2008 CHEVROLET IMPALA roof

Seats and Restraint Systems........................... 1-1
Front Seats
............................................... 1-2
Rear Seats
............................................... 1-8
Safety Belts
.............................................1-10
Child Restraints
.......................................1-31
Airbag System
.........................................1-54
Restraint System Check
............................1-68
Features and Controls..................................... 2-1
Keys
........................................................ 2-3
Doors and Locks
......................................2-10
Windows
.................................................2-15
Theft-Deterrent Systems
............................2-18
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle
...........2-21
Mirrors
....................................................2-35
OnStar
®System
......................................2-38
Universal Home Remote System
..................2-41
Storage Areas
.........................................2-48
Sunroof
..................................................2-49
Instrument Panel............................................. 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview
.......................... 3-4
Climate Controls
......................................3-22
Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators
........3-27
Driver Information Center (DIC)
..................3-44
Audio System(s)
.......................................3-66Driving Your Vehicle....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle
..... 4-2
Towing
...................................................4-26
Service and Appearance Care.......................... 5-1
Service
..................................................... 5-3
Fuel
......................................................... 5-5
Checking Things Under the Hood
...............5-12
Headlamp Aiming
.....................................5-47
Bulb Replacement
....................................5-47
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
.........5-52
Tires
......................................................5-54
Appearance Care
.....................................5-90
Vehicle Identication
.................................5-98
Electrical System
......................................5-98
Capacities and Specications
...................5-103
Maintenance Schedule..................................... 6-1
Maintenance Schedule
................................ 6-2
Customer Assistance Information.................... 7-1
Customer Assistance and Information
........... 7-2
Reporting Safety Defects
...........................7-14
Vehicle Data Recording and Privacy
...........7-16
Index.................................................................1
2008 Chevrolet Impala Owner ManualM

Airbag System
Your vehicle has the following airbags:
A frontal airbag for the driver.
A frontal airbag for the right front passenger
Your vehicle may also have the following airbags:
A roof-rail airbag for the driver and the passenger
seated directly behind the driver.
A roof-rail airbag for the right front passenger and
the passenger seated directly behind the right
front passenger.
All of the airbags in your vehicle will have the word
AIRBAG embossed in the trim or on an attached label
near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word AIRBAG will appear on the
middle part of the steering wheel for the driver and
on the instrument panel for the right front passenger.
With roof-rail airbags, the word AIRBAG will appear
along the headliner or trim.Airbags are designed to supplement the protection
provided by safety belts. Even though today’s airbags
are also designed to help reduce the risk of injury
from the force of an inating bag, all airbags must inate
very quickly to do their job.
{CAUTION:
You can be severely injured or killed in a crash
if you are not wearing your safety belt — even
if you have airbags. Wearing your safety belt
during a crash helps reduce your chance of
hitting things inside the vehicle or being
ejected from it. Airbags are “supplemental
restraints” to the safety belts. All airbags are
designed to work with safety belts, but do not
replace them.
1-54

{CAUTION:
Frontal airbags are designed to deploy in
moderate to severe frontal and near frontal
crashes. They are not designed to inate in
rollover, rear crashes, or in many side crashes.
Roof-rail airbags are designed to inate in
moderate to severe crashes where something
hits the side of your vehicle. They are not
designed to inate in frontal, in rollover, or in
rear crashes.
Everyone in your vehicle should wear a safety
belt properly — whether or not there is an
airbag for that person.
{CAUTION:
Airbags inate with great force, faster than the
blink of an eye. Anyone who is up against, or
very close to, any airbag when it inates
can be seriously injured or killed. Do not sit
unnecessarily close to the airbag, as you would
be if you were sitting on the edge of your seat or
leaning forward. Safety belts help keep you in
position before and during a crash. Always wear
your safety belt, even with airbags. The driver
should sit as far back as possible while still
maintaining control of the vehicle.
Occupants should not lean on or sleep against
the door or side windows in seating positions
with roof-rail airbags.
1-55

If your vehicle has roof-rail airbags for the driver, right
front passenger, and second row outboard passengers,
they are in the ceiling above the side windows.
{CAUTION:
If something is between an occupant and an
airbag, the airbag might not inate properly or it
might force the object into that person causing
severe injury or even death. The path of an
inating airbag must be kept clear. Do not put
anything between an occupant and an airbag,
and do not attach or put anything on the
steering wheel hub or on or near any other
airbag covering.
If your vehicle has roof-rail airbags, never
secure anything to the roof of your vehicle by
routing the rope or tie down through any door
or window opening. If you do, the path of an
inating roof-rail airbag will be blocked. Driver Side shown, Passenger Side similar
1-58

When Should an Airbag Inate?
Frontal airbags are designed to inate in moderate to
severe frontal or near-frontal crashes to help reduce the
potential for severe injuries mainly to the driver’s or
right front passenger’s head and chest. However, they
are only designed to inate if the impact exceeds a
predetermined deployment threshold. Deployment
thresholds are used to predict how severe a crash is
likely to be in time for the airbags to inate and
help restrain the occupants.
Whether your frontal airbags will or should deploy is not
based on how fast your vehicle is traveling. It depends
largely on what you hit, the direction of the impact,
and how quickly your vehicle slows down.
Frontal airbags may inate at different crash speeds.
For example:
If the vehicle hits a stationary object, the airbags
could inate at a different crash speed than if the
vehicle hits a moving object.
If the vehicle hits an object that deforms, the
airbags could inate at a different crash speed than
if the vehicle hits an object that does not deform.
If the vehicle hits a narrow object (like a pole), the
airbags could inate at a different crash speed
than if the vehicle hits a wide object (like a wall).
If the vehicle goes into an object at an angle, the
airbags could inate at a different crash speed
than if the vehicle goes straight into the object.Thresholds can also vary with specic vehicle design.
Frontal airbags are not intended to inate during vehicle
rollovers, rear impacts, or in many side impacts.
In addition, your vehicle has dual-stage frontal airbags.
Dual-stage airbags adjust the restraint according to
crash severity. Your vehicle has electronic frontal
sensors, which help the sensing system distinguish
between a moderate frontal impact and a more severe
frontal impact. For moderate frontal impacts, dual-stage
airbags inate at a level less than full deployment.
For more severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs.
Your vehicle may or may not have roof-rail airbags.
SeeAirbag System on page 1-54. Roof-rail airbags are
intended to inate in moderate to severe side crashes.
Roof-rail airbags will inate if the crash severity is above
the system’s designed threshold level. The threshold
level can vary with specic vehicle design.
Roof-rail airbags are not intended to inate in frontal
impacts, near-frontal impacts, rollovers, or rear impacts.
Both roof-rail airbags will deploy when either side of
the vehicle is struck.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an
airbag should have inated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs
were. For frontal airbags, ination is determined by
what the vehicle hits, the angle of the impact, and how
quickly the vehicle slows down. For roof-rail airbags,
deployment is determined by the location and severity of
the side impact.
1-59

What Makes an Airbag Inate?
In a deployment event, the sensing system sends an
electrical signal triggering a release of gas from the
inator. Gas from the inator lls the airbag causing the
bag to break out of the cover and deploy. The inator,
the airbag, and related hardware are all part of the airbag
module.
Frontal airbag modules are located inside the steering
wheel and instrument panel. For vehicles with
roof-rail airbags, there are airbag modules in the ceiling
of the vehicle, near the side windows that have
occupant seating positions.
How Does an Airbag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. In moderate to severe side
collisions, even belted occupants can contact the inside
of the vehicle.
Airbags supplement the protection provided by safety
belts. Frontal airbags distribute the force of the
impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper body,
stopping the occupant more gradually. Roof-rail airbags
distribute the force of the impact more evenly over
the occupant’s upper body.But airbags would not help in many types of collisions,
primarily because the occupant’s motion is not
toward those airbags. SeeWhen Should an Airbag
Inflate? on page 1-59for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything more
than a supplement to safety belts.
What Will You See After an
Airbag Inates?
After the frontal airbags inate, they quickly deate,
so quickly that some people may not even realize
an airbag inated. Roof-rail airbags may still be at least
partially inated for some time after they deploy.
Some components of the airbag module may be hot for
several minutes. For location of the airbag modules,
seeWhat Makes an Airbag Inflate? on page 1-60.
The parts of the airbag that come into contact with you
may be warm, but not too hot to touch. There may be
some smoke and dust coming from the vents in
the deated airbags. Airbag ination does not prevent
the driver from seeing out of the windshield or being
able to steer the vehicle, nor does it prevent people
from leaving the vehicle.
1-60

Adding Equipment to Your
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle
Q:Is there anything I might add to or change
about the vehicle that could keep the airbags
from working properly?
A:Yes. If you add things that change your vehicle’s
frame, bumper system, height, front end or side
sheet metal, they may keep the airbag system from
working properly. Changing or moving any parts
of the front seats, safety belts, the airbag sensing
and diagnostic module, steering wheel, instrument
panel, roof-rail airbag modules, ceiling headliner
or pillar garnish trim, front sensors, or airbag wiring
can affect the operation of the airbag system.
In addition, your vehicle has a passenger sensing
system for the right front passenger’s position,
which includes sensors that are part of the
passenger’s seat. The passenger sensing system
may not operate properly if the original seat trim
is replaced with non-GM covers, upholstery or trim,
or with GM covers, upholstery or trim designed
for a different vehicle. Any object, such as an
aftermarket seat heater or a comfort enhancing pad
or device, installed under or on top of the seatfabric, could also interfere with the operation of the
passenger sensing system. This could either
prevent proper deployment of the passenger
airbag(s) or prevent the passenger sensing system
from properly turning off the passenger airbag(s).
SeePassenger Sensing System on page 1-62.
If you have any questions about this, you should
contact Customer Assistance before you modify
your vehicle. The phone numbers and addresses for
Customer Assistance are in Step Two of the
Customer Satisfaction Procedure in this manual.
SeeCustomer Satisfaction Procedure on page 7-2.
Q:Because I have a disability, I have to get
my vehicle modied. How can I nd out whether
this will affect my airbag system?
A:If you have questions, call Customer Assistance.
The phone numbers and addresses for Customer
Assistance are in Step Two of the Customer
Satisfaction Procedure in this manual. See
Customer Satisfaction Procedure on page 7-2.
In addition, your dealer/retailer and the service manual
have information about the location of the airbag
sensors, sensing and diagnostic module and airbag
wiring.
1-67

Mirrors...........................................................2-35
Manual Rearview Mirror.................................2-35
Manual Rearview Mirror with OnStar
®..............2-36
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror
with OnStar
®............................................2-36
Outside Power Mirrors...................................2-37
Outside Power Heated Mirrors........................2-37
Outside Convex Mirror...................................2-37
OnStar
®System.............................................2-38
Universal Home Remote System.......................2-41
Universal Home Remote System Operation
(With Three Round LED)............................2-42Storage Areas................................................2-48
Glove Box...................................................2-48
Cupholder(s)................................................2-48
Sunglasses Storage Compartment...................2-48
Center Console Storage.................................2-48
Rear Storage Area........................................2-48
Rear Seat Armrest........................................2-48
Convenience Net..........................................2-49
Sunroof.........................................................2-49
Section 2 Features and Controls
2-2