Driving Your
Vehicle
Your Driving, the Road, and
the Vehicle
Driving for Better Fuel
Economy............................4-1
Defensive Driving..................4-2
Drunk Driving.......................4-2
Control of a Vehicle...............4-3
Braking................................4-3
Antilock Brake
System (ABS).....................4-4
Braking in Emergencies..........4-5
StabiliTrak
®System...............4-5
All-Wheel Drive (AWD)
System..............................4-8
Steering...............................4-8
Off-Road Recovery................4-9
Passing..............................4-10
Loss of Control...................4-10
Driving at Night...................4-11Driving in Rain and on
Wet Roads.......................4-12
Before Leaving on a
Long Trip..........................4-13
Highway Hypnosis...............4-13
Hill and Mountain Roads......4-14
Winter Driving.....................4-15
If Your Vehicle is Stuck in
Sand, Mud, Ice, or Snow......4-17
Rocking Your Vehicle to
GetItOut.........................4-18
Loading the Vehicle.............4-18
TowingTowing Your Vehicle............4-22
Recreational Vehicle
Towing.............................4-22
Towing a Trailer..................4-26
Your Driving, the
Road, and the Vehicle
Driving for Better Fuel
Economy
Driving habits can affect fuel
mileage. Here are some driving tips
to get the best fuel economy
possible.
Avoid fast starts and accelerate
smoothly.
Brake gradually and avoid abrupt
stops.
Avoid idling the engine for long
periods of time.
When road and weather
conditions are appropriate, use
cruise control, if equipped.
Always follow posted speed limits
or drive more slowly when
conditions require.
Keep vehicle tires properly
in ated.
Driving Your Vehicle 4-1
ProCarManuals.com
Winter Driving
Driving on Snow or Ice
Drive carefully when there is snow
or ice between the tires and the
road, creating less traction or grip.
Wet ice can occur at about 32°F
(0°C) when freezing rain begins to
fall, resulting in even less traction.
Avoid driving on wet ice or in
freezing rain until roads can be
treated with salt or sand.
Drive with caution, whatever the
condition. Accelerate gently
so traction is not lost. Accelerating
too quickly causes the wheels
to spin and makes the surface under
the tires slick, so there is even
less traction.Try not to break the fragile traction.
If you accelerate too fast, the drive
wheels will spin and polish the
surface under the tires even more.
TheStabiliTrak®System on
page 4-5improves the ability to
accelerate on slippery roads,
but slow down and adjust your
driving to the road conditions. When
driving through deep snow, turn
off the traction control part of
the StabiliTrak
®System to help
maintain vehicle motion at lower
speeds.
TheAntilock Brake System (ABS)
on page 4-4improves vehicle
stability during hard stops on a
slippery roads, but apply the brakes
sooner than when on dry pavement.Allow greater following distance on
any slippery road and watch for
slippery spots. Icy patches can occur
on otherwise clear roads in shaded
areas. The surface of a curve or an
overpass can remain icy when the
surrounding roads are clear. Avoid
sudden steering maneuvers and
braking while on ice.
Turn off cruise control, if equipped,
on slippery surfaces.
Driving Your Vehicle 4-15
ProCarManuals.com
Uniform Tire Quality
Grading
Quality grades can be found
where applicable on the tire
sidewall between tread shoulder
and maximum section width.
For example:
Treadwear 200 Traction AA
Temperature A
The following information relates
to the system developed by the
United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), which grades tires
by treadwear, traction, and
temperature performance.
This applies only to vehicles
sold in the United States.The grades are molded on the
sidewalls of most passenger car
tires. The Uniform Tire Quality
Grading (UTQG) system does
not apply to deep tread,
winter-type snow tires,
space-saver, or temporary use
spare tires, tires with nominal rim
diameters of 10 to 12 inches
(25 to 30 cm), or to some
limited-production tires.
While the tires available on
General Motors passenger cars
and light trucks may vary with
respect to these grades, they
must also conform to federal
safety requirements and
additional General Motors Tire
Performance Criteria (TPC)
standards.Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a
comparative rating based on the
wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on
a speci ed government test
course. For example, a tire
graded 150 would wear one
and a half (1.5) times as well
on the government course as a
tire graded 100. The relative
performance of tires depends
upon the actual conditions of
their use, however, and may
depart signi cantly from the norm
due to variations in driving habits,
service practices, and differences
in road characteristics and
climate.
Service and Appearance Care 5-57
ProCarManuals.com
B
Battery...............................5-29
Electric Power
Management.................3-15
Run-Down Protection.........3-16
Belt Routing, Engine.............6-15
Bluetooth
®.........................3-103
Brake
Emergencies...................... 4-5
Brake Fluid.........................5-27
Brakes...............................5-27
Antilock............................. 4-4
Parking...........................2-27
System Warning Light.......3-36
Braking................................ 4-3
Braking in Emergencies.......... 4-5
Break-In, New Vehicle..........2-20
Bulb Replacement................5-37
Fog Lamp ........................3-13
Halogen Bulbs..................5-36
Headlamp Aiming..............5-35
Headlamps......................5-35
High Intensity Discharge
(HID) Lighting...............5-36Bulb Replacement (cont.)
License Plate Lamps.........5-37
Taillamps, Turn Signal,
Stoplamps and
Sidemarker Lamps.........5-36
Buying New Tires.................5-54
C
Calibration..........................3-54
California
Perchlorate Materials
Requirements................. 5-4
California Fuel....................... 5-6
California Proposition 65
Warning............................ 5-3
Camera, Rear Vision............2-37
Canadian Owners..................... ii
Capacities and
Speci cations...................5-98
Carbon Monoxide.................2-11
Engine Exhaust................2-30
Liftgate............................2-10
Winter Driving..................4-15
Care of
Safety Belts.....................5-86Cargo
Tie Downs .......................2-53
Cargo Cover........................2-53
Cargo Management System....2-53
CD, MP3 ....................3-92, 3-97
Center Console Storage........2-50
Chains, Tire........................5-60
Charging System Light..........3-35
Check
Engine Lamp...................3-39
Checking Things Under
the Hood .........................5-10
Chemical Paint Spotting........5-90
Child Restraints
Infants and Young
Children.......................1-30
Lower Anchors and
Tethers for Children.......1-37
Older Children..................1-28
Securing a Child Restraint
in a Rear Seat Position....1-43
Securing a Child Restraint
in the Right Front Seat
Position.......................1-45
Systems..........................1-33
Where to Put the
Restraint......................1-35
i-2 INDEX
ProCarManuals.com
V
Vehicle
Control............................. 4-3
Loading...........................4-18
Running While Parked.......2-30
Symbols.............................. iii
Vehicle Customization, DIC.....3-65
Vehicle Data Recording
and Privacy.....................7-16
Vehicle Data Recording,
Radio Frequency (RFID).....7-18
Vehicle Identi cation
Number (VIN)...................5-91
Service Parts
Identi cation Label.........5-91
Vehicle, Remote Start............. 2-6
Ventilation Adjustment...........3-27
Visors.................................2-16
Voltage Devices, and
Wiring.............................5-91
Voltmeter Gage....................3-35
W
Warning Lights, Gages,
and Indicators..................3-30
Warnings
DIC Warnings and
Messages....................3-56
Hazard Warning Flashers..... 3-5
Safety and Symbols.............. iii
Wheels
Alignment and Tire
Balance.......................5-58
Different Size...................5-56
Replacement....................5-59
When It Is Time for
New Tires........................5-54
Where to Put the Child
Restraint.........................1-35
Windows.............................2-14
Power .............................2-14
Windshield
Backglass, and Wiper
Blades, Cleaning...........5-88
Washer............................. 3-8
Washer Fluid....................5-26Windshield (cont.)
Wiper Blade
Replacement................5-38
Wiper Fuses....................5-92
Wipers.............................. 3-7
Winter Driving......................4-15
Wipers
Rear Washer..................... 3-9
Wiring, High Voltage
Devices...........................5-91
X
XM Radio Messages...........3-102
Y
Your Vehicle and the
Environment...................... 6-1
i-12 INDEX
ProCarManuals.com