2010 BUICK LACROSSE check engine light

Vehicle Care 9-1
Vehicle Care
General Information
General Information . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
California Proposition65 Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
California Perchlorate Materials Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Accessories and Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Vehicle Checks
Doing Your OwnService Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Engine Compartment Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Engine Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-11
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 9-13
Automatic Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . 9-15
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-17
Engine Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-18
Engine Overheating . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Overheated Engine Protection Operating Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
Power Steering Fluid . . . . . . . . 9-22 Washer Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24
Brake Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-26
Starter Switch Check . . . . . . . . 9-27
Automatic Transmission Shift
Lock Control System
Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Ignition Transmission Lock Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-28
Park Brake and P (Park) Mechanism Check . . . . . . . . . 9-28
Wiper Blade Replacement . . . 9-29Headlamp Aiming
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Bulb Replacement
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
High Intensity Discharge (HID) Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Headlamps, Front Turn Signal and Parking Lamps . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-35 Taillamps, Turn Signal,
Stoplamps, and Back-Up
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-35
License Plate Lamp . . . . . . . . . . 9-36
Replacement Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . 9-37
Electrical System
Electrical System Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Engine Compartment Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-39
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-41
Rear Compartment Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-43
Wheels and Tires
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-46
Winter Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-46
Tire Sidewall Labeling . . . . . . . 9-47
Tire Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-49
Tire Terminology and
Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-50
Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-53
Tire Pressure Monitor System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-54

Vehicle Care 9-15
Automatic Transmission
Fluid
How to Check Automatic
Transmission Fluid
It is not necessary to check the
transmission fluid level.
A transmission fluid leak is the only
reason for fluid loss. If a leak
occurs, take the vehicle to your
dealer/retailer service department
and have it repaired as soon as
possible.
There is a special procedure for
checking and changing the
transmission fluid. Because this
procedure is difficult, you should
have this done at your dealer/
retailer service department. Contact
your dealer/retailer for additional
information or the procedure can be
found in the service manual. To
purchase a service manual, see
Service Publications Ordering
Information on page 12‑12.Change the fluid and filter at the
intervals listed in
Scheduled
Maintenance
on page 10‑2, and be
sure to use the fluid listed in
Recommended Fluids and
Lubricants on page 10‑7.
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter
The engine air cleaner/filter is
located in the engine compartment
on the driver's side of the vehicle.
See Engine Compartment Overview
on page 9‑6for more information
on location.
When to Inspect the Engine Air
Cleaner/Filter
Inspect the air cleaner/filter at the
Maintenance IIintervals and replace
it at the first oil change after each
80 000 km (50,000 mile) interval.
See Scheduled Maintenance
on
page 10‑2for more information.
If you are driving in dusty/dirty
conditions, inspect the filter at each
engine oil change.
How to Inspect the Engine Air
Cleaner/Filter
To inspect the air cleaner/filter,
remove the filter from the vehicle
and lightly shake the filter to release
loose dust and dirt. If the filter
remains caked with dirt, a new filter
is required.
To inspect or replace the engine air
cleaner/filter do the following:
2.4 L L4 Engine
1. Remove the screws on top of the engine air cleaner/filter
housing.

9-20 Vehicle Care
3. Fill the coolant surge tank withthe proper mixture to the mark
pointed to on the front of the
coolant surge tank.
4. With the coolant surge tank cap off, start the engine and let it run
until the upper radiator hose
starts getting hot. Watch out for
the engine cooling fan(s). By this
time, the coolant level inside the
coolant surge tank may be
lower. If the level is lower, add
more of the proper mixture to the
coolant surge tank until the level reaches the mark pointed to on
the front of the coolant
surge tank.
5. Replace the cap. Be sure the cap is hand–tight and full
seated.
Notice: If the pressure cap is not
tightly installed, coolant loss and
possible engine damage may
occur. Be sure the cap is properly
and tightly secured.
If coolant is needed, add the proper
DEX-COOL®coolant mixture at the
coolant recovery tank.
Engine Overheating
The vehicle has several indicators
to warn of engine overheating.
There is a coolant temperature gage
and a warning light on the
instrument panel cluster that
indicate an overheated engine
condition. See Engine Coolant
Temperature Gage
on page 4‑15for more information. You may decide not to lift the hood
when this warning appears, but
instead get service help right away.
See
Roadside Assistance Program
(US, Can) on page 12‑6.
If you do decide to lift the hood ,
make sure the vehicle is parked on
a level surface.
Then check to see if the engine
cooling fans are running. If the
engine is overheating, the fan(s)
should be running. If they are not,
do not continue to run the engine
and have the vehicle serviced.
Notice: Engine damage from
running the engine without
coolant is not covered by the
warranty.
If Steam Is Coming From The
Engine Compartment
See Overheated Engine Protection
Operating Modeon page 9‑21for
information on driving to a safe
place in an emergency.

9-76 Vehicle Care
1. Check the other vehicle. It musthave a 12-volt battery with a
negative ground system.
Notice: If the other vehicle's
system is not a 12-volt system
with a negative ground, both
vehicles can be damaged. Only
use vehicles with 12-volt systems
with negative grounds to jump
start your vehicle. 2. Position the two vehicles so that
they are not touching.
3. Set the parking brake firmly and put the shift lever in P (Park).
See Shifting Into Park
on
page 8‑23. Notice:
If you leave the radio or
other accessories on during the
jump starting procedure, they
could be damaged. The repairs
would not be covered by the
warranty. Always turn off the
radio and other accessories when
jump starting the vehicle.
4. Turn the ignition to LOCK/OFF
and switch off all lights and
accessories in both vehicles,
except the hazard warning
flashers if needed.
{WARNING
An electric fan can start up even
when the engine is not running
and can injure you. Keep hands,
clothing and tools away from any
underhood electric fan.

INDEX i-1
A
Accessories andModifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Accessory Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-20
Adaptive Forward Lighting (AFL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Add-On Electrical
Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-60
Adding Equipment to the Airbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . . . 2-38
Adjustments
Lumbar, Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
Air Cleaner/Filter, Engine . . . . . . 9-15
Air Filter, Passenger Compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Air Intake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Airbag System
Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-39
How Does an AirbagRestrain? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-30
Passenger Sensing System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-32 Airbag System (cont.)
What Makes an Airbag
Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-30
What Will You See After
an Airbag Inflates? . . . . . . . . . . 2-30
When Should an Airbag Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-28
Where Are the Airbags? . . . . . . 2-27
Airbags
Adding Equipment to theVehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-38
Passenger Status Indicator . . . 4-16
Readiness Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-16
Servicing Airbag-Equipped Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-37
System Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-24
Alarm System Anti-Theft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
All-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-30
AM-FM Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-12
Antenna Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
Anti-Theft
Alarm System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Alarm System Messages . . . . . 4-37 Antilock Brake
System (ABS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-31
Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-21
Appearance Care Exterior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-82
Interior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-86
Assistance Program,
Roadside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-6
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-20 CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-20
Audio System
Backglass Antenna . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
Radio Reception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-18
Theft-Deterrent Feature . . . . . . . . 6-2
Automatic Headlamp System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Automatic Climate Control System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . . 8-27 Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-29
Shiftlock Control SystemCheck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Auxiliary Devices . . . . . . . . 6-28, 6-31

i-2 INDEX
B
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-26Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-75
Load Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Power Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Voltage and ChargingMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-33
Blade Replacement, Wiper . . . . 9-29
Bluetooth . . . . 6-42, 6-43, 6-46, 6-57
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24 Antilock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-31
Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-34
Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Parking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-32
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-33
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-4
Break-In, New Vehicle . . . . . . . . . 8-17
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-37
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5, 9-35
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Headlamps, Front TurnSignal and Parking
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33 Bulb Replacement (cont.)
High Intensity Discharge
(HID) Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
License Plate Lamps . . . . . . . . . 9-36
Taillamps, Turn Signal,
Stoplamps, and Back-Up
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-35
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-61
C
Calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
California Fuel Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . 8-51
Perchlorate MaterialsRequirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Camera, Rear Vision . . . . . . . . . . 8-46
Canadian Vehicle Owners . . . . . . . . iv
Capacities and Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-2
Carbon Monoxide Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-26
Trunk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9 Cautions, Danger, and
Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
CD DVD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-22
CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-20
Center Console Storage . . . . . . . . 3-1
Chains, Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-67
Charging System Light . . . . . . . . 4-17
Check Engine Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-17
Ignition Transmission Lock . . . 9-28
Child Restraints Infants and YoungChildren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-42
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children . . . . . . . . . 2-48
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-40
Securing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-55, 2-57
Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-45
Where to Put the Restraint . . . 2-46
Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Cleaning
Exterior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-82
Interior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-86

i-4 INDEX
Dual Automatic ClimateControl System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
DVD Rear Seat EntertainmentSystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-34
DVD/CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-22
E
Electric Parking Brake Light . . . 4-20
Electrical Equipment, Add-On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-60
Electrical System Engine Compartment Fuse
Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-39
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-41
Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Rear Compartment Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-43
Electronic Stability Control . . . . . 8-35
Electronic Stability Control Indicator Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-22 Engine
Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
Check and Service Engine
Soon Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-17
Compartment Overview . . . . . . . . 9-6
Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-18
Coolant Temperature Gage . . . 4-15
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-17
Cooling System Messages . . . 4-34
Drive Belt Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-4
Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-26
Overheated Protection Operating Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
Overheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Power Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-35
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-23
Running While Parked . . . . . . . . 8-26
Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-20
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-35
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Equipment, Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-59
Event Data Recorders . . . . . . . . 12-15
Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6 Extender, Safety Belt . . . . . . . . . . 2-23
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . . 5-1
Exterior Lamps Off Reminder . . . 5-2
F
Filter
Engine Air Cleaner . . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Flashers, Hazard Warning . . . . . . 5-4
Flat Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-67
Flat Tire, Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-69
Fluid Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 9-15
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Power Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
Fog Lamps Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . 5-5, 9-35
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-24
Folding Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
Front Seats Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Heated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Heated and Ventilated . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Front Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1

i-6 INDEX
Heated and Ventilated FrontSeats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Heated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Heated Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . . 4-24
Highway Hypnosis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-8
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . . . 8-9
Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-13
I
Ignition Positions . . . . . . . . 8-18, 8-19
Ignition Transmission Lock
Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-28
Illumination Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Infants and Young Children, Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-42
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .iii, 6-2
J
Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-75
K
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . . . 4-36
Keyless Entry Remote (RKE) System . . . 1-3, 1-5
Keyless Entry System . . . . . . . . . . 1-3
Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
L
Labeling, Tire Sidewall . . . . . . . . . 9-47
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-36
Lamps Daytime Running (DRL) . . . . . . . 5-2
Dome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Exterior Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1
Exterior Lamps Off
Reminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Headlamps, Front Turn
Signal and Parking
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
License Plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-36 Lamps (cont.)
Malfunction Indicator . . . . . . . . . 4-17
Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Sun Visor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
LATCH System Replacing Parts After aCrash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-55
Latch, Lower Anchors and
Tethers for Children . . . . . . . . . . 2-48
Light Electric Parking Brake . . . . . . . . 4-20
Lighting Adaptive Forward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Entry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Lights Airbag Readiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-16
Antilock Brake System
(ABS) Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-21
Charging System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-17
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-25
Engine Oil Pressure . . . . . . . . . . 4-23