
2010 Chevrolet Equinox Owner ManualM
Driving and Operating. . . . . . . . 8-1
Driving Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-2
Starting and Operating . . . . . . . 8-28
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-34
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 8-35
Drive Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-38
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-38
Ride Control Systems . . . . . . . . 8-41
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-44
Object Detection Systems . . . . 8-46
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-53
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-57
Conversions and Add-Ons . . . 8-64 Vehicle Care
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-1
General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Vehicle Checks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Electrical System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34
Wheels and Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-40
Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-69
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-72
Appearance Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-75
Service and Maintenance . . . 10-1
General Information . . . . . . . . . . 10-1
Scheduled Maintenance . . . . . . 10-2
Recommended Fluids,
Lubricants, and Parts . . . . . . . 10-7
Maintenance Records . . . . . . . 10-10 Technical Data
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-1
Vehicle Identification . . . . . . . . . . 11-1
Vehicle Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-2
Customer Information . . . . . . . 12-1
Customer Information . . . . . . . . 12-1
Reporting Safety Defects . . . . 12-13
Vehicle Data Recording and
Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-14
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i-1

Vehicle Care 9-1
Vehicle Care
General Information
General Information . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
California Proposition65 Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
California Perchlorate Materials Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Accessories and Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Vehicle Checks
Doing Your OwnService Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Engine Compartment Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Engine Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-9
Engine Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-10
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . . 9-11
Automatic Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-12 Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . 9-13
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-14
Engine Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
Engine Overheating . . . . . . . . . 9-18
Power Steering Fluid (2.4L
L4 Engine) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Power Steering Fluid (3.0L V6 Engine) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Washer Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
Brake Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24
All-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24
Starter Switch Check . . . . . . . . 9-25
Automatic Transmission Shift Lock Control System
Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Ignition Transmission Lock Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Park Brake and P (Park) Mechanism Check . . . . . . . . . 9-26
Wiper Blade Replacement . . . 9-26
Headlamp Aiming
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Bulb Replacement
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Headlamps, Front Turn Signal, Sidemarker, and Parking
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-31
Taillamps, Turn Signal, Sidemarker, Stoplamps,
and Back-Up Lamps . . . . . . . 9-32
License Plate Lamp . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Replacement Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . 9-34
Electrical System
Fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34
Engine Compartment Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-37

9-30 Vehicle Care
Bulb Replacement
For the proper type of replacement
bulbs, seeReplacement Bulbson
page 9‑34.
For any bulb changing procedure
not listed in this section, contact
your dealer.
Headlamps, Front Turn
Signal, Sidemarker, and
Parking Lamps
A. Low Beam Headlamp
B. High Beam headlamp
C. Park/Turn Signal Lamp
D. Side Marker Lamp To replace:
1. Turn the tire to reach the access
port cap located on front of
wheel well cover.A. Screw
B. Access Port Cap
2. Remove screw (A) and turn access port cap (B)
counterclockwise to remove.

Vehicle Care 9-33
License Plate Lamp
To replace one of these bulbs:
1. Open the liftgate partway. SeeLiftgate (Manual)
on page 1‑8orLiftgate (Power)on
page 1‑8for more information.
Passenger side shown, driver side
similar
2. Push the left end of the lamp assembly towards the right. 3. Pull the lamp assembly down to
remove from liftgate.
A. Bulb Socket
B. Bulb
C. Lamp Assembly
4. Turn the bulb socket (A) counterclockwise to remove from
lamp assembly (C). 5. Pull the bulb (B) straight out of
the bulb socket.
6. Push the replacement bulb straight into the bulb socket and
turn the bulb socket clockwise to
install into lamp assembly.
7. Turn the lamp assembly into the liftgate engaging the clip side
first.
8. Push on the lamp side opposite the clip until the lamp assembly
snaps into place.

9-34 Vehicle Care
Replacement Bulbs
Exterior LampBulb
Number
Back-Up Lamp 921
Fog Lamp Front H11
Headlamp
High Beam HB3
Headlamp
Low Beam H11
License Plate Lamp W5WLL
Parking Lamp/Turn
Signal Front T20
Sidemarker Front
and Rear 194
Taillamp/Turn Signal
Lamp/Stop Lamp 3157K
For replacement bulbs not listed
here, contact your dealer.
Electrical System
Fuses
The wiring circuits in the vehicle are
protected from short circuits by
fuses. This greatly reduces the
chance of damage caused by
electrical problems.
Look at the silver-colored band
inside the fuse. If the band is broken
or melted, replace the fuse. Be sure
to replace a bad fuse with a new
one of the identical size and rating.
There are two fuse blocks in the
vehicle: one in the engine
compartment and one in the
instrument panel.
There is a fuse puller located in the
engine compartment fuse block.
See Engine Compartment Fuse
Block
on page 9‑34. It can be used
to easily remove fuses from the fuse
block.
Engine Compartment
Fuse Block
To remove the fuse block cover,
squeeze the clips on the cover and
lift it straight up.
The vehicle may not be equipped
with all of the fuses and relays
shown.
Notice: Spilling liquid on any
electrical components on the
vehicle may damage it. Always
keep the covers on any electrical
component.

i-2 INDEX
B
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-69
Voltage and ChargingMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-28
Blade Replacement, Wiper . . . . 9-26
Bluetooth . . . . 6-42, 6-43, 6-46, 6-58
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21 Antilock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-38
Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-40
Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
Parking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-40
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-28
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-4
Break-In, New Vehicle . . . . . . . . . 8-28
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34 Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3, 9-31
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Headlamps, Front TurnSignal, Sidemarker, and
Parking Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30 Bulb Replacement (cont.)
License Plate Lamps . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Taillamps, Turn Signal,
Sidemarker, Stoplamps,
and Backup Lamps . . . . . . . . . . 9-32
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-54
C
Calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
California Fuel Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . 8-54
Perchlorate Materials
Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Camera, Rear Vision . . . . . . . . . . 8-49
Canadian Vehicle Owners . . . . . . . . iv
Capacities and Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-2
Carbon Monoxide Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-34
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-21 Cargo
Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Cautions, Danger, and Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
CD DVD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-21
CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
Center Console Storage . . . . . . . . 3-1
Chains, Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-58
Charging System Light . . . . . . . . 4-16
Check
Engine Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-16
Ignition Transmission Lock . . . 9-25
Child Restraints Infants and YoungChildren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-39
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children . . . . . . . . . 2-45
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-37
Securing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-51, 2-54
Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-41
Where to Put the Restraint . . . 2-43

i-4 INDEX
DVDRear Seat Entertainment
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-33
DVD/CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-21
E
ECO Button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-37
Economy Mode Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-37
Electrical Equipment, Add-On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-64
Electrical System Engine Compartment Fuse
Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34
Fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-37
Engine
Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
Check and Service EngineSoon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-16
Compartment Overview . . . . . . . . 9-6
Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-15 Engine (cont.)
Coolant Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-31
Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-14
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-14
Cooling System Messages . . . 4-29
Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-9
Drive Belt Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-4
Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-34
Overheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-18
Power Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-30
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-22
Running While Parked . . . . . . . . 8-34
Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-30
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-11
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-30
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Equipment, Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-63
Event Data Recorders . . . . . . . . 12-15
Extender, Safety Belt . . . . . . . . . . 2-21
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . . 5-1
F
Filter
Engine Air Cleaner . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Flashers, Hazard Warning . . . . . . 5-2
Flat Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-59
Flat Tire, Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-61
Fluid Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 9-12
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
Power Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
Fog Lamps Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . 5-3, 9-31
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-23
Front Seats
Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Heated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-53 Additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-55
Economy Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-2
Economy Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-22
Filling a Portable Fuel
Container . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-57
Filling the Tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-56
Fuels in Foreign Countries . . . . 8-54

INDEX i-5
Fuel (cont.)Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . 8-54
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . . 4-22
Recommended . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-54
Requirements, California . . . . . 8-54
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-30
Fuel Economy Mode . . . . . . . . . . . 8-37
Fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34 Engine Compartment FuseBlock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-37
G
GasolineSpecifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-54
Gauges Engine CoolantTemperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-14
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
Warning Lights and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-11 General Information
Service and Maintenance . . . . . 10-1
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-57
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1
GM Mobility Reimbursement Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-5
H
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . . . 5-2
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
HeadlampsAiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Headlamps, Front Turn Signal, Sidemarker, and
Parking Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 4-23
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . . 5-1
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 4-23
Heated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Heated Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14 Heater
Engine Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-31
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . . 4-23
Highway Hypnosis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-20
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . . 8-20
Hill Start Assist (HSA) . . . . . . . . . 8-41
Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
I
Ignition Positions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-28
Ignition Transmission LockCheck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Infants and Young Children, Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-39
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-12
Instrument Panel Storage Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview . . . . . 4-4
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .iii, 6-1