2010 PONTIAC G3 ignition

Starting the Engine
Automatic Transmission
Move the shift lever to P (Park) or N (Neutral).
The engine will not start in any other position.
To restart the engine when the vehicle is already
moving, use N (Neutral) only.
Notice:Do not try to shift to P (Park) if the vehicle
is moving. If you do, you could damage the
transmission. Shift to P (Park) only when the
vehicle is stopped.
Manual Transmission
The shift lever should be in N (Neutral) and the parking
brake engaged. Hold the clutch pedal to the floor and
start the engine. The vehicle will not start if the clutch
pedal is not all the way down.
Starting Procedure
1. With your foot off the accelerator pedal, turn the ignition to START. When the engine starts, let go of
the key. The idle speed will go down as the engine
gets warm.
Notice: Holding the key in START for longer than
15 seconds at a time will cause the battery to be
drained much sooner. And the excessive heat can
damage the starter motor. Wait about 15 seconds
between each try to help avoid draining the battery
or damaging the starter.
2. If the engine does not start, wait about 15 seconds and try again. Wait about 15 seconds between
each try.
When the engine has run about 10 seconds to
warm up, the vehicle is ready to be driven. Do not
run the engine at high speed when it is cold.
If the weather is below freezing (32°F or 0°C), let
the engine run for a few minutes to warm up.
3-19

Parking Brake
The parking brake lever is located between the bucket
seats.To set the parking brake, hold the brake pedal down
and pull up on the parking brake lever. If the ignition
is on, the brake system warning light will come on.
See
Brake System Warning Light on page 4‑26.
To release the parking brake, hold the brake pedal
down. Pull the parking brake lever up until you can
press the release button. Hold the release button in as
you move the brake lever all the way down.
Notice: Driving with the parking brake on can
overheat the brake system and cause premature
wear or damage to brake system parts. Make sure
that the parking brake is fully released and the
brake warning light is off before driving.
3-28

Shifting Into Park
(Automatic Transmission)
{WARNING:
It can be dangerous to get out of the vehicle if the
shift lever is not fully in P (Park) with the parking
brake firmly set. The vehicle can roll. If you have
left the engine running, the vehicle can move
suddenly. You or others could be injured. To be
sure the vehicle will not move, even when you are
on fairly level ground, use the steps that follow.
1. Hold the brake pedal down and set the parking brake. See Parking Brake
on page 3‑28for more
information.
2. Move the shift lever into P (Park) by pressing the button on the shift lever and pushing the lever all
the way toward the front of the vehicle.
3. Turn the ignition key to LOCK/OFF.
4. Remove the key and take it with you. If you can leave the vehicle with the ignition key in your hand,
the vehicle is in P (Park).
Leaving the Vehicle With the Engine
Running (Automatic Transmission)
{WARNING:
It can be dangerous to leave the vehicle with the
engine running. The vehicle could move suddenly
if the shift lever is not fully in P (Park) with the
parking brake firmly set. And, if you leave the
vehicle with the engine running, it could overheat
and even catch fire. You or others could be
injured. Do not leave the vehicle with the engine
running.
If you have to leave the vehicle with the engine running,
be sure the vehicle is in P (Park) and the parking brake
is firmly set before you leave it. After you have moved
the shift lever into P (Park), hold the brake pedal down.
Then see if you can move the shift lever away from
P (Park) without first pushing the shift lock release
button. If you can, it means that the shift lever was not
fully locked into P (Park).
3-29

Torque Lock (Automatic Transmission)
If you are parking on a hill and you do not shift your
transmission into P (Park) properly, the weight of the
vehicle may put too much force on the parking pawl in
the transmission. You may find it difficult to pull the
shift lever out of P (Park). This is called“torque lock.”
To prevent torque lock, set the parking brake and then
shift into P (Park) properly before you leave the driver
seat. To find out how, see Shifting Into Park (Automatic
Transmission) on page 3‑29.
When you are ready to drive, move the shift lever out of
P (Park) before you release the parking brake.
If torque lock does occur, you may need to have
another vehicle push yours a little uphill to take some of
the pressure from the parking pawl in the transmission,
so you can pull the shift lever out of P (Park).
Shifting Out of Park
Vehicles with an automatic transmission have a shift
interlock system. You have to apply the brake pedal
before you can shift from P (Park) when the ignition is in
the ON/RUN position. See Automatic Transmission
Operation on page 3‑22.
If you cannot shift out of P (Park) while holding the
brake pedal down, try this:
1. Set the parking brake.
2. Turn the ignition off and remove the key.
3. Remove the hole cover from the shift lock slot by prying it off using a small, flat object. The shift lock
release slot is located at the top of the shift lever.
3-30

4. Insert the key into the shift lock slot and press andhold the key.
5. Shift to N (Neutral).
6. Remove the key from the slot, insert the key into the ignition and start the engine.
7. Replace the shift-lock release slot cover.
8. Apply and hold the brake pedal fully and release the parking brake.
9. Shift to the gear you want.
10. Have the vehicle fixed as soon as you can.
Parking the Vehicle
(Manual Transmission)
Before leaving the vehicle, do the following:
1. Hold the brake pedal down and firmly apply the parking brake.
2. Fully press in the clutch pedal and place the shift lever into the gear position as stated below:
.When parking on level ground, place the shift
lever into N (Neutral).
.When parking downhill, place the shift lever in
R (Reverse).
.When parking uphill, place the shift lever in
1 (First).
3. After shifting, turn the ignition to LOCK/OFF, remove the key and release the clutch.
3-31

Outside Power Mirrors
The control is located on
the instrument panel, left
of the steering wheel.
The ignition must be turned to ON/RUN to adjust the
mirrors.
To adjust the mirrors: 1. Select the mirror you want to adjust by moving the selector switch to L for the driver side mirror
or R for the passenger side mirror.
2. Press one of the four arrows located on the control pad to move the mirror to the desired direction.
Manually fold the mirrors inward to prevent damage
when going through an automatic car wash. To fold,
push the mirror toward the vehicle. Push the mirror
outward, to return to its original position.
Outside Convex Mirror
{WARNING:
A convex mirror can make things, like other
vehicles, look farther away than they really are.
If you cut too sharply into the right lane, you could
hit a vehicle on the right. Check the inside mirror
or glance over your shoulder before changing
lanes.
The passenger side mirror is convex shaped. A convex
mirror's surface is curved so more can be seen from the
driver seat.
Outside Heated Mirrors
For vehicles with this feature:
<(Rear Window Defogger): Press to heat the
mirrors. See “Rear Window and Outside Mirror
Defogger” underClimate Control System
on page 4‑15for more information.
3-35

Sunroof
On vehicles with this
feature, the switch is
located on the headliner
between the sun visors.
The sunroof only operates when the ignition is turned to
ON/RUN. The sunroof can be opened to a vent position
or it can be opened all of the way.
To open the sunroof to the vent position, open the
sunshade. Then press and hold the driver side of the
switch. To close the sunroof, press and hold the
passenger side of the switch until the sunroof reaches
the desired position. To fully open the sunroof, press and hold the passenger
side of the switch. The sunshade opens with the
sunroof. To close the sunroof, press and hold the driver
side of the switch. The sunroof will stop if the switch is
released during operation. Close the sunshade
manually.
In both the vent and fully open positions, the air flow
can be adjusted by pushing and holding the switch until
the sunroof moves to the desired position.
The sunroof cannot be opened or closed if the vehicle
has an electrical failure.
3-37

As you signal a turn or a lane change, if the arrows
flash rapidly, a signal bulb may be burned out and other
drivers will not see your turn signal.
If a bulb is burned out, replace it to help avoid an
accident. If the arrows do not go on at all when you
signal a turn, check for burned-out bulbs and then
check the fuse. SeeFuses and Circuit Breakers
on
page 6‑87.
Headlamp High/Low-Beam Changer
The headlamps must be on for this feature to work.
Push the turn signal lever away from you to turn the
high beams on. This instrument panel cluster light
3comes on while
the high beams are on and the ignition is turned to
ON/RUN.
Pull the lever towards you to return to low beams.
Flash-to-Pass
This feature is used to signal to the vehicle ahead that
you want to pass.
Pull the turn signal/multifunction lever towards you until
the high-beam headlamps come on, then release the
lever to turn them off.
4-5