Page 375 of 446

Black plate (69,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-69
{WARNING
Changing a tire can be
dangerous. The vehicle can slip
off the jack and roll over or fall on
you or other people. You and they
could be badly injured or even
killed. Find a level place to
change your tire. To help prevent
the vehicle from moving:1. Set the parking brake firmly.
2. Put an automatic transmission shift lever in
P (Park), or shift a manual
transmission to 1 (First) or
R (Reverse).
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
3. Turn off the engine and donot restart while the vehicle
is raised.
4. Do not allow passengers to remain in the vehicle.
To be certain the vehicle will not
move, put blocks at the front and
rear of the tire farthest away from
the one being changed. That
would be the tire on the other
side, at the opposite end of the
vehicle.
When the vehicle has a flat tire (B),
use the following example as a
guide to assist you in the placement
of wheel blocks (A).
A. Wheel Block
B. Flat Tire
The following information explains
how to repair or change a tire.
Page 376 of 446

Black plate (70,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
10-70 Vehicle Care
Tire Changing
Removing the Spare Tire and
Tools
To access the spare tire and tools:
1. Open the liftgate. SeeLiftgate
(Manual) on page 2‑8 orLiftgate
(Power) on page 2‑9.
2. Lift the load floor up.
3. Remove the extension (A), wheel wrench (B) and jack (C).
Place the tools next to the tire
being changed.
4. Turn the retainer nutcounterclockwise and remove
the spare tire.
5. Place the spare tire next to the tire being changed.
Removing the Flat Tire and
Installing the Spare Tire
1. Do a safety check beforeproceeding. See If a Tire Goes
Flat on page 10‑68 for more
information.
2. For vehicles with wheel nut caps, turn the wheel wrench
counterclockwise to loosen and
remove them.
Do not try to remove plastic caps
from the cover or center cap.
3. For vehicles with a wheel cover or center cap, pull the cover or
center cap away from the wheel
to remove it. Store the wheel
cover in the cargo area until you
have the flat tire repaired or
replaced.
Page 377 of 446
Black plate (71,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-71
4. Turn the wheel wrenchcounterclockwise to loosen all
the wheel nuts, but do not
remove them yet.
5. Place the jack near the flat tire.
Notice: Make sure that the jack
lift head is in the correct position
or you may damage your vehicle.
The repairs would not be covered
by your warranty.Front
Rear 6. Position the jack lift head at the
jack location nearest the flat tire.
The location is indicated by a
mark on the bottom edge of the
front and rear door plastic
molding. The jack must not be
used in any other position.
Place the jack notch (A) under
the frame rail seam (B).
7. Put the compact spare tire near you.
Page 379 of 446
Black plate (73,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-73
9. Insert the other end of the jackhandle into the wrench.10. Place the jack under the vehicle.11. Raise the vehicle by turning thejack handle clockwise. Raise
the vehicle far enough off the
ground so there is enough
room for the road tire to clear
the ground.
Page 381 of 446

Black plate (75,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-75
16. Reinstall the wheel nuts.Tighten each nut by hand until
the wheel is held against
the hub.
17. Lower the vehicle by turning the jack handle
counterclockwise.
{WARNING
Wheel nuts that are improperly or
incorrectly tightened can cause
the wheels to become loose or
come off. The wheel nuts should
be tightened with a torque wrench
to the proper torque specification
after replacing. Follow the torque
specification supplied by the
aftermarket manufacturer when
using accessory locking wheel
nuts. See Capacities and
Specifications on page 12‑2 for
original equipment wheel nut
torque specifications. Notice:
Improperly tightened
wheel nuts can lead to brake
pulsation and rotor damage. To
avoid expensive brake repairs,
evenly tighten the wheel nuts in
the proper sequence and to the
proper torque specification. See
Capacities and Specifications on
page 12‑2 for the wheel nut
torque specification.
18. Tighten the wheel nuts firmly in a crisscross sequence, as
shown. 19. Lower the jack all the way and
remove the jack from under the
vehicle.
20. Tighten the wheel nuts firmly with the wheel wrench.
When reinstalling the wheel cover or
center cap on the full-size tire,
tighten all five plastic caps hand
snug with the aid of the wheel
wrench and tighten them with the
wheel wrench an additional
one‐quarter of a turn.
Notice: Wheel covers will not fit
on your vehicle's compact spare.
If you try to put a wheel cover on
the compact spare, the cover or
the spare could be damaged.
Page 386 of 446

Black plate (80,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
10-80 Vehicle Care
4. Locate the positive (+) andnegative (−) terminals on both
vehicles. Some vehicles have
remote jump starting terminals.
{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. 5. The remote positive (+)
terminal (A) is located on the
underhood fuse block, on the
driver side. Lift the red cap to
uncover the terminal.
The remote negative (−)
terminal (B) is a stud behind the
metal tab stamped with GND (−)
near the driver side strut tower.
6. The jumper cables should be in good working condition with no
loose or missing insulation. The
vehicles could be damaged if
they are not.
7. Connect the red positive (+) cable to the positive (+) terminal
on the vehicle with the dead
battery. Use a remote
positive (+) terminal if the vehicle
has one. 8. Do not let the other end
touch metal. Connect it to
the positive (+) terminal of the
good battery. Use a remote
positive (+) terminal if the
vehicle has one.
9. Connect the black negative (−) cable to the negative (−) terminal
of the good battery. Use a
remote negative (−) terminal if
the vehicle has one.
Do not let the other end touch
anything until the next step.
The other end of the negative (−)
cable does not go to the dead
battery. It goes to a heavy,
unpainted metal engine part or
to a remote negative (−) terminal
on the vehicle with the dead
battery.
Page 387 of 446

Black plate (81,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-81
10. Connect the other end of thenegative (−) cable away from
the dead battery, but not near
engine parts that move.
11. Start the vehicle with the good battery and run the engine.
12. Press the unlock symbol on the remote keyless entry
transmitter to disarm the
security system, if equipped.
13. Try to start the vehicle that had the dead battery. If it will not
start after a few tries, it needs
service.
Notice: If the jumper cables are
connected or removed in the
wrong order, electrical shorting
may occur and damage the
vehicle. The repairs would not be
covered by the vehicle warranty.
Always connect and remove the
jumper cables in the correct
order, making sure that the
cables do not touch each other or
other metal.
Jumper Cable Removal
A. Heavy, Unpainted Metal Engine Part or Remote Negative (−)
Terminal
B. Good Battery or Remote Positive (+) and Remote
Negative (−) Terminals
C. Dead Battery or Remote Positive (+) Terminal To disconnect the jumper cables
from both vehicles,
1. Disconnect the black
negative (−) cable from the
vehicle that had the dead
battery.
2. Disconnect the black negative (−) cable from the
vehicle with the good battery.
3. Disconnect the red positive (+) cable from the vehicle with the
good battery.
4. Disconnect the red positive (+) cable from the other vehicle.
5. Return the underhood fuse block cover to its original position,
if applicable.
Page 389 of 446

Black plate (83,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-83
Dinghy Towing
Front-wheel‐drive and
all-wheel-drive vehicles may be
dinghy towed from the front. These
vehicles can also be towed by
placing them on a platform trailer
with all four wheels off of the
ground. For other towing options,
see“Dolly Towing” following in
this section.
For vehicles being dinghy towed,
the vehicle should be run at the
beginning of each day and at each
RV fuel stop for about five minutes.
This will ensure proper lubrication of
transmission components.
To tow the vehicle from the front
with all four wheels on the ground:
1. Position the vehicle that will be towed and secure it to the
towing vehicle.
2. Turn the ignition key to ON/RUN.
3. Shift the transmission to N (Neutral).
4. Turn the ignition key to ACC/ ACCESSORY. 5. Turn all accessories off.
6. To prevent the battery from
draining while the vehicle is
being towed, remove fuse 32,
the Discrete Logic Ignition
Switch fuse, from the instrument
panel fuse block and store it in a
safe location. See Instrument
Panel Fuse Block on
page 10‑43.
Notice: If the vehicle is towed
without performing each of the
steps listed under “Dinghy
Towing,” the automatic
transmission could be damaged.
Be sure to follow all steps of the
dinghy towing procedure prior to
and after towing the vehicle.