
Black plate (43,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Infotainment System 7-43
DVD Display Error Messages
The DVD display error message
depends on which radio the vehicle
has. The video screen may display
one of the following:
Disc Load/Eject Error or
Mechanical Error:There are disc
load or eject problems.
Disc Format Error or Unknown
Format: The disc is inserted with
the disc label wrong side up, or the
disc is damaged.
Disc Region Error or Disc Error:
The disc is not from a correct
region.
No Disc Inserted: No disc is
present when the
XEJECT or
MEM/DVD/AUX button is pressed
on the radio.
DVD Distortion
Video distortion can occur when
operating cellular phones, scanners,
CB radios, Global Position Systems
(GPS)*, two-way radios, mobile fax,
or walkie talkies.
It might be necessary to turn off the
DVD player when operating one of
these devices in or near the vehicle.
*Excludes the OnStar
®System.
Cleaning the RSE Seatback
Console
Use only a clean cloth dampened
with clean water to clean the RSE
seatback console surface.
Cleaning the Video Screen
Use only a clean cloth dampened
with clean water. Use care when
touching or cleaning the screen as
damage could result.
Rear Seat Audio (RSA)
System
Vehicles with this feature allow the
rear seat passengers to listen to
and control any of the music
sources: radio, CDs, DVDs, or other
auxiliary sources. RSA can only
control music sources that the front
seat passengers are not listening to,
except on radios where dual control
is allowed.
RSA can function when the
front radio is off.
Xdisplays on
the infotainment system when
RSA is on.

Black plate (45,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Infotainment System 7-45
Press and hold©or¨until“Tune”
displays. Continue to press
©or¨to
tune to an individual station. Tune
stays active until
©or¨has not
been pressed for several seconds.
If the front seat passengers are
listening to the radio, this function
may be inactive on some radios.
While listening to a disc, press
¨to
go to the next track or chapter on
the disc. Press
©to go back to the
start of the current track or chapter if
more than ten seconds have played.
If the front seat passengers are
listening to a disc, this function may
be inactive on some radios. Press
and hold
©or¨to fast reverse or
fast forward. When a DVD video menu is being
displayed, press
©or¨to cursor up
or down on the menu. Hold
©or¨to
cursor left or right on the menu.
PROG (Program): Press to go to
the next preset radio station or
channel set on the main radio. If the
front seat passengers are listening
to the radio, this function may be
inactive on some radios.
When a CD or DVD audio disc is
playing, press PROG to go to the
beginning of the disc or display disc
info. If the front seat passengers are
listening to a disc, this function may
be inactive on some radios. When a disc is playing in the CD or
DVD changer, press and hold
PROG to select the next disc,
if multiple discs are loaded. If the
front seat passengers are listening
to a disc, this function may be
inactive on some radios.
The PROG button may be used to
access the menu of an MP3. Once
in the menu, use
©or¨to make
selections.
When a DVD video menu is
displayed, press PROG, or press
and hold PROG to perform the
menu function, ENTER.

Black plate (48,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
7-48 Infotainment System
Pairing a Phone
1. Press the CONFIG button.
2. Select Phone Settings.
3. Select Bluetooth.
4. Select Pair Device (Phone).A four‐digit Personal
Identification Number (PIN)
appears on the display.
5. Start the pairing process on the cell phone that will be paired to
the vehicle. Reference the cell
phone manufacturers user guide
for information on this process.
Locate the device named “Your
Vehicle” in the list on the cell
phone and follow the instructions
on the cell phone to enter the
PIN provided by the system.
6. The system prompts for a name for the phone and confirms the
name provided. This name is
used to indicate which phone is
connected. 7. The system responds with
“
successfully paired” after the
pairing process is complete.
8. Repeat Steps 1 through 7 to pair additional phones.
Listing All Paired and Connected
Phones
1. Press the CONFIG button.
2. Select Phone Settings.
3. Select Bluetooth.
4. Select Device List.
Deleting a Paired Phone
1. Press the CONFIG button.
2. Select Phone Settings.
3. Select Bluetooth.
4. Select Device List.
5. Select the phone to delete and follow the on screen prompts. Linking to a Different Phone
To link to a different phone, the new
phone must be in the vehicle and
available to be connected to the
Bluetooth system before the
process is started.
1. Press the CONFIG button.
2. Select Phone Settings.
3. Select Bluetooth.
4. Select Device List.
5. Select the new phone to link to
and follow the on screen
prompts.
If delete is selected, the
highlighted phone will be
deleted.

Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
8-4 Climate Controls
Manual Operation
O(Power):Press to turn the
climate control system on or off.
A(Fan Control): Turn to increase
or decrease the fan speed.
Adjusting the fan speed while in
automatic mode places the fan
under manual control. The AUTO
indicator light turns off. The air
delivery mode remains in automatic
control.
Temperature Control: Turn to
increase or decrease the
temperature inside the vehicle.
H/G(Air Delivery Mode
Control): Press mode up or mode
down to cycle through the different
air delivery modes. The current
mode is shown on the display. Select from the following:
F
(Vent): Air is directed to the
instrument panel outlets.
* (Bi-Level): Air is directed to the
instrument panel outlets and the
floor outlets.
7 (Floor): Air is directed to the
floor outlets.
W(Defog): Clears the windows of
fog or moisture. Air is directed to the
windshield and floor outlets.
0(Defrost): Clears the
windshield of fog or frost more
quickly. Air is directed to the
windshield and side window outlets.
Selecting defrost disables the
automatic mode.
For best results, clear all snow and
ice from the windshield before
defrosting.
Do not drive the vehicle until all the
windows are clear.
Air Conditioning
#(Air Conditioning): Press to
turn the air conditioning on or off.
If the fan is turned off or the outside
temperature falls below freezing, the
air conditioning will not work. When
in AUTO, the air conditioning will
come on automatically as needed.
h(Recirculation): Press to turn
on the recirculation. Press to
alternate between recirculation and
outside air, if the vehicle does not
have a separate outside air button.
The indicator light turns on when
recirculation is selected. Air is
recirculated inside the vehicle.
It helps quickly cool the air inside
the vehicle or prevent outside air
and odors from entering.
%(Outside Air, If Equipped):
Press to turn on the outside air. An
indicator light comes on. Outside air
is circulated throughout the vehicle.

Black plate (29,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Driving and Operating 9-29
To shift out of P (Park), turn the
ignition to ON/RUN and apply the
brake pedal.
A (STOPPING THE ENGINE/
LOCK/OFF):When the vehicle is
stopped, turn the ignition switch to
LOCK/OFF to turn the engine off.
Retained Accessory Power (RAP)
will remain active. See Retained
Accessory Power (RAP) on
page 9‑31.
This is the only position from which
the key can be removed. This locks
the steering wheel, ignition and
automatic transmission.
Do not turn the engine off when the
vehicle is moving. This will cause a
loss of power assist in the brake
and steering systems and disable
the airbags. In an emergency:
1. Brake using a firm and steady
pressure. Do not pump the
brakes repeatedly. This may
deplete power assist, requiring
increased brake pedal force.
2. Shift the vehicle to N (Neutral). This can be done while the
vehicle is moving. After shifting
to N (Neutral), firmly apply the
brakes and steer the vehicle to a
safe location.
3. Come to a complete stop, shift to P (Park), and turn the ignition
to LOCK/OFF. On vehicles with
an automatic transmission, the
shift lever must be in P (Park) to
turn the ignition switch to the
LOCK/OFF position.
4. Set the parking brake. See Parking Brake on page 9‑40. The ignition switch can bind in the
LOCK/OFF position with the wheels
turned off center. If this happens,
move the steering wheel from right
to left while turning the key to ACC/
ACCESSORY. If this does not work,
then the vehicle needs service.
B (ACC/ACCESSORY):
This
position provides power to some of
the electrical accessories.
C (ON/RUN): The ignition switch
stays in this position when the
engine is running. This position
can be used to operate the
electrical accessories, including the
ventilation fan and 12‐volt power
outlets, as well as to display
some warning and indicator lights.

Black plate (37,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Driving and Operating 9-37
The repairs would not be covered
by the vehicle warranty. Be sure
the engine is not running at high
speed when shifting the vehicle.
D (Drive):This position is for
normal driving. It provides the best
fuel economy. If you need more
power for passing, and you are:
.Going less than 56 km/h
(35 mph), push the accelerator
pedal about halfway down.
.Going about 56 km/h (35 mph) or
more, push the accelerator all
the way down.
Notice: If the vehicle seems to
accelerate slowly or not shift
gears when you go faster, and
you continue to drive the vehicle
that way, you could damage the
transmission. Have the vehicle
serviced right away.
M (Manual Mode): Allows the
driver to select the range of gear
positions. See Manual Mode on
page 9‑37.
Manual Mode
Electronic Range Select
(ERS) Mode
ERS or manual mode allows for the
selection of the range of gear
positions. Use this mode when
driving downhill or towing a trailer to
limit the top gear and vehicle speed.
The shift position indicator within
the Driver Information Center (DIC)
will display a number next to the
M indicating the highest available
gear under manual mode and the
driving conditions when manual
mode was selected.
To use this feature:
1. Move the shift lever to M (Manual Mode).
2. Press the plus/minus button on the shift lever, to increase or
decrease the gear range
available. When shifting to M (Manual Mode),
the transmission will shift to a preset
lower gear range. For this preset
range, the highest gear available is
displayed next to the M in the DIC.
See
Driver Information Center (DIC)
on page 5‑22 for more information.
All gears below that number are
available to use. For example, when
4 (Fourth) is shown next to the M,
1 (First) through 4 (Fourth) gears are
shifted automatically. To shift to
5 (Fifth) gear, press the + (Plus)
button or shift into D (Drive).
M (Manual Mode) will prevent
shifting to a lower gear range if the
engine speed is too high. If vehicle
speed is not reduced within the time
allowed, the lower gear range shift
will not be completed. Slow the
vehicle, then press the −(Minus)
button to the desired lower gear
range.
While using the ERS, cruise control
can be used.

Black plate (38,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
9-38 Driving and Operating
Fuel Economy Mode
Vehicles with a 2.4L engine have a
Fuel Economy Mode. When
engaged, fuel economy mode can
improve the vehicle's fuel economy.
Press the“eco”(economy) button by
the shift lever to turn this feature on
or off. The “eco”light in the
instrument cluster will come on
when engaged. See Fuel Economy
Light on page 5‑20. A Driver Information Center (DIC)
message
“ECO MODE ON” is also
displayed. See Fuel System
Messages on page 5‑29 for more
information.
When Fuel Economy Mode is on:
.The transmission will upshift
sooner and downshift later.
.The torque converter clutch will
apply sooner and stay on longer.
.The gas pedal will be less
sensitive.
.The vehicle's computer will more
aggressively shut off fuel to the
engine under deceleration.
.The engine idle speed will
be lower.
.Driving performance is more
conservative.
Drive Systems
All-Wheel Drive
Vehicles with this feature always
send engine power to all four
wheels. It is fully automatic, and
adjusts itself as needed for road
conditions.
When using a compact spare tire on
an AWD vehicle, the system
automatically detects the compact
spare and disables AWD. To restore
AWD operation and prevent
excessive wear on the system,
replace the compact spare with a
full-size tire as soon as possible.
See Compact Spare Tire on
page 10‑77 for more information.

Black plate (41,1)Chevrolet Equinox Owner Manual - 2011
Driving and Operating 9-41
Hill Start Assist (HSA)
This vehicle has a Hill Start Assist
(HSA) feature, which may be useful
when the vehicle is stopped on a
grade. This feature is designed to
prevent the vehicle from rolling,
either forward or rearward, during
vehicle drive off. After driver
completely stops and holds the
vehicle in a complete standstill on a
grade, HSA will be automatically
activated. During the transition
period between when the driver
releases the brake pedal and starts
to accelerate to drive off on a grade,
HSA holds the braking pressure to
ensure that there is no rolling. The
brakes will automatically release
when the accelerator pedal is
applied within the two second
window. It will not activate if the
vehicle is in a drive gear and facing
downhill or if the vehicle is facing
uphill and in R (Reverse).
Ride Control Systems
Traction Control
System (TCS)
The vehicle has a Traction Control
System (TCS) that limits wheel spin.
On a front-wheel-drive vehicle, the
system operates if it senses that
one or both of the front wheels are
spinning or beginning to lose
traction. On an All-Wheel-Drive
(AWD) vehicle, the system will
operate if it senses that any of the
wheels are spinning or beginning to
lose traction. When this happens,
the system brakes the spinning
wheel(s) and/or reduces engine
power to limit wheel spin.
The system may be heard or felt
while it is working, but this is
normal.TCS is on whenever the vehicle is
started. To limit wheel spin,
especially in slippery road
conditions, the system should
always be left on. But, TCS can be
turned off if needed.
dflashes to indicate that the
traction control system is active.
If there is a problem detected with
TCS, SERVICE TRACTION
CONTROL and SERVICE
STABILITRAK may be displayed on
the Driver Information Center (DIC)
and
dwill be on. See Ride Control
System Messages on page 5‑30.