Black plate (40,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2011
9-40 Driving and Operating
Fuel E85 (85% Ethanol)
Vehicles that have a FlexFuel badge
and a yellow fuel cap can use either
unleaded gasoline or ethanol fuel
containing up to 85% ethanol (E85).
For all other vehicles, use only the
unleaded gasoline described under
Recommended Fuel on page 9‑38.
We encourage the use of E85 in
vehicles that are designed to use it.
The ethanol in E85 is a“renewable”
fuel, meaning it is made from
renewable sources such as corn
and other crops.
Many service stations will not have
an 85% ethanol fuel (E85) pump
available. The U.S. Department of
Energy has an alternative fuels
website (www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/
infrastructure/locator.html) that can
help you find E85 fuel. Those
stations that do have E85 should
have a label indicating ethanol
content. Do not use the fuel if the
ethanol content is greater than 85%. At a minimum, E85 should meet
ASTM Specification D 5798. By
definition, this means that fuel
labeled E85 will have an ethanol
content between 70% and 85%.
Filling the fuel tank with fuel
mixtures that do not meet ASTM
specifications can affect driveability
and could cause the malfunction
indicator lamp to come on.
To ensure quick starts in the
wintertime, the E85 fuel must be
formulated properly for your climate
according to ASTM specification
D 5798. If you have trouble starting
on E85, it could be because the E85
fuel is not properly formulated for
your climate. If this happens,
switching to gasoline or adding
gasoline to the fuel tank can
improve starting. For good starting
and heater efficiency below 0°C
(32°F), the fuel mix in the fuel tank
should contain no more than 70%
ethanol. It is best not to alternate
repeatedly between gasoline and
E85. If you do switch fuels, it is
recommended that you add asmuch fuel as possible
—do not add
less than 11 L (three gallons) when
refueling. You should drive the
vehicle immediately after refueling
for at least 11 km (seven miles) to
allow the vehicle to adapt to the
change in ethanol concentration.
E85 has less energy per gallon than
gasoline, so you will need to refill
the fuel tank more often when using
E85 than when you are using
gasoline. See Filling the Tank
on
page 9‑41.
Notice: Some additives are not
compatible with E85 fuel and can
harm the vehicle's fuel system.
Do not add anything to E85.
Damage caused by additives
would not be covered by the
vehicle warranty.
Notice: This vehicle was not
designed for fuel that contains
methanol. Do not use fuel
containing methanol. It can
corrode metal parts in the fuel
system and also damage plastic
Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-19
By this time, the coolant level
inside the coolant surge tank
might be lower. If the level is
lower than the FULL COLD
mark, add more of the proper
mixture to the coolant surge tank
until the level reaches the FULL
COLD mark.
5. Then replace the pressure cap. Be sure the pressure cap is
hand-tight and fully 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.
Engine Overheating
The vehicle has several indicators
to warn of engine overheating.
There is an engine coolant
temperature gauge as well as an
engine coolant temperature warning
light on the vehicle's instrument
panel cluster. See Engine Coolant Temperature Gauge on page 5‑20
and
Engine Coolant Temperature
Warning Light on page 5‑20.
If it is decided not to lift the hood
when this warning appears, but
instead get service help right away.
See Roadside Assistance Program
(United States and Canada)
on
page 13‑7or Roadside Assistance
Program (Mexico) on page 13‑9.
If it is decided 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, both fans
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
{WARNING
Steam from an overheated engine
can burn you badly, even if you
just open the hood. Stay away
from the engine if you see or hear
steam coming from it. Just turn it
off and get everyone away from
the vehicle until it cools down.
Wait until there is no sign of
steam or coolant before you open
the hood.
If you keep driving when your
engine is overheated, the liquids
in it can catch fire. You or others
could be badly burned. Stop your
engine if it overheats, and get out
of the vehicle until the engine
is cool.
Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2011
INDEX i-5
Fuel (cont.)Filling a Portable Fuel
Container . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-42
Filling the Tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-41
Fuels in Foreign Countries . . . . 9-38
Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . 9-38
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Recommended . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Requirements, California . . . . . 9-38
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Fuel Economy Driving for Better . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-30 Engine Compartment
Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-31
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-33
Rear Compartment Fuse
Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-35G
GasolineSpecifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Gauges Engine CoolantTemperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Warning Lights and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
General Information Service and Maintenance . . . . . 11-1
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-43
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
GM Mobility Reimbursement Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-7
H
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-28
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . . . 6-4
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Headlamps
Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-27
Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-28
Daytime RunningLamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Delayed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . . 6-2
Heated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Heated Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
High-Speed Operation . . . . . . . . 10-46
Highway Hypnosis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-8
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . . . 9-8
Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-5
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
Black plate (7,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2011
INDEX i-7
Lower Anchors and Tethersfor Children (LATCH
SYSTEM) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-47
Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4 Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
M
MaintenanceRecords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-9
Maintenance Schedule Recommended Fluids andLubricants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-6
Scheduled Maintenance . . . . . . 11-2
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . 5-16
Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Messages Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Brake System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Door Ajar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Engine Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Engine Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Fuel System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28 Messages (cont.)
Key and Lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Ride Control System . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Service Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Vehicle Reminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Washer Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Mirrors Automatic DimmingRearview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Convex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Heated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Manual Rearview . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Monitor System, Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-47
N
Navigation System
Vehicle Data Recordingand Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-17
Net, Convenience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
New Vehicle Break-In . . . . . . . . . . 9-17
O
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11 Trip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Oil
Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-9
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . 10-12
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Older Children, Restraints . . . . . 3-38
Online Owner Center . . . . . . . . . . 13-6
OnStar
®System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Black plate (12,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2011
i-12 INDEX
Vehicle IdentificationNumber (VIN) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-1
Service Parts Identification
Label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-1
Vehicle Reminder Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Ventilation, Air . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9
Visors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19W
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv Cautions and Danger . . . . . . . . . . . .iv
Hazard Flashers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Washer Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-22
Washer Fluid Messages . . . . . . . 5-31
Wheels
Alignment and TireBalance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-58
Different Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-56
Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-58 When It Is Time for New
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-53
Where to Put the Child Restraint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-45
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16 Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Windshield
Wiper/Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-9
Winter Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-39
Wiper Blade Replacement . . . . 10-27