2011 CHEVROLET VOLT wheel

Black plate (29,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-29
SeeRadio Frequency
Statement on page 13‑28 for
information regarding Part 15
of the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) rules and
Industry Canada Standards
RSS-210/220/310.
OnStar Steering Wheel
Controls
This vehicle may have talk and
mute buttons that can be used to
interact with OnStar Hands-Free
Calling. See Steering Wheel
Controls on page 5‑6 for more
information.
On some vehicles, the mute button
can be used to dial numbers into
voice mail systems, or to dial phone
extensions. See the OnStar Owner's
Guide for more information.
Your Responsibility
Increase the volume of the radio
if the OnStar Advisor cannot be
heard.
If the light next to the OnStar
buttons is red, the system may
not be functioning properly.
Push
Qand request a vehicle
diagnostic check. If the light
appears clear or no light appears,
your OnStar subscription has
expired and all services have been
deactivated. Push
Qto confirm that
the OnStar equipment is active.
OnStar®
If the vehicle is equipped with
an active OnStar system, that
system may also record data in
crash or near crash-like situations.
The OnStar Terms and Conditions
provides information on data
collection and use and is available
in the OnStar Glove Box Kit,
at www.onstar.com (U.S.) or
www.onstar.ca (Canada), or by
pushing
Qand speaking to an
Advisor.

Black plate (11,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-11
Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything,
you go as fast as it goes.
Take the simplest vehicle. Suppose
it is just a seat on wheels.
Put someone on it.Get it up to speed. Then stop the
vehicle. The rider does not stop.

Black plate (25,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-25
Airbag System
The vehicle has the following
airbags:
.A frontal airbag for the driver.
.A frontal airbag for the right front
passenger.
.A knee airbag for the driver.
.A knee airbag for the front
passenger.
.A seat-mounted side impact
airbag for the driver.
.A seat-mounted side impact
airbag for the right front
passenger.
.A roof-rail airbag for the driver
and the passenger seated
directly behind the driver.
.A roof-rail airbag for the
right front passenger and the
passenger seated directly
behind the right front passenger.All of the airbags in the vehicle will
have the word AIRBAG embossed
in the trim or on an attached label
near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear on the middle
part of the steering wheel for the
driver and on the instrument panel
for the right front passenger.
With knee airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear on the lower
portion of the instrument panel.
With seat-mounted side impact
airbags, the word AIRBAG will
appear on the side of the seatback
closest to the door.
With roof-rail airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear along the
headliner or trim.
Airbags are designed to supplement
the protection provided by safety
belts. Even though today's airbags
are also designed to help reduce
the risk of injury from the force of an
inflating bag, all airbags must inflate
very quickly to do their job. Here are the most important things
to know about the airbag system:
{WARNING
You can be severely injured or
killed in a crash if you are not
wearing a safety belt
—even if
the vehicle has airbags. Airbags
are designed to work with safety
belts, but do not replace them.
Also, airbags are not designed to
deploy in every crash. In some
crashes safety belts are the only
restraint. See When Should an
Airbag Inflate? on page 3‑28.
Wearing a safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance
of hitting things inside the vehicle
or being ejected from it. Airbags
are “supplemental restraints” to
the safety belts. Everyone in the
vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly —whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.

Black plate (27,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-27
Where Are the Airbags?
The driver frontal airbag is in the
middle of the steering wheel.
The right front passenger frontal
airbag is in the instrument panel on
the passenger side.
The driver knee airbag is below
the steering column. The right front
passenger knee airbag is below the
glove box.Driver Side Shown,
Passenger Side Similar
The seat-mounted side impact
airbags for the driver and right front
passenger are in the side of the
seatbacks closest to the door.

Black plate (28,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
3-28 Seats and Restraints
Driver Side Shown,
Passenger Side Similar
The roof-rail airbags for the driver,
right front passenger, and second
row outboard passengers are in the
ceiling above the side windows.
{WARNING
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inflate properly
or it might force the object into
that person causing severe injury (Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
or even death. The path of an
inflating airbag must be kept
clear. Do not put anything
between an occupant and an
airbag, and do not attach or
put anything on the steering
wheel hub or on or near any
other airbag covering.
Do not use seat accessories
that block the inflation path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.
Never secure anything to the roof
of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags
by routing a rope or tie‐down
through any door or window
opening. If you do, the path
of an inflating roof-rail airbag
will be blocked.
When Should an Airbag
Inflate?
Frontal airbags are designed
to inflate in moderate to severe
frontal or near frontal crashes
to help reduce the potential for
severe injuries mainly to the driver's
or right front passenger's head
and chest. However, they are
only designed to inflate if the
impact exceeds a predetermined
deployment threshold. Deployment
thresholds are used to predict how
severe a crash is likely to be in time
for the airbags to inflate and help
restrain the occupants.
Whether the frontal airbags will
or should deploy is not based on
how fast your vehicle is traveling.
It depends largely on what you hit,
the direction of the impact, and how
quickly your vehicle slows down.

Black plate (30,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
3-30 Seats and Restraints
In any particular crash, no one
can say whether an airbag should
have inflated simply because of
the damage to a vehicle or because
of what the repair costs were.
For frontal airbags, inflation is
determined by what the vehicle hits,
the angle of the impact, and how
quickly the vehicle slows down.
For seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags, deployment is
determined by the location and
severity of the side impact.
In a rollover event, roof‐rail airbag
deployment is determined by the
direction of the roll.What Makes an Airbag
Inflate?
In a deployment event, the sensing
system sends an electrical signal
triggering a release of gas from the
inflator. Gas from the inflator fills the
airbag causing the bag to break out
of the cover and deploy. The inflator,
the airbag, and related hardware are
all part of the airbag module.
Frontal airbag modules are located
inside the steering wheel and
instrument panel. For vehicles
with knee airbags, there are
airbag modules below the steering
column and below the glove box.
For vehicles with seat-mounted side
impact airbags, there are airbag
modules in the side of the front
seatbacks closest to the door.
For vehicles with roof-rail airbags,
there are airbag modules in the
ceiling of the vehicle, near the
side windows that have occupant
seating positions.
How Does an Airbag
Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or
near frontal collisions, even belted
occupants can contact the steering
wheel or the instrument panel.
In moderate to severe side
collisions, even belted occupants
can contact the inside of the
vehicle.
Airbags supplement the protection
provided by safety belts. Frontal
airbags with knee airbags distribute
the force of the impact more evenly
over the occupant's body, stopping
the occupant more gradually.
Seat-mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags distribute the
force of the impact more evenly
over the occupant's upper body.

Black plate (38,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
3-38 Seats and Restraints
Servicing the
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle
Airbags affect how the vehicle
should be serviced. There are
parts of the airbag system in
several places around the vehicle.
Your dealer and the service manual
have information about servicing
the vehicle and the airbag system.
To purchase a service manual,
seeService Publications Ordering
Information on page 13‑12.
{WARNING
For up to 10 seconds after the
vehicle is turned off and the
12‐volt battery is disconnected,
an airbag can still inflate during
improper service. You can be
injured if you are close to an
airbag when it inflates. Avoid
yellow connectors. They are
probably part of the airbag
system. Be sure to follow proper
service procedures, and make
sure the person performing work
for you is qualified to do so.
Adding Equipment to the
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle
Q: Is there anything I might add
to or change about the vehicle
that could keep the airbags
from working properly?
A: Yes. If you add things that
change the vehicle's frame,
bumper system, height, front end
or side sheet metal, they may
keep the airbag system from
working properly. Changing or
moving any parts of the front
seats, safety belts, the airbag
sensing and diagnostic module,
steering wheel, instrument
panel, roof-rail airbag modules,
ceiling headliner or pillar garnish
trim, overhead console, front
sensors, side impact sensors,
rollover sensor module, or airbag
wiring can affect the operation of
the airbag system.

Black plate (39,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-39
In addition, the vehicle has a
passenger sensing system
for the right front passenger
position, which includes sensors
that are part of the passenger
seat. The passenger sensing
system may not operate properly
if the original seat trim is
replaced with non-GM covers,
upholstery or trim, or with
GM covers, upholstery or
trim designed for a different
vehicle. Any object, such as
an aftermarket seat heater
or a comfort enhancing pad
or device, installed under or on
top of the seat fabric, could also
interfere with the operation of
the passenger sensing system.
This could either prevent proper
deployment of the passengerairbag(s) or prevent the
passenger sensing system
from properly turning off
the passenger airbag(s).
See
Passenger Sensing
System on page 3‑33.
If you have questions,
call Customer Assistance.
The phone numbers and
addresses for Customer
Assistance are in Step Two
of the Customer Satisfaction
Procedure in this manual.
See Customer Satisfaction
Procedure on page 13‑1.
If the vehicle has rollover
roof‐rail airbags, see Different
Size Tires and Wheels on
page 10‑65 for additional
important information. Q: Because I have a disability,
I have to get my vehicle
modified. How can I find out
whether this will affect my
airbag system?
A: If you have questions,
call Customer Assistance.
The phone numbers and
addresses for Customer
Assistance are in Step Two
of the Customer Satisfaction
Procedure in this manual.
See Customer Satisfaction
Procedure on page 13‑1.
In addition, the dealer and the
service manual have information
about the location of the airbag
sensors, sensing and diagnostic
module, and airbag wiring.