
Black plate (23,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-23
If coolant is needed, add the proper
DEX-COOL coolant mixture at the
coolant surge tank.
The coolant surge tank pressure
cap can be removed when the
cooling system, including the
surge tank pressure cap and upper
radiator hose, is no longer hot.
1. Turn the pressure cap slowlycounterclockwise. If a hiss is
heard, wait for that to stop.
A hiss means there is still
some pressure left.
2. Keep turning the cap and remove it.
3. Fill the coolant surge tank with
the proper mixture to the cold
fill line.
4. 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 an indicator to warn
of engine overheating.
If the decision is made not to
lift the hood when this warning
appears, get service help right
away. See Roadside Assistance
Program on page 13‑6.
If the decision is made 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, the fans
should be running. If they are not,
do not continue to run the vehicle
and have the vehicle serviced.
Notice: Engine damage from
running the engine without
coolant is not covered by the
warranty.

Black plate (42,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
10-42 Vehicle Care
Instrument Panel Fuse
Block (Left Side)
The instrument panel fuse block
is on the driver side end of the
instrument panel. To access the
fuses, open the fuse panel door
by pulling out.
To reinstall the door, insert the
bottom tab first, then push the
door back into its original location.
Instrument Panel Fuse Block
A fuse puller is located in the engine
compartment fuse block.
The vehicle may not be equipped
with all of the fuses, relays, and
features shown. Fuses Usage
F1 Power Outlet
–Top
of IP Storage Bin
F2 Radio
F3 Instrument Cluster
F4 Infotainment Display Fuses Usage
F5 Heating, Ventilation
& Air Conditioning/
Integrated Center
Stack Switches
F6 Airbag (Sensing
Diagnostic Module/
Passenger Sensing
Module)
F7 Data Link
Connector 1/Data
Link Connector 2

Black plate (48,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
10-48 Vehicle Care
Wheels and Tires
Tires
Every new GM vehicle has
high-quality tires made by
a leading tire manufacturer.
See the warranty manual
for information regarding
the tire warranty and where
to get service. For additional
information refer to the tire
manufacturer.
{WARNING
.Poorly maintained and
improperly used tires are
dangerous.(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
.Overloading the tires can
cause overheating as a
result of too much flexing.
There could be a blowout and
a serious crash. See Vehicle
Load Limits on page 9‑14.
.Underinflated tires pose the
same danger as overloaded
tires. The resulting crash
could cause serious injury.
Check all tires frequently to
maintain the recommended
pressure. Tire pressure
should be checked when
the tires are cold.
.Overinflated tires are more
likely to be cut, punctured,
or broken by a sudden
impact —such as when
hitting a pothole. Keep
tires at the recommended
pressure.
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
.Worn or old tires can cause
a crash. If the tread is badly
worn, replace them.
.Replace any tires that have
been damaged by impacts
with potholes, curbs, etc.
.Improperly repaired tires
can cause a crash. Only the
dealer or an authorized tire
service center should repair,
replace, dismount, and mount
the tires.
.Do not spin the tires in
excess of 55 km/h (35 mph)
on slippery surfaces such
as snow, mud, ice, etc.
Excessive spinning may
cause the tires to explode.

Black plate (54,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
10-54 Vehicle Care
Vehicle Capacity Weight:
The number of designated
seating positions multiplied by
68 kg (150 lbs) plus the rated
cargo load. SeeVehicle Load
Limits on page 9‑14.
Vehicle Maximum Load on the
Tire
:Load on an individual tire
due to curb weight, accessory
weight, occupant weight, and
cargo weight.
Vehicle Placard
:A label
permanently attached to a
vehicle showing the vehicle's
capacity weight and the
original equipment tire size
and recommended inflation
pressure. See “Tire and Loading
Information Label” underVehicle
Load Limits on page 9‑14.
Tire Pressure
Tires need the correct amount
of air pressure to operate
effectively.
Notice: Neither tire
underinflation nor
overinflation is good.
Underinflated tires, or
tires that do not have
enough air, can result in:
.Tire overloading and
overheating which could
lead to a blowout.
.Premature or
irregular wear.
.Poor handling.
.Reduced fuel economy. Overinflated tires, or tires
that have too much air, can
result in:
.Unusual wear.
.Poor handling.
.Rough ride.
.Needless damage from
road hazards.
The Tire and Loading
Information label on the
vehicle indicates the original
equipment tires and the correct
cold tire inflation pressures.
The recommended pressure
is the minimum air pressure
needed to support the vehicle's
maximum load carrying capacity.

Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
i-4 INDEX
E
Electric Drive Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-32
Electric Drive UnitMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-47
Electric Drive Unit Shift Lock Control Function
Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-30
Electric Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Electric Parking Brake . . . . . . . . . 9-35
Electric Parking Brake Light . . . 5-25
Electrical Equipment, Add-On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-63
Electrical Requirements for Battery Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-56
Electrical System Engine Compartment
Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-38
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . 10-42, 10-43
Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-37
Rear Compartment Fuse
Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-45
Electronic Stability Control . . . . . 9-39
Energy Efficiency Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25, 9-2
Energy Information . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41 Engine
Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . 10-16
Check and Service Engine
Soon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Compartment Overview . . . . . 10-10
Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-21
Coolant Temperature Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Cooling System . . . . . . 10-18, 10-20
Cooling System Messages . . . 5-47
Drive Belt Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-3
Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Overheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-23
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Running While Parked . . . . . . . . 9-31
Engine Oil
Life System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-15
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-48
Engine Unavailable Out of Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-28
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Event Data Recorders . . . . . . . . 13-26
Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Extended Range Mode . . . . . . . . 9-25
Extender, Safety Belt . . . . . . . . . . 3-23
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . . 6-1
F
Filter,
Engine Air Cleaner . . . . . . . . . 10-16
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Flashers, Hazard Warning . . . . . . 6-4
Flat Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-69
Floor Console Storage . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Floor Mats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-96
Fluid Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-26
Power Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-24
Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-24
Folding Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Front Seats Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Heated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-57 Additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-59
Filling a Portable FuelContainer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-62
Filling the Tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-60
Fuels in Foreign Countries . . . . 9-58
Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . 9-58
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16

Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
INDEX i-5
Fuel (cont.)Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . . 5-28
Requirements, California . . . . . 9-58
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-48
Function Check Electric Drive Unit ShiftLock Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-30
Fuses Engine Compartment
Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-38
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . 10-42, 10-43
Rear Compartment Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-45
G
Garage Door Opener . . . . . . . . . . 5-60
Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-60
Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-58
Gauges Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Driver Efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15 Gauges (cont.)
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Warning Lights and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
General Information Service and Maintenance . . . . . 11-1
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-62
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Global Positioning System (GPS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-74
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
GM Mobility Reimbursement Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-5
H
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-34
Hard Drive Device (HDD) . . . . . . 7-26
Hatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . . . 6-4
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-34
Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-32
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-34
Daytime RunningLamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3 Headlamps (cont.)
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . . 6-2
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Heated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Heated Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Heating and Air Conditioning . . . 8-1
High Voltage Battery Gauge . . . 5-16
High Voltage Devices and Wiring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-37
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Highway Hypnosis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-10
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . . 9-10
Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-9
Hood, Door, Hatch Open Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
How to Wear Safety Belts
Properly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13

Black plate (8,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
i-8 INDEX
N
NavigationDestination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-51
Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-47
Using the System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-39
Vehicle Data Recordingand Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-27
New Vehicle Break-In . . . . . . . . . . 9-18
O
Object Detection System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-49
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Trip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-8
Oil Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-12
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . 10-15
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-48
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Older Children, Restraints . . . . . 3-41
Online Owner Center . . . . . . . . . . 13-4
OnStar
®System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-27
Open Source Information . . . . . 13-24 Ordering
Map DVDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-76
Service Publications . . . . . . . . 13-12
Out of Fuel/Engine Unavailable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-28
Outlets Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Overheating, Engine . . . . . . . . . . 10-23
Overview, Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3
P
ParkShifting into . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
Shifting out of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
Parking Assist, Ultrasonic . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-43
Brake and P (Park)Mechanism Check . . . . . . . . 10-30
Over Things That Burn . . . . . . . 9-24
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Passenger Sensing System . . . 3-33
Pedestrian Friendly Alert . . . . . . . 6-2
Perchlorate Materials
Requirements, California . . . . . 10-3 Personalization
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-53
Phone Bluetooth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-85
Plug-In Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-49
Power Button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-18
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-11
Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Protection, Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Retained Accessory (RAP) . . . 9-22
Steering Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-24
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Pregnancy, Using Safety
Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-23
Privacy Radio FrequencyIdentification (RFID) . . . . . . . 13-27
Problems with Route
Guidance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-76
Program Courtesy Transportation . . . . . . 13-8