
Black plate (37,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-37
SeeAdding Equipment to the
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle on
page 3‑38 for more information
about modifications that can affect
how the system operates.
A wet seat can affect the
performance of the passenger
sensing system. Here is how:
.The passenger sensing system
may turn off the passenger
frontal airbag and passenger
knee airbag when liquid is
soaked into the seat. If this
happens, the off indicator will
be lit, and the airbag readiness
light on the instrument panel
will also be lit.
.Liquid pooled on the seat that
has not soaked in may make it
more likely that the passenger
sensing system will enable
(turn on) the passenger frontal
airbag and passenger knee
airbag while a child restraint or
child occupant is on the seat.
If the passenger frontal airbag
and passenger knee airbag are
turned on, the on indicator will
be lit.
If the passenger seat gets wet, dry
the seat immediately. If the airbag
readiness light is lit, do not install
a child restraint or allow anyone
to occupy the seat. See Airbag
Readiness Light on page 5‑19
for important safety information. The on indicator may be lit if
an object, such as a briefcase,
handbag, grocery bag, laptop or
other electronic device, is put on
an unoccupied seat. If this is not
desired remove the object from
the seat.
{WARNING
Stowing of articles under the
passenger seat or between the
passenger seat cushion and
seatback may interfere with the
proper operation of the passenger
sensing system.

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 (1,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Storage 4-1
Storage
Storage Compartments
Instrument Panel Storage . . . . 4-1
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Floor Console Storage . . . . . . . . 4-1
Umbrella Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
Additional Storage Features
Cargo Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
Storage
Compartments
Instrument Panel Storage
There is a storage compartment
on top of the instrument panel that
includes an auxiliary power outlet.
Inside is a transmitter slot for the
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
transmitter. SeeRemote Keyless
Entry (RKE) System Operation on
page 2‑3.
Glove Box
Open the glove box by lifting up on
the lever.
Floor Console Storage
Inside the front of the floor console
is an auxiliary power outlet (C)
and a jack for auxiliary input
devices (B). Cords can be routed
in the pass‐thru (A). See Auxiliary
Devices on page 7‑38.
The console has cupholders and a
storage area.

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-1
Instruments and
Controls
Instrument Panel Overview
Instrument Panel Overview . . . . 5-4
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 5-6
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 5-6
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . 5-7
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, andIndicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16 Battery Gauge (High
Voltage) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Driver Efficiency Gauge . . . . . . 5-17
Total Vehicle Range . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . 5-18
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . 5-19
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Charging System Light (12-Volt Battery) . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Electric Parking Brake Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Service Electric Parking Brake Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Sport Mode Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Mountain Mode Light . . . . . . . . 5-26 Traction Control System
(TCS)/StabiliTrak
®Light . . . . 5-27
Engine Coolant Temperature Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 5-28
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 5-28
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Door, Hood, or Hatch Open
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Information Displays
Center Stack Display . . . . . . . . 5-31
Power Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
Energy Information . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-42
Driver InformationCenter (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43

Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
5-4 Instruments and Controls
Instrument Panel Overview

Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-5
A.Air Vents on page 8‑9.
B. Turn and Lane‐Change Lever. See Turn and Lane-Change
Signals on page 6‑4.
Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6‑1.
Pedestrian Friendly Alert on
page 6‑2.
C. Instrument Cluster on page 5‑9.
Driver Information Center (DIC)
Display. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑43.
D. Windshield Wiper/Washer on
page 5‑7.
E. Heated Front Seats on page 3‑6
(If Equipped).
F. Center Stack Display on
page 5‑31.
G. Charging Status Indicator. See Charging Status Feedback
on page 9‑52. H. Light Sensor. See
Daytime
Running Lamps (DRL) on
page 6‑3.
I. Instrument Panel Storage on
page 4‑1.
J. Automatic Climate Control
System on page 8‑1.
K. Driver Information Center (DIC) Controls. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑43.
L. Instrument Panel Illumination
Control on page 6‑5.
M. Data Link Connector (DLC) (Out of View). See Malfunction
Indicator Lamp on page 5‑21.
N. Cruise Control on page 9‑40.
O. Steering Wheel Adjustment on
page 5‑6.
P. Horn on page 5‑7.
Q. Steering Wheel Controls on
page 5‑6 (If Equipped). R. Leaf Button. See
Center Stack
Display on page 5‑31.
S. DRIVE MODE Button. See Driver Selected Operating
Modes on page 9‑26.
T. Power Button on page 9‑18.
U. Shift Lever. See Electric Drive
Unit on page 9‑32.
V. Infotainment on page 7‑2.
Navigation System. See Using
the Navigation System on
page 7‑39.
W. Electric Parking Brake on
page 9‑35.
X. Power Door Locks on
page 2‑11.
Y. Hazard Warning Flashers on
page 6‑4.
Z. Glove Box on page 4‑1.

Black plate (8,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
5-8 Instruments and Controls
Clear ice and snow from the wiper
blades before using them. If frozen
to the windshield, carefully loosen or
thaw them. Damaged wiper blades
should be replaced. SeeWiper
Blade Replacement on page 10‑31.
Heavy snow or ice can overload the
wipers. If the wiper motor overheats,
the windshield wipers will stop until
the motor cools and the wiper
control is turned off. See Electrical
System Overload on page 10‑37.
Wipe Parking
If the vehicle is turned off, while the
wipers are on 1, 2, or
G, they will
stop immediately.
If the windshield wiper lever is then
moved to off before the driver door
is opened or within 10 minutes, the
wipers will restart and move to the
base of the windshield.
If the vehicle is turned off during a
windshield wash, the wipers will
stop when they reach the base of
the windshield.
Windshield Washer
Pull the windshield wiper lever
toward you to spray windshield
washer fluid and activate the wipers.
The washer and wipers will continue
until the lever is released or the
maximum wash time is reached.
When the windshield wiper lever
is released, additional wipes may
occur depending on how long
the windshield washer had been
activated. See Washer Fluid on
page 10‑24 for information on
filling the windshield washer fluid
reservoir.
{WARNING
In freezing weather, do not use
the washer until the windshield is
warmed. Otherwise the washer
fluid can form ice on the
windshield, blocking your vision.
Power Outlets
The accessory power outlets can be
used to plug in electrical equipment,
such as a cell phone or MP3 player.
There are three accessory power
outlets:
.Inside the front of the center
floor console.
.On the rear of the center floor
console.
.Inside the instrument panel
storage area.
The power outlets supply power
while the vehicle is on, or if the
vehicle is in Retained Accessory
Power (RAP). See Retained
Accessory Power (RAP) on
page 9‑22.

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-1
Lighting
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . 6-1
Headlamp High/Low-BeamChanger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Pedestrian Friendly Alert . . . . . . 6-2
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . 6-4
Turn and Lane-Change Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel IlluminationControl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Reading Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Lighting Features
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Battery Power Protection . . . . . . 6-6
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls
The exterior lamp control is on the
turn signal/lane change lever.
O(Exterior Lamp Control):
Operates the exterior lamps. Turn to
one of the following positions:
O(Off): Turns the exterior
lamps off. AUTO (Automatic Headlamps):
Turns the exterior lamps on and off
automatically depending on the
exterior light.
;(Parking Lamps):
Turns on
the parking lamps together with the
following:
.Sidemarker Lamps
.Taillamps
.License Plate Lamps
.Instrument Panel Lights
5(Headlamps): Turns on the
headlamps, together with the
previously listed lamps and lights.