
Black plate (17,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-17
Vehicle Features
Radio(s)
Radio with CD
Top Knob: Press to turn the
system on and off. Turn to increase
or decrease the volume. BAND:
Press to switch between
FM1, FM2, AM, and if equipped,
XM1 and XM2.
O/e: Turn to select radio
stations.
tSEEKu: Press to seek
stations.
tSCANu: Press and hold to
scan stations.
4: Press to change the information
that shows on the display while
listening to the radio.
For more information about these
and other radio features, see
Infotainment on page 7‑1 and
Operation on page 7‑2.
Setting Preset Stations
Up to 30 stations (six FM1, six FM2,
and six AM, and if equipped,
six XM1, and six XM2) can be
programmed.
To program presets:
1. Turn the radio on.
2. Press BAND to select FM1, FM2, AM, XM1, or XM2.
3. Tune in the desired station.

Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-19
Steering Wheel Controls
For vehicles with steering wheel
controls, some audio controls can
be adjusted at the steering wheel.
bg: Press to turn on and off the
vehicle speakers. Press and hold
longer than two seconds to interact
with the OnStar
®or Bluetooth
systems.
c: Press to reject an incoming
call, or to end a call.
e+ /e− : Press to Increase or
decrease volume.
w/x: Press to change radio
stations or select tracks on a CD.
1 to 6: Press to play stations that
are programmed on the radio preset
pushbuttons.
For more information, see Steering
Wheel Controls on page 5‑3.
Cruise Control
The cruise controls are located at
the end of the multifunction lever.
9: Turns the system off.
R:Turns the system on.
S:Makes the vehicle accelerate
or resume a previously set speed.
T: Press the button at the end of
the lever to set the speed.
See Cruise Control on page 9‑45.
Navigation System
If the vehicle has a navigation
system, there is a separate
navigation system manual that
includes information on the radio,
audio players, and navigation
system.
The navigation system provides
detailed maps of most major
freeways and roads. After a
destination has been set, the
system provides turn-by-turn
instructions for reaching the
destination. In addition, the system
can help locate a variety of points of
interest (POIs), such as banks,
airports, restaurants, and more.
See the navigation system manual
for more information.

Black plate (20,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2012
1-20 In Brief
Driver Information
Center (DIC)
The DIC display is located at the
bottom of the instrument panel
cluster. It shows the status of
many vehicle systems and enables
access to the personalization menu.
The DIC buttons are located on the
instrument panel to the right of the
instrument panel cluster.
.4:Press to display fuel
information such as fuel economy
and range.
2: Press to display gauge
information like oil pressure and
temperature, coolant temperature,
automatic transmission fluid
temperature (if equipped), battery
voltage, and front/rear tire
pressures.
TRIP: Press to display your total
and trip distance driven, the elapsed
time function, your average speed,
and the engine oil life.
OPTION: Press to choose personal
options that are available on your
vehicle, depending on the options
your vehicle is equipped with, such
as door locks, easy entry seats, and
language.
RESET: Press, along with the other
buttons, to reset system functions,
select personal options, and turn off
or acknowledge messages on
the DIC.
For more information, see Driver
Information Center (DIC) on
page 5‑28.Vehicle Personalization
Some vehicle features can
be programmed by using the
DIC buttons located to the right
of the instrument panel cluster.
The features that can be
programmed include:
.Units
.Memory Features
.Lighting Features
.Lock and Unlock Feedback
.Door Lock and Unlock Settings
.Language
.Personalization Name
See Vehicle Personalization on
page 5‑55.

Black plate (23,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-23
Jump Starting the Battery
The battery of Z06, ZR1, and
manual transmission Z16 (Grand
Sport) coupe models is in the rear of
the vehicle. You do not need to
access the battery for jump starting.
There are remote positive (+) and
negative (−) terminals under the
hood for this purpose. SeeBattery
on page 10‑43 andJump Starting
on page 10‑82.
Brake Noise
Under certain weather or operating
conditions, occasional brake noise
might be heard with the vehicle's
performance braking system. This
brake system is designed for
superior fade resistance and
consistent operation using high
performance brake pads. Brake
noise is normal and does not affect
system performance. See Braking
on page 9‑4. Car Wash Guidelines
Automatic car washes are not
recommended for this vehicle.
Some car washes cause damage to
the vehicle, the wheels, and the
convertible top, if the vehicle is
so equipped.
If you drive the vehicle through an
automatic car wash that does not
have enough clearance for the
undercarriage and/or wide rear tires
and wheels, you could damage the
vehicle. Verify with the manager of
the car wash that the vehicle will fit
before entering the car wash or use
a touchless car wash. See
“Washing
Your Vehicle” underExterior Care
on page 10‑86.Engine Oil Life System
The engine oil life system calculates
engine oil life based on vehicle use
and displays a DIC message when
it is necessary to change the engine
oil and filter. The oil life system
should be reset to 100% only
following an oil change.
Resetting the Oil Life System
1. Press the TRIP button so the OIL LIFE percentage is
displayed.
2. Press RESET and hold for two seconds. OIL LIFE
REMAINING 100% will appear.
See Engine Oil Life System on
page 10‑22.

Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-3
The telescopic steering column
position can be stored with your
memory settings. See“Memory
Seat, Mirrors, and Steering Wheel”
under Power Seat Adjustment on
page 3‑3 for more information.
Steering Wheel Controls
For vehicles with steering wheel
controls, some audio controls can
be adjusted at the steering wheel.
b/g(Mute/Push to Talk): Press
to silence the vehicle speakers only.
Press again to turn the sound on.
For vehicles with Bluetooth or
OnStar
®systems press and holdb /gfor longer than two seconds
to interact with those systems.
See Bluetooth on page 7‑18 and
OnStar Overview on page 14‑1 for
more information.
c(Phone On Hook): Press to
reject an incoming call, or end a
current call.
w x(Next/Previous): Press to
change radio stations or select
tracks on a CD.
To change radio stations:
.Pressworxto go to the next
or to the previous radio station
and stay there. The radio only
seeks stations with a strong
signal that are in the
selected band.
.Press and holdworxfor
two seconds until SCAN displays
and a beep sounds to scan
stations. The radio goes to a
station, plays for a few seconds,
then goes to the next station.
Press again to stop scanning.
.Press and holdworxfor
four seconds until PRESET
SCAN displays and a beep
sounds to scan presets. The
radio goes to a station, plays for
a few seconds, then goes to the
next station. Press again to
stop scanning.
To select tracks on a CD:
.Pressworxto go to the next
or to the previous track when a
CD is playing.
.Press and holdworxfor
more than two seconds to scan
the current CD. The CD goes to
the next track, plays the first
10 seconds, then goes to the
next track. Press again to
stop scanning.

Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2012
5-4 Instruments and Controls
.Press and holdworxfor
more than four seconds to scan
all of the CDs loaded. The CD
goes to the next CD, plays the
first 10 seconds of each track,
then goes to the next CD.
Press again to stop scanning.
+
e−e(Volume): Press to
increase or to decrease the radio
volume.
1 to 6 (Preset Pushbuttons):
Press to play stations that are
programmed on the radio preset
pushbuttons.
Horn
Press near or on the horn symbols
on the steering wheel pad to sound
the horn.
Windshield Wiper/Washer
The windshield wiper/washer lever
is located on the right side of the
steering column.
Move the lever to the following
positions:
1(High Speed): Use for fast
wipes.
6(Low Speed): Use for
slow wipes.
3(Delay): Use to set a delay
between wipes.
x(Delay Adjustment): Use for a
delayed wiping cycle. Turn the
intermittent adjust band down for a
longer delay or up for a shorter
delay. The wiper speed can only be
manually adjusted when the lever is
in this position.
9(Off): Use to turn off the
windshield wipers.
8(Mist): Move all the way down
to mist and release for a single
wiping cycle. The windshield wipers
will stop after one wipe. Hold the
band on mist longer for more wipes.
Heavy snow or ice can overload the
wipers. If this occurs, a circuit
breaker will stop the wipers until the
motor cools. Clear all ice and snow
from the wiper blades before using
them. If frozen to the windshield,
carefully loosen them or thaw them.
Damaged wiper blades should be
replaced. See Wiper Blade
Replacement on page 10‑47.

Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-5
Windshield Washer
Press and hold the button at the end
of the lever to spray washer fluid on
the windshield. The washer will
spray until the button is released.
The wipers will continue to clear the
window for about six seconds after
the button is released and then stop
or return to your preset speed.
{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.
If the fluid in the windshield washer
fluid reservoir is low, the message
CHECK WASHER FLUID will
appear on the Driver Information
Center (DIC) display. It will take
15 seconds after the bottle is refilled
for this message to turn off. For information on the correct
washer fluid to use, see
Washer
Fluid on page 10‑38 and
Recommended Fluids and
Lubricants on page 11‑12.
Compass
Compass Operation
With the compass feature on, each
time the vehicle is started, the
compass will take a few seconds to
adjust and display the current
compass heading. For example,
NE is displayed for north-east.
Compass Calibration
PressPonce to turn the compass
display on or off.
If after several seconds the display
does not show a compass heading,
there may be a strong magnetic
field interfering with the compass.
Interference can be caused by a
magnetic antenna mount, note pad
holder, or similar object. If the letter C or CAL appears in the
compass window, the compass
needs calibration.
Depending on the mirror, in order
to calibrate, CAL must be displayed
in the mirror compass windows.
If CAL is not displayed, press
Pfor
several seconds or until CAL is
displayed.
If the compass has map lamps, it
can be placed in calibration mode
by pressing and holding the left map
light button until a C appears on the
compass display.
The mirror compass can be
calibrated by driving the vehicle in
circles at 8 km/h (5 mph) or less until
the display reads a direction.

Black plate (13,1)Chevrolet Corvette Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-13
Fuel Gauge
The fuel gauge shows how much
fuel the vehicle has left while the
engine is on.
An arrow on the fuel gauge
indicates the side of the vehicle the
fuel door is on.
When the needle approaches the
low fuel symbol, a chime sounds
and LOW FUEL appears on the
Driver Information Center (DIC)
display. There is still a little fuel left,
but the vehicle's fuel tank should
be filled soon.Press the RESET button to
acknowledge a DIC message(s).
Pressing the RESET button also
turns off a DIC message but the
LOW FUEL message comes on
again in 10 minutes if fuel is not
added to the vehicle.
Here are five things that some
owners ask about. All these things
are normal and do not indicate
that anything is wrong with the
fuel gauge.
.At the service station, the gas
pump shuts off before the gauge
reads the full.
.It takes a little more or less fuel
to fill up than the gauge
indicated. For example, the
gauge may have indicated half
full, but it took a little more or
less than half of the tank's
capacity to fill the tank.
.The gauge pointer may move
while cornering, braking or
speeding up.
.The gauge may not indicate the
tank is empty when the ignition
is turned off.
.The gauge reading may change
slightly within the first several
minutes after starting the
vehicle.
See “DIC Operation and Displays”
in Driver Information Center (DIC)
on page 5‑28 for more information.