Page 1 of 430

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Express Owner Manual - 2012
2012 Chevrolet Express Owner ManualM
In Brief. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Vehicle Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
Performance and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Keys, Doors, and Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1
Keys and Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Exterior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Interior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16 Seats and Restraints
. . . . . . . . . 3-1
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-18
Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-38
Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . 4-1
Instruments and Controls . . . . 5-1
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Information Displays . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-34
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 5-42 Lighting
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Lighting Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-13
Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-24
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . 8-1
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-8
Page 9 of 430

Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Express Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-3
A.Air Vents on page 8‑8.
B. Driver Information Center (DIC) Buttons. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑28.
C. Turn and Lane‐Change Lever. See Turn and Lane-Change
Signals on page 6‑5.
Windshield Wiper/Washer on
page 5‑5.
D. Hazard Warning Flashers on
page 6‑5 (Out of View).
E. Instrument Cluster on
page 5‑12.
F. Shift Lever. See Starting the
Engine on page 9‑18.
Manual Mode on page 9‑31
(If Equipped).
G. Climate Control Systems on
page 8‑1.
H. Infotainment on page 7‑1.
I. Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6‑1. J.
Instrument Panel Illumination
Control on page 6‑6.
Dome Lamp Override. See
Dome Lamps on page 6‑6.
K. Cruise Control on page 9‑37
(If Equipped).
Fast Idle System (If Equipped).
See the Duramax diesel
supplement for more
information.
L. Steering Wheel Adjustment on
page 5‑2 (If Equipped).
M. Data Link Connector (DLC) (Out of View). See Malfunction
Indicator Lamp on page 5‑21.
N. Horn on page 5‑4.
O. Steering Wheel Controls on
page 5‑2 (If Equipped).
P. Tow/Haul Mode Button. See “Tow/Haul Mode” underTowing
Equipment on page 9‑55.
Q. Power Outlets on page 5‑10. R.
StabiliTrak®System on
page 9‑35 (If Equipped).
S. Passenger Airbag On‐Off Switch (If Equipped). See
Airbag On-Off Switch on
page 3‑26.
T. Front Storage on page 4‑1
(If Equipped).
U. Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 5‑20
(If Equipped).
OnStar
®System Button
(If Equipped). See OnStar
Overview on page 14‑1.
V. Rear Heating System on
page 8‑5 (If Equipped).
W. USB Port (If Equipped). See Auxiliary Devices on page 7‑19.
Page 22 of 430
Black plate (16,1)Chevrolet Express Owner Manual - 2012
1-16 In Brief
Vehicle Features
Radio(s)
Radio with CD (MP3)
O:Press to turn the system on
and off. Turn to increase or
decrease the volume. BAND:
Press to choose between
FM1, FM2, AM, and XM™.
f: Select radio stations.
©SEEK or¨SEEK: Seek or scan
stations.
4: Press to switch the display
between the radio station frequency
and the time. While the ignition is
off, press this button to display the
time. Press to display additional text
information related to the current
FM-RDS station or MP3 song.
A choice of additional information
such as Channel, Song, Artist,
and CAT (category) can display.
Continue pressing to highlight the
desired tab, or press the softkey
located under any one of the tabs
and the information about that
tab displays.
For more information about these
and other radio features, see
Infotainment on page 7‑1.
Page 169 of 430

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Express Owner Manual - 2012
Infotainment System 7-1
Infotainment
System
Introduction
Infotainment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Theft-Deterrent Feature . . . . . . . 7-2
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3
Radio
AM-FM Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-10
Radio Reception . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-12
Fixed Mast Antenna(Multi-Band) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-12
Fixed Mast Antenna (Care) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-12
Audio Players
CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-13
Auxiliary Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-19
Phone
Bluetooth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-24
Introduction
Infotainment
If the vehicle came without a radio,
the wiring provisions for a radio and
an antenna were installed at the
assembly plant, so that if you want,
a radio can be installed at the
dealer.
Determine which radio the vehicle
has and read the following pages to
become familiar with its features.
{WARNING
Taking your eyes off the road for
extended periods could cause a
crash resulting in injury or death
to you or others. Do not give
extended attention to
entertainment tasks while driving.
This system provides access to
many audio and non‐audio listings.
Page 170 of 430

Black plate (2,1)Chevrolet Express Owner Manual - 2012
7-2 Infotainment System
To minimize taking your eyes off the
road while driving, do the following
while the vehicle is parked:
.Become familiar with the
operation and controls of the
audio system.
.Set up the tone, speaker
adjustments, and preset radio
stations.
For more information, see Defensive
Driving on page 9‑3.
Notice: Contact your dealer
before adding any equipment.
Adding audio or communication
equipment could interfere with
the operation of the engine, radio,
or other systems, and could
damage them. Follow federal
rules covering mobile radio and
telephone equipment. Notice:
The chime signals related
to safety belts, parking brake, and
other functions of the vehicle
operate through the radio/
entertainment system. If that
equipment is replaced or
additional equipment is added to
the vehicle, the chimes may not
work. Make sure that replacement
or additional equipment is
compatible with the vehicle
before installing it. See
Accessories and Modifications on
page 10‑3.
The vehicle has Retained
Accessory Power (RAP). With RAP,
the audio system can be played
even after the ignition is turned off.
See Retained Accessory Power
(RAP) on page 9‑21 for more
information.
Theft-Deterrent Feature
The theft-deterrent feature works by
learning a portion of the Vehicle
Identification Number (VIN) to the
infotainment system. The
infotainment system does not
operate if it is stolen or moved to a
different vehicle.
Page 171 of 430
Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Express Owner Manual - 2012
Infotainment System 7-3
Operation
AM-FM Radio
Page 172 of 430
Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Express Owner Manual - 2012
7-4 Infotainment System
Radio with CD (MP3) Shown; Radio with USB and CD (MP3) and Radiowith CD Similar
The vehicle has one of these radios
as its audio system.
Using the Radio
O(Power/Volume): Press to turn
the system on and off.
Turn clockwise or counterclockwise
to increase or decrease the volume.
4(Information): Press to switch
the display between the radio
station frequency and the time.
While the ignition is off, press this
button to display the time. Press to
display additional text information
related to the current FM-RDS
station or MP3 song. A choice of
additional information such as
Channel, Song, Artist, and CAT
(category) can display. Continue
pressing to highlight the desired tab,
or press the softkey located under
any one of the tabs and the
information about that tab displays.
Page 173 of 430

Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Express Owner Manual - 2012
Infotainment System 7-5
Speed Compensated
Volume (SCV):Radios with
SCV automatically adjust the radio
volume to compensate for road and
wind noise as the vehicle speed
changes while driving, so that the
volume level stays consistent.
To activate SCV:
1. Set the radio volume to the desired level.
2. Press the MENU button to display the radio setup menu.
3. Press the softkey under the AUTO VOLUM (automatic
volume) tab on the radio display. 4. Press the softkey under the
desired Speed Compensated
Volume setting (OFF, Low, Med,
or High) to select the level of
radio volume compensation.
The display times out after
approximately 10 seconds. Each
higher setting allows for more
radio volume compensation at
faster vehicle speeds.Setting the Tone (Bass/Treble)
(AM-FM Radio and AM-FM
Radio with CD)
To adjust the bass or treble:
1. Press the
fknob until Bass or
Treble displays.
2. To adjust the setting, do one of the following:
.Turn thefknob.
.Press either¨SEEK,
or
©SEEK.
EQ (Equalization): Press this
button to choose bass and treble
equalization settings designed for
different types of music. Selecting
MANUAL, or changing bass or
treble, returns the EQ to the manual
bass and treble settings.
Unique EQ settings can be saved
for each source.