
Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-3
Steering Wheel Controls
Vehicles with audio steering wheel
controls could differ depending on
the vehicle's options. Some audio
controls can be adjusted at the
steering wheel.
w(Next):Press to go to the next
radio station stored as a favorite,
or the next track if a CD is playing.
c/x(Previous/End): Press to
go to the previous radio station
stored as a favorite, go to the next
track if a CD is playing, reject an
incoming call, or end a current call.
b/g(Mute/Push to Talk): Press
to silence the vehicle speakers only.
Press again to turn the sound on.
For vehicles with OnStar
®or
Bluetooth®systems, press and holdb/gfor longer than two seconds to
interact with those systems. See
OnStar Overview on page 14‑1 and
Bluetooth on page 7‑20 for more
information. SRCE (Source):
Press to choose
between the radio (AM, FM, XM),
CD, and auxiliary input jack.
+
e−e(Volume): Press to
increase or to decrease the radio
volume.
¨(Seek): Press to go to the next
radio station while in AM, FM,
or XM. Press
¨to go to the next
track or chapter while sourced to
the CD.
Horn
Press near or on the horn symbols
on the steering wheel pad to sound
the horn.

Black plate (18,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
5-18 Instruments and Controls
If one or more of these conditions
occurs, change the fuel brand used.
It will require at least one full tank of
the proper fuel to turn the light off.
SeeRecommended Fuel on
page 9‑37.
If none of the above have made the
light turn off, your dealer can check
the vehicle. The dealer has the
proper test equipment and
diagnostic tools to fix any
mechanical or electrical problems
that might have developed.
Emissions Inspection and
Maintenance Programs
Some local governments may have
programs to inspect the on-vehicle
emission control equipment. For the
inspection, the emission system test
equipment is connected to the
vehicle’s Data Link
Connector (DLC).
The DLC is under the instrument
panel to the left of the steering
wheel. See your dealer if assistance
is needed.
The vehicle may not pass
inspection if:
.The malfunction indicator lamp is
on with the engine running, or if
the light does not come on when
the ignition is turned to ON/RUN
while the engine is off.
.The OBD II (On-Board
Diagnostics) system determines
that critical emission control
systems have not been
completely diagnosed. The
vehicle would be considered not
ready for inspection. This can
happen if the 12-volt battery has
recently been replaced or run
down. The diagnostic system is
designed to evaluate critical
emission control systems during
normal driving. This can take
several days of routine driving.
If this has been done and the
vehicle still does not pass the
inspection for lack of OBD II
system readiness, your dealer
can prepare the vehicle for
inspection.

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Lighting 6-1
Lighting
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . 6-1
Headlamp High/Low-BeamChanger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)/Automatic Headlamp
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . 6-4
Turn and Lane-Change Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel Illumination Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Courtesy Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Reading Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Lighting Features
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Delayed Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . 6-7
Delayed Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Parade Dimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Battery Load Management . . . . 6-8
Battery Power Protection . . . . . . 6-8
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls
The exterior lamps control is located
on the instrument panel to the left of
the steering wheel.
It controls the following systems:
.Headlamps
.Taillamps
.Parking Lamps
.License Plate Lamps
.Instrument Panel Lights
.Fog Lamps (If Equipped)

Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Lighting 6-5
Fog Lamps
#(Fog Lamps):For vehicles with
fog lamps, the button is located on
the exterior lamps control. The
exterior lamps control is located on
the instrument panel to the left of
the steering column. The ignition must be in the ON/RUN
position for the fog lamps to
come on.
Press
#to turn the fog lamps on or
off. A light will come on in the
instrument panel cluster.
When the headlamps are changed
to high beam, the fog lamps also
go off.
Some localities have laws that
require the headlamps to be on
along with the fog lamps.
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel
Illumination Control
D(Instrument Panel
Brightness): This knob is located
on the instrument panel to the left of
the steering wheel. Push the knob in
all the way until it extends out and
then turn the knob clockwise or
counterclockwise to brighten or dim
the lights. Push the knob back in
when finished.

Black plate (7,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Infotainment System 7-7
.To scan preset stations in the
selected band, press and hold
©SEEK for four seconds until a
double beep sounds. The radio
goes to a stored preset, plays for
a few seconds, then goes to
the next stored preset. Press
©SEEK again to stop scanning
preset stations.
¨SEEK: Press to seek or scan
stations with a strong signal in the
selected band.
.To seek stations, press and
release
¨SEEK to go to the
next station and stay there.
.To scan stations, press and hold¨SEEK for a few seconds until
the radio beeps once. The radio
goes to a station, plays for a
few seconds, then goes to the
next station. Press
¨SEEK
again to stop scanning.
.To scan preset stations in the
selected band, press and hold
¨SEEK for four seconds until a
double beep sounds. The radio
goes to a stored preset, plays
for a few seconds, then goes
to the next stored preset. Press
¨SEEK again to stop scanning
preset stations.
Storing Radio Stations
Drivers are encouraged to store
radio station while the vehicle is
parked. See Defensive Driving on
page 9‑3. Tune to stored radio
stations using the presets, favorites
button, and steering wheel controls,
if the vehicle has this feature.
Radios that have a FAV button store
radio stations as favorites, up to
36 stations can be programmed as
favorites using the 6 softkeys below
the radio station frequency tabs and
by using the FAV button. Press the
FAV button to go through up to
6 pages of favorites, each having
6 favorite stations available per page. Each page of favorites can
contain any combination of AM, FM,
or XM, if equipped, stations.
Radios that do not have a FAV
button store radio stations as
presets, up to 18 stations (6 FM1,
6 FM2, and 6 AM), can be
programmed on the 6 numbered
pushbuttons.
Storing a Radio Station as a
Preset, Radio with CD (Base)
Radios that have numbered
pushbuttons store radio stations as
presets.
Up to 18 stations (6 FM1, 6 FM2,
and 6 AM), can be programmed on
the six numbered buttons.
To store preset stations:
1. Tune to a radio station.
2. Press and hold one of the
6 numbered pushbuttons for
3 seconds until a beep sounds.
3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 to store additional radio stations.

Black plate (10,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
7-10 Infotainment System
3. To exit the category searchmode, press the FAV button or
BAND button to display the
favorites again.
Adding and Removing Categories
Categories cannot be added or
removed while the vehicle is moving
faster than 8 km/h (5 mph).
To add or remove a category:
1. Press the MENU button.
2. Press the softkey located below the XM CAT tab.
3. Turn the
fknob to display the
category you want to add or
remove.
4. Press the softkey located under the Add or Remove tab.
To restore all removed
categories, press the softkey
under the Restore All tab.
5. Repeat the steps to remove more categories.
Storing XM Channels
Drivers are encouraged to store
radio station while the vehicle is
parked. See Defensive Driving on
page 9‑3. Tune to stored radio
stations using the presets, favorites
button, and steering wheel controls,
if the vehicle has this feature.
Up to 36 stations can be
programmed as favorites using the
6 softkeys below the radio station
frequency tabs and by using the
FAV button. Press the FAV button to
go through up to 6 pages of
favorites, each having 6 favorite
stations available per page. Each
page of favorites can contain any
combination of AM, FM, or XM,
if equipped, stations.
Storing an XM Channel as a
Favorite
To store a station as a favorite:
1. Tune to an XM channel.
2. Press the FAV button to display the page where the station will
be stored. 3. Press and hold one of the
6 softkeys until a beep sounds.
4. Repeat Steps 1 through 3 to store additional radio stations.
The number of favorites pages can
be set up using the MENU button.
To set up the number of favorites
pages:
1. Press the MENU button.
2. Press the softkey located below the FAV 1-6 tab.
3. Select the number of favorites pages by pressing the softkey
located below the displayed
page numbers.
4. Press the FAV button, or let the menu time out, to return to the
original main radio screen
showing the radio station
frequency tabs and to begin the
process of programming
favorites.

Black plate (21,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Infotainment System 7-21
Voice Recognition
The Bluetooth system uses voice
recognition to interpret voice
commands to dial phone numbers
and name tags.
For additional information, say
“Help”while you are in a voice
recognition menu.
Noise: Keep interior noise levels to
a minimum. The system may not
recognize voice commands if there
is too much background noise.
When to Speak: A short tone
sounds after the system responds
indicating when it is waiting for a
voice command. Wait until the tone
and then speak.
How to Speak: Speak clearly in a
calm and natural voice.
Audio System
When using the in‐vehicle Bluetooth
system, sound comes through the
vehicle's front audio system
speakers and overrides the audio
system. Use the audio system
volume knob, during a call, to
change the volume level. The
adjusted volume level remains in
memory for later calls. To prevent
missed calls, a minimum volume
level is used if the volume is turned
down too low.
Bluetooth Controls
Use the buttons located on the
steering wheel to operate the in‐
vehicle Bluetooth system. See
Steering Wheel Controls on
page 5‑3 for more information.
b/g(Push To Talk): Press to
answer incoming calls, confirm
system information, and start
speech recognition.
c/x(Phone On Hook): Press
to end a call, reject a call, or cancel
an operation.
Pairing
A Bluetooth enabled cell phone
must be paired to the Bluetooth
system and then connected to the
vehicle before it can be used. See
the cell phone manufacturer's user
guide for Bluetooth functions before
pairing the cell phone. If a Bluetooth
phone is not connected, calls will be
made using OnStar Hands‐Free
Calling, if equipped. See OnStar
Overview on page 14‑1 for more
information.
Pairing Information
.A Bluetooth phone with MP3
capability cannot be paired to
the vehicle as a phone and an
MP3 player at the same time.
.Up to five cell phones can be
paired to the Bluetooth system.
.The pairing process is disabled
when the vehicle is moving.

Black plate (2,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
8-2 Climate Controls
Single Zone
A. Fan Control
B. Outside Air
C. Temperature Control
D. Recirculation E. Air Delivery Mode Control
F. Air Conditioning
G. Rear Window DefoggerTemperature Control:
For dual
zone, turn the thumbwheels up or
down to increase or decrease the
temperature on the driver or the
passenger side of the vehicle. For
single zone, turn the knob clockwise
or counterclockwise to increase or
decrease the temperature.
9(Fan Control): Turn clockwise
or counterclockwise to increase or
decrease the fan speed. Positioning
the knob between two modes can
select a combination of those
modes.
If the airflow seems low when the
fan is at the highest setting, the
passenger compartment air filter
may need to be replaced. There will
be some airflow noticeable from the
various outlets when driving, even
with the fan in the off position. For
more information, see Passenger
Compartment Air Filter on page 8‑5
and Maintenance Schedule on
page 11‑3.