Black plate (7,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-7
Manual Lumbar
Move the lever up or down to
increase or decrease lumbar
support.
SeeLumbar Adjustment on
page 3‑4 for more information.
Second Row Seats
On vehicles with the flip and fold
feature, the bottom seat cushions
can be flipped forward and the
seatback folded down to create an
extended cargo area. The vehicle also has an under seat
storage area.
See
Rear Seats (Split Folding) on
page 3‑8 for more information.
Head Restraint
Adjustment
Do not drive until the head restraints
for all occupants are installed and
adjusted properly.
To achieve a comfortable seating
position, change the seatback
recline angle as little as necessary
while keeping the seat and the head
restraint height in the proper
position.
For more information see Head
Restraints on page 3‑2 andSeat
Adjustment on page 3‑3.
Safety Belts
Refer to the following sections for
important information on how to use
safety belts properly.
.Safety Belts on page 3‑10.
.How to Wear Safety Belts
Properly on page 3‑11.
.Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 3‑13.
.Lap Belt on page 3‑18.
.Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH System) on
page 3‑45.
Black plate (10,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
2-10 Keys, Doors, and Windows
Doors
Trunk
{WARNING
Exhaust gases can enter the
vehicle if it is driven with the
liftgate, trunk/hatch open, or with
any objects that pass through the
seal between the body and the
trunk/hatch or liftgate. Engine
exhaust contains Carbon
Monoxide (CO) which cannot be
seen or smelled. It can cause
unconsciousness and even death.
If the vehicle must be driven with
the liftgate, or trunk/hatch open:
.Close all of the windows.
.Fully open the air outlets on
or under the instrument
panel.(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
.Adjust the Climate Control
system to a setting that
brings in only outside air and
set the fan speed to the
highest setting. See Climate
Control System in the Index.
.If the vehicle is equipped with
a power liftgate, disable the
power liftgate function.
For more information about
carbon monoxide, see Engine
Exhaust on page 9‑24.
Trunk Release
To open the trunk from the outside,
press
Von the RKE transmitter.
See Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
System Operation on page 2‑3.
Or, use the key in the lock cylinder,
if equipped.
Remote Trunk Release
To open the trunk from the inside,
press
V. See Trunk on page 2‑10.
The trunk can also be opened by
lowering the rear seat and pulling
the emergency trunk release handle
located inside the trunk. See Rear
Seats (Split Folding) on page 3‑8
and “Emergency Trunk Release
Handle” following.
Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-1
Seats and
Restraints
Head Restraints
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Center Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Power Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . 3-4
Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Heated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7
Rear Seats
Rear Seats (Split Folding) . . . . . 3-8
Safety Belts
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10
How to Wear Safety BeltsProperly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-17
Lap Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-18
Safety Belt Extender . . . . . . . . . 3-19 Safety System Check . . . . . . . . 3-19
Safety Belt Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19
Replacing Safety Belt System
Parts after a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-20
Airbag System
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-20
Where Are the Airbags? . . . . . 3-23
When Should an AirbagInflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-24
What Makes an Airbag Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-26
How Does an Airbag Restrain? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-26
What Will You See after an Airbag Inflates? . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-26
Passenger Sensing
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-28
Servicing the Airbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-33
Adding Equipment to the Airbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . 3-34
Airbag System Check . . . . . . . . 3-35
Replacing Airbag System Parts after a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-35
Child Restraints
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-36
Infants and YoungChildren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-38
Child Restraint Systems . . . . . 3-41
Where to Put the Restraint . . . 3-43
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-45
Replacing LATCH System Parts After a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-51
Securing Child Restraints (Rear Seat Position) . . . . . . . . 3-51
Securing Child Restraints (Center Front Seat
Position) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-53
Securing Child Restraints (Right Front Seat
Position) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-53
Black plate (8,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
3-8 Seats and Restraints
Press the button once for the
highest setting. With each press of
the button, the heated seat will
change to the next lower setting,
and then to the off setting. The
lights indicate two for the highest
setting and one for the lowest.
The passenger seat may take
longer to heat up.
The heated seat are canceled each
time the ignition is turned off. To use
this feature after restarting the
vehicle, press the desired button
again.Rear Seats
Rear Seats (Split Folding)
Flip and Fold Feature
On vehicles with this feature, the
seat cushions flip forward and the
seatbacks fold down to create an
extended flat cargo area.
To flip the seat cushion and fold the
seatback:
1. Make sure the front seats arenot reclined. The seat cushion
will not flip forward completely if
the front seats are reclined.
2. Flip the seat cushion forward bypulling up on the tab in the
center of the seat cushion where
the seatback meets the seat
cushion.
Black plate (48,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
3-48 Seats and Restraints
Securing a Child Restraint
Designed for the LATCH
System
{WARNING
If a LATCH-type child restraint is
not attached to anchors, the child
restraint will not be able to protect
the child correctly. In a crash, the
child could be seriously injured or
killed. Install a LATCH-type child
restraint properly using the
anchors, or use the vehicle safety
belts to secure the restraint,
following the instructions that
came with the child restraint and
the instructions in this manual.
{WARNING
Do not attach more than one child
restraint to a single anchor.
Attaching more than one child(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
restraint to a single anchor could
cause the anchor or attachment
to come loose or even break
during a crash. A child or others
could be injured. To reduce the
risk of serious or fatal injuries
during a crash, attach only one
child restraint per anchor.
{WARNING
Children can be seriously injured
or strangled if a shoulder belt is
wrapped around their neck and
the safety belt continues to
tighten. Buckle any unused safety
belts behind the child restraint so
children cannot reach them. Pull
the shoulder belt all the way out
of the retractor to set the lock,
if the vehicle has one, after the
child restraint has been installed. Notice:
Do not let the LATCH
attachments rub against the
vehicle’ s safety belts. This may
damage these parts. If necessary,
move buckled safety belts to
avoid rubbing the LATCH
attachments.
Do not fold the empty rear seat
with a safety belt buckled. This
could damage the safety belt or
the seat. Unbuckle and return the
safety belt to its stowed position,
before folding the seat.
1. Attach and tighten the lower attachments to the lower
anchors. If the child restraint
does not have lower
attachments or the desired
seating position does not have
lower anchors, secure the child
restraint with the top tether and
the safety belts. Refer to your
child restraint manufacturer
instructions and the instructions
in this manual.
Black plate (2,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
4-2 Storage
Rear Storage
For vehicles with a split folding rear
seat, there are two storage areas
underneath. Pull the tab(s) located
by the passenger side safety belt
buckle and the driver side rear seat
to access the storage areas. See
Rear Seats (Split Folding) on
page 3‑8for more information.
Center Console Storage
For vehicles with a front center
console storage area, open it by
pulling up on the latch located in the
front of the console cover. There
may be a removable tray inside.
Additional Storage
Features
Convenience Net
For vehicles with a convenience net,
it is located in the rear. Use it to
store small loads as far forward as
possible. The net should not be
used to store heavy loads.
Black plate (15,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Driving and Operating 9-15
Notice :Overloading the
vehicle may cause damage.
Repairs would not be covered
by the vehicle warranty. Do
not overload the vehicle.
If things like suitcases, tools,
packages, or anything else are
put inside the vehicle, they will
go as fast as the vehicle goes.
If you have to stop or turn
quickly, or if there is a crash,
they will keep going.{WARNING
Things inside the vehicle can
strike and injure people in a
sudden stop or turn, or in a
crash.
.Put things in the cargo
area of the vehicle. In the
cargo area, put them as
far forward as possible.
Try to spread the weight
evenly.
.Never stack heavier
things, like suitcases,
inside the vehicle so that
some of them are above
the tops of the seats.
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
.Do not leave an
unsecured child restraint
in the vehicle.
.Secure loose items in the
vehicle.
.Do not leave a seat folded
down unless needed.