Black plate (13,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-13
Vehicle Features
Radio(s)
Radio with CD (Base)
O:Press to turn the system on
and off. Turn to increase or
decrease the volume. BAND:
Press to choose between
FM1, FM2, AM, or XM™
(if equipped) on the Radio with
CD (Base).
f: Select radio stations.
© ¨:Seek or scan stations.
4: For vehicles with RDS, press to
display additional text information
related to the current FM-RDS or
XM station; or CD, MP3, or WMA
song. If information is available
during XM or CD playback, the song
title information displays on the top
line of the display and artist
information displays on the bottom
line. When information is not
available, “No Info”displays.
For more information about these
and other radio features, see
Infotainment on page 7‑1.
Storing a Favorite Station
Depending on which radio the
vehicle has, radio stations are
stored as either favorites or presets.
Black plate (18,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
1-18 In Brief
During cooler conditions, the low tire
pressure warning light may appear
when the vehicle is first started and
then turn off. This may be an early
indicator that the tire pressures are
getting low and the tires need to be
inflated to the proper pressure.
The TPMS does not replace normal
monthly tire maintenance. It is the
driver’s responsibility to maintain
correct tire pressures.
See Tire Pressure Monitor System
on page 10‑43.
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. Display OIL LIFE REMAINING
on the DIC.
2. Press and hold the SET/RESET button on the DIC for more than
five seconds. The oil life will
change to 100%.
See Engine Oil Life System on
page 10‑10.
Fuel E85 (85% Ethanol)
Vehicles that have a FlexFuel badge
and a yellow fuel cap can use either
unleaded gasoline or ethanol fuel
containing up to 85% ethanol (E85).
See Fuel E85 (85% Ethanol) on
page 9‑39. For all other vehicles,
use only the unleaded gasoline
described under Recommended
Fuel on page 9‑37.
Driving for Better Fuel
Economy
Driving habits can affect fuel
mileage. Here are some driving tips
to get the best fuel economy
possible.
.Avoid fast starts and accelerate
smoothly.
.Brake gradually and avoid
abrupt stops.
.Avoid idling the engine for long
periods of time.
.When road and weather
conditions are appropriate, use
cruise control.
.Always follow posted speed
limits or drive more slowly when
conditions require.
Black plate (8,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
2-8 Keys, Doors, and Windows
Power Door Locks
A power door lock switch is located
on both front doors next to the door
handle.
Press the top of the switch to unlock
all doors or press the bottom of the
switch to lock all doors.
If the vehicle has the optional
content theft-deterrent system and it
is armed, the power door lock
switches will be disabled. You must
use the RKE transmitter or the keyto unlock the doors when the
system is armed. See
Anti-theft
Alarm System on page 2‑11.
Delayed Locking
This feature allows the driver to
delay the actual locking of the
doors. When the driver power door
lock switch is pressed with the key
removed from the ignition, and the
driver door open, a chime will sound
three times to signal that the
delayed locking system is active.
When all doors have been closed,
the doors will lock automatically
after several seconds. If any door is
opened before this, the timer will
reset itself once all the doors have
been closed again.
Pressing the driver or passenger
power door lock switch again or the
RKE transmitter button will override
this feature.
Personal Choice Programming
The delayed locking feature can be
turned on or off, using the Driver
Information Center (DIC) to program
this feature. See “DELAY DOOR
LOCK” underVehicle
Personalization on page 5‑37.
Automatic Door Locks
The doors will automatically lock
when the shift lever is moved out of
P (Park). The automatic door locking
feature cannot be disabled.
Programmable Automatic Door
Unlock
The vehicle is programmed so that
when the shift lever is moved into
P (Park) all doors will unlock.
With the vehicle stopped and the
engine running, door unlocking can
be programmed through prompts
displayed on the Driver Information
Center (DIC). These prompts allow
the driver to choose various unlock
Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
5-4 Instruments and Controls
Windshield Wiper/Washer
Turn the band with the wiper symbol
to control the windshield wipers.
8(Mist):Single wipe, turn to8,
then release. Several wipes, hold
the band on
8longer.
9(Off): Turns the windshield
wipers off.
6(Adjustable Interval Wipes):
Turn the band up for more frequent
wipes or down for less frequent
wipes.
6(Low Speed): Slow
wipes.
?(High Speed): Fast wipes.
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. See Wiper
Blade Replacement on page 10‑24.
Heavy snow or ice can overload the
wiper motor. A circuit breaker will
stop the motor until it cools down.
Windshield Washer
Push the paddleLat the top of the
lever to spray washer fluid on the
windshield. The wipers run for
several sweeps and then either stop
or return to the preset speed. The
ignition key must be in ACC/
ACCESSORY or ON/RUN for this to
work. See Washer Fluid on
page 10‑18.
{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.
When the vehicle is low on washer
fluid, the WASHER FLUID LOW
ADD FLUID displays in the Driver
Information Center (DIC) for
60 seconds. When the ignition is
turned off, this message displays
again for three seconds to remind
you that the fluid level is low.
Until the fluid reservoir is refilled,
every time the vehicle is started, the
WASHER FLUID LOW ADD FLUID
message displays in the Driver
Information Center (DIC) for
60 seconds. See Washer Fluid
Messages on page 5‑37.
Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-5
Compass
This vehicle may have a compass in
the Driver Information Center (DIC).
Compass Zone
Your dealer will set the correct zone
for your location.
Under certain circumstances, such
as during a long distance
cross-country trip or moving to a
new state or province, it will be
necessary to compensate for
compass variance by resetting the
zone through the DIC if the zone is
not set correctly.
Compass variance is the difference
between the earth's magnetic north
and true geographic north. If the
compass is not set to the zone
where you live, the compass may
give false readings. The compass
must be set to the variance zone in
which the vehicle is traveling.To adjust for compass variance, use
the following procedure:
Compass Variance (Zone)
Procedure
1. Do not set the compass zone
when the vehicle is moving. Only
set it when the vehicle is in
P (Park).
Press
Tuntil PRESSVTO
CHANGE COMPASS ZONE
displays.
2. Find the vehicle's current location and variance zone
number on the map. Zones 1 through 15 are
available.
3. Press
Vto scroll through and
select the appropriate
variance zone.
4. Press
3until the vehicle
heading, for example, N for
North, is displayed in the DIC.
5. If calibration is necessary, calibrate the compass. See
“Compass Calibration
Procedure” following.
Compass Calibration
The compass can be manually
calibrated. Only calibrate the
compass in a magnetically clean
and safe location, such as an open
parking lot, where driving the
vehicle in circles is not a danger.
It is suggested to calibrate away
from tall buildings, utility wires,
manhole covers, or other industrial
structures, if possible.
Black plate (20,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
5-20 Instruments and Controls
Antilock Brake System
(ABS) Warning Light
The Antilock Brake System (ABS)
light comes on briefly when the
engine is started.
If the light does not come on, have it
fixed so it will be ready to warn if
there is a problem.
If the ABS light stays on, turn the
ignition off. If the light comes on
while driving, stop as soon as it is
safely possible and turn the ignition
off. A chime may also sound when
the light comes on steady. Then
start the engine again to reset the
system. If the ABS light stays on,
or comes on again while driving, the
vehicle needs service. If the regular
brake system warning light is not
on, the vehicle still has brakes, butnot antilock brakes. If the regular
brake system warning light is also
on, the vehicle does not have
antilock brakes and there is a
problem with the regular brakes.
See
Brake System Warning Light on
page 5‑19.
See Driver Information Center (DIC)
on page 5‑24 for all brake related
DIC messages.
Electronic Stability
Control (ESC) Off Light
This light comes on briefly while
starting the engine.
If it does not, have the vehicle
serviced by your dealer. If the
system is working normally, the
indicator light then goes off. Press and release the Electronic
Stability Control (ESC) OFF button
to turn off the Traction Control
System (TCS), and a message
displays in the DIC. See
Ride
Control System Messages on
page 5‑33 for more information.
Press and briefly hold the ESC OFF
button to turn off the ESC system;
the ESC OFF light comes on and a
message displays in the Driver
Information Center (DIC). See Ride
Control System Messages on
page 5‑33 for more information.
If the TCS/ESC system is off, the
system does not assist in controlling
the vehicle. Turn on the TCS/ESC
system and the indicator light
turns off.
See Traction Control System (TCS)
on page 9‑30, and Electronic
Stability Control (ESC) on
page 9‑32 for more information.
Black plate (25,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-25
If your vehicle has these features,
the DIC also displays the compass
direction and the outside air
temperature when viewing the trip
and fuel information. The compass
direction appears on the top right
corner of the DIC display. The
outside air temperature
automatically appears in the bottom
right corner of the DIC display.
If there is a problem with the system
that controls the temperature
display, the numbers will be
replaced with dashes. If this occurs,
have the vehicle serviced by your
dealer.
The DIC also allows some features
to be customized. SeeVehicle
Personalization on page 5‑37 for
more information.DIC Operation and Displays
The DIC has different displays
which can be accessed by pressing
the DIC buttons located on the
instrument panel, to the right of the
instrument panel cluster.
DIC Buttons
The buttons are the trip/fuel, vehicle
information, customization, and set/
reset buttons. The button functions
are detailed in the following pages.
3(Trip/Fuel): Press this button
to display the odometer, trip
odometers, fuel range, average
economy, instantaneous economy,
Active Fuel Management™ indicator
on vehicles with this feature, and
average speed.
T(Vehicle Information): Press
this button to display the oil life,
units, tire pressure readings, and
compass zone and compass
calibration on vehicles with this
feature.
U(Customization): Press this
button to customize the feature
settings on your vehicle. See
Vehicle Personalization on
page 5‑37 for more information.
V(Set/Reset): Press this button to
set or reset certain functions and to
turn off or acknowledge messages
on the DIC.
Black plate (26,1)Chevrolet Impala Owner Manual - 2012
5-26 Instruments and Controls
Trip/Fuel Menu Items
3(Trip/Fuel):Press this button
to scroll through the following menu
items:
Odometer
Press the trip/fuel button until
ODOMETER displays. This display
shows the distance the vehicle has
been driven in either miles (mi) or
kilometers (km).
Trip A and Trip B
Press the trip/fuel button until
TRIP A or TRIP B displays. This
display shows the current distance
traveled in either miles (mi) or
kilometers (km) since the last reset
for each trip odometer. Both trip
odometers can be used at the
same time.
Each trip odometer can be reset to
zero separately by pressing the set/
reset button while the desired trip
odometer is displayed. The trip odometer has a feature
called the retro-active reset. This
can be used to set the trip odometer
to the number of miles (kilometers)
driven since the ignition was last
turned on. This can be used if the
trip odometer is not reset at the
beginning of the trip.
To use the retro-active reset feature,
press and hold the set/reset button
for at least four seconds. The trip
odometer will display the number of
miles (mi) or kilometers (km) driven
since the ignition was last turned on
and the vehicle was moving. Once
the vehicle begins moving, the trip
odometer will accumulate mileage.
For example, if the vehicle was
driven 8 km (5 miles) before it is
started again, and then the
retro-active reset feature is
activated, the display will show 8 km
(5 miles). As the vehicle begins
moving, the display will then
increase to 8.2 km (5.1 miles),
8.4 km (5.2 miles), etc.If the retro-active reset feature is
activated after the vehicle is started,
but before it begins moving, the
display will show the number of
miles (mi) or kilometers (km) that
were driven during the last ignition
cycle.
Fuel Range
Press the trip/fuel button until
FUEL RANGE displays. This
display shows the approximate
number of remaining miles (mi) or
kilometers (km) the vehicle can be
driven without refueling.
The fuel range estimate is based on
an average of the vehicle's fuel
economy over recent driving history
and the amount of fuel remaining in
the fuel tank. This estimate will
change if driving conditions change.