2012 CHEVROLET MALIBU display

Black plate (6,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
6-6 Lighting
Dome Lamps
The dome lamps come on when any
door is opened. They turn off after
all the doors are closed.
The dome lamps can also be turned
on by turning the instrument panel
brightness knob, located on the
instrument panel to the left of the
steering column, clockwise to the
farthest position. In this position, the
dome lamps remain on whether a
door is opened or closed.
Reading Lamps
For vehicles with front and rear
reading lamps, press the lens to
turn the lamp on and off, while the
doors are closed. These lamps
come on automatically when any
door is opened.
Lighting Features
Entry/Exit Lighting
The lamps inside the vehicle come
on when any door is opened. These
lamps fade out about 20 seconds
after all of the doors have been
closed or when the ignition is turned
to ON/RUN. They also come on
when the unlock symbol button or
the horn symbol is pressed on the
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
system transmitter.
The lamps inside the vehicle stay on
for about 20 seconds after the key is
removed from the ignition to provide
light as you exit.
Parade Dimming
Parade dimming is a separate
lighting mode that comes on while
the parking lamps are turned on
during the day. It prevents the
display lights and indicator lights
from being dim, while the parking
lamps are used during the day.
Battery Load
Management
The vehicle has Electric Power
Management (EPM) that estimates
the battery's temperature and state
of charge. It then adjusts the voltage
for best performance and extended
life of the battery.
When the battery's state of charge
is low, the voltage is raised slightly
to quickly bring the charge back up.
When the state of charge is high,
the voltage is lowered slightly to
prevent overcharging. If the vehicle
has a voltmeter gauge or a voltage
display on the Driver Information
Center (DIC), you may see the
voltage move up or down. This is
normal. If there is a problem, an
alert will be displayed.
The battery can be discharged at
idle if the electrical loads are very
high. This is true for all vehicles.

Black plate (7,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
Lighting 6-7
This is because the generator
(alternator) may not be spinning
fast enough at idle to produce all of
the power needed for very high
electrical loads.
A high electrical load occurs when
several of the following are on, such
as: headlamps, high beams, fog
lamps, rear window defogger,
climate control fan at high speed,
heated seats, engine cooling fans,
trailer loads, and loads plugged into
accessory power outlets.
EPM works to prevent excessive
discharge of the battery. It does this
by balancing the generator's output
and the vehicle's electrical needs.
It can increase engine idle speed to
generate more power whenever
needed. It can temporarily reduce
the power demands of some
accessories.Normally, these actions occur in
steps or levels, without being
noticeable. In rare cases at the
highest levels of corrective action,
this action may be noticeable to the
driver. If so, a DIC message might
be displayed, such as BATTERY
SAVER ACTIVE, BATTERY
VOLTAGE LOW, or LOW BATTERY.
If one of these messages displays,
it is recommended that the driver
reduce the electrical loads as much
as possible. See
Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑24.
Battery Power Protection
The vehicle has a battery run-down
protection feature designed to
protect the vehicle's battery.
When any interior lamp (trunk,
reading, or visor vanity) is left on
while the ignition is turned off, the
battery run-down protection system
will automatically shut the lamp(s)
off after 20 minutes. This will avoid
draining the battery. To reactivate the interior lamps,
do one of the following:
.Turn on the ignition.
.Turn the exterior lamp control off
and then on.
.Open a door.
.Press any Remote Keyless
Entry (RKE) transmitter button
(if equipped).
.Press the remote trunk release
button.
.Press the power door lock
switch.
The battery run-down feature will
also be activated when any door
on the vehicle is left open and the
ignition is in LOCK/OFF.

Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
Infotainment System 7-3
Radio with CD (MP3) and USB Port shown, Radio with CD (MP3) similar
The vehicle has one of these radios as its infotainment system. Softkeys
The Radio with CD (MP3) and USB
Port, and the Radio with CD (MP3)
have five softkeys located below the
radio display. Softkeys are used to
control functions that appear on the
radio display as tabs directly above
the softkeys.
Using the Radio
O(Power/Volume):
Press to turn
the system on and off. Turn 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.
Speed Compensated Volume
(SCV): Radios with the Speed
Compensated Volume (SCV) feature
automatically adjust the radio
volume to compensate for road and
wind noise as the vehicle speeds up
or slows down, so that the volume
level is consistent.

Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
7-4 Infotainment System
To activate SCV:
1. Set the radio volume to thedesired level.
2. Press MENU to display the radio setup menu.
3. Press the softkey under the AUTO VOLUM 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)
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 button.
.Press either\FWD,
or
sREV button.
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.
Setting the Tone (Bass/
Midrange/Treble) Radio with
CD (MP3) and USB Port,
Radio with CD (MP3)
BASS/MID/TREB (Bass, Midrange,
or Treble): To adjust the bass,
midrange, or treble:
1. Press the
fknob until the tone
control tabs display.
2. Highlight the desired tone control tab by doing one of the
following:
.Pressing thefknob..Press the softkey under the
desired tab.
3. Adjust the setting by doing one of the following:
.Turn thefknob clockwise
or counterclockwise.
.Press the¨SEEK,
or
©SEEK button.
.Press the\FWD,
or
sREV button.

Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
Infotainment System 7-5
If a station's frequency is weak or if
there is static, decrease the treble.
To quickly adjust bass, midrange,
or treble to the middle position,
press the softkey positioned under
the BASS, MID, or TREB tab for
more than two seconds. A beep
sounds and the level adjusts to the
middle position.
To quickly adjust all tone and
speaker controls to the middle
position, press the
fknob for more
than two seconds until a beep
sounds.
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.
If the radio has a Bose
®audio
system, the EQ settings are either
MANUAL or TALK.
Adjusting the Speakers
(Balance/Fade) Radio with CD
To adjust the balance or fade:
1. Press the
`or press the
fknob until the speaker control
label displays.
2. To adjust the setting, do one of the following:
.Turn thefknob.
.Press either¨SEEK,
or
©SEEK button.
.Press either\FWD,
or
sREV button.
Adjusting the Speakers
(Balance/Fade) Radio with
CD (MP3) and USB Port,
Radio with CD (MP3)
BAL/FADE (Balance/Fade):
To adjust the balance or fade:
1. Press the
fknob until the
speaker control tabs display.
2. Highlight the desired speaker control tab by doing one of the
following:
.Pressing thefknob.
.Press the softkey under the
desired tab.
3. Adjust the setting by doing one of the following:
.Turn thefknob clockwise
or counterclockwise.
.Press the¨SEEK,
or
©SEEK button.
.Press the\FWD,
or
sREV button.

Black plate (6,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
7-6 Infotainment System
To quickly adjust all speaker and
tone controls to the middle position,
press the
fknob for more than
two seconds.
If the Rear Seat Audio (RSA) is
turned on, the radio disables FADE
and mutes the rear speakers.
Radio Messages
Calibration Error: Displays if the
radio is no longer calibrated
properly for the vehicle. The vehicle
must be returned to your dealer for
service.
Loc or Locked: Displays when the
TheftLock
®system has activated.
Take the vehicle to your dealer for
service.
If any error occurs repeatedly or
if an error cannot be corrected,
contact your dealer.
Radio
AM-FM Radio
Radio Data System (RDS)
The radio may have RDS. The RDS
feature is available for use only on
FM stations that broadcast RDS
information. This system relies upon
receiving specific information from
these stations and only works when
the information is available. While
the radio is tuned to an FM-RDS
station, the station name or call
letters display. In rare cases, a radio
station could broadcast incorrect
information that causes the radio
features to work improperly. If this
happens, contact the radio station.
4(Information) (RDS Features):
For vehicles with RDS features,
press
4to display additional text
information related to the current FM-RDS station. If information is
available, 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.
Auto Text (RDS Features):
If additional information is available
for the current song being played,
Auto Text will automatically
page/scroll the information every
three seconds above the FAV
presets on the radio display.
By default, Auto Text is enabled.
To change the Auto Text setting:
1. Press MENU to display the radio setup menu.
2. Press the softkey under AUTO TXT tab on the radio display.
3. Press the softkey under the ON or OFF tab on the radio display.

Black plate (7,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
Infotainment System 7-7
If4is pressed and the song title or
artist information is longer than
what can be displayed, the extra
information will page every
three seconds when Auto Text is
activated.
Finding a Station
BAND: Press to choose
between FM1, FM2, AM, or XM™
(if equipped) on the Radio with CD
(Base). Press to choose between
FM, AM, XM (if equipped) on the
Radio with CD (MP3) and USB Port,
or the Radio with CD (MP3).
f(Tune): Turn to select radio
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
previous 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.
¨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.

Black plate (8,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
7-8 Infotainment System
Storing Radio Stations
Drivers are encouraged to store
radio station while the vehicle is
parked, seeDefensive 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 six softkeys
below the radio station frequency
tabs and by using the FAV button.
Press the FAV button to go through
up to six pages of favorites, each
having six 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
(six FM1, six FM2, and six AM),
can be programmed on the
six numbered pushbuttons. Storing a Radio Station as a
Preset
Radios that have numbered
pushbuttons store radio stations as
presets.
Up to 18 stations (six FM1, six FM2,
and six 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
six numbered pushbuttons for
three seconds until a beep
sounds.
3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 to store additional radio stations.
Storing a Radio Station as a
Favorite
Radio that have a FAV button store
radio stations as favorites.
To store a station as a favorite:
1. Tune to a radio station.
2. Press the FAV button to display the page where the station will
be stored. 3. Press and hold one of the
six softkeys until a beep sounds.
4. Repeat Steps 1 through 3 to store additional radio stations.
The number of favorites pages can
be setup using the MENU button.
To setup 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.