2012 CHEVROLET MALIBU ignition

Black plate (30,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
5-30 Instruments and Controls
TRACTION OFF
If your vehicle has the Traction
Control System (TCS), this
message displays and the ESC/TCS
light on the instrument panel cluster
comes on solid when the system is
turned off. Adjust your driving
accordingly. SeeTraction Control
System (TCS) on page 9‑30 and
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)/
Traction Control System (TCS)
Indicator/Warning Light on
page 5‑20 for more information.
Airbag System Messages
SERVICE AIR BAG
This message displays when there
is a problem with the airbag system.
Have your vehicle serviced by your
dealer immediately.
Service Vehicle Messages
ENGINE DISABLED
This message displays if the starting
of the engine is disabled. Have your
vehicle serviced by your dealer
immediately.
POWER STEERING
On some vehicles, this message
displays if a problem has been
detected with the electric power
steering. Have your vehicle serviced
by your dealer immediately.
Tire Messages
SVC (Service) TIRE MONITOR
On vehicles with the Tire Pressure
Monitor System (TPMS), this
message displays if a part on the
TPMS is not working properly.
The tire pressure light also flashes
and then remains on during the
same ignition cycle. See Tire
Pressure Light on page 5‑21. Several conditions may cause this
message to appear. See
Tire
Pressure Monitor Operation on
page 10‑53 for more information.
If the warning comes on and stays
on, there may be a problem with the
TPMS. See your dealer.
TIRE LOW ADD AIR
On vehicles with the Tire Pressure
Monitor System (TPMS), this
message displays when the
pressure in one or more of the
vehicle's tires is low on air. The low
tire pressure warning light also
comes on. See Tire Pressure Light
on page 5‑21. If this message
appears on the DIC, stop as soon
as you can. Have the tire pressures
checked and set to those shown on
the Tire Loading Information label.
See Tires on page 10‑42, Vehicle
Load Limits on page 9‑11, and Tire
Pressure on page 10‑50. The DIC
also shows the tire pressure values.
See Driver Information Center (DIC)
on page 5‑24.

Black plate (31,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-31
Vehicle Reminder
Messages
ICE POSSIBLE
This message displays when the
outside air temperature is cold
enough to create icy road
conditions. Adjust your driving
accordingly.
Washer Fluid Messages
LOW WASHER FLUID
This message displays when the
vehicle's windshield washer fluid is
low. Fill the windshield washer fluid
reservoir to the proper level as soon
as possible. SeeWasher Fluid on
page 10‑23.
Vehicle
Personalization
Your vehicle has personalization
capabilities that allow you to
program certain features to a
preferred setting. All of the features
listed may not be available on your
vehicle. Only the features available
will be displayed on the DIC.
The default settings for the features
were set when your vehicle left the
factory, but may have been changed
from their default state since
that time.
To change feature settings, use the
following procedure:
Entering Personalization Menu
1. Turn the ignition on while the
vehicle is stopped.
To avoid excessive drain on the
battery, it is recommended that
the headlamps are turned off. 2. Press and hold the information
and reset buttons at the
same time for one second,
then release to enter the
personalization menu.
If the vehicle speed is greater
than 3 km/h (2 mph), only the
UNITS menu will be accessible.
3. Press the information button to scroll through the available
personalization menu modes.
Press the reset button to scroll
through the available settings for
each mode.
If you do not make a selection
within ten seconds, the display
will go back to the previous
information displayed.

Black plate (35,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-35
SeeRemote Keyless Entry (RKE)
System Operation on page 2‑3 for
more information.
To select a setting and move on
to the next feature, press the
information button while the desired
setting is displayed on the DIC.
LANGUAGE
This feature allows you to select the
language in which the DIC will
display. When LANGUAGE appears
on the display, press and hold the
reset button for at least one second
to scroll through the available
settings:
ENGLISH (default): All messages
will appear in English.
FRENCH: All messages will appear
in French.
SPANISH: All messages will
appear in Spanish.
GERMAN: All messages will
appear in German. To select a setting and exit out of
the personalization menu mode,
press the information button while
the desired setting is displayed on
the DIC.
Exiting Personalization Menu
The personalization menu will be
exited when any of the following
conditions occur:
.A ten second time period has
elapsed.
.The ignition is turned off.
.The end of the personalization
menu list is reached.

Black plate (2,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
6-2 Lighting
P(Off/On):Turn the band to this
position to turn on the Automatic
Headlamp System. In Canada,
this position only works when a
vehicle is in the P (Park) position.
To turn on the Automatic Headlamp
System, turn the switch to off/on.
To turn them off, turn the switch to
off/on again. This is a momentary
control switch that springs back
when released. The Automatic
Headlamp System always turns on
at the beginning of an ignition cycle.
Exterior Lamps Off
Reminder
If the drivers door is opened and the
ignition is turned off while leaving
the lamps on, a warning chime will
sound.
Headlamp High/
Low-Beam Changer
To change the headlamps from low
beam to high beam, push the turn
signal/multifunction lever away
from you.
This instrument panel cluster
light
3comes on if the high beam
lamps are turned on while the
ignition is in ON/RUN.
To change the headlamps from
high beam to low beam, pull the
turn signal lever toward you.
Flash-to-Pass
This feature lets the high-beam
headlamps be used to signal a
driver in front of you that you want
to pass.
Pull the turn signal/multifunction
lever toward you until the high-beam
headlamps come on, then release
the lever to turn them off.
Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL)
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) can
make it easier for others to see the
front of your vehicle during the day.
Fully functional DRL are required on
all vehicles first sold in Canada.
The vehicle has a light sensor on
top of the instrument panel that
controls the DRL. Do not cover this
sensor or the head lamps will be on
when they are not needed.
The DRL system makes the
low-beam headlamps come on at
a reduced brightness when the
following conditions are met:
.The ignition is on.
.The exterior lamps control is
in AUTO.
.The exterior lamps control is in
the parking lamps only position
(This applies only to vehicles
that are first sold in Canada).

Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
Lighting 6-3
.The light sensor detects
daytime light.
.The parking brake is released or
the vehicle is not in P (Park).
When the DRL system is on, the
taillamps, sidemarker lamps,
parking lamps, and instrument panel
lights are not on unless you turn the
exterior lamps control to the parking
lamp position.
The regular headlamp system
should be turned on when they are
needed.
Automatic Headlamp
System
When it is dark enough outside, the
automatic headlamp system turns
on the headlamps at the normal
brightness along with other lamps
such as the taillamps, sidemarker,
parking lamps, and the instrument
panel lights. The radio lights will
also be dim.
The vehicle has a light sensor on
top of the instrument panel that
controls the automatic headlamp
system. Do not cover the sensor or
the automatic headlamp system will
turn on when it is not needed.
There is a delay in the transition
between the daytime and nighttime
operation of the DRL and the
automatic headlamp systems so
that driving under bridges or bright
overhead street lights does not
affect the system. The DRL and
automatic headlamp systems will
only be affected when the light
sensor sees a change in lighting
lasting longer than this delay. If the vehicle is started in a dark
garage, the automatic headlamp
system comes on immediately.
Once the vehicle leaves the garage,
it takes about one minute for the
automatic headlamp system to
change to DRL if it is light outside.
During that delay, the instrument
panel cluster may not be as bright
as usual. Make sure the instrument
panel brightness control is in the
full bright position. See
Instrument
Panel Illumination Control on
page 6‑5.
To idle the vehicle with the
automatic headlamp system off, turn
the ignition on and set the exterior
light switch to the off/on position.
For vehicles first sold in Canada,
the transmission must stay in
P (Park) for this function.
The regular headlamps should be
used when needed.

Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual - 2012
Lighting 6-5
The lever returns to its starting
position when it is released.
If a turn signal arrow flashes rapidly
or does not come on, a signal bulb
may need to be replaced. See
Fuses on page 10‑34.
Fog Lamps
For vehicles with fog lamps, the
button for this feature is located on
the instrument panel, to the left of
the steering wheel.The ignition must be on for the fog
lamps to work.
#:
Press to turn the fog lamps on
or off. An indicator light comes on
when the fog lamps are on.
The parking lamps automatically
turn on and off when the fog lamps
are turned on and off.
The fog lamps turn off while the
high-beam headlamps are
turned on.
Some localities have laws that
require the headlamps to be on
along with the fog lamps.
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel
Illumination Control
The knob for this control is located
on the instrument panel to the left of
the steering column.
D (Instrument Panel
Brightness): Turn the knob
clockwise or counterclockwise to
brighten or dim the lights. Turn the
knob completely clockwise to turn
on the interior lamps.

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.