Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2012
Introduction v
Vehicle Symbol Chart
Here are some additional symbols
that may be found on the vehicle
and what they mean. For more
information on the symbol, refer to
the Index.
9:Airbag Readiness Light
#:Air Conditioning
!:Antilock Brake System (ABS)
b/g:Audio Steering Wheel
Controls or OnStar®
I: Brake System Warning
Light
A: Charge Port Door
":Charging System (12‐Volt
Battery)
I: Cruise Control
f: Electric Parking Brake
d:Electronic Stability
Control (ESC)
B: Engine Coolant Temperature
O:Exterior Lamps
y:Fault
g:First Responder
.: Fuel Gauge
+:Fuses
3: Headlamp High/Low-Beam
Changer
_: High Voltage
j:LATCH System Child
Restraints
[: Leaf
*:Malfunction Indicator Lamp
::Oil Pressure
O:Power
B:Remote Vehicle Start
>:Safety Belt Reminders
g:StabiliTrak®Disable
7:Tire Pressure Monitor
i:Traction Control System (TCS)
Disable
Q: Vehicle Ready
M:Windshield Washer Fluid
Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-1
In Brief
Instrument Panel
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4
Remote Start . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Heated Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Passenger Sensing System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13 Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 1-15
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
Vehicle Features
Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . 1-19
Bluetooth
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . 1-19
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Navigation System . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Battery and Efficiency
High Voltage Safety Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
Fueling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
Total Vehicle Range . . . . . . . . . 1-25
Regenerative Braking . . . . . . . . 1-25
Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
Performance and Maintenance
Traction Control System (TCS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
Electronic Stability Control (ESC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . 1-27
Tire Sealant and
Compressor Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-27
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 1-27
Driving for Better Energy Efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-28
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-30
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-30
Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-3
A.Air Vents on page 8‑8.
B. Turn and Lane‐Change Lever. See Turn and Lane-Change
Signals on page 6‑4.
Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6‑1.
Pedestrian Friendly Alert on
page 5‑6.
C. Instrument Cluster on page 5‑9.
Driver Information Center (DIC)
Display. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑45.
D. Windshield Wiper/Washer on
page 5‑6.
E. Heated Front Seats on page 3‑6
(If Equipped).
F. Center Stack Display on
page 5‑29.
G. Charging Status Indicator. See Charging Status Feedback on
page 9‑52. H. Light Sensor. See
Daytime
Running Lamps (DRL) on
page 6‑2.
I. Instrument Panel Storage on
page 4‑1.
J. Automatic Climate Control
System on page 8‑1.
K. Driver Information Center (DIC) Controls. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑45.
L. Instrument Panel Illumination
Control on page 6‑4.
M. Data Link Connector (DLC) (Out of View). See Malfunction
Indicator Lamp on page 5‑19.
N. Cruise Control on page 9‑40.
O. Steering Wheel Adjustment on
page 5‑5.
P. Horn on page 5‑6. Q.
Steering Wheel Controls on
page 5‑5 (If Equipped).
R. Leaf Button. See Center Stack
Display on page 5‑29.
S. DRIVE MODE Button. See Driver Selected Operating
Modes on page 9‑25.
T. Power Button on page 9‑18.
U. Shift Lever. See Electric Drive
Unit on page 9‑31.
V. Infotainment on page 7‑1.
Navigation System. See the
separate navigation system
manual.
W. Electric Parking Brake on
page 9‑34.
X. Power Door Locks on
page 2‑12.
Y. Hazard Warning Flashers on
page 6‑3.
Black plate (13,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-13
Steering Wheel
Adjustment
To adjust the steering wheel:
1. Pull the lever (A) down.
2. Move the steering wheel upor down.
3. Pull or push the steering wheel closer or away from you.
4. Pull the lever (A) up to lock the steering wheel in place.
Do not adjust the steering wheel
while driving.
Interior Lighting
Dome Lamps
The dome lamp controls are in the
overhead console.
To operate, press the following
buttons:
': Press to turn on the dome
lamps.
H: Press to turn the lamps on
automatically when a door is
opened.
(: Press to turn the lamps off,
even when a door is open. Reading Lamps
There are front and rear reading
lamps.
The front reading lamps are in the
overhead console.
# $:
Press to turn each lamp on
or off.
Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-19
Satellite Radio
Vehicles with an XM™satellite radio
tuner and a valid XM satellite radio
subscription can receive XM
programming.
XM Satellite Radio Service
XM is a satellite radio service based
in the 48 contiguous United States
and 10 Canadian provinces. XM
satellite radio has a wide variety of
programming and commercial-free
music, coast to coast, and in
digital-quality sound. A fee is
required to receive the XM service.
For more information refer to:
.www.xmradio.com or call
1-800-929-2100 (U.S.).
.www.xmradio.ca or call
1-877-438-9677 (Canada).
For more information, see Satellite
Radio on page 7‑11.
Portable Audio Devices
This vehicle has a 3.5 mm (1/8 in)
auxiliary input and a USB port
located in the center stack. External
devices such as iPods
®, laptop
computers, MP3 players, CD
changers, and USB storage devices
may be connected, depending on
the audio system.
For more information, see Auxiliary
Devices on page 7‑18.
Bluetooth®
The Bluetooth system allows users
with a Bluetooth-enabled cell phone
to make and receive hands-free
calls using the vehicle audio system
and controls.
The Bluetooth-enabled cell phone
must be paired with the in-vehicle
Bluetooth system before it can be
used in the vehicle. Not all phones
will support all functions. See
Bluetooth (Overview) on
page 7‑22 orBluetooth
(Infotainment Controls) on
page 7‑24 orBluetooth (Voice
Recognition) on page 7‑28.
Steering Wheel Controls
For vehicles with audio steering
wheel controls, some audio controls
can be adjusted at the steering
wheel.
b/g: Press to interact with an
OnStar, Bluetooth, or navigation
system (if equipped).
Black plate (20,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2012
1-20 In Brief
$/i:Press to silence the
vehicle speakers only. Press again
to turn the sound on. For vehicles
with OnStar or Bluetooth systems,
press to reject an incoming call,
or to end a current call.
_SRC^: Use this control to select
a radio band or audio source.
Use
_or^to select the next or
previous favorite radio station, CD
track, DVD track/chapter (with
navigation), or MP3 track.
Press SRC to change between
radio and CD or DVD.
Press and hold SRC to interact with
the navigation system.
+
x−: Press + to increase or −to
decrease the volume.
For more information, see Steering
Wheel Controls on page 5‑5.
Cruise Control
The cruise control buttons are on
the steering wheel.
1: Press to turn the cruise control
system on and off. An indicator light
will turn on or off in the instrument
cluster.
*: Press to disengage cruise
control without erasing the set
speed from memory.
RES/+ : Move the thumbwheel up
to resume to a previously set speed
or to accelerate. SET/−
:Move the thumbwheel
down to set a speed and activate
cruise control or to make the vehicle
decelerate.
See Cruise Control on page 9‑40.
Navigation System
If the vehicle has a navigation
system, there is a separate
navigation system manual that
includes information on the radio,
audio players, and navigation
system.
The navigation system provides
detailed maps of most major
freeways and roads. After a
destination has been set, the
system provides turn-by-turn
instructions for reaching the
destination. In addition, the system
can help locate a variety of points of
interest (POIs), such as banks,
airports, restaurants, and more.
See the navigation system manual
for more information.
Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-19
Airbag System
The vehicle has the following
airbags:
.A frontal airbag for the driver.
.A frontal airbag for the front
outboard passenger.
.A knee airbag for the driver.
.A knee airbag for the front
outboard passenger.
.A seat-mounted side impact
airbag for the driver.
.A seat-mounted side impact
airbag for the front outboard
passenger.
.A roof-rail airbag for the driver
and the passenger seated
directly behind the driver.
.A roof-rail airbag for the front
outboard passenger and the
passenger seated directly
behind the front outboard
passenger.All of the airbags in the vehicle will
have the word AIRBAG embossed
in the trim or on an attached label
near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word
AIRBAG is on the center of the
steering wheel for the driver and on
the instrument panel for the front
outboard passenger.
For knee airbags, the word AIRBAG
is on the lower part of the
instrument panel.
For seat-mounted side impact
airbags, the word AIRBAG is on the
side of the seatback closest to
the door.
For roof-rail airbags, the word
AIRBAG is on the ceiling or trim.
Airbags are designed to supplement
the protection provided by safety
belts. Even though today's airbags
are also designed to help reduce
the risk of injury from the force of an
inflating bag, all airbags must inflate
very quickly to do their job. Here are the most important things
to know about the airbag system:
{WARNING
You can be severely injured or
killed in a crash if you are not
wearing your safety belt, even
with airbags. Airbags are
designed to work with safety
belts, not replace them. Also,
airbags are not designed to inflate
in every crash. In some crashes
safety belts are the only restraint.
See
When Should an Airbag
Inflate? on page 3‑22.
Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce the chance of
hitting things inside the vehicle or
being ejected from it. Airbags are
“supplemental restraints” to the
safety belts. Everyone in the
vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly, whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.
Black plate (21,1)Chevrolet Volt Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-21
Where Are the Airbags?
The driver frontal airbag is in the
center of the steering wheel.
The front outboard passenger
frontal airbag is in the passenger
side instrument panel.
The driver knee airbag is below the
steering column. The front outboard
passenger knee airbag is below the
glove box.Driver Side Shown, PassengerSide Similar
The driver and front outboard
passenger seat-mounted side
impact airbags are in the side of the
seatbacks closest to the door.