ESC Operating ModesThe “ESC Off” switch is lo-
cated in the center switch
bank, next to the hazard
flasher switch.
ESC On
This mode is the normal operating
mode for ESC on two-wheel drive ve-
hicles. Whenever the vehicle is
started, the ESC system will be in this
mode. This mode should be used for
most driving situations. ESC should
only be turned off for specific reasons
as noted below.
ESC Partial Off
This mode is entered by momentarily
pressing the “ESC Off” switch.
When in the “Partial Off” mode, the
TCS portion of ESC, except for the
“limited slip” feature described in the
TCS section, has been disabled and
the “ESC Off Indicator Light” will be
illuminated. When in the “Partial
Off” mode, ESC will operate without
engine torque management. This mode is intended to be used if the
vehicle is in deep snow, sand or gravel
conditions and more wheel spin than
ESC would normally allow is required
to gain traction. To turn ESC on
again, momentarily press the “ESC
Off” switch. This will restore the nor-
mal “ESC On” mode of operation.
NOTE: To improve the vehicle's
traction when driving with snow
chains, or starting off in deep
snow, sand or gravel, it may be
desirable to switch to the “Partial
Off” mode by pressing the “ESC
Off” switch. Once the situation re-
quiring ESC to be switched to the
“Partial Off” mode is overcome,
turn ESC back on by momentarily
pressing the “ESC Off” switch.
This may be done while the vehicle
is in motion.
WARNING!
In partial ESC mode, the engine
power reduction feature of ESC is
disabled. Therefore, enhanced ve-
hicle stability offered by the ESC
system is reduced.
ESC Activation/Malfunction
Indicator Light And ESC OFF
Indicator Light
The “ESC Activation/
Malfunction Indicator
Light” in the instrument
cluster will come on when
the ignition switch is turned to the ON
position. It should turn off with the
engine running. If the “ESC
Activation/Malfunction Indicator
Light” comes on continuously with
the engine running, a malfunction has
been detected in the ESC system. If
this light remains on after several ig-
nition cycles, and the vehicle has been
driven several kilometers at speeds
greater than 48 km/h, see your autho-
rized dealer as soon as possible to
have the problem diagnosed and
corrected.
The “ESC Activation/Malfunction In-
dicator Light” (located in the instru-
ment cluster) starts to flash as soon as
the tires lose traction and the ESC sys-
tem becomes active. The “ESC
Activation/Malfunction Indicator
Light” also flashes when TCS is active.
246
If the “ESC Activation/Malfunction In-
dicator Light” begins to flash during
acceleration, ease up on the accelerator
and apply as little throttle as possible.
Be sure to adapt your speed and driving
to the prevailing road conditions.NOTE:
The “ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator Light”
and the “ESC OFF Indicator
Light” come on momentarily
each time the ignition switch is
turned ON.
Each time the ignition is turned ON, the ESC system will be ON
even if it was turned off
previously.
The ESC system will make buzz- ing or clicking sounds when it is
active. This is normal; the
sounds will stop when ESC be-
comes inactive following the
maneuver that caused the ESC
activation. The “ESC OFF Indicator
Light” indicates the Elec-
tronic Stability Control
(ESC) is off.
TIRES — GENERAL
INFORMATION
TIRE PRESSURE
Proper tire inflation pressure is essen-
tial to the safe and satisfactory opera-
tion of your vehicle. Three primary
areas are affected by improper tire
pressure:
Safety
WARNING!
Improperly inflated tires are dan- gerous and can cause collisions.
Under-inflation increases tire flexing and can result in over-
heating and tire failure.
Over-inflation reduces a tire's
ability to cushion shock. Objects
on the road and chuckholes can
cause damage that result in tire
failure.
(Continued)
WARNING!(Continued)
Over-inflated or under-inflated tires can affect vehicle handling
and can fail suddenly, resulting in
loss of vehicle control.
Unequal tire pressures can cause
steering problems. You could lose
control of your vehicle.
Unequal tire pressures from one side of the vehicle to the other can
cause the vehicle to drift to the
right or left.
Always drive with each tire in-
flated to the recommended cold
tire inflation pressure.
Economy
Improper inflation pressures can
cause uneven wear patterns to de-
velop across the tire tread. These ab-
normal wear patterns will reduce
tread life resulting in a need for earlier
tire replacement. Under-inflation also
increases tire rolling resistance result-
ing in higher fuel consumption.
247
WARNING!
High speed driving with your ve-
hicle under load is dangerous. The
added strain on your tires could
cause them to fail. You could have a
serious collision. Do not drive a ve-
hicle loaded to maximum capacity
at continuous speeds above
120 km/h.
RADIAL-PLY TIRESWARNING!
Combining radial ply tires with
other types of tires on your vehicle
will cause your vehicle to handle
poorly. The instability could cause
a collision. Always use radial ply
tires in sets of four. Never combine
them with other types of tires.
Cuts and punctures in radial tires are
repairable only in the tread area be-
cause of sidewall flexing. Consult
your authorized tire dealer for radial
tire repairs. SPARE TIRE MATCHING
ORIGINAL EQUIPPED
TIRE AND WHEEL (for
versions/markets, where
provided)
Your vehicle may be equivalent with a
spare tire and wheel in look and func-
tion as the original equipment tire and
wheel found on the front or rear axle
of your vehicle. This spare tire may be
used in the tire rotation for your ve-
hicle. If your vehicle has this option
refer to an authorized tire dealer for
the recommended tire rotation pat-
tern.
If your vehicle is not equipped with an
original equipment tire and wheel as a
spare, a non-matching temporary
emergency use spare may be equipped
with your vehicle. Temporary use
spares are engineered to be used only
with your vehicle. Your vehicle may
be equipped with one of the following
types of non-matching temporary use
spares; compact, full size, or limited-
use. Do not install more than one non-
matching temporary use spare tire/
wheel on the vehicle at any given time.
CAUTION!
Because of the reduced ground
clearance, do not take your vehicle
through an automatic car wash
with a compact, full size or limited-
use temporary spare installed.
Damage to the vehicle may result.
COMPACT SPARE TIRE (for
versions/markets, where
provided)
The compact spare is for temporary
emergency use only. You can identify
if your vehicle is equipped with a
compact spare by looking at the spare
tire description on the Tire and Load-
ing Information Placard located on
the driver’s side door opening or on
the sidewall of the tire. Compact spare
tire descriptions begin with the letter
“T” or “S” preceding the size desig-
nation. Example: T145/80D18
103M.
T, S = Temporary Spare Tire.
249
Since this tire has limited tread life the
original equipment tire should be re-
paired (or replaced) and reinstalled
on your vehicle at the first opportu-
nity.
Do not install a wheel cover or at-
tempt to mount a conventional tire on
the compact spare wheel, since the
wheel is designed specifically for the
compact spare tire. Do not install
more than one compact spare tire and
wheel on the vehicle at any given time.WARNING!
Compact spares are for temporary
emergency use only. With these
spares, do not drive more than
80 km/h. Temporary use spares
have limited tread life. When the
tread is worn to the tread wear in-
dicators, the temporary use spare
tire needs to be replaced. Be sure to
follow the warnings, which apply to
your spare. Failure to do so could
result in spare tire failure and loss
of vehicle control.FULL SIZE SPARE (for
versions/markets, where
provided)
The full size spare is for temporary
emergency use only. This tire may
look like the original equipped tire on
the front or rear axle of your vehicle,
but it is not. This spare tire may have
limited tread life. When the tread is
worn to the tread wear indicators, the
temporary use full size spare tire
needs to be replaced. Since it is not the
same as your original equipment tire,
replace (or repair) the original equip-
ment tire and reinstall on the vehicle
at the first opportunity.
LIMITED-USE SPARE (for
versions/markets, where
provided)
The limited-use spare tire is for tem-
porary emergency use only. This tire is
identified by a label located on the
limited-use spare wheel. This label
contains the driving limitations for
this spare. This tire may look like the
original equipped tire on the front or
rear axle of your vehicle, but it is not. Installation of this limited-use spare
tire affects vehicle handling. Since it is
not the same as your original equip-
ment tire, replace (or repair) the origi-
nal equipment tire and reinstall on the
vehicle at the first opportunity.
WARNING!
Limited-use spares are for emer-
gency use only. Installation of this
limited-use spare tire affects ve-
hicle handling. With this tire, do
not drive more than the speed listed
on the limit-use spare wheel. Keep
inflated to the cold tire inflation
pressure listed on your Tire and
Loading Information Placard lo-
cated on the driver’s side door
opening. Replace (or repair) the
original equipment tire at the first
opportunity and reinstall it on your
vehicle. Failure to do so could result
in loss of vehicle control.
TIRE SPINNING
When stuck in mud, sand, snow, or ice
conditions, do not spin your vehicle's
250
wheels faster than 48 km/h, or for
more than 30 seconds continuously,
without stopping.
Refer to “Freeing A Stuck Vehicle” in
“What To Do In Emergencies” for fur-
ther information.WARNING!
Fast spinning tires can be danger-ous. Forces generated by exces-
sive wheel speeds may cause tire
damage or failure. A tire could
explode and injure someone.
Do not spin your vehicle's wheels faster than 48 km/h, or for more
than 30 seconds continuously,
when you are stuck; and do not let
anyone near a spinning wheel, no
matter what the speed.
TREAD WEAR
INDICATORS
Tread wear indicators are in the
original-equipment tires to help you
in determining when your tires should
be replaced. These indicators are molded into the
bottom of the tread grooves. They will
appear as bands when the tread depth
becomes 2 mm. When the tread is
worn to the tread wear indicators, the
tire should be replaced.
LIFE OF TIRE
The service life of a tire is dependent
upon varying factors, including, but
not limited to:
Driving style
Tire pressure
Distance driven
WARNING!
The tires and the spare tire should
be replaced after six years, regard-
less of the remaining tread. Failure
to follow this warning can result in
sudden tire failure. You could lose
control and have a collision result-
ing in serious injury or death.
Keep dismounted tires in a cool, dry
place with as little exposure to light as
possible. Protect tires from contact
with oil, grease and gasoline.
REPLACEMENT TIRES
The tires on your new vehicle provide
a balance of many characteristics.
They should be inspected regularly
for wear and correct cold tire inflation
pressure. The manufacturer strongly
recommends that you use tires
equivalent to the originals in size,
quality and performance when re-
placement is needed. Please see
“Tread Wear Indicators” and “Tire
and Loading Information” placard
for the size designation of your tire.
The Load Index and Speed Symbol
for your tire will be found on the
1 — Worn Tire
2 — New Tire
251
original equipment tire sidewall. See
the Tire Sizing Chart example found
in the Tire Safety Information section
of this manual for more information
relating to the Load Index and Speed
Symbol of a tire.
It is recommended to replace the two
front tires or two rear tires as a pair.
Replacing just one tire can seriously
affect your vehicle’s handling. If you
ever replace a wheel, make sure that
the wheel’s specifications match those
of the original wheels.
It is recommended you contact your
original equipment or an authorized
tire dealer with any questions you
may have on tire specifications or ca-
pability. Failure to use equivalent re-
placement tires may adversely affect
the safety, handling, and ride of your
vehicle.
NOTE: Always respect the sizes
of tires given in the Registration
Document/Certificate.
WARNING!
Do not use a tire, wheel size orrating other than that specified
for your vehicle. Some combina-
tions of unapproved tires and
wheels may change suspension
dimensions and performance
characteristics, resulting in
changes to steering, handling,
and braking of your vehicle. This
can cause unpredictable handling
and stress to steering and suspen-
sion components. You could lose
control and have a collision re-
sulting in serious injury or death.
Use only the tire and wheel sizes
with load ratings approved for
your vehicle.
Never use a tire with a smaller load index or capacity, than what
was originally equipped on your
vehicle. Using a tire with a
smaller load index could result in
tire overloading and failure. You
could lose control and have a col-
lision.
(Continued)
WARNING!(Continued)
Failure to equip your vehicle with
tires having adequate speed capa-
bility can result in sudden tire fail-
ure and loss of vehicle control.CAUTION!
Replacing original tires with tires of
a different size may result in false
speedometer and odometer read-
ings.
252
WARNING!
Overloading of your tires is danger-
ous. Overloading can cause tire
failure, affect vehicle handling, and
increase your stopping distance.
Use tires of the recommended load
capacity for your vehicle. Never
overload them.
TIRE ROTATION
RECOMMENDATIONS
Tires on the front and rear axles of
vehicles operate at different loads and
perform different steering, driving,
and braking functions. For these rea-
sons, they wear at unequal rates.
These effects can be reduced by
timely rotation of tires. The benefits
of rotation are especially worthwhile
with aggressive tread designs such as
those on all season type tires. Rotation
will increase tread life, help to main-
tain mud, snow, and wet traction lev-
els, and contribute to a smooth, quiet
ride.
Refer to the “Maintenance Schedule”
for the proper maintenance intervals. The reasons for any rapid or unusual
wear should be corrected prior to ro-
tation being performed.
TIRE PRESSURE
MONITOR SYSTEM
(TPMS)
The TPMS will warn the driver of a
low tire pressure based on the cold
inflation tire pressure requirements
found on the tire placard located on
the driver's-side B-pillar.
The tire pressure will vary with tem-
perature by about 0.07 BAR for every
7°C. This means that when the out-
side temperature decreases, the tire
pressure will decrease. Tire pressure
should always be set based on cold
inflation tire pressure. This is defined
as the tire pressure after a vehicle has
not been driven for more than three
hours - and in outside ambient tem-
perature.
Refer to “Tires – General
Information” in “Starting and Op-
erating” for information on how to
properly inflate the vehicle’s tires.
The tire pressure will also increase as the vehicle is driven - this is normal
and there should be no adjustment for
this increased pressure.
The TPMS will warn the driver of a
low tire pressure if the tire pressure
falls below the low pressure warning
threshold for any reason, including
low temperature effects, or natural air
pressure loss through the tire.
The TPMS will continue to warn the
driver of low tire pressure as long as
the condition exists, and will not turn
off until the tire pressure is at or above
recommended cold tire placard pres-
sure. Once the low tire pressure warn-
ing has been illuminated, the tire
pressure must be increased to the rec-
ommended cold tire placard pressure
in order for the “Tire Pressure Moni-
toring Telltale Light” to be turned off.
The system will automatically update
and the “Tire Pressure Monitoring
Telltale Light” will extinguish once
the updated tire pressures have been
received. The vehicle may need to be
driven for up to 20 minutes above
24 km/h to receive this information.
261
For example, your vehicle may have a
recommended cold (parked for more
than three hours) tire pressure of 2.4
BAR. If the ambient temperature is
20°C and the measured tire pressure
is 2.1 BAR, a temperature drop to
7°C will decrease the tire pressure to
approximately 1.8 BAR. This tire
pressure is sufficiently low enough to
turn on the “Tire Pressure Monitoring
Telltale Light.” Driving the vehicle
may cause the tire pressure to rise to
approximately 2.1 BAR, but the “Tire
Pressure Monitoring Telltale Light”
will still be on. In this situation, the
“Tire Pressure Monitoring Telltale
Light” will turn off only after the tires
have been inflated to the vehicle’s rec-
ommended cold tire pressure value.
CAUTION!
The TPMS has been optimizedfor the original equipment tires
and wheels. TPMS pressures have
been established for the tire size
equipped on your vehicle. Unde-
sirable system operation or sensor
damage may result when using
replacement equipment that is
not of the same size, type, and/or
style. Aftermarket wheels can
cause sensor damage. Do not use
aftermarket sealants or balance
beads if your vehicle is equipped
with a TPMS, as damage to the
sensors may result.
After inspecting or adjusting the tire pressure always reinstall the
valve stem cap. This will prevent
moisture and dirt from entering
the valve stem, which could dam-
age the TPMS sensor.
NOTE:
The TPMS is not intended to re- place normal tire care and
maintenance, or to provide
warning of a tire failure or con-
dition. The TPMS should not be used as
a tire pressure gauge while ad-
justing your tire pressure.
Driving on a significantly under- inflated tire causes the tire to
overheat and can lead to tire
failure. Under-inflation also re-
duces fuel efficiency and tire
tread life, and may affect the ve-
hicle’s handling and stopping
ability.
The TPMS is not a substitute for proper tire maintenance, and it
is the driver's responsibility to
maintain correct tire pressure,
using an accurate tire pressure
gage, even if under-inflation has
not reached the level to trigger
illumination of the “Tire Pres-
sure Monitoring Telltale Light.”
Seasonal temperature changes will affect tire pressure, and the
TPMS will monitor the actual
tire pressure in the tire.
262