
Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
80 Seats and Restraints
If the Off Indicator Is Lit for an
Adult-Sized Occupant
If a person of adult size is sitting inthe front outboard passenger seat,but the off indicator is lit, it could bebecause that person is not sittingproperly in the seat or that the childrestraint locking feature is engaged.Use the following steps to allow thesystem to detect that person andenable the front outboard passengerfrontal airbag and knee airbag:
1. Turn the vehicle off.
2. Remove any additional materialfrom the seat, such asblankets, cushions, seatcovers, seat heaters, or seatmassagers.
3. Place the seatback in the fullyupright position.
4. Have the person sit upright inthe seat, centered on the seatcushion, with legs comfortablyextended.
5. If the shoulder portion of thebelt is pulled out all the way,the child restraint lockingfeature will be engaged. Thismay unintentionally cause thepassenger sensing system toturn the airbag off for someadult-sized occupants. If thishappens, unbuckle the belt, letthe belt go back all the way,and then buckle the belt againwithout pulling the belt out allthe way.
6. Restart the vehicle and havethe person remain in thisposition for two tothree minutes after the onindicator is lit.
{Warning
If the front outboard passenger
airbag is turned off for an
adult-sized occupant, the airbag
will not be able to inflate and help
protect that person in a crash,
resulting in an increased risk of
serious injury or even death. An
adult-sized occupant should not
ride in the front outboard
passenger seat, if the passenger
airbag off indicator is lit.
Additional Factors Affecting
System Operation
Safety belts help keep thepassenger in position on the seatduring vehicle maneuvers andbraking, which helps the passengersensing system maintain thepassenger airbag status. See“Safety Belts”and“Child Restraints”in the Index for additionalinformation about the importance ofproper restraint use.

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Seats and Restraints 85
Warning (Continued)
That could cause serious or fatal
injuries. The shoulder belt should
go over the shoulder and across
the chest.
Infants and Young
Children
Everyone in a vehicle needsprotection! This includes infants andall other children. Neither thedistance traveled nor the age andsize of the traveler changes theneed, for everyone, to use safety
restraints. In fact, the law in everystate in the United States and inevery Canadian province sayschildren up to some age must berestrained while in a vehicle.
{Warning
Children can be seriously injured
or strangled if a shoulder belt is
wrapped around their neck. The
shoulder belt can tighten but
cannot be loosened if it is locked.
The shoulder belt locks when it is
pulled all the way out of the
retractor. It unlocks when the
shoulder belt is allowed to go all
the way back into the retractor,
but it cannot do this if it is
wrapped around a child’sneck.
If the shoulder belt is locked and
tightened around a child’sneck,
the only way to loosen the belt is
to cut it.
Never leave children unattended
in a vehicle and never allow
children to play with the safety
belts.
Every time infants and youngchildren ride in vehicles, they shouldhave the protection provided byappropriate child restraints. Neitherthe vehicle's safety belt system norits airbag system is designedfor them.
Children who are not restrainedproperly can strike other people,or can be thrown out of the vehicle.
{Warning
Never hold an infant or a child
while riding in a vehicle. Due to
crash forces, an infant or a child
will become so heavy it is not
possible to hold it during a crash.
For example, in a crash at only
40 km/h (25 mph), a 5.5 kg (12 lb)
infant will suddenly become a
11 0 k g ( 2 4 0 l b ) f o r c e o n a p e r s o n ' s
arms. An infant or child should be
secured in an appropriate
restraint.

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Seats and Restraints 93
Securing a Child Restraint
Designed for the LATCH
System
{Warning
If a LATCH-type child restraint is
not attached to anchors, the child
restraint will not be able to protect
the child correctly. In a crash, the
child could be seriously injured or
killed. Install a LATCH-type child
restraint properly using the
anchors, or use the vehicle's
safety belts to secure the
restraint, following the instructions
that came with the child restraint
and the instructions in this
manual.
{Warning
To r e d u c e t h e r i s k o f s e r i o u s o r
fatal injuries during a crash, do
not attach more than one child
restraint to a single anchor.
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
Attaching more than one child
restraint to a single anchor could
cause the anchor or attachment
to come loose or even break
during a crash. A child or others
could be injured.
{Warning
Children can be seriously injured
or strangled if a shoulder belt is
wrapped around their neck. The
shoulder belt can tighten but
cannot be loosened if it is locked.
The shoulder belt locks when it is
pulled all the way out of the
retractor. It unlocks when the
shoulder belt is allowed to go all
the way back into the retractor,
but it cannot do this if it is
wrapped around a child’sneck.
If the shoulder belt is locked and
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
tightened around a child’sneck,
the only way to loosen the belt is
to cut it.
Buckle any unused safety belts
behind the child restraint so
children cannot reach them. Pull
the shoulder belt all the way out
of the retractor to set the lock,
and tighten the belt behind the
child restraint after the child
restraint has been installed.
Caution
Do not let the LATCH
attachments rub against the
vehicle’ssafetybelts.Thismay
damage these parts. If necessary,
move buckled safety belts to
avoid rubbing the LATCH
attachments.
(Continued)

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Seats and Restraints 97
4. Pull the shoulder belt all theway out of the retractor to setthe lock. When the retractorlock is set, the belt can betightened but not pulled out ofthe retractor.
5. To tighten the belt, push downon the child restraint, pull theshoulder portion of the belt totighten the lap portion of thebelt, and feed the shoulder beltback into the retractor. Wheninstalling a forward-facing childrestraint, it may be helpful touse your knee to push down onthe child restraint as youtighten the belt.
Try to pull the belt out of theretractor to make sure theretractor is locked. If theretractor is not locked, repeatSteps 4 and 5.
6. If the child restraint has a toptether, follow the child restraintmanufacturer's instructionsregarding the use of the toptether. SeeLower Anchors andTe t h e r s f o r C h i l d r e n ( L AT C HSystem)090.
7. Before placing a child in thechild restraint, make sure it issecurely held in place. Tocheck, grasp the child restraintat the safety belt path andattempt to move it side to sideand back and forth. When thechild restraint is properlyinstalled, there should be nomore than 2.5 cm (1 in) ofmovement.
To r e m o v e t h e c h i l d r e s t r a i n t ,unbuckle the vehicle safety belt andlet it return to the stowed position.If the top tether is attached to a toptether anchor, disconnect it.

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Seats and Restraints 99
When using the lap-shoulder belt tosecure the child restraint in thisposition, follow the instructions thatcame with the child restraint and thefollowing instructions:
1. Move the seat as far back as itwill go before securing theforward-facing child restraint.Move the seat upward or theseatback to an upright position,if needed, to get a tightinstallation of the childrestraint.
When the passenger sensingsystem has turned off the frontoutboard passenger frontalairbag and knee airbag, the offindicator on the passengerairbag status indicator shouldlight and stay lit when you startthe vehicle. SeePassengerAirbag Status Indicator0121.
2. Put the child restraint onthe seat.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and runthe lap and shoulder portionsof the vehicle's safety belt
through or around the restraint.The child restraint instructionswill show you how.
4. Push the latch plate into thebuckle until it clicks.
Position the release button onthe buckle, away from the childrestraint system, so that thesafety belt could be quicklyunbuckled if necessary.
5. Pull the shoulder belt all theway out of the retractor to setthe lock. When the retractorlock is set, the belt can betightened but not pulled out ofthe retractor.

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
100 Seats and Restraints
6. To tighten the belt, push downon the child restraint, pull theshoulder portion of the belt totighten the lap portion of thebelt, and feed the shoulder beltback into the retractor. Wheninstalling a forward-facing childrestraint, it may be helpful touse your knee to push down onthe child restraint as youtighten the belt.
Try to pull the belt out of theretractor to make sure theretractor is locked. If theretractor is not locked, repeatSteps 5 and 6.
7. Before placing a child in thechild restraint, make sure it issecurely held in place. Tocheck, grasp the child restraintat the safety belt path andattempt to move it side to sideand back and forth. When thechild restraint is properlyinstalled, there should be nomore than 2.5 cm (1 in) ofmovement.
If the airbags are off, the offindicator in the passenger airbagstatus indicator will come on andstay on when the vehicle is started.
If a child restraint has been installedand the on indicator is lit, see“If theOn Indicator Is Lit for a ChildRestraint”underPassenger SensingSystem077.
To r e m o v e t h e c h i l d r e s t r a i n t ,unbuckle the vehicle safety belt andlet it return to the stowed position.

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
Instruments and Controls 103
Instruments and
Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 104Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 104Heated Steering Wheel . . . . . . . 105Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 105Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108Wireless Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, andIndicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111Instrument Cluster (BaseLevel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112Instrument Cluster(Uplevel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117Ta c h o m e t e r ( N o n - H y b r i d ) . . . . . 11 7Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118Power Indicator Gauge(Hybrid) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Engine Coolant TemperatureGauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . 120Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . . 120Passenger Airbag StatusIndicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121Charging System Light . . . . . . . 122Malfunction Indicator Lamp(Check Engine Light) . . . . . . . . 122Brake System WarningLight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124Electric Parking BrakeLight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124Service Electric Parking BrakeLight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125Antilock Brake System (ABS)Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125Lane Keep Assist (LKA)Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125Vehicle Ahead Indicator . . . . . . 126Pedestrian Ahead Indicator . . . 126Traction Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126StabiliTrak®OFF Light . . . . . . . . 127Traction Control System (TCS)/StabiliTrak®Light . . . . . . . . . . . 127Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . 127Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 128Low Fuel Warning Light(Uplevel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128Low Fuel Warning Light (BaseLevel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129Vehicle Ready Light(Hybrid) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 129Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 130Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . . 130Door Ajar Light (Uplevel) . . . . . 130
Information Displays
Power Flows (Hybrid) . . . . . . . . . 131Energy Information(Hybrid) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131Driver Information Center (DIC)(Base Level) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131Driver Information Center (DIC)(Uplevel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 138Battery Voltage and ChargingMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138Brake System Messages . . . . . 138Compass Messages . . . . . . . . . . 139Cruise Control Messages . . . . . 139Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . . 140Engine Cooling SystemMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . . 141Engine Power Messages . . . . . 141Fuel System Messages . . . . . . . 141Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 141

Chevrolet Malibu Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-10122664) - 2017 - crc - 5/23/16
104 Instruments and Controls
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142Object Detection SystemMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142Propulsion PowerMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144Ride Control SystemMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145Airbag System Messages . . . . 145Security Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 145Service Vehicle Messages . . . . 145Steering SystemMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145Starting the VehicleMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146Tire Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146Transmission Messages . . . . . . 146Vehicle ReminderMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147Window Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Vehicle Personalization
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 147
Universal Remote System
Universal Remote System . . . . 159Universal Remote SystemProgramming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159Universal Remote SystemOperation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Controls
Steering Wheel
Adjustment
To a d j u s t t h e s t e e r i n g w h e e l :
1. Pull the lever down.
2. Move the steering wheel upor down.
3. Pull or push the steering wheelcloser or away from you.
4. Pull the lever up to lock thesteering wheel in place.
Do not adjust the steering wheelwhile driving.
Steering Wheel Controls
g:If equipped with OnStar®or aBluetooth®system, press to interactwith those systems. SeeOnStarOverview0397,Bluetooth(Overview)0190orBluetooth(Infotainment Controls Radio withTo u c h s c r e e n )0195orBluetooth(Infotainment Controls Radio withoutTo u c h s c r e e n )0191,or“Bluetooth(Overview)”in the infotainmentmanual.