
Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-10122660) -2017 - crc - 5/13/16
4 Introduction
3:Headlamp High/Low-BeamChanger
j:LATCH System Child Restraints
*:Malfunction Indicator Lamp
::Oil Pressure
}:Power
/:Remote Vehicle Start
>:Safety Belt Reminders
7:Tire Pressure Monitor
d:Traction Control/StabiliTrak®
a:Under Pressure
M:Windshield Washer Fluid

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-10122660) -2017 - crc - 5/13/16
In Brief 5
In Brief
Instrument Panel
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Initial Drive Information
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . . . 8Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . . . 9Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Liftgate (Hatchback) . . . . . . . . . . . 10Trunk Release (Sedan) . . . . . . . . 10Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Second Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . 13Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Passenger Sensing System . . . 13Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . 14Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . . 16Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Vehicle Features
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . . . 18Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . . . 20Bluetooth®..................... 20Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . . 20Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Driver InformationCenter (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Forward Collision Alert (FCA)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Lane DepartureWarning (LDW) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Rear Vision Camera (RVC) . . . . 22Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Performance and Maintenance
Traction Control/ElectronicStability Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . . . 23Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23E85 or FlexFuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . . . 24Driving for Better FuelEconomy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24Roadside AssistanceProgram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-10122660) -2017 - crc - 5/13/16
12 In Brief
Power Seats
To a d j u s t a p o w e r s e a t :
.Move the seat forward orrearward by sliding the controlforward or rearward.
.Raise or lower the front part ofthe seat cushion by moving thefront of the control up or down.
.Raise or lower the entire seat bymoving the rear of the control upor down.
SeePower Seat Adjustment054.
Lumbar Adjustment
If available, press the front or rear ofthe switch to increase or decreaselumbar support. Release the switchwhen the desired level of support isreached.
SeeLumbar Adjustment054.
Reclining Seatbacks
Manual Seat Shown, Power Seat
Similar
To r e c l i n e t h e s e a t b a c k :
1. Lift the lever.
If necessary, move the safetybelt out of the way to accessthe lever.
2. Move the seatback to thedesired position, then releasethe lever to lock the seatbackin place.
3. Push and pull on the seatbackto make sure it is locked.

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-10122660) -2017 - crc - 5/13/16
In Brief 13
To r e t u r n t h e s e a t b a c k t o a n u p r i g h tposition:
1. Lift the lever fully withoutapplying pressure to theseatback, and the seatbackreturns to the upright position.
2. Push and pull on the seatbackto make sure it is locked.
SeeReclining Seatbacks055.
Second Row Seats
The rear seatbacks can be foldeddown to increase cargo space.
SeeRear Seats057.
Head Restraint
Adjustment
Do not drive until the head restraintsfor all occupants are installed andadjusted properly.
To a c h i e v e a c o m f o r t a b l e s e a t i n gposition, change the seatbackrecline angle as little as necessarywhile keeping the seat and the headrestraint height in the properposition.
SeeHead Restraints052andSeatAdjustment053.
Safety Belts
Refer to the following sections forimportant information on how to usesafety belts properly:
.Safety Belts059.
.How to Wear Safety BeltsProperly060.
.Lap-Shoulder Belt061.
.Lower Anchors and Tethers forChildren (LATCH System)084.
Passenger Sensing
System
United States
Canada
The passenger sensing systemturns off the front outboardpassenger frontal airbag and kneeairbag under certain conditions. Noother airbag is affected by thepassenger sensing system. SeePassenger Sensing System071.

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-10122660) -2017 - crc - 5/13/16
38 Keys, Doors, and Windows
After this, the vehicle's ignitionswitch must be turned to ON/RUNand then back to LOCK/OFF usingthe key, before the remote startprocedure can be used again.
Canceling a Remote Start
To c a n c e l a r e m o t e s t a r t , d o o n e o fthe following:
.Press and hold/until the
parking lamps turn off.
.Turn on the hazard warningflashers.
.Turn the vehicle on and then off.
Conditions in Which Remote StartWill Not Work
The remote vehicle start feature willnot operate if:
.The key is in the ignition.
.The hood is not closed.
.The hazard warning flashersare on.
.The malfunction indicator lampis on.
.The engine coolant temperatureis too high.
.The oil pressure is low.
.Tw o r e m o t e v e h i c l e s t a r t s , o r asingle remote start with anextension, have alreadybeen used.
.The vehicle is not in P (Park).
Door Locks
{Warning
Unlocked doors can be
dangerous.
.Passengers, especiallychildren, can easily openthe doors and fall out of amoving vehicle. When adoor is locked, the handlewill not open it. The chanceof being thrown out of thevehicle in a crash isincreased if the doors arenot locked. So, allpassengers should wearsafety belts properly and the
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
doors should be lockedwhenever the vehicle isdriven.
.Yo u n g c h i l d r e n w h o g e t i n t ounlocked vehicles may beunable to get out. A childcan be overcome byextreme heat and can sufferpermanent injuries or evendeath from heat stroke.Always lock the vehiclewhenever leaving it.
.Outsiders can easily enterthrough an unlocked doorwhen you slow down or stopthe vehicle. Locking thedoors can help prevent thisfrom happening.
To l o c k o r u n l o c k t h e d o o r s f r o moutside the vehicle:
.Use the key in the driver door tolock all doors or unlock thedriver door only.

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-10122660) -2017 - crc - 5/13/16
Seats and Restraints 51
Seats and
Restraints
Head Restraints
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Front Seats
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53Power Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . 54Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . 54Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . . 55Front Seat Armrest . . . . . . . . . . . . 56Heated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Rear Seats
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Safety Belts
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59How to Wear Safety BeltsProperly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61Safety Belt Use DuringPregnancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63Safety Belt Extender . . . . . . . . . . . 64Safety System Check . . . . . . . . . . 64Safety Belt Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64Replacing Safety Belt SystemParts after a Crash . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Airbag System
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65Where Are the Airbags? . . . . . . . 67When Should an AirbagInflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68What Makes an AirbagInflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69How Does an AirbagRestrain? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70What Will You See after anAirbag Inflates? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70Passenger Sensing System . . . 71Servicing the Airbag-EquippedVehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75Adding Equipment to theAirbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . . . 75Airbag System Check . . . . . . . . . . 76Replacing Airbag System Partsafter a Crash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Child Restraints
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77Infants and Young Children . . . . 79Child Restraint Systems . . . . . . . 81Where to Put the Restraint . . . . . 83Lower Anchors and Tethers forChildren (LATCH System) . . . . 84Replacing LATCH System PartsAfter a Crash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Securing Child Restraints (Withthe Safety Belt in theRear Seat) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91Securing Child Restraints (Withthe Safety Belt in theFront Seat) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-10122660) -2017 - crc - 5/13/16
Seats and Restraints 55
Reclining Seatbacks
{Warning
If either seatback is not locked, it
could move forward in a sudden
stop or crash. That could cause
injury to the person sitting there.
Always push and pull on the
seatbacks to be sure they are
locked.
To r e c l i n e a m a n u a l s e a t b a c k :
1. Lift the lever.
If necessary, move the safetybelt out of the way to accessthe lever.
2. Move the seatback to thedesired position, and thenrelease the lever to lock theseatback in place.
3. Push and pull on the seatbackto make sure it is locked inplace.
To r e t u r n t h e s e a t b a c k t o t h e u p r i g h tposition:
1. Lift the lever fully withoutapplying pressure to theseatback, and the seatback willreturn to the upright position.
2. Push and pull on the seatbackto make sure it is locked.
{Warning
Sitting in a reclined position when
the vehicle is in motion can be
dangerous. Even when buckled
up, the safety belts cannot do
their job.
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
The shoulder belt will not be
against your body. Instead, it will
be in front of you. In a crash, you
could go into it, receiving neck or
other injuries.
The lap belt could go up over
your abdomen. The belt forces
would be there, not at your pelvic
bones. This could cause serious
internal injuries.
For proper protection when the
vehicle is in motion, have the
seatback upright. Then sit well
back in the seat and wear the
safety belt properly.

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-10122660) -2017 - crc - 5/13/16
Seats and Restraints 57
Remote Start Auto Heated
Seats
If equipped, when it is cold outsidethe heated seats can be turned onautomatically during a remotevehicle start. The heated seats willbe canceled when the ignition isturned on. Press the heated seatcontrols to use the heated seatsafter the vehicle is started.
The heated seat indicator lights donot turn on during a remote start.
The temperature performance of anunoccupied seat may be reduced.This is normal.
SeeRemote Vehicle Start037.
Rear Seats
Folding the Seatback
Either side of the seatback can befolded down for more cargo space.Fold a seatback only when thevehicle is not moving.
Caution
Folding a rear seat with the safety
belts still fastened may cause
damage to the seat or the safety
belts. Always unbuckle the safety
belts and return them to their
normal stowed position before
folding a rear seat.
To f o l d t h e s e a t b a c k d o w n :
1. Make sure the safety belt is inthe retainer hook.