
Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-12461769) -
2019 - crc - 5/21/18
4 Introduction
Q:Keep Fuse Block Covers
Properly Installed
|: Lane Change Alert
@:Lane Departure Warning
A:Lane Keep Assist
*:Malfunction Indicator Lamp
::Oil Pressure
X:Park Assist
~:Pedestrian Ahead Indicator
O:Power
7: Rear Cross Traffic Alert
I:Registered Technician
/:Remote Vehicle Start
>: Seat Belt Reminders
I:Side Blind Zone Alert
h:Stop/Start
7: Tire Pressure Monitor
d:Traction Control/StabiliTrak/
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
a: Under Pressure
V:Vehicle Ahead Indicator

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-12461769) -
2019 - crc - 5/21/18
In Brief 5
In Brief
Instrument Panel
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Initial Drive Information
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . . . 8
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Liftgate (Hatchback) . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Trunk Release (Sedan) . . . . . . . . 10
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Second Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . 13
Seat Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Passenger Sensing System . . . 14
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . 15
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . . 16
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Vehicle Features
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . . . 20
Bluetooth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . . 20
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Forward Collision Alert (FCA) System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Lane Departure Warning (LDW) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Rear Vision Camera (RVC) . . . . 22
Park Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Performance and Maintenance
Traction Control/Electronic Stability Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . . . 24
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
E85 or FlexFuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . . . 25
Driving for Better Fuel Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-12461769) -
2019 - crc - 5/21/18
22 In Brief
3.MENU: Press to display the
DIC menus. This button is also
used to return to or exit the last
screen displayed on the DIC.
See Driver Information Center (DIC)
0 126.
Forward Collision Alert
(FCA) System
If equipped, FCA may help avoid or
reduce the harm caused by
front-end crashes. FCA provides a
green indicator,
V, when a vehicle
is detected ahead. When
approaching a vehicle ahead too
quickly, FCA provides a red flashing
alert and rapidly beeps. This alert
stays lit if you follow a vehicle much
too closely.
See Forward Collision Alert (FCA)
System 0212.
Lane Departure
Warning (LDW)
If equipped, LDW may help avoid
unintentional lane departures at
speeds of 56 km/h (35 mph) or
greater. LDW uses a camera sensor
to detect the lane markings. The
LDW light,
@, is green if a lane
marking is detected. If the vehicle
departs the lane without using a turn
signal in that direction, the light will
change to amber and flash. In
addition, beeps will sound.
See Lane Departure Warning (LDW)
0 214.
Rear Vision
Camera (RVC)
If equipped, RVC displays a view of
the area behind the vehicle, on the
infotainment display, when the
vehicle is shifted into R (Reverse).
See Rear Vision Camera (RVC)
0 209.
Park Assist
If equipped, Rear Park Assist (RPA)
uses sensors on the rear bumper to
assist with parking and avoiding
objects while in R (Reverse).
It operates at speeds less than
8 km/h (5 mph) and uses audible
beeps to provide distance and
system information.
Keep the sensors on the vehicle's
rear bumper clean to ensure proper
operation.
See Park Assist 0211.
Power Outlets
The accessory power outlets can be
used to plug in electrical equipment,
such as a cell phone or MP3 player.
The vehicle has an accessory
power outlet behind the cupholders
on the center console.
See Power Outlets 0109.

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-12461769) -
2019 - crc - 5/21/18
174 Driving and Operating
Driving and
Operating
Driving Information
Distracted Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Defensive Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Drunk Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Control of a Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Driving on Wet Roads . . . . . . . . 178
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . 179
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
If the Vehicle Is Stuck . . . . . . . . 181
Vehicle Load Limits . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Starting and Operating
New Vehicle Break-In . . . . . . . . . 185
Ignition Positions (KeyAccess) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Ignition Positions (Keyless Access) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Starting the Engine . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Engine Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Retained Accessory Power (RAP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192 Shifting Into Park (Automatic
Transmission) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Shifting out of Park (Automatic Transmission) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Parking (Manual
Transmission) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Parking over Things That Burn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Extended Parking (Keyless Access) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Engine Exhaust
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Running the Vehicle WhileParked . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Automatic Transmission
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 196
Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Manual Transmission
Manual Transmission . . . . . . . . . 199
Brakes
Antilock BrakeSystem (ABS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Parking Brake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Brake Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Hill Start Assist (HSA) . . . . . . . . 203
Ride Control Systems
Traction Control/Electronic Stability Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Cruise Control
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Driver Assistance Systems
Driver Assistance Systems . . . 208
Rear Vision Camera (RVC) . . . 209
Park Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Forward Collision Alert (FCA)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Lane Departure Warning (LDW) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Fuel
Top Tier Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Recommended Fuel . . . . . . . . . . 216
Prohibited Fuels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Fuels in Foreign Countries . . . 217
Fuel Additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Filling the Tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Filling a Portable FuelContainer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Trailer Towing
General TowingInformation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-12461769) -
2019 - crc - 5/21/18
Driving and Operating 179
Warning (Continued)
occupants could drown. Do not
ignore police warnings and be
very cautious about trying to drive
through flowing water.
Hydroplaning
Hydroplaning is dangerous. Water
can build up under the vehicle's
tires so they actually ride on the
water. This can happen if the road is
wet enough and you are going fast
enough. When the vehicle is
hydroplaning, it has little or no
contact with the road.
There is no hard and fast rule about
hydroplaning. The best advice is to
slow down when the road is wet.
Other Rainy Weather Tips
Besides slowing down, other wet
weather driving tips include:
.Allow extra following distance.
. Pass with caution. .
Keep windshield wiping
equipment in good shape.
. Keep the windshield washer fluid
reservoir filled.
. Have good tires with proper
tread depth. See Tires0253.
. Turn off cruise control.
Hill and Mountain Roads
Driving on steep hills or through
mountains is different than driving
on flat or rolling terrain. Tips include:
.Keep the vehicle serviced and in
good shape.
. Check all fluid levels and brakes,
tires, cooling system, and
transmission.
. Shift to a lower gear when going
down steep or long hills.
{Warning
Using the brakes to slow the
vehicle on a long downhill slope
can cause brake overheating, can
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
reduce brake performance, and
could result in a loss of braking.
Shift the transmission to a lower
gear to let the engine assist the
brakes on a steep downhill slope.
{Warning
Coasting downhill in N (Neutral)
or with the ignition off is
dangerous. This can cause
overheating of the brakes and
loss of steering assist. Always
have the engine running and the
vehicle in gear.
. Drive at speeds that keep the
vehicle in its own lane. Do not
swing wide or cross the
center line.
. Be alert on top of hills;
something could be in your lane
(e.g., stalled car, crash).

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-12461769) -
2019 - crc - 5/21/18
252 Vehicle Care
FusesUsage
BCM1 Body control module 1
IPC Instrument panel cluster
TELEMATICS Telematics
PAS/SBSA Park assist system/ Side blind spot
alert system
RAIN SNSR Rain sensing wiper
AUDIO Audio
TRAILER1 Trailer 1 LDW/FCA Lane departure warning/Front
collision alert
CGM Central gateway module
HVAC1 Heating, ventilation, and air
conditioning 1
HLLD SW Automatic headlamp leveling
switch Fuses
Usage
IPC/AOS Instrument cluster/ Automatic
occupant sensing
display
SPARE –
TRAILER2 Trailer hitch 2 CLOCK
SPRING Clock spring
HVAC2 Heating, ventilation, and air
conditioning 2
HTD
STR WHL Heated steering
wheel
SPARE –
S/ROOF SW Sunroof switch CIGAR APO Cigar auxiliary power outlet
ESCL Electric steering column lock
PWR WNDW FRONT Front power
windows
IRAP ACCY IRAP accessory
BATT CONN Battery connector Relays
Usage
RUN RELAY Run L/GATERELAY Liftgate
IRAP RELAY IRAP RAP/ACCY RELAY Retained
accessory power/
Accessory

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-12461769) -
2019 - crc - 5/21/18
Index 347
S
Safety Defects ReportingCanadian Government . . . . . . . . 324
General Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
U.S. Government . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Safety Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Safety System Check . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Scheduling Appointments . . . . . . . 319
Seat Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Extender . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
How to Wear Seat BeltsProperly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Reminders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114
Replacing after a Crash . . . . . . . . 69
Use During Pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . 68
Seats
Adjustment, Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Heated Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Lumbar Adjustment, Front . . . . . . 57
Power Adjustment, Front . . . . . . . 57
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Securing Child Restraints . . . . 96, 98 Security
OnStar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Vehicle Alarm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172 Accessories andModifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Climate Control System . . . . . . . 169
Doing Your Own Work . . . . . . . . 223
Maintenance Records . . . . . . . . 308
Maintenance, General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295
Parts Identification Label . . . . . 309
Scheduling Appointments . . . . . 319
Vehicle Soon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . .118
Services
Special Application . . . . . . . . . . . 302
Servicing the Airbag . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Shift Lock Control Function Check, Automatic
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Shifting Into Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Out of Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Signals, Turn and Lane-Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 Spare Tire
Compact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
Special Application Services . . . . 302
Specifications and Capacities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
StabiliTrak OFF Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Start Assist, Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Start Vehicle, Remote . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Starter Switch Check . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Starting the Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Heated Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Power, Warning Lights . . . . . . . . 120
Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Wheel Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Stoplamps and Back-up Lamps Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Storage Load Compartment . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Storage Areas Cargo Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . . 102
Struts Gas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Chevrolet Sonic Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada-12461769) -
2019 - crc - 5/21/18
348 Index
Stuck Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Summer Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
Sun Visors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
SystemForward Collision
Alert (FCA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Systems Driver Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
T
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
TaillampsBulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Text Telephone (TTY) Users . . . . 316
Theft-Deterrent Systems . . . . . . . . . 47 Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253 All-Season . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
Compact Spare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Different Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
If a Tire Goes Flat . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 Tires (cont'd)
Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Pressure Monitor Operation . . 262
Pressure Monitor System . . . . . 261
Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Sidewall Labeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Terminology and Definitions . . 257
Uniform Tire Quality
Grading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Wheel Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 271
When It Is Time for New
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Winter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
Top Tier Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Towing
General Information . . . . . . . . . . 219
Recreational Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . 283
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
Traction
Control System(TCS)/StabiliTrak Light . . . . . . 122
Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Traction Control/Electronic Stability Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 Trademarks and License
Agreements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
Transmission Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Fluid, Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Fluid, Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Transportation Program,
Courtesy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Trunk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Turn and Lane-Change Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Turn Signal Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
U
Ultrasonic Parking SensorLight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Uniform Tire Quality Grading . . . 269
Up-Shift Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
USB Port . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Using the System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Using This Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
V
Vehicle Alarm System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Canadian Owners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176