GMC C4C042, C5C042, C4V042, C5V042, C4U042 Owner's Manual

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The 2003 GMC C-Series Owner’s Manual

1-1 Seats and Restraint Systems

This section tells you how to use your seats and safety belts properly. It also explains the air bag system.

2-1 Features and Controls

This section explains how to start and operate your vehicle.

3-1 Comfort Controls and Audio Systems

This section tells you how to adjust the ventilation and comfort controls and how to operate your audio system.

4-1 Your Driving and the Road

Here you’ll find helpful information and tips about the road and how to drive under different conditions.

5-1 Problems on the Road

This section tells you what to do if you have a problem while driving, such as a flat tire or overheated engine, etc.

6-1 Service and Appearance Care

Here the manual tells you how to keep your vehicle running properly and looking good.

7-1 Maintenance Schedule

This section tells you when to perform vehicle maintenance and what fluids and lubricants to use.

8-1 Customer Assistance Information

This section tells you how to contact GMC for assistance and how to get service and owner publications. It also gives you information on “Reporting Safety Defects” on page 8

-4.

GENERAL MOTORS, GM, the GM Emblem, GMC and the GMC Truck Emblem are registered trademarks of General Motors Corporation.

This manual includes the latest information at the time it was printed. We reserve the right to make changes after that time without further notice. For vehicles first sold in Canada, substitute the name “General Motors of Canada Limited” for GM Medium Duty Truck Division whenever it appears in this manual.

Please keep this manual in your vehicle, so it will be there if you ever need it when you’re on the road. If you sell the vehicle, please leave this manual in it so the new owner can use it.

We support voluntary technician certification.

Litho in U.S.A.

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How to Use this Manual

Many people read their owner’s manual from beginning to end when they first receive their new vehicle. If you do this, it will help you learn about the features and controls for your vehicle. In this manual, you’ll find that pictures and words work together to explain things quickly.

Safety Warnings and Symbols

You will find a number of safety cautions in this book. We use a box and the word CAUTION to tell you about things that could hurt you if you were to ignore the warning.

CAUTION:

These mean there is something that could hurt you or other people.

In the caution area, we tell you what the hazard is. Then we tell you what to do to help avoid or reduce the hazard. Please read these cautions. If you don’t, you or others could be hurt.

You will also find a circle with a slash through it in this book. This safety symbol means “Don’t,” “Don’t do this” or “Don’t let this happen.”

Vehicle Damage Warnings

Also, in this book you will find these notices:

NOTICE:

These mean there is something that could damage your vehicle.

In the notice area, we tell you about something that can damage your vehicle. Many times, this damage would not be covered by your warranty , and it could be costly. But the notice will tell you what to do to help avoid the damage.

When you read other manuals, you might see CAUTION and NOTICE warnings in different colors or in different words.

You’ll also see warning labels on your vehicle. They use the same words, CAUTION or NOTICE.

Vehicle Symbols

Your vehicle may be equipped with components and labels that use symbols instead of text. Symbols, used on your vehicle, are shown along with the text describing the operation or information relating to a specific component, control, message, gage or indicator.

If you need help figuring out a specific name of a component, gage or indicator reference the following topics in the Index:

“Instrument Panel”

“Comfort Controls”

“Audio Systems”

Also see “Warning Lights and Gages” in the Index.

Here are some examples of symbols you may find on your vehicle:

Model Reference

This manual contains information which covers conventional cab models as shown. Most models are unfinished from the factory .

C4C042 C5C042 C4V042 C5V042 C4U042 C5U042

C6C042 C7C042 C8C042 C6V042 C7V042 C8V042

C8C064 C8V064

C4E042 C5E042 C6E042 C7E042 C8E042

C8E064

Since C-Series models delivered from the factory are finished in a variety of ways by a number of companies, you’ll probably find other manuals in your finished vehicle. These manuals are put there by the companies that have added components or equipment to the C-Series model. Read all these materials

-- as well

as this manual

-- carefully , to get all of the information

on your vehicle.

1-1

Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems

Here you’ll find information about the seats in your vehicle and how to use your safety belts properly . You can also learn about some things you should not do with air bags and safety belts.

-2 Seats and Seat Controls

-8 Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone

-12 Here Are Questions Many People Ask About

Safety Belts

-- and the Answers

-13 How to Wear Safety Belts Properly

-13 Driver Position

-21 Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy

-22 Right Front Passenger Position

-22 Air Bag System

-36 Center Passenger Position

-37 Rear Seat Passengers

-41 Children

-45 Restraint Systems for Children

-64 Older Children

-67 Safety Belt Extender

-67 Checking Your Restraint Systems

-68 Replacing Restraint System Parts

After a Crash

1-2

Seats and Seat Controls

This section tells you about the seats in your vehicle and how to adjust them. It also tells you about reclining front seatbacks.

CAUTION:

You can lose control of the vehicle if you try to adjust the seat while the vehicle is moving. The sudden movement could startle and confuse you, or make you push a pedal when you don’t want to. Adjust the driver’s seat only when the vehicle is not moving.

Bucket Seats (If Equipped)

If your vehicle has bucket seats, also known as static seats, you can adjust them forward or rearward with the lever located at the front of the seat.

To adjust the seat, pull the lever up to release the seat bottom. Slide the seat to where you want it and release the lever. Then try to move the seat with your body, to make sure the seat is locked in place.

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Split Bench Seat (If Equipped)

If your vehicle has a split bench seat, your seat is fixed and is not able to be adjusted.

Air Suspension Seats (If Equipped)

If your vehicle has the low-back suspension seat, there are six ways you can adjust the seat.

If your vehicle has the high

-back air suspension seat,

there are five ways you can adjust the seat.

Height Adjustment

The suspension seat height adjustment lever is located on the front inboard side of the seat.

To adjust the height of the air suspension seat, pull the lever up to inflate. Push the lever down to deflate.

The seat cushion itself can also be raised or lowered.

1-4

The seat cushion height adjustment handle is located underneath the seat, in the front.

To adjust the height of the cushion, lift the cushion height adjustment handle up and pull it forward. You can choose between two settings.

Lumbar Adjustments

The lumbar adjustment knob is located on the seatback, on the inboard side of the driver’s seat and on the outboard side of the passenger’s seat.

To get more support in the lumbar area of your back, turn the lumbar adjustment knob clockwise. To decrease the amount of lumbar support, turn the knob counterclockwise.

1-5

Seatback Adjustment

The seatback adjustment knob is located on the inboard side of the driver’s and passenger’s seat cushions.

To tilt the seatback rearward, turn the knob counterclockwise. Turn the knob clockwise to tilt the seatback forward.

Fore

-and-Aft Adjustment

The fore-and-aft adjustment lever is located underneath the seat, in the front.

To slide the seat forward or rearward, move the lever toward the driver’s door. The seat will lock in at 1/2 inch (1.5 cm) increments.

1-6

Chugger-Snubber Lock-Out Feature (If Equipped)

If your vehicle has this feature, the handle is located on the outboard sides of the driver’s and passenger’s seats.

Move the handle down to minimize any backslap experienced while in tractor/trailer operation or while operating a dump truck application. This feature is only available on low

-back seats.

Reclining Front Seatbacks (If Equipped)

If your vehicle is equipped with bucket seats, you can recline the seatbacks. The lever is located on the outboard side of the seat cushion.

To recline the seatback, lift the lever and use your body to move the seatback. Release the lever to lock the seatback where you want it. Lean forward and pull up on the lever to return the seatback to an upright position.

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But don’t have a seatback reclined if your vehicle is moving.

CAUTION:

Sitting in a reclined position when your vehicle is in motion can be dangerous. Even if you buckle up, your safety belts can’t do their job when you’re reclined like this.

The shoulder belt can’t do its job because it won’t 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 can’t do its job either. In a crash the 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 your safety belt properly.

1-8

Rear Seats (Crew CabR)

Folding the Rear Seat

The Crew Cab’s rear bench seat can be folded down to provide more cargo space.

To fold down the seatback, pull this nylon strap located on the rear of the seat, while pulling the seatback down.

To raise a seatback, pull the nylon strap while raising the seatback until it locks upright.

After raising a seatback to an upright position, push and pull on the seatback to check that it is locked in place.

Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone

This part of the manual tells you how to use safety belts properly. It also tells you some things you should not do with safety belts.

And it explains the air bag system.

CAUTION:

Don’t let anyone ride where he or she can’t wear a safety belt properly. If you are in a crash and you’re not wearing a safety belt, your injuries can be much worse. You can hit things inside the vehicle or be ejected from it. You can be seriously injured or killed. In the same crash, you might not be if you are buckled up. Always fasten your safety belt, and check that your passengers’ belts are fastened properly too.

1-9

CAUTION:

It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo area, inside or outside of a vehicle. In a collision, people riding in these areas are more likely to be seriously injured or killed. Do not allow people to ride in any area of your vehicle that is not equipped with seats and safety belts. Be sure everyone in your vehicle is in a seat and using a safety belt properly.

Your vehicle has a light that comes on as a reminder to buckle up. See “Safety Belt Reminder Light” in the Index.

In most states and all Canadian provinces, the law says to wear safety belts. Here’s why: They work.

You never know if you’ll be in a crash. If you do have a crash, you don’t know if it will be a bad one.

A few crashes are mild, and some crashes can be so serious that even buckled up a person wouldn’t survive. But most crashes are in between. In many of them, people who buckle up can survive and sometimes walk away. Without belts they could have been badly hurt or killed.

After more than 30 years of safety belts in vehicles, the facts are clear. In most crashes buckling up does matter ... a lot!

1-10

Why Safety Belts Work

Q: Aren’t safety belts for kids?

A: Yes. And they’re for adult truckers, and anyone

else who rides in your vehicle.

Here’ s why: when your vehicle goes, say, 30 mph (50 km/h), so do you and your passengers.

If the vehicle hits something, it stops -- right then. But nothing stops the people. They keep moving.

1-11

Then something will stop them. It could be the windshield.

Or it could be the instrument panel. Now, what if you and your passengers were to give that

big vehicle a chance to deal with the force of the impact, instead of you?

1-12

With belts, you slow down as the vehicle does. You get more time to stop.

You stop over more distance, and your strongest bones take the forces. Safety belts are for everyone.

Here Are Questions Many People Ask About Safety Belts

-- and the Answers

W on’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an accident if I’m wearing a safety belt?

A: You could be -- whether you’re wearing a safety

belt or not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt, even if you’re upside down. And your chance of being conscious during and after an accident, so you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if you are belted.

Q: If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to

wear safety belts?

A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be in

most of them in the future. But they are supplemental systems only; so they work with safety belts

-- not instead of them. Every air bag

system ever offered for sale has required the use of safety belts. Even if you’re in a vehicle that has air bags, you still have to buckle up to get the most protection. That’s true not only in frontal collisions, but especially in side and other collisions.

1-13

Q: If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from

home, why should I wear safety belts?

A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an

accident

-- even one that isn’t your fault -- you

and your passengers can be hurt. Being a good driver doesn’t protect you from things beyond your control, such as bad drivers.

Most accidents occur within 25 miles (40 km) of home. And the greatest number of serious injuries and deaths occur at speeds of less than 40 mph (65 km/h).

Safety belts are for everyone.

How to Wear Safety Belts Properly

Adults

This part is only for people of adult size. Be aware that there are special things to know about

safety belts and children. And there are different rules for smaller children and babies. If a child will be riding in your vehicle, see the part of this manual called “Children.” Follow those rules for everyone’s protection.

First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your vehicle has.

We’ll start with the driver position.

Driver Position

This part describes the driver’s restraint system.

Lap-Shoulder Belt

The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here’s how to wear it properly .

1. Close and lock the door.

2. Adjust the seat so you can sit up straight. To see how, see “Seats” in the Index.

1-14

3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you. Don’t let it get twisted. The shoulder belt may lock if you pull the belt across you very quickly . If this happens, let the belt go back slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt across you more slowly .

4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure.

If the belt isn’t long enough, see “Safety Belt Extender” at the end of this section.

Make sure the release button on the buckle is positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly if you ever had to.

1-15

The lap part of the belt should be worn low and snug on the hips, just touching the thighs. In a crash, this applies force to the strong pelvic bones. And you’d be less likely to slide under the lap belt. If you slid under it, the belt would apply force at your abdomen. This could cause serious or even fatal injuries. The shoulder belt should go over the shoulder and across the chest. These parts of the body are best able to take belt restraining forces.

The safety belt locks if there’s a sudden stop or a crash, or if you pull the belt very quickly out of the retractor.

Shoulder Belt Height Adjuster

Before you begin to drive, move the shoulder belt adjuster to the height that is right for you. Adjust the height so that the shoulder portion of the belt is centered on your shoulder. The belt should be away from your face and neck, but not falling off your shoulder.

To move it down, push in at the top of the arrows and move the height adjuster to the desired position. You can move the adjuster up just by pushing up on the shoulder belt guide. After you move the adjuster to where you want it, try to move it down without pushing in to make sure it has locked into position.

1-16

Q: What’s wrong with this?

A: The shoulder belt is too loose. It won’t give nearly

as much protection this way .

CAUTION:

You can be seriously hurt if your shoulder belt is too loose. In a crash, you would move forward too much, which could increase injury. The shoulder belt should fit against your body.

1-17

Q: What’s wrong with this?

A: The belt is buckled in the wrong place.

CAUTION:

You can be seriously injured if your belt is buckled in the wrong place like this. In a crash, the belt would go up over your abdomen. The belt forces would be there, not at the pelvic bones. This could cause serious internal injuries. Always buckle your belt into the buckle nearest you.

1-18

Q: What’s wrong with this?

A: The belt is over an armrest.

CAUTION:

You can be seriously injured if your belt goes over an armrest like this. The belt would be much too high. In a crash, you can slide under the belt. The belt force would then be applied at the abdomen, not at the pelvic bones, and that could cause serious or fatal injuries. Be sure the belt goes under the armrests.

1-19

Q: What’s wrong with this?

A: The shoulder belt is worn under the arm. It should

be worn over the shoulder at all times.

CAUTION:

You can be seriously injured if you wear the shoulder belt under your arm. In a crash, your body would move too far forward, which would increase the chance of head and neck injury. Also, the belt would apply too much force to the ribs, which aren’t as strong as shoulder bones. You could also severely injure internal organs like your liver or spleen.

1-20

Q: What’s wrong with this?

A: The belt is twisted across the body .

CAUTION:

You can be seriously injured by a twisted belt. In a crash, you wouldn’t have the full width of the belt to spread impact forces. If a belt is twisted, make it straight so it can work properly, or ask your dealer to fix it.

1-21

To unlatch the belt, just push the button on the buckle. The belt should go back out of the way .

Before you close the door, be sure the belt is out of the way. If you slam the door on it, you can damage both the belt and your vehicle.

Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy

Safety belts work for everyone, including pregnant women. Like all occupants, they are more likely to be seriously injured if they don’t wear safety belts.

A pregnant woman should wear a lap-shoulder belt, and the lap portion should be worn as low as possible, below the rounding, throughout the pregnancy .

1-22

The best way to protect the fetus is to protect the mother . When a safety belt is worn properly, it’s more likely that the fetus won’t be hurt in a crash. For pregnant women, as for anyone, the key to making safety belts effective is wearing them properly.

Right Front Passenger Position

To learn how to wear the right front passenger’s safety belt properly , see “Driver Position” earlier in this section.

The right front passenger’s safety belt works the same way as the driver’s safety belt. If your vehicle has a static seat in this position and if you ever pull the shoulder portion of the belt out all the way , you will engage the child restraint locking feature. If this happens, just let the belt go back all the way and start again.

Air Bag System

This part explains the air bag system.

1-23

If it says AIR BAG on the middle part of the steering wheel and AIR BAG on the instrument panel in front of the right front passenger’s seat, your vehicle has two air bags

-- one air bag for the driver and another air bag for

the right front passenger.

If it says AIR BAG on the middle part of the steering wheel but it doesn’t say AIR BAG on the instrument panel in front of the right front passenger’s seat, your vehicle has an air bag for the driver only .

If it says AIR BAG on the middle part of the steering wheel, but there is no right front passenger seat, your vehicle has an air bag for the driver only .

If it doesn’t say AIR BAG on the middle part of the steering wheel, your vehicle doesn’t have air bags.

Frontal air bags are designed to help reduce the risk of injury from the force of an inflating air bag. But these air bags must inflate very quickly to do their job and comply with federal regulations.

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GMC C4C042, C5C042, C4V042, C5V042, C4U042 Owner's Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual