Pontiac SOLSTICE 2007 Owner Manual

2007 Pontiac Solstice Owner Manual M

Seats and Restraint Systems

Front Seats Safety Belts Child Restraints Airbag System Restraint System Check

Features and Controls

Keys Doors and Locks Windows Theft-Deterrent Systems Starting and Operating Your Vehicle Mirrors OnStar

....................................................... 60

.............................................. 8

............................................ 12

...................................... 27

........................................ 42

................................ 59

.................................... 65

................................................ 70

.................................................... 93

System

..................................... 94

....................... 7

......................... 56

......................... 72

....... 76

Storage Areas Convertible Top

Instrument Panel

Instrument Panel Overview Climate Controls Warning Lights, Gages, and

Indicators Driver Information Center (DIC) Audio System(s)

Driving Your Vehicle

Your Driving, the Road, and

Your Vehicle Towing

................................................. 231

........................................ 98

...................................... 99

....................................... 105

................................... 122

.......................................... 127

................................... 157

................................. 189

..................................... 190

................... 108

............ 145

Service and Appearance Care

Service Fuel

................................................. 235

...................................................... 237

Checking Things Under the Hood Rear Axle Bulb Replacement

............................................. 279

................................ 280

Windshield Wiper Blade

Replacement

Tires

..................................................... 284

Appearance Care Vehicle Identiﬁcation

..................................... 283

.................................. 314

............................. 325

.................. 233

......... 242

Electrical System

.................................. 326

Capacities and Speciﬁcations

Maintenance Schedule

.............................. 333

.......................... 334

Customer Assistance Information

Customer Assistance and

Information

Reporting Safety Defects

Index

.......................................................... 383

........................................ 362

...................... 379

................ 332

............. 361

GENERAL MOTORS, GM, the GM Emblem, PONTIAC, the PONTIAC Emblem, and the name SOLSTICE 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 Pontiac Division whenever it appears in this manual.

This manual describes features that may be available in this model, but your vehicle may not have all of them. For example, more than one entertainment system may be offered or your vehicle may have been ordered without a front passenger or rear seats.

Keep this manual in the vehicle, so it will be there if it is needed while you are on the road. If the vehicle is sold, leave this manual in the vehicle.

Canadian Owners

A French language copy of this manual can be obtained from your dealer or from:

Helm, Incorporated P.O. Box 07130 Detroit, MI 48207

Litho in U.S.A. Part No. 15859544 A First Printing

How to Use This Manual

Many people read the owner manual from beginning to end when they ﬁrst receive their new vehicle. If this is done, it can help you learn about the features and controls for the vehicle. Pictures and words work together in the owner manual to explain things.

Index

A good place to quickly locate information about the vehicle is the Index in the back of the manual. It is an alphabetical list of what is in the manual and the page number where it can be found.

Safety Warnings and Symbols

There are a number of safety cautions in this book. We use a box and the word CAUTION to tell 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 do not, you or others could be hurt.

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

Vehicle Damage Warnings

Vehicle Symbols

Also, in this manual you will ﬁnd these notices:

Notice: These mean there is something that could damage your vehicle.

A notice tells about something that can damage the vehicle. Many times, this damage would not be covered by your vehicle’s warranty, and it could be costly. But the notice will tell 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.

There are also warning labels on the vehicle. They use the same words, CAUTION or NOTICE.

The vehicle has components and labels that use symbols instead of text. Symbols 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:

• Seats and Restraint Systems in Section 1

• Features and Controls in Section 2

• Instrument Panel Overview in Section 3

• Climate Controls in Section 3

• Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators in

Section 3

• Audio System(s) in Section 3

• Engine Compartment Overview in Section 5

These are some examples of symbols that may be found on the vehicle:

Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems

Front Seats ..................................................... 8

Manual Seats ................................................ 8

Reclining Seatbacks ...................................... 9

Seatback Latches ........................................ 11

Power Lift Seat ........................................... 12

Safety Belts .................................................. 12

Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone ........... 12

Questions and Answers About

Safety Belts ............................................. 17

How to Wear Safety Belts Properly ............. 18

Driver Position ............................................. 18

Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy .............. 25

Passenger Position ...................................... 26

Safety Belt Pretensioners ............................ 26

Safety Belt Extender ................................... 26

Child Restraints ............................................ 27

Older Children ............................................. 27

Infants and Young Children ......................... 30

Child Restraint Systems .............................. 33

Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children

(LATCH) .................................................. 37

Securing a Child Restraint in the

Passenger Seat Position .......................... 38

Airbag System .............................................. 42

Where Are the Airbags? .............................. 45

When Should an Airbag Inﬂate? .................. 47

What Makes an Airbag Inﬂate? ................... 48

How Does an Airbag Restrain? ................... 48

What Will You See After an

Airbag Inﬂates? ........................................ 48

Passenger Sensing System ......................... 50

Servicing Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle ...... 54

Adding Equipment to Your

Airbag-Equipped Vehicle .......................... 55

Restraint System Check ............................... 56

Checking the Restraint Systems .................. 56

Replacing Restraint System Parts After

a Crash ................................................... 57

Front Seats

Manual Seats

{CAUTION:

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

Lift the lever located under the front of the seat to unlock it.

Slide the seat to where you want it and release the lever. Try to move the seat with your body to be sure the seat is locked in place.

Make sure nothing is in front of or under the seat to prevent it from releasing or re-locking after adjustment.

Reclining Seatbacks

{CAUTION:

To adjust the seatback, turn the knob on the outboard side of the seatback until the seatback is in the desired position.

{CAUTION:

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

The shoulder belt cannot do its job. In a crash, you could go into it, receiving neck or other injuries.

The lap belt cannot 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.

Do not have a seatback reclined if your vehicle is moving.

Seatback Latches

The seats have a latch located on the outboard side near the top of the seatback that enables the front seatback(s) to fold forward.

This allows access to the map pocket on the rear of the seatback.

To fold the seatback forward, lift the latch and push the seatback forward.

{CAUTION:

If the 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 seatback to be sure it is locked.

Power Lift Seat

Your vehicle may have this feature.

The switch is located on the outboard side of the driver’s seat. To use the adjuster, ﬁrst move the seat forward or rearward to where you want it. See Manual Seats on page 8. To raise the seat hold the switch up. To lower the seat hold the switch down.

Safety Belts

Safety Belts: They Are 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.

{CAUTION:

Do not let anyone ride where he or she can not wear a safety belt properly. If you are in a crash and you are 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 passenger’s belt is fastened properly too.

{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 indicators to remind you and your passenger to buckle your safety belts. See Safety

Belt Reminder Light on page 130 and Passenger Safety Belt Reminder Light on page 130.

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

You never know if you will be in a crash. If you do have a crash, you do not 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 would not 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 40 years of safety belts in vehicles, the facts are clear. In most crashes buckling up does matter... a lot!

Why Safety Belts Work

When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as it goes.

Take the simplest vehicle. Suppose it is just a seat on wheels.

Put someone on it.

Get it up to speed. Then stop the vehicle. The rider does not stop.

The person keeps going until stopped by something. In a real vehicle, it could be the windshield...

or the instrument panel... or the safety belts!

With safety 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. That is why safety belts make such good sense.

Questions and Answers About Safety Belts

Q: Will I be trapped in the vehicle after an

accident if I am wearing a safety belt?

A: You could be — whether you are wearing a

safety belt or not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt, even if you are 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 airbags, why should I

have to wear safety belts?

A: Airbags are supplemental systems only; so

they work with safety belts — not instead of them. Every airbag system ever offered for sale has required the use of safety belts. Even if you are in a vehicle that has airbags, you still have to buckle up to get the most protection. That is true not only in frontal collisions, but especially in side and other collisions.

Q: If I am 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 are

in an accident — even one that is not your fault — you and your passenger can be hurt. Being a good driver does not 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

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

Older Children on page 27 or Infants and Young Children on page 30. Follow those rules for

everyone’s protection.

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

We will start with the driver position.

Driver Position

Lap-Shoulder Belt

The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here is 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.

3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you. Do not let it get twisted.

The lap-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 is not long enough, see Safety Belt Extender on page 26.

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.

5. To make the lap part tight, pull up on the shoulder belt.

It may be necessary to pull stitching on the safety belt through the latch plate to fully tighten the lap belt on smaller occupants.

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 would 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 is a sudden stop or crash.

Q: What is wrong with this?

A: The shoulder belt is too loose. It will not 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.

Q: What is wrong with this?

A: The lap belt is too loose. It will not give nearly

as much protection this way.

{CAUTION:

You can be seriously hurt if your lap belt is too loose. In a crash, you could slide under the lap belt and apply force at your abdomen. This could cause serious or even fatal injuries. The lap belt should be worn low and snug on the hips, just touching the thighs.

Q: What is 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.

Q: What is 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 are not as strong as shoulder bones. You could also severely injure internal organs like your liver or spleen.

Q: What is 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 would not 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.

To unlatch the belt, 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 do not 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.

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

Passenger Position

Safety Belt Extender

To learn how to wear the passenger’s safety belt properly, see Driver Position on page 18.

The passenger’s safety belt works the same way as the driver’s safety belt — except for one thing. 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.

Safety Belt Pretensioners

Your vehicle has safety belt pretensioners for the driver and right front passenger. Although you cannot see them, they are part of the safety belt assembly. They help tighten the safety belts during the early stages of a moderate to severe frontal or near frontal crash if the threshold conditions for pretensioner activation are met.

Pretensioners work only once. If they activate in a crash, you will need to get new ones, and probably other new parts for your safety belt system. See Replacing Restraint System Parts After a Crash on page 57.

If the vehicle’s safety belt will fasten around you, you should use it.

But if a safety belt is not long enough, your dealer will order you an extender. When you go in to order it, take the heaviest coat you will wear, so the extender will be long enough for you. To help avoid personal injury, do not let someone else use it, and use it only for the seat it is made to ﬁt. The extender has been designed for adults. Never use it for securing child seats. To wear it, just attach it to the regular safety belt. For more information see the instruction sheet that comes with the extender.

Child Restraints

Older Children

Older children who have outgrown booster seats should wear the vehicle’s safety belts.

Q: What is the proper way to wear safety belts? A: If possible, an older child should wear a

lap-shoulder belt and get the additional restraint a shoulder belt can provide. The shoulder belt should not cross the face or neck. The lap belt should ﬁt snugly below the hips, just touching the top of the thighs. It should never be worn over the abdomen, which could cause severe or even fatal internal injuries in a crash.

According to accident statistics, children are safer when properly restrained in the rear seating positions than in the front seating positions.

In a crash, children who are not buckled up can strike other people who are buckled up, or can be thrown out of the vehicle. Older children need to use safety belts properly.

{CAUTION:

Never do this.

Here two children are wearing the same belt. The belt can not properly spread the impact forces. In a crash, the two children can be crushed together and seriously injured. A belt must be used by only one person at a time.

Q: What if a child is wearing a lap-shoulder

belt, but the child is so small that the shoulder belt is very close to the child’s face or neck?

A: Move the child toward the center of the

vehicle, but be sure that the shoulder belt still is on the child’s shoulder, so that in a crash the child’s upper body would have the restraint that belts provide.

{CAUTION:

Never do this.

Here a child is sitting in a seat that has a lap-shoulder belt, but the shoulder part is behind the child. If the child wears the belt in this way, in a crash the child might slide under the belt. The belt’s force would then be applied right on the child’s abdomen. That could cause serious or fatal injuries.

The lap portion of the belt should be worn low and snug on the hips, just touching the child’s thighs. This applies belt force to the child’s pelvic bones in a crash.

Infants and Young Children

Everyone in a vehicle needs protection! This includes infants and all other children. Neither the distance traveled nor the age and size of the traveler changes the need, for everyone, to use safety restraints. In fact, the law in every state in the United States and in every Canadian province says children up to some age must be restrained while in a vehicle.

{CAUTION:

Children can be seriously injured or strangled if a shoulder belt is wrapped around their neck and the safety belt continues to tighten. Never leave children unattended in a vehicle and never allow children to play with the safety belts.

Every time infants and young children ride in vehicles, they should have the protection provided by appropriate restraints. Young children should not use the vehicle’s adult safety belts alone, unless there is no other choice. Instead, they need to use a child restraint.

{CAUTION:

People should never hold a baby in their arms while riding in a vehicle. A baby does not weigh much — until a crash. During a crash a baby will become so heavy it is not possible to hold it. For example, in a crash at only 25 mph (40 km/h), a 12 lb (5.5 kg) baby will suddenly become a 240 lb (110 kg) force on a person’s arms. A baby should be secured in an appropriate restraint.

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