2007 Pontiac Grand PRIX Owners Manual

Download PDF Manual
249 Setting Preset PTYs (RDS Only) These pushbuttons have factory PTY presets. Up to 12 PTYs (six FM1 and six FM2), can be programmed on the six numbered pushbuttons, by performing the following steps: 1. Press BAND to select FM1 or FM2. 2. Press PROG TYPE to activate program type select mode. The PTY symbol appears on the display. 3. Turn the SELECT knob to select a PTY. 4. Press and hold one of the six numbered pushbuttons until a beep sounds. Whenever that numbered pushbutton is pressed, the PTY that was set returns, if program type select mode is activated. 5. Repeat the steps for each pushbutton. w SCAN x: Scan the stations within a PTY by performing the following: 1. Press PROG TYPE to activate program type select mode. The PTY symbol appears on the display. 2. Turn the SELECT knob to select a PTY. 3. Once the desired PTY is displayed, press and hold either SCAN arrow, and the radio begins scanning the stations in the PTY. 4. Press either SCAN arrow to stop at a station. If both PTY and TRAF are on, the radio scans for stations with the selected PTY and traffic announcements. BAND (Alternate Frequency): Alternate frequency allows the radio to switch to a stronger station with the same program type. To turn alternate frequency on, press and hold BAND for two seconds. AF ON displays. The radio can switch to stations with a stronger frequency. To turn alternate frequency off, press and hold BAND again for two seconds. AF OFF displays. The radio does not switch to other stations. This function does not apply for XM™ Satellite Radio Service. 250 RDS Messages ALERT!: Alert warns of local or national emergencies. When an alert announcement comes on the current radio station, ALERT! displays. You will hear the announcement, even if the volume is low or a CD is playing. If a CD is playing, play stops during the announcement. Alert announcements cannot be turned off. ALERT! is not affected by tests of the emergency broadcast system. This feature is not supported by all RDS stations. INFO (Information): If the current station has a message, INFO displays. Press this button to see the message. The message may display the artist, song title, call in phone numbers, etc. If the entire message is not displayed, parts of the message appears every three seconds. To scroll through the message, press and release the INFO button. A new group of words appear on the display after every press of this button. Once the complete message has been displayed, the information symbol disappears from the display until another new message is received. The last message can be displayed by pressing the INFO button. You can view the last message until a new message is received or a different station is tuned to. TRAF (Traffic): If TRAF displays, the tuned station broadcasts traffic announcements. To receive the traffic announcement from the tuned station, press this button. Brackets are displayed around TRAF and when a traffic announcement broadcasts on the tuned radio station, you will hear it. If the station does not broadcast traffic announcements, press the TRAF button and the radio seeks to a station that does. When a station that broadcasts traffic announcements is found, the radio stops seeking and brackets are displayed around TRAF. If no station is found that broadcasts traffic announcements, NO TRAFFIC displays. If the brackets are on the display and TRAF is not, press the TRAF button to remove the brackets or use the TUNE knob or the SEEK arrows to go to a station that supports traffic announcements. If no station is found that broadcasts traffic announcements, NO TRAFFIC displays. The radio plays the traffic announcement if the volume is low. The radio interrupts the play of a CD if the last tuned station broadcasts traffic announcements and the brackets are displayed. This function does not apply to XM™ Satellite Radio Service. 251 Radio Messages CALIBRATE: The audio system has been calibrated for your vehicle from the factory. If CALIBRATE displays it means that the radio has not been conﬁgured properly for your vehicle and it must be returned to your dealer for service. Radio Messages for XM™ Only See XM Radio Messages on page 275 later in this section for further detail. Playing a CD Insert a CD partway into the slot, label side up. The player pulls it in and READING DISC and the CD symbol appears on the display. If you want to insert a CD with the ignition off, ﬁrst press the EJECT button or push the RCL knob. If the ignition or radio is turned off with a CD in the player it stays in the player. When the ignition or radio is turned on, the CD starts to play where it stopped, if it was the last selected audio source. When the CD is inserted, the CD symbol appears on the display. As each new track starts to play, the track number appears on the display. 252 The CD player can play the smaller 3 inch (8 cm) single CDs with an adapter ring. Full-size CDs and the smaller CDs are loaded in the same manner. If playing a CD-R, the sound quality may be reduced due to CD-R quality, the method of recording, the quality of the music that has been recorded, and the way the CD-R has been handled. There may be an increase in skipping, difficulty in ﬁnding tracks, and/or difficulty in loading and ejecting. If these problems occur, check the bottom surface of the CD. If the surface of the CD is damaged, such as cracked, broken, or scratched, the CD will not play properly. If the surface of the CD is soiled, see Care of Your CDs on page 279 for more information. If there is no apparent damage, try a known good CD. Do not add any label to a CD, it could get caught in the CD player. If a CD is recorded on a personal computer and a description label is needed, try labeling the top of the recorded CD with a marking pen. Notice: If you add any label to a CD, insert more than one CD into the slot at a time, or attempt to play scratched or damaged CDs, you could damage the CD player. When using the CD player, use only CDs in good condition without any label, load one CD at a time, and keep the CD player and the loading slot free of foreign materials, liquids, and debris. If an error appears on the display, see “CD Messages” later in this section. \ 1 (Forward): Press and hold this pushbutton to advance quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a reduced volume. Release this pushbutton to play the passage. The elapsed time of the track appears on the display. RDM 2 (Random): Press this pushbutton to hear the tracks in random, rather than sequential, order. RDM and the track number appears on the display. Press RDM again to turn off random play. 3 # (Next Folder): This button does not have a function for non-MP3 CDs. 4 s (Reverse): Press and hold this pushbutton to reverse quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a reduced volume. Release this pushbutton to play the passage. The elapsed time of the track appears on the display. 6 ! (Previous Folder): This button does not have a function for non-MP3 CDs. EQ (Equalizer): Press EQ to select the desired customized equalization setting while playing a CD. The equalization is automatically set whenever a CD is played. See “EQ” listed previously for more information. w SEEK x: Press the up arrow to go to the start of the next track. Press the down arrow to go to the start of the previous track. Pressing either arrow for more than two seconds searches the previous or next tracks at two tracks per second. When the track number that you would like to play appears on the display, release the arrow to stop searching and to play the track. 253 w SCAN x: Press and hold either arrow for more than two seconds until SCAN and the track number appear on the display and a beep sounds. The CD goes to the next track, plays for a few seconds, then goes to the next track. Press either arrow again to stop scanning. RCL (Recall): Push this knob to see how long the current track has been playing. To change the default on the display, track and elapsed time, push the knob until you see the desired display, then hold the knob until the display ﬂashes. The selected display is now the default. While elapsed time appears on the display, CD TIME displays. BAND: Press this button to listen to the radio when a CD is playing. The inactive CD remains safely inside the radio for future listening. CD AUX (Auxiliary): Press this button to play a CD when listening to the radio. The CD symbol appears on the display when a CD is loaded. EJECT: Press this button to eject a CD. Eject may be activated with either the ignition or radio off. CDs may be loaded with the radio and ignition off if this button is pressed ﬁrst. 254 Playing an MP3 CD-R Disc Your vehicle’s radio system may have the MP3 feature. If it has this feature, it is capable of playing an MP3 CD-R disc. For more information on how to play an MP3 CD-R disc, see Using an MP3 on page 269 later in this section. CD Messages CHECK CD: If this message appears on the display and/or the CD comes out, it could be for one of the following reasons: (cid:127) It is very hot. When the temperature returns to normal, the CD should play. (cid:127) You are driving on a very rough road. When the road becomes smoother, the CD should play. (cid:127) The CD is dirty, scratched, wet, or upside down. (cid:127) The air is very humid. If so, wait about an hour and try again. (cid:127) The format of the CD may not be compatible. See Using an MP3 on page 269 later in this section. (cid:127) There may have been a problem while burning the CD. (cid:127) The label may be caught in the CD player. If the CD is not playing correctly, for any other reason, try a known good CD. If any error occurs repeatedly or if an error cannot be corrected, contact your dealer. If the radio displays an error message, write it down and provide it to your dealer when reporting the problem. Radio with Six-Disc CD If your vehicle has the Monsoon audio system, included are nine speakers and an eight channel ampliﬁer. The radio displays MONSOON when the radio or the ignition is turned on. See your dealer for details. 255 XM™ Satellite Radio Service XM™ is a satellite radio service that is based in the 48 contiguous United States and Canada. XM™ offers a large variety of coast-to-coast channels including music, news, sports, talk, traffic/weather (U.S. subscribers), and children’s programming. XM™ provides digital quality audio and text information that includes song title and artist name. A service fee is required in order to receive the XM™ service. For more information, contact XM™; In the U.S. at www.xmradio.com or call 1-800-852-XMXM (9696) or in Canada at www.xmradio.ca or call 1-877-GET-XMSR (438-9677). Radio Data System (RDS) The audio system has a Radio Data System (RDS). RDS features are available for use only on FM stations that broadcast RDS information. With RDS, the radio can do the following: (cid:127) Seek to stations broadcasting the selected type of programming (cid:127) Receive announcements concerning local and national emergencies (cid:127) Display messages from radio stations (cid:127) Seek to stations with traffic announcements This system relies upon receiving speciﬁc information from these stations and only works when the information is available. In rare cases, a radio station may broadcast incorrect information that causes the radio features to work improperly. If this happens, contact the radio station. While the radio is tuned to an RDS station, the station name or call letters appear on the display instead of the frequency. RDS stations may also provide the time of day, a program type (PTY) for current programming, and the name of the program being broadcast. 256 Playing the Radio PWR (Power): Push this knob to turn the system on and off. VOLUME: Turn this knob clockwise or counterclockwise to increase or to decrease the volume. RCL (Recall): Press this knob to switch the display between the radio station frequency and the time. When the ignition is off, press this knob to display the time. For RDS, press the RCL knob to change what appears on the display while using RDS. The display options are station name, RDS station frequency, PTY, and the name of the program (if available). For XM™ (if equipped), press the RCL knob while in XM mode to retrieve four different categories of information related to the current song or channel: Artist, Song Title, Category or PTY, Channel Number/Channel Name. To change the default on the display, press the RCL knob until you see the desired display, then hold the knob until the display ﬂashes. The selected display is now the default. AUTO VOL (Automatic Volume): With automatic volume, the audio system adjusts automatically to make up for road and wind noise as you drive. Set the volume at the desired level. Press this button to select MIN (minimum), MED (medium), or MAX (maximum). Each higher setting allows for more volume compensation at faster vehicle speeds. Then, as you drive, automatic volume increases the volume, as necessary, to overcome noise at any speed. The volume level should always sound the same to you as you drive. To turn automatic volume off, press this button until OFF displays. 257 Setting Preset Stations Up to 30 stations (six FM1, six FM2, and six AM, six XM1 and six XM2 (if equipped)), can be programmed on the six numbered pushbuttons, by performing the following steps: 1. Turn the radio on. 2. Press BAND to select FM1, FM2, AM, or XM1 or XM2. 3. Tune in the desired station. 4. Press AUTO EQ to select the equalization. 5. Press and hold one of the six numbered pushbuttons until a beep sounds. Whenever that numbered pushbutton is pressed, the station that was set returns and the equalization that was selected is stored for that pushbutton. 6. Repeat the steps for each pushbutton. Finding a Station BAND: Press this button to switch between FM1, FM2, AM, or XM1 or XM2 (if equipped). The display shows the selection. TUNE: Turn this knob to select radio stations. s SEEK t: Press the right or the left arrow to go to the next or to the previous station and stay there. The radio only seeks stations with a strong signal that are in the selected band. s SCAN t: Press and hold either SCAN arrow for two seconds until SC displays and a beep sounds. The radio goes to a station, plays for a few seconds, then goes to the next station. Press either SCAN arrow again to stop scanning. To scan preset stations, press and hold either SCAN arrow for more than four seconds. PRESET SCAN appears on the display and a double beep sounds. The radio goes to the ﬁrst preset station stored on the pushbuttons, plays for a few seconds, then goes to the next preset station. Press either SCAN arrow again to stop scanning presets. The radio only scans stations with a strong signal that are in the selected band. 258 Setting the Tone (Bass/Midrange/Treble) AUDIO: Push the AUDIO knob until BASS, MID (midrange), or TREB (treble) displays. Turn the knob to increase or to decrease. If a station is weak or noisy, decrease the treble. To adjust bass, midrange, or treble to the middle position, select BASS, MID, or TREB and push and hold the AUDIO knob. The display level adjusts to the middle position and a beep sounds. To adjust all tone and speaker controls to the middle position, push and hold the AUDIO knob when no tone or speaker control is displayed. CENTERED displays and one beep sounds. AUTO EQ (Automatic Equalization): Press this button to select customized equalization settings designed for country, jazz, talk, pop, rock, and classical. To return to the manual mode, press the AUTO EQ button until CUSTOM displays. Then manually adjust the bass, midrange, and treble using the AUDIO knob. Adjusting the Speakers (Balance/Fade) AUDIO: To adjust the balance between the right and the left speakers, push the AUDIO knob until BAL (balance) displays. Turn the knob to move the sound toward the right or the left speakers. To adjust the fade between the front and rear speakers, push and hold the AUDIO knob until FAD (fade) displays. Turn the knob to move the sound toward the front or the rear speakers. To adjust the balance and the fade to the middle position, select balance or fade and push and hold the AUDIO knob. The display level adjusts to the middle position and a beep sounds. To adjust all tone and speaker controls to the middle position, push and hold the AUDIO knob when no tone or speaker controls are displayed. CENTERED displays and one beep sounds. 259 Finding a Program Type (PTY) Station (RDS and XM™) To select and ﬁnd a desired PTY perform the following: 1. Press the P-TYPE button to activate program type select mode. P-TYPE and the last selected PTY displays. 2. Turn the P-TYPE knob to select a PTY. 3. Once the desired PTY is displayed, press either SEEK arrow to select and to take you to the PTY’s ﬁrst station. 4. To go to another station within that PTY, and the PTY is displayed, press either SEEK arrow once. If the PTY is not displayed, press either SEEK arrow twice to display the PTY and then to go to another station. 5. Press P-TYPE to exit program type select mode. If PTY times out and is no longer on the display, go back to Step 1. If both P-TYPE and TRAF are on, the radio searches for stations with the selected PTY and traffic announcements. 260 To use the PTY interrupt feature, press and hold the P-TYPE button until a beep sounds on the PTY you want to interrupt with. When selected, an asterisk appears beside that PTY on the display. You may select multiple interrupts, if desired. When you are listening to a CD, the last selected RDS station interrupts play, if that selected program type format is broadcast. SCAN: Scan the stations within a PTY by performing the following: 1. Press the P-TYPE button to activate program type select mode. P-TYPE and the last selected PTY displays. 2. Turn the P-TYPE knob to select a PTY. 3. Once the desired PTY is displayed, press and hold either SCAN arrow, and the radio begins scanning the stations in the PTY. 4. Press either SCAN arrow to stop at a station. If both P-TYPE and TRAF are on, the radio scans for stations with the selected PTY and traffic announcements. BAND (Alternate Frequency): Alternate frequency allows the radio to switch to a stronger station with the same program type. To turn alternate frequency on, press and hold BAND for two seconds. AF ON displays. The radio can switch to stations with a stronger frequency. To turn alternate frequency off, press and hold BAND again for two seconds. AF OFF displays. The radio does not switch to other stations. This function does not apply for XM™ Satellite Radio Service. Setting Preset PTYs (RDS Only) These buttons have factory PTY presets. Up to 12 PTYs (six FM1 and six FM2), can be programmed on the six numbered pushbuttons, by performing the following steps: 1. Press BAND to select FM1 or FM2. 2. Press the P-TYPE button to activate program type select mode. P-TYPE and the last selected PTY displays. 3. Turn the P-TYPE knob to select a PTY. 4. Press and hold one of the six numbered pushbuttons until a beep sounds. Whenever that numbered pushbutton is pressed, the PTY that was set returns. 5. Repeat the steps for each pushbutton. RDS Messages ALERT!: Alert warns of local or national emergencies. When an alert announcement comes on the current radio station, ALERT! displays. You will hear the announcement, even if the volume is low or a CD is playing. If a CD is playing, play stops during the announcement. Alert announcements cannot be turned off. ALERT! is not affected by tests of the emergency broadcast system. This feature is not supported by all RDS stations. INFO (Information): If the current station has a message, INFO displays. Press this button to see the message. The message may display the artist, song title, call in phone numbers, etc. 261 If the entire message is not displayed, parts of the message appears every three seconds. To scroll through the message, press and release the INFO button. A new group of words appear on the display after every press of this button. Once the complete message has displayed, INFO disappears from the display until another new message is received. The last message can be displayed by pressing the INFO button. You can view the last message until a new message is received or a different station is tuned to. TRAF (Traffic): If TRAF displays, the tuned station broadcasts traffic announcements. To receive the traffic announcement from the tuned station, press this button. Brackets are displayed around TRAF and when a traffic announcement broadcasts on the tuned radio station, you will hear it. If the current tuned station does not broadcast traffic announcements, press the TRAF button and the radio seeks to a station that does. When a station that broadcasts traffic announcements is found, the radio stops seeking and brackets are displayed around TRAF. If no station is found, NO TRAFFIC displays. If the brackets are on the display and TRAF is not, press the TRAF button to remove the brackets or use the TUNE knob or the SEEK arrows to go to a station that supports traffic announcements. If no station is found that broadcasts traffic announcements, NO TRAFFIC displays. The radio plays the traffic announcement if the volume is low. The radio interrupts the play of a CD if the last tuned station broadcasts traffic announcements and the brackets are displayed. This function does not apply to XM™ Satellite Radio Service. Radio Messages for XM™ Only See XM Radio Messages on page 275 later in this section for further detail. 262 Radio Messages CAL ERR (Calibration Error): The audio system has been calibrated for your vehicle from the factory. If CAL ERR displays it means that the radio has not been conﬁgured properly for the vehicle and it must be returned to your dealer for service. LOCKED: This message is displayed when the THEFTLOCK® system has locked up. Take your vehicle to your dealer for service. If any error occurs repeatedly or if an error cannot be corrected, contact your dealer. Playing a CD If the ignition or radio is turned off, with a CD in the player, it stays in the player. When the ignition or radio is turned on, the CD starts playing where it stopped, if it was the last selected audio source. When a CD is inserted, the CD symbol appears on the CD. As each new track starts to play, the track number appears on the display. The CD player can play the smaller 3 inch (8 cm) single CDs with an adapter ring. Full-size CDs and the smaller CDs are loaded in the same manner. If playing a CD-R, the sound quality may be reduced due to CD-R quality, the method of recording, the quality of the music that has been recorded, and the way the CD-R has been handled. There may be an increase in skipping, difficulty in ﬁnding tracks, and/or difficulty in loading and ejecting. If these problems occur, check the bottom surface of the CD. If the surface of the CD is damaged, such as cracked, broken, or scratched, the CD will not play properly. If the surface of the CD is soiled, see Care of Your CDs on page 279 for more information. If there is no apparent damage, try a known good CD. 263 If you add any label to a CD, insert Do not add any label to a CD, it could get caught in the CD player. If a CD is recorded on a personal computer and a description label is needed, try labeling the top of the recorded CD with a marking pen. Notice: more than one CD into the slot at a time, or attempt to play scratched or damaged CDs, you could damage the CD player. When using the CD player, use only CDs in good condition without any label, load one CD at a time, and keep the CD player and the loading slot free of foreign materials, liquids, and debris. If an error appears on the display, see “CD Messages” later in this section. LOAD CD Z: Press the LOAD side of this button to load CDs into the CD player. This CD player holds up to six CDs. To insert one CD, do the following: 1. Turn the ignition on. 2. Press and release the LOAD button. 264 3. Wait for the light, located to the right of the slot, to turn green. 4. Load a CD. Insert the CD partway into the slot, label side up. The player pulls the CD in. To insert multiple CDs, do the following: 1. Turn the ignition on. 2. Press and hold the LOAD button for two seconds. A beep sounds and the light, located to the right of the slot, begins to ﬂash. 3. Once the light stops ﬂashing and turns green, load a CD. Insert the CD partway into the slot, label side up. The player pulls the CD in. 4. Once the CD is loaded, the light begins ﬂashing again. Press the LOAD button again. Once the light turns green, load the next disc. Repeat this procedure for each CD. The CD player takes up to six CDs. Do not try to load more than six. To load more than one CD but less than six, complete Steps 1 through 3. When ﬁnished loading CDs, the radio begins to play the last CD loaded. If more than one CD has been loaded, a number for each CD displays. Playing a Speciﬁc Loaded CD For every CD loaded, a number appears on the display. To play a speciﬁc CD, ﬁrst press the CD AUX button, then press the numbered pushbutton that corresponds to the CD. A small bar appears under the CD number that is playing and the track number appears. If an error appears on the display, see “CD Messages” later in this section. LOAD CD Z (Eject): Press the CD eject side of this button to eject a CD(s). A beep sounds and the indicator light ﬂashes to let you know when a CD is being ejected. REMOVE CD displays. The CD can be removed. If the CD is not removed, after 25 seconds, the CD is automatically pulled back into the player. If the CD is pushed back into the player, before the 25 second time period is complete, the player senses an error and tries to eject the CD several times before stopping. Do not repeatedly press the CD eject button to eject a CD after trying to push it in manually. The player’s 25-second eject timer resets at each press of eject, causing the player to not eject the CD until the 25-second time period has elapsed. Once the player stops and the CD is ejected, remove the CD. After removing the CD, push the PWR knob off and then on again, or wait for the system to reset. This clears the CD-sensing feature and enables CDs to be loaded into the player again. { REV (Reverse): Press and hold this button to reverse quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a reduced volume. Release this button to play the passage. The elapsed time of the track appears on the display. FWD |(Forward): Press and hold this button to advance quickly within a track. You will hear sound at a reduced volume. Release this button to play the passage. The elapsed time of the track appears on the display. RPT (Repeat): With repeat, one track or an entire CD can be repeated. 265 To use repeat, do the following: (cid:127) To repeat the track you are listening to, press and release the RPT button. RPT displays. Press RPT again to turn off repeat play. (cid:127) To repeat the CD you are listening to, press and hold the RPT button for two seconds. RPT displays. Press RPT again to turn off repeat play. RDM (Random): With random, you can listen to the tracks in random, rather than sequential, order, on one CD or on all of the CDs. To use random, do one of the following: (cid:127) To play the tracks on the CD you are listening to in random order, press and release the RDM button. RANDOM ONE displays. Press RDM again to turn off random play. (cid:127) To play the tracks on all of the CDs that are loaded, in random order, press and hold RDM for more than two seconds. A beep sounds and RANDOM ALL displays. Press RDM again to turn off random play. AUTO EQ (Automatic Equalization): Press AUTO EQ to select the desired equalization setting while playing a CD. The equalization is set whenever a CD is played. For more information on AUTO EQ, see “AUTO EQ” listed previously in this section. sSEEK t: Press the left arrow to go to the start of the current track, if more than ten seconds have played. Press the right arrow to go to the next track. If either arrow is held or pressed more than once, the player continues moving backward or forward through the CD. sSCAN t: To scan one CD, press and hold either SCAN arrow for more than two seconds until SCAN displays and a beep sounds. Use this feature to listen to 10 seconds of each track of the currently selected CD. Press either SCAN arrow again, to stop scanning. To scan all loaded CDs, press and hold either SCAN arrow for more than four seconds until CD SCAN displays and a beep sounds. Use this feature to listen to 10 seconds of the ﬁrst track of each loaded CD. Press either SCAN arrow again, to stop scanning. 266 RCL (Recall): Press this knob to see how long the current track has been playing. To change the default on the display, track and elapsed time, press the knob until you see the desired display, then hold the knob until the display ﬂashes. The selected display is now the default. BAND: Press this button to play the radio when a CD is playing. The inactive CD(s) remains safely inside the radio for future listening. CD AUX (Auxiliary): Press this button to play a CD when listening to the radio. Using Song List Mode The six-disc CD changer has a feature called song list. This feature is capable of saving 20 track selections. To save tracks into the song list feature, perform the following steps: 1. Turn the CD player on and load it with at least one CD. See “LOAD CD” listed previously in this section for more information. 2. Check to see that the CD changer is not in song list mode. S-LIST should not appear in the display. If S-LIST is present, press the SONG LIST button to turn it off. 3. Select the desired CD by pressing the numbered pushbutton and then use the SEEK SCAN right arrow to locate the track to be saved. The track begins to play. 4. Press and hold the SONG LIST button to save the track into memory. When SONG LIST is pressed, one beep sounds. After two seconds of continuously pressing the SONG LIST button, two beeps sound to conﬁrm that the track has been saved. 5. Repeat Steps 3 and 4 for saving other selections. S-LIST FULL displays if you try to save more than 20 selections. To play the song list, press the SONG LIST button. One beep sounds and S-LIST displays. The recorded tracks begins to play in the order they were saved. Seek through the song list by using the SEEK SCAN arrows. Seeking past the last saved track returns the song list to the ﬁrst saved track. 267 To delete tracks from the song list, perform the following steps: 1. Turn the CD player on. 2. Press the SONG LIST button to turn song list on. S-LIST displays. 3. Press the SEEK SCAN arrows to select the desired track to be deleted. 4. Press and hold the SONG LIST button for two seconds. When SONG LIST is pressed, one beep sounds. After two seconds of continuously pressing the SONG LIST button, two beeps sound to conﬁrm that the track has been deleted. After a track has been deleted, the remaining tracks are moved up the list. When another track is added to the song list, the track is added to the end of the list. To delete the entire song list, perform the following steps: 1. Turn the CD player on. 2. Press the SONG LIST button to turn song list on. S-LIST displays. 3. Press and hold the SONG LIST button for more than four seconds. One beep sounds, followed by two beeps after two seconds, and a ﬁnal beep sounds after four seconds. S-LIST EMPTY displays indicating the song list has been deleted. If a CD is ejected, and the song list contains saved tracks from that CD, those tracks are automatically deleted from the song list. Any tracks saved to the song list again are added to the bottom of the list. To end song list mode, press the SONG LIST button. One beep sounds and S-LIST is removed from the display. 268 CD Messages CHECK CD: If this message appears on the display and/or the CD comes out, it could be for one of the following reasons: (cid:127) It is very hot. When the temperature returns to normal, the CD should play. (cid:127) You are driving on a very rough road. When the road becomes smoother, the CD should play. (cid:127) The CD is dirty, scratched, wet, or upside down. (cid:127) The air is very humid. If so, wait about an hour and try again. (cid:127) There may have been a problem while burning the CD. (cid:127) The label may be caught in the CD player. If the CD is not playing correctly, for any other reason, try a known good CD. If any error occurs repeatedly or if an error cannot be corrected, contact your dealer. If the radio displays an error message, write it down and provide it to your dealer when reporting the problem. Using an MP3 MP3 CD-R Disc MP3 Format If you burn your own MP3 disc on a personal computer: (cid:127) Make sure the MP3 ﬁles are recorded on a CD-R disc. (cid:127) Do not mix standard audio and MP3 ﬁles on one disc. (cid:127) Make sure playlists have a .mp3 or .wpl extension, other ﬁle extensions may not work. (cid:127) Files can be recorded with a variety of ﬁxed or variable bit rates. Song title, artist name, and album are available for display by the radio when recorded using ID3 tags version 1 and 2. (cid:127) Create a folder structure that makes it easy to ﬁnd songs while driving. Organize songs by albums using one folder for each album. Each folder or album should contain 18 songs or less. (cid:127) Make sure to ﬁnalize the disc when burning an MP3 disc, using multiple sessions. It is usually better to burn the disc all at once. 269 The player is able to read and play a maximum of 50 folders, 50 playlists, 10 sessions, and 255 ﬁles. Long ﬁle names, folder names, or playlist names may use more disc memory space than necessary. To conserve space on the disc, minimize the length of the ﬁle, folder or playlist names. You can also play an MP3 CD that was recorded using no ﬁle folders. The system can support up to 11 folders in depth, though, keep the depth of the folders to a minimum in order to keep down the complexity and confusion in trying to locate a particular folder during playback. If a CD contains more than the maximum of 50 folders, 50 playlists, 10 sessions, and 255 ﬁles the player lets you access and navigate up to the maximum, but all items over the maximum are ignored. Root Directory The root directory is treated as a folder. If the root directory has compressed audio ﬁles, the directory is displayed as F1 ROOT. All ﬁles contained directly under the root directory are accessed prior to any root directory folders. However, playlists (Px) are always be accessed before root folders or ﬁles. 270 Empty Directory or Folder If a root directory or a folder exists somewhere in the ﬁle structure that contains only folders/ subfolders and no compressed ﬁles directly beneath them, the player advances to the next folder in the ﬁle structure that contains compressed audio ﬁles. The empty folder does not display. No Folder When the CD contains only compressed ﬁles, the ﬁles are located under the root folder. The next and previous folder functions do not function on a CD that was recorded without folders or playlists. When displaying the name of the folder the radio displays ROOT. When the CD contains only playlists and compressed audio ﬁles, but no folders, all ﬁles are located under the root folder. The folder down and the folder up buttons search playlists (Px) ﬁrst and then go to the root folder. When the radio displays the name of the folder the radio displays ROOT. Order of Play Tracks are played in the following order: (cid:127) Play begins from the ﬁrst track in the ﬁrst playlist and continues sequentially through all tracks in each playlist. When the last track of the last playlist has played, play continues from the ﬁrst track of the ﬁrst playlist. If the CD does not contain any playlists, then play begins from the ﬁrst track under the root directory. When all tracks from the root directory have played, play continues from ﬁles according to their numerical listing. After playing the last track from the last folder, play begins again at the ﬁrst track of the ﬁrst folder or root directory. (cid:127) When play enters a new folder, the display does not automatically show the new folder name unless you have chosen the folder mode as the default display. See RCL later in this section for more information. The new track name appears on the display. File System and Naming The song name that is displayed is the song name that is contained in the ID3 tag. If the song name is not present in the ID3 tag, then the radio displays the ﬁle name without the extension (such as .mp3) as the track name. Track names longer than 32 characters or 4 pages are shortened. The display does not show parts of words on the last page of text and the extension of the ﬁlename is not displayed. Preprogrammed Playlists You can access preprogrammed playlists which were created by WinAmp™, MusicMatch™, or Real Jukebox™ software, however, you do not have editing capability. These playlists are treated as special folders containing compressed audio song ﬁles. Playing an MP3 Insert a CD partway into the slot, label side up. The player pulls it in, and READING displays. The CD should begin playing and the CD symbol appears on the display. If you want to insert a CD with the ignition off, ﬁrst press the EJECT button or the RCL knob. 271 If the ignition or radio is turned off with a CD in the player it stays in the player. When the ignition or radio is turned on, the CD starts to play where it stopped, if it was the last selected audio source. As each new track starts to play, the track number appears on the display. The CD player can play the smaller 3 inch (8 cm) single CDs with an adapter ring. Full-size CDs and the smaller CDs are loaded in the same manner. If playing a CD-R, the sound quality may be reduced due to CD-R quality, the method of recording, the quality of the music that has been recorded, and the way the CD-R has been handled. There may be an increase in skipping, difficulty in ﬁnding tracks, and/or difficulty in loading and ejecting. If these problems occur, check the bottom surface of the CD. If the surface of the CD is damaged, such as cracked, broken, or scratched, the CD will not play properly. If the surface of the CD is soiled, see Care of Your CDs on page 279 for more information. If there is no apparent damage, try a known good CD. 272 Do not add any label to a CD, it could get caught in the CD player. If a CD is recorded on a personal computer and a description label is needed, try labeling the top of the recorded CD with a marking pen. Notice: If you add any label to a CD, insert more than one CD into the slot at a time, or attempt to play scratched or damaged CDs, you could damage the CD player. When using the CD player, use only CDs in good condition without any label, load one CD at a time, and keep the CD player and the loading slot free of foreign materials, liquids, and debris. If an error appears on the display, see “CD Messages” later in this section. \ 1 (Forward): Press and hold this pushbutton to advance quickly within a track. Press and hold this pushbutton for less than two seconds to advance at 10 times the normal playing speed. Press and hold it for more than two seconds to advance at 20 times the normal playing speed. Release this pushbutton to play the track. FWD and the elapsed time of the track appears on the display. RDM 2 (Random): To repeat the tracks in the current folder or playlist, press and release this pushbutton. FOLDER RANDOM displays. Once all of the tracks in the current folder or playlist have been played, the system moves on to the next folder or playlist and plays all of the tracks in random order. To repeat the tracks on the CD, press and hold this pushbutton for two seconds. A beep sounds and DISC RANDOM displays. This feature does not work with playlists. When in random, pressing and releasing either SEEK arrow takes you to the next or previous random track. Press and release this pushbutton again to turn off random play. NO RANDOM displays. 3 # (Next Folder): Press this pushbutton to go to the ﬁrst track in the next folder or playlist. If the disc contains playlists, it goes through the playlist, then the folders. Pressing this button while in folder random mode takes you to the next folder and random the tracks in that folder. This function does not work on a CD that does not contain folders or playlists. 4 REV (Reverse): Press and hold this pushbutton to reverse quickly within a track. Press and hold this pushbutton for less than two seconds to reverse at 10 times the normal playing speed. Press and hold it for more than two seconds to reverse at 20 times the normal playing speed. Release this pushbutton to play the track. REV and the elapsed time of the track appears on the display. If this pushbutton is pressed for more than 20 seconds, the radio stops reversing and begins to play. 6 ! (Previous Folder): Press this pushbutton to go to the ﬁrst track in the previous folder or playlist. If the disc contains playlists, it goes through the playlist, then the folders. Pressing this pushbutton while in folder random mode takes you to the previous folder and random the tracks in that folder. This function does not work on a CD that does not contain folders or playlists. w SEEK x: Press the up arrow to go to the start of the next track. Press the down arrow to go to the start of the previous track. Pressing either arrow for more than two seconds searches the previous or next tracks at two tracks per second. When the track number that you would like to play appears on the display, release the arrow to stop searching and to play the track. 273 TUNE: Turn this knob to fast track reverse or advance through tracks in all folders or playlists. The track number and ﬁle name appears on the display for each track. Turn this knob while in random to fast track reverse or advance the tracks in sequential order. RCL (Recall): Push this knob to switch between track mode, folder/playlist mode, and time of day mode. The display shows only 13 characters, but there can be up to three pages of text. If there are more than 13 characters in the song, folder, or playlist name pushing this knob within two seconds takes you to the next page of text. If there are no other pages to be shown, pushing this knob within two seconds takes you to the next display mode. Track mode displays the current track number and the ID3 tag song name. Folder/playlist mode displays the current folder or playlist number and the folder/playlist name. Time of day mode displays the time of day and the ID3 tag song name. To change the default on the display, push this knob until you see the desired display, then hold this knob for two seconds. The radio produces one beep and the selected display is now the default. INFO (Information): INFO displays whenever a current track has ID3 tag information. Press this button to display the artist name and album contained in the tag. INFO disappears from the display when the information in the ID3 tag has ﬁnished. BAND: Press this button to listen to the radio when a CD is playing. The inactive CD remains safely inside the radio for future listening. CD AUX (Auxiliary): Press this button to play a CD when listening to the radio. The CD symbol appears on the display when a CD is loaded. EJECT: Press this button to eject a CD. Eject may be activated with either the ignition or radio off. CDs may be loaded with the radio and ignition off if this button is pressed ﬁrst. 274 XM Radio Messages Radio Display Message Condition Action Required XL (Explicit Language Channels) XL on the radio display, after the channel name, indicates content with explicit language. These channels, or any others, can be blocked at a customer’s request, by calling 1-800-852-XMXM (9696). Updating Updating encryption code The encryption code in the receiver is being updated, and no action is required. This process should take no longer than 30 seconds. No Signal Loss of signal The system is functioning correctly, but the vehicle is in a location that is blocking the XM™ signal. When the vehicle moves into an open area, the signal should return. Loading XM CH Off Air CH Unavail No Info No Info Acquiring channel audio (after a four second delay) The audio system is acquiring and processing audio and text data. No action is needed. This message should disappear shortly. Channel not in service This channel is not currently in service. Tune to another channel. Channel no longer available Artist Name/Feature not available Song/Program Title not available This previously assigned channel is no longer assigned. Tune to another station. If this station was one of the presets, choose another station for that preset button. No artist information is available at this time on this channel. The system is working properly. No song title information is available at this time on this channel. The system is working properly. 275 Radio Display Message Condition Action Required No Info No Info Not Found Category Name not available No category information is available at this time on this channel. The system is working properly. No Text/Informational message available No text or informational messages are available at this time on this channel. The system is working properly. No channel available for the chosen category There are no channels available for the selected category. The system is working properly. XM Locked Theft lock active Radio ID Radio ID label (channel 0) Unknown Chk XMRcvr Radio ID not known (should only be if hardware failure) Hardware failure The XM™ receiver in the vehicle may have previously been in another vehicle. For security purposes, XM™ receivers cannot be swapped between vehicles. If this message is received after having your vehicle serviced, check with the servicing facility. If tuned to channel 0, this message will alternate with the XM™ Radio eight digit radio ID label. This label is needed to activate the service. If this message is received when tuned to channel 0, there may be a receiver fault. Consult with your GM dealer. If this message does not clear within a short period of time, the receiver may have a fault. Consult with your GM dealer. 276 Theft-Deterrent Feature THEFTLOCK® is designed to discourage theft of your vehicle’s radio. The feature works automatically by learning a portion of the Vehicle Identiﬁcation Number (VIN). If the radio is moved to a different vehicle, it will not operate and LOCKED will appear on the display. When the radio and vehicle are turned off, the blinking red light indicates that THEFTLOCK® is armed. With THEFTLOCK® activated, the radio will not operate if stolen. Audio Steering Wheel Controls If your vehicle has this feature, some audio controls can be adjusted at the steering wheel. They include the following: w t u x (Seek): Press the up or the down arrow to go to the next or previous station and stay there. To scan stations, press and hold either arrow for two seconds until FREQUENCY SCAN appears on the display. The radio will go to a station, play for a few seconds, then go to the next station. Press either arrow again to stop scanning. The sound will mute while seeking or scanning. 277 The radio will only seek or scan stations with a strong signal that are in the selected band. When a CD is playing, press either arrow to go to the previous or next track, if more than eight seconds have played. If either arrow is held or pressed more than once, the player will continue moving backward or forward through the CD. BAND: Press this button to switch between FM1, FM2, AM, or XM1 or XM2 (if equipped). 1 - 6: Press this button to scan the stations that are programmed on the radio preset pushbuttons. The radio will go to the next preset station stored on the pushbuttons, play for a few seconds, then go on to the next preset station. Press this button again to stop scanning. The radio will only scan preset stations with a strong signal that are in the selected band. $ (Mute/OnStar®): Press and release this button to silence the audio system. Press it again, or any other radio button to turn the sound on. If your vehicle is equipped with OnStar, press and hold this button to interact with the OnStar system. See the OnStar® System on page 122 in this manual for more information. 278 r (Play): When listening to the radio, press this button to play a cassette tape or CD. wu x (Volume): Press the up or down arrow to increase or decrease the volume. Radio Reception You may experience frequency interference and static during normal radio reception if items such as cellphone chargers, vehicle convenience accessories, and external electronic devices are plugged into the accessory power outlet. If there is interference or static, unplug the item from the accessory power outlet. AM The range for most AM stations is greater than for FM, especially at night. The longer range can cause station frequencies to interfere with each other. For better radio reception, most AM radio stations boosts the power levels during the day, and then reduce these levels during the night. Static can also occur when things like storms and power lines interfere with radio reception. When this happens, try reducing the treble on your radio. FM Stereo FM stereo gives the best sound, but FM signals reach only about 10 to 40 miles (16 to 65 km). Tall buildings or hills can interfere with FM signals, causing the sound to fade in and out. XM™ Satellite Radio Service XM™ Satellite Radio Service gives digital radio reception from coast-to-coast in the 48 contiguous United States, and in Canada. Just as with FM, tall buildings or hills can interfere with satellite radio signals, causing the sound to fade in and out. In addition, traveling or standing under heavy foliage, bridges, garages, or tunnels can cause loss of the XM™ signal for a period of time. The radio could display NO XM SIGNAL to indicate interference. Care of Your CDs Handle CDs carefully. Store them in their original cases or other protective cases and away from direct sunlight and dust. The CD player scans the bottom surface of the disc. If the surface of a CD is damaged, such as cracked, broken, or scratched, the CD will not play properly or not at all. If the surface of a CD is soiled, take a soft, lint free cloth or dampen a clean, soft cloth in a mild, neutral detergent solution mixed with water, and clean it. Make sure the wiping process starts from the center to the edge. Do not touch the bottom side of a CD while handling it; this could damage the surface. Pick up CDs by grasping the outer edges or the edge of the hole and the outer edge. Care of the CD Player Do not use CD lens cleaners for CD players because the lens of the CD optics can become contaminated by lubricants. 279 Backglass Antenna The AM-FM antenna is integrated with the rear window defogger, located in the rear window. Make sure that the inside surface of the rear window is not scratched and that the lines on the glass are not damaged. If the inside surface is damaged, it could interfere with radio reception. Also, for proper radio reception, the antenna connector at the top-center of the rear window needs to be properly attached to the post on the glass. Notice: Do not apply aftermarket glass tinting with metallic ﬁlm. The metallic ﬁlm in some tinting materials will interfere with or distort the incoming radio reception. Any damage caused to your backglass antenna due to metallic tinting materials will not be covered by your warranty. Notice: Using a razor blade or sharp object to clear the inside rear window may damage the rear window antenna and/or the rear window defogger. Repairs would not be covered by your warranty. Do not clear the inside rear window with sharp objects. Because this antenna is built into your rear window, there is a reduced risk of damage caused by car washes and vandals. If static is heard on the radio, when the rear window defogger is turned on, it could mean that a defogger grid line has been damaged. If this is true, the grid line must be repaired. If you choose to add a cellular telephone to your vehicle, and the antenna needs to be attached to the glass, make sure that you do not damage the grid lines for the AM-FM antenna. There is enough space between the lines to attach a cellular telephone antenna without interfering with radio reception. 280 XM™ Satellite Radio Antenna System The XM™ Satellite Radio antenna is located on the roof of your vehicle. Keep this antenna clear of snow and ice build up for clear radio reception. If your vehicle has a sunroof, the performance of the XM™ system may be affected if the sunroof is open. Loading items onto the roof of your vehicle can interfere with the performance of the XM™ system. Make sure the XM™ Satellite Radio antenna is not obstructed. Chime Level Adjustment The radio is used to adjust the vehicle’s chime level. To change the volume level of the chime, press and hold pushbutton 6 with the ignition on and the radio power off. The volume level will change from the normal level to loud, and LOUD will appear on the radio display. To change back to the default or normal setting, press and hold pushbutton 6 again. The volume level will change from the loud level to normal, and NORMAL will appear on the radio display. Each time the chime volume is changed, three chimes will sound to indicate the new volume selected. Removing the radio and not replacing it with a factory radio or chime module will disable vehicle chimes. 281 ✍ NOTES 282 Section 4 Driving Your Vehicle Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle ..................................................... 284 Defensive Driving ...................................... 284 Drunken Driving ........................................ 285 Control of a Vehicle .................................. 288 Braking ...................................................... 288 Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) .................. 289 Braking in Emergencies ............................. 291 Traction Control System (TCS) .................. 292 Enhanced Traction System (ETS) .............. 293 StabiliTrak® Plus System ........................... 295 Steering .................................................... 296 Off-Road Recovery .................................... 299 Passing ..................................................... 299 Loss of Control .......................................... 301 Driving at Night ......................................... 302 Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads ............ 303 City Driving ............................................... 306 Freeway Driving ........................................ 307 Before Leaving on a Long Trip .................. 308 Highway Hypnosis ..................................... 309 Hill and Mountain Roads ........................... 309 Winter Driving ........................................... 311 If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand, Mud, Ice, or Snow .......................................... 316 Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out ........... 316 Loading Your Vehicle ................................ 317 Towing ........................................................ 322 Towing Your Vehicle ................................. 322 Recreational Vehicle Towing ...................... 322 Towing a Trailer ........................................ 324 283 Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle Defensive Driving The best advice anyone can give about driving is: Drive defensively. Please start with a very important safety device in your vehicle: Buckle up. See Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone on page 17. 284 {CAUTION: Defensive driving really means “Be ready for anything.” On city streets, rural roads, or expressways, it means “Always expect the unexpected.” Assume that pedestrians or other drivers are going to be careless and make mistakes. Anticipate what they might do and be ready. Rear-end collisions are about the most preventable of accidents. Yet they are common. Allow enough following distance. Defensive driving requires that a driver concentrate on the driving task. Anything that distracts from the driving task makes proper defensive driving more difficult and can even cause a collision, with resulting injury. Ask a passenger to help do these things, or pull off the road in a safe place to do them. These simple defensive driving techniques could save your life. Drunken Driving Death and injury associated with drinking and driving is a national tragedy. It is the number one contributor to the highway death toll, claiming thousands of victims every year. Alcohol affects four things that anyone needs to drive a vehicle: (cid:127) Judgment (cid:127) Muscular Coordination (cid:127) Vision (cid:127) Attentiveness Police records show that almost half of all motor vehicle-related deaths involve alcohol. In most cases, these deaths are the result of someone who was drinking and driving. In recent years, more than 16,000 annual motor vehicle-related deaths have been associated with the use of alcohol, with more than 300,000 people injured. Many adults — by some estimates, nearly half the adult population — choose never to drink alcohol, so they never drive after drinking. For persons under 21, it is against the law in every U.S. state to drink alcohol. There are good medical, psychological, and developmental reasons for these laws. The obvious way to eliminate the leading highway safety problem is for people never to drink alcohol and then drive. But what if people do? How much is “too much” if someone plans to drive? It is a lot less than many might think. Although it depends on each person and situation, here is some general information on the problem. The Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of someone who is drinking depends upon four things: (cid:127) The amount of alcohol consumed (cid:127) The drinker’s body weight (cid:127) The amount of food that is consumed before and during drinking (cid:127) The length of time it has taken the drinker to consume the alcohol 285 According to the American Medical Association, a 180 lb (82 kg) person who drinks three 12 ounce (355 ml) bottles of beer in an hour will end up with a BAC of about 0.06 percent. The person would reach the same BAC by drinking three 4 ounce (120 ml) glasses of wine or three mixed drinks if each had 1-1/2 ounces (45 ml) of liquors like whiskey, gin, or vodka. It is the amount of alcohol that counts. For example, if the same person drank three double martinis (3 ounces or 90 ml of liquor each) within an hour, the person’s BAC would be close to 0.12 percent. A person who consumes food just before or during drinking will have a somewhat lower BAC level. There is a gender difference, too. Women generally have a lower relative percentage of body water than men. Since alcohol is carried in body water, this means that a woman generally will reach a higher BAC level than a man of her same body weight will when each has the same number of drinks. The law in most U.S. states, and throughout Canada, sets the legal limit at 0.08 percent. In some other countries, the limit is even lower. For example, it is 0.05 percent in both France and Germany. The BAC limit for all commercial drivers in the United States is 0.04 percent. The BAC will be over 0.10 percent after three to six drinks (in one hour). Of course, as we have seen, it depends on how much alcohol is in the drinks, and how quickly the person drinks them. 286 But the ability to drive is affected well below a BAC of 0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving skills of many people are impaired at a BAC approaching 0.05 percent, and that the effects are worse at night. All drivers are impaired at BAC levels above 0.05 percent. Statistics show that the chance of being in a collision increases sharply for drivers who have a BAC of 0.05 percent or above. A driver with a BAC level of 0.06 percent has doubled his or her chance of having a collision. At a BAC level of 0.10 percent, the chance of this driver having a collision is 12 times greater; at a level of 0.15 percent, the chance is 25 times greater! The body takes about an hour to rid itself of the alcohol in one drink. No amount of coffee or number of cold showers will speed that up. “I will be careful” is not the right answer. What if there is an emergency, a need to take sudden action, as when a child darts into the street? A person with even a moderate BAC might not be able to react quickly enough to avoid the collision. There is something else about drinking and driving that many people do not know. Medical research shows that alcohol in a person’s system can make crash injuries worse, especially injuries to the brain, spinal cord, or heart. This means that when anyone who has been drinking — driver or passenger — is in a crash, that person’s chance of being killed or permanently disabled is higher than if the person had not been drinking. {CAUTION: Drinking and then driving is very dangerous. Your reﬂexes, perceptions, attentiveness, and judgment can be affected by even a small amount of alcohol. You can have a serious — or even fatal — collision if you drive after drinking. Please do not drink and drive or ride with a driver who has been drinking. Ride home in a cab; or if you are with a group, designate a driver who will not drink. 287 Control of a Vehicle You have three systems that make your vehicle go where you want it to go. They are the brakes, the steering, and the accelerator. All three systems have to do their work at the places where the tires meet the road. Sometimes, as when you are driving on snow or ice, it is easy to ask more of those control systems than the tires and road can provide. That means you can lose control of your vehicle. See Traction Control System (TCS) on page 292 and Enhanced Traction System (ETS) on page 293. Adding non-GM accessories can affect your vehicle’s performance. See Accessories and Modiﬁcations on page 336. Braking See Brake System Warning Light on page 176. Braking action involves perception time and reaction time. First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal. That is perception time. Then you have to bring up your foot and do it. That is reaction time. Average reaction time is about three-fourths of a second. But that is only an average. It might be less with one driver and as long as two or three seconds or more with another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination, and eyesight all play a part. So do alcohol, drugs, and frustration. But even in three-fourths of a second, a vehicle moving at 60 mph (100 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m). That could be a lot of distance in an emergency, so keeping enough space between your vehicle and others is important. And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly with the surface of the road, whether it is pavement or gravel; the condition of the road, whether it is wet, dry, or icy; tire tread; the condition of the brakes; the weight of the vehicle; and the amount of brake force applied. 288 Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive in spurts — heavy acceleration followed by heavy braking — rather than keeping pace with traffic. This is a mistake. The brakes may not have time to cool between hard stops. The brakes will wear out much faster if you do a lot of heavy braking. If you keep pace with the traffic and allow realistic following distances, you will eliminate a lot of unnecessary braking. That means better braking and longer brake life. If your vehicle’s engine ever stops while you are driving, brake normally but do not pump the brakes. If you do, the pedal may get harder to push down. If the engine stops, you will still have some power brake assist. But you will use it when you brake. Once the power assist is used up, it may take longer to stop and the brake pedal will be harder to push. Adding non-GM accessories can affect your vehicle’s performance. See Accessories and Modiﬁcations on page 336. Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) Your vehicle may have the Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS), an advanced electronic braking system that will help prevent a braking skid. If your vehicle has ABS, this warning light on the instrument panel will come on brieﬂy when you start your vehicle. When you start your engine, or when you begin to drive away, your ABS will check itself. You may hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while this test is going on, and you may even notice that your brake pedal moves or pulses a little. This is normal. 289 ABS can change the brake pressure faster than any driver could. The computer is programmed to make the most of available tire and road conditions. This can help you steer around the obstacle while braking hard. Let us say the road is wet and you are driving safely. Suddenly, an animal jumps out in front of you. You slam on the brakes and continue braking. Here is what happens with ABS: A computer senses that wheels are slowing down. If one of the wheels is about to stop rolling, the computer will separately work the brakes at each wheel. 290 As you brake, your computer keeps receiving updates on wheel speed and controls braking pressure accordingly. Remember: ABS does not change the time you need to get your foot up to the brake pedal or always decrease stopping distance. If you get too close to the vehicle in front of you, you will not have time to apply your brakes if that vehicle suddenly slows or stops. Always leave enough room up ahead to stop, even though you have ABS. Using ABS Do not pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal down ﬁrmly and let anti-lock work for you. You may feel a slight brake pedal pulsation or notice some noise, but this is normal. Braking in Emergencies At some time, nearly every driver gets into a situation that requires hard braking. If you have ABS, you can steer and brake at the same time. However, if you do not have ABS, your ﬁrst reaction — to hit the brake pedal hard and hold it down — may be the wrong thing to do. Your wheels can stop rolling. Once they do, the vehicle cannot respond to your steering. Momentum will carry it in whatever direction it was headed when the wheels stopped rolling. That could be off the road, into the very thing you were trying to avoid, or into traffic. If you do not have ABS, use a “squeeze” braking technique. This will give you maximum braking while maintaining steering control. You can do this by pushing on the brake pedal with steadily increasing pressure. In an emergency, you will probably want to squeeze the brakes hard without locking the wheels. If you hear or feel the wheels sliding, ease off the brake pedal. This will help you retain steering control. If you do have ABS, it is different. See Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) on page 289. In many emergencies, steering can help you more than even the very best braking. 291 Traction Control System (TCS) If the vehicle has the 3800 Supercharged V6 engine or the 5.3L V8 engine, it has a Traction Control System (TCS) that limits wheel spin. This is especially useful in slippery road conditions. The system operates only if it senses that one or both of the front wheels are spinning or beginning to lose traction. When this happens, the system works the front brakes and reduces engine power to limit wheel spin. This symbol, along with the TRACTION CONTROL ACTIVE message, comes on the DIC screen when the system is active. When the traction control system is not working, one of these symbols will come on the instrument panel cluster. This symbol is located on the instrument panel cluster. You may feel or hear the system working, but this is normal. This symbol, along with the message TRACTION CONTROL OFF will display in the DIC for three seconds when the traction control system is disabled. 292 If there is a problem with the system, the service traction system will also appear on the DIC. When these symbols and messages appear on the instrument panel and the DIC, the system will not limit wheel spin. Adjust driving accordingly. The traction control system automatically comes on whenever the vehicle is started. To limit wheel spin, especially in slippery road conditions, always leave the system on. But the traction control system can be turned off if needed. The system should be turned off if the vehicle ever gets stuck in sand, mud, or snow and rocking the vehicle is required. See Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out on page 316 and If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand, Mud, Ice, or Snow on page 316 for more information. Press the traction control button located on the console to turn the system off. If the system is limiting wheel spin when the traction control button is pressed, the system will turn off instantly. Turn the system back on at any time by pressing the button again. If the vehicle is in cruise control when the traction control system begins to limit wheel spin, the cruise control will automatically disengage. When road conditions allow safe use of it, the cruise control can be used again. See Cruise Control on page 140. Adding non-GM accessories can affect your vehicle’s performance. See Accessories and Modiﬁcations on page 336 for more information. Enhanced Traction System (ETS) If the vehicle has the 3800 V6 engine and anti-lock brakes, it has an Enhanced Traction System (ETS) that limits wheel spin. This is especially useful in slippery road conditions. The system operates only if it senses that one or both of the front wheels are spinning or beginning to lose traction. When this happens, the system reduces engine power and may also upshift the transaxle to limit wheel spin. 293 This symbol comes on the Driver Information Center (DIC) when the ETS is limiting wheel spin. If the vehicle is in cruise control when ETS begins to limit wheel spin, the cruise control will automatically disengage. When road conditions allow safe use of it, the cruise control can be used again. See Cruise Control on page 140. ETS operates in all transaxle shift lever positions. But the system can upshift the transaxle only as high as the chosen shift lever position, so use the lower gears only when necessary. See Automatic Transaxle Operation on page 110. 294 One of these lights will appear on the instrument panel to indicate that the ETS is not on. This symbol, along with the message TRACTION CONTROL OFF will display on the DIC for three seconds when the ETS is not on. If there is a problem with the system, the service traction system will also come on in the DIC. See Enhanced Traction System Warning Light on page 179. When this warning light is on, the system will not limit wheel spin. Adjust driving accordingly. To limit wheel spin, especially in slippery road conditions, the ETS should always be left on. But the system can be turned off. The system should be turned off if the vehicle ever gets stuck in sand, mud, or snow and rocking the vehicle is required. See Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out on page 316 and If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand, Mud, Ice, or Snow on page 316 for more information. Press the traction control button located on the console to turn the system off. StabiliTrak® Plus System The vehicle may have a vehicle stability enhancement system called StabiliTrak® Plus. It is an advanced computer controlled system that assists with directional control of the vehicle in difficult driving conditions. StabiliTrak® Plus comes on whenever the vehicle is started. It activates when the computer senses a discrepancy between the intended path and the direction the vehicle is actually traveling. StabiliTrak® Plus selectively applies braking pressure at any one of the vehicle’s brakes to help control the vehicle in the steering direction. If the system is limiting wheel spin when the button is pressed, the system will turn off instantly. Press the traction control button again to turn the system on. This symbol, along with the STABILITY CONTROL ACTIVE message comes on the Driver Information Center (DIC). See DIC Warnings and Messages on page 200. You may also hear a noise or feel vibration in the brake pedal. This is normal. Continue to steer the vehicle in the desired direction. 295 This symbol will appear on the DIC. If there is a problem detected with StabiliTrak® Plus, this symbol along with the SERVICE STABILITY SYSTEM warning message will come on the DIC. See DIC Warnings and Messages on page 200. When this message is displayed, the system is not operational. Driving should be adjusted accordingly. To turn the StabiliTrak® system off (GXP only), press and hold the traction control button for more than ﬁve seconds. A message will appear on the DIC indicating that StabiliTrak® has been turned off. You can turn the system back on at any time by pressing the button again. If the vehicle is in cruise control when StabiliTrak® Plus activates, the cruise control will automatically disengage. When road conditions allow safe use of it, the cruise control can be used again. See Cruise Control on page 140 for more information. 296 Steering Power Steering If you lose power steering assist because the engine stops or the system is not functioning, you can steer but it will take much more effort. Variable Effort Steering If your vehicle has this steering system, the system provides less steering effort for parking and when driving at speeds below 20 mph (32 km/h). Steering effort will increase at higher speeds for improved road feel. Steering Tips It is important to take curves at a reasonable speed. A lot of the “driver lost control” accidents mentioned on the news happen on curves. Here is why: Experienced driver or beginner, each of us is subject to the same laws of physics when driving on curves. The traction of the tires against the road surface makes it possible for the vehicle to change its path when you turn the front wheels. If there is no traction, inertia will keep the vehicle going in the same direction. If you have ever tried to steer a vehicle on wet ice, you will understand this. The traction you can get in a curve depends on the condition of your tires and the road surface, the angle at which the curve is banked, and your speed. While you are in a curve, speed is the one factor you can control. Suppose you are steering through a sharp curve. Then you suddenly apply the brakes. Both control systems — steering and braking — have to do their work where the tires meet the road. Unless you have four-wheel anti-lock brakes, adding the hard braking can demand too much of those places. You can lose control. The same thing can happen if you are steering through a sharp curve and you suddenly accelerate. Those two control systems — steering and acceleration — can overwhelm those places where the tires meet the road and make you lose control. See Traction Control System (TCS) on page 292 or Enhanced Traction System (ETS) on page 293. What should you do if this ever happens? Ease up on the brake or accelerator pedal, steer the vehicle the way you want it to go, and slow down. Speed limit signs near curves warn that you should adjust your speed. Of course, the posted speeds are based on good weather and road conditions. Under less favorable conditions you will want to go slower. If you need to reduce your speed as you approach a curve, do it before you enter the curve, while your front wheels are straight ahead. Try to adjust your speed so you can “drive” through the curve. Maintain a reasonable, steady speed. Wait to accelerate until you are out of the curve, and then accelerate gently into the straightaway. Adding non-GM accessories can affect your vehicle’s performance. See Accessories and Modiﬁcations on page 336. 297 Steering in Emergencies There are times when steering can be more effective than braking. For example, you come over a hill and ﬁnd a truck stopped in your lane, or a car suddenly pulls out from nowhere, or a child darts out from between parked cars and stops right in front of you. You can avoid these problems by braking — if you can stop in time. But sometimes you cannot; there is not room. That is the time for evasive action — steering around the problem. Your vehicle can perform very well in emergencies like these. First apply your brakes. See Braking on page 288. It is better to remove as much speed as you can from a possible collision. Then steer around the problem, to the left or right depending on the space available. 298 An emergency like this requires close attention and a quick decision. If you are holding the steering wheel at the recommended 9 and 3 o’clock positions, you can turn it a full 180 degrees very quickly without removing either hand. But you have to act fast, steer quickly, and just as quickly straighten the wheel once you have avoided the object. The fact that such emergency situations are always possible is a good reason to practice defensive driving at all times and wear safety belts properly. Off-Road Recovery You may ﬁnd that your right wheels have dropped off the edge of a road onto the shoulder while you are driving. If the level of the shoulder is only slightly below the pavement, recovery should be fairly easy. Ease off the accelerator and then, if there is nothing in the way, steer so that your vehicle straddles the edge of the pavement. You can turn the steering wheel up to one-quarter turn until the right front tire contacts the pavement edge. Then turn your steering wheel to go straight down the roadway. Passing The driver of a vehicle about to pass another on a two-lane highway waits for just the right moment, accelerates, moves around the vehicle ahead, then goes back into the right lane again. A simple maneuver? Not necessarily! Passing another vehicle on a two-lane highway is a potentially dangerous move, since the passing vehicle occupies the same lane as oncoming traffic for several seconds. A miscalculation, an error in judgment, or a brief surrender to frustration or anger can suddenly put the passing driver face to face with the worst of all traffic accidents — the head-on collision. So here are some tips for passing: (cid:127) Drive ahead. Look down the road, to the sides, and to crossroads for situations that might affect your passing patterns. If you have any doubt whatsoever about making a successful pass, wait for a better time. 299 (cid:127) Watch for traffic signs, pavement markings, and lines. If you can see a sign up ahead that might indicate a turn or an intersection, delay your pass. A broken center line usually indicates it is all right to pass, providing the road ahead is clear. Never cross a solid line on your side of the lane or a double solid line, even if the road seems empty of approaching traffic. (cid:127) Do not get too close to the vehicle you want to pass while you are awaiting an opportunity. For one thing, following too closely reduces your area of vision, especially if you are following a larger vehicle. Also, you will not have adequate space if the vehicle ahead suddenly slows or stops. Keep back a reasonable distance. (cid:127) When it looks like a chance to pass is coming up, start to accelerate but stay in the right lane and do not get too close. Time your move so you will be increasing speed as the time comes to move into the other lane. If the way is clear to pass, you will have a running start that more than makes up for the distance you would lose by dropping back. And if something happens to cause you to cancel your pass, you need only slow down and drop back again and wait for another opportunity. 300 (cid:127) If other vehicles are lined up to pass a slow vehicle, wait your turn. But take care that someone is not trying to pass you as you pull out to pass the slow vehicle. Remember to glance over your shoulder and check the blind spot. (cid:127) Check your vehicle’s mirrors, glance over your shoulder, and start your left lane change signal before moving out of the right lane to pass. When you are far enough ahead of the passed vehicle to see its front in your vehicle’s inside mirror, activate the right lane change signal and move back into the right lane. Remember that your vehicle’s passenger side outside mirror is convex. The vehicle you just passed may seem to be farther away from you than it really is. (cid:127) Try not to pass more than one vehicle at a time on two-lane roads. Reconsider before passing the next vehicle. (cid:127) Do not overtake a slowly moving vehicle too rapidly. Even though the brake lamps are not ﬂashing, it may be slowing down or starting to turn. If you are being passed, make it easy for the following driver to get ahead of you. Perhaps you can ease a little to the right. (cid:127) Loss of Control Let us review what driving experts say about what happens when the three control systems — brakes, steering, and acceleration — do not have enough friction where the tires meet the road to do what the driver has asked. In any emergency, do not give up. Keep trying to steer and constantly seek an escape route or area of less danger. Skidding In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle. Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable care suited to existing conditions, and by not overdriving those conditions. But skids are always possible. The three types of skids correspond to your vehicle’s three control systems. In the braking skid, your wheels are not rolling. In the steering or cornering skid, too much speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip and lose cornering force. And in the acceleration skid, too much throttle causes the driving wheels to spin. A cornering skid is best handled by easing your foot off the accelerator pedal. If you do not have the Enhanced Traction System (ETS) or the Traction Control System (TCS), or if the system is off, then an acceleration skid is also best handled by easing your foot off the accelerator pedal. See Enhanced Traction System (ETS) on page 293 or Traction Control System (TCS) on page 292. If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot off the accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want the vehicle to go. If you start steering quickly enough, your vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready for a second skid if it occurs. Of course, traction is reduced when water, snow, ice, gravel, or other material is on the road. For safety, you will want to slow down and adjust your driving to these conditions. It is important to slow down on slippery surfaces because stopping distance will be longer and vehicle control more limited. While driving on a surface with reduced traction, try your best to avoid sudden steering, acceleration, or braking, including reducing vehicle speed by shifting to a lower gear. Any sudden changes could cause the tires to slide. You may not realize the surface is slippery until your vehicle is skidding. 301 Learn to recognize warning clues — such as enough water, ice, or packed snow on the road to make a mirrored surface — and slow down when you have any doubt. If you have the Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS), remember: It helps avoid only the braking skid. If you do not have ABS, then in a braking skid, where the wheels are no longer rolling, release enough pressure on the brakes to get the wheels rolling again. This restores steering control. Push the brake pedal down steadily when you have to stop suddenly. As long as the wheels are rolling, you will have steering control. Driving at Night Night driving is more dangerous than day driving. One reason is that some drivers are likely to be impaired — by alcohol or drugs, with night vision problems, or by fatigue. Here are some tips on night driving. (cid:127) Drive defensively. (cid:127) Do not drink and drive. (cid:127) Adjust the inside rearview mirror to reduce the glare from headlamps behind you. 302 (cid:127) Since you cannot see as well, you may need to slow down and keep more space between you and other vehicles. (cid:127) Slow down, especially on higher speed roads. Your vehicle’s headlamps can light up only so much road ahead. In remote areas, watch for animals. If you are tired, pull off the road in a safe place and rest. (cid:127) (cid:127) No one can see as well at night as in the daytime. But as we get older these differences increase. A 50-year-old driver may require at least twice as much light to see the same thing at night as a 20-year-old. What you do in the daytime can also affect your night vision. For example, if you spend the day in bright sunshine you are wise to wear sunglasses. Your eyes will have less trouble adjusting to night. But if you are driving, do not wear sunglasses at night. They may cut down on glare from headlamps, but they also make a lot of things invisible. You can be temporarily blinded by approaching headlamps. It can take a second or two, or even several seconds, for your eyes to re-adjust to the dark. When you are faced with severe glare, as from a driver who does not lower the high beams, or a vehicle with misaimed headlamps, slow down a little. Avoid staring directly into the approaching headlamps. Keep the windshield and all the glass on your vehicle clean — inside and out. Glare at night is made much worse by dirt on the glass. Even the inside of the glass can build up a ﬁlm caused by dust. Dirty glass makes lights dazzle and ﬂash more than clean glass would, making the pupils of your eyes contract repeatedly. Remember that the headlamps light up far less of a roadway when you are in a turn or curve. Keep your eyes moving; that way, it is easier to pick out dimly lighted objects. Just as the headlamps should be checked regularly for proper aim, so should your

Boost Classifieds - Car Advice, Reviews, Events & Classifieds

2007 Pontiac Grand PRIX Owners Manual