User manual PONTIAC FIREBIRD 1996

1996 v .... The1996'PontiacFirebirdOwner's Manual ............................................................. This section tells you how to use your seats and safety belts properly. also explains the "SRS" system. It FeaturesandControls .................................................................. This section explains how to start and operate your Pontiac. Comfort Controls and Audio Systems..................................................... Seats and Restraint Systems .. 1-1 2-1 3-1 Your Driving and the Road ... Here you'll find helpful information and tips about the road and how to drive under different conditions. ProblemsontheRoad Service and Appearance Care This section tells you what to do you have a problem while driving, such as a flat tire or if overheated engine, etc. This section tells you how to adjustthe ventilation and comfortcontrols and how to operate your audio system. .............................................................. 4-1 5-1 6-1 .................................................................. .............................................................. Here the manual tells you how to keep your Pontiac running properly and looking good. . Maintenanceschedule ................................................................... This section tells you when to perform vehicle maintenance and whatfluids and lubricants to use. CustomerAssistanceInformation ........................................................ This section tells you how to contact Pontiac for assistance and h'ow to service and owner publications. get It also gives you information on "Reporting SafetyDefects" on page 8-9. 7-1 8-1 Index ................................................................................ 9-1 Here's an alphabetical listing of almost every subject in this manual. can use it to quickly find You something you want to read. i IPONTIAC , I -' We support voluntary technician certification. d WE SUPPORT VOLUNTARY TECHNICIAN CERTIFICATION THROUGH Natlonal Institute for AUTOMOTIVE GENERAL MOTORS, GM, the GM Emblem, PONTIAC, the PONTIAC Emblem and the name FIREBIRD are registered trademarks ofGeneral Motors Corporation. This manual includes the latest information at the time it `wasprinted. We reserve the right to make changes in the product 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. Please keep this manual in your Pontiac, so it will be there if you ever need it when you're on the road. If you sell the vehicle, please leave manual in it so the new this owner can use it. SERVICE EXCELLENCE For Canadian Owners Who Prefer a French Language Manual: Aux proprictaires canadiens: Vous pouvez vous procurer un exemplaire de ceguide en fraqais chez votre concessionaire ou au: DGN Marketing Services Ltd. 1500 Bonhill Rd. Mississauga, Ontario L5T 1C7 Litho in U.S.A. Part No. 10275781 B First Edition @CopyrightGeneral Motors Corporation 1995 4ll Rights Reserved ii How to Use This Manual Many people read their owner's manual from beginning to end when they first receive their new vehicle. If you do this, it will help you learn about the features and controls for your vehicle. In this manual, you'll find that pictures and words worktogether to explain things quickly. 1CAUTITN: These mean there something thatcould hart is you or other people. In the caution area, we tell you what the hazardis. Then we tell you what to do to help avoid or reduce the hazard. Please read these cautions. If you don't, youor others could be hurt. You will also find a circle with a slash through it in this book. This safety Index A good place to look for what you needis the Index in the back of the manual. It's an alphabetical list of all that's in themanual, and the page number where you'll find it. Safety Warnings and Symbols You will find a number of safety cautions in this book. We use a box and the word CAUTION to tell you about things that could hurt you if you were to ignore the warning. symbol means "Don't," "Don't do this," or "Don't let this happen." Veh.icleDamage Warnings Also, in this book you will find these notices: I NOTICE: I I These mean thereis something thatcould damage your vehicle. I I I In the notice area, we tell you about something that can damage your vehicle. Many times, this damage would not be covered by your warranty, and it.could be costly. But the notice will tell you what to do to help avoid the damage. When you read other manuals, you might see CAUTION and NOTICE warnings in different colors or in different words. You'll also see warning labels on your vehicle. They use the same words, CAUTION or NOTICE. iV I Vehicle Symbols These are some of the symbols you may find on your vehicle. For example, these symbols a e used on an r original battery: CAUTION POSSIBLE INJURY PROTECT EYES BY SHlELDlNG PARKING CAUSTIC A These symbols are important for you and your passengers whenever your vehicle is driven: These symbols have to do with your lights: These symbols are on some of your controls: WINDSHIELD WIPER These symbols are used on warning and indicator lights: Here are some other symbols you may see: n ENGINE COOLANT TEMP BATTERY CHARGING SYSTEM WINDSHIELD DEFROSTER Fd I-1 FUSE LIGHTER m LAMPS pf WINDOW DEFOGGER BATTERY ACID COULD CAUSE BURNS AVOID SPARKS OR FLAMES SPARK OR FLAME COULD EXPLODE BAllERY FASTEN SEAT BELTS BRAKE () 0 HORN )cr COOLANT POWER WINDOW 1 a SPEAKER b J ,\I/, AIR BAG ENGINE OIL PRESSURE e, p3 FUEL a? p \ FOG LAMPS $0 ANTI-LOCK BRAKES (e) V NOTES Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems I Here you'll find information about the seats in your You Pontiac and howto use your safety belts properly. can also learn about some things you should not do with air bags and safety belts. Seats and Seat Controls This section tells you aboutthe seats -- how to adjust them and also about recliningfront seatbacks, seatback latches and thefolding rear seatback. Manual Front Seat A CAUTION: I Move the lever under the passenger's front seat to unlock it. Slide the seat to where you want it. Then release the lever and try to move the seat with your body to make sure the seat is locked into place. Be sure the lever returns to its original position after moving the seat. You can lose control the vehicleif` you try to of adjust a manual driver's seat while the vehicleis moving. The sudden movement could startle and confuse you, or make you push a pedal when you don't want to. Adjust the driver's seat only when the vehicle is not moving. 1-1 4-Way Manual Seat 6-Way Power Seat (Option) There are two levers at the front of the seat, The left lever adjusts the seat forward and back. The right lever adjusts the angle sf the front of the seat. To adjust the seats forward and rearward, lift the lever of under the left front the seat. Slide the seat to where r you want it. Then release the lever and t y to move the seat with your body to make sure the seat is locked into place. The driver's seat has three controls on the left side. The front control makes the front of the seat go up and down., The back control makes the back of the seat go up and down. The center control makes the whole seat go up and down or forward and backward. To raise or lower theentire seat, lift the lever under the right front ofthe seat and lean forward or backward. 1-2 FullyArticulating Spori Seat(Option) If your Pontiac has these seats, the driver's seat has the four-waymanual seat adjuster. See "4-Way Manual Seat" earlier in this part. The passenger seat has the two-way manual seat adjuster. See "Manual Front Seat" earlier in this part. The switch pads on the `outer side of the seats "inflate" and "deflate" parts of your seatback. The two buttons that have "dots" inflate and deflate the outer parts of the seatback. To inflate, press the raised button. T O deflate, Press the hdented button. The two buttons without dots inflate and deflate the lumbar (lower part of the seatback) support. To inflate, press the raised button. To deflate, press the indented button. Reclining Front Seatbacks If you have fully articulatingsport seats, your recliner lever looks like this. To adjust the seatback, lift the lever on the outer side of the seat. Release the lever to lock the seatback where you want it. Pull up on the lever and the seat will go to its original upright position. 1-4 1 A CAUTION: Sitting in a reclined position whenyour vehicle is in motioncan be dangerous. Even if you buckle up, your safety belts can't their job when do you're reclined like this. The shoulder belt can'tdo its job. In a crash you could go into it, receiving neckor other injuries. The lap belt can't do its job either. In a crash the belt couldgo 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 sitwell back in the seatand wear your safety belt properly. But don't have a seatback reclined vehicle is moving. if your Head Restraints Slide the head restraint upor down so that the top of the restraint isclosest to the top of your ears. This position reduces thechance of a neck injury in a crash. On some models, the head restraints tilt forward and rearward also. 1-5 Front Seatback Latches The front seatback folds forward to let people getinto the back seat. TQfold a seatback forward, lift the latch located on the lower backside of the seatback. Then the seatback will fold forward. When you return the seatback to original position, its The make sure the seatback is locked. latch must be down for the seat to work properly. Folding Rear Seatback /I\ CAUTION: Ithe seatback isn'tlocked, it codd move forward i a sudden stop or crash. That could cause injury n to the person sitting there. Always press rearward on the seatback to be sure it is locked. . I The rear seatback in Pontiac folds down to provide your more storage space. To fold the seatback down: 1. Pull forward on both levers. 2. Fold the seatback down. To raise the seatback: 1. Pull it up to the locked, upright position. 2. Be sure both latches hold the seatback place. Have in them fixed if they don't. 1-6 Safety Belts: They're for Everyone This part of the manual tells you how touse safety belts properly. It also tells you some things you should not do with safety belts. Your vehicle has a light that comes on as a reminder to buckle up. (See "Safety Belt Reminder Light" in the Index.) And it explains the Supplemental Inflatable Restraint (SIR), or air bag system. Don't letanyone ride where he or she can't wear a safety beltproperly. If you are in a crash and you're not wearing a safety belt,your injuries can be much worse.You can hit things inside the vehicle or be ejected from it. You can be seriously injured or killed. In the same crash, you might not be if yon are buckled up. Always fasten your satety belt,and check that your passengers' belts are fastened properly too. In most states and Canadian provinces, the law saysto wear safety belts. Here's why: They work. You never know if you'll be in a crash. If you do have a crash, you don't know if it will be a bad one. A few crashes are.mild, and some crashes can be so serious that even buckled up a person wouldn't survive. But most crashes are in between. In many of them, people who buckle up can surviveand sometimes walk away. Without belts they could have been badly hurt or killed. After more than 25 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 anythmg, you go as fast as it goes. ... .. rake the simplest vehicle. Suppose it's just a seaton wheels. 1-8 Get it up to speed. Then stop the vehicle. The rider doesn't stop. The person keeps going until stoppedby something. In a real vehicle, it could be thewindshield ... 1-9 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's why safety belts make such good sense. 1-10 - Here Are Questions Many PeopleAsk About Safety Belts -- and the Answers Q.' If I'm a good driver, and I never drive far from home, why shouldI wear safety belts? .. &.' Won't I be trapped in the vehicle after an accident if I'm wearing a safety belt? . ., . A: ~ --:+..: 7, .:.- . _. ` I -. ' , .I. . . ..,. .. .; A: You could be -- whether you're wearing a safety belt or `not. you can unbuckle a safety belt, But even if you're upside down. And your chance of being conscious during and after an accident, so you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater if you are belted. You may be an excellent driver, but if you're in an accident -- even one that isn't your fault -- you and your passengers can be hurt. Being a good driver doesn't protect you from things beyond your control, such as bad drivers. Most accidents occur within 25 miles (40 km) of home. And the greatest number of serious injuries and deaths occur at speeds of less than 40 mph (65 km/h). Safety belts are for everyone. &: A: If my vehicle has air bags, should I have to why wear safety belts? Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be in most of them in the future. But they are supplemental systems only; so they work with safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag , system ever offered for sale has required the use of safety belts. Even if you're in a vehicle that has air bags, you still have to buckle up to get the most protection. That'strue not only in frontal collisions, but especially in side and other collisions. 1-11 How to Wear Safety Belts Properly Adults This part is only forpeople of adult size. Be aware that there are special things to know about safety belts add children. And there areMerent rules for smaller chldren and babies. If a child wilI be riding in your Pontiac, see thepart of this manual called " h l r n "Follow those rules for everyone's protection. Cide. First, you'll want to know which restraint systems your vehicle has. We'll start with the driver position. Driver Position This part describes the driver's restraint system. Lap-Shoulder Belt The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here's how to wear it properly. 1. Close and lock the door. 3. Pick-up the latch plate and pull the belt across you. Don't let it gettwisted. On convertible models, the shoulder belt may lock if you pull the belt across you very quickly. If this happens, let the belt go back slightly to unlock it. Then pull the belt across you more slowly. 2. Adjust the seat (to see how, see "Seats" in the Index) so you can sit up straight. 4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks. If the belt stops before it reaches the buckle, tilt the latch plate and keep pulling until youcan buckle the belt. 5. To make the lap part tight, pull down on the buckle end of the belt as you pull up on the shoulder belt. Pull up on the latch plate to make sure it is secure. If the belt isn't longenough, see "Safety Belt Extender" atthe end of this section. Make sure the release button on the buckleis positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the safety belt quickly if you ever had to. 1-13