Chevrolet 1996 Cavalier User manual

11
CAVALIER

0 The 1996 Chevrolet Cavalier Owner’s Manual
SeatsandRestraintSystems ............................................................. 1-1
This section tells you how to use your seats and safety belts properly. It also explains the “SRS” system.
..
FeaturesandControls ................................................................... 2-1
ComfortControlsand AudioSystems ..................................................... 3-1
This section explains how to start and operate your Chevrolet.
This section tells
you how to adjust the ventilation and comfort controls and how to operate your
audio system.
YourDrivingandtheRoad .............................................................. 4-1
Here you’ll find helpful information and tips about the road and how to drive under different conditions.
ProblemsontheRoad .................................................................. 5-1
This section tells you what to do if you have a problem while driving, such as a flat tire or overheated
engine, etc.
ServiceandAppearanceCare ............................................................ 6-1
Here the manual tells you how to keep your Chevrolet running properly and looking good.
MaintenanceSchedule .................................................................. 7-1
This section tells you when to perform vehicle maintenance and what fluids and lubricants to use.
CustomerAssistanceInformation ........................................................ 8-1
This section tells you how to contact Chevrolet for assistance and how to get service and owner publications.
It also gives
you information on “Reporting Safety Defects” on page 8-8.
Here’s an alphabetical listing of almost every subject in this manual. You can use it to quickly find
something you want to read.
Index ................................................................................ 9-1
i

GENERAL MOTORS,GM, theGM Emblem,
CHEVROLET, the Chevrolet Emblem andthe
name CAVALIER areregisteredtrademarks of
GeneralMotors Corporation.
Thismanual includesthe latest information at the time it
was printed.We reserve the right to makechangesin the
product afterthat time without furthernotice. For
vehiclesfirstsold inCanada, substitutethe name
“GeneralMotors of Canada Limited”for Chevrolet
Motor Division wheneverit appearsin
this manual.
Please keepthis manual in yourChevrolet,
so it will be
there
if you ever need it when you’re on the road.If you
sellthe vehicle,please leave this manual in
it so the new
owner can use
it.
Litho in U.S.A.
Part No. 10273 194 B First Edition
WE SUPPORT
VOLUNTARY TECHNICIAN
CERTIFICATION THROUGH
National institute for
AUTOMOTIVE
SERVICE
EXCELLENCE
L
We support voluntary
technician certification.
For Canadian Owners Who
French Language Manual:
refer a
Aux propriktaires canadiens: Vous pouvez vous
procurer
un exemplairede ceguide en frangais chez
votre concessionaire ou au:
DGN Marketing ServicesLtd.
1500 BonhillRd.
Mississauga,OntarioL5T 1C7
@CopyrightGeneralMotors Corporation 1995
All RightsReserved
ii

The dynamic William C. “Billy”
Durant shiftedgears from making
carriages to making
cars,
forming half the team thatgave
birth
to Chevrolet.
Louis Chevrolet, the other half
of the team,
at the wheel
of his experimental “Classic
Six,” which enteredproduction in I91 2.
Thatyear 2999 vehicles wereproduced.

I
In 1932 Chevrolet
introduced the
Synchro-Mesh
transmission and
.
oflered a host of
accessories -- including
such nicetiesas a clock?
I
The legacy of America’sfavorite sportscar
I
I
I
I began-in 1953, when 319 hand-assembled ;
launchedthe I
first use of a
fiberglass
body in . I
aproduction car.
= white Corvettes
I
I
iv

I The 1957 Chevystarted a romance with the American
public
-- and waspowered by anavailablefuel-injected V8.
legendary 327 V8.
Your new Chevrolet continuesa tradition of quality and value.
V

How to Use This Manual
Many peopleread their owner’s manual from beginning
to end when theyfirst receive their new vehicle.This
will help you learnaboutthe featuresand controlsfor
your vehicle.
In this manual, you’ll find that pictures
and words worktogetherto explainthingsquickly.
Index
A good place to look for what you need is the Index in
the back of the manual.It’s an alphabeticallist of all
that’s
in the manual, andthe page number where you’ll
find it.
Safety Warnings and Symbols
You will find a number of safety cautionsin this book.
We use the word CAUTION to tell you about things that
could hurt you if you wereto ignorethe warning.
These mean there is something that could hurt
you or other people.
In thecautionarea, we tell you whatthe hazard is. Then
we tell you what todo to help avoidor reduce the
hazard. Pleaseread these cautions.
If you don’t, youor
others couldbe hurt.
- You will also find a circle
with a slashthrough it in
this
book. This safety
symbolmeans “Don’t,”
“Don’t
do this,’’or “Don’t
let this happen.’’
vi

Vehicle Damage Warnings Inthenoticearea,wetellyouaboutsomethingthatcan
damageyour vehicle. Many times, this damage would
But the notice will tell you what
to doto help avoid
the damage.
When
you read other manuals, you might see
CAUTION and NOTICE warnings in different colorsor
in different words.
You’ll also see warning labelson your vehicle. They use
yellow for cautions, bluefor notices and the
words
CAUTION or NOTICE.
Also,
in thisbookyouwillfindthesenotices:notbecoveredbyyourwarranty,and it couldbecostly.
NOTICE:
These mean thereis something that could
damage your vehicle.
vii

Vehicle Symbols
These are some of the symbols you may find on your vehicle.
For example,
these symbols
are used on an
original battery:
POSSIBLE A
CAUTION
INJURY
PROTECT
EYES BY
SHIELDING
CAUSTIC
BURNS
SPARK
OR ,\I/,
COULD
FLAME
EXPLODE
BATTERY
These symbols
are important
for you
and
your passengers
whenever your
vehicle
is
driven:
FASTEN
SEAT
BELTS
These symbols
have to do with
your lights:
SIGNALS @
TURN
FOG LAMPS $0
These symbols
are on some of
your controls:
WINDSHIELD
DEFROSTER
These symbols
are used on
warning
and
indicator lights:
COOLANT -
TEMP -
CHARGING I-1
BAllERY
SYSTEM
BRAKE
(a)
COOLANT a
ENGINEOIL e,
PRESSURE
ANTI-LOCK
(@)
BRAKES
Here are some
other symbols
you maysee:
FUSE
LIGHTER
m
HORN )a(
SPEAKER
b
FUEL B
viii

0 SectiOn 1 Seats andRestraint Systems
Here you’ll find information about the seats in your
Chevrolet and howto
use your safety belts properly.
You 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 reclining seatbacks and
head restraints.
a1 Front
You can lose controlof the vehicle if you try to
adjust
a manual driver’s seatwhile the vehicle is
moving. The suddenmovement couldstartle and
confuse you,
or make you push a pedal whenyou
don’t want to. Adjust the driver’s seatonly when
the vehicle is not moving.
Move the lever on the frontof the driver’s seat to unlock
it. Slide the seat to where you wantit. Then release the
lever and tryto move the seat with your body, to make
sure the seatis locked into place.
1-1

Pull the lever in front of the front passenger’s seat upto
unlock it. Slidethe seat to where you wantit. Then
release the lever and try to movethe seat with your
body, to make sure theseat is locked intoplace.
Manual Lumbar Support (Convertible with
White Vinyl
Seats Only)
The manual lumbarsupportcontrolis located at the
front
of the driver’sseat,toward the right. Turn the knob
clockwiseor counterclockwise to increaseor decrease
the amount
of support to your lower back.
Reclining Front Seatbacks
L
To adjust the seatback, lift the lever on the outer side of
the seat and move the seatbackto where you wantit.
1-2

Releasethe lever to lock the seatback.fill up on the
lever
and the seat will go to an upright position.
But don’thave a seatbackreclined if your vehicle is
moving.
A CAUTION:
Sitting in a reclined position whenyour vehicle is
in motion canbe dangerous. Even if you buckle
up, your safetybelts can’t dotheir jobwhen
you’re reclined like
this.
The shoulder belt can’t do its job because it
won’t be against yourbody. Instead, itwill be in
front of you. 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 could
go up over your abdomen. The belt
forceswould be there, not at yourpelvic bones.
Thiscould causeserious internal injuries.
For properprotection when the vehicle
is in
motion, have the seatback upright. Thensit well
back in the seatand wear yoursafety belt properly.
- 1-3

Head Restraints
Slide the head restraintup or down so that the topof the
restraintis closest
to the top of your ears.This position
reduces the chanceof a neck injury in
a crash.
Seatback Latches (2-Door Models)
The front seatback folds
forward to let people get
into the back seat.
To fold afront seatback forward,lift the latch.
When you return the seatback to its original position, the
seatback
will lock.
Easy-Entry Seat (Opti 1)
If an easy entry right frontseat isn’t locked, it
can move. In a sudden stop or crash, the person
sitting there could be injured. After you’ve used
it, be sureto push rearward onan easy entry seat
to be sure it
is locked.
On two-door models, the rightfront seat of your vehiclc
makes it easyto get
in and out of the rear seat.
0
0
0
Tilt the rightfront seatback completely forward and
the whole seat willslideforward.
Move the rightfront seatback to itsoriginalposition
aftersomeone getsinto the rear seat area. Then move
the seatrearward until it locks.
Tilt the seatback completely forward againto
get out.
1A

Rear Seats
Folding the Rear Seat
I
To open the fold-down rear seat, pull forwardon the
seat tab.
To close the seat, push the seatback up to its
original position.
Check to ensurethe seatback is in
its original position
and securely latched
by pulling forwardon the top
of the seatback. Move any obstructions in the
trunk compartment.
1-5

Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone
’ Thispart ,of themanual tells you how to use safetybelts
: properly.It also tells you some thingsyou should notdo
1 with safetybelts.
And it explainsthe SupplementalRestraint System
(SRS), or airbag system.
1
Don’t let anyone ride wherehe or shecan’t wear
a safety belt properly. If you arein a crash and
you’re not wearing
a safety belt, your injuries
can be muchworse.
You can hit things inside the
vehicle or be ejected from
it. You can be seriously
injured orkilled. In the same crash,
you might
not be if you arebuckled
up. Always fasten your
safety belt, and check that your passengers’ belts
are fastened properlytoo.
Your vehicle hasa light that
comes
on as a reminder to
buckle up.(See“Safety
Belt ReminderLight”
in
theIndex.)
I
In most statesand Canadian provinces,the law says to
wear safety belts. Here’s why:
They work.
You never know if you’llbe in a crash. If you dohave a
crash,you don’t knowif it willbe a bad one.
A few crashesare mild, and somecrashescan be so
seriousthat even buckled upa person wouldn’t survive.
But mostcrashesarein between.In many of them,
people who buckleup can survive and sometimes walk
away. Withoutbelts they couldhave been badly hurtor
killed.
After more
than 25 years ofsafetybelts in vehicles,
the factsare clear.
In most crashesbuckling up does
matter
. .. a lot!

Why Safety Belts Work
When you ride in or on anything, you go as fast as
it goes.
Take thesimplestvehicle. Suppose it's just a seat
on wheels.
Put someoneon
it.
1-7

Get it up to speed. Thenstopthe vehicle. The rider
doesn't stop. Theperson keeps going until stopped
by something.
In a realvehicle,
it could be the windshield ...
1-8

I
or the instrumentpanel ...
I
or the safetybelts!
Wia safetybelts, you slow down as the vehicle does.
You get more timeto stop. You stopover moredistance,
and yourstrongestbones take theforces. That's why
safetybelts make such good sense.
1-9

Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
Won’t Ibe trapped in the vehicle afteran
accident if I’m wearing a safety belt?
A: You could be -- whether you’re wearinga safety
belt or not. But youcanunbuckle a safety belt,
even if you’re upsidedown. And yourchanceof
being consciousduring and after an accident,
so
you can unbuckle and get out, is much greaterif
you are belted.
Qi’ If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
A: Air bags are in manyvehiclestoday andwill be in
most of them inthe future. But they are
supplementalsystems only; so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Everyair bag
system ever offered for salehas required the use of
safetybelts. Evenif you’re in a vehicle that has air
bags, you stillhave to buckle
up to getthemost
protection. That’s true not only
in frontal collisions,
but especially in side andothercollisions.
@ If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
home,why should
I wear safety belts?
A: You may be anexcellentdriver, but if you’re in an
accident
-- even one that isn’tyour fault -- you and
your paskengerscanbe hurt. Beinga good driver
doesn’t protect you fromthings beyond your
control,such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within
25 miles (40 km) of
home. Andthe greatest numberof seriousinjuries
and deathsoccurat speedsof lessthan
40 mph
(65 bb).
Safety belts arefor everyone.