GMC C series 2002 User manual

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2002 GMC C-Series
Owner’s Manual
Litho in U.S.A. E Copyright General Motors Corporation 06/11/01
Part Number X2202 A First Edition All Rights Reserved

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GENERAL MOTORS, GM, the GM Emblem, GMC
and the GMC Truck Emblem are registered trademarks
of General Motors Corporation.
This manual includes the latest information at the time
it was printed. We reserve the right to make changes
after that time without further notice. For vehicles first
sold in Canada, substitute the name “General Motors of
Canada Limited” for GM Medium Duty Truck Division
whenever it appears in this manual.
Please keep this manual in your vehicle, so it will
be there if you ever need it when you’re on the road.
If you sell the vehicle, please leave this manual in it
so the new owner can use it.
We support voluntary
technician certification.
For Canadian Owners Who Prefer a
French Language Manual:
Aux propriétaires canadiens: Vous pouvez vous
procurer un exemplaire de ce guide en français chez
votre concessionaire ou au:
Helm, Incorporated
P.O. Box 07130
Detroit, MI 48207

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How to Use this Manual
Many people read their owner’s manual from beginning
to end when they first receive their new vehicle. If
you do this, it will help you learn about the features
and controls for your vehicle. In this manual, you’ll
find that pictures and words work together to explain
things quickly.
Safety Warnings and Symbols
You will find a number of safety cautions in this book.
We use a box and the word CAUTION to tell you
about things that could hurt you if you were to ignore
the warning.
CAUTION:
These mean there is something that could hurt
you or other people.
In the caution area, we tell you what the hazard is.
Then we tell you what to do to help avoid or reduce
the hazard. Please read these cautions. If you don’t,
you or others could be hurt.
You will also find a circle
with a slash through it in
this book. This safety
symbol means “Don’t,”
“Don’t do this” or “Don’t
let this happen.”

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Vehicle Damage Warnings
Also, in this book you will find these notices:
NOTICE:
These mean there is something that could damage
your vehicle.
In the notice area, we tell you about something that can
damage your vehicle. Many times, this damage would
not be covered by your warranty, and it could be costly.
But the notice will tell you what to do to help avoid
the damage.
When you read other manuals, you might see
CAUTION and NOTICE warnings in different
colors or in different words.
You’ll also see warning labels on your vehicle.
They use the same words, CAUTION or NOTICE.
Vehicle Symbols
Your vehicle may be equipped with components and
labels that use symbols instead of text. Symbols,
used on your vehicle, are shown along with the text
describing the operation or information relating to a
specific component, control, message, gage or indicator.
If you need help figuring out a specific name of a
component, gage or indicator reference the following
topics in the Index:
D “Instrument Panel”
D “Comfort Controls”
D “Audio Systems”
Also see “Warning Lights and Gages” in the Index.

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

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Model Reference
This manual contains information which covers
conventional cab models as shown. Most models are
unfinished from the factory.
C6H042
C7H042
C7H064
Since C-Series models delivered from the factory are
finished in a variety of ways by a number of companies,
you’ll probably find other manuals in your finished
vehicle. These manuals are put there by the companies
that have added components or equipment to the
C-Series model. Read all these materials -- as well as
this manual -- carefully, to get all of the information
on your vehicle.

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Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
Here you’ll find information about the seats in your vehicle and how to use your safety belts properly. You can also
learn about some things you should not do with safety belts.
1-2 Seats and Seat Controls
1-7 Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone
1-11 Here are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
1-12 How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
1-12 Driver Position
1-21 Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy
1-21 Right Passenger Position
1-22 Center Passenger Position
1-23 Children
1-27 Restraint Systems for Children
1-33 Older Children
1-36 Safety Belt Extender
1-36 Checking Your Restraint Systems
1-3 Replacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash

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Seats and Seat Controls
This section tells you about the seats in your vehicle and
how to adjust them.
CAUTION:
You can lose control of the vehicle if you try
to adjust the seat while the vehicle is moving.
The sudden movement could startle and confuse
you, or make you push a pedal when you don’t
want to. Adjust the driver’s seat only when the
vehicle is not moving.
Bucket and Bench Seats
If your vehicle has a bucket or bench seat, you can
adjust it with this lever located at the front of the seat.
Slide the lever toward the outer seat support 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.

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Head Restraints
Some seats have adjustable head restraints. Slide an
adjustable head restraint up or down so that the top of
the restraint is closest to the top of your head. This
position reduces the chance of a neck injury in a crash.
Seatback Latches
The full-width bench seat seatback folds forward to let
you reach the rear of the cab. Bucket seats have
outboard-mounted levers to tilt the seatbacks forward or
rearward.
Your seatback will move back and forth freely unless
you come to a sudden stop -- then it will lock into place.
The seatback latch is
located on the rear of the
seat cushion. To fold the
seatback forward, pull the
seatback toward the
front of the vehicle
as you lift this latch.
Bench Seat Shown

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To return the seatback to its original position, push
the seatback toward the rear of the vehicle.
Push and pull the seatback to be sure it’s locked
into place. The latch must be down for the seat to
work properly.
CAUTION:
If the seatback isn’t locked, it could move forward
in a sudden stop or crash. That could cause injury
to the person sitting there. Always press rearward
on the seatback to be sure it is locked.
National Seats (If Equipped)
If your vehicle has the low-back National seat, there are
six ways you can adjust the seat.
If your vehicle has the high-back National seat, there are
five ways you can adjust the seat.

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Height Adjustment
To adjust the height of
a self-contained seat
(hand-pumped air seat),
push the seat height
adjustment pump lever,
located on the lower
outboard side, down and
continue pumping to raise
the seat. Press the lever and
hold it to lower the seat.
To adjust the height of air-sourced seats, use the knob
on the front outboard side of the seat. Push the knob to
inflate. Pull the knob to deflate.
To adjust the height of the
cushion, lift the cushion
height adjustment handle
up and forward. You can
choose between two
settings. The handle is
located underneath the
seat, in the front.
Lumbar Adjustments
To get more support in the
lumbar area of your back,
turn the lumbar adjustment
knob. The knob is located
on the upper cushion,
on the inboard side of
the driver’s seat and the
outboard side of the
passenger’s seat.

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Seatback Adjustment
To tilt the seatback, turn
the backrest tilt knob.
The knob is located on
the lower cushion, on the
outboard side of the driver’s
seat and the inboard side of
the passenger’s seat.
Fore-and-Aft Adjustment
To slide the seat forward or
rearward, move the lever
toward the passenger’s side
of the vehicle. The seat will
lock in at 1/2 inch (1.5 cm)
increments. The lever is
located underneath the seat,
in the front.
Chugger-Snubber Lock-Out Feature (If Equipped)
If your vehicle has this
feature, the handle is
located on the lower
outboard side of the
driver’s seat and the
inboard side of the
passenger’s seat.
Move the handle down to limit backslap experienced
while in tractor/trailer operation or while operating a
dump truck application. This is only available on
low-back seats.

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Safety Belts: They’re for Everyone
This part of the manual tells you how to use safety belts
properly. It also tells you some things you should not do
with safety belts.
CAUTION:
Don’t let anyone ride where he or she can’t wear
a safety belt properly. If you are in a crash and
you’re not wearing a safety belt, your injuries
can be much worse. You can hit things inside the
vehicle or be ejected from it. You can be seriously
injured or killed. In the same crash, you might
not be if you are buckled up. Always fasten your
safety belt, and check that your passengers’ belts
are fastened properly too.
CAUTION:
It is extremely dangerous to ride in a cargo area,
inside or outside of a vehicle. In a collision,
people riding in these areas are more likely to be
seriously injured or killed. Do not allow people to
ride in any area of your vehicle that is not
equipped with seats and safety belts. Be sure
everyone in your vehicle is in a seat and using a
safety belt properly.
If your vehicle has a
safety belt reminder light,
a light comes on as a
reminder to buckle up.
See “Safety Belt Reminder
Light” in the Index.

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If your vehicle has a safety belt reminder tone, a tone
comes on as a reminder to buckle up. See “Safety Belt
Reminder Tone” in the Index.
In most states and Canadian provinces, the law says to
wear safety belts. Here’s why: They work.
You never know if you’ll be in a crash. If you do have
a crash, you don’t know if it will be a bad one.
A few crashes are mild, and some crashes can be so
serious that even buckled up a person wouldn’t survive.
But most crashes are in between. In many of them,
people who buckle up can survive and sometimes walk
away. Without belts they could have been badly hurt
or killed.
After more than 30 years of safety belts in vehicles,
the facts are clear. In most crashes buckling up does
matter ... a lot!
Why Safety Belts Work
Q: Aren’t safety belts for kids?
A: Yes. And they’re for adult truckers, and anyone
else who rides in your vehicle.
Here’s why: when your vehicle goes, say, 30 mph
(50 km/h), so do you and your passengers.

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If the vehicle hits something, it stops -- right then.
But nothing stops the people. They keep moving. Then something will stop them. It could be the windshield.

1-10
Or it could be the instrument panel.
Now, what if you and your passengers were to give that
big vehicle a chance to deal with the force of the impact,
instead of you?
With belts, you slow down as the vehicle does. You get
more time to stop.
You stop over more distance, and your strongest bones
take the forces. Safety belts are for everyone.

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Here Are Questions Many People Ask
About Safety Belts -- and the Answers
Q: Won’t I be trapped in the vehicle after an
accident if I’m wearing a safety belt?
A: You could be -- whether you’re wearing a safety
belt or not. But you can unbuckle a safety belt,
even if you’re upside down. And your chance of
being conscious during and after an accident, so
you can unbuckle and get out, is much greater
if you are belted.
Q: If my vehicle has air bags, why should I have to
wear safety belts?
A: Air bags are in many vehicles today and will be in
most of them in the future. But they are
supplemental systems only; so they work with
safety belts -- not instead of them. Every air bag
system ever offered for sale has required the use of
safety belts. Even if you’re in a vehicle that has air
bags, you still have to buckle up to get the most
protection. That’s true not only in frontal collisions,
but especially in side and other collisions.
Q: If I’m a good driver, and I never drive far from
home, why should I wear safety belts?
A: You may be an excellent driver, but if you’re in an
accident -- even one that isn’t your fault -- you
and your passengers can be hurt. Being a good
driver doesn’t protect you from things beyond your
control, such as bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within 25 miles (40 km)
of home. And the greatest number of serious
injuries and deaths occur at speeds of less than
40 mph (65 km/h).
Safety belts are for everyone.

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How to Wear Safety Belts Properly
Adults
This part is only for people of adult size.
Be aware that there are special things to know about safety
belts and children. And there are different rules for smaller
children and babies. If a child will be riding in your
vehicle, see the part of this manual called “Children.”
Follow those rules for everyone’s protection.
First, you’ll want to know which restraint systems your
vehicle has.
We’ll start with the driver position.
Driver Position
This part describes the driver’s restraint system.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
The driver has a lap-shoulder belt. Here’s how to
wear it properly.
1. Close and lock the door.
2. Adjust the seat so you can sit up straight.
To see how, see “Seats” in the Index.
Bench (A)

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Suspension (B)
3. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you.
Don’t let it get twisted.
4. Push the latch plate into the buckle until it clicks.
For suspension-type seats (B), if the belt stops
before it reaches the buckle, tilt the latch plate and
keep pulling until you can buckle the belt. Pull up on
the latch plate to make sure it is secure. If the belt is
pulled out all the way so that it locks, press down on
the button on the retractor cover to make it retract.
If the belt isn’t long enough, see “Safety Belt
Extender” at the end of this section.
Make sure the release button on the buckle is
positioned so you would be able to unbuckle the
safety belt quickly if you ever had to.
Suspension (B)
5. To make the lap part tight on suspension-type
seats (B), pull down on the buckle end of the belt
as you pull up on the shoulder belt.