GMC Chevrolet Tahoe 2003 User manual

Seats and Restraint Systems ........................... 1-1
Front Seats ............................................... 1-3
Rear Seats ............................................... 1-9
Safety Belts ............................................. 1-24
Child Restraints ....................................... 1-47
Air Bag Systems ...................................... 1-73
Restraint System Check ............................ 1-88
Features and Controls ..................................... 2-1
Keys ........................................................ 2-3
Doors and Locks ....................................... 2-8
Windows ................................................. 2-16
Theft-Deterrent Systems ............................ 2-18
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle ........... 2-21
Mirrors .................................................... 2-45
OnStar
®
System ...................................... 2-55
HomeLink
®
Transmitter ............................. 2-57
Storage Areas ......................................... 2-61
Sunroof .................................................. 2-65
Vehicle Personalization ............................. 2-66
Instrument Panel ............................................. 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview .......................... 3-4
Climate Controls ...................................... 3-20
Warning Lights, Gages and Indicators ......... 3-36
Driver Information Center (DIC) .................. 3-53
Audio System(s) ....................................... 3-72
Driving Your Vehicle ....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle ..... 4-2
Towing ................................................... 4-59
Service and Appearance Care .......................... 5-1
Service ..................................................... 5-3
Fuel ......................................................... 5-4
Checking Things Under the Hood ............... 5-12
All-Wheel Drive ........................................ 5-55
Rear Axle ............................................... 5-56
Four-Wheel Drive ..................................... 5-57
Front Axle ............................................... 5-58
Bulb Replacement .................................... 5-59
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement ......... 5-66
Tires ...................................................... 5-67
Appearance Care ..................................... 5-99
Vehicle Identification ............................... 5-107
Electrical System .................................... 5-108
Capacities and Specifications ................... 5-118
Normal Maintenance Replacement Parts .... 5-121
Maintenance Schedule ..................................... 6-1
Maintenance Schedule ................................ 6-2
Customer Assistance Information .................... 7-1
Customer Assistance Information .................. 7-2
Reporting Safety Defects ........................... 7-10
Index .................................................................1
2003 Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban M

GENERAL MOTORS, GM, the GM Emblem,
CHEVROLET, the CHEVROLET Emblem, the name
TAHOE and the name SUBURBAN 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 Chevrolet Motor 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.
Litho in U.S.A.
Part No. C2316 A First Edition ©Copyright General Motors Corporation 06/24/02 All Rights Reserved
Canadian Owners
You can obtain a French copy of this manual from your
dealer or from:
Helm, Incorporated
P.O. Box 07130
Detroit, MI 48207
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 will find that pictures
and words work together to explain things.
Index
A good place to look for what you need is the Index in
back of the manual. It is an alphabetical list of what
is in the manual, and the page number where you will
find it.
ii

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.”
iii

Vehicle Damage Warnings
Also, in this book you will find these notices:
Notice: These mean there is something that could
damage your vehicle.
A notice will 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 has 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:
•Seats and Restraint Systems in Section 1
•Features and Controls in Section 2
•Instrument Panel Overview in Section 3
•Climate Controls in Section 3
•Warning Lights, Gages and Indicators in Section 3
•Audio System(s) in Section 3
•Engine Compartment Overview in Section 5
iv

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

Model Reference
This manual covers these models:
Tahoe Suburban
vi

Front Seats ......................................................1-3
Manual Seats ................................................1-3
Power Seats ..................................................1-4
Power Lumbar ...............................................1-5
Heated Seats .................................................1-5
Reclining Seatbacks ........................................1-6
Head Restraints .............................................1-8
Rear Seats .......................................................1-9
Rear Seat Operation .......................................1-9
60/40 Split Bench Seat ...................................1-9
50/50 Split Bench Seat ..................................1-12
Bench Seat ..................................................1-16
Bucket Seats ...............................................1-21
Safety Belts ...................................................1-24
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone ................1-24
Questions and Answers About Safety Belts ......1-28
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly .................1-29
Driver Position ..............................................1-30
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy ..................1-38
Right Front Passenger Position .......................1-38
Center Passenger Position .............................1-39
Rear Seat Passengers ..................................1-40
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for Children
and Small Adults .......................................1-44
Safety Belt Extender .....................................1-46
Child Restraints .............................................1-47
Older Children ..............................................1-47
Infants and Young Children ............................1-49
Child Restraint Systems .................................1-53
Where to Put the Restraint .............................1-56
Top Strap ....................................................1-57
Top Strap Anchor Location .............................1-59
Lower Anchorages and Top Tethers for
Children (LATCH System) ...........................1-62
Securing a Child Restraint Designed for the
LATCH System .........................................1-64
Securing a Child Restraint in a Rear Outside
Seat Position ............................................1-64
Securing a Child Restraint in a Center Rear
Seat Position ............................................1-66
Securing a Child Restraint in the Center Front
Seat Position ............................................1-68
Securing a Child Restraint in the Right Front
Seat Position ............................................1-69
Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
1-1

Air Bag Systems ............................................1-73
Where Are the Air Bags? ...............................1-76
When Should an Air Bag Inflate? ....................1-79
What Makes an Air Bag Inflate? .....................1-80
How Does an Air Bag Restrain? .....................1-80
What Will You See After an Air Bag Inflates? ...1-81
Passenger Sensing System ............................1-83
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle .........1-87
Adding Equipment to Your Air Bag-Equipped
Vehicle ....................................................1-88
Restraint System Check ..................................1-88
Checking Your Restraint Systems ...................1-88
Replacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash ............................................1-89
Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
1-2

Front Seats
Manual Seats
{CAUTION:
You can lose control of the vehicle if you try to
adjust a manual driver’s seat while the vehicle
is moving. The sudden movement could startle
and confuse you, or make you push a pedal
when you don’t want to. Adjust the driver’s
seat only when the vehicle is not moving. If your vehicle has a manual bucket or a split bench
seat, you can adjust it with this lever located at the front
of the seat.
Lift the lever to unlock the seat. Using your body, slide
the seat to where you want it and release the lever.
Try to move the seat with your body to make sure the
seat is locked into place.
1-3

Power Seats
If your vehicle has a power seat, you can adjust it with
these controls located on the outboard sides of the seats.
•Raise or lower the front of the seat cushion by raising
or lowering the forward edge of the horizontal control.
•Move the seat forward or rearward by moving the
whole horizontal control forward or rearward.
•Raise or lower the rear of the seat cushion by raising
or lowering the rear edge of the horizontal control.
•Moving the whole horizontal control up or down
raises or lowers the entire seat cushion.
If your vehicle has power reclining seats, you can use
the vertical control to adjust the angle of the seatback.
Move the reclining front seatback rearward or forward
by moving the control toward the rear or the front of the
vehicle. See
Reclining Seatbacks on page 1-6 .
1-4

Power Lumbar
If your vehicle has this
feature, the four-way
control is located on the
outboard side of the seat.
To increase or decrease support, press and hold the
front or rear of the control. Let go of the control when the
lower seatback reaches the desired level of support.
You can also reshape the side wing area of the
lower seatback for more lateral support. To increase or
decrease support, press and hold the top or bottom
of the control. Let go of the control when the lower
seatback reaches the desired level of support.
Heated Seats
If your vehicle has this
feature, the button used to
control the driver’s
heated seat is located on
the driver’s door panel.
The button used to control
the passenger’s heated
seat is located on the
passenger’s door panel.
To heat the entire seat, press the horizontal button.
Press the button to cycle through the temperature
settings of high, medium, and low. The indicator light
will glow to indicate the level of heat selected.
To heat only the seatback, press the vertical button with
the heated seatback symbol. An indicator light on the
button will glow to designate that only the seatback
is being heated.
The engine must be running for them to operate.
The heated front seats will be canceled after the ignition
is turned off. If you still want to use the heated front
seat feature after you restart your vehicle, you will need
to press the heated seat button again.
1-5

Reclining Seatbacks To adjust the front seatback, lift the manual lever
located on the outboard side of the seat. Release the
lever to lock the seatback where you want it. Lift
the lever again without pushing on the seatback and the
seatback will go to an upright position.
If your vehicle has power seats with a power recliner,
see
Power Seats on page 1-4 for further information on
how to operate the reclining seatback feature.
1-6

But don’t have a seatback reclined if your vehicle is
moving.
{CAUTION:
Sitting in a reclined position when your vehicle
is in motion can be dangerous. Even if you
buckle up, your safety belts can’t do their job
when you’re reclined like this.
The shoulder belt can’t do its job. In a crash,
you could go into it, receiving neck or other
injuries.
The lap belt can’t do its job either. In a crash
the belt could go up over your abdomen. The
belt forces would be there, not at your pelvic
bones. This could cause serious internal
injuries.
For proper protection when the vehicle is in
motion, have the seatback upright. Then sit
well back in the seat and wear your safety belt
properly.
1-7

Head Restraints Adjust your head restraint 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.
To raise the head restraint pull up on the head restraint.
On some models the head restraints tilt forward and
rearward also.
The rear seat head restraints in your vehicle may be
adjustable. They work the same as the front seat head
restraints, except they do not tilt forward and rearward.
1-8

Rear Seats
Rear Seat Operation
Entering or Exiting the Third Row
Seats
{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.
Extended models: The passenger’s side of the second
row 60/40 or rear bucket seats has an easy entry
feature. This makes it easy to get in and out of the third
seat, if your vehicle has one.
To operate the easy entry seat turn the release lever,
located on the back of the seat upward.
Tilt the seatback toward the front of the vehicle by
pulling the top of the seat forward. When you do the seat
bottom will release. Pull the seat forward until it stops.
Be sure to return the seat to the passenger position
when finished. Push and pull on the seat to make sure
it is locked in place.
60/40 Split Bench Seat
Regular models: The rear seat may have a 60/40 split
seat which may be folded down to give you more
cargo space.
Extended models: The second row rear seat of
Suburban/Yukon XL models may have a 60/40 split
seat. Either side of the rear seat my be folded down to
provide more cargo space.
1-9

Folding the Seatbacks
{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.
Make sure that nothing is under or in front of the seat
and that the head restraints are completely lowered.
On regular models the rear seatbacks may be equipped
with rearward folding head restraints. When the
seatback is being folded down, the head restraint will
automatically fold rearward to allow a flat load floor
for cargo or entry to the third row seat (if equipped).
To fold, pull up on the
strap loop at the rear of
the seat cushion.
Then, pull the seat cushion
up and fold it forward.
After folding the seat cushion fully forward, pull the
seatback forward and fold the seatback down until it is
flat. If the seatback cannot fold flat because it
interferes with the cushion, try moving the seat forward
and/or bring the front seatback more upright. On the
passenger side of the extended models, the lever at the
base of the seat must be turned rearward to release
the seatback.
1-10

To create a load floor release the panels from the
seatback by pushing forward on the latch. Then fold the
panels back to cover the rear seat footwell area.
To return the seat to the passenger position on a
extended model do the following:
1. Lift the floor load panels and latch them into the
seatback.
2. Lift the seatback up and push rearward all the way.
3. Lower the seat cushion until it latches into
position.
4. Pull forward on the seatback and up on the seat
cushion to make sure the seat is securely in
place.
Make sure that the buckles on the driver’s side seatback
are accessible to the outboard and center occupant
and are not under the seat cushions.
On regular models make sure the head restraints are
returned to the upright position.
1-11

50/50 Split Bench Seat
If your vehicle has a 50/50 split bench, the seatback(s)
can be folded and the entire seat(s) tilted or removed
from the vehicles.
Folding the Seatbacks
{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.
To fold the seatbacks do the following:
•Pull up on the release lever, labeled 1, located on
the rear of the seatback, and push the seatback
forward.
•To return the seat to the passenger position, pull up
on the release lever labeled 1 and then pull up on
the seatback until the seatback locks into the upright
position.
Push forward on the seatback to make sure it is locked
into position.
Tilting the 50/50 Split Bench Seat
{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.
{CAUTION:
If the support rod isn’t properly engaged, the
folded third row seat could come loose in a
sudden stop or crash. That could cause injury
to people and damage to your vehicle. Always
be sure the support rod is properly engaged
when the third row seat is folded forward.
1-12

Once the third seatback has been folded down, the
entire seat can be tilted forward to create a flat
load floor. To do this, do the following:
1. Enter the rear cargo area of the vehicle.
2. Make sure the head restraints have been lowered
completely.
3. With the seat folded, unlatch the seat from the floor
by pulling up on the lever located under the
carrying handle at the rear of the seat labeled 2.
4. Lift the rear of the seat up, off the floor. You will not
be able to unlatch the seat from the floor unless the
seatback is folded down.
5. Tilt the seat fully forward and secure it in place
using the support rod located on the underside
of the seat on the passenger’s side. Make sure the
rod pin is fully engaged in the lock.
6. Push and pull on the seat. Make sure the support
rod is holding it firmly in place. Use the seat in this
position only when necessary for additional
cargo space.
To return the seat to the seating position do the
following:
1. Push forward on the seat and release the support
lock rod.
2. Secure the support rod in its stored position on the
underside of the seat.
3. Lower the seat to the floor and let the seat drop
into place.
4. Lift up on the carrying handle to make sure the seat
is locked in place.
5. Return the seatback to the upright position by
pulling up on the release lever labeled 1 before
the back can be folded upright.
6. Pull the seatback forward to make sure it is locked
in place.
1-13

Removing the 50/50 Split Bench Seat
To remove the 50/50 split bench seat, do the following:
1. Open the rear doors and enter the rear of the
vehicle. 2. Fold the seatback
forward onto the seat
cushion by using
the lever labeled 1.
The seat cannot
be removed unless the
seatback is folded.
3. To unlatch the seat
from the floor, pull up
on the release lever
labeled 2, located at the
rear of the seat, and lift
the rear of the seat up
off the floor.
4. Squeeze the release lever, located in the lower
middle to unlatch the seat from the floor, while
pulling the seat out.
5. While holding the rear of the seat up, roll the seat
out of the vehicle.
1-14