2009 Pontiac Vibe Owner's Manual - Page 195

Vehicle Service and Care If Steam Is Coming From Your Engine Notice: If the engine catches fire because of being driven with no coolant, your vehicle can be badly damaged. The costly repairs would not be covered by the vehicle warranty. 9-23 If the overheat warning is displayed with no sign of steam, try this for a minute or so: 1. In heavy traffic, let the engine idle in N (Neutral) while stopped. If it is safe to do so, pull off the road, shift to P (Park) or N (Neutral) and let the engine idle. 2. Turn on the heater to full hot at the highest fan speed and open the windows as necessary. If the overheat warning is no longer displayed, the vehicle can be driven. Just to be safe, drive slower for about 10 minutes. If the warning does not come back on, continue to drive. If the warning continues, pull over, stop, and park the vehicle right away. If there is still no sign of steam, idle the engine for three minutes while the vehicle is parked. If the warning is still displayed, turn off the engine and get everyone out of the vehicle until it cools down. { CAUTION Steam from an overheated engine can burn you badly, even if you just open the hood. Stay away from the engine if you see or hear steam coming from it. Just turn it off and get everyone away from the vehicle until it cools down. Wait until there is no sign of steam or coolant before you open the hood. If you keep driving when your engine is overheated, the liquids in it can catch fire. You or others could be badly burned. Stop your engine if it overheats, and get out of the vehicle until the engine is cool. If No Steam Is Coming From Your Engine If an engine overheat warning is displayed but steam is not heard or seen escaping, the problem may not be too serious. Sometimes the engine can get a little too hot when the vehicle: Climbs a long hill on a hot day. Stops after high-speed driving. Idles for long periods in traffic. Tows a trailer.