2001 CADILLAC ELDORADO Owners Manual

2-36
OFF: Turn the band to OFF to turn off the wipers.
Be sure to clear ice and snow from the wiper blades
before using them. If they're frozen to the windshield,
carefully loosen or thaw them. If the blades do become
damaged, get new blades or blade inserts.
Heavy snow or ice can overload the wiper motor.
A circuit breaker will stop the motor until it cools.
Clear away snow or ice to prevent an overload.
Rainsense
II Wipers (ETC Only)
The moisture sensor is mounted on the interior side of
the windshield behind the rearview mirror and is used to
automatically operate the wipers by monitoring the
amount of moisture build
-up on the windshield.Wipes occur as needed to clear the windshield
depending on driving conditions and the sensitivity
setting. In light rain or snow, fewer wipes will occur. In
heavy rain or snow, wipes will occur more frequently.
The Rainsense wipers operate in a delay mode as well as
a continuous low or high speed depending as needed.
If the system is left on for long periods of time,
occasional wipes may occur without any moisture on
the windshield. This is normal and indicates that the
Rainsense system is activated.
The Rainsense system can be activated by turning the
wiper stalk to one of the five sensitivity levels within the
AUTO DELAY area. The AUTO DELAY position closest
to OFF is the lowest sensitivity setting, level one. This
allows more rain or snow to collect on the windshield
between wipes. Turning the stalk away from you to the
higher levels of other AUTO DELAY settings increases
the sensitivity of the system and frequency of wipes. The
highest sensitivity setting, level five is closest to LO. A
single wipe will occur each time you turn the wiper stalk
to a higher sensitivity level to indicate that the sensitivity
level has been increased. An initial wipe occurs when you
turn the ignition on as a reminder that Rainsense is active.
The windshield wipers also remain in a ªhigh parkº
position (when the wipers are stopped on the windshield
and are not in the normal park position), even when the
ignition is turned off.

2-37
NOTICE:
The wipers must be turned off when going
through a car wash to avoid damage.
The MIST and ªwashº cycles operate as normal and are
not affected by the Rainsense function. The Rainsense
system can be overridden at any time by manually
turning the wiper stalk to LO or HI speed.
NOTICE:
Do not place stickers or other items on the
exterior glass surface directly in front of the
moisture sensor. Doing this could cause the
moisture sensor to malfunction.
Windshield Washer
CAUTION:
In freezing weather, don't use your washer until
the windshield is warmed. Otherwise the washer
fluid can form ice on the windshield, blocking
your vision.
At the top of the turn signal/multifunction lever there is
a paddle with the word PUSH on it. To spray washer
fluid on the windshield, press and release this paddle.
The wipers will clear the windshield and either stop or
return to your preset speed. For more washer cycles,
press and hold the paddle.
LOW WASHER FLUID will be displayed on the Driver
Information Center (DIC) when the washer fluid reaches
a low level.

2-38 Cruise Control
With cruise control, you can maintain a speed of about
25 mph (40 km/h) or more without keeping your foot
on the accelerator. This can help on long trips.
Cruise control does not work at speeds below
25 mph (40 km/h).
Cruise control shuts off when you apply your brakes.
CAUTION:

Cruise control can be dangerous where you
can't drive safely at a steady speed. So,
don't use your cruise control on winding
roads or in heavy traffic.

Cruise control can be dangerous on
slippery roads. On such roads, fast changes
in tire traction can cause needless wheel
spinning, and you could lose control. Don't
use cruise control on slippery roads.
If your vehicle is in cruise control when the traction
control system begins to limit wheel spin, the cruise
control will automatically disengage. See ªTraction
Control Systemº in the Index. When road conditions
allow you to safely use it again, you may turn the cruise
control back on.

2-39
Setting Cruise Control
CAUTION:
If you leave your cruise control switch on when
you're not using cruise, you might hit a button
and go into cruise when you don't want to. You
could be startled and even lose control. Keep the
cruise control switch off until you want to use
cruise control.
1. Move the cruise control switch to ON.
2. Accelerate to the speed you want.
3. Press the SET CRUISE button at the end of the lever
and release it. The CRUISE ENGAGED message
will display on the Driver Information Center (DIC).
4. Remove your foot from the accelerator pedal.Resuming a Set Speed
Setting the cruise control at a desired speed and then
applying the brake will end the cruise function.
Once you're going about 25 mph (40 km/h) or more,
you can move the cruise control switch from ON to R/A
(Resume/Accelerate) for about half a second to reset.
This returns you to your desired preset speed. The
Driver Information Center (DIC) will display the
CRUISE ENGAGED message again.
If you hold the switch at R/A longer than half a second,
the vehicle will accelerate until you release the switch or
apply the brake. So unless you want to go faster, don't
hold the switch at R/A.

2-40
Increasing Speed While Using Cruise Control
There are two ways to go to a higher speed:

Use the accelerator pedal to get to the higher speed.
Push the button at the end of the lever and then
release the button and the accelerator pedal.
You'll now cruise at the higher speed.

Move the cruise switch from ON to R/A. Hold it
there until you reach a desired speed and then
release the switch. (To increase your speed in very
small amounts, move the switch to R/A. Each
time you do this, your vehicle will go about
1 mph (1.6 km/h) faster.)
The accelerate feature will only work after you have
set the cruise control speed by pushing the SET
CRUISE button.Reducing Speed While Using Cruise Control
There are two ways to reduce your speed while using
cruise control:

Push in the button at the end of the lever until you
reach a desired lower speed, then release it. A
CRUISE ENGAGED message will then display in
the Driver Information Center (DIC).

To slow down in very small amounts, push the
button for less than half a second. Each time you do
this, you'll go about 1 mph (1.6 km/h) slower.
Passing Another Vehicle While Using Cruise Control
Use the accelerator pedal to increase your speed. When
you take your foot off the pedal, your vehicle will slow
down to the cruise control speed you set earlier.

2-41
Using Cruise Control on Hills
How well your cruise control will work on hills depends
upon your speed, load and the steepness of the hills.
When going up steep hills, you may have to step on the
accelerator pedal to maintain your speed. When going
downhill, you may have to brake or shift to a lower gear
to keep your speed down. Of course, applying the brakes
or downshifting into FIRST (1) takes you out of cruise
control. Many drivers find this to be too much trouble
and don't use cruise control on steep hills.
Ending Cruise Control
There are two ways to end cruise control:

Step lightly on the brake pedal.

Move the CRUISE switch to OFF.
Erasing Speed Memory
The cruise control set speed memory is erased when you
turn off the cruise control or the ignition.Exterior Lamps
The control located on
the left side of the
instrument panel controls
these lamp systems:

Headlamps

Taillamps

Parking Lamps

Sidemarker Lamps

License Plate Lamp

Underhood Lamp

Fog Lamps

Instrument Panel Lights

Interior Courtesy Lamps
Instrument panel backlighting will activate whenever
the lamps or lights are turned on.

2-42 Parking Lamps
Pull the exterior lamp control knob out to the first stop to
turn on the parking as well as the taillamps, sidemarker
lamps and instrument panel lights. Push the control knob
all the way back in to turn the lamps and lights off.
Headlamps
Pull the exterior lamp control knob out all the way to
turn on the headlamps. Push the control knob all the
way back in to turn the headlamps off.
Wiper
-Activated Headlamps
This feature activates the headlamps and parking lamps
after the windshield wipers have been in use for
approximately 20 seconds.
In order to operate the wiper
-activated headlamps, the
Twilight Sentinel
must be turned on. This feature
lights the way in poor weather and it also makes your
vehicle more visible to other drivers. If the
wiper
-activated headlamps are on, and the ignition
switch is turned off, the wiper
-activated headlamps will
immediately turn off.
The wiper
-activated headlamps will deactivate if you
turn off the Twilight Sentinel or if the windshield wipers
have been turned off for a period of one or two seconds.
Lamps On Reminder
If the manual headlamp control is activated, you will
hear a warning chime if you open either door while
leaving the lamps on. An exception to this is when
you're using Twilight Sentinel.
Daytime Running Lamps
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) can make it easier for
others to see the front of your vehicle during the day.
DRL can be helpful in many different driving
conditions, but they can be especially helpful in the
short periods after dawn and before sunset. Fully
functional daytime running lights are required on all
vehicles first sold in Canada.
The DRL system will make the high
-beam headlamps
come on at reduced brightness when:

The ignition is on,

the headlamp switch is off and

the transaxle is not in PARK (P).
When DRL are on, only your high
-beam headlamps (at
reduced brightness) will be on. No other exterior lamps
such as the parking lamps, taillamps, etc. will be on
when the DRL are being used. Your instrument panel
won't be lit up either.

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When the Twilight Sentinel switch is on and it's dark
enough outside, the high
-beam headlamps (at reduced
intensity) will turn off and normal low
-beam headlamp
operation will occur. When the Twilight Sentinel switch
is on and it's bright enough outside, the regular lamps
will go off, and the high
-beam headlamps at reduced
brightness will take over for the DRL.
If it's dark enough outside and the Twilight Sentinel
control is off, a HEADLAMPS SUGGESTED message
will display on the Driver Information Center (DIC).
This message informs the driver that turning on the
exterior lamps is recommended even though the DRL
are still illuminated (it's become dark enough outside to
require the headlamps and/or other exterior lamps).
Turning on the Twilight Sentinel, the headlamp switch
or the fog lamp switch will remove the HEADLAMPS
SUGGESTED message.
To idle your vehicle with the DRL off, turn off the
Twilight Sentinel switch and shift the transaxle into
PARK (P). Placing your vehicle in PARK (P) disables
the DRL. The DRL will stay off until you shift
out of PARK (P).
As with any vehicle, you should turn on the regular
headlamp system when you need it.
Fog Lamps
Use the fog lamps for better
vision in foggy or misty
conditions. When you press
the fog lamp button, a small
indicator light will tell you
that the fog lamps and the
parking lamps are on. Press
the button again to turn
them off.
If you turn on the high
-beam headlamps, the fog lamps
will turn off. They'll turn back on again when you
switch to low
-beam headlamps.
When the Twilight Sentinel is on and the fog lamp
switch is activated, the fog lamps will remain on as well
as the headlamps and parking lamps.
Cornering Lamps
The cornering lamps come on when you signal a turn.
They provide more light for cornering.