Seats and Restraint Systems........................... 1-1
Front Seats
............................................... 1-2
Rear Seats
............................................... 1-6
Safety Belts
.............................................. 1-8
Child Restraints
.......................................1-28
Air Bag Systems
......................................1-50
Restraint System Check
............................1-65
Features and Controls..................................... 2-1
Keys
........................................................ 2-3
Doors and Locks
....................................... 2-8
Windows
.................................................2-24
Theft-Deterrent Systems
............................2-26
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle
...........2-28
Mirrors
....................................................2-41
OnStar
žSystem
......................................2-46
HomeLinkžTransmitter
.............................2-48
Storage Areas
.........................................2-52
Sunroof
..................................................2-71
Vehicle Personalization
.............................2-72
Instrument Panel............................................. 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview
.......................... 3-4
Climate Controls
......................................3-24
Warning Lights, Gages and Indicators
.........3-31
Driver Information Center (DIC)
..................3-47
Audio System(s)
.......................................3-66Driving Your Vehicle....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle
..... 4-2
Towing
...................................................4-48
Service and Appearance Care.......................... 5-1
Service
..................................................... 5-3
Fuel
......................................................... 5-4
Checking Things Under the Hood
...............5-10
All-Wheel Drive
........................................5-50
Rear Axle
...............................................5-51
Front Axle
...............................................5-52
Headlamp Aiming
.....................................5-53
Bulb Replacement
....................................5-57
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
.........5-65
Tires
......................................................5-66
Appearance Care
.....................................5-93
Vehicle Identi®cation
...............................5-100
Electrical System
....................................5-101
Capacities and Speci®cations
...................5-110
Normal Maintenance Replacement Parts
......5-111
Maintenance Schedule..................................... 6-1
Maintenance Schedule
................................ 6-2
Customer Assistance Information.................... 7-1
Customer Assistance Information
.................. 7-2
Reporting Safety Defects
............................ 7-9
Index.................................................................1
2003 Cadillac Escalade EXT Owner ManualM
Vehicle Damage Warnings
Also, in this book you will ®nd 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 speci®c component, control,
message, gage or indicator.
If you need help ®guring out a speci®c 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
Front Seats......................................................1-2
Power Seats..................................................1-2
Power Lumbar...............................................1-3
Heated Seats.................................................1-3
Reclining Seatbacks........................................1-4
Head Restraints.............................................1-5
Rear Seats.......................................................1-6
Rear Seat Operation.......................................1-6
Safety Belts.....................................................1-8
Safety Belts: They Are for Everyone.................1-8
Questions and Answers About Safety Belts.........1-12
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly.................1-13
Driver Position..............................................1-14
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy..................1-21
Right Front Passenger Position.......................1-22
Rear Seat Passengers..................................1-22
Rear Safety Belt Comfort Guides for
Children and Small Adults..........................1-25
Safety Belt Extender.....................................1-27
Child Restraints.............................................1-28
Older Children..............................................1-28
Infants and Young Children............................1-31
Child Restraint Systems.................................1-35
Where to Put the Restraint.............................1-38Top Strap....................................................1-40
Top Strap Anchor Location.............................1-41
Lower Anchorages and Top Tethers for
Children (LATCH System)...........................1-42
Securing a Child Restraint Designed for the
LATCH System.........................................1-44
Securing a Child Restraint in a
Rear Seat Position....................................1-44
Securing a Child Restraint in the Right Front
Seat Position............................................1-46
Air Bag Systems............................................1-50
Where Are the Air Bags?...............................1-53
When Should an Air Bag In¯ate?....................1-55
What Makes an Air Bag In¯ate?.....................1-57
How Does an Air Bag Restrain?.....................1-57
What Will You See After an Air Bag In¯ates?.......1-58
Passenger Sensing System............................1-60
Servicing Your Air Bag-Equipped Vehicle.........1-64
Adding Equipment to Your Air Bag-Equipped
Vehicle....................................................1-65
Restraint System Check..................................1-65
Checking Your Restraint Systems...................1-65
Replacing Restraint System Parts
After a Crash............................................1-66
Section 1 Seats and Restraint Systems
1-1
Front Seats
Power Seats
Horizontal Control:You can adjust your vehicle's front
seats with the horizontal control located on the outboard
edge of each front seat.Raise or lower the front of the seat by raising or lowering
the forward edge of the control. Raise or lower the rear
of the seat by raising or lowering the rear edge of the
control.
Move the seat forward or rearward by moving the whole
control toward the front or toward the rear of the vehicle.
Moving the whole control up or down raises or lowers the
entire seat cushion.
Vertical Control:You can use the vertical control to
adjust the angle of the seatback. Move the reclining
seatback forward or rearward by moving the top of
the control toward the front or toward the rear of the
vehicle.
For information on the reclining seatbacks, see
Reclining
Seatbacks on page 1-4.
Your vehicle may have a memory function which allows
seat settings to be saved and recalled. See
Memory
Seat on page 2-72for more information.
1-2
Power Lumbar
You can increase or
decrease lumbar support
in an area of the lower
seatback.
To increase support, press and hold the front of the
control. To decrease support, press and hold the 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 support, press and hold the top of the
control. To decrease support, press and hold the bottom
of the control. Let go of the control when the lower
seatback reaches the desired level of support.
Your vehicle may have a memory function which allows
seat settings to be saved and recalled. See
Memory
Seat on page 2-72for more information.
Heated Seats
The buttons used to
control this feature are
located on the front doors.
The engine must be
running for the heated
seat feature to work.
To heat the entire seat, press the horizontal button with
the heated seat symbol. Press the button to cycle
through the temperature settings of high, medium and
low and to turn the heated seat off. Indicator lights
will glow to designate the level of heat selected,
three for high, two for medium, and one for low.
The low setting warms the seatback and cushion
until the seat temperature is near body temperature.
The medium and high settings heat the seatback
and seat cushion to a slightly higher temperature.
You will be able to feel heat in about two minutes.
1-3
To heat only the seatback, press the vertical button
with the heated seatback symbol. An indicator light on
the seatback button will glow to designate that only
the seatback is being heated. Additional presses of the
seatback button will cycle through the heat levels for
the seatback only. Press the horizontal button again to
heat the whole seat.
The heated front seats will shut off automatically when
the ignition is turned off.Reclining Seatbacks
Your vehicle's front seatbacks have a recline feature
which is described earlier. SeePower Seats on
page 1-2.
But don't have a seatback reclined if your vehicle is
moving.
1-4
The front head restraints can also be tilted forward in
addition to being slid up or down. To tilt either of
the front head restraints do the following:
Pull the head restraint toward you until you hear a click.
Then let go. The head restraint will stay in this position
unless you pull it forward more until another click is
heard. There are four positions available: initial position,
®rst click, second click, and third click. After the third
position (three clicks) is reached, pulling the head
restraint farther will release it back to the normal
upright position.
The rear head restraints can be slid up or down just as
the front head restraints, but they do not tilt.Rear Seats
Rear Seat Operation
The rear seat is a 60/40 split rear seat that can be
folded to give you more cargo space and access to the
folding midgate. See
Midgate on page 2-12for more
information on operation of the folding midgate.
To fold either side of the seat do the following:
1. Push the rear head restraints all the way down.
2. Pull the seat loop
located where the
seatback and
seat cushion meet.
The seat will release
and allow you to
tilt it toward the front
of the vehicle.
1-6
3. Grasp the seatback and pull it toward the front of
the vehicle. Push it down until it is ¯at. You may
have to move the front seats forward slightly
to do this.
4. Repeat the procedure for the other side.
To return the seats to the normal position, pull the
seatback up and fold the seat cushion down.
{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:
A safety belt that is improperly routed, not
properly attached, or twisted won't provide
the protection needed in a crash. The person
wearing the belt could be seriously injured.
After raising the rear seatback, always check
to be sure that the safety belts are properly
routed and attached, and are not twisted.
1-7