2004 CADILLAC XLR traction control

Driving On Snow or Ice
Most of the time, those places where your tires meet
the road probably have good traction.
However, if there is snow or ice between your tires and
the road, you can have a very slippery situation. You
will have a lot less traction or ªgripº and will need to be
very careful.
What is the worst time for this? ªWet ice.º Very cold
snow or ice can be slick and hard to drive on. But wet
ice can be even more trouble because it may offer
the least traction of all. You can get wet ice when it is
about freezing (32ÉF; 0ÉC) and freezing rain begins
to fall. Try to avoid driving on wet ice until salt and sand
crews can get there.
Whatever the condition Ð smooth ice, packed, blowing
or loose snow Ð drive with caution.
Keep your traction control system on. It improves your
ability to accelerate when driving on a slippery road.
Even though your vehicle has the TCS system, you will
want to slow down and adjust your driving to the
road conditions. The Stabilitrak
žSystem may also
activate. SeeTraction Control System (TCS) on
page 4-9andStabilitrakžSystem on page 4-11.Your anti-lock brakes improve your vehicle's stability
when you make a hard stop on a slippery road.
Even though you have the anti-lock braking system, you
will want to begin stopping sooner than you would on
dry pavement. See
Braking on page 4-6.
·Allow greater following distance on any
slippery road.
·Watch for slippery spots. The road might be ®ne
until you hit a spot that is covered with ice. On
an otherwise clear road, ice patches may appear in
shaded areas where the sun can not reach:
around clumps of trees, behind buildings or under
bridges. Sometimes the surface of a curve or
an overpass may remain icy when the surrounding
roads are clear. If you see a patch of ice ahead
of you, brake before you are on it. Try not to brake
while you are actually on the ice, and avoid
sudden steering maneuvers.
4-29

Rocking Your Vehicle To Get It Out
First, turn your steering wheel left and right. That will
clear the area around your front wheels. Turn your
traction control system off; see
Traction Control System
(TCS) on page 4-9. Then shift back and forth between
REVERSE (R) and a forward gear, spinning the wheels
as little as possible. Release the accelerator pedal
while you shift, and press lightly on the accelerator pedal
when the transmission is in gear. By slowly spinning
your wheels in the forward and reverse directions, you
will cause a rocking motion that may free your
vehicle. If that does not get you out after a few tries,
you may need to be towed out. If you do need to
be towed out, see
Towing Your Vehicle on page 4-32.
Towing
Towing Your Vehicle
Consult your dealer or a professional towing service if
you need to have your disabled vehicle towed. See
Roadside Service on page 7-5.
Recreational Vehicle Towing
Recreational vehicle towing means towing your vehicle
behind another vehicle Ð such as behind a motorhome.
The two most common types of recreational vehicle
towing are known as ªdinghy towingº (towing your
vehicle with all four wheels on the ground) and ªdolly
towingº (towing your vehicle with two wheels on
the ground and two wheels up on a device known
as a ªdollyº).
Your vehicle was not designed to be towed with any of
its wheels on the ground. If your vehicle must be
towed, see ªTowing Your Vehicleº earlier in this section.
Loading Your Vehicle
It is very important to know how much weight your
vehicle can carry. This weight is called the vehicle
capacity weight and includes the weight of all occupants,
cargo and all nonfactory-installed options. Two labels
on your vehicle show how much weight it may properly
carry, the Tire and Loading Information label and the
Certi®cation label.
4-32

Buying New Tires
To ®nd out what kind and size of tires you need, look at
the Tire and Loading Information label. For information
about this label and where to ®nd it, see
Loading
Your Vehicle on page 4-32.
The tires installed on your vehicle when it was new had
a Tire Performance Criteria Speci®cation (TPC Spec)
number on each tire's sidewall. When you get new tires,
GM recommends that you get tires with that same
TPC Spec number. That way your vehicle will continue
to have tires that are designed to give proper
endurance, handling, speed rating, load range, traction,
ride, tire pressure monitoring system performance
and other things during normal service on your vehicle.
If your tires have an all-season tread design, the
TPC number will be followed by an ªMSº (for mud
and snow).
Whenever you replace your tires with those not having
a TPC Spec number, make sure they are the same
size, load range, speed rating and construction
type (bias, bias-belted or radial) as your original tires.
If you replace your vehicle's tires with those not having a
TPC Spec number, the tire pressure monitoring
system may give an inaccurate low-pressure warning.
Non-TPC Spec tires may give a low-pressure warning
that is higher or lower than the proper warning level you
would get with TPC Spec numbered tires.
{CAUTION:
Mixing tires could cause you to lose control
while driving. If you mix tires of different sizes
or types (radial and bias-belted tires), the
vehicle may not handle properly, and you
could have a crash. Using tires of different
sizes may also cause damage to your vehicle.
Be sure to use the same size and type tires on
all wheels.
{CAUTION:
If you use bias-ply tires on your vehicle, the
wheel rim ¯anges could develop cracks after
many miles of driving. A tire and/or wheel
could fail suddenly, causing a crash. Use only
radial-ply tires with the wheels on your vehicle.
5-63

Uniform Tire Quality Grading
Quality grades can be found where applicable on the
tire sidewall between tread shoulder and maximum
section width. For example:
Treadwear 200 Traction AA Temperature A
The following information relates to the system
developed by the United States National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, which grades tires by
treadwear, traction and temperature performance. (This
applies only to vehicles sold in the United States.)
The grades are molded on the sidewalls of most
passenger car tires. The Uniform Tire Quality Grading
system does not apply to deep tread, winter-type
snow tires, space-saver or temporary use spare tires,
tires with nominal rim diameters of 10 to 12 inches
(25 to 30 cm), or to some limited-production tires.
While the tires available on General Motors passenger
cars and light trucks may vary with respect to these
grades, they must also conform to federal safety
requirements and additional General Motors Tire
Performance Criteria (TPC) standards.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating based on
the wear rate of the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a speci®ed government test course.
For example, a tire graded 150 would wear one and
a half (1.5) times as well on the government course as
a tire graded 100. The relative performance of tires
depends upon the actual conditions of their use,
however, and may depart signi®cantly from the norm
due to variations in driving habits, service practices and
differences in road characteristics and climate.
Traction ± AA, A, B, C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are AA, A,
B, and C. Those grades represent the tire's ability
to stop on wet pavement as measured under controlled
conditions on speci®ed government test surfaces of
asphalt and concrete. A tire marked C may have poor
traction performance. Warning: The traction grade
assigned to this tire is based on straight-ahead braking
traction tests, and does not include acceleration,
cornering, hydroplaning, or peak traction characteristics.
5-64

Used Replacement Wheels
{CAUTION:
Putting a used wheel on your vehicle is
dangerous. You can't know how it's been used
or how far it's been driven. It could fail
suddenly and cause a crash. If you have to
replace a wheel, use a new GM original
equipment wheel.
Tire Chains
{CAUTION:
Don't use tire chains. There's not enough
clearance. Tire chains used on a vehicle
without the proper amount of clearance can
cause damage to the brakes, suspension or
other vehicle parts. The area damaged by the
tire chains could cause you to lose control of
your vehicle and you or others may be injured
in a crash. Use another type of traction device
only if its manufacturer recommends it for use
on your vehicle and tire size combination and
road conditions. Follow that manufacturer's
instructions. To help avoid damage to your
vehicle, drive slowly, readjust or remove the
device if it's contacting your vehicle, and don't
spin your wheels. If you do ®nd traction
devices that will ®t, install them on the
rear tires.
5-68

J
Jump Starting.................................................5-39
K
Keyless Access System..................................... 2-3
Keyless Access System, Operation...................... 2-4
Keys............................................................... 2-2
L
Lamps
Exterior......................................................3-22
Interior.......................................................3-25
Lamps on Reminder........................................3-23
Language......................................................3-69
Lap-Shoulder Belt...........................................1-10
LATCH System
Child Restraints...........................................1-27
Securing a Child Restraint Designed for
the LATCH System...................................1-29
Leaving Your Vehicle.......................................2-11
Leaving Your Vehicle With the Engine Running . . . 2-29
Lifting From the Front......................................5-70
Lifting From the Rear......................................5-72
Lifting Your Vehicle, Tires.................................5-69Light
Air Bag Off .................................................3-43
Air Bag Readiness.......................................3-42
Anti-Lock Brake System Warning...................3-46
Brake System Warning.................................3-45
Fog Lamp..................................................3-53
Lights On Reminder.....................................3-53
Malfunction Indicator....................................3-48
Safety Belt Reminder...................................3-41
Security.....................................................3-52
TCS Warning Light......................................3-46
Tire Pressure..............................................3-48
Traction Control System (TCS) Warning..........3-46
Lighted Visor Vanity Mirrors..............................2-16
Limited-Slip Rear Axle.....................................4-10
Loading Your Vehicle.......................................4-32
Lockout Protection..........................................2-11
Locks
Door........................................................... 2-8
Leaving Your Vehicle....................................2-11
Lockout Protection.......................................2-11
Power Door................................................2-10
Programmable Automatic Door Locks.............2-10
Loss of Control...............................................4-16
Lowering the Retractable Hardtop......................2-44
Lumbar
Power Controls............................................. 1-3
7

T
Tachometer....................................................3-41
TCS Warning Light..........................................3-46
Telescopic Steering Column, Power Tilt Wheel...... 3-5
Testing the Alarm............................................2-18
Theft-Deterrent, Radio.....................................3-71
Theft-Deterrent System....................................2-17
Theft-Deterrent Systems...................................2-17
Tire
Pressure Light.............................................3-48
Tire Sidewall Labeling......................................5-50
Tire Size Codes..............................................5-52
Tire Terminology and De®nitions........................5-53
Tires.............................................................5-50
Buying New Tires........................................5-63
Chains.......................................................5-68
If a Tire Goes Flat.......................................5-73
In¯ation - Tire Pressure................................5-57
Inspection and Rotation................................5-60
Lifting Your Vehicle......................................5-69
Pressure Monitor System..............................5-58
Run-Flat.....................................................5-56
Uniform Tire Quality Grading.........................5-64
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance.................5-65
Wheel Replacement.....................................5-66
When It Is Time for New Tires......................5-62To Use the Engine Coolant Heater....................2-22
Top Strap......................................................1-27
Torque Lock...................................................2-29
Towing
Recreational Vehicle.....................................4-32
Towing a Trailer..........................................4-37
Your Vehicle...............................................4-32
Traction
Control System (TCS).................................... 4-9
Control System Warning Light.......................3-46
Limited-Slip Rear Axle..................................4-10
Magnetic Ride Control..................................4-10
Stabilitrak
žSystem......................................4-11
Transmission
Fluid, Automatic...........................................5-19
Transmission Operation, Automatic....................2-23
Transmission, Transaxle, Transfer Case Unit
Repair Manual............................................7-11
Transportation Options...................................... 7-7
Trip Computer
Oil Life Indicator..........................................3-70
Trip Odometer................................................3-41
Trunk............................................................2-11
Trunk Lock Release........................................2-12
Turn and Lane-Change Signals.......................... 3-6
Turn Signal/Multifunction Lever........................... 3-5
Twilight Sentinel
ž............................................3-24
12