2004 CADILLAC XLR sensor

When Should an Air Bag In¯ate?
The drivers and passenger's frontal air bags are
designed to in¯ate in moderate to severe frontal or
near-frontal crashes. But they are designed to in¯ate
only if the impact speed is above the system's designed
ªthreshold level.º
In addition, your vehicle has ªdual stageº frontal air
bags, which adjust the amount of restraint according to
crash severity. For moderate frontal impacts, these
air bags in¯ate at a level less than full deployment. For
more severe frontal impacts, full deployment occurs.
If the front of your vehicle goes straight into a wall that
does not move or deform, the threshold level for the
reduced deployment is about 12 to 16 mph (19 to
26 km/h), and the threshold level for a full deployment is
about 18 to 24 mph (29 to 38.5 km/h).
The threshold level can vary, however, with speci®c
vehicle design, so that it can be somewhat above
or below this range.
If your vehicle strikes something that will move or
deform, such as a parked car, the threshold level will be
higher. The driver's and passenger's frontal air bags
are not designed to in¯ate in rollovers, rear impacts, or
in many side impacts because in¯ation would not
help the occupant.Vehicles with dual stage air bags are also equipped with
seat position sensors which enable the sensing
system to monitor the position of the driver's and
passenger's seats. The seat position sensor provides
information which is used to determine if the air
bags should deploy at a reduced level or at full
deployment.
The side impact air bags are designed to in¯ate in
moderate to severe side crashes. A side impact air bag
will in¯ate if the crash severity is above the system's
designed ªthreshold level.º The threshold level can vary
with speci®c vehicle design. Side impact air bags are
not designed to in¯ate in frontal or near-frontal impacts,
rollovers or rear impacts, because in¯ation would not
help the occupant. A side impact air bag will only deploy
on the side of the vehicle that is struck.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an air
bag should have in¯ated simply because of the damage
to a vehicle or because of what the repair costs were.
For frontal air bags, in¯ation is determined by the angle
of the impact and how quickly the vehicle slows down
in frontal and near-frontal impacts. For side impact
air bags, in¯ation is determined by the location
and severity of the impact.
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Doors and Locks
Door Locks
{CAUTION:
Unlocked doors can be dangerous.
·Passengers Ð especially children Ð can
easily open the doors and fall out of a
moving vehicle. When a door is locked it
will not open. You increase the chance of
being thrown out of the vehicle in a crash
if the doors are not locked. So, wear safety
belts properly and lock the doors
whenever you drive.
·Young children who get into unlocked
vehicles may be unable to get out. A child
can be overcome by extreme heat and can
suffer permanent injuries or even death
from heat stroke. Always lock your vehicle
whenever you leave it.
·Outsiders can easily enter through an
unlocked door when you slow down or
stop your vehicle. Locking your doors can
help prevent this from happening.To lock or unlock your vehicle from the outside, use the
keyless access transmitter and press the appropriate
lock or unlock button. You may also unlock and open the
door passively when you squeeze the door handle
sensor, as long as you have your transmitter with you.
Passive entry occurs when the door handle sensor
is pressed and the vehicle recognizes your keyless
access transmitter. When the passenger door is opened
®rst, the driver's door will also become unlocked.
From the inside, use the power door lock buttons located
at the top of the door panel near the window. See
ªPower Door Locksº following for more information.
To open a door from the inside, press the button in front
of the door handle and push the door open.
2-8

Trunk Lock Release
{CAUTION:
Moving parts of the powered trunk lid can be
dangerous. You or others could be injured.
Keep yourself and others away from the trunk
lid and its mechanism while it is closing.
The trunk lock release
button is located to the left
of the steering wheel on
the instrument panel.Press the button to open the trunk. To use this feature,
your vehicle must be in PARK (P) or NEUTRAL (N)
and the valet lockout switch must be off.
You can also press the button with the trunk symbol on
the keyless access transmitter to open the trunk. To
disable this feature, see ªValet Lockout Switchº underTheft-Deterrent Systems on page 2-17.
You may passively enter the trunk when you squeeze
the trunk release sensor located on the rear of the trunk
lid under the emblem, as long as you have your
transmitter with you. The vehicle must be in PARK (P)
and the valet lockout switch must be off.
To close the trunk, press
the button on the
underside of the trunk lid.
2-12

To stop the trunk lid while it is closing, do one of the
following:
·Press the trunk lock release button located on the
instrument panel.
·Use the key cylinder on the rear fascia.
·Squeeze the trunk release sensor located on the
rear of the trunk lid.
·Press the button with the trunk symbol on the
keyless access transmitter.
·Press the trunk close button on the underside of the
trunk lid.
To begin opening the trunk from the stopped position,
use any of the methods above, except pressing the trunk
close button.
To resume closing the power trunk lid, press the trunk
close button on the underside of the trunk lid.If the vehicle has lost
battery power, you can
still open the trunk using
the key.
The key cylinder is located behind a cover on the lower
rear fascia on the driver's side of the vehicle. Use
the key to pry open the door to access the key cylinder.
2-13

Testing the Alarm
Do the following to test the system:
1. Make sure the trunk lid is latched.
2. Lower the window on the driver's door.
3. Manually arm the system.
4. Close the doors and wait 30 seconds.
5. Reach through the open window and manually pull
the release lever on the ¯oor.
6. Turn off the alarm by pressing the unlock button on
the transmitter.
If the alarm is inoperative, check to see if the horn
works. If not, check the horn fuse. See
Fuses and Circuit
Breakers on page 5-85. If the horn works, but the
alarm does not go off, see your dealer.
Disarming the System
Always use your keyless access transmitter to unlock a
door either by pressing the unlock button on the
transmitter or by squeezing the door handle sensor
while you have the transmitter with you. Unlocking a
door any other way will set off the alarm. If your alarm
sounds, press the unlock button on the keyless
access transmitter to disarm it.
Valet Lockout Switch
The valet lockout switch
is located inside the
glove box.
Press the switch to ON to disable the use of the trunk
and convertible top. The trunk cannot be opened except
by using the key if the valet lockout is on.
Press the switch to OFF to enable the use of the trunk
and convertible top.
Locking the glove box with your key will also help to
secure your vehicle.
2-18

RainsenseŸ Wipers
Your vehicle has RainsenseŸ wipers. The moisture
sensor for this feature is mounted on the interior side of
the windshield below 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 RainsenseŸ wipers operate in a delay mode
as well as a continuous low or high speed 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
RainsenseŸ system is activated.
The RainsenseŸ system is also sensitive to vibration.
The system may activate if something hits the
windshield or if the vehicle hits a bump.
The RainsenseŸ system can be activated by moving
the wiper lever up to the delay position and turning
the delay adjust band to one of the ®ve sensitivity levels.
The bottom delay adjust position is the lowest sensitivity
setting, level one. This allows more rain or snow to
collect on the windshield between wipes.Turning the delay adjust band away from you to the
higher sensitivity levels allows less rain or snow
to collect on the windshield between wipes.
The top position is the highest sensitivity setting, level
®ve. A single wipe will occur each time you turn the
delay adjust band to a higher sensitivity level to indicate
that the sensitivity level has been increased.
Notice:Going through an automatic car wash with
the wipers on can damage them. Turn the wipers
off when going through an automatic car wash.
The mist and wash cycles operate as normal and are
not affected by the RainsenseŸ function. The
RainsenseŸ system can be overridden at any time by
manually changing the wiper control to low or high
speed.
When RainsenseŸ is active, the headlamps will turn on
automatically. If it is dark, they will remain on. See
ªWiper-Activated Headlampsº under
Exterior Lamps on
page 3-22for more information.
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.
3-8

Fog Lamps
If your vehicle has fog lamps, use them for better vision
in foggy or misty conditions.
The fog lamps control is located on the multifunction
lever next to the exterior lamp control.
-(Fog Lamps):Turning the band to this position will
turn on the fog lamps.
When you turn on the fog lamps, the fog lamp light on
the instrument panel cluster will come on to indicate that
the fog lamps and the parking lamps are on.
If you turn on the high-beam headlamps, the fog lamps
will turn off. They will turn back on again when you
switch to low-beam headlamps.
The ignition must be on for the fog lamps to operate.
Twilight Sentinelž
Twilight Sentinelžcan turn your lamps on and off for
you. A light sensor on top of the instrument panel makes
the Twilight Sentinel
žwork, so be sure it is not
covered.With Twilight Sentinel
žyou will see the following
happen:
·When it is dark enough outside, the front turn signal
lamps (DRL) will go off, and the headlamps and
parking lamps will come on. The other lamps
that come on with headlamps will also come on.
·When it is bright enough outside, the headlamps
will go off, and the front turn signal lamps (DRL)
will come on, as long as the exterior lamp switch is
in the OFF position.
If you start your vehicle in a dark garage, the automatic
headlamp system will come on immediately. Once
you leave the garage, it will take approximately
one minute for the automatic headlamp system to
change to DRL if it is light outside. During that delay,
your instrument panel cluster may not be as bright
as usual. Make sure your instrument panel brightness
control is in full bright position. See ªInstrument
Panel Brightness Controlº under
Interior Lamps on
page 3-25.
You can idle the vehicle with the lamps off, even when
it is dark outside. First set the parking brake while
the ignition is in OFF. Then start the vehicle. The lamps
will stay off until you release the parking brake.
3-24

How the System Works
URPA comes on automatically when the shift lever is
moved into REVERSE (R) and the vehicle speed is less
than 3 mph (5 km/h). When the system comes on,
the three lights on the display will illuminate to let you
know that the system is working. URPA senses
how close your vehicle is to an object. The distance is
determined by the four ultrasonic sensors located on the
rear bumper. When you shift into REVERSE (R) and
an object is detected, the following will occur in
sequence depending on the distance from the object:
·At 5 feet (1.5 m) a chime will sound and one
amber light will be lit;
·at 40 inches (1.0 m) both amber lights will be lit;
·at 20 inches (0.5 m) a continuous chime will
sound and all three lights (amber/amber/red) will be
lit; and
·at 1 foot (0.3 m) a continuous chime will sound and
all three lights (amber/amber/red) will ¯ash.
URPA can detect objects 3 inches (7.6 cm) and wider,
and at least 10 inches (25.4 cm) tall, but it cannot detect
objects that are above trunk level. In order for the
rear sensors to recognize an object, it must be within
operating range.If the URPA system is not functioning properly, the
display will ¯ash red, indicating that there is a problem.
The light will also ¯ash red while driving if a trailer is
attached to your vehicle, or a bicycle or object is on the
back of, or hanging out of your trunk. The light will
continue to ¯ash until the trailer or the object is
removed and your vehicle is driven forward at least
15 mph (25 km/h).
It may also ¯ash red if the ultrasonic sensors are not
kept clean. So be sure to keep your rear bumper free of
mud, dirt, snow, ice and slush or materials such as
paint or the system may not work properly. If after
cleaning the rear bumper and driving forward at least
15 mph (25 km/h), the display continues to ¯ash red, see
your dealer. For cleaning instructions, see
Cleaning
the Outside of Your Vehicle on page 5-78.
It may also ¯ash red if your vehicle is moving in
REVERSE (R) at a speed greater than 3 mph (5 km/h).
Other conditions that may affect system performance
include things like the vibrations from a jackhammer or
the compression of air brakes on a very large truck.
As always, drivers should use care when backing up a
vehicle. Always look behind you, being sure to check
for other vehicles, obstructions and blind spots.
3-31