2005 GMC ENVOY XUV ABS

Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle..........4-2
Defensive Driving...........................................4-2
Drunken Driving.............................................4-3
Control of a Vehicle........................................4-6
Braking.........................................................4-6
Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS).........................4-7
Braking in Emergencies...................................4-8
Traction Assist System (TAS)...........................4-9
Locking Rear Axle........................................4-10
Steering......................................................4-11
Off-Road Recovery.......................................4-13
Passing.......................................................4-13
Loss of Control.............................................4-15
Off-Road Driving with Your
Four-Wheel-Drive Vehicle...........................4-16
Driving at Night............................................4-29Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads..................4-31
City Driving..................................................4-33
Freeway Driving...........................................4-34
Before Leaving on a Long Trip.......................4-35
Highway Hypnosis........................................4-36
Hill and Mountain Roads................................4-36
Winter Driving..............................................4-38
If You Are Stuck: In Sand, Mud,
Ice or Snow..............................................4-42
Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out.................4-43
Loading Your Vehicle....................................4-43
Adding a Snow Plow or Similar Equipment.......4-50
Towing..........................................................4-50
Towing Your Vehicle.....................................4-50
Recreational Vehicle Towing...........................4-50
Towing a Trailer...........................................4-55
Section 4 Driving Your Vehicle
4-1

Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS)
Your vehicle has anti-lock brakes. ABS is an advanced
electronic braking system that will help prevent a
braking skid.
When you start your engine and begin to drive away,
your anti-lock brake system will check itself. You
may hear a momentary motor or clicking noise while
this test is going on. This is normal.
If there is a problem with
the anti-lock brake system,
this warning light will
stay on. SeeAnti-Lock
Brake System Warning
Light on page 3-39.
Along with ABS, your vehicle has a Dynamic Rear
Proportioning (DRP) system. If there is a DRP problem,
both the brake and ABS warning lights will come on
accompanied by a 10-second chime. The lights and
chime will come on each time the ignition is turned on
until the problem is repaired. See your dealer for service.Let us say the road is wet and you are driving safely.
Suddenly, an animal jumps out in front of you. You slam
on the brakes and continue braking. Here is what
happens with ABS:
A computer senses that wheels are slowing down.
If one of the wheels is about to stop rolling, the computer
will separately work the brakes at each front wheel
and at both rear wheels.
4-7

Loss of Control
Let us review what driving experts say about what
happens when the three control systems — brakes,
steering, and acceleration — do not have enough friction
where the tires meet the road to do what the driver
has asked.
In any emergency, do not give up. Keep trying to
steer and constantly seek an escape route or area of
less danger.
Skidding
In a skid, a driver can lose control of the vehicle.
Defensive drivers avoid most skids by taking reasonable
care suited to existing conditions, and by not overdriving
those conditions. But skids are always possible.
The three types of skids correspond to your vehicle’s
three control systems. In the braking skid, your wheels
are not rolling. In the steering or cornering skid, too much
speed or steering in a curve causes tires to slip and lose
cornering force. And in the acceleration skid, too much
throttle causes the driving wheels to spin.
A cornering skid is best handled by easing your foot off
the accelerator pedal.If you have the Traction Assist System, remember:
It helps avoid only the acceleration skid. If you do not
have this system, or if the system is off, then an
acceleration skid is also best handled by easing your
foot off the accelerator pedal.
If your vehicle starts to slide, ease your foot off the
accelerator pedal and quickly steer the way you want
the vehicle to go. If you start steering quickly enough,
your vehicle may straighten out. Always be ready
for a second skid if it occurs.
Of course, traction is reduced when water, snow, ice,
gravel, or other material is on the road. For safety, you
will want to slow down and adjust your driving to these
conditions. It is important to slow down on slippery
surfaces because stopping distance will be longer and
vehicle control more limited.
While driving on a surface with reduced traction,
try your best to avoid sudden steering, acceleration,
or braking, including engine braking by shifting to
a lower gear. Any sudden changes could cause the tires
to slide. You may not realize the surface is slippery
until your vehicle is skidding. Learn to recognize warning
clues — such as enough water, ice, or packed snow
on the road to make a mirrored surface — and
slow down when you have any doubt.
Remember: Any anti-lock brake system (ABS) helps
avoid only the braking skid.
4-15

Your anti-lock brakes improve your vehicle’s stability
when you make a hard stop on a slippery road.
Even though you have an anti-lock braking system, you
will want to begin stopping sooner than you would on
dry pavement. SeeAnti-Lock Brake System (ABS)
on page 4-7.
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 cannot reach, such as
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.
If You Are Caught in a Blizzard
If you are stopped by heavy snow, you could be in a
serious situation. You should probably stay with
your vehicle unless you know for sure that you are near
help and you can hike through the snow. Here are
some things to do to summon help and keep yourself
and your passengers safe:
Turn on your hazard ashers.
Tie a red cloth to your vehicle to alert police that
you have been stopped by the snow.
Put on extra clothing or wrap a blanket around you.
If you do not have blankets or extra clothing, make
body insulators from newspapers, burlap bags,
rags, oor mats — anything you can wrap around
yourself or tuck under your clothing to keep warm.
4-40

Driving On Grades
Reduce speed and shift to a lower gearbeforeyou start
down a long or steep downgrade. If you don’t shift
down, you might have to use your brakes so much that
they would get hot and no longer work well.
You can tow in DRIVE (D). You may want to shift the
transmission to THIRD (3) or a lower gear, under heavy
loads or hilly conditions.
When towing at high altitude on steep uphill grades,
consider the following: Engine coolant will boil at a lower
temperature than at normal altitudes. If you turn your
engine off immediately after towing at high altitude
on steep uphill grades, your vehicle may show signs
similar to engine overheating. To avoid this, let the
engine run while parked (preferably on level ground)
with the automatic transmission in PARK (P) for a
few minutes before turning the engine off. If you do get
the overheat warning, seeEngine Overheating on
page 5-28.
Parking on Hills
{CAUTION:
You really should not park your vehicle, with a
trailer attached, on a hill. If something goes
wrong, your rig could start to move. People
can be injured, and both your vehicle and the
trailer can be damaged.
But if you ever have to park your rig on a hill, here’s
how to do it:
1. Apply your regular brakes, but don’t shift into
PARK (P) yet. When parking uphill, turn your wheels
away from the curb. When parking downhill, turn
your wheels into the curb.
2. Have someone place chocks under the trailer
wheels.
3. When the wheel chocks are in place, release the
regular brakes until the chocks absorb the load.
4-63

Back-Up Lamps
The back-up lamps are located in the rear bumper.
To replace a bulb, do the following:
1. Reach behind the rear bumper and locate the
bulb socket.
2. Turn it counterclockwise to remove from the
bulb assembly.
3. Pull the bulb from the bulb socket.
4. Push in a new bulb into the bulb socket.
5. Reinstall the bulb socket by lining up the tabs in the
lamp assembly and turn it clockwise to secure it.
Replacement Bulbs
Exterior Lamp Bulb Number
Back-up Lamps 3157
Front Sidemarker Lamps 194
Front Turn Signal/Parking Lamps 3457
Halogen Headlamps
High-Beam 9005 HB3
Low-Beam 9006 HB4
Rear Turn Signal, Stoplamp
and Taillamp3057
For replacement bulbs not listed here, contact your
dealer.
5-52

You may have an air inator kit that is located in the
glove compartment. It includes a 22 ft (6.7 m) hose with
three nozzle adapters.
To use the accessory inator, do the following:
1. Attach the appropriate nozzle adapter to the end of
the hose if required.
2. Attach that end of the hose to the object you wish
to inate.
3. Attach the other end of the hose to the outlet.
4. Press and release the switch to turn the air inator
on. The indicator light will remain on when the
inator is running.
The system has an internal clock to prevent
overheating. The system will allow about ve
minutes of running time, then the compressor will
stop. The indicator light will then begin to ash.
When the indicator is off, the inator can be started
again by pressing the switch. If the compressor
is still hot, it may only run for a short time before
shutting off again.
5. Press and release the switch to turn the inator off.Place the inator kit tools in the pouch and store it in its
proper location. Remove the inator hose from the
outlet during loading and unloading. Load leveling will
not function with the inator hose attached to the inator
outlet. See “Electronically Controlled Air Suspension
System” underLoading Your Vehicle on page 4-43.
To reinstall the cover, line up the tabs at the back of the
cover, put it in place and latch the tabs.
A continuous ashing indicator light may also indicate a
malfunction in the air suspension system. See
“Electronically Controlled Air Suspension System” under
Loading Your Vehicle on page 4-43for more information.
{CAUTION:
Inating something too much can make it
explode, and you or others could be injured.
Be sure to read the inator instructions, and
inate any object only to its recommended
pressure.
5-70

Fuses and Circuit Breakers
The wiring circuits in your vehicle are protected from
short circuits by a combination of fuses and circuit
breakers. This greatly reduces the chance of res
caused by electrical problems.
Look at the silver-colored band inside the fuse. If the
band is broken or melted, replace the fuse. Be sure you
replace a bad fuse with a new one of the identical
size and rating.
If you ever have a problem on the road and don’t have
a spare fuse, you can borrow one that has the same
amperage. Just pick some feature of your vehicle
that you can get along without — like the radio or
cigarette lighter — and use its fuse, if it is the correct
amperage. Replace it as soon as you can.
Engine Compartment Fuse Block
The fuse block is located under the hood in the engine
compartment on the driver’s side of the vehicle. See
Engine Compartment Overview on page 5-12for more
information on location.
Remove the primary cover by pressing the two locking
tabs. Remove the secondary cover by snapping off
while lifting. To reinstall the fuse panel cover, reverse
the sequence.
5-97