2007 CADILLAC DTS Owners Manual

g(Mute/Voice Recognition):Press and hold
this button to interact with the OnStar®system.
If your vehicle is also equipped with the navigation
system, push this button to initiate voice
recognition and say, “OnStar” to enter OnStar
®
mode, see theOnStar®System on page 139
in this manual for more information.
If your vehicle does not have OnStar
®, press this
button to silence the system. Press this button
again or turn the volume knob to turn the sound on.
If your vehicle has the navigation system, press
this button to initiate voice recognition. See “Voice
Recognition” in the index of your vehicle’s
navigation system manual for more information.
SRCE (Source):Press this button to switch
between AM, FM, or XM (if equipped), radio, or CD.+
e−e(Volume):Press the plus or minus
button to increase or to decrease the volume.
¨(Seek):Press the seek arrow to go to the next
radio station and stay there. The system only
seeks radio stations with strong frequencies.
When the seek arrow is pressed and held for
two seconds, the system scans the radio stations
that are in the selected band. If listening to a
CD, the system advances to the next CD when
multiple discs are inserted.
If you have the navigation system, some of the
audio steering wheel controls work when a DVD is
playing in the navigation radio. See the Navigation
System manual for more information.
297

Radio Reception
You may experience frequency interference
and static during normal radio reception if items
such as cellphone chargers, vehicle convenience
accessories, and external electronic devices
are plugged into the accessory power outlet.
If there is interference or static, unplug the item
from the accessory power outlet.
AM
The range for most AM stations is greater than
for FM, especially at night. The longer range can
cause station frequencies to interfere with each
other. For better radio reception, most AM
radio stations will boost the power levels during
the day, and then reduce these levels during
the night. Static can also occur when things
like storms and power lines interfere with radio
reception. When this happens, try reducing
the treble on your radio.
FM Stereo
FM stereo will give the best sound, but FM signals
will reach only about 10 to 40 miles (16 to 65 km).
Tall buildings or hills can interfere with FM
signals, causing the sound to fade in and out.
XM™ Satellite Radio Service
XM™ Satellite Radio Service gives digital radio
reception from coast-to-coast in the 48 contiguous
United States, and in Canada. Just as with FM,
tall buildings or hills can interfere with satellite
radio signals, causing the sound to fade in and out.
In addition, traveling or standing under heavy
foliage, bridges, garages, or tunnels may cause
loss of XM signal for a period of time. The
radio may display NO XM SIGNAL to indicate
interference.
298

Cellular Phone Usage
Cellular phone usage may cause interference
with your vehicle’s radio. This interference
may occur when making or receiving phone calls,
charging the phone’s battery, or simply having
the phone on. This interference is an increased
level of static while listening to the radio. If static
is received while listening to the radio, unplug
the cellular phone and turn it off.
Care of Your CDs
Handle CDs carefully. Store them in their original
cases or other protective cases and away from
direct sunlight and dust. The CD player scans
the bottom surface of the disc. If the surface of a
CD is damaged, such as cracked, broken, orscratched, the CD does not play properly or not at
all. If the surface of a CD is soiled, take a soft, lint
free cloth or dampen a clean, soft cloth in a mild,
neutral detergent solution mixed with water, and
clean it. Make sure the wiping process starts from
the center to the edge.
Do not touch the bottom side of a CD while
handling it; this could damage the surface. Pick up
CDs by grasping the outer edges or the edge of
the hole and the outer edge.
Care of the CD Player
Do not use CD lens cleaners for CD players
because the lens of the CD optics can become
contaminated by lubricants.
299

Backglass Antenna
The AM-FM antenna is located in the rear window.
Make sure that the inside surface of the rear
window is not scratched and that the grid lines on
the glass are not damaged. If the inside surface
is damaged, it could interfere with radio reception.
Notice:Do not apply aftermarket glass
tinting with metallic lm. The metallic lm
in some tinting materials will interfere with
or distort the incoming radio reception.
Any damage caused to your antenna due to
metallic tinting materials will not be covered
by your warranty.
Notice:Using a razor blade or sharp object
to clear the inside rear window may damage
the rear window antenna and/or the rear
window defogger. Repairs would not be
covered by your warranty. Do not clear
the inside rear window with sharp objects.
If static is heard on the radio, when the rear
window defogger is turned on, it could mean that
a defogger grid line has been damaged. If this
is true, the grid line must be repaired.If you choose to add a cellular telephone to your
vehicle, and the antenna needs to be attached
to the glass, make sure that the grid lines for the
AM-FM antenna are not damaged. Make sure
the cellular telephone antenna does not touch
a grid line.
XM™ Satellite Radio Antenna
System
The XM™ Satellite Radio antenna is located on
the roof of your vehicle. Keep this antenna clear of
snow and ice build up for clear radio reception.
A vehicle with a sunroof might not get the
best performance from the XM™ system if the
sunroof is open.
Loading items onto the roof of your vehicle can
interfere with the performance of the XM™ system.
Make sure the XM™ Satellite Radio antenna is
not obstructed.
300

Your Driving, the Road, and
Your Vehicle............................................ 302
Defensive Driving...................................... 302
Drunken Driving........................................ 303
Control of a Vehicle.................................. 306
Braking...................................................... 306
Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS).................. 307
Braking in Emergencies............................. 309
Traction Control System (TCS).................. 309
Magnetic Ride Control............................... 310
StabiliTrak
®System................................... 311
Panic Brake Assist.................................... 312
Steering.................................................... 312
Off-Road Recovery.................................... 315
Passing..................................................... 315
Loss of Control.......................................... 317Driving at Night......................................... 318
Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads............ 320
City Driving............................................... 322
Freeway Driving........................................ 323
Before Leaving on a Long Trip.................. 324
Highway Hypnosis..................................... 325
Hill and Mountain Roads........................... 326
Winter Driving........................................... 328
If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand,
Mud, Ice, or Snow................................. 332
Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out........... 333
Loading Your Vehicle................................ 333
Towing........................................................ 340
Towing Your Vehicle................................. 340
Recreational Vehicle Towing...................... 340
Towing a Trailer........................................ 342
Section 4 Driving Your Vehicle
301

Your Driving, the Road, and
Your Vehicle
Defensive Driving
The best advice anyone can give about driving is:
Drive defensively.
Please start with a very important safety device in
your vehicle: Buckle up. SeeSafety Belts: They
Are for Everyone on page 19.
{CAUTION:
Defensive driving really means “Be ready
for anything.” On city streets, rural roads,
or expressways, it means “Always expect
the unexpected.” Assume that pedestrians
or other drivers are going to be careless
CAUTION: (Continued)
CAUTION: (Continued)
and make mistakes. Anticipate what they
might do and be ready. Rear-end
collisions are about the most preventable
of accidents. Yet they are common. Allow
enough following distance. Defensive
driving requires that a driver concentrate
on the driving task. Anything that
distracts from the driving task makes
proper defensive driving more difficult
and can even cause a collision, with
resulting injury. Ask a passenger to help
do these things, or pull off the road in a
safe place to do them. These simple
defensive driving techniques could save
your life.
302

Drunken Driving
Death and injury associated with drinking and
driving is a national tragedy. It is the number one
contributor to the highway death toll, claiming
thousands of victims every year.
Alcohol affects four things that anyone needs to
drive a vehicle:
Judgment
Muscular Coordination
Vision
Attentiveness
Police records show that almost half of all motor
vehicle-related deaths involve alcohol. In most
cases, these deaths are the result of someone who
was drinking and driving. In recent years, more
than 16,000 annual motor vehicle-related deaths
have been associated with the use of alcohol, with
more than 300,000 people injured.
Many adults — by some estimates, nearly half the
adult population — choose never to drink
alcohol, so they never drive after drinking. Forpersons under 21, it is against the law in every
U.S. state to drink alcohol. There are good
medical, psychological, and developmental
reasons for these laws.
The obvious way to eliminate the leading highway
safety problem is for people never to drink
alcohol and then drive. But what if people do?
How much is “too much” if someone plans
to drive? It is a lot less than many might think.
Although it depends on each person and situation,
here is some general information on the problem.
The Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of
someone who is drinking depends upon
four things:
The amount of alcohol consumed
The drinker’s body weight
The amount of food that is consumed before
and during drinking
The length of time it has taken the drinker to
consume the alcohol
303

According to the American Medical Association, a
180 lb (82 kg) person who drinks three 12 ounce
(355 ml) bottles of beer in an hour will end up with
a BAC of about 0.06 percent. The person would
reach the same BAC by drinking three 4 ounce
(120 ml) glasses of wine or three mixed drinks if
each had 1-1/2 ounces (45 ml) of liquors like
whiskey, gin, or vodka.It is the amount of alcohol that counts. For
example, if the same person drank three double
martinis (3 ounces or 90 ml of liquor each)
within an hour, the person’s BAC would be close
to 0.12 percent. A person who consumes food
just before or during drinking will have a somewhat
lower BAC level.
There is a gender difference, too. Women
generally have a lower relative percentage of body
water than men. Since alcohol is carried in body
water, this means that a woman generally will
reach a higher BAC level than a man of her same
body weight will when each has the same
number of drinks.
The law in most U.S. states, and throughout
Canada, sets the legal limit at 0.08 percent. In
some other countries, the limit is even lower. For
example, it is 0.05 percent in both France and
Germany. The BAC limit for all commercial drivers
in the United States is 0.04 percent.
The BAC will be over 0.10 percent after three to
six drinks (in one hour). Of course, as we have
seen, it depends on how much alcohol is in the
drinks, and how quickly the person drinks them.
304