2007 CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV engine

Hill and Mountain Roads
Driving on steep hills or mountains is different
from driving in at or rolling terrain.If you drive regularly in steep country, or if you are
planning to visit there, here are some tips that
can make your trips safer and more enjoyable.
SeeOff-Road Driving on page 338for information
about driving off-road.
Keep your vehicle in good shape. Check all
uid levels and also the brakes, tires,
cooling system, and transmission. These parts
can work hard on mountain roads.
{CAUTION:
If you do not shift down, your brakes
could get so hot that they would not work
well. You would then have poor braking or
even none going down a hill. You could
crash. Shift down to let your engine assist
your brakes on a steep downhill slope.
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{CAUTION:
Coasting downhill in NEUTRAL (N) or with
the ignition off is dangerous. Your brakes
will have to do all the work of slowing
down. They could get so hot that they
would not work well. You would then have
poor braking or even none going down a
hill. You could crash. Always have your
engine running and your vehicle in gear
when you go downhill.
Know how to go down hills. The most important
thing to know is this: let your engine do some of
the slowing down. Shift to a lower gear when
you go down a steep or long hill.
Know how to go uphill. You may want to shift
down to a lower gear. The lower gears help
cool your engine and transmission, and you can
climb the hill better.
Stay in your own lane when driving on two-lane
roads in hills or mountains. Do not swing wide
or cut across the center of the road. Drive at
speeds that let you stay in your own lane.
As you go over the top of a hill, be alert. There
could be something in your lane, like a stalled
car or an accident.
You may see highway signs on mountains that
warn of special problems. Examples are long
grades, passing or no-passing zones, a falling
rocks area, or winding roads. Be alert to these
and take appropriate action.
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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.You can run the engine to keep warm, but be
careful.
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{CAUTION:
Snow can trap exhaust gases under
your vehicle. This can cause deadly
CO (carbon monoxide) gas to get inside.
CO could overcome you and kill you.
You cannot see it or smell it, so you
might not know it is in your vehicle.
Clear away snow from around the base
of your vehicle, especially any that is
blocking your exhaust pipe. And check
around again from time to time to be
sure snow does not collect there.
Open a window just a little on the side
of the vehicle that is away from the wind.
This will help keep CO out.Run your engine only as long as you must.
This saves fuel. When you run the engine, make
it go a little faster than just idle. That is, push
the accelerator slightly. This uses less fuel for
the heat that you get and it keeps the battery
charged. You will need a well-charged battery
to restart the vehicle, and possibly for signaling
later on with your headlamps. Let the heater
run for a while.
Then, shut the engine off and close the window
almost all the way to preserve the heat. Start
the engine again and repeat this only when you
feel really uncomfortable from the cold. But do
it as little as possible. Preserve the fuel as long as
you can. To help keep warm, you can get out of
the vehicle and do some fairly vigorous exercises
every half hour or so until help comes.
367

If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand,
Mud, Ice, or Snow
In order to free your vehicle when it is stuck, you
will need to spin the wheels, but you do not
want to spin your wheels too fast. The method
known as rocking can help you get out when you
are stuck, but you must use caution.
{CAUTION:
If you let your tires spin at high speed,
they can explode, and you or others could
be injured. And, the transmission or other
parts of the vehicle can overheat. That
could cause an engine compartment re
or other damage. When you are stuck,
spin the wheels as little as possible. Do
not spin the wheels above 35 mph
(55 km/h) as shown on the speedometer.Notice:Spinning your wheels can destroy
parts of your vehicle as well as the tires. If you
spin the wheels too fast while shifting your
transmission back and forth, you can destroy
your transmission.
For more information about using tire chains on
your vehicle, seeTire Chains on page 475.
Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out
First, turn your steering wheel left and right. That
will clear the area around your front wheels. If your
vehicle has the StabiliTrak
®System, turn the
system off by pressing the StabiliTrak®button so
that the STABILITY SYS DISABLED message
and the traction off light are illuminated on the
instrument panel cluster. 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.
368

Dolly Towing
Two-Wheel-Drive Vehicles (Rear Wheels
Off the Ground)
Notice:If you tow a two-wheel-drive vehicle
with the rear wheels on the ground, the
transmission could be damaged. The repairs
would not be covered by your warranty. Never
tow your vehicle with the rear wheels on the
ground.
Two-wheel-drive vehicles should not be towed
with the rear wheels on the ground.
Two-wheel-drive transmissions have no provisions
for internal lubrication while being towed.
Two-wheel-drive vehicles can be towed on a dolly
with the front wheels on the ground provided
that the wheels are straight.
Use the following procedure to dolly tow your
vehicle:
1. Drive the vehicle up onto the tow dolly.
2. Shift the transmission to PARK (P).
3. Turn the engine off, but leave the ignition on.
4. Firmly set the parking brake.5. Securely attach the vehicle being towed to the
tow dolly.
6. Release the parking brake only after the
vehicle being towed is rmly attached to
the towing vehicle.
Autoride®
The Autoride®feature provides improved vehicle
ride and handling under a variety of passenger and
loading conditions.
The system is fully automatic and uses a computer
controller to continuously monitor vehicle speed,
wheel to body position, lift/dive and steering
position of the vehicle. The controller then sends
signals to each shock absorber to independently
adjust the damping level to provide the optimum
vehicle ride.
Autoride
®also interacts with the tow/haul mode
that, when activated, will provide additional control
of the shock absorbers. This additional control
results in better ride and handling characteristics
when the vehicle is loaded or towing a trailer.
See “Tow/Haul Mode” underTowing a Trailer
on page 379for more information.
378

If You Do Decide To Pull A Trailer
If you do, here are some important points:
There are many different laws, including speed
limit restrictions, having to do with trailering.
Make sure your rig will be legal, not only
where you live but also where you’ll be driving.
A good source for this information can be
state or provincial police.
Consider using a sway control. See “Hitches”
later in this section.
Don’t tow a trailer at all during the rst
500 miles (800 km) your new vehicle is driven.
Your engine, axle or other parts could be
damaged.
Then, during the rst 500 miles (800 km) that
you tow a trailer, don’t drive over 50 mph
(80 km/h) and don’t make starts at full throttle.
This helps your engine and other parts of
your vehicle wear in at the heavier loads.
You can tow in DRIVE (D). You may want
to shift the transmission to THIRD (3) or,
if necessary, a lower gear selection if
the transmission shifts too often (e.g., under
heavy loads and/or hilly conditions).
See “Tow/Haul Mode” next.Three important considerations have to do
with weight:
the weight of the trailer
the weight of the trailer tongue
and the weight on your vehicle’s tires
Tow/Haul Mode
Tow/haul is designed to assist while your
vehicle is pulling a large or heavy load or trailer.
Tow/haul is most useful while pulling such a
load in rolling terrain, in stop-and-go traffic, or
when you need improved low-speed control, such
as when parking. The purpose of the tow/haul
mode is to do the following:
Reduce the frequency and improve the
predictability of transmission shifts when
pulling a heavy trailer or a large or heavy load.
Provide the same solid shift feel when pulling
a heavy trailer or a large or heavy load as
when the vehicle is unloaded.
Improve control of vehicle speed while
requiring less throttle pedal activity when
pulling a heavy trailer or a large or heavy load.
380

Tow/haul is designed to be most effective when
the vehicle and trailer combined weight is at least
75 percent of the vehicle’s Gross Combination
Weight Rating (GCWR). See “Weight of the
Trailer” later in this section.
Press this button at the end of the shift lever to
enable/disable the tow/haul mode.A light on the instrument
panel will illuminate
to indicate that
tow/haul mode has
been selected.
The vehicle will automatically turn off tow/haul
every time it is started.
Driving with tow/haul activated without a heavy
load or with no trailer will cause reduced fuel
economy and unpleasant engine and transmission
driving characteristics, but will not cause
damage.
Operating the vehicle in tow/haul when lightly
loaded or with no trailer at all will not cause
damage. However, there is no benet to the
selection of tow/haul when the vehicle is unloaded.
Such a selection when unloaded may result in
unpleasant engine and transmission driving
characteristics and reduced fuel economy.
Tow/haul is recommended only when pulling a
heavy trailer or a large or heavy load.
381