2007 CADILLAC ESCALADE EXT ABS

The following are the main components of the
Midgate®system:
A. Latch Levers
B. Grab Handles
C. Glass-Catch
Release Button
D. Glass Lock
KnobsE. Window Retaining Tabs
F. Midgate
®Release
Handle
G. Window Alignment
Arrows
Rear Glass Removal and Storage
{CAUTION:
If the removable rear glass is not stored
properly, it could be thrown about the
vehicle in a crash or sudden maneuver.
People in the vehicle could be injured.
Whenever you store the rear glass in the
vehicle, always be sure that it is stored
securely in the Midgate
®storage pocket.
Do not remove the rear glass when the rear
defroster is on. If you remove the rear glass with
the rear defroster on, you may see a discharge
spark coming from the latch area.
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4. With the rear glass tilted toward you, lift it out
from the lower window frame channel. Use
the grab handles to assist you in removing the
rear glass.5. Load the rear glass into the storage pocket in
the Midgate
®, guiding the lower edge of the
rear glass behind the three rear glass retaining
tabs (E).
Hold the rear glass at against the storage
pocket, with grab handles facing you, until the
next step.
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Anti-Lock Brake System
Warning Light
With the Anti-Lock Brake
System (ABS), this light
will come on when you
start your engine and
may stay on for several
seconds.
That is normal. If the light does not come on then,
have it xed so it will be ready to warn you if
there is a problem.If the light stays on, or comes on when you are
driving, your vehicle needs service. You will
also hear a chime sound when the light is on
steady. If the regular brake system warning light
is not on, you still have brakes, but you do
not have ABS. If the regular brake system warning
light is also on you do not have ABS and there
is a problem with your regular brakes. In addition
to both lights, you will also hear a chime sound
on the rst occurrence of a problem and each time
the vehicle is shut off and then restarted. See
Brake System Warning Light on page 232.
The ABS warning light should come on briey
when you turn the ignition key to RUN. If the light
does not come on then, have it xed so it will
be ready to warn you if there is a problem.
234

Your Driving, the Road, and
Your Vehicle............................................ 322
Defensive Driving...................................... 322
Drunken Driving........................................ 323
Control of a Vehicle.................................. 326
Braking...................................................... 326
Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS).................. 327
Braking in Emergencies............................. 329
Locking Differential.................................... 329
Road Sensing Suspension......................... 329
StabiliTrak
®System................................... 330
All-Wheel Drive (AWD) System.................. 333
Steering.................................................... 333
Off-Road Recovery.................................... 335
Passing..................................................... 336
Loss of Control.......................................... 338
Off-Road Driving........................................ 339
Driving at Night......................................... 355
Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads............ 356City Driving............................................... 360
Freeway Driving........................................ 361
Before Leaving on a Long Trip.................. 362
Highway Hypnosis..................................... 363
Hill and Mountain Roads........................... 364
Winter Driving........................................... 366
If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand, Mud,
Ice, or Snow.......................................... 370
Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out........... 370
Recovery Hooks........................................ 371
Loading Your Vehicle................................ 372
Truck-Camper Loading Information............ 378
Towing........................................................ 378
Towing Your Vehicle ................................. 378
Recreational Vehicle Towing...................... 379
Autoride
®................................................... 379
Towing a Trailer........................................ 380
Trailer Recommendations.......................... 392
Section 4 Driving Your Vehicle
321

Avoid needless heavy braking. Some people drive
in spurts — heavy acceleration followed by
heavy braking — rather than keeping pace with
traffic. This is a mistake. The brakes may not have
time to cool between hard stops. The brakes
will wear out much faster if you do a lot of heavy
braking. If you keep pace with the traffic and
allow realistic following distances, you will
eliminate a lot of unnecessary braking. That means
better braking and longer brake life.
If your vehicle’s engine ever stops while you are
driving, brake normally but do not pump the
brakes. If you do, the pedal may get harder to
push down. If the engine stops, you will still have
some power brake assist. But you will use it
when you brake. Once the power assist is used
up, it may take longer to stop and the brake pedal
will be harder to push.
Adding non-GM accessories can affect your
vehicle’s performance. SeeAccessories and
Modications on page 397.Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS)
Your vehicle has the Anti-Lock Brake System
(ABS), an advanced electronic braking system that
will help prevent a braking skid.
When you start your engine and begin to drive
away, ABS 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 ABS, this warning
light will stay on.
SeeAnti-Lock Brake
System Warning
Light on page 234.
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.
327

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.ABS can change the brake pressure faster than
any driver could. The computer is programmed to
make the most of available tire and road
conditions. This can help you steer around the
obstacle while braking hard.
As you brake, your computer keeps receiving
updates on wheel speed and controls braking
pressure accordingly.
328

Remember: ABS does not change the time you
need to get your foot up to the brake pedal
or always decrease stopping distance. If you get
too close to the vehicle in front of you, you will not
have time to apply your brakes if that vehicle
suddenly slows or stops. Always leave enough
room up ahead to stop, even though you
have ABS.
Using ABS
Do not pump the brakes. Just hold the brake
pedal down rmly and let anti-lock work for you.
You may feel the brakes vibrate, or you may notice
some noise, but this is normal.
Braking in Emergencies
With ABS, you can steer and brake at the same
time. In many emergencies, steering can help you
more than even the very best braking.
Locking Differential
If your vehicle has this feature, your locking
differential can give you additional traction on
snow, mud, ice, sand or gravel. It works like
a standard axle most of the time, but when one of
the wheels has no traction and the other does,
this feature will allow the wheel with traction
to move the vehicle.
Road Sensing Suspension
The Road Sensing Suspension (RSS) feature
provides superior 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.
329

RSS also interacts with the tow/haul mode that,
when engaged, 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 380.
StabiliTrak®System
Your vehicle may be equipped with the
StabiliTrak®system which combines antilock
brake, traction and stability control systems and
helps the driver maintain directional control of the
vehicle in most driving conditions.
When you rst start your vehicle and begin to
drive away, the system performs several diagnostic
checks to ensure there are no problems. You
may hear or feel the system working. This
is normal and does not mean there is a problem
with your vehicle. The system should initialize
before the vehicle reaches 20 mph (32 km/h).
In some cases, it may take approximately
two miles of driving before the system initializes.If the system fails to turn on or activate, the
StabiliTrak
®light along with one of the following
messages will be displayed on the Driver
Information Center (DIC): TRACTION CONTROL
OFF, SERVICE TRACTION CONTROL,
STABILITRAK OFF, SERVICE STABILITRAK. If
these DIC messages appear, make sure the
StabiliTrak
®system has not been turned off using
the StabiliTrak®on/off button. Then turn the
steering wheel clockwise from the nine o’clock
position to the three o’clock position. If this clears
the message(s), your vehicle does not need
servicing. If this does not clear the message(s),
then turn the vehicle off, wait 15 seconds, and then
turn it back on again to reset the system. If any
of these messages still appear on the Driver
Information Center (DIC), your vehicle should be
taken in for service. For more information on
the DIC messages, seeDriver Information Center
(DIC) on page 243.
330