2007 CADILLAC STS Owners Manual

{CAUTION:
FCA is only a warning system and does
not apply the brakes. When you are
approaching a vehicle or object too rapidly
or when you are following a vehicle too
closely that is ahead of you, FCA may not
provide you with enough time to avoid a
collision. FCA is not designed to warn the
driver of pedestrians or animals. Your
complete attention is always required while
driving and you should be ready to take
action and apply the brakes. For more
information, seeDefensive Driving on
page 316.The Forward Collision
Alert (FCA) controls are
located on the end of
the multifunction lever.
9(Off):This position turns the system off.
R(On):This position turns the system on.
To enable FCA, move the Adaptive Cruise Control
switch to on. To disable FCA, move the switch
to off.
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Make sure the Head-Up Display is on and
properly adjusted. If the HUD is not on, FCA will
not be enabled and you will not be provided
with FCA audible and visual warnings. See
Head-Up Display (HUD) on page 223for more
information.
{CAUTION:
On winding roads, FCA may not detect
a vehicle ahead. You could crash into
a vehicle ahead of you. Do not rely on
FCA on winding roads.
When weather limits visibility, such as
in fog, rain, or snow, FCA performance
is limited. There may not be enough
warning distance to the vehicle in front
of you. Do not rely on FCA in low
visibility conditions.
{CAUTION:
When FCA is enabled, the Adaptive Cruise
Control switch is on. If you press another
Adaptive Cruise Control button, you might
go into cruise when you do not want to.
You could be startled and even lose
control. Be careful not to press adaptive
cruise buttons unless you want to use
cruise control.
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Warning the Driver
The alert symbol will
ash on the HUD and
a warning beep will
sound when driver
action may be required.
The driver warning is active when:
You are approaching a vehicle too quickly.
You are following a vehicle ahead much
too closely.
SeeDefensive Driving on page 316for more
information.
Detecting the Vehicle Ahead
The vehicle ahead symbol will only appear on the
HUD when a vehicle ahead of you is detected in
your path. If this symbol does not appear, or
disappears briey, FCA will not respond to vehicles
you may see ahead. The symbol may disappear on
curves, highway exit ramps, or hills. Also, when
another vehicle enters the same lane as you, the
FCA system will not detect the vehicle until it is
completely in your driving lane.
{CAUTION:
When the Adaptive Cruise Control radar is
blocked by snow, ice, or dirt, it may not
detect a vehicle ahead. FCA may not
help you avoid a collision under these
conditions. Do not use FCA when the radar
is blocked by snow, ice, or dirt. Keep your
radar clean. See “Cleaning the System”
underAdaptive Cruise Control on page 197.
{CAUTION:
FCA may not detect and warn soon
enough to stationary or slow-moving
vehicles or other objects ahead of you.
You could crash into an object ahead
of you. Do not rely on FCA when
approaching stationary or slow-moving
vehicles or other objects.
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Unnecessary Warnings
FCA may occasionally provide an unnecessary
warning to guard rails, signs, and other stationary
objects. This is normal operation, your vehicle
does not need service.
Other Messages
There are three messages that may appear on the
Driver Information Center (DIC). They are
CLEAN RADAR, RADAR CRUISE NOT READY
and SERVICE RADAR CRUISE. SeeDIC
Warnings and Messages on page 264.
Cleaning the System
The radar can become blocked by snow, ice, or
dirt. If so, you may need to turn off the engine and
clean the lens. See “Cleaning the System”
underAdaptive Cruise Control on page 197.
Flash-to-Pass
This feature allows you to use the high-beam
headlamps to signal the driver in front of you that
you want to pass.
Pull and hold the turn signal/multifunction lever
toward you to use this feature. When you do this,
the following will occur:
If the headlamps are off, in low-beam or in
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) mode, the
high-beam headlamps will turn on. They will
stay on as long as you hold the lever
there. Release the lever to turn them off.
If the headlamps are in high-beam mode, they
will switch to low beam. To return to
high-beam, push the lever away from you.
188

Windshield Wipers
The lever on the right side of the steering column
operates the windshield wipers.
7(Mist):Pull the lever down and release it for
a single wiping cycle. The lever will return to its
original position. For more cycles, hold the
lever down before releasing it.
9(Off):Put the lever in this position to turn off
the wipers.
&(Delay):Put the lever in this position to set a
delay between wipes. Turn the delay adjustment
band to set the length of the delay.
x(Delay Adjustment):Use this band to set the
length of the delay between wipes when using the
delay feature. The closer you move the band
toward mist, the longer the delay. The windshield
wiper lever must be in delay for this feature to work.
6(Low Speed):Put the lever in this position
for slow, steady wiping cycles.
1(High Speed):Put the lever in this position
for rapid wiping cycles.
If the windshield wipers are in use for about
six seconds while you are driving, the exterior
lamps will come on automatically if the exterior
lamp control is in AUTO. SeeWiper Activated
Headlamps on page 215for more information.
Be sure to clear ice and snow from the wiper
blades before using them. If they’re frozen to the
windshield, gently loosen or thaw them. If the
blades do become damaged, install new blades.
For more information, seeWindshield Wiper Blade
Replacement on page 419.
189

Heavy snow or ice can overload the wiper motor. A
circuit breaker will stop the motor until it cools down.
Clear away snow or ice to prevent an overload.
Your vehicle (STS-V only) is equipped with a
feature that disables the wiper system when the
hood is open and your vehicle is stopped. Opening
the hood will automatically park the wipers if
they are not parked. This prevents the wipers from
interfering with hood operation. Be sure the
hood is not opened when you require the vehicle’s
wipers out of the park position, such as when
changing the wiper blades.
Rainsense™ II Wipers
If your vehicle has this feature, the moisture
sensor is mounted on the interior side of the
windshield behind the rearview mirror. It 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 Rainsense™ wipers operate in adelay 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 Rainsense™ system
is activated.
To activate the Rainsense™ system, turn the
wiper band to delay mode and select one of the
four sensitivity levels indicated on the wiper stalk.
The position closest to off is the lowest sensitivity
setting, level one. This allows more rain or snow to
collect on the windshield between wipes. Turning
the wiper band away from you to higher sensitivity
levels increases the sensitivity of the system and
frequency of wipes. The highest sensitivity setting,
level four, is closest to low. A single wipe will occur
each time you turn the wiper stalk 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.
190

The mist and wash cycles operate as normal and
are not affected by the Rainsense™ function.
The Rainsense™ system can be overridden at any
time by manually turning the wiper band to low
or high speed.
When Rainsense™ is active, the headlamps will
turn on automatically. The headlamps will turn
off again once the wipers turn off if it is light
enough outside. If it is dark, they will remain on.
SeeWiper Activated Headlamps on page 215.
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.
Windshield Washer
K(Washer Fluid):The lever on the right side
of the steering column also controls the windshield
washer. There is a button at the end of the
lever. To spray washer uid on the windshield,
press the button and hold it. The washer will spray
until you release the button. The wipers will
continue to clear the window for about six seconds
after the button is released and then stop or
return to your preset speed.
{CAUTION:
In freezing weather, do not use your
washer until the windshield is warmed.
Otherwise the washer uid can form ice
on the windshield, blocking your vision.
If the uid in the windshield washer uid reservoir
is low, the message CHECK WASHER FLUID
will appear on the Driver Information Center (DIC)
display. It will take 60 seconds after the bottle
is relled for this message to turn off. For
information on the correct washer uid mixture to
use, seeWindshield Washer Fluid on page 404
andRecommended Fluids and Lubricants on
page 516.
191

Headlamp Washer
Your vehicle may have headlamp washers.
The headlamp washers clear debris from the
headlamp lenses.
The headlamp washers are located to the inside
of the headlamps.To wash the headlamps, press the washer button
located at the end of the windshield wiper lever.
The headlamps will be washed after the fth press
of the windshield washer button.
The headlamps must be on to be washed. If the
headlamps are off, only the windshield will be
washed when the washer button is pressed.
If the washer uid is low, the headlamp washers
will not work.
SeeWindshield Washer on page 191for additional
information.
192