2009 CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV Owners Manual

Your Driving, the Road, and the Vehicle ........... .5-2
Driving for Better Fuel Economy ...................... .5-2
Defensive Driving .......................................... .5-2
Drunk Driving ................................................ .5-3
Control of a Vehicle ....................................... .5-3
Braking ........................................................ .5-4
Antilock Brake System (ABS) .......................... .5-5
Braking in Emergencies .................................. .5-6
StabiliTrak ®
System ....................................... .5-6
Magnetic Ride Control™ ................................. .5-9
Road Sensing Suspension .............................. .5-9
Locking Rear Axle ......................................... .5-9
All-Wheel Drive (AWD) System ........................ .5-9
Steering ..................................................... .5-10
Off-Road Recovery ...................................... .5-11
Passing ...................................................... .5-12
Loss of Control ............................................ .5-12
Off-Road Driving .......................................... .5-13 Driving at Night ........................................... .5-25
Driving in Rain and on Wet Roads ................. .5-26
Before Leaving on a Long Trip ...................... .5-27
Highway Hypnosis ....................................... .5-27
Hill and Mountain Roads ............................... .5-28
Winter Driving ............................................. .5-29
If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand, Mud,
Ice, or Snow ............................................ .5-31
Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out ................ .5-32
Recovery Hooks .......................................... .5-32
Loading the Vehicle ..................................... .5-33
Towing ......................................................... .5-40
Towing Your Vehicle .................................... .5-40
Recreational Vehicle Towing .......................... .5-40
Level Control .............................................. .5-43
Autoride ®
.................................................... .5-44
Towing a Trailer .......................................... .5-44
Trailer Recommendations .............................. .5-57Section 5 Driving Your Vehicle
5-1

Your Driving, the Road, and
the Vehicle Driving for Better Fuel Economy Driving habits can affect fuel mileage. Here are some
driving tips to get the best fuel economy possible.
Avoid fast starts and accelerate smoothly.
Brake gradually and avoid abrupt stops.
Avoid idling the engine for long periods of time.
When road and weather conditions are appropriate,
use cruise control, if equipped.
Always follow posted speed limits or drive more
slowly when conditions require.
Keep vehicle tires properly inated.
Combine several trips into a single trip.
Replace the vehicle’s tires with the same TPC Spec
number molded into the tire’s sidewall near the size.
Follow recommended scheduled maintenance. Defensive Driving Defensive driving means “always expect the
unexpected.” The rst step in driving defensively is to
wear your safety belt — See Safety Belts: They Are for
Everyone on page 1-30 .
{ CAUTION: Assume that other road users (pedestrians,
bicyclists, and other drivers) are going to be
careless and make mistakes. Anticipate what they
might do and be ready. In addition:
Allow enough following distance between you
and the driver in front of you.
Focus on the task of driving.
Driver distraction can cause collisions resulting in
injury or possible death. These simple defensive
driving techniques could save your life.
5-2

Drunk Driving
{ CAUTION: Drinking and then driving is very dangerous. Your
reexes, perceptions, attentiveness, and judgment
can be affected by even a small amount of alcohol.
You can have a serious — or even fatal — collision
if you drive after drinking. Do not drink and drive or
ride with a driver who has been drinking. Ride home
in a cab; or if you are with a group, designate a
driver who will not drink.
Death and injury associated with drinking and driving is
a global tragedy.
Alcohol affects four things that anyone needs to drive a
vehicle: judgment, muscular coordination, vision, and
attentiveness.
Police records show that almost 40 percent 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 17,000 annual
motor vehicle-related deaths have been associated with
the use of alcohol, with about 250,000 people injured. For persons 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.
Medical research shows that alcohol in a person’s system
can make crash injuries worse, especially injuries to the
brain, spinal cord, or heart. This means that when anyone
who has been drinking — driver or passenger — is in a
crash, that person’s chance of being killed or permanently
disabled is higher than if the person had not been
drinking.
Control of a Vehicle The following three systems help to control the vehicle
while driving — brakes, steering, and accelerator.
At times, as when driving on snow or ice, it is easy to
ask more of those control systems than the tires and road
can provide. Meaning, you can lose control of the vehicle.
See StabiliTrak ®
System on page 5-6 .
Adding non-dealer/non-retailer accessories can affect
vehicle performance. See Accessories and Modifications
on page 6-3 .
5-3

Braking See Brake System Warning Light on page 3-39 .
Braking action involves perception time and reaction
time. Deciding to push the brake pedal is perception
time. Actually doing it is reaction time.
Average reaction time is about three-fourths of a second.
But that is only an average. It might be less with one
driver and as long as two or three seconds or more with
another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination,
and eyesight all play a part. So do alcohol, drugs, and
frustration. But even in three-fourths of a second, a
vehicle moving at 60 mph (100 km/h) travels 66 feet
(20 m). That could be a lot of distance in an emergency,
so keeping enough space between the vehicle and others
is important.
And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly
with the surface of the road, whether it is pavement or
gravel; the condition of the road, whether it is wet, dry, or
icy; tire tread; the condition of the brakes; the weight of
the vehicle; and the amount of brake force applied. 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 might not have time to cool between
hard stops. The brakes will wear out much faster with a
lot of heavy braking. Keeping pace with the traffic and
allowing realistic following distances eliminates a lot of
unnecessary braking. That means better braking and
longer brake life.
If the engine ever stops while the vehicle is being driven,
brake normally but do not pump the brakes. If the brakes
are pumped, the pedal could get harder to push down.
If the engine stops, there will still be some power brake
assist but it will be used when the brake is applied. Once
the power assist is used up, it can take longer to stop and
the brake pedal will be harder to push.
Adding non-dealer/non-retailer accessories can affect
vehicle performance. See Accessories and Modifications
on page 6-3 .
5-4

Antilock Brake System (ABS) This vehicle has the Antilock Brake System (ABS), an
advanced electronic braking system that helps prevent a
braking skid.
When the engine is started and the vehicle begins to
drive away, ABS checks itself. A momentary motor or
clicking noise might be heard while this test is going on.
This is normal.
If there is a problem with
ABS, this warning light
stays on. See Antilock
Brake System (ABS)
Warning Light on
page 3-40 .
Along with ABS, the vehicle has a Dynamic Rear
Proportioning (DRP) system. If there is a DRP problem,
both the brake and ABS warning lights 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/retailer
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 the 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 to each wheel, as
required, faster than any driver could. This can help
the driver steer around the obstacle while braking hard.
As the brakes are applied, the computer keeps receiving
updates on wheel speed and controls braking pressure
accordingly.
Remember: ABS does not change the time needed to get
a foot up to the brake pedal or always decrease stopping
distance. If you get too close to the vehicle in front of you,
there will not be enough time to apply the brakes if that
vehicle suddenly slows or stops. Always leave enough
room up ahead to stop, even with ABS.
Using ABS Do not pump the brakes. Just hold the brake pedal
down rmly and let antilock work. The brakes might
vibrate or some noise might be heard, but this is normal.
5-5

Braking in Emergencies ABS allows the driver to steer and brake at the same
time. In many emergencies, steering can help more than
even the very best braking.
Brake Assist This vehicle has a Brake Assist feature designed to assist
the driver in stopping or decreasing vehicle speed in
emergency driving conditions. This feature uses the
stability system hydraulic brake control module to
supplement the power brake system under conditions
where the driver has quickly and forcefully applied the
brake pedal in an attempt to quickly stop or slow down
the vehicle. The stability system hydraulic brake control
module increases brake pressure at each corner of the
vehicle until the ABS activates. Minor brake pedal
pulsations or pedal movement during this time is normal
and the driver should continue to apply the brake pedal
as the driving situation dictates The Brake Assist feature
will automatically disengage when the brake pedal is
released or brake pedal pressure is quickly decreased. StabiliTrak ®
System The vehicle has a vehicle stability enhancement system
called StabiliTrak. It is an advanced computer controlled
system that assists the driver with directional control of
the vehicle in difficult driving conditions.
StabiliTrak activates when the computer senses a
discrepancy between the intended path and the direction
the vehicle is actually traveling. StabiliTrak selectively
applies braking pressure at any one of the vehicle’s
brakes to assist the driver with keeping the vehicle on the
intended path.
When the vehicle is started and begins to move, the
system performs several diagnostic checks to insure
there are no problems. The system may be heard or felt
while it is working. This is normal and does not mean
there is a problem with the 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 cruise control is being used when StabiliTrak activates,
the cruise control automatically disengages. The cruise
control can be re-engaged when road conditions allow.
See Cruise Control on page 3-13 .
5-6

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), the
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), the vehicle should be taken in for service.
For more information on the DIC messages, see Driver
Information Center (DIC) on page 3-47 .
The StabiliTrak light will
ash on the instrument
panel cluster when the
system is both on and
activated.
The system may be heard or felt while it is working; this
is normal. The traction control disable
button is located on the
instrument panel below the
climate controls.
The traction control part of StabiliTrak can be turned off
by pressing and releasing the StabiliTrak button if both
systems (traction control and StabiliTrak) were previously
on. To disable both traction control and StabiliTrak, press
and hold the button for ve seconds.
Traction control and StabiliTrak can be turned on by
pressing and releasing the StabiliTrak button if not
automatically shut off for any other reason.
When the TCS or StabiliTrak system is turned off,
the StabiliTrak light and the appropriate TCS off or
StabiliTrak off message will be displayed on the DIC to
warn the driver. The vehicle will still have brake-traction
control when traction control is off, but will not be able
to use the engine speed management system. See
“Traction Control Operation” next for more information.
When the traction control system has been turned off,
system noises may still be heard as a result of the
brake-traction control coming on.
5-7

It is recommended to leave the system on for normal
driving conditions, but it may be necessary to turn the
system off if the vehicle is stuck in sand, mud, ice or
snow, and you want to “rock” the vehicle to attempt to
free it. It may also be necessary to turn off the system
when driving in extreme off-road conditions where high
wheel spin is required. See If Your Vehicle is Stuck in
Sand, Mud, Ice, or Snow on page 5-31 .
Traction Control Operation The traction control system is part of the StabiliTrak
system. Traction control limits wheel spin by reducing
engine power to the wheels (engine speed management)
and by applying brakes to each individual wheel
(brake-traction control) as necessary.
The traction control system is enabled automatically
when the vehicle is started. It will activate and the
StabiliTrak light will ash if it senses that any of the
wheels are spinning or beginning to lose traction
while driving. If traction control is turned off, only the
brake-traction control portion of traction control will work.
The engine speed management will be disabled. In this
mode, engine power is not reduced automatically and the
driven wheels can spin more freely. This can cause the
brake-traction control to activate constantly. Notice: If the wheel(s) of one axle is allowed
to spin excessively while the StabiliTrak, ABS and
brake warning lights and any relevant DIC messages
are displayed, the transfer case could be damaged.
The repairs would not be covered by the vehicle
warranty. Reduce engine power and do not spin
the wheel(s) excessively while these lights and
messages are displayed.
The traction control system may activate on dry or
rough roads or under conditions such as heavy
acceleration while turning or abrupt upshifts/downshifts
of the transmission. When this happens, a reduction in
acceleration may be noticed, or a noise or vibration may
be heard. This is normal.
If cruise control is being used when the system activates,
the StabiliTrak light will ash and cruise control will
automatically disengage. Cruise control may be
reengaged when road conditions allow. See Cruise
Control on page 3-13 .
StabiliTrak may also turn off automatically if it determines
that a problem exists with the system. If the problem does
not clear itself after restarting the vehicle, see your
dealer/retailer for service.
5-8