2009 CADILLAC STS window

Seats and Restraint System............................. 1-1
Front Seats
............................................... 1-2
Rear Seats
............................................... 1-6
Safety Belts
.............................................. 1-7
Child Restraints
.......................................1-28
Airbag System
.........................................1-51
Restraint System Check
............................1-66
Features and Controls..................................... 2-1
Keys
........................................................ 2-3
Doors and Locks
......................................2-13
Windows
.................................................2-18
Theft-Deterrent Systems
............................2-21
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle
...........2-25
Mirrors
....................................................2-38
Object Detection Systems
..........................2-42
OnStar
®System
......................................2-50
Universal Home Remote System
................2-53
Storage Areas
.........................................2-60
Sunroof
..................................................2-60
Vehicle Personalization
.............................2-61Instrument Panel............................................. 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview
.......................... 3-4
Climate Controls
......................................3-48
Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators
........3-55
Driver Information Center (DIC)
..................3-72
Audio System(s)
.......................................3-97
Driving Your Vehicle....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and the Vehicle
....... 4-2
Towing
...................................................4-29
Service and Appearance Care.......................... 5-1
Service
..................................................... 5-3
Fuel
......................................................... 5-5
Checking Things Under
the Hood
.............................................5-10
All-Wheel Drive
........................................5-47
Rear Axle
...............................................5-48
Front Axle
...............................................5-49
Headlamp Aiming
.....................................5-50
Bulb Replacement
....................................5-51
Windshield Replacement
...........................5-52
2009 Cadillac STS/STS-V Owner ManualM

A booster seat (C-D) is a child restraint designed to
improve the t of the vehicle’s safety belt system.
A booster seat can also help a child to see out the
window.
Securing an Add-On Child Restraint in
the Vehicle
{CAUTION:
A child can be seriously injured or killed in a crash
if the child restraint is not properly secured in the
vehicle. Secure the child restraint properly in the
vehicle using the vehicle’s safety belt or LATCH
system, following the instructions that came with
that child restraint and the instructions in this
manual.
To help reduce the chance of injury, the child restraint
must be secured in the vehicle. Child restraint systems
must be secured in vehicle seats by lap belts or the
lap belt portion of a lap-shoulder belt, or by the LATCH
system. SeeLower Anchors and Tethers for Children
(LATCH) on page 1-39for more information. A child can
be endangered in a crash if the child restraint is not
properly secured in the vehicle.
1-36

Here are the most important things to know about the
airbag system:
{CAUTION:
You can be severely injured or killed in a crash if
you are not wearing your safety belt — even if you
have airbags. Airbags are designed to work with
safety belts, but do not replace them. Also, airbags
are not designed to deploy in every crash. In some
crashes safety belts are your only restraint. See
When Should an Airbag Inflate? on page 1-56.
Wearing your safety belt during a crash helps
reduce your chance of hitting things inside the
vehicle or being ejected from it. Airbags are
“supplemental restraints” to the safety belts.
Everyone in your vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly — whether or not there is an airbag for that
person.
{CAUTION:
Airbags inate with great force, faster than the blink
of an eye. Anyone who is up against, or very close
to, any airbag when it inates can be seriously
injured or killed. Do not sit unnecessarily close to
the airbag, as you would be if you were sitting on
the edge of your seat or leaning forward. Safety
belts help keep you in position before and during a
crash. Always wear your safety belt, even with
airbags. The driver should sit as far back as
possible while still maintaining control of the
vehicle.
Occupants should not lean on or sleep against the
door or side windows in seating positions with
seat-mounted side impact airbags and/or roof-rail
airbags.
1-52

The roof-rail airbags for the driver, right front passenger,
and second row outboard passengers are in the
ceiling above the side windows.
{CAUTION:
If something is between an occupant and an airbag,
the airbag might not inate properly or it might force
the object into that person causing severe injury or
even death. The path of an inating airbag must
be kept clear. Do not put anything between an
occupant and an airbag, and do not attach or put
anything on the steering wheel hub or on or near
any other airbag covering.
Do not use seat accessories that block the ination
path of a seat-mounted side impact airbag.
Never secure anything to the roof of a vehicle with
roof-rail airbags by routing a rope or tie down
through any door or window opening. If you do, the
path of an inating roof-rail airbag will be blocked. Driver Side shown, Passenger Side similar
1-55

Seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail airbags are
not intended to inate in frontal impacts, near-frontal
impacts, rollovers, or rear impacts. A seat-mounted side
impact airbag is intended to deploy on the side of the
vehicle that is struck. A roof-rail airbag is intended
to deploy on the side of the vehicle that is struck.
In any particular crash, no one can say whether an airbag
should have inated simply because of the damage to a
vehicle or because of what the repair costs were. For
frontal airbags, ination is determined by what the vehicle
hits, the angle of the impact, and how quickly the vehicle
slows down. For seat-mounted side impact and roof-rail
airbags, deployment is determined by the location and
severity of the side impact.
What Makes an Airbag Inate?
In a deployment event, the sensing system sends an
electrical signal triggering a release of gas from the
inator. Gas from the inator lls the airbag causing the
bag to break out of the cover and deploy. The inator, the
airbag, and related hardware are all part of the airbag
module.
Frontal airbag modules are located inside the
steering wheel and instrument panel. For vehicles with
seat-mounted side impact airbags, there are airbagmodules in the side of the front seatbacks closest to
the door. For vehicles with roof-rail airbags, there
are airbag modules in the ceiling of the vehicle, near
the side windows that have occupant seating positions.
How Does an Airbag Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel
or the instrument panel. In moderate to severe side
collisions, even belted occupants can contact the inside
of the vehicle.
Airbags supplement the protection provided by safety
belts. Frontal airbags distribute the force of the impact
more evenly over the occupant’s upper body, stopping
the occupant more gradually. Seat-mounted side impact
and roof-rail airbags distribute the force of the impact
more evenly over the occupant’s upper body.
But airbags would not help in many types of collisions,
primarily because the occupant’s motion is not toward
those airbags. SeeWhen Should an Airbag Inflate? on
page 1-56for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything more
than a supplement to safety belts.
1-57

What Will You See After an Airbag
Inates?
After the frontal airbags and seat-mounted side impact
airbags inate, they quickly deate, so quickly that
some people may not even realize an airbag inated.
Roof-rail airbags may still be at least partially inated
for some time after they deploy. Some components
of the airbag module may be hot for several minutes.
For location of the airbag modules, seeWhat Makes
an Airbag Inflate? on page 1-57.
The parts of the airbag that come into contact with you
may be warm, but not too hot to touch. There may
be some smoke and dust coming from the vents in the
deated airbags. Airbag ination does not prevent
the driver from seeing out of the windshield or being
able to steer the vehicle, nor does it prevent people
from leaving the vehicle.
{CAUTION:
When an airbag inates, there may be dust in the
air. This dust could cause breathing problems for
people with a history of asthma or other breathing
trouble. To avoid this, everyone in the vehicle
should get out as soon as it is safe to do so.
If you have breathing problems but cannot get out
of the vehicle after an airbag inates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or a door. If you
experience breathing problems following an airbag
deployment, you should seek medical attention.
The vehicle has a feature that may automatically unlock
the doors, turn the interior lamps on, and turn the hazard
warning ashers on when the airbags inate. You can
lock the doors, turn the interior lamps off, and turn the
hazard warning ashers off by using the controls for
those features.
1-58

Keys...............................................................2-3
Keyless Access System...................................2-4
Keyless Access System Operation....................2-5
Remote Vehicle Start....................................2-11
Doors and Locks............................................2-13
Door Locks..................................................2-13
Power Door Locks........................................2-13
Programmable Automatic Door Locks..............2-14
Rear Door Security Locks..............................2-14
Lockout Protection........................................2-15
Trunk..........................................................2-15
Windows........................................................2-18
Power Windows............................................2-19
Sun Visors...................................................2-21
Theft-Deterrent Systems..................................2-21
Theft-Deterrent System..................................2-21
Valet Lockout Switch.....................................2-23
Immobilizer..................................................2-24
Immobilizer Operation....................................2-24Starting and Operating Your Vehicle................2-25
New Vehicle Break-In....................................2-25
Ignition Positions..........................................2-26
Retained Accessory Power (RAP)...................2-27
Starting the Engine.......................................2-27
Engine Coolant Heater..................................2-29
Automatic Transmission Operation...................2-30
Parking Brake..............................................2-33
Shifting Into Park..........................................2-34
Shifting Out of Park......................................2-35
Parking Over Things That Burn.......................2-35
Engine Exhaust............................................2-36
Running the Vehicle While Parked..................2-37
Mirrors...........................................................2-38
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror...............
.2-38
Compass.....................................................2-38
Outside Power Mirrors...................................2-40
Outside Automatic Dimming Mirror..................2-40
Park Tilt Mirrors............................................2-41
Outside Convex Mirror...................................2-41
Outside Heated Mirrors..................................2-41
Section 2 Features and Controls
2-1

Keys
{CAUTION:
Leaving children in a vehicle with the keyless
access transmitter is dangerous for many reasons,
children or others could be badly injured or even
killed. They could operate the power windows or
other controls or even make the vehicle move.
The windows will function with the keyless access
transmitter in the vehicle and they could be
seriously injured or killed if caught in the path
of a closing window. Do not leave the keyless
access transmitter in a vehicle with children.
2-3