
Black plate (43,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-43
In addition, your dealer and the
service manual have information
about the location of the airbag
sensors, sensing and diagnostic
module and airbag wiring.
Airbag System Check
The airbag system does not need
regularly scheduled maintenance
or replacement. Make sure the
airbag readiness light is working.
SeeAirbag Readiness Light on
page 5‑14 for more information.
Notice: If an airbag covering is
damaged, opened, or broken,
the airbag may not work properly.
Do not open or break the airbag
coverings. If there are any
opened or broken airbag covers,
have the airbag covering and/or
airbag module replaced. For the
location of the airbag modules,
see What Makes an Airbag
Inflate? on page 3‑34. See your
dealer for service.
Replacing Airbag System
Parts After a Crash
{WARNING
A crash can damage the
airbag systems in the vehicle.
A damaged airbag system
may not work properly and
may not protect you and your
passenger(s) in a crash, resulting
in serious injury or even death.
To help make sure the airbag
systems are working properly
after a crash, have them
inspected and any necessary
replacements made as soon
as possible. If an airbag inflates, you will need
to replace airbag system parts.
See your dealer for service.
If the airbag readiness light stays on
after the vehicle is started or comes
on when you are driving, the airbag
system may not work properly.
Have the vehicle serviced right
away. See
Airbag Readiness Light
on page 5‑14 for more information.

Black plate (65,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-65
You will be using the lap-shoulder
belt to secure the child restraint in
this position. Follow the instructions
that came with the child restraint.
1. Move the seat as far back asit will go before securing the
forward-facing child restraint.
When the passenger sensing
system has turned off the
right front passenger frontal
airbag and seat‐mounted side
airbag, the off indicator on
the passenger airbag status
indicator should light and stay
lit when you start the vehicle.
See Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 5‑15.
2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder portions of
the vehicle's safety belt through
or around the restraint. The child
restraint instructions will show
you how.
4. Push the latch plate into thebuckle until it clicks.
Position the release button on
the buckle so that the safety belt
could be quickly unbuckled if
necessary.5. Pull the shoulder belt all the wayout of the retractor to set the
lock. When the retractor lock is
set, the belt can be tightened but
not pulled out of the retractor.

Black plate (1,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-1
Instruments and
Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 5-2
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 5-2
Heated Steering Wheel . . . . . . . 5-3
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . 5-3
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Clock (Without DateDisplay) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Clock (With Date Display) . . . . . 5-6
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11 Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Engine Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . 5-14
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . 5-14
Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Charging System Light . . . . . . 5-16
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Electric Parking Brake Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Traction Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Electronic Stability Control (ESC) Indicator Light . . . . . . . 5-22
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)/Traction Control
System (TCS) Indicator/
Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22 Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 5-23
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 5-24
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . 5-25
Taillamp Indicator Light . . . . . . 5-25
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Information Displays
Driver Information
Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Head-Up Display (HUD) . . . . . 5-29
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
Battery Voltage and Charging Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
Brake System Messages . . . . 5-33
Compass Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-34
Cruise Control Messages . . . . 5-34
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-34
Engine Cooling System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-35

Black plate (3,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-3
SeeBluetooth (Overview) on
page 7‑46 orBluetooth
(Infotainment Controls) on
page 7‑48 orBluetooth (Voice
Recognition) on page 7‑53,
the OnStar Owner's Guide, or
the separate Navigation System
Manual for more information.
$ i(Mute/End Call): Press
to silence the vehicle speakers
only. Press again to turn the
sound on. For vehicles with
OnStar or Bluetooth systems,
press to reject an incoming call,
or end a current call.
_SRC^(Rotary Control): Press
to select an audio source.
Press
_or^to select the next or
previous favorite radio station, CD,
DVD track/chapter (with navigation),
or MP3 track.
+
x− (Volume): Press + to
increase the volume. Press −to
decrease the volume.
Heated Steering Wheel
For vehicles with a heated steering
wheel, the button for this feature
is located on the climate control
system.
(: Press to turn the heated
steering wheel on or off. A light
on the button displays when the
feature is turned on.
The steering wheel takes about
three minutes to start heating.
Horn
Press near the horn symbols or
press on the steering wheel pad
to sound the horn.
Windshield Wiper/Washer
The windshield wiper lever is
on the side of the steering
column. With the ignition in
ACC/ACCESSORY or ON/RUN,
move the windshield wiper lever
to select the wiper speed.
2: Use for fast wipes.
1: Use for slow wipes.

Black plate (6,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
5-6 Instruments and Controls
3. Turn the Menu knob to adjustthe highlighted value.
4. Press the SELECT button to select the next value.
5. To save the time and return to the Time Settings menu, press
the
0BACK button at any time
or press the SELECT button
after adjusting the minutes.
Setting the 12/24 Hour Format
1. Press the CONFIG button and select Time Settings,
or press
H.
2. Highlight 12/24 Hour Format.
3. Press the SELECT button to select the 12 hour or 24 hour
display format.
Clock (With Date Display)
The infotainment system controls
are used to access the time and
date settings through the menu
system. See Operation on page 7‑7
for information about how to use
the menu system.
Setting the Time and Date
1. Press the CONFIG button and select Time and Date Settings,
or press
H.
2. Select Set Time or Set Date.
3. Turn the Menu knob to adjust the highlighted value. 4. Press the SELECT button to
select the next value.
5. To save the time or date and return to the Time and
Date Settings menu, press
the
0BACK button at any time
or press the SELECT button
after adjusting the minutes
or year.
Setting the 12/24 Hour Format
1. Press the CONFIG button and select Time and Date Settings,
or press
H.
2. Highlight Set Time Format.
3. Press the SELECT button to select the 12 hour or 24 hour
display format.

Black plate (7,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-7
Setting the Month & Day
Format
1. Press the CONFIG button andselect Time and Date Settings,
or press
H.
2. Highlight Set Date Format.
3. Press the SELECT button to select MM/DD/YY
(month/day/year) or DD/MM/YY
(day/month/year).
Setting the Auto Time Adjust
1. Press the CONFIG button andselect Time and Date Settings,
or press
H.
2. Highlight Auto Time Adjust.
3. Press the SELECT button to turn Auto Time Adjust on or off.
4. Press the SELECT button to select Time Zone, and then
select the Time Zone.
5. Press the SELECT button to turn Daylight Savings on or off.
Power Outlets
The accessory power outlets can be
used to plug in electrical equipment,
such as a cell phone or MP3 player.
There are two accessory power
outlets. One is located under the
armrest inside the center console
storage and the other is on the rear
of the center floor console.
These outlets are powered
when the ignition is in ON/RUN
or ACC/ACCESSORY, or until
the driver door is opened within
10 minutes of turning off the vehicle.
See Retained Accessory Power
(RAP) on page 9‑24.

Black plate (8,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
5-8 Instruments and Controls
Remove the cover to access and
replace when not in use.
Certain electrical accessories
may not be compatible with the
accessory power outlets and could
overload vehicle or adapter fuses.
If there is a problem, see your
dealer.
When adding electrical equipment,
be sure to follow the installation
instructions included with the
equipment. SeeAdd-On Electrical
Equipment on page 9‑62.
Notice: Hanging heavy
equipment from the power
outlet can cause damage not
covered by the vehicle warranty.
The power outlets are designed
for accessory power plugs only,
such as cell phone charge cords. Power Outlet 110 Volt Alternating
Current
The vehicle may have a power
outlet that can be used to plug
in electrical equipment with a
maximum limit of 150 watts.
The power outlet is located on the
rear of the center console.An indicator light on the outlet
comes on when in use. The light
comes on when the ignition is in
ON/RUN and equipment requiring
less than 150 watts is plugged into
the outlet, and no system fault is
detected.
If you try to connect equipment
using more than 150 watts or
a system fault is detected, the
equipment may operate for a
short period and turn itself off.
A protection circuit shuts off the
power supply and the indicator
light turns off. To reset the circuit,
unplug the item and plug it back
in or turn the Remote Accessory
Power (RAP) off and then back on.

Black plate (9,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-9
SeeRetained Accessory Power
(RAP) on page 9‑24. Prolonged
usage of the power outlet at the
maximum load of 150 watts may
cause the outlet to overheat and
automatically shut down. The power
restarts when equipment that
operates within the limit is plugged
into the outlet and a system fault is
not detected.
The power outlet is not designed for
and may not work properly, if any of
the following is plugged in:
.Equipment with high
initial peak wattage such as:
compressor-driven refrigerators
and electric power tools.
.Other equipment requiring
an extremely stable
power supply such as:
microcomputer-controlled
electric blankets, touch
sensor lamps, etc.
Warning Lights,
Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning lights and gauges can
signal that something is wrong
before it becomes serious enough
to cause an expensive repair or
replacement. Paying attention to
the warning lights and gauges
could prevent injury.
Warning lights come on when there
could be a problem with a vehicle
function. Some warning lights come
on briefly when the engine is started
to indicate they are working. Gauges can indicate when there
could be a problem with a vehicle
function. Often gauges and warning
lights work together to indicate a
problem with the vehicle.
When one of the warning lights
comes on and stays on while
driving, or when one of the gauges
shows there may be a problem,
check the section that explains what
to do. Follow this manual's advice.
Waiting to do repairs can be costly
and even dangerous.