2011 BUICK LACROSSE ignition

Black plate (30,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
5-30 Instruments and Controls
HUD Display on the VehicleWindshield
The HUD information appears as an
image focused out toward the front
of the vehicle.
When the ignition key is turned to
ON/RUN, the HUD will display an
introductory message for a short
time, until the HUD is ready. The following indicator lights come
on the instrument panel when
activated and also appear on
the HUD:
.Turn Signal Indicators
.High-Beam Indicator Symbol
The HUD temporarily displays
some vehicle warnings, such as
CHECK TIRE PRESSURE and
FUEL LEVEL LOW when these
messages are on the DIC trip
computer.
The HUD also displays the following
messages on vehicles with these
systems, when they are active:
.TRACTION CONTROL ACTIVE
.STABILITRAK ACTIVE
When the HUD is on, the
speedometer reading is continually
displayed. The current radio
station or CD track number will
display for a short period of time after the radio or CD track status
changes. This happens whenever
radio information is changed.
The speedometer size is reduced
when radio, CD information,
warnings, or turn-by-turn navigation
information are displayed on
the HUD.
The HUD control is located to the
left of the steering wheel.

Black plate (32,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
5-32 Instruments and Controls
All formats will show the turn-by-turn
navigation information and provide
details about the next driving
maneuver to be made. When
you near your destination, the
HUD will display a distance bar
that will empty the closer you get
to your destination. All navigation
information is provided to the HUD
by the navigation radio or OnStar
®
service, for vehicles that have these
features.
English Shown, Metric Similar
The HUD image displayed on
the windshield will automatically
dim and brighten to compensate
for outside lighting. However, the
HUD brightness control can still
be adjusted as needed. The HUD image can temporarily
light up depending on the angle
and position of the sunlight on the
HUD display. This is normal and
will change when the angle of
the sunlight on the HUD display
changes.
Polarized sunglasses could make
the HUD image harder to see.
Care of the HUD
Clean the inside of the windshield
as needed to remove any dirt or film
that could reduce the sharpness or
clarity of the HUD image.
To clean the HUD lens, use a soft,
clean cloth that has household glass
cleaner sprayed on it. Wipe the
HUD lens gently, then dry it. Do not
spray cleaner directly on the lens
because the cleaner could leak into
the unit.
If You Cannot See the HUD
Image When the Ignition Is On
.Is anything covering the
HUD lens?
.Is the HUD dimmer setting bright
enough?
.Is the HUD image adjusted to
the proper height?
.Are you wearing polarized
sunglasses?
.Still no HUD image? Check the
fuse in the instrument panel fuse
block. See
Instrument Panel
Fuse Block on page 10‑42.
If the HUD Image Is Not Clear
.Is the HUD image too bright?
.Are the windshield and HUD
lens clean?
If the HUD image is not correct,
contact your dealer.
Keep in mind that the windshield is
part of the HUD system.

Black plate (41,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-41
Auto Rear Defog
This will allow you to turn the auto
rear defog on or off. This feature
will automatically turn on the rear
defogger when it is cold outside.
Press the MENU/SELECT
knob when Auto Rear Defog is
highlighted to open the menu.
Turn the knob to highlight On
or Off. Press the knob to confirm
the selection and move back to
the last menu.
Comfort and Convenience
Select the Comfort and
Convenience menu and the
following will be displayed:
.Chime Volume
.Driver Seat Easy Exit
.Park Tilt MirrorsChime Volume
This allows the selection of the
chime volume level.
Press the MENU/SELECT knob
when Chime Volume is highlighted.
Turn the knob to select Normal or
High. Press the knob to confirm
and go back to the last menu.
Driver Seat Easy Exit
When on, this feature will move
the driver seat rearward upon
turning the ignition off and the driver
door being opened. This may be
performed to make it easier to exit
the vehicle. See
“Easy Exit Driver
Seat” under Power Seat Adjustment
on page 3‑5 for more information.
This allows you to turn the easy exit
seat feature on or off.
Press the MENU/SELECT knob
when Driver Seat Easy Exit is
highlighted. Turn the knob to select
On or Off. Press the knob to confirm
and go back to the last menu. Park Tilt Mirrors
When on, both the driver and
passenger mirrors will tilt downward
when the vehicle is shifted to
R (Reverse) to improve visibility of
the ground near the rear wheels.
They will return to their previous
driving position when the vehicle
is shifted out of R (Reverse),
the ignition is turned to OFF, or
the vehicle is left in R (Reverse).
See
Park Tilt Mirrors on page 2‑17
for more information.
This allows you to turn the park tilt
mirrors feature on or off.
Press the MENU/SELECT
knob when Park Tilt Mirrors is
highlighted. Turn the knob to select
Driver & Passenger or Off. Press
the knob to confirm and go back
to the last menu.

Black plate (2,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
6-2 Lighting
Turn the control to the following
positions:
O(Off):Turns off the exterior
lamps. The knob returns to the
AUTO position after it is released.
Turn to off again to reactivate the
AUTO mode.
AUTO (Automatic): Automatically
turns the exterior lamps on and off,
depending on outside lighting.
The current status of the AUTO
system is displayed in the Driver
Information Center (DIC) uplevel
display. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑25.
;(Parking Lamps): Turns on
the parking lamps together with the
following:
.Sidemarker Lamps
.Taillamps
.License Plate Lamps
.Instrument Panel Lights
5(Headlamps): Turns on the
headlamps together with the
following:
.Sidemarker Lamps
.Taillamps
.License Plate Lamps
.Instrument Panel Lights
.Parking Lamps
Exterior Lamps Off
Reminder
A warning chime sounds if the driver
door is opened while the ignition is
off and the exterior lamps are on.
Headlamp High/
Low-Beam Changer
2 3
Headlamp High/Low‐Beam
Changer: Push the turn signal/lane
change lever away from you and
release, to turn the high beams on.
To return to low beams, push the
lever again or pull it toward you
and release.
This indicator light turns on in the
instrument panel cluster when the
high‐beam headlamps are on.
Flash-to-Pass
To flash the high beams, pull the
turn signal/lane change lever toward
you, and release.

Black plate (3,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-3
Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL)
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) can
make it easier for others to see the
front of your vehicle during the day.
Fully functional daytime running
lamps are required on all vehicles
first sold in Canada.
The DRL system turns on the
low-beam headlamps at a reduced
brightness. For vehicles with
High Intensity Discharge (HID)
headlamps, the dedicated DRL
will come on when all of the
following conditions are met:
.The engine is running.
.The exterior lamp band is
in AUTO.
.The light sensor determines it is
daytime.When the DRL are on, the
low-beam headlamps will be
on. The taillamps, sidemarker,
instrument panel lights, and
other lamps will not be on.
The DRL turn off when the
headlamps are turned to
Oor
the ignition is off.
Automatic Headlamp
System
When the exterior lamp control is
set to AUTO and it is dark enough
outside, the headlamps come on
automatically. There is a light sensor located on
top of the instrument panel. Do not
cover the sensor or the headlamps
will come on when they are not
needed.
The system may also turn on the
headlamps when driving through
a parking garage or tunnel.
When it is bright enough outside,
the headlamps will turn off or may
change to Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL).
The automatic headlamp system
turns off when the exterior lamp
control is turned to
Oor the ignition
is off.

Black plate (5,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-5
Fog Lamps
For vehicles with fog lamps, the
button is located on the exterior
lamp control, on the outboard side
of the steering wheel.
To turn on the fog lamps, the ignition
and the headlamps or parking lamps
must be on.
If the fog lamps are turned on while
the exterior lamp switch is in the
AUTO position, the headlamps
come on automatically.
#:Press to turn on or off. An
indicator light on the instrument
panel cluster comes on when the
fog lamps are on.
Some localities have laws that
require the headlamps to be on
along with the fog lamps.
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel
Illumination Control
The brightness of the instrument
panel lighting and steering
wheel controls can be adjusted.
Use the thumbwheel located next
to the exterior lamps control on the
outboard side of the steering wheel.
D: Move the thumbwheel up or
down to brighten or dim the lights.
Dome Lamps
The interior lamps control located in
the overhead console controls both
the front and rear interior lamps.
To operate, press the following
buttons:
((Off): Turns the lamps off.
HDoor: Turns the lamps on
when any door is opened.
'ON: Keeps the lamps on all
the time.
Reading Lamps
There are front and rear reading
lamps.
The front reading lamps are located
in the overhead console.
# $: Press to turn each lamp on
or off.
The rear reading lamps are located
in the headliner.
Sun Visor Lamps
This lamp turns on when the cover
is opened.

Black plate (6,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
6-6 Lighting
Lighting Features
Entry Lighting
The headlamps, taillamps, license
plate lamps, back‐up lamps, dome
lamps, and most of the interior lights
turn on briefly, when the Remote
Keyless Entry (RKE)
Kbutton is
pressed, or when the door handle is
pulled on a keyless access vehicle.
See Ignition Positions (Key Access)
on page 9‑17 orIgnition Positions
(Keyless Access) on page 9‑19.
After about 30 seconds the exterior
lamps turn off, and then the dome
lamps and remaining interior lights
will dim to off. Entry lighting can be
disabled manually by changing the
ignition out of the OFF position,
or by pressing the RKE
Qbutton.
This feature can be changed.
See Vehicle Personalization on
page 5‑39.
Exit Lighting
The headlamps, taillamps, parking
lamps, back‐up lamps, and license
plate lamps come on at night, or in
areas with limited lighting, when the
key is removed from the ignition.
The dome lamps also come on
when the key is removed from the
ignition. The exterior lights and
dome lamps remain on after the
door is closed for a set amount of
time, then automatically turn off.
For a vehicle with keyless access,
the exterior lights and dome lamps
automatically turn on when a door
is opened after the ignition is turned
off. See Ignition Positions (Key
Access) on page 9‑17 orIgnition
Positions (Keyless Access) on
page 9‑19.
The exterior lights turn off
immediately by turning the
exterior lamps control to OFF.
This feature can be changed.
See Vehicle Personalization on
page 5‑39.
Battery Load
Management
The vehicle has Electric Power
Management (EPM) that estimates
the battery's temperature and state
of charge. It then adjusts the voltage
for best performance and extended
life of the battery.
When the battery's state of charge
is low, the voltage is raised slightly
to quickly bring the charge back up.
When the state of charge is high,
the voltage is lowered slightly to
prevent overcharging. If the vehicle
has a voltmeter gauge or a voltage
display on the Driver Information
Center (DIC), you may see the
voltage move up or down. This is
normal. If there is a problem, an
alert will be displayed.

Black plate (7,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-7
The battery can be discharged at
idle if the electrical loads are very
high. This is true for all vehicles.
This is because the generator
(alternator) may not be spinning
fast enough at idle to produce
all the power needed for very
high electrical loads.
A high electrical load occurs when
several of the following are on,
such as: headlamps, high beams,
fog lamps, rear window defogger,
climate control fan at high speed,
heated seats, engine cooling fans,
trailer loads, and loads plugged into
accessory power outlets.
EPM works to prevent excessive
discharge of the battery. It does this
by balancing the generator's output
and the vehicle's electrical needs.It can increase engine idle speed
to generate more power, whenever
needed. It can temporarily reduce
the power demands of some
accessories.
Normally, these actions occur
in steps or levels, without being
noticeable. In rare cases at the
highest levels of corrective action,
this action may be noticeable to the
driver. If so, a Driver Information
Center (DIC) message might be
displayed, such as BATTERY
SAVER ACTIVE, BATTERY
VOLTAGE LOW, or LOW BATTERY.
If one of these messages displays,
it is recommended that the driver
reduce the electrical loads as much
as possible. See
Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑25.Battery Power Protection
The battery saver feature is
designed to protect the vehicle's
battery.
If the exterior lamps or any interior
light is left on and the ignition is
turned off, the battery rundown
protection system automatically
turns the lamp off after about
10 minutes.