Black plate (22,1)Cadillac DTS Owner Manual - 2011
Tire Sealant and Compressor Kit
This vehicle may come with a jack and spare tire or a
tire sealant and compressor kit. The kit can be used to
seal small punctures in the tread area of the tire.
SeeTire Sealant and Compressor Kit
on page 6‑75for
complete operating information.
If the vehicle came with a jack and spare tire, see
Changing a Flat Tire on page 6‑83.
Engine Oil Life System
The engine oil life system calculates engine oil life
based on vehicle use and displays a DIC message
when it is necessary to change the engine oil and filter.
The oil life system should be reset to 100% only
following an oil change.
Resetting the Oil Life System
1. Turn the ignition to ON/RUN, with the engine off.
2. Press the DIC INFO button until OIL LIFE REMAINING displays.
3. Press and hold the DIC INFO RESET button until 100% displays.
4. Turn the key to LOCK/OFF.
See Engine Oil Life System on page 6‑18.
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 inflated.
.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.
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Black plate (19,1)Cadillac DTS Owner Manual - 2011
The Tire and Loading Information label also
shows the tire size of the original equipment
tires (C) and the recommended cold tire inflation
pressures (D). For more information on tires and
inflation seeTires
on page 6‑48andInflation - Tire
Pressure
on page 6‑57.
There is also important loading information on the
Certification label. It tells you the Gross Vehicle
Weight Rating (GVWR) and the Gross Axle
Weight Rating (GAWR) for the front and rear axle;
see “Certification Label” later in this section.
If you have a Professional Vehicle, a Tire and
Loading Information label specific to your vehicle
will be provided and installed by the final body
manufacturer. The Tire and Loading Information
label, should be attached to the B‐pillar of your
vehicle. See the final stage manufacturer's
manual or contact them directly. The label shows
the original tires installed on your professional
vehicle and the recommended cold tire inflation
pressures for those tires. The label also tells you
the professional vehicle's capacity weight.
Steps for Determining Correct Load Limit
1.Locate the statement “The combined weight
of occupants and cargo should never exceed
XXX kg or XXX lbs” on your vehicle's placard.
2.Determine the combined weight of the driver
and passengers that will be riding in your
vehicle.
3.Subtract the combined weight of the driver
and passengers from XXX kg or XXX lbs.
4.The resulting figure equals the available
amount of cargo and luggage load capacity.
For example, if the“XXX”amount equals
1400 lbs and there will be five 150 lb
passengers in your vehicle, the amount of
available cargo and luggage load capacity is
650 lbs (1400 −750 (5 x 150) = 650 lbs).
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Black plate (1,1)Cadillac DTS Owner Manual - 2011
Section 6 Service and Appearance Care
Service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Accessories and Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
California Proposition 65 Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
California Perchlorate Materials Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Doing Your Own Service Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Adding Equipment to the Outside of the Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Gasoline Octane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
California Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Fuels in Foreign Countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Filling the Tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Filling a Portable Fuel Container . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-11
Checking Things Under the Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-12
Hood Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-13
Engine Compartment Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-14
Engine Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-15
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-18
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
Automatic Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-21
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-24
Engine Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-26
Engine Overheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-29 Overheated Engine Protection
Operating Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-31
Power Steering Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-32
Windshield Washer Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-32
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-33
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-36
Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-38
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-43
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-46
High Intensity Discharge (HID) Lighting . . . . . . . . 6-46
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement . . . . . . . . . . .6-46
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-48
Tire Sidewall Labeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-49
Tire Terminology and Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-54
Inflation - Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-57
High-Speed Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-59
Tire Pressure Monitor System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-60
Tire Pressure Monitor Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-61
Tire Inspection and Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-65
When It Is Time for New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-67
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-68
Different Size Tires and Wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-70
Uniform Tire Quality Grading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-70
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-72
Wheel Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-72
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Black plate (49,1)Cadillac DTS Owner Manual - 2011
Tire Sidewall Labeling
Useful information about a tire is molded into its
sidewall.
Passenger Car Tire Example
(A) Tire Size:The tire size is a combination of
letters and numbers used to define a particular
tire's width, height, aspect ratio, construction type
and service description. See the “Tire Size”
illustration later in this section for more detail. (B) TPC Spec (Tire Performance Criteria
Specification)
:Original equipment tires designed
to GM's specific tire performance criteria have a
TPC specification code molded onto the sidewall.
GM's TPC specifications meet or exceed all
federal safety guidelines.
(C) DOT (Department of Transportation)
:The
Department of Transportation (DOT) code
indicates that the tire is in compliance with the
U.S. Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle
Safety Standards.
(D) Tire Identification Number (TIN)
:The letters
and numbers following the DOT code are the Tire
Identification Number (TIN). The TIN shows the
manufacturer and plant code, tire size, and date
the tire was manufactured. The TIN is molded
onto both sides of the tire, although only one side
may have the date of manufacture.
(E) Tire Ply Material
:The type of cord and
number of plies in the sidewall and under the
tread.
(F) Uniform Tire Quality Grading (UTQG)
:Tire
manufacturers are required to grade tires based
on three performance factors: treadwear, traction
and temperature resistance. For more information
see Uniform Tire Quality Grading
on page 6‑70.
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(G) Maximum Cold Inflation Load Limit:
Maximum load that can be carried and the
maximum pressure needed to support that load.
For information on recommended tire pressure
seeInflation - Tire Pressure
on page 6‑57and
Loading the Vehicle
on page 5‑18.
Compact Spare Tire Example
(A) Temporary Use Only:The compact spare
tire or temporary use tire has a tread life of
approximately 3,000 miles (5 000 km) and should not be driven at speeds over 65 mph (105 km/h).
The compact spare tire is for emergency use
when a regular road tire has lost air and gone flat.
See
Spare Tire
on page 6‑93andIf a Tire Goes
Flat
on page 6‑73.
(B) Tire Ply Material
:The type of cord and
number of plies in the sidewall and under the
tread.
(C) Tire Identification Number (TIN)
:The Tire
Identification Number (TIN). The TIN shows the
manufacturer and plant code, tire size, and date
the tire was manufactured. The TIN is molded
onto both sides of the tire, although only one side
may have the date of manufacture.
(D) Maximum Cold Inflation Load Limit
:
Maximum load that can be carried and the
maximum pressure needed to support that load.
See Inflation - Tire Pressure
on page 6‑57and
Loading the Vehicle
on page 5‑18.
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(E) Tire Inflation:The temporary use tire or
compact spare tire should be inflated to 60 psi
(420 kPa). For more information on tire pressure
and inflation see Inflation - Tire Pressure
on
page 6‑57
and Spare Tireon page 6‑93.
(F) Tire Size
:A combination of letters and
numbers define a tire's width, height, aspect ratio,
construction type and service description. The
letter T as the first character in the tire size means
the tire is for temporary use only.
(G) TPC Spec (Tire Performance Criteria
Specification)
:Original equipment tires designed
to GM's specific tire performance criteria have a
TPC specification code molded onto the sidewall.
GM's TPC specifications meet or exceed all
federal safety guidelines.
Light Truck Tire Example
(A) Tire Size:The tire size code is a combination
of letters and numbers used to define a particular
tire's width, height, aspect ratio, construction type
and service description. See the “Tire Size”
illustration later in this section for more detail.
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Black plate (52,1)Cadillac DTS Owner Manual - 2011
(B) TPC Spec (Tire Performance Criteria
Specification)
:Original equipment tires designed
to GM's specific tire performance criteria have a
TPC specification code molded onto the sidewall.
GM's TPC specifications meet or exceed all
federal safety guidelines.
(C) Dual Tire Maximum Load
:Maximum load
that can be carried and the maximum pressure
needed to support that load when used in a
dual configuration.
(D) DOT (Department of Transportation)
:The
Department of Transportation (DOT) code
indicates that the tire is in compliance with the
U.S. Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle
Safety Standards.
(E) Tire Identification Number (TIN)
:The letters
and numbers following DOT code are the Tire
Identification Number (TIN). The TIN shows the
manufacturer and plant code, tire size, and date
the tire was manufactured. The TIN is molded
onto both sides of the tire, although only one side
may have the date of manufacture.
(F) Tire Ply Material
:The type of cord and
number of plies in the sidewall and under the
tread. (G) Single Tire Maximum Load
:Maximum load
that can be carried and the maximum pressure
needed to support that load when used as a
single. For information on recommended tire
pressure see Inflation - Tire Pressure
on
page 6‑57
.
Tire Size
The following illustration shows an example of a
tire size.
(A) P‐Metric Tire:The United States version
of a metric tire sizing system. The letter P as the
first character in the tire size means a passenger
vehicle tire engineered to standards set by
the U.S. Tire and Rim Association.
(B) Tire Width
:The three‐digit number indicates
the tire section width in millimeters from sidewall
to sidewall.
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(C) Aspect Ratio:A two‐digit number that
indicates the tire height‐to‐width measurements.
For example, if the tire size aspect ratio is 60, as
shown in item C of the illustration, it would mean
that the tire's sidewall is 60 percent as high as it
is wide.
(D) Construction Code
:A letter code is used to
indicate the type of ply construction in the tire.
The letter R means radial ply construction; the
letter D means diagonal or bias ply construction;
and the letter B means belted‐bias ply
construction.
(E) Rim Diameter
:Diameter of the wheel in
inches.
(F) Service Description
:These characters
represent the load index and speed rating of the
tire. The load index represents the load carry
capacity a tire is certified to carry. The speed
rating is the maximum speed a tire is certified to
carry a load.
Light Truck (LT‐Metric) Tire
(A) Light Truck (LT‐Metric) Tire:The United
States version of a metric tire sizing system. The
letters LT as the first two characters in the tire size
means a light truck tire engineered to standards
set by the U.S. Tire and Rim Association.
(B) Tire Width
:The three‐digit number indicates
the tire section width in millimeters from sidewall
to sidewall.
(C) Aspect Ratio
:A two‐digit number that
indicates the tire height‐to‐width measurements.
For example, if the tire size aspect ratio is 75, as
shown in item C of the light truck (LT‐Metric) tire
illustration, it would mean that the tire's sidewall is
75 percent as high as it is wide.
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