
Black plate (1,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-1
Instruments and
Controls Controls Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 5-2
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 5-3
Heated Steering Wheel . . . . . . . 5-5
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . 5-5
Rear Window Wiper/
Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Cigarette Lighter . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Ashtrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11 Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Engine Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . 5-15
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . 5-16
Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Charging System Light . . . . . . 5-18
Malfunction
Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18 Brake System Warning
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Antilock Brake System (ABS)
Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Tow/Haul Mode Light . . . . . . . . 5-23
StabiliTrak ®
Indicator Light . . . 5-23
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 5-24
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . 5-25
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Information Displays Driver Information
Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26

Black plate (2,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
5-2 Instruments and Controls Vehicle Messages Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Battery Voltage and Charging
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Brake System Messages . . . . 5-31
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-32
Engine Cooling System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . 5-34
Engine Power Messages . . . . 5-34
Fuel System Messages . . . . . . 5-35
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 5-35
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-35
Object Detection System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-36
Ride Control System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-37
Airbag System Messages . . . . 5-38 Anti-Theft Alarm System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Tire Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Transmission Messages . . . . . 5-40
Vehicle Reminder
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Washer Fluid Messages . . . . . 5-40
Vehicle Personalization Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . 5-40
Universal Remote System Universal Remote System . . . 5-50
Universal Remote System
Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-50
Universal Remote System
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-55 Controls Steering Wheel
Adjustment
The power tilt wheel control is
located on the left side of the
steering column.
Push the control up or down to tilt
the steering wheel up or down.
To set the memory position, see
“ Memory Features ” in Power Seat
Adjustment on page 3 ‑ 3 .

Black plate (47,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-47Press the customization button until
EASY EXIT RECALL appears on
the DIC display. Press the set/reset
button once to access the settings
for this feature. Then press the
customization button to scroll
through the following settings:
DOOR BUTTON ONLY: No
automatic seat exit recall will occur.
The recall will only occur after
pressing the easy exit seat button.
BUTTON AND KEY OUT
(default): If the features are
enabled through the EASY EXIT
SETUP menu, the driver seat will
move back, and if the vehicle has
the power tilt wheel feature, the
power steering column will move up
when the key is removed from the
ignition or after pressing the easy
exit seat button. The automatic easy exit seat
movement will only occur one time
after the key is removed from the
ignition. If the automatic movement
has already occurred, and you put
the key back in the ignition and
remove it again, the seat and
steering column will stay in the
original exit position, unless a
memory recall took place prior to
removing the key again.
NO CHANGE: No change will be
made to this feature. The current
setting will remain.
To select a setting, press the
set/reset button while the desired
setting is displayed on the DIC. EASY EXIT SETUP
If your vehicle has this feature, it
allows you to select which areas will
recall with the automatic easy exit
seat feature. It also allows you to
turn off the automatic easy exit
feature. See “ Memory Features ” in
Power Seat Adjustment on page 3 ‑ 3
and “ EASY EXIT RECALL ” earlier
for more information.
Press the customization button until
EASY EXIT SETUP appears on the
DIC display. Press the set/reset
button once to access the settings
for this feature. Then press the
menu up/down button to scroll
through the following settings:
OFF: No automatic seat exit will
recall.
SEAT ONLY: The driver seat will
recall.

Black plate (48,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
5-48 Instruments and Controls TILT ONLY: The steering wheel tilt
feature will recall.
SEAT & TILT (default): The driver
seat and the steering wheel tilt
feature will recall.
NO CHANGE: No change will be
made to this feature. The current
setting will remain.
To select a setting, press the
set/reset button while the desired
setting is displayed on the DIC.
MEMORY SEAT RECALL
This feature allows you to select
your preference for the remote
memory seat recall feature. See
“ Memory Features ” in Power Seat
Adjustment on page 3 ‑ 3 for more
information.
Press the customization button
until MEMORY SEAT RECALL
appears on the DIC display.
Press the set/reset button once to
access the settings for this feature. Then press the customization
button to scroll through the
following settings:
OFF (default): No remote memory
seat recall will occur.
ON: The driver seat, and on some
vehicles, the outside mirrors will
automatically move to the stored
driving position when the unlock
button on the Remote Keyless
Entry (RKE) transmitter is pressed.
On some vehicles with the
adjustable throttle and brake
pedal feature, the pedals will also
automatically move.
NO CHANGE: No change will be
made to this feature. The current
setting will remain.
To select a setting, press the
set/reset button while the desired
setting is displayed on the DIC. REMOTE START
If your vehicle has this feature, it
allows you to turn the remote start
off or on. The remote start feature
allows you to start the engine from
outside of the vehicle using the
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
transmitter. See Remote Vehicle
Start on page 2 ‑ 5 for more
information.
Press the customization button until
REMOTE START appears on the
DIC display. Press the set/reset
button once to access the settings
for this feature. Then press the
customization button to scroll
through the following settings:
OFF: The remote start feature will
be disabled.
ON (default): The remote start
feature will be enabled.
NO CHANGE: No change will be
made to this feature. The current
setting will remain.

Black plate (1,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-1
Lighting Exterior Lighting Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lamps Off
Reminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Headlamp High/Low-Beam
Changer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Automatic Headlamp
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . 6-8
Turn and Lane-Change
Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9 Interior Lighting Instrument Panel Illumination
Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Reading Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-11
Lighting Features Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-11
Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-11
Battery Load Management . . . 6-12
Battery Power Protection . . . . 6-12
Exterior Lighting Exterior Lamp Controls
The exterior lamps control is located
on the instrument panel to the left of
the steering wheel.

Black plate (100,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
7-100 Infotainment System
Voice Recognition The navigation system's voice
recognition allows for hands-free
operation of the navigation system,
audio system, and OnStar (if
equipped) features.
Voice recognition can be used when
the ignition is on or when Retained
Accessory Power (RAP) is active.
See Retained Accessory Power
(RAP) on page 9 ‑ 35 for more
information. To use voice recognition:
1. Press and hold SRCE located
on the steering wheel until you
hear a beep. The audio system
mutes.
2. Clearly state one of the
commands listed on the
following pages. Helpful Hints for Stating
Commands .
When a multiple command is
available, choose the command
that works best. .
Words that are in brackets are
optional. For example, for the
command Radio [band] [select]
FM, stating Radio FM or Radio
select FM are both valid
commands. .
When the system recognizes the
command the system does one
of the following:
‐ Perform the function.
‐ Ask you to confirm your
choice.
‐ Issue an error message
“ Did not recognize. Voice
Recognition Canceled. ” .
If you experience difficulty with
the system recognizing a
command, try saying it more
softly, and wait for a few
seconds after the beep,
or repeat the command.

Black plate (1,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Driving and Operating 9-1
Driving and
Operating Driving Information Defensive Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Drunk Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Control of a Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Off-Road Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-7
Driving on Wet Roads . . . . . . . 9-18
Highway Hypnosis . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . 9-20
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
If the Vehicle is Stuck . . . . . . . . 9-23
Vehicle Load Limits . . . . . . . . . . 9-24
Starting and Operating New Vehicle Break-In . . . . . . . . 9-30
Adjustable Throttle and Brake
Pedal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-31
Ignition Positions . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-32
Starting the Engine . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Engine Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-35 Retained Accessory
Power (RAP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-35
Shifting Into Park . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-36
Shifting Out of Park . . . . . . . . . . 9-37
Parking Over Things
That Burn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Active Fuel Management ®
. . . 9-38
Engine Exhaust Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Running the Vehicle While
Parked . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-39
Automatic Transmission Automatic Transmission . . . . . 9-40
Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-43
Tow/Haul Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-43
Drive Systems All-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-45
Brakes Antilock Brake
System (ABS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-45
Parking Brake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-46
Brake Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-47 Ride Control Systems StabiliTrak ®
System . . . . . . . . . 9-47
Locking Rear Axle . . . . . . . . . . . 9-49
Road Sensing Suspension . . . 9-50
Continuous Damping
Control (CDC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-50
Automatic Level Control . . . . . 9-50
Cruise Control Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-51
Object Detection Systems Ultrasonic Parking Assist . . . . 9-54
Side Blind Zone
Alert (SBZA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-56
Rear Vision
Camera (RVC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-59
Fuel Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-63
Recommended Fuel . . . . . . . . . 9-64
Gasoline Specifications (U.S.
and Canada Only) . . . . . . . . . . 9-64
California Fuel
Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-64
Fuels in Foreign Countries . . . 9-65
Fuel Additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-65

Black plate (5,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Driving and Operating 9-5
Steering Power Steering If the vehicle is a hybrid, see
the hybrid supplement for more
information.
If power steering assist is lost
because the engine stops or the
power steering system is not
functioning, the vehicle can be
steered but it will take more effort.
Steering Tips It is important to take curves at a
reasonable speed.
Traction in a curve depends on the
condition of the tires and the road
surface, the angle at which the
curve is banked, and vehicle speed.
While in a curve, speed is the one
factor that can be controlled.
If there is a need to reduce speed,
do it before entering the curve, while
the front wheels are straight. Try to adjust the speed so you can
drive through the curve. Maintain a
reasonable, steady speed. Wait to
accelerate until out of the curve, and
then accelerate gently into the
straightaway.
Steering in Emergencies There are times when steering can
be more effective than braking. For
example, you come over a hill and
find a truck stopped in your lane,
or a car suddenly pulls out from
nowhere, or a child darts out from
between parked cars and stops right
in front of you. These problems can
be avoided by braking — if you can
stop in time. But sometimes you
cannot stop in time because there
is no room. That is the time for
evasive action — steering around
the problem.
The vehicle can perform very well
in emergencies like these. First,
apply the brakes. See Braking on
page 9 ‑ 4 . It is better to remove as
much speed as possible from a collision. Then steer around
the problem, to the left or right
depending on the space available.
An emergency like this requires
close attention and a quick decision.
If holding the steering wheel at the
recommended 9 and 3 o'clock
positions, it can be turned a full
180 degrees very quickly without
removing either hand. But you have
to act fast, steer quickly, and just as
quickly straighten the wheel once
you have avoided the object.