2011 CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV instrument panel

Black plate (38,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
3-38 Seats and Restraints
Where Are the Airbags?
The driver frontal airbag is in the
middle of the steering wheel. The right front passenger frontal
airbag is in the instrument panel on
the passenger side. Driver Side Shown, Passenger
Side Similar
The seat ‐ mounted side impact
airbags for the driver and right front
passenger are in the side of the
seatbacks closest to the door.

Black plate (41,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-41The seat position sensor provides
information that is used to determine
if the airbags should deploy at a
reduced level or at full deployment.
The vehicle has seat ‐ mounted
side impact and roof-rail airbags.
See Airbag System on page 3 ‑ 35 .
Seat ‐ mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags are intended to
inflate in moderate to severe side
crashes. In addition, these roof-rail
airbags are intended to inflate
during a rollover or in a severe
frontal impact. Seat ‐ mounted side
impact and roof-rail airbags will
inflate if the crash severity is above
the system's designed threshold
level. The threshold level can vary
with specific vehicle design.
Roof-rail airbags are not
intended to inflate in rear impacts.
A seat ‐ mounted side impact airbag
is intended to deploy on the side of the vehicle that is struck. Both
roof-rail airbags will deploy when
either side of the vehicle is struck or
if the sensing system predicts that
the vehicle is about to roll over,
or in a severe frontal impact.
In any particular crash, no one
can say whether an airbag should
have inflated simply because of
the damage to a vehicle or because
of what the repair costs were.
For frontal airbags, inflation 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. In a
rollover event, roof-rail airbag
deployment is determined by the
direction of the roll. What Makes an Airbag
Inflate? In a deployment event, the sensing
system sends an electrical signal
triggering a release of gas from the
inflator. Gas from the inflator fills the
airbag causing the bag to break out
of the cover and deploy. The inflator,
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 airbags modules 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.

Black plate (42,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
3-42 Seats and Restraints
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. Rollover capable roof-rail airbags
are designed to help contain the
head and chest of occupants in
the outboard seating positions
in the first, second, and third rows,
if equipped with a third row seat.
The rollover capable roof-rail
airbags are designed to help
reduce the risk of full or partial
ejection in rollover events, although
no system can prevent all such
ejections.
But airbags would not help in
many types of collisions, primarily
because the occupant's motion is
not toward those airbags. See When
Should an Airbag Inflate? on
page 3 ‑ 40 for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded
as anything more than a supplement
to safety belts. What Will You See After
an Airbag Inflates? After the frontal airbags and
seat-mounted side impact airbags
inflate, they quickly deflate, so
quickly that some people may not
even realize an airbag inflated.
Roof-rail airbags may still be at least
partially inflated for some time after
they deploy. Some components of
the airbag module may be hot for
several minutes. For location of the
airbag modules, see What Makes
an Airbag Inflate? on page 3 ‑ 41 .
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 deflated
airbags. Airbag inflation 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.

Black plate (49,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-49WARNING (Continued)proper service procedures, and
make sure the person performing
work for you is qualified to do so.
Adding Equipment to the
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle Q: Is there anything I might add
to or change about the vehicle
that could keep the airbags
from working properly?
A: Yes. If you add things that
change the vehicle's frame,
bumper system, height, front end
or side sheet metal, they may
keep the airbag system from
working properly. Changing or
moving any parts of the front
seats, safety belts, the airbag
sensing and diagnostic module,
steering wheel, instrument panel, roof-rail airbag modules,
ceiling headliner or pillar garnish
trim, overhead console, front
sensors, side impact sensors,
or airbag wiring can affect the
operation of the airbag system.
In addition, the vehicle may
have a passenger sensing
system for the right front
passenger position, which
includes sensors that are part
of the passenger seat. The
passenger sensing system
may not operate properly if the
original seat trim is replaced
with non-GM covers, upholstery
or trim, or with GM covers,
upholstery or trim designed for a
different vehicle. Any object,
such as an aftermarket seat
heater or a comfort enhancing
pad or device, installed under or
on top of the seat fabric, could
also interfere with the operation
of the passenger sensing
system. This could either prevent proper deployment
of the passenger airbag(s) or
prevent the passenger sensing
system from properly turning off
the passenger airbag(s). See
Passenger Sensing System on
page 3 ‑ 44 .
If you have any questions,
call Customer Assistance. The
phone numbers and addresses
for Customer Assistance are
in Step Two of the Customer
Satisfaction Procedure in this
manual. See Customer
Satisfaction Procedure
(U.S. and Canada) on
page 13 ‑ 1 or Customer
Satisfaction Procedure (Mexico)
on page 13 ‑ 3 .
If the vehicle has rollover
roof-rail airbags, see Different
Size Tires and Wheels on
page 10 ‑ 62 for additional
important information.

Black plate (13,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-13If the vehicle is a hybrid, see the
hybrid supplement for more
information.
Speedometer The speedometer shows the vehicle
speed in both kilometers per hour
(km/h) and miles per hour (mph).
Odometer The vehicle's odometer works
together with the Driver Information
Center (DIC). The Trip odometer can
be set. See “ Trip Odometer ” under
Driver Information Center (DIC) on
page 5 ‑ 26 for more information.
To check the odometer mileage
while the vehicle is not running,
press the trip stem on the
instrument panel cluster. If the vehicle ever needs a new
odometer installed, the new one will
be set to the correct mileage total of
the old odometer.
Trip Odometer The trip odometer can show how far
the vehicle has been driven since
the trip odometer was last set
to zero.
For more information see “ Trip
Odometer ” under Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5 ‑ 26 .
Tachometer The tachometer displays the engine
speed in revolutions per
minute (rpm). Fuel Gauge
When the ignition is on, the fuel
gauge shows about how much fuel
the vehicle has left in the tank.
An arrow on the fuel gauge
indicates the side of the vehicle the
fuel door is on.
The gauge will first indicate empty
before the vehicle is out of fuel, but
the vehicle's fuel tank should be
filled soon.

Black plate (20,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
5-20 Instruments and Controls The following may correct an
emissions system malfunction: .
Make sure the fuel cap is fully
installed. See Filling the Tank on
page 9 ‑ 68 . The diagnostic
system can determine if the
fuel cap has been left off or
improperly installed. A loose or
missing fuel cap allows fuel to
evaporate into the atmosphere.
A few driving trips with the cap
properly installed should turn the
light off. .
Make sure the electrical system
is not wet. The system could be
wet if the vehicle was driven
through a deep puddle of
water. The condition is usually
corrected when the electrical
system dries out. A few driving
trips should turn the light off. .
Make sure to fuel the vehicle
with quality fuel. Poor fuel quality
causes the engine not to run as
efficiently as designed and can
cause: stalling after start-up,
stalling when the vehicle is
changed into gear, misfiring,
hesitation on acceleration,
or stumbling on acceleration.
These conditions might go away
once the engine is warmed up.
If one or more of these conditions
occurs, change the fuel brand used.
It will require at least one full tank of
the proper fuel to turn the light off.
See Recommended Fuel on
page 9 ‑ 64 .
If none of the above have made
the light turn off, your dealer can
check the vehicle. The dealer
has the proper test equipment
and diagnostic tools to fix any
mechanical or electrical problems
that might have developed. Emissions Inspection and
Maintenance Programs Some state/provincial and local
governments may have programs
to inspect the on-vehicle emission
control equipment. For the
inspection, the emission system
test equipment is connected
to the vehicle ’ s Data Link
Connector (DLC).
The DLC is under the instrument
panel to the left of the steering
wheel. See your dealer if
assistance is needed.

Black plate (26,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
5-26 Instruments and Controls
Information Displays Driver Information
Center (DIC) Your vehicle has a Driver
Information Center (DIC).
The DIC displays information
about your vehicle. It also displays
warning messages if a system
problem is detected. The DIC
also allows some features to
be customized. See Vehicle
Personalization on page 5 ‑ 40
for more information.
All messages will appear in the DIC
display located in the center of the
instrument panel cluster.
The DIC comes on when the ignition
is on. After a short delay, the DIC
will display the information that was
last displayed before the engine
was turned off. Operation and Displays The DIC has different displays
which can be accessed by pressing
the DIC buttons located on the
instrument panel, next to the
steering wheel.
The DIC displays trip, fuel, and
vehicle system information, and
warning messages if a system
problem is detected. A digital
speedometer also appears at the
bottom of the DIC display. The
digital speedometer can be
enabled or disabled. See “ DISPLAY
DIGITAL SPEED ” under Vehicle
Personalization on page 5 ‑ 40 for
more information. DIC Buttons
The buttons are the trip/fuel,
vehicle information, customization,
and set/reset buttons. The button
functions are detailed in the
following pages.
3 (Trip/Fuel): Press to display
the odometer, trip odometer, fuel
range, average economy, fuel
used, timer, transmission
temperature, instantaneous
economy, and average vehicle

Black plate (31,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-31
Vehicle Messages Messages displayed on the DIC
indicate the status of the vehicle
or some action may be needed to
correct a condition. Multiple
messages may appear one
after another.
The messages that do not
require immediate action can be
acknowledge and cleared by
pressing any DIC button.
The messages that require
immediate action cannot be
cleared until that action is
performed.
All messages should be taken
seriously and clearing the message
does not correct the problem.
The following are the possible
messages and some information
about them. Battery Voltage and
Charging Messages BATTERY LOW START
VEHICLE When the vehicle ’ s battery is
severely discharged, this message
will display and four chimes
will sound. Start the vehicle
immediately. If the vehicle is not
started and the battery continues
to discharge, the climate controls,
heated seats, and audio systems
will shut off and the vehicle may
require a jump start. These systems
will function again after the vehicle
is started.
SERVICE BATTERY
CHARGING SYSTEM
On some vehicles, this message
displays if there is a problem with
the battery charging system. Under
certain conditions, the charging system light may also turn on in
the instrument panel cluster.
See Charging System Light on
page 5 ‑ 18 . Driving with this problem
could drain the battery. Turn off all
unnecessary accessories. Have the
electrical system checked as soon
as possible. See your dealer.
Brake System Messages SERVICE BRAKE SYSTEM This message displays along with
the brake system warning light if
there is a problem with the brake
system. See Brake System Warning
Light on page 5 ‑ 21 . If this message
appears, stop as soon as possible
and turn off the vehicle. Restart the
vehicle and check for the message
on the DIC display. If the message
is still displayed or appears again
when you begin driving, the brake
system needs service as soon as
possible. See your dealer.