Black plate (1,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
2011 Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual MIn Brief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Vehicle Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
Performance and
Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Keys, Doors and Windows . . . 2-1
Keys and Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-13
Exterior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Interior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22
Seats and Restraints . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-18
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-35
Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-51 Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . 4-1
Roof Rack System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
Instruments and Controls . . . . 5-1
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Information Displays . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 5-40
Universal Remote System . . . . 5-50
Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Lighting Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-11
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2
Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-10
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-19
Rear Seat Infotainment . . . . . . . 7-33
Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-60
Voice Recognition . . . . . . . . . . . 7-100
Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-103 Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . 8-1
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-8
Driving and Operating . . . . . . . . 9-1
Driving Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Starting and Operating . . . . . . . 9-30
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 9-40
Drive Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-45
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-45
Ride Control Systems . . . . . . . . 9-47
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-51
Object Detection Systems . . . . 9-54
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-63
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-70
Conversions and Add-Ons . . . 9-82
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-1
General Information . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Vehicle Checks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . 10-34
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-36
Black plate (5,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Introduction vVehicle Symbol Chart
Here are some additional symbols
that may be found on the vehicle
and what they mean. For more
information on the symbol, refer to
the Index.
0 : Adjustable Pedals
9 : Airbag Readiness Light
# : Air Conditioning
! : Antilock Brake System (ABS)
% : Audio Steering Wheel Controls
or OnStar ®
$ : Brake System Warning Light " : Charging System
I : Cruise Control
B : Engine Coolant Temperature
O : Exterior Lamps
# : Fog Lamps
. : Fuel Gauge
+ : Fuses
3 : Headlamp High/Low-Beam
Changer
( : Heated Steering Wheel
j : LATCH System Child
Restraints * : Malfunction Indicator Lamp
: : Oil Pressure
g : Outside Power Foldaway
Mirrors
} : Power
/ : Remote Vehicle Start
> : Safety Belt Reminders
7 : Tire Pressure Monitor
_ : Tow/Haul Mode
F : Traction Control
M : Windshield Washer Fluid
Black plate (13,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-13Dome Lamp Override
The dome lamp override button is
located next to the exterior lamps
control.
k : Press the button in and the
dome lamps remain off when a door
is opened. Press the button again to
return it to the extended position so
that the dome lamps come on when
a door is opened. Reading Lamps
For vehicles with reading lamps in
the overhead console, press the
button located next to the lamp to
turn it on or off.
The vehicle may also have reading
lamps in other locations. To turn the
lamps on or off, press the button
located next to the lamp.
For more information about interior
lamps, see: .
Dome Lamps on page 6 ‑ 10 ..
Reading Lamps on page 6 ‑ 11 ..
Instrument Panel Illumination
Control on page 6 ‑ 10 .Exterior Lighting
The exterior lamps control is located
on the instrument panel to the left of
the steering wheel.
P : Turns off the automatic
headlamps and Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL). Turning the headlamp
control to the off position again will
turn the automatic headlamps and
DRL back on.
For vehicles first sold in Canada,
the off position only works when the
vehicle is shifted into the P (Park)
position.
Black plate (14,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
1-14 In Brief AUTO: Automatically turns on the
headlamps at normal brightness,
along with the parking lamps,
instrument panel lights, license plate
lamps, and taillamps.
; : Turns on the parking lamps,
along with the instrument panel
lights, license plate lamps, and
taillamps.
5 : Turns on the headlamps,
parking lamps, instrument panel
lights, license plate lamps, and
taillamps.
For more information, see: .
Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6 ‑ 1 ..
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
on page 6 ‑ 6 ..
Fog Lamps on page 6 ‑ 9 .Windshield Wiper/Washer
The lever is on the left side of the
steering column.
8 : Single wipe, turn to
8 , then
release. Several wipes, hold the
band on
8 longer.
9 : Turns the windshield
wipers off.
6 : Turn the band up for more
frequent wipes or down for less
frequent wipes.
6 : Slow wipes.
? : Fast wipes.
L : Push the paddle at the top of
the lever to spray washer fluid on
the windshield. Rear Wiper Window Wiper/Washer
To turn the rear wiper on, slide the
lever to a wiper position.
9 : Turns the wiper off.
5 : Turns on the rear wiper delay.
Z : Turns on the rear wiper.
= : Press the button on the end of
the lever to spray washer fluid on
the rear window.
See Windshield Wiper/Washer on
page 5 ‑ 5 and Rear Window Wiper/
Washer on page 5 ‑ 6 .
Black plate (14,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
2-14 Keys, Doors and Windows Your vehicle's headlamps will flash
and the horn will sound for about
30 seconds, then will turn off to save
the battery power.
The theft-deterrent system will not
activate if the doors are locked with
the vehicle's key or the manual door
lock. It activates only if you use the
power door lock switch with the door
open or the RKE transmitter. You
should also remember that you can
start your vehicle with the correct
ignition key if the alarm has been
set off.
To avoid setting off the alarm by
accident: .
If you do not want to activate
the theft-deterrent system, the
vehicle should be locked with
the door key after the doors are
closed. .
Always unlock the doors with
the RKE transmitter. Unlocking a
door any other way will set off
the alarm if it is armed. If you set off the alarm by accident,
press unlock on the RKE transmitter
or place the key in the ignition and
turn it to START to turn off the
alarm. The alarm will not stop if you
try to unlock a door any other way.
Testing the Alarm To test the alarm:
1. From inside the vehicle, lower
the driver window and open the
driver door.
2. Activate the system by locking
the doors with the power door
lock switch while the door is
open, or with the RKE
transmitter.
3. Get out of the vehicle, close the
door and wait for the security
light to go out.
4. Then reach in through the
window, unlock the door with
the manual door lock and open
the door. This should set off the
alarm. While the alarm is set, the power
door unlock switch will not work.
If the alarm does not sound when
it should but the headlamps flash,
check to see if the horn works. The
horn fuse may be blown. To replace
the fuse, see Fuses and Circuit
Breakers on page 10 ‑ 39 .
If the alarm does not sound or the
headlamps do not flash, the vehicle
should be serviced by your dealer.
Immobilizer See Radio Frequency Statement on
page 13 ‑ 19 for information
regarding Part 15 of the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC)
rules and Industry Canada
Standards RSS-210/220/310.
Black plate (18,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
2-18 Keys, Doors and Windows
Automatic Dimming
Mirror The vehicle has an automatic
dimming mirror. The driver outside
mirror automatically adjusts for the
glare of headlamps behind you. This
feature is controlled by the on and
off setting on the inside rearview
mirror. See Automatic Dimming
Rearview Mirror on page 2 ‑ 18 for
more information. Park Tilt Mirrors If the vehicle has the memory
package, the passenger and/or
driver mirror tilts to a preselected
position when the vehicle is in
R (Reverse). This feature lets the
driver view the curb when parallel
parking. The mirror(s) return to the
original position when the vehicle is
shifted out of R (Reverse), or the
ignition is turned off or to
OFF/LOCK.
Turn this feature on or off through
the Driver Information Center (DIC).
See Driver Information Center (DIC)
on page 5 ‑ 26 for more information.Interior Mirrors Automatic Dimming
Rearview Mirror Automatic dimming reduces the
glare of lights from behind the
vehicle. The dimming feature comes
on and the indicator light illuminates
each time the vehicle is started.
O (On/Off): Press to turn the
dimming feature on or off.
The vehicle may have IntelliBeam ®
.
For more information on IntelliBeam,
see “ IntelliBeam Intelligent
High ‐ Beam Headlamp Control
System ” under Exterior Lamp
Controls on page 6 ‑ 1 .
Black plate (25,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-25
Security Light
For information regarding this light
and the vehicle's security system,
see Anti-Theft Alarm System on
page 2 ‑ 13 .
High-Beam On Light
This light comes on when the
high-beam headlamps are in use.
See Headlamp High/Low-Beam
Changer on page 6 ‑ 6 for more
information. Front Fog Lamp Light
The front fog lamp light comes on
when the fog lamps are in use.
The light goes out when the fog
lamps are turned off. See Fog
Lamps on page 6 ‑ 9 for more
information.
Lamps On Reminder
This light comes on whenever the
parking lamps are on. See Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6 ‑ 1 for more information.
Cruise Control Light
The cruise control light comes on
whenever the cruise control is set.
The light goes out when the cruise
control is turned off. See Cruise
Control on page 9 ‑ 51 for more
information.
Black plate (35,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-35
Fuel System Messages FUEL LEVEL LOW This message displays and a chime
sounds if the fuel level is low. Refuel
as soon as possible. See Fuel
Gauge on page 5 ‑ 13 and Fuel on
page 9 ‑ 63 for more information.
TIGHTEN GAS CAP This message may display along
with the check engine light on the
instrument panel cluster if the fuel
cap is not tightened properly. See
Malfunction Indicator Lamp on
page 5 ‑ 18 . Reinstall the fuel cap
fully. 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 this light and message off. Key and Lock Messages REPLACE BATTERY IN
REMOTE KEY This message displays if a Remote
Keyless Entry (RKE) transmitter
battery is low. The battery needs to
be replaced in the transmitter. See
“ Battery Replacement ” under
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
System Operation on page 2 ‑ 3 .
Lamp Messages SERVICE LEFT HEADLAMP
ASSEMBLY On some models, this message
will be displayed when the left
headlamp is out and needs to be
serviced. See “ LED Lighting ” in LED
Lighting on page 10 ‑ 36 for more
information. SERVICE RIGHT HEADLAMP
ASSEMBLY On some models, this message
will be displayed when the right
headlamp is out and needs to be
serviced. See “ LED Lighting ” in LED
Lighting on page 10 ‑ 36 for more
information.
TURN SIGNAL ON This message displays and a chime
sounds if a turn signal is left on for
1.2 km (3/4 of a mile). Move the turn
signal/multifunction lever to the off
position.