
Black plate (9,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Keys, Doors and Windows 2-9
Doors
Liftgate (Manual)
{WARNING
It can be dangerous to drive
with the liftglass or liftgate open
because carbon monoxide (CO)
gas can come into your vehicle.
You cannot see or smell CO.
It can cause unconsciousness
and even death.
If you must drive with the liftglass
or liftgate open, or if electrical
wiring or other cable connections
must pass through the seal
between the body and the
liftglass or liftgate:
.Make sure all other windows
are shut.
.Turn the fan on your heating
or cooling system to its
highest speed with the(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
recirculation mode off.
That will force outside air
into your vehicle. See Dual
Automatic Climate Control
System on page 8‑1.
.If you have air outlets on or
under the instrument panel,
open them all the way.
.If your vehicle is equipped
with a power liftgate, disable
the power liftgate function.
See Engine Exhaust on
page 9‑38.
To unlock the liftgate, use the power
door lock switch or press
Kon
the Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
transmitter twice. See Remote
Keyless Entry (RKE) System
Operation on page 2‑3.
On vehicles with a liftglass, press
the button on the underside of the
license pocket applique (A) to open
it. The liftglass can also be opened
by pressing
mon the RKE.
To open the entire liftgate, press
&on the RKE or in the vehicle.
See “Power Liftgate Operation” in
this section. You can also press
the touchpad on the underside of
the liftgate handle (B). The liftgate
will open after a slight delay. The
vehicle must be in P (Park) to open
the liftgate. To close the liftgate, use
the pull cup or pull strap as an aid.

Black plate (10,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
2-10 Keys, Doors and Windows
The liftgate or liftglass cannot be
opened if the rear wipers are in
motion. Attempting to open the
liftgate or liftglass while the rear
wipers are in motion will cause the
release of the liftglass or liftgate to
delay until the wipers are parked off
the liftglass.
Both the liftglass and liftgate have
an electric latch. If the battery is
disconnected or has low voltage,
the liftglass and liftgate will not
open. The liftglass and liftgate will
resume operation when the battery
is reconnected and charged.
If the battery is properly connected
and has adequate voltage, and
the liftgate or liftglass still will not
function, your vehicle should be
taken to a dealership for service.Liftgate (Power)
Power Liftgate Operation
{WARNING
Exhaust gases can enter the
vehicle if it is driven with the
liftgate, trunk/hatch open,
or with any objects that pass
through the seal between the
body and the trunk/hatch or
liftgate. Engine exhaust contains
Carbon Monoxide (CO) which
cannot be seen or smelled.
It can cause unconsciousness
and even death.
If the vehicle must be driven with
the liftgate, or trunk/hatch open:
.Close all of the windows.
.Fully open the air outlets on
or under the instrument
panel.(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
.Adjust the Climate Control
system to a setting that
brings in only outside air
and set the fan speed to the
highest setting. See Climate
Control System in the Index.
.If the vehicle is equipped with
a power liftgate, disable the
power liftgate function.
For more information about
carbon monoxide, see Engine
Exhaust on page 9‑38.
On vehicles with a power liftgate the
button is on the overhead console.
The vehicle must be in P (Park) to
use the power liftgate feature.
&: Press the top of the button to
open or close the power liftgate.
OFF: Press the bottom of the
button for manual operation of the
power liftgate.

Black plate (13,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Keys, Doors and Windows 2-13
Power Assist Steps
The vehicle may have power assist
steps.
The switch used to disable the
power assist steps is located on the
center console below the climate
control system.
The power assist steps
automatically extend from
beneath the vehicle on the side in
which the door has been opened.
Once the door is closed, the assist
steps automatically move back
under the vehicle after a brief delay.
The vehicle must not be moving for
the assist steps to extend or retract.
The assist steps cannot be disabled
in the extended position.
Vehicle Security
This vehicle has theft-deterrent
features; however, they do not make
it impossible to steal.
Anti-Theft Alarm System
Your vehicle has a content
theft-deterrent alarm system.
This is the security light.
To arm the theft-deterrent system:
1. Open the door.
2. Lock the door with the RemoteKeyless Entry (RKE) transmitter
or the power door lock switch.
The security light will come on to
inform the driver the system is arming. If a door is open when
the doors are locked, the
security light will flash.
If the delayed locking feature is
turned on, the theft‐deterrent
system will not start the arming
process until the last door is
closed and the delay timer has
expired. See
Delayed Locking
on page 2‑8.
3. Close all doors. The security light should go off after about
30 seconds. The alarm is not
armed until the security light
goes off.
If a locked driver door is opened
without using the RKE transmitter,
a 10-second pre-alarm will occur.
The horn will chirp and the lights
will flash. If the key is not placed
in the ignition and turned to
START or the door is not unlocked
by pressing the unlock button
on the RKE transmitter during
the 10-second pre-alarm,
the alarm will go off.

Black plate (17,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Keys, Doors and Windows 2-17
Mirror Adjustment
1. Press (A) or (B) to select thedriver or passenger side mirror.
2. Press the arrows on the control pad to adjust the mirror.
3. Press the opposite side to get the control pad to a neutral
position.
Power Foldaway Mirrors
1. Press (C) to fold the mirrors outto the driving position.
2. Press (D) to fold the mirrors into the folded position.
Resetting the Power Foldaway
Mirrors
Reset the power foldaway mirrors if:
.The mirrors are accidentally
obstructed while folding.
.They are accidentally manually
folded/unfolded.
.The mirrors will not stay in the
unfolded position.
.The mirrors vibrate at normal
driving speeds.
Fold and unfold the mirrors one time
using the mirror controls to reset
them to their normal position.
A popping noise may be heard
during the resetting of the power
foldaway mirrors. This sound is
normal after a manual folding
operation.
See Power Mirrors on page 2‑16.
Turn Signal Indicator
The vehicle has a turn signal
indicator on the mirror. An arrow on
the mirror flashes in the direction of
the turn or lane change.
Heated Mirrors
The heated outside rearview mirrors
turn on when the rear window
defogger is on and helps to clear
fog or frost from the surface of the
mirrors.
<(Rear Window Defogger):
This button is on the climate control
panel.
See “Rear Window Defogger” under
Dual Automatic Climate Control
System on page 8‑1.

Black plate (8,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
3-8 Seats and Restraints
Heated and Ventilated
Front Seats
{WARNING
If you cannot feel temperature
change or pain to the skin,
the seat heater may cause
burns even at low temperatures.
To reduce the risk of burns,
people with such a condition
should use care when using
the seat heater, especially for
long periods of time. Do not
place anything on the seat that
insulates against heat, such as
a blanket, cushion, cover or
similar item. This may cause
the seat heater to overheat.
An overheated seat heater may
cause a burn or may damage
the seat.
The buttons are on the climate
control panel.
{(Cooled Seat):Press to cool
the seat.
+(Heated Seatback): Press to
heat the seatback.
z(Heated Seat and Seatback):
Press to heat seat and seatback. One of these symbols appears on
the climate control display when this
feature is on.
Press the desired button once for
the highest setting. With each press
of the button, the seat will change to
the next lower setting, and then to
the off setting.
Indicator bars next to the symbol on
the climate control display show the
selected setting: three for high, two
for medium, and one for low.
The heated and cooled seats
are canceled when the ignition is
turned off. To use this feature after
restarting the vehicle, press the
desired button again.

Black plate (8,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
5-8 Instruments and Controls
If the DIC display does not show a
heading, for example, N for North,
or the heading does not change
after making turns, there may be
a strong magnetic field interfering
with the compass. Such interference
may be caused by a magnetic CB
or cell phone antenna mount, a
magnetic emergency light, magnetic
note pad holder, or any other
magnetic item. Turn off the vehicle,
move the magnetic item, then turn
on the vehicle and calibrate the
compass.
To calibrate the compass, use the
following procedure:
Compass Calibration Procedure
1. Before calibrating the compass,make sure the compass zone
is set to the variance zone in
which the vehicle is located.
See “Compass Variance (Zone)
Procedure” earlier in this
section. Do not operate any switches
such as window, sunroof,
climate controls, seats, etc.
during the calibration procedure.
2. Press the vehicle information button until PRESS
VTO
CALIBRATE COMPASS
displays.
3. Press the set/reset button to start the compass calibration.
4. The DIC will display CALIBRATING: DRIVE IN
CIRCLES. Drive the vehicle
in tight circles at less than
8 km/h (5 mph) to complete
the calibration. The DIC
will display CALIBRATION
COMPLETE for a few seconds
when the calibration is complete.
The DIC display will then return
to the previous menu.
Clock
The analog clock is not connected
with any other vehicle system and
runs by itself.
To adjust the clock, do the following:
1. Locate the adjustment button,
near the lower left corner of the
clock.
2. Push and hold the adjustment button to advance the clock
hands. Holding the button down
will cause the clock to advance
faster. Release the button before
you get to the desired time.
3. Push and release the button to increase the time by one minute
increments until the desired time
is reached.

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.

Black plate (11,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-11
Lighting Features
Entry Lighting
The vehicle has an illuminated entry
feature.
When the doors are opened, the
dome lamps will come on if the
dome override button is in the
extended position. If the dome
override button is pressed in,
the lamps will not come on.
Exit Lighting
The interior lamps come on when
the key is removed from the ignition.
They turn off automatically in
20 seconds. The lights do not come
on if the dome override button is
pressed in.
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.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 that is 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.