2011 CADILLAC STS brake

Black plate (6,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
Once Every Two Years
.Vehicles using DOT 4 brake fluid only: Brake fluid
replacement.
First Engine Oil Change After Every
40 000 km/25,000 Miles
.Passenger compartment air filter replacement
(or every 24 months, whichever occurs first).
More frequent replacement may be needed if
you drive in areas with heavy traffic, areas with
poor air quality, or areas with high dust levels.
Replacement may also be needed if you notice
reduced air flow, windows fogging up, or odors.
Your dealer can help you determine when it is the
right time to replace the filter.
First Engine Oil Change After Every
80 000 km/50,000 Miles
.Engine air cleaner filter replacement. SeeEngine
Air Cleaner/Filter on page 6‑21.
.Automatic transmission fluid and filter change
(severe service) for vehicles mainly driven in heavy
city traffic in hot weather, in hilly or mountainous
terrain, when frequently towing a trailer, or used for
taxi, police, or delivery service. See Automatic
Transmission Fluid on page 6‑23.
.All‐wheel drive only: Transfer case fluid change
(severe service) for vehicles mainly driven when
frequently towing a trailer, or used for taxi, police,
or delivery service. Check vent hose at transfer
case for kinks and proper installation. Check to be
sure vent hose is unobstructed, clear, and free of
debris.
.Evaporative control system inspection. Check all
fuel and vapor lines and hoses for proper hook‐up,
routing, and condition. Check that the purge valve,
if the vehicle has one, works properly. Replace as
needed. An Emission Control Service. The U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency or the California
Air Resources Board has determined that the
failure to perform this maintenance item will not
nullify the emission warranty or limit recall liability
prior to the completion of the vehicle's useful life.
We, however, urge that all recommended
maintenance services be performed at the
indicated intervals and the maintenance be
recorded.
7-6

Black plate (7,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
First Engine Oil Change After Every
160 000 km/100,000 Miles
.Automatic transmission fluid and filter change
(normal service). SeeAutomatic Transmission
Fluid on page 6‑23.
.All‐wheel drive only: Transfer case fluid change
(normal service). Check vent hose at transfer case
for kinks and proper installation. Check to be sure
vent hose is unobstructed, clear, and free of
debris.
.Spark plug replacement and spark plug wires
inspection. An Emission Control Service.
First Engine Oil Change After Every
240 000 km/150,000 Miles
.Engine cooling system drain, flush, and refill
(or every five years, whichever occurs first). See
Engine Coolant
on page 6‑25.An Emission
Control Service.
.Engine drive belts inspection for fraying, excessive
cracks, or obvious damage (or every 10 years,
whichever occurs first). Replace, if needed.
Owner Checks and Services
Starter Switch Check
{WARNING:
When you are doing this inspection, the vehicle
could move suddenly. If the vehicle moves, you or
others could be injured.
1. Before starting this check, be sure there is enough room around the vehicle.
2. Firmly apply both the parking brake and the regular brake. See Parking Brake on page 3‑33.
Do not use the accelerator pedal, and be ready to
turn off the engine immediately if it starts.
3. Try to start the engine in each gear. The vehicle should start only in P (Park) or N (Neutral). If the
vehicle starts in any other position, contact your
dealer for service.
7-7

Black plate (8,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
Automatic Transmission Shift Lock
Control Function Check
{WARNING:
When you are doing this inspection, the vehicle
could move suddenly. If the vehicle moves, you or
others could be injured.
1. Before starting this check, be sure there is enough room around the vehicle. It should be parked on a
level surface.
2. Firmly apply the parking brake. See Parking Brake
on page 3‑33.
Be ready to apply the regular brake immediately if
the vehicle begins to move.
3. With the engine off and without applying the regular brake, try to move the shift lever out of
P (Park) with normal effort. If the shift lever moves
out of P (Park), contact your dealer for service.
Parking Brake and Automatic
Transmission P (Park) Mechanism
Check
{WARNING:
When you are doing this check, the vehicle could
begin to move. You or others could be injured and
property could be damaged. Make sure there is
room in front of the vehicle in case it begins to
roll. Be ready to apply the regular brake at once
should the vehicle begin to move.
Park on a fairly steep hill, with the vehicle facing
downhill. Keeping your foot on the regular brake, set the
parking brake.
.To check the parking brake's holding ability: With
the engine running and the transmission in
N (Neutral), slowly remove foot pressure from the
regular brake pedal. Do this until the vehicle is held
by the parking brake only.
.To check the P (Park) mechanism's holding ability:
With the engine running, shift to P (Park). Then
release the parking brake followed by the regular
brake.
Contact your dealer if service is required.
7-8

Black plate (9,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
Recommended Fluids and
Lubricants
Fluids and lubricants identified below by name, part
number, or specification can be obtained from your
dealer.Usage Fluid/Lubricant
Engine Oil The engine requires engine oil
approved to the dexos™
specification.
Oils meeting this specification can
be identified with the dexos™
certification mark. Look for and use
only an engine oil that displays the
dexos™ certification mark of the
proper viscosity grade. See Engine
Oil on page 6‑16.
Engine Cooling System 50/50 mixture of clean, drinkable
water and use only DEX-COOL
Coolant. See
Engine Coolant
on
page 6‑25.
Usage Fluid/Lubricant
Hydraulic Brake
System DOT 3 Hydraulic Brake Fluid
(GM Part No. U.S. 12377967, in
Canada 89021320).
Windshield Washer Optikleen
®Washer Solvent.
Parking Brake Cable Guides Chassis Lubricant (GM Part No.
U.S. 12377985, in Canada 88901242)
or lubricant meeting requirements of
NLGI #2, Category LB or GC-LB.
Power Steering System GM Power Steering Fluid
(GM Part No. U.S. 89021184, in
Canada 89021186).
Automatic
Transmission DEXRON
®-VI Automatic Transmission
Fluid.
Key Lock
Cylinders Multi-Purpose Lubricant, Superlube
(GM Part No. U.S. 12346241, in
Canada 10953474).
7-9

Black plate (17,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
To contact NHTSA, you may call the Vehicle
Safety Hotline toll-free at 1-888-327-4236
(TTY: 1-800-424-9153); go to
http://www.safercar.gov;or write to:
Administrator, NHTSA
1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20590
You can also obtain other information about motor
vehicle safety from http://www.safercar.gov
.
Reporting Safety Defects to the
Canadian Government
If you live in Canada, and you believe that your
vehicle has a safety defect, notify Transport Canada
immediately, and notify General Motors of Canada
Limited. Call them at 1-800-333-0510 or write to:
Transport Canada
Road Safety Branch
2780 Sheffield Road
Ottawa, Ontario K1B 3V9
Reporting Safety Defects to General
Motors
In addition to notifying NHTSA (or Transport Canada) in
a situation like this, notify General Motors.
Call 1-800-458-8006, or write:Cadillac Customer Assistance Center
Cadillac Motor Car Division
P.O. Box 33169
Detroit, MI 48232-5169
In Canada, call 1‐888‐446‐2000, or write:
Canadian Cadillac Customer Communication
Centre, Mail Code: CA1-163-005
General Motors of Canada Limited
1908 Colonel Sam Drive
Oshawa, Ontario L1H 8P7
Service Publications Ordering
Information
Service Manuals
Service Manuals have the diagnosis and repair
information on the engines, transmission, axle,
suspension, brakes, electrical, steering, body, etc.
8-17

Black plate (19,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Data Recording and
Privacy
Your GM vehicle has a number of sophisticated
computers that record information about the vehicle’s
performance and how it is driven. For example, your
vehicle uses computer modules to monitor and control
engine and transmission performance, to monitor the
conditions for airbag deployment and deploy airbags in
a crash, and, if so equipped, to provide antilock braking
to help the driver control the vehicle. These modules
may store data to help your dealer technician service
your vehicle. Some modules may also store data about
how you operate the vehicle, such as rate of fuel
consumption or average speed. These modules may
also retain the owner’s personal preferences, such as
radio pre-sets, seat positions, and temperature settings.
Event Data Recorders
This vehicle has an Event Data Recorder (EDR).
The main purpose of an EDR is to record, in certain
crash or near crash-like situations, such as an airbag
deployment or hitting a road obstacle, data that will
assist in understanding how a vehicle's systems
performed. The EDR is designed to record data related
to vehicle dynamics and safety systems for a short period of time, typically 30 seconds or less.
The EDR in this vehicle is designed to record
such data as:
.How various systems in your vehicle were
operating
.Whether or not the driver and passenger safety
belts were buckled/fastened
.How far, if at all, the driver was pressing the
accelerator and/or brake pedal
.How fast the vehicle was traveling
This data can help provide a better understanding of the
circumstances in which crashes and injuries occur.
Important: EDR data is recorded by your vehicle only if
a non-trivial crash situation occurs; no data is recorded
by the EDR under normal driving conditions and no
personal data (e.g., name, gender, age, and crash
location) is recorded. However, other parties, such as
law enforcement, could combine the EDR data with the
type of personally identifying data routinely acquired
during a crash investigation.
To read data recorded by an EDR, special equipment is
required, and access to the vehicle or the EDR is
needed. In addition to the vehicle manufacturer, other
parties, such as law enforcement, that have the special
equipment, can read the information if they have access
to the vehicle or the EDR.
8-19

Black plate (1,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
A
Accessories and Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-4
Accessory Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27
Accessory Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-42
Adaptive Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-15
Add-On Electrical Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-114
Additives, Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-7
AdjustmentsHeadlamp Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Air Cleaner/Filter, Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-21
Air Filter, Passenger Compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-50
Airbag Adding Equipment to Your Airbag-EquippedVehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-71
Airbag System How Does an Airbag Restrain? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-63
Passenger Sensing System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-66
Servicing Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . 2-70
What Makes an Airbag Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-63
What Will You See After an Airbag Inflates? . . . . . . 2-64
When Should an Airbag Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-62
Where Are the Airbags? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-59
Airbags Passenger Status Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-55
Readiness Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-54
System Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-57
All-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-43 All-Wheel-Drive (AWD) System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Antenna
Backglass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-126
Antenna, XM™ Satellite Radio Antenna
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-126
Antilock Brake System (ABS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-5 Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-59
Appearance Care Aluminum or Chrome-Plated Wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-112
Care of Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-109
Chemical Paint Spotting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-113
Cleaning Exterior Lamps/Lenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-110
Fabric/Carpet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-107
Finish Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-110
Finish Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-113
Instrument Panel, Vinyl, and Other PlasticSurfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-108
Interior Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-106
Leather . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-108
Sheet Metal Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-113
Speaker Covers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-109
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-113
Underbody Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-113
Washing Your Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-109
Weatherstrips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-109
Windshield and Wiper Blades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-111
Wood Panels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-109
i - 1

Black plate (2,1)Cadillac STS Owner Manual - 2011
Audio System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-94Audio Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-124
Navigation/Radio System, see Navigation
Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-113
Radio Personalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-120
Radio Reception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-125
Setting the Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-95
Theft-Deterrent Feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-123
XM™ Satellite Radio Antenna System . . . . . . . . . . .4-126
Audio System(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-95
Automatic Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-23
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-30
Axle, Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-44
B
Back-Up Lamps - Ambulance Body Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-48
Backglass Antenna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-126
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-38 Electric Power Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-37
Exterior Lighting Battery Saver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-35
Inadvertent Power Saver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-37
Load Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-36
Belt Routing, Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-12
Bluetooth
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-113 Brake
Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-35 Antilock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Parking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-33
System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-58
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-4
Braking in Emergencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-6
Break-In, New Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-25
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-48 Back-Up Lamps - Ambulance Body . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-48
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-33
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-47
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-46
Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-47
High Intensity Discharge (HID) Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . 6-47
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-67
C
Calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14, 3-38
California Perchlorate Materials Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
California Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-7
Canadian Owners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
Capacities and Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-128
i - 2