
Black plate (27,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-27
Portable Audio Devices
This vehicle may have an auxiliary
input located on the radio faceplate
and a USB port located in the center
console or on the dashboard.
External devices such as an iPod
®,
laptop computer, MP3 player, CD
changer, or USB storage device.
can be connected to the auxiliary
port using a 3.5 mm (1/8 in) input
cable or the USB port depending
on the audio system.
See “Using the Auxiliary Input Jack”
and “Using the USB Port” in
Auxiliary Devices on page 7‑33.
Bluetooth®
For vehicles with a Bluetooth
system, it allows users with a
Bluetooth‐enabled cell phone to
make and receive hands-free calls
using the vehicle’ s audio system
and controls. The Bluetooth‐enabled cell phone
must be paired with the Bluetooth
system before it can be used in the
vehicle. Not all phones will support
all functions. For more information,
visit www.gm.com/bluetooth.
For more information, see
Bluetooth
on page 7‑49.
Steering Wheel Controls
For vehicles with audio steering
wheel controls, some audio controls
can be adjusted at the steering
wheel.
w/x:Press to change favorite
radio stations, select tracks on a
CD/DVD, or to navigate tracks or
folders on an iPod
®or USB device.
b g: Press to silence the vehicle
speakers only. Press again to turn
the sound on. Press and hold longer
than two seconds to interact with
OnStar
®or Bluetooth systems,
if equipped.
+
e−e: Press to increase or
decrease volume.
c: Press to reject an incoming
call, or to end a call.
SRCE: Press to switch between
the radio and CD, and for equipped
vehicles, the DVD, front auxiliary,
and rear auxiliary.
¨: Press to seek the next radio
station, the next track or chapter
while sourced to the CD or DVD
slot, or to select tracks and folders
on an iPod
®or USB device.
For more information, see Steering
Wheel Controls on page 5‑3.

Black plate (28,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
1-28 In Brief
Navigation System
The vehicle's navigation system
(if equipped) provides detailed maps
of most major freeways and roads
throughout the United States and
Canada. After a destination has
been set, the system provides
turn-by-turn instructions for reaching
the destination. In addition, the
system can help locate a variety
of points of interest (POI), such
as banks, airports, restaurants,
and more.
See the Navigation System manual
for more information.
Driver Information
Center (DIC)
The DIC display is located at the
bottom of the instrument panel
cluster. It shows the status of
many vehicle systems and enables
access to the personalization menu.
The DIC buttons are located on
the instrument panel, next to the
steering wheel.
Some vehicles do not have the
buttons shown, however some of
the menus can be viewed by using
the trip odometer reset stem.
3:Press this button to display
the odometer, trip odometer, fuel
range, average economy, fuel used,
timer, transmission temperature,
and instantaneous economy and
Active Fuel Management™
indicator. The compass and outside air temperature will also be shown
in the display. The temperature will
be shown in °C or °F depending on
the units selected.
T:
Press this button to display
the oil life, units, tire pressure
readings for vehicles with the
Tire Pressure Monitor System
(TPMS), trailer brake gain and
output information for vehicles
with the Integrated Trailer Brake
Control (ITBC) system, engine
hours, compass zone setting, and
compass recalibration.
U: Press this button to customize
the feature settings on the vehicle.
See Vehicle Personalization (with
DIC Buttons)
on page 5‑53for
more information.
V: Press this button to set or reset
certain functions and to turn off or
acknowledge messages on the DIC.
For more information, see Driver
Information Center (DIC)
on
page 5‑34.

Black plate (29,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-29
Vehicle Customization
Some vehicle features can be
programmed by using the DIC
buttons next to the steering wheel.
These features include:
.Language
.Door Lock and Unlock Settings
.RKE Lock and Unlock Feedback
.Lighting
.Chime Volume
.Memory Features
See Vehicle Personalization (with
DIC Buttons) on page 5‑53.
Cruise Control
The cruise control buttons are
located on the left side of the
steering wheel.
T: Press to turn the system on
or off. The indicator light is on when
cruise control is on and turns off
when cruise control is off.
+ RES : Press briefly to make the
vehicle resume to a previously
set speed, or press and hold to
accelerate.
SET −: Press to set the speed and
activate cruise control or make the
vehicle decelerate.
[: Press to disengage cruise
control without erasing the set
speed from memory.
See Cruise Control on page 9‑73.

Black plate (37,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-37
OnStar Steering Wheel
Controls
This vehicle may have a Talk/Mute
button that can be used to interact
with OnStar Hands-Free calling.
SeeSteering Wheel Controls
on
page 5‑3for more information.
On some vehicles, the mute button
can be used to dial numbers into
voice mail systems, or to dial phone
extensions. See the OnStar Owner's
Guide for more information.
Your Responsibility
Increase the volume of the radio if
the OnStar advisor cannot be heard.
If the light next to the OnStar
buttons is red, the system may
not be functioning properly. Push
the
Qbutton and request a vehicle
diagnostic. If the light appears clear
(no light appears), your OnStar
subscription has expired and all
services have been deactivated.
Push the
Qbutton to confirm that
the OnStar equipment is active.

Black plate (31,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-31
Airbag System
The vehicle has the following
airbags:
.A frontal airbag for the driver.
.A frontal airbag for the right front
passenger.
The vehicle may have the following
airbags:
.A seat‐mounted side impact
airbag for the driver.
.A seat‐mounted side impact
airbag for the right front
passenger.
.A roof-rail airbag for the driver
and the passenger seated
directly behind the driver.
.A roof-rail airbag for the right
front passenger and the person
seated directly behind the right
front passenger. All of the airbags in the vehicle will
have the word AIRBAG embossed
in the trim or on an attached label
near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear on the middle
part of the steering wheel for the
driver and on the instrument panel
for the right front passenger.
With seat‐mounted side impact
airbags, the word AIRBAG will
appear on the side of the seatback
closest to the door.
With roof-rail airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear along the
headliner or trim.
Airbags are designed to supplement
the protection provided by safety
belts. Even though today's airbags
are also designed to help reduce
the risk of injury from the force of an
inflating bag, all airbags must inflate
very quickly to do their job. Here are the most important things
to know about the airbag system:
{WARNING
You can be severely injured or
killed in a crash if you are not
wearing your safety belt
—even
if you have airbags. Airbags are
designed to work with safety
belts, but do not replace them.
Also, airbags are not designed to
deploy in every crash. In some
crashes safety belts are your only
restraint. See When Should an
Airbag Inflate? on page 3‑34.
Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance
of hitting things inside the vehicle
or being ejected from it. Airbags
are “supplemental restraints” to
the safety belts. Everyone in your
vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly —whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.

Black plate (33,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-33
Where Are the Airbags?
The driver airbag is in the middle of
the steering wheel.
The right front passenger airbag is
in the instrument panel on the
passenger's side.Driver Side Shown, PassengerSide Similar
If the vehicle has seat‐mounted side
impact airbags for the driver and
right front passenger, they are in
the side of the seatbacks closest
to the door.

Black plate (34,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
3-34 Seats and Restraints
Driver Side Shown, PassengerSide Similar
If the vehicle has roof-rail
airbags for the driver, right front
passenger, and second row
outboard passengers, they are in
the ceiling above the side windows.
{WARNING
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inflate properly
or it might force the object into (Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
that person causing severe injury
or even death. The path of an
inflating airbag must be kept
clear. Do not put anything
between an occupant and an
airbag, and do not attach or put
anything on the steering wheel
hub or on or near any other
airbag covering.
Do not use seat accessories
that block the inflation path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.
Never secure anything to the roof
of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags
by routing a rope or tie down
through any door or window
opening. If you do, the path of
an inflating roof-rail airbag will
be blocked.
When Should an Airbag
Inflate?
Frontal airbags are designed
to inflate in moderate to severe
frontal or near-frontal crashes to
help reduce the potential for severe
injuries mainly to the driver's or right
front passenger's head and chest.
However, they are only designed
to inflate if the impact exceeds
a predetermined deployment
threshold. Deployment thresholds
are used to predict how severe a
crash is likely to be in time for the
airbags to inflate and help restrain
the occupants.
Whether the frontal airbags will
or should deploy is not based on
how fast your vehicle is traveling.
It depends largely on what you hit,
the direction of the impact, and how
quickly your vehicle slows down.

Black plate (36,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
3-36 Seats and Restraints
The vehicle may or may not have
seat‐mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags. SeeAirbag System
on page 3‑31. 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.