
Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
2011 Chevrolet Silverado Owner ManualM
In Brief. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-8
Vehicle Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25
Performance and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-32
Keys, Doors and Windows . . . 2-1
Keys and Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Exterior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Interior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22
Seats and Restraints . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-14
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-31
Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-51 Storage
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . 4-1
Instruments and Controls . . . . 5-1
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Information Displays . . . . . . . . . . 5-34
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 5-53
Universal Remote System . . . . 5-61
Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Lighting Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-14
Rear Seat Infotainment . . . . . . . 7-38
Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-49 Climate Controls
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . 8-1
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-11
Driving and Operating . . . . . . . . 9-1
Driving Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Starting and Operating . . . . . . . 9-32
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-42
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 9-43
Manual Transmission . . . . . . . . . 9-51
Drive Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-53
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-67
Ride Control Systems . . . . . . . . 9-70
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-73
Object Detection Systems . . . . 9-76
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-83
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-90
Conversions and
Add-Ons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-123

Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
Introduction v
Vehicle 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)
g: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
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 (1,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-1
In Brief
Instrument Panel
Instrument Panel (Base/UplevelVersion) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Instrument Panel (Premium Version) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Initial Drive Information
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-8
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Heated Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
Safety Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15 Sensing System for
Passenger Airbag . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Throttle and Brake Pedal Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 1-19
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
Four-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-23
Vehicle Features
Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . 1-27
Bluetooth
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-27
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . 1-27
Navigation System . . . . . . . . . . . 1-28 Driver Information
Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-28
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-29
Rear Vision Camera (RVC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-30
Ultrasonic Parking Assist . . . . 1-30
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-30
Universal Remote System . . . 1-31
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-31
Performance and Maintenance
StabiliTrak®System . . . . . . . . . 1-32
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . 1-33
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 1-34
Fuel E85 (85% Ethanol) . . . . . 1-34
Driving for Better Fuel Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-34
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-35
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-35

Black plate (25,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-25
Vehicle Features
Radio(s)
Radio with CD, DVD, and USB Port
O:Press to turn the system
on and off. Turn to increase or
decrease the volume.
BAND: Press to choose between
FM, AM, or XM™, if equipped.f: Select radio stations.
© ¨:Seek or scan stations.
4: Press to display additional text
information related to the current
FM-RDS or XM station; or CD, MP3,
or WMA song. If information is
available during XM, CD, MP3,
or WMA playback, the song title
information displays on the top
line of the display and artist
information displays on the bottom
line. When information is not
available, “NO INFO” displays.
For more information about these
and other radio features, see
Operation on page 7‑2.
For vehicles with a Rear Seat
Entertainment System (RSE) and
Rear Seat Audio System (RSA),
see Rear Seat Entertainment (RSE)
System
on page 7‑38and Rear
Seat Audio (RSA) Systemon
page 7‑47for more information.

Black plate (26,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
1-26 In Brief
Storing Radio Stations
A maximum of 36 stations can be
stored as favorites using the six
softkeys located below the radio
station frequency tabs and by using
the radio FAV button. Press FAV
to go through up to six pages of
favorites, each having six favorite
stations available per page. Each
page of favorites can contain any
combination of AM, FM, or XM
stations.
For more information, see“Storing
Radio Stations” inAM-FM Radio
on
page 7‑8.
Setting the Clock
To set the time and date for the
radio with CD, DVD, and USB Port:
1. Turn the ignition key to
ACC/ACCESSORY or ON/RUN,
then press
O, to turn the
radio on.
2. Press
Hto display HR, MIN,
MM, DD, and YYYY (hour,
minute, month, day, and year).
3. Press the softkey located under any one of the labels to be
changed.
4. To increase or decrease the time or date, turn
fclockwise or
counter‐clockwise.
For detailed instructions on setting
the clock for the vehicle's specific
audio system, see Clock
on
page 5‑8.
Satellite Radio
XM is a satellite radio service
that is based in the 48 contiguous
United States and 10 Canadian
provinces. XM satellite radio has a
wide variety of programming and
commercial-free music, coast to
coast, and in digital-quality sound.
A fee is required to receive the
XM service.
For more information, refer to:
.www.xmradio.com or call
1-800-929-2100 (U.S.)
.www.xmradio.ca or call
1-877-438-9677 (Canada)
See “XM Satellite Radio Service”
under Satellite Radio on page 7‑10.

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 (30,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
1-30 In Brief
Rear Vision
Camera (RVC)
The rear vision camera displays a
view of the area behind the vehicle
when the vehicle is shifted into
R (Reverse). This is displayed on
the inside rearview mirror or the
navigation screen, if equipped.
To clean the camera lens, located
in the bezel for the tailgate handle,
rinse it with water and wipe it with a
soft cloth.
For more information, seeRear
Vision Camera (RVC) on page 9‑78.
Ultrasonic Parking Assist
Ultrasonic Rear Parking
Assist (URPA) uses sensors
on the rear bumper to detect
objects while parking the vehicle.
URPA comes on automatically
when the shift lever is moved into
R (Reverse) and operates at speeds
less than 8 km/h (5 mph). URPA
uses audio beeps to provide
distance and system information.
Keep the sensors on the vehicle's
rear bumper clean to ensure proper
operation.
The system can be disabled by
pressing the rear park aid disable
button located next to the radio.
See Ultrasonic Parking Assist
on
page 9‑76for more information.
Power Outlets
Accessory power outlets can be
used to plug in electrical equipment,
such as a cell phone, MP3
player, etc. The vehicle may have two
accessory power outlets located
below the climate control system,
or may have one accessory power
outlet and one cigarette lighter.
The cigarette lighter is designed to
fit only in the receptacle closest to
the driver.
There may be another accessory
power outlet in the rear cargo area.
If the vehicle has a floor console,
there is an accessory power outlet
inside the storage bin and one on
the rear of the floor console.
The accessory power outlets are
powered, even when the ignition is
in LOCK/OFF. Continuing to use
power outlets while the ignition is in
LOCK/OFF may cause the vehicle's
battery to run down.
See
Power Outlets on page 5‑10.

Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Silverado Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-3
Steering Wheel Controls
For vehicles with audio steering
wheel controls, some audio controls
can be adjusted at the steering
wheel.
w/x(Next/Previous):Press
to select preset or favorite radio
stations, select tracks on a
CD/DVD, or navigate an iPod
®
or USB device. Radio
To select preset or favorite radio
stations:
Press and release
worxto go to
the next or previous radio station
stored as a preset or favorite.
CD/DVD
To select tracks on a CD/DVD:
Press and release
worxto go to
the next or previous track.
Selecting Tracks on an iPod or
USB Device (Vehicles without a
Navigation System)
1. Press and hold
worxwhile
listening to a song until the
contents of the current folder
display on the radio display.
2. Press and release
worxto
scroll up or down the list, then
press and hold
w, or press¨to
play the highlighted track. Navigating Folders on an iPod or
USB Device (Vehicles without a
Navigation System):
1. Press and hold
worxwhile
listening to a song until the
contents of the current folder
display on the radio display.
2. Press and hold
xto go back to
the previous folder list.
3. Press and release
worxto
scroll up or down the list.
.To select a folder, press
and hold
w, or press¨
when the folder is
highlighted.
.To go back further in the
folder list, press and
hold
x.