
Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2011
2011 Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner ManualM
In Brief. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Vehicle Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Performance and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
Keys, Doors and Windows . . . 2-1
Keys and Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Exterior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Interior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22
Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-24
Seats and Restraints . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-24
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-41
Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-57 Storage
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . 4-1
Additional Storage Features . . . 4-2
Roof Rack System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
Instruments and Controls . . . . 5-1
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Information Displays . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 5-49
Universal Remote System . . . . 5-57
Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Lighting Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-15
Rear Seat Infotainment . . . . . . . 7-36
Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48 Climate Controls
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . 8-1
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-13
Driving and Operating . . . . . . . . 9-1
Driving Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Starting and Operating . . . . . . . 9-29
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-37
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 9-39
Drive Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-46
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-53
Ride Control Systems . . . . . . . . 9-55
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-58
Object Detection Systems . . . . 9-61
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-71
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-78
Conversions and Add-Ons . . . 9-97

Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2011
2-4 Keys, Doors and Windows
If enabled through the Driver
Information Center (DIC), the turn
signal lamps flash once to indicate
locking has occurred. If enabled
through the DIC, the horn chirps
when the lock button is pressed
again within three seconds. See
Vehicle Personalization (With DIC
Buttons) on page 5‑49for additional
information.
Pressing
Qarms the content
theft‐deterrent system. See
Anti-Theft Alarm System on
page 2‑14.
K(Unlock): Press once to unlock
only the driver door. If
Kis pressed
again within three seconds, all
remaining doors unlock. The interior
lamps may come on and stay on for
20 seconds or until the ignition is
turned on. If enabled through the DIC, the turn
signal lamps flash twice to indicate
unlocking has occurred. See
Vehicle
Personalization (With DIC Buttons)
on page 5‑49. If enabled through
the DIC, the exterior lights turn on
briefly if it is dark enough outside.
See “Approach Lighting” under
Vehicle Personalization (With DIC
Buttons) on page 5‑49.
Pressing
Kon the RKE transmitter
disarms the content theft‐deterrent
system. See Anti-Theft Alarm
System on page 2‑14.
m(Liftglass): Press and hold to
unlock the liftglass.
&(Power Liftgate): Press and
hold to open and close the liftgate.
The taillamps flash and a chime
sounds to indicate when the liftgate
is opening and closing.
L(Vehicle Locator/Panic
Alarm): Press and release to
locate the vehicle. The turn signal
lamps flash and the horn sounds
three times. Press and hold
Lfor more than
two seconds to activate the panic
alarm. The turn signal lamps flash
and the horn sounds repeatedly for
30 seconds. The alarm turns off
when the ignition is moved to ON/
RUN or
Lis pressed again. The
ignition must be in LOCK/OFF for
the panic alarm to work.
The vehicle comes with two
transmitters. Each transmitter will
have a number on it, “1”or“2”.
These numbers correspond to the
driver of the vehicle. For example,
the memory seat position for driver
1 will be recalled when using the
transmitter labeled “1”, if enabled
through the DIC. See “Memory
Seat, Mirrors, and Pedals” under
Power Seat Adjustment on page 3‑4
and Vehicle Personalization (With
DIC Buttons) on page 5‑49 for more
information.

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-1
Lighting
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lamps OffReminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Headlamp High/Low-Beam Changer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Automatic Headlamp System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . 6-5
Turn and Lane-Change Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Auxiliary Roof-Mounted Lamp . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel IlluminationControl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Reading Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Lighting Features
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Battery Load Management . . . . 6-8
Battery Power Protection . . . . . . 6-9
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls
The exterior lamps control is located
on the instrument panel to the left of
the steering wheel.
It controls the following systems:
.Headlamps
.Taillamps
.Parking Lamps
.License Plate Lamps
.Instrument Panel Lights

Black plate (7,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-7
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel
Illumination Control
D(Instrument Panel
Brightness): This feature controls
the brightness of the instrument
panel lights and is located next to
the exterior lamps control.
Push the knob to extend out and
then it can be turned. Turn the knob clockwise or
counterclockwise to brighten or dim
the instrument panel lights. Turning
the knob to the farthest clockwise
position turns on the dome lamps.
Dome Lamps
The dome lamps are located in the
overhead console.
They come on when any door is
opened and turn off after all the
doors are closed.
Turn the instrument panel
brightness knob located below the
dome lamp override button,
clockwise to the farthest position to
manually turn on the dome lamps.
The dome lamps remain on until the
knob is turned counterclockwise.
Dome Lamp Override
The dome lamp override button is
located next to the exterior lamps
control.
k(Dome Off):
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.

Black plate (8,1)Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban Owner Manual - 2011
6-8 Lighting
Reading Lamps
For vehicles with reading lamps
they are located on the overhead
console.
To turn on the reading lamps, press
the button located next to each
lamp. To turn them off, press the
button again.
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.
The lamps are fixed and cannot be
adjusted.
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.