
Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2011
2011 Chevrolet Traverse Owner ManualM
In Brief. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Vehicle Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
Performance and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Keys, Doors and Windows . . . 2-1
Keys and Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Exterior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Interior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21
Seats and Restraints . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-16
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-31
Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-47 Storage
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . 4-1
Additional Storage Features . . . 4-3
Roof Rack System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5
Instruments and Controls . . . . 5-1
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Information Displays . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 5-41
Universal Remote System . . . . 5-48
Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Lighting Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-6
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-12
Rear Seat Infotainment . . . . . . . 7-35
Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46 Climate Controls
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . 8-1
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-12
Driving and Operating . . . . . . . . 9-1
Driving Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Starting and Operating . . . . . . . 9-16
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 9-24
Drive Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-28
Ride Control Systems . . . . . . . . 9-30
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-32
Object Detection Systems . . . . 9-34
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-40
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-46
Conversions and Add-Ons . . . 9-57

Black plate (10,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2011
1-10 In Brief
Safety Belt
Refer to the following sections for
important information on how to use
safety belts properly.
.Safety Belts on page 3‑16.
.How to Wear Safety Belts
Properly on page 3‑19.
.Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 3‑24.
.Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH System)on
page 3‑56.
Sensing System for
Passenger Airbag
United States
Canada and Mexico
The passenger sensing system will
turn off the right front passenger
frontal airbag under certain
conditions. The driver airbag, seat‐mounted side impact airbags,
and roof‐rail airbags are not affected
by the passenger sensing system.
The passenger airbag status
indicator will be visible on the
instrument panel when the vehicle is
started. See
Passenger Sensing
System
on page 3‑39for more
information.

Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2011
Keys, Doors and Windows 2-19
The vehicle aerodynamics are
designed to improve fuel economy
performance. This may result in a
pulsing sound when either rear
window is down and the front
windows are up. To reduce the
sound, open either a front window
or the sunroof (if equipped).
Power Windows
{WARNING
Leaving children in a vehicle with
the keys is dangerous for many
reasons. Children or others could
be badly injured or even killed.
They could operate the power
windows or other controls or even
make the vehicle move. The
windows will function and they
could be seriously injured or killed
if caught in the path of a closing
window. Do not leave keys in a
vehicle with children.
When there are children in the
rear seat use the window lockout
button to prevent unintentional
operation of the windows.
Uplevel shown, base similar
The power window controls are
located on each of the side doors.
The driver door also has switches
that control the passenger and
rear windows. The power windows
work with the ignition in ACC/
ACCESSORY, ON/RUN or when
Retained Accessory Power (RAP) is
active. See Retained Accessory
Power (RAP) on page 9‑18.
Press the switch to lower the
window. Pull up on the front edge of
the switch to raise the window.

Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-1
Seats and
Restraints
Head Restraints
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Power Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . 3-4
Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . 3-7
Heated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Heated and Ventilated FrontSeats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10
Rear Seats
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11
Third Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13
Safety Belts
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-16
How to Wear Safety BeltsProperly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . 3-24
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-29
Safety Belt Extender . . . . . . . . . 3-29 Safety System Check . . . . . . . . 3-30
Safety Belt Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-30
Replacing Safety Belt System
Parts After a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-30
Airbag System
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-31
Where Are the Airbags? . . . . . 3-33
When Should an AirbagInflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-35
What Makes an Airbag Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-36
How Does an Airbag Restrain? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-37
What Will You See After an Airbag Inflates? . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-38
Passenger Sensing
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-39
Servicing the Airbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-44
Adding Equipment to the Airbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . 3-45
Airbag System Check . . . . . . . . 3-46
Replacing Airbag System Parts After a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-46
Child Restraints
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-47
Infants and YoungChildren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-49
Child Restraint Systems . . . . . 3-52
Where to Put the Restraint . . . 3-54
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-56
Replacing LATCH System Parts After a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-63
Securing Child Restraints (Rear Seat ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-63
Securing Child Restraints (Right Front
Passenger Seat) . . . . . . . . . . . 3-66

Black plate (19,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-19
Q: If I am a good driver,and I never drive far from
home, why should I wear
safety belts?
A: You may be an excellent driver,
but if you are in a crash —even
one that is not your fault —you
and your passenger(s) can be
hurt. Being a good driver does
not protect you from things
beyond your control, such as
bad drivers.
Most accidents occur within
40 km (25 miles) of home.
And the greatest number of
serious injuries and deaths
occur at speeds of less than
65 km/h (40 mph).
Safety belts are for everyone.How to Wear Safety Belts
Properly
This section is only for people of
adult size.
Be aware that there are special
things to know about safety belts
and children. And there are different
rules for smaller children and
infants. If a child will be riding in the
vehicle, see Older Children
on
page 3‑47or Infants and Young
Childrenon page 3‑49. Follow
those rules for everyone's
protection.
It is very important for all occupants
to buckle up. Statistics show that
unbelted people are hurt more often
in crashes than those who are
wearing safety belts.
Occupants who are not buckled up
can be thrown out of the vehicle
in a crash. And they can strike
others in the vehicle who are
wearing safety belts. First, before you or your
passenger(s) wear a safety belt,
there is important information you
should know.
Sit up straight and always keep
your feet on the floor in front of you.
The lap part of the belt should be
worn low and snug on the hips, just
touching the thighs. In a crash, this
applies force to the strong pelvic
bones and you would be less likely
to slide under the lap belt. If you slid
under it, the belt would apply force
on your abdomen. This could cause
serious or even fatal injuries.

Black plate (24,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2011
3-24 Seats and Restraints
Q: What is wrong with this?
A:The belt is twisted across
the body.
{WARNING
You can be seriously injured by a
twisted belt. In a crash, you would
not have the full width of the belt
to spread impact forces. If a belt
is twisted, make it straight so it
can work properly, or ask your
dealer to fix it.
Lap-Shoulder Belt
All seating positions in the vehicle
have a lap-shoulder belt.
If you are using a rear seating
position with a detachable safety
belt and the safety belt is not
attached, see Third Row Seats
on
page 3‑13for instruction on
reconnecting the safety belt to the
mini-buckle.
The following instructions explain
how to wear a lap-shoulder belt
properly.
1. Adjust the seat, if the seat is adjustable, so you can sit up
straight. To see how, see “Seats”
in the Index.
2. Pick up the latch plate and pull the belt across you. Do not let it
get twisted.
The lap-shoulder belt may lock if
you pull the belt across you very
quickly. If this happens, let the
belt go back slightly to unlock it.
Then pull the belt across you
more slowly.
If the shoulder portion of a
passenger belt is pulled out all
the way, the child restraint
locking feature may be engaged.
If this happens, let the belt go
back all the way and start again.

Black plate (27,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-27
Rear Safety Belt Comfort
Guides
This vehicle may have rear shoulder
belt comfort guides. If not, they are
available through your dealer. The
guides may provide added safety
belt comfort for older children who
have outgrown booster seats and
for some adults. When installed and
properly adjusted, the comfort guide
positions the shoulder belt away
from the neck and head.Here is how to install a comfort
guide to the safety belt:
Outboard Positions
1. For the outboard positions, remove the guide from its
storage clip on the interior body.
For the third row center position,
locate the comfort guide which is
located in a storage pocket, at
the top of the seat, under the
headrest on the driver's side of
the vehicle. To access the comfort guide, you will first need
to move the headrest forward by
pulling on the handle behind the
seatback. The comfort guide will
now be accessible.
Third Row Center Position
Pull the comfort guide out
of its storage location and
then return the headrest to its
upright position.

Black plate (29,1)Chevrolet Traverse Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-29
To remove and store the comfort
guide, squeeze the belt edges
together so that the safety belt can
be removed from the guide. Slide
the guide into its storage location or
on its storage clip.
Safety Belt Use During
Pregnancy
Safety belts work for everyone,
including pregnant women. Like all
occupants, they are more likely to
be seriously injured if they do not
wear safety belts.
A pregnant woman should wear a
lap-shoulder belt, and the lap
portion should be worn as low as
possible, below the rounding,
throughout the pregnancy.
The best way to protect the fetus is
to protect the mother. When a safety
belt is worn properly, it is more likely
that the fetus will not be hurt in a
crash. For pregnant women, as for
anyone, the key to making safety
belts effective is wearing them
properly.
Safety Belt Extender
If the vehicle's safety belt will fasten
around you, you should use it.
But if a safety belt is not long
enough, your dealer will order you
an extender. When you go in to
order it, take the heaviest coat you
will wear, so the extender will be
long enough for you. To help avoid
personal injury, do not let someone
else use it, and use it only for the
seat it is made to fit. The extender
has been designed for adults. Never
use it for securing child seats. To
wear it, attach it to the regular safety
belt. For more information, see the
instruction sheet that comes with
the extender.