
Black plate (72,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2011
10-72 Vehicle Care
Removing the Spare Tire
The compact spare tire is located
under the vehicle, in front of the rear
bumper. SeeCompact Spare Tire
on page 10‑82 for more information
about the compact spare.
A. Rear Convenience Center
B. Lug Wrench C. Storage Compartment Cap
D. Hoist Shaft
E. Compact Spare Tire
F. Retainer
1. Open the storage compartment
door of the convenience
center (A) that is nearest the
liftgate and remove the cap (C)
on the bottom of the storage
compartment.
2. Open the carpet cutout that is located through the hole of the
storage compartment (C).
3. Attach the lug wrench (B) into the hoist shaft (D). 4. Turn the lug wrench (B)
counterclockwise to lower the
spare tire (E) to the ground.
Continue turning the wrench
until the spare tire can be pulled
out from under the vehicle.

Black plate (73,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-73
5. Tilt the retainer (F) and slip itthrough the wheel opening to
remove the spare tire (E) from
the cable.
6. Turn the wrench (B) clockwise to raise the cable back up after
removing the spare tire.
Do not store a full‐size or a
flat road tire under the vehicle.
See “Storing a Flat or Spare Tire
and Tools” later in this section. To continue changing the flat tire,
see
“Removing the Flat Tire and
Installing the Spare Tire” later in
this section.
If the spare tire will not lower, the
secondary latch could be engaged.
Do the following to check the cable:
1. Check under the vehicle to see if the cable is visible.
2. If it is not visible, see Secondary
Latch System on page 10‑80. If it is visible, first try to tighten
the cable by turning the lug
wrench clockwise until you hear
two clicks or feel it skip twice.
You cannot over‐tighten the
cable.
3. Loosen the cable by turning the wrench counterclockwise three
or four turns.
4. If the spare tire has not lowered, tighten the cable all the way and
then loosen it at least two times.
If the spare tire did lower to the
ground, continue with Step 5
under “Removing the Spare
Tire (Vehicles with the Rear
Convenience Center)” listed
previously.
5. If you still cannot lower the spare tire to the ground, see
Secondary Latch System on
page 10‑80.

Black plate (75,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-75
Notice:If a jack is used to raise
the vehicle without positioning
it correctly, the vehicle could
be damaged. When raising the
vehicle on a jack, avoid contact
with the rear axle control arms.
5. Attach the lug wrench to the
jack, and turn the wrench
clockwise to raise the jack
head 3 inches (7.6 cm).
6. Do not raise the vehicle yet. Put the compact spare tire near you.
{WARNING
Getting under a vehicle when it
is jacked up is dangerous. If the
vehicle slips off the jack, you
could be badly injured or killed.
Never get under a vehicle when
it is supported only by a jack.
{WARNING
Raising the vehicle with the
jack improperly positioned can
damage the vehicle and even
make the vehicle fall. To help
avoid personal injury and vehicle
damage, be sure to fit the jack lift
head into the proper location
before raising the vehicle.
7. Raise the vehicle by turning the lug wrench clockwise in the jack.
Raise the vehicle far enough
off the ground so that there is
enough room for the spare tire
to fit under the wheel well.
8. Remove all the wheel nuts and the flat tire.
9. Remove the plastic spare tire
heat shield by pulling the rubber
latch. Store the plastic spare tire
heat shield. See “Storing a Flat
or Spare Tire and Tools” later in
this section for more information.

Black plate (76,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2011
10-76 Vehicle Care
{WARNING
Rust or dirt on a wheel, or on the
parts to which it is fastened, can
make wheel nuts become loose
after time. The wheel could come
off and cause an accident. When
changing a wheel, remove any
rust or dirt from places where the
wheel attaches to the vehicle.
In an emergency, use a cloth or
a paper towel to do this; but be
sure to use a scraper or wire
brush later, if needed, to get all
the rust or dirt off. SeeIf a Tire
Goes Flat on page 10‑61.
{WARNING
Never use oil or grease on bolts
or nuts because the nuts might
come loose. The vehicle's wheel
could fall off, causing a crash. 10. Remove any rust or dirt from
the wheel bolts, mounting
surfaces, and spare wheel.
11. Place the spare tire on the wheel mounting surface.
12. Put the nuts on by hand by turning them clockwise until
the wheel is held against the
mounting surface. Make sure
the rounded end is toward the
wheel.
13. Lower the vehicle by attaching the lug wrench to the jack
and turning the wrench
counterclockwise. Lower
the jack completely.
{WARNING
Wheel nuts that are improperly or
incorrectly tightened can cause
the wheels to become loose or
come off. The wheel nuts should
be tightened with a torque wrench
(Continued)
WARNING (Continued)
to the proper torque specification
after replacing. Follow the torque
specification supplied by the
aftermarket manufacturer when
using accessory locking wheel
nuts. SeeCapacities and
Specifications on page 12‑2
for original equipment wheel
nut torque specifications.
Notice: Improperly tightened
wheel nuts can lead to brake
pulsation and rotor damage.
To avoid expensive brake repairs,
evenly tighten the wheel nuts
in the proper sequence and to
the proper torque specification.
See Capacities and Specifications
on page 12‑2 for the wheel nut
torque specification.

Black plate (80,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2011
10-80 Vehicle Care
3. Reinstall the wing bolt (B) byturning clockwise.
4. To replace the cover, line up the tab at the front of the cover with
the notch in the cover opening.
Push the cover in place and
make sure that the rear clips are
in the slots and push the cover
closed.
Store the center cap or the plastic
bolt‐on wheel covers until a full
size tire is put back on the vehicle.
When you replace the compact
spare with a full‐size tire, reinstall
the bolt‐on wheel covers or the
center cap. Hand‐tighten them
over the wheel nuts, using the
lug wrench.Secondary Latch System
This vehicle has an underbody
mounted tire hoist assembly that
has a secondary latch system.
It is designed to stop the compact
spare tire from suddenly falling off
the vehicle if the cable holding the
spare tire is damaged. For the
secondary latch to work, the tire
must be stowed with the valve stem
pointing down. See Tire Changing
on page 10‑71 for instructions on
storing the spare tire correctly.
{WARNING
Before beginning this procedure
read all the instructions. Failure
to read and follow the instructions
could damage the hoist assembly
and you and others could get
hurt. Read and follow the
instructions listed next. To release the spare tire from the
secondary latch:
{WARNING
Someone standing too close
during the procedure could be
injured by the jack. If the spare
tire does not slide off the jack
completely, make sure no one is
behind you or on either side of
you as you pull the jack out from
under the spare.
1. If the cable is not visible, start this procedure at Step 3.

Black plate (81,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2011
Vehicle Care 10-81
All‐Wheel‐Drive Vehicle shown
2. Turn the lug wrench counterclockwise until
approximately 6 inches
(15 cm) of cable is exposed.
3. Attach the lug wrench to the jack and raise the jack at least
10 turns.
4. Place the jack under the vehicle, ahead of the rear bumper.
Position the center lift point of
the jack under the center of the
spare tire. 5. Turn the lug wrench clockwise
to raise the jack until it lifts the
secondary latch spring.
6. Keep raising the jack until the spare tire stops moving upward
and is held firmly in place.
This lets you know that the
secondary latch has released
and the spare tire is balancing
on the jack.
7. Lower the jack by turning thelug wrench counterclockwise.
Keep lowering the jack until the
spare tire slides off the jack.
8. Disconnect the lug wrench from
the jack and carefully remove
the jack. Use one hand to push
against the spare tire while
firmly pulling the jack out from
under the spare tire with the
other hand.
9. Tilt the retainer and slip it through the wheel opening
when the spare tire has been
completely lowered.
10. Turn the lug wrench clockwise to raise the cable back up if the
cable is hanging.

Black plate (3,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2011
INDEX i-3
Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-32
CleaningExterior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-90
Interior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-95
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . . 8-1 Air Conditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Dual Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-4
Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10, 8-11
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Cluster, Instrument . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Collision Damage Repair . . . . . 13-13
Compact Spare Tire . . . . . . . . . . 10-82
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Compressor Kit, Tire Sealant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-63
Control of a Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Convenience Net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
Convex Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Coolant Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-15
Engine Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Engine Temperature Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22 Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-15
Engine Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Courtesy Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Courtesy Transportation Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-11
Cover Cargo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-7
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33 Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Cupholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Customer Assistance . . . . . . . . . . 13-6 Offices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-5, 13-6
Text Telephone (TTY)Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-6
Customer Information Service PublicationsOrdering Information . . . . . . 13-15
Customer Satisfaction Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-1, 13-3D
Damage Repair, Collision . . . . . 13-13
Danger, Warnings, and
Cautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
Data Recorders, Event . . . . . . . 13-18
Daytime Running Lamps/Automatic
Headlamp System . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Defensive Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Delayed Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Delayed Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Devices, Auxiliary . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-37
Displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Power Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Drive Systems All-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . 10-27, 9-28