Page 1 of 414

Black plate (1,1)GMC Savana Owner Manual - 2011
2011 GMC Savana Owner ManualM
In Brief. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Vehicle Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
Performance and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Keys, Doors and Windows . . . 2-1
Keys and Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Exterior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Interior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Seats and Restraints . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-25
Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-44
Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . 4-1 Instruments and Controls
. . . . 5-1
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Information Displays . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-32
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 5-40
Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Lighting Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-7
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-12
Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-23
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . 8-1
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-6
Driving and Operating . . . . . . . . 9-1
Driving Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Starting and Operating . . . . . . . 9-17
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-26 Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 9-27
Drive Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-35
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-35
Ride Control Systems . . . . . . . . 9-37
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-39
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-42
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-48
Conversions and Add-Ons . . . 9-59
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-1
General Information . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Vehicle Checks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-38
Electrical System . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-43
Wheels and Tires . . . . . . . . . . . 10-50
Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-84
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-88
Appearance Care . . . . . . . . . . . 10-91
Service and Maintenance . . . 11-1
General Information . . . . . . . . . . 11-1
Scheduled Maintenance . . . . . . 11-3
Recommended Fluids, Lubricants, and Parts . . . . . . . 11-7
Maintenance Records . . . . . . . 11-10
Page 7 of 414

Black plate (1,1)GMC Savana Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-1
In Brief
Instrument Panel
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4
Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . 1-4
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Airbag On-Off Switch . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Sensing System for Passenger Airbag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 1-12
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Vehicle Features
Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . 1-17
Bluetooth
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . 1-18
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Performance and Maintenance
StabiliTrak®System . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . 1-19
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 1-20
Fuel E85 (85% Ethanol) . . . . . 1-20
Driving for Better Fuel Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Page 8 of 414
Black plate (2,1)GMC Savana Owner Manual - 2011
1-2 In Brief
Instrument Panel
Page 9 of 414

Black plate (3,1)GMC Savana Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-3
A.Air Vents on page 8‑6.
B. Driver Information Center (DIC) Buttons. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑27.
C. Turn and Lane‐Change Lever. See Turn and Lane-Change
Signals on page 6‑5.
Windshield Wiper/Washer on
page 5‑4.
D. Hazard Warning Flashers on
page 6‑4 (Out of View).
E. Instrument Cluster on
page 5‑11.
F. Shift Lever. See Starting the
Engine on page 9‑20.
Manual Mode on page 9‑33
(If Equipped).
G. Climate Control Systems on
page 8‑1.
H. Infotainment on page 7‑1. I.
Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6‑1.
J. Instrument Panel Illumination
Control on page 6‑5.
Dome Lamp Override. See
Dome Lamps on page 6‑6.
K. Cruise Control on page 9‑39
(If Equipped) .
Fast Idle System (If Equipped).
See the Duramax diesel
supplement for more
information.
L. Steering Wheel Adjustment on
page 5‑2.
M. Data Link Connector (DLC) (Out of View). See Malfunction
Indicator Lamp on page 5‑20.
N. Horn on page 5‑4.
O. Steering Wheel Controls on
page 5‑2. P. Tow/Haul Mode Button. See
“Tow/Haul Mode” underTowing
Equipment on page 9‑56.
Q. Power Outlets on page 5‑9.
R. StabiliTrak
®System on
page 9‑37 (If Equipped).
S. Airbag On-Off Switch on
page 3‑33 (If Equipped) .
T. Front Storage on page 4‑1.
U. Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator on page 5‑19
(If Equipped).
OnStar
®System Button.
(If Equipped).
V. Rear Heating System on
page 8‑3 (If Equipped).
W. USB Port. See Auxiliary
Devices on page 7‑18.
Page 14 of 414
Black plate (8,1)GMC Savana Owner Manual - 2011
1-8 In Brief
Safety Belts
Refer to the following sections for
important information on how to use
safety belts properly.
.Safety Belts on page 3‑9.
.How to Wear Safety Belts
Properly on page 3‑12.
.Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 3‑18.
.Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH System) on
page 3‑52.
Airbag On-Off Switch
If the instrument panel has one of
the switches pictured in the
following illustrations, the vehicle
has an airbag on-off switch that you
can use to manually turn on or off
the right front passenger airbag.
United States
Canada and Mexico
To operate the airbag on‐off switch,
use the vehicle key.
See Airbag On-Off Switch on
page 3‑33 for important information.
Page 15 of 414
Black plate (9,1)GMC Savana Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-9
Sensing System for
Passenger Airbag
The passenger sensing system,
if equipped, will turn off the right
front passenger frontal airbag under
certain conditions. The driver airbag
and roof‐rail airbags, if equipped,
are not affected by this.
If the vehicle has a passenger
sensing system, the passenger
airbag status indicator will be visible
on the instrument panel when the
vehicle is started.
United States
Canada and Mexico
See Passenger Sensing System on
page 3‑37 for important information.
Mirror Adjustment
Exterior Mirrors
Vehicles with outside manual
mirrors can be adjusted by moving
the mirror up and down or left to
right so you can see a little of the
side of the vehicle, and have a clear
view of objects behind you.
Vehicles with outside power mirrors
have controls located on the driver
side door.
Page 17 of 414

Black plate (11,1)GMC Savana Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-11
Interior Lighting
Dome Lamp
The dome lamps come on when any
door is opened. They turn off after
all the doors are closed.
The instrument panel brightness
knob extends when
Dis pressed.
To manually turn on the dome
lamps, press
Dthen turn the knob
clockwise to the farthest position. In
this position, the dome lamps
remain on whether a door is opened
or closed.
EDOME OFF : This button is
located above the instrument panel
brightness knob.
Press the button in and the dome
lamps remain off when a door is
opened. Press the button again so
that the dome lamps come on when
a door is opened.
Reading Lamps
For vehicles with reading lamps,
press the button located next to
each lamp to turn it on or off.
The vehicle may also have reading
lamps in other locations. The lamps
cannot be adjusted.
For more information on interior
lighting, see:
.Instrument Panel Illumination
Control on page 6‑5.
.Entry/Exit Lighting on page 6‑7.
Exterior Lighting
The exterior lamps control is located
on the instrument panel to the left of
the steering wheel.
O: Briefly turn the control to this
position to turn the automatic
headlamps and Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL) off or back on.
For vehicles first sold in Canada,
the off position only works for
vehicles that are shifted into the
P (Park) position.
AUTO: Automatically turns on the
headlamps, parking lamps,
taillamps, instrument panel lights,
and license plate lamps.
Page 18 of 414
Black plate (12,1)GMC Savana Owner Manual - 2011
1-12 In Brief
;:Turns on the parking lamps,
taillamps, instrument panel lights,
and license plate lamps.
2: Turns on the headlamps,
parking lamps, taillamps, instrument
panel lights, and license plate
lamps.
For more information, see:
.Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6‑1.
.Exterior Lamps Off Reminder on
page 6‑2.
.Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
on page 6‑3.
.Automatic Headlamp System on
page 6‑3.
Windshield Wiper/Washer
The lever is located on the left side
of the steering column.
8: Use for a single wiping cycle.
6:Use to adjust the delay time
between wipes. Turn the band up or
down for more frequent wipes or
less frequent wipes.
d: Slow wipes.
a:Fast wipes.
9:Use to turn the wipers off.
L: Push the paddle on top of the
multifunction lever to spray washer
fluid on the windshield.
See Windshield Wiper/Washer on
page 5‑4.