2011 GMC SIERRA ignition

Black plate (9,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
Lighting 6-9
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.
If the vehicle has a DVD Rear Seat
Entertainment (RSE) system, press
the lamp lenses to turn the lamps on
or off.
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.

Black plate (10,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
6-10 Lighting
The battery can be discharged at
idle if the electrical loads are very
high. This is true for all vehicles.
This is because the generator
(alternator) may not be spinning
fast enough at idle to produce all
the power that is needed for very
high electrical loads.
A high electrical load occurs when
several of the following are on,
such as: headlamps, high beams,
fog lamps, rear window defogger,
climate control fan at high speed,
heated seats, engine cooling fans,
trailer loads, and loads plugged into
accessory power outlets.
EPM works to prevent excessive
discharge of the battery. It does this
by balancing the generator's output
and the vehicle's electrical needs.
It can increase engine idle speed
to generate more power, whenever
needed. It can temporarily reduce
the power demands of some
accessories.Normally, these actions occur
in steps or levels, without being
noticeable. In rare cases at the
highest levels of corrective action,
this action may be noticeable to the
driver. If so, a Driver Information
Center (DIC) message might be
displayed, such as BATTERY
SAVER ACTIVE, BATTERY
VOLTAGE LOW, or LOW BATTERY.
If one of these messages displays,
it is recommended that the driver
reduce the electrical loads as much
as possible. See
Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑33.
Battery Power Protection
This feature shuts off the dome and
reading lamps, if they are left on
for more than 10 minutes after the
ignition is turned off. The cargo
lamp shuts off after 20 minutes.
This prevents the battery from
running down.

Black plate (2,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
7-2 Infotainment System
The vehicle has Retained
Accessory Power (RAP). With RAP,
the audio system can be played
even after the ignition is turned off.
SeeRetained Accessory Power
(RAP) on page 9‑40 for more
information.
Navigation/Radio System
For vehicles with a navigation radio
system, see the separate Navigation
System Manual.
Theft-Deterrent Feature
TheftLock®is designed to
discourage theft of the vehicle's
radio by learning a portion of the
Vehicle Identification Number (VIN).
The radio does not operate if it
is stolen or moved to a different
vehicle.
Operation
AM-FM Radio

Black plate (5,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
Infotainment System 7-5
Using the Radio
O(Power/Volume):Press to turn
the system on and off.
Turn clockwise or counterclockwise
to increase or decrease the volume.
4(Information) (AM-FM Radio and
AM-FM Radio with CD): Press to
switch the display between the radio
station frequency and the time.
While the ignition is off, press this
button to display the time. 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. Speed Compensated Volume
(SCV):
Radios with Speed
Compensated Volume (SCV)
automatically adjust the radio
volume to compensate for road
and wind noise as the vehicle's
speed changes while driving, so that
the volume level stays consistent.
To activate SCV:
1. Set the radio volume to the desired level.
2. Press the MENU button to display the radio setup menu.
3. Press the softkey under the AUTO VOLUM (automatic
volume) tab on the radio display.
4. Press the softkey under the desired Speed Compensated
Volume setting (OFF, Low, Med,
or High) to select the level of
radio volume compensation.
The display times out after
approximately 10 seconds. Each
higher setting allows for more
radio volume compensation at
faster vehicle speeds.
Setting the Tone (Bass/Treble)
(AM-FM Radio and AM-FM
Radio with CD)
To adjust the bass or treble:
1. Press the
fknob until Bass or
Treble displays.
2. To adjust the setting, do one of the following:
.Turn thefknob.
.Press either¨SEEK,
or
©SEEK.
.Press either\FWD,
or
sREV.
EQ (Equalization): Press this
button to choose bass and treble
equalization settings designed for
different types of music. Selecting
MANUAL, or changing bass or
treble, returns the EQ to the manual
bass and treble settings.
Unique EQ settings can be saved
for each source.

Black plate (17,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
Infotainment System 7-17
Ejecting a CD
(Six-Disc CD Player)
ZEJECT :Press and release
to eject the disc that is currently
playing. Remove the CD when
Remove Disc displays. If the disc is
not removed, after several seconds
the disc is automatically pulled back
into the player.
To eject all CDs, press and hold the
ZEJECT button for two seconds.
Playing a CD
If the ignition or radio is turned off
with a CD in the player, it stays in
the player. When the ignition or
radio is turned on, the CD starts
playing where it stopped, if it was
the last selected audio source.
The CD is controlled by the buttons
on the radio faceplate or by the RSA
unit. See Rear Seat Audio (RSA)
System on page 7‑48 for more
information. When a CD is inserted, the CD
symbol displays on the left side
of the radio display. As each new
track starts to play, the track number
displays.
The CD player can play the smaller
8 cm (3 in) single CDs with an
adapter ring. Full-size CDs and the
smaller CDs are loaded in the same
manner.
CD/AUX (CD/Auxiliary):
Press to
cycle between CD or Auxiliary when
listening to the radio. The CD icon
and a message showing the disc
and/or track number will display
when a CD is in the player. Press
again and the system automatically
searches for an auxiliary input
device; see Auxiliary Devices on
page 7‑34 for more information.
If a portable audio player is not
connected, “No Input Device Found”
displays.
4(Information): Press to display
additional text information related
to the current song. If information is
available, 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.
f(Tune):Turn to select tracks on
the CD that is currently playing.
©SEEK: Press to go to the start
of the current track if more than
10 seconds on the CD have played.
Press to go to the previous track if
less than 10 seconds on the CD
have played.
Press and hold, or press multiple
times, to continue moving backward
through the tracks on the CD.
¨SEEK: Press to go to the next
track.
Press and hold, or press multiple
times, to continue moving forward
through the tracks on the CD.

Black plate (24,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
7-24 Infotainment System
Front seat passengers can listen
to the radio (AM, FM, or XM if
equipped) by pressing the BAND
button or the DVD/CD AUX button
to select CD slot, DVD slot, front
auxiliary input, USB port, or rear
auxiliary input (if available).
If a playback device is plugged
into the radio’s front auxiliary input
jack, USB port, or the rear auxiliary
jack, the front seat passengers
are able to listen to playback
from this source through the
vehicle speakers. See“Using the
Auxiliary Input Jack” inAuxiliary
Devices on page 7‑34, or “Audio/
Video (A/V) Jacks” underRear
Seat Entertainment (RSE) System
on page 7‑39 for more information.
In some vehicles, depending on
audio options, the rear speakers
can be muted when the RSA power
is turned on. See Rear Seat Audio
(RSA) System on page 7‑48 for
more information.Inserting a Disc
Insert a disc partway into either slot,
label side up. The player pulls it in
and the disc should begin playing.
(Loading a disc into the system,
depending on media type and
format, ranges from 5 to 20 seconds
for a CD, and up to 30 seconds for
a DVD to begin playing.)
Ejecting a Disc
ZCD (Eject): Press and
release to eject the disc that is
currently playing. The CD ejects
from the bottom slot. A beep
sounds and Ejecting Disc displays.
Once the disc is ejected, Remove
Disc displays. The disc can be
removed. If the disc is not removed,
after several seconds the disc
automatically pulls back into
the player.
ZDVD (Eject): Press and
release to eject the disc that is
currently playing in the top slot.
A beep sounds and Ejecting Disc
displays. If loading and reading of a disc
cannot be completed, due to
unknown format, etc., and the disc
fails to eject, press and hold for
more than five seconds to force
the disc to eject.
Playing a CD (in Either the
DVD or CD Slot)
If the ignition or radio is turned off
with a CD in the player, it stays in
the player. When the ignition or
radio is turned on, the CD starts
playing where it stopped, if it was
the last selected audio source.
The CD is controlled by the buttons
on the radio faceplate or by the RSA
unit. See
Rear Seat Audio (RSA)
System on page 7‑48 for more
information. The DVD/CD decks
(the upper slot is the DVD deck
and the lower slot is the CD deck)
of the radio are compatible with
most audio CDs, CD-Rs, CD-RWs,
and MP3s.

Black plate (31,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
Infotainment System 7-31
O(Power):Press to turn the
radio on or off. Turn clockwise or
counterclockwise to increase or
decrease the volume. Press and
hold for more than two seconds to
turn off the entire radio and Rear
Seat Entertainment (RSE) system
and to start the Parental Control
feature. Parental Control prevents
the rear seat occupant from
operating the Rear Seat Audio
(RSA) system or remote control.
A lock symbol displays next to the
clock display. The Parental Control
feature remains on until the knob
is pressed and held for more than
two seconds again, or until the
driver turns the ignition off and
exits the vehicle.
f(Tune): Turn to select tracks on
a CD or DVD.
©SEEK: Press to return to the
start of the current track or chapter.
Press again to go to the previous
track or chapter. This button might
not work when the DVD is playing
the copyright information or the
previews.
¨SEEK: Press to go to the next
track or chapter. This button might
not work when the DVD is playing
the copyright information or the
previews.
sREV (Fast Reverse): Press
to quickly reverse the CD or DVD
at five times the normal speed.
To stop fast reversing, press again.
This button might not work when
the DVD is playing the copyright
information or the previews.
\FWD (Fast Forward): Press
to fast forward the CD or DVD at
five times the normal speed. To stop
fast forwarding, press again. This
button might not work when the
DVD is playing the copyright
information or the previews. Using Softkeys to Play a DVD-V
(Video)
Once a DVD-V is inserted, the
radio display menu shows several
tab options for playback. Press the
softkey located under any tab option
during DVD-V playback.
r/j(Play/Pause):
Press either
the Play or Pause tab displayed on
the radio, to toggle between pausing
or restarting playback of a DVD.
If the forward arrow is showing on
the display, the system is in pause
mode. If the Pause tab is showing
on the display, the system is in
playback mode. If the DVD screen
is off, press the play button to turn
the screen on.
Some DVDs begin playing after the
previews have finished, although
there could be a delay of up to
30 seconds. If the DVD does
not begin playing the movie
automatically, press the softkey
located under the play/pause
symbol tag displayed on the radio.

Black plate (40,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
7-40 Infotainment System
Parental Control
The RSE system may have a
Parental Control feature, depending
on which radio the vehicle has.
To start Parental Control, press
and hold the radio power button for
more than two seconds to stop all
system features such as: radio,
video screen, Rear Seat Audio
(RSA), DVD, and/or CD. While
Parental Control is on, a padlock
icon displays.
The radio can be turned back on
with a single press of the power
button, but the RSE system will
remain under Parental Control.
To turn Parental Control off, press
and hold the radio power button for
more than two seconds. The RSE
returns from where it was previously
left and the padlock icon disappears
from the radio display.
Parental Control can also be turned
off by inserting or ejecting any disc,
pressing the play icon on the radio
DVD display menu, or changing an
ignition position.
Headphones
A. Battery cover
B. Channel 1 or 2 switch
C. Power button
D. Volume control
E. Power indicator light
The RSE includes two 2-channel
wireless headphones that are
dedicated to this system. Channel 1
is dedicated to the video screen,
while Channel 2 is dedicated to
Rear Seat Audio (RSA) selections.
These headphones can be used tolisten to the radio, CDs, DVDs,
MP3s, DVD‐As, or any auxiliary
source connected to A/V jacks or
the auxiliary input jack, if the vehicle
has this feature. The wireless
headphones have an On/Off button,
channel 1 or 2 switch, and a volume
control.
Push the power button to turn on
the headphones. An indicator light
located on the headphones comes
on. If the light comes on, but there
is intermittent sound and/or static on
the headphones, or if the indicator
light does not come on, the batteries
might need to be replaced.
See
“Battery Replacement” later in
this section for more information.
Switch the headphones to Off when
not in use.
Infrared transmitters are located at
the rear of the overhead console.
The headphones shut off
automatically to save the battery
power if the RSE system and RSA
are shut off, or if the headphones
are out of range of the transmitters
for more than three minutes.