
Black plate (30,1)GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual - 2011
1-30 In Brief
Service involving location
information about your vehicle
can’t work unless GPS signals
are available, unobstructed, and
compatible with the OnStar
hardware. The vehicle has to have
a working electrical system and
adequate battery power for the
OnStar equipment to operate.
OnStar service may not work if the
OnStar equipment isn’t properly
installed or you haven’t maintained
it and your vehicle is in good
working order and in compliance
with all government regulations.
If you try to add, connect, or modify
any equipment or software in your
vehicle, OnStar service may not
work. Other problems OnStar can’t
control may prevent service to you,
such as hills, tall buildings, tunnels,
weather, electrical system design
and architecture of your vehicle,
damage to important parts of your
vehicle in a crash, or wireless phone
network congestion or jamming.See
Radio Frequency Statement on
page 13‑16 for information
regarding Part 15 of the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC)
rules and Industry Canada
Standards RSS-210/220/310.
OnStar Steering Wheel
Controls
This vehicle may have ab g/c xTalk/Mute button
that can be used to interact with
OnStar Hands-Free Calling. See
Steering Wheel Controls on
page 5‑2 for more information.
On some vehicles, the mute button
can be used to dial numbers into
voice mail systems, or to dial phone
extensions. See the OnStar Owner's
Guide for more information.
Your Responsibility
Increase the volume of the radio
if the OnStar Advisor cannot be
heard. If the light next to the OnStar
buttons is red, the system may
not be functioning properly.
Push
Qand request a vehicle
diagnostic check. If the light
appears clear (no light is
appearing), your OnStar
subscription has expired and all
services have been deactivated.
Push
Qto confirm that the OnStar
equipment is active.
OnStar®
If the vehicle is equipped with an
active OnStar system, that system
may also record data in crash or
near crash-like situations. The
OnStar Terms and Conditions
provides information on data
collection and use and is available
in the OnStar Glove Box Kit,
at www.onstar.com (U.S.) or
www.onstar.ca (Canada), or by
pushing
Qand speaking to an
Advisor.

Black plate (39,1)GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-39
Airbag System
The vehicle has the following
airbags:
.A frontal airbag for the driver.
.A frontal airbag for the right front
passenger.
.A roof-rail airbag for the driver
and passenger directly behind
the driver.
.A roof-rail airbag for the right
front passenger and the person
seated directly behind that
passenger.
The vehicle may have the following
airbags:
.A seat‐mounted side impact
airbag for the driver.
.A seat‐mounted side impact
airbag for the right front
passenger.
.If the vehicle has a third row
seat, it will have a third row
roof-rail airbag. All of the airbags in the vehicle will
have the word AIRBAG embossed
in the trim or on an attached label
near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear on the middle
part of the steering wheel for the
driver and on the instrument panel
for the right front passenger.
With seat‐mounted side impact
airbags, the word AIRBAG will
appear on the side of the seatback
closest to the door.
With roof-rail airbags, the word
AIRBAG will appear along the
headliner or trim.
Airbags are designed to supplement
the protection provided by safety
belts. Even though today's airbags
are also designed to help reduce
the risk of injury from the force of an
inflating bag, all airbags must inflate
very quickly to do their job.
Here are the most important things
to know about the airbag system:
{WARNING
You can be severely injured or
killed in a crash if you are not
wearing your safety belt
—even if
you have airbags. Airbags are
designed to work with safety
belts, but do not replace them.
Also, airbags are not designed to
deploy in every crash. In some
crashes safety belts are your only
restraint. See When Should an
Airbag Inflate? on page 3‑43.
Wearing your safety belt during a
crash helps reduce your chance
of hitting things inside the vehicle
or being ejected from it. Airbags
are “supplemental restraints” to
the safety belts. Everyone in your
vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly —whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.

Black plate (41,1)GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-41
Where Are the Airbags?
The driver frontal airbag is in the
middle of the steering wheel.
The right front passenger frontal
airbag is in the instrument panel on
the passenger's side.Driver Side Shown, PassengerSide Similar
If the vehicle has seat‐mounted side
impact airbags for the driver and
right front passenger, they are in
the side of the seatbacks closest to
the door.

Black plate (42,1)GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual - 2011
3-42 Seats and Restraints
Driver Side Shown, PassengerSide Similar
The roof-rail airbags for the driver,
right front passenger, and second
row outboard passengers are in the
ceiling above the side windows.Driver Side Shown, Passenger Side Similar
If the vehicle has a third row
passenger seat, the roof-rail airbags
are located in the ceiling above
the rear windows for the outboard
passenger positions in the third row.
{WARNING
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inflate properly
or it might force the object into
that person causing severe injury
or even death. The path of an
inflating airbag must be kept
clear. Do not put anything
between an occupant and an
airbag, and do not attach or put
anything on the steering wheel
hub or on or near any other
airbag covering.
Do not use seat accessories
that block the inflation path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.
Never secure anything to the roof
of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags
by routing a rope or tie down
through any door or window
opening. If you do, the path of an
inflating roof-rail airbag will be
blocked.

Black plate (44,1)GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual - 2011
3-44 Seats and Restraints
The seat position sensor provides
information that is used to determine
if the airbags should deploy at a
reduced level or at full deployment.
The vehicle may or may not have
seat‐mounted side impact airbags.
The vehicle has roof-rail airbags.
SeeAirbag System on page 3‑39.
Seat‐mounted side impact airbags
and roof-rail airbags are intended to
inflate in moderate to severe side
crashes. In addition, these roof-rail
airbags are intended to inflate
during a rollover or in a severe
frontal impact. Seat‐mounted side
impact airbags and roof-rail airbags
will inflate if the crash severity is
above the system's designed
threshold level. The threshold level
can vary with specific vehicle
design. Roof-rail airbags are not
intended to inflate in rear impacts.
A seat‐mounted side impact airbag
is intended to deploy on the side
of the vehicle that is struck. Both
roof-rail airbags will deploy when
either side of the vehicle is struck or
if the sensing system predicts that
the vehicle is about to roll over, or in
a severe frontal impact.
In any particular crash, no one
can say whether an airbag should
have inflated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because
of what the repair costs were.
For frontal airbags, inflation is
determined by what the vehicle hits,
the angle of the impact, and how
quickly the vehicle slows down.
For seat‐mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags, deployment is
determined by the location and
severity of the side impact. In a
rollover event, roof-rail airbag
deployment is determined by the
direction of the roll.What Makes an Airbag
Inflate?
In a deployment event, the sensing
system sends an electrical signal
triggering a release of gas from the
inflator. Gas from the inflator fills the
airbag causing the bag to break out
of the cover and deploy. The inflator,
the airbag, and related hardware are
all part of the airbag module.
Frontal airbag modules are located
inside the steering wheel and
instrument panel. For vehicles with
seat‐mounted side impact airbags,
there are airbags modules in the
side of the front seatbacks closest
to the door. For vehicles with
roof-rail airbags, there are airbag
modules in the ceiling of the vehicle,
near the side windows that have
occupant seating positions.

Black plate (45,1)GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual - 2011
Seats and Restraints 3-45
How Does an Airbag
Restrain?
In moderate to severe frontal or
near frontal collisions, even belted
occupants can contact the steering
wheel or the instrument panel. In
moderate to severe side collisions,
even belted occupants can contact
the inside of the vehicle.
Airbags supplement the protection
provided by safety belts. Frontal
airbags distribute the force of the
impact more evenly over the
occupant's upper body, stopping
the occupant more gradually.
Seat‐mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags distribute the force
of the impact more evenly over the
occupant's upper body.Rollover capable roof-rail airbags
are designed to help contain the
head and chest of occupants in
the outboard seating positions in
the first, second, and third rows,
if equipped with a third row seat.
The rollover capable roof-rail
airbags are designed to help
reduce the risk of full or partial
ejection in rollover events, although
no system can prevent all such
ejections.
But airbags would not help in
many types of collisions, primarily
because the occupant's motion is
not toward those airbags. See
When
Should an Airbag Inflate? on
page 3‑43 for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded
as anything more than a supplement
to safety belts.
What Will You See After
an Airbag Inflates?
After the frontal airbags and
seat-mounted side impact airbags
inflate, they quickly deflate, so
quickly that some people may not
even realize an airbag inflated.
Roof-rail airbags may still be at
least partially inflated for some
time after they deploy. Some
components of the airbag module
may be hot for several minutes. For
location of the airbag modules, see
What Makes an Airbag Inflate? on
page 3‑44.
The parts of the airbag that come
into contact with you may be
warm, but not too hot to touch.

Black plate (52,1)GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual - 2011
3-52 Seats and Restraints
Adding Equipment to the
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle
Q: Is there anything I might addto or change about the vehicle
that could keep the airbags
from working properly?
A: Yes. If you add things that
change your vehicle's frame,
bumper system, height, front end
or side sheet metal, they may
keep the airbag system from
working properly. Changing or
moving any parts of the front
seats, safety belts, the airbag
sensing and diagnostic module,
steering wheel, instrument
panel, roof-rail airbag modules,
ceiling headliner or pillar garnish
trim, overhead console, front
sensors, side impact sensors,
or airbag wiring can affect the
operation of the airbag system.
In addition, the vehicle may have
a passenger sensing system
for the right front passenger's
position, which includes sensors
that are part of the passenger's seat. The passenger sensing
system may not operate
properly if the original seat
trim is replaced with non-GM
covers, upholstery or trim,
or with GM covers, upholstery
or trim designed for a different
vehicle. Any object, such as
an aftermarket seat heater or
a comfort enhancing pad or
device, installed under or on
top of the seat fabric, could also
interfere with the operation of
the passenger sensing system.
This could either prevent proper
deployment of the passenger
airbag(s) or prevent the
passenger sensing system
from properly turning off the
passenger airbag(s). See
Passenger Sensing System on
page 3‑47.
If you have any questions
about this, you should contact
Customer Assistance before
you modify your vehicle. The
phone numbers and addresses
for Customer Assistance are in
Step Two of the Customer
Satisfaction Procedure in
this manual. See
Customer
Satisfaction Procedure on
page 13‑1.
If the vehicle has rollover
roof-rail airbags, see Different
Size Tires and Wheels on
page 10‑66 for additional
important information.
Q: What if I added a snow plow? Will it keep the airbags from
working properly?
A: We have designed our airbag
systems to work properly under
a wide range of conditions,
including snow plowing with
vehicles that have the optional
Snow Plow Prep Package
(RPO VYU). But do not change
or defeat the snow plow's
“tripping mechanism.” If you do,
it can damage your snow plow
and your vehicle, and it may
cause an airbag inflation.

Black plate (1,1)GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual - 2011
Instruments and Controls 5-1
Instruments and
Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 5-2
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 5-2
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . 5-5
Rear Window Wiper/Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Cigarette Lighter . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Ashtrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13 Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Engine Oil Pressure
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Engine Coolant Temperature Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Voltmeter Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . 5-17
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . 5-18
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Charging System Light . . . . . . 5-20
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Tow/Haul Mode Light . . . . . . . . 5-25
StabiliTrak
®Indicator Light . . . 5-25
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 5-26
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 5-27
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . 5-28
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Information Displays
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 5-37
Battery Voltage and ChargingMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Brake System Messages . . . . 5-38
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Engine Cooling System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . 5-41
Engine Power Messages . . . . 5-41
Fuel System Messages . . . . . . 5-42
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 5-42
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-42
Object Detection System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-42
Ride Control System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43
Airbag System Messages . . . . 5-45
Anti-Theft Alarm System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
Tire Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45