
Black plate (1,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2012
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
Trunk Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Heated and Ventilated Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . 1-9
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Passenger Sensing System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10 Steering Wheel
Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-12
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 1-13
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16Vehicle Features
Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . 1-18
Bluetooth
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . 1-18
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Navigation System . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . 1-20
Ultrasonic Parking Assist . . . . 1-20
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Universal Remote System . . . 1-21
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
eAssist Features
eAssist®Overview . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
High Voltage Safety Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-23
Driver Efficiency Gauge . . . . . . 1-23
Automatic Engine Start/Stop Feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
Regenerative Braking . . . . . . . . 1-24
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25
Performance and Maintenance
Traction Control System (TCS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25
StabiliTrak
®System . . . . . . . . . 1-25
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . 1-26
Tire Sealant and Compressor Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 1-27
Driving for Better Fuel Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-27
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-27
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-28

Black plate (3,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-3
A.Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6‑1.
Fog Lamps on page 6‑5
(If Equipped).
Instrument Panel Illumination
Control on page 6‑5.
Head-Up Display (HUD) on
page 5‑31 (If Equipped).
B. Air Vents on page 8‑10.
C. Turn and Lane‐Change Lever. See Turn and Lane-Change
Signals on page 6‑4.
Driver Information Center
Buttons. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑27.
D. Instrument Cluster on
page 5‑10.
Driver Information Center
Display. See Driver Information
Center (DIC) on page 5‑27.
E. Windshield Wiper/Washer on
page 5‑3.
F. Infotainment Display Screen. G.
Infotainment on page 7‑1.
H. Front Storage on page 4‑1.
I. Data Link Connector (DLC) (Out of View). See Malfunction
Indicator Lamp on page 5‑17.
J. Cruise Control on page 9‑42.
K. Steering Wheel Adjustment on
page 5‑2.
L. Horn on page 5‑3.
M. Steering Wheel Controls on
page 5‑2 (If Equipped).
N. Ignition Positions (Key Access)
on page 9‑18 orIgnition
Positions (Keyless Access) on
page 9‑20.
O. Heated and Ventilated Front
Seats on page 3‑10
(If Equipped).
P. Automatic Climate Control
System on page 8‑1
(If Equipped).
Dual Automatic Climate Control
System on page 8‑5
(If Equipped). Q.
Parking Brake on page 9‑36.
R. Shift Lever Position Indicator. See Automatic Transmission on
page 9‑31.
S. Shift Lever. See Shifting Into
Park on page 9‑27.
T. Traction Control System (TCS)
on page 9‑38.
StabiliTrak
®System on
page 9‑40 (If Equipped).
Ultrasonic Parking Assist on
page 9‑44.
Rear Window Sunshade on
page 2‑21 (If Equipped).
U. Power Door Locks on
page 2‑12.
Hazard Warning Flashers on
page 6‑4.
Passenger Sensing System on
page 3‑29.

Black plate (11,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-11
Interior
Adjust this mirror for a clear view of
the area behind the vehicle. Hold
the mirror in the center to move it
up, down, or side to side. To reduce
headlamp glare from behind, push
the tab forward for daytime and pull
it for nighttime use.
Vehicles with OnStar
®have three
control buttons at the bottom of the
mirror. See your dealer for more
information on the system and how
to subscribe to OnStar. See OnStar
Overview on page 14‑1.
See Manual Rearview Mirror on
page 2‑18.
Steering Wheel
Adjustment
To adjust the steering wheel:
1. Pull the lever (A) down.
2. Move the steering wheel up or down.
3. Pull or push the steering wheel closer or away from you.
4. Pull the lever (A) up to lock the steering wheel in place.
Do not adjust the steering wheel
while driving.
Interior Lighting
Dome Lamps
The interior lamps control located in
the overhead console controls both
the front and rear interior lamps.
(: Turns the lamps off.
H:Turns the lamps on when any
door is opened.
': Keeps the lamps on all
the time.

Black plate (1,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-1
Instruments and
Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 5-2
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 5-2
Heated Steering Wheel . . . . . . . 5-3
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . 5-3
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Clock (Radio with CD andTouchscreen) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Driver Efficiency Gauge . . . . . . 5-13
Engine Coolant Temperature Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . 5-15 Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . 5-16
Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Charging System Light . . . . . . 5-17
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Electric Parking Brake Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Traction Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
StabiliTrak
®OFF Light . . . . . . . 5-22
Traction Control System (TCS)/StabiliTrak
®Light . . . . 5-23
Engine Coolant Temperature Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 5-25
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 5-25
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . 5-26
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Door Ajar Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Information Displays
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Head-Up Display (HUD) . . . . . 5-31
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 5-35
Battery Voltage and Charging Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-35
Brake System Messages . . . . 5-36
Compass Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-36
Cruise Control Messages . . . . 5-36
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-37
Engine Cooling System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-37
Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . 5-38
Engine Power Messages . . . . 5-38
Fuel System Messages . . . . . . 5-39
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 5-39
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Object Detection System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Ride Control System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Anti-theft Alarm System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Starting the Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41

Black plate (2,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2012
5-2 Instruments and Controls
Tire Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Transmission Messages . . . . . 5-42
Window Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 5-42
Vehicle Personalization
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . 5-43
Universal Remote System
Universal Remote System . . . 5-49
Universal Remote SystemProgramming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-49
Universal Remote System Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-52
Controls
Steering Wheel
Adjustment
To adjust the steering wheel:
1. Pull the lever (A) down.
2. Move the steering wheel up
or down. 3. Pull or push the steering wheel
closer or away from you.
4. Pull the lever (A) up to lock the steering wheel in place.
Do not adjust the steering wheel
while driving.
Steering Wheel Controls
For vehicles with audio steering
wheel controls, some audio controls
can be adjusted at the steering
wheel.

Black plate (12,1)Buick LaCrosse Owner Manual - 2012
i-12 INDEX
ShiftingInto Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-27
Out of Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-29
Side Blind Zone Alert . . . . . . . . . . 9-46
Signals, Turn and Lane-Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Spare Tire
Compact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-93
Specifications and Capacities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-2
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
StabiliTrak
OFF Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-40
Start Assist, Hills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Start Vehicle, Remote . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Starter Switch Check . . . . . . . . . 10-27
Starting the Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
Starting the Vehicle Messsages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4 Steering (cont'd)
Fluid, Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-21
Heated Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Wheel Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Stoplamps and Back-up Lamps Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-35
Storage Mass Media (MEM) . . . . . . . . . . . 7-36
Storage Areas Center Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
Convenience Net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storing the Tire Sealant and Compressor Kit . . . . . . . . . 10-87
Stuck Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-11
Sun Visor Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Sun Visors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22
Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
System Infotainment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1T
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Taillamps
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-35
Text Telephone (TTY) Users . . . 13-6
Theft-Deterrent Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15, 2-16
Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Tires Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . 10-63
Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-68
Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-87
Compact Spare . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-93
Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-51
Different Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-65
If a Tire Goes Flat . . . . . . . . . . 10-69
Inflation Monitor System . . . . 10-57
Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-60
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Pressure Monitor System . . . 10-56