Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Avalanche 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 . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Midgate
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Tailgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Second Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Heated and Ventilated Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11 Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Passenger Sensing
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-12
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-12
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Throttle and Brake Pedal Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 1-15
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Four-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
Vehicle Features
Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . 1-21
Bluetooth
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . 1-21
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22 Navigation System . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
Driver Information
Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-23
Rear Vision Camera (RVC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
Ultrasonic Parking Assist . . . . 1-24
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
Universal Remote System . . . 1-24
Performance and Maintenance
StabiliTrak®System . . . . . . . . . 1-25
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . 1-25
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 1-25
Fuel E85 (85% Ethanol) . . . . . 1-26
Driving for Better Fuel Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
Roadside Assistance
Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-27
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-27
Black plate (7,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-7
Seat Adjustment
Manual Seats
To adjust the seat:
1. Lift the bar to unlock the seat.
2. Slide the seat to the desiredposition and release the bar.
3. Try to move the seat back and forth to be sure the seat is
locked in place.
See Seat Adjustment on page 3‑3
for more information.
Power Seats
To adjust a power seat, if equipped:
.Move the seat forward or
rearward by sliding the control
forward or rearward.
.If available, raise or lower the
front or rear part of the seat
cushion by moving the front or
rear of the control up or down.
.If available, raise or lower the
entire seat by moving the entire
control up or down. See
Power Seat Adjustment on
page 3‑4 for more information.
Lumbar Adjustment
Manual Lumbar
If equipped, increase or decrease
manual lumbar support by turning
the knob forward or rearward.
SeeLumbar Adjustment on
page 3‑4 for more information.
Black plate (8,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2012
1-8 In Brief
Power Lumbar
To adjust the power lumbar support,
if equipped:
.On vehicles with two-way
lumbar, press and hold the top
or bottom of the control to
increase or decrease lumbar
support.
.On vehicles with four-way
lumbar, press and hold the front
or rear of the control to increase
or decrease lumbar support. To
raise or lower the height of the
support, press and hold the top
or bottom of the control.
See Lumbar Adjustment on
page 3‑4 for more information.Reclining Seatbacks
Manual Reclining Seatbacks
To recline a manual seatback:
1. Lift the lever.
2. Move the seatback to the
desired position, and then
release the lever to lock the
seatback in place.
3. Push and pull on the seatback to make sure it is locked.
Black plate (11,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2012
In Brief 1-11
Heated and Ventilated
Seats
Heated and Cooled Seat ButtonsShown, Heated Seat Buttons Similar
If available, the buttons are on the
front doors.
H: If available, press to cool
the seat.
I: Press to heat the
seatback only.
J: Press to heat the seat and
seatback. Press the button once for the
highest setting. With each press of
the button, the seat will change to
the next lower setting, and then to
the off setting. The lights indicate
three for the highest setting and one
for the lowest.
See
Heated and Ventilated Front
Seats on page 3‑9.
Head Restraint
Adjustment
Do not drive until the head restraints
for all occupants are installed and
adjusted properly.
To achieve a comfortable seating
position, change the seatback
recline angle as little as necessary
while keeping the seat and the head
restraint height in the proper
position.
For more information see Head
Restraints on page 3‑2 andSeat
Adjustment on page 3‑3.
Safety Belts
Refer to the following sections for
important information on how to use
safety belts properly.
.Safety Belts on page 3‑12.
.How to Wear Safety Belts
Properly on page 3‑13.
.Lap-Shoulder Belt on page 3‑14.
.Lower Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH System) on
page 3‑45.
Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-1
Seats and
Restraints
Head Restraints
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Center Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Power Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . 3-4
Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Memory Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7
Heated and Ventilated FrontSeats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Rear Seats
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10
Safety Belts
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
How to Wear Safety BeltsProperly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . 3-14
Safety Belt Use During Pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19 Lap Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19
Safety Belt Extender . . . . . . . . . 3-20
Safety System Check . . . . . . . . 3-20
Safety Belt Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-21
Replacing Safety Belt System
Parts after a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-21
Airbag System
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-22
Where Are the Airbags? . . . . . 3-24
When Should an AirbagInflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-25
What Makes an Airbag Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27
How Does an Airbag Restrain? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27
What Will You See after an
Airbag Inflates? . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-28
Passenger Sensing System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-29
Servicing the Airbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-34
Adding Equipment to the Airbag-Equipped Vehicle . . . 3-34
Airbag System Check . . . . . . . . 3-35
Replacing Airbag System Parts after a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-36
Child Restraints
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-36
Infants and YoungChildren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-38
Child Restraint Systems . . . . . 3-41
Where to Put the Restraint . . . 3-43
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-45
Replacing LATCH System Parts After a Crash . . . . . . . . . 3-51
Securing Child Restraints (Rear Seat Position) . . . . . . . . 3-51
Securing Child Restraints (Center Front Seat
Position) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-53
Securing Child Restraints (Right Front Seat
Position) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-54
Black plate (3,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2012
Seats and Restraints 3-3
Rear Seats
The rear seat has adjustable
headrests in the outboard seating
positions.
The height of the headrest can be
adjusted. Pull the headrest up to
raise it. To lower the headrest, push
down on the headrest.
Rear outboard headrests are not
designed to be removed.
Front Seats
Seat Adjustment
{WARNING
You can lose control of the
vehicle if you try to adjust a
manual driver seat while the
vehicle is moving. The sudden
movement could startle and
confuse you, or make you push a
pedal when you do not want to.
Adjust the driver seat only when
the vehicle is not moving.
To adjust the seat:
1. Lift the bar under the front edgeof the seat cushion to unlock
the seat.
2. Slide the seat to the desired position and release the bar.
3. Try to move the seat back and forth to be sure the seat is
locked in place.
Black plate (4,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2012
3-4 Seats and Restraints
Center Seat
If equipped, the center front
seatback doubles as an armrest and
cupholder/storage area for the driver
and passenger when the center
front seat is not used. Do not use it
as a seating position when the
seatback is folded down.
Power Seat Adjustment
To adjust a power seat, if equipped:
.Move the seat forward or
rearward by sliding the control
forward or rearward.
.If available, raise or lower the
front or rear part of the seat
cushion by moving the front or
rear of the control up or down.
.If available, raise or lower the
entire seat by moving the entire
control up or down.
To adjust the seatback, see “Power
Reclining Seatbacks” under
Reclining Seatbacks on page 3‑5.
Lumbar Adjustment
Manual Lumbar
If equipped, increase or decrease
manual lumbar support by turning
the knob forward or rearward.
Black plate (16,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2012
3-16 Seats and Restraints
Shoulder Belt Height Adjuster
The vehicle has a shoulder belt
height adjuster for the driver and
right front passenger positions.
Adjust the height so the shoulder
portion of the belt is on the shoulder
and not falling off of it. The belt
should be close to, but not
contacting, the neck. Improper
shoulder belt height adjustment
could reduce the effectiveness of
the safety belt in a crash. SeeHow
to Wear Safety Belts Properly on
page 3‑13.
Squeeze the buttons (A) on the
sides of the height adjuster and
move the height adjuster to the
desired position.
The adjuster can be moved up just
by pushing up on the shoulder belt
guide.
After the adjuster is set to the
desired position, try to move it down
without squeezing the buttons to
make sure it has locked into
position.
Safety Belt Pretensioners
This vehicle has safety belt
pretensioners for front outboard
occupants. Although the safety belt
pretensioners cannot be seen, they
are part of the safety belt assembly.
They can help tighten the safety
belts during the early stages of a
moderate to severe frontal, near
frontal, or rear crash if the threshold
conditions for pretensioner
activation are met. And, if the
vehicle has side impact airbags,
safety belt pretensioners can help
tighten the safety belts in a side
crash or a rollover event.
Pretensioners work only once. If the
pretensioners activate in a crash,
they will need to be replaced, and
probably other new parts for the
vehicle's safety belt system. See
Replacing Safety Belt System Parts
after a Crash on page 3‑21.