
Black plate (6,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
14-6 OnStar
OnStar services require a vehicle
electrical system, wireless service,
and GPS satellite technologies to
be available and operating for
features to function properly.
These systems may not operate
if the battery is discharged or
disconnected.
OnStar service cannot work unless
your vehicle is in a place where
OnStar has an agreement with a
wireless service provider for service
in that area, and the wireless
service provider has coverage,
network capacity, reception, and
technology compatible with
OnStar’s service. Service involving
location information about the
vehicle cannot work unless GPS
signals are available, unobstructed,
and compatible with the OnStar
hardware. OnStar service may not
work if the OnStar equipment is not properly installed or it has
not been properly maintained.
If equipment or software is added,
connected, or modified, OnStar
service may not work. Other
problems beyond OnStar
’s control
may prevent service such as hills,
tall buildings, tunnels, weather,
electrical system design and
architecture of the vehicle, damage
to the vehicle in a crash, or wireless
phone network congestion or
jamming.
See Radio Frequency Statement on
page 13‑22 for information
regarding Part 15 of the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC)
rules and Industry Canada
Standards RSS-GEN/210/220/310.Services for People with
Disabilities
Advisors provide services to help
subscribers with physical disabilities
and medical conditions.
Push
Qfor help with:
.Locating a gas station with an
attendant to pump gas.
.Finding a hotel, restaurant, etc.,
that meets accessibility needs.
.Providing directions to the
closest hospital or pharmacy
in urgent situations.
TTY Users
OnStar has the ability to
communicate to the deaf,
hard‐of‐hearing, or speech‐impaired
customers while in the vehicle.
The available dealer‐installed
TTY system can provide in-vehicle
access to all of the OnStar services,
except Virtual Advisor and OnStar
Turn‐by‐Turn Navigation.

Black plate (7,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
OnStar 14-7
Onstar.com
The website provides access to
account information, manages the
OnStar subscription, and allows
viewing of videos of each service.
Get subscription plan pricing
and sign up for OnStar Vehicle
Diagnostics. Click on the“My
Account” tab on the home page.
OnStar Personal Identification
Number (PIN)
A PIN is needed to access some of
the OnStar services, like Remote
Door Unlock and Stolen Vehicle
Assistance. You will be prompted
to change the PIN the first time
when speaking with an Advisor.
To change the OnStar PIN, call
OnStar and provide the Advisor
with the current number.
Warranty
OnStar equipment may be
warranted as part of the new-vehicle
limited warranty. The manufacturer
of the vehicle furnishes detailed
warranty information.
Languages
The vehicle can be programmed
to respond in French or Spanish.
Push
Qand ask an Advisor.
Advisors can speak French or
Spanish.
Potential Issues
Some OnStar services are disabled
after five days. OnStar cannot
perform Remote Door Unlock or
Stolen Vehicle Assistance after the
vehicle has been off continuously
for five days. After five days, OnStar
can contact Roadside Assistance
and a locksmith to help gain access
to the vehicle.
Global Positioning
System (GPS)
.Obstruction of the GPS can
occur in a large city with tall
buildings; in parking garages;
around airports; in tunnels,
underpasses, or parking
garages; or in an area with very
dense trees. If GPS signals are
not available, the OnStar system
should still operate to call
OnStar. However, OnStar could
have difficulty identifying the
exact location.
.In emergency situations, OnStar
can use the last stored GPS
location to send to emergency
responders.
.A temporary loss of GPS can
cause loss of the ability to send
a Turn-by-Turn Navigation route.
The Advisor may give a verbal
route or may ask for a call back
after the vehicle is driven into an
open area.

Black plate (8,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
14-8 OnStar
Cellular and GPS Antennas
Avoid placing items over or near the
antenna to prevent blocking cellular
and GPS signal reception. Cellular
reception is required for OnStar to
send remote signals to the vehicle.
Unable to Connect to OnStar
Message
If there is limited cellular coverage
or the cellular network has reached
maximum capacity, this message
may come on. Push
Qto try the
call again or try again after driving a
few miles into another cellular area.
Vehicle and Power Issues
OnStar services require a vehicle
electrical system, wireless service,
and GPS satellite technologies to be
available and operating for features
to function properly. These systems
may not operate if the battery is
discharged or disconnected.
Add-on Electrical Equipment
The OnStar system is integrated
into the electrical architecture of the
vehicle. Do not add any electrical
equipment. See Add-On Electrical
Equipment on page 9‑53. Added
electrical equipment may interfere
with the operation of the OnStar
system and cause it to not operate.
Privacy
The complete OnStar Privacy
Statement may be found at
www.onstar.com. Privacy-sensitive
users of wireless communications
are cautioned that the privacy of any
information sent via wireless cellular
communications cannot be assured.
Third parties may unlawfully
intercept or access transmissions
and private communications without
consent.

Black plate (3,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
INDEX i-3
CleaningExterior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-86
Interior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-89
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . . 8-1 Air Conditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Dual Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-4
Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10, 8-11
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Cluster, Instrument . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Collision Damage Repair . . . . . 13-16
Compact Spare Tire . . . . . . . . . . 10-77
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Compressor Kit, Tire Sealant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-60
Connections, OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . 14-4
Control of a Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Convenience Net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5
Convex Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Coolant Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-14
Engine Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Engine Temperature Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23 Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-14
Engine Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Courtesy Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Courtesy Transportation Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-14
Cover Cargo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-8
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-32 Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Cupholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Customer Assistance . . . . . . . . . . 13-6 Offices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-5, 13-6
Text Telephone (TTY)Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-6
Customer Information Service PublicationsOrdering Information . . . . . . 13-18
Customer Satisfaction Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-2, 13-4
D
Damage Repair, Collision . . . . . 13-16
Danger, Warnings, and
Cautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
Data Recorders, Event . . . . . . . 13-21
Daytime Running Lamps/Automatic Headlamp
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Defensive Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Delayed Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Delayed Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Delayed Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Devices, Auxiliary . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-36
Diagnostics, OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . 14-5
Distracted Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Door
Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Power Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Drive Belt Routing, Engine . . . . . 12-3

Black plate (4,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
i-4 INDEX
Drive SystemsAll-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . 9-27, 10-26
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25, 5-30
Driving Characteristics andTowing Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-45
Defensive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Drunk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
For Better Fuel Economy . . . . . 1-24
Highway Hypnosis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-7
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . . 9-7
If the Vehicle is Stuck . . . . . . . . . 9-10
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Vehicle Load Limits . . . . . . . . . . . 9-10
Wet Roads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Winter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-8
Dual Automatic Climate Control System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-4
DVD
Rear Seat EntertainmentSystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-38
DVD/CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-15E
Electrical Equipment, Add-On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-53
Electrical System Engine CompartmentFuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-31
Fuses and Circuit
Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-31
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-34
Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-30
Emergency, OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . 14-2
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . 10-12
Check and Service EngineSoon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
Compartment Overview . . . . . . . 10-6
Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-14
Coolant Temperature Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Coolant Temperature Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-14
Cooling System Messages . . . 5-39
Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-8
Drive Belt Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-3 Engine (cont'd)
Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-19
Oil Life System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-10
Oil Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Overheated Protection
Operating Mode . . . . . . . . . . . 10-20
Overheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-18
Power Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Running While Parked . . . . . . . . 9-23
Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-18
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Equipment, Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-51
Event Data Recorders . . . . . . . . 13-21
Extender, Safety Belt . . . . . . . . . . 3-22
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . . 6-1
F
Features Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Filter, Engine Air Cleaner . . . . . . . . . 10-12
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Flashers, Hazard Warning . . . . . . 6-4

Black plate (5,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
INDEX i-5
Flat Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-58Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-68
Floor Console Storage . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
Floor Mats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-92
Fluid Automatic Transmission . . . . 10-12
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-24
Power Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-21
Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-22
Fog Lamps Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Folding Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Front Seats Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Heated and Ventilated . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-40 Additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-41
Economy Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
Filling a Portable FuelContainer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-44
Filling the Tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-42
Foreign Countries . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-41 Fuel (cont'd)
Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . 9-40
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Recommended . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-40
Requirements, California . . . . . 9-40
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Fuses Engine CompartmentFuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-31
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-31
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-34
G
Garage Door Opener . . . . . . . . . . 5-54Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-54
Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-40
Gauges
Engine CoolantTemperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13 Gauges (cont'd)
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Voltmeter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Warning Lights and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
General Information Service and Maintenance . . . . . 11-1
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-44
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
GM Mobility Reimbursement Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-8
H
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . . . 6-4
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Head-up Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
HeadlampsAiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-28
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-29
Daytime RunningLamps/Automatic
Headlamp System . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Delayed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3

Black plate (7,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
INDEX i-7
Lights (cont'd)Engine Coolant
Temperature Warning . . . . . . . 5-23
Engine Oil Pressure . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Front Fog Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
High-Beam On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . . 6-2
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . 5-15
Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
StabiliTrak
®Indicator . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Tow/Haul Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Locks
Automatic Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Lockout Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Power Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children
(LATCH System) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-46
Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4 Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
M
MaintenanceRecords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11-14
Maintenance Schedule Recommended Fluidsand Lubricants . . . . . . . . . . . . .11-12
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . 5-18
Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Memory Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7
Messages
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-42
Anti-theft Alarm System . . . . . . . 5-42
Battery Voltage andCharging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-37
Brake System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Door Ajar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-38
Engine Cooling System . . . . . . . 5-39
Engine Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Engine Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Fuel System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Key and Lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Object Detection System . . . . . 5-41
Ride Control System . . . . . . . . . . 5-42
Service Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43 Messages (cont'd)
Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-44
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-37
Vehicle Reminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
Vehicle Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
Washer Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
Mirrors Automatic Dimming . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Automatic Dimming
Rearview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Blind Spot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Convex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Folding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Heated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Manual Rearview . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Park Tilt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Monitor System, Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-45
MP3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-23, 7-29
Multi-band Antenna . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-13

Black plate (8,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
i-8 INDEX
N
NavigationOnStar®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
Vehicle Data Recording and Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-22
Net, Convenience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-5
New Vehicle Break-In . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
O
Object Detection System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Oil Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-8
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . 10-10
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Older Children, Restraints . . . . . 3-38
Online Owner Center . . . . . . . . . . 13-7
OnStar
®
Additional Information . . . . . . . . 14-5
Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-4
Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-5
Emergency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2 OnStar
®(cont'd)
Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-1
Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
System, In Brief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25
Operation, Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2
Ordering Service Publications . . . . . . . . 13-18
Outlets Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Overheated Engine Protection
Operating Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-20
Overheating, Engine . . . . . . . . . . 10-18
Overview, OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . 14-1
P
Parade Dimming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Park Shifting Into . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Shifting Out of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
Tilt Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19 Parking
Assist, Ultrasonic . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-34
Brake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-28
Brake and P (Park)
Mechanism Check . . . . . . . . 10-27
Over Things That Burn . . . . . . . 9-22
Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Passenger Compartment Air Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-13
Passenger Sensing System . . . 3-31
Perchlorate Materials
Requirements, California . . . . . 10-3
Personalization Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-46
Phone
Bluetooth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-49
Power Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Protection, Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Retained Accessory (RAP) . . . 9-20
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Steering Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-21
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21