
Black plate (1,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali 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
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Second Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Third Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Heated and Ventilated Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10 Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Passenger Sensing
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-12
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 1-14
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
Vehicle Features
Radio(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-17
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
Portable Audio Devices . . . . . . 1-18
Bluetooth
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . 1-19
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Navigation System . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Ultrasonic Parking Assist . . . . 1-20
Storage Compartments . . . . . . 1-21
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
Performance and Maintenance
StabiliTrak®System . . . . . . . . . 1-22
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . 1-22
Tire Sealant and Compressor Kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-23
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . 1-23
Driving for Better Fuel
Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-25

Black plate (6,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
1-6 In Brief
Power Liftgate
On vehicles with a power liftgate,
the vehicle must be in P (Park) to
operate it.
.Press and hold8on the
Remote Keyless Entry
(RKE) transmitter.
.PressO.
.Press the touch pad on the
outside liftgate handle.
For more information see Liftgate on
page 2‑10.
Windows
Press the switch to lower the
window. Pull the switch up to
raise it.
For more information, see Power
Windows on page 2‑21.
Seat Adjustment
Manual Seats
A. Seat Adjustment Handle
B. Driver Seat Height Adjustment Lever
C. Seatback Lever

Black plate (1,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
Keys, Doors, and Windows 2-1
Keys, Doors, and
Windows
Keys and Locks
Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System Operation . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . 2-5
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Power Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Automatic Door Locks . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Lockout Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Safety Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Doors
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Vehicle Security
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-13
Anti-theft Alarm System . . . . . . 2-13
Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Immobilizer Operation . . . . . . . 2-14
Exterior Mirrors
Convex Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Power Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Folding Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Heated Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Automatic Dimming Mirror . . . 2-18
Blind Spot Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Park Tilt Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Interior Mirrors
Manual Rearview Mirror . . . . . . 2-19
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Windows
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Power Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21
Sun Visors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-23
Roof
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-23

Black plate (2,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
2-2 Keys, Doors, and Windows
Keys and Locks
Keys
{WARNING
Leaving children in a vehicle with
the ignition key is dangerous for
many reasons. Children or others
could be badly injured or even
killed. They could operate the
power windows or other controls
or even make the vehicle move.
The windows will function with the
keys in the ignition and children
could be seriously injured or killed
if caught in the path of a closing
window. Do not leave the keys in
a vehicle with children.
The key is used for the ignition and
all door locks.
The key has a bar-coded key tag
that the dealer or qualified locksmith
can use to make new keys. Store
this information in a safe place, not
in the vehicle.See your dealer if a replacement
key or additional key is needed.
Notice:
If the keys get locked in
the vehicle, it may have to be
damaged to get them out.
Always carry a spare key.
If locked out of the vehicle, call
Roadside Assistance. See Roadside
Assistance Program (U.S. and
Canada) on page 13‑8 orRoadside
Assistance Program (Mexico) on
page 13‑10.
With an active OnStar subscription,
an OnStar Advisor may remotely
unlock the vehicle. See OnStar
Overview on page 14‑1.

Black plate (3,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
Keys, Doors, and Windows 2-3
Remote Keyless Entry
(RKE) System
SeeRadio 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.
If there is a decrease in the RKE
operating range:
.Check the distance. The
transmitter may be too far from
the vehicle.
.Check the location. Other
vehicles or objects may be
blocking the signal.
.Check the transmitter's battery.
See “Battery Replacement” later
in this section.
.If the transmitter is still not
working correctly, see your
dealer or a qualified technician
for service.
Remote Keyless Entry
(RKE) System Operation
The Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
transmitter functions work up to
60 m (195 ft) away from the vehicle.
There are other conditions which
can affect the performance of the
transmitter. See Remote Keyless
Entry (RKE) System on page 2‑3.
With Remote Start and Power
Liftgate Shown, Without Similar
/(Remote Vehicle Start):
For vehicles with this feature,
see Remote Vehicle Start on
page 2‑5 for additional information.
Q(Lock):Press to lock all the
doors.
If enabled through the Driver
Information Center (DIC), the
parking lamps flash once to indicate
locking has occurred. If enabled
through the DIC, the horn sounds
when
Qis pressed again within
five seconds. See Vehicle
Personalization (With DIC Buttons)
on page 5‑46 for additional
information.
Pressing
Qmay arm the
content theft‐deterrent system.
See Anti-theft Alarm System on
page 2‑13.

Black plate (4,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
2-4 Keys, Doors, and Windows
K(Unlock):Press once to unlock
only the driver door. If
Kis pressed
again within five seconds, all
remaining doors unlock. The interior
lamps come on and stay on for
20 seconds or until the ignition is
turned on.
If enabled through the DIC, the
parking lamps flash twice to indicate
unlocking has occurred. See Vehicle
Personalization (With DIC Buttons)
on page 5‑46.
Pressing
Kon the RKE transmitter
disarms the content theft‐deterrent
system. See Anti-theft Alarm
System on page 2‑13.
8(Power Liftgate): Press and
hold until the liftgate begins to
move to open or close the liftgate.
The taillamps flash and a chime
sounds to indicate when the liftgate
is opening or closing.
L(Vehicle Locator/Panic
Alarm): Press and release to
locate the vehicle. The parking
lamps flash and the horn sounds
three times.
Press and hold
Lfor more than
two seconds to activate the panic
alarm. The parking lamps flash and
the horn sounds repeatedly for
30 seconds. The alarm turns off
when the ignition is moved to
ON/RUN or
Lis pressed again.
The ignition must be in LOCK/OFF
for the panic alarm to work.
Programming Transmitters to
the Vehicle
Only RKE transmitters programmed
to this vehicle will work. If a
transmitter is lost or stolen, a
replacement can be purchased and
programmed through your dealer. When the replacement transmitter
is programmed to this vehicle, all
remaining transmitters must also be
reprogrammed. Any lost or stolen
transmitters will no longer work
once the new transmitter is
programmed. Each vehicle can
have up to eight transmitters
programmed to it. See your dealer
to program transmitters to this
vehicle.
Battery Replacement
Replace the battery if the REPLACE
BATTERY IN REMOTE KEY
message displays in the DIC.
Notice:
When replacing the
battery, do not touch any of the
circuitry on the transmitter.
Static from your body could
damage the transmitter.

Black plate (8,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
2-8 Keys, Doors, and Windows
Power Door Locks
Base Model
Uplevel Model
K(Unlock):Press to unlock the
doors.
Q(Lock): Press to lock the doors.
Delayed Locking
When locking the doors with the
power lock switch and a door or the
liftgate is open, the doors will lock
five seconds after the last door is
closed. You will hear three chimes
to signal that the delayed locking
feature is in use.
Pressing the power lock switch
twice or the lock button on the RKE
transmitter twice will override the
delayed locking feature and
immediately lock all the doors.
This feature will not operate if the
key is in the ignition.
This feature can be programmed by
using the Driver Information Center
(DIC). See “DELAY DOOR LOCK”
under Vehicle Personalization
(With DIC Buttons) on page 5‑46.

Black plate (9,1)GMC Acadia/Acadia Denali Owner Manual - 2012
Keys, Doors, and Windows 2-9
Automatic Door Locks
Vehicles with an automatic
lock/unlock feature enable you to
program the vehicle's power door
locks. This feature can be
programmed through the Driver
Information Center (DIC). See
Vehicle Personalization (With DIC
Buttons) on page 5‑46for more
information.
Lockout Protection
This feature protects you from
locking the key in the vehicle when
the key is in the ignition and a front
door is open. If the driver side power door lock
switch is pressed when the driver
door is open and the key is in the
ignition, all of the doors will lock and
then the driver door will unlock.
If the passenger side power door
lock switch is pressed when the
front passenger door is open and
the key is in the ignition, all of the
doors will lock and then the front
passenger door will unlock.Safety Locks
The vehicle has rear door security
locks to prevent passengers from
opening the rear doors from the
inside.
Open the rear doors to access the
security locks on the inside edge of
each door.
To set the locks, insert a key into
the slot and turn it to the horizontal
position. The door can only be
opened from the outside with the
door unlocked. To return the door to
normal operation, turn the slot to the
vertical position.