Black plate (6,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
14-6 OnStar
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 13‑20 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.
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.
Black plate (7,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
OnStar 14-7
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.
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.
Black plate (1,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
INDEX i-1
A
Accessories andModifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Accessory Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-29
Active Fuel Management
®. . . . . 9-32
Add-On Electrical Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-105
Adding a Snow Plow or Similar Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . 9-106
Additional Information, OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-5
Adjustable Throttle and Brake Pedal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Adjustments Lumbar, Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Air Cleaner/Filter, Engine . . . . . 10-17
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10
Airbag System
Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-38
How Does an AirbagRestrain? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27
Passenger Sensing System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-32
What Makes an Airbag Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27 Airbag System (cont'd)
What Will You See after an
Airbag Inflates? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27
When Should an Airbag
Inflate? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-25
Where Are the Airbags? . . . . . . 3-23
Airbags Adding Equipment to theVehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-37
Light On-Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
On-Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
On-Off Switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-29
Passenger Status Indicator . . . 5-21
Readiness Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
Servicing Airbag-Equipped Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-36
System Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-21
Alarm System
Anti-theft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-11
AM-FM Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-9
Antenna Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-15
Anti-theft
Alarm System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-11
Alarm System Messages . . . . . 5-45 Antilock Brake
System (ABS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-53
Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Appearance Care Exterior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-98
Interior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-101
Ashtrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Assistance Program,
Roadside . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-7, 13-9
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-15 CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-15
CD/DVD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-21
Audio System Fixed Mast Antenna . . . . . . . . . . 7-15
Radio Reception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-14
Rear Seat (RSA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46
Theft-Deterrent Feature . . . . . . . . 7-2
Automatic Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Headlamp System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-35
TransmissionFluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11, 10-14
Black plate (2,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
i-2 INDEX
Automatic TransmissionManual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Shift Lock Control
Function Check . . . . . . . . . . . 10-35
Auxiliary Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-32
Roof Mounted Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Axle, Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-31
Axle, Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-32
B
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-30 Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-88
Load Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Power Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Voltage and Charging
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Blade Replacement, Wiper . . . 10-36
Bluetooth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48
Brake
Pedal and AdjustableThrottle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-25
System Warning Light . . . . . . . . 5-25 Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-27
Antilock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-53
Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-54
Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-28
Parking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-54
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Break-In, New Vehicle . . . . . . . . . 9-25
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-43
Center High-MountedStoplamp (CHMSL) and
Cargo Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-42
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-39
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . 10-37
Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-39
Headlamps, Front Turn Signal, Sidemarker, and
Parking Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-39
License Plate Lamps . . . . . . . 10-42 Bulb Replacement (cont'd)
Pick-up Box Identification
and Fender Marker
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-40
Taillamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-40
Taillamps, Turn Signal, Stoplamps, and
Back-up Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . 10-41
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-68
C
Calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
California
Fuel Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . 9-69
Perchlorate MaterialsRequirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Camera, Rear Vision . . . . . . . . . . 9-62
Canadian Vehicle Owners . . . . . . . . iii
Capacities and Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-2
Black plate (3,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
INDEX i-3
Carbon MonoxideEngine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-33
Tailgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
Cargo Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Cautions, Danger, and Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-15
CD/DVD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-21
Center Console Storage . . . . . . . . 4-2
Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL) and
Cargo Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-42
Center Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Chains, Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-74
Charging System Light . . . . . . . . 5-22
Check Engine Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
IgnitionTransmission Lock . . . . . . . . 10-35 Child Restraints
Infants and Young
Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-41
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children . . . . . . . . . 3-47
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-39
Securing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-55, 3-58
Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-44
Cigarette Lighter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-44
Cleaning Exterior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-98
Interior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-101
Climate Control Systems . . . 8-1, 8-4 Air Conditioning . . . . . . . . . . 8-1, 8-4
Dual Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-5
Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1, 8-4
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Cluster, Instrument . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Collision Damage Repair . . . . . 13-14
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Connections, OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . 14-4 Control of a Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Convex Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Coolant
Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-19
Engine TemperatureGauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-18
Engine Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Courtesy Transportation Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-13
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-58
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Cupholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Customer Assistance . . . . . . . . . . 13-6 Offices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-4, 13-5
Text Telephone (TTY)Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-6
Customer Information Service PublicationsOrdering Information . . . . . . 13-16
Customer Satisfaction
Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-1, 13-3
Black plate (4,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
i-4 INDEX
D
Damage Repair, Collision . . . . . 13-14
Danger, Warnings, andCautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
Data Recorders, Event . . . . . . . 13-19
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Defensive Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Devices, Auxiliary . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-32
Diagnostics, OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . 14-5
Distracted Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Power Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Rear Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Drive Belt Routing, Engine . . . . . 12-6
Driver Information
Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30 Driving
Characteristics and
Towing Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-74
Defensive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Drunk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
For Better Fuel Economy . . . . . 1-36
Highway Hypnosis . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-12
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . 9-12
If the Vehicle is Stuck . . . . . . . . . 9-15
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Off-Road . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Vehicle Load Limits . . . . . . . . . . . 9-16
Wet Roads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-11
Winter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
Dual Automatic Climate
Control System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-5
Dual Tire Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-67
DVD Rear Seat Entertainment
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-37
DVD/CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-21
E
E85 Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-71
Electrical Equipment, Add-On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-105
Electrical System Engine CompartmentFuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-44
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-44
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-48
Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-43
Emergency, OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . 14-2
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . 10-17
Check and Service EngineSoon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Compartment Overview . . . . . . . 10-6
Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-19
Coolant Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Coolant Temperature Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-18
Black plate (6,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
i-6 INDEX
Fuel (cont'd)Management, Active . . . . . . . . . . 9-32
Recommended . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-68
Requirements, California . . . . . 9-69
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43
Full-Size Spare Tire . . . . . . . . . . 10-87
Fuses Engine CompartmentFuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-44
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-44
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-48
G
Garage Door Opener . . . . . . . . . . 5-56Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-56
Gasoline Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-69 Gauges
Engine Coolant
Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Engine Oil Pressure . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Voltmeter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Warning Lights and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
General Information Service and Maintenance . . . . . 11-1
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-74
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Glass Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . 10-37
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
GM Mobility Reimbursement Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-7
H
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-39
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . . . 6-5
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
HeadlampsAiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-37
Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-39
Daytime RunningLamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Headlamps, Front Turn
Signal, Sidemarker, and
Parking Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-39
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . . 6-3
Heated and Ventilated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Heated Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Heater Engine Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-30
Black plate (7,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
INDEX i-7
Heating and AirConditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1, 8-4
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
High-Speed Operation . . . . . . . . 10-60
Highway Hypnosis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-12
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . . 9-12
Hill Start Assist (HSA) . . . . . . . . . 9-54
Hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-5
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
How to Wear Safety Belts Properly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13
I
Idle System
Fast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-29
Ignition Positions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-26
Ignition Transmission Lock Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-35
Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Infants and Young Children, Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-41
Infotainment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1 Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Instrument Panel
Storage Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
J
Jump Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-88
K
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . . . 5-43
Keyless Entry Remote (RKE) System . . . . . . . . 2-3
Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
L
Labeling, Tire Sidewall . . . . . . . . 10-52
Lamps Auxiliary Roof
Mounted Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Cargo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Daytime Running (DRL) . . . . . . . 6-3
Dome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8 Lamps (cont'd)
Exterior Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lamps Off
Reminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
License Plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-42
Malfunction Indicator . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43
Pick-up Box Identification and Fender Marker . . . . . . . . 10-40
Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Taillamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-40
Lap Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-14
LATCH System Replacing Parts after aCrash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-55
LATCH, Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children . . . . . . . . . . 3-47
Lighter, Cigarette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Lighting Entry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Illumination Control . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7