Black plate (5,1)GMC Terrain Owner Manual (Include Mex) - 2012
Introduction v
Vehicle Symbol Chart
Here are some additional symbols
that may be found on the vehicle
and what they mean. For more
information on the symbol, refer to
the Index.
9:Airbag Readiness Light
#:Air Conditioning
!:Antilock Brake System (ABS)
$:Brake System Warning Light
":Charging System
I:Cruise Control
B: Engine Coolant Temperature
O:Exterior Lamps
#:Fog Lamps
.: Fuel Gauge
+:Fuses
3: Headlamp High/Low-Beam
Changer
j: LATCH System Child
Restraints
*: Malfunction Indicator Lamp
::Oil Pressure
J:OnStar®
}: Power
/:Remote Vehicle Start
>:Safety Belt Reminders
%: Steering Wheel Controls
7:Tire Pressure Monitor
d:Traction Control/StabiliTrak®
M:Windshield Washer Fluid
Black plate (1,1)GMC Terrain Owner Manual (Include Mex) - 2012
Instruments and Controls 5-1
Instruments and
Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 5-2
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 5-2
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . 5-3
Rear Window Wiper/Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Engine Coolant Temperature Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . 5-11
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . 5-11 Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Charging System Light . . . . . . 5-13
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Lane Departure Warning (LDW) Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Forward Collision Alert (FCA) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
Traction Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
StabiliTrak
®OFF Light . . . . . . . 5-19
Traction Control System (TCS)/StabiliTrak
®Light . . . . 5-19
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 5-20
Fuel Economy Light . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 5-21
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . 5-22
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Information Displays
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Battery Voltage and ChargingMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Brake System Messages . . . . 5-27
Compass Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Cruise Control Messages . . . . 5-27
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Engine Cooling System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . 5-28
Engine Power Messages . . . . 5-29
Fuel System Messages . . . . . . 5-29
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 5-29
Object Detection System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Ride Control System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Airbag System Messages . . . . 5-31
Safety Belt Messages . . . . . . . 5-31
Anti-theft Alarm System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Service Vehicle Messages . . . 5-31
Black plate (22,1)GMC Terrain Owner Manual (Include Mex) - 2012
5-22 Instruments and Controls
High-Beam On Light
The high‐beam on light comes on
when the high-beam headlamps are
in use.
SeeHeadlamp High/Low-Beam
Changer on page 6‑2 for more
information.
Front Fog Lamp Light
The front fog lamp light comes on
when the fog lamps are in use.
The light goes out when the fog
lamps are turned off. See Fog
Lamps on page 6‑4 for more
information.
Lamps On Reminder
For vehicles with the lamps on
reminder light, it comes on when the
lights are in use.
Cruise Control Light
The cruise control light is white
whenever the cruise control is set,
and turns green when the cruise
control is active.
The light turns off when the cruise
control is turned off. See Cruise
Control on page 9‑38 for more
information.
Black plate (1,1)GMC Terrain Owner Manual (Include Mex) - 2012
Lighting 6-1
Lighting
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . 6-1
Headlamp High/Low-BeamChanger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
Automatic Headlamp System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . 6-3
Turn and Lane-Change Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel Illumination Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Reading Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Lighting Features
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Battery Load Management . . . . 6-5
Exterior Lighting
Exterior Lamp Controls
The exterior lamp control is on the
turn signal/lane change lever.
O(Exterior Lamp Control):
Operates the exterior lamps. Turn to
one of the following positions:
O(Off): Briefly turn to this position
to turn the automatic light control off
or on again. AUTO (Automatic Headlamps):
Turns the exterior lamps on and off
automatically depending on the
exterior light. The vehicle will default
to the AUTO setting when it is first
started.
;(Parking Lamps):
Turns on the
parking lamps together with the
following:
.Sidemarker Lamps
.Taillamps
.License Plate Lamps
.Instrument Panel Lights
5(Headlamps): Turns on the
headlamps, together with the
previously listed lamps and lights.
Black plate (2,1)GMC Terrain Owner Manual (Include Mex) - 2012
6-2 Lighting
Headlamp High/
Low-Beam Changer
2 3
Headlamp High/Low‐Beam
Changer: Push the turn signal/lane
change lever away from you and
release, to turn the high beams on.
To return to low beams, push the
lever again or pull it toward you and
release.
This indicator light turns on in the
instrument panel cluster when the
high‐beam headlamps are on.
Flash-to-Pass
The flash‐to‐pass feature works with
the low beams or Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL) on or off.
To flash the high beams, pull the
turn signal/lane change lever all the
way toward you, then release it.
Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL)
Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
system makes the low-beam
headlamps come on at a reduced
brightness in daylight when the
following conditions are met:
.The ignition is on.
.The exterior lamp band is in the
automatic position.
.The transmission is not in
P (Park).
.The light sensor determines it is
daytime.
.The parking brake is released. Fully functional Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL) are required on all
vehicles first sold in Canada.
When the DRL are on the taillamps,
sidemarker, instrument panel lights
and other lamps will not be on. The
instrument panel cluster will be lit.
When the exterior lamp band is
turned to the headlamp position, the
low-beam headlamps come on. The
other lamps that come on with the
headlamps will also come on.
To idle your vehicle with the DRL
off, move the shift lever to P (Park).
The DRL will stay off until the shift
lever is moved out of the P (Park)
position.
The regular headlamp system
should be turned on when needed.
Black plate (4,1)GMC Terrain Owner Manual (Include Mex) - 2012
6-4 Lighting
If after signaling a turn or a lane
change the arrows flash rapidly or
do not come on, a signal bulb may
be burned out.
Have the bulbs replaced. If the bulb
is not burned out, check the fuse;
seeFuses on page 10‑38 for more
information.
Fog Lamps
The fog lamps control is located on
the turn/lane change lever.
Use the fog lamps for better vision
in foggy or misty conditions.
#FOG (Fog Lamps): Turn the fog
lamp band on the lever to
#and
release it, to turn the fog lamps on
or off. The band will return to its
original position.
The parking lamps or low‐beam
headlamps must be on to use the
fog lamps.
The fog lamps will go off whenever
the high-beam headlamps are
turned on. When the high‐beam
headlamps are turned off, the fog
lamps will come on again.
Some localities have laws that
require the headlamps to be on
along with the fog lamps.
Interior Lighting
Instrument Panel
Illumination Control
This control is located on the
instrument panel, to the left of the
steering column.
D(Instrument Panel
Brightness): Turn clockwise or
counterclockwise to brighten or dim
the lights.
Dome Lamps
There are front and rear dome
lamps.
The dome lamp controls are located
in the overhead console. To change
the settings, press the following:
*(Dome Lamp Override): Turns
the lamps off, even when a door
is open.
Black plate (6,1)GMC Terrain Owner Manual (Include Mex) - 2012
6-6 Lighting
The battery can be discharged at
idle if the electrical loads are very
high. This is true for all vehicles.
This is because the generator
(alternator) may not be spinning fast
enough at idle to produce all of the
power needed for very high
electrical loads.
A high electrical load occurs when
several of the following are on, such
as: headlamps, high beams, fog
lamps, rear window defogger,
climate control fan at high speed,
heated seats, engine cooling fans,
trailer loads, and loads plugged into
accessory power outlets.EPM works to prevent excessive
discharge of the battery. It does this
by balancing the generator's output
and the vehicle's electrical needs.
It can increase engine idle speed to
generate more power whenever
needed. It can temporarily reduce
the power demands of some
accessories.
Normally, these actions occur in
steps or levels, without being
noticeable. In rare cases at the
highest levels of corrective action,
this action may be noticeable to the
driver. If so, a DIC message might
be displayed and it is recommended
that the driver reduce the electrical
loads as much as possible. See
Battery Voltage and Charging
Messages on page 5‑26.
Black plate (30,1)GMC Terrain Owner Manual (Include Mex) - 2012
10-30 Vehicle Care
Headlamp Aiming
The headlamp aiming system has
been preset at the factory.
If the vehicle is damaged in an
accident, the aim of the headlamps
may be affected and adjustment
may be necessary.
It is recommended that a dealer
adjust the headlamps. To re-aim the
headlamps yourself, use the
following procedure.
The vehicle should be properly
prepared as follows. The vehicle:
.Should be placed so the
headlamps are 7.6 m (25 ft) from
a light colored wall.
.Must have all four tires on a
level surface which is level all
the way to the wall.
.Should be placed so it is
perpendicular to the wall or other
flat surface.
.Should not have any snow, ice,
or mud on it.
.Should be fully assembled and
all other work stopped while
headlamp aiming is being
performed.
.Should be normally loaded with
a full tank of fuel and one person
or 75 kg (160 lbs) sitting in the
driver's seat.
.Tires should be properly inflated.
Headlamp aiming is done with the
vehicle's low-beam headlamps. The
high-beam headlamps will be
correctly aimed if the low-beam
headlamps are aimed properly. To adjust the vertical aim, do the
following:
1. Open the hood. See
Hood on
page 10‑5 for more information.
2. Locate the aim dot on the lens of
the low‐beam headlamp.
3. Measure the distance from the ground to the aim dot on the
low‐beam headlamp. Record the
distance.