GMC Sierra Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
9234758) - 2016 - crc - 11/9/15
Driving and Operating 323
.The trailer must be equipped
with brakes adequate for the
intended use. A loaded trailer
weighing more than 900 kg
(2,000 lb) must be equipped with
its own brake system, with
brakes working on all axles.
Trailer braking equipment
conforming to Canadian
Standards Association (CSA)
requirement CAN3-D313, or its
equivalent, is recommended.
. Do not tow a trailer during the
first 800 km (500 mi) to prevent
damage to the engine, axle,
or other parts.
. Then during the first 800 km
(500 mi) of trailer towing, do not
drive over 80 km/h (50 mph) and
do not make starts at full throttle.
. Vehicles can tow in D (Drive).
The Tow/Haul Mode may be
used if the transmission shifts
too often. See Tow/Haul
Mode 0292.
. Turn off Park Assist when
towing.{Warning
When towing a trailer, exhaust
gases may collect at the rear of
the vehicle and enter if the
liftgate, trunk/hatch, or rear-most
window is open.
When towing a trailer:
. Do not drive with the
liftgate, trunk/hatch,
or rear-most window open.
. Fully open the air outlets on
or under the instrument
panel.
. Also adjust the climate
control system to a setting
that brings in only outside
air. See “Climate Control
Systems” in the Index.
For more information about
carbon monoxide, see Engine
Exhaust 0285.
Towing a trailer requires a certain
amount of experience. The
combination you are driving is
longer and not as responsive as the vehicle itself. Get acquainted with
the handling and braking of the rig
before setting out for the open road.
The structure, tires, and brakes of
the trailer must be rated to carry the
load. Inadequate trailer equipment
can cause the combination to
operate in an unexpected or unsafe
manner.
Before starting, check all trailer hitch
parts and attachments, safety
chains, electrical connectors, lamps,
tires, and mirrors. Get familiar with
the handling and braking of the rig.
If the trailer has electric brakes, start
the combination moving and then
apply the trailer brake controller by
hand to be sure the brakes work.
During the trip, check occasionally
to be sure that the load is secure
and the lamps and any trailer
brakes still work.
Following Distance
Stay at least twice as far behind the
vehicle ahead as you would when
driving the vehicle without a trailer.
This can help to avoid heavy
braking and sudden turns.
GMC Sierra Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
9234758) - 2016 - crc - 11/9/15
420 Vehicle Care
Quality grades can be found
where applicable on the tire
sidewall between tread shoulder
and maximum section width. For
example:
Treadwear 200 Traction AA
Temperature A
All Passenger Car Tires Must
Conform to Federal Safety
Requirements In Addition To
These Grades.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a
comparative rating based on the
wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a
specified government test
course. For example, a tire
graded 150 would wear one and
one-half (1½) times as well on
the government course as a tire
graded 100. The relative
performance of tires depends
upon the actual conditions of
their use, however, and may
depart significantly from thenorm due to variations in driving
habits, service practices and
differences in road
characteristics and climate.
Traction
The traction grades, from
highest to lowest, are AA, A, B,
and C. Those grades represent
the tire's ability to stop on wet
pavement as measured under
controlled conditions on
specified government test
surfaces of asphalt and
concrete. A tire marked C may
have poor traction performance.
Warning: The traction grade
assigned to this tire is based on
straight-ahead braking traction
tests, and does not include
acceleration, cornering,
hydroplaning, or peak traction
characteristics.
Temperature
The temperature grades are A
(the highest), B, and C,
representing the tire's resistanceto the generation of heat and its
ability to dissipate heat when
tested under controlled
conditions on a specified indoor
laboratory test wheel. Sustained
high temperature can cause the
material of the tire to degenerate
and reduce tire life, and
excessive temperature can lead
to sudden tire failure. The grade
C corresponds to a level of
performance which all
passenger car tires must meet
under the Federal Motor Safety
Standard No. 109. Grades B and
A represent higher levels of
performance on the laboratory
test wheel than the minimum
required by law. Warning: The
temperature grade for this tire is
established for a tire that is
properly inflated and not
overloaded. Excessive speed,
underinflation, or excessive
loading, either separately or in
combination, can cause heat
buildup and possible tire failure.
GMC Sierra Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
9234758) - 2016 - crc - 11/9/15
498 Index
California (cont'd)Perchlorate Materials
Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
California
Proposition
65 Warning . . . . . . . . . .355, 382, 434
Canadian Vehicle Owners . . . . . . . . 2
Capacities and Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 468
Carbon Monoxide Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
Tailgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Cargo
Tie-Downs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119
Cargo Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Caution, Danger, and Warning . . . . 3
CD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Center Console Storage . . . . . . . . 118
Center High-Mounted Stoplamp (CHMSL) and
Cargo Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390
Center Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Chains, Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422
Charging
Wireless . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Charging System Light . . . . . . . . . 140 Check
Ignition Transmission Lock . . . 387
Malfunction Indicator
Engine Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Child Restraints Infants and Young Children . . . . . 88
Lower Anchors and Tethersfor Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Securing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105, 108
Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Cleaning Exterior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444
Interior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246, 248
Air Conditioning . . . . . . . . . 246, 248
Dual Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246, 248
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Cluster, Instrument . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Collision Damage Repair . . . . . . . 479
Compartments Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Connections OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488 Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
Traction and Electronic
Stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
Control Light Hill Descent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Control of a Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Convex Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Coolant Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
Engine Temperature Gauge . . 135
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Engine Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Courtesy Transportation Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306 Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Cupholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Customer Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . 475 Offices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474
Text Telephone (TTY)Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475
Customer Information Service PublicationsOrdering Information . . . . . . . . 481
Customer Satisfaction
Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472
GMC Sierra Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
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Index 499
D
Damage Repair, Collision . . . . . . . 479
Danger, Warning, and Caution . . . . 3
Data Recorders, Event . . . . . . . . . 484
Daytime RunningLamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Defensive Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Diagnostics OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 490
Distracted Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Power Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Drive Belt Routing, Engine . . . . . . 471
Driver Assistance Systems . . . . . 309
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148, 150
Driving Assistance Systems . . . . . . . . . . 312
Characteristics andTowing Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
Defensive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Drunk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
For Better Fuel Economy . . . . . . . 30 Driving (cont'd)
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . 266
If the Vehicle is Stuck . . . . . . . . . 268
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Off-Road . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Vehicle Load Limits . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Wet Roads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Winter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Dual Automatic Climate Control System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
E
E85 or FlexFuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
Electrical Equipment,Add-On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
Electrical System Engine Compartment FuseBlock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392
Fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395, 397
Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
Emergency
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 487
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . 370
Check and Service EngineSoon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141 Engine (cont'd)
Compartment Overview . . . . . . . 358
Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
Coolant Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Cooling System Messages . . . 154
Drive Belt Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . 471
Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
Oil Life System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
Oil Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Oil Pressure Gauge . . . . . . . . . . 134
Overheated Protection Operating Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
Overheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375
Power Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Running While Parked . . . . . . . . 286
Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Equipment, Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
Event Data Recorders . . . . . . . . . . 484
Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Extender, Safety Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Exterior Lamp Controls . . . . . . . . . 174
Exterior Lamps Off Reminder . . . 176
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Index 505
Reporting Safety Defects (cont'd)General Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
U.S. Government . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
Restraints
Where to Put . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Retained Accessory Power (RAP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Reverse Tilt Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Ride Control Systems Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Roads Driving, Wet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 476
Roof Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Rotation, Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414
Routing, Engine Drive Belt . . . . . . 471
Running the Vehicle While Parked . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
S
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Extender . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
How to Wear Safety Belts
Properly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Lap Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Safety Belts (cont'd)
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Reminders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Replacing after a Crash . . . . . . . . 71
Use During Pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . 69
Safety Defects Reporting Canadian Government . . . . . . . . 483
General Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
U.S. Government . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
Safety Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Safety System Check . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196, 197
Scheduling Appointments . . . . . . . 478
Seats Adjustment, Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Center Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Heated and Ventilated Front . . . . 61
Lumbar Adjustment, Front . . . . . . 58
Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Power Adjustment, Front . . . . . . . 58
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Securing Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105, 108
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159 Security (cont'd)
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 487
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Vehicle Alarm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255 Accessories andModifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
Climate Control System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246, 248
Doing Your Own Work . . . . . . . . 357
Engine Soon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Maintenance Records . . . . . . . . 466
Maintenance, General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453
Parts Identification Label . . . . . 467
Publications Ordering Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481
Scheduling Appointments . . . . . 478
Services Special Application . . . . . . . . . . . 460
Servicing the Airbag . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Shift Lock Control Function Check, Automatic
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386
Shifting Into Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Out of Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284