GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S/Canada-
9159297) - 2016 - CRC - 10/12/15
In Brief 5
In Brief
Instrument Panel
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Initial Drive Information
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . . . 8
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Second Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Third Row Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Heated and Cooled Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Head Restraint Adjustment . . . . 14
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Passenger Sensing System . . . 14
Mirror Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . . 16
Throttle and Brake Pedal Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . . 18
Climate Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Four-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Vehicle Features
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . . 21
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Driver Information
Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Forward Collision Alert (FCA) System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Front Automatic Braking (FAB) System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Lane Keep Assist (LKA) . . . . . . . 22
Lane Change Alert (LCA) . . . . . . 23
Rear Vision Camera (RVC) . . . . 23
Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA) System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Parking Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Universal Remote System . . . . . 24
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Performance and Maintenance
Traction Control/Electronic Stability Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Tire Pressure Monitor . . . . . . . . . . 25
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . . . . 26
E85 or FlexFuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Driving for Better Fuel Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Roadside Assistance
Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S/Canada-
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Instruments and Controls 123
Instruments and
Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 124
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 125
Heated Steering Wheel . . . . . . . 125
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 125
Rear Window Wiper/Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Wireless Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Engine Oil Pressure
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 Engine Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Voltmeter Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . 140
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . . 140
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Charging System Light . . . . . . . 142
Malfunction Indicator Lamp (Check Engine Light) . . . . . . . . 142
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Tow/Haul Mode Light . . . . . . . . . 145
Lane Keep Assist (LKA) Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Vehicle Ahead Indicator . . . . . . 146
Traction Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
StabiliTrak
®OFF Light . . . . . . . . 146
Traction Control System (TCS)/ StabiliTrak
®Light . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 147
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 148
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . . 148
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 148
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . . 148
Information Displays
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Battery Voltage and ChargingMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Brake System Messages . . . . . 153
Compass Messages . . . . . . . . . . 153
Cruise Control Messages . . . . . 153
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . . 154
Engine Cooling System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . . 155
Engine Power Messages . . . . . 155
Fuel System Messages . . . . . . . 156
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 156
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Object Detection System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Ride Control System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Airbag System Messages . . . . 160
Security Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Steering System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Starting the Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Tire Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Transmission Messages . . . . . . 161
GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S/Canada-
9159297) - 2016 - CRC - 10/12/15
Instruments and Controls 127
With Rainsense, if the transmission
is in N (Neutral) and the vehicle
speed is very slow, the wipers may
automatically stop at the base of the
windshield.
The wiper operations return to
normal when the transmission is no
longer in N (Neutral) or the vehicle
speed has increased.
Windshield Washer
{Warning
In freezing weather, do not use
the washer until the windshield is
warmed. Otherwise the washer
fluid can form ice on the
windshield, blocking your vision.
Lm(Washer Fluid) : Push the
paddle marked with the windshield
washer symbol at the top of the turn
signal lever to spray washer fluid
and activate the wipers. The wipers
will continue until the paddle is
released or the maximum wash time
is reached. When the paddle is
released, additional wipes may
occur depending on how long the windshield washer had been
activated. See
Washer Fluid0291
for information on filling the
windshield washer fluid reservoir.
Rear Window Wiper/
Washer
The rear wiper control is on the turn
signal lever.
To turn the rear wiper on, slide the
lever to a wiper position.
OFF : Turns the wiper off.
INT (Intermittent Wipes) : Turns on
the rear wiper with a delay between
wipes.
ON (Rear Wipes) : Turns on the
rear wiper.
=REAR (Rear Wiper Wash) :
Press this button on the end of the
lever to spray washer fluid on the rear window. The wipers will clear
the rear window and either stop or
return to your preset speed. For
more washer cycles, press and hold
the button.
The rear window wiper/washer will
not operate if the liftgate or liftglass
is open or ajar. If the liftgate or
liftglass is opened while the rear
wiper is on, the wiper returns to the
parked position and stops.
Rear Wiper Arm Assembly
Protection
When using an automatic car wash,
move the rear wiper control to OFF
to disable the rear wiper. In some
vehicles, if the transmission is in
N (Neutral) and the vehicle speed is
very slow, the rear wiper will
automatically park under the rear
spoiler.
The wiper operations return to
normal when the transmission is no
longer in N (Neutral) or the vehicle
speed has increased.
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9159297) - 2016 - CRC - 10/12/15
Instruments and Controls 155
ENGINE OVERHEATED IDLE
ENGINE
This message displays when the
engine coolant temperature is too
hot. Stop and allow the vehicle to
idle until it cools down. SeeEngine
Coolant Temperature Gauge 0138.
When towing, use Tow/Haul Mode
to prevent damage to the engine or
transmission. See Tow/Haul
Mode 0224.
ENGINE OVERHEATED STOP
ENGINE
This message displays and a chime
may sound if the engine cooling
system reaches unsafe
temperatures for operation. Stop
and turn off the vehicle as soon as it
is safe to do so to avoid severe
damage. This message clears when
the engine has cooled to a safe
operating temperature.
Engine Oil Messages
CHANGE ENGINE OIL SOON
This message displays when the
engine oil needs to be changed.
When you change the engine oil, be
sure to reset the CHANGE ENGINE
OIL SOON message. See Engine
Oil Life System 0281 for
information on how to reset the
message. See Engine Oil0279 and
Maintenance Schedule 0364.
ENGINE OIL LOW ADD OIL
On some vehicles, this message
displays when the engine oil level
may be too low. Check the oil level
before filling to the recommended
level. If the oil is not low and this
message remains on, take the
vehicle to your dealer for service.
See Engine Oil 0279.
ENGINE OIL HOT IDLE
ENGINE
This message displays when the
engine oil becomes hotter than the
normal operating temperature. Stop and allow the vehicle to idle until it
cools down. See
Engine Coolant
Temperature Gauge 0138.
OIL PRESSURE LOW STOP
ENGINE
This message displays if low oil
pressure levels occur. Stop the
vehicle as soon as safely possible
and do not operate it until the cause
of the low oil pressure has been
corrected. Check the oil as soon as
possible and have the vehicle
serviced by your dealer. See Engine
Oil 0279.
Engine Power Messages
ENGINE POWER IS REDUCED
This message displays and a chime
may sound when the cooling system
temperature gets too hot and the
engine further enters the engine
coolant protection mode. See
Engine Overheating 0289 for more
information.
This message also displays when
the vehicle's engine power is
reduced. Reduced engine power
can affect the vehicle's ability to
GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S/Canada-
9159297) - 2016 - CRC - 10/12/15
214 Driving and Operating
Caution
If you add electrical parts or
accessories, you could change
the way the engine operates. Any
resulting damage would not be
covered by the vehicle warranty.
SeeAdd-On Electrical
Equipment 0273.
Starting Procedure (Key
Access)
1. With your foot off the
accelerator pedal, turn the
ignition key to START. When
the engine starts, let go of the
key. The idle speed will go
down as the engine gets warm.
Do not race the engine
immediately after starting it.
Operate the engine and
transmission gently to allow the
oil to warm up and lubricate all
moving parts.
When the low fuel warning
lamp is on and the FUEL
LEVEL LOW message is
displayed in the Driver Information Center (DIC), hold
the ignition switch in the
START position to continue
engine cranking.
Caution
Cranking the engine for long
periods of time, by returning the
ignition to the START position
immediately after cranking has
ended, can overheat and damage
the cranking motor, and drain the
battery. Wait at least 15 seconds
between each try, to let the
cranking motor cool down.
2. If the engine does not start after five to 10 seconds,
especially in very cold weather
(below −18 °C or 0 °F), it could
be flooded with too much
gasoline. Try pushing the
accelerator pedal all the way to
the floor and holding it there
while holding the key in START
for up to 15 seconds. Wait at
least 15 seconds between each
try, to allow the cranking motor
to cool down. When the engine starts, let go of the key and
accelerator. If the vehicle starts
briefly but then stops again, do
the same thing. This clears the
extra gasoline from the engine.
Do not race the engine
immediately after starting it.
Operate the engine and
transmission gently until the oil
warms up and lubricates all
moving parts.
Starting Procedure (Keyless
Access)
1. With the Keyless Access
system, the RKE transmitter
must be in the vehicle. Press
the ENGINE START/STOP
button with the brake pedal
applied. When the engine
begins cranking, let go of the
button.
The idle speed will go down as
the engine gets warm. Do not
race the engine immediately
after starting it.
If the RKE transmitter is not in
the vehicle, if there is
interference, or the RKE
battery is low, the Driver
GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S/Canada-
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Driving and Operating 215
Information Center (DIC) will
display a message. SeeKey
and Lock Messages 0156.
Caution
Cranking the engine for long
periods of time, by returning the
ignition to the START position
immediately after cranking has
ended, can overheat and damage
the cranking motor, and drain the
battery. Wait at least 15 seconds
between each try, to let the
cranking motor cool down.
2. If the engine does not start after five to 10 seconds,
especially in very cold weather
(below −18 °C or 0 °F), it could
be flooded with too much
gasoline. Try pushing the
accelerator pedal all the way to
the floor and holding it there as
you press the ENGINE START/
STOP button, for up to a
maximum of 15 seconds. Wait
at least 15 seconds between
each try, to allow the cranking
motor to cool down. When the engine starts, let go of the
button, and the accelerator.
If the vehicle starts briefly but
then stops again, do the same
thing. This clears the extra
gasoline from the engine. Do
not race the engine
immediately after starting it.
Operate the engine and
transmission gently until the oil
warms up and lubricates all
moving parts.
Engine Heater
The engine coolant heater can
provide easier starting and better
fuel economy during engine
warm-up in cold weather conditions
at or below
−18 °C (0 °F). Vehicles
with an engine heater should be
plugged in at least four hours before
starting. There may be an internal
thermostat in the plug end of the
cord, which will prevent engine
coolant heater operation at
temperatures above −18 °C (0 °F).
To Use the Engine Coolant
Heater
1. Turn off the engine. 2. Open the hood and unwrap the
electrical cord. The cord is by
the left front fender, next to the
engine compartment fuse
block.
Check the heater cord for
damage. If it is damaged, do
not use it. See your dealer for
a replacement. Inspect the
cord for damage yearly.
3. Plug the cord into a normal, grounded 110-volt AC outlet.
{Warning
Improper use of the heater cord
or an extension cord can damage
the cord and may result in
overheating and fire.
. Plug the cord into a
three-prong electrical utility
receptacle that is protected
by a ground fault detection
(Continued)
GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S/Canada-
9159297) - 2016 - CRC - 10/12/15
Driving and Operating 261
vehicle itself. Get acquainted with
the handling and braking of the rig
before setting out for the open road.
Before starting, check all trailer hitch
parts and attachments, safety
chains, electrical connectors, lamps,
tires, and mirrors. 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.
Passing
More passing distance is needed
when towing a trailer. The
combination will not accelerate as
quickly and is longer so it isnecessary to go much farther
beyond the passed vehicle before
returning to the lane.
Backing Up
Hold the bottom of the steering
wheel with one hand. To move the
trailer to the left, move that hand to
the left. To move the trailer to the
right, move your hand to the right.
Always back up slowly and,
if possible, have someone
guide you.
Making Turns
Caution
Making very sharp turns while
trailering could cause the trailer to
come in contact with the vehicle.
The vehicle could be damaged.
Avoid making very sharp turns
while trailering.
When turning with a trailer, make
wider turns than normal. Do this so
the trailer will not strike soft
shoulders, curbs, road signs, trees, or other objects. Avoid jerky or
sudden maneuvers. Signal well in
advance.
If the trailer turn signal bulbs burn
out, the arrows on the instrument
cluster will still flash for turns. It is
important to check occasionally to
be sure the trailer bulbs are still
working.
Driving on Grades
Reduce speed and shift to a lower
gear
before starting down a long or
steep downgrade. If the
transmission is not shifted down, the
brakes might get hot and no longer
work well.
Vehicles can tow in D (Drive). Shift
the transmission to a lower gear if
the transmission shifts too often
under heavy loads and/or hilly
conditions.
When towing, use the Tow/Haul
Mode to prevent damage to the
engine or transmission. See Tow/
Haul Mode 0224.
When towing at high altitude on
steep uphill grades, consider the
following: Engine coolant will boil at
GMC Yukon/Yukon XL Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S/Canada-
9159297) - 2016 - CRC - 10/12/15
262 Driving and Operating
a lower temperature than at normal
altitudes. If the engine is turned off
immediately after towing at high
altitude on steep uphill grades, the
vehicle may show signs similar to
engine overheating. To avoid this,
let the engine run while parked,
preferably on level ground, with the
transmission in P (Park) for a few
minutes before turning the engine
off. If the overheat warning comes
on, seeEngine Overheating 0289.
Parking on Hills
{Warning
Parking the vehicle on a hill with
the trailer attached can be
dangerous. If something goes
wrong, the rig could start to move.
People can be injured, and both
the vehicle and the trailer can be
damaged. When possible, always
park the rig on a flat surface. If parking the rig on a hill:
1. Press the brake pedal, but do not shift into P (Park) yet. Turn
the wheels into the curb if
facing downhill or into traffic if
facing uphill.
2. Have someone place chocks under the trailer wheels.
3. When the wheel chocks are in place, release the regular
brakes until the chocks absorb
the load.
4. Reapply the brake pedal. Then apply the parking brake and
shift into P (Park).
5. Release the brake pedal.
Leaving After Parking on a Hill
1. Apply and hold the brake pedal.
2. Start the engine.
3. Shift into a gear.
4. Release the parking brake.
5. Let up on the brake pedal.
6. Drive slowly until the trailer is clear of the chocks. 7. Stop and have someone pick
up and store the chocks.
Maintenance when Trailer
Towing
The vehicle needs service more
often when pulling a trailer. See
Maintenance Schedule 0364.
Things that are especially important
in trailer operation are automatic
transmission fluid, engine oil, axle
lubricant, belts, cooling system, and
brake system. It is a good idea to
inspect these before and during
the trip.
Check periodically to see that all
hitch nuts and bolts are tight.
Trailer Towing
Do not tow a trailer during break-in.
See New Vehicle Break-In 0209.
Before towing a trailer, see
"Hands-Free Operation" under
Liftgate 044.