GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-9955992) - 2017 - crc - 4/18/17
Introduction 3
Danger, Warning, and
Caution Warning messages found on vehicle
labels and in this manual describe
hazards and what to do to avoid or
reduce them.
{ DangerDanger indicates a hazard with a
high level of risk which will result
in serious injury or death.
{ WarningWarning indicates a hazard that
could result in injury or death.
Caution
Caution indicates a hazard that
could result in property or vehicle
damage. A circle with a slash through it is a
safety symbol which means “ Do
Not, ” “ Do not do this, ” or “ Do not let
this happen. ”
Symbols The vehicle has components and
labels that use symbols instead of
text. Symbols are shown along with
the text describing the operation or
information relating to a specific
component, control, message,
gauge, or indicator.
M : Shown when the owner
manual has additional instructions
or information.
* : Shown when the service
manual has additional instructions
or information.
0 : Shown when there is more
information on another page —
“ see page. ” 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.
0 : Adjustable Pedals
9 : Airbag Readiness Light
! : Antilock Brake System (ABS)
g : Audio Steering Wheel Controls
or OnStar ®
(if equipped)
$ : Brake System Warning Light
" : Charging System
I : Cruise Control
` : Do Not Puncture
^ : Do Not Service
B : Engine Coolant Temperature
O : Exterior Lamps
_ : Flame/Fire Prohibited
# : Fog Lamps
. : Fuel Gauge
+ : Fuses
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-9955992) - 2017 - crc - 4/18/17
Keys, Doors, and Windows 39.
Fuel level is too low.
The engine will turn off during a
remote vehicle start if:
.
The coolant temperature gets
too high.
.
The oil pressure gets low.
The RKE transmitter range may be
reduced while the vehicle is running.
Other conditions can affect the
performance of the transmitter.
See Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
System 0 36 or Vehicle
Personalization 0 167 .
Starting the Engine Using Remote
Start
1. Press and release
Q .
2. Immediately press and hold
/until the turn signal lamps flash
or for at least four seconds.
When the vehicle starts, the
parking lamps will turn on. The
doors will be locked and the
climate control system may
come on. The engine will continue to run
for 10 minutes. After
30 seconds, repeat
Steps 1 and 2 for a 10-minute
time extension.
Turn the ignition on to operate the
vehicle.
Extending Engine Run Time
The engine run time can be
extended by 10 minutes, for a total
of 20 minutes, if during the first
10 minutes Steps 1 and 2 are
repeated while the engine is still
running. An extension can be
requested 30 seconds after starting.
A maximum of two remote starts,
or a single start with an extension,
is allowed between ignition cycles.
The vehicle's ignition must be
turned on and then back off to use
remote start again.
Canceling a Remote Start
To cancel a remote start, do one of
the following:
.
Press and hold
/ until the
parking lamps turn off. .
Turn on the hazard warning
flashers.
.
Turn the ignition on and then off.
Door Locks
{ WarningUnlocked doors can be
dangerous.
.
Passengers, especially
children, can easily open
the doors and fall out of a
moving vehicle. When a
door is locked, the handle
will not open it. The chance
of being thrown out of the
vehicle in a crash is
increased if the doors are
not locked. So, all
passengers should wear
safety belts properly and the
doors should be locked
whenever the vehicle is
driven.
(Continued)
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-9955992) - 2017 - crc - 4/18/17
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 . . . . 126
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Wireless Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Engine Oil Pressure
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Engine Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 Transmission Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Voltmeter Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . 140
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . . 141
Airbag On-Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Charging System Light . . . . . . . 143
Malfunction Indicator Lamp
(Check Engine Light) . . . . . . . . 144
Brake System Warning
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Antilock Brake System (ABS)
Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Four-Wheel-Drive Light . . . . . . . 147
Tow/Haul Mode Light . . . . . . . . . 147
Hill Descent Control Light . . . . 147
Lane Departure Warning
(LDW) Light (2500/3500) . . . . 147
Lane Keep Assist (LKA) Light
(1500 Series) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Vehicle Ahead Indicator . . . . . . 148
Traction Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
StabiliTrak OFF Light . . . . . . . . . 148
Traction Control System (TCS)/
StabiliTrak Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Engine Coolant Temperature
Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 150 Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 150
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 151
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . . 151
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 151
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . . 152
Door Ajar Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Information Displays Driver Information Center (DIC)
(Base Level Cluster) . . . . . . . . 152
Driver Information Center (DIC)
(Uplevel and Denali
Cluster) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Vehicle Messages Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Battery Voltage and Charging
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Brake System Messages . . . . . 158
Compass Messages . . . . . . . . . . 158
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . . 158
Engine Cooling System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . . 159
Engine Power Messages . . . . . 160
Fuel System Messages . . . . . . . 160
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 160
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Object Detection System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-9955992) - 2017 - crc - 4/18/17
Instruments and Controls 137When the indicator nears empty, the
low fuel light comes on. There still is
a little fuel left, but the vehicle
should be refueled soon.
Here are four things that some
owners ask about. None of these
show a problem with the fuel gauge:
.
At the service station, the fuel
pump shuts off before the gauge
reads full.
.
It takes a little more or less fuel
to fill up than the gauge
indicated. For example, the
gauge may have indicated the
tank was half full, but it actually
took a little more or less than
half the tank's capacity to fill
the tank.
.
The gauge moves a little while
turning a corner or speeding up.
.
The gauge takes a few seconds
to stabilize after the ignition is
turned on, and goes back to
empty when the ignition is
turned off. Engine Oil Pressure
Gauge
Metric, Standard Theme Shown English, Standard Theme Shown
The engine oil pressure gauge
shows the engine oil pressure
in kPa (kilopascals) or psi (pounds
per square inch) when the engine is
running.
Oil pressure can vary with engine
speed, outside temperature, coolant
temperature, and oil viscosity.
A reading outside the normal
operating range can be caused by a
dangerously low oil level or some
other problem causing low oil
pressure. Check the vehicle's oil as
soon as possible. See “ OIL
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-9955992) - 2017 - crc - 4/18/17
138 Instruments and Controls PRESSURE LOW STOP ENGINE ”
under Engine Oil Messages 0 159
and Engine Oil 0 364 .
CautionLack of proper engine oil
maintenance can damage the
engine. Driving with the engine oil
low can also damage the engine.
The repairs would not be covered
by the vehicle warranty. Check
the oil level as soon as possible.
Add oil if required, but if the oil
level is within the operating range
and the oil pressure is still low,
have the vehicle serviced. Always
follow the maintenance schedule
for changing engine oil.
If the vehicle has a diesel engine,
see the Duramax diesel
supplement. Engine Coolant
Temperature Gauge
Metric, Standard Theme Shown English, Standard Theme Shown
This gauge shows the engine
coolant temperature. Under normal
driving conditions the gauge will
read approximately 100 °C (210 °F)
or less. If the gauge pointer is near
125 °C (260 °F), the engine is
too hot.
It means that the engine coolant has
overheated. If the vehicle has been
operating under normal driving
conditions, pull off the road, stop the
vehicle, and turn off the engine as
soon as possible.
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-9955992) - 2017 - crc - 4/18/17
Instruments and Controls 149This light comes on when the
StabiliTrak system is turned off.
If StabiliTrak is off, the Traction
Control System (TCS) is also off.
If StabiliTrak and TCS are off, the
system does not assist in controlling
the vehicle. Turn on the TCS and
the StabiliTrak systems, and the
warning light turns off.
See Traction Control/Electronic
Stability Control 0 299 .
Traction Control System
(TCS)/StabiliTrak Light
This light comes on briefly when the
engine is started.
If the light does not come on, have
the vehicle serviced by your dealer.
If the system is working normally,
the indicator light turns off. If the light is on and not flashing, the
TCS and potentially the StabiliTrak
system have been disabled.
A Driver Information Center (DIC)
message may display. Check the
DIC messages to determine which
feature(s) is no longer functioning
and whether the vehicle requires
service. See Ride Control System
Messages 0 161 .
If the light is on and flashing, the
TCS and/or the StabiliTrak system
is actively working.
See Traction Control/Electronic
Stability Control 0 299 .
Engine Coolant
Temperature Warning
Light
This light comes on briefly while
starting the vehicle. If it does not, have the vehicle
serviced by your dealer. If the
system is working normally the
indicator light goes off.
CautionThe engine coolant temperature
warning light indicates that the
vehicle has overheated. Driving
with this light on can damage the
engine and it may not be covered
by the vehicle warranty. See
Engine Overheating 0 376 .
The engine coolant temperature
warning light comes on when the
engine has overheated.
If this happens, pull over and turn
off the engine as soon as possible.
See Engine Overheating 0 376 .
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-9955992) - 2017 - crc - 4/18/17
Instruments and Controls 159obstructions, and close the door
again. Check to see if the message
still appears on the DIC.
HOOD OPEN This message displays and a chime
may sound if the hood is not fully
closed. Stop and turn off the
vehicle, check the hood for
obstructions, and close the hood
again. Check to see if the message
still appears on the DIC.
Engine Cooling System
Messages A/C OFF DUE TO HIGH
ENGINE TEMP This message displays when the
engine coolant becomes hotter than
the normal operating temperature.
See Engine Coolant Temperature
Gauge 0 138 . To avoid added strain
on a hot engine, the air conditioning
compressor automatically turns off.
When the coolant temperature
returns to normal, the air
conditioning compressor turns back
on. You can continue to drive your
vehicle. If this message continues to appear,
have the system repaired by your
dealer as soon as possible to avoid
damage to the engine.
ENGINE OVERHEATING IDLE
ENGINE This message displays when the
engine coolant temperature is too
hot. Stop and allow the vehicle to
idle until it cools down. See Engine
Coolant Temperature Gauge 0 138 .
When towing, use Tow/Haul mode
to prevent damage to the engine or
transmission. See Tow/Haul Mode
0 288 .
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 0 367 for
information on how to reset the
message.
See Engine Oil 0 364 and
Maintenance Schedule 0 455 .
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 0 364 .
ENGINE OIL HOT IDLE
ENGINE
This message displays when the
engine oil becomes hotter than the
normal operating temperature. Stop
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-9955992) - 2017 - crc - 4/18/17
160 Instruments and Controls and allow the vehicle to idle until it
cools down. See Engine Coolant
Temperature Gauge 0 138 .
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 0 364 .
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 0 376 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 accelerate. If this message is on,
but there is no reduction in
performance, proceed to your
destination. The performance may
be reduced the next time the vehicle
is driven. The vehicle may be driven
at a reduced speed while this
message is on, but acceleration and
speed may be reduced. Anytime
this message stays on, or displays
repeatedly, the vehicle should be
taken to your dealer for service as
soon as possible.
Fuel System Messages FUEL LEVEL LOW This message displays and a chime
may sound if the fuel level is low.
Refuel as soon as possible.
See Fuel Gauge 0 136 and Fuel
0 315 .
TIGHTEN GAS CAP
This message may display along
with the malfunction indicator lamp
on the instrument cluster if the
vehicle's fuel cap is not tightened
properly. See Malfunction Indicator
Lamp (Check Engine Light) 0 144 . Reinstall the fuel cap fully. See
Filling the Tank 0 317 . The
diagnostic system can determine if
the fuel cap has been left off or
improperly installed. A loose or
missing fuel cap allows fuel to
evaporate into the atmosphere.
A few driving trips with the cap
properly installed should turn this
light and message off.
Key and Lock Messages REPLACE BATTERY IN
REMOTE KEY This message displays if a Remote
Keyless Entry (RKE) transmitter
battery is low. The battery needs to
be replaced in the transmitter. See
“ Battery Replacement ” under
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE)
System Operation 0 36 .
Lamp Messages TURN SIGNAL ON
This message displays and a chime
sounds if a turn signal is left on for
1.2 km (0.75 mi). Move the turn
signal lever to the off position.