Buick Encore Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
11354409) - 2018 - crc - 11/8/17
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.
{Danger
Danger indicates a hazard with a
high level of risk which will result
in serious injury or death.
{Warning
Warning 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 ’s
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. See the
features in this manual for
information.
9:
Airbag Readiness Light
#:Air Conditioning
!:Antilock Brake System (ABS)
$: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
.:Fuel Gauge
+: Fuses
3:Headlamp High/Low-Beam
Changer
j: ISOFIX/LATCH System Child
Restraints
Buick Encore Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
11354409) - 2018 - crc - 11/8/17
102 Instruments and Controls
Instruments and
Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 103
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 103
Heated Steering Wheel . . . . . . . 103
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . 103
Rear Window Wiper/Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Engine Coolant Temperature Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Seat Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . . . 114 Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . . 115
Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Charging System Light . . . . . . . 116
Malfunction Indicator Lamp (Check Engine Light) . . . . . . . . 116
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Lane Departure Warning (LDW) Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Vehicle Ahead Indicator . . . . . . 120
Traction Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
StabiliTrak OFF Light . . . . . . . . . 120
Traction Control System (TCS)/ StabiliTrak Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 121
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 122
Immobilizer Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 122
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . . 122
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 123
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . . 123
Information Displays
Driver Information Center (DIC) (Base Level) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Driver Information Center (DIC) (Uplevel) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Engine Power Messages . . . . . 128
Vehicle Speed Messages . . . . . 128
Vehicle Personalization
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 128
Universal Remote System
Universal Remote System . . . . 134
Universal Remote SystemProgramming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Universal Remote System Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Buick Encore Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
11354409) - 2018 - crc - 11/8/17
116 Instruments and Controls
outboard passenger frontal airbag
and knee airbag (if equipped) are
allowed to inflate.
If the word OFF or the off symbol is
lit on the passenger airbag status
indicator, it means that the
passenger sensing system has
turned off the front outboard
passenger frontal airbag and
passenger knee airbag (if
equipped).
If, after several seconds, both status
indicator lights remain on, or if there
are no lights at all, there may be a
problem with the lights or the
passenger sensing system. See
your dealer for service.
{Warning
If the airbag readiness light ever
comes on and stays on, it means
that something may be wrong
with the airbag system. To help
avoid injury to yourself or others,
have the vehicle serviced right
away. SeeAirbag Readiness
(Continued)
Warning (Continued)
Light0115 for more information,
including important safety
information.
Charging System Light
This light will come on briefly when
the ignition is turned on, and the
engine is not running, as a check to
show it is working.
It should go out when the engine is
started. If it stays on, or comes on
while driving, there may be a
problem with the electrical charging
system. Have it checked by your
dealer. Driving while this light is on
could drain the battery. If a short
distance must be driven with the
light on, turn off all accessories, such as the radio and air
conditioner, to help reduce the drain
on the battery.
Malfunction Indicator
Lamp (Check Engine
Light)
This light is part of the vehicle’s
emission control on-board
diagnostic system. If this light is on
while the engine is running, a
malfunction has been detected and
the vehicle may require service. The
light should come on to show that it
is working when the ignition is in
Service Mode. See
Ignition
Positions 0166.
Buick Encore Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
11354409) - 2018 - crc - 11/8/17
172 Driving and Operating
Warning (Continued)
you are on fairly level ground,
always set the parking brake and
move the shift lever to P (Park).
SeeShifting Into Park 0171.
If you have to leave the vehicle with
the engine running, be sure the
vehicle is in P (Park) and the
parking brake is firmly set before
you leave it. After you have moved
the shift lever into P (Park), hold the
brake pedal down. Then see if you
can move the shift lever away from
P (Park) without first pushing the
button on the shift lever. If you can,
it means that the shift lever was not
fully locked into P (Park).
Torque Lock (Automatic
Transmission)
If you are parking on a hill and you
do not shift the transmission into
P (Park) properly, the weight of the
vehicle may put too much force on
the parking pawl in the
transmission. You may find it difficult
to pull the shift lever out of P (Park). This is called
“torque lock.”
To prevent torque lock, set the
parking brake and then shift into
P (Park) properly before you leave
the driver seat. To find out how, see
“Shifting Into Park” previously in this
section.
When you are ready to drive, move
the shift lever out of P (Park) before
you release the parking brake.
If torque lock does occur, you may
need to have another vehicle push
yours a little uphill to take some of
the pressure from the parking pawl
in the transmission, so you can pull
the shift lever out of P (Park).
Shifting out of Park
This vehicle is equipped with a shift
lock control. The shift lock control is
designed to prevent movement of
the shift lever out of P (Park) unless
the ignition is on and the brake
pedal is applied.
The shift lock control is always
functional except in the case of an
uncharged or low voltage (less than
9-volt) battery. If the vehicle has an uncharged
battery or a battery with low voltage,
try charging or jump starting the
battery. See
Jump Starting - North
America 0261.
To shift out of P (Park):
1. Apply the brake pedal.
2. Turn the ignition on.
3. Press the shift lever button.
4. Move the shift lever to the desired position.
If still unable to shift out of P (Park): 1. Fully release the shift lever button.
2. Hold the brake pedal down and press the shift lever button
again.
3. Move the shift lever to the desired position.
If the shift lever still cannot be
moved from P (Park), see “Shift
Lock Manual Release” following.
Buick Encore Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
11354409) - 2018 - crc - 11/8/17
Index 319
AutomaticDoor Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Headlamp System . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Transmission Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Automatic Transmission Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Shift Lock Control Function
Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
B
BatteryExterior Lighting BatterySaver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Power Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Battery - North America . . . . 219, 261
Blade Replacement, Wiper . . . . . 221
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . .118
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217 Antilock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Parking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Break-In, New Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . 166
Bulb Replacement Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224 Bulb Replacement (cont'd)
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Headlamps, Front Turn
Signal, and Parking
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
License Plate Lamps . . . . . . . . . 227
Taillamps, Turn Signal, Sidemarker, Stoplamps,
and Backup Lamps . . . . . . . . . . 225
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250
C
Calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
California Fuel Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Perchlorate MaterialsRequirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
California
Proposition
65 Warning . . . . . . . . . .199, 219, 261, Back Cover
Camera Rear Vision (RVC) . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Canadian Vehicle Owners . . . . . . . . 2
Capacities and Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290 Carbon Monoxide
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Cargo Cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Management System . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Caution, Danger, and Warning . . . . 3
Center Console Storage . . . . . . . . . 98
Chains, Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
Charging System Light . . . . . . . . . 116
Check Engine Light (MalfunctionIndicator) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116
Child Restraints Infants and Young Children . . . . . 79
Lower Anchors and Tethers
for Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Older Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Securing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92, 94
Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Cleaning Exterior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Interior Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . . 145 Air Conditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Dual Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Buick Encore Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
11354409) - 2018 - crc - 11/8/17
Index 323
Lamps (cont'd)Daytime Running (DRL) . . . . . . 139
Dome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Exterior Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Exterior Lighting Battery
Saver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Front Fog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Headlamps, Front Turn Signal, and Parking
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
License Plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Malfunction Indicator (Check Engine) . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116
On Reminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Lane Departure Warning (LDW) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Lane Departure Warning
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
LATCH System Replacing Parts after aCrash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
LATCH, Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
LED Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Lighting
Entry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Illumination Control . . . . . . . . . . . 141
LED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Lights Airbag Readiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115
Antilock Brake System
(ABS) Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .119
Brake System Warning . . . . . . . .118
Charging System . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116
Check Engine (Malfunction Indicator) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Engine Oil Pressure . . . . . . . . . . 121
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Front Fog Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
High-Beam On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . 138
Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Lane Departure Warning . . . . . . .119
Low Fuel Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Seat Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . . . .114
StabiliTrak OFF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Traction Control System (TCS)/StabiliTrak . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Traction Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 Locks
Automatic Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Lockout Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Power Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . . . . 122
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
M
MaintenanceRecords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288
Maintenance and Care Additional . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Maintenance Schedule . . . . . . . . . 278
Recommended Fluids andLubricants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . . 116
Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Memory Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51