2018 GMC SIERRA DENALI Owners Manual

GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-11349177) - 2018 - CRC - 10/17/17
264 Driving and Operating
Parking over Things
That Burn
{ WarningThings that can burn could touch
hot exhaust parts under the
vehicle and ignite. Do not park
over papers, leaves, dry grass,
or other things that can burn.
Active Fuel Management Vehicles with a V8 or V6 gasoline
engine may have Active Fuel
Management. This system allows
the engine to operate on either all of
its cylinders, or in V4 mode,
depending on the driving conditions. When less power is required, such
as cruising at a constant vehicle
speed, the system will operate in
the V4 mode, allowing the vehicle to
achieve better fuel economy. When
greater power demands are
required, such as accelerating from
a stop, passing, or merging onto a
freeway, the system will maintain
full-cylinder operation.
If the vehicle has an Active Fuel
Management indicator, see Driver
Information Center (DIC) (Uplevel
and Denali Cluster) 0 160 or Driver
Information Center (DIC) (Base
Level Cluster) 0 158 for more
information on using this display. Engine Exhaust
{ WarningEngine exhaust contains carbon
monoxide (CO), which cannot be
seen or smelled. Exposure to CO
can cause unconsciousness and
even death.
Exhaust may enter the vehicle if:
.
The vehicle idles in areas
with poor ventilation
(parking garages, tunnels,
deep snow that may block
underbody airflow or tail
pipes).
.
The exhaust smells or
sounds strange or different.
.
The exhaust system leaks
due to corrosion or damage.
.
The vehicle exhaust system
has been modified,
damaged, or improperly
repaired.
(Continued)

GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-11349177) - 2018 - CRC - 10/17/17
Driving and Operating 265Warning (Continued).
There are holes or openings
in the vehicle body from
damage or aftermarket
modifications that are not
completely sealed.
If unusual fumes are detected or
if it is suspected that exhaust is
coming into the vehicle:
.
Drive it only with the
windows completely down.
.
Have the vehicle repaired
immediately.
Never park the vehicle with the
engine running in an enclosed
area such as a garage or a
building that has no fresh air
ventilation. Running the Vehicle
While Parked It is better not to park with the
engine running.
If the vehicle is left with the engine
running, follow the proper steps to
be sure the vehicle will not move.
See Shifting Into Park 0 262 and
Engine Exhaust 0 264 .
If parking on a hill and pulling a
trailer, see Driving Characteristics
and Towing Tips 0 303 .Automatic
Transmission If equipped, there is an electronic
shift lever position indicator within
the instrument cluster. This display
comes on when the ignition key is
turned on.
There are several different positions
for the shift lever.
Heavy-Duty 6-Speed Automatic
Transmission Shown, Others
Similar
See “ Range Selection Mode ” under
Manual Mode 0 268 .
P : This position locks the rear
wheels. Use P (Park) when starting
the engine because the vehicle
cannot move easily.

GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-11349177) - 2018 - CRC - 10/17/17
266 Driving and Operating When parked on a hill, especially
when the vehicle has a heavy load,
you might notice an increase in the
effort to shift out of P (Park). See
“ Torque Lock ” under Shifting Into
Park 0 262
{ WarningIt is dangerous to get out of the
vehicle if the shift lever is not fully
in P (Park) with the parking brake
firmly set. The vehicle can roll.
Do not leave the vehicle when the
engine is running. If you have left
the engine running, the vehicle
can move suddenly. You or others
could be injured. To be sure the
vehicle will not move, even when
you are on fairly level ground,
always set the parking brake and
move the shift lever to P (Park).
See Shifting Into Park 0 262 and
Driving Characteristics and
Towing Tips 0 303 . { WarningIf equipped with four-wheel drive,
the vehicle will be free to roll if the
transfer case is in N (Neutral),
even when the shift lever is in
P (Park). You or someone else
could be seriously injured. Be
sure the transfer case is in a drive
gear — 2
m , 4
m , or 4
n or set the
parking brake before placing the
transfer case in N (Neutral). See
Shifting Into Park 0 262 .
R : Use this gear to back up.
Caution
Shifting to R (Reverse) while the
vehicle is moving forward could
damage the transmission. The
repairs would not be covered by
the vehicle warranty. Shift to
R (Reverse) only after the vehicle
is stopped. To rock the vehicle back and forth to
get out of snow, ice, or sand without
damaging the transmission, see If
the Vehicle Is Stuck 0 247 .
N : In this position, the engine does
not connect with the wheels. To
restart the engine when the vehicle
is already moving, use
N (Neutral) only.
Also, use N (Neutral) when the
vehicle is being towed.
{ WarningShifting into a drive gear while the
engine is running at high speed is
dangerous. Unless your foot is
firmly on the brake pedal, the
vehicle could move very rapidly.
You could lose control and hit
people or objects. Do not shift
into a drive gear while the engine
is running at high speed.

GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-11349177) - 2018 - CRC - 10/17/17
Driving and Operating 267CautionShifting out of P (Park) or
N (Neutral) with the engine
running at high speed may
damage the transmission. The
repairs would not be covered by
the vehicle warranty. Be sure the
engine is not running at high
speed when shifting the vehicle.
CautionA transmission hot message may
display if the automatic
transmission fluid is too hot.
Driving under this condition can
damage the vehicle. Stop and idle
the engine to cool the automatic
transmission fluid. This message
clears when the transmission fluid
has cooled sufficiently. D : This position is for normal
driving. It provides the best fuel
economy. If more power is needed
for passing, press the accelerator
pedal down.
.
Going less than about 55 km/h
(35 mph), push the accelerator
pedal about halfway down.
.
Going about 55 km/h (35 mph) or
more, push the accelerator all
the way down.
By doing this, the vehicle shifts
down to the next gear and has
more power.
Use D (Drive) and Tow/Haul Mode
when towing a trailer, carrying a
heavy load, driving on steep hills,
or driving off-road. Shift the
transmission to a lower gear
selection if the transmission shifts
too often.
Downshifting the transmission in
slippery road conditions could result
in skidding. See “ Skidding ” under
Loss of Control 0 238 . The vehicle has a shift stabilization
feature that adjusts the transmission
shifting to the current driving
conditions in order to reduce rapid
upshifts and downshifts. This shift
stabilization feature is designed to
determine, before making an
upshift, if the engine is able to
maintain vehicle speed by analyzing
things such as vehicle speed,
throttle position, and vehicle load.
If the shift stabilization feature
determines that a current vehicle
speed cannot be maintained, the
transmission does not upshift and
instead holds the current gear.
In some cases, this could appear to
be a delayed shift, however the
transmission is operating normally.
The transmission uses adaptive
shift controls. The adaptive shift
control process continually
compares key shift parameters to
pre-programmed ideal shifts stored
in the transmission ’ s computer. The
transmission constantly makes
adjustments to improve vehicle
performance according to how the
vehicle is being used, such as with
a heavy load or when the

GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-11349177) - 2018 - CRC - 10/17/17
268 Driving and Operating temperature changes. During this
adaptive shift control process,
shifting might feel different as the
transmission determines the best
settings.
When temperatures are very cold,
the transmission's gear shifting
could be delayed providing more
stable shifts until the engine warms
up. Shifts could be more noticeable
with a cold transmission. This
difference in shifting is normal.
L : This position allows selection of
a range of gears appropriate for
current driving conditions.
If equipped, see “ Range Selection
Mode ” under Manual Mode 0 268 .
Caution
Spinning the tires or holding the
vehicle in one place on a hill
using only the accelerator pedal
may damage the transmission.
The repair will not be covered by
the vehicle warranty. If the vehicle
is stuck, do not spin the tires.
(Continued) Caution (Continued) When stopping on a hill, use the
brakes to hold the vehicle in
place.
Normal Mode Grade Braking If equipped with a gasoline engine
and an automatic transmission,
Normal Mode Grade Braking is
enabled when the vehicle is started,
but is not enabled in Range
Selection Mode. It assists in
maintaining desired vehicle speeds
when driving on downhill grades by
using the engine and transmission
to slow the vehicle. The first time
the system engages for each
ignition key cycle, a DIC message
will be displayed.
To disable or enable Normal Mode
Grade Braking within the current
ignition key cycle, press and hold
the Tow/Haul button for
five seconds. When the button is
released, the requested mode
change is made. A DIC message
displays. For other forms of grade braking,
see Tow/Haul Mode 0 271 and
Cruise Control 0 285 .
Kickdown Mode If equipped, the accelerator pedal
provides an additional downshift
after pressing through the kickdown
feature.
It requires extra pedal pressure near
the end of its travel to engage.
Manual Mode Range Selection Mode
If equipped, Range Selection Mode
helps control the vehicle's
transmission and vehicle speed
while driving downhill or towing a
trailer by letting you select a desired
range of gears.

GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-11349177) - 2018 - CRC - 10/17/17
Driving and Operating 269To use this feature:
1. Move the shift lever to
L (Manual Mode).
2. Press the plus/minus buttons
on the shift lever to select the
desired range of gears for
current driving conditions.
With an 8-speed automatic
transmission, hold the plus/minus
buttons on the shift lever to select
the highest or lowest range
available for the current vehicle
speed. When the shift lever is moved from
D (Drive) to L (Manual Mode), a
number displays next to the L,
indicating the current transmission
range.
This number is the highest gear that
the transmission will command while
operating in L (Manual Mode). All
gears below that number are
available. As driving conditions
change, the transmission can
automatically shift to lower gears.
For example, when L5 is selected,
1 (First) through 5 (Fifth) gears are automatically shifted by the
transmission, but 6 (Sixth) cannot be
used until the plus/minus button on
the shift lever is used to change to
the range.
In vehicles with gasoline engines,
when the shift lever is moved from
D (Drive) to L (Manual Mode), a
downshift may occur. The gear that
the transmission is operating in
when the shift lever is moved from
D (Drive) to L (Manual Mode)
determines if a downshift occurs.
See the following chart.

GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-11349177) - 2018 - CRC - 10/17/17
270 Driving and Operating 6-Speed Automatic Transmission
Gear before shifting from
D (Drive) to L (Manual Mode) 6th 5th 4th 3rd 2nd 1st
Range after shifting from
D (Drive) to L (Manual Mode) L4 L4 L3 L2 L2 L1
8-Speed Automatic Transmission
Gear before
shifting from
D (Drive) to
L (Manual Mode) 8th 7th 6th 5th 4th 3rd 2nd 1st
Range after
shifting from
D (Drive) to
L (Manual Mode) –
Tow/Haul not
engaged L6 L6 L5 L4 L3 L3 L2 L1
Range after
shifting from
D (Drive) to
L (Manual Mode) –
Tow/Haul engaged L6 L5 L4 L3 L3 L3 L2 L1 Grade Braking is not available when
Range Selection Mode is active.
See Tow/Haul Mode 0 271 .
While using Range Selection Mode,
cruise control and the Tow/Haul
Mode can be used.
If the vehicle has an exhaust brake,
it can also be used, but will not
automatically downshift the
transmission. See “ Exhaust Brake ”
in the Duramax diesel supplement.
CautionSpinning the tires or holding the
vehicle in one place on a hill
using only the accelerator pedal
may damage the transmission.
The repair will not be covered by
the vehicle warranty. If the vehicle
is stuck, do not spin the tires.
When stopping on a hill, use the
brakes to hold the vehicle in
place.

GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-11349177) - 2018 - CRC - 10/17/17
Driving and Operating 271Low Traction Mode If equipped, Low Traction Mode
assists in vehicle acceleration when
road conditions are slippery, such
as with ice or snow. While the
vehicle is at a stop, select L2 using
Range Selection Mode. This will
limit torque to the wheels and help
to prevent the tires from spinning.
Tow/Haul Mode
Vehicles with an automatic
transmission have a Tow/Haul
Mode. The Tow/Haul Mode adjusts
the transmission shift pattern to
reduce shift cycling. This provides increased performance, vehicle
control, and enhanced transmission
and engine cooling when driving
down steep hills or mountain
grades, when towing, or when
hauling heavy loads.
The selector button is on the end of
the shift lever. Turn the Tow/Haul
Mode on and off by pressing the
button. When the Tow/Haul Mode is
enabled, a light on the instrument
cluster will come on.
For an eAssist vehicle, the Stop/
Start function will become
unavailable when Tow/Haul Mode is
active.
For an eAssist vehicle, the
Regenerative Braking functionality is
disabled when using the Tow/Haul
Mode. See the eAssist supplement.
See Tow/Haul Mode Light 0 153 and
Hill and Mountain Roads 0 245 .
Also see “ Tow/Haul Mode ” under
Towing Equipment 0 325 . Tow/Haul Mode Grade Braking Tow/Haul Mode Grade Braking is
only enabled while the Tow/Haul
Mode is selected and the vehicle is
not in the Range Selection Mode.
See “ Tow/Haul Mode ” listed
previously and Manual Mode 0 268 .
Tow/Haul Mode Grade Braking
assists in maintaining desired
vehicle speeds when driving on
downhill grades by using the engine
and transmission to slow the
vehicle.
If equipped, on vehicles with a
gasoline engine, to disable or
enable Tow/Haul Grade Braking
within the current ignition key cycle,
press and hold the Tow/Haul button
for five seconds. When the button is
released, the requested mode
change is made. A DIC message is
displayed.