
in which the ESC module is detecting vehicle instability.
The torque that the steering wheel receives is only meant to
help the driver realize optimal steering behavior in order to
reach/maintain vehicle stability. The only notification the
driver receives that the feature is active is the torque
applied to the steering wheel.
NOTE:The DST feature is only meant to help the driver
realize the correct course of action through small torques
on the steering wheel, which means the effectiveness of the
DST feature is highly dependent on the driver ’s sensitivity
and overall reaction to the applied torque. It is very
important to realize that this feature will not steer the
vehicle, meaning the driver is still responsible for steering
the vehicle.
Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD)
This function manages the distribution of the braking
torque between the front and rear axles by limiting braking
pressure to the rear axle. This is done to prevent overslip of
the rear wheels to avoid vehicle instability, and to prevent
the rear axle from entering ABS before the front axle.
Electronic Roll Mitigation (ERM)
This system anticipates the potential for wheel lift by
monitoring the driver ’s steering wheel input and the speed of the vehicle. When ERM determines that the rate of
change of the steering wheel angle and vehicle’s speed are
sufficient to potentially cause wheel lift, it then applies the
appropriate brake and may also reduce engine power to
lessen the chance that wheel lift will occur. ERM can only
reduce the chance of wheel lift occurring during severe or
evasive driving maneuvers; it cannot prevent wheel lift
due to other factors, such as road conditions, leaving the
roadway, or striking objects or other vehicles.
WARNING!
Many factors, such as vehicle loading, road conditions
and driving conditions, influence the chance that
wheel lift or rollover may occur. ERM cannot prevent
all wheel lift or roll overs, especially those that involve
leaving the roadway or striking objects or other ve-
hicles. The capabilities of an ERM-equipped vehicle
must never be exploited in a reckless or dangerous
manner which could jeopardize the user’s safety or the
safety of others.
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
This system enhances directional control and stability of
the vehicle under various driving conditions. ESC corrects
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SAFETY 197

for oversteering or understeering of the vehicle by apply-
ing the brake of the appropriate wheel(s) to assist in
counteracting the oversteer or understeer condition. En-
gine power may also be reduced to help the vehicle
maintain the desired path.
ESC uses sensors in the vehicle to determine the vehicle
path intended by the driver and compares it to the actual
path of the vehicle. When the actual path does not match
the intended path, ESC applies the brake of the appropriate
wheel to assist in counteracting the oversteer or understeer
condition.
•Oversteer — when the vehicle is turning more than
appropriate for the steering wheel position.
• Understeer — when the vehicle is turning less than
appropriate for the steering wheel position.
The “ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator Light” located
in the instrument cluster will start to flash as soon as the
ESC system becomes active. The “ESC Activation/
Malfunction Indicator Light” also flashes when the TCS is
active. If the “ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator
Light” begins to flash during acceleration, ease up on the
accelerator and apply as little throttle as possible. Be sure to
adapt your speed and driving to the prevailing road
conditions.WARNING!
•Electronic Stability Control (ESC) cannot prevent the
natural laws of physics from acting on the vehicle,
nor can it increase the traction afforded by prevailing
road conditions. ESC cannot prevent accidents, in-
cluding those resulting from excessive speed in turns,
driving on very slippery surfaces, or hydroplaning.
ESC also cannot prevent accidents resulting from loss
of vehicle control due to inappropriate driver input
for the conditions. Only a safe, attentive, and skillful
driver can prevent accidents. The capabilities of an
ESC equipped vehicle must never be exploited in a
reckless or dangerous manner which could jeopar-
dize the user ’s safety or the safety of others.
• Vehicle modifications, or failure to properly main-
tain your vehicle, may change the handling charac-
teristics of your vehicle, and may negatively affect
the performance of the ESC system. Changes to the
steering system, suspension, braking system, tire
type and size or wheel size may adversely affect ESC
performance. Improperly inflated and unevenly
worn tires may also degrade ESC performance. Any
vehicle modification or poor vehicle maintenance
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198 SAFETY

ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator Light and ESC
OFF Indicator Light
The “ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator
Light” in the instrument cluster will come on
when the ignition is turned to the ON mode. It
should go out with the vehicle running. If the
“ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator Light” comes on
continuously with the vehicle running, a malfunction has
been detected in the ESC system. If this light remains on
after several ignition cycles, and the vehicle has been
driven several miles (kilometers) at speeds greater than
30 mph (48 km/h), see your authorized dealer as soon as
possible to have the problem diagnosed and corrected.
The “ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator Light” (lo-
cated in the instrument cluster) starts to flash as soon as the
tires lose traction and the ESC system becomes active. The
“ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator Light” also flashes
when TCS is active. If the “ESC Activation/Malfunction
Indicator Light” begins to flash during acceleration, ease
up on the accelerator and apply as little throttle as possible.
Be sure to adapt your speed and driving to the prevailing
road conditions. NOTE:
•
The “ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator Light” and
the “ESC OFF Indicator Light” come on momentarily
each time the ignition is turned ON.
• Each time the ignition is turned ON, the ESC system will
be on even if it was turned off previously.
• The ESC system will make buzzing or clicking sounds
when it is active. This is normal; the sounds will stop
when ESC becomes inactive following the maneuver
that caused the ESC activation.
The “ESC OFF Indicator Light” indicates the
customer has elected to have the Electronic Sta-
bility Control (ESC) in a reduced mode.
Hill Start Assist (HSA)
The HSA system is designed to mitigate roll back from a
complete stop while on an incline. If the driver releases the
brake while stopped on an incline, HSA will continue to
hold the brake pressure for a short period. If the driver
does not apply the throttle before this time expires, the
system will release brake pressure and the vehicle will roll
down the hill as normal.
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The following conditions must be met in order for HSA to
activate:
•The feature must be enabled.
• The vehicle must be stopped.
• Park brake must be off.
• Driver door must be closed.
• The vehicle must be on a sufficient grade.
• The gear selection must match vehicle uphill direction
(i.e., vehicle facing uphill is in forward gear; vehicle
backing uphill is in REVERSE gear).
• HSA will work in REVERSE gear and all forward gears.
The system will not activate if the transmission is in
PARK or NEUTRAL.
The HSA system works alongside Autonomous Hill Hold
(AHH) to maintain vehicle position on an incline. In a
situation where the accelerator pedal is being used to keep
the vehicle stationary on an incline, the AHH system will
compensate and hold the vehicle in place until the accel-
erator pedal is pressed enough to push the vehicle forward.WARNING!
There may be situations where the Hill Start Assist
(HSA) will not activate and slight rolling may occur,
such as on minor hills or with a loaded vehicle, or
while pulling a trailer. HSA is not a substitute for
active driving involvement. It is always the driver ’s
responsibility to be attentive to distance to other ve-
hicles, people, and objects, and most importantly brake
operation to ensure safe operation of the vehicle under
all road conditions. Your complete attention is always
required while driving to maintain safe control of your
vehicle. Failure to follow these warnings can result in
a collision or serious personal injury.
Disabling And Enabling HSA
This feature can be turned on or turned off. To change the
current setting, proceed as follows:
• If disabling HSA using Uconnect Settings, refer to
“Uconnect Settings” in “Multimedia” for further infor-
mation.
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SAFETY 201

Rain Brake Support (RBS)
Rain Brake Support may improve braking performance in
wet conditions. It will periodically apply a small amount of
brake pressure to remove any water buildup on the front
brake rotors. It functions when the windshield wipers are
in LO or HI speed. When Rain Brake Support is active,
there is no notification to the driver and no driver interac-
tion is required.
Ready Alert Braking (RAB)
Ready Alert Braking may reduce the time required to reach
full braking during emergency braking situations. It antici-
pates when an emergency braking situation may occur by
monitoring how fast the throttle is released by the driver.
The EBC will prepare the brake system for a panic stop.
Regenerative Braking System (RBS) — Hybrid
Your vehicle has a Regenerative Braking System (RBS). The
RBS replenishes the vehicle’s high voltage battery during
deceleration, and is particularly useful in stop-and-go city
traffic. The electric motors which propel the vehicle for-
ward can operate as generators when braking. The RBS
recharges the high voltage battery under certain braking
conditions by recapturing energy that would otherwise belost while braking. The electric power that is generated
goes back into the high voltage battery for later use, for
example when acceleration is desired.
The RBS uses conventional hydraulic friction brakes, re-
generative braking, or a combination to slow the vehicle. If
the system detects slippery conditions while braking,
ONLY friction is used to slow the vehicle. The RBS can
result in extended life of the hydraulic service brakes;
however, all inspection, scheduled maintenance, and ser-
vice intervals for the vehicle service brakes must be fol-
lowed.
Audible Pedestrian Warning System
Your vehicle is equipped with an Audible Pedestrian
Warning System. The Audible Pedestrian Warning System
uses distinct sounds to alert pedestrians that your vehicle is
approaching. In addition, the module will indicate change
in speed by varying the pitch of sound.
The audible warning system uses an in-car sound synthe-
sizer with a speaker located in the underhood compart-
ment. The warning system is automatically activated when
selecting REVERSE, NEUTRAL, DRIVE or LOW.
202 SAFETY

General Information
The following regulatory statement applies to all Radio
Frequency (RF) devices equipped in this vehicle:
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules and
with Industry Canada license-exempt RSS standard(s).
Operation is subject to the following two conditions:
1. This device may not cause harmful interference.
2. This device must accept any interference received, in-cluding interference that may cause undesired opera-
tion.
NOTE: Changes or modifications not expressly approved
by the party responsible for compliance could void the
user ’s authority to operate the equipment.
Forward Collision Warning (FCW) With Mitigation
— If Equipped
The Forward Collision Warning (FCW) system with miti-
gation provides the driver with audible warnings, visual
warnings (within the instrument cluster display), and may
apply a brake jerk to warn the driver when it detects a
potential frontal collision. The warnings and limited brak-
ing are intended to provide the driver with enough time to
react, avoid or mitigate the potential collision. NOTE:
FCW monitors the information from the forward
looking sensors as well as the Electronic Brake Controller
(EBC), to calculate the probability of a forward collision.
When the system determines that a forward collision is
probable, the driver will be provided with audible and
visual warnings and may provide a brake jerk warning.
If the driver does not take action based upon these pro-
gressive warnings, then the system will provide a limited
level of active braking to help slow the vehicle and mitigate
the potential forward collision. If the driver reacts to the
warnings by braking and the system determines that the
driver intends to avoid the collision by braking but has not
applied sufficient brake force, the system will compensate
and provide additional brake force as required.
If a FCW with Mitigation event begins at a speed below
26 mph (42 km/h), the system may provide the maximum
braking possible to mitigate the potential forward collision.
If the Forward Collision Warning with Mitigation event
stops the vehicle completely, the system will hold the
vehicle at standstill for two seconds and then release the
brakes.
210 SAFETY

the system to warn the driver of a possible collision with
the vehicle in front using audible/visual warnings and it
applies autonomous braking.
Changing the FCW status to “Far” setting allows the
system to warn the driver of a possible collision with the
vehicle in front using audible/visual warning when the
latter is at a farther distance thanMediumsetting. This
provides the most reaction time to avoid a possible colli-
sion.
Changing the FCW status to the “Near” setting, allows the
system to warn the driver of a possible collision with the
vehicle in front when the distance between the vehicle in
the front is much closer. This setting provides less reaction
time than the “Far” and “Medium” settings, which allows
for a more dynamic driving experience.
NOTE:
• Changing the FCW status to “Only Warning” prevents
the system from providing limited active braking, or
additional brake support if the driver is not braking
adequately in the event of a potential frontal collision,
but maintains the audible and visual warnings.
• Changing the FCW status to “Off” prevents the system
from providing autonomous braking, or additional brake support if the driver is not braking adequately in
the event of a potential frontal collision.
• The system will retain the last setting selected by the
driver after ignition shut down.
• FCW may not react to irrelevant objects such as over-
head objects, ground reflections, objects not in the path
of the vehicle, stationary objects that are far away,
oncoming traffic, or leading vehicles with the same or
higher rate of speed.
• FCW will be disabled like ACC, with the unavailable
screens.
FCW Limited Warning
If the instrument cluster displays “ACC/FCW Limited
Functionality” or “ACC/FCW Limited Functionality Clean
Front Windshield” momentarily, there may be a condition
that limits FCW functionality. Although the vehicle is still
drivable under normal conditions, the active braking may
not be fully available. Once the condition that limited the
system performance is no longer present, the system will
return to its full performance state. If the problem persists,
see an authorized dealer.
212 SAFETY

•Cut off battery power to the:
• Engine
• Electric Motor (if equipped)
• Electric power steering
• Brake booster
• Electric park brake
• Automatic transmission gear selector
• Horn
• Front wiper
• Headlamp washer pump
NOTE: After an accident, remember to cycle the ignition
to the STOP (OFF/LOCK) position and remove the key
from the ignition switch to avoid draining the battery.
Carefully check the vehicle for fuel leaks in the engine
compartment and on the ground near the engine compart-
ment and fuel tank before resetting the system and starting
the engine. If there are no fuel leaks or damage to the
vehicle electrical devices (e.g. headlights) after an accident,
reset the system by following the procedure described
below. If you have any doubt, contact an authorized dealer.Enhanced Accident Response System Reset
Procedure
After an event occurs requiring activation of the Enhanced
Accident Response System, when the system is active, a “
Service Hybrid Electric Vehicle System” message will be
displayed on the instrument cluster. The vehicle is not
drivable in this state.
In order to reset the High Voltage Battery and Engine, the
vehicle must be towed to an authorized dealer immedi-
ately to be inspected and have the Enhanced Accident
Response System reset.
In order to immediately reset the Hazard Flashers, Interior
Lights, Power Door Locks, HVAC Blower Motor, the igni-
tion switch must be changed from START or ON/RUN to
ignition OFF.
Maintaining Your Air Bag System
WARNING!
• Modifications to any part of the air bag system could
cause it to fail when you need it. You could be
injured if the air bag system is not there to protect
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254 SAFETY