GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-13337776) - 2020 - CRC - 4/4/19
Driving and Operating 185
Driving and
Operating
Driving Information
Driving for Better FuelEconomy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Distracted Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Defensive Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Drunk Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Control of a Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Off-Road Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Driving on Wet Roads . . . . . . . . 196
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . 197
Winter Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
If the Vehicle Is Stuck . . . . . . . . 199
Vehicle Load Limits . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Truck-Camper Loading Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Starting and Operating
New Vehicle Break-In . . . . . . . . . 208
Ignition Positions (KeylessAccess) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208 Ignition Positions (Key
Access) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Starting the Engine . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Stop/Start System . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Engine Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Retained Accessory Power (RAP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Shifting Into Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Shifting out of Park . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Parking over Things That Burn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Active Fuel Management . . . . . 219
Extended Parking . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Engine Exhaust
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Running the Vehicle While Parked . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Automatic Transmission
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 221
Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Tow/Haul Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Drive Systems
Four-Wheel Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Brakes
Electric Brake Boost . . . . . . . . . . 232
Antilock BrakeSystem (ABS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Electric Parking Brake . . . . . . . . 233 Brake Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Hill Start Assist (HSA) . . . . . . . . 235
Ride Control Systems
Traction Control/Electronic
Stability Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Hill Descent Control (HDC) . . . 237
Driver Mode Control . . . . . . . . . . 238
Limited-Slip Differential . . . . . . . 242
Locking Rear Axle . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Cruise Control
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Adaptive Cruise Control (1500 Series) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Driver Assistance Systems
Driver Assistance Systems . . . 256
Assistance Systems forParking or Backing . . . . . . . . . . 257
Assistance Systems for Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Forward Collision Alert (FCA) System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Front Pedestrian Braking (FPB) System (1500
Series) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Side Blind Zone Alert (SBZA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/
Mexico-13337776) - 2020 - CRC - 4/4/19
242 Driving and Operating
Terrain ModeDrive Select Expected Vehicle Behavior Ideal Terrain
L1 Significant deceleration when
off throttle and significant
ability to modulate throttle;
will bring vehicle to a stop in
most cases.
Rock crawling downhill
Active Braking During Lift Throttle
will reduce the back and forth
between the accelerator and brake
pedals.
Vehicle Hold Features:
. When the vehicle comes to a
stop on an incline grade in
forward gear or on a decline
grade in reverse gear, Vehicle
Hold is engaged until the
accelerator pedal is pressed.
. When the vehicle is in forward
gear on a decline, the vehicle is
allowed to creep down the hill
when the brake pedal is
released without pressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle
will also creep forward on flat
ground.
. If the driver seat belt is removed
and the driver door is opened
while the vehicle is being held,
EPB will be engaged.
. EPB will engage if the vehicle is
held for an extended period.
Terrain Mode is only available on
vehicles equipped with the single
speed transfer case.
Terrain Mode can only be
active when:
. Vehicle speed is less than
80 km/h (50 mph).
. The transfer case is in 4
m. Frequent use of this mode may
cause brake wear due to the light
braking.
The vehicle will automatically exit
the mode if the brakes get too hot.
Terrain Mode can be turned back on
after the brakes have cooled.
When Terrain Mode is selected:
.
Auto Engine Start/Stop will be
disabled.
. The Terrain Mode indicator
displays on the instrument
cluster.
Limited-Slip Differential
If equipped, the limited-slip
differential can give more traction on
snow, mud, ice, sand, or gravel.
It works like a standard axle most of
the time, but when traction is low,
this feature allows the drive wheel
with the most traction to move the
vehicle. For vehicles with the
limited-slip differential, driven under
severe conditions, the rear axle fluid
should be changed. See
Maintenance Schedule 0442.
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/-
Mexico-13337776) - 2020 - CRC - 4/4/19
Index 491
DiagnosticsConnected Services . . . . . . . . . . 487
Differential, Limited-Slip . . . . . . . . 242
Distracted Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Dome Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Door Ajar Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Power Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Drive Belt Routing, Engine . . . . . . 462
Driver Assistance Systems . . . . . 256
Driver Information
Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148, 149
Driver Mode Control . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
Driver Mode Control Light . . . . . . 145
Driving Assistance Systems . . . . . . . . . . 268
Better Fuel Economy . . . . . . . . . 186
Characteristics andTowing Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287
Defensive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Drunk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
Hill and Mountain Roads . . . . . . 197
If the Vehicle is Stuck . . . . . . . . . 199
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Off-Road . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Off-Road Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . 190 Driving (cont'd)
Vehicle Load Limits . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Wet Roads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Winter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Dual Automatic Climate Control System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
E
E85 or FlexFuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
Electric Brake Boost . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Electric Parking Brake . . . . . . . . . . 233
Electric Parking Brake Light . . . . 141
Electrical Equipment,Add-On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
Electrical System Engine Compartment FuseBlock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . 370
Instrument Panel Fuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374, 376
Overload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 370
Electronic Stability Control (ESC) Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Emergency
OnStar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478
Engine Air Cleaner/Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344 Engine (cont'd)
Check Light (Malfunction
Indicator) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Compartment Overview . . . . . . . 332
Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Coolant Temperature Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Cooling System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
Drive Belt Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . 462
Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353
Heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Oil Life System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341
Oil Pressure Gauge . . . . . . . . . . 133
Oil Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Overheated Protection Operating Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352
Overheating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351
Power Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Running While Parked . . . . . . . . 220
Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Engine Air Filter Life System . . . . 343
Entry Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Equipment, Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296
Event Data Recorders . . . . . . . . . . 475
Exit Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Extended Parking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/-
Mexico-13337776) - 2020 - CRC - 4/4/19
494 Index
Lamps (cont'd)On Reminder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Lane Change Alert (LCA) . . . . . . . 274
Lane Departure
Warning (LDW) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276
Lane Departure Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Lane Keep Assist (LKA) . . . . . . . . 278
Lane Keep Assist Light . . . . . . . . . 143
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
LATCH System
Replacing Parts after aCrash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
LATCH, Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
LED Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
Lighting Entry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Illumination Control . . . . . . . . . . . 172
LED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
Task . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Lights Airbag Readiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Antilock Brake System(ABS) Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Brake System Warning . . . . . . . 140 Lights (cont'd)
Charging System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Check Engine (Malfunction
Indicator) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Door Ajar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Driver Mode Control . . . . . . . . . . 145
Electric Parking Brake . . . . . . . . 141
Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Engine Coolant Temperature Warning . . . . . . . 145
Engine Oil Pressure . . . . . . . . . . 146
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Four-Wheel-Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Front Fog Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
High-Beam On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . 167
Hill Descent Control . . . . . . . . . . 142
Lane Departure Warning . . . . . . 142
Lane Keep Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Low Fuel Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Seat Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . . . 136
Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Service Electric Parking Brake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Tow/Haul Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142 Lights (cont'd)
Traction Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Limited-Slip Differential . . . . . . . . . 242
Lock Steering Column . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Locking Rear Axle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Locks Automatic Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Lockout Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Power Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . . . . 146
Low-Profile Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380
Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
M
MaintenanceRecords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457
Maintenance and Care Additional . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450
Maintenance Schedule . . . . . . . . . 442
GMC Sierra/Sierra Denali Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/-
Mexico-13337776) - 2020 - CRC - 4/4/19
498 Index
Steering Column Lock . . . . . . . . . . . 38
StepsPower Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Stop/Start System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Stoplamps and Back-up Lamps Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . 368
Storage
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114
Storage Areas Center Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114
Floor Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .113
Underseat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . . 113
Struts Gas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Stuck Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Sun Visors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
System Brake Pad Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356
Engine Air Filter Life . . . . . . . . . . 343
Forward CollisionAlert (FCA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Infotainment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176, 476
Noise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362 Systems
Driver Assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
T
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Tailgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Taillamps
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . 368
Task Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Text Telephone (TTY) Users . . . . 466
Theft-Deterrent Systems . . . . . . . . . 39 Immobilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379 All-Season . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379
All-Terrain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
Buying New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399
Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404
Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407
Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383
Different Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
Full-Size Spare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418
If a Tire Goes Flat . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
Inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396
Low Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380
Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387, 389
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Pressure Monitor Operation . . 390 Tires (cont'd)
Pressure Monitor System . . . . . 389
Rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396
Sidewall Labeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
Terminology and Definitions . . 385
Uniform Tire Quality
Grading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401
Wheel Alignment and Tire Balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403
Wheel Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 403
When It Is Time for New Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
Winter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380
Top Tier Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
Tow/Haul Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Tow/Haul Mode Light . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Towing Driving Characteristics . . . . . . . . 287
Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296
General Information . . . . . . . . . . 287
Recreational Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . 424
Trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Trailer Sway Control (TSC) . . . 308
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424
Traction Limited-Slip Differential . . . . . . . 242
Off Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143