Manual shifting CADILLAC CTS 2014 User Guide

Black plate (24,1)Cadillac CTS Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
6081492) - 2014 - CRC 2nd Edition - 11/18/13
9-24 Driving and Operating
{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.
R (Reverse): Use this gear to
back up.
At low vehicle speeds, R (Reverse)
can be used to rock the vehicle
back and forth to get out of snow,
ice, or sand without damaging your
transmission. See If the Vehicle Is
Stuck on page 9-10.
N (Neutral): In this position, the
engine does not connect with the
wheels. To restart when the vehicle
is already moving, use N (Neutral)
only. You can also use N (Neutral)
when the vehicle is being towed.
{Warning
Shifting 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.
{Caution
Shifting 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. D (Drive):
This position is for
normal driving. It provides the best
fuel economy. If you need more
power for passing, and you are:
.Going less than 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.
The transmission will shift down
to a lower gear and have more
power.
Downshifting the transmission in
slippery road conditions could result
in skidding. See “Skidding”under
Loss of Control on page 9-5.
M (Manual Mode): This mode can
be entered with the shift lever in the
D (Drive) position by pressing the
M (Manual Mode) button on the top
of the shift lever. M (Manual Mode)
allows the driver to select gears
appropriate for current driving
conditions. M (Manual Mode) Can

Black plate (25,1)Cadillac CTS Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
6081492) - 2014 - CRC 2nd Edition - 11/18/13
Driving and Operating 9-25
be exited with a second press of the
M (Manual Mode) button. See
Manual Mode on page 9-25.
{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 you are
stuck, do not spin the tires. When
stopping on a hill, use the brakes
to hold the vehicle in place.
While in Sport Mode, the vehicle
monitors driving behavior, and
automatically enables Performance
Shift Features when spirited driving
is detected. These features maintain
lower transmission gears to
increase available engine braking
and improve acceleration response.
The vehicle will exit these features
and return to normal operation after a short period when no spirited
driving is detected. See
Driver Mode
Control on page 9-31.
Manual Mode
Tap Shift
{Caution
Driving with the engine at a high
rpm without upshifting while using
Tap Shift, could damage the
vehicle. Always upshift when
necessary while using Tap Shift.
Vehicles with Tap Shift have
controls on the back of the steering
wheel to manually shift the
automatic transmission.
To enter Permanent Tap Shift Mode:
1. With the shift lever in D (Drive), press the M (Manual Mode)
button on the top of the shift
lever. While in Tap Shift Mode,
the M of the PRNDM section of
the instrument cluster will
become highlighted, and the
current gear is indicated.
2. Tap the left control to downshift, and the right control to upshift.
3. To exit, press the M (Manual Mode) button a second time.

Black plate (26,1)Cadillac CTS Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
6081492) - 2014 - CRC 2nd Edition - 11/18/13
9-26 Driving and Operating
With the shift lever in D (Drive) and
not in Permanent Tap Shift Mode,
the tap shift controls will activate a
temporary tap manual shift mode,
allowing the transmission to be
manually shifted. Automatic shifts
return after no manual shifts have
been done for seven to 10 seconds.
The Temporary Tap Shift Mode can
also be deactivated by holding the
right upshift control briefly.
While using Tap Shift, the vehicle
will have firmer, quicker shifting. You
can use this for sport driving or
when climbing or descending hills,
to stay in gear longer, or to
downshift for more power or engine
braking.
The transmission will only allow you
to shift into gears appropriate for the
vehicle speed and engine
revolutions per minute (rpm). The
transmission will not automatically
shift to the next lower gear if the
engine rpm is too high, nor to the
next higher gear when the maximum
engine rpm is reached.If shifting is prevented for any
reason, a SHIFT DENIED message
will be displayed in the instrument
cluster. See
Transmission
Messages on page 5-47.
When accelerating the vehicle from
a stop in snowy and icy conditions,
it is suggested to shift into second
gear. A higher gear allows the
vehicle to gain more traction on
slippery surfaces.Drive Systems
All-Wheel Drive
Vehicles with this feature always
send engine power to all four
wheels. It is fully automatic, and
adjusts itself as needed for road
conditions.

Black plate (8,1)Cadillac CTS Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
6081492) - 2014 - CRC 2nd Edition - 11/18/13
i-8 INDEX
MirrorsAutomatic Dimming
Rearview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21
Convex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Folding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Heated . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Tilt in Reverse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Mirrors, Interior Rearview . . . . . . 2-21
Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-31 Driver Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-31
Monitor System, Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-50
N
NavigationOnStar®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
Net, Convenience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
New Vehicle Break-In . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
O
Object Detection System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14 Trip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14 Off-Road
Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
Oil Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-10
Engine Oil Life System . . . . . 10-12
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Older Children, Restraints . . . . . 3-35
Online Owner Center . . . . . . . . . . 13-4
OnStar
®
System, In Brief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
OnStar®Additional
Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-5
OnStar
®Connections . . . . . . . . . . 14-3
OnStar®Emergency . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
OnStar®Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
OnStar®Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-1
OnStar®Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
OnStar®Vehicle
Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-5
Ordering
Service Publications . . . . . . . . .13-11
Outlets Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Overheating, Engine . . . . . . . . . . 10-21
P
Park
Shifting Into . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Shifting Out of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
Parking Brake and P (Park)Mechanism Check . . . . . . . . 10-28
Over Things That Burn . . . . . . . 9-21
Parking Brake Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Parking or Backing
Assistance Systems . . . . . . . . . . 9-46
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
Passenger Compartment Air Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9
Passenger Sensing System . . . 3-28
Perchlorate Materials Requirements, California . . . . . 10-2
Personalization
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-48
Power Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Protection, Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9

Black plate (10,1)Cadillac CTS Owner Manual (GMNA-Localizing-U.S./Canada/Mexico-
6081492) - 2014 - CRC 2nd Edition - 11/18/13
i-10 INDEX
Safety Belts (cont'd)Reminders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Replacing after a Crash . . . . . . 3-21
Use During Pregnancy . . . . . . . . 3-20
Safety Defects Reporting Canadian Government . . . . . . 13-12
General Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-12
U.S. Government . . . . . . . . . . . 13-12
Safety Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Safety System Check . . . . . . . . . . 3-20
Scheduling Appointments . . . . . . 13-7
Seats
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Heated and Ventilated Front . . . 3-8
Heated, Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
Lumbar Adjustment, Front . . . . . 3-4
Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Power Adjustment, Front . . . . . . 3-3
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10
Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Securing Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-49, 3-51 Security
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
OnStar
®. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Vehicle Alarm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9
Accessories andModifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Doing Your Own Work . . . . . . . . 10-3
Engine Soon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Maintenance Records . . . . . . .11-16
Maintenance, General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-1
Parts Identification Label . . . . . 12-1
Publications Ordering Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13-11
Scheduling Appointments . . . . . 13-7
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
Service Electric Parking Brake Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Servicing the Airbag . . . . . . . . . . . 3-33
Shift Lock Control Function Check, Automatic
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-27 Shifting
Into Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
Out of Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
Side Blind Zone Alert (SBZA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-56
Signals, Turn and Lane-Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Specifications and Capacities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-2
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
StabiliTrak OFF Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Start Vehicle, Remote . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Starter Switch Check . . . . . . . . . 10-27
Starting the Engine . . . . . . . 1-4, 9-17
Starting the Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-46
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4 Heated Wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Wheel Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3