instrument panel CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV 2008 Owners Manual

Seats and Restraint Systems ........................... 1-1
Front Seats
............................................... 1-2
Rear Seats
.............................................. 1-10
Safety Belts
............................................. 1-29
Child Restraints
....................................... 1-50
Airbag System
......................................... 1-76
Restraint System Check
............................ 1-92
Features and Controls ..................................... 2-1
Keys
........................................................ 2-3
Doors and Locks
...................................... 2-10
Windows
................................................. 2-18
Theft-Deterrent Systems
............................ 2-20
Starting and Operating Your Vehicle
........... 2-24
Mirrors
.................................................... 2-41
Object Detection Systems
.......................... 2-48
OnStar ®
System
...................................... 2-50
Universal Home Remote System
................ 2-53
Storage Areas
......................................... 2-60
Sunroof
.................................................. 2-64
Instrument Panel ............................................. 3-1
Instrument Panel Overview
.......................... 3-4
Climate Controls
...................................... 3-26
Warning Lights, Gages, and Indicators
........ 3-33
Driver Information Center (DIC)
.................. 3-48
Audio System(s)
....................................... 3-70 Driving Your Vehicle ....................................... 4-1
Your Driving, the Road, and Your Vehicle
..... 4-2
Towing
................................................... 4-41
Service and Appearance Care .......................... 5-1
Service
..................................................... 5-3
Fuel
......................................................... 5-5
Checking Things Under the Hood
............... 5-10
All-Wheel Drive
........................................ 5-45
Rear Axle
............................................... 5-46
Front Axle
............................................... 5-47
Headlamp Aiming
..................................... 5-48
Bulb Replacement
.................................... 5-51
Windshield Wiper Blade Replacement
......... 5-54
Tires
...................................................... 5-56
Appearance Care
..................................... 5-98
Vehicle Identication
............................... 5-107
Electrical System
.................................... 5-108
Capacities and Specications
................... 5-115
Maintenance Schedule ..................................... 6-1
Maintenance Schedule
................................ 6-2
Customer Assistance Information .................... 7-1
Customer Assistance and Information
........... 7-2
Reporting Safety Defects
........................... 7-13
Vehicle Data Recording and Privacy
........... 7-15
Index ................................................................ 12008 Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual
M

or the instrument panel... or the safety belts!
With safety belts, you slow down as the vehicle does.
You get more time to stop. You stop over more distance,
and your strongest bones take the forces. That is why
safety belts make such good sense.
1-32

Airbag System Your vehicle has the following airbags:
A frontal airbag for the driver.
A frontal airbag for the right front passenger.
A roof-rail airbag for the driver and the passenger
seated directly behind the driver.
A roof-rail airbag for the right front passenger and
the passenger seated directly behind the right
front passenger.
Your vehicle may have the following airbags:
If your vehicle has a third row seat, it will have third
row roof-rail airbags.
All of the airbags in your vehicle will have the word
AIRBAG embossed in the trim or on an attached label
near the deployment opening.
For frontal airbags, the word AIRBAG will appear on the
middle part of the steering wheel for the driver and
on the instrument panel for the right front passenger.
With roof-rail airbags, the word AIRBAG will appear
along the headliner or trim. Airbags are designed to supplement the protection
provided by safety belts. Even though today’s airbags
are also designed to help reduce the risk of injury
from the force of an inating bag, all airbags must inate
very quickly to do their job.
Here are the most important things to know about the
airbag system:
{ CAUTION: You can be severely injured or killed in a crash
if you are not wearing your safety belt — even
if you have airbags. Wearing your safety belt
during a crash helps reduce your chance of
hitting things inside the vehicle or being
ejected from it. Airbags are “supplemental
restraints” to the safety belts. All airbags are
designed to work with safety belts, but do not
replace them.
1-76

{ CAUTION: Airbags plus lap-shoulder belts offer the best
protection for adults, but not for young
children and infants. Neither the vehicle’s
safety belt system nor its airbag system is
designed for them. Young children and infants
need the protection that a child restraint
system can provide. Always secure children
properly in your vehicle. To read how, see
Older Children on page 1-50 or Infants and
Young Children on page 1-53 .
There is an airbag
readiness light on the
instrument panel cluster,
which shows the airbag
symbol.
The system checks the airbag electrical system for
malfunctions. The light tells you if there is an electrical
problem. See Airbag Readiness Light on page 3-36
for more information. Where Are the Airbags?
The driver’s frontal airbag is in the middle of the
steering wheel.
1-78

The right front passenger’s frontal airbag is in the
instrument panel on the passenger’s side.
The roof-rail airbags for the driver, right front passenger,
and second row outboard passengers are in the
ceiling above the side windows. Driver Side shown, Passenger Side similar
1-79

What Makes an Airbag Inate? In a deployment event, the sensing system sends an
electrical signal triggering a release of gas from
the inator. Gas from the inator lls the airbag causing
the bag to break out of the cover and deploy. The
inator, the airbag, and related hardware are all part of
the airbag module.
Frontal airbag modules are located inside the steering
wheel and instrument panel. For vehicles with
roof-rail airbags, there are airbag modules in the ceiling
of the vehicle, near the side windows that have
occupant seating positions.
How Does an Airbag Restrain? In moderate to severe frontal or near frontal collisions,
even belted occupants can contact the steering wheel or
the instrument panel. In moderate to severe side
collisions, even belted occupants can contact the inside
of the vehicle. Airbags supplement the protection provided by safety
belts. Frontal airbags distribute the force of the
impact more evenly over the occupant’s upper body,
stopping the occupant more gradually. Roof-rail airbags
distribute the force of the impact more evenly over
the occupant’s upper body.
Rollover capable roof-rail airbags are designed to help
contain the head and chest of occupants in the
outboard seating positions in the rst, second, and third
rows, if equipped with a third row seat. The rollover
capable roof-rail airbags are designed to help reduce the
risk of full or partial ejection in rollover events, although
no system can prevent all such ejections.
But airbags would not help in many types of collisions,
primarily because the occupant’s motion is not
toward those airbags. See When Should an Airbag
Inflate? on page 1-81 for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded as anything more
than a supplement to safety belts.
1-83

If you ever pull the shoulder portion of the belt out all
the way, you will engage the child restraint locking
feature. This may unintentionally cause the passenger
sensing system to turn the airbag(s) off for some
adult size occupants. If this happens, just let the belt go
back all the way and start again.
{ CAUTION: If the airbag readiness light in the instrument
panel cluster ever comes on and stays on, it
means that something may be wrong with the
airbag system. If this ever happens, have the
vehicle serviced promptly, because an
adult-size person sitting in the right front
passenger’s seat may not have the protection
of the airbag(s). See Airbag Readiness Light
on page 3-36 for more on this, including
important safety information. A thick layer of additional material, such as a blanket or
cushion, or aftermarket equipment such as seat
covers, seat heaters, and seat massagers can affect
how well the passenger sensing system operates.
We recommend that you not use seat covers or other
aftermarket equipment other than any that GM has
approved for your specic vehicle. See Adding
Equipment to Your Airbag-Equipped Vehicle on
page 1-90 for more information about modications that
can affect how the system operates.
{ CAUTION: Stowing of articles under the passenger’s seat
or between the passenger’s seat cushion and
seatback may interfere with the proper
operation of the passenger sensing system.
1-89

Servicing Your Airbag-Equipped
Vehicle Airbags affect how your vehicle should be serviced.
There are parts of the airbag system in several places
around your vehicle. Your dealer/retailer and the service
manual have information about servicing your vehicle
and the airbag system. To purchase a service manual,
see Service Publications Ordering Information on
page 7-14 .
{ CAUTION: For up to 10 seconds after the ignition is
turned off and the battery is disconnected, an
airbag can still inate during improper service.
You can be injured if you are close to an
airbag when it inates. Avoid yellow
connectors. They are probably part of the
airbag system. Be sure to follow proper
service procedures, and make sure the person
performing work for you is qualied to do so. Adding Equipment to Your
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle
Q: Is there anything I might add to or change
about the vehicle that could keep the airbags
from working properly?
A: Yes. If you add things that change your vehicle’s
frame, bumper system, height, front end or side
sheet metal, they may keep the airbag system from
working properly. Changing or moving any parts
of the front seats, safety belts, the airbag sensing
and diagnostic module, steering wheel, instrument
panel, roof-rail airbag modules, ceiling headliner
or pillar garnish trim, overhead console, front
sensors, side impact sensors, rollover sensor
module, or airbag wiring can affect the operation of
the airbag system.
1-90

Liftgate/Liftglass
{ CAUTION: It can be dangerous to drive with the liftglass
or liftgate open because carbon monoxide
(CO) gas can come into your vehicle. You
cannot see or smell CO. It can cause
unconsciousness and even death.
If you must drive with the liftglass or liftgate
open, or if electrical wiring or other cable
connections must pass through the seal
between the body and the liftglass or liftgate:
Make sure all other windows are shut.
Turn the fan on your heating or cooling
system to its highest speed with the
recirculation mode off. That will force
outside air into your vehicle. See Dual
Automatic Climate Control System on
page 3-26 .
If you have air outlets on or under the
instrument panel, open them all the way.
If your vehicle is equipped with a power
liftgate, disable the power liftgate function.
See Engine Exhaust on page 2-39 . See Power Liftgate on page 2-14 for more information
on how to use the power liftgate.
To unlock the liftgate, use the power door lock switch or
press the door unlock button on the Remote Keyless
Entry (RKE) transmitter twice. See Remote Keyless
Entry (RKE) System Operation on page 2-4 .
On vehicles with a liftglass, press the button on the
underside of the license pocket applique (A) to open it.
The liftglass can also be opened by pressing the
liftglass release button on the RKE.
2-13

To open the entire liftgate, press the power liftgate
release button on the RKE or in the vehicle. See Power
Liftgate on page 2-14 . You can also press the
touchpad on the underside of the liftgate handle (B).
The liftgate will open after a slight delay. The vehicle
must be in PARK (P) to open the liftgate. To close the
liftgate, use the pull cup or pull strap as an aid.
The liftgate or liftglass cannot be opened if the rear
wipers are in motion. Attempting to open the liftgate or
liftglass while the rear wipers are in motion will cause
the release of the liftglass or liftgate to delay until
the wipers are parked off the liftglass.
Both the liftglass and liftgate have an electric latch. If
the battery is disconnected or has low voltage, the
liftglass and liftgate will not open. The liftglass
and liftgate will resume operation when the battery is
reconnected and charged.
If the battery is properly connected and has adequate
voltage, and the liftgate or liftglass still will not function,
your vehicle should be taken to a dealership for
service. Power Liftgate Power Liftgate Operation
{ CAUTION: It can be dangerous to drive with the liftgate
open because carbon monoxide (CO) gas can
come into your vehicle. You cannot see or
smell CO. It can cause unconsciousness and
even death.
If you must drive with the liftgate open, or if
electrical wiring or other cable connections
must pass through the seal between the body
and the liftgate:
Make sure all other windows are shut.
Turn the fan on your heating or cooling
system to its highest speed with the
recirculation mode off. That will force
outside air into your vehicle. See Climate
Control System in the index.
If you have air outlets on or under the
instrument panel, open them all the way.
If your vehicle has a power liftgate, disable
the power liftgate function.
See Power Liftgate on page 2-14 .
2-14