GMC SIERRA 1500 2012 Owners Manual

Black plate (63,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
Seats and Restraints 3-63
WARNING (Continued)
To help avoid injury to yourself or
others, have the vehicle serviced
right away. SeeAirbag Readiness
Light on page 5‑18 for more
information, including important
safety information.
If the vehicle does not have a rear
seat that will accommodate a
rear-facing child restraint, a
rear-facing child restraint should not
be installed in the vehicle, even if
the airbag is off.
If the child restraint has the
LATCH system, see Lower Anchors
and Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) on page 3‑47 for how and
where to install the child restraint
using LATCH. If a child restraint is
secured using a safety belt and it
uses a top tether, see Lower
Anchors and Tethers for Children
(LATCH System) on page 3‑47 for
top tether anchor locations. Do not secure a child restraint in a
position without a top tether anchor
if a national or local law requires
that the top tether be anchored, or if
the instructions that come with the
child restraint say that the top strap
must be anchored.
In Canada, the law requires that
forward-facing child restraints have
a top tether, and that the tether be
attached.
You will be using the lap-shoulder
belt to secure the child restraint in
this position. Follow the instructions
that came with the child restraint.
1. Move the seat as far back as it
will go before securing the
forward-facing child restraint. If you have no other choice but
to install a rear-facing child
restraint in this seat, make sure
the airbag is off once the child
restraint has been installed.
When the airbag off switch
has turned off the right front
passenger frontal airbag, the off
indicator in the airbag off light
should light and stay lit when
you start the vehicle. See
Airbag
On-Off Light on page 5‑19.
2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder portions of
the vehicle's safety belt through
or around the restraint. The child
restraint instructions will show
you how.

Black plate (64,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
3-64 Seats and Restraints
4. Push the latch plate into thebuckle until it clicks.
Position the release button so
that the safety belt could be
quickly unbuckled if necessary.5. Pull the shoulder belt all the wayout of the retractor to set the
lock. When the retractor lock is
set, the belt can be tightened but
not pulled out of the retractor.6. To tighten the belt, push downon the child restraint, pull the
shoulder portion of the belt to
tighten the lap portion of the belt,
and feed the shoulder belt back
into the retractor. When installing
a forward-facing child restraint, it
may be helpful to use your knee
to push down on the child
restraint as you tighten the belt.
Try to pull the belt out of the
retractor to make sure the
retractor is locked. If the
retractor is not locked, repeat
Steps 5 and 6.

Black plate (65,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
Seats and Restraints 3-65
7. If your vehicle does not have arear seat and your child restraint
has a top tether, follow the
child restraint manufacturer's
instructions regarding the use
of the top tether. See Lower
Anchors and Tethers for
Children (LATCH System) on
page 3‑47.
8. Before placing a child in the child restraint, make sure it is
securely held in place. To check,
grasp the child restraint at the
safety belt path and attempt to
move it side to side and back
and forth. When the child
restraint is properly installed,
there should be no more than
2.5 cm (1 in) of movement.
To remove the child restraint,
unbuckle the vehicle safety belt and
let it return to the stowed position.
If the top tether is attached to a top
tether anchor, disconnect it. If you turned the airbag off with
the switch, turn on the right front
passenger airbag when you remove
the child restraint from the vehicle
unless the person who will be sitting
there is a member of a passenger
airbag risk group. See
Airbag
On-Off Switch on page 3‑29 for
more information, including
important safety information.
Heavy Duty Crew Cab Only
This vehicle has airbags. A rear
seat is a safer place to secure a
forward-facing child restraint. See
Where to Put the Restraint on
page 3‑45.
A label on the sun visor says,
“Never put a rear-facing child seat in
the front.” This is because the risk to
the rear-facing child is so great,
if the airbag deploys. Never
put a rear-facing child
restraint in the right front passenger
seat. Here is why:
{WARNING
A child in a rear-facing child
restraint can be seriously
injured or killed if the right front
passenger's airbag inflates. This
is because the back of the
rear-facing child restraint would
be very close to the inflating
airbag. Always secure a
rear-facing child restraint in a
rear seat.
If the vehicle does not have a rear
seat that will accommodate a
rear-facing child restraint, a
rear-facing child restraint should not
be installed in the vehicle, even if
the airbag is off.

Black plate (66,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
3-66 Seats and Restraints
If the child restraint has the LATCH
system, seeLower Anchors and
Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) on page 3‑47 for how and
where to install the child restraint
using LATCH. If you secure a child
restraint using a safety belt and
it uses a top tether, see Lower
Anchors and Tethers for Children
(LATCH System) on page 3‑47 for
top tether anchor locations.
Do not secure a child seat in a
position without a top tether anchor
if a national or local law requires
that the top tether be anchored, or if
the instructions that come with the
child restraint say that the top strap
must be anchored. In Canada, the law requires that
forward-facing child restraints have
a top tether, and that the tether be
attached.
You will be using the lap-shoulder
belt to secure the child restraint in
this position. Follow the instructions
that came with the child restraint.
1. Move the seat as far back as
it will go before securing the
forward-facing child restraint.
2. Put the child restraint on the seat.
3. Pick up the latch plate, and run the lap and shoulder portions of
the vehicle's safety belt through
or around the restraint. The child
restraint instructions will show
you how.
4. Push the latch plate into thebuckle until it clicks.
Make sure the release button
is positioned so you would be
able to unbuckle the safety belt
quickly if necessary.

Black plate (67,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
Seats and Restraints 3-67
5. Pull the shoulder belt all the wayout of the retractor to set the
lock. When the retractor lock is
set, the belt can be tightened but
not pulled out of the retractor.6. To tighten the belt, push downon the child restraint, pull the
shoulder portion of the belt to
tighten the lap portion of the belt,
and feed the shoulder belt back
into the retractor. When installing
a forward-facing child restraint,
it may be helpful to use your
knee to push down on the child
restraint as you tighten the belt.
Try to pull the belt out of the
retractor to make sure the
retractor is locked. If the
retractor is not locked, repeat
Steps 5 and 6. 7. If your child restraint has a top
tether, follow the child restraint
manufacturer's instructions
regarding the use of the top
tether. See Lower Anchors and
Tethers for Children (LATCH
System) on page 3‑47 for more
information.
8. Before placing a child in the child restraint, make sure it is
securely held in place. To check,
grasp the child restraint at the
safety belt path and attempt to
move it side to side and back
and forth. When the child
restraint is properly installed,
there should be no more than
2.5 cm (1 in) of movement.
To remove the child restraint,
unbuckle the vehicle safety belt and
let it return to the stowed position.
If the top tether is attached to a top
tether anchor, disconnect it.

Black plate (68,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
3-68 Seats and Restraints
2NOTES

Black plate (1,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
Storage 4-1
Storage
Storage Compartments
Instrument Panel Storage . . . . . 4-1
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Cupholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Center Console Storage . . . . . . 4-2
Storage
Compartments
Instrument Panel Storage
For vehicles equipped with an
instrument panel storage area, it is
located above the glove box.
Access the storage area by
pressing and holding in the driver
side of the handle and pull out on
the exposed portion of the handle.
Glove Box
Lift up on the glove box lever to
open it.
Cupholders
If equipped, there are cupholders on
the center console and the rear of
the center console, also in the rear
seat armrest.
Pull the cover down on the rear of
the center console to access the
cupholders in the rear of the center
console.
Pull the rear seat armrest down to
access the cupholders.

Black plate (2,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
4-2 Storage
Center Console Storage
Vehicles with an upper and lower
center console storage area have
cupholders included.
Pull the lever (A) up to access the
upper storage area. Raise the upper
storage bin, then pull the lever (B)
up to access the lower storage area.
Use the key to lock and unlock the
lower storage area.

Black plate (1,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
Instruments and Controls 5-1
Instruments and
Controls
Controls
Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 5-2
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 5-2
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . 5-4
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Cigarette Lighter . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Ashtrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators
Warning Lights, Gauges, andIndicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Engine Oil Pressure Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15 Engine Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Voltmeter Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . 5-17
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . 5-18
Airbag On-Off Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Passenger Airbag Status Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Charging System Light . . . . . . 5-22
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Brake System Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Antilock Brake System (ABS) Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Four-Wheel-Drive Light . . . . . . 5-26
Tow/Haul Mode Light . . . . . . . . 5-26
StabiliTrak
®OFF Light . . . . . . . 5-27
Traction Control System (TCS)/StabiliTrak
®Light . . . . 5-27
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 5-28
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . 5-28
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . 5-29
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Information Displays
Driver Information Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Vehicle Messages
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Battery Voltage and ChargingMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-39
Brake System Messages . . . . 5-40
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-40
Engine Cooling System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . 5-42
Engine Power Messages . . . . 5-42
Fuel System Messages . . . . . . 5-43
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 5-43
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43
Object Detection System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43
Ride Control System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-44
Airbag System Messages . . . . 5-45
Anti-theft Alarm System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
Starting the Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
Tire Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45

Black plate (2,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2012 - CRC - 11/15/11
5-2 Instruments and Controls
Transmission Messages . . . . . 5-46
Vehicle ReminderMessages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-47
Washer Fluid Messages . . . . . 5-48
Vehicle Personalization
Vehicle Personalization (With DIC Buttons) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-48
Universal Remote System
Universal Remote System . . . 5-56
Universal Remote SystemProgramming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-56
Universal Remote System Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-61
Controls
Steering Wheel
Adjustment
The tilt lever is located on the lower
left side of the steering column.
To adjust the steering wheel:
1. Hold the steering wheel and pull
the lever.
2. Move the steering wheel up or down. 3. Release the lever to lock the
wheel in place.
Do not adjust the steering wheel
while driving.
Steering Wheel Controls
If equipped, some audio controls
can be adjusted at the steering
wheel.
w(Next): Press to go to the next
favorite radio station, track on
a CD, or folder on an iPod
®or USB
device.