steering wheel CADILLAC ESCALADE ESV 2012 User Guide

Black plate (26,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
3-26 Seats and Restraints The vehicle may have the following
airbags: .
If the vehicle has a third row
seat, it will have a third row
roof-rail airbag.
All of the airbags in the 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 seat ‐ mounted side impact
airbags, the word AIRBAG will
appear on the side of the seatback
closest to the door.
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
inflating bag, all airbags must inflate
very quickly to do their job.
Here are the most important things
to know about the airbag system:
{ WARNINGYou can be severely injured or
killed in a crash if you are not
wearing your safety belt — even if
you have airbags. Airbags are
designed to work with safety
belts, but do not replace them.
Also, airbags are not designed to
deploy in every crash. In some
crashes safety belts are your only
restraint. See When Should an
Airbag Inflate? on page 3 ‑ 29 .
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. Everyone in your
(Continued) WARNING (Continued) vehicle should wear a safety belt
properly — whether or not there is
an airbag for that person.
{ WARNINGBecause airbags inflate with great
force and faster than the blink of
an eye, anyone who is up
against, or very close to any
airbag when it inflates can be
seriously injured or killed. Do not
sit unnecessarily close to any
airbag, as you would be if sitting
on the edge of the seat or leaning
forward. Safety belts help keep
you in position before and during
a crash. Always wear a safety
belt, even with airbags. The driver
should sit as far back as possible
while still maintaining control of
the vehicle.
(Continued)

Black plate (27,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
Seats and Restraints 3-27WARNING (Continued)Occupants should not lean on or
sleep against the door or side
windows in seating positions with
seat-mounted side impact airbags
and/or roof-rail airbags.
{ WARNINGChildren who are up against,
or very close to, any airbag
when it inflates can be seriously
injured or killed. Airbags plus
lap-shoulder belts offer protection
for adults and older children, but
not for young children and infants.
Neither the vehicle safety belt
system nor its airbag system is
designed for them. Young
children and infants need the
protection that a child restraint
(Continued) WARNING (Continued) system can provide. Always
secure children properly in the
vehicle. To read how, see Older
Children on page 3 ‑ 41 or Infants
and Young Children on
page 3 ‑ 43 .
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 5 ‑ 14 for
more information. Where Are the Airbags?
The driver frontal airbag is in the
middle of the steering wheel.

Black plate (29,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
Seats and Restraints 3-29
Driver Side Shown, Passenger
Side Similar
If the vehicle has a third row
passenger seat, the roof-rail airbags
are located in the ceiling above the
rear windows for the outboard
passenger positions in the third row.
{ WARNING
If something is between an
occupant and an airbag, the
airbag might not inflate properly
or it might force the object into
(Continued) WARNING (Continued) that person causing severe injury
or even death. The path of an
inflating airbag must be kept
clear. Do not put anything
between an occupant and an
airbag, and do not attach or put
anything on the steering wheel
hub or on or near any other
airbag covering.
Do not use seat accessories that
block the inflation path of a
seat-mounted side impact airbag.
Never secure anything to the roof
of a vehicle with roof-rail airbags
by routing a rope or tie ‐ down
through any door or window
opening. If you do, the path of an
inflating roof-rail airbag will be
blocked. When Should an Airbag
Inflate? Frontal airbags are designed to
inflate in moderate to severe frontal
or near-frontal crashes to help
reduce the potential for severe
injuries mainly to the driver's or right
front passenger's head and chest.
However, they are only designed to
inflate if the impact exceeds a
predetermined deployment
threshold. Deployment thresholds
are used to predict how severe a
crash is likely to be in time for the
airbags to inflate and help restrain
the occupants.
Whether the frontal airbags will or
should deploy is not based on how
fast your vehicle is traveling.
It depends largely on what you hit,
the direction of the impact, and how
quickly your vehicle slows down.

Black plate (31,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
Seats and Restraints 3-31In any particular crash, no one can
say whether an airbag should have
inflated simply because of the
damage to a vehicle or because of
what the repair costs were. For
frontal airbags, inflation is
determined by what the vehicle hits,
the angle of the impact, and how
quickly the vehicle slows down. For
seat ‐ mounted side impact and
roof-rail airbags, deployment is
determined by the location and
severity of the side impact. In a
rollover event, roof-rail airbag
deployment is determined by the
direction of the roll.
What Makes an Airbag
Inflate? In a deployment event, the sensing
system sends an electrical signal
triggering a release of gas from the
inflator. Gas from the inflator fills the
airbag causing the bag to break out
of the cover and deploy. The inflator,
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
seat ‐ mounted side impact airbags,
there are airbags modules in the
side of the front seatbacks closest
to the door. 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. Seat ‐ mounted side impact and
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
first, 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 3 ‑ 29 for more information.
Airbags should never be regarded
as anything more than a supplement
to safety belts.

Black plate (38,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
3-38 Seats and Restraints
Servicing the
Airbag-Equipped Vehicle Airbags affect how the vehicle
should be serviced. There are parts
of the airbag system in several
places around the vehicle. Your
dealer and the service manual have
information about servicing the
vehicle and the airbag system. To
purchase a service manual, see
Service Publications Ordering
Information on page 13 ‑ 17 .
{ WARNINGFor up to 10 seconds after the
vehicle is turned off and the
battery is disconnected, an airbag
can still inflate during improper
service. You can be injured if you
are close to an airbag when it
inflates. 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 qualified to do so. Adding Equipment to the
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 the 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,
or airbag wiring can affect the
operation of the airbag system.

Black plate (1,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
Instruments and Controls 5-1
Instruments and
Controls Controls Steering Wheel Adjustment . . . 5-2
Steering Wheel Controls . . . . . . 5-2
Heated Steering Wheel . . . . . . . 5-4
Horn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Windshield Wiper/Washer . . . . . 5-4
Rear Window
Wiper/Washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-5
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Power Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Cigarette Lighter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Ashtrays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators Warning Lights, Gauges, and
Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Instrument Cluster . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12 Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Fuel Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
Engine Coolant Temperature
Gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . 5-13
Airbag Readiness Light . . . . . . 5-14
Passenger Airbag Status
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Charging System Light . . . . . . 5-16
Malfunction
Indicator Lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Brake System Warning
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Antilock Brake System (ABS)
Warning Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Tow/Haul Mode Light . . . . . . . . 5-20
StabiliTrak ®
OFF Light . . . . . . . 5-20
Traction Control System
(TCS)/StabiliTrak ®
Light . . . . 5-21
Tire Pressure Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Engine Oil Pressure Light . . . . 5-22
Security Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . 5-22 Front Fog Lamp Light . . . . . . . . 5-23
Lamps On Reminder . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Cruise Control Light . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Information Displays Driver Information
Center (DIC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Vehicle Messages Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Battery Voltage and
Charging Messages . . . . . . . . 5-29
Brake System Messages . . . . 5-29
Door Ajar Messages . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Engine Cooling System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Engine Oil Messages . . . . . . . . 5-31
Engine Power Messages . . . . 5-32
Fuel System Messages . . . . . . 5-32
Key and Lock Messages . . . . . 5-32
Lamp Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-32
Object Detection System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
Ride Control System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-34

Black plate (2,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
5-2 Instruments and Controls Airbag System Messages . . . . 5-35
Anti-theft Alarm System
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-36
Tire Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-36
Transmission Messages . . . . . 5-37
Vehicle Reminder
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-37
Washer Fluid Messages . . . . . 5-37
Vehicle Personalization Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . 5-38
Universal Remote System Universal Remote System . . . 5-46
Universal Remote System
Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-46
Universal Remote System
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-52 Controls Steering Wheel
Adjustment
Push the control up or down to tilt
the steering wheel up or down.
To set the memory position, see
Vehicle Personalization on
page 5 ‑ 38 . 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.
c /
x (Previous/End): Press to
go to the previous favorite radio
station, track on a CD, or folder on
an iPod ®
or USB device. Press to
reject an incoming call, or end a
current call.

Black plate (4,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
5-4 Instruments and Controls To scan radio stations:
1. Press and hold
¨ until a beep is
heard, to place the radio into
SCAN mode. A station will play
for five seconds before moving
to the next station.
2. To stop the SCAN function,
press
¨ again.
While listening to a CD/DVD,
press and hold
¨ to quickly move
forward through the tracks. Release
to stop on the desired track.
+
e : Press to increase volume.
−
e : Press to decrease volume.
Heated Steering Wheel For vehicles with a heated
steering wheel, the button for
this feature is located on the
steering wheel. ( : Press to turn the heated
steering wheel on or off. A light on
the button displays when the feature
is turned on.
The steering wheel takes about
three minutes to start heating.
Horn To sound the horn, press the center
pad on the steering wheel.
Windshield Wiper/Washer
The front wiper control is located on
the turn and lane ‐ change lever.
Turn the band with the wiper symbol
to control the windshield wipers. 8 (Mist): For a single wipe,
turn to
8 , then release.
For several wipes, hold the band
on
8 longer.
9 (Off): Turns the windshield
wipers off.
6 (Adjustable Interval Wipes):
Turn the band up for more frequent
wipes or down for less frequent
wipes.
6 (Low Speed): Slow wipes.
? (High Speed): Fast wipes.
Clear ice and snow from the wiper
blades before using them. If frozen
to the windshield, carefully loosen or
thaw them. Damaged wiper blades
should be replaced. See Wiper
Blade Replacement on page 10 ‑ 32 .
Heavy snow or ice can overload the
wiper motor. A circuit breaker will
stop the motor until it cools down.

Black plate (18,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
5-18 Instruments and Controls If one or more of these conditions
occurs, change the fuel brand used.
It will require at least one full tank of
the proper fuel to turn the light off.
See Recommended Fuel on
page 9 ‑ 52 .
If none of the above have made the
light turn off, your dealer can check
the vehicle. The dealer has the
proper test equipment and
diagnostic tools to fix any
mechanical or electrical problems
that might have developed.
Emissions Inspection and
Maintenance Programs Some local governments may
have programs to inspect the
on-vehicle emission control
equipment. For the inspection,
the emission system test equipment
is connected to the vehicle ’ s Data
Link Connector (DLC). The DLC is under the instrument
panel to the left of the steering
wheel. See your dealer if assistance
is needed.
The vehicle may not pass
inspection if: .
The malfunction indicator lamp
is on with the engine running,
or if the light does not come on
when the ignition is turned to
ON/RUN while the engine is off.
See your dealer for assistance in
verifying proper operation of the
malfunction indicator lamp. .
The OBD II (On-Board
Diagnostics) system determines
that critical emission control
systems have not been
completely diagnosed.
The vehicle would be considered
not ready for inspection. This
can happen if the 12-volt battery
has recently been replaced or
run down. The diagnostic system
is designed to evaluate critical
emission control systems during
normal driving. This can take
several days of routine driving.
If this has been done and the
vehicle still does not pass the
inspection for lack of OBD II
system readiness, your dealer
can prepare the vehicle for
inspection.

Black plate (24,1)Cadillac Escalade/Escalade ESV Owner Manual - 2012 - 2nd CRC - 11/29/11
5-24 Instruments and Controls Operation and Displays The DIC has different displays
which can be accessed by pressing
the DIC buttons located on the
instrument panel, next to the
steering wheel.
The DIC displays trip, fuel, and
vehicle system information, and
warning messages if a system
problem is detected. A digital
speedometer also appears at the
bottom of the DIC display.
The digital speedometer can be
enabled or disabled. See “ DISPLAY
DIGITAL SPEED ” under Vehicle
Personalization on page 5 ‑ 38 for
more information. DIC Buttons
The buttons are the trip/fuel,
vehicle information, customization,
and set/reset buttons. The button
functions are detailed in the
following pages.
3 (Trip/Fuel): Press to display
the odometer, trip odometer, fuel
range, average economy, fuel used,
timer, transmission temperature,
instantaneous economy, and
average vehicle speed. The compass and outside air
temperature will also be shown in
the display. The temperature will be
shown in °C or °F depending on the
units selected.
T (Vehicle Information): Press
to display the oil life, units, side
blind zone system on/off, tire
pressure readings for vehicles
with the Tire Pressure Monitor
System (TPMS), compass zone
setting, and compass recalibration.
U (Customization): Press to
customize the feature settings on
your vehicle. See Vehicle
Personalization on page 5 ‑ 38 for
more information.
V (Set/Reset): Press to set or
reset certain functions and to turn
off or acknowledge messages on
the DIC.