weight CADILLAC ESCALADE EXT 2003 2.G Owners Manual

Q:What are the different types of add-on child
restraints?
A:Add-on child restraints, which are purchased by
the vehicle's owner, are available in four basic
types. Selection of a particular restraint should take
into consideration not only the child's weight,
height, and age but also whether or not the
restraint will be compatible with the motor vehicle
in which it will be used.
For most basic types of child restraints, there are
many different models available. When purchasing a
child restraint, be sure it is designed to be used
in a motor vehicle. If it is, the restraint will have a
label saying that it meets federal motor vehicle
safety standards.
The restraint manufacturer's instructions that come
with the restraint state the weight and height
limitations for a particular child restraint. In addition,
there are many kinds of restraints available for
children with special needs.
{CAUTION:
Newborn infants need complete support,
including support for the head and neck.
This is necessary because a newborn infant's
neck is weak and its head weighs so much
compared with the rest of its body. In a crash,
an infant in a rear-facing seat settles into
the restraint, so the crash forces can be
distributed across the strongest part of an
infant's body, the back and shoulders. Infants
always should be secured in appropriate infant
restraints.
1-34

The passenger sensing system is designed to turn off
the right front passenger's frontal air bag if:
·the right front passenger seat is unoccupied
·the system determines that an infant is present in a
rear-facing infant seat
·the system determines that a small child is present
in a forward-facing child restraint
·the system determines that a small child is present
in a booster seat
·a right front passenger takes his/her weight off of
the seat for a period of time
·the right front passenger seat is occupied by a
smaller person, such as a child who has outgrown
child restraints
·or if there is a critical problem with the air bag
system or the passenger sensing system.
When the passenger sensing system has turned off the
passenger's frontal air bag, the off indicator will light
and stay lit to remind you that the air bag is off.
The passenger sensing system is designed to turn off
the passenger's frontal air bag when a rear facing infant
seat, a forward-facing child restraint or a booster seat
is detected. If the child restraint has been installedand the on indicator is lit, turn the vehicle off, remove
the child restraint from the vehicle and reinstall the
restraint following the child restraint manufacturer's
directions and refer to
Securing a Child Restraint in the
Right Front Seat Position on page 1-46of this manual.
If after reinstalling the child restraint and restarting
the vehicle, the on indicator is still lit, secure the child in
the child restraint in a rear seat position in the vehicle
and check with your dealer.
The passenger sensing system is designed to enable
(may in¯ate) the right front passenger's frontal air
bag anytime the system senses that a person of adult
size is sitting properly in the right front passenger's seat.
When the passenger sensing system has allowed the
air bag to be enabled, the on indicator will light and stay
lit to remind you that the air bag is active.
For some children who have outgrown child restraints
and for very small adults, the passenger sensing system
may or may not turn off the right front passenger's
frontal air bag, depending upon the person's seating
posture and body build. Everyone in your vehicle
who has outgrown child restraints should wear a safety
belt properly Ð whether or not there is an air bag
for that person.
1-62

Standing outside of the vehicle, place one hand against
the crossbar so the Midgate does not fall forward
unexpectedly. Turn the Midgate handle clockwise and
pull the Midgate toward you.If you lower the Midgate with the rear glass in the
stored position, you will notice that the entire crossbar
(the bar with the release handle) will lower with the
Midgate. This is completely normal; however, since the
crossbar lowers with the Midgate, it will be heavier.
As you lower the Midgate in this con®guration be ready
for the extra weight and be careful not to let the
Midgate fall out of your hands as you lower it. Rear Glass Stored in Glass Storage Pocket
2-21

Torque Lock
If you are parking on a hill and you don't shift your
vehicle into PARK (P) properly, the weight of the vehicle
may put too much force on the parking pawl in the
transmission. You may ®nd it difficult to pull the shift
lever out of PARK (P). This is called torque lock.
To prevent torque lock, set the parking brake and then
shift into PARK (P) properly before you leave the
driver's seat. To ®nd out how, see
Shifting Into Park (P)
on page 2-36.
When you are ready to drive, move the shift lever out of
PARK (P) before you release the parking brake.
If torque lock does occur, you may need to have another
vehicle push yours a little uphill to take some of the
pressure from the parking pawl in the transmission,
so you can pull the shift lever out of PARK (P).
Shifting Out of Park (P)
Your vehicle has an automatic transmission shift lock
control system. You have to fully apply your regular
brakes before you can shift from PARK (P) when the
ignition is in RUN. See
Automatic Transmission
Operation on page 2-32.
If you cannot shift out of PARK (P), ease pressure on the
shift lever and push the shift lever all the way up into
PARK (P) as you maintain brake application. Then, move
the shift lever into the gear you want.
If you ever hold the brake pedal down but still can't shift
out of PARK (P), try this:
1. Turn the key to OFF/ACCESSORY. There is no
shift interlock in this key position.
2. Apply and hold the brake until the end of Step 4.
3. Shift the vehicle to NEUTRAL (N).
4. Start the vehicle and then shift to the drive gear
you want.
5. Have the system ®xed as soon as possible.
2-38

Center Console Storage Area
Your vehicle has a console compartment between the
bucket seats.
To open it, press the button on the side of the console
and swing the console lid open.
The console may be equipped with an accessory
power outlet inside. See
Accessory Power Outlets on
page 3-22.
The rear of the console also has a cupholder that
swings down for the rear seat passengers to use.
Luggage Carrier
You can load things on top of your vehicle if it has this
feature.
The luggage carrier has slats and siderails attached
to the roof and may have crossrails which can be moved
back and forth to help secure cargo. Tie the load to
the siderails or siderail supports.
Notice:Loading cargo that weighs more than
200 lbs. (91 kg) on the luggage carrier may damage
your vehicle. When you carry large things, never
let them hang over the rear or the sides of your
vehicle. Load your cargo so that it rests on the
slats and does not scratch or damage the vehicle.
Put the cargo against the side rails and fasten
it securely to the luggage carrier. Put the main
weight as far forward as you can.
Don't exceed the maximum vehicle capacity when
loading your vehicle. For more information on vehicle
capacity and loading, see
Loading Your Vehicle on
page 4-48.
2-53

Cargo Cover Panels
{CAUTION:
Improperly stored cargo cover panels could be
thrown about the vehicle during a collision or
sudden maneuver. You or others could be
injured. If you remove a panel, always store it
in the proper storage location. When you
put it back, always be sure that is securely
reattached.
Notice:Each cargo cover is designed to support
250 lbs. (113 kg) on top of them. Exceeding the
weight limit can damage the cargo covers.
This damage would not be covered by your
vehicle's warranty.
Your vehicle is equipped with a three-piece cargo cover
system. The cargo panels can be removed and
stored in the cargo area of the vehicle with the cargo
panel storage bag.To remove a cargo panel(s), do the following:
1. Lower the tailgate. Use the ignition/door key to
unlock the tailgate if it is locked. See
Tailgate on
page 2-22for more information on the tailgate.
Before removing the cargo panel(s), notice the
numbers embossed on the upper center portion of
each panel. The panels are labeled 1, 2 and 3.
There are also numbered labels on the bottom of
the panels. The numbers on the top and bottom
of the panels will be used as reference when
removing, storing and reinstalling the panels.
2-55

Drunken Driving
Death and injury associated with drinking and driving is
a national tragedy. It's the number one contributor to
the highway death toll, claiming thousands of victims
every year.
Alcohol affects four things that anyone needs to
drive a vehicle:
·Judgment
·Muscular Coordination
·Vision
·Attentiveness.
Police records show that almost half of all motor
vehicle-related deaths involve alcohol. In most cases,
these deaths are the result of someone who was
drinking and driving. In recent years, more than
16,000 annual motor vehicle-related deaths have been
associated with the use of alcohol, with more than
300,000 people injured.Many adults Ð by some estimates, nearly half the adult
population Ð choose never to drink alcohol, so they
never drive after drinking. For persons under 21,
it's against the law in every U.S. state to drink alcohol.
There are good medical, psychological and
developmental reasons for these laws.
The obvious way to eliminate the leading highway
safety problem is for people never to drink alcohol
and then drive. But what if people do? How much is
ªtoo muchº if someone plans to drive? It's a lot less than
many might think. Although it depends on each person
and situation, here is some general information on
the problem.
The Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of someone
who is drinking depends upon four things:
·The amount of alcohol consumed
·The drinker's body weight
·The amount of food that is consumed before and
during drinking
·The length of time it has taken the drinker to
consume the alcohol.
4-3

According to the American Medical Association,
a 180 lb (82 kg) person who drinks three 12 ounce
(355 ml) bottles of beer in an hour will end up with a
BAC of about 0.06 percent. The person would reach the
same BAC by drinking three 4 ounce (120 ml) glasses
of wine or three mixed drinks if each had 1-1/2 ounces
(45 ml) of liquors like whiskey, gin or vodka.It's the amount of alcohol that counts. For example,
if the same person drank three double martinis
(3 ounces or 90 ml of liquor each) within an hour, the
person's BAC would be close to 0.12 percent. A person
who consumes food just before or during drinking will
have a somewhat lower BAC level.
There is a gender difference, too. Women generally
have a lower relative percentage of body water
than men. Since alcohol is carried in body water, this
means that a woman generally will reach a higher BAC
level than a man of her same body weight will when
each has the same number of drinks.
The law in an increasing number of U.S. states, and
throughout Canada, sets the legal limit at 0.08 percent.
In some other countries, the limit is even lower. For
example, it is 0.05 percent in both France and Germany.
The BAC limit for all commercial drivers in the United
States is 0.04 percent.
The BAC will be over 0.10 percent after three to
six drinks (in one hour). Of course, as we've seen,
it depends on how much alcohol is in the drinks, and
how quickly the person drinks them.
4-4

Control of a Vehicle
You have three systems that make your vehicle go where
you want it to go. They are the brakes, the steering and
the accelerator. All three systems have to do their work at
the places where the tires meet the road.
Sometimes, as when you're driving on snow or ice, it's
easy to ask more of those control systems than the
tires and road can provide. That means you can lose
control of your vehicle. Also see
StabilitrakžSystem on
page 4-10.
Braking
Braking action involvesperception timeandreaction time.
First, you have to decide to push on the brake pedal.
That'sperception time.Then you have to bring up your
foot and do it. That'sreaction time.
Averagereaction timeis about 3/4 of a second.
But that's only an average. It might be less with one
driver and as long as two or three seconds or more with
another. Age, physical condition, alertness, coordination
and eyesight all play a part. So do alcohol, drugs
and frustration. But even in 3/4 of a second, a vehicle
moving at 60 mph (100 km/h) travels 66 feet (20 m).
That could be a lot of distance in an emergency,
so keeping enough space between your vehicle and
others is important.
And, of course, actual stopping distances vary greatly
with the surface of the road (whether it's pavement
or gravel); the condition of the road (wet, dry, icy); tire
tread; the condition of your brakes; the weight of
the vehicle and the amount of brake force applied.
4-6

Driving Across an Incline
Sooner or later, an off-road trail will probably go across
the incline of a hill. If this happens, you have to
decide whether to try to drive across the incline.
Here are some things to consider:
·A hill that can be driven straight up or down may be
too steep to drive across. When you go straight up
or down a hill, the length of the wheel base (the
distance from the front wheels to the rear wheels)
reduces the likelihood the vehicle will tumble
end over end. But when you drive across an incline,
the much more narrow track width (the distance
between the left and right wheels) may not prevent
the vehicle from tilting and rolling over. Also,
driving across an incline puts more weight on the
downhill wheels. This could cause a downhill
slide or a rollover.
·Surface conditions can be a problem when you drive
across a hill. Loose gravel, muddy spots, or even wet
grass can cause your tires to slip sideways, downhill.
If the vehicle slips sideways, it can hit something that
will trip it (a rock, a rut, etc.) and roll over.
·Hidden obstacles can make the steepness of the
incline even worse. If you drive across a rock with the
uphill wheels, or if the downhill wheels drop into a rut
or depression, your vehicle can tilt even more.For reasons like these, you need to decide carefully
whether to try to drive across an incline. Just because
the trail goes across the incline doesn't mean you
have to drive it. The last vehicle to try it might have
rolled over.
{CAUTION:
Driving across an incline that's too steep will
make your vehicle roll over. You could be
seriously injured or killed. If you have any
doubt about the steepness of the incline, don't
drive across it. Find another route instead.
4-28