maintenance GMC SIERRA 1500 2011 Workshop Manual

Black plate (6,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
13-6 Customer Information
Mexico
From Mexico City
5329-0812
From Other Mexico Locations
01-800-466-0812
United States and Canada
1-866-466-8191
Costa Rica
00-800-052-1005
Guatemala
1-800-999-5252
Panama
00-800-052-0001
Dominican Republic
1-888-751-5301
El Salvador
800-6273
Honduras
800-0122-6101
Customer Assistance for
Text Telephone (TTY)
Users (U.S. and Canada)
To assist customers who are deaf,
hard of hearing, or speech impaired
and who use Text Telephones
(TTYs), GMC has TTY equipment
available at its Customer Assistance
Center. Any TTY user can
communicate with GMC by dialing:
1-800-462-8583. TTY users in
Canada can dial 1-800-263-3830.
Online Owner Center
GMC Owner Center (U.S.)
www.gmcownercenter.com
Information and services
customized for your specific
vehicle—all in one convenient
place.
.Digital owner manual, warranty
information, and more.
.Storage for online service and
maintenance records.
.GMC dealer locator for service
nationwide.
.Exclusive privileges and offers.
.Recall notices for your specific
vehicle.
.OnStar and GM Cardmember
Services Earnings summaries.
Other Helpful Links
GMC —www.gmc.com
GMC Merchandise —
www.gmccollection.com
Help Center —www.gmc.com/
helpcenter
.FAQ (Frequently Asked
Questions)
.Contact Us

Black plate (15,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
Customer Information 13-15
If another party's insurance
company is paying for the repairs,
you are not obligated to accept
a repair valuation based on that
insurance company's collision
policy repair limits, as you have no
contractual limits with that company.
In such cases, you can have control
of the repair and parts choices
as long as the cost stays within
reasonable limits.
Service Publications
Ordering Information
Service Manuals
Service Manuals have the
diagnosis and repair information
on the engines, transmission, axle,
suspension, brakes, electrical,
steering, body, etc.
Service Bulletins
Service Bulletins give additional
technical service information
needed to knowledgeably service
General Motors cars and trucks.Each bulletin contains instructions
to assist in the diagnosis and
service of the vehicle.
Owner Information
Owner publications are written
specifically for owners and intended
to provide basic operational
information about the vehicle.
The Owner Manual includes the
Maintenance Schedule for all
models.
In-Portfolio: Includes a Portfolio,
Owner Manual, and Warranty
Booklet.
RETAIL SELL PRICE:
$35.00 (U.S.) plus handling and
shipping fees.
Without Portfolio: Owner
Manual only.
RETAIL SELL PRICE:
$25.00 (U.S.) plus handling and
shipping fees.
Current and Past Models
Technical Service Bulletins and
Manuals are available for current
and past model GM vehicles.
ORDER TOLL FREE:
1-800-551-4123 Monday - Friday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM Eastern Time
For Credit Card Orders Only
(VISA-MasterCard-Discover), visit
Helm, Inc. at: www.helminc.com.
Or write to:
Helm, Incorporated
P.O. Box 07130
Detroit, MI 48207
Prices are subject to change
without notice and without incurring
obligation. Allow ample time for
delivery.
All listed prices are quoted in
U.S. funds. Make checks payable
in U.S. funds.

Black plate (6,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
i-6 INDEX
Fuel (cont.)Management, Active . . . . . . . . . . 9-44
Recommended . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-84
Requirements, California . . . . . 9-85
System Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-46
Fuel Economy Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-35
Full-Size Spare Tire . . . . . . . . . . 10-97
Fuses Engine CompartmentFuse Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-50
Fuses and Circuit Breakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-50
Instrument Panel Fuse
Block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-54
G
Garage Door Opener . . . . . . . . . . 5-61Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-61
Gasoline
Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-85 Gauges
Engine Coolant
Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Engine Oil Pressure . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Tachometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Trip Odometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
Voltmeter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
Warning Lights and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-12
General Information Service and Maintenance . . . . . 11-1
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-90
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Glass Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . 10-41
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
GM Mobility Reimbursement Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-7
H
Halogen Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-44
Hazard Warning Flashers . . . . . . . 6-5
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Headlamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-44Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-42
Automatic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-44
Daytime RunningLamps (DRL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
High-Beam On Light . . . . . . . . . . 5-32
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . . 6-3
Heated Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
Heated Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Heater Engine Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-40
Heating and Air Conditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1, 8-4

Black plate (8,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
i-8 INDEX
Lap Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-26
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-21
LATCH SystemReplacing Parts After aCrash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-66
Latch, Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children . . . . . . . . . . 3-57
Lighter, Cigarette . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Lighting Entry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Illumination Control . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Lights Airbag On-Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
Airbag Readiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Antilock Brake System(ABS) Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Brake System Warning . . . . . . . 5-27
Charging System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-32
Engine Oil Pressure . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Flash-to-Pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Four-Wheel-Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Front Fog Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-32 Lights (cont.)
High-Beam On . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-32
High/Low Beam Changer . . . . . . 6-3
Low Fuel Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Safety Belt Reminders . . . . . . . . 5-19
Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-32
StabiliTrak
®Indicator . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Tire Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-30
Tow/Haul Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Locking Rear Axle . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-73
Locks Automatic Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Delayed Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Lockout Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Power Door . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Loss of Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Low Fuel Warning Light . . . . . . . . 5-31
Lower Anchors and
Tethers for Children
(LATCH SYSTEM) . . . . . . . . . . . 3-57
Lumbar Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
M
MaintenanceRecords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11-12
Maintenance Schedule Recommended Fluids andLubricants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-8
Scheduled Maintenance . . . . . . 11-2
Transfer Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-54
Malfunction Indicator Lamp . . . . 5-25
Manual Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Manual Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-50
Manual Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19
Memory Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Messages Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-48
Anti-Theft Alarm System . . . . . . 5-48
Battery Voltage andCharging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-41
Brake System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-42
Door Ajar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-43
Engine Cooling System . . . . . . . 5-44
Engine Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45
Engine Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-45

Black plate (10,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
i-10 INDEX
Passenger Airbag StatusIndicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Passenger Sensing System . . . 3-40
Perchlorate Materials Requirements, California . . . . . 10-3
Personalization Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-52
Phone Bluetooth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-50
Pickup Conversion to Chassis Cab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-129
Pickup-Box Identification and Fender Marker
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-45
Power Door Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Protection, Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Retained Accessory (RAP) . . . 9-40
Seat Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Steering Fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-29
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-19 Pregnancy, Using Safety
Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-26
Privacy Radio FrequencyIdentification (RFID) . . . . . . . 13-19
Program Courtesy Transportation . . . . .13-11
Proposition 65 Warning, California . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
R
Radio FrequencyIdentification (RFID) . . . . . . . . 13-19
Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-19
Radios AM-FM Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
CD/DVD Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-22
Reception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-14
Satellite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-10
Reading Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Rear Axle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-37 Locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-73 Rear Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Rear Seat Audio (RSA)
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48
Rear Seat Entertainment System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-39
Rear Seat Audio (RSA) . . . . . . . 7-48
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10, 3-11
Rear Vision Camera (RVC) . . . . 9-78
Rear Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Rearview Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18 Automatic Dimming . . . . . . . . . . . 2-18
Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Recommended Fluids and Lubricants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-8
Recommended Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . 9-84
Records Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11-12
Recreational Vehicle Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10-103
Reimbursement Program, GM Mobility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-7
Remote Keyless Entry (RKE) System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3

Black plate (11,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
INDEX i-11
Remote Vehicle Start . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
ReplacementGlass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-41
Replacement Bulbs . . . . . . . . . . . 10-48
Replacement Parts Airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-48
Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-11
Replacing Airbag System . . . . . . 3-48
Replacing LATCH System Parts After a Crash . . . . . . . . . . . 3-66
Replacing Safety Belt
System Parts After a
Crash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-28
Reporting Safety Defects Canadian Government . . . . . . 13-16
General Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-17
U.S. Government . . . . . . . . . . . 13-16
Restraints Where to Put . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-56
Retained Accessory Power (RAP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-40 Ride Control Systems
Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-47
Roads Driving, Wet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-19
Roadside Assistance Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-8, 13-10
Roof
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21, 2-22
Rotation, Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-73
Routing, Engine Drive Belt . . . . . 12-6
Running the Vehicle While Parked . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-45
S
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-28
Extender . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27
How to Wear Safety BeltsProperly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-15
Lap Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-26
Lap-Shoulder Belt . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-21
Reminders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Replacing After a Crash . . . . . . 3-28
Use During Pregnancy . . . . . . . . 3-26 Safety Defects Reporting
Canadian Government . . . . . . 13-16
General Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-17
U.S. Government . . . . . . . . . . . 13-16
Safety Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Safety System Check . . . . . . . . . . 3-27
Satellite Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-10
Scheduled Maintenance . . . . . . . 11-2
Scheduling Appointments . . . . . 13-10
Seats Adjustment, Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Center Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Heated Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
Lumbar Adjustment, Front . . . . . 3-6
Power Adjustment, Front . . . . . . 3-4
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10, 3-11
Reclining Seatbacks . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
Securing Child Restraints . . . . . . . . 3-66, 3-69, 3-78
Security
Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-32
Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12

Black plate (12,1)GMC Sierra Owner Manual - 2011
i-12 INDEX
ServiceAccessories and
Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Doing Your Own Work . . . . . . . . 10-4
Engine Soon Light . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Maintenance Records . . . . . . .11-12
Maintenance, General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-1
Parts Identification Label . . . . . 12-1
Publications Ordering Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-15
Scheduling Appointments . . . 13-10
Servicing the Airbag . . . . . . . . . . . 3-46
Shift Lock Control Function Check, Automatic
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-40
Shifting Into Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-41
Out of Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-43 Signals, Turn and
Lane-Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Snow Plow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-125
Specifications and Capacities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-2
Speedometer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14
StabiliTrak
®Indicator Light . . . . 5-30
StabiliTrak®System . . . . . . . . . . . 9-70
Start Assist, Hills . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-70
Start Vehicle, Remote . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
Starter Switch Check . . . . . . . . . 10-39
Starting the Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-37
Starting the Vehicle Messsages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-48
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4 Fluid, Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-29
Wheel Adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Wheel Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3 Stoplamps and Back-Up Lamps
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-46
Storage Areas Armrest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Center Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
Glove Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Stuck Vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
Sun Visors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-21, 2-22
Switches Airbag On-Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-37
Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv
System Infotainment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Noise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-38