2011 GMC Savana 3500 Passenger Owner's Manual - Page 231

Driving and Operating If you have to leave the vehicle with the engine running, be sure the vehicle is in P (Park) and the parking brake is firmly set before you leave it. After you move the shift lever into P (Park), hold the regular brake pedal down. Then, see if you can move the shift lever away from P (Park) without first pulling it toward you. If you can, it means that the shift lever was not fully locked into P (Park). When you are ready to drive, move the shift lever out of P (Park) 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 P (Park). . 9-23 Prevent movement of the shift lever out of P (Park), unless the ignition is in ON/RUN or ACC/ACCESSORY and the regular brake pedal is applied. The shift lock control system is always functional except in the case of a dead battery or low voltage (less than 9 V) battery. If the vehicle has an uncharged battery or a battery with low voltage, try charging or jump starting the battery. See Jump Starting on page 10‑86 for more information. To shift out of P (Park) use the following: 1. Apply the brake pedal. 2. Turn the ignition to ACC/ACCESSORY or ON/RUN. 3. Move the shift lever to the desired position. Shifting Out of Park The vehicle has an automatic transmission shift lock control system. You have to fully apply the brakes before you can shift from P (Park) when the ignition is in ON/RUN or ACC/ACCESSORY. See Automatic Transmission (Six Speed) on page 9‑25 or Automatic Transmission (Four Speed) on page 9‑28. The shift lock control system is designed to do the following: . Torque Lock If you are parking on a hill and you do not shift the vehicle into P (Park) properly, the weight of the vehicle may put too much force on the parking pawl in the transmission. You may find it difficult to pull the shift lever out of P (Park). This is called torque lock. To prevent torque lock, set the parking brake and then shift into P (Park) properly before you leave the driver seat. To find out how, see "Shifting Into Park" previously in this section. Prevent the ignition key from being removed unless the shift lever is in P (Park).