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INSTRUMENT PANEL AND CONTROLS 
page 
1 - Air vents 51 
2 - Light switch and thumb wheel  for instrument illumination 46 
3 - Safety belt and brake warning lights 43, 47 
4 - Speedometer with trip odometer 40  5 — Warning/indicator lights 6, 43 
6 - Clock or tachometer with fuel gauge and  coolant temperature gauge 40,41 
7 - Rear window defogger switch 47 
8 - Emergency flasher switch 46  9 - For additional switch 
10 - Air vents, left and right 51 
11 - Ashtray 64 
12 - Loudspeaker grille 
13 - Fuses 128  14 - Turn signal/headlight dimmer switch lever 48 
15 - Horn  page 
16 - Digital clock 40 
17 - Steering lock/ignition/starter switch 38 
18 - Temperature switch for auxiliary heater 57 
19 - Windshield wiper/washer lever 50 
20 - Secondary heat exchanger switch 53 
21 - Emission Control System (ECS) 45 
22 - Climate controls 51 
23 - Air vents 51 
24 - Radio1) 
25 - Cigarette lighter 63  26 - Glove compartment 64 
1) A separate brochure is provided for your factory-installed 
radio.
 If you replace your radio, please be sure to read the notes 
in the chapter "Do-it-yourself Service", page 135. 
Note 
Some features mentioned are standard equipment on some 
models only or are options on others. 
 
 
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[INSTRUMENT
 PANEL
 AND
 CONTROLS 
WARNING AND
 INDICATOR
 LIGHT
 SYMBOLS 
Symbol 
 Details 
on
 page 
 Turn
 signals 
44,48 
a  Alternator A 
44 
Oil pressure 1^1 
 43 
ID 
 High beam 
45,48 
=L  Coolant temperature 1^ 
45,104 
(®)
 BRAKE 
 Brake
 ® 
 29,43 
A  Safety belt 
 14,44 
A  Emergency flasher 
46 
m 
 Rear
 window defogger 
47 
WARNING 
If one of the lights marked with ® 
comes
 on suddenly while driving,  move a safe distance off the
 road.
 Turn 
off the engine,
 turn
 the emergency
 fla
sher on and use other warning devices 
to alert other motorists. Go to listed  page in
 your
 Owner's
 Manual for ex
planations. 
Some
 of the lights mentioned are on certain 
 models
 only and may be options on other 
models. 
6 
 
 
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CONTROLS AND EQUIPMENT 
MIRRORS 
Adjust
 the
 outside
 and
 inside mirrors
 be
 fore driving and after adjusting your seat
 to 
proper driving position.
 It is
 important
 for 
safe driving that
 you
 have good vision
 to 
the rear. 
WARNING 
The right hand outside mirror may have  a curved (convex) surface. Always remember that vehicles or other objects 
seen in a convex mirror will look 
smaller and appear farther away than 
when seen in a flat mirror. Do not use 
this mirror to estimate distances of 
following cars when changing lanes. 
Whenever possible, use the inside mir ror to determine the actual distance 
and size of vehicles or objects seen in 
the convex mirror. 
Outside mirrors 
The outside mirrors
 are
 hinged
 and
 fold  flat against
 the
 vehicle when pressed from either direction. 
Fold mirrors flat against
 the
 side windows 
when taking your vehicle through
 an
 auto matic
 car
 wash
 to
 prevent possible dam
age. 
 Outside mirrors with electric 
remote control* 
These mirrors can
 be
 adjusted electrically  from
 the
 inside
 by
 moving
 the
 knob
 on the 
driver's door panel. They work only with 
the ignition
 on. To
 adjust either driver
 or 
 passenger mirror, turn knob
 to L or R. 
If
 the
 electrical adjustment
 of the
 mirror 
should
 not
 respond, adjust
 the
 mirror
 by 
 hand
 by
 pushing lightly
 on the
 edge
 of the 
mirror glass. 
When
 the
 rear window defogger
 is 
 switched
 on, the
 outside mirrors
 are 
electrically heated
 at the
 same time
 (see 
page 47).  |B28-021
 | 
Inside day-night mirror 
You
 can
 adjust
 the
 day-night mirror from  clear daylight visibility
 to
 non-glare visibili
ty
 at
 night
 by
 moving
 the
 lever
 at the
 bot
tom
 of
 the mirror. 
To ensure
 the
 best possible anti-glare
 ef
 fect,
 the
 lever should
 be
 pointing forwards 
when
 the
 basic mirror setting
 is
 made. 
daylight driving
 -
 lever front night driving
 -
 lever rear 
*where applicable  13 
 
 
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CONTROLS AND EQUIPMENT 
STEERING LOCK/IGNITION/STARTER
 SWITCH 
The
 steering is equipped
 with
 an
 antitheft 
 ignition lock. 
 Switch
 positions 
1 -
 Ignition
 off/steering can be
 locked. 
 •
 Pull
 out the key and
 turn
 steering wheel until it
 locks. 
WARNING 
 • This position
 only
 locks the
 steering 
wheel
 and not the
 shift
 control
 lever. 
 Sudden and
 unexpected
 vehicle
 move
ment
 may occur if the
 shift
 control 
lever
 is
 moved
 out of P
 (Park)
 (automa
tic
 transmission)
 or out of
 gear
 (manual 
transmission)
 and the
 parking
 brake
 is  not
 firmly
 set. 
•
 Never
 remove
 key
 from
 steering
 lock 
or
 turn
 key off
 while
 the
 vehicle
 is  moving. The
 steering
 wheel
 will
 lock, 
causing loss of control. 
2-
 Ignition
 on/steering free.  If it is difficult to
 turn
 the key from po
sition 1 to 2, gently move the steering 
wheel until the key turns freely. 
 3
 - Starter engages. 
Key
 returns to Pos. 2 as soon as it is 
released. 
"Starting procedures" see next 
 pages. 
In position 3, the power supply to 
headlights, windshield wipers, 
blower motor and rear window defog-
ger
 is temporarily interrupted to
 con
serve
 battery power. 
Before
 the starter can be operated again 
the key must be turned back to position 1. 
The
 non-repeat lock in the ignition switch  prevents the starter from being operated 
when engine is running as this could 
damage
 the starter. 
In position 2 and 3 several warning/in
dicator lights will come on.
 Refer
 to 
"Warning/indicator lights" for details. 
Chime If you leave the key in the ignition/steering 
lock, the chime will sound when the 
driver's door is opened. This is your  reminder to remove the key and lock the 
doors. 
 
 
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CONTROLS
 AND
 EQUIPMENT 
WARNING continned  •
 The
 engine compartment
 of any 
motor vehicle
 is a
 potentially hazard
ous
 area.
 Before you check anything  in the engine compartment, stop
 the 
engine and
 let it
 cool down. Always 
exercise extreme caution when work
 ing
 one the
 engine. Heed
 all of the 
WARNINGS on page
 97. 
Reduce the risk
 of
 scalding from
 hot 
coolant by following these steps. 
• If the coolant reservoir cap must be 
removed, wait until
 the
 engine
 has 
cooled down. 
• Protect face, hands
 and
 arms
 by 
covering
 the cap
 with
 a
 large, thick 
 rag
 to
 protect against escaping fluid 
and
 steam. 
• Carefully and slowly
 turn
 cap
 one 
turn
 to
 allow excess pressure
 to es
 cape before completely removing 
cap. 
•
 To
 help avoid being burned,
 do not 
spill
 antifreeze
 or
 coolant
 on the ex
haust system
 or hot
 engine parts. 
 Under
 some conditions, the ethylene 
glycol
 in
 engine coolant
 is
 combusti
 ble. 
 If a
 visual check shows that coolant level 
and V-belt
 are
 normal,
 but the
 warning  light continues to
 flash,
 contact
 your
 near
est dealer
 to
 have
 the
 cause located
 and 
corrected. 
For more details see "Cooling system"
 on 
page 104. 
If the
 coolant gauge needle nears
 the 
upper end
 of
 the scale and the engine ap
pears
 to be
 overheating,
 turn
 off the air 
conditioner. 
Do
 not
 install accessories
 (fog
 lights
 or
 in
sect screens,
 for
 example)
 on top of the 
front
 bumper.
 They
 may
 restrict engine 
 cooling. 
 5
 -
 Fuel gauge 
The needle
 in
 the fuel gauge will indicate  the fuel level
 in the
 tank shortly after
 the 
 ignition is switched on. 
The fuel tank capacity is
 16
 gal/60
 (syncro 
 18.5/70)
 liters. 
When
 the
 needle reaches the
 red
 area
 at 
 the bottom there
 is a
 reserve
 of
 about 2.6 U.S. gal.
 or
 10 liters
 of
 fuel left in the tank. 
Time to refuel. 
 
 
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CONTROLS AND EQUIPMENT 
SWITCHES 
3 4 5 
page
 1 - Lights 
1
 -
 Lights
 46 
2
 -
 Instrument illumination
 46 
3
 -
 Emergency flasher
 46 
4
 -
 Rear window defogger
 47 
 5
 - For
 additional switch  Depress
 the
 rocker switch
 to the
 first stop 
to turn
 on the
 parking, side marker, license 
 plate,
 tail
 and
 instrument panel lights. Depress
 the
 switch
 to the
 second stop
 to 
turn
 on the
 headlights (ignition
 on). 
To conserve battery power,
 the
 headlights  will
 go out
 automatically when
 the
 ignition is turned
 off or
 when
 the
 engine
 is
 started. 
Headlight dimmer and 
headlight flasher see
 page
 48.  2 - InstrumeriL illumination 
Turn
 the
 thumb wheel below rocker switch 
to adjust
 the
 brightness
 of
 instrument 
lights. 
3 - Emergency 
flasher 
The emergency flasher works indepen dently
 of the
 ignition switch position. 
If your vehicle
 is
 disabled
 or
 parked under 
emergency conditions, depress the switch 
to make
 all
 four turn signals flash simul
taneously.
 The
 warning light
 in the
 rocker 
switch flashes,
 too. 
WARNING 
Move the vehicle a safe distance off the 
road when stalled or stopped for 
repairs. Do not park or operate the 
vehicle in areas where the hot exhaust  system may come in contact with dry 
grass, brush, fuel spill or other material 
which can cause a fire. 
46 
 
 
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CONTROLS AND
 EQUIPMENT 
-Rear
 window Trm  defogger* I I1* 
__e
 rear window defogger works only
 with 
re ignition on. 
_-e
 rear window defogger - together  :i the flow through ventilation - will 
••= o to keep the inside of the rear window 
: ear of condensation and frost. 
~~e
 rear window defogger is not designed 
Of
 melting snow. Therefore, always re-
_:ve heavy snow and ice accumulations 
refore driving off. 
Zepress
 the switch to
 turn
 on the rear  * ndow defogger. 
~ie control
 light
 in the switch will
 light 
 • to remind you
 that
 the defogger is 
switched on. After the rear window has 
ceen
 cleared, switch off the rear window  :efogger to avoid unnecessary drain 
:i the battery. 
By saving electricity, you save fuel. See 
aso
 page 72. 
 Vhen
 the rear window defogger is 
i.vitched on, the outside mirrors
 with 
;!ectric remote control* are electrically 
bated at the same time (see page 13). 
 Electrically
 heated seat* 
With ignition on, the backrest and seat 
 cushion
 of the driver's seat can be heated 
electrically. 
The heating element can be regulated and  turned on and off
 with
 the thumbwheel switch behind the steering wheel. 
where applicable 
 
 
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VEHICLE OPERATION 
OPERATE
 YOUR VEHICLE ECONOMICALLY AND
 MINIMIZE
 POLLUTION 
Your
 personal
 style
 of
 driving
 determines  your operating costs,
 exhaust
 emissions and noise levels. To obtain the best
 possi
ble fuel economy,
 minimize
 pollution
 and 
save
 wear and tear on the engine, brakes 
and tires, observe the following points: 
• Keep a
 light
 foot
 on the accelerator. 
• Drive smoothly, avoid abrupt changes 
in speed as much as possible. 
• Avoid jack rabbit starts and sudden 
stops. 
• Avoid unnecessary idling. Turn the 
engine off. 
• "Warm up" idling wastes gas. Start the 
engine
 just
 before you are ready to drive. 
Accelerate
 slowly and smoothly. 
• Do not drive longer than necessary in 
the lower gears. By upshifting early you 
 can
 economize on fuel consumption.  • Organize your trips to include in several 
errands. 
• Any additional weight carried in the 
vehicle reduces fuel economy. Always  keep cargo to a minimum and remove all 
unnecessary
 items. 
• Remove roof and ski racks when not in 
use. 
• All electrical consumers contribute to 
increased
 fuel consumption. Therefore, 
use
 fan, rear window defogger, etc., only 
when needed. 
• Check your vehicle's fuel consumption 
regularly. Keep a
 written
 tally sheet or use 
the
 trip
 odometer. Fuel consumption will 
vary
 with
 traffic, road and weather condi
tions. 
• Have your vehicle serviced by an 
Volkswagen
 dealer at the specified inter
 vals
 (see page 95 and your Maintenance brochure).  • Air cleaner should be inspected to 
assure
 proper engine "breathing". 
• Battery should be fully charged. 
• Wheels should be properly aligned. 
• Tires should be inflated to correct pres
sures.
 Check
 tire
 pressures regularly - at  least once a month. 
• The published ENVIRONMENTAL-
PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA) and Trans
port
 Canada
 mileage
 estimates
 may not 
agree
 with
 your
 actual
 highway
 mileage 
which
 will
 vary,
 depending
 upon
 vehicle 
 load
 and speed,
 road
 and
 weather
 condi
tions,
 trip
 length,
 etc. 
• Have the engine oil level checked
 with 
every fuel filling. Engine oil consumption 
 is
 normal but tends to be higher when the 
engine is new. The use of quality engine oil 
and a correct engine oil level are essential 
for vehicle performance and economical  operation at all times. 
72 
 
 
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