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Your new
 Volkswagen 
may have all or some of the equipment 
described
 in this manual. Therefore, you  may find explanations of equipment not 
installed in your vehicle. 
Check
 with
 your authorized Volkswagen 
dealer
 on available options or
 accesso
 ries. 
Note 
WARNINGS
 concern
 safety
 and are co lor
 identified
 throughout
 this
 manual. 
 Please
 note
 that
 the items of equipment 
marked
 with
 an asterisk* may be stand
ard on certain models but are only avail
 able
 as options on other models. 
In addition to this Owner's Manual, your 
Vanagon/Transporter
 comes
 with 
• the Radio
 Operating
 Instructions*, 
 In Canada, 
these
 manuals are also available in 
 French.
 To obtain a copy, contact your 
dealer
 or
 write
 to: 
Au
 Canada
 on peut se procurer un exem- plaire de ce Manuel en francais aupres du 
concessionnaire
 ou du: 
Volkswagen
 Canada,
 Inc. 
 Customer
 Assistance/ 
Assistance
 a la Clientele  1940 Eglinton Ave. East 
Scarborough,
 Ontario 
 M1L2M2 
If you sell your
 Volkswagen 
the Owner's Manual, the Warranty  booklet and the Maintenance booklet 
should
 be
 left
 in the vehicle to make 
Warranty terms as well as all operating,  safety and maintenance information avail
able
 to the next owner. 
If you change your address or if 
you
 bought
 this
 Volkswagen
 used 
be
 sure to send in a "Notice of Address 
ChangeVNotice
 of Used Car Purchase" 
post card. This card can be found in the 
Warranty booklet or obtained from your 
 Volkswagen
 dealer. 
It is in your own
 interest
 that
 we can 
contact
 you should the
 need
 arise. 
Your
 Owner's
 Manual 
applies
 to all Vanagon/Transporter models 
currently sold in the USA and
 Canada.
 It 
contains important operating safety infor mation. Keep this booklet in your glove 
box at all times for ready reference. 
Read
 it before you drive your new vehicle. 
Pay
 particular attention to the "Break-in 
period hints" and to all points listed under 
"Vehicle
 operation". 
Acquaint
 yourself
 with
 your vehicle's fea tures and know how to operate it more 
safely.
 The more you know about your 
Volkswagen,
 the more you will enjoy  driving it. For your own protection and  longer service life of your vehicle, always 
heed
 our instructions and warnings. Igno
ring them could result in extensive da
mage
 or serious personal injury.  • the
 Warranty
 Booklet
 and 
• the
 Maintenance
 Booklet. 
Your
 Warranty
 booklet 
 which is a separate brochure, contains 
detailed information about the warranties 
covering your Volkswagen. 
Your
 Maintenance
 booklet 
 which is a separate brochure, explains  how you can keep your Volkswagen in top 
driving condition by having it serviced  regularly. Always have the Maintenance 
booklet
 with
 you when you take your 
vehicle
 to a Volkswagen dealer for service. 
Your
 Service Adviser will record each 
 scheduled
 service. 
 
 
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1
 INSTRUMENT PANEL 
Illustration instruments and controls 
Warning and indicator light symbols 
CONTROLS AND EQUIPMENT 
Keys,
 central locking system .... 7, 8 
Doors 9 
Rear lid 11 
Windows, mirrors 12, 13  Safety belts, head restraints . . . .14,19 
Seats 20 Luggage compartment, pedals . 28,29 
Brakes, Transmission 29, 32  Differential lock 33 
Automatic-transmission 35  Steering lock/ignition/starter switch . 38 
Starting procedures 39 Instrument cluster 40 
Warning/indicator lights 43  Switches 46 Emergency flasher 46 
Light switch, turn signals .... 46,48 
Cruise control 49 
Windshield wipers 50  Ventilation/Heating 51 
Air conditioning 54 
Heater 57 
Sliding roof 62 
Roof-rack 68  VEHICLE OPERATION 
Break-in period - and afterwards . . 69 
Operate your vehicle safety 70 
Operate your vehicle economically 
and minimize pollution 72 
Trailer towing 73  Driving with the all-wheel drive ... 75 
VEHICLE CARE 
Fuel tank, fuel supply 85,86 
Vehicle care (exterior/interior) . . 90, 93  Maintenance, inspection intervals . . 95 Engine compartment lid, 
engine compartment 97  Lubricants, engine oil 98,99 
Engine oil filter 101 
Transmission oil 102 
Power steering 103 
Cooling system 104  Brake fluid 108 
Battery 109 
Windshield washers/wipers . . . 112,113 
Tires/wheels 114  Difficult operating conditions .... 120 
Winter driving 121 
Accessories 122 
DO-IT-YOURSELF SERVICE 
Jack and tools 123  Spare wheel 124 
Changing a wheel 125  Fuses, bulbs 128, 130  Adjusting headlights 
134 
Installing,
 replacing the radio . .  . . 135 
Emergency starting  136 
Emergency towing  138 
Lifting vehicle  . . 140 
TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION 
Engine, transmission 142 
Steering,
 suspension, brakes, 
body, chassis 143 Emission-control-system 144 
TECHNICAL DATA 
Engine, spark plugs . 
V-belts capacities . .  Dimensions 
Weights 
Vehicle identification  146 
147 
148 
150  151 
CONSUMER INFORMATION 
Service manuals 152 
GAS STATION INFORMATION 
Location of servicing points 156 
ALPHABETICAL INDEX 158 
 
 
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CONTROLS AND
 EQUIPMENT 
=ailure
 of one
 brake
 circuit 
 I the brake pedal travel should suddenly 
 icrease,
 one of the brake circuits may 
_ave
 failed. Should this happen, you will 
m able to bring your vehicle safely to a 
s:op,
 however, you will have to push hard
er on the brake pedal and it will take a  onger distance to stop the vehicle.
 Con
tact your Volkswagen dealership for as
 sistance. 
Brake
 wear 
~he brakes on our automobiles are still  subject to wear depending largely on operating conditions and driving habits. On ve
hicles
 which are driven mostly in stop-and-
50 city
 traffic
 or which are driven hard, the 
crake linings should be checked by your 
Volkswagen
 dealer more often than 
 specified
 in the Maintenance brochure. 
Front
 spoiler 
If you
 install
 a
 front
 spoiler on
 your
 vehi
cle, be
 sure
 the air
 flow
 to the
 front 
brakes
 is not
 obstructed,
 otherwise
 the 
brake
 system
 could
 overheat. 
 Parking
 brake
 lever 
The parking brake lever is located  between the
 front
 seats. 
• To set the parking brake, pull the lever 
until
 strong resistance is
 felt.
 The parking 
brake must be pulled up all the way so
 that 
the vehicle cannot be moved. When the ig nition is on, the brake warning
 light
 will 
light
 up. 
• Depress brake pedal and hold while re
leasing
 parking brake. To release the park
ing brake, pull the lever slightly up, de
press
 the release
 button
 (arrow), and then 
push the lever all the way down. When the  parking brake is fully released, the brake 
warning
 light
 will go out. 
 WARNING 
•
 Release
 the
 parking
 brake
 fully.
 A 
partially
 engaged
 brake
 will
 overheat 
the
 rear
 brakes,
 reduce
 their
 effective
 ness and cause excessive
 wear. 
•
 Always
 set the
 parking
 brake
 when 
parking
 your
 vehicle.
 Move
 the
 selector 
 lever
 to "P"
 (Automatic
 transmission) 
or
 move
 the
 gearshift
 lever
 to "R" or  "1"
 (Manual
 transmission).
 On
 hills 
also
 turn
 the
 wheels
 toward
 the curb. 
31 
 
 
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CONTROLS AND
 EQUIPMENT 
THE
 DIFFERENTIAL
 LOCK*
 (SYNCRO) 
When driving around a curve, the outside 
 .vheels
 turn
 more than the inside wheels. 
A
 gear set, part of the transmission, called  :he differential, compensates for the differ
ence.
 If, however, one wheel gets on a slip pery surface and starts to spin, the 
differential will not transmit power to the 
ether wheel. The car will be stuck. The
 dif
ferential lock will allow power to be trans
 mitted
 to both wheels to help get the vehi-
:!e
 moving again. Because the differential 
 5
 then unable to compensate for corner-
~.g, vehicle handling and maneuverability 
.'.ill
 be reduced. Therefore the differential  zck may only be used under limited condi-
:ons. 
WARNING 
Locked
 differential
 cannot
 compensate 
for
 cornering
 and
 therefore
 increases 
tire
 wear,
 reduces
 vehicle
 maneuvera
 bility,
 driveability
 and can
 impair
 vehi
cle
 handling
 performance.
 See
 detailed 
instructions
 on
 next
 page. 
 Using the
 differential
 lock 
Engage
 or disengage the differential
 with 
the knob shown in the center of the instru ment panel. 
WARNING 
To
 reduce
 the
 potential
 for loss of 
vehicle
 control,
 only
 use the
 rear 
differential
 lock
 under
 the specific and 
limited
 circumstances described on 
the
 next
 page. 
 When
 the
 knob
 is
 pulled
 or pushed. 
engagement or disengagement is ony initiated. The actual locking of the differ
ential can be delayed if the wheels are  rotating at substantially different speeds. 
When driving around a corner it could also  happen
 that
 the lock will not engage or 
disengage. 
Under
 such conditions slow down and 
drive in a straight-ahead direction so
 that 
the lock may engage or disengage. 
The
 warning
 light
 above the knob indi
 cates
 the operational condition of the lock: 
• The
 light
 comes on only when the lock 
has
 engaged properly. 
• The
 light
 goes out again once the knob 
has
 been pushed in and the lock has actu
ally disengaged. If the warning
 light
 does  not
 light
 up, after selecting the differential 
lock, and after an extended drive, the elec
trical system and the lock should be 
checked
 by your VW dealer. 
e applicable 
 
 
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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 
AIR
 CONDITIONER* 
WARNING 
• Good
 visibility
 comes
 with
 windows 
free
 of fog, condensation and
 frost. 
• For clear
 visibility
 and safe
 driving
 it 
is
 extremely
 important
 that
 you
 thor
oughly
 familiarize
 yourself
 with
 and fol low the
 operating
 instructions
 pertain
ing to the proper use and
 function
 of 
the
 ventilation/heating,
 defogging/de-
frosting
 and air conditioning system in 
this
 manual. If in
 doubt,
 consult your 
Volkswagen
 dealer. 
The
 air conditioning unit is installed under 
the roof of the driver's cab. Ten air outlets  permit interior cooling throughout the 
vehicle. 
Two
 climate control switches are located 
on the instrument panel. 
The
 unit operates on the air recirculation 
 principle.
 Air is sucked in through the two 
large
 air intake grilles at the rear portion of 
the unit. 
Because
 the air conditioner is not normally used at low ambient temperatures it 
is
 designed to operate only when outside 
temperature is above 41° F or + 5° C. 
 When
 the air conditioner is on, tempera
ture as well as humidity inside the vehicle 
is
 controlled. During high outside humidi
ty you can prevent windshield and win
dows
 from fogging by setting the controls 
 accordingly. 
Maximum
 cooling is maintained with 
standard
 heating/ventilation controls 
turned off and the windows
 closed. 
However,
 when the vehicle interior is very 
hot from standing in the sun, open a win
dow for a few minutes to permit hot air to 
escape. 
 • iHBll
 1
 m 
Air
 outlets/Vents 
1 - These air vents can be adjusted or 
 closed
 completely. 
• Tilt air vent housing to direct air 
flow up or down. 
• Turn thumb wheel to direct air 
flow sideways. 
• To open outlets, position thumb 
wheel
 in center of vents. 
• To close air outlets,
 turn
 thumb 
wheel
 to extreme right or left. 
2
 - These air vents can be adjusted but  not
 closed. 
• Direct air flow by swiveling the 
vent housing. 
54 * where applicable 
 
 
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CONTROLS AND
 EQUIPMENT 
Malfunctions 
if the
 unit
 does not
 operate 
• Outside temperatures may be below 
41° For + 5°C. 
• The air conditioner fuse may have blown. Turn the
 unit
 off and check fuse. 
See
 page 129 for use panel location. 
 General
 hints 
If
 water
 drips
 under
 the
 vehicle 
When outside temperature is high and the 
air very humid, condensed water can drip 
off the evaporator under the vehicle. This 
 is
 normal and does not indicate a leak. 
Payload
 reduction 
The weight of the air conditioner installed  in your vehicle reduces the vehicle's load 
carrying capacity. For weight information, 
see
 sticker on
 left
 doorjamb. 
Maintenance 
The condenser should be checked peri
odically for cleanliness. If clogged
 with 
dirt
 or insects, the condenser should be 
washed down
 with
 water. 
After the winter months and before ex
tended summer
 usage,
 the air conditioner  should be checked and, if necessary, ser
viced by your Volkswagen dealer. 
 
 
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