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CONTROLS AND
 EQUIPMENT 
Key A is used for the ignition/steering lock, • Do not
 leave
 your
 vehicle
 unattended 
the doors, the lockable tank cap and the
 with
 the key in the
 ignition
 lock.
 Always 
 rear luggage compartment lid.
 take
 the key and lock the doors. 
KEYS 
B25-460 
Your
 Volkswagen comes
 with
 four keys:  • two keys A 
• two keys B 
Key
 A can be inserted
 into
 locks either 
way.  Key B is provided for vehicles equipped 
with
 a lockable glove compartment. 
Tag C gives the key number. 
For
 your
 protection
 against
 theft: 
• Record the key number and keep it in a 
safe
 place, such as your wallet. Do not keep  it in the vehicle. 
• If you should lose a key, provide your
 Vol
kswagen dealer
 with
 the key number to 
obtain a duplicate key. 
In addition to the plastic tag, there may also 
be a metal tag snowing part of the vehicle 
identification number. This tag is no longer 
required after the vehicle has been deliv
ered. 
Note 
The syncro model has a separate key for the  lockable tank cap. 
 A
 chime
 will sound when you open the 
driver's door
 with
 the key
 left
 in the ignition lock. This is your reminder to remove the 
key and lock the doors. 
WARNING 
• Do not
 leave
 children
 unattended
 in 
the
 vehicle
 especially
 with
 access to 
 vehicle
 keys. Unsupervised use of the 
keys
 can
 result
 in
 starting
 of the
 engine 
and use of
 vehicle
 systems such as 
 power
 windows
 etc. Unsupervised use 
of
 these
 systems can
 result
 in serious 
 personal
 injury. 
• Do not
 remove
 key
 from
 steering 
lock
 while
 you are
 driving
 or as the 
vehicle
 is
 rolling
 to a stop. The
 steering 
column
 will
 lock
 when
 you
 remove
 the  key, and you
 will
 not be
 able
 to
 steer
 the 
vehicle. 
 
 
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CONTROLS
 AND
 EQUIPMENT 
•
 Never shift into Reverse (R) or Park 
(P) when the vehicle is in motion. 
•
 Do not remove the key from the ig
nition steering lock until you have 
parked the vehicle, because removal 
of the key
 will
 lock the steering wheel. 
•
 If the selector lever is unintention
ally moved into Neutral (N)
 while
 driv
ing,
 take
 your foot off the accelerator  pedal and
 wait
 until the engine speed 
has
 dropped to idling before selecting 
a driving position. 
Maneuvering 
•'/hen
 alternating between forward and 
-averse
 - for
 instance,
 while
 maneuvering 
ne
 vehicle
 into a tight parking
 space
 -
 :nly
 shift when the
 vehicle
 has
 come
 to a 
full stop and the
 engine
 is running at idle 
 soeed. 
 Stuck
 in snow, mud or sand 
When
 alternating between forward and 
 reverse
 in an effort to free the
 vehicle, 
depress
 the
 accelerator
 pedal
 slightly 
while
 the
 transmission
 is in
 gear,
 and 
 release
 the
 accelerator
 pedal
 while 
shifting.
 Do not
 race
 the
 engine
 and
 avoid 
spinning
 the
 wheels.
 Do not repeat 
 "rocking"
 back and
 forth
 with
 wheels 
spinning
 at high engine speed and heavy
 throttle,
 as serious damage may 
be caused to the automatic transmis
sion
 and other critical parts. 
Kickdown
 device 
The
 kickdown
 device
 gives
 maximum 
 acceleration
 when the
 accelerator
 pedal
 is 
pressed
 down
 past
 the full throttle
 posi
tion.
 Depending
 on
 road
 speed
 and 
 engine
 speed,
 either the upshift is
 delayed 
(forced
 throttle) or the box
 changes
 down 
into
 the next lower
 gear. 
WARNING 
Be
 careful when using the kickdown on 
slippery
 roads. Rapid acceleration may 
cause
 skidding. 
 Stopping 
•
 When
 stopping briefly, at a traffic light 
for
 example,
 it is not
 necessary
 to
 move 
the
 selector
 lever
 to
 Neutral.
 Simply
 apply 
the
 brakes.
 To start
 again
 release
 brake 
 and
 accelerate. 
•
 The driving
 positions
 must
 never
 be 
used
 for holding the
 vehicle
 at rest
 uphill. 
Always
 use your foot
 brakes
 when 
 stopped
 on
 inclines. 
WARNING 
•
 Never get out of the driver's seat 
when the engine is running and the 
 selector
 lever is not securely locked in 
the P position. 
•
 If you must leave the vehicle move 
the selector lever securely into the P 
 position
 and apply parking brake 
firmly. 
Towing 
To
 tow the
 vehicle
 see instructions 
 "Emergency
 towing" on
 page
 138. 
 
 
 
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CONTROLS
 AND
 EQUIPMENT 
STARTING
 PROCEDURES 
WARNING 
•
 Fasten safety belts before driving. 
•
 Never
 start or let the engine run in a 
confined or enclosed, unventilated 
area.
 Exhaust fumes from the engine 
contain carbon monoxide, which is a 
colorless
 and odorless gas. Carbon  monoxide can be
 fatal
 if inhaled. 
•
 Never
 leave engine idling unatten
ded.
 An unattended vehicle with a run
 ning
 engine is potentially hazardous. 
•
 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. 
•
 Do not leave engine unattended at 
idle.
 When starting engine, be ready to 
drive off immediately. Maintain moder
 ate
 speed until the engine is
 com
pletely warm. Remember that
 your
 en
gine performs best at operating
 tem
 perature. 
 Automatic
 Transmission 
Engine will only start with selector lever in 
Neutral or Park. 
Manual
 Transmission 
Start with gearshift lever in Neutral, clutch 
pedal
 depressed, so that the starter only 
has
 to crank the engine. 
Starting
 engine 
 •
 Do not depress accelerator pedal 
when starting. At extrem low temperatures 
the engine will probably start better, if you  depress accelerator pedal slighly. 
•
 As soon as the engine starts, release 
the ignition key. 
•
 If the engine does not start the first time 
or
 stalls,
 turn
 the ignition off and restart.  Depress the accelerator pedal slowly 
during the second starting attempt. 
•
 Operate the starter for no more than 
10
 seconds. 
•
 Allow about 30 seconds between each 
starting
 attempt. 
 STOPPING
 ENGINE 
Do not stop engine immediately after 
hard or extended driving. Keep engine 
running for about two minutes to pre
vent
 excessive heat build-up. 
WARNING 
•
 Before you check anything in the 
engine compartment, stop the engine  and let it cool down. Hot components 
can
 burn skin on contact. 
•
 The radiator fan switches on auto
matically
 when the coolant reaches a cer
tain
 temperature and will continue to run 
 (even
 with ignition off) until the coolant 
temperature drops. 
39 
 
 
 
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CONTROLS AND EQUIPMENT 
I - Tachometer* 
"he red shaded area at the end of the  scale indicates the maximum permissible 
engine rpm (revolutions per minute) for all  gears after the break-in period. Before 
'eaching this area, the next higher gear 
snould be selected or the foot eased off 
the accelerator pedal. Earlier shifting  saves fuel and reduces noise. 
Sniff to the next lower gear when the en-
; ne rpm drops below 1500 rpm. 
~ne green shaded area on the scale  snows the speed at which the engine is de-
 •
 eloping its most favourable torque. 
3 - Normal clock* 
~J
 set the clock, depress the knob in the  : al center and
 turn. 
 4 - Coolant temperature 
gauge  X 
tare applicable  The needle in the coolant temperature 
gauge will indicate the temperature of the 
coolant shortly after the ignition is 
switched on. 
When ignition is switched on the warning  light (c) will flash for a few seconds as a 
functional check. 
a - Engine cold 
Avoid high engine speeds and heavy throt tle when the needle is still in this area of 
the
 dial. 
b - Normal temperature During normal running the needle will re
main somewhere in the middle of the
 dial. 
 If the engine is working hard at hign a--
bient temperatures, the needle may as: 
go further to the right, but this is no cause 
for concern so long as the coolant
 tem
 perature warning light does not start 
flashing. 
c - Warning light  If the light flashes when driving first check 
the coolant temperature gauge. If the nee
dle is in the normal range, add coolant at the  next opportunity. If the needle is in the warn
ing range, either the coolant level is too low 
or the coolant temperature is too high.  Move the vehicle a safe distance off the 
road,
 stop the engine and depress the 
emergency flasher switch. 
The fan should be operating when the  warning light is on (listen for fan, located in 
front of car behind grille). 
WARNING • To reduce the risk of being burned, 
never open the hood if you see or hear 
steam or coolant escaping from the 
engine compartment. Wait until no 
steam or coolant can be seen or heard 
before carefully opening the hood. 
 
 
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CONTROLS
 AND
 EQUIPMENT 
WARNING
 / INDICATOR
 LIGHTS 
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 
your vehicle is equipped
 with
 several 
•nportant indicator and warning devices to 
~ionitor the continued reliable operation of  .our vehicle. Familiarize yourself
 with 
:hese
 devices so if one should come on  .ou know what to do. 
-allure to heed applicable warnings and  "nportant vehicle information may result in 
serious
 personal injury or vehicle damage. 
WARNING 
•
 Whenever
 stalled
 or stopped for 
 epair,
 move
 the
 vehicle
 a
 safe
 distance 
off the road, stop the
 engine
 and
 turn 
on the
 emergency
 flasher
 (see
 page 
46). 
• The
 engine
 compartment
 of any 
-lotor
 vehicle
 is a
 potentially
 hazard
 ous
 area.
 Before
 you check
 anything
 in 
?ie
 engine
 compartment,
 stop the 
 engine
 and let it cool down.
 Always 
exercise
 extreme
 caution
 when
 work
 ing
 under
 the
 engine
 hood.
 Heed
 all of 
re
 WARNINGS
 on
 page
 97. 
 page 
1 - Brake 43 
2
 - Safety belt 18 
3
 - Turn signals 44 
4 - Alternator 44 
 5
 - For additional light 
6 - For additional light  7 - Oil pressure 43 
8 - High beam 45 
9 - Coolant temperature/level . . . 45 
10 - For additional switch  9 10
 B25-5t? 
1-Brake
 « -> 
The
 light comes on while the engine is 
 cranking.
 It goes out after the engine is started and the parking brake is
 fully 
released.
 This is your assurance
 that
 the 
brake warning light is functioning properly. 
If the brake warning light does not light JC 
while cranking the engine or setting :ne  parking brake, there may be a malfunction in the electrical system. In this
 case
 c;~-
tact your Volkswagen dealer. 
'where applicable 
 Always
 heed
 WARNINGS
 on next page 
 
 
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I CONTROLSAND EQUIPMENT 
WARNING If the brake warning
 light
 does not go 
out
 with
 the engine running and the  parking brake released or lights up 
while driving, the fluid level
 in
 the brake 
fluid reservoir may
 be
 too low. 
This might be
 due
 to
 a
 leak in one of the  two independently functioning brake circuits. 
If the brake pedal travel has increased, 
one of the brake circuits may have 
failed.
 Avoid driving the vehicle and  have it towed to the nearest Volkswa
gen dealer or qualified workshop for re pair. 
If brake pedal travel has not increased 
and
 braking performance remains un
 impaired,
 proceed carefully to
 your 
nearest Volkswagen dealer or qualified 
workshop to have the braking system  inspected and corrected. 
For detailed information see
 "Brakes" on 
page 29.  2-
 Safety belt
 |
 A
 FASTEN
 BELTS 
Refer
 to
 "Safety belts"
 on
 page
 14 for 
details. 
3
 -
 Turn
 signals E^ 
Refer
 to
 "Turn
 signal/headlight dimmer 
switch lever" on page 49 for details. 
4
 - Alternator 
This
 light comes
 on
 when
 the
 ignition
 is 
 turned on and goes out after the engine
 is 
started.
 If the
 light does
 not go out
 after 
starting
 and
 revving-up
 the
 engine 
momentarily
 or
 lights
 up
 while driving, 
there may be a malfunction
 in
 the electrical  system
 or
 the V-belt
 to
 the alternator may be loose
 or
 broken. 
In
 this
 case,
 turn
 the engine off and 
contact
 your
 Volkswagen dealer. 
5
 - For additional
 light 
6
 - For additional
 light 
 7
 - Engine Oil pressure 
When
 the
 ignition
 is
 turned
 on, the oil 
 pressure warning light comes on for a bulb 
check.
 It
 should
 go out
 after
 the
 engine 
has
 started. 
If the
 warning light does
 not go out or 
flashes
 while driving
 (above
 2000
 engine  rpm a buzzer
 will
 sound simultaneously),
 it 
indicates,
 that the oil pressure is too low. 
Stop the engine immediately, check the 
engine
 oil
 level
 and add
 oil, if necessary. 
If engine oil level is normal, but the
 light 
continues to flash, do not continue to 
operate the vehicle. This could damage 
the engine. 
Turn
 the engine off and contact the nearest  Volkswagen dealer for assistance. 
The oil pressure warning
 light
 is not an  indicator for low engine oil level. To 
check
 the oil level, always use dipstick 
(see page 99). 
Make
 it a habit to have the engine oil 
level checked
 with
 every
 fuel filling. 
 
 
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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 
lie heater has a safety switch which is lo- :ated under the dash on the left near the 
steering column. If the heater does not 
start, or starts and then stops again, wait 
3 minutes and then operate the red lever 
on the safety switch. 
[f the heater still does not work or if the 
safety switch stops it again, there is a de-
:ect in the heater which can only be re- :aired by a Volkswagen workshop.  Fuses 
The auxiliary heater is equipped with two 
 fuses,
 one 16 amp fuse for the entire  heater and one 8 amp fuse for the over
heating switch. Both fuses are located in a 
fuse holder behind the fuse panel on the  left side under the dashboard. When the 
fuse for the overheating switch is blown, 
the fan is working however no heat is 
delivered. 
If the replacement fuse blows again, have 
the heater checked by your Volkswagen  dealer. 
59 
 
 
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