1993 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF Owners Manual

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Topping up engine oil
Unscrew the cap (b) from oil filler ope ning in cylinder head cover an d po ur 0 11 in 0 .5 litr es
at a time. Then check le ve l with th e dipst ic k .
On no account must the oil level be above area C . Otherwise oil can b e drawn
n to the engine via the crankcase breathe r
a n d escape into the atm osphere via th e ex·
h aust system. On ve hicl es fitted with a catalytic conve rte r, t he oil could burn inside the conve rter causing it to become dam·
a ged
Attention When topping up the oil. do not spill it onto hot engine compo­nents -danger of fire.
C arefully close the filler cap a n d push the oil ipsti ck in as far as possible, this w ill pre ­
vent oil spill when the engine is running .
Changing engine oil
The engine oil must be changed at the inter­
v a ls g iven in the ser v ice sch e d ule .
Attention Old oil must be stored out of reach of children until it is dis­posed of in the correct manner,
r1Ib On no account must oil be ~poured down d,'ain s or into earth. Because of the disposal problems, the necessary special tools and specialist knowledge required the engine oiland filter ch anging should preferably be done by a Volkswagen dealer.
En gin e oil additives
No additives should be mixed with
the engine oil.

A ny damage caused by the use of
su ch additives will not be covered
by the warranty.

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Automatic transmission fluid (ATF)*
The ATF' ) level must however be
checked between the interva ls given in the
Service Schedule. To do this the vehicle
must be standing on a level surface. The level must only be checked when the ATF is warm ( approximate ly 10 km afte r starting
from cold the ATF will reach the required
temperature). If ATF is cold or too hot the
reading w ill be incorrect.
The engine must be running at idling speed,
the handbrake must be appl ied and the se­
lector lever at "N ".
To check, pull dipstick (see Fig .) out. wipe
w ith a clea n lint -free rag and then insert it fully again.
Pull the dipstick out and check ATF level. When the ATF is warm the level must
11 Automat ic Transm is sion Fluid

- Spe cif ic ati on ATF Dexr on®

be between the two marks -other­
w ise the vehicle must be taken to a Volks­
wagen dealer without delay so that they can find the reason for the incorrect level. It is not sufficient to merely top up or drain off ATF.
Changing oil
The ATF must be changed at the intervals
given in Service Schedule .
r£il:-, Because of the disposal prob­~lems, the special tools necessary and the specialist knowledge re­quired, the ATF changing should preferably be donfY'by a Volkswagen dealer.
Note
• No additives may be mixed with ATF
Power assisted steering
The reservoir is located in the engine com­

partment nex t to the battery.

The power assisted steering is fil led with

our hydraulic oil G 002 000.

The leve l can only be checked With the en­

gine at normal operating temperature but

not running .

The oil level should always be between the
"MAX." and "MIN" m arks. When the leve l
has dropped down below the "MIN" mark

the power assisted steering should be
ched:ed at a Volkswagen dealer. It is not

suff iCient merely to top up with hy draulic oil.

96

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Cooling system
The cooling system is filled at the factory with a perman ent coolant whic h is not
changed . The coo lant consists of w ater and a 40 % concent ration of our coolant additive
G 11 V8B (anti-f reeze on glycol basi s with
anti-corrosion additives). Thi s mi xture not
only gives the necessary frost prot ection
down to -25°C but also pro te cts the allo y
parts in the cooling system against cor­
rosion. In add it ion it pr event s scal ing and ra­ises the boiling point of the coo lant
The concentr atio n of the co olant therefore
must not be reduce d in the summer or in
wa rm countries, by tOPPing up with plain
w ater. The coolant additive propor­tion must be at least 40 %.
If greater protection against frost is re­
qu ired, th e propor tion of G 11 V8B additive
c a n be increased, but onl y up to 60 % (Irost
prot ection to appr ox. -40 Cl. oth erwise the
a n ti-freeze prot ection is red uced and fur­
t h ermore the cool ing effec t is im paired .
Vehicles for expor t to cold cou ntries usually
h ave frost protection down to -35°C.
Only our G 11 V8B or an addi tive with the specification TL-VW 774 B (ma rked on container ) should be added to the coolant.
The ad dit ive s can be obtained from Volks­
w ag
en dealer s.
Other additives c a n b e very detri­mental to the anti·corrosion effect in particular.
The subsequent corro sion damage can lead to coolant loss resulting in major engine damage.
Checking coolant level
The expansion tank is in the engine com­
p artm ent on the bulkhead -see Fig
The level can o nly be checked properly
w he n engin e is not running .
The coo lant level must be bet ween the MIN
and Mt>,X marks on e xpansion tank when
engine is cold and can be slightly above the
MAX mark when it is warm .
07

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Coolant losses
Coolant loss normally indicates leaks in the
system . In this case the cooling system
should be checked by a Volkswagen dealer
w it h out delay . It is not sufficient merely to
add coolant.
Ii'! ~ ~MI~d ~v~t~m IMMS canonly occur if the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as a result of overheating, and coolant is forced out of the system.
Topping up coolant
Switch engine off and let it cool down . Then
cover expansion tank cap with a cloth and
turn cap carefully
to the left
and remove.
Attention Do not remove expansion tank cap when engine is hot -Danger of scalding. System is under pressure.
If, in an emergency only water can be added the correct mixture concentration
must be restored with the specified coolant
additive (see previous page) as soon as possible. If
a lot of coolant has been lost.
on l y add cold
coolant after the engine has cooled down.
This will prevent engine damage.
Do not fill above the MAX. mark.
The excess coolant will be forced out
through the pressure rel ief valve in the cap
when engine becomes hot.
Screw cap on again tightly.
Attention The coolant additive and the coolant are a danger to health. The additive must therefore only be stored in the original con­tainer well out of reach of children. If the coolant has to be drained at any time it must be caught and also stored in a safe place.
dih Drained coolant should not nor­~mally be reused, it must be dis­posed of, bearing in mind environ­mental protection regulations.
Fan
The radiator fan is driven electrically and controlled by a thermoswitch from the cool­
ant temperature (also from the engine com­
partment temperature
on some models).
Attention After the engine has been stopped the fan can continue running for a while -even with the engine switched off -(up to about 10 minutes). It can also start to run again suddenly after a short time if -the coolant temperature in­creases due to heat build-up
when engine is hot and the en­gine compartment is heated additionally by strong sun­light.
Special care must therefore be taken when working in the en­gine compartment.
98

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Brake fluid
The brake fluid reservoir is on the left in the

e ngine compartment.

O n vehicles with ABS* the brake fluid reser­

voir
can be found in the same place, only the

s hape of the reserv oir is different to that

s hown .

O n
vehicles with right-hand drive the reser­

voir is on the other side of the engine com­

p artment.

Checking fluid level
T he fluid level must always be between the
" MAX" and "MIN" marks.
T he
level of flu id tends to sin k slightly when the vehicle is used due to the automatic ad­Ju stment of brake linings . This IS quite nor­
mal.
H owever, if the level sinks noticeably in a
s h ort time or drops below the" MIN" mark
t h e system may be leaking. A low fluid level
in the reservoir is indicated by the brake
wa rning lamp lighting up (see page 48 also)
If this happens, take car to a Volkswagen
dealer immediately and have the brake sys­
tem checked.
Renewing brake fluid
Brake fluid absorbs moisture. In the course
of time it takes in water from the ambient air. Too high a content of wa ter in the brake
fluid can In time cause corrosion damage in the system Furthermore the boiling point
of the brake fluid IS reduced considerably. For this reason the brake fluid must be renewed every f'wo years.
Attention When the brake fluid becomes too old vapour bubbles can form in the brake system when the brakes are used hard. The effi­ciency of the brakes and thus the vehicle safety is then seriously affected.
Only use our genuine brake fluid (spec ifica­
tion to US standard FMVSS 116 DOT 4). The fluid must be new.
Attention Brake fluid is poisonous! It must therefore only be stored in the closed original container out of reach of children.
Remember also that brake fluid will attack the paintwork.

,.Q,., Because of the disposal prob­
~lems, the special tools necessary
and the specialist knowledge re­
quired, the brake fluid changing should preferably be done by a Vo/kswagen dealer.
It is advisable to have the fluid change car­
ried out during an Inspection Service.
99

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Battery
The battery IS In the engine compartment.
S t
artin g by connecting an addi tional battery
i s described in the Do-it-yourself section.
Attention Note the following w a rning
note s and safety precautions when working on the battery.
W e
ar eye protection. Do no t allow particles co n­
t a ining acid or lead t o
come into c ontact with the eyes, skin or cloths.
Battery Jlc id is highly caustic. A lways wear pro­tective gloves and glasses. Do not tip bat­tery - ac id can spill out of the vents. Should acid conta ct the eyes, rinse for several minutes using clea n running w ater. Seek medical assistance immediately. S hould aCi d contact skin or clothes, neutralize immediately using an alkaline soap solution and ri nse thoroug hly. Should acid ina d vertently be drunk, s eek medical attention immediately.
Keep a cid and battery out of th e reach of children.
When battery i s being charged, a highly explos­ive mixture of gases is produced.
Keep w ell cle a r o f naked flame and sparks. Do not smoke. Avoid generating sparks when handling cables and electrical compo­nents . Avoid short circuits. Never sh o rt batte ry t erm inals ­danger of injury from high­e nergy sparks.
• D
isconnect negative terminal of battery before doing any work on th e electrical system. When changing bulbs it is sufficient t o
switch off lamp.
100

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• When disconnecting the bat­
tery from th e vehic le e lectrical
system first disconnect the nega­
tive cable and then the positive
cable.
The battery must not b e discon­
nected with th e engine ru nning,
as this will damage t he e lectrica l
system (e lectro n ic components).

• When reconnecting t h e bat­
tery connect the positive cable
first and then the negative cable.
The connect ing cables must on
no account interchang ed -can
cause wiring to burn out.

In order to protect the c asing from UV radiation, do not expose battery to direct sunlight.
Checking acid level
In norma l operating conditions the ba ttery re quires hardly any maintenance . At 111(;)11 am bient tem peratu res Ilowever It I S advIs­
a b le to check th e acid le ve l a t r egula r inter ­als. It shou ld always be between the M IN
a nd MAX marks on th e batter y I
f th e ac
id leve l drops below the MIN mark, the aff ecte d c ells must be topped -up to the
MAX mark W ith dis tille d wa ter.
It
is recommen ded that the acid level is checked and correcte d by a Volkswag en dea ler.
Winter driving
W inte r wea ther is part icu larly hard on the
battery. Furt h er more at low temperatures it has only a par t of th e capacity it has at nor ­
ma l temperatures . We reco mmend there­
for e th at
the bat te ry sho uld be c h ecked pre­
f erably by a Volkswage1l dea le r before the onset of cold weat her an d charge d if
necessary
I f the vehicle is not driven for sev­e ral weeks when te m peratures are very low, the battery should be taken out and stored in a frost-free room, s o tha t it cannot freeze up and become damaged.
To ake battery out, first d isconnect the two cables an d th en remov e retainer.
Charging battery
W hen charg ing with a lo w curren t (e.g. with a smal l char ger) the battery cables need not
no rmally b e taken off. The instructions from the charger manufactu re r must however be
noted.
Bef ore
Quick charging, that is charging
wi th a high current, both battery cables
must b e disconnec ted .
T
he f o llowin g inf ormation must be noted:
• Whe n charging the
battery do not re­
move caps.
• A discha rged battery
can freeze at -10°e. It is essential to thaw out a frozen battery before it is given a quick charge otherwise it may ex­plode!
• The mains cable of the charger should
n ot be connec ted unti l afte r the clips of the charger have been prop erly secured to th e
battery terminals Red =pos itive
Black = negative
•
Recon nect cables correct ly after ch arg­ing battery.
101

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Spark plugs V-belts
Renewing a battery
If the battery has to be renewed , the new battery must have the same capacity, volt­
age (12 V olts). current strength and shape
and a cap sealing arrangement. Volkswagen
dealers have a range of suitable batteries .
&-. Because of the problem of dis­~posing of the old battery the re­newal ofa battery should preferably be done by a Vo/kswagen dealer. Batteries contain, amongst other things, sulphuric acid and lead and must on no account be put with nor­mal household waste.
The spark plugs are rene w ed during the
Volkswagen Inspection Service
If the spark plugs have to be rene w
ed be­
t w een the Inspection Services, the fOllow­
ing should be noted :
• Spark plugs and ignition system are
matched to the engine and
as such contrib­
ute to reducing the levels of exhaust pollu­
tants. To avoid faulty operation, engine
damage and even the w ithdrawal of the
type approval due
to ex cessive emissions
v alues or non -suppressed spark plugs, only
the Genuine Volks wagen spark plugs for the
engine concerned should be used. Import­
ant, am ong other
thing
'S, are the number of
electrodes , the heat value and if necessary
the radio suppression .
• The plugs may
be, for technical reasons,
changed at short notice. It is therefore ad­visable to obtain plugs only from Volks­
w agen dealers -they have the latest in­
formation •
The V-belts are among the most s
e­verely stressed parts of a vehicle. The belts
must therefore be subjected to very high
quality requirements.
• When renewing a belt it
is not sufficient to use just any belt of the same size. For
safety reasons only the special Genuine
V olkswagen belt for the vehicle concerned
should be used .
• The V-belts may
be, for technical rea­
sons, changed at short notice . It is therefore
advisable to obtain V-belts only from Volks­
wagen dealers and to
hav e them changed
there -they have the latest information .
•
On some engines durable ribbed belts are used, which are checked and if necess­
ary tensioned during an Inspection Service
(every 60, 000 km/40,OOO miles).
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