
---------------------CONTROLS
AND EQUIPMENT
2 -Defrosting windows
See climate controls, page 163. 3
-Rear window defogger QiP
The rear window defogger works only with
the ignition on.
Depress the switch to turn on the rear win
dow defogger. The indicator light in the
switch will light up.
When outside air temperatures are above
32°F {0°C) the rear window defogger will
turn off automatically after approximately
10 minu tes.
r.Gb In order to save electricity, m switch off the defogger when
the rear window is clear. The light in
the switch will go out.
When you save electri city, you save
fuel. See "Operate your vehicle eco
nomically and minimize pollution",
paga 195.
The rear window defogger is not designed
for melt snow. Therefore, always remove
heavy snow and ice accumula tions before
driving off.
151

CONTROLS AND EQUIPMENT---------------------
1
- Electronic Stability Program
(ESP)
The ESP is switched on automatically when
the engine is started. If required, it can also
be switched on and off manually by briefly
pressing the switch .
. When the system is switched off, the warn
ing light comes on. See page 124.
See page 205 for further details.
15 2 2
- Emergency flasher �
The emergency flasher works independe nt
ly 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 simulta
neously. The warning light in the switch
flashes too. ftl
WARN ING
To avoid being struck by another
vehicle, move your 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
that can cause fire.
When the airbag deploys in an accident, the
emergency flasher also will come on.

---------------------CONTROLS AND
EQUIPMENT
Rear window
1 - Intermittent wiping
The wiper works about every six seconds.
Pull lever back again briefly to switch rear
wiper off.
2 -Automatic wiper I washer
Press lever away from steering wheel and
hold -the wip_er and the washer work as
long as lever is held in this position.
Release lever-
The washer stops and the wiper continues
for about four seconds. �W
ARNING
• Worn or dirty wiper blades will
reduce visibility. making driving
hazardous. Clean blades regularly
to remove road film and carwash
wax buildup. Use an alcohol base
cleaning solution. a lint free cloth
and wipe along the blade.
• Clean all inside and outside win
dow glass regularly. Use an alco
hol base cleaning solution and
wipe dry with a lint free or a cham
ois cloth.
• Do not use the wiper 1 washer in
fr eezing weather without first
warming the windshield with the
defrosters, otherwise the washer
solution may freeze on the wind
shield and obscure your vision.
• Avoid running the wiper blades
over a dry windshield to prevent
scratc hing the glass. A scratched
windshield will reduce visibility
and increase glare at night. Headlight
washer
When the headlights are switched on, the
headlight lenses are washed each time the
windshield washer is operated.
The headlight washer jets come out autO
matically (under water pressure) when the
washers are operated.
Clean off dirt or insects from the lenses at
reg ular intervals, for example, when refueli
ng.
To ensur e that the system works properly in
winter, keep the washer jets free of snow
and remove any ice with de-icer spray.
Filling washer container, see page 250.
161

CONTROLS AND
EQUIPMENT---------------------
C... -Air recirculation
In the air recirculation mode, the supply of
outside air is blocked and the air in the pas
senger compartment is recirculated. This
helps to prevent pollutant-conta ining out
side air from entering the passenger
compartment. It is best not to use this set
ting for exte nded periods of time.
If the windows begin to fog or ice
up, select the ® program setting as
soon as possible.
�W ARNING
• You will not receive any fresh
outside air when air recirculation
is on. Do not use this setting over
long periods of time because stale
air contributes to fatigue and re
duced driver alertness.
• If the windows fog up, press the
air recirculation button again im
mediately to switch off the air re
circulation function or select de
frost.
16 4 ECON -
Economy
The air conditioner compressor can be
turned off to save fuel. However, the com
fort level that the system can achieve in this
mode limited.
If the interior of the vehicle gets too hot, or
if the windows begin to fog or ice up, press
the ECON button again to tum the compres
sor on again and switch back to AUTO .
OFF -Switching air conditioner oft
The air conditioner can be switched off by
pressing the button briefly. This cuts off the
supply of air from the outside.
To reactivate the air conditioner,
press the AUTO button or one of the blower,
temperature or air distribution selector but
tons, or press OFF again.
It is not normally necessary to switch off the
air condition er.
- + Fan speed
The automatically selected fan speed (vol
ume of air delivery) can be reduced or in
creased manually by operati ng these but
tons. The selected fan speed is shown by a
segment display above the buttons. 4iiJ
-Rear window defogger
See page 151.
Air distribution selector
buttons
The automatically programmed air distribu
tion can be altered manually with the but
tons {},� . and {).. The buttons can be op
erated singly or in combination.
To return to the automatically programmed
air distribution, switch off the selected
manual functions separately or by pressing
the "AUTO" or ® butto ns.
iJ -Air directed to windows
Unlike setting ®, this setting directs all
the air to outlets 1 and 2.
1 :s::
1 -
Air
from dashboard outlets
-
and rear of center console
All the air comes from outlets 3 and 4.
0 -Air to footwall&
All the air comes from outlets 5 and from
the outlets under the front seats.

CONT
ROLS AND
EQUIPMENT---------------------
Loading a roof rack
Always distribute the loads evenly.
The total maximum permissible load
carrying capacity of 200 lbs ( 1 00 kg)
for the roof rack installation (includ
ing weight the roof rack system)
must not be exceeded -see
page 290 for details.
19 2 �
WARNING
• Improper use of a roof rack can
cause accidents and personal inju
ries.
• The use of a roof rack can nega
tively affect the way a vehicle han
dles.
• Cargo that is large. heavy,
bulk y, long or flat will have a
greater negative influence on the
vehicle's aerodynamics. center of
gravity and over all handling.
• Never exceed the maximum per
missible load carrying capacity of
the roof of your vehicle.
• Always drive slowly, avoid sud
den braking and maneuvers when
transp orting cargo on the roof of
your vehicle. When to
remove the roof rack
If you have installed a roof rack on your ve
hicle, it is best to ask the car wash operator
if it should be removed before going
through an automatic car wash.
When not in use, remove the roof rack to re
duce wind noise, improve handling, fuel
consump tion and guard against theft.

The
first 1,000 miles (1 500 km)
and afterwards
Break-in period
During the first few hours of driving, the en
gine's internal friction is higher than later
when all the moving parts have been broken
in. How well this break-in process is done
depends to a considerable extent on the
way the vehicle is driven during the first
1, 000 miles (1 500 kilometres").
For the first 600 miles
(1 000 kilometres):
As a rule of thumb:
• Do not use full throttle.
• Do not drive faster than 3/4 of top
speed shown on the speedometer.
• Avoid high engine speeds.
• If possible, avoid towing a trailer. �
WARNING
• New tires tend to be slippery
and must also be "broken-ln." Be
sure to remember this during the
first 300 miles (500 kilometres).
Brake gently. Avoid following
closely behind other vehicles or
other situations that might require
sudden, hard braking.
• New brake pads don't have the
best stopp ing power and must be
.. brok en-in" during the initial 100
to 150 miles (150 to 200 kilo
metres) of normal city driving. You
can compensate for this by press
ing the brake pedal more firmly.
This also applies later when new
pads are installed.
From 600 to 1,000 miles
(1 000 to 1 500 kilometres):
Speeds can gradually be increased to maxi
mum permissible road or engine speed. VE
HICL E OPER ATION
During and after break-in
period
• Do not rev the engine up to high speeds
when it is cold. This applies whether the
transmission is in N (Neutral) or in gear. dib Do not drive with unnece ssarily C!1'5 high engine speeds -upshifting
early saves fuel, reduces noise and
protects the environmeht -see also
page 195.
After the break-in period
Do not exceed maximum engine
speed under any circumstances. Up
shift into the next higher gear before reach
ing the red area at the end of the tachome
ter scale -see page 117.
Excessive engine speeds are automatically
reduced.
193

VEHICLE OPERA
TION-----------------------
Operate your vehicle safely
The condition of the vehicle is es
sential for driving safety.
Therefore, always be sure to observe the
following points before you drive off:
• Check lights and turn signals.
• Check fuel level.
• Adjust the mirrors.
• Make sure that all lights and all
windows are clean.
• Make sure the air Intake slot be
tween the engine hood and the
windshield is free of leaves, snow
and ice.
• Check warning and indicator
lights when starting the engine.
For driving safety, always follow the speci
fied maintenance intervals in your Mainte
nance booklet -especially for changing
the brake fluid, see page 242.
Yo ur personal driving style and your
attitude affect driving safety to a
very great extent.
19 4 Therefore,
for your own safety:
• Wear your safety belts and wear
them properly, even if you're just
driving in the city or to the corner
store -see page 14.
• Make sure that all passengers are
wearing their safety belts properly,
even those sitting in the rear -
see page 14.
Passengers not wearing safety belts endan
ger not only themselves in case of an acci
dent, but also the driver and other passen
gers.
• Make sure that children always sit
on the rear seat properly restrained
by a res traint system appropriate
for their size and age.
• Never transport a child in a rear
facing child or infant seat on the
front passenger seat.
• Adjust your seat so that you can
easily reach all controls as far away
from the airbag as possible but no
closer than 10 in. (25 em) -
see page 76. •
The seating position is very im
portant for the airbag performance
- see page 29.
• Always adjust the head restra ints
to the correct height.
For maximum protection, the upper edge of
the head restraints should be at least at
eye level, or higher .
• Always make sure that the move
ment of the pedals is not restricted
In any way-see page 102.
• Store luggage and light items
properly
in the luggage compartment
see page 88.
of the roof - see page 191.
• If you drink, do not drive.
The use of alcohol, drugs and certain medi
cations will seriously impair perception,
reactions and driving ability, and substan
tially increase the risk of an accident and
personal injury.

------------------------VEHICLE
OPERATION
Operate your vehicle economically and
• Do not drive if you are tired.
Make frequent rest stops, at least after ev
ery two hours of driving.
• Always adapt vehicle speed to
traffic, weather and road condi
tions.
Remember that especially on smooth, slip
pery roads, vehicle handling and braking de
pend a great deal on tire adhesion. On wet
roads, the front wheels can hydroplane es
pecially at higher speeds. If this happens,
you will then, no longer be able to steer or
brake properly.
• Always observe the posted speed
limits and use common sense. Your
good judgment can mean the differ
ence between arriving safely at your
destination and having an accident.
Additional information regarding safety can
be found in the individual chapters of this
manual. minimize
pollution
Va rious factors influence fuel consumption:
engine wear, brakes and tires, environmen
tal impact.
This chapter addresses some of these
points.
Yo ur personal sty!e of driving
wi II determine the economy of your vehicle,
as well as exhaust and noise levels.
«i? Do not let your vehicle stand and
, warm
up.
When the engine is idling, it takes a very
long time to warm up. Moreover, during
warm-up, both engine wear and exhaust
gas emissions are very high. Therefore, be
ready to drive off immediately after starting
the engine and avoid high engine speeds.
«i? Avoid full throttle.
Accelerating gently reduces fuel consump
tion, engine wear, and does not disturb the
environment. <£'
Avoid driving at high speed.
Fuel consumption, exhaust emissions and
engine noise increase disproportionately at
high speeds. If you drive at approximately
three quarters of top speed, fuel consump
tion will be reduced by one half. Never drive
faster than the posted speed limit and
weather conditions permitting.
r.:Cib Drive as smoothly as possible
W5 and keep a lookout ahead.
Unn ecessary accelerating and braking in
crease fuel consumption and disturb the en
vironment.
r.:Cib Switch off your engine if you are
W5 caught in a traffic jam. This
saves fuel and reduces emissions.
195