Towing a trailer191
Using the systemSafetyDriving TipsGeneral MaintenanceBreakdown assistanceTechnical Data
Tyre pressure
Select the tyre inflation pressure on your vehicle for that of “fully laden”,
⇒
page 226. The inflation pressure of the tyres fitted to the trailer adjust
in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendation.
Exterior mirrors
You have to have additional exterior mirrors fitted if you are not able to see
the traffic behind the trailer with the standard rear-view mirrors. Both exte-
rior mirrors should be attached to folding arms. Adjust the mirrors so that
they provide you with an adequate field of view to the rear.
Headlights
Before starting off with a hitched trailer, also check the setting of the head-
lights. Alter the setting as necessary with the aid of the headlight beam
adjuster ⇒page 58.
Detachable ball head
The ball rod is detachable on vehicles which feature a factory-fitted towing
device. It is stowed together with separate fitting instructions in the spare
wheel well in the luggage compartment of the vehicle.
Further information on the towing device ⇒page 192.
Note
•We recommend that you also have your vehicle inspected between
service intervals if you tow a trailer frequently.
•The handbrake on the towing vehicle must be put on when coupling
and decoupling the trailer.
Driving Tips
Particular caution is required when towing a trailer.
– Do not, as far as possible, drive with your vehicle unladen and the trailer laden.
– Do not make full use of the legal maximum speeds. This applies in particular to downhill sections.
– Apply the brakes in good time.
– Keep a check on the coolant temperature gauge if the outside temperature is high.
Distribution of weight
The distribution of the weight is very poor if your vehicle is unladen and
the trailer is laden. Maintain a particularly low speed if you cannot avoid
driving with this combination.
Driving speed
Do not drive faster than 80 km/hour for safety reasons. This also applies
for countries in which higher speeds are allowed.
The fact that the driving stability of the vehicle + trailer combination
reduces with increasing speed means that the legally allowed speed
should not be used when there are unfavourable road, weather or wind
conditions, particularly near accident black spots.
You must always reduce your speed immediately as soon as you detect
even just the slightest swaying of the trailer. On no account attempt to
stop the trailer from “swaying” by accelerating.
Apply the brakes in good time! If the trailer is fitted with a trailer brake,
apply the brakes gently at first, then brake firmly. This will avoid brake jolts
resulting from the trailer wheels locking. Shift down gears in good time
Towing a trailer
192
before negotiating a downhill section to allow the engine to also act as a
brake.
Engine overheating
Please keep a check on the coolant temperature gauge if you have to
negotiate a lengthy slope in a low gear at a high engine speed when the
outside temperature is very high ⇒page 14.
If the needle of the coolant temperature gauge moves into the right-hand
area or even the red area of the scale, reduce your speed immediately.
Stop and switch off the engine if the warning light
in the instrument
cluster begins flashing. Wait a few minutes and check the level of coolant
in the coolant expansion bottle ⇒page 215, “Inspecting the coolant level”.
Please refer to the following guidelines ⇒page 31, “Coolant tempera-
ture/coolant level ”.
The coolant temperature can be reduced by switching on the heating.
Any increase in the cooling effect of the coolant fan through shifting down
a gear and increasing the engine speed is not possible since the fan
speed is independent of the engine speed. One should also not drop a
gear for this reason when towing a trailer as long as the engine can
manage the slope without any drop in speed.
Detachable towing device*
The detachable ball head of the towing device is stowed in the spare
wheel well in the luggage compartment.
An instruction for correct installation and removal of the ball head of the
towing device is supplied with the ball head
Inspect the ball head to ensure that it is properly locked each time before
setting off. The inspection is performed by turning the closed locking lever
downwards. If the locking lever can only be turned approx. 5°, the locking
mechanism is O.K. After the inspection pull the locking lever back again
to its stop. The towing device must not be used, if it does not wish to close
or the locking lever turns slightly in the closed position.
WARNING
Do not use any aids or tools for installing or removing the ball
head. This might result in damage to the locking mechanism to the
Fig. 155 Detachable
ball head
Inspecting and Replenishing
216
Replenishing the coolant
– Switch the engine off.
– Allow the engine to cool down.
– Place a cloth over the cap of the coolant expansion reservoir
⇒page 215, fig. 162 and unscrew the cap carefully by
turning it to the left ⇒.
– Top up the coolant.
– Screw on the cap tight until it is heard to lock.
The coolant which you use for replenishing the system, must comply with
one specific specification ⇒page 214, “Coolant”. Do not use an alterna-
tive additive if the coolant additive G12 PLUS is not available in excep-
tional cases. Just top up the system with water and as soon as possible
arrange adjustment to correct the mixing ratio of water and coolant addi-
tive again by a Škoda dealer.
Only use fresh coolant for topping up the system.
Do not fill up over the “MAX” marking! Excess coolant which is heated up
is forced out of the cooling system through the pressure relief valve in the
cap of the coolant compensation bottle.
Wait until the engine has cooled down for a system which has suffered a
major loss of coolant before pouring in coolant. This is necessary to avoid
engine damage.
Do not continue your journey if for some reason it is not possible
under the conditions prevailing to top up with coolant. Switch off the
engine and obtain professional assistance from a Škoda dealer.
WARNING
•The cooling system is pressurized! Do not open the cap of the
coolant expansion bottle if the engi ne is still hot - risk of scalding!
•The coolant additive and thus all of the coolant is harmful to
your health. Avoid contact with the coolant. Coolant vapours are
also harmful to the health. It is important, therefore, to always
safely store any coolant additive in its original container out of the
reach of children - risk of poisoning!
•If any splashes of coolant get into your eyes, rinse out your eyes
immediately with clear water and contact a doctor as soon as
possible.
•You should also consult a doctor without delay if you have inad-
vertently swallowed coolant.
For the sake of the environment
Do not re-use coolant if it is necessary to drain the coolant in the system.
It should be collected and disposed of in compliance with environmental
protection regulations.
The radiator fan
The radiator fan may switch on suddenly.
The radiator fan is driven by an electric motor and controlled by a thermo-
stat according to the coolant temperature.
The radiator fan may continue running for up to 10 minutes after the
engine has been switched off - even if the ignition is also off. It may also
switch on suddenly after a certain time, if
•the coolant temperature has risen because of an accumulation of heat
or
Index
262
Child safety seats
ISOFIX system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Child seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168 attach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Child seat protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Classification into groups . . . . . . . . . . . 168
on the front passenger seat . . . . . . . . . 166
Safety instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Use of child seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Children and safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Chrome parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Cigarette lighter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Climatronic Air outlet vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Blower . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Defrosting windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
economic use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Keeping windows demisted . . . . . . . . . . 111
Operational problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Recirculated air mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Setting temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Climatronic (automatic air conditioning) . . . 109
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Clothes hooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Cockpit An overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Coming Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Compartments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Convenience operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Converting/masking over headlights . . . . . . 184
Cool box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
replenishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Coolant level Warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Coolant temperature gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Coolant temperature/coolant level Warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Cooling Climatronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
The air conditioning system . . . . . . . . . . 104
Correct seated position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Counter for distance driven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Cruise control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Cruise control system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
D
Deactivating an airbag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Defrosting rear window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Defrosting windows The air conditioning system . . . . . . . . . . 106
De-icing windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Detachable towing device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Diesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Diesel engines Starting engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Differential Lock (EDL) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177 Digital clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Dipstick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Direction indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Distance driven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
distance driven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Door Child safety locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Drinks can holder at the front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
at the rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Driving economically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Driving time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Dynamo Warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
E
EDL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Electric sliding/tilting roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Electrically adjustable rear mirror . . . . . . . . . 67
Electrically adjustable seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Electronic Differential LockWarning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Electronic Differential Lock (EDL) . . . . . . . . 177
Electronic immobiliser Warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Electronic stability programme (ESP) . . . . . 175 Warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34