2005 Alfa Romeo 159 service

78
SAFETY
DEVICES
WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
CAR
MAINTENANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
INDEX
CORRECT USE
OF THE CAR
DASHBOARD
AND
CONTROLS
The device is automatically deactivated
when operating accidentally or incor-
rectly the stalk, the knurled ring Aor
buttonRES: in this event to reactivate
the device: bring the car to the required
speed and then move the stalk upwards
(+) or downwards (–).CEILING LIGHTS
FRONT CEILING LIGHT
fig. 58
Press button:
A: to turn on/off the driver’s courtesy
light;
B: to turn on/off the central light;
C: to turn on/off the passenger’s cour-
tesy light.
Keeping pressed button Bwill turn off
all front ceiling lights and rear ceiling
lights. Turning off is also indicated by the
sound of a buzzer. To turn these lights
on again press briefly button B.
In the event of device
malfunction or failure,
turn the knurled ring A-fig. 57
to O and contact Alfa Romeo
Authorized Services after
checking the protection fuse in-
tegrity.
WARNING
When travelling with
the device on, never
set the gearshift lever to neu-
tral.
WARNING
A0E0225mfig. 58
IMPORTANT Leaving inadvertently a
door open, the front ceiling light and the
puddle lights will turn off automatically
after a few minutes. To turn them on
again, open another door or close and
open again the same door.

102
SAFETY
DEVICES
WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
CAR
MAINTENANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
INDEX
CORRECT USE
OF THE CAR
DASHBOARD
AND
CONTROLS
ROOF RACK/
SKI RACK
The car is preset for mounting roof
racks/ski racks.
Front hooks are in points A-fig. 99.
Rear hooks are in points B.
A0E0097mfig. 99
HEADLIGHTS
ADJUSTING THE HEADLIGHT
BEAM
Proper adjustment of the headlight
beams is of vital importance for your
safety and comfort and also for the oth-
er road users. To ensure you and other
drivers have the best visibility conditions
when travelling with the headlights on,
the headlights must be set properly. Con-
tact Alfa Romeo Authorized Services to
have the headlights properly adjusted.
HEADLIGHT AIMING DEVICE
It works with the key fitted into the ig-
nition device and dipped beams on.
When the car is loaded, it slopes back-
wards. This means that the headlight
beam rises. In this case, it is necessary
to return it to the correct position.
Distribute the load even-
ly and when driving, bear
in mind the increased
sensitivity to side wind.
IMPORTANTAfter few kilometers,
check that fastening screws are firmly
tightened.
IMPORTANTNever exceed the max.
permissible loads (see section “”Tech-
nical specifications”).

103
SAFETY
DEVICES
WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
CAR
MAINTENANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
INDEX
CORRECT USE
OF THE CAR
DASHBOARD
AND
CONTROLS
In this event, to adjust the headlight
slant use control A-fig. 100set on the
button control panel near the steering
wheel.
If the car is fitted with bixenon head-
lights, headlight aiming is electronic and
therefore control Ais not present.Control has four positions corresponding
to the loads given below:
❒position0: one or two passenger on
front seats and kerb weight (includ-
ing full fuel tank, tools and acces-
sories);
❒position1: five passengers;
❒position2: five passengers and boot
fully loaded (about 50 kg);
❒position3: driver plus 300 kg load
completely stored into the boot.
IMPORTANT Check headlight slant
each time the transported load changes.
FRONT FOG LIGHT
ADJUSTMENT
Contact Alfa Romeo Authorized Services
to have the headlights correctly adjusted.
A0E0226mfig. 100
HEADLIGHT ADJUSTMENT
ABROAD
The dipped beam headlights are adjust-
ed for circulation in the country in which
the car is marketed. In countries with
opposite circulation, to avoid glaring on-
coming vehicles, proceed as follows:
❒remove headlight cover (see para-
graph “Dipped beam headlights” in
section “In an emergency”);
❒move lever A-fig. 101aside;
A0E0050mfig. 101

105
SAFETY
DEVICES
WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
CAR
MAINTENANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
INDEX
CORRECT USE
OF THE CAR
DASHBOARD
AND
CONTROLS
EBD failure
EBD failure is indicated by the turning
on of warning lights
>+xon the in-
strument panel (on certain versions to-
gether with the dedicated message on
the display) (see section “Warning lights
and messages”).
In this case with sharp braking the rear
wheels might lock too early, with the
possibility of skidding. Drive extremely
carefully to the closest Alfa Romeo Au-
thorized Services to have the system
checked.
BRAKE ASSIST
(emergency braking
assistance)
The system, which cannot be cut out,
recognizes emergency braking (on the
ground of the brake pedal operation
speed) and considerably increases the
pressure in the brake circuit.
Brake Assist is deactivated on the ver-
sions equipped with VDC system in the
event of VDC system failure, indicated
by the turning on of warning light
áon
the instrument panel (on certain ver-
sions together with a message on the
display).
FAILURE WARNING LIGHTS
ABS failure
ABS failure is indicated by the turning
on of warning light
>on the instru-
ment panel (on certain versions together
with the dedicated message on the dis-
play) (see section “Warning lights and
messages”). In this case the braking
system is still efficient, though without
the aid of the ABS system.
Drive carefully to the closest Alfa Romeo
Authorized Services to have the system
checked.

106
SAFETY
DEVICES
WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
CAR
MAINTENANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
INDEX
CORRECT USE
OF THE CAR
DASHBOARD
AND
CONTROLS
VDC SYSTEM
(Vehicle Dynamics
Control)
(where provided)
The VDC system is an electronic system
controlling the car stability in the event
of tyre grip loss.
The VDC system is therefore particular-
ly useful when grip conditions of the
road surfaces changes.
VDC SYSTEM
INTERVENTION
It is signalled by the blinking of the
warning light
áon the instrument pan-
el, to inform the driver that the car is
in critical stability and grip conditions.
TURNING THE VDC SYSTEM
ON/OFF
The VDC system is automatically acti-
vated when the engine is started. When
travelling, to turn the VDC off press the
ASR/ VDC button on the central console
fig. 102for 2 seconds. Turning off the
VDC will also turn off the ASR. Both func-
tions can be reactivated by pressing the
ASR/VDC button.
VDC system deactivation is indicated
by the instrument panel warning light
á(on certain versions a symbol is dis-
played) and by the circular led around
the ASR/VDC button.
If the VDC has been turned off when
travelling, at next engine start-up it will
turn on again automatically.
FAILURE WARNING LIGHTS
In the event of failure, the VDC system
is automatically disconnected and the
warning light
ácomes on with fixed
light on the instrument panel (on cer-
tain versions together with a message
on the display) (see section “Warning
lights and messages”). In this case con-
tact Alfa Romeo Authorized Services as
soon as possible.
A0E0026mfig. 102

Failure warnings
In the event of malfunctioning, the ASR
system is automatically disconnected
and on versions fitted with “Reconfig-
urable multifunction display” symbol
Vis displayed. In this case contact Al-
fa Romeo Authorized Services as soon
as possible.
110
SAFETY
DEVICES
WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
CAR
MAINTENANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
INDEX
CORRECT USE
OF THE CAR
DASHBOARD
AND
CONTROLS
MSR system (engine braking
torque control)
It is an integral part of the ASR system
that in case of sudden gear shifting, cuts
in providing torque to the engine thus
preventing excessive driving wheel dri-
ve that, specially in poor grip conditions,
can lead to loss of stability.
For correct operation of
the ASR system, the
tyres must absolutely be of
the same brand and type on all
wheels, in normal conditions of
use, at the proper inflation
pressure values and, above all,
of type, brand and size speci-
fied (see paragraph “Wheels”
in section “Technical Specifica-
tions”).
WARNING

111
SAFETY
DEVICES
WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
CAR
MAINTENANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
INDEX
CORRECT USE
OF THE CAR
DASHBOARD
AND
CONTROLS
111
EOBD SYSTEM
The EOBD system (European On Board
Diagnosis) allows continuous diagnosis
of the components of the car correlat-
ed with emissions.
It also alerts the driver, by turning on the
warning light
Uon the instrument pan-
el (on certain versions together with the
message on the display) (see section
“Warning lights and messages”), when
these conditions are no longer in peak
conditions.
The objective is:
❒ to keep system efficiency under con-
trol;
❒ to warn when a fault causes emission
levels to increase;
❒to warn of the need to replace dete-
riorated components.
If when fitting the key
into the ignition device,
the warning light
U
does not turn on or if, while
travelling it turns on glowing
steadily or flashing, contact Al-
fa Romeo Authorized Services
as soon as possible. Warning
light
Uoperation can be
checked by means of special
equipment by traffic agents. Al-
ways comply with the traffic
regulations in force in the coun-
try where you are travelling.
The system also has a diagnostic con-
nector that can be interfaced with ap-
propriate tools, which makes it possible
to read the error codes stored in the con-
trol unit, together with a series of spe-
cific parameters for engine operation
and diagnosis. This check can also be
carried out by the traffic police.
IMPORTANTAfter eliminating the in-
convenience, to check the system com-
pletely, Alfa Romeo Authorized Services
are obliged to run a bench test and, if
necessary, road tests which may also
call for a long journey.

112
SAFETY
DEVICES
WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
CAR
MAINTENANCE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
INDEX
CORRECT USE
OF THE CAR
DASHBOARD
AND
CONTROLS
Sound system presetting includes:
❒sound system power cables;
❒front and rear speakers cables;
❒aerial power cable;
❒sound system compartment;
❒aerial on car roof.
The sound system shall be installed in
the proper space occupied by the odd-
ment compartment that shall be re-
moved by pressing the two retaining
tabs set in the oddment compartment:
here you will find the power cables.
SOUND SYSTEM
PRESETTING
(where provided)
When the sound system has not been
requested the car is provided with two
oddment compartments on the instru-
ment panel.
If you decide to install
the sound system after
buying the car, contact
first Alfa Romeo Authorized
Services that will give you use-
ful advice about installation and
how to safeguard the battery.
Excessive loadless absorption
damages the battery and the
battery warranty can be inval-
idated.