2005 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF Owners Manual

Never excee d the maximum inflation pressure listed o n the tire sidewall for
that the ve hicle manufacturer. no t the tir e m anufacturer. determines the co rrect
tir e
pressure for the tire s on your vehic le
the required tire pressure from the tire pressure label on the open ed ge of the driver's
door.
Place the air pressure gauge on the dust caps -the re is no need
The tire pressures should only be ch ecked when the tires are co ld. T he s lightl y raised pres­
sures of warm t ires mus t not be red uced.
Adjust the tire pressure to the load you are
carrying.
Vehicle with
Head the required tir e pres sure from the tire
pressure on the ope n edge of the driver's
d oor.
Turn the va lve stem cap counter-cloc kwise to
remove i t from the ti re va lve.
Place the air pressure gauge on the valve.
The tire pressures should onl y be c hecked and adjusted when the tire s are cold. The slightl y
raised pressures of warm tires must not b e re­
duced.
Adju st the tir e pressure to the load you are
carryin g.
the valve stem cap on the valve.
When should check the tire pressure?
The correct tire pressure is especi ally important
at high speeds. The pressure sh oul d there fore be ch ecked at least once a month and always before
s tarting a journey. Do not forge t check the tire pressure on th e spare whee l7l
When should odjust the tire pressures?
Adju st
the tire pressure to the load you are car­
ry ing. Af ter changing a
addition on vehicles with TPMS,
yo u should sp ecify new tire
sudden tire failure loss of control, collision, serious personal injury even death.
Always fill tires to the recommende d and correct tire pressure before dri ving ofT.
Driving with underinflated tires bend m ore, letting them get too hot resulting in
tread separation, sudden tire failure tire
failure and loss of control.
Excessive speed and/or overloading can heat build-up, sudden tire failu re in­cluding a blowout and sudden deflation and
loss o f co ntrol.
If the tir e pressure is too low or too high, the tires w ill wear prematurely and the ve hicle
will not handle we ll.
with tire pressure monitoring system To prevent this, make sure that factory
For the sake of environment
Tip s
For vehicles
may find differences between the pres­
s ur e read ings fro m a hand-held pressure gauge
a nd the pressure readings disp laye d in the in­
s trument The tire pres sure monitoring syste m is more acc urat e.
the is too
applicable =Tire press ure monitoring
applicable
69

Tires and
There arc limits to th e amount of load or weig ht that any vehicl e and any tire can carry. A ve hicle that is overloaded will not handle well and is mor e to stop. Overloading can not only
lead l oss of ve hicle control. but ca n al so damage including a blowout
and s udden d eflatio n th at can cause the vehicl e
to crash .
Your safet y
and that of your passengers also de­
pends on making sure th a t l oad limit s arc not ex­ceeded. load in cludes everybody and ev­eryth in g in and on the vehicle. These load limit s are technically refe rred to as th e vehicle' s Gr oss Ratin g
includes the weight of the basic ve­all factory installed accessorie s. a full tank of coolant and other fluids plus max­imum load. The m ax imum load incl udes the number of passengers that the ve hicle is in ­tended to carry lbs. (68 kg) for each pas­senger at designation seating position and the
total wei ght of a ny lu ggage in the ve hicle. yo u the weig ht of the trailer hit ch and the tongue weight of the loaded trailer mus t be included o f the ve hicle load.
T he Gross
Axle is the m aximum load th at can be ap plied at each of the
veh icle's two
has 5 seat ing pos ition s, 2 in the front and 3 in the rear for seating ca­paciry of 5. Eac h seatin g posit ion ha s a sa fe ty bookle t2.1
and
The fact that there is an upper li mit to your ve­
hi cle's Gross Hating means that the total weight of whatever i s bein g carried in the vehicle (in cluding the weight of a trailer hit ch and the tongue weig ht o f the load ed
t railer) is limited. The more passengers in the ve­
hicl e or passengers are heav ier than the standard weig hts assumed mean that less weig ht can be carried lu ggage.
The tire pressure on your Volkswage n also lists the maximum combined weight of all of the occupants and
page fig . 15 .
WARNING
Overloading a ve hicl e can cause loss of vehicle control, a crash or other accident, serious pe r­
sonal injury, nnd even dent h.
more weight than your vehicle was d esig ne d to carry will prevent th e ve hicl e
fr om handling properl y and increase the ri sk of th e loss of ve hicl e control.
The brakes on a ve hicl e that has been over­loaded may not be abl e to sto p the ve hicle
w ithi n a safe di stance.
o n a ve hicle that has been overloaded can
Alway s make sure that the to tal load bein g transported-including the weight of a trail er hitch and the tongu e weight of a loaded trail er -does no t m ake th e ve hicle heavier t11e
ve hicl e's Gross Vehicle Rating .

Determining correct
Use the example below to calc ul ate the
to ta l weight of the passen ge rs and lu ggage
or other things that yo u pla n to transport
so that you can make sure tha t
w ill not be overlo ad ed .
Steps for Determining Load
limit
l. Locate the statement
WEIGHT
placard (tire infla­
tion
press ure page 61,
fig. 15 .
2. Determine the combined
weight of the dri ver and pas­
sengers that will be riding in
your
3. Subtract the combined
weight of the driver and pas­
se
ngers from kilog rams
or pounds page 61,
fig. 15.
4. T he resulting figure equals
the availabl e amount of cargo
and luggage load capacity. For
example ,
if the amount
equals
lbs . passengers in
your vehicle, the amount of
availab le cargo and luggag e
lo ad
capacity is lb s.
(5 x = lbs.)
5. Determine the combine d
weight
of lu ggage and cargo
being loaded on the
-the tire page 73,
fig . 19 )
to dete rmine the designated load
ratin g for a specific
and 71

3.2 Tip s and Advice
Tire service
The serv ice life of tires depends on a lot of different things including proper
lation and balancing, correct tire pressure and driving style.
Fig. 17 Tire tread : tread wear indicators (TWI)
T re ad
Wear Indicator {T W I)
The original tires on your ve hicle have 1/16 inch
(1.6 mm) high fig . 17 ning across the tread. Dependi ng on the m ake, there will be six to eight o f them evenly placed around th e tire.
he tread
Tir e press ure
In correct tire pressure cau ses premature wear and ca n cause sudden tire blow-out. For this
reason , tire pressure must be c h ecke d at least once a page 68.
D riving style
Driving fast around curve s, heavy acceleration and hard braki ng increase tire
Rota ting tires for m ore even wear
If the front tires arc worn considerably more than the rear ones. rotate them shown 18 . All the tires will then last for about the same amount of time.
A
ll four tires should h ave the same amount of wear. All four w heels mus t have th e same ro llin g
circumference.
72
Fig_ 18 Rotat ing tires for more even wear
Wheel balanci ng
The wheels on new vehicles are balanced. I low­vario us s ituation s during everyday driv ing can cause them to become unbalanced, re­
s u lting in vibrations you can usu ally feel through
t h e stee ring wheel.
tire wea r. impairin g the safe ty of the ve hicl e. tires show excess ive wea r. have the w heel a lig n-
m ent checke d by Volkswagen
d ealer or qualified works ho p.
Sudden tire failu re
Never drive ve hicle when
Worn tires safety
and loss of comrol.
Always keep chemical s that can cause tire
damage, s u ch as grease,

(continued)
T ires age even if they arc not being used
and can f ail suddenly, especially at high
s peeds. Tire s that are more than 6 years old can only be used in an emerge ncy and then special care and at lo we r speeds.
(continued)
Never mount used tires on yo ur ve hicle if yo u are not sure of their used tir es may have been damaged eve n though the damage cannot be seen that can lead to sudden tire fa ilure and loss of vehicl e control.
Ne w tires and wheels have to be broke n in.
Ratio of height to width (aspect ratio)
of tire - Load
index &
speed rating
in
hicle's design
. The tires and rim s approved by Volk swagen are specially matched to th e te ristics of th e ve hicl e and can make a major comribution to good road ho ldin g and safe
We recommend that all wo rk on tires and wheels be performed by an authorized Volkswage n dealer. They arc famil iar with recommended procedures and have the sp ecial tools
and spare pa rts as well as the proper facilit ies for disposing of the old tires .
Author ized Volkswage n dealers have
the sary info rmation about technical requirements for installing or changin g tires and rims.
R
eplacing tires and wheels
Tires should b e replaced at lea st in pairs and not
individuall y (fo r example both front !ires or
ve hicle with read and heed th e page 75,

eq uipped with Tire Monitoring
Always buy replacement rad ia l tires that have the same s p ecifica tions as the tires approved for your by
th e original equipment or approved op­tional tires listed in the page
and its load
limits, and can contribute t o the important road holding, driv ing characteris tics. and safety of the vehi cle. The page 6 1) lists specifications of t h e tires approve d for the Literature.
T he tir e pressure label on the open edge of th e driver's page fig. 15lis ts the s pecifica­tions of the o riginal equipment tires installed o n your ve hicl e at the time it was manufactured.
Federal law requires tire manufacturers to place standardized information on the sidewall of all page fig. 19 . This information identi­fies and describes the fundamental characteris­tics, the qualit y grade of the tire and also pro­vides a tire identificatio n number for safety stan ­dard certification and in case of a recall.
Tir e
specifications
K n
owledge of tire specificatio ns makes it easier to choose the correct tires. Rad ial tires have the
tir e specifications marked on the sidewall, for exampl e:
R 17 91 W
T
his example contains the follow ing informa­
t ion:
rat ing letter code
(o r Indicates that the tire has some mud and snow capability
The tires coul d also have the information of di­rection of page 86.
Speed rating letter code
The speed rati ng letter code o n the wheels indi­cates the maximum permissible road speeds in o n 77.
up to 93 mph
km/h )
R
up to km/h)
up to mph
mph
krn /h)9l
W
up t o 168 mph
Tire Identification Number and tire manufacture dote
T
his i s the t ire's begi ns with th e letters
mean tha t the tire was produced in th e 18th week
fabric in the tire. In gen ­the g reater the number o f plies, the m ore weight tire can support. Tir e manufacturers
a lso must indicate the materials in the tire, which include steel, nylon, polyes ter, and others.
system)
For tires with maxim um sp eed over t49 mph (240 le tt ers
74 Checking and

Maximum Load Ratin g
This number indi cates the maximum load in and pounds that can be carried b y th e
tire. Tire
and temperature resistance.
Tire quality grading for tr ead wear, traction,
and temperature resistance
Tread trac tion tempe rature grades
Maximum Permissibl e
su re that sh o ul d ever be put in t he tir e under normal driv in g con d itio ns.
Replacin g tire s
or rims on
stantly monitors the air pressure in sid e the tire , and then transmit s thi s information to th e
you arc goin g to replace the wheel
rims on your ve hicl e, have these se n sors. The sensors must be compatibl e with the sys te m on yo ur hicle .
you rims. which do not sors, or have sensors w hi ch are not compatibl e,
then the TPM S will no t wo rk properly. wo uld not be able to monit or the tir e pressure o r you if it i s necessaty.
senso rs mus t b e rep laced at sp ecific va ls.
yo u ch an ge sen sors, yo u have to new valv es.
driv e wi th the stem caps curely m ounted . valve stem caps. your authorized Volk swage n dealer to re p lace lost va lve stem caps.
T he in stallat i
on of replacement ti res w ith steel cord p lie s in th e tire sidewal l may cause m alfuncti on of the tire pressure monitoring sys te m and is no t recomme nded (cord material inform ation in molded o n the tir e
if your ve hicle was equipped with r un-flat tires. rep la cin g them
wi th tire s that are not identical to th ose fill ed may cause mal function of the
3.2 Tips and Advice
and i s not recommended. Run-flat ti res should not be used to replace regular tires.
indicator after p la cing o ne or more tire s on you r ve hicle. the m alfu nctio n indi cator is is
not working p ro perly. Your r eplacement tire
m ight be incompatible with system,
o r some component of the be age d.
Usin g incorrect or unmatch ed tires and I or wheels or imprope r tire and wheel
use tires , rims and wheel b o lts that meet the sp ecificatio ns o f o ri ginal
Tires age even if they are n o l b eing used and can fail suddenly, especially a t hi gh
s peeds. Tires that arc m ore tha n 6 years old can only be used in an em erge ncy and then
w ith special care and lower speed s.
Never moun t used tires o n your ve hicl e if you are not sure o f their
four whee ls mus t be fitt ed with radial tires o f the same ence) and the same tread pattern. Dri ving with different tires reduces vehicle and can lead t o loss of contro l.
If the s pare wheel is no t the sam e as the tires that are m ounted on the vehicle-fo r ample with winter tires-on ly usc th e spare w heel fo r a short perio d of t im e and drive with extra care. Refit the normal road w heel as s oo n
a s safe ly possibl e.
Neve r drive fa ster th a n the maximum
speed f or which the tires on your ve hicl e are
r a te d because ti res that are driven faste r than their ra te d speed can suddenly.
Ov erloading tires cause heat build -up,
sudde n tire failure, including a blowout and sudden d eflati on and loss of control.

(continued)
For technical reasons it is not
I f you install wheel t rim discs on the ve­
hicle wheels, make sure that the air flow to the brakes is not blocked. Reduced airflow to the brakes can them to overheat, increasing stop­ping distances and causing collision.
Note
For technical reasons. it is not ge nerally pos­
s ibl e to use th e wheel rim s from other vehicle s.
This can ho ld true for wheels of the same vehicle
ty pe.
Uniform tire
Tr ead wear
Temperature A B
Quality can be found where applicable on the tire sid e wall between tread shoulder an d maximum section pa ge 73, fig.
For example: Tread wear Tra ction M, Te m ­
perature A.
All passe nger car tire s must conform to Federa l
Sa fe ty Hequirement s in addition to these grades.
Tread
wear
T he /read comparative rat ing base d on th e wea r rate of the tire when tested under controll ed co nditi ons on a sp ecifie d go v­
ernment test course.
For exa
mple, a tir e graded would wear one and one half(ll/2) times as well on the govern ­
ment cou rse as a tir e
The relati ve performance of tires depends upon the actual conditions of th eir use , h oweve r, and m ay depart significantl y fro m the norm due to
76 Checking and
extra care. Replace the flat tire
with the tir e matchin g the others on your vehicl e
a s soon as poss ible.
Note
in stall ing new
drive without the va lve ste m cap. The valves and sensors co uld get damaged.
If the sen sors must be re pla ced, then the valve mus t also be replaced th e sa me time.
The sensors mus t be replaced in schedule d bookle t ...
For the sake of environment
Dispose of o ld tires in accordance w ith the local
requirement s.
variations in driving habits, serv ice pra ctices and diff ere n ces in road characteristics and cli­
mate.
Traction
AA, A, B, C
T he
from highes t to lowest, are M, A, Band T hose grades rep resent the tire's abil iry to stop on wet pave ment measured under controlled conditions o n specified gov­ernment tes t s urfa ces of and co ncre te. A
tir e marked may have poor tra ction perfo r­
Temperatur e A, B, C
The lemperruuregrad es arc A (th e highest), B. and C, representing the tire's resistance the
ge neration of heat and its abilit y to diss ipat e heat tested under controlled conditi ons
o n a sp ecified indoor laboratory test wheel.
Susta ined hig h t em pera t
ure cause mate­
rial of th e tir e to degenerat e and reduce tire lif e. and excessive tempera tur e