2007 Alfa Romeo 8C warning

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5
USING THE VEHICLE
STARTING-OFF WHEN
THE ENGINE IS COLD
Start-off slowly, avoiding sudden accelerations
and run the engine at low-medium speeds. High-
performance driving should be avoided until the
water temperature reaches
65–70 °C.EMERGENCY STARTING
WITH AUXILIARY
BATTERY
If the battery is flat, the engine can be started
using another battery having the same or slightly
higher capacity than the flat one.
Proceed as follows:
1) Connect the positive terminals (+) of the
two batteries with a cable specifi cally
designed for this purpose.
2) Connect the negative terminals (-) of the
two batteries with a cable specifi cally
designed for this purpose.
WARNING: The battery is housed in a metal box,
therefore, be extremely careful not to let the
battery charger clips come into contact with it.3) Start the engine.
4) When the engine starts, remove the cables
in reverse order.
If the engine does not start after a number
of attempts, do not continue indefinitely but
consult an Authorised Service Centre of the
Manufacturer’s Network.
CAUTION
Do not carry out this procedure
if you have no experience of it:
incorrect manoeuvres may cause high
levels of electrical discharge and may
even lead to the battery explosion.
CAUTION
You are also advised not to
approach the battery with open flames
or lit cigarettes and not to cause
sparks: risk of explosion and fire!

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5
A
B
WARNING: Do not use a battery-charger for
emergency starting under any circumstances:
you could damage the electronic systems,
particularly the control units that manage the
ignition and fuel supply functions.
CAUTION
Remember that when the
engine is not started, the power
braking and power steering systems
are not activated and so the effort
required on the brake pedal and
steering wheel is much greater.
TURNING OFF THE
ENGINE
With the engine idling, rotate the ignition key to
the STOP position.
A burst on the accelerator pedal before turning
off the engine has no purpose and increases fuel
consumption.
Q-SELECT
GEARBOXThe “Q-Select gearbox” is controlled with
the paddles on the steering wheel for gear
engagement and with the buttons on the centre
console for reverse gear engagement and
activation of the “automatic gearshift” and “low
grip” functions.
The “Q-Select gearbox” controls are the
following:A - Lower gear engagement paddle DOWNB - Upper gear engagement paddle UPC - Reverse gear engagement button

117
5
E
CD
F
H
G
USING THE VEHICLE
D - “Automatic gearshift” button E - “Low grip” mode button F - SPORT mode button ”
The display shows the gear engaged (1, 2, 3, 4,
5, 6, R or N) in area
G.
In the event of a failure or if the oil level in the
gearbox is low, the symbol
illuminates in
area
H. When the “automatic gearshift” function
is active, the gear displayed is replaced with the
letter “D”.
When “SPORT” and “low grip” modes are
active, the letters “S” and “W”, illuminate in
area G.SYSTEM ACTIVATION
Turning the key to position MAR the display and
the failure symbol
illuminate and will go off
after a few seconds if no faults are found.
The gear engaged will remain highlighted in area
G on the display.WARNING: When the driver’s door is opened,
you may hear a humming coming from the
gearbox assembly; this is due to ignition
preparation stages. The failure warning light
may also flash briefly (10 sec.) and then
turns off. The system completes the “ignition”
stage and is then correctly activated. Avoid
entering any commands in the system during
this stage.
CAUTION
If the symbol continues
flashing without turning off, start the
system again after switching it off.
If the malfunction persists, contact
an Authorised Service Centre of the
Manufacturer’s Network to have the
necessary checks performed.

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5
If the symbol
remains on, there is a system
failure. This condition is also indicated by a beep
when the key is turned to position MAR.
WARNING: Contact an Authorised Service
Centre of the Manufacturer’s Network to have
the malfunction corrected.
OPERATION WITH THE
ENGINE OFF
After completing the “system start-up” stage,
the gear currently engaged will appear on the
display:
- N (Neutral)
- R (Reverse)
- D(1
st).
If the indication flashes (may also occur with N)
it means that the gear is not properly engaged or
is disengaged; therefore, request neutral (N) and
then the desired gear.CAUTION
If a horizontal dash appears on
the display, there is a system failure.
When the engine is off, 1st gear, reverse (R) and
neutral (N) can be engaged. Keeping the brake
pedal pressed during the request, you must
proceed as follows:
- N (Neutral): pull both paddles found behind
the steering wheel.
- R (Reverse): press button
C.
- Engaging 1
st gear: pull the UP paddle
towards the steering wheel.
CAUTION
To engage reverse gear, hold
the button C down until the letter R is
displayed.
WARNING: Immediately release the paddles
UP, DOWN and the button R after the gearshift
request. A prolonged manoeuvre may cause
the failure warning light
and the buzzer
to activate. Do not operate the system with the
engine off, to prevent discharging the battery.
Avoid useless gearshifting with the engine off, to
prevent overheating of the pump.

119
5
USING THE VEHICLE
DRIVING THE VEHICLE
With the engine running, the vehicle stationary
and the brake pedal pressed, release the brake
and depress the accelerator to start off.
With the engine on and the vehicle stationary,
you can shift directly from 1
st gear to R (reverse
gear), by pressing the button C, and from reverse
gear to 1
st gear by pulling the paddle
B UP
towards the steering wheel.
WARNING: Reverse gear engagement is
accompanied by a safety acoustic signal, which
sounds intermittently for the entire reversing
manoeuvre. When shifting from reverse to 1
st gear, if the
system automatically engages 2nd gear, it
indicates that jamming has occurred with 1
st
gear. Therefore, this is not a failure, as it falls
within the logic of the system operation.
For the same reason, the system automatically
engages neutral (N) in case of jamming
when shifting from 1
st gear to reverse. During
prolonged stops with the engine running, it is
advisable to keep the gearshift in neutral (N).Hill Holder Strategy
The Hill Holder system helps the driver when
starting-off on an uphill slope. It activates only
following a vehicle stop when the brake pedal
is released, keeping the vehicle stationary for a
moment, so as to allow the driver to move from
the brake to the accelerator pedal.
The system is capable of varying its activation
time depending on the road slope. This time
ranges from a minimum (0.06 seconds)
on downhill stretches and a maximum (1.2
seconds) on uphill stretches, so that the driver
will not perceive the vehicle as “braking”
downhill.
The function that measures the gradient is active
only at speeds over 8 km/h, therefore gradient
changes at lower speeds will not be detected.
Example: if you are driving uphill and you make
a manoeuvre to change your driving direction,
the system will not detect a gradient change,
and its maximum activation time will remain 1.2
seconds.
WARNING: If, on downhill slopes, you let the
vehicle move in neutral (N), when you request
a gearshift UP, the gear engaged will depend on
the current speed of the vehicle. For safety reasons, the system activates the
warning buzzer and automatically engages
neutral (N) when, with the vehicle stationary,
the engine running and a gear engaged:
- the brake pedal or the accelerator are not
depressed for over 1 minute
- the brake pedal is depressed for more than
10 minutes
- the door is opened without depressing the
brake pedal or the accelerator
- the engine compartment lid is opened.WARNING: The warning buzzer is activated
even if the clutch overheats during the “pickup”
manoeuvre. In these cases, you must start off
immediately or release the accelerator pedal and
depress the brake pedal.

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5
OTHER SYSTEM
FUNCTIONS
“Low-grip” WET mode
This mode can be used on particularly slippery
road surfaces (e.g., snow, ice) and it is
activated/deactivated by pressing button
E.
This will light up the letter “W” on the instrument
panel display.
While driving, the system ignores any
gearshifting which would cause RPM adjustment
above 2800 RPM.
“Low-grip” mode has priority over the other
functions (“automatic gearshift” and “SPORT”)
and it assists the VDC system.It is always a good rule to deactivate the other
operating modes (“automatic gearshift” and
“SPORT”) before you select “low-grip” mode.
“Automatic gearshift” mode AUTO
It is activated/deactivated by pressing the
button
D; the gear displayed is replaced with the
letter “D” and the system will automatically shift
the gears UP and DOWN according to the vehicle
speed, the engine RPM and the torque/power
requested by the driver.
WARNING: The “automatic gearshift” mode has
priority over “SPORT” mode. Therefore, if you
press the AUTO button, D the system will operate
in “automatic gearshift” mode.You can go back to NORMAL mode (or SPORT
mode, if this was active) by holding the button
D
pressed down until the word AUTO goes off.When the vehicle is stationary, requesting N 1
st
or R will not cause the system to switch from
“Automatic gearshift” to “Normal” mode.
It is always a good rule to deactivate the other
operating modes before you select “Automatic
gearshift” mode.
“No auto exit” strategy
In AUTO mode you can always request
a gearshift using the paddles, which will
temporarily set the system to “manual” mode.
This is shown on the display by the word “AUTO”
that flashes for 5 seconds and then illuminates
permanently, thus confirming that the system
has returned to AUTO mode. A further gearshift
request will restart the 5-second timer.
E
D

123
5
F
USING THE VEHICLE
“SPORT” mode
It is activated by pressing button
F; the letter “S”
will illuminate on the display.
To return to “NORMAL” mode from “SPORT”
mode, press the button again.
As “SPORT” mode has lower priority over “low-
grip” and “automatic gearshift” modes, if these
are already active when you activate “SPORT”
mode, the system will ignore the command even
though the relative warning light switches on.
CAUTION
“SPORT” mode is characterised
by faster gearshifts than in
“NORMAL” mode and engine power
reduction through the ASR system is
kept to a minimum.
Fast gearshifting however always depends on
the accelerator pedal travel and on the engine
RPM, as in “NORMAL” mode.
DOWNshifts with the accelerator pedal released,
will have a braking effect approaching the
skidding of the driving wheels on dry asphalt.
Under racing-style driving conditions with
gearshifts at high engine RPM, double-clutching
when up-shifting is performed automatically.
CAUTION
It is advisable not to use
“SPORT” mode on roads with low or
medium “grip” conditions (e.g. ice,
snow, or wet roads) as the driving
wheels could skid during gearshifts.
Therefore, excessive use of the vehicle
in “SPORT” mode is advisable only on
racetracks.
If you use a racing-style driving when starting-off
or gearshifting with SPORT mode active, you
might feel the driving wheels begin to slip even
on dry roads.
It is a good rule to deactivate the other operating
modes (“low-grip” and “automatic gearshift”)
before you select “SPORT” mode.

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5
WARNING: In the event that the control lever
assembly is malfunctioning, in addition to
activating the buzzer and the failure warning
light
, the system enables “automatic
gearshift” mode and any gearshift command,
including the request for N and R, will be
ignored.
WARNING: If the malfunction persists,
contact an Authorised Service Centre of the
Manufacturer’s Network as soon as possible to
have the malfunction corrected.
PUSH START
In the case of malfunctioning of the starter
system, you can push-start the vehicle
proceeding as follows
- perform the “system start-up” stage
- request UP while the vehicle is picking up
speed with the gearbox in N.WARNING: This procedure should not be used
unless there is an emergency situation!
USING THE
BRAKESTo allow the brake pads and discs to run in
properly, avoid sudden braking during the first
300 km.
The ABS is a component of the braking system
that provides two basic advantages:
- It avoids locking of the wheels and thus
skidding during emergency braking,
especially under low grip conditions.
- It makes it possible to brake and steer at
the same time in order to avoid unexpected
obstacles or to direct the vehicle where
desired when braking: this is in keeping
with the physical limits of the tyre side grip. In order to fully exploit the ABS:
- You will note a light vibration of the brake
pedal during emergency braking or braking
under low grip conditions: This indicates
that the ABS is operating. Do not release
the pedal but continue to press it to give
continuity to the braking action.
- The ABS prevents the wheels from locking,
but it does not increase the physical grip
limits between the tyres and the road.
So, even with vehicles equipped with
ABS, always ensure that you keep to a
safe distance from the vehicle in front and
reduce your speed when entering a bend.