2008 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA engine light

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Braking power and braking distance
Braking power and braking distance are influenced by driving situations and
road
Worn brake pads will not provide good braking.
The amount of wear and tear on the brake pads
depends to a great extent on the cond itions
und er which the vehicle is opera ted and the way
the vehicle is dr iven. If you do a lot of city
driv ing, drive short distances or have a sporty
driving style, we reco mm end th at you have the
thickness of your brake pad s checked by an au­
thor ized Volkswagen dea ler more frequently
than r ecommend ed in the service schedule.
I f you dr ive witJ1 wet brakes , for example after a
dri ving through water,
heavy rainfall or
after washing the vehicle, brakin g power will be
reduced and sto pping distances w ill be longer
because the brake d iscs will be wet or in winter
ma ybe even frozen
the brakes must be dried
with severa l ca reful brake applications.
Brake fluid absorbs water and must be c hanged
every two years. Heavy use of the brakes can
cause vapor lock if the brake fl uid is too old.
Va por lock reduces braking power, increases
stopp ing distances and can even cause total
brake failure.
WARNING
• New tires and new brake pads do not pro­
v id e maximum grip, control or braking abilit y.
• To reduce the risk of losing control, a colli­
s ion and se rious persona l injuries, drive with
special ca re for the first
350 mil es (560 km).
• New brake pads do not have the best stop ­
ping power for the first
150 mil es (240 km) and
must be broken in. You can com pensate for
the slightly reduced braking ability by drivin g
w ith care and applying more pressure on the
brak e pedal.
• Never fo llow other vehicle s too close ly or
put yourse lf into other situ ations that might
r equ ire s udden , hard brakin g especially when
th e brake pads have not been broken in.
WARNING
Wet brake s or brak es coa ted ice or road
sa lt react slower and need longer stopping dis­
tanc es.
• Carefully apply brakes for a lest.
• Alwa ys dry brake s and clean olT ice coa t­
ings and salt coa tings with a few cautiou s
brake app lica tions.
• Always read and hee d all
in "Break ing in tir es and brake pads" on
page 7.
WARNING
Overheated brakes will reduce the vehicle's
s topping power and increase stoppin g di s­
tances.
• Always avoid over hea tin g the brakes!
• When driving downhill, the brakes have to
work hard and hea t up quickly .
• Before driving clown a long, steep hill, al­
ways red uce spee d and downshift to a lower
gea r. This will let th e ve hicle use engine
braking and reduce the load on the brakes.
• Always c han ge the brake fluid at least
every two years. Hard braking with old brake
fluid may cause a va por lock. Vapor lock re­
duces brakin g power, increases s topping dis­
tan ces and can even ca use to tal brake failure.
• A damaged front spoiler or new non stan­
dard spoile r ca n reduce the airflo w to the
brake s and cause them to overheat.
• Always sec an au thorized Vo lkswage n
dealer or qualil1ed workshop if yo u think th at
you may have damaged the front spoiler.
• Be sure to read and heed all WARNINGS
and the information =-page 27, "Accessories
and part s" before buying accessorie s.
8 Driving and protecting the environment

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Applies to veh icles: with o gaso line engi ne
Catalytic converter
Help the catalytic converter do its job
for a long time :
-Alwa ys use unl eaded gasol ine.
- Never
the ta nk complet ely empty .
- Do not put in too much en gin e oil
40, "Adding engine oil
-Never tow the ve hicle to start it, use
jump er cab les if n ecess ary
85.
If yo u notic e mi sfiring, uneve n runn ing or loss of
power w hen th e vehicl e is m ov ing , s low down
immediate ly and h ave the vehicl e in sp ec te d by
th e nea res t a uth oriz ed Volk swagen deal er or
qu alifi ed wo rksh op. These co nditions w ill u su­
a ll y be in dic ated b y an ind icator light
3. 1, chapt er "Warning light s." If thi s
happ ens, raw f uel ca n ge t int o th e ex hau st
sys te m , d am age t he ca ta ly ti c co nverte r and es­
ca pe int o th e atmosp here .
WARNING
A ca ta ly tic conver te r get s very hot and can
cau se lir e ca usin g se riou s personal injury.
• Neve r park where th e cata lytic converter
co uld come into conta ct with dry grass o r any
other flammabl e materials under the vehicl e.
Trailer towing
Technical requirements
Yo ur Volk sw agen was desig ned primaril y for
pas seng er tr an spor ta ti on. If yo u plan to
trai ler , plea se re m emb er th at yo ur ve hicle w ill be
p erformin g a serv ice for whi ch it w as not prim a­
ril y in ten ded. The addit io na l lo ad will affec t du­
r ability, hand lin g, econ omy and p erfor mance.
Tra iler to wing not only pl aces more s tress on the
ve hicle, it a lso calls for mor e co nce ntrati on from
t h e dr ive r.
WARNING (continued)
• Never appl y additional under coating or
ru st proofin g on or near the ex haus t manifold ,
exhaust pipes, ca ta ly tic conver te r or hea t
s hi elds.
39 , fig . 5 d o not sta rt the e ngi ne thi s co uld dama ge
the catalyt ic c onverter and the e ngin e! See an
a uthori zed Vo lkswage n dea le r or a qualifi ed
works hop.
• To avoi d dama ge to th e ca talyti c conve rter al­
ways rea d and hee d th e in formation on
=:page 32, "Fu el suppl y".
For the sake of environment
Even when th e e missio n co ntro l syste m is
worki ng perf ec tly, yo u may so metim es s mell
s ulfur from th e ex hau st d ep endin g on th e
a m ount of sulf ur in th e fu el you arc usi ng. T he
s m ell ca n usua lly be so lved by ch angin g to an ­
ot her brand of ga solin e. T railer
For th ese reason s, a lwa ys fo llow the o pera tin g
an d dri vi ng in stru ction s given a nd use comm on
se nse.
T railer hitch
U se a we ig ht -carry ing hitch co n fo rm ing
trail er hit ch re movab le
ball mount. ch eck with th e traile r hit ch
10 Driving and protecting the environment

WARN ING (continu ed)
• Exceed ing permi ssibl e weig ht ratings can
r es ult in ve hicl e da m age, accide nts, and per­
sona l
Driving tips
For th e best handlin g of ve hicle and trailer,
p lease note th e fo llowing:
• A "bala nce d" rig is easie r
operate and con­
trol. This m ean s th a t th e tow vehicl e should b e
loaded to th e extent p ossible and p ermi ssible
whil e keep ing th e trailer as light as po ssibl e
und er th e circum stanc es. Wh eneve r po ssib le,
tran sfe r som e cargo to the
co mpar tment
of the tow vehicl e w hile obs ervin g tongu e loa d
req uirem ents and vehicle loa ding consid er­
a tion s.
• The high er th e s pee d, the more
it be ­
come s fo r the drive r to control th e rig. Do not
dr ive at the maximum permis sibl e
• Always appl y br akes earl y. When driving
d ow nhill, d ownshi ft into a lower gear to u se the
e ng in e brak in g eff ec t to slo w down the ve hicle.
U se of the brake s alo ne ca n ca use them to ove r­
h ea t an d fail.
• The coo ling effect of the rad iator fan cann ot
b e in crease d by dow nsh ifti ng beca use fan sp ee d
i s ind epend ent of engine sp ee d. The re for e,
Trailer towing tips
Your vehicle handles diff ere nt ly wh en t ow in g a
t ra iler b ecause of the a ddit io na l weight and
weig ht d is tribut ion. S af ety. perform ance and
e conomy will gr ea tly depend on how car efull y
yo u load your tra iler
yo ur rig.
B efor e y ou actua lly
your tra iler, practice
t urn ing. stoppin g and backing up in an ar ea
away from
until yo u l earn the feel of your
ve hicle and trailer unit.
Backing up is
r e quir es prac tice .
S teer ing w hile backing up is generall y opposite
of th at wh en backing your vehicl e w ith out a
tra iler.
Booklet 3.2 Tip s and Advice
wh en dr iving uphill , yo u can alwa ys dri ve in the
hi gh est po ssible gea r wit h low e ngin e sp ee d. If
th e coo lant te mp erature warning light in the in­
s trument cluste r start s fla shin g in red , p ull off
the road , stop and le t th e e ngin e id le for abou t
minute s to pre vent hea t bu ildup and engin e
damag e.
WARNING
• Reduce you r speed even more under unfa­
vora ble load, wea ther or w ind condi tions
p artic ular ly w hen goi ng dow nhill.
• Be especia lly carefu l w hen passing o ther
veh icles. Redu ce ve hicle sp eed immediate ly if
the tra iler sh ow s the sli ghtest sig n of sway ing.
• Neve r try to stop the sway ing by acceler­
ating.
• Always heed speed lim its. In some a reas
speed lim its for vehicl es tow ing tra ilers are
l ower than for reg ular
Keep more di stan ce between your vehicl e and
th e one in front of you. will nee d m ore roo m
to stop.
To compens ate fo r th e traile r, yo u w ill n eed a
l a rger than normal tu rning
When passing , reme mber that you can not acce l­
erate as fast as you normall y wou ld because of
t h e added load. Make sur e yo u ha ve enough
room to pas s. After passing, allow plen ty of room
fo r yo ur tr aile r befor e changing la nes aga in.
Avoid jerk y s tart s, sharp turns or rapid lan e
c h ange s.
Driving and protecting the env ironment 13

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Engine oil consumption
I n ord er to provide effective lubri cation and
cooling of int ern al eng ine compo nents, all in­
t e rnal combu stion engines use a ce rtain amount
of oil. Oil co nsumpti on varies from en gi ne
to en ­
gine and may change significantly over the life of
th e e ngine. T ypicall y engin es whi ch have a
break -in period, us e mor e oi l during the break ­
in pe riod than they do after the break-in period,
wh en oil consumption has stabilized.
Vo lksw age n recommend s that you use the ty p e
of oil that m eets th e s pec ifica tion s described
=:p age 37 ,
oil sp eci fica tion s".
Und er norm al cond ition s, the rate of oil con ­
s umpti on d ep ends on the qua lity of the o il as
w ell as it s viscos ity, the
(revolu tions per
minut e) at w hich the en gin e is operated, the
outside te mperature. the ro ad conditions as we ll
as the amount of oil di lution by co nden sa tio n
wa ter or fuel residu e and
th e ox idati on level
of the o il. As engines o il co nsumption incr ease ove r time until r epla cement of wo rn
eng ine parts may become ne cessary.
of a ll of th ese vn riabl es, it is not p ossible to sp ecify standnrd or rate o f oil con­
s umpti on. For that re ason, urge you to ch eck
the oil level in yo ur en g in e a t regu la r int erval s,
pr efe rabl y every time yo u re fu el, a nd alwa ys be­
fore going on
long trip.
The oi l pre ssure light i s not an indicator of low
e n g ine oil level. If the warnin g light doe s not go
out or flashes while drivin g (above 1500 e ngin e
a buzzer will so und. It indicates that the
o il pr essure is too low . Stop the engine imm edi-
38 Checking and Filling
ate ly, check th e engine oil leve l and add oil if
n ecessa ry. If th e eng ine oil l eve l is no rmal, but
th e light continu es to flash, do not continu e to
operate the ve hicl e. Engine dama ge ma y occ ur.
If yo u believe your engine u ses excess ive
amount s of oil, we reco mme nd that you co nsult
yo ur
Volkswagen d ea le r so that th e
ca use of conce rn can b e prop erl y diag ­
n ose d. Keep in mind t hat th e acc urate m easure­
m ent of nil consumpti on require s great car e and
ma y ta ke so me tim e. Yo ur Vo lkswagen deale r h as
in stru cti ons ho w
meas ure o il co nsumpti on
nccurately.
WARNING
S top ! Before working in the engi ne co mpart­
ment, a lways read and heed all WARN INGS
34. T he engine compar tment of a ny
m oto r ve hicl e is a potentially dangerous area
an d ca n ca use s eriou s personal injury.
Note
• The engin e in your vehicl e dep en ds on o il to
lub ricate and cool all of its mo vin g parts . Th ere­
fo re th e e ngin e oi l mu st be ch ec ked reg ularly
and k ept at th e req uir ed l evel.
• Make it a habit to have the e ngin e n il leve l
c h ec ke d eve ry tim e you refuel.
• Lack of eng in e o il ma y caus e seve re engine
d amag e.
• The
pressure warni ng ligh t is not oil
l eve l indi cato r. ._

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Checking the coolant level and topping off
The correct coolant level is important for correct functioning of the engine cooling
system .
Fig. 7 In the engine compartment: coolant expan­
s ion tank
To get a true reading, the vehicle must be
on level grou nd. Before opening the en­
gine hood, always read and heed all
WARN INGS
34, is job No. l
when working in the eng ine compart­
If th e coo lant level drops too low,
th e wa rning text
STOP Ch eck coolant
O w ner's manual!
is disp layed in the instru­
ment cluster and t he engine coo lant
level/temperatu re wa rning lig h t lights up.
Opening the coolant e xpansion tank
- Switc h off the eng ine and allow it to
coo l.
- To prevent scald in g, cove r the cap
8011 the expansion tank with a thick
cloth and ca refu lly un screw the
Checking coolant level
- Look into the open coo lant expansion
tan k and read off the coo lant leve l.
- If th e leve l is belo w the
mark , top
off w ith coolant.
Topping off coolant
- Only use new coolant.
44 Checking and Filling
Fi g. 8 In the engine compar tment: cap of coola nt
expansion tank
-Do not fill above the upper mark.
Closing the coolant expansion tank
-Reinsta ll the cap
pos itio n of t he coo lant expa nsion tank i s
show n in the corre spo ndin g en gin e co mpart ­
overview 3.3 'Technical data."
Make sure that the coola nt meets the required
s p eci fications
43. Do not use a different
typ e of add itive if coolant addit ive G 12 i s not
avai lable. In this case use only water and bring
coola nt co ncentrati on back up to th e corr ect
l eve l as soo n as po ssible by to pping off with the
s p ec ified addi tive
43 .
A lways top off wi th
Do not fill above the upper mark. Otherwi se the
excess ive coo la nt be pressed out of the
coo ling sys tem w hen th e engine is hot.
T he
additive G 12 (purp le) may be mixed
w ith G 12 (pink) and a lso with G 1 1.
WARNING
Stop! Before working in the e ngine compart­
ment, a lways read and heed all WARNINGS
34. The engine compar tment of an y
motor vehicle i s a poten tially dangerous area
and can cause serious personal injury.

Note
• When mixed with ot heradditives t he colo r of
G 12 w ill chan ge to brown . If thi s ha ppens. im­
mediat ely change the coo lant. Otherw ise it wi ll
res ult in engi ne damage!
• If a lot o f coo la n t ha s been lost. wa it for the
engine to
coo l before topping cold
coolant to h elp prevent damage to th e e ngine.
Large coolan t losses are a s ign of leaks in the
Book let 3.2 Tip s and Advic e ®
cooling syste m. Ha ve the cool ing syste m
che cke d imm ediatel y by an authori zed Volk­
swage n dea le r or qua lifi ed worksho p to red uce
the risk of engine damage.
• Do not add an y type of radia to r leak sealant
to you r veh icle's e ngi ne coola nt.Adding ra di ator
repair fluid m ay adve rse ly aff ect th e f un ction
and performanc e of yo ur coo ling sys te m and
co uld result in damage not covere d by your New
Ve hicle Lim ited
The water for cleaning windsh ield should always be mixed windshield
washer
Fig . 9 In the engine comportment: cop of wind ­
shie ld wa sher flu id container
Th e wi ndsh iel d washer co ntain er loca ted
in t he eng ine c ompartme nt suppli es was her
fluid to b oth th e wind shield wash er an d hea d­
li g ht washi ng sys te m . If the was her flu id l eve l
drop s to o low. the informat io n tex t Top up
was h fluid! i s di sp layed in the ins trument cluster a nd
t h e w indshield washer warn ing light ligh ts up . Stop!
o
p eni ng t he engine hood, always
r ea d and hee d all WA RN INGS 34, is job No. l w hen working in the engi ne com­
partm ent ".
Th e location of the container is shown in
corresponding engine co mpartm elll overview
=>bookle t 3.3 ''Techn ical Data."
S inc e regular water is usually not adequate for
cleaning t he wi ndshi eld, a dd
clea ning so lution
to the water. Please follow the diluti on in stru c­
t io ns on the package.
WARNING
Stop! Before working in the eng in e co mpa rt­
m ent , a lways read a nd heed all WA RN INGS
34 . Th e engine co mpartm ent an y
motor ve hicl e is a potent ially dan gerous area
a nd ca n ca use se riou s personal inju ry.
D o not use engine coo lan t, anti-freeze a ny
o th er so lu tions that ca n damage t he ve hicl e
Ch ecki ng and Fillin g 45

fluid reservoir has a black cap.
Fig. 12 I n the engine compartm ent : c ap of the
brake fluid reservoi r
To get a read in g, the ve hicl e be
on leve l g round . Before opening th e
g in e hood, always rea d and hee d all
WA RN INGS
34, "Sa fety is job No. 1
w hen wo rkin g in the eng ine com par t·
m ent' '.
H ead off fluid leve l a t the tran s­
par ent brak e fluid reservo ir. IL sho uld
ways be be twee n th e "M IN" and "MAX"
m arks .
Bookl et 3.2 Tips and Advic e @
• Never move the w indshi eld wiper o r sh ield wiper arm manu ally· this co uld cause
damage!
• To prevent damage to the wiping sys te m,
ways loose n blades froze n to th e g lass befor e ting th e wi pers
Th e loca tion of the brak e flu id reservo ir is show n
in the correspo nding engin e co mpartm ent over·
v iew
3 .3 "Tec hnical Data. " T he brake
fluid reservoir has a black cap 12 .
Th e fluid leve l drops slightly w hen th e hide is bein g use d and as the pads are to mat ically a dju ste d as they wea r dow n.
Howe ver, if the leve l goes
no ticeab ly i n a time, o r drops below th e "MIN " mark,
ther e ma y be a lea k in the brake syste m. If th e
brak e fluid leve l drops too low, the wa rnin g tex t
STOP . Brake fluid stop vehicle! i s disp layed i n the
instrumem cluste r an d the brake system
warning lig ht light s up . If this hap pens, imm edi ·
ate ly take the ve hicle to an auth orized Vo lk­
s wa gen d ealer ship, or qua lified workshop a nd
have the brak e sys te m insp ecte d.
WARNING
Stop! Before wo rk in g in the en gin e compart­
ment , a lways read and h eed all WARN IN GS
34 . Th e engine compar tme nt of any
motor vehicle is a pot entia lly dan gerou s area
and can ca use ser io us perso nal injur y
Checking and Filling 47

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Fuses in the fuse box A in the dash panel
Electrical consumer
Fuse number (amp
ratin g in bra cke ts )
ABS /ESP/E DL 2
(5)
Tran sm iss ion (2.5 1 14 (5)
and 1.91 engine)
Front pow er wi nd ows 23 (30)
powe r 32 (30)
Fan 22 (40)
wi ndow de- 25 (25)
fogger
S tee rin g. DSG • 6 (5)
Int erior light s
15 (7,5 )
Fuel pump 27 (15)
A irbag 3 (5)
roof
33 (25 )
Se at hea ting
4 (5), 37 (30). 46 (5 )
8
48
V aca nt
20
Auxiliary hea tin g'
16 (10), 25 (25) 47 (10)
Pow er outl et 26 (20)
Cc n
lock ing for 12 (IO}
fr ont doo rs
H eat ed was her je ts 46 (5)
Lumb ar support ad- 34 (15)
ju stment for front
sea ts
C igare tte light er
24 (25)
Fuses in the fuse box Bin the engine compart­
ment: vehicles with a
54 fuse box
Electrical consumer
Fuse numb er (amp
rating in bra cke ts)
Fl (30). F2 (30)
L eft turn signa l F47 (40 )
turn s ignal (40 )
I-lorn F5 (15)
D SG' FI3 (15 )
light s
F47 (40), (40)
80 What do I do now?
F19
v\l ind shi eld wip ers (3 0)
Lef t headlight F47
(40)
headlight F48 (40 )
So und system
(30)
L ef t sid e lig ht F47 (40 )
sid e light F48 (40 )
release
Ce ntral lock ing for (2 0) rea r door s
Fuses in the fuse box B in the engine compart­
ment: vehicles with
a 30 fuse box
Electrical co nsum er
Fuse number (amp
rat ing in bra ckets )
A BS F4 (30),
(30)
W ind shi eld wip ers Fl (25 )FJ9 (25)
F8 (15 )
H orn FI7 (15 )
DSG' F5
(15)
Turn sig nal ri ght
F25 (40 )
Turn signal left F26 (40 )
Aux iliary heat ing •
Fil (20)
T e le phon e•
F9 (5)
Fu el pump (di esel)
(5)
Fan F24 (IO )
F og lig ht s F25 (40 )F26 (40)
h ea dli ght
F26 (40 )
headlight F25 (40 )
WARNING
Using the wrong fuse and attempting to repair
a fu se or u singsomethingin stead of a fuse can
cause a fire and serious per sonal inju ry.
• Always read and hee d the information and
a ll WARN INGS.
Tips
T he tabl es show the fu se loca tion s for the mo st
important consumers. The right -hand column s