2009 VOLKSWAGEN CC Coolant light

WARNING
The engine compartment of any motor vehicle is a potentially
dangerous area and can cause serious personal injury.
Always use extreme caution when doing any work in the en-
gine compartment. Always follow commonly accepted safety
practices and use common sense. Never risk personal injury.
Never perform any work in the engine compartment unless
you know exactly how to carry out the job and have the correct
technical information and the correct tools.
If you are uncertain about what to do, have the work per-
formed by an authorized Volkswagen dealer, an authorized
Volkswagen Service Facility, or another qualified workshop.
Serious personal injury may result from improperly performed
work.
We strongly recommend that you always have HID – High In-
tensity Discharge (Xenon) headlights and H7 bulbs replaced by
a qualified technician. Serious personal injury may result from
improperly performed work.
Never open or close the engine hood if steam or coolant is
escaping. Hot steam or coolant can cause serious burns. Al-
ways wait until you no longer see or hear steam or coolant es-
caping from the engine.
Always let the engine cool down completely before carefully
opening the hood.
Hot parts of the engine and the exhaust system will burn skin
on contact.
When the engine has cooled down and you are ready to open
the hood:
– Firmly apply the parking brake and shift the transmission
into Park (P) (automatic) or Neutral (manual only).
– Take the vehicle key out of the ignition.
– On vehicles with Keyless Access, make sure that the re-
mote control vehicle key is out of range of the vehicle and
that the vehicle cannot be started by depressing the starter
button ⇒  Starter button.
– Always keep children and others away from the engine
compartment and never leave them unsupervised.

The engine coolant system is under pressure when the en-
gine is hot. Never unscrew the coolant expansion tank cap
when the engine is hot. Hot coolant can spray out and cause
severe burns and other serious injuries.
– Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in a counterclock-
wise direction while applying light downward pressure on the
top of the cap.
– Always protect your face, hands, and arms from hot escap-
ing coolant or steam by covering the cap with a large, thick
rag.
Never spill fluids on the engine or exhaust system when re-
filling. Spilling fluids onto hot parts of the engine or exhaust
system can cause a fire.
WARNING
High voltage systems in the engine compartment can cause
electrical shocks or even electrocution, severe burns, other se-
rious injuries, and even death!
Never short-circuit the electrical system. Be especially care-
ful when using jumper cables. The vehicle's battery could ex-
plode!
To reduce the risk of electrical shock and personal injury
while the engine is running or being started:
– Never touch ignition cables. Never touch other compo-
nents of the high voltage electronic ignition system.
– Never touch the wiring of the HID – High Intensity Dis-
charge (Xenon) headlights.
Read and heed the important information and warnings on
cleaning the engine compartment ⇒  Cleaning the engine com-
partment.

WARNING
Engine coolant is poisonous!
Always keep the coolant in its original container stored in a
safe place.
To reduce the risk of poisoning, never store engine coolant in
empty food or beverage containers or in any other containers
that might mislead someone into drinking from them.
Always keep engine coolant out of reach of children.
Always make sure there is enough of the correct coolant ad-
ditive to provide proper antifreeze protection at the coldest
temperatures that can be expected where the vehicle will be
used.
At extremely cold temperatures, the coolant could freeze,
causing the vehicle to break down. The heater would also not
work, and vehicle occupants could be without protection at
subfreezing temperatures.
Coolant and coolant additives can pollute the environment. Col-
lect leaking operating fluids and dispose of them properly in accord-
ance with applicable environmental laws and regulations.
Warning light and engine coolant temperature gauge

Fig. 167 Engine coolant temperature gauge in the instrument cluster:
A Engine cold; B Normal temperature range; C Warning zone.

If the indicator in the engine coolant temperature gauge is located in
the cold range (A), the engine has not reached operating tempera-
ture. High engine speeds and heavy engine loads should be avoided.
Under normal driving conditions, the needle should be in the middle
of the gauge. The temperature may go higher when the engine is
working hard, especially in hot weather.
When the ignition is switched on, several warning and indicator lights
come on briefly for a function check. They go out after a few seconds.
The following table explains what to do if the engine coolant tempera-
ture warning light ~ does not go out a few seconds after the engine
is started or starts flashing while driving.

Flashes
Temperature
gauge
needle
⇒ fig. 167
Possible
cause Proper response

When the ignition is switched on, several warning and indicator lights
come on briefly for a function check. They go out after a few seconds.
WARNING
Failure to heed warning lights and instrument cluster text mes-
sages can cause the vehicle to break down in traffic and result
in a collision and serious personal injury.
Never ignore warning lights or text WARNINGS.
Always stop the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so.
NOTICE
Failure to heed warning lights or text WARNINGS can result in
vehicle damage.
Engine coolant specifications

Checking engine coolant level
When the engine is cold, check the engine coolant level relative to
the marking on the side of the expansion tank ⇒ fig. 168.
If the coolant level in the tank is below the minimum mark (“min”),
add coolant. When the engine is warm, the engine coolant level may
be slightly above the upper edge of the marked range.
Adding engine coolant
Always protect face, hands and arms from hot escaping coolant or
steam by covering the cap with a large, thick rag.
Carefully unscrew the cap ⇒ .
Add only new engine coolant according to Volkswagen specifica-
tions (⇒ Engine coolant specifications) ⇒ .
The engine coolant level must be inside the marks on the side of
the reservoir ⇒ fig. 168. Do not fill above the top edge of the filling
range! ⇒ 
Screw the lid tightly.
Even in an emergency, do not use any other kind of coolant addi-
tive if engine coolant meeting Volkswagen specifications (⇒ page 456,
Engine coolant specifications) is unavailable! Instead, add distilled
water only ⇒ . As soon as possible, have the correct coolant ratio
restored using engine coolant that meets Volkswagen specifications
⇒  Engine coolant specifications.

WARNING
Hot steam and hot engine coolant can cause serious burns.
Never open the hood if you see steam or coolant escaping
from the engine compartment. Always wait until you no longer
see or hear steam or coolant escaping from the engine.
Always let the engine cool down completely before carefully
opening the hood. Hot components will burn skin on contact.
When the engine has cooled down and you are ready to open
the hood:
– Apply the electronic parking brake and shift the transmis-
sion into Park (P) (automatic) or Neutral (manual only).
– Take the vehicle key out of the ignition.
– On vehicles with Keyless Access, make sure that the re-
mote control vehicle key is out of range of the vehicle and
that the vehicle cannot be started by depressing the starter
button
– Always keep children and others away from the engine
compartment and never leave them unsupervised.
The engine coolant system is under pressure when the en-
gine is hot. Never unscrew the coolant expansion tank cap
when the engine is hot. Hot coolant can spray out and cause
severe burns and other serious injuries.
– Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in a counterclock-
wise direction while applying light downward pressure on the
top of the cap.
– Always protect your face, hands, and arms from hot escap-
ing coolant or steam by covering the cap with a large, thick
rag.
Never spill fluids on the engine or exhaust system when re-
filling. Spilling fluids onto hot parts of the engine or exhaust
system can cause a fire. Under some conditions, the ethylene
glycol in engine coolant can catch fire.
NOTICE
Use distilled water only when adding coolant! All other types
of water contain chemical compounds that can cause extensive
corrosion damage to the engine. This can even lead to engine