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SAFETY
SUITABILITY OF PASSENGER SEATS FOR CHILD SEAT USE
The car complies with the new European Directive 2000/3/EC which governs the
arrangement possibilities for child seats on the various seats of the car as shown in
the following table:Below is a summary of the safety
rules to be followed when carrying
children:
1) The recommended position for in-
stalling child seats is on the rear seat, as
it is the most protected area in the event
of a crash.
2) When disengaging the passenger
airbag, always check the amber warning
light on the instrument panel is perma-
nently on to make sure that the airbag has
actually been deactivated.
3) Carefully follow the instructions that
came with the child seat, which the man-
ufacturer must supply by law. Keep the in-
structions in the car along with the other
documents and this handbook. Do not use
second hand child seats without instruc-
tions.
4) Always check the seat belt is well fas-
tened by pulling on it.
5) Only one child is to be strapped into
each retaining system; never carry two
children using one child seat.
6) Always check the seat belts do not
rest on the child’s neck.
7) While travelling, do not let the child
sit incorrectly or release the belts.
8) Never carry children on your lap, even
newborns. No one, however strong, can
hold a child in the event of an accident.
9) In the event of an accident, replace the
child seat with a new one.
Front Rear Central
Group Weight range passenger passenger rear
passenger (●)
Groups 0, 0+ up to 13 kg U (▼)U *
Groups 1 9-18 kg U (▼)U *
Groups 2 15-25 kg U (▼)U *
Groups 3 22-36 kg U (▼)U *
Key:
U = suitable for child restraint systems in the “Universal” category, according to Eu-
ropean Standard ECE-R44 for the specified “Groups”.
(
▼) on cars whose passenger seat is not adjustable in height, the backrest must be
perfectly upright.
* Never put any type of child seat on the central rear seat.
(
●) For versions/markets, where provided.
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SAFETY
Never rest your head, arms
or elbows on the doors, on
the windows or in the window bag
area as this could cause injuries dur-
ing the inflation phase.
WARNING
Never lean your head, arms
or elbows out of the window.
WARNING
GENERAL WARNINGS
If when turning the key to
MAR the warning light ¬does not turn on or if it stays on when
travelling (together with the message
on the multifunction display, for ver-
sions/markets, where provided), there
could be a failure in the safety sys-
tems; in this event, airbags or pre-
tensioners may not trigger in case of
impact or, in a minor number of cas-
es, they could trigger accidentally.
Contact a Fiat Dealership immedi-
ately to have the system checked.
WARNING
Do not cover the backrest of
front and rear seats with
trims or covers that are not suitable
to be used with side bags.
WARNING
Never travel with objects on
your lap, in front of your
chest or with a pipe, pencil, etc. be-
tween your lips; serious injury may re-
sult in the event of the airbag being
triggered.
WARNING
If the key is turned to MAR,
even if the engine is switched
off, airbags may be deployed when
the car is stationary and hit by an-
other vehicle. For this reason, children
must never occupy the front seat,
even if the car is not moving. Con-
versely, remember that when the key
is inserted in the STOP position, no
safety device (air bag or pretension-
ers) will activate following an impact;
non-activation of these devices in such
cases cannot therefore be considered
an indicator of system malfunction.
WARNING
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SAFETY
Do not wash the seats with
water or steam under pres-
sure (by hand or in automatic wash-
ing stations for seats).
WARNING
Front airbag deployment
takes place at a higher level
of impact than the pretensioners. For
collisions in the range between the
two thresholds, it is normal for only
the pretensioners to be activated.
WARNING
Do not hang rigid objects on
the coat hooks and the sup-
port handles.
WARNING
Airbags do not replace seat
belts, but increase their effi-
ciency. Furthermore, since front
airbags are not deployed in low
speed collisions, side-on collisions,
rear-end shunts or roll-overs, the pas-
sengers are protected only by the
seat belts which must therefore be
fastened at all times.
WARNING
When the ignition key is
turned to MAR, the warning
light (with passenger’s front airbag
activated) turns on and flashes for
a few seconds to remind you that the
passenger’s air bag will be deployed
in a crash, after which it should go off.
WARNING
Always drive with your hands
on the steering wheel rim so
that the airbag can inflate freely if
needed. Do not drive with your body
bent forward. Keep your back straight
against the backrest.
WARNING
If the vehicle has been sub-
ject to theft or a theft at-
tempt, or if it has been affected by
vandalism or flooding, have the airbag
system checked at a Fiat Dealership.
WARNING
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STARTING
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STARTING THE ENGINE
The car is fitted with an electronic engine
lock device: if the engine fails to start, see
the paragraph on “The Fiat CODE sys-
tem” in the “Dashboard and controls”
section.
The engine may be noisier during the first
few seconds of operation, particularly af-
ter a long period of inactivity. This is a fea-
ture of hydraulic tappets, the timing sys-
tem chosen to reduce the number of
servicing interventions, and effects neither
functionality nor reliability.
We recommend that during
the initial period you do not
drive to full car performance
(e.g. excessive acceleration,
long journeys at top speed, sharp brak-
ing etc.).
When the engine is switched
off, never leave the key in
the ignition switch to prevent
draining the battery.
It is dangerous to have the
engine running indoors. The
engine consumes oxygen and pro-
duces carbon dioxide, carbon monox-
ide and other toxic gases.
WARNING
Remember that the brake
booster and power steering
are not operational until the engine
has been started, therefore you need
to apply much more force than usu-
al to the brake pedal and steering
wheel.
WARNING
STARTING PROCEDURE
FOR PETROL VERSIONS
Proceed as follows:
❒ensure that the handbrake is on;
❒put the gear lever into neutral;
❒press the clutch pedal all the way down
without touching the accelerator;
❒turn the ignition key to AVVand re-
lease it the moment the engine starts.
If the engine does not start at the first at-
tempt, return the ignition key to STOP
before repeating the starting procedure.
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STARTING
AND DRIVING
If, when the ignition key is at MAR, the in-
strument panel warning light
Yremains
lit together with warning light U, turn the
key to STOPand then back to MAR; if
the warning lights remain on, try using the
other keys provided with the car.
IMPORTANT If the instrument panel
warning light
Ystays on permanently,
contact a Fiat Dealership immediately.
IMPORTANT Never leave the ignition key
at MARwhen the engine is off.STARTING PROCEDURE
FOR DIESEL VERSIONS
Proceed as follows:
❒ensure that the handbrake is on;
❒put the gear lever into neutral;
❒turn the ignition key to MAR: the
warning lights
mand Yon the in-
strument panel will turn on;
❒wait for the warning lights Yand mto turn off. The hotter the engine is, the
quicker this will happen;
❒press the clutch pedal all the way down
without touching the accelerator;
❒turn the ignition key to AVVas soon
as the warning light
mturns off. Wait-
ing too long will waste the work done
by the heater plugs. Release the key as
soon as the engine starts.If the engine does not start at the first at-
tempt, return the ignition key to STOP
before repeating the starting procedure.
If, when the ignition key is at MAR, the in-
strument panel warning light
Yremains
lit together with warning light
m, turn
the key to STOPand then back to MAR;
if the warning lights remain on, try using
the other keys provided with the car.
IMPORTANT If the instrument panel
warning light
Ystays on permanently,
contact a Fiat Dealership immediately.
IMPORTANT Never leave the ignition key
at MARwhen the engine is off.
Warning light
mwill blink
for 60 seconds after starting
or during prolonged cranking
to indicate a fault with the
glow plug system. Use the car as nor-
mal if the engine starts, but go to a Fiat
Dealership as soon as possible.
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STARTING
AND DRIVINGHANDBRAKE fig. 1
The handbrake is located between the
two front seats.
Pull the lever upwards to operate the
handbrake. Four or five notches are nor-
mally sufficient to secure the car on flat
terrain, while nine or ten may be neces-
sary on a steep slope with the car loaded.
IMPORTANT If this is not the case, con-
tact a Fiat Dealership to have the hand-
brake adjusted.
When the handbrake is on and the igni-
tion key is at MAR, the instrument panel
warning light
xwill come on.
PARKING THE VEHICLE
Proceed as follows:
❒stop the engine and engage the hand-
brake;
❒engage a gear (first gear if the vehicle
is parked uphill or reverse if it is facing
downhill) and leave the wheels turned.
If the car is parked on a steep slope, it is
also advisable to block the wheels with
a wedge or stone. Do not leave the key in
the ignition switch as this drains the bat-
tery. Always remove the key when you
leave the car.
Never leave children unat-
tended in the car. Always re-
move the ignition key when leaving
the car and take it with you.
WARNING
fig. 1F0M0115m
To release the handbrake, proceed as
follows:
❒pull up slightly on the lever and press
release button A;
❒hold button Adown and lower the
lever. The xwarning light on the in-
strument panel will go out.
Press the brake pedal when carrying out
this operation to prevent the car from
moving accidentally.
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WARNING
LIGHTS AND
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WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
GENERAL WARNINGS
Warning lights are accompanied by a spe-
cific message and/or sound when applica-
ble. These indications are synthetic and
precautionaryand, as such, must not be
considered as exhaustive and/or alterna-
tive to the information contained in this
Owner Handbook, which you are rec-
ommended to read carefully in all cases.
Refer to the information in this sectionif
a fault is signalled.
IMPORTANT The fault indications ap-
pearing on the display are divided into two
categories: very seriousand less seri-
ousfailures.
Very seriousfailures are indicated by
a repeated and prolonged warning “cycle”.
Less seriousfailures are indicated by
a shorter warning “cycle”.
Press MENU ESCto stop the warning
cycle in both cases. Warning lights on the
instrument panel will stay on until the
cause of the failure is eliminated.
For messages relevant to the versions
equipped with a Dualogic gearbox, see the
attached Supplement.LOW BRAKE FLUID
LEVEL (red)
HANDBRAKE ON (red)
When the ignition key is moved to MAR,
the warning light turns on but should go
off after a few seconds.
Low brake fluid level
The warning light comes on when the lev-
el of the brake fluid in the reservoir falls
below the minimum level due to possible
leaks in the circuit.
A specific message is displayed on certain
versions.
x
If the warning light xturns
on when travelling (togeth-
er with the message on the display on
certain versions), stop the car imme-
diately and contact a Fiat Dealership.
WARNING
Handbrake on
The warning light turns on when the hand-
brake is engaged.
If the car is moving, an audible warning will
also sound on certain versions.
IMPORTANT If the warning light comes
on with the vehicle in motion, check that
the handbrake is not engaged.
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WARNING
LIGHTS AND
MESSAGES
AIRBAG FAULT
(red)
When the ignition key is moved to MAR,
the warning light turns on but should go
off after a few seconds.
The warning light stays on constantly if
there is a failure in the airbag system.
A specific message is displayed on certain
versions.
¬If the warning light ¬does
not turn on when turning the
key to MAR or stays on during car
travel, there may be a failure in the
restraint systems. If this is the case,
the airbags or pretensioners may not
be deployed in an accident or, in a
minor number of cases, they may be
deployed incorrectly. Contact a Fiat
Dealership immediately to have the
system checked before driving off.
WARNING
A problem with the warning
light
¬(light off) is indicat-
ed by the warning light
“, which in-
dicates the front passenger airbag is
deactivated, flashing for more than
the usual four seconds.
WARNING
OVERHEATED ENGINE
COOLANT (red)
When the ignition key is moved to MAR,
the warning light turns on but should go
off after a few seconds.
The warning light turns on when the en-
gine is overheated.
If the warning light comes on, proceed as
follows:
❒when driving normally: stop the car,
switch off the engine and check that the
water level in the reservoir is not be-
low the MIN mark. If it is not, wait for
a few minutes for the engine to cool
down then slowly and carefully open
the cap, top-up with coolant and check
that the level is between the MIN and
MAX marks. Also visually check for
leaks. Should the warning light turn on
again at the next start-up, contact a Fiat
Dealership.
ç
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