
Wheels and tyres
240Wear indicators
The original tyres on your vehicle have 1.6 mm high tread wear indicators
⇒ page 239, fig. 152 , running across the tread. Depending on the make,
there will be 6 to 8 of them evenly spaced around the tyre. Markings on the
tyre sidewall (for instance the letters “TWI” or other symbols) indicate the
positions of the tread wear indicators. The minimum tread depth required by
law is 1.6 mm (measured in the tread grooves next to the tread wear indica-
tors). Worn tyres must be replaced. Different figures may apply in export
countries ⇒.
Tyre pressure
Incorrect tyre pressure causes premature wear and could cause tyre blow-out.
For this reason, the tyre pressure should be checked at least once per month
⇒ page 237.
Driving style
Fast cornering, heavy acceleration and hard braking all increase tyre wear.
Changing wheels around
If the front tyres are worn considerably more than the rear ones it is advisable
to change them around as shown ⇒page 239, fig. 153. All the tyres will then
last for about the same time.
Wheel balance
The wheels on new vehicles are balanced. However, various factors encoun-
tered in normal driving can cause them to become unbalanced, which results
in steering vibration.
Unbalanced wheels should be rebalanced, as they otherwise cause excessive
wear on steering, suspension and tyres. A wheel must also be rebalanced
when a new tyre is fitted.
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment causes excessive tyre wear, impairing the safety of
the vehicle. If tyres show excessive wear, you should have the wheel align-
ment checked by an Authorised Service Centre.
WARNING
There is a serious danger of accidents if a tyre bursts during driving!•The tyres must be replaced at the latest when the tread is worn down to
the tread wear indicators. Failure to do so could result in an accident. Worn
tyres do not grip well at high speeds on wet roads. There is also a greater
risk of aquaplaning.•At continuously high speeds, a tyre with insufficient pressure flexes
more. This causes it to overheat. This can cause tread separation and tyre
blow-out. Risk of accident. Always observe the recommended tyre pres-
sures.•I f t y r e s s h o w e x ce s s i v e w e a r, y o u s h o u l d h a v e t h e r u n n i n g g e a r ch e cke d
by an Authorised Service Centre.•Keep chemicals such as oil, fuel and brake fluid away from tyres.•Damaged wheels and tyres must be replaced immediately!For the sake of the environment
Under-inflated tyres will increase fuel consumption.Run-flat tyres
Run-flat tyres allow you to continue driving even with a punc-
tured tyre, in the majority of cases.In vehicles that are factory-fitted with run-flat tyres
25) the loss of tyre
pressure is indicated on the instrument panel.
25)Depending upon version and country.
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Technical Specifications277
Safety First
Operating Instructions
Practical Tips
Technical Specifications
Technical SpecificationsChecking fluid levelsFrom time to time, the levels of the different fluids in the
vehicle must be checked. Never fill with incorrect fluids,
otherwise serious damage to the engine may be caused.
Coolant expansion tank
Windscreen washer fluid reservoir
Engine oil filler cap
Engine oil dipstick
Brake fluid reservoir
Vehicle battery (underneath the cover)
The checking and refilling of service fluids are carried out on the components
mentioned above. These operations are described in the ⇒page 221. Overview
You will find further explanations, instructions and restrictions on the tech-
nical specifications as of
⇒page 273.
Fig. 186 Diagram for the
location of the various
elements
A1A2A3A4A5A6
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Index297
Index
AABS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Accessories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Acoustic signal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Acoustic warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Adaptive headlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Adjusting the seat belt height . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
AFS (cornering lights) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Air conditioner General notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Air conditioner automatic mode 2C-Climatronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Air conditioner* 2C-Climatronic* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Air conditioning* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Air recirculation mode 2C-Climatronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Manual air conditioner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Airbag covers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Airbag system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Curtain airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
front airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Side airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Alarm system Switching off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 All-wheel drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Alternator
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Anti-freeze . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Anti-lock brake system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Anti-theft alarm Switching off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Anti-theft alarm system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Anti-theft wheel bolts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Aquaplaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Ashtray* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Aspects to take into account before starting the vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Automatic anti-dazzle interior mirror* Activating the anti-dazzle function . . . . . . 132
Deactivating anti-dazzle function . . . . . . . . 132
Automatic car wash tunnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Automatic gearbox Kick-down feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Automatic gearbox / DSG automatic gearbox . 171
Automatic lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Automatic windscreen wiper/washer . . . . . . . . 127
Auxiliary audio connection: AUX-IN . . . . . . . . . 144
BBall coupling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 Battery
Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Winter conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Before starting the vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Biodiesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Biodiesel fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Bonnet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Brake fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233 Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Brake pads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Brake pedal warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Brake servo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185, 193
Brake system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233 Brake servo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193 Worn brake pads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Braking distance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Bulb changes General notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Bulb defect warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Buzzer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124, 162
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