Page 369 of 477

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Changing the brake fluid
The brake must b e chang ed e very ye ars
We r ecomm end th at yo u have the br ake fl uid
c h a nged by a n au th ori zed Volksw age n dea le r.
S to p! B efo re openin g th e eng in e hoo d, a lways
rea d and hee d all WA RN INGS
34. is jo b No . I w hen work ing in e n gine com
p a rtm ent ".
B rak e fluid absorbs mois tu re. Ove r tim e. it w ill
a bsor b wat er fr om th e air . If
co n1en 1 in
th e brak e fluid is too high, brake co uld co rro de. Too much wa te r in brake fl uid
co nsid erabl y re du ces th e boilin g of brak e fluid. Very heavy use of 1h e bra kes old
b ra ke fluid may ca use va por loc k. Va po r l oc k re
du ces brakin g powe r. in creases s!Opp in g di s
tan ces and can ev en cau se to tal br ake failur e.
Fo r thi s re a so n th e brak e fluid m ust be r epla ced
ev ery
y e ars.
Only use brak e fluid
th e US
standard FM VSS 116 D OT 4. Th e fluid mu st
b e new.
WARNING
Stop! Before working in the engine co mpart
m en t, a lways re ad and heed all
34. Th e eng in e co mpartm en t of motor vehicle is a po tent ially dangerou s area
and can ca use s eriou s per sona l injury.
WARNING
Brake failur e ca n r esult from old o r incorr ec t
brake fluid.
48 Ch ecking and Filling
,0. W ARN ING (c on tinue d)
• U se onl y brake fluid that meets SAE speci
fi ca tion J 1703 and conforms to Federa l Mo tor
Veh icle Safety Sta ndard 116.
• Alwa ys check wit h your a uthor ized Vo lk
s wagen dea le r to make su re that yo u arc usin g
the correc t
fluid.
• The correc t brake fluid is al so listed on the
l abe l o n the brake fluid reservo ir .
WARNING
Brake fluid is poison ous.
• Alway s store brake fluid in the closed or ig
inal contain ers in a safe place.
• To reduce the risk of po iso nin g, ne ver u se
em pty food or beverage co ntain ers that might
mislead someo ne into drinkin g from th em.
• Always keep brak e fluid out of the reac h of
c hildr en.
• Always c hange the brake fluids as required
in the m aint enan ce boo klet. Heavy braking
w ith old brak e fluid m ay cause a va por lock
th at reduces braking power , in crea ses stop
pi ng di sta nce s an d can eve n ca use tota l brake
Note
Llrake fluid ca n d am age t he pa int. Wipe
a n y
b ra ke fluid from th e pa int imm edi ately.
flu id mu st be dr ained and di sp ose d of in
t h e prope r ma nne r observ in g environme ntal
reg ulatio ns.
Page 370 of 477

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Vehicl e batt ery
Location of battery
The battery is mai nte nance-free is c h ecked during the inspection serv ice.
Warning note s on handling batterie s
Battery acid is very co rrosive a nd
ca usti c. Always we ar protective
g loves and eye prot ection !
Fires, s park s, open ligh ts and
s moking arc pro hibit ed!
Always kee p childr en away acid and batt eries!
WARNING
Wo rki ng on the batt eri es or the electr ical
syste m in yo ur vehicl e can result in ser ious
acid burns,
th e
batt eri es . Whe n a light bulb is c han ged, always
sw itch o!Tt he light.
• Turn o!Tt he an ti- th ert alarm by unl ockin g
the vehicl e befor e yo u disco nnect th e bat
terie s to pre vent th e ala rm rrom goin g on.
• Always kee p childr en a way
acid an d
batterie s.
• Alw ays wear eye prot ectio n. Nev er let bat
t ery acid or lead particl es contact your eyes,
and clothin g.
•
batter y acid is ve ry co rrosive and
can cause damag e to unprote cted ski n and
blindn ess. A lways wear protectiv e gloves a nd
eye protec tion. To re du ce yo ur risk o r injur y,
n eve r tilt the batt eri es, as thi s co uld spill acid
throu gh th e ve nts and burn you.
WARN ING
• Wh en disconn ecting the batt eri es from the
ve hicl e elec tr ic al sys tem , a lways disco nnect
the negative cable(- ) fir st a nd th en th e po si
ti ve ca ble(+ ).
• Alwa ys avo id fires, spark s, op en li ght s a nd
s moking. Alw ays avoid generatin g sparks a nd
e lectro static charges whe n handlin g cables
a nd elect rica l equipment. Never short-cir cuit
the battery pole s. Hi gh -energy sparks can
c au se se rious per sonal injury.
• Always swi tc h off all electrica l con sumer s
before recon nectin g the batteries. Heconncct
th e plu s ca ble( +) first and then the negative
cab le(-). Neve rrever se the polarity or the con
ne ctions. This could cause fire.
• A hi ghl y exp losive mixtur e or gases is give n
off when th e batter y is bein g ch arged.
• Never cha rge a frozen batt ery, or one that
ha s th awe d. Thi s could res ult in explos io ns
and chemical burns! A lways re pla ce
batte ry
t h at h as frozen. A discharged battery can
rr eeze a t temperatures around 32° F (0 ° CJ.
• Alwa ys make sure that t he ven t hose is co n
n ec ted to the batt eries.
• Never use dama ged batter ie s- they can ex
p lode ! Im med iately repl ace dam aged bat
terie s.
•
yo u ge t b att ery acid in yo ur eyes or on
y our imm edi ate ly rin se with co ld water
fo r sev eral minut es and see k m edi ca l att en
tion imm ed ia te ly.
yo u in ges t a ny batt ery
aci d, seek medi cal aue ntion imm ediatel y.
WARNING
California Propositi on 65 Warnin g:
• Battery posts, te rm in al s and re la te d acces
so ries contain l ead and lead compon ent s,
c hemicals kno wn to the
of Ca lifornia lo
ca use cance r and reproducti ve harm . Wash
h ands
h and ling.
Ch ecking and Filling 49
Page 371 of 477

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
The electrolyte level be checked reg ularly in high-mileage vehicles, in hot
cou ntri es and in older batteries.
- Open the engine hood and open the
batt ery cover at the front.
- C heck th e co lor display in the round
w ind ow at the top of the battery.
- If there are air bubb les in the window,
tap the w indow gent ly un til they disp erse .
Th e positio n of th e battery is sh ow n in th e corre
spo ndin g engine compart ment diagram
3.3. Th
e ro und window ("magic eye '') on th e to p of
t h e batt ery chang es color, d epending on the
c harg e le vel and ele ctrolyt e le vel of the ba ttery.
I f th e c olor in the w indow i s co lor less or bri gh t
ye llow . the elec trol yte le vel of the battery is to o
I la ve the ba tte1y ch ec ked by a q ualifi ed
d eal ers hip ..
The col ors g ree n and b la ck ar c use d b y the work
s h op t o diagno se the battery.
Charging and replacing vehicle batteries
All work with the vehicle battery req uir es specia l know ledge.
Have th e batteries checked by auth orized
Vo lkswagen deale r o r qua lified workshop be
t ween regular ma inten an ce i nt erva ls if you of te n
driv e short distance s or i f th e vehicle is not
driven for lo ng peri ods.
I f the bat te ry has discharged and you have prob
l ems starting th e ve hicle, the battery might be
damaged . If thi s happens, we re comme nd you
h ave the ve hicle batte ry c hecked by an autho
ri ze d Vol kswag en dealer
it w ill he erly recha rged o r re pla ced.
C har ging vehicle batteries
T he c har ging of the vehicl e batt eri es s hould be
l ef t to an aut horized Vo lkswage n deale r o r qual
ifi ed workshop, b ecau se your ve hicle is
equipp ed w ith specia l batteri es th at mu st b e
charg ed in a contro lled e nvironm ent.
50 Checking and Filling
Rep lacing a battery
T he batt eries have been specia lly deve lo ped for
th eir lo cat io ns and they have specia l sa fe ty fea
Genui ne Volkswage n batte ries me et th e m aint e
nan ce, and safety sp ecificat io ns
fo r you r ve hicl e.
WARNING
• u se on ly maint en an ce -fr ee or
cycle -free, leak-proof batteries with the same
s pecification s and dimen sions as the ori ginal
e quipm ent batt ery. S pecifi cation s are liste d
on the batt ery hous ing.
• Before sta rtin g
work on th e batteries,
a lways rea d and heed a ll in
"Loca tion of battery" on page 49.
Page 372 of 477

c£> For the sa ke of e nvironment
Batte ries
1ox ic s ubstan ces includin g sul
furi c acid and le ad . Th ey mus! be dis posed ap
p ro pria lc ly an d 110 1
ord inary garbage.
Tires and wheels
Genera l notes
Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Tips
Wh en !h e ba ttery is reconne c1e d .
warning
li gh l for 1he S1abi lization Program
(ES P). (AS RJ ma y lig ht up
a nd sla y on. go out if yo u dri ve briefly in a line al a sp eed of 15 20 km /h .
Tires may le n st appr eciated and most abus ed parts of motor vehicle.
Tire s ma y be 1h e appr eciale d and mo st
ab use d pans of rn o!O r ve hicl e. Tire s are,
ever . o ne mo s! pans ofa ve
h icl e. p arli cula rly co nsid erin g comp arasmall o f rubb er on eac h tir e th al as
s ure s all-imponanl b etwee n yo u,
your vehicl e
road.
Mainl ainin g 1h e c orr cc1 lire pressure , ma kin g
s ur e
vehicl e an d i1s 1ir es do 1101 have to
ca rry mor e !hey can safe ly hand le ,
a vo iding dam age from haz ards and regu
larl y in spec lin g !ir es fo r d am age including
slas hes ir reg ular wear and co ndi tion are
th e mos! impor lan 11hin gs you ca n do lo
h elp avoid sudd en lire f ailur e includ ing tread
se para lion and hlo wo u1s.
Avoiding damage If yo u ha ve
dri ve ove r a cu rb or sim ilar ob
s tacl e, dri ve ve ry s lowly a nd as cl ose as po ssib le
a l a rig h1 angl e 10
curb.
ke e p ch emi ca ls including g rease. o il. gas
o lin e an d brak e fluid off 1 he 1ires .
ln spe cl
1ir es regul arly fo r damag e (c ut s.
c ra cks or c1c.J. any foreign
bo dies em bed de d in ! r e ad s.
Storing tires
Mark lires when yo u r em ove th em
to indi cale dire cti on T hi s ens ures y ou 10 be hie 10 m ou nl when yo u rein sta ll
!h em .
W hen
1h e whee ls or 1ires s hou ld be
s tor ed in a cool, dry and preferab ly dark place. S
!o re tir es in
a ven ica l po sil ion if th ey are 1101
m ount ed on rim s, in a horizo ntal pos i1 ion if1h ey
are mou n1ed on rim s.
New tires
!ir es have to be broke n
The !r ea d ofn ew lir es may vary, accor ding
10 1h e 1y pe and mak e of li re an d 1h e tre ad pat
l e rn.
Hidd en damag e
!ir es rim s is 11 01 r ead ily vis
ibl e. you n olice unu sual vibral ion or !he vepull s 10 one side, !his may indi cale th al o n e or 1h e 1ires be en dama ged. The tir es mu st b e
c h ec ke d imm ediale ly by an auth ori zed Vo lk
s wag en dea ler or qua lifi ed wo rk sh op.
U nidirectiona l tires
A unidir ec1ional lir e can b e id e111 ifi ed by arro ws
o n 1h e sid ew all , 1h a1
in 1he dir ection 1h e
l ire is designe d 10 ro la!C. Yo u must fo llow 1h e
s p ecifie d direc1 io n of ro 1a 1ion. This is necessa ry
so
1h es e 1ires de velo p !heir rega rding grip , road noi se, we ar
an d hydro plan ing For m ore info rm a
lion " Unidi re c tional 1ir es".
WARNING
tir es or !ires th al arc o ld, worn or dam
aged cannol provide max imum control and
brak ing abilil y.
• New tir es len d to be s lippery a nd mu st be
broken in.
re duce !he r is k of losin g conlrol ,
a co llisio n and serious pe rso nal injur ies, dri ve
Checking and Filling 51
Page 373 of 477

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
WARNING (continued)
with special care for the fir st 35 0 mile s
( 560km ).
• Driving with worn or dam aged tires can
l ead to los s of co ntrol, sud den tire failure, in
clud ing a blowout and sudden deflation,
cras hes and se riou s perso nal injurie s. H ave
worn or damaged tires rep laced immediat ely.
• Tires age even if th ey arc not bein g used
a n d can fail sudd enl y, es pecia lly
at high
s p ee ds. Tire s th at ar c mor e than 6 yea rs old
WARNIN G (contin ued)
ca n onl y be use d in an em erge ncy and then
w ith specia l ca re and at lo w er sp eeds.
• Neve r m ount u sed t ires on yo ur vehicl e if
you arc not s ure of th eir "pre vio us hi story."
Old use d tir es ma y have been dama ged eve n
t h ough th e damage cann ot b e see n that can
l ea d to sudd en tir e fa ilur e and loss of vehicle
contro l.
• If yo u notice unu sual vibrat ion or if th e ve
hicle pull s to one sid e wh en drivin g, a lways
stop as soo n as it is safe to do so and check the
wheels and tires for dam age.
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessor y weight
m ea ns th e comb ined weigh t (in excess of those
s tand ard item s wh ic h may b e re p laced ) of auto
matic tran sm iss ion, powe r stee ring . power
brake s, pow er wind ows, powe r se ats. radio, a nd
heat er, to th e ex tent that th ese item s are ava il
ab le as factory- in st all ed eq ui pment (w heth er in
s talled or not).
Aspect ratio m ea ns th e ra tio of th e heig h t
th e wid th of th e
ti re in perce nt. Numbers of70 or lowe r ind icat e
a sh ort sid ewa ll for imp roved steering r espons e
a nd be tter ove rall hand ling d ry pa vement.
B ead
m ea ns th e pan oft he tire that is m ade of stee l
w ires, wrapp ed or reinfor ced by ply cords and
t h at is s hape d to
th e rim .
B ead separation
mean s a breakdow n of th e bo nd b etwee n com
p on ent s in the bea d.
Cord mea ns th e s trands for ming the plies in t he tire .
Cold lir e inflation pressure
m ea ns th e tire press ure reco mmend ed by the
ve hicl e m anu factur er f or a tire of a des ig nate d
s ize th a t ha s not b ee n d rive n for th an a co up le of
m iles ( kilomete rs) at low sp eeds in th e thr ee
h our peri od befo re th e tire press ure is m eas ured
or ad juste d.
52 Checking and Filling
Curb weig ht
mea ns th e weig ht of
a moto r ve hicle sta n
dard equipm ent in cluding th e maxi mum ca
paci ty o f fuel. oil. a nd coolant, air co ndition ing
and additional weight of o ptional equipme nt.
Gr oss Axle Weight Roting
m ea ns th e load -ca rryi ng ca pacity of a sin gle axle
sys tem, measured at th e tire-gro und in te rface s.
Gro ss Vehicl e W eight Roling
means th e max imum t otal load ed weig ht of the
ve hicl e.
Groo ve
m ea ns th e spa ce betw een
ad jacent tread
r ib s.
L o ad rotin g (cod e)
m eans the maximum load that
tir e is ra ted to
carry for a given inflation press ure. You may not
this o n all tir es bec ause it is not
required by law.
Ma ximum load roting
m ean s th e load rating for
tire at th e perm iss ible inflatio n pressu re for that t ir e .
Ma ximum load ed ve hicle weig ht
mean s th e
of:
(a) C urb weig ht,
( b ) Accesso ry weight,
( c ) Vehicle capa city weigh t, a nd
(cl ) Pro duction o ptions we ig h t.
Page 374 of 477

Maximum (permissible) inflation pressure means the maximum cold inflation pressure to
which a tire may be inflated. Also called "max imum inflation pressure."
Normal occupant weight
means
150 lbs. (68 kilograms) times the number
of occupants seated in the vehicle up to the total seating capacity of your vehicle.
Outer diameter
means the overall diameter of an inflated new
tire.
Overall width means the linear distance between the exteriors
of the sidewalls of an inflated tire, including ele
vations due to labeling, decorations, or protec tive bands or ribs.
Ply
means a layer of rubber-coated parallel cords.
Radial ply tire
means a pneumatic tire in which the ply cords
that extend to the beads are laid at substantially
90 degrees to the centerline of the tread.
Recommended inflation pressure
see
52, "Cold tire inflation pressure".
Rim
means a metal support for a tire or a tire and
tube assembly upon which the tire beads are
seated.
Rim diameter
means nominal diameter of the bead seat . If you
change your wheel size, you will have to pur
chase new tires to match the new rim diameter.
Rim size designation
means rim diameter and width.
Rim width
means nominal distance between rim flanges.
Sidewall
means that portion of a tire between the tread
and bead.
Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Speed rating (letter code) means the speed at which a tire is designed to be
driven for extended periods of time. The ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h) to 186 mph
(298 km/h). These ratings are listed in the table
below 62. You may not find this informa
tion on all tires because it is not required by law.
The speed rating letter code, where applicable, is molded on the tire sidewall and indicates the
maximum permissible road speeds.
Tire pressure monitoring system
1 )
means a system that detects when one or more
of a vehicle's tires are underinflated and illumi nates a low tire pressure warning telltale.
Tread means that portion of a tire that comes into con
tact with the road.
Tread separation means pulling away of the tread from the tire
carcass.
Tread wear indicators (TWI) means the projections within the principal
grooves designed to give a visual indication of
the degrees of wear of the tread. See
59, "Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)" for more informa
tion on measuring tire wear.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
is a tire information system developed by the United States National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) that is designed to help buyers make relative comparisons among tires.
The UTQG is not a safety rating and not a guar antee that a tire
will last for a prescribed number
of miles or perform in a certain way. It simply
gives tire buyers additional information to com bine with other considerations, such as price,
brand loyalty and dealer recommendations .
Under UTQG, tires are graded by the tire manu
facturers in three areas: tread wear, traction and temperature resistance. The UTQG information
on the tires, molded into the sidewalls.
U.S. DOT Tire Identification Number (TIN)
This is the tire's "serial number."
It begins with
the letters "DOT" and indicates that the tire
meets all federal standards. The next two num-
Tire pressure monitoring system)
Checking and Filling 53
Page 375 of 477

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
bers or w her e il manufactured, and fo ur numb ers re pre
s ent the week and year of manufa ctur e. For ex
ampl e, th e numb ers 180 1 m ean lhal
lir e produ ced in the wee k of 200 1. oth er
numb ers arc m ark e ting code s may or may
n ot b e use d by th e lir e m an ufa c tur er. T hi s info r
is use d lO cl co nsum ers if lir e dere quir es reca ll.
Vehicle capacity we ight
means cargo and luggage load pl us
1 50 lbs. (68 kilogra ms) lime s vehicle's I se
alin g capaci ty as
on label alt ached lo
t h e open ed ge of th e dri ver's door .
Vehicle maximum load on the tire
means that load on an ind iv idua l tire that is de
t erm in ed b y dis tribu ting e a ch ax le its shar e of ma ximum load ed ve hicle weig ht and di
v iding b y
Vehicle nor mal load on the tire
mean s load on an indi vidual lha l is de
termined by each axle i ls s hare of curb accessory and n ormal weighl in accordan ce below 54) and div id in g by
Occupant loading and distribution for vehic le normal load for various designated sealing capaciti es
Desig na ted sea ling capaci ty,
Vehicle norm al l oad, numbe r
Occupa nt distri bution in a
nu mber of occ upants
of occupants normally lo aded vehicle
2 th rough 4
2 2 in front.
5 3 in I in back scat.
Cold tire inflation pressure
pressure aff ects the overall safety of a icle .
TIRE AND LOADING INFORMATION
( SEATING CAPAOTY
amt,l D Of
TIR E SIZE COLD TIRE PRESSURE
FRONT
SPARE
F ig . 1 3 Approximate location of fire pressure labe l on open edge of driver's door and example
of a fire pressure label
T ire p ress ur e ge nera lly refe rs to in a tire th at i l needs il t o do ils job an d sa fe ly
ca rry co mbin ed loa d of enti re vehicle
and it s content s. Tir e pre ssur e is meas ured in ki
l op ascals
imernat io nal meas urin g
unit and in poun ds per squar e in ch (P SI). Tir e
p ressure is based in pan o n th e ve hicle's des ig n
and l oad Ii mil -
greates t amount of
54 Checking and Filling
th at can car ry safe ly an d th e lir e s ize.
T he proper tir e press ure is frequ entl y to
as the "recom mend ed co ld tire inflation pr es
s ur e." Air in
!ires expa nds w hen tir e heat s
up because of fric tion when it fl exes in
u se . Th e tir e press ure is highe r w hen tire warmed up than when is "co ld.·· ll i s infla
t io n p ressure in a "co ld" lire Ther e-
Page 376 of 477

fore, you shou ld ne ver let air o ut of a warm ti re m atc h "cold tire inflation pressure" reco m
m endati ons. The tir es wo uld then be und erin
fla ted and could fail suddenl y.
Maint aining proper tire press ure is on e of the
mo st important things you ca n do
help avoi d
s udd en tir e failu re. Unde rinflated tire s are a
major cause of sudden tir e failure. Keeping t ires
a t th e righ t p ress ure is also important for saf e
and resp o nsiv e ve hicl e handl ing, tra ctio n,
and load carryi ng. Tire pre ssure s arc
part icu lar ly i mport ant when the ve hicle is
being driven at higher speeds, and then espe
cially when heavi ly lo ad ed eve n wit hin th e per
mi ssible load-carry ing capaci ties approved for
yo ur vehicle.
The reco mm end ed tir e pre ssure s fo r yo ur Volk
sw age n dep end on th e kind or tires on your ve-
Ca rlin e E ngin e Tire
Jet ta 1.91
/ 74 195/65
15 91 H
kWT DI
1.91/ 74 205
/55 R 16 91
kW TD I
1. 9 1 / 74 225/45
17 91 H
kW TDI
J etta 2.0
l / 147 205/55 R 16 911-1
2. 0l / 147 225/45
R 17 91 H
kWTF SI
2.0 1 / 147 255 /40
18 92 Y
kWTFSI
J e tt a 2.51/ 110 195/65
1 5 91 H
kW
2 .5 1 /
IIO 205/55 R 16 91 H
k W
2 .5 1 /
IIO 225/45 R 1791 H
kW
xi= reinfor ced
Be caus e
ch anges may be mad e to ve
hicl e equipm ent during the model year, always
c ompar e th e tire size designation on the tire
pr ess ure label on yo ur vehi cle
the tire s on
y ou r ve hicle. Make sur e that th e tir e s ize in fo r-
Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
hide an d th e number of passe ngers and /or
amo unt of luggage you will b e
The tire pr ess ure la b el on the op en edge of the
dri ver's doo r on your Volk swagen li sts th e rec
o mmended cold tire infla tion press ures fo r the
veh icle at its max imum capaci ty weight and tire s
th at were on your vehicle at the time it was man
ufa ctur ed.
See the illu stration
54, fig. for the loca
ti on of the label on the open edge of the drive r's
door (color of th e actual label and exact location
o n the vehicl e will vary slightl y).
table below li sts the recom mend ed co ld tire
inflation pressures for the Volk swa gen m odel s
cove red by your O wner's Lit era ture at the ve
hi cle's maximum capacit y weig ht and the tir e
s izes insta lled on th e res pec tive mode ls as ori g
in al e quipment , o r as a fa ctory opt ion .
Tire pressur e Tire pressure rear
front
PSI kPa
PS I kPa
34 234 34 234
34 234 34 234
34 234 34 234
3 5 240 35 240
35 240
35 240
35 240
240
34 234
34 234
34 2
34 3 4
234
34 234
34 234
mation o n the vehicl e lab el i s the same as th e
s ize of t he tir es on the ve hicl e is es pecially im
portan t if th e ve hicl e belo ngs to someo ne e lse or
y ou bou ght the vehicle with different rims/tires
Checking and Filling 55