2011 Seat Alhambra oil dipstick

281
Checking and refilling levels
Checking the engine oil level and topping up Fig. 168 Marked engine
oil
dip
stick. Fig. 169 In the engine
comp
ar

tment: Engine oil
filler cap. Preparations
●
Park the vehicle on flat ground so that the engine oil reading is correct.
● Stop the engine and wait a few minutes for the oil to drain back into the
sump.
When the engine has cooled down, immediately check the oil level
and top up if necessary.
● Open the bonnet  ⇒ p
age 275.
● The engine oil filler opening can be recognised by the symbol  on the
cap ⇒ 
fig. 169 and the dipstick by its coloured handle.
Checking the engine oil level
● Pull out the dipstick and wipe it on a clean cloth.
● Replace the dipstick, pushing it in as far as it will go. If the dipstick has a
mark, when y
ou reintroduce it this mark should slot into the corresponding
groove located on the upper end of the tube.
● Remove the dipstick again and check the engine oil level ⇒ tabl
e on
page 281.
● After reading the oil level, replace the dipstick in the tube completely.
Engine oil
topping up ranges fig. 168 Operations required depending on the engine oil topping
up lev
el: Area
A Do not top up oil
⇒  .
Area
B Add approximately 0.5 L of oil (1/2 quarter of a gallon).
The oil
l

evel can be in the zone A , but never above
A .
Area
C : It is
essential to add oil (approximately 1 litre or quarter of
a g al

lon). Ensure that the level is around the centre of the
zone B after adding oil.
Adding oil after checking the level
Only
a

dd engine oil in small quantities and in steps. Safety First Operating instructions Practical tips Technical Data

282
Checking and refilling levels
● Unscrew the cap from engine oil filler opening on the cylinder head
⇒  fig. 169
. If you are not sure where the cap is, request help from a special-
ist.
● Only refill using engine oil expressly approved by SEAT and in small
quantities (not
more than 0.5 l or 1/2 a quarter of a gallon at a time)
⇒  page 280.
● To avoid adding too much oil, each time you add a quantity, wait until
the oil h
as flowed into the crankcase so that it can be measured with the
dipstick.
● Check the oil level before adding any more oil. Do not top up with too
much engine oi
l ⇒  .
● When the oil level is in at least the ⇒ fig. 168 B zone, insert the dip-
stic k

into the tube fully to avoid engine oil escaping when the engine is run-
ning.
● After topping up the oil, ensure that the cap is screwed on to the filler
mouth correctly
. WARNING
Oil could catch fire if it comes into contact with hot engine components.
This c

ould lead to a fire, explosion and severe injuries.
● Always ensure that after topping of oil, the engine oil filler cap is cor-
rectly tight
ened. This will avoid engine oil spilling onto hot engine parts
when the engine is running. CAUTION
● If the oil level is above the area A do not start the engine. You should
obt ain pr

ofessional assistance. Otherwise catalytic converter and engine
damage may occur.
● When refilling or changing service liquids, ensure that you put the liq-
uids int
o the right tank. Making a mistake when refilling could cause seri-
ous malfunctions and damage the engine! For the sake of the environment
The oil level must never be above area A . Otherwise oil can be drawn in
through the c r

ankcase breather and escape into the atmosphere via the ex-
haust system. 
Engine oil consumption The consumption of engine oil can be different from one engine to another
and can
v

ary during the useful life of the engine.
Depending on driving style and the conditions of use, the consumption of
engine oil can reach 1 litre every 2000 km (one quarter of a gallon every
1200 miles); for new vehicles, this could be higher for the first 5000 km
(3000 miles). For this reason the engine oil level must be checked at regular
intervals, preferably when filling the tank and before a journey.
When the engine is working hard, for instance during sustained high-speed
motorway cruising in summer, when towing a trailer or climbing mountain
passes, the oil level should preferably be kept within area ⇒ fig. 168 A .

Changing the engine oil The engine oil must be changed regularly according to the specifications of
the Maint
en

ance Programme.
Due to the problems linked with disposing of used oil and the need for suit-
able tools and special knowledge, always visit a Technical Service to have
the engine oil and filter changed. SEAT recommends visiting a Technical
Service.
Detailed information on the service intervals are shown in the Maintenance
Programme. 

348
Technical Data
Technical Data
Checking fluid levels From time to time, the levels of the different fluids in the ve-
hicle must
be c
hecked. Never fill with incorrect fluids, other-
wise serious damage to the engine may be caused. Fig. 221 Diagram for the location of the various elements Liquid coolant deposit
Engine oi
l

dipstick
Oil filler neck
Brake fluid reservoir
Vehicle battery (underneath a cover)
Windscreen washer fluid reservoir
The checking and refilling of service fluids are carried out on the compo-
nents mentioned above. These operations are described in ⇒ page 275.
Overview
Further explanations, instructions and restrictions on the technical data are
contained as of ⇒ page 344 
1 2
3
4
5
6

Engine oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
chan
ging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
Checking the oil level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Consumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
Control lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Dipstick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Filler opening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
Topping up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
ESC See "Braking assist systems" . . . . . . . . . . 189
ESP see ESC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Event Data Recorder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Exhaust gas purification system . . . . . . . . . . . 228 Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Exterior aerial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Exterior mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 Automatically folding exterior mirrors . . . 112
Controlling function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Synchronised mirror adjustment . . . . . . . . 112
Vehicle care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Extinguisher Driving with a trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
F
Fastening rings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Fault Electric windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Park assist system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 Parking sensor system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Rear a
ssist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Fault memory Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Faults Climate control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Panorama sliding sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Filling capacity AdBlue tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Filling the tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 Control lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Diesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Fuel gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Petrol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Refilling precautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Filter pre-heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Fire extinguisher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
Fire extinguishers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
First-aid kit Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
First aid kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
Fitting Tow hitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Floor mats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Fluids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Fog light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Folding down rear seats Load space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Folding in exterior mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Folding table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Folding the backrest of the front passenger
seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
F
our-wheel-drive Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341
Front airbags See "Airbag system" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Front passenger airbag Deactivating using the key switch . . . . . . . . 35
See "Airbag system" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267 Depending on the engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Diesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Filling the tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Information on consumption . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Petrol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Type of fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Fuel consumption Economic driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Why does fuel consumption increase? . . . 229
Fuel gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265 Control lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Fuel tank flap Closure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Opening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Function control Tow hitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322 Fuse box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Identification using colours . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Identifying blown fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324
Preparation before replacing . . . . . . . . . . . 324
Replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324 371
Index