
Contents3
ContentsManual structure
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Content
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Safety First
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Safe driving
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Brief introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Proper sitting position for occupants . . . . . . . . . 
Pedal area  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Storing objects  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Seat belts
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Brief introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Why wear seat belts? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Seat belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Seat belt tensioners  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Airbag system
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Brief introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Front airbags  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Side airbags* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Curtain airbags  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Deactivating airbags*  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Child safety
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Brief introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Child seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Securing child seats  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Operating Instructions
 . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Cockpit
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Overview  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Instruments  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
LPG system* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Digital instrument panel display  . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Instrument panel menus* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Warning lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Steering wheel controls
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
General information  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Audio system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Radio navigation system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Unlocking and locking
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Central locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Keys  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Radio frequency remote control . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Anti-theft alarm system* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Tailgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Windows  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Sliding/tilting sunroof* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Lights and visibility
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Lights  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Interior lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Visibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Windscreen wipers  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Rear-view mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Seats and storage compartments
. . . . . . . . . . 
The importance of correct seat adjustment . . . . 
Head restraints  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Front seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Rear seats  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Storage compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Ashtrays*, cigarette lighter* and electrical 
sockets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
First-aid kit, warning triangle, fire extinguisher  
Luggage compartment  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Air conditioning
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Climatic*  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
2C-Climatronic*  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
General notes  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Driving
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Steering  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Ignition lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Starting and stopping the engine  . . . . . . . . . . . 
Start-Stop function*  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Manual gearbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Automatic gearbox*/DSG automatic gearbox . . 
Handbrake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Parking aid acoustic system* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Cruise control* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Practical Tips
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Intelligent technology
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Brakes  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Anti-lock brake system and traction control M-ABS 
(ABS and TCS)  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Electronic Stability Programme (ESP)* . . . . . . . . 
Driving and the environment
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Running-in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Exhaust gas purification system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
Economical and environmentally friendly driving
Driving abroad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
5
6
7
7
7
10
16
17
19
19
21
24
28
30
30
34
37
41
44
46
46
48
51 55
55
55
57
60
61
68
77
91
91
92
96
99
99
105
107
109
111
113
115
118
118
126
129
130
134
137
137
138
140
142
144 152
155
156
159
159
161
165
169
171
171
172
173
174
178
181
182
187
189
192
197
197
197
198
199
205
205
206
207
210
Altea_EN.book  Seite 3  Donnersta
g, 2. September 2010  2:00 14 

Cockpit
70Main menu
The menu provides access to  the different display functions 
(only with the MFI lever).
Open main menu
– Switch the ignition on.
– Press and hold the eject button   for at least two seconds. It 
may be necessary to repeat this operation until the main menu is 
displayed.
Select a menu from the main menu
– To choose an option from the menu, press the upper or lower end  of rocker switch  . The selected option is displayed between 
two horizontal lines.
– Press button   to select the entry.Example of menu use  ⇒page 68
Fig. 47  Windscreen wiper 
lever (MFI): button A to 
confirm the menu selec-
tion and rocker switch B to 
change the menuFig. 48  Digital instru-
ment panel display: Main 
menu
Main menu
Function
Multifunction 
display
Change to the multifunction display (MFI): “Multifunc-
tion display (MFI)”
Audio
This menu displays the available information for the 
active audio source (radio station, CD audio track / MP3 
/ USB / iPod / Bluetooth audio
a) / call information
a).
Navigation
This menu is only available if the vehicle is fitted with a 
navigation system. The navigation system must be 
switched on. When the route guidance is activated, the 
turning arrows and proximity bars are displayed. The 
display is similar to that of the Navigation system. 
If the route guidance is not activated, the direction of 
travel (compass) and the name of the street along 
which you are driving are shown.
AB
AB
AA
Altea_EN.book  Seite 70  Donnersta g, 2. September 2010  2:00 14 

Cockpit71
Safety First
Operating Instructions
Practical Tips
Technical Specifications
Note
For electronic and vehicle equipment one or more of these menus will be 
displayed.
Multifunction disp lay menu (MFI)
The multifunction display (MFI) shows you information on the 
journey and fuel consumption.The multifunction display (MFI) has two automatic memories: 1 - Trip memory 
and 2 - Total memory . The selected memory is shown on the upper right hand 
section of the display  ⇒fig. 49  at all times.
Open the multifunction display menu
–Select the Multifunction display menu from the main menu  ⇒page 70 
and press the   button on the windscreen wiper lever or the multifunc-
tion lever*.
Selecting a memory
– To change from one memory to another, briefly press button    ⇒page 68, fig. 45  ⇒ page 68 on the windscreen wiper lever or the   
button on the multifunction lever  ⇒page 68, fig. 46  ⇒page 68 while 
the ignition is switched on.
Te l e p h o n e
This menu is only available in vehicles with radio unit if 
the vehicle is fitted with the telephone function. In vehi-
cles fitted with a radio navigation system, this menu is 
available in the central unit (navigator) ⇒ Booklet 
“SEAT Media System 2.1”.
Vehicle condition
This menu displays current warning or information 
texts: “Vehicle status menu”
This option flashes when one of these texts is dis-
played.
Configuration
This option allows the time, the speed warning when 
using winter tyres, units, language, independent heat-
ing, the Light and visibility menu and the Convenience 
menu to be reset.
a)Only in vehicles fitted with a radio navigation system.
Fig. 49  Multifunction 
display (MFI) instrument 
panel display.
OK
AA
OK
Altea_EN.book  Seite 71  Donnersta g, 2. September 2010  2:00 14 

Cockpit
74
– Press button   or   on the multifunction steering wheel* ⇒page 68, fig. 46  until the Vehicle Status  menu is displayed.Priority 2 warning messages and information texts: “Information and warning 
messages on the screen” will automatically disappear from the screen after a 
time and will be stored in the  Vehicle status menu.
The warning and information texts may be viewed in this menu. If there is no 
warning or information message, the option  Vehicle status is not displayed. 
If there are several messages, each one is shown for a few seconds.
Example of menu use  ⇒page 68
Note
If there are no warning messages, this menu is not available.Configuration menu
This menu is used to make th e settings for the vehicle func-
tions.Open Configuration menu
– Select the option  Configuration from the main menu: “Main 
menu” and press button      ⇒page 68, fig. 45  on the wind-
screen wiper lever.  or
– Press button   or   on the multifunction steering wheel*  ⇒page 68, fig. 46  until the Configuration  menu is displayed.Example of menu use ⇒page 68.
 „
 ƒ
OK
AA
 „
 ƒ
Displayed on the 
screen
Function
Multifunction 
display data.
This menu is used to establish the data in the multi-
function display menu to be displayed on the instru-
ment panel  ⇒page 71
Convenience
This menu allows you to make the settings for the 
convenience functions in the vehicle.
Lights and visibility
From this menu it is it possible to alter the vehicle 
lighting settings.
Time
The hours and minutes of the clock and the naviga-
tion system can be changed. Choose between 12 
and 24-hour format and change to summer time.
Winter tyres
The menu allows the setting of a speed at which an 
optical and acoustic warning will be given by the 
system. You can use this function, for example, if 
you have fitted winter tyres which are not suited for 
the top speed of your vehicle. Please see the sec-
tion “Wheels and tyres”.
Settings: Language
The display texts and the navigation system texts 
can be seen in different languages.
Units
This option allows you to select the units for dis-
playing temperature, fuel consumption values and 
distances.
Aux. Speed
The instrument panel also displays the speed in 
another different unit of measurement (mph or 
km/h) to that given on the speedometer.
Altea_EN.book  Seite 74  Donnersta g, 2. September 2010  2:00 14 

Steering wheel controls91
Safety First
Operating Instructions
Practical Tips
Technical Specifications
Steering wheel controlsGeneral informationThe steering wheel includes a multifunction module from where it is possible 
to control the audio, telephone and radio navigation functions, and the auto-
matic gearbox*, without needing to distract the driver.
There are two versions of the multifunction module:•Audio version, to control the available audio functions from the steering 
wheel.•Audio + Telephone version, to control the available audio functions and 
the telephone system from the steering wheel.
Both versions may be used to control the Audio system (Radio, Audio CD, 
mp3 CD, iPod
21)/USB
21)/SD21)) and the Radio navigation system, in which 
case they also control the Navigation system.
•Version for automatic gearbox*  ⇒page 185.21)If fitted in the vehicle.
Altea_EN.book  Seite 91  Donnersta g, 2. September 2010  2:00 14 

Steering wheel controls
96Radio navigation systemSteering wheel Audio + Telephone controls
Fig. 57  Controls on the 
steering wheel
Fig. 58  Steering wheel 
controls (depending on 
version of model)
Button
Radio
CD/MP3/USB*/iPod*
AUX
NAVIGATOR
TELEPHONE
Volume up
Vol um e  up
Volu m e up
Volu m e  up
Volu m e up
Vol u m e dow n
Volume down
Vol um e  d own
Vol um e  d own
Vol um e  d own
Search for next station
Next track
Hold down: Fast forward
No function specified
No function specified
No function specified
Search for last station
Previous track
Hold down: Rewind
No function specified
No function specified
No function specified
AAABACAD
Altea_EN.book  Seite 96  Donnersta g, 2. September 2010  2:00 14 

Steering wheel controls
98
Change menu on instrument 
panel
Change menu on instrument panel
Change menu on instru-ment panel
No function specified
Change menu on instru-ment panel
Operates on instrument panel
Operates on instrument panel
Operates on instrument  panel
Operates on instrument panel
Operates on instrument 
panel / No function speci- fied
Operates on instrument panel
Operates on instrument panel
Operates on instrument panel
Operates on instrument panel
Operates on instrument 
panel / No function speci- fied
a)For a more detailed description of how to use this button, please  refer to the Radio navigation System User Handbook (SEAT Medi a System 2.1)b)Only if the panel is in Audio menu.AJAKAL
Altea_EN.book  Seite 98  Donnerstag, 2. September 2010  2:00 14 

Air conditioning
166
 button – Manual air recirculation mode
 button – Heated rear window The heating will be switched off auto-
matically approximately  20 minutes after switching on. However, it may 
be turned off by pushing the button. The button lights up yellow and the 
symbol appears in the display.
 button – Automatic temperature, ventilation and air distribution 
control  ⇒page 167
 button - Dual zone synchroniser
 button – Switches the 2C-Climatronic on and off  ⇒page 168
Blower control  ⇒page 168
 button – Switches heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system 
onWARNING
For road safety all windows must be clear of ice, snow, and condensation. 
This is essential to ensure good visibility. Please familiarise yourself with 
the correct operation of the heating and ventilation system, including the 
anti-fog/defrost functions for the windscreens.
Note
Please observe the general notes  ⇒page 169.
Viewing Climatronic information
Information about the Climatronic system can be displayed 
on the radio or radio and navigation screen mounted at 
factory.
A5
A6
 =
A7
AUTO
A8
DUAL
A9
OFF
A10A11
AC
Fig. 130  Navigation 
display with information 
about the ClimatronicFig. 131  Radio display 
with information about 
Climatronic
Altea_EN.book  Seite 166  Donnerstag, 2. September 2010  2:00 14