2012 Seat Alhambra fuel additives

272Checking and refilling levels
WARNING
Refuelling or handling fuel carelessly can cause an explosion or fire re-
sulting in serious burns and injuries.
● Fuel is a highly explosive, easily flammable substance.
● Observe current safety instructions and local regulations concerning
the handling of fuel.

Types of fuel
The type of fuel to use when refilling will depend on the vehicle's engine.
You will find a factory-fitted sticker containing information on the type of
fuel for your vehicle on the inside of the fuel tank flap.
SEAT recommends the use of sulphur-free or low sulphur fuel to reduce con-
sumption and prevent engine damage.
Possible types of fuelAlternative namesFurther information
91a)
RONNormal petrol, normal unlea-
ded petrol
⇒ page 27295 a)
RONPremium unleaded petrol (95
RON)
98 a)
RONPremium unleaded petrol (98
RON)
Diesel ⇒ page 273a) RON = Regulation Octane Number Petrol
Petrol types
Vehicles with petrol engines must refuel using unleaded petrol according to
European norm EN 228 ⇒ 
.
Petrol types are categorised according to their octane number (e.g. 91, 95,
98 or 99 RON (RON = “Research Octane Number”). You may use petrol with
a high octane number than the one recommended for your engine. Howev-
er, this has no advantage in terms of fuel consumption and engine power.
SEAT recommends refuelling with a low sulphur content or sulphur-free pet-
rol to reduce petrol consumption for petrol engines.
Petrol additives
The quality of the fuel influences running behaviour, performance and serv-
ice life of the engine. For this reason, you should use good quality petrol
containing a mixture of additives. These additives will help to prevent corro-
sion, keep the fuel system clean and prevent deposits from building up in
the engine.
If good quality petrol with additives is not available or engine problems
arise, the necessary additives must be added when refuelling.
Not all petrol additives have been shown to be effective. The use of unsuita-
ble petrol additives could damage the engine. These additives are available
from Technical Services, who will inform you of their application.
CAUTION
● Only use fuel with an octane rating that is in line with the norm EN 228,
otherwise significant damage could be caused to the engine and fuel sys-
tem. Furthermore, it could lead to a loss of performance with the conse-
quent engine fault.
● The use of unsuitable petrol additives could damage the engine. 

273
Checking and refilling levels
● If, in exceptional circumstances, petrol with a lower octane rating to that
recommended is used, only use moderate engine speeds and a light throt-
tle. Avoid using full throttle and overloading the engine. Otherwise you may
damage the engine. Fill up with fuel of a suitable octane rating as soon as
possible.
● Do not refuel if the filler indicates that the fuel contains metal. LRP (lead
replacement petrol) fuels also contain high concentrations of metal addi-
tives. This could damage the engine!
● Just one full tank of leaded fuel would seriously impair the efficiency of
the catalytic converter and could damage it. 
Diesel
Diesel fuel
Diesel fuel must correspond to European standard EN 590 (In Germany,
EN 590 or DIN 51628).
The use of diesel fuel with a high sulphur percentage requires shorter serv-
ice intervals ⇒ Booklet Maintenance Programme ⇒ 
. Your Technical Serv-
ice will be able to tell you which countries have diesel with a high sulphur
content.
Do not mix fuel additives (thinners, or similar additives) with diesel fuel.
Winter-grade diesel
When using “summer-grade diesel fuel”, difficulties may be experienced at
temperatures below 0 °C (+32 °F) because the fuel thickens due to wax sep-
aration. For this reason, “winter-grade diesel fuel” is available in Germany,
for example, during the cold months. It can be used at temperatures as low
as -20 °C (-4 °F).
In countries with different climatic conditions, other types of diesel fuel are
available that are suitable to local temperatures. Technical Services and fill-
ing stations in the country concerned will inform you on the type of diesel
fuels available. A cold diesel engine makes more noise during winter temperatures than
summer temperatures. Furthermore, the exhaust fumes may turn slightly
bluish while the engine is heating. The quantity of exhaust gases will de-
pend on the outside temperature.
Filter pre-heater
Vehicles with a diesel engine are fitted with a fuel filter pre-heater. This en-
sures that the fuel system remains operational to approx. -24 °C (-11.2 °F),
provided you use winter-grade diesel which is safe to -15 °C (+5 °F).
However, if the fuel has waxed to such an extent that the engine will not
start at temperatures of under -24 °C (-11,2 °F), simply place the vehicle in a
warm garage or workshop for a while to heat up.
Auxiliary heater
Vehicles with a diesel engine may be fitted with an auxiliary heater. The
heater runs off the fuel from the fuel tank. On doing so, smells and steam
may be noticed outside the vehicle for a short period. This is normal and it
is not an indication of a fault in the vehicle.
Whenever there is little fuel in the tank (reserve), the auxiliary heater auto-
matically switches off.
WARNING
Never use start boosters. An aerosol start booster could explode or cause
a sudden rise in engine speed leading to engine damage and serious in-
jury. 
Safety FirstOperating instructionsPractical tipsTechnical Specifications

278Checking and refilling levels
Opening the tank filling neck
● Open the tailgate.
● Rotate the shut off on the cover clockwise ⇒ fig. 166 and open the cover
forwards.
● Unscrew the tank filler neck cap ⇒ fig. 167 1
anticlockwise.
Refilling AdBlue
Only use AdBlue that is approved by SEAT and that complies with the
ISO 22241-1 Standard. Only use genuine bottles.
● Observe the instructions and information provided by the refill bottle
manufacturer.
● Observe the expiry date.
● Unscrew the cap on the refill bottle.
● Place the refill bottle 2
upside down inside the tank filler neck.
● Press the refill bottle against the filler neck and keep in this position.
● Add at least 10 litres of AdBlue (6 bottles). A lower quantity would be
insufficient.
● Wait until the contents of the refill bottle have been poured into the
AdBlue tank. Do not crush or damage the bottle!
● Unscrew the liquid bottle anticlockwise and remove it carefully ⇒ 
.
● You can tell when the AdBlue tank is full because the bottle will be emp-
ty.
Closing the tank filling neck
● Screw on the tank filler neck cap 1
clockwise until it is fully inserted.
● Place the cover and turn the shut off anticlockwise to close it.
Operations before driving
● Only switch the ignition on after refilling.
● Keep the ignition switch on for at least 30 seconds so that the system
detects tank refilling.
● Wait 30 seconds before starting the engine!
WARNING
Only keep AdBlue in its original container, tightly shut and in a safe
place.
● Never keep AdBlue in empty food cans, bottles or other containers to
avoid other people mistaking it for something else.
● Keep the AdBlue out of the reach of small children.
CAUTION
● Only refill using AdBlue expressly approved by SEAT. The use of any oth-
er type of AdBlue could cause engine damage!
● AdBlue should never be mixed with water or any other additives. Any
type of damage caused by a mixture will not be covered by the warranty.
● Do not add AdBlue to the diesel fuel tank! Otherwise you may damage
the engine.
● Never leave the refill bottle in the vehicle. It could become permeable
due to temperature changes and bottle damage and the AdBlue could dam-
age the vehicle interior.
For the sake of the environment
Dispose of the refill bottle in an environment-friendly manner.
Note
Suitable AdBlue refill bottles can be purchased from a Technical Service. 

Parking light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Parking sensor system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200, 201Fault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Optical parking system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
With towing bracket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Particulate filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Pedals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12, 178
Petrol Additives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Filling the tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Fuel gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Plates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Polishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Portable waste bin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Pre-heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Preparation Checking the engine coolant level . . . . . . 290
Vehicle battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294
Work in the engine compartment . . . . . . . 281
Preparations Changing a wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310
Checking the engine oil level . . . . . . . . . . 285
Topping up the engine oil level . . . . . . . . . 285
Preparing for the journey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Principles of physics regarding a frontal colli- sion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Protection of vehicle undercarriage . . . . . . . . 252
Pushing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172 R
Radio reception Aerial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Operating faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Rails and attachment element system Baggage net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Rails and attachment system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Rain sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Control of function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Raising the vehicle Check list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314
Jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
Raising vehicle Lifting platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
With a lifting platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Reading the Fault memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Rear assist Fault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Mode 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Mode 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Things to note . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
User instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Rear Assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Rear assist systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Rear seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Rear shelf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Rear vision mirror . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110, 111
Rear vision mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Recommended gear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 Recycling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Refilling precautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271
Reflective vest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
Reflective vests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
Refuelling
Mistakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Remote control Auxiliary heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
See "Keys" . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Removing ice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Removing snow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Removing wax deposits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Repairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261, 262 Airbag system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
Labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Lifting platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
Plates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Replacement of parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Reprogramming control units . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Retaining hooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Retro-fitting Two-way radios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
Vehicle telephone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
Rev counter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Reversing camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
Rocker switches Tiptronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Rollback anti-trap function Electric sliding doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Roof carrier system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Rubber seals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
379
Index