2012 VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG ECU

d Check the vehicle tool kit. Add tools and other gear based on the special requirements of the trip
you will be taking ⇒  Useful off-road driving equipment.
d Stow luggage as low and flat as possible in the vehicle. Safely secure all loose objects.
Before driving off-road the first time
Before you drive your vehicle off-road, we urge you to take an appropriate off-road driving course. Taking a course is especially important if you have little or no experience driving off-road. Even more experienced off-roaders can benefit from an off-road driving course.
A good course can show you how to handle the vehicle in a wide range of off-road situations and how to more safely deal with difficult terrain Driving off-road demands a different attitude and very different skills compared with highway driving. Your safety and that of your passengers will depend on your
knowledge, skill, and caution as a driver ⇒ .
WARNING
Disregarding the safety-related checklist may lead to accidents and serious personal injuries.
x Always review and follow the checklist above. Follow commonly accepted safety practices and use common sense.
x All occupants must sit properly and wear safety belts whenever the vehicle is moving.
General rules and good driving practices

DANGER
The vehicle's high-voltage electrical system and high-voltage battery are dangerous and can cause burns, other serious personal injuries, electrocution, and death.
x Always assume that high-voltage battery and parts of the high-voltage system are fully charged and energized.
x Never touch or let jewelry or other metal objects contact high-voltage cables or the high-voltage battery and battery poles, especially if the cables, battery, and battery poles have been damaged in any way.
x Never do any work yourself on the high-voltage electrical system, the orange-colored high-voltage wiring, or on the high-voltage battery.
x Never open, service, repair, or disconnect any part of the hybrid electrical system.
x Never damage the orange-colored high-voltage cables. Never remove them and never disconnect them from the high-voltage electrical system.
x Never open or remove the orange-colored cover on the high-voltage battery.
x Always have work on the hybrid electrical system and systems that could be indirectly affected by it done by qualified, trained technicians who have the know-how, experience, documentation, and tools to do the work safely.
x All work on the high-voltage electrical system and the high-voltage battery must be done in compliance with Volkswagen standards and guidelines.
x Vehicle keys must be safely stored a safe distance from vehicle so that the ignition cannot be switched on and energize the electrical system.
x Gases vented or released from the high-voltage battery vapors are potentially poisonous and can burn.
x Physical damage to the vehicle or the high-voltage battery can result in immediate or de-layed release of poisonous gases that can also cause a fire.
x Always avoid contact with leaking fluids and gases escaping from the battery, particularly one that has been damaged.
x Always tell emergency responders that the vehicle has a high-voltage battery.
WARNING
Unintended vehicle movement during maintenance work can cause serious personal injuries.
x Never work under the vehicle unless you have safely secured the vehicle from moving. If you must work under the vehicle with the wheels on the ground, always make sure that the vehicle is on level ground, that all 4 wheels are chocked to keep them from moving, and that the key is not in the ignition.
x If you must work under a vehicle raised on a floor jack, always make sure that the vehicle is safely supported on safety stands intended for that purpose that are strong enough to support the weight of the vehicle. The jack supplied with the vehicle is not strong enough for this purpose and can collapse causing serious personal injury.

x Open the driver door and pull the inside hood release lever in the direction of the arrow ⇒ fig. 314.
x The engine hood is released from its latch by a spring ⇒ .
x Push the outside hood release lever ⇒ fig. 315 (arrow) and lift the hood all the way up. A gas-filled strut will hold the hood up.
Closing the engine hood
x Pull the hood down to overcome the resistance of the gas-pressure strut ⇒ .
x Let the engine hood drop into the hood latch – do not press it afterwards!
If the hood does not close completely, open it again and close it properly.
When the hood is properly closed, you can see that it fits flush with the other body parts. The indicator light in the instrument cluster will go out
WARNING
If the hood is not closed properly, it could fly up and block your view while you are driving. This can lead to a crash and serious personal injuries.
x After closing the engine hood, check that the hood release lever is properly latched into the hood latch. The engine hood must be flush with the surrounding auto body parts.
x If you ever notice that the hood latch is not properly secured when the vehicle is moving, stop at once and close it.
x Never let anyone get in the way of the hood when closing it.
NOTICE
x Make sure the windshield wipers are switched off and the windshield wiper arms are resting on the windshield before you open the hood. Otherwise, the windshield wipers and the hood may be damaged.
x Always put the windshield wiper arms down against the windshield before driving the vehi-cle.
NOTICE
Before opening or closing the engine hood, make sure there is enough room to do so, for example when the vehicle is in a garage.

x Interior care and cleaning
x Parts, accessories, repairs and modifications
WARNING
Working on the batteries or the electrical system in your vehicle can cause serious acid burns, fires, explosions, or electrical shocks. Always read and heed the following WARNINGS and safety precautions before working on the batteries or the electrical system.
x Before working on the electrical system, always switch off the ignition and all electrical consumers and disconnect the negative cable (–) from the standard 12 Volt vehicle battery.
x When you change a light bulb, always switch off the light first.
x Always keep children away from battery acid and vehicle batteries in general.
x Always wear eye protection. Never let battery acid or lead particles come into contact with your eyes, skin, or clothing.
x Sulfuric battery acid is very corrosive. It can burn unprotected skin and cause blindness. Always wear protective gloves and eye protection. To reduce your risk of injury, never tilt the batteries, as this could spill acid through the vents and burn you.
x If you get battery acid in your eyes or on your skin, immediately rinse with cold water for several minutes and then get immediate medical attention. If you swallow any battery acid, get medical attention immediately.
x When disconnecting the batteries from the vehicle electrical system, always disconnect the negative cable (–) first and then the positive cable (+).
x Always switch off all electrical consumers before reconnecting 12 Volt vehicle batteries. Reconnect the plus cable (+) first and then the negative cable (–). Never reverse the polarity of the connections. This could cause a fire.
x A highly explosive mixture of gases is given off when the battery is being charged.
x Do not smoke and avoid fires, sparks, and open flames when working. Never create sparks or electrostatic charges when handling cables and electrical equipment. Never short circuit the battery terminals. High-energy sparks can cause serious personal injury.
x Never use or attempt to charge a damaged or frozen battery, or a battery that was frozen but has thawed. Charging a frozen or thawed battery could cause explosions and chemical burns! Replace damaged or frozen vehicle batteries immediately. A dead battery can freeze at temperatures around +32 °F (0 °C).
x If the battery has a vent line or tube, make sure that this it is properly connected to the battery.
x Always make sure that the vent line is securely attached to a vehicle battery that is located in the luggage compartment.
WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning
x Battery posts, terminals, and related accessories contain lead and lead components, chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and reproductive harm. Wash your hands after handling.
NOTICE
x Do not expose the vehicle battery to direct sunlight for an extended period of time as ultra-violet rays may damage the battery housing.
x If the vehicle is left standing in the cold for a long time, protect the vehicle battery from freezing. A battery will be permanently damaged by freezing.

unit. Some suspension changes can, for example, increase the force levels measured by the airbag sensors and send to the electronic control unit and make the airbag system deploy in crashes in which it would not deploy if the changes had not been made. Other kinds of changes may reduce the force levels measured by the sensors and prevent the airbag from deploying when it should.
Never install leather upholstery on a vehicle that originally had cloth upholstery. Never install cloth upholstery on a vehicle that originally had leather upholstery. The weight-sensing mat for the Ad-vanced Airbag system will not work properly if different upholstery is installed on the passenger seat than the upholstery originally installed on the vehicle when it was originally manufactured.
WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension including use of unapproved tire-rim combinations can change airbag performance and increase the risk of serious personal injury in a crash.
x Never install suspension components that do not have the same performance characteris-tics as the components originally installed on your vehicle.
x Never use tire-rim combinations that have not been approved by Volkswagen.
WARNING
Leaving the optional safety belt extender attached to the safety belt buckle on the front pas-senger seat when the safety belt is not being used will prevent the Advanced Airbag System from working properly and can increase the risk of serious personal injury in a collision.
x Leaving the extender attached to the safety belt buckle when the front seat is occupied and the safety belt is not being used will signal to the airbag control unit that the front pas-senger seat is occupied and that the safety belt is being used. The electronic control unit for the airbag system will then receive incorrect information that will
– cause the safety belt pretensioner to deploy unnecessarily in collisions and
– cause the front passenger airbag to deploy later in collisions in which the front airbag would otherwise be triggered earlier to help protect an unrestrained front seat passenger.
x Always remove the safety belt extender when it is not needed and stow it safely.
x Never use the safety belt extender to secure a child restraint.
WARNING
Items stored between the safety belt buckle and the center console can cause safety belt buckle to send the wrong information to the airbag control unit and prevent the Advanced Airbag System from working properly.
x Always make sure that nothing can interfere with the safety belt buckles and that they are not obstructed.

2. Switch off the engine, shift the transmission into Park (P) ⇒  Shifting. Then apply the parking brake
to help prevent the vehicle from moving ⇒  Braking and parking.
3. If towing a trailer: Unhitch the trailer from the vehicle and park the trailer properly.
4. Straighten the steering wheel so that the front wheels point straight forward.
5. Block the diagonally opposite wheel with chocks or other suitable things.
6. Loosen the wheel bolts of the wheel to be changed ⇒  Wheel bolts.
7. Remove the scissors jack and tools from the vehicle.
8. Inset the extension ⇒ fig. 340 (A) into the scissors jack (B) Attach the crank (C) to the extension (A).
9. Find the jack lift point ⇒ fig. 340 on the vehicle frame that is closest to the wheel to be changed.
10. Crank up the jack so that it still just fits underneath the lift point.
11. Position the jack so that its base is directly underneath the lift point ⇒ fig. 341, making sure that the entire base of the jack rests securely on the ground.
12. Align the jack and wind up the jack claw at the same time, until the claw cradles the rib underneath
the vehicle ⇒ fig. 341 A or B.
13. Continue cranking up the jack until the wheel is just a little off the ground.
WARNING
Using the wrong jack to raise a vehicle with side steps, extended door sills, additional deco-rative trim or other enhancements in the area of the lower side sills can cause the vehicle to fall off the jack and result in serious personal injury.
x Never use the standard jack supplied with unmodified vehicles to raise the vehicle. The side step can interfere with the jack when raising the vehicle.
x Always use the scissor vehicle jack supplied with the authorized side step package when the vehicle must be jacked up, for example, to change a tire.

WARNING
Improper replacement of burned out headlights and other light bulbs can cause serious per-sonal injury.
x Stop! Always read and heed the WARNINGS before doing any work in the engine com-
partment ⇒  Working in the engine compartment. The engine compartment of any motor vehi-cle is a potentially dangerous area, and work in this area can lead to serious personal injury.
x HID – High Intensity Discharge (Xenon) get power from a high-voltage source that can cause severe personal injury and even death if handled improperly.
x H7 bulbs and HID – High Intensity Discharge (Xenon) are under high pressure and can explode if handled improperly.
x Always let a burned out light bulb cool down before replacing it.
x Never replace a light bulb unless you are familiar with all of the necessary procedures. In particular, never remove a headlight unless you know exactly how to carry out the job and have the correct tools and light bulbs.
x If you are uncertain about what to do, have the work performed by an authorized Volkswagen dealer, an authorized Volkswagen Service Facility, or another qualified work-shop. Serious personal injury may result from improperly performed work.
x We strongly recommend that you always have HID - High Intensity Discharge (Xenon) lamps and H7 bulbs replaced by a qualified technician.
x Do not touch the glass of light bulbs with your bare hands. Fingerprints left on the bulb evaporate due to the heat when the bulb is switched on and cause the reflector to “cloud”.
x There are sharp edges on and around the headlight housing in the engine compartment and the taillight housing. Wear hand protection if you replace bulbs.
NOTICE
After replacing a headlight bulb or other light bulb, always make sure that the rubber covers or plastic caps have been properly and securely reinstalled to help prevent water from getting into the electrical connections and headlight housing and damaging the electrical system.
Indicator lights