2013 SKODA FABIA wheel size

Seats and storage
Front seats
Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
Adjusting the front seats - Version 1
55
Adjusting the front seats - Variant 2
55
Front seat heating
55
The driver's seat should be adjusted in such a way that the pedals can be fully
pressed to the floor with slightly bent legs.
The seat backrest on the driver's seat should be adjusted in such a way that the
upper point of the steering wheel can be easily reached with slightly bent arms.
Correct adjustment of the seats is particularly important:
› for reaching the controls safely and quickly;
› for a relaxed, fatigue-free body position;
› for achieving maximum protection from the seat belts and the airbag system.
WARNINGGeneral information■Caution when adjusting the seat! You may suffer injuries or bruises as a re-
sult of adjusting the seat without paying proper attention.■
The seat backrests must not be reclined too far when driving otherwise this
will affect proper operation of the seat belts and of the airbag system – risk of
injury.
■
Never carry more people than the number of seats in the vehicle.
■
Each occupant must correctly fasten the seat belt belonging to the seat.
Children must be fastened » page 140, Transporting children safely with a
suitable restraint system.
■
The front seats and head restraints must be adjusted to match the body
size at all times and the seat belt must always be fastened properly to provide the most effective levels of protection to the passengers.
■
Do not transport any objects on the front passenger seat other than objects
(e.g. child safety seat) intended for this purpose – there is the risk of an acci-
dent.
WARNINGInformation for the driver■Only adjust the driver's seat when the vehicle is stationary – there is the risk
of an accident.■
Keep a distance of at least 25 cm from the steering wheel. Not keeping to
this minimum distance will mean that the airbag system will not be able to
properly protect you – risk of death.
■
Ensure that there are no objects in the driver's footwell as they may get
caught behind the pedals while you are driving or under braking. You would
then no longer be able to operate the clutch, brake or accelerate.
WARNINGInformation for the front seat passenger■Maintain a distance of at least 25 cm from the dash panel. Not maintaining
this minimum distance will mean that the airbag system will not be able to
properly protect you - there is a risk that you could be killed.■
Always keep your feet in the footwell when the car is being driven - never
place your feet on the instrument panel, out of the window or on the seats.
You will be exposed to increased risk of injury if it becomes necessary to apply
the brakes or in the event of an accident. You may suffer fatal injuries when
an airbag is deployed if you have adopted an incorrect seating position.
Note
After a certain time, play can develop within the adjustment mechanism of the
backrest angle.
54Using the system

What influences driving safety?First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings
on page 124.
The driver is fully responsible for himself and his occupants. If your driving safety is effected, you place yourself and the oncoming traffic at risk.
The following guidelines must therefore be observed. › Do not get distracted from concentrating on the traffic situation, e.g. by your
passengers or mobile phone calls.
› Never drive when your driving ability is impaired, e.g. through medication, alco-
hol or drugs.
› Keep to the traffic regulations and the permissible speed limit.
› Always adjust the driving speed to the road, traffic and weather conditions.
› Take regular breaks on long journeys – at least every two hours.

Correct seated position

Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
Correct seated position of the driver
126
Correct seated position of the front passenger
126
Correct seated position of the rear seat passengers
126
Examples of incorrect seated positions
126WARNINGGeneral information■The front seats and head restraints must be adjusted to match the body
size at all times and the seat belt must always be fastened properly to provide the most effective levels of protection to the passengers.■
If the occupant adopts an incorrect seated position, he is exposed to life-
threatening injuries, in case he is hit by a deployed airbag.
■
If the occupants on the rear seats are not sitting upright, the risk of injury is
increased due to incorrect routing of the seat belt.
■
The seat backrests must not be reclined too far when driving otherwise this
will affect proper operation of the seat belts and of the airbag system – risk of
injury.
WARNINGInformation for the driver■Always assume the correct seated position before setting off and do not
change this position while driving. Also advise your passengers to adopt the
correct seated position and not to change this position while the car is mov-
ing.■
Keep a distance of at least 25 cm from the steering wheel. Not keeping to
this minimum distance will mean that the airbag system will not be able to
properly protect you – risk of death.
■
When driving, hold the steering wheel with both hands firmly on the outer
edge in the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock position. Never hold the steering wheel in
the 12 o'clock position or in any other way (e.g. in the middle or inner edge of
the steering wheel). In such cases, you could severely injure your arms, hands
and head when the driver airbag is deployed.
■
Ensure that there are no objects in the driver's footwell as they may get
caught behind the pedals while you are driving or under braking. You would
then no longer be able to operate the clutch, brake or accelerate.
WARNINGInformation for the front seat passenger■Maintain a distance of at least 25 cm from the dash panel. Not maintaining
this minimum distance will mean that the airbag system will not be able to
properly protect you - there is a risk that you could be killed.■
Always keep your feet in the footwell when the car is being driven - never
place your feet on the instrument panel, out of the window or on the seats.
You will be exposed to increased risk of injury if it becomes necessary to apply
the brakes or in the event of an accident. You may suffer fatal injuries when
an airbag is deployed if you have adopted an incorrect seating position.

125Passive Safety

Airbag system
Description of the airbag system
Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
System description
133
Airbag deployment
133WARNING■ An airbag can only offer you optimal protection in combination with a fas-
tened seat belt.■
The airbag is not a substitute for the seat belt, but instead forms part of the
complete passive vehicle safety concept.
■
To ensure passengers are protected with the greatest possible effect when
the airbag is deployed, the front seats must be correctly adjusted to match
the body size » page 125, Correct seated position .
■
If you do not fasten the seat belts when driving, lean too far forward or
adopt an incorrect seated position, you are exposing yourself to increased risk of injury in the event of an accident.
WARNINGObserve the following instructions for the airbag system.■If there is a fault, the airbag system must be checked by a specialist garage
immediately. Otherwise, there is a risk of the airbag not being activated in the
event of an accident.■
No modifications of any kind must be made to parts of the airbag system.
■
Any work on the airbag system including the installation and removal of sys-
tem components due to other repair work (e.g. removal of the steering wheel) must only be carried out by a specialist garage.
■
Never make any changes to the front bumper or bodywork.
■
It is prohibited to tamper with individual parts of the airbag system as this
might result in the airbag being deployed.
■
The protective function of the airbag system is sufficient for only one acci-
dent. The airbag system must then be replaced if the airbag has been de-
ployed.

System description
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-ings
on page 133.
The functional status of the airbag system is indicated by the  indicator light in
the instrument cluster » page 26.
When the airbags are deployed they fill with gas and inflate.
A grey white or red, non-harmful gas is released when the airbag is inflated. This
is perfectly normal and is not an indication of a fire in the vehicle.
The airbag system consists – depending on the vehicle equipment – of thefollowing modules.
› Electronic control unit.
› Front airbag for the driver and the front passenger
» page 135.
› Side airbags
» page 136.
› Head airbags
» page 137.
› Airbag indicator light in the instrument cluster
» page 26.
› Key switch for the front passenger airbag
» page 138.
› Warning light for front passenger airbag deactivation in dash panel cen-
tre » page 138 .
Note
■
The airbag system needs no maintenance during its working life.■If you sell your vehicle, provide the complete vehicle documentation to the new
owner. Please note that the information relating to the possibility of deactivating
the front passenger airbag must be included!■
When disposing of vehicle or parts of the airbag system, it is important to com-
ply with the national legal requirements.

Airbag deployment
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings
on page 133.
The airbags inflate in fractions of a second and at a high speed in order to be able
to offer that additional protection in the event of an accident.
The airbag system is only functional when the ignition is switched on. 
133Airbag system

Front airbagsFig. 112
Driver airbag in the steering wheel/front passenger airbag in the
dash panel
Fig. 113
Safe distance to steering wheel/inflated airbags
First read and observe the introductory information given on page 134.
In the event of a severe frontal collision, the front airbag system offers additional protection for the head and chest area of the driver and front passenger.
The front airbag for the driver is housed in the steering wheel » Fig. 112 - 
.
The front airbag for the front seat passenger is located in the dash panel above
the glove compartment » Fig. 112 - 
.
The airbags inflate in front of the driver and front passenger when they are de- ployed » Fig. 113 -
 . The forward movement of the driver and of the front pas-
senger is cushioned when they make contact with the fully inflated airbag and
the risk of injury to head and chest is thus reduced.
WARNINGCorrect seated position■For the driver and front passenger, it is important to maintain a distance of
at least 25 cm from the steering wheel or dashboard A
» Fig. 113 . Not keeping
to this minimum distance will mean that the airbag system will not be able to
properly protect you – risk of death. The front seats and the head restraints
must always also be correctly adjusted to match the body size of the occu-
pant.
■
The airbag develops enormous forces when triggered, which can lead to in-
juries if the sitting position or seated position is not correct.
■
There must not by any further persons, animals or objects positioned be-
tween the front seated occupants and the deployment area of the airbag.
WARNINGFront airbag and transporting children■Never transport children on the front seat of a vehicle without using a prop-
er restraint system. If airbags are deployed in the event of an accident, the
child might suffer severe or even fatal injuries!■
It is essential to switch off the front passenger airbag if you are using a child
seat on the front passenger seat in which the child is carried with its back fac-
ing the direction of travel » page 137, Deactivating airbags . If this is not done,
there is a risk of the child suffering severe or even fatal injuries if the front
passenger airbag is deployed. When transporting a child on the front passen-
ger seat, pay attention to any relevant national regulations regarding the use
of child safety seats.
WARNINGGeneral■The steering wheel and the surface of the airbag module in the dash panel
on the passenger side must not have stickers attached, be covered or modi-
fied in any other way. These parts should only be cleaned with a cloth that is
dry or has been moistened with water. No objects such as cup holders, mobile
phone mounts, etc. must be attached to the covers of the airbag modules or
be located within their immediate vicinity.■
Never place objects on the surface of the front passenger airbag module in
the dash panel.

135Airbag system

Wheels
Tyres and rims
Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
Tyre service life
174
New tyres
175
Unidirectional tyres
176
Tyre pressure monitor
176
Spare wheel
177
Full wheel trim
178
Wheel bolts
178
Hubcaps
178
Wheel bolts
179WARNING■ National legal requirements must be observed for the use of tyres.■Observe the national legal regulations relating to the use of snow chains
and the maximum vehicle speed with snow chains.WARNINGThe following instructions for the use of tyres must be observed.■During the first 500 km, new tyres do not offer optimum grip and appropri-
ate care should therefore be taken when driving – there is the risk of an acci-
dent.■
On all four wheels, use only radial tyres of the same type, size (rolling cir-
cumference) and the same tread pattern.
■
For safety reasons, do no replace tyres individually.
■
Never exceed the maximum permissible load bearing capacity of the tyres
fitted – there is the risk of an accident.
■
Never exceed the maximum permissible speed of the tyres fitted – there is
the risk of an accident.
WARNING (Continued)■ Incorrect wheel alignment at the front or rear impairs handling – there is the
risk of an accident.■
Unusual vibrations or pulling of the vehicle to one side could be a sign of
tyre damage. If there is any doubt that a wheel is damaged, immediately re-
duce your speed and stop! If no external damage is evident, drive slowly and
carefully to the nearest specialist garage to have the vehicle checked.
■
Only use those tyres or wheel rims which have been approved by ŠKODA for
your model of vehicle. Failure to observe this instruction will adversely affect
the road safety of your vehicle – there is the risk of an accident.
WARNINGObserve the following information regarding tyre damage and wear.■Never use tyres if you do not know anything about the condition and age.■
Never drive with damaged tyres – there is the risk of an accident.
■
Immediately replace damaged wheel rims or tyres.
■
You must have your tyres replaced with new ones at the latest when the
wear indicators have been worn down.
■
Worn tyres do not provide the necessary grip particularly at high speeds on
wet roads. “Aquaplaning” (uncontrolled movements of the vehicle – “swim- ming” on a wet road surface) could be the result.
WARNINGObserve the following information regarding the tyre pressure.■The tyre control display does not absolve the driver of the responsibility to
ensure the correct tyre inflation pressure. Check the tyre pressure at regular
intervals.■
Pressures that are too low or too high impair handling – there is the risk of
an accident.
■
If the pressure is too low, the tyre must overcome a greater rolling resist-
ance. This will heat the tyre up, especially at higher speeds. This can result in tread separation and a tyre blowout. 
173Wheels

WARNINGObserve the following information regarding the wheel bolts.■The wheel bolts must be clean and must turn easily. Never apply grease or
oil.■
The specified tightening torque of the wheel bolts for steel and light alloy
wheels is 120 Nm.
■
If the wheel bolts are insufficiently tightened, the rim can come loose when
the car is moving – there is the risk of an accident. A tightening torque which
is too high can damage the bolts and threads and this can result in permanent
deformation of the contact surfaces on the rim.
■
The wheel can loosen when the car is moving if the wheel bolts are not han-
dled correctly – there is the risk of an accident.
WARNINGObserve the following information regarding the spare wheel.■Only use the spare wheel while absolutely necessary.■
Never drive with more than one spare wheel fitted.
■
The snow chains cannot be used on the spare wheel.
CAUTION
■ If a spare wheel is used that is not identical to the fitted tyres, the following
must be observed » page 177, Spare wheel .■
Protect the tyres from contact with oil, grease and fuel.
■
Replace lost dust caps.
■
If, in the event of a puncture, it is necessary to fit a spare wheel with a tyre
without a dedicated running direction or the opposite running direction, drive carefully as the optimum characteristics of the tyre are no longer applicable in
this situation.
For the sake of the environment
Tyres which are insufficiently inflated increase your fuel consumption.
Note
■ We recommend that any work on the wheels or tyres is carried out by a special-
ist garage.■
We recommend that you use wheel rims, tyres, full wheel trims and snow chains
from ŠKODA Original Accessories.

Tyre service lifeFig. 132
Principle sketch: Tyre tread with wear indicators/Open fuel filler
flap with a table detailing the tyre sizes and tyre pressures
Fig. 133
Swapping wheels around
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings on page 173.
The life of tyres depends on the pressure, driving style, and other circumstances.
Following the advice below can extend the service life of your tyres.
Tyre pressure
Check the tyre pressure, including that of the spare wheel, at least once a month and also before setting off on a long journey.
The tyre pressures for tyres are shown on the inside of the fuel filler
flap » Fig. 132 –
.
The tyre pressure should be at the highest pressure specified for your vehicle at
all times. 
174General Maintenance

Always check the inflation pressure when the tyres are cold. Do not reduce the
higher pressure of warm tyres.
Adjust the tyre pressure accordingly if you are carrying a greater load.
Driving style
Fast cornering, sharp acceleration and braking increase the wear of your tyres.
Balancing wheels
The wheels of a new vehicle are balanced. There are a wide range of influences
when the car is being driven which may result in an imbalance. This may become
apparent by “vibration” in the steering.
Have the wheels rebalanced after replacing the tyres.
Wheel alignment errors
Incorrect wheel alignment at the front or rear leads to excess wear on the tyres.
Tyre damage
Drive over kerbs and other such obstacles slowly and at right angles wherever
possible in order to avoid damage to tyres and wheel trims.
We recommend checking your tyres and wheel rims for damage (punctures, cuts,
splits and bulges, etc.) on a regular basis. Remove foreign bodies (e.g. small
stones) from the tyre profile immediately.
Swapping wheels around
If significantly greater wear is present on the front tyres, we recommend swap-
ping the front wheels with the rear wheels as shown in the diagram » Fig. 133.
You will then obtain approximately the same life for all the tyres.
We recommend that you swap the tyres around every 10,000 km in order to ach-ieve even wear on all tyres and to obtain optimal tyre life.
Storing tyres
Mark the tyres as you remove them so that you are able to refit them to run in the
same direction.
Always store wheels or tyres in a cool, dry and, where possible, dark place. Tyres which are not fixed to a wheel trim should be stored upright.
Wear indicators
The base of the tread of the tyres has 1.6 mm high wear indicators installed.
These wear indicators are arranged evenly spaced around the circumference of
the tyre a number of times depending on the make » Fig. 132 - 
. Markings on the
walls of the tyres through the letters “TWI”, triangular symbols or other symbols identify the position of the wear indicators.Tyre age
Tyres age losing their original characteristics, even if they are not used. There-
fore, we recommend that you do not use summer or winter tyres that are older
than 6 years or 4 years respectively.
New tyres
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings
on page 173.
Only fit radial tyres of the same type, size (rolling circumference) and the same
tread pattern on one axle on all four wheels.
The tyre/wheel combinations which are approved for your vehicle are indicated in
your vehicle documents.
Where possible replace tyres by axle. Always fit the tyres with the deeper tread
depth to the front wheels.
Explanation of tyre markings
185/65 R 14 86 T
What this means is:
185Tyre width in mm » Fig. 132 on page 174 - 65Height/width ratio in % » Fig. 132 on page 174 - RCode letter for the tyre construction – Radial » Fig. 132 on page 174
- 14Diameter of wheel in inches » Fig. 132 on page 174 - 86Load index » TSpeed symbol »
The date of manufacture is stated on the tyre wall (possibly only on the inside of
wheel ). e.g.
DOT ... 10 13...
means, for example, that the tyre was manufactured in the 10th week of 2013.
Load index
This indicates the maximum permissible load on each individual tyre. 487 kg
515 kg 
8385175Wheels

Wheel boltsFirst read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-ings
on page 173.
Wheels and wheel bolts are matched to each other in terms of design. Whenever
you change the wheels fitted, e.g. light alloy wheels or wheels with winter tyres,
you must also use the matching wheel bolts of the correct length and shape of
bolt head. Correct fastening of the wheels depends on this.

Winter use
 Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
Winter tyres
179
Snow chains
179
Winter tyres
First read and observe the introductory information given on page 179.
The handling of your vehicle will be significantly improved when driving on wintry
roads if you fit winter tyres. Summer tyres have less grip on ice, snow and at tem- peratures below 7 °C. This is especially true of low-profile tyres or high-speed
tyres .
To achieve the best possible handling properties, winter tyres must be fitted on
all four wheels, the minimum tread depth must be 4 mm and tyres must be no
older than 4 years.
Winter tyres of a lower speed category can be used provided that the permissible
maximum speed of these tyres is not exceeded even if the possible maximum
speed of the vehicle is higher.
The speed limit for winter tyres can be set in the MAXI DOT display in the Winter
tyres menu item » page 18.
For the sake of the environmentRe-fit the summer tyres at an appropriate time as they provide better handling
properties, a shorter braking distance, less tyre noise, and reduced tyre wear on
roads which are free of snow and ice as well as at temperatures above 7 °C. The
fuel consumption is also lower.
Snow chains
First read and observe the introductory information given on page 179.
When driving on wintry roads, snow chains improve not only traction, but also the
braking performance.
Snow chains must only be mounted on the front wheels.
For technical reasons, it is only permissible to fit snow chains with the following wheel/tyre combinations.
Wheel sizeDepth (D)Tyre size5J x 1435 mm165/706J x 1437 mm185/606J x 1543 mm185/55
Only fit snow chains with links and locks not larger than 12 mm.
CAUTION
■
The chains must be removed when driving on roads which are free of snow.
They adversely affect the handling of your vehicle, damage the tyres and are rap-
idly destroyed.■
Remove the full wheel trims before installing the snow chains.

179Wheels