WARNING■It is prohibited to work with naked flames or lights.■It is prohibited to smoke or carry out any activities that produce sparks.■
Never use a damaged vehicle battery – risk of explosion!
■
Never charge a frozen or thawed vehicle battery – risk of explosion and
chemical burns!
■
Replace a frozen vehicle battery.
■
Never jump-start vehicle batteries with insufficient acid levels – risk of ex-
plosion and chemical burns.
WARNING■ When you charge a battery, hydrogen is released, and a highly explosive gas
mixture is also produced. An explosion can be caused through sparkling over during unclamping or loosening of the cable plug while the ignition is on.■
Creating a bridge between the poles on the battery (e.g. with a metal object
or cable) creates a short circuit - risk of melting the lead bars, and risk of ex-
plosion, battery fire and acid splashes.
■
Avoid creating sparks when working with cables and electrical devices.
Strong sparking represents a risk of injury.
■
Before carrying out any work on the electrical system, switch off the engine,
the ignition and all of the electrical components and disconnect the negative
terminal ( ) on the battery.
CAUTION
Improper handling of the battery can lead to damage. We recommend having all
work on the vehicle battery carried out by a specialist garage.
CAUTION
■ The vehicle battery must only be disconnected if the ignition is switched off,
otherwise the vehicle's electrical system (electronic components) can be dam-
aged. When disconnecting the battery from the electrical system, first disconnect
the battery's negative terminal ( ), followed by the positive terminal ( ).■
When connecting the battery to the electrical system, first connect the battery's
positive terminal ( ), followed by the negative terminal ( ). Under no circumstan-
ces must the battery cables be connected incorrectly – risk of a cable fire.
■
Ensure that battery acid does not come into contact with the bodywork – risk of
damage to the paintwork.
■ Do not place the battery in direct daylight in order to protect the vehicle battery
housing from the effects of ultra-violet light.■
If the vehicle has not been driven for more than 3 to 4 weeks, the battery will
discharge. This is because certain electrical components consume electricity (e. g.
control units) also in idle state. Prevent the battery from discharging by discon-
necting the battery's negative terminal ( ) or continuously charging the battery
with a very low charging current.
■
If the vehicle is frequently used for making short trips, the vehicle battery will
not have time to charge up sufficiently and may discharge.
For the sake of the environment
A vehicle battery that has been removed is a special type of hazardous waste.
These must be disposed of in accordance with national legal regulations.
Note
You should replace batteries older than 5 years.
Open cover
Fig. 167
Engine compartment: Polyester cover of the vehicle battery/plastic
cover of the vehicle battery
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings
on page 215.
The battery is located in the engine compartment in a polyester cover
1
» Fig. 167 , in a plastic cover
2
» Fig. 167 or in the left side of the boot » Fig. 89
on page 89.
216General Maintenance
It is not necessary to disconnect the cables of the battery if you recharge the ve-
hicle battery using low amperages (for example from a mini-charger). Refer to the
instructions of the charger manufacturer .
A charging current of 0.1 multiple of the total vehicle battery capacity (or lower)
must be used until full charging is achieved.
It is necessary to disconnect both cables before charging the battery with high
amperages, known as “ rapid charging”.
The vent plugs of the vehicle battery should not be opened for charging.WARNING“Quick-charging” the vehicle battery is dangerous and requires a special
charger and specialist knowledge.
CAUTION
On vehicles with the START/STOP system, the pole terminal of the charger must
not be connected directly to the negative terminal of the vehicle battery, but only
to the engine earth » page 236, Jump-starting in vehicles with the START-STOP
system .
Note
We therefore recommend that vehicle batteries be rapid charged by a specialist
garage.
Replace
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings
on page 215.
When replacing a battery, the new vehicle battery must have the same capacity,
voltage, amperage and be the same size. Suitable vehicle battery types can be
purchased from a specialist garage.
We recommend having the battery replaced by a specialist garage, where the
new vehicle battery will be installed properly and the original battery will be dis-
posed of in accordance with national regulations.
Disconnecting or reconnecting
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-ings
on page 215.
On disconnecting and reconnecting the vehicle battery the following functions
are initially deactivated or are no longer able to operate fault-free.
OperationOperating measureElectrical power window (operational faults)» page 46Panoramic sliding roof (operational faults)» page 242Enter the radio/navigation system code num-
ber» User manual of the radio
or » user manual of the naviga-
tion systemSetting the clock» page 13Data in the multifunction display are deleted.» page 25
Note
We recommend having the vehicle checked by a specialist garage in order to en-
sure full functionality of all electrical systems.
Automatic load deactivation
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-ings
on page 215.
The vehicle voltage control unit automatically prevents the battery from discharg-
ing when the battery is put under high levels of strain. This manifests itself by the
following.
› The idling speed is raised to allow the generator to deliver more electricity to
the electrical system.
› Where necessary, large convenience consumers such as seat heaters and rear
window heaters have their power limited or are shut off completely in the event of an emergency.
218General Maintenance
WARNING■A discharged vehicle battery may already freeze at temperatures just below
0 °C. If the battery is frozen, do not jump start with the battery of another ve- hicle – there is a risk of explosion.■
Pay attention to the warning instructions relating to working in the engine
compartment » page 206.
■
The non-insulated parts of the terminal clamps must never touch each other
– there is a risk of short circuit.
■
The jump-start cable connected to the positive terminal of the battery must
not come into contact with electrically conducting parts of the vehicle – there is a risk of short circuit.
■
Do not clamp the jump-start cable to the negative terminal of the dis-
charged battery. There is the risk of detonating gas seeping out the battery
being ignited by the strong spark which results from the engine being started.
■
Route the jump-start cables so that they cannot be caught by any rotating
parts in the engine compartment.
■
Do not bend over the battery – there is a risk of caustic burns.
■
The vent screws of the battery cells must be tightened firmly.
■
Keep any sources of ignition (naked flame, lit cigarettes, etc.) away from the
battery – there is a risk of explosion.
■
Never jump-start vehicle batteries with insufficient acid levels – risk of ex-
plosion and chemical burns.
CAUTION
■ There must not be any contact between the two vehicles otherwise current
may flow as soon as the negative terminals are connected.■
The discharged battery must be properly connected to the system of the vehi-
cle.
■
We recommend you buy jump-start cables from a car battery specialist.
Jump-starting using the battery from another vehicleFig. 184
Jump-starting: A – flat battery, B
– battery providing current
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings on page 234.
The battery of another vehicle can be used to jump-start your vehicle if the en-
gine will not start because the battery is flat. Jump-start cables are required for
this purpose.
The jump-start cables must be attached in the following sequence.
›
Attach clamp
1
to the positive terminal of the discharged battery
A
» Fig. 184 .
›
Attach clamp
2
to the positive terminal of the battery supplying power
B
.
›
Attach clamp
3
to the negative terminal of the battery supplying power
B
.
›
Attach the clamp
4
to a solid metal component firmly connected to the engine
block or to the engine block itself.
Starting engine
›
Start the engine on the vehicle providing the power and allow it to idle.
›
Start the engine of the vehicle with the discharged battery.
›
If the engine does not start, halt the attempt to start the engine after 10 sec- onds and wait for 30 seconds before repeating the process.
›
Disconnect the cables in exactly the reverse order
to the one described above.
Both batteries must have a rated voltage of 12 V. The capacity (Ah) of the battery
supplying the power must not be significantly less than the capacity of the dis-
charged battery in your vehicle.
Jump-start cables
Only use jump-start cables which have an adequately large cross-section and in-
sulated terminal clamps. Observe the instructions of the jumper lead manufactur-
er.
Positive cable - colour coding in the majority of cases is red.
235Emergency equipment and self-help
Negative cable - colour coding in the majority of cases is black.
Jump-starting in vehicles with the START-STOP system
Fig. 185
Engine earth: START-STOP sys-
tem
First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn- ings on page 234.
On vehicles with the START-STOP system, the jump-start cable of the charger
must never be connected directly to the negative pole of the vehicle battery, but
only to the engine earth » Fig. 185.
Jump-starting vehicles with the vehicle battery in the boot
Fig. 186
Detail of the engine compart-
ment: Jump-starting pointFirst read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings on page 234.
On vehicles with the vehicle battery in the boot, the positive terminal of the bat-
tery supplying the power can only be connected to the jump-starting point in the
engine compartment of the vehicle being started by means of a jump-start ca-
ble » Fig. 186 !
›
Open the protective cap of the jump-starting point in the direction of the ar-
row » Fig. 186 .
›
Connect the positive terminal of the battery supplying the power with the jump-
starting point.
›
Attach the negative terminal of the battery supplying the power to a solid metal
part firmly connected to the engine block or to the engine block itself.
›
Start the engine.
›
After starting the engine, close the protective cap of the jump-starting point.
Towing the vehicle
Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
Front towing eye
237
Rear towing eye
238
Vehicles with a tow hitch
238
Vehicles with manual transmission may be towed in with a tow bar or a tow rope
or with the front or rear wheels raised.
Vehicles with automatic transmission may be towed in with a tow bar or a tow
rope or with the front wheels raised. If the vehicle is raised at rear, the automatic
gearbox is damaged!
A tow bar is the safest way of towing a vehicle and also minimises any shocks.
Only use a tow rope if a suitable tow bar is not available.
When towing, the following guidelines must be observed.
Driver of the tow vehicle
›
Release the clutch particularly gently when starting off or depress the accelera-
tor particularly gently if the vehicle is fitted with an automatic gearbox.
›
On vehicles with a manual transmission, only push down on the accelerator pedal once the rope is taught.
236Do-it-yourself