2013 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF warning

WARNING
Damage to safety belts reduces their overall effectiveness and increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death whenever the vehicle is being used.
x Never let safety belts become damaged by being caught in the door or seat hardware.
x Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and damaged safety belt hardware can break in an
accident.
x Inspect belts regularly for damage. If webbing, bindings, buckles, or retractors are
damaged, have the belts replaced immediately with the correct replacement belts approved
by Volkswagen for your vehicle, model, and model year.
x Safety belts that were subject to stress in an accident and stretched must be replaced with
a correct, new safety belt, preferably by an authorized Volkswagen dealer or authorized
Volkswagen Service Facility.
x Replacement after a crash may be necessary even if a safety belt shows no visible
damage. Anchorages that have been loaded must also be inspected.
x Damaged safety belts must be replaced; they cannot be repaired.
x Never try to repair a damaged safety belt yourself. Never remove or modify the safety belts
in any way.
x Have safety belts, bindings, retractors and buckles replaced by an authorized Volkswagen
dealer or authorized Volkswagen Service Facility.
x Always keep the belts clean. Dirty belts may not work correctly and can impair the
function of the inertia reel.
Applicable only in the United States
Warning light

Fig. 47 Warning light in the instrument cluster.

When the ignition is switched on, several warning and indicator lights come on briefly for a function
check. They go out after a few seconds.
A warning chime also sounds.
The safety belt warning light ª comes on for 6 seconds when the ignition is switched on. A warning
chime also sounds for up to 6 seconds if the driver's safety belt is not buckled. The chime stops
sooner if the driver buckles his or her safety belt. The warning light and the chime go out when both
driver and front passenger have bucked their safety belts.
If the driver and front seat passenger do not both fasten their safety belts within about 24 seconds
after the chime stops and the vehicle is moving at a speed of more than about 15 mph (25 km/h), the
chime will again sound for about 6 seconds, then go off for about 24 seconds, then sound again for
about another 6 seconds. The same thing happens if one of the safety belts is fastened and then
unfastened while the vehicle is moving. The safety belt warning light ª also flashes. The warning
chime continues to sound at 24 second intervals for up to 2 minutes. No chime sounds at speeds of
less than about 5 mph (8 km/h).
If the ignition is switched on, the safety belt warning light ª stays on until the driver and front
passenger have both buckled their safety belts.
WARNING
Not wearing a safety belt or wearing an improperly positioned safety belt increases the risk of
severe personal injury or death. Safety belts offer optimum protection only when used
correctly.
Applicable only in Canada
Warning light

Fig. 48 Warning light in the instrument cluster.

The safety belt warning light ª comes on for 6 seconds when the ignition is switched on. A warning
chime also sounds for up to 6 seconds if the driver's safety belt is not buckled. The chime stops
sooner if the driver buckles his or her safety belt. The warning light and the chime go out when the
driver has buckled his or her safety belt.
If the driver does not fasten his or her safety belt within about 24 seconds after the chime stops and
the vehicle is moving at a speed of more than about 15 mph (25 km/h), the chime will again sound for
about 6 seconds, then go off for about 24 seconds, then sound again for about another 6 seconds.
The same thing happens if the driver safety belt is fastened and then unfastened while the vehicle is
moving. The safety belt warning light ª also flashes. The warning chime continues to sound at
24 second intervals for up to 2 minutes. No chime sounds at speeds of less than about 5 mph
(8 km/h).
If the ignition is switched on, the safety belt warning light ª stays on until the driver has buckled his or
her safety belt.
WARNING
Not wearing a safety belt or wearing an improperly positioned safety belt increases the risk of
severe personal injury or death. Safety belts offer optimum protection only when used
correctly.
Frontal collisions and laws of physics

Fig. 49 A vehicle with passengers not wearing safety belts approaches a wall.

Fig. 50 A vehicle with passengers not wearing safety belts hits a wall.

WARNING
Improper use and care of safety belts increases the risk of severe personal injury or death.
x Regularly check safety belts and related parts for damage.
x Damaged safety belts must be replaced; they cannot be repaired.
x Always keep safety belts clean.
x Never catch, damage or chafe safety belt webbing on sharp edges.
x Always keep objects and liquids away from the belt buckle and buckle opening.
Fastening and unfastening safety belts

Fig. 54 Inserting the safety belt buckle tongue into the belt buckle.

Fig. 55 Releasing the buckle tongue from the belt buckle.

x Make sure the seat backrest of the rear seat bench is in an upright position and securely latched in
place before using the safety belt ⇒ .
x Hold the safety belt by the tongue and pull it slowly and evenly across the chest and pelvis. Do not
twist the safety belt webbing ⇒ .
x Insert the tongue into the correct buckle for your seat until you hear it latch securely ⇒ fig. 54.
x Pull on the safety belt to make sure that it is securely latched in the buckle.
Unfastening safety belts
Unfasten safety belts only when the vehicle is not moving ⇒ .
x Press the red button on the buckle ⇒ fig. 55. The buckle tongue is ejected.
x Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you guide the belt tongue to its stowed position to help
prevent the safety belt from twisting and to help avoid damage to the interior trim.
WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause serious personal injury or death in an accident.
x Safety belts offer optimum protection only when the seat backrest is upright and belts are
correctly positioned on the body.
x A person who is not properly restrained can be seriously injured by the safety belt itself if
it slips from the stronger parts of the body into sensitive areas like the abdomen.
x Unfastening safety belts while the vehicle is in motion can cause severe personal injury or
death in the event of an accident or braking maneuver!
Safety belt position

Fig. 56 Proper safety belt positioning and head restraint adjustment.

WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause serious personal injury in an accident or a
sudden braking maneuver.
x Always make sure that all vehicle occupants are correctly restrained and stay in a correct
seating position whenever the vehicle is being used.
x Safety belts offer optimum protection only when the seat backrest is upright and belts are
correctly positioned on the body.
x A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious injuries by shifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable soft tissue and cause serious injury.
x The shoulder belt portion of the safety belt must be positioned over the middle of the
occupant's shoulder and never across the neck or throat.
x The safety belt must lie flat and snug on the occupant's upper body.
x Never wear the shoulder part of the safety belt under your arm or otherwise out of
position.
x The lap portion of the safety belt must be positioned as low as possible across the pelvis
and never over the abdomen. Make sure the belt lies flat and snug against the pelvis. Pull on
the safety belt to tighten if necessary.
x Expectant mothers must always wear the lap portion of the safety belt as low as possible
across the pelvis and below the rounding of the abdomen.
x Do not twist the belt when attaching it. If you cannot untwist a twisted safety belt, wear it
anyway, but make sure the twisted part is not in contact with your body. Have the problem
corrected right away by an authorized Volkswagen dealer or authorized Volkswagen Service
Facility.
x Never hold the safety belt away from your body with your hand.
x Never wear belts over rigid or breakable objects, such as eyeglasses, pens or keys.
x Never modify the position of the belt using comfort clips, loops or similar devices.
If you have a physical impairment or condition that prevents you from sitting properly on the seat
with the safety belt properly fastened, special modifications to your vehicle may be necessary. Contact
your authorized Volkswagen dealer or authorized Volkswagen Service Facility or call the Volkswagen
Customer CARE Center at 1-800-822-8987 for information about possible modifications to your
vehicle.

the front seat is occupied and the safety belt is not being used will signal the airbag control unit during
a collision that the front passenger 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 and the front passenger airbag to deploy later in
collisions that would normally trigger the front airbag earlier in the collision to help protect an
unrestrained front seat occupant. The airbag will not be able to provide enough protection for an
occupant not wearing a safety belt.
x Only use the safety belt extender approved by Volkswagen for your vehicle.
WARNING
Improper use or positioning of a safety belt extender increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
x A driver or passenger who is not properly restrained can be seriously injured by striking
the interior of the passenger compartment or by the safety belt itself, which can be displaced
from stronger parts of the body into sensitive areas like the abdomen.
x Safety belt extenders offer optimum protection only when they are properly used.
x Only use the extender when the belt is not long enough to be worn low and snug and the
person is in the correct seating position. Remove and stow extender safely when not needed.
x Always make sure the safety belt tongue of the safety belt extender is securely inserted
into the buckle for the seating position that belongs to the seat where the safety belt extender
is being used. Attaching the safety belt to the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt
effectiveness and can cause serious personal injury.
x Never use the safety belt extender if you can properly attach the safety belt without it.
Using a safety belt extender when not needed can increase the risk of injury, especially in a
collision.
x Never use a safety belt extender if the distance (B) between the front edge of the safety
belt extender buckle (A) and the centerline of the person using the safety belt extender
⇒ fig. 60 (C) is less than 6 inches (15 cm).
x Never leave a safety belt extender attached to the vehicle safety belt buckle when the
extender is not needed and being used with the safety belt. Otherwise, the airbag control
module will receive an incorrect signal from the safety belt buckle and this will prevent the
airbag from working properly for a person who is not using the safety belt.
x Never use more than 1 extender with a safety belt. Using more than 1 extender can change
the way the safety belt passes over the body and can cause serious injury.
x Never use the safety belt extender to secure a child restraint.
x Never use a safety belt extender on your Volkswagen that you got from another
automobile manufacturer or from an automotive parts store.
x Never use the safety belt extender you got for your vehicle for any other vehicle,
regardless of make, model, or model year.
NOTICE
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 passenger 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.
– 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 A pretensioner that has deployed cannot be repaired. The entire safety belt must be
replaced.

NOTICE
If the safety belt extender is left attached to the safety belt buckle, the safety belt warning
system will sense that the safety belt for that seat is being used. The warning light will not
come on and the warning chime will not sound even though the seat is occupied and the safety
belt is not being used.
Safety belt retractor, pretensioner, load limiter