2015 VAUXHALL CASCADA Owner's Manual

Driving and operating143Manual transmission
To engage reverse, with the vehicle
stationary wait 3 seconds after
depressing the clutch pedal and then
press the release button on the
selector lever and engage the gear.
If the gear does not engage, set the
lever to neutral, release the clutch
pedal and depress again; then repeat
gear selection.
Do not slip the clutch unnecessarily.
When operating, depress the clutch
pedal completely. Do not use the
pedal as a foot rest.
Caution
It is not advisable to drive with the hand resting on the selector lever.
Brakes
The brake system comprises two independent brake circuits.
If a brake circuit fails, the vehicle can
still be braked using the other brake
circuit. However, braking effect is
achieved only when the brake pedal
is depressed firmly. Considerably
more force is needed for this. The
braking distance is extended. Seek the assistance of a workshop before
continuing your journey.
When the engine is not running, the
support of the brake servo unit
disappears once the brake pedal has been depressed once or twice.
Braking effect is not reduced, but
braking requires significantly greater
force. It is especially important to bear
this in mind when being towed.
Control indicator R 3 90.
Antilock brake system
Antilock brake system (ABS)
prevents the wheels from locking.

144Driving and operating
ABS starts to regulate brake pressureas soon as a wheel shows a tendency to lock. The vehicle remains
steerable, even during hard braking.
ABS control is made apparent
through a pulse in the brake pedal
and the noise of the regulation
process.
For optimum braking, keep the brake
pedal fully depressed throughout the
braking process, despite the fact that
the pedal is pulsating. Do not reduce
the pressure on the pedal.
After starting off the system performs
a self-test which may be audible.Control indicator u 3 91.
Adaptive brake light
During full braking, all three brake
lights flash for the duration of ABS
control.
Fault9 Warning
If there is a fault in the ABS, the
wheels may be liable to lock due
to braking that is heavier than
normal. The advantages of ABS are no longer available. During
hard braking, the vehicle can no longer be steered and may
swerve.
Have the cause of the fault remedied
by a workshop.
Parking brake
Manual parking brake9 Warning
Always apply parking brake firmly
without operating the release
button, and apply as firmly as
possible on a downhill or uphill
slope.
To release the parking brake, pull
the lever up slightly, press the
release button and fully lower the
lever.

Driving and operating145To reduce the operating forces of
the parking brake, depress the
foot brake at the same time.
Control indicator R 3 90.
Electric parking brake
Applying when vehicle is stationary
9 Warning
Pull switch m for approx.
one second, the electric parking
brake operates automatically with
adequate force. For maximum
force, e.g. parking with trailer or on
inclines, pull switch m twice.
The electric parking brake is
applied when control indicator m
illuminates 3 91.
The electric parking brake can always
be activated, even if the ignition is off.
Do not operate electric parking brake
system too often without engine
running as this will discharge the
vehicle battery.
Before leaving the vehicle, check the electric parking brake status. Control
indicator m 3 91.
Releasing
Switch on ignition. Keep brake pedal
depressed and then push switch m.
Drive away function
Depressing clutch pedal (manual
transmission) or engaging drive gear
(automatic transmission) and then
depressing the accelerator pedal
releases the electric parking brake
automatically. This is not possible
when the switch is pulled at the same
time.
This function also helps driving away
on inclines.
Aggressive drive away may reduce
life time of wear parts.
Dynamic braking when vehicle is
moving
When the vehicle is moving and the
switch m is kept pulled, the electric
parking brake system will decelerate the vehicle, but will not apply
statically.
As soon as the switch m is released,
dynamic braking will be stopped.
Fault
Failure mode of electric parking brake
is indicated by control indicator j and
by a vehicle message which is
displayed in the Driver Information Centre.

146Driving and operating
Apply electric parking brake: pull and
hold the switch m for more than
5 seconds. If control indicator m
illuminates, electric parking brake is
applied.
Release electric parking brake: push
and hold the switch m for more than
2 seconds. If control indicator m
extinguishes, electric parking brake is
released.
Control indicator m flashes: electric
parking brake is not fully applied or
released. When continuously
flashing, release electric parking
brake and retry applying.
Brake assist
If the brake pedal is depressed
quickly and forcefully, maximum
brake force is automatically applied
(full braking).
Maintain steady pressure on the
brake pedal for as long as full braking
is required. Maximum brake force is
automatically reduced when the
brake pedal is released.Hill start assist
The system helps prevent unintendedmovement when driving away on
inclines.
When releasing the foot brake after
stopping on an incline, the brakes
remain on for a further two seconds.
The brakes release automatically as
soon as the vehicle begins to
accelerate.
The hill start assist is not active during
an Autostop.Ride control systems
Traction Control system
The Traction Control system (TC) is a
component of the Electronic Stability
Control (ESC) 3 147.
TC improves driving stability when
necessary, regardless of the type of
road surface or tyre grip, by
preventing the drive wheels from
spinning.
As soon as the drive wheels starts to spin, engine output is reduced and
the wheel spinning the most is braked
individually. This considerably
improves the driving stability of the
vehicle on slippery road surfaces.

Driving and operating147
TC is operational after each engine
start as soon as the control indicator
b extinguishes.
When TC operates b flashes.
9 Warning
Do not let this special safety
feature tempt you into taking risks
when driving.
Adapt speed to the road
conditions.
Control indicator b 3 92.
Deactivation
TC can be switched off when spinning
of drive wheels is required:
press button b briefly to deactivate
TC, k illuminates. Deactivation is
displayed as status message in the
Driver Information Centre.
TC is reactivated by pressing the b
button again.
TC is also reactivated the next time
the ignition is switched on.
Electronic Stability Control
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
improves driving stability when
necessary, regardless of the type of
road surface or tyre grip. It also
prevents the drive wheels from
spinning. ESC operates in
combination with the Traction Control system (TC) 3 146.
As soon as the vehicle starts to
swerve (understeer/oversteer),
engine output is reduced and the wheels are braked individually. This
considerably improves the driving stability of the vehicle on slippery road
surfaces.

148Driving and operating
ESC is operational after each engine
start as soon as the control indicator
b extinguishes.
When ESC operates b flashes.9 Warning
Do not let this special safety
feature tempt you into taking risks
when driving.
Adapt speed to the road
conditions.
Control indicator b 3 92.
Deactivation
For a more sporty behaviour ESC and
TC can be deactivated separately:
■ press button b briefly: only Traction
control system is inactive, ESC
remains active, k illuminates
■ hold button b pressed for min.
5 seconds: TC and ESC are
deactivated, k and n illuminate.
Additionally the selected mode is
displayed as status message in the
Driver Information Centre.
If the vehicle comes into threshold
with deactivated ESP, the system will reactivate ESP for the time duration
of the threshold, when the brake pedal is depressed once.
ESC is reactivated by pressing the
b button again. If the TC system was
previously disabled, both TC and
ESC are reactivated.
ESC is also reactivated the next time
the ignition is switched on.Interactive driving system
Flex Ride
Flex Ride driving system allows the
driver to select between three driving
modes:
■ SPORT mode: press button SPORT , LED illuminates.
■ TOUR mode: press button TOUR,
LED illuminates.
■ NORMAL mode: both buttons SPORT and TOUR are not
pressed, no LED illuminates.
Deactivate SPORT mode and TOUR
mode by pressing corresponding
button once more.
In each driving mode Flex Ride networks the following electronic
systems:
■ Continuous Damping Control.
■ Accelerator Pedal Control.
■ Steering Control.
■ Electronic Stability Control (ESC).
■ Antilock brake system (ABS) with cornering brake control (CBC).
■ Automatic transmission.

Driving and operating149
SPORT mode
The settings of the systems are
adapted to a sportier driving style:
■ Damping of shock absorbers reacts
more stiffly to provide better contact with the road surface.
■ The engine reacts more quickly to the accelerator pedal.
■ Steering support is reduced.
■ Shift points of automatic transmission occur later.
■ With SPORT mode activated, the illumination of main instruments
changes from white to red.
TOUR mode
The settings of the systems are
adapted to a comfort driving style:
■ Damping of shock absorbers reacts
more softly.
■ Accelerator pedal reacts with standard settings.
■ Steering support is in standard mode.
■ Shift points of automatic transmission occur in a comfort
mode.
■ Illumination of main instruments is white.
NORMAL mode
All settings of the systems are
adapted to standard values.
Drive mode control Within each manually selected drivingmode SPORT, TOUR or NORMAL,
the Drive Mode Control (DMC)
detects and analyses continuously
the real driving characteristic,
responses by the driver, and the
active dynamic state of the vehicle. If
necessary, the control unit of DMC
automatically changes the settings
within the selected driving mode or,
when recognising greater variations,
the driving mode is changed for the
length of variation.
If, for example, NORMAL mode is
selected and DMC detects a sporty
driving behaviour, DMC changes
several settings of the Normal mode
into sporty settings. The DMC
changes to SPORT mode in case of
very sporty driving behaviour.
If, for another example, TOUR mode
is selected and whilst driving on a
winding road a sudden hard brake is
necessary, DMC will detect the

150Driving and operating
dynamic vehicle condition and
changes the settings for suspension
to SPORT mode to increase vehicle
stability.
When the driving characteristic or the
dynamic vehicle state returns to the
former state, DMC will change the
settings to the preselected driving
mode.
Personalised settings in the
SPORT mode The driver can select the functions of
the SPORT mode when SPORT
button is pressed. These settings can
be changed in the Settings menu in
the Info-Display. Vehicle
personalisation 3 103.Driver assistance
systems9 Warning
Driver assistance systems are
developed to support the driver
and not to replace the driver's
attention.
The driver accepts full
responsibility when driving the
vehicle.
When using driver assistance
systems, always take care
regarding the current traffic
situation.
Cruise control
The cruise control can store and
maintain speeds of approx. 20 to
120 mph. Deviations from the stored
speeds may occur when driving uphill or downhill.
For safety reasons the cruise controlcannot be activated until the foot
brake has been operated once.
Activating in first gear is not possible.
Do not use the cruise control if it is not advisable to maintain a constant
speed.
With automatic transmission, only
activate cruise control in automatic
mode.
Control indicator m 3 94.
Switching on
Press button m, control indicator m in
instrument cluster illuminates white.