2018.5 OPEL ASTRA J brakes

In brief19Transmission
Manual transmission
Reverse: with the vehicle stationary,
depress clutch pedal, 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.
Manual transmission 3 152.
Automatic transmissionP:parkR:reverseN:neutralD:automatic modeM:manual mode: move selector
lever from D to the left.<:manual mode upshifting]:manual mode downshifting
The selector lever can only be moved
out of P when the ignition is on and
the brake pedal is applied. To engage
P or R, press the release button.
Automatic transmission 3 148.
Starting off
Check before starting off ● Tyre pressure and condition 3 231, 3 270.
● Engine oil level and fluid levels 3 203.
● All windows, mirrors, exterior lighting and number plates are
free from dirt, snow and ice and
are operational.
● Proper position of mirrors, seats, and seat belts 3 31, 3 41,
3 49.
● Brake function at low speed, particularly if the brakes are wet.

140Driving and operatingDriving and
operatingDriving hints ............................... 141
Control of the vehicle ...............141
Steering ................................... 141
Starting and operating ...............141
New vehicle running-in ............141
Ignition switch positions ...........142
Retained power off ..................142
Starting the engine ..................142
Overrun cut-off ........................ 143
Stop-start system ....................143
Parking .................................... 145
Engine exhaust .......................... 146
Exhaust filter ............................ 146
Catalytic converter ...................148
Automatic transmission ..............148
Transmission display ...............148
Selector lever .......................... 149
Manual mode ........................... 150
Electronic driving programmes 150
Fault ........................................ 151
Interruption of power supply ....151
Manual transmission ..................152Brakes........................................ 153
Antilock brake system .............153
Parking brake .......................... 154
Brake assist ............................. 155
Hill start assist ......................... 155
Ride control systems .................156
Traction Control system ..........156
Electronic Stability Control ......156
Interactive driving system ........158
Driver assistance systems .........160
Cruise control .......................... 160
Speed limiter ........................... 162
Adaptive cruise control ............163
Forward collision alert .............170
Following distance indication ...173
Active Emergency Braking ......174
Parking assist .......................... 176
Side blind spot alert .................183
Traffic sign assistant ................184
Lane departure warning ..........188
Fuel ............................................ 189
Fuel for petrol engines .............189
Fuel for diesel engines ............190
Fuel for liquid gas operation ....191
Refuelling ................................ 191
Trailer hitch ................................ 195
General information .................195
Driving characteristics and towing tips .............................. 195Trailer towing........................... 195
Towing equipment ...................196
Trailer stability assist ...............199

Driving and operating153Brakes
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 89.
Antilock brake system
Antilock brake system (ABS)
prevents the wheels from locking.ABS starts to regulate brake pressure as 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 90.
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.

Driving and operating155brake automatically. This is not
possible when the switch m is pulled
at the same time.
Vehicles with automatic transmission:
Engaging D and then depressing the
accelerator pedal releases the
electric parking brake automatically.
This is not possible when the switch
m is pulled at the same time.
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 code number or a vehicle
message which is displayed in the
Driver Information Centre. Vehicle
messages 3 100.Apply electric parking brake: pull and
hold the switch m for more than five
seconds . If control indicator m
illuminates, electric parking brake is
applied.
Release electric parking brake: push
and hold the switch m for more than
two 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 brake pedal 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.

Driving and operating163
Change speed limit
With speed limiter active, turn thumb
wheel to RES/+ to increase or SET/-
to decrease the desired maximum
speed.
Exceeding the speed limit
In the event of an emergency, it is
possible to exceed the speed limit by
depressing the accelerator pedal
firmly beyond the point of resistance.
The limited speed will flash in the
Driver Information Centre and
(depending on vehicle) additionally a
chime sounds during this period.
Release the accelerator pedal and the speed limiter function is
reactivated once a speed lower than
the limit speed is obtained.
Deactivation Press y: speed limiter is deactivated
and the vehicle can be driven without speed limit.
The limited speed is stored and a corresponding message appears in
the Driver Information Centre.
Resume limit speed
Turn thumb wheel to RES/+. The
stored speed limit will be obtained.
Switching off
Press L, the speed limit indication in
the Driver Information Centre
extinguishes. The stored speed is
deleted.
By pressing m to activate cruise
control or adaptive cruise control or
by switching off the ignition, speed
limiter is also deactivated and the
stored speed is deleted.Adaptive cruise control
Adaptive cruise control is an
enhancement to traditional cruise control with the additional feature of
maintaining a certain distance behind the vehicle ahead.
Adaptive cruise control automatically
decelerates the vehicle when
approaching a slower moving vehicle. It then adjusts the vehicle speed to
follow the vehicle ahead at the
selected following distance. The
vehicle speed increases or decreases
to follow the vehicle in front, but will
not exceed the set speed. It may
apply limited braking with activated
brake lights.
The adaptive cruise control can store and maintain speeds over approx.
50 km/h and brakes automatically to follow a slower vehicle driving ahead
to a minimum speed of 30 km/h.

Driving and operating165Once the system is activated,
adaptive cruise control decelerates or
brakes if it detects a vehicle ahead,
which is slower or closer than the
desired following distance.9 Warning
Accelerating by the driver
deactivates automatic braking by
the system. This is indicated as a
pop-up warning in the Driver
Information Centre.
Increase speed
With adaptive cruise control active,
hold thumb wheel turned to RES/+:
speed increases continuously in large
increments, or activate repeatedly
RES/+ : speed increases in small
increments.
If the vehicle is driven with adaptive cruise control active much faster than
the desired speed, e.g. after
depressing the accelerator pedal,
then the current speed can be stored
and maintained by turning the thumb
wheel to SET/-.
Reduce speed
With adaptive cruise control active,
hold thumb wheel turned to SET/-:
speed decreases continuously in
large increments, or activate
repeatedly SET/-: speed decreases in
small increments.
If the vehicle is driven with adaptive
cruise control active much slower
than the desired speed, e.g. because of a slower vehicle ahead, then the
current speed can be stored and
maintained by turning the thumb
wheel to SET/-.
Resume stored speed If the system is switched on but
inactive, then turn thumb wheel to
RES/+ at a speed above 50 km/h to
resume the stored speed.
Setting the following distance
When adaptive cruise control detects a slower moving vehicle in the drivingpath, it will adjust the vehicle speed to
maintain the following distance
selected by the driver.The following distance can be set to
near, medium or far.
Press E; the current setting is shown
in the Driver Information Centre.
Press E again to change the
following distance. The setting is also displayed in the top line of the Driver
Information Centre.

Driving and operating167● There is no traffic and nothingdetected on the road sides for
several minutes. In this case,
there are no radar echoes and
the sensor may report that it is
blocked.
● The collision imminent braking system is applying the brakes.
● The radar sensor is blocked by an ice or water film.
● A fault is detected in the radar, engine or brake system.
When adaptive cruise control is
deactivated automatically, the control
indicator m illuminates white and a
warning symbol is displayed as a pop- up in the Driver Information Centre.
The stored speed is maintained.
9 Warning
When adaptive cruise control is
deactivated, the driver must take
over full brake and engine control.
Switching off
Press C to switch off adaptive cruise
control. The control indicator m
extinguishes. The stored speed is
deleted.
Switching off the ignition also
switches off adaptive cruise control
and deletes the stored speed.
Driver's attention
● Use adaptive cruise control carefully on bends or mountain
roads, as it can lose the vehicle
ahead and need time to detect it
again.
● Do not use the system on slippery roads as it can create
rapid changes in tyre traction
(wheel spinning), so that you
could lose control.
● Do not use adaptive cruise control during rain, snow or
heavy dirt, as the radar sensor
can be covered by a water film,
dust, ice or snow. This reduces or suppresses completely the
visibility. In case of sensor
blockage, clean the sensor
cover.
System limits ● The system's automatic brake force does not permit hard
braking and the braking level
may not be sufficient to avoid a
collision.

Driving and operating173Deactivation
The system can be deactivated.
Press V repeatedly until the following
message appears in the Driver
Information Centre.
General information for both
variants of forward collision alert
9 Warning
Forward collision alert is just a
warning system and does not
apply the brakes. When
approaching a vehicle ahead too
rapidly, it may not provide you
enough time to avoid a collision.
The driver accepts full
responsibility for the appropriate
following distance based on traffic, weather and visibility conditions.
The complete attention of the
driver is always required while
driving. The driver must always be
ready to take action and apply the
brakes.
System limitations
The system is designed to warn only for vehicles, but may react also to
other metallic objects.
In the following cases, forward
collision alert may not detect a vehicle ahead or sensor performance is
limited:
● on winding roads
● when weather limits visibility, e.g.
fog, rain, or snow
● when the sensor is blocked by snow, ice, slush, mud, dirt, or
windscreen damage
Following distance
indication
The following distance indication
displays the distance to a preceding
moving vehicle. The system uses,
depending on the vehicle equipment,
either the radar behind the radiator
grille or the front camera in the
windscreen to detect the distance of
a vehicle directly ahead in your path.
It is active at speeds above 40 km/h.
When a preceding vehicle is detected
ahead, the distance is indicated in
seconds, displayed on a page in the
Driver Information Centre 3 94 . Press
MENU on the turn signal lever to
select Vehicle Information Menu
X and turn the adjuster wheel to
choose following distance indication
page.