2018 VAUXHALL ASTRA J ESP

Climate control155Maintenance
Air intake
The air intake in front of the
windscreen in the engine
compartment must be kept clear to
allow air intake. Remove any leaves,
dirt or snow.
Pollen filter The pollen filter cleans dust, soot,
pollen and spores from the air
entering the vehicle through the air
intake.
Air conditioning regular
operation
In order to ensure continuously
efficient performance, cooling must
be operated for a few minutes once a
month, irrespective of the weather
and time of year. Operation with
cooling is not possible when the
outside temperature is too low.
Service For optimal cooling performance, it is recommended to annually check the
climate control system, starting
three years after initial vehicle
registration, including:
● functionality and pressure test
● heating functionality
● leakage check
● check of drive belts
● cleaning of condenser and evaporator drainage
● performance check

Driving and operating161Before restarting or to switch off the
engine when vehicle is stationary,
press Engine Start/Stop once more
briefly.
Manual transmission: during an
Autostop, the engine can be started
by depressing the clutch pedal
3 162.
Automatic transmission or manual
transmission automated: during an
Autostop, the engine can be started
by releasing the brake pedal 3 162.
Emergency shut off during driving If the engine needs to be switched offduring driving in case of emergency,
press Engine Start/Stop for longer
than two seconds or press twice briefly within five seconds.9 Danger
Switching off the engine during
driving may cause loss of power
support for brake and steering
systems. Assistance systems and
airbag systems are disabled.
Lighting and brake lights will
extinguish. Therefore power down the engine and ignition while
driving only when required in case of emergency.
Starting the vehicle at low
temperatures
Starting the engine without additional
heaters is possible down to -25 °С for diesel engines and -30 °C for petrol
engines. Required is an engine oil
with the correct viscosity, the correct
fuel, performed services and a
sufficiently charged vehicle battery.
With temperatures below -30 °C the
automatic transmission requires a
warming phase of approx.
five minutes. The selector lever must
be in position P.
Automatic starter control
This function controls the engine
starting procedure. The driver does
not need to hold the key in position 3
or to hold Engine Start/Stop pressed.
Once applied, the system will go on
starting automatically until the engine
is running. Because of the checking procedure, the engine starts running
after a short delay.
Possible reasons for a non-starting
engine:
● Clutch pedal not operated (manual transmission).
● Brake pedal not operated or selector lever not in P or N
(automatic transmission).
● Brake pedal not operated (manual transmission
automated).
● Timeout occurred.
Turbo engine warm-up
Upon start-up, engine available
torque may be limited for a short time, especially when the engine
temperature is cold. The limitation is
to allow the lubrication system to fully protect the engine.

174Driving and operatingThe vehicle starts to move when the
brake pedal is released.
To start-off without depressing the
brake pedal, accelerate immediately
after engaging a gear as long as D or
R flashes.
If neither the accelerator nor the
brake pedal are depressed, no gear
is engaged and D or R flashes for a
brief time in the display.
Stopping the vehicle
In D, first gear is engaged and the
clutch is released when the vehicle is stopped. In R, reverse gear remains
engaged.
Engine braking
Automatic mode
When driving downhill, the manual
transmission automated does not
shift into higher gears until a fairly
high engine speed has been reached.
It shifts down in good time when
braking.Manual mode
To utilise the engine braking effect, select a lower gear in good time when driving downhill. Changing into
manual mode is only possible while
the engine is running or during an
Autostop.
Rocking the vehicle Rocking the vehicle is only
permissible if the vehicle is stuck in
sand, mud or snow. Move the selector
lever between R and D in a repeat
pattern. Do not race the engine and
avoid sudden acceleration.
Parking The most recently engaged gear (seetransmission display) remains
engaged when switching off ignition.
With N, no gear is engaged.
Therefore always apply the parking
brake when switching off ignition. If
parking brake is not applied, P flashes
in the transmission display and the
key cannot be removed from the
ignition switch. P stops flashing in the
transmission display as soon as the
parking brake is slightly applied.When the ignition is switched off, the
transmission no longer responds to
movement of the selector lever.
Emergency operation to avoid
freezing of the parking brake 3 165.
Manual mode
If a higher gear is selected when the engine speed is too low, or a lower
gear when the speed is too high, the
shift is not executed. This prevents
the engine from running at too low or
too high an engine speed. A warning
message is displayed in the Driver
Information Centre. Vehicle
messages 3 122.
If engine speed is too low, the
transmission automatically shifts to a
lower gear.
When + or - is selected in automatic
mode, the transmission switches to
manual mode and shifts accordingly.
Gear shift indication
The symbol R or S with a number
beside is indicated when gearshifting
is recommended for fuel saving
reasons.

Driving and operating175Shift indication appears only in
manual mode.
Electronic driving programmes
● Following a cold start, the operating temperature
programme increases engine
speed to quickly bring the
catalytic converter to the required
temperature.
● The adaptive programme tailors gearshifting to the driving
conditions, e.g. greater load or
gradients.
Kickdown If the accelerator pedal is presseddown completely in automatic mode, the transmission shifts to a lower gear
depending on engine speed.
Fault
To prevent damage to the manual transmission automated, the clutch is
engaged automatically at high clutch
temperatures.In the event of a fault, a warning
message is displayed in the Driver
Information Centre. Vehicle
messages 3 122.
Continued driving is restricted or not
possible, depending on the fault.
Have the cause of the fault remedied
by a workshop.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 the 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 3 110.
Antilock brake system
Antilock brake system (ABS)
prevents the wheels from locking.

176Driving and operatingABS 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 3 111.
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
9 Warning
Before leaving the vehicle, check
parking brake status. Control
indicator R (manual parking
brake) or m (electrical parking
brake) must illuminate constantly.
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 operating181Have the cause of the fault remedied
by a workshop.
Sport mode
Sport mode adapts the settings of
some vehicle systems to a sportier
driving style.
Activation
Press SPORT when engine is
running.
LED in the button illuminates when
sport mode is active and a status
message appears in the Driver
Information Centre.
Deactivation
Briefly press SPORT. Sport mode is
deactivated the next time the ignition
is switched on.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 mph to maximum vehicle speed. Deviations
from the stored speeds may occur
when driving uphill or downhill.
Activating in first gear is not possible.

184Driving and operating
Press L, symbol L illuminates in the
Driver Information Centre.
If cruise control has been activated
before, it is switched off when speed
limiter is activated and the control
indicator m extinguishes.
Set speed limit
Accelerate to the desired speed and
briefly turn thumb wheel to SET/-: the
current speed is stored as maximum speed.
On Midlevel display L and the speed
limit is displayed.
On Uplevel display L changes to
green.
Change speed limit With speed limiter active, hold or
briefly turn thumb wheel to RES/+ to
increase or SET/- to decrease the
desired maximum speed.
Exceeding the speed limit
When exceeding the limited speed
without driver input, the speed will
flash in the Driver Information Centre
and a chime sounds during this
period.
In the event of an emergency, it is
possible to exceed the speed limit by
depressing the accelerator pedal
firmly nearly to the final point. In this
case no chime appears.
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.
On Midlevel display the stored limited
speed is indicated in brackets.
On Uplevel display L changes to
white.
Additionally, a corresponding
message appears.
Speed limiter is deactivated, but not
switched off. Last stored speed
remains in memory for later speed
resume.

188Driving and operating
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 Driver Information
Centre.The selected following distance is
indicated by filled distance bars in the
adaptive cruise control page.
Note that the following distance
setting is shared with the sensitivity
setting of forward collision alert
3 192.
Example: If setting 3 (far) is selected,
then the driver is warned sooner
before a possible collision, also if
adaptive cruise control is inactive or
switched off.
9 Warning
The driver accepts full
responsibility for the appropriate
following distance based on traffic, weather and visibility conditions.
Following distance must be
adjusted or the system switched
off when required by the prevailing
conditions.
Detecting the vehicle ahead
The green illuminated vehicle ahead
control indicator A is displayed when
the system detects a vehicle in the driving path. The range of the sensors
is between 25 and 150 metres
depending on vehicle speed.
Forward collision alert 3 192.