2018 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA latch

WARNING
Improper or unsupervised unlocking or opening of the luggage compartment lid can cause severe injuries. Never open the luggage compartment lid when someone is in the way.
x If a bicycle or luggage rack is installed on the luggage compartment lid, it may be hard to see that the luggage compartment lid is unlatched. An unlatched luggage compartment lid may open suddenly when the vehicle is moving.
At temperatures below +32 °F (0 °C), the luggage compartment lid may not open automatically after you unlock it. It will be necessary to lift it by hand.
Closing the luggage compartment lid

Fig. 33 Opened luggage compartment lid: Recessed grips for closing.

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 they are used properly.
x Properly worn safety belts are the single most effective means of reducing the risk of serious injury and death in a collision or other accident. For this reason, always wear your safety belt properly and make sure all passengers wear their safety belts properly as well whenever the vehicle is moving.
x The driver must always make sure that every person in the vehicle is properly seated on a seat of his or her own, properly fastens the safety belts belonging to that seat before the vehicle starts to move, and keeps the belts properly fastened while riding in the vehicle. This applies even when just driving around town. Therefore, always wear your safety belts and make sure that everybody in your vehicle is properly restrained.
x Always secure children in the vehicle with a restraint system appropriate for their age,
weight and height ⇒  Child safety and child restraints.
x Always fasten safety belts correctly before driving off and make sure that all passengers are properly restrained.
x Never attach the safety belt to the buckle of another seat. Attaching the safety belt to the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt effectiveness and can cause serious personal injury.
x Never let any objects or liquids get into the safety belt latch and prevent it from working properly.
x Never remove a safety belt while the vehicle is moving. Doing so will increase your risk of being injured or killed.
x Never strap more than one person, including small children, into any single safety belt.
x Never let children or babies ride sitting on your lap, and never place a safety belt over a child sitting on your lap.
x Never wear belts over rigid or breakable objects in or on your clothing, such as eyeglass-es, pens, keys, etc., as these may cause injury.
x Several layers of heavy clothing (such as a coat worn over top of a sports jacket) may interfere with proper positioning of the safety belt and reduce the overall effectiveness of the system.
x Never use comfort clips or devices that create slack in the shoulder belt. However, special clips may be required for the correct use of some child restraint systems.
x Safety belts offer optimum protection only when the seat backrest is upright and belts are correctly positioned on the body.

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. 58.
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. 59. 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. 60 Proper safety belt positioning and head restraint adjustment.

WARNING
Heavy loads will influence the way your vehicle handles and increase stopping distances. Heavy loads that are not properly stowed or secured can cause loss of control and serious injury.
x Secure the load properly to keep it from shifting.
x Always remember when transporting heavy objects that a change in the center of gravity also changes the way your vehicle handles:
– Always distribute the load as evenly as possible.
– Secure heavy objects properly as far forward in the luggage compartment as possible.
– Always tie down heavy items securely with suitable straps using the tie-downs in the luggage compartment.
x Securely latch the rear seat backrest in the upright position.
x Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating on the safety compliance sticker on the left door jamb. Exceeding permissible weight can cause the vehicle to skid and handle differently.
x Always adapt your speed and driving to the heavier load and the weight distribution in the vehicle. Take road, weather, traffic, and visibility conditions into account as well.
x Always accelerate gently and avoid sudden braking and driving maneuvers.
x Always brake earlier than you would if you were not driving a loaded vehicle.
Stowing luggage

WARNING
Improper folding and improper latching of the rear seat backrest can cause serious personal injury.
x Always make sure there are no people or animals in the area around the rear seat backrest when folding it forward.
x Never fold the rear seat backrest forward or back while the vehicle is moving.
x When folding the rear seat backrest back up, make sure that the safety belt does not get caught or damaged.
x Keep hands, fingers, feet and other body parts out of the way when folding the rear seat backrest forward or back.
x Each rear seat backrest must be securely latched in the upright position so that the safety belts on the rear seats can provide protection. This is particularly the case for the middle seat on the rear seat bench.
x If a seat is used with an unsecured backrest, the passenger will move forward together with the rear seat backrest during sudden braking, driving maneuvers, or in a collision.
x No one, including children, may ride on the rear seats if the rear seat backrest is folded down or not correctly latched.
NOTICE
Before folding the rear seat backrest forward, adjust the front seats so that the rear seat's head restraint or backrest cushion will not touch the front seats.
There is a separate release lever in the luggage compartment for each rear seat backrest sec-tion.
Luggage compartment pass-through

Fig. 95 In the rear seat backrest: Opening the luggage compartment pass-through (if equipped).

x Do not try to add fuel after the pump stops! Topping off the tank in this way may fill the expansion space that the tank needs and cause fuel to overflow, for example, if it gets warmer outside.
Closing the fuel filler cap
x Screw the fuel cap clockwise onto the fuel filler neck until you hear it click into place.
x Close the fuel filler flap until you hear it latch shut. The fuel filler flap must be flush with the vehicle body.
WARNING
Spilled fuel can cause fires, explosions, burns, and other severe injuries.
x Always stop refueling once the pump nozzle switches off so that the tank does not over-flow.
NOTICE
Remove fuel spills from all vehicle surfaces immediately to help prevent damage to the paint, tires, and wheel housings.
Fuel spills may pollute the environment.
Misfueling guard for diesel vehicles

Fig. 159 With open fuel cap: Misfueling guard in the fuel filler neck.

Closing the engine hood
x Lift the hood slightly ⇒ .
x Take out the hood support and clamp it in place in its bracket ⇒ fig. 163 A.
x Lower the engine hood by hand until it is about 8 in. (20 cm) above its latch and then let it drop into place to latch it. Do not push down on it afterwards!
If the hood does not close completely, open it again and close it properly.
When the hood is properly closed, you can see that it fits flush with the other body parts.
WARNING
If the hood is not closed properly, it could fly up and block your view while you are driving. This can lead to a crash and serious personal injuries.
x After closing the engine hood, check that the hood release lever is properly latched into the hood latch. The engine hood must be flush with the surrounding auto body parts.
x If you ever notice that the hood latch is not properly secured when the vehicle is moving, stop at once and close it.
x Never let anyone get in the way of the hood when closing it.
NOTICE
x Make sure the windshield wipers are switched off and the windshield wiper arms are resting on the windshield before you open the hood. Otherwise, the windshield wipers and the hood may be damaged.
x Always put the windshield wiper arms down against the windshield before driving the vehi-cle.
NOTICE
Before opening or closing the engine hood, make sure there is enough room to do so, for example when the vehicle is in a garage.

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 Check the condition of all safety belts regularly. If you notice that the safety belt webbing, hardware, retractor, buckle, or any other part of the safety belts is damaged, immediately have an authorized Volkswagen dealer or authorized Volkswagen Service Facility replace the safety belt with the correct replacement belt for your vehicle model and model year.
x Never use chemical cleaning agents, solvents, or any substance that may damage or weaken the safety belt webbing or any other parts of the safety belt. Never let the belts come into contact with corrosive fluids or sharp objects. Otherwise, the safety belt webbing will be significantly weakened.
x After cleaning, always give the safety belts time to dry completely before letting them retract. The moisture can damage the retractor and keep it from working properly.
x Never let foreign objects or liquids get into the safety belt latch. This could prevent the belt buckles and safety belts from working properly.
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 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 dam-age. Anchorages that have been loaded must also be inspected.