2020 Seat Leon engine

Start and driving
For the sake of the environment
If the engine is run in gently, the life of the
engine will be incr eased and the engine oil
consumption r
educed.Economical and environmentally
friendly driving
Fuel consumption, environmental pollution
and w
ear t

o the engine, brakes and tyres all
depend largely on driving style. Consumption
can be reduced between 10-15% with an effi-
cient driving type. The following section gives
you some tips on lessening the impact on the
environment and reducing your operating
costs at the same time.
Active cylinder management (ACT®)*
Depending on vehicle equipment, the active
cylinder management (ACT®) may deacti-
vate some of the engine cylinders if the driv-
ing situation does not require too much pow-
er. The number of active cylinders can be
seen on the instrument panel display.
››› page 72.
Foresight when driving
If you think ahead when driving, you will need
to brake less and thus accelerate less. Take
advantage of the inertia of the vehicle when-
ever possible, with a gear engaged. This takes advantage of the engine braking effect,
r
educing w

ear on the brakes and tyres. Emis-
sions and fuel consumption will drop to zero.
Changing gear to save energy
An effective way of saving is to change in ad-
vance to a higher gear.
Manual transmission: shift up from first to
second gear as soon as possible. Choosing
the right gear enables fuel savings. Select the
highest possible gear appropriate for the
driving situation (the engine should continue
functioning with cyclical regularity).
Automatic transmission: accelerate gradu-
ally and without reaching the “kick-down”
position.
Avoid driving at high speed
Avoid travelling at your vehicle’s top speed,
whenever possible. Fuel consumption, emis-
sion of harmful gases and noise pollution
multiply as speed is increased. Driving at
moderate speeds will help to save fuel.
Reduce idling time
In vehicles with the Start-Stop system idling is
automatically reduced. In vehicles without
the Start-Stop system it is worth switching off
the engine, for example, at level crossings
and at traffic lights that remain red for long
periods of time. When an engine has reached
operating temperature, and depending on the cylinder capacity, keeping it switched off
for a minimum of about 5 seconds alr
eady
saves more than the amount of fuel necessa-
ry for restarting.
The engine takes a long time to warm up
when it is idling. Mechanical wear and pollu-
tant emissions are also especially high during
this initial warm-up phase. It is therefore best
to drive off immediately after starting the en-
gine. Avoid running the engine at high speed.
Regular maintenance
Regular servicing helps in saving fuel even
before the engine is started. A well-serviced
engine gives you the benefit of improved fuel
efficiency as well as maximum reliability and
an enhanced resale value. A badly serviced
engine can consume up to 10% more fuel
than necessary.
Avoid short journeys
The engine and catalytic converter need to
reach their optimal operating temperature
in order to minimise fuel consumption and
emissions.
A cold engine consumes a disproportionate
amount of fuel. The engine reaches its work-
ing temperature after about four kilometres
(2.5 miles), when fuel consumption will return
to a normal level. »
239

Driving
Check tyre pressure
Al w
ays make sure the tyres are inflated to the
correct pressures ››› page 348
to save fuel. If
the pressure is below half bar, fuel consump-
tion may increase by 5%. Due to the greater
rolling resistance, under-inflation also increa-
ses tyre wear and impairs handling.
Do not use winter tyres all year round as
they increase fuel consumption by up to 10%.
Avoid carrying unnecessary loads
Given that every kilo of extra weight will in-
crease the fuel consumption, it is advisable
make sure that no unnecessary loads are be-
ing transported.
Since the luggage rack increases the aero-
dynamic drag of the vehicle, you should re-
move it when not needed. At speeds of
100-120 km/h (62-75 mph), this will save 12%
of fuel.
Save electrical energy
The engine drives the alternator, thereby
generating electricity. This implies that any
increase in power consumption also increa-
ses fuel consumption! For this reason, switch
off any unneeded electrical devices. Devices
that use a lot of electricity includes the blow-
er at a high setting, the rear window heating
or the seat heating*. Plug-in hybrid drive: brak
e early and evenly
to take advantage of energy recovery. Note

Driving
ignition, the function will remain on the next
time the ignition is s wit
ched on.
If the Auto Hold function was not switched on,
it will automatically remain off next time the
ignition is engaged.
The Auto Hold function connects automat-
ically if the following conditions are met
(all points must be met at the same time
››› ):
The v ehicl

e is kept stationary with the
brake pedal on a flat surface or on a
slope.
The engine rotates “correctly”.
The Auto Hold function is automatically
turned off if the following conditions are
met: If any of the conditions mentioned on
››› page 277, Conditions for keeping
the vehicle stationary with the Au-
to Hold function are no longer met.
If the engine is running irregularly or an
anomaly is detected.
If the engine stalls.
Manual gearbox: The clutch and the ac-
celerator are pressed at the same time.
Automatic gearbox: If the accelerator is
pressed
Automatic gearbox: If any of the tyres
has only minimal contact with the
1.
2.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5. ground, e.g. in the case of axle articula-
tion. WARNING
The smart technology incorporated into
the Aut o Hol

d function cannot defy the
laws of physics; it only works within the lim-
its of the system. The greater convenience
provided by the Auto Hold function should
never tempt you to take any risk that may
compromise safety.

Braking and parking
Brake assist systems Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
The ESC helps t
o impr
ove safety. It reduces
the tendency to skid and improves the stabili-
ty and roadholding of the vehicle. The ESC
detects critical handling situations, such as
vehicle understeer or oversteer, or wheelspin
on the driving wheels. It stabilises the vehicle
by braking individual wheels or by reducing
the engine torque. The warning lamp will
flash on the instrument panel when the ESC is
intervening !.
The ESC includes the anti-lock brake system
(ABS), the hydraulic brake assist (HBA), the
traction control system (TCS), electronic dif-
ferential lock (EDS), electronic torque control
(XDS) and the tractor-trailer sway mitiga-
tion*.
ESC also helps stabilise the vehicle by
changing the torque.
The TCS can be deactivated when wheel
spin is desirable ››› page 281
.
Anti-lock brake system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up un-
der braking until the vehicle has reached a
virtual standstill. You can continue to steer the
vehicle even when the brakes are on full.
Keep your foot on the brake pedal and do not
pump the brakes. You will feel the brake pedal
pulsate while the ABS is working. If the running gear or brake system is modi-
fied, the eff
ectiv

eness of the ABS could be se-
verely limited.
Hydraulic Brake Assist (HBA)
The brake assist system can reduce the re-
quired braking distance. The braking force is
automatically boosted if you press the brake
pedal quickly in an emergency. You must
keep pressing the brake pedal until the dan-
ger has passed.
Traction control (TCS)
In the event of the wheels spinning, the TCS
reduces the engine torque to adapt to the
road condition. This helps the car to start
moving, accelerate or climb a gradient.
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
When the EDL detects wheelspin, it brakes
the spinning wheel and directs the power to
the other driven wheel. This function is active
up to approximately 100 km/h (62 mph).
To prevent the disc brake of the braked wheel
from overheating, the EDL cuts out automati-
cally if subjected to excessive loads. The ve-
hicle can still be driven. The EDL will switch on
again automatically when the brake has
cooled down. Tractor-trailer sway mitigation*
If the vehicl
e is pulling a trailer, it will control
the following: tractor-trailers tend to sway.
When the swaying of the trailer is felt by the
vehicle and detected by the ESC, it will auto-
matically brake the towing vehicle within the
limits of the system and mitigate the sway.
Tractor-trailer sway mitigation is not available
in all countries ››› page 303
.
Electronic engine torque management
(XDS)
When taking a curve, the driveshaft differen-
tial allows the outer wheel to turn at a higher
speed than the inner wheel. In this way, the
wheel that is turning faster (outer wheel) re-
ceives less drive torque than the inner wheel.
This may mean that in certain situations the
torque delivered to the inner wheel is too
high, causing the wheels to spin. On the other
hand, the outer wheel is receiving a lower
drive torque than it could transmit. This can
cause a loss of grip on the drive axle, in this
case the front axle, which results in under-
steer or “lengthening” of the trajectory.
The XDS can detect and correct this effect
via the sensors and signals of the ESC.
Via the ESC, the XDS will brake the inside
wheel and counter the excess driving torque
of that wheel. This means that the requested
trajectory is much more precise. »
279

Towing bracket device*
This powers, for example, the trailer's interior
lighting. El ectrical de
vices such as a fridge in
a caravan only receive electrical power if the
engine is running (through pin 10).
To avoid overloading the electrical system,
you cannot connect the ground wires of pin
3 , pin 11 or pin 13 to each other.
If the trailer has a 7-contact connector, you
will need to use an adapter cable. In this case
the function corresponding to pin 10 will not
be available.
Tow cable
The tow rope must always be securely fixed
to the towing vehicle and loose enough so
that the vehicle can handle turns smoothly.
However, make sure that the cable does not
rub on the ground while driving.
Trailer tail lights
Always check the trailer's rear lights to ensure
they are working correctly and that they
comply with the relevant safety regulations. If
you connect the trailer to the factory-moun-
ted system, when you turn on the rear fog
lamp, the fog lamp of the towing vehicle will
turn off to turn on the trailer fog lamp.
Include in the anti-theft alarm
The trailer is included in the anti-theft system
if the following conditions are met:

High-voltage battery
Manual release of the charging connector
The pull er f
or the manual release is located
on the left hand side of the engine compart-
ment , above the charging socket ››› Fig. 213
.

Practical tips
at least 30 seconds before starting the en-
gine
. When you then st
art the engine it may
take longer than normal (up to one minute)
to start firing. For the sake of the environment
Do not overfill the fuel tank, it may cause
the fuel t o o

verflow if it becomes warm. Note
There is no emergency mechanism for the
manual r el

ease of the fuel tank flap. If nec-
essary, request assistance from special-
ised personnel. Note
Diesel vehicles are fitted with a protective
de vice that pr

events the insertion of the
wrong fuel hose 1)
. It is only possible to re-
fuel with Diesel nozzles.

Checking and refilling levels
Super unleaded petrol 95 octane petrol or
normal 91 oct ane petr
ol at least
We recommend refuelling with super 95 oc-
tane petrol (91 AKI). If not available, normal 91
octane petrol (87 AKI) (with a slight power
loss) may be used.
Super unleaded petrol, 95 octanes at
least
You should use super 95 octane petrol (91
AKI) at least.
If super is not available, if necessary, use nor-
mal 91 octane petrol (87 AKI). In this case only
use moderate engine speeds and a light
throttle. Refuel with super as soon as possi-
ble.
Unleaded super plus 98 octane petrol or
super 95 octane petrol at least
We recommend refuelling with super plus 98
octane petrol (93 AKI). If not available: super
95 octane petrol (91 AKI) (with a slight power
loss).
If super is not available, if necessary, use nor-
mal 91 octane petrol (87 AKI). In this case only
use moderate engine speeds and a light
throttle. Refuel with super as soon as possi-
ble. CAUTION