VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 1997 Owners Manual

Wiper blades mu st b e in good condition to
provid e vis ion.
w ith a
w ind shie ld washer solution to prev ent
streaking.
wi th insects ,
be caused by resi due on the windsh ield by automatic car washes . the wind shield washer container with a
special solution to remove the resid ue.
A l
ways loosen blades frozen to be­fore operating wipers to prevent damage to the wiping system.
on page 126 .
144
Always inspect the cond ition of your wiper
b la de s. For safet y re as ons replace your wip­
e r bl ad es once or tw ice a year if neces sary. your au tho rized Volkswagen dealer for replacement blades .
Notes
Commercial hot waxes applied by au­tomatic car washes have been known to affect the cleanability of the windshield.
To prevent damage to wiper blades, do not use gasoline, kerosene, paint thin­ner, or other solvents on or near the wiper blades.
To prevent damage to the wiper arms or other components, do not attempt to move the wipers manually.
Replacing wiper blades
Raise the wiper arm and hold wiper horizontally.
D epres s lock ing spr ing (A ) and remove it towards the windshield
( B).
new wiper blades
The locking spring must on the wiper arm.
When
a lw ays make sure the de­
flecto r points down.

Dust and
Turn cover securing knob by 4 5 degr ees
and
CARE
14 5

Tires are important but often abused pa rt s of
a vehicle , they not
Be sure to inspect your tires at (3
D amage to yo u that a tire o r has been dam aged , it is wise r to hav e it re­as soon as possible. tire
d amage can to tir e failu re . fo r ad­
vice and assis ta nce.
Mark tires before removing th em . Re­mount tires on the same vehicle side be­
cause the rotation direct ion must stay the same.
Tires which are not on be stored standing up.
Tires age even if they are not being used . Tires which are more than 6
years
Avoid damaging tires and you must drive over a curb or other drive
Remove embedded
missing
brake etc. away from tires .
traction
To avoid of control , operate a
kilometers) .
Tire service
The service
tire in flatio n pressu res are
tan k
tire wear and adversely
affect road of the vehicle , and
personal injury.
injury.

Low tire pressures increase fuel consumption which is detrimental to
the environm ent.
Tire pressu res before a
is drive n at higher speeds.
check tire pressures when the tires
are When the tires are warm , the sure be higher. Do not reduce the sure of warm tires.
Do not forget to check the spare The pressure is ma rked on the tire
pressures. Do not exceed
the maximum tire pressure on
the tire pressure
means: when a has been standing
for at than 1
Do not forge t to the
on new
to become unbalanced.
Thi s may be notice d as vibrations in the
steering.
Since tire
can cause wear on the
steering, suspension and tires, you have your rebalanced. A be
of the you notice excessive trre wear, contact your authorized gen
have in wear indicators. They are into the
bottom of the tread grooves and appear
as approximately 1
/2 inch (12 mm) bands the tire tread depth wears down to 1
/16 rnches (1.6 mm). Depending on the tire
ma nufacturer , there are six to eight wear
drcator s spaced around the
or a show the
heed on next
page .
147

and are even effective on wet
roads.
of and injury.
Since worn tires do not grip the
road surface
is driven on wet roads, the may tend to sooner .
1 48
)
Tire rotation
By ing this , tires
Tires
when tires show
Your
row mark ings on the sides of the tires. The
r otation direction must not be reve rse d.
Therefore ,these tires can not be
switche d in doubt , d isc uss any tire wea
r wi th your authorized
Nm).
Refer to on page 159 for
Wheel and tire replacement
to t he and driving cha racterist ics of the
the spare tire is differen t from the tires
that you have moun ted on your (for
Fitting and repairing tires requires expert This work
We recommend that you have your tires
changed by an authorized because they have the and necessary expertise.

Furthermore, your aut horized Volkswagen
dealer stocks a range of tires and wheels.
plac ed in pairs and not
ways
vehicle handl ing , always
b uy replacemen t radial tires that have the
same specifications with regard to tire size ,
design , load carrying capacit
y, sp eed rating ,
tr ead pattern , trea d depth , e tc . This also
plies to Volksw agen recommended nate replaceme nt tires.
Make s
ure that the new tires also meet the
specifications listed on the located on the insid e of the fuel tank fl ap or on the er's door lock jamb (right rear door on the four door model).
Tire specifications
Never mix tires of different design
such as steel belted radials with
radial bias belted or bias
tires have the designations:
e.g.
R 14 86 V
195
T ir e width in mm
rating code letter
The s peed ra tin g letter code indicates th e
maximum permissible road speeds :
mph
mph
over km/h) .
tires carry the speed ra tin g code letter in
combi nat ion with the tire construc tio n letter
Winter tires see page 152.
Alw ays heed

CARE
Exceeding the maximum speed for which tires are rated and approved
Always observe speed limits and adjust your vehicle to prevailing road and traffic conditions.
The manufacturing date is also to be seen on the tire wall (poss ibly only on the inside of
t h e wheel):
WARNING
ing based on the wear rate of the tire when
tested on a government test course. Fo r
T he relat ive performance of tires pends on actual conditions of use, however ,
and may depart significantly fr om the norm
due to variat ions in driving habits , service
p ractices and differences in road
The tr act ion grades , fr om highest to lowest ,
are A, B and C and represent the tire 's ability
t o s top on wet pavement as measured on
gove
rnment test surfaces of asphal t and
concrete . A tire marked C may have poor
tract ion perfo rmance.
The traction grade is based
on braking
( straight ahead) tract ion tests and does not
include cornering (turn ing) traction.
Temperatur e A, B ,
The temperature grades A (the highest), B
and C, represent the tire's resistance to the
gene ration of heat. Sustained high
ty Standard No. 1
quired by law.
Always heed on next
p age .

Excessive speed, underinflation, or excessive either
with tir es or
tory ,
For reasons it is not from other -under certain conditions not even from the same
and shape must be used.
The secure fit of the er functioning oft he brake system are pendent upon this.
mounted on rims,
They have the essary to advise you which
CARE
The use of tires, that do not meet specifications of the equipment
and may cause an accident and injury.
are installed , make sure the for

VEHICLE CARE
Winter tires
The tires for your for performance under
of your ve­sea­
so n tires or w inter tires
season tires are performance tires ad­
vertised by the tire manu fact urer as
Wint er tires , sometimes snow tires, a re
H
or Von the tire
advise
and assis t you.
Motor res trictions.
152
When winter tires, note
the following:
for the recommended tire size.
W inter tires must be mounted on four
B ecause of the design charac te r­
istics of
3 psi above the tire
Tires with worn treads and
studs are very dangerous. Make sure
they are
Never mix tires of different design
such as
and can

be run at
moderate speeds when new in order to give
the studs time to
high speed.
Winter tires
use a softer rubber compound
and a deeper tread pattern and therefore
have a
speed rating and redu ced tio n and when used on dry roads.
Winter tires have the same equipmen t tires.
speed rating code
mph
mph km /h).
to sudden tire
injury.
at speeds
greater than the maximum speed
rating
of the tires with which the
and adjust your to
chains
Snow chains ca n be used on the front
ing no more than 1/2 inch (15 mm) from tir e
t r ead and side tensioner. must rot ate
and
page 158 for
they ca n be damaged and
impair
153