Pressure VOLKSWAGEN GOLF PLUS 2012 Owners Manual

Symbol
BRAKE
WEAR Fro nt brake pads wo rn.
Lights up: malfuncti oning or sw itched o!T b y th e system.
Flashing: or 188
manually deactivated.
malfunction or fail ure.
Fr ont fog lights switch ed on.
Ligh ts up: driving lights m alfunctioning parti ally or en tirely . page344 ! Flashing: cornerin g light system malfun ctionin g. 120
converter malfunction.
Lig ht s up: die sel eng in e preheati ng.
F l
ashi ng: en gin e contro l malfunctio ning. page315
Engine control malfunctionin g.
D i
esel p a rt ic u la te filt er clogged with soot.
with the s teering.
Tir e pressure is too low or Tire Monitoring Syste m is page276
fun ctioning.
Wind shi eld was he r fluid level too low. 1 28
F u e l tank a lmost empty. page234
Fla sh ing: engin e oil system malfunct io n. page247 -Fla sh in g: en gin e oil level too low.
A irba g and safety belt pretensio ne r sys te m malfunction. page80
Passenger front air bag turned o!T o r page80
Fuel t an k cap not properly c losed.
overview

identificatio n number (VlN)
Veh icle type, eng in e rating , tran smission
E n gine and tra nsm iss io n classificatio n cod es, pain t num ber, interior. In the exa mple,
3 1, fig.IO.
equipment, part num bers
Thi s ve
hicle data can also b e fou nd i n t he War ra nty
and Maintenan ce booklet.
Engine data and dimensions
first read and note the in trod uctory inform ation and heed th e WARNINGS on page31.
G aso line engi nes
Injec -
Maxim um power
rp m
125 kW at-
147 kW at
kW at rpm T D I®
Before dri ving
Safety
i nfo rmatio n).
Hi gh vo ltage warning sticker in the en gin e compartment next to the eng ine hood r elease leve r (see in format ion) .
Tire infl ati o n pressure la b el o n th e driver door
pillar (see Tires and
Maximum torqu e net) N
o. of cy linders
Disp laceme n t
Nm at rpm 5 cy linders
5 cy linders
N m at-4 cylinders
1 ,984 cc
Max
imum torque n et) N
o. of cy lin ders
Di sp lacement
N m at rp m 4 cylinde
rs 196 8 cc

Function Operation of scat heating,
versio n
Activate:
Turn the
thumb-wheel
t o th e desired
h eat
ing level.
heatin g T urn the
l eve l: thumb- w heel to th e desired
heatin g level.
D eac tivate:
Turn the
thumb-w hee l
down t o
Befo re driving
Operation of sca t heating,
versio n 2
th e button. heating is
switc h ed on maximum.
the
button
re-
p
eat e dl y until
th e des ired
h
eatin g leve l is
set.
th e
button
rc-
pcat cdly until
n o indi cator
light s are o n
Certain medical conditions, su ch as pa ralysis and diabetes, and certai n medication s, can crease the risk of seriou s burns when the seat heating feature is swi tched on.
Vehicle occupants who have a low level of perceived pain or a lowered awareness of pain can rece ive seriou s burns to the back, buttocks, and leg s that take a long tim e to heal or may neve r heal completely.
NEVER usc the scat
To help preven t damage to elec trica l parts in the seat, do not kneel on the front scats or apply concentrated pressure to a small area or the seat or backrest.
Liquids, sharp objects and things on the scat that do not le t th e heat in the seat escape into the air can damage the seat heating system.
lfyou smell an odor, immediatel y shut off the seat heating and have it checked by an authorized
Volkswagen dealer or authorized Volkswagen vice Facility.
off

Safety belt position
Fig . 52 Proper
informatio n on
Wea ring safe ty improperly ca n ca use serious
in jury or death. belt s ca n onl y work when they are corr ectly positioned on the body. A worn safe ty be lt also he lp s to position the cupant so that an airb ag can prov ide m aximum protection when deployed. Therefore, always
fasten your safe ty mak e sure that it is properly positioned over your body.
seati ng positi ons reduce the ness of safety jury or death by moving the sa fe ty to critica l
a re as of the body.
Before driving
safety belt position
The sho uld er portio n of the safe ty belt mu st ways run over the cen te r of the shoulder and neve r
ove r the th roat. ove r the arm. under the arm or hin d th e back.
The lap po rtion of the safety mus t ru n ove r th e pelv is a nd neve r over the abdomen.
Always wear th e safe ty a nd snug on the safe ty belt to tight en
if necessary .
Expectant mothers must a lways wear th e lap as low as possible across the pelv is an d below the rounding of the abdomen­
throu ghout the pregnancy. The safe ty must lie aga inst th e bod y to avoid pressure against th e abdomen 53.
Adjusting safety belt height
Th e safety posit ion can be adjuste d u sin g the features:
belt he ig ht adju ster s for the front seats.
Fro nt seats with height adjustment.
rio us personal injury in an accident or a sudden braking maneuver.
belt s offer optimum protection onl y when th e seat bac k i s upright and belt s arc rectl y positioned on the body.
A safety belt can cause serious injuries by s hiftjn g its position on your body from the strong bones to more vulnerable s oft
tissu e and cause se riou s injury.

Heavy loads innuence th e way your vehicle handles and increa se stopping distances. Heavy
load s that arc not properly stowed or secured can cause los s of contro l and serious injury . Always remember when transporting heavy
objects that a change in the center of gravity also
changes the way your vehicle handles:
- Always dis tribute the load as evenly as
possib le. -heavy objects properly as far forward
in th e luggage compa rtme nt as possible.
- Always tie down heavy items secure ly using
th e tiedowns provided and suitable straps.
Never exceed th e Gross Axle Weight Rating or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating on the safety compliance sticker on the left door jamb. Excee­
ding permissible weight can cause the vehicle to
skid and handl e diff erentl
y.
Always adapt your speed and driving to th e
heavi er load and the we ight distribution in the
vehicl e. Take road, weathe r, and visibility
cond itions into acco unt as we ll.
Stowing
on page 137.
Always stow all luggage securely in the vehicle
Distribut e loads in the vehicle, on th e roof and the trail er as even ly as possible.
Secu re lu ggage in the luggag e compartment with suit able tightening strap s to the tie-down page 142.
Adjust the headli ght page
Before driving
Drive especia lly carefully and accelerate
gently.
Avoid sudden braking and driving maneu­
ve rs.
Brake earlie r than yo u would if you were not driving a loaded
tire pressure. Heed the information on the tir e pressure page 276.
sure Monitor ing Syste m, the system may need to
be adjusted for the new page
CD Note
The heating wires in the rear window can be se­
vere ly damaged by hard or sharp things on the sh elf below the rear window.
review inf ormation about loading a page 152 and a roof rack 149.

Any problems with the vehicle's elec trica l system when attached to a trailer should be chec ked by an authorized Volkswagen dealer or authorized Volkswagen Service Facility.
Loading the trailer
Pleas e first read and note the introductory information and heed the on page 152.
Towing capacity and tongue weight
Towing capac ity is the load that th e vehicle can
159.
The towing capacity and tongue weigh t indicated on the model plate o f the trail er hit ch are only re f­
e ren ce value s. The vehicle-specific values, which are often below these values, can be found in the vehicle document s. Specificat ions in officia l ve­
hicl e documents alwa ys take precedence.
To help en sure optimum handling and driving safe ty, Volkswagen recommends always using the
not handle as well.
Tongue weight increases the load on the rear axle and, in turn, reduces the remaining pay load your ve hicl e can cor­
rect load limit.
Combined towing weight
towing weight is th e we ight of the
l oaded tow in g vehicle plus th e we igh t of th e
l oaded trailer.
In some countries, su ch a s th e States and Ca nada, trailer s are organ ize d in to cla sses. swagen recommend s askin g an authori zed swage n dealer or auth orized Volksw agen Se rvice
Facili ty about suitabl e trailer s.
Thi s
vehicle has not been desig n ed to tow a traile r and must n eve r be retrofitted to tow a II trailer. Always make sure that your vehicl e has been designed to tow the trai le r you want to use and that is is legal to tow the traile r where you be driving.
T ronsporting
Loading the trailer
The weig ht dist ribution in the vehicle and tra iler
mu st be balanced. th e maximum permissible
tongue weight and make sure that the load in the
trail er i s eve nly di stributed and that it is not front­
h eavy or back-heavy:
Distribut e th e load in th e trail er so that heavy objec ts are directly above the axl e or as close as
po ssibl e to the
Secu re load s properly on the trail er.
Tire pressure
Always follow th e trail er manufac turer' s tir e pres­
s ure recommendations fo r the trailer tires.
W h
en towing, inflat e th e towin g vehicl e's tir es to the maximum permissible press ure listed on th e
tir e pressure la bel pag e 276.
Exceeding
the maximum gross axle and tongue weight ratings, as well as the gross vehicle or combined towing weight ratings, can cause acci­dents and serious personal injury.
Never exceed the stated va lues.
Never let the actual weight at the front or rear axle exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating for that
axle. Never let the combined front and rear weights exceed the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating.
Trailer loads
that are not properl y secured can shift when the vehicl e is moving or braking and suddenly change the way the vehicle handles,
causing accidents and severe injuries.
Always load the trailer properly.
Always secure the load properly with suit­able, undamaged straps that can be tightened so that th e load cannot shift.
154 155

Brake booster
Th e brak e boo ste r w ork s o
nly wh en the engi ne is
running . It increa se s th e forc e on the brake s above and beyond the pre ssure put on th e brake pedal by
the driver.
If the brake booster is not working, or if th e ve hicl e
ha s to be towed, you have to push th e brak e
p ed a l hard er to make up for the lack of booster
New brake pads do not provide maximum braking performance.
New brake pads do not have the best ping power for the first km) and must be You can compensate for the slightl y reduced braking force by putting more pressure on the brake pedal.
Drive with
Never follow otl1er vehicles too closely or put yourself into other sit uation s that might require sudden, hard braking ,especially when the brake pads have not been broken
Overheated brakes
When driving downhill , the brakes have to
work es pecially hard and heat up quickly.
Before driving downhill, es peciall y on th at are long or steep, alwa ys reduce s peed and shift into lower gear (manual or automatic
transmission) so that the engine he lp s to brake
the vehicl e. Othenvise, the brake system cou ld
ov erheat and pos sibly u se the brakes
w hen yo u need them to slow the v ehicl e down
m ore or to stop.
A damaged front spoiler or a non- standard spoiler can reduce airflow to the brakes and
Starting, shifting, parking
Wet brakes or brakes witl1 icc or road salt
react slow er and n eed lo n ger stoppin g tances.
Ca refully apply the brakes to test th em.
Always dry brak es and clean off ice and salt
coat ings with a few cautious
tions permit.
Driving when the booster is no t working
in creases stopping distances and can cause dent s and seriou s personal injuries.
Never le t the vehicl e coast when the en gine is
switc hed off.
If the brake booster is not working (such as
w he n the vehicle is bein g towed), a lot more pedal force is needed to slow down and stop.
Note
Neve r the by keeping your foot on the to brak e.
Constant pressure on the brake pedal can make th e brakes overheat. This sub stantially reduce
braking performance, increase stopping di stan ce, and can cause co mpl ete failure of th e brake
s y stem.
Before driving downhill, especially on that are long or steep, always reduce speed and shift into lower gear (manua l or automati c
When th e front brake s are serviced , you should have the rea r brake pads inspected
rized Volksw agen deal er or au th orize d Volkswa gen
Service Facility vis uall y insp ec t th e pads through
th e o pe nin gs in the wh eel rim s or from nea th tl1e ve hicle. If n ecess ary, the wheels ca n be
t ake n off for a mor e thorou gh
192 193

Efficient driving
Please information and heed the on page 198.
Shifting faster
As a rule, the following applies: The higher gear is
a lways the more efficient gear. The rule of thumb for most vehicles is to drive in 3rd gear at mph f km/h, 4th gear at 25 mph f km/h, and 5th gear at mph f km /h.
If
and driving conditions permit, gears when upshifting also saves fuel.
Do
not run the gears up to their limit.
mati c transmissions .
Vehicles with gear recommendation aid in fuel fic ient dri ving by indicating the optimum time to shift gears.
livery to the engine is interrupted, which lowers
fuel consumption.
T herefore, when nearing a red stop light , for s tanc e, allow the vehicle to coast without using the accelera tor. Press the clutch pedal and release it only if the v ehicle is moving too slowly or the coasting distance is too long. The engine will then continue to run at idl e.
In situati ons
where the vehicle will be stopped for
a longer period of time, such as at a train cros sing,
physically switch off the engin e.
D efens ive driving
and with traffic
Fre
quent braking and accel eration increases fuel consumption sign ific antly. Just by driving sivel y and keeping a su fficiently large distance away fro m the vehicle in front of you can make up for the speed fluctuation s caused by taking your foot off the accelerator. Active braking and ating is then not necessarily required.
system information
The power stee ring syste m i s not hydrauli c.lt is an electro-mechanical syste m. The advantage of this
s te ering system is tha t no hydra uli c hoses, draulic oil, pumps, filters or other parts are quired . Th e e lectro-m echanica l system is more fue l effi cient. A hydraulic system requires constant oil pressure in the syste m; an electro -mechanical
s teerin g sys tem, however, needs power only whil e
s teering.
Th e el
ectro-mechanical power steering
chanical power steering works only when the gin e is running.
and smooth driving
Consistency is more important than speed. The more smoothly yo u drive, the less fuel the vehicle consumes.
When driving on the highwa y or freeway, a
stantly accelerating and braking. you can r each your destinatio n just as quickly by driving at a moderate, but steady speed.
The c rui se control syste m can a ssis t in
sciou s manner.
Some dev ices can increase fuel consumption when activated (examples):
C limate control air conditioning system:
trasting temperatures, it requires a large amount of energy, which is generated by the e ngin e. T he
tr emely different from that of the outside
windows increase fuel consumption.
Switch off seat heating once it has served its
purpose.
Sw itch off the windshield and rear window
Malfunctioning engine control.
Driving in the mountains.
Towing a trailer .
page 257
Towing and page 357
Turning the steering wheel is very hard when the power steering system is not working. This makes it harder to control the vehicle.
steering works only when the engine is running.
Never let the vehicle coast with the engine switched off.
Never remove the key from the ignition
switch while the vehicle is moving or rolling to a
stop. The steering column will lock and you will be unable to control the vehicle.

Fuel-efficient driving
Fig. 131 Fuel consumption in ferent ambient air temperatures .
info rmation and heed the on page 198.
Dri vin g defensive ly and economically can easily
r educe fuel con sumption by to 15 % .
The ve hicle consu mes the most fu el w he n atin g. D efe nsive dri vin g require s less brakin g and therefore less accelerat ion. If possib le, coast the ve hicle to a sto p, for exa mple, when yo u ca n see th a t th e next traffic ligh t is red or is about to turn
red.
Avoid traveling short distanc
es
A cold engine consumes sig nificantl y more fuel
imm ediately after sta rtin g. It take s a few miles fore the engi ne is warm ed up and fuel tion i s stabili zed.
To reduce fuel consumptio n and the emission of pollutants effect ive ly, the e ng in e and ca talytic
conve rter must reach th eir optimal operating
ica l in thi s context.
fig. 13 1 displays the v a ry ing fuel consumption rates
for the same d istance dri ven, once at +68 and once at + 14
th e e ngin e run to warm is not o nl y lega l in some co untries, but also technicall y not
n ecessary and wastes fu el.
Adjust the tire pres sure
T he prop er tir e
pressure help s reduce rollin g tance as well as fue l co nsumption. In additi on ,
slig htl y higher tire pressure(+ 3 psi I+ bar) ca n
h e lp save fuel.
If you ca n a ccept a slight los s in comfort, the ommend ed tir e pressure for a fully loade d ve hicl e
ca n be used. This als o applies to so litary dri vin g and driv ing withou t lu ggage loa ds.
When purchasing new t ires, alway s ma ke sure th at
th e tires are optimi zed for lower rollin g resis tance.
Us e low viscosity engine oil
F ull y sy nth e
tic, low viscosity e ngine oils reduce
fuel consumption. Low viscosity e ngin e oils duce the fric tional res istance on th e engine and are dis tributed m ore evenly and qui ckly, larly w hen co ld -s tarting the engine. The effect is parti c ularl y apparent in vehicles th at frequentl y
tra vel s hort dis tan ces.
A lways ens
ure th e righ t e n g in e oil leve l is ta in ed and keep to the sc h edul ed serv ice interva ls
(e ng ine oil ch an ges).
W
hen purch asing e ngine oil, always ch eck th e Volksw agen en gine oil standard and approval.
Avoid unnecessary weight
The lighter th e ve hicl e, th e more economica l and ceo-friend ly it w ill be. For in stance, an extra
H e m ove
consum e. Aftermark et co mponents s uch as
ro of or b icycle racks dimin is h its aerod yn a m ic fonnan ce.
Th erefo re, re
mov e un necessary aftermark e t ponents and unused rac k systems, parti cul arly if ....... -
fir st read and note th e introductory informa tion and h ee d th e WAHNINGS page
response
Ha ve the power stee rin g sys te m ch ec ked ste eri ng failure. mediatel y by an authori zed Volk swag en deale r
o r a n authorized Volk swagen
Fac ility. steeri ng ass is t i s reduced. re start the e n gine, and dri ve a sh ort tan ce. If th e yello w warning light does not
c o m e on again, you do not need to have th e
s te ering syste m ch ec ke d .
Vehicle battery was di sconnected and has Drive a short distan ce at 12 mph been reconnec te d . km/h).
F lashes re sponse
Elec troni c steering column lo ck malfunc -
which m ay appea r in the in strument clu ste r
di sp lay. loc ke d.
W
hen the i g nit ion is switc h ed on, seve ra l wa rnin g and indicator lights come on bri efly for a f un ction ch e ck . T hey go out after a few seconds.
Failure to
heed warning light s and in strument cluster text m essages can cause th e vehicl e to break down in t raffic and result in a collisio n and seriou s personal injury.
Neve r igno re warning lights or tex t
Do not dri ve if th e s teerin g co lumn remains
l ocke d switch in g th e ig niti on on aga in.
Ge t expert assis ta nce.
Alwa ys sto p the vehicl e as soon as it is safe to do so .
Note
Failur e to heed warning lights or tex t WARNINGS can res ult in vehicl e damage

Steering system information
first read and note the introductory informatio n and heed the on page
To help m ake it more diffi cult to s teal your ve hicl e,
you sh ould always make sur e the steering co lumn is locked before leaving the ve hicle .
Electronic steering column lock
Vehicles with o
ut The s teering column is
l ocked if the vehicle is stationary and the vehicle
k ey is removed from the ign ition lock. The elec­
tr onic s teering column will not lock if the vehicl e is
s till mov in g for longe r than seconds after the ve­
hicl e key was re moved.
Vehicles with
Th e s teering column is
l ocked if the dri ver door is ope ned with the igni­tio n switch ed ofT. For this, the ve hicle should be
s tationary if applic abl e, the gear selector leve r
s h ould be in
If the driver door is opened befo re the ign ition is
sw itch ed
188.
H e
move th e ve hicl e
k ey.
Turn th e s teering
w heel s lig htl y until you
hear the steering
column l oc k en gage.
Starting, shifting , parking
Disengaging the
steering column lock
Turn the s teering
whee l s lightl y to take pressure ofT the
s teerin g column lock.
In
sert the ve hicl e key
into the ignition swit ch .
Ho ld th e s teerin g
wheel in thi s pos ition
and turn the ignition switch.
steering
The e lectro-mechanical power steering auto m ati­
c ally adjusts to dri ving speed, steering torque , and the steering angle of the wheels . The e lectro-me­
c hanical power steering work s only w hen the en­
gine is running.
If power steering is reduced or lost comple tely, it
will b e much harder to steer and co ntrol the ve­
hicl e.
Counter-steering
assistance
T he feature
m akes it easier for the dri ver to control the vehicle
in difficult situation s. For exampl e, if yo u h ave to
brak e h
ard on a surface that provides uneve n t rac­
tion, the ve hicle could pull to the right or l eft. detect s th is situation and h elps th e dri ver counter­
s teer with additi onal steerin g
The counter-steering ass istance In