FIAT CROMA 2009 2.G Owners Manual

HOW TO WARM UP THE
ENGINE AFTER IT HAS JUST
STARTED (petrol and diesel
engines)
Proceed as follows:
❒Drive off slowly, letting the engine turn
at medium revs. Do not accelerate
abruptly;
❒Do not drive at full performance for
the initial kilometres. Wait until the
coolant temperature gauge starts
moving.
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Never bump start the engine
by pushing, towing or coasting
downhill as this could cause
fuel to flow into the catalytic
exhaust system and damage it beyond
repair.
A quick burst on the acceler-
ator before turning off the en-
gine serves absolutely no prac-
tical purpose, it wastes fuel
and is damaging especially to tur-
bocharged engines.
Remember that the servo-
brake and power steering
are not operational until the engine
has been started, therefore much ef-
fort than usual is required on the
brake pedal and steering wheel.
WARNING
STOPPING THE ENGINE
Turn the ignition key to OFFwhile the
engine is idling.
IMPORTANT After a taxing drive, you
should allow the engine to “catch its
breath” before turning it off by letting it
idle to allow the temperature in the en-
gine compartment to fall.
IMPORTANT If the engine is turned off
while the car is still moving, for safety rea-
sons it will be impossible to remove the
key from the ignition switch. To remove
the key, turn it to ONand then to OFF
with the car stopped without forcing at re-
moval.
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PARKING THE CAR
Proceed as follows:
❒Stop the engine and engage the hand-
brake;
❒Engage a gear (on a slope, engage first
gear if the car is faced uphill or reverse
if it is faced downhill; position P with
automatic transmission) and leave the
wheels steered.
Block the wheels with a wedge or a stone
if the car is parked on a steep slope. Do
not leave the key in the ignition switch to
prevent draining the battery. Always re-
move the key when you leave the car.
Never leave children unattended in the
car. Always remove the ignition key when
leaving the car and take it out with you.HANDBRAKE fig. 3
The handbrake lever is located between
the two front seats.
Pull the handbrake lever upwards until the
car cannot be moved. Four or five clicks
are generally enough when the car is on
level ground while nine or ten may be re-
quired if the car is on a steep slope or
laden.
IMPORTANT If this is not the case, con-
tact Fiat Dealership to have the handbrake
adjusted.
When the handbrake lever is pulled up
and the ignition key is at ONthe instru-
ment panel warning light
xwill come on. IMPORTANT If after turning the engine
off with the car stopped, it is not possi-
ble to remove the key from the ignition
switch, try to turn it to ONand then to
OFF. If the problem persists, remove the
emergency key without forcing and fit it
into the proper slot A-fig. 2in the igni-
tion switch; now it will be possible to turn
the key to OFFand remove it. Contact
Fiat Dealership.
WARNING If you turn the electronic key
to OFFposition, external lights and elec-
tronic safety systems are turned off.
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fig. 2FF0L0207mfig. 3F0L0373m
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MANUAL
TRANSMISSION
To engage the gears, press the clutch ped-
al fully and shift the gear lever into one of
the required positions (the diagram is
shown on the knob).
IMPORTANT The car can only be put in-
to reverse gear when it has stopped mov-
ing completely. With the engine running,
before engaging the reverse, wait at least
2 seconds with the clutch pedal fully down
to prevent damage and grating of the
gears.
To engage reverse (R) from neutral pro-
ceed as follows:
Petrol versions fig. 4
❒shift the lever to the right and then
back;
Multijet versions fig. 5
❒lift the sliding ring Aunder the knob
and shift the lever straight to the left
and then forward. To release the handbrake:
❒slightly lift the handbrake and press re-
lease button A;
❒keep button Apressed and lower the
lever. Warning light xwill turn off.
Press the brake pedal when carrying out
this operation to prevent the car from
moving accidentally.
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fig. 4FF0L0146m
fig. 5F0L0200m
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ELECTRONIC
AUTOMATIC
TRANSMISSION
The car may be fitted with 5-speed (petrol
versions) or 6-speed (Multijet versions)
automatic transmission with electronic
control. Gears are shifted automatically
according to instant car parameters of use
(speed and accelerator pedal position).
Gears can however be shifted manually us-
ing transmission in sequential mode.
IMPORTANT Read carefully the follow-
ing points to learn how to use the elec-
tronic automatic transmission right from
the start.GEAR LEVER fig. 6
PParking
RReverse
NIdle
DDrive, automatic forward gear
+To upshift in sequential mode
–To downshift in sequential mode
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To change gears properly
you must push the clutch
pedal fully down. It is therefore es-
sential that there is nothing under the
pedals: make sure mats are lying flat
and do not get in the way of the ped-
als.
WARNING
Do not drive with your hand
resting on the gear lever as the
force exerted, even if slight,
could lead over time to pre-
mature wear on the gearbox internal
components.
IMPORTANT The clutch pedal must be
used for gear shift only. Never drive with
the foot resting, even if slightly, on the
clutch pedal. For versions / markets where
applicable, the clutch pedal control elec-
tronics can intervene interpreting the
wrong drive style as a fault
fig. 6FF0L0315m
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Reverse (R)
With gear lever at R, it is not possible to
start the engine.
Idle (N)
This position corresponds to the idle po-
sition of a traditional manual gearbox.
With gear lever at N, it is possible to start
the engine.
Engage idle N in case of long stops.
Drive, automatic forward gear (D)
Engage position D for urban and extra-ur-
ban use of the car. DISPLAY
The display shows:
❒selected gear (P, R, N, D) and word-
ing AUTO, in automatic mode;
❒upshifting or downshifting (through
digits) in sequential mode.
GEAR LEVER POSITIONS
Parking (P)
Select P to stop mechanically the driving
wheels.
Engage this position only with the car sta-
tionary, pull the handbrake if required.
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To shift from P to whatever
position, with ignition key at
ON, press the brake pedal and
press the gear lever button.
Reverse shall only be engaged
with car stationary, engine
idling and accelerator fully re-
leased.
Shifting from R →N or D is free
whereas for shifting R →P you
have to press the gear lever
button.
To shift from N, release the ac-
celerator pedal and make sure
the engine is idling.
Shifting from N →D is free
whereas for shifting from N
→R or P you have to press the
gear lever button.
Shifting the lever from P to D
(P →D), from N to D
(N →D) and from R to D (R→D) shall be only performed
with the car stationary and the engine
idling.
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Proceed as follows:
❒Set gear lever to N and press the
brake pedal
❒Restart the engine by turning the key
to STARTand set the gear lever to
D.IMPORTANT: Take the utmost care in
the following conditions: handbrake and
brake pedal released with engine idling and
gear lever at D, R or sequential since the
car can move also without pressing the ac-
celerator pedal.
The above condition can be used for park-
ing in narrow spaces, taking care to op-
erate the brake pedal only. ENGINE STARTING
❒Handbrake engaged and gear lever at
P or N: engine can be only started with
the gear lever in one of these posi-
tions.
❒With lever at P press the brake pedal
and turn the ignition key to START
without pressing the accelerator ped-
al.
❒With lever at N press the brake ped-
al and turn the ignition key to START
without pressing the accelerator ped-
al.
If the engine fails to start at first attempt,
turn the key to OFFbefore trying to
restart.
IMPORTANT With engine off, never leave
the ignition key at ONto prevent drain-
ing the battery.
IMPORTANT: if when travelling
with gear lever at D or in sequential
mode you turn inadvertently the key
to OFF the engine will turn off and
transmission will fail.
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OF THE CARRunning the engine in con-
fined areas is extremely dan-
gerous. The engine consumes oxygen
and produces carbon monoxide
which is a highly toxic and lethal gas.
WARNING
MOVING OFF
Proceed as follows:
❒at P position, press the brake pedal;
❒press the gear lever button and move
the gear lever to the required position
(D or R);
❒accelerate gradually; the car moves off
and gearshifting will be automatic.
Never leave children unat-
tended in the car.
WARNING
Shifting from P, with ignition
key at ON, is only possible
with brake pedal pressed.
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When stopping the car with a gear high-
er than 1st gear, transmission will set au-
tomatically at 1st gear.
When stopping the car under poor grip
conditions (snow, ice), at next starting the
transmission control unit could engage a
gear higher than 1st gear to prevent wheel
slipping. This shall not be considered as a
fault
IMPORTANT: in the event of excessive
oil temperatures (see section “Warning
lights and messages”), the electronic con-
trol intervenes excluding sequential mode
and activating automatic mode in order to
safeguard transmission life. Sequential
mode will be resumed as soon as regular
operating temperatures are restored.AUTOMATIC MODE
D can be selected from sequential mode
under whatever driving condition.
When passing from sequential mode to D,
the gear to engage is selected by trans-
mission control unit according to engine
rpm and speed (accelerator pedal posi-
tion).
Low engine power demand will result in
long gears engagement and reduced fuel
consumption. Increasing speed by press-
ing the accelerator will automatically en-
gage short gears that will result in im-
proved performance as to pickup and ac-
celeration: in this case fuel consumption
will increase.
For speedy pickup:
❒press the accelerator pedal flat-out,
the kick-down device will cut in to ob-
tain max. performance in terms of
pickup and acceleration. In this case fu-
el consumption will obviously increase.
IMPORTANT When driving under poor
grip conditions (snow, ice, etc.) avoid to
engage the kick-down device. SEQUENTIAL MODE
In sequential mode, the electronic auto-
matic transmission works like a fixed gear
sequential gearbox.
From position D move the gear lever left-
wards:
❒move gear lever to +: to upshift;
❒move gear lever to –: to downshift.
Gears are displayed by digits on the in-
strument panel. Non-stop monitoring car-
ried out by transmission control unit ex-
cludes whatever possibility of error.
Downshifting (or upshifting) is only pos-
sible if engine rpm enables it.
In sequential mode, electronic transmis-
sion control can however intervene in self-
adapting mode by shifting gears automat-
ically when engine rpm exceeds or falls be-
low the admitted rpm limit.
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PARKING THE CAR
Engage the handbrake and set gear lever to
P. Leave the wheels steered. Block the
wheels with a wedge or a stone if the car
is parked on a steep slope.
Do not leave the ignition key at ONto
prevent draining the battery. Always re-
move the key when you leave the car.TOWING THE CAR
IMPORTANT Comply with current local
regulations to tow the car.
If the car is to be towed, observe the fol-
lowing recommendations:
❒transport the car, if possible, on the
flatbed of a wrecker or maintenance
vehicle;
❒should this not be possible, tow the
car with the front driving wheels
raised from ground.
For towing the car, the gear lever shall be
set to N. FAILURE INDICATIONS
Failures to the electronic automatic trans-
mission is indicated by the turning of warn-
ing light
ton the instrument panel to-
gether with the dedicated message on the
multifunction display (see section “Warn-
ing lights and messages”).
Contact Fiat Dealership as soon as possi-
ble to have the fault removed.
STOPPING THE CAR
To stop the car:
❒release the accelerator pedal;
❒press the brake pedal.
IMPORTANT With the car on a sloping
road and engine running, keep the car
stopped just using the brake pedal, do not
press the accelerator pedal.
With the car parked with engine running
and gear lever at D, R or in sequential
mode, keep the brake pedal pressed to
prevent car moving off by engine idling.
For long stops set gear lever to P.
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Never leave children unat-
tended in the car.
WARNING
BUZZER WARNINGS
The warning buzzer will sound and P po-
sition will flash for a few seconds when the
ignition key is at OFFand the gear lever
is not set at P.
Ignition key can only be removed with
gear lever at P.Do not start the engine when
towing the car.
Failure to observe the above
instructions could seriously
damage the automatic trans-
mission.
Never leave children unat-
tended in the car.
WARNING
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Roof rack/ski rack
Remove the roof rack or the ski rack from
the roof as soon as they are no longer
used. These accessories lower air pene-
tration and adversely affect consumption
levels. When needing to carry particular-
ly voluminous objects, preferably use a
trailer.
Electric devices
Use electric devices only for the amount
of time needed. Rear heated window, ad-
ditional headlights, windscreen wipers and
heater fan need a considerable amount of
energy, therefore increasing the require-
ment of current increases fuel consump-
tion (up to +25% in the urban cycle).
Climate control
The air conditioner is an additional load
which greatly affects the engine leading to
higher consumption (on average up to
+20%). When the temperature outside
the car permits it, use the air vents where
possible.
Spoilers
The use of non-certified aerodynamic
items may adversely affect air drag and
consumption levels.DRIVING STYLE
Starting
Do not warm the engine with the car at
a standstill or at idle or high speed: under
these conditions the engine warms up
much more slowly, increasing electrical
consumption and emissions. It is therefore
advisable to move off immediately, slow-
ly, avoiding high speeds. This way the en-
gine will warm faster.
Unnecessary actions
Avoid accelerating when waiting at traffic
lights or before switching off the engine.
This and also double declutching is ab-
solutely pointless on modern cars and al-
so increase consumption and pollution.
Gear selection
As soon as the conditions of the traffic and
road allow, use a higher gear. Using a low
gear to obtain brilliant performance in-
creases consumption.
In the same way improper use of a high
gear increases consumption, emissions an
engine wear.CONTAINING
RUNNING COSTS
Here are some suggestions which may
help you to keep the running costs of your
car down and lower the amount of toxic
emissions released into the atmosphere.
GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
Car maintenance
Have checks and adjustments carried out
in accordance with the “Service schedule”.
Tyres
Check the pressure of the tyres routine-
ly at an interval of no more than 4 weeks:
if the pressure is too low, consumption
levels increase as resistance to rolling is
higher.
Unnecessary loads
Do not travel with too much luggage
stowed in the boot. The weight of the car
(especially when driving in town) and its
trim greatly affects consumption and sta-
bility.
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Traffic situations and road
conditions
Rather high consumption levels are tied to
situations with heavy traffic, for example
in queues with frequent use of the lower
gears or in cities with many traffic lights.
Also winding mountain roads and rough
road surfaces adversely affect consump-
tion.
Traffic hold-ups
During prolonged hold-ups (e.g.: level
crossings) the engine should be switched
off.TOWING TRAILERS
IMPORTANT NOTES
For towing caravans or trailers the car
must be fitted with a certified tow hook
and an adequate electric system. Installa-
tion should be carried out by specialised
personnel who release a special document
for circulation on the road.
Install any specific and/or additional rear-
view mirrors as specified by law.
Remember that when towing a trailer,
steep hills are harder to climb, the brak-
ing spaces increase and overtaking takes
longer depending on the overall weight.
Engage a low gear when driving downhill,
rather than constantly using the brake.
The weight the trailer exerts on the car
tow hook reduces by the same amount
the actual car loading capacity. To make
sure the maximum towable weight is not
exceeded (given in the log book) account
should be taken of the fully laden trailer,
including accessories and personal be-
longings. Top speed
Fuel consumption considerably increases
with speed. Avoid superfluous braking and
accelerating, which cost in terms of both
fuel and emissions.
Acceleration
Accelerating violently increasing the revs
will greatly affect consumption and emis-
sions: acceleration should be gradual and
should not exceed the maximum torque.
CONDITIONS OF USE
Cold starting
Short journeys and frequent cold starts do
not allow the engine to reach optimum
operating temperature. This results in a
significant increase in consumption levels
(from +15 to +30% on the urban cycle)
and emission of harmful substances.
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