Charge battery FIAT DUCATO 244 2005 3.G Owners Manual

64GETTING TO KNOW YOUR VEHICLE
– Always remember to turn the
heater off when refuelling or standing
in service stations to avoid fires and
explosions.
– Do not park the vehicle over in-
flammable material such as paper, dry
grass or leaves: fire risk!
– The temperature near the heater
must never exceed 120°C (e.g. during
painting operations in a workshop
oven). Higher temperatures could
damage the electronic control unit
components.
– When the engine is off, the heater
runs off the battery: it is consequently
important to run the engine for a cer-
tain period of time in order to restore
the battery charge.– Follow the prescriptions in “Vehi-
cle maintenance” section at paragraph
“Engine coolant level” to check the
coolant level. The coolant in the cir-
cuit must contain at least 10% an-
tifreeze fluid.
– Maintenance and repairs must al-
ways be carried out by a Fiat Deal-
ershipand only genuine spare parts
must be used.
MAINTENANCE
Have the heater checked at a Fiat
Dealership periodically (always be-
fore winter). This will ensure safe and
cheap running and long appliance life.
The heater burns fuel in the
same way as the engine,
though, of course, to a lesser degree
and therefore to avoid intoxication
and suffocation, never use the sup-
plementary heater in closed areas,
garages or workshops not equipped
with specific exhaust evacuation
devices even for short periods of
time.
WARNING

108GETTING THE BEST OUT OF YOUR VEHICLE
SWITCHING OFF
THE ENGINE
Turn the ignition key to STOPwhile
the engine is idling.
IMPORTANTAfter a taxing drive
you should allow the engine to “catch
its breath” before turning it off by let-
ting it idle to allow temperature in the
engine compartment to fall.PARKING
Switch off the engine, pull up the
handbrake and engage a gear (1st gear
or reverse, according to whether the
vehicle is facing up or downhill) and
leave the wheels turned. If the vehi-
cle is left on a steep slope, wedges or
a rock should be used to lock the
wheels.
Do not leave the ignition key at
MAR to prevent running the battery
down. Always remove the key when
you leave the vehicle.HANDBRAKE
The handbrake lever is located on
the left-hand side of the driver’s seat.
Pull the lever upwards as far as it will
go to apply the handbrake. Instrument
panel warning light xwill come on
when the key is turned to MAR.
IMPORTANTThe vehicle must be
blocked after three or four lever re-
leases when the vehicle is empty; the
number of releases necessary to block
it depend on the load and on the road
slope.
In case of problems, contact a Fiat
Dealershipto have it adjusted. A quick burst on the ac-
celerator before turning
off the engine serves ab-
solutely no practical purpose and
wastes fuel. It can also damage
turbo-charged engines.
fig. 1
F0D0044m
Never leave children unsu-
pervised in the vehicle.
WARNING

134GETTING THE BEST OUT OF YOUR VEHICLE
VEHICLE STORAGE
The following precautions should be
taken if the vehicle will not be used for
several months:
– park the vehicle in covered, dry and
if possible well-ventilated premises;
– engage a gear;
– remove the cables from the battery
(first remove the cable to the negative
terminal) and check the battery
charge. If the vehicle is to be stored
for long periods the charge of the bat-
tery should be checked every month
and recharged if it falls below 12.5 V;– make sure the handbrake is not en-
gaged;
– clean and protect the painted parts
using protective wax;
– clean and protect the shiny metal
parts using special compounds readi-
ly available;
– sprinkle talcum powder on the rub-
ber windscreen and rear window
wiper blades and lift them off the glass;
– slightly open the windows;
– cover the vehicle with a cloth or
perforated plastic sheet. Do not use
sheets of non-perforated plastic as
they do not allow moisture on the ve-
hicle body to evaporate;– inflate the tyres to 0.5 bar above
the normal specified pressure and
check it at intervals;
– do not drain the engine cooling sys-
tem.
IMPORTANTWhere relevant,
switch off the electronic vehicle alarm
with the remote control and deacti-
vate the system by turning the emer-
gency key to OFF (see “Electronic
alarm” in section “Getting to know
your vehicle”).

136IN AN EMERGENCY
JUMP STARTING
If the battery is flat, you can use an-
other battery to start the engine. Its
capacity must be the same or slightly
greater than the flat battery.
Proceed as follows fig. 1:
1) connect positive terminals1and
2 (+sign near terminal) of the two
batteries with a jump lead;
2) with a second lead, connect the
negative terminal 3(– sign near the
terminal) of the auxiliary battery to an
earthing point 4(E) on the engine or
gearbox of the vehicle to be started;IMPORTANTDo not directly
connect the two negative terminals:
sparks could ignite the flammable gas
from the battery. If the other battery
is fitted in a vehicle, prevent acciden-
tal contacts between the metal parts
of the two vehicles.
3) Start the engine.
4)when the engine has been start-
ed, remove the leads reversing the or-
der above.
If the engine fails to start after a few
attempts, do not keep turning the key
but have the vehicle seen at a Fiat
Dealership.
fig. 1
F0D0203m
Under no circumstances
should a battery charger
be used to start the en-
gine: it could damage the elec-
tronic systems and in particular
the ignition and injection control
units.
Do not carry out this pro-
cedure if you lack experi-
ence; if it is not done correctly it
can cause very intense electrical
discharges and the battery might
even explode. The liquid in the bat-
tery is poisonous and corrosive.
Keep it away from the eyes and
skin. You are also advised not to put
naked flames or lighted cigarettes
near the battery and not to cause
sparks: risk of fire and explosion.
WARNING

157IN AN EMERGENCY
IF THE BATTERY
IS FLAT
IMPORTANTBattery recharging
procedure is given as information on-
ly since this operation shall be only
performed at a Fiat Dealership.
RECHARGING THE BATTERY
You are advised to recharge the bat-
tery slowly for a period of approxi-
mately 24 hours at a low amperage.
Charging for too long could damage
the battery.
Proceed as follows:
1) disconnect the electrical system
from the battery terminals;
IMPORTANTIf the vehicle is fit-
ted with the alarm system, deactivate
it by the remote control (see “Elec-
tronic alarm” in chapter “Getting to
know your vehicle”).JUMP STARTING
See “Jump starting” in this section. 2)connect the charger cables to the
battery terminals;
3)turn the charger on;
4)when you have finished, turn the
charger off before disconnecting the
battery;
5) reconnect the cables to the bat-
tery terminals. Make sure the polari-
ty is correct.
The liquid in the battery is
poisonous and corrosive.
Do not let it touch the skin or eyes.
Recharging the battery should be
done in a well-ventilated area away
from naked flames or possible
sources of sparks: explosion and fire
risk.
WARNING
Do not attempt to recharge
a frozen battery. Thaw it
first otherwise it could explode. If
the battery froze, make sure the in-
ternal elements are not broken
(short-circuit risk) and that the cas-
ing is not cracked (risk of spilling
the poisonous and corrosive fluid.
WARNING

165VEHICLE MAINTENANCE
ANNUAL
INSPECTION
SCHEDULE
The following annual inspection
schedule is required for vehicles trav-
elling 15,000 Kmapprox. a year. The
schedule includes the following oper-
ations:
– check tyre condition and wear and
adjust pressure, if required (including
spare wheel);
– check operation of lights (head-
lights, direction indicators, hazard
lights, boot light, passenger compart-
ment light, instrument panel lights,
etc.);
– check windscreen wiper/washer
and adjust nozzles;
– check position and wear of wind-
screen/rear window wiper blades;
– check front pad conditions and
wear;
– check for bonnet and boot lock
cleanness, lever cleanness and lubri-
cation;– inspect conditions of: engine, gear-
box, transmission, piping (exhaust, fu-
el feed, brakes), rubber parts (boots,
sleeves, bushings, etc.), brake and fu-
el line hoses;
– check battery charge status;
– check conditions of various control
belts;
– check and top up fluid levels (en-
gine coolant, brakes, windscreen
washer, battery, etc.);
– check and top up engine oil;
– replace pollen filter.
ADDITIONAL
CHECKS
Every 1,000 km or before long
trips, check and top up as necessary:
– engine coolant level
– brake fluid level
– power steering fluid level
– battery electrolyte level
– windscreen washer fluid
– tyre pressure and conditions.
Every 3,000 km or before long
trips, check and top up as necessary:
engine oil
Every 10,000 kmor at cwarning
light coming on (diesel engines only):
bleed water from fuel filter.
You are recommended to use FL
Seleniaproducts designed and pro-
duced for Fiat vehicles (see the “Ca-
pacities” table in the “Technical Spec-
ifications” section).

166VEHICLE MAINTENANCE
IMPORTANT - Pollen filter
If the vehicle is often used in dusty
or extremely polluted environments,
you should change the filter element
more frequently. It should be changed
especially if the amount of air intro-
duced into the passenger compart-
ment has decreased.
IMPORTANT - Diesel filter
Refuelling with diesel fuel not com-
plying with the grade of purity pre-
scribed by European Specification
EN590 might make it necessary to re-
place the filter more frequently than
indicated in the Service Schedule.
IMPORTANT - Battery
The charge in your battery should be
checked, where possible at the start
of the winter, to limit the risk of the
battery electrolyte freezing.
This check should be carried out
more frequently if the vehicle is mainly
used for short trips or if it is fitted
with accessories that permanently
take in electricity even when the igni-
tion key is removed, especially in the
case of after market accessories.You should check the battery fluid
(electrolyte) level more frequently
than shown in the Service Schedule if
the vehicle is used in hot climates or
particularly demanding conditions.
IMPORTANTAs concerns Camp-
ing Car versions, due to high electric
absorption, observe indications rele-
vant to battery contained in para-
graphs "Vehicle storage" (section
"Getting the best out of your vehicle")
and "Battery – Checking the charge"
(section "Vehicle maintenance").
Maintenance of your ve-
hicle should be entrusted
to a Fiat Dealership. For
ordinary routine maintenance
operations which you are able to
carry out yourself, ensure that
you have the necessary tools and
original Fiat spare parts and flu-
ids available. Do not carry out
servicing operations if you have
no experience.IMPORTANT - Engine oil
Change the engine oil more fre-
quently than shown in the Service
Schedule if the vehicle is normally dri-
ven in one of the following particular-
ly severe conditions:
– towing a trailer
– on dusty roads
– short distances (less than 7-8 km)
repeated and with external tempera-
tures below zero.
– frequently idling engines or long
distance low speed driving (e. g. taxis
or door-to-door deliveries) or in case
of a long term inactivity replace engine
oil more frequently than required on
Scheduled Maintenance Plan.
IMPORTANT - Air cleaner
Replace the air cleaner more fre-
quently if the vehicle is used on dusty
roads.
If you are in doubt about how often
the engine oil or the air cleaner should
be changed in relation to how you use
the vehicle, contact a Fiat Dealer-
ship.

174VEHICLE MAINTENANCE
REPLACING THE BATTERY
If required, replace the battery with
a genuine spare part presenting the
same specifications. If a battery with
different specifications is fitted, the fre-
quencies shown in the “Service Sched-
ule” will no longer be valid. Refer to
the instructions provided by the bat-
tery manufacturer.
Batteries contain sub-
stances that are very
harmful for the environ-
ment. You are advised to have the
battery changed at a Fiat Dealer-
ship. It is properly equipped for
disposing of used batteries in an
environmentally-friendly way that
complies with the law.
Incorrect fitting of elec-
trical and electronic ac-
cessories can seriously
damage the vehicle. If you want
to add accessories after buying
the vehicle antitheft system, ra-
dio, free-hand phone kit, etc.) vis-
it a Fiat Dealership. They can sug-
gest the most suitable acces-
sories to get and check whether
the electric system can support
the required load or whether a
higher capacity battery is re-
quired.
The liquid in the battery is
poisonous and corrosive.
Do not let it touch the skin or eyes.
Do not bring naked flames or pos-
sible sources or sparks near the bat-
tery: risk of fire and explosion.
WARNING
fig. 15
F0D0244m
BATTERY
Fiat Ducato battery is of the “Limit-
ed maintenance” and is fitted with in-
dicator A-fig. 15to check the elec-
trolyte level and the charge.
Under normal conditions of use it
does not require topping up with dis-
tilled water. However, check it peri-
odically through the control optical in-
dicator that is placed on the battery
cover and must be dark with a cen-
tral green area.
If the indicator is a bright colour, or
dark without the green central area,
contact a Fiat Dealership.

175VEHICLE MAINTENANCE
When working on the bat-
tery or near it, always wear
the proper goggles.
WARNING
Running the battery with
low fluid level can damage
the battery beyond repair and
could also cause its explosion.
WARNING
If the vehicle is to stand for
a long time in the cold, re-
move the battery and store it in a
warm place to avoid it freezing.
WARNINGCHECKING THE CHARGE
The battery charge may be checked
satisfactorily through the indicator and
acting according to the colour the in-
dicator shows.
Refer to the table below or to the la-
belB-fig. 15on the battery.USEFUL ADVICE FOR
LENGTHENING THE LIFE OF
YOUR BATTERY
When you park the vehicle, ensure
the doors are closed properly. The
ceiling lights must be off.
Do not keep accessories (e.g.: sound
system, hazard lights, etc.) switched
on for a long time when the engine is
not running.
IMPORTANTA battery which is
kept at a charge of less than 50% for
any length of time will be damaged by
sulphation leading to a reduction in
cranking power and a higher risk of the
battery electrolyte freezing (this may
even occur at –10 °C).
Bright white colour
Dark colour without green
area in the centre
Dark colour with green
area in the centreTop up electrolyte
Low charge level
Electrolyte level
and charge sufficientContact a
Fiat Dealership
Charge the battery
(advisable to contact a Fiat
Dealership)
No action

177VEHICLE MAINTENANCE
ELECTRONIC
CONTROL UNIT
When the vehicle is being used nor-
mally, special measures are not nec-
essary.
The following instructions must be
followed very carefully however, if
you work on the electrical system or
in cases where emergency starting is
necessary:
– never disconnect the battery from
the electric system while the engine is
running;
– disconnect the battery from the
electric system if you are recharging it;
– never perform emergency starting
with a battery charger. Always use an
auxiliary battery;
– be particularly careful when con-
necting the battery to the electric sys-
tem. Make sure that the polarity is
correct and that the connection is ef-
ficient;
– do not connect or disconnect the
terminals of the electronic units while
the ignition key is at MAR;
– do not check polarity through
sparking;– disconnect the electronic control
units if you are electrically welding the
vehicle body. Remove the units if tem-
peratures exceed 80 °C (special op-
erations on the bodywork, etc.).
IMPORTANTIf the sound system
or vehicle alarm systems are not in-
stalled correctly, they can interfere
with the working of the electronic
control units.
Modifications or repairs to
the electrical system car-
ried out incorrectly and without
bearing the features of the system
in mind can cause malfunctions
with the risk of fire.
WARNING
SPEED LIMITER
On certain version, the injection con-
trol unit is set to limit the vehicle
speed at a max. preset limit.
Speed limits are the following:
– for Minibus versions (M2 homolo-
gation category): 100 km/h;
– for good Transport versions (ve-
hicle dead weight: > 3.5 t) (N2 ho-
mologation category): 90 km/h;
Label (fig.16) with admitted top
speed (90 or 100 km/h according to
versions) is applied on the wind-
screen.
This limit has been established by Eu-
ropean Directive 2002/85/EC, what-
ever violation is therefore punishable
by law.
IMPORTANTWhen the device
comes into action, the speed value
displayed on the instrument panel
could be approx. 10% higher than the
actual one.
fig. 16
F0D0299m