inflation pressure PORSCHE PANAMERA 2009 1.G Information Manual

Seats, Mirrors and Steering Wheel
49
Function of the air bag systemAir bags are a supplemental safety system. Your
primary protection comes from your safety belts.
The front air bags are triggered during a frontal
collision of sufficient force and direction.
In the event of a side impact of corresponding
force, the side air bag on the impact side is
triggered.
The inflation process generates the amount of gas
required to fill the air bags at the necessary
pressure in fractions of a second.
Air bags help to protect the head and body, while
simultaneously damping the motion of the driver
and passenger in the impact direction in the event
of a frontal impact or side impact.
In order to help provide protection in severe
collisions which can cause death and serious
injury, air bags must inflate extremely rapidly.
Such high speed inflation has a negative but
unavoidable side effect, which is that it can and
does cause injuries, including facial and arm
abrasions, bruising and broken bones. You can
help minimize such injuries by always wearing your
safety belts.
There are many types of accidents in which air
bags are not expected to deploy. These include
accidents where the air bags would provide no
benefit, such as a rear impact against your
vehicle. Other accidents where the air bags are
designed not to deploy are those where the risk of
injury from the air bag deployment could exceed any protective benefits, such as in low speed
accidents or higher speed accidents where the
vehicle decelerates over a longer time. Since air
bag deployment does not occur in all accidents,
this further emphasizes the need for you and your
passengers to always wear safety belts.
Your vehicle is equipped with a crash sensing and
diagnostic module. This module will record the
use of the seat belt restraint system by the driver
and front passenger when the air bags and/or belt
tentioner are triggered.
Precondition for activating the restraint systems:
f
Ignition is switched on.
Advanced air bagYour vehicle is equipped with occupant sensing for
the passenger's seat in accordance with
U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208.
Depending on the weight, body positioning and
shape acting on the passenger's seat, the
passenger's air bag will automatically be switched
on and off.
Depending on the angle and force of impact, the
passenger's air bag which is switched-on will be
triggered during a collision.
Precondition for switching the passenger's air bag
on and off, depending on weight, body positioning
and shape:
fIgnition is switched on.
Danger!
Risk of serious personal injury or death due
to the passenger air bag not triggering.
Improper handling of occupant sensing can
unintentionally impair switching the
passenger's air bag off and on.
If the weight on the passenger's seat is
reduced significantly, e.g., by supporting
weight on the armrest, the passenger's air
bag can be switched off.
f Select an upright seat position, and do not
support weight on the armrests or lean out of
the window.
Always keep feet in the footwell while driving.
Do not put feet on the dashboard or the seat
area. Do not lean against the inside of the door
or outside the window while the vehicle is
moving.
f If a child restraint system is installed on the passenger’s seat, do not adjust the seat.

Instrument Panel and Multi-Function Display
127
Tire Pressure Monitoring (TPM)Each tire should be checked monthly when cold
and inflated to the inflation pressure
recommended by Porsche on the tire inflation
pressure label.
For information on the tire inflation pressure label:
fPlease see the chapter “TIRES AND WHEELS”
on page 280.
As an added safety feature, your vehicle has been
equipped with a tire pressure monitoring system
(TPM) that illuminates a low tire pressure telltale
(warning light) when one or more of your tires is
significantly under-inflated.
Accordingly, when the low tire pressure telltale
illuminates, you should stop and check your tires
as soon as possible, an d inflate them to the
proper pressure. Driving on a significantly under-
inflated tire causes the tire to overheat and can
lead to tire failure. Under-inflation also reduces
fuel efficiency and tire tread life, and may affect
the vehicle’s handling and stopping ability.
However, the tire pressure must still be set
manually on the wheel.
f Please see the chapter “TIRE PRESSURE FOR
COLD TIRES (68 °F/20 °C)” on page 326.
Danger!
Risk of serious personal injury or death.
Driving the vehicle with low tire pressure
increases the risk of a tire failure and
resulting loss of control. Furthermore, low
tire pressure increases rate of wear of the
affected tires.
Please note that the Tire Pressure Monitoring
is not a substitute for proper tire
maintenance, and it is the driver's
responsibility to maintain correct tire
pressure, even if under-inflation has not
reached the level to trigger illumination of
Tire Pressure Monitoring low tire pressure
telltale. Low tire pressure reduces the road
safety of the vehicle and destroys the tire and
wheel.
Tire Pressure Monitoring gives a warning
about tire damage caused by a natural loss
in pressure as well as about a gradual loss of
pressure caused by foreign objects.
Tire Pressure Monitoring cannot warn you
about tire damage that occurs suddenly (e.g.
flat tire due to abrupt external effects).
f When a red tire pressure warning appears,
stop immediately in a suitable place and check
the tires for damage. If necessary, remedy the
damage with a tire sealant.
f Do not by any means continue to drive with
defective tires. f
Sealing the tire with tire sealant is only an
emergency repair so you can drive to the
nearest specialist workshop.
The permitted top speed is 50 mph
(80 km/h) .
f Do not drive with tires in which the tire
pressure drops again very quickly. In case of
doubt, have tires checked by a specialist
workshop.
f Defective tires must be replaced immediately
at an authorized Porsche dealer.
Tires must never be repaired under any
circumstances.
f If Tire Pressure Monitoring is defective
(e.g. defective wheel transmitter), contact an
authorized Porsche dealer immediately and
have the damage repaired.
The tire pressure will not be monitored at all
or will be monitored only partially when Tire
Pressure Monitoring is defective.
For information on warning messages on the multi-
function display:
f Please see the chapter “OVERVIEW OF
WARNING MESSAGES” on page 152.
f Incomplete entries or selection of the wrong
tires on the multi-function display affect the
accuracy of warnings and messages.
The settings in the tire pressure menu must be
updated following a wheel change or changes
in vehicle loading.

236
Storage, Luggage Compartment and Roof Transport System
Loading InformationDefinitionsThe rear-axle load is the vehicle weight on the
rear axle plus the weight of the transported load.
The Curb weight - actual weight of your vehicle -
vehicle weight including standard and optional
equipment, fluids, and emergency tools. This
weight does not include passengers and cargo.
The Gross Vehicle Weight is the sum of the curb
weight and the weight of passengers and cargo
combined.
The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating is the
maximum total weight of vehicle, passengers,
luggage, hitch, trailer tongue load and optional
equipment.
The Gross Axle Weight Rating is the maximum
load limit for the front or the rear axle. This
information is located on the safety comliance
sticker located in the dr iver’s side door jamb.
For determining the compat ibility of the tire and
vehicle load capabilities:
f Please see the chapter “TIRES AND WHEELS”
on page 280. The load capacity coefficient (e.g. “106”) is a
minimum requirement. For more information:
f
Please see the chapter “INSCRIPTION ON
RADIAL TIRE” on page 288.
The Gross Combined Weight Rating is the
maximum total weight rating of vehicle,
passengers and cargo.
The Vehicle Capacity Weight - Load Limit - is
the maximum total weight limit specified of the
load (passengers and cargo) for the vehicle. This
is the maximum weight of passengers and cargo
that can be loaded into the vehicle. This infor-
mation can be found on the tire pressure plate.
The maximum loaded vehicle weight is the
sum of curb weight, acce ssory weight, vehicle
capacity weight and production options weight.
The load rating is the maximum load that a tire
is rated to carry for a given inflation pressure.
The maximum load rating is the load rating for
a tire at the maximum permissible inflation
pressure.
The cargo capacity is the permissible weight of
cargo, the subtracted weight of passengers from
the load limit.
f Never exceed the permissible limits.
Danger!
Risk of personal injury or death.
Injuries are much more likely in an accident
if persons ride in the cargo area.
f Persons must ride only on the seats provided
for this purpose.
f Make sure that everybody fastens their safety
belts.
Risk of loss of control, damage to the vehicle
and serious personal injury or death.
f Never exceed the specified axle loads.
Overloading can shorten the service life of the
tires and car, as well as lead to dangerous
vehicle reactions and long braking distances.
Damage due to overloading is not covered by the vehicle warranty.

Minor Repairs
281
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specific
government test course. For example, a tire
graded 150 would wear one and a half (1-1/2)
times as well on the government course as a tire
graded 100. The relative performance of tires
depends upon the actual conditions of their use,
however, and may depart significantly from the
norm due to variations in driving habits, service
practices and differences in road characteristics
and climate.
Traction AA, A, B, C
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are
AA, A, B, and C and they represent the tire's ability
to stop on wet pavement as measured under
controlled conditions on specified government
test surfaces of asphalt and concrete. A tire
marked C may have poor traction performance.
Warning!
The traction grade assigned to this is based
on braking (straight-ahead) traction tests
and does not include cornering (turned)
traction, acceleration, hydroplaning or peak
traction characteristics. Temperature A, B, C
The temperature grades are A (the highest), B and
C, representing the tire's resistance to the
generation of heat and it
s ability to dissipate heat
when tested under controlled conditions on a
specified indoor laboratory test wheel.
Sustained high temperatures can cause the
material of the tire to de generate and reduce tire
life, and excessive temperature can lead to
sudden tire failure.
The grade C corresponds to a level of
performance which all passenger car tires must
meet under the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard No. 109.
Grades B and A represent higher levels of
performance on the labora tory test wheel than the
minimum required by law.
Warning!
The temperature grade for this tire is
established for a tire that is properly inflated
and not overloaded. Excessive speed,
underinflation, or excessive loading, either
separately or in combin ation, can cause heat
buildup and possible tire failure, resulting
loss of control, leading to serious personal
injury or death.
Tire pressures
Danger!
Risk of accident.
Risk of serious personal injury or death.
Driving the vehicle with low tire pressure
increases risk of a tire failure and resulting
loss of control. Furthermore, low tire
pressure increases rate of wear of the
affected tires and cause damage.
f Always use an accurate tire pressure gage
when checking inflation pressures.
f Do not exceed the maximum tire pressure
listed on the tire sidewall. (Also refer to
”Technical data“).
f Please see the chapter “TIRE PRESSURE
PLATE” on page 283.
f Cold tire inflation pressure means: all tires
must be cold, ambient temperature maximum
68 °F (20 °C), when adjusting the inflation
pressure. Avoid sunlight striking the tires
before measuring cold pressures, since the
pressures would rise from temperature
influence.

282
Minor Repairs
f
Valve caps protect the valve from dust and dirt,
and thus from leakage. Always screw caps
tightly down. Replace missing caps
immediately.
f Use only plastic valve caps.
f For safety reasons, don't use tire inflating
bottles.
f Please see the chapter “TIRE PRESSURE FOR
COLD TIRES (68 °F/20 °C)” on page 326.
Each tire, including the spare (if provided), should
be checked monthly when cold and inflated to the
inflation pressure recommended by the vehicle
manufacturer on the vehicle placard or tire infla-
tion pressure label. (If your vehicle has tires of a
different size than the size indicated on the vehicle
placard or tire inflation pr essure label, you should
determine the proper tire inflation pressure for
those tires).
As an added safety feature, your vehicle has been
equipped with a tire pressure monitoring (TPM)
that illuminates a low tire pressure telltale when
one or more of your tires is significantly under-
inflated. Accordingly, when the low tire pressure
telltale illuminates, you should stop and check
your tires as soon as po ssible, and inflate them to
the proper pressure. Driving on a significantly
under-inflated tire causes the tire to overheat and
can lead to tire failur e. Under-inflation also
reduces fuel efficiency an d tire tread life, and may
affect the vehicle’s handling and stopping ability. Please note that the TPM is not a substitute for
proper tire maintenance, and it is the driver’s
responsibility to maintain correct tire pressure,
even if under-inflation has not reached the level to
trigger illumination of the TPM low tire pressure
tell-tale.
For further information on the tire pressure
monitoring:
f
Please see the chapter “TIRE PRESSURE
MONITORING (TPM)” on page 127.
When tires are warm, the tire pressure is
increased.
f Never let air out of hot tires. This could cause
the tire pressure to fall below the prescribed
value.
Insufficient tire pressure can cause tires to over-
heat and thus be damaged – even invisibly. Hidden
tire damage is not eliminated by subsequently
correcting the tire pressure. Overloading
Danger!
Risk of damage to vehicle parts, loss of
control and serious pers onal injury or death.
f Do not overload your vehicle. Be careful about
the roof load.
f If you plan to load the vehicle, first correct the
tire pressure. Tire pressure for loaded vehicle
can be found on the tire pressure plate and in
the chapter technical data.
f Never exceed the specified axle load.
Overloading can shorten the service life of the
tires and car, as well as lead to dangerous
vehicle reactions and long braking distances.
Damage due to overloading is not covered by
the vehicle warranty.
Tire damage may also be caused by
overloading, and this damage is not covered by your tire warranty.
f Please see the chapter “LOADING INFORMA-
TION” on page 236.

Minor Repairs
283
Example of a tire pressure plateTire Pressure plateInformation on the tire pressure plate
A Seating capacityMaximum number of vehicle occupants,
including the driver.
B Vehicle load limit Is the maximum total weight limit specified of
the load (passengers and cargo) for the
vehicle. This is the maximum weight of
passengers and cargo that can be loaded into
the vehicle.
Please see the chapter “LOADING
INFORMATION” on page 236. C Original tire size
Size of tires mounted at the factory.
D Recommended cold tire inflation pressure These values are for cold tires (68 °F/20 °C).
Tire traction
Warning!
When driving on wet or slushy roads, a
wedge of water may bu ild up between the
tires and the road. This phenomenon is
known as “hydroplane” and may cause
partial or complete loss of traction, vehicle
control or stopping ability.
f Reduce speed on wet surfaces to prevent this.
Tire lifeTire life depends on various factors, i.e., road
surfaces, traffic and weather conditions, driving
habits, type of tires and tire care.
f Inspect your tires for wear and damage before
driving off. If you notice uneven or substantial
wear, wheels might need alignment or tires
should be balanced or replaced.Tire wearThe original equipment tires on your Porsche have
built-in tire wear indicators. They are molded into
the bottom of the tread grooves and will appear as
approximately 1/2 in. (12 mm) bands when the
tire tread depth is down to 1/16 of an in (1.6 mm).
When the indicators appear in two or more
adjacent grooves, it is time to replace the tires.
We recommend, however, that you do not let the
tires wear down to this extent.
Worn tires cannot grip the road surface properly
and are even less effective on wet roads.
In the United States, state laws may govern the
minimum tread depth permissible. Follow all such
laws.

Minor Repairs
289
– second two-digit code means tire size.
– third four-digit code means tire type code.
– fourth four-digit code means date of manufacture.
If, for example, the last four numbers read
1204, the tire was produced in the 12th week
of 2004.
C – Tire ply composition and material
The number of layers in the tread and sidewalls
and their material composition.
D – Maximum permissibl e inflation pressure
The maximum permissible cold inflation pressure
to which a tire can be inflated.
f Do not exceed the permissible inflation
pressure.
E – Maximum Load rating
The maximum load in kilograms and pounds can
be carried by the tire. If you replace tires always
use a tire that has the same maximum load rating
as the factory installed tire.
F – Radial
The identification indicates if the tire has radial
structure.
G – Term of tubeless or tube tire
Identification for tubeless tires. Speed code letters
The speed code letter
Y indicates the maximum
permitted speed for the tire.
This code letter is shown on the tire sidewall.
Tip on driving
Tires with a maximum speed rating that is lower
than the specified maximum vehicle speed may be
mounted only if they bear an M+S identification on
the tire sidewall.
f Please note that in addition to snow tires,
all-season tires are also subject to speed limits
and bear this identification.
G- Rim width in inches
H - Rim-flange contour code letter
I - Symbol for drop-center rim
J - Rim diameter in inches
K -Double hump
L - Rim offset in mmInscription on alloy wheelsThe information is inscribed on the back of the
spokes near the tire valve.
T
= up to 118 mph (190 km/h)
H = up to 131 mph (210 km/h)
V = up to 150 mph (240 km/h)
W = up to 167 mph (270 km/h)
Y = up to 186 mph (300 km/h)
(Y) = up to 186 mph (300 km/h) as for Y tires.
Speeds of more than 185 mph
(300 km/h) are also possible at
a maximum tire load capacity of 85 %
(confirmation from tire manufacturer
required for speeds of more than
185 mph (300 km/h)).