check engine light Seat Alhambra 2006 Owner's Guide

Checking and refilling levels 222
The position of the brake fluid reservoir is shown in the corresponding engine
compartment diagram Ÿpage 262. The brake fluid reservoir has a black and
yellow cap.
The brake fluid level drops slightly when the vehicle is being used as the
brake pads are automatically adjusted as they wear.
However, if the level goes down noticeably in a short time, or drops below the
“MIN” mark, there may be a leak in the brake system. A display on the instru-
ment panel will warn you if the brake fluid level is too low Ÿpage 70.
WARNING
Before opening the bonnet to check the brake fluid level, read and observe
the warnings Ÿpage 209.
Changing the brake fluid
The brake fluid must be renewed every two years.
We recommend that you have the brake fluid changed by an Authorised
Service Centre.
Before opening the bonnet, please read and follow the warnings Ÿ in
“Safety instructions on working in the engine compartment” on page 209 in
“Working in the engine compartment”.
Brake fluid absorbs moisture. In the course of time, it will absorb water from
the ambient air. If the water content in the brake fluid is too high, the brake
system could corrode. This also considerably reduces the boiling point of the
brake fluid. Heavy use of the brakes may then cause a vapour lock which
could impair the braking effect.
For this reason the brake fluid must be renewed every two years.It is important that you use only use brake fluid compliant with the US
standard FMVSS 116 DOT 4. We recommend the use of Genuine SEAT brake
fluid.
WARNING
Brake fluid is poisonous. Old brake fluid impairs the braking effect.
•Before opening the bonnet to check the brake fluid level, read and
observe the warnings Ÿpage 209.
•Brake fluid should be stored in the closed original container in a safe
place out of reach of children. There is a toxic risk.
•Have the brake fluid changed every two years at the latest. Heavy use
of the brakes may cause a vapour lock if the brake fluid is left in the system
for too long. This would seriously affect the efficiency of the brakes and the
safety of the vehicle. This may cause an accident.
Caution
Brake fluid could damage the paintwork. Wipe off any brake fluid from the
paintwork immediately.
For the sake of the environment
Brake fluid must be drained and disposed of in the proper manner observing
environmental regulations.

Checking and refilling levels223
Safety FirstOperating instructionsTips and MaintenanceTe c h n i c a l D a t a
Battery
Warnings on handling the battery
WARNING
Always be aware of the danger of injury and chemical burns as well as the
risk of accident or fire when working on the battery and the electrical
system:
•Wear eye protection. Protect your eyes, skin and clothing from acid and
particles containing lead.
•Battery acid is very corrosive and caustic. Wear protective gloves and
eye protection. Do not tilt the batteries. This could spill acid through the
vents. Rinse battery acid from eyes immediately for several minutes with
clear water. Then seek medical care immediately. Neutralize any acid
splashes on the skin or clothing with a soapy solution, and rinse off with
plenty of water. If acid is swallowed by mistake, consult a doctor immedi-
ately.
•Fires, sparks, naked lights and smoking are prohibited. When handling
cables and electrical equipment, avoid causing sparks and electrostatic charge. Never short the battery terminals. High-energy sparks can cause
injury.
•A highly explosive mixture of gases is released when the battery is
under charge. The batteries should be charged in a well-ventilated room
only.
•Keep children away from acid and batteries.
•Before working on the electrical system, you must switch off the
engine, the ignition and all consumers. The negative cable on the battery
must be disconnected. When a light bulb is changed, you need only switch
off the light.
•Deactivate the anti-theft alarm by unlocking the vehicle before you
disconnect the battery! The alarm will otherwise be triggered.
•When disconnecting the battery from the vehicle electrical system,
disconnect first the negative cable and then the positive cable.
•Switch off all electrical consumers before reconnecting the battery.
Reconnect first the positive cable and then the negative cable. Never
reverse the polarity of the connections. This could cause an electrical fire.
•Never charge a frozen battery, or one which has thawed. This could
result in explosions and chemical burns. Always replace a battery which
has frozen. A flat battery can freeze at temperatures around 0
°C.
•Ensure that the vent hose is always connected to the battery.
•Never use a defective battery. This may be fatally explosive. Replace a
damaged battery immediately.
Caution
•Never disconnect the battery if the ignition is switched on or if the engine
is running. This could damage the electrical system or electronic compo-
nents.
•Do not expose the battery to direct sunlight over a long period of time, as
the intense ultraviolet radiation can damage the battery housing.
Wear eye protection
Battery acid is very corrosive and caustic. Wear protec-
tive gloves and eye protection!
ŽFires, sparks, naked lights and smoking are prohibited!
ŸA highly explosive mixture of gases is released when the
battery is under charge.
Keep children away from acid and batteries!
WARNING (continued)

Index 288
Belt tension devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Biodiesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Bonnet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Brake assist system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Brake fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
Brake pad wear
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Brake pad wear indicator*
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Brake pads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Brake servo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179, 185
Brake system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
brake servo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179, 185
Braking distance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Bulb change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Bulb defect
warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Buzzer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
C
Car care
Exterior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Car care products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Car phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Car washes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194Catalytic converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
CCS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
CD changer
Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Central locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
individual opening of doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Central locking button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Central stowage on instrument panel . . . . . . . 133
Cetane number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Changing a bulb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Changing a wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236, 240
Changing brake pads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Changing bulbs
lights on tailgate/rear door . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
Lights on vehicle body . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Reading light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Registration plate light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
Changing gear
SeeManual gearbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Changing the bulbs
interior light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248
rear lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Changing the lamps
Side indicator lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Chassis number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Checking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Checking battery electrolyte level . . . . . . . . . . 224
Checking engine oil level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Child safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45Child seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Categorisation in groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Group 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Group 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Group 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Groups 0 and 0+ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
in front passenger seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Safety notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
securing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Childproof locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Cigarette lighter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Cleaning alloy wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Cleaning and caring for your vehicle . . . . . . . . 193
Cleaning chrome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Cleaning cloth seat covers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Cleaning dash panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Cleaning engine compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Cleaning fabric trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Cleaning leather . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Cleaning plastic parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Cleaning seat belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Cleaning steel wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Cleaning windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Cleaning wooden trim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Climatronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Air outlet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
faults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
General notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Second cooling system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Index 290
Electronic differential lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Electronic immobiliser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75, 162
Electronic stabilisation program . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Electronic stabilisation programme . . . . . . . . . . 74
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161, 183
Electronic stabilisation programme (ESP)
warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Emergency opening
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Engine
Running in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Engine compartment
Working in the engine compartment . . . . . 209
Engine coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Engine fault
monitor indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Engine hood
SeeBonnet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Engine management
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Engine oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Checking level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Oil properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Topping up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Engine oil dipstick . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214Engine oil pressure
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Engine oil temperature display . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Engine oil temperature gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
ESP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74, 182
warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Exhaust gas indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Exhaust gas purification system
diesel particle filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Exhaust system fault* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Exterior mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119, 196
External aerial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
F
Fastening rings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15, 143
Fastening seat belt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Fault messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Faults in operation of air conditioning . . . . . . 157
First-aid kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Floor mats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Fog lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Foot brake
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Four-wheel drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Replacing tyres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Snow chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Winter tyres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184Front airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Safety notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Front passenger airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Front seats
adjusting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
safety instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Fuel
Diesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Petrol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Fuel level
Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Fuel reserve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Fuel tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
See alsoFuel reserve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Fuel tank cap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Fuse box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
Fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
G
G 12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
Gear selector lever
SeeAutomatic gearbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
SeeAutomatic gearbox with Tiptronic . . . . 171
General overview of the engine compartment 262
Glove compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Glove compartment light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Glow plug system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Index 294
Steering wheel audio controls
audio + telephone version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
audio version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Steering wheel height adjustment . . . . . . . . . . 159
Stowage
Other stowage areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Stowage compartment
Front passenger side . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Sun visor
front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Sunroof blind
Sliding/tilting roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Switches
Exterior mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Hazard warning lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Sliding/tilting roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Switching off the engine
With the ignition key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
T
Tailgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Closing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Convenience opening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Opening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
safety instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Tailgate open display*
warning light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77Tank
Fuel level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Tank capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Tank capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
TCS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
TCS (Traction control system)
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
The danger of not using the seat belt . . . . . . . . 20
Thermos box
cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Tightening torque of wheel bolts . . . . . . . . . . . 261
Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Towing a trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188, 260
Towing bracket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Towing eye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
Towline anchorage
Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Tow-starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251, 253
Traction control system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Trailer turn signals
Indicator lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Trailer weights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Trips, checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Turn signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73, 112Two-way radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Type plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Tyre pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Tyre pressures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260
Tyres and wheels
Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Tyres service life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Tyres tread depth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Tyres with directional tread pattern . . . . . . . . . 225
U
Underbody sealant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Unfastening seat belt
(with one buckle) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Unfastening seat belts
(with two buckles) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Upper right stowage on instrument panel . . . 134
V
Vehicle
Lifting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Vehicle battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Vehicle data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Vehicle identification data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Vehicle identification number . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258
Vehicle onboard tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Vehicle paint
Car care products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Vehicle tool kit jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239