wheel size Seat Alhambra 2006 Owner's Manual

Airbag system 32
Airbag system
Brief introduction
Why wear a seat belt and assume the correct sitting
position?
For the inflating airbags to achieve the best protection, the
seat belt must always be worn properly and the correct sitting
position must be assumed.
For your own safety and the safety of the passengers, please ensure
the following before you drive:
– Always wear the seat belt properly Ÿpage 17.
– Adjust the driver seat and the steering wheel correctly Ÿpage 9.
– Adjust the front passenger seat correctly Ÿpage 10.
– Adjust the head restraint seat correctly Ÿpage 12.
– Use the correct child restraint system to protect children in your
vehicle Ÿpage 45.
The airbag deploys in fractions of a second and with a high velocity. If you
have assumed an incorrect seating position at that moment, you could
sustain critical injuries. Therefore, it is essential that all occupants maintain
a correct sitting position while travelling.
Braking heavily the moment before an accident may cause an occupant not
wearing a seat belt to be thrown forward into the area of the deploying airbag. In this case, the inflating airbag may inflict critical or fatal injuries upon the
occupant. This applies particularly to children.
Always maintain the greatest possible distance between yourself and the
front airbag. This way, the front airbags can completely deploy when trig-
gered, providing their maximum protection.
The most important factors for triggering the airbag are the type of accident,
the angle of impact and the vehicle speed.
Whether the airbags are triggered depends primarily on the vehicle deceler-
ation rate resulting from the collision and detected by the control unit. If the
vehicle deceleration occurring during the collision and measured by the
control unit remains below the specified reference values, the front, side
and/or curtain airbag will not be triggered. Take into account that the visible
damage in a vehicle following an accident, for whatever reason, are not an
indication as to why the airbags were triggered.
WARNING
•Wearing the seat belt incorrectly or assuming an incorrect sitting posi-
tion can lead to critical or fatal injuries.
•All occupants, including children, who are not properly belted can
sustain critical or fatal injuries if the airbag is triggered. You should always
transport all children up to 12 years of age on the rear seat. Never transport
children in the vehicle if they are not restrained or the restraint system is
not appropriate for their age, size or weight.
•If you are not wearing a seat belt or if you lean forward or to the side or
assume an incorrect sitting position, the risk of injury is increased
substantially. This increased risk of injury will be further increased if you
are struck by an inflating airbag.
•To reduce the risk of injury from an inflating airbag, always wear the
seat belt properly Ÿpage 17.

Seats and stowage121
Safety FirstOperating instructionsTips and MaintenanceTe c h n i c a l D a t a
Seats and stowage
The importance of correct seat adjustment
Proper seat adjustment optimises the level of protection
offered by seat belts and airbags.
The driver seat, front passenger seat, and seats in the passenger compart-
ment, can be adjusted in many ways to suit the physical requirements of the
vehicle occupants. The correct seat position is very important for:
•fast and easy operation of all controls on the instrument panel,
•relaxed posture that does not cause drowsiness,
•safe driving,
•optimum protection from the seat belts and airbag system Ÿpage 7.
Vehicle seats
Your vehicle has a total of five or seven
24) seats.
•First row of seats: two seats
•Second row of seats: three seats
•Third row of seats24): two seats
Each seat is equipped with a three-point seat belt.
WARNING
If the driver and passengers assume improper sitting positions, they may
sustain critical injuries.
•Never transport more people than there are seats available in the
vehicle.
•Every occupant in the vehicle must properly fasten and wear the seat
belt belonging to his or her seat. Children must be protected with an appro-
priate child restraint system. Section “Child Safety”
•The seats and all head restraints must always be adjusted to body size
and the seat belt must always be properly adjusted to provide you and your
passengers with optimum protection.
•Always keep your feet in the foot well when the vehicle is moving; never
rest them on the dash panel, out of the window or on the seat. This also
applies to passengers. An incorrect sitting position exposes you to an
increased risk of injury in the event of a braking manoeuvre or an accident.
If the airbag is triggered, you could sustain fatal injuries due to an improper
sitting position.
•It is important for the driver and front passenger to maintain a distance
of at least 25 cm from the steering wheel or dash panel. Failure to respect
the minimum distance means that the airbag will not protect you. Risk of
fatal injury. The distance between the driver and the steering wheel or
between the front passenger and the dash panel should always be as great
as possible.
•Adjust the driver or front passenger seat only when the vehicle is
stationary. Otherwise your seat could move unexpectedly while the vehicle
is moving. This could increase the risk of an accident and therefore injury.
In addition, while adjusting your seat, you will assume an incorrect sitting
position. Risk of fatal accidents.
•Special guidelines apply to installing a child seat on the front
passenger seat. When installing a child seat, observe the warning note in
“Child safety”.
•The seats in the third row of seats may, for safety reasons, only be used
if the luggage compartment cover has been removed.
24)Optional equipment
WARNING (continued)

Seats and stowage 124
Front seats
Adjusting front seats
The control elements Ÿfig. 87 are mirrored for the front right-hand
seat.
Adjusting the seat forwards and backwards
– Pull up the lever and move the seat forwards or backwards
Ÿ.
– Then release the grip and move the seat further until the
catch engages.
Adjusting the backrest angle
– Take your weight off the backrest and turn the hand wheel.Adjusting the lumbar support
25)
– Take your weight off the backrest and turn the hand wheel.
Turning the seat
25)
– Adjust the seat surface to its lowest position and push the seat
back as far as it will go.
–On the driver's seat, adjust the backrest fully forward so that it
will not hit the steering wheel when turning the seat round.
– Lift the lever and turn the seat round Ÿ.
Adjusting the seat height
– Pull the lever up or push down (several times if necessary) from
its home position. This adjusts the seat height in stages Ÿ
Adjusting the armrest
25)
– Turn the thumb wheel underneath the arm rest to adjust it to the
size of the occupant.
The curvature of the cushioned area is determined by the settings made in
the lumbar region. This supports the natural curvature of the spine very effec-
tively.
WARNING
•Never adjust the driver or front passenger seat while the vehicle is in
motion. While adjusting your seat, you will assume an incorrect sitting
position. Risk of injury. Adjust the driver or front passenger seat only when
the vehicle is stationary.
Fig. 87 Front left seat
controls
A1
A1
A2
25)Optional equipment
A3
A4
A4
A5
A6

Checking and refilling levels 228
easier to choose the correct tyres. Radial tyres have the tyre designations
marked on the sidewall, for example:
195/65 R15 91T
This contains the following information:
195 Tyre width in mm
65 Height/width ratio in %
R Tyre construction: Radial
15 Rim diameter in inches
91 Load rating code
T Speed rating
The tyres could also have the following information:
•A direction of rotation symbol
•“Reinforced” denotes heavy-duty tyres.
The manufacturing date is also indicated on the tyre sidewall (possibly only
on the inner side of the wheel).
“DOT ... 1105 ...” means, for example, that the tyre was produced in the 11th
week of 2005.
We recommend that work on tyres and wheels is carried out by an Authorised
Service Centre. They are familiar with the procedure and have the necessary
special tools and spare parts as well as the proper facilities for disposing of
the old tyres.
Any Authorised Service Centre has full information on the technical require-
ments when installing or changing tyres, wheels or wheel trims.
WARNING
•We recommend that you use only wheels and tyres which have been
approved by SEAT for your model. Failure to do so could impair vehicle
handling. Risk of accident.
•Avoid running the vehicle on tyres that are more than six years old. If
you have no alternative, you should drive slowly and with extra care at all
times.
•Never use old tyres or those with an unknown “history of use”.
•If wheel trims are retrofitted, you must ensure that the flow of air to the
brakes is not restricted. This could cause them to overheat.
•All four wheels must be fitted with radial tyres of the same type, size
(rolling circumference) and the same tread pattern.
For the sake of the environment
Old tyres must be disposed of according to the laws in the country concerned.
Note
•For technical reasons, it is not generally possible to use the wheels from
other vehicles. This can also apply to wheels of the same model. The use of
wheels or tyres which have not been approved by SEAT for use with your
model may invalidate the vehicle's type approval for use on public roads.
•If the spare tyre is not the same as the tyres that are mounted on the
vehicle - for example with winter tyres - you should only use the spare tyre for
a short period of time and drive with extra care. Refit the normal road wheel
as soon as possible.
Wheel bolts
Wheel bolts must be tightened to the correct torque.
The design of wheel bolts is matched to the rims. If different wheel rims are
fitted, the correct wheel bolts with the right length and correctly shaped bolt
WARNING (continued)

Checking and refilling levels229
Safety FirstOperating instructionsTips and MaintenanceTe c h n i c a l D a t a heads must be used. This ensures that wheels are fitted securely and that the
brake system functions correctly.
In certain circumstances, you may not use wheel bolts from a different car -
even if it is the same model Ÿpage 202.
WARNING
If the wheel bolts are not tightened correctly, the wheel could become
loose while driving. Risk of accident.
•The wheel bolts must be clean and turn easily. Never apply grease or oil
to them.
•Use only wheel bolts which belong to the wheel.
•If the prescribed torque of the wheel bolts is too low, they could loosen
whilst the vehicle is in motion. Risk of accident! If the tightening torque is
too high, the wheel bolts and threads could be damaged.
Caution
The prescribed torque for wheel bolts for steel and alloy wheels is 120 Nm.
Winter tyres
Winter tyres will improve the vehicles handling on snow and
ice.
In winter conditions winter tyres will considerably improve the vehicles
handling. The design of summer tyres (width, rubber compound, tread
pattern) gives less grip on ice and snow.
Winter tyres must be inflated to a pressure 0.2 bar higher than the pressures
specified for summer tyres (see sticker on tank flap).
Winter tyres must be fitted on all four wheels.Information on permitted winter tyre sizes can be found in the vehicle's regis-
tration documents. Use only radial winter tyres. All tyre sizes listed in the
vehicle documentation also apply to winter tyres.
Winter tyres lose their effectiveness when the tread is worn down to a depth
of 4 mm.
The speed rating code Ÿpage 227, “New tyres and wheels” determines the
following speed limits Ÿ:
Q max. 99.42 mi/h
S max. 111.85 mi/h
T max. 118.06 mi/h
H max. 210 km/h
In some countries, vehicles that can exceed the speed rating of the fitted tyre
must have an appropriate sticker in the driver's field of view. These stickers
are available from your Authorised Service Centre. The legal requirements of
each country must be followed.
Do not have winter tyres fitted for unnecessarily long periods. Vehicles with
summer tyres handle better when the roads are free of snow and ice.
If you have a flat tyre, please refer to the notes on the spare wheel
Ÿpage 227, “New tyres and wheels”.
WARNING
The maximum speed for the winter tyres must not be exceeded. Otherwise,
this could lead to tyre damage and thus, an accident risk.
For the sake of the environment
Fit your summer tyres in good time. They are quieter, do not wear so quickly
and reduce fuel consumption.

Checking and refilling levels 230
Snow chains
Snow chains may be fitted only to the front wheels, and only to certain tyre
sizes Ÿpage 260.
Snow chains must have fine-pitch links which do not protrude more that 0.59
in, including tension device.
Remove wheel hub covers and trim rings before fitting snow chains. For safety
reasons cover caps, available in any Authorised Service Centre, must then be
fitted over the wheel bolts.
WARNING
Observe the fitting instructions provided by the snow chain manufacturer.
Caution
You must remove the snow chains to drive on roads which are free of snow.
Otherwise they will impair handling, damage the tyres and wear out very
quickly.
Note
In some countries, the speed limit for using snow chains is 50 km/h. The legal
requirements of the country should be followed.

If and when241
Safety FirstOperating instructionsTips and MaintenanceTe c h n i c a l D a t a
WARNING
•If the prescribed torque of the wheel bolts is too low, they could loosen
whilst the vehicle is in motion. Risk of accident! If the tightening torque is
too high, the wheel bolts and threads could be damaged.
Caution
The stipulated torque for the wheel bolts on steel wheels and alloy wheels is
170 Nm with a tolerance of ±10 Nm. You should visit a specialised workshop
as soon as possible to check the torque with a torque wrench.
Note
•The wheel bolts should be clean and turn easily. Do not grease or oil them.
•The hexagonal socket in the screwdriver handle should be used only for
turning wheel bolts which have been slackened off. Do not use it to loosen or
tighten the wheel bolts.
•If you notice that the wheel bolts are corroded and difficult to turn when
changing a wheel, they must be replaced before you have the tightening
torque checked.
•If the spare tyre is not the same as the tyres that are mounted on the car -
for example with winter tyres - you should only use the spare tyre for a short
period of time and drive with extra care. Refit the normal road wheel as soon
as possible.
•Have the flat tyre replaced as quickly as possible.
Fuses
Changing a fuse
– Use the fuse tables, to find out where, and in which fuse box, the
damaged fuse is located Ÿpage 242.
– Switch off the ignition and the component concerned.
– Remove the fuse box cover Ÿfig. 163
– Use the plastic pliers in the fuse box to remove the fuse.
– If the fuse has blown (the metal strip will have melted), replace it
with a new fuse of the same amp rating (same colour and same
imprint) and size.
The individual electrical circuits are protected by fuses. It is advisable to carry
several spare fuses at all times.
Fig. 163 Left side of dash
panel: fuse box

General notes on the technical data261
Safety FirstOperating instructionsTips and MaintenanceTe c h n i c a l D a t a Snow chains
Snow chains may be fitted only to the front wheels.
Consult the chapter “wheels” of this manual.
Wheel bolts
After the wheels have been changed, the tightening torque of the wheel bolts
should be checked as soon as possible with a torque wrench Ÿ. The tight-
ening torque for steel and alloy wheels is 120 Nm.
WARNING
•Check the tyre pressure at least once per month. Correct tyre pressure
is very important. If the tyre pressure is too high or too low, there is an
increased danger of accidents, particularly at high speeds.
•If the torque of the wheel bolts is too low, they could loosen whilst the
vehicle is in motion. Risk of accident! If the tightening torque is too high,
the wheel bolts and threads could be damaged.
Note
We recommend that you ask your Authorised Service Centre for information
about appropriate wheel, tyre and snow chain size.