brake fluid Seat Altea 2007 User Guide

Checking and refilling levels
222However, 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 ⇒page 72.
WARNING
Before opening the bonnet to check the brake fluid level, read and observe
the warnings ⇒page 208.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 ⇒ in
“Safety instructions on working in the engine compartment” on page 208 in
“Working in the engine compartment”.
Brake fluid absorbs moisture. In the cour se 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 ⇒page 208.
•
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.
WARNING (continued)
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Checking and refilling levels227
Safety First
Operating instructions
Tips and Maintenance
Te c h n i c a l D a t a
Wear indicators
The original tyres on your vehicle have 1.6 mm high “tread wear indicators”
⇒
page 226, fig. 169 running across the tread. Depending on the make,
there will be six to eight of them evenly spaced around the tyre. Markings on
the tyre sidewall (for instance the letters “TWI” or other symbols) indicate the
positions of the tread wear indicators. The minimum tread depth required by
law is 1.6 mm (measured in the tread grooves next to the tread wear indica-
tors). Worn tyres must be replaced. Different figures may apply in export
countries ⇒.
Tyre pressure
Incorrect tyre pressure causes premature wear and could cause tyre blow-out.
For this reason, the tyre pressure should be checked at least once per month
⇒ page 226.
Driving style
Fast cornering, heavy acceleration and hard braking all increase tyre wear.
Changing wheels around
If the front tyres are worn considerably more than the rear ones it is advisable
to change them around as shown ⇒page 226, fig. 170 . All the tyres will then
last for about the same time.
Wheel balance
The wheels on new vehicles are balanced. However, various factors encoun-
tered in normal driving can cause them to become unbalanced, which results
in steering vibration.
Unbalanced wheels should be rebalanced, as they otherwise cause excessive
wear on steering, suspension and tyres. A wheel must also be rebalanced
when a new tyre is fitted.
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment causes excessive tyre wear, impairing the safety of
the vehicle. If tyres show excessive wear, you should have the wheel align-
ment checked by an Authorised Service Centre.
WARNING
There is a serious danger of accidents if a tyre bursts during driving!•
The tyres must be replaced at the latest when the tread is worn down to
the tread wear indicators. Failure to do so could result in an accident. Worn
tyres do not grip well at high speeds on wet roads. There is also a greater
risk of “aquaplaning”.
•
At continuously high speeds, a tyre with insufficient pressure flexes
more. This causes it to overheat. This can cause tread separation and tyre
blow-out. Risk of accident. Always observe the recommended tyre pres-
sures.
•
If tyres show excessive wear, you should have the running gear checked
by an Authorised Service Centre.
•
Keep chemicals such as oil, fuel and brake fluid away from tyres.
•
Damaged wheels and tyres must be replaced immediately!For the sake of the environment
Under-inflated tyres will increase fuel consumption.Puncture-proof tyres
Puncture-proof tyres will usually allow the vehicle to continue
even when one of the tyres has a puncture.Vehicles that are factory-fitted with puncture-proof tyres
19)
indicate
on the instrument panel when there is a loss of tyre pressure.
19)Depending upon version and country.
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Technical Data
272Te c h n i c a l D a t aChecking fluid levelsFrom time to time, the levels of the different fluids in the
vehicle must be checked. Never fi ll with incorrect fluids, to do
so may cause serious damage to the engine.
Radiator expansion tank
Windscreen washer fluid reservoir
Engine oil filler cap
Engine oil dipstick
Brake fluid reservoir
Vehicle battery (underneath the cover)
The checking and replenishment of the service fluids are carried out on the
components mentioned above. These operations are described in the
⇒ page 208. Overview
Further explanations, instructions and restrictions on the technical data are
contained as of
⇒page 267.
Fig. 208 Diagram for the
location of the various
elements
A1A2A3A4A5A6
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Index291
Index
AABS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Accessories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Acoustic signal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Acoustic warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Adjusting the seat belt height . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Air conditioner* 2C-Climatronic* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Air conditioning system General notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Air conditioning* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Air recirculation mode 2C-Climatronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Manual air conditioner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Airbag covers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Airbag system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Curtain airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Front airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Side airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Airbags Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Disposal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Safety notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Alarm system Switching off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Alterations to the vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Alternator
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Ambient temperature display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Anti-freeze . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Anti-lock brake system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180 Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Anti-theft alarm system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Switching off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Anti-theft wheel bolts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Apple iPod connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Aquaplaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Ashtray* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Automatic anti-dazzle interior mirror* Activating the anti-dazzle function . . . . . . 124
Deactivating anti-dazzle function . . . . . . . . 124
Automatic car washes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Automatic gearbox / DS G automatic gearbox . 166
Automatic lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Automatic mode 2C-Climatronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Automatic wiper/wash function for the rear window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Auxiliary audio connection: AUX-IN . . . . . . . . . 143
BBall coupling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189 BAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Battery
Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Winter conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223
Belt tension device Disposal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Belt tension devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Biodiesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207
Bonnet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Brake assist system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Brake fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221 Changing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Brake pad wear indicator* Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Brake pads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Brake servo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179, 183
Brake system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221 Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Braking distance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Bulb changes general notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Bulb defect warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Buzzer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116, 161
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