Seat Leon 2018 Owner's manual

Start and driving
Step
Starting the engine with the start-
er button

Driving

Start and driving
Wet roads or road salt
In cert ain sit
uations (f
or example, on driving
through flooded areas, in severe downpours
or after washing the vehicle) the braking ac-
tion could be delayed if the discs and pads
are damp, or frozen in winter. In this case the
brakes should be “dried” by pressing the
brake pedal several times.
At high speed and with the windscreen wipers
activated, the brake pads will briefly touch
the brake discs. This takes place, although
unnoticeable to the driver, at regular intervals
to improve the response time of the brakes
when they are wet.
The effectiveness of the brakes can also be
temporarily reduced if the vehicle is driven for
some distance without using the brakes when
there is a lot of salt on the road in winter. The
layer of salt that accumulates on the discs
and pads can be removed by gently apply-
ing the brakes a few times.
Corrosion
There may be a tendency for corrosion to
form on the discs and dirt to build up on the
brake pads if the vehicle is used infrequently
or the brakes are not used very often.
If the brakes are not used frequently, or if rust
has formed on the disks, it is advisable to
clean off the pads and disks by braking firmly
a few times at a moderately high speed

Driving
Control lamps 
It lights up red
Brake fluid level too low

Start and driving
pulling up the 

Driving
Releasing the handbrake

Start and driving
Braking and stability sys-
t ems
Contr ol l
amps 
It lights up
Fault in the ESC or disconnection caused by the sys-
tem.
As the ESC operat

es in conjunction with the ABS, the
ESC light will also come on if a fault should occur in
the ABS. 
Flashes
ESC or ASR activated. 
It lights up
ASR manually deactivated.
Or: ESC in Sport mode

Driving
Electronic torque management (XDS)
When t aking a curv
e
, the driveshaft differen-
tial mechanism allows the outer wheel to turn
at a higher speed than the inner wheel. In this
way, the wheel that is turning faster (outer
wheel) receives less drive torque than the in-
ner wheel. This may mean that in certain sit-
uations the torque delivered to the inner
wheel is too high, causing the wheels to spin.
On the other hand, the outer wheel is receiv-
ing a lower drive torque than it could transmit.
This causes an overall loss of lateral grip on
the front axle, resulting in understeer or
“lengthening” of the trajectory.
The XDS system can detect and correct this
effect via the sensors and signals of the ESC.
Via the ESC, the XDS will brake the inside
wheel and counter the excess driving torque
of that wheel. This means that the driver

Start and driving
Switching on/off the ESC and ASR Fig. 257
Centre console: Button for switching
on/off the ESC and ASR The ESC is switched on automatically when
the engine is st
art
ed, and only w
orks when
the engine is running and includes the ABS,
EDS and ASR systems.
The ASR and ESC function should only be
switched off in situations in which traction is
insufficient, among others:

Driving
WARNING
You should switch on the ESC Sport mode
only if the traffic conditions and your driv-
ing abilit y all
ow you to do so safely: risk of
skidding!