four wheel drive SKODA FABIA 2014 2.G / 5J Owner's Manual

WARNING (Continued)■The lock tongue should only be inserted into the lock which is the correct
one for your seat. Wrong use of the safety belt will reduce its capacity to
protect and the risk of injury increases.■
The slot of the belt tongue must not be blocked otherwise the belt
tongue will not lock in place properly.
■
Many layers of clothing and loose clothing (e. g. a winter coat over a jack-
et) do not allow you to be correctly seated and impairs proper operation of
the seat belts.
■
It is prohibited to use clamps or other objects to adjust seat belts (e. g. for
shortening the belts for smaller persons).
■
The seat belts for the rear seats can only fulfil their function reliably
when the seat backrests are correctly locked into position » page 66.
WARNINGInformation on the care and maintenance of the safety belts■The belt webbing must always be kept clean. Soiled belts may impair
proper operation of the inertia reel » page 134, Seat belts .■
The seat belts must not be removed or changed in any way. Do not at-
tempt to repair the seat belts yourself.
■
Check the condition of all the seat belts on a regular basis. If any damage
to the seat belts, seat belt connections, inertia reel or the lock is detected,
the seat belt concerned must be replaced by a specialist garage.
■
Damaged seat belts which have been subjected to stress in an accident
and were therefore stretched, must be replaced - this is best done by a
specialist garage. The anchorage points of the belts must also be inspec-
ted. The anchorage points for the belts should also be checked.
Note
The national legal requirements must be observed when using seat belts.The physical principle of a frontal collisionFig. 4
Driver without a fastened seat belt/rear seat passenger without a
fastened seat belt
Read and observe
on page 10 first.
As soon as the vehicle is moving, so-called kinetic energy (the energy of mo-
tion) is produced both in terms of the car as well as in terms of the occupants.
The magnitude of this kinetic energy depends essentially on the speed at
which the vehicle is travelling and on the weight of the vehicle including the
occupants. The greater the speed and weight increase, the greater the
amount of energy which has to be absorbed in the event of an accident.
The speed of the vehicle is the most important factor. Doubling the speed of
the vehicle from 25 km/h up to 50 km/hour increases the kinetic energy four
times.
The notion that it is possible to support your body with your hands in a minor
accident is incorrect. Even in a collision at only a low speed, the forces acting
on the body are such that it is no longer possible to support your body.
Even if you only drive at a speed of 30 km/h to 50 km/h, the forces that your body is exposed to in the event of an accident can exceed a ton (1000 kg).
For example, a person's weight of 80 kg “increases” at 50 km/h to 4.8 tons (4800 kg).
In the event of a frontal collision, occupants of the car not wearing a seat belt
are thrown forward and strike parts of the interior of the car, such as the
steering wheel, dash panel, windscreen in ways which cannot be control-
led » Fig. 4 -
 . In certain circumstances you could even be thrown out of the
vehicle, which could cause life threatening or even fatal injuries. 
11Seat belts

Assist systems
Brake assist systems
Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
Stabilisation control (ESC)
114
Antilock Braking System (ABS)
115
Traction Control System (ASR)
115
Electronic Differential Lock (EDL and XDS)
115WARNING■ A lack of fuel can cause irregular engine running or cause the engine to
shut down. The brake assist systems would then be without function –
there is the risk of an accident.■
Adjust the speed and driving style to the current visibility, weather, road
and traffic conditions. The increased safety offered by the brake assist sys-
tems must not tempt you to take greater risks than otherwise – there is
the risk of an accident.
■
Visit a specialist garage immediately in the event of an ABS fault. Adjust
your style of driving according to the damage to the ABS as you will not
know how great the damage is and the limitation it is placing on the brak-
ing efficiency.
CAUTION
■ All four wheels must be fitted with the same tyres approved by the manufac-
turer to ensure the brake assist systems operate correctly.■
Changes to the vehicle (e.g. to the engine, brakes, chassis) can influence the
functionality of the brake assist systems » page 126, Services, modifications
and technical alterations .
■
If a fault occurs in the ABS system, the ESC, TCS and EDL will also fail to
work. An ABS fault is indicated with by the 
warning light » page 38.
Stabilisation control (ESC)
Read and observe
and on page 114 first.
The ESC system helps to maintain control of the vehicle in situations where itis being operated at its dynamic limits, such as a sudden change to the direc-
tion of travel. Depending on the road surface conditions, the risk of skidding is
reduced, thereby improving the vehicle's driving stability .
The ESC system is automatically activated each time the ignition is switched on.
The direction which the driver wishes to take is determined based on the
steering angle and the speed of the vehicle and is constantly compared with
the actual behaviour of the vehicle. If differences exist, such as the car begin-
ning to skid, the ESC system will automatically brake the appropriate wheel.
During an intervention of the system, the warning light  flashes in the instru-
ment cluster.
The following systems are integrated into the electronic stabilisation control
(ESC) :
› Antilock brake system (ABS),
› Traction control (TCS),
› Electronic Differential Lock (EDL and XDS);
› Hydraulic brake assist (HBA);
› Hill hold control (HHC).
The ESC system cannot be deactivated. The 
» Fig. 112 on page 115 button
can only be used to deactivate the TCS. The  warning light comes on in the
instrument cluster when the TCS is deactivated.
In the event of an ESC fault, the ESC warning light illuminates in the instru-
ment cluster 
» page 38 .
Hydraulic brake assist (HBA)
HBA increases the braking effect and helps to shorten the braking distance.
The HBA is activated by very rapid depression of the brake pedal. To achieve
the shortest possible braking distance, the brake pedal must be applied firmly
until the vehicle has come to a complete standstill.
HBA is automatically switched off when the brake pedal is released.
ABS is activated sooner and more effectively with the intervention of HBA. 
114Driving

Automatic load deactivationRead and observe
and on page 146 first.
The vehicle voltage control unit automatically prevents the battery from dis-
charging when the battery is subjected to heavy loads. This may be noticed
from the following.
› The idling speed is raised to allow the generator to deliver more electricity to
the electrical system.
› Where appropriate large convenience consumers, e.g. seat heaters, rear win-
dow heaters, have their power limited or shut off completely if necessary.
CAUTION
■ Despite such intervention by the vehicle electric system management, the
vehicle battery may be drained. For example, when the ignition is switched on
a long time with the engine turned off or the side or parking lights are turned
on during longer parking.■
Consumers which are supplied via a 12 V socket can cause the vehicle battery
to discharge when the ignition is switched off.
Note
Driving comfort is not disrupted by any shutting off of consumers. Often the
driver is not aware of it having taken place.Wheels
Tyres and rims
 Introduction
This chapter contains information on the following subjects:
Tyre service life
151
Explanation of the tire labelling
152
New Wheels
152
Unidirectional tyres
154
Tyre pressure monitor
154
Spare and back-up wheel
155
Full wheel trim
156
Wheel bolts
156
Wheel bolts
156WARNINGNational legal requirements must be observed for the use of tyres.WARNINGInstructions for the use of tyres■During the first 500 km, new tyres do not offer optimum grip and appro-
priate care should therefore be taken when driving – there is the risk of an
accident.■
Only use radial tyres of the same type, size and tread pattern on all four
wheels.
■
For safety reasons, do no replace tyres individually.
■
Never exceed the maximum permissible load bearing capacity for fitted
tyres – risk of accident!
■
Never exceed the maximum permissible speed for fitted tyres – risk of ac-
cident!
■
Incorrect wheel alignment at the front or rear impairs handling – there is
the risk of an accident. 
149Wheels