warning VOLKSWAGEN GOLF 2012 Workshop Manual

Checking engine coolant level and topping off
Fig. 13 1 Coolant expan sion tank in the engi ne
compartme nt.
Please first read and note the introduc­tory Information and heed the WARN ­on page 233.
Park the vehicle on level ground .
Always let the engine down
the engine hood in Introduction on
page 222.
There is a sy mbol on the cap of the engine coolant expans ion tank 132 .
Checking engine coolant
When the engine is cold , check the engine
coolant level relative to the marking on the side of the expansion tank 13 1.
the coolant level in the tank is below the mini ­
mum mark ("min"), add coolant. When th e engi ne is warm, the engine coolant level may be slig htly
above the upper edge of the marked range.
Adding engine coolant
Always protect face, hands and arms from hot
escaping coolant or steam by covering the cap
with a large , thick rag.
Carefully unscrew the cap
Add only new engine coolant according to
The engine coolant level must be inside the
marks on the side of the reservoir 131. Do not
236 cleaning, maintenance Fig.
132 Coola nt expansion tank cap in the eng ine
compa rtment.
Screw the lid tightly .
Even in an emergency , do not use any other kind of coolant additive if engine coolant meeting
add distilled water only As
soon as possible , have the correct coolant ratio re­
sto red using engine coolant that meet s
WARNING
Hot steam and hot engine coolant can cau se serious burns.
Neve r open the hood you see steam or coolant escaping from the engine compart­ment. Always w ai t until you no longer see or hea r steam or co olant escaping from the en­
gine .
opening the hood. Hot components will burn skin on contact.
Park (P) (automatic) or Neutral (manua l only).
- Take the vehicle key
out of the ignition.
-
veh icles with Keyless Access, make
sure that the remote control vehicle key is out of range of the vehicle and that the ve­hicle cannot be sta rted by depressing the
starte r button 44.
-
Always keep children and others away
from the engine compartment and never
l eave them unsupervised.

California Proposition 65 Warning
nect 2 vehicle batteries to each other when the ignition is switched on or the engine is
tem or electronic components.
violet rays may damage the battery housing.
dam-aged by freezing . Warning light
on
Alterna tor malfun ction .
W he n t he igni tion i s sw itched on, severa l wa rnin g
a n d i ndi cato r li g ht s
come on brie fly for a functio n
check . They go out after a few seconds.
Failure to heed warning
Faci lity . H av e the
e le c tric al sys tem checked. o ff unn ecessa ry electrica l loads . The ve-batt ery
to h ee d warning or text can result in vehicle damage.

Washing the vehicle
tory information and heed the on page 243 .
T he longer insect splatter , bird droppings, tree sap,
r oad dirt , indust rial deposits , tar , soot , road
and othe r aggressive materials stay on your cle, the more damage they do to the paint finish.
H igh temperatures (includi ng strong sunlight)
oughly.
Car wash
Pay close attention to the information provided
by the car wash operator . B efo re goi ng throu gh a
ca r was h, b e s ure to take th e usual precautio ns t o
avoid damag e , such as closi ng the windows ,
The paint finish is toug h enough th at the vehicle can
the wheels and under the door
After the vehi cle ha s been washed , the wet brakes or, in winter, brake discs or pads ed with ice, react slower and need longer stopping distances .
WARNING
Always dry the brakes and clean off any ice coatings with a few careful applications of the brake . Make sure not to endanger other motorists or cyclists or disobey legal require-
ments .
edges under the vehicl e can cut ex-
posed skin.
Always protect your hands and arms from cuts on sharp metal edges when cleaning the under-body , the inside of the wheel housings,
etc.
The water temperature must not be more
than
Ne ver clean headlights with a dry cloth or sponge . Always use a w et cloth o r s ponge . For best result s use soapy water.
When washing or rinsing the vehicle in cold weather , do not
cult to open the vehicle!
To help prevent vehicle damage
in a car wash:
in the car wash to help prevent damage to wheel rims and tires!
Make sure there is enough clearance for the
height and width of the vehic le .
To help prevent paint damage to the engine
hood, place wiper blades against the shield after they have dried. Do not let them
snap back into place .
Lock the rear hatch to prevent unintentional
opening in the car wa sh .

Removing wax residue
Automatic car washes and vehicle care products
can leave a wax residue on glass surfaces.
T hese wax residues can only be removed with
special cleane rs or clean ing clo ths. Wax residue
left on the wind shie ld can cause the windshield
wipe rs to grab and squeak instead
of
cloth.
Windshie ld wiper squeak and grab can be
reduced
by the winds hield washer fluid tank with a
wiper
fr om yo ur auth orized Volkswagen dealer and au­
thorized Volkswagen For the re­
moval of wax residue, Volkswagen recom mends
the cleaners:
For the warmer months, Windscreen Clear 184 A 1 or equivalent . Mixing ra tio (1 part concentra te to
(-18 about 1:2 (1 part conce ntrat e to 2 parts water) , oth­
erwise mixing ra tio 1 :4 in windshie ld washer reser­
voir .
Window cleaning cloths I ch amois
G 522 A 1 or equ iva le nt for windows an d
outside mirrors.
Removing snow
Rem ove snow from windows and outside mir­
rors with an appropria te br ush .
Removing ice
Th e best way to remov e ice is wi
th a deice r sp ray. When using an ice scraper always scrap e in on e
direct ion , never bac k and forth . D irt can scratch
the glass when moving t he sc ra per backward .
WARNING
Dirty or fogged up windows re duce visibility and incre ase the risk of accidents and seve re
injuries .
Don't drive until you have clear visibility th rough all windows.
Never mix recommend ed cleaning agents
with other cleaning agents in the windshield
washer
Never use warm or hot water to remove snow and ice from windows and mirrors. This could cause the gla ss to crackl
The heating elements for the rear defroster are on the inside of the rear window. Do not put stickers over the heating elements on the in­side of the rear window and never clean the in­side of the windows with corrosive or acidic cleaning agents or other chemic als that could damage the heating element s.
Antenna s installed on the insides of win­dows can be damaged by abra sive objects or by corrosive or acidic cleaning agents or other chemicals . Do not place any stickers on the windshield-integrated antenna and never clean
the antenna with corrosive or acidic cleaning
agents or other ch emicals.

on
when it comes to the care and preservat ion of the
fasteners can damage fabric , and trim. Before you get into the fasteners that come into contact with fabrics and trim .
objects and items on and (such as and fabric tr im . To prevent damage ,
do not such items come into direct conta ct with the uphols tery and fabric trim .
Dust and dirt in pores , and seams can have a "scouring " effect on and to
Check to prevent upholstery discoloration , to upholstery.
Disregarding the may of
recommends having any oration re moved by an authorized gen or authorized cili ty . fabric trim and
on page 251.
on heated seats and power seats or seats with airbag components
Airbag components and connector s may be in the driver seat, the front passenger
seat , and in the outer rea r sea ts. Damaging, ing and handling incorrectly , or wett ing or soaki ng
t hese seat surfaces and back rests can d am age the
v ehic le sys te m and preve nt the airba g
sys tem from working
compone nt s a nd conn ectors that or are in powe r sea ts and heated sea ts Thi s ca n in damage to other parts of the sys te m .
For thi s r easo n, read and these clea ning
maintenance
Do not use press ure washers , steam
Do not use detergent pastes or
Do not wet the surface
use cleaning products approved by wagen .
you h ave questions or concerns, consult a
p ro fessiona l clea ner.
Bef ore usi ng any cleanin g agen t, fami liar ize
yo urs elf wit h instruct ions and warnings on the
packag ing.
hol stery, a nd carpeting with a brush attachment.
A soft sponge or a may be used for general
Alcantara ® surfaces with a damp cotton
or o r a lint -fre e
microfiber

Tire and
on
page
Tires may be the
Tires are very important , since
their
patches of rubber are the
and reg­
ing tread separation and
The tires and
parts of the design . The tires
and
approved by
matched to the charac­
teristics
of the for good road
inflated.
maintenance
Avoiding tire damage
you must drive over a curb or oth­
er
drive very
to
the curb with the tire tread of both
front
warning messages from
the Tire
worn or damaged tires im­
267.
to one side, this may indicate that one
of the tires is damaged . The tires
must be checked
wagen or an authorized
267.
and permis­
grease ,
missing

Check tire inflation pressure
and on cold tires. Check all the
tires, including the compact spare,
if
any. colder climates tire pressure
shou ld be checked more often, but
on ly when the tires are co
ld. Always
use
an accurate tire pressure gauge.
After adjusting the tire inflation
pressures , make sure to screw the
valve caps back on; replace missing
valve caps immediately. Read an d
heed information on resetting the Tire
Pr essure Monitoring System
Remember that the vehicle
facture r, n ot the tir e manufacturer,
sure specified for the compact spare
on the
tire pressure labe l or on a
serious
personal injury, and even death.
pressure, and blowouts. Tires
with excessively low pressure
flex (bend) more, which can
cause
the tire to overheat and fail
suddenly without warning.
sure.
at the factory. The caps
must be screwed on tightly. Do not
use metal valve caps or
Underinflation increases fuel con-
s umpti on.
care and maintenance

over 149 mph
up to 186 mph
tires
with a
maximum permis sibl e road
speed above 149 mph
km/h}
w ith the
Using incorrect or unmatched
tires and/or wheels or improper
tire and wheel combinations can
lead
to Joss of control, collision
and serious personal injury.
first read and note the tory information and heed the on page 258.
Win te r t ires improve the
character istics of your tires have
4 especially when winter road tions are expected. Winter tires reduce
stopping distances during winter weather. gen recommends installing winter tires once peratures are +45 (+7
addition , winter tire
maintenance
When using winter tires:
ments.
winter tires on 4
Use winter tires
Use
the same dimensions (tread circumference)
and the same tread design .
speed restrictions according to the
restrictions
Winte r tires are certified up to a top speed
it is to set a
speed warning in the MFD menu in the instrument
24.

Engine life is influenced by how you drive the vehi­
cle for the first miles (1 ,600 km). Even after­
wards , driv ing at moderate engine speeds, espe­
tend to reduce
engine wear and help the engine to last longe r and
go farther . But do not dri ve at an excess ive ly low
engi n e speed , either . A lways downshi ft if the en­
gin e is not running smoothly . For the first
Do not use
Don't le t t he engine speed get above 2/3 the
max imum speed.
Do not tow a trailer .
Parts and accessories
on pag e 283.
Volkswagen recomme nds that you consult an au­
tho
rized Vol kswagen dealer or authoriz ed Volkswa­
gen Service Facility before purchas ing accesso ­
ries, spare parts or other equipment. Always do so
i f you want to
on page 283.
Operating fluids and parts that wear out w ith use (such as timing belts, tires , engine coolants ,
engine oils, spark plugs, and vehic le batteries) are
constantly being improved . For this reason, it is im ­
portant to have operating fluids ch anged and
wear­ing parts rep laced by an au thorized Volkswage n
de ale r or authorized Volk swagen Service Facility.
Authorized Volkswagen dealers and authorized
Volkswagen Service Facilities are a lways up- to ­
date regarding new developmen
ts and ch anges .
284 cleaning , maintenance F
rom
to
New tires and rep lacing tires 258
Brakes 183
Breaking in a new engine incr ease serv ice life and reduce oil co nsump tion. Improper veh icle modifications and r e pairs
affect the performance of the airbag system and cause malfunctions and severe personal injuries.
Improper use of operating and equip­m ent can cause accidents , serious personal injuries , burns and/or poisoning.
WARNINGS on the package before us-ing vehicle care products.

Consumer information
this section find information about:
. . . . . . . 292
Volkswagen service informatio n 293
More information:
Exterior views 6
assis tan ce systems 195
Parts , accessories, repairs and modificat io n s
Warranty and Maintenance
.
legal requirement s.
Stickers and labels
on page 291.
Factory
-installed safety certificates, stickers and
s ign s co ntaining importa nt information regarding
vehicle operation can be found in th e engine partment and on certain vehicle componen ts, such as insid e the fuel flap , on the passenger sun
visor, in the driver door jamb or on the luggage
compartmen t floor .
Do not remove, alter or render unusable or legible any safe ty certificates , stickers and labels .
cates, stickers, or
forming certificates , stickers, or to the same
part of the new compone nts.
requirement s.
tions in the and nance.
Manual and heed
necessary safety standards and req uirements of t h e traffic safety agency of the respective country were met. The month and year of production as as the vehicle ide ntifi catio n number may be
listed as well .
Radiator fan and high voltage warning sticker
A warning sticker about the radiat or fan and the
high
<1
Vehicl e care and maintenance 291