wheel VOLKSWAGEN GOLF PLUS 2012 User Guide

first read and note th e introducto ry information a nd heed on page 67.
Ma ny peopl e believe th at it is possib le to resis t the
forc es of an impact b y holding tight or bracin g themselves. That i s s impl y not true!
Eve n at low collis ion speeds, th e forces acting on th e body are too much for the body to be held in the seat with the arms and hands. a front al col­lis ion, unrestra in ed occup ants w ill slam v iolentl y
into the s teerin g wheel, instrument pane l, w ind­shield or anything e lse in the fig . 47.
Neve r rel y on airb ags alone fo r protection. Even
w he n they deploy, airbags pro vide o nl y additional
pro tectio n . Airbag s are no t supposed to deploy in
all kind s of accidents. Even if your ve hicl e is equippe d w ith airbags . all ve hicl e occupants, in -
Before driving F
ig. 48 U
nbelted passengers in the rear seats ore thrown forward on top of th e belted drive r .
eluding the driver, must wear sa fety belts correctly
in order to minimize th e risk of se vere injury o r
d eath in a c rash, regardless of whether
is als o impo rt ant for occupants in the rear seats
t o wea r th eir safety belts properly since they can be thrown vio lently fon vard through th e ve hicl e in
th e event of an accid ent. Unbelted passen ge rs in the rear seats endang er not onl y them se lves but al so th e drive r and other passengers in the vehicl e

Have repairs and vehicle modification s
rized Volkswagen dealers and authorized swagen Facilities have the required
tool s, dia gnostic equipment, repair tion, and trained personnel.
Never permit salvaged or recycled airbags to be installed in your veh icle.
Never modify any components of the airbag syste m.
During activation of the
The fine dust can irritate the skin and eye muco us membranes and cause breathing lems for people who suffer from asthma or other breathin g conditions. To reduce th e risk of breathing probl em s, those with asthma o r o th er
r es piratory
Be careful no t t o ge t the dust into your eyes or
into any c uts or sc ratches.
Using so lve nts or other improper cleaning
u cts containing so lvents w ill ch ange the ti es of the plastic s and may cause plastic parts to break and fly around when the airbag deploys in a crash, causin g injury.
Never usc so lven ts or cleaners on th e
s teering wheel horn pad or on the instrument pan el b eca use they ca n damage the airbag cover or change the s tiffness or strength of the rial so that the airba g cannot deploy and protect properly. When cleaning the horn pad a n d strument panel, use onl y a soft, dry cloth or a
cloth moistened w ith plain water.
Please first read and note th e introductory informatio n and heed the WARN INGS on
Be sure to read the important inform ation and th e for important detail s about child ren
and Adva nce d Airbags
in you r ve hicl e has
been ce rtifi ed to comply wit h th e requirement s of the Unit ed Federal Moto r Vehicle as well a s Motor Vehicl e as a pplicabl e
at the time your vehicle was manufactured. co rding to req uirement s, th e front Advance d
A ir bag on th e passeng er side h as been tified for for infant s of about 12
months old and you nger and for risk for ch ildren aged 3 to 6 yea rs old {as defined
in the stand ard ).
Even th ough your vehicl e is equipp ed w ith an vance d Air bag mak e ce rtain that all dre n, es pecially 12 years and younge r, a lways ride
o n th e back seat properly restra ined for their a ge
Sitting properly and safely
and size. The airb ag on the front passenge r side m ak es the fron t seat a potentially dangerou s pla ce for a child ride. Th e front seat is no t th e sa fest
p lace for a child in a fo rward -faci ng chil d seat. is
a very dangerous place for an in fant or a child in a
r earward-fac ing sea t.
is in an improp erl y in stall ed for ward-faci ng
child res traint, or
in an y rearward- facing child restraint
will
be se riously injur ed and can be kill ed.
Eve n though your vehicl e is equipped with an Advance d Air bag make certain that aU children, especia lly years and you nger,
a lwa ys rid e o n the back seat properly restrained
for their age and s ize.
Always properly install reanvard-facing child seats or infant carriers and forward -faci ng c hild
s eats on the rear seat-even with an Advanced
81

light does not
come
on ...
the ligh t
vice Facili ty.
The light should
BAG light shou ld come on w he n the ign ition is on and an adult is
the lig ht
co mes on and sta ys on unde r these circ um stances,
mak e sure that :
th e adult on the front passenger seat is
the adult is not we igh t off the seat by holding o n to t he passe nge r assis t handle abov e the front passe nger doo r or supporting their weight on th e armres t o r hold in g onto the ass ist ha ndle on the in strument panel;
t h e safet y belt is be in g properly wo rn and that th ere is no t a lo t o f s la c k in the s afet y be lt webbing;
Access ory seat covers or cu sh ions or other
thi ngs that m ay cause an incorrect reading or pression on the weight-se nsin g mat under the
fir st read and note the introd uc tory inform ation an d heed the on page 80.
Front airbags and how they work
Airbags are only supplem ental restra ints. They are not a substit ute for safety belt s that must be w orn even though th e front seatin g po sitions are equip ped wi th front airb ags. The fron t a ir bags can provid e additional prote ct ion for the chest and head of the drive r and the fr ont seat passe nger when seat s, safety belt s, h ead restraints and, for
th e dri ver, th e s teering wheel, are properly used and have been properly adju sted.
Before driving
the statu s of the Adva nced Air bag has changed whi le the vehicle is moving, the BAG ligh t blinks for about 5 sec­onds to catch the driver's attention . If this pens, a lways stop as soon as it is safe to do so and check the steps described above.
light does not go ofT when an adult who is not very sm all is sitting on the front passen ge r seat after taking the steps described above, make sure the adult is properly seat e d and restrained a t one of the rear seating
position s.
Have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Volkswagen dealer or authorized Volkswag en
sen ge r seat d ete cts an empty seat, th e front airba g on the passenger sid e will be tu rned off, and the light stay on.
sen ge r safety belt itself is buckled and the front passe nge r seat is no t occupied, the
the air bag sys te m deploys in a collis io n , a
ga s ge nerator fills th e a ir bags that break open the padded cove rs on the steering w heel and th e strume n t panel. The front airbags inflate between
th e s teerin g w heel and th e driver and between th e
in strumen t panel a nd th e front passenger.
Fron t air bag s in combination wit h properly wo rn
sa fety be lt s s low down and limit the occupant's forward movement. Toge ther they help to prevent th e driv er

Safety equipment
safet y and the s afe ty of your p assenge rs shouldn 't be l eft to c han ce. Advances in tech­
nolo gy have made a numb er of featur es available help reduce the ris k of injury in a collisio n. The follo wi ng are just a few o f th e sa fe ty features for your Volkswag en :
Soph is ticated safety belts for all seating posi­
tions.
Safety belt pretensio ne rs for the outboard seatin g positi ons on the rea r seat o n ve hicl es equipped with optional side a irbags for the o ut­
board rear seating positi ons?.
belt load limit ers fo r all outb oa rd seating
positions.
b elt h e ig ht adju ste rs for the front
belt warning light.
A dvanced front airba g sys tem for driver and fro nt passe nger.
airbag s.
Driver knee airbag .
Airbag indicator light
BAG light.
Ele ctronic cont rol unit and asso ciat ed senso rs.
Head res traint s w ith heig ht adju stment opt i­mized for rear -end collisio ns.
Adju stabl e stee rin g column.
lo w er univer sa l and top te th er an chor­
age s for child restraint s.
These individual safety wo rk tog eth er as sys te m t o help pro tect yo u and your passenger s in w id e rang e of collisio ns. Th ese features can't
work as a syste m if they are no t a lwa ys correctly
adju ste d and prope rly used!
How the Advanced Airbag System components
work together ...
in ­
fan t of about one yea r o f ag e in one of th e c hild
seats u sed to certif y th e Adva nced Airb ag under Federa l Motor dard h as been regis te re d on th e seat. Th e AI sta ys on
Before driv ing
o n th e passenge r side has been turned off
Neve r rely on airbags alone for protec tion.
Even wh en they depl oy, airbags provide only
supplemental protection.
Airbag s work most effec tive ly when used with properly worn safe ty page 67, Safety
belt
s.
Every person in ve hicle must be prope rl y
se ated on a seal of his or he r own, must prope rl y
fasten the s afety belt belonging to that seat be­
fore th e ve hicle start s to move, and must keep the belt properly fas tened w hil e riding in the ve­
hicle. This applies to the dri ver and all passen-
too close to the steering wheel or instru­
m ent panel will dec rease the effectiveness of th e
airbags and will increase the risk of personal in­
jury in a coUision .
Never sit closer than inche s (25 em ) from the s teering whee l or instrument panel.
If yo u cannot sit upright more th an inch es (25 em) from the steering wheel, investigat e
whether adaptive equipment may be ava ilable
to help you reach the pedal s and increase your seating di stance from the steering wheel.
If you are unres trained , leaning fonvard, sit­
tingsideway s, or out of position in anyway, your ris k of injury is m uch higher.
To reduce the risk of injury w hen an airbag always wear safety belt s properl y.
A n infant in a reanvard-facing child seat in­
s talled in the front passe nge r seat w ill be seri ­
ously injured an d ca n b e killed if the front airbag
inflates-even with an Advanced Airbag
Always make certai n that children age 12 or younger alway s ride in the re ar seat. If childre n
are not properl y re stra in ed, they may be se­
ve rel y injured or killed when th e infl ates.
Never le t children ride unres trained or im ­properly re strain ed in th e ve hicl e.
Adjust the front seats properly.

Always make sure nothing is in the front air­bag deploym ent zone that could be struck by the airbag when it inflates.
Never hold things or on your lap when the vehicle is in use.
Never place accesso ries or other objects
(such as cup holders, tel ephone brackets, note pads, navigation systems, or things that are large, heavy, or bulky) on the doors; never at­tach them to the doors or the windshield; never place th em over or near or attach them to the area marked
fig. 59 or 91, fig.
Never attach objects to the windshield above the passenger front airbag, such as accessory navigation units or music player s.
Never recline th e front passenger seat to transport objects. can also move into the deployment area of the side airbags or the front airbag during breaking or in a sudden maneu­ver. near th e a irbags can fly dangerously through the pass enger compartment and cause injury, particularly when the seat is reclined and the airbags inflate.
Always make sure that there is nothing on the front passe nger seat that will cause the weight­sensing mat in the scat to signal to theAirbag that the scat is occupied by a person when it i s not, or to signal that it is occupied by someone who is heav ie r than the person actually
sitting on th e sca t. The weight of th e object could cause the passenger front airbag to be turned on when it should be off, or could cause the airbag to work in a way that is differ ent from the way it
would have worked without the added weight.
Alwa ys make sure that nothing is on the front passenger seat when the backrest is folded
forward. Even light objec ts could be pushed into the seat cu shi on and cause th e weight-sensing mat in the seat to re gister enough weight to turn the airbag on.
Never usc solvents or cleaners on the steering wheel horn pad or instrument panel, because they can damage the
Before driving
airbag cover or change the stiffne ss or strength of the material so that the airbag cannot deploy and protect properly. When cleaning the hom pad and instrumen t p anel, use only a soft, dry cloth or a cloth moist en ed
with plain water.
A front seat passenger, especially an infant or small child, will be seriously injured and could
eve n be killed if he or she is
Although the Advanced Airbag has been designed to switch off when an infant or child is on the front passenger seat in a child seat that was used during the certification
process for the Advanced Airbag no one can guarantee with absolute certainty that the airbag never deploy under these particular conditions in all conceivable situations for the duration of the vehicle 's use.
For their own safety, all children, especially those 12 years and younger, mus t always sit on the back seat, properly restrained for their age and size.
Facility. A lit indicator light means the airbag may not work properly if
activated in a crash.

Always make sure that the statu s signaled
b y the BAG light is correct
for the way that the front passenger seat is bein g
u sed.
The fine dust c reated when airbags deploy can cause breathing problems for people with asthma or other breathing conditions .
To reduce the risk of breathing probl ems , those wit h asthma or tion s should get fres h air right away by getting
o ut of th e ve hicl e or opening windows or doors.
If yo u are in a c ollision in which airbags de­
ploy, wash your hands and face with mild soap and wate r b efor e eating.
Be careful not to get the dust int o your eye s, or int o any cut s or sc ratch es.
If the residue should ge t into your eyes, them with water.
Airbags that have deployed in a cras h must
b e replac ed.
Use only original equipment airbag s appro­
ved by Volkswagen and installed by a train ed
technician who has the necessary tools and diagnosti c equipment to properl y re plac e any airbag on your veh icle and assure sys te m eff ec­
ti ve ness in a cra sh.
Neve r pe rmit salvage d or recy cled airb ags t o
be install ed in your vehicle .
Advanced Airbag System components
first re a d and note th e introductory information and heed the
on pag e
vehicles equipped with the Adva nced Airbag Syste m , th e front passe nge r seat contains a who le
array of important Advanced Airbag compo nents
page 82. Be­cause the front passe nger seat contains important Advanced Airbag System components. you must
take ca re to prevent it from bein g damaged . Damage to th e sea t may pre vent the Adva nced Airbag Syste m for the front passenger sea t from
doing its job in a cras h.
S ittin g properly ond solely
Alwa ys hold the s teering wheel with hands on outsid e of th e steerin g wheel rim at the 9 o 'clock and 3 o'clock positions to help re­
duce
Neve r hold the steeri ng wheel at the 12 o'clock position or with your hands anywhere
inside
s ioner s are cla ssified as Material -special handlin g ma y apply.
applicable legal requir ements when
scra pping the vehicle or o f it s restraint sys tem, including airbag modules and safe ty belts
wit h pretensioner s. Auth orized Volkswage n
dealers and authorized Volksw agen Serv ice ties are familiar with the require ments, an d we rec­
ommend that you have them p erform this serv ice for
The front Advanced Airbag System also includes:
sensors in the front of th e ve hicl e th at
m eas ure vehicle acce lera tion and dece leration to
p rovide informat io n to th e Advan ced Airb ag
System about the seve rity o f a crash.
An elec troni c co ntrol unit, with int egra ted
cras h sensors for front and sid e im pac ts. The con­
trol unit w heth er or n ot to fire just the front air bag s ba sed on the information received
from the crash sen so rs. Th e control unit also whether the safety belt pre te n si oners
s hould be activate d.
A n Adva nced Air b ag. with gas genera tor, ins id e the steering wheel hub for th e driver.
An Adva nced Airbag. with ga s gene rator, in sid e the ins trum ent pan e l for th e front passe nger.
A we ig ht-sen sing mat unde r the upho ls tery paddin g of th e front passenge r seat cushion that
m eas ures the to tal weight on the sear. The infor­
m atio n regi stered is sent co nti nuo usly to the elec-
92 93

Child restraints and Advanced front airbag system
Please firs t read informatio n and heed the WARNINGS o n page
vehi cle is equipped w ith front complies with United States Federal Motor Vehicle and with Vehicle Safety dard
The Advanced Airbag requirements
for 3 and 6 yea r-old children (a s defined in the
standard) o n the passenger sid e and adults
o n th e side." Low risk" de ployment occurs
in those cras hes place at lower decelera­tions programmed in the e lectronic control unit. The low risk deployment c riteria are in­
t e nded to reduce the risk through int erac­tio n with the airbag can occur in these colli­
sio ns. for example, b y being too close to the steerin g wheel or in strument pan el when the airbag In addition, the system has been certifi ed to comply with the re­quirements of the Safe ty rd. to turn off the
f ront airbag fo r infant s up to 12 months w ho are restrained on th e front passenger seat in one of the c hild restraint s that a re lis ted in the
Airbag children, especially
those 12 years and younger. mus t a lways ride in the backseat properly re strained for their age and size. The airbag o n the passe nge r sid e makes the front scat potentiall y dangerous place for a child to
ride. The front seat is not the safest place for a child in a forward-facing child seat. la rger child in a rear­ward -fac ing seat.
The ,\dvanced Airb ag Syste m in your vehicle de­tects the presence o f a n in fant or child in a child straint on the front passenger seat using th e weight-sen sin g mat in th e scat cushion and the
se nsor in the sa fe ty be lt buckle on the fro nt pas­senger that measures the tension on the safet y
belt.
The weight-sen sin g measures total weight of the c hild and the child seat and
i.e. the size
pro perly ond safely
and shape of the botto m of the chi ld restraint as it
s it s on the seat. The weight of a chi ld restraint and its vary for different k inds of c hild re­
straints and for the diff erent mode ls o f th e same ki nd of child restra int offered by child restraint manufacturers.
The weight ranges for the in div idual types, makes a nd models of child res traint s
the Adva nced Airbag
Syste m compares th e weight measured by the weight-sen sing w ith the information sto re d in the electro ni c cont rol unit.
se nsor in the belt buckle fo r th e front seat
pnssenger measures th e te nsion on th e belt and sends thi s information to the electro ni c control
m odule for the sys tem. The tensio n on the safety belt for the front passenger seat w ill be dif­
ferent for an i s properly using the safety
belt, as
w hether th ere is a child res tra int with
restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regnrdlessofthcchild rest raint that yo u u se, make
s u re th at it bee n certifi ed to meet United States Federa l Mo tor Vehicle Standard Motor Vehicl e if you live in sure that the child re ­
straint yo u arc usin g been cerlifi ed b y its m an­ufacturer for use w ith airb ag. Always be s ure that th e ch ild restra int is properly installed at one of t h e rear seatin g position s.
of th e information on child
safety and Adva nced
that
th e passenger front is turne d off. that the is light.
Many types have been availn ble over th e years, new models are in-troduced r egularly in corporating new and im-

Ignition key positions
Fig. 118
Please first r ead and n o te the introduc tory information and heed th e on
fig. 118
No key in ig nitio n switch : column is lo cke d.
Ig nition switched e lec trical co nsumers T he ve hicl e key b e
r emove d.
Ig nition is switched on . Th e di ese l e n gin e is pre h eated. column lock b e leased.
th e e ng in e. the eng in e start s, relea se th e ve hicl e key. released . th e ve hicle
k ey return s to
If you use the w rong key
If an unauthorize d ve hicl e key been inserted
int o the ig niti on switch , it b e removed as lows:
transmi ssion: the ve hicle key cannot b e rem oved from the ig nit ion in thi s the rel ease button on th e transmissio n
se lec to r l eve r releas e. Th e ve hicl e ke y can be re m oved.
Manual tran smissio n: out the ve hicle key.
I
mproper usc of v e hi cle keys can result in rious perso nal injury.
the key with yo u w hen yo u leave the ve hicle . The engine can be started and hicle sy ste m s su ch a s the power windows can be operated, lea din g to serious personal injury.
Neve r lea ve ch ildren , d isabled pe rsons, or anyone who cannot h elp themselves in th e hicle. The doors can be locked with the remote
control key. This could result in peo ple being trapped in the ve hicle in
be exposed to very
hi gh or very low temperatures. eat build -up in the pas senger compartment of
atures can quickl y re ach leve ls cause unconscio usness and death , to
s mall children.
Never remove the key from the ig niti on
swi tc h w hile th e vehicle is moving or rolling to a stop. The steering wheel will lock and you will
not b e a ble to steer or control th e ve hicle.
Leavi ng the key in the ig niti on fo r a long time w hen th e en g in e is no t running will drain the
v ehicle batt ery.

Selector lever posi- Designation tion
The drive wheels are mecha nica lly locked.
p Se le c t only when the ve hicle is
N Neutral Tran
smissio n i s in Ne utral positi on. No power is tra nsferre d to
th e wheels and no e ng in e brakin g effect is available.
D Driv e (standard All forwa rd gears shift up and d ow n automatically. The tran smi s-
dri vin g pos ition) s
ion shift s as nee ded dep endin g on engin e load , indiv idual dri vin g sty le, and dri ving speed.
A
ll f orwa rd gea rs aut omatically up shift/aterand dow nshift ear-
s Sport Dri ve
leve r lock
Th e
selector leve r lo ck in
the re le ase button on th e selec tor leve r a t th e sam e time .
Th e se lec to r leve r l
ock is no t e ngaged if these­
(R) to Dri ve (D)).
T hi s makes it possibl e to
second and th e
ve hicl e is tra velin g no faste r than approx imate ly
3 mph (5 km /h).
ra re cases. the Dir ect Gea rbox. thi s ha ppens, th e eng ine w ill be disab led to pre­
ve nt the vehicle from m oving unexpec te dly. Th e
gree n ind ica tor light will blink and text mes­
sage will be di sp layed. To e n gage th e selec tor lever lock, do as follows:
6-speed trans missions: Depress and then re le a se the brak e pedal; try to e ngage th e se lector l oc k again.
Starting, shifting, parking
Never accelerate when m ovi ng the selector lever.
Whe n the en gin e is running and a drive posi­tio n is engaged, the ve hicle will start to move as soon as the brake pedal is re leased.
Never shift into Reverse or
Never get out of the driver's seat whil e the engine is running, especially when the tra nsmi s­
s ion is in a drive gear. lfyou m ust leave your ve­
hicl e while the engi ne is running, alwa ys set the
p a rkin g brake and shift the transmi ssio n into (P).
182

Braking, stopping, and parking
Introduction
In this section yo u'll find inform ation on fo l­
lowi ng:
Warning and indicator lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Park in g brake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 1
About t
he brakes . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . 192
Bra king assistance sys tem s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Switching Anti-Slip Regulation (ASR) on ond off . . 196
Brake fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
T he brakin g support syste ms are Brake A ss is t E lec tro nic Differ e n tial Loc k (EDL). Anti-Slip
M ore information:
Trail er page
pag e
Tires and page 276
acce ssories, r epa ir s and modifi catio ns
brakes or worn brake pads can
ca use colli sio n and serious personal inju ry.
light s up in the
in strument cluste r di splay, w heth er a lo n e or to­
ge ther with tex t message, immediat ely conta ct an authorized Volk swage n dea ler or authorized
Volkswag en Se rvi ce Faci lity to have th e brake pad s ch ecke d and , if necessary, re pl aced.
WARNING
improperly can cause se riou s pe rso nal
injury .
Never re m ove key from the ignition switch while vehicl e is m ov ing or ro llin g to a
s top. The steering w heel w ill lock and you not be
Never park the vehicle w here the ho t ex ha ust
syste m or catalyti c convert er could ignit e flam ­
mabl e mater ia ls, su ch as brus h , leaves , dry grass, spilled fue l, e tc .
Always apply th e parki ng brake whe n
p a rki ng your veh icle. Imprope r u sc of th e
p a rking bra ke can se rio usly injur e you and your passe nge rs.
Never use the
e m ergency . The stopping dista n ce is muc h
longer b ec au se onl y the wheels arc braked . use the foot brake to sto p the vehicle .
Never the throttl e from
th e e ng in e
th e automati c transmission is in gear. The ve hicle will start t o move as soon the e ngine speed ev en i f th e brake is on.
Never leave childr en or anyo ne w ho canno t
h elp them se lve s beh in d in the vehicl e. They could re leas e the brak e move the gear selector leve r or shift , wh ic h could cause th e vehicle to start m ov ing. Thi s ca n lea d
to a cras h and seri ous personal injuri es.
Always take the key with you when yo u
leave th e ve hicle . The engine ca n be started and ve hicl e sys te m s s uch as the power wind ows can
b e operate d , le ad ing to seri ous perso nal injury.
Neve r leave childr en , di sabled perso ns, or a nyon e who cannot h elp them se lves in the vehicl e. T he doors can b e lo cke d wit h the re mote contro l ke y, trapping passe nge rs in the
ve hicle in an emerge ncy. For exa mpl e, dep en­ding on th e tim e of year, people trappe d in the
ve hicle can be ex pose d to very high or very temperatures. Heat build -up in the passenger and parked vehicl e result in temperatu res in the ve hicl e th at arc much hi gher than the outsid e tempe mtu­
res, partic ul arl y in summer. T emperatures ca n
qui ckly reac h le v e ls that can cause uncon­
scio usn ess ch ildr en.