light not VOLKSWAGEN JETTA 2007 Repair Manual

Booklet 3.1 Controls and Equipment
has bee n se lec te d in ad dition to po siti on D 83 .
If po sit io n N h as been selec te d and you wi sh to
se le ct D , yo u mu st pre ss the foot brake if th e ve­
hi cle is stat io nary, or travellin g at under 5 km/h
( approx. 3 mph )
S - standard dri ving posit ion {sport program)
If y ou s ele ct t he sport pro gra m yo u will be
dri ving in a sport y mode . A ll forward gear s
shift and down shift automat ically at high er en­
g in e s pee ds dep ending on en gin e load , you r in ­
di vid ual d rivin g sty le and th e ve hicle sp ee d.
W hile dr iv ing downh ill in S, the engin e docs not
the veh icle. Th e displa y al so sh ow s wh ic h
ge ar ha s be en se lec te d in addit io n t o po siti on S .
WARNING
Neve r switch off the engine before the ve hicle
ha s come lo a complete stop. You can lose co n­
trol of the vehicl e, crash and be ser iously in ­
jured.
• The airb ags a nd safe ty bell pretensioners
w ill n ot work when the igniti on i s swi tched off.
• The br ake boo ster do es no t work when the
eng ine i s turn ed off. A lot mor e brak e pedal
pressure will be necessary to stop th e vehicle.
• The power steer ing system does not work
w hen the engine is turn ed off and you will
n eed more force to steer th e ve hicl e.
Applies to vehicles: with on a utoma tic trans missio n
Kick-down function
WARNI NG (continued)
• When the key is removed, th e steer ing
w hee l co lumn will lo ck up and you will not be
able to stee r th e ve hicle.
• Never coast down a slop e w ith th e trans­
mi ssio n in Ne utral.
Tips
• If th e selec to r lev er i s un inte nti onal ly mo ved
int o N wh ile dri ving , take your fo ot off t he acc el­
era to r p eda l a n d wa it until th e engi ne spee d has
dropp ed to idl e sp ee d before sele c tin g a dri vin g
po sition .
• If th ere is
fa ult in th e sys te m and th e auto­
mati c tra nsmi ssion I dir ect shift gearbox is run ­
n in g in an emergen cy program if all the displays
of the s elector leve r position s for the au tomat ic
tr ansmi ss ion
I di rec t s hi ft g ea rb ox have light
ba ckg ro un d. The a utoma tic tran smi ssio n I di­
r ec t shift gearbo x shou ld be c hec ked b y an au ­
thori zed Vo lkswage n dea ler as soon as
po ssibl e._.
Th e kick -down permits maximum a ccele ration the se lector lev er
is
D, So r
down, th e tran smi ssion p ermi ts a c­
c e le ratio n. The tran smi ssio n aut om atica lly
down shift s, de pending on the road spe ed as we ll
a s th e eng ine sp ee d.
Th e tra nsmi ssion
not up sh ift until the en­
g in e reac hes the engin e s pee d for th e
g ear sele ct ed .
WARNING
Accelerating on slippe ry road s can cause lo ss
of ve hicle control and serious per sonal injury.
• Be very careful when u sin g th e kick -do wn
especi all y o n sli ppery sur faces. Rapid
accelera tion may ca use w hee l spin and sk id ­
d in g.
• Use the kick-down fea tur e o nly w hen
and weather conditions permit
Driving 103

Booklet 3.1 Controls and Equipment
Alphabetical index
A
ABS Wa rnin g light 27
See also Ant i-lock brake syste m
A co ustic wa rning 93
Add itional storage co mpartment 73
Adj ustin g the compass variance zone 19
Ai r co ndit io nin g
Co ndensation 89
Impo rtant notes
88
Malfunct io ns 88
Unp leasa nt od or 89
A ir conditioni ng sys tem 81
C lim atro nic
84
Air r ecircul ation mode
2C -Cl imatroni c 83, 88
Alarm syste m 36
Sw itch ing off 36
A lt ern ator
See Genera to r
A nti -lo ck brake system
ligh t 27
An ti-Slip Re gula tion 92
A nti -th eft alar m sys tem 36
Sw itchin g off 36
Arm res t
F ro nt ce nte r arm res t 66
S tora ge compartmen t 70
AS R 92
A ut omat ic mod e
C lim atroni c 85
A ut om atic sw itch-off of elec tri cal
co mp onen ts 93
A utom atic tra nsm iss io n
Dir ect shift gearbox 98
Sa fe ty int erlo ck for ign ition key 94
Se lec tor leve r loc k 99
Tiptroni c 98
A utomati c tra nsm iss ion with Tiptronic LO I
A ve rage fu el con sumpti on 9
Average sp ee d 9
B
Ba ckground lightin g 51 Brake
fluid
Wa rnin g ligh t 11
Brak e pad
W arn ing m essage II
Brak e pad wea r indi ca to r
Warn ing ligh t 26
Bra ke sys te m
Wa rnin g lig ht 28
Bulb defe cti ve
Warn ing lig ht 24
Bumpe r cov er
Ca ution when pa rki ng nea r a parkin g ba r­
ri er or cu rb LO S
Bu zze r 50 , 93
C
Ca librat ing th e co mpass 18
Ce ntral loc king
I ndi vid ual unl ocking 34
Ce ntral locki ng butt on 34
Ce ntr al locki ng sys tem 34
C han ging unit s 16
C hild safe ty lo cks 35
C lea nin g
E lec troni c park ing a ssis ta nc e se nsors 106
C lim ati c 81
Ma lfun cti ons 88
C lim atroni c
I mpor tant not es 88
Ma lfu ncti ons 8 8
C loc k 5
C lo sin g
R ea r li d 38
C lot hes hook 7 1
Co rning home fu n ctio n 47
Co mp ass 18
Adjusting 19
Ca librat ing 18
Compa ss fun ctio n 12
Co ndensa tion 89
Contro ls
P owe r w ind ows 39
Conven ience closing 41, 43
Co nve nien ce men u 17
Alphabetical index 109

About this booklet
This booklet contains important information,
tip s, s uggest ions and WARN INGS on usin g yo ur
veh icle. The other booklets in the Owner's Liter­
ature contain further information tha t you
sho uld be aware of for yo ur own safety and for
the sa fety of yo ur pa ssenge rs.
Make sure that you always keep the comp lete
Owner's Literature in the vehi cle. Th is is es pe­
cia lly import ant whe n you lend or sell th e ve­
hicl e.
Thi s manual describes the vehicle equipm ent at
th e time of publicatio n. Some of the equipmen t
d escribed w ill not be availab le until a late r date,
or is only available for certain markets.
Illustrations may slightly vary fro m you r veh icle.
Fo r tl1is reaso n yo u sh ou ld regard illus tratio ns as
a general g uide.
A t th e beginning of this booklet, you
find a
table of contents sho wing all the item s de­
scr ibed in this manua l in the order they appear .
An alphabetica l ind ex is a t the end of the
booklet.
Dire ction s and positions (for example right, left,
front, rear ) are a lways re lat ive to the direction o f
travel of the vehicle unless sta ted otherwise.
Some sections of this book let do not app ly to a ll
ve hicl es. If this is the case, a text at the beginning
section indicates w hic h veh icles it appli es
to , for examp le "App lies to veh icles wit h Diese l
engi ne" .
The section i s con tinued on t he nex t page.
In dicates the end of a section.
® Registered trademarks are marked
or®·
However, the absence of this sym bol does
not const itute a wa iver of th e rights con­
ce rnin g any te rm.
Cross-reference to a "WA RN ING" within
o r outside of a sect ion.
WARNING
Texts symbo l co ntain imp ortant in ­
formation on safety and how to reduce risk
of personal injury or d eath.
Note
T exts
sym bol dr aw your attention to potential sources of damage to your vehicle .
For th e sake of environment
Texts w ith this symbo l contain infor mation
a bo ut the environment and how you can he lp
to protect it.
Tips
Texts with thi s symbol contai n spec ia l tips and
othe r information abou t gett ing the most out of
your veh icle and its features.

Table of contents
Smart technology ........... ... .. .. .
Brakes .............. .. .. ..... .. .. .• .....
Po we r stee ring ....... .. ..... ... .. ...... .
Notice about data recorded b y vehicle
contro l modu les ....... ........ .... ..... .
Driving and protecting the
environment ..... ... .... ..... ...... ..
Break-in Pe riod ... ... ........ ......... . ..
Catalytic converter ....... .. .. .. ....... ..
T ra ile r t owi ng . . . . . . . . ... ............ .. .
D riv ing economically o nd respecti ng the
environmen t ... .... ..... ............. ... .
Cleaning and protection ........ . .
General notes .... .... ... ....... .. ...... .
Car e of veh icle exte rior ....... ..• ...... ..
C ore of the vehicle interior ... ..... ..•. ..
Accessories, new parts, repairs
and modifications .......... ...... ..
Accesso ries and pa rts .......... .... .... .
R epa irs and technica l modifications ..... .
Cellu lar phones a nd CB radi os ........ . .
2
2
6
6
7
7
10
10
14
16
16
17
23
27
27
28
29
Booklet 3 .2 Tip s and Advice
Checking and Filling 30
Fill ing the tank . . . . . . . . . .. .. . . .. . . .. . • . . . . 30
Fu el supp ly . .. . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Working in the eng ine compa rtment . . . . . 34
Engine oil . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .. .. . . . .. .. . . .. . . 37
Coo lant ....... .... .... ...... ... ......... 43
Wos he r fluid and wind shie ld wiper blade s 45
Brok e fluid . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 47
Vehicle battery . . . . . . . . . .. . .. .. .. . .. . . .. . 49
T ir es and wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
What do I do now? . .. .. . . .. . . . . .. . 67
Vehicle tools and spore whee l . . . . . . • . . . . . 67
Changing a whe el . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. • . . . . . 68
Em erg ency closing or opening . . . • . . . . . . . 7 5
F use s . . . . . . . .. .. . .. .. . . . .. . . . . . . .. . . .. . . . 77
Cha nging a light bulb . .. .. . . . .. .. . • .. . . . 81
Jump start ing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . 84
To wing .... ... . . .. . .. .... ....... ... . . .•. . 86
Lifting th e ve hicle .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . 89
C onsumer Info rmat ion . . . . . • . . . . . . 90
Alphabetical index . . . . . . . . . 92
Table of contents

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Braking power and braking distance
Braking power and braking distance are influenced by driving situations and
road
Worn brake pads will not provide good braking.
The amount of wear and tear on the brake pads
depends to a great extent on the cond itions
und er which the vehicle is opera ted and the way
the vehicle is dr iven. If you do a lot of city
driv ing, drive short distances or have a sporty
driving style, we reco mm end th at you have the
thickness of your brake pad s checked by an au­
thor ized Volkswagen dea ler more frequently
than r ecommend ed in the service schedule.
I f you dr ive witJ1 wet brakes , for example after a
dri ving through water,
heavy rainfall or
after washing the vehicle, brakin g power will be
reduced and sto pping distances w ill be longer
because the brake d iscs will be wet or in winter
ma ybe even frozen
the brakes must be dried
with severa l ca reful brake applications.
Brake fluid absorbs water and must be c hanged
every two years. Heavy use of the brakes can
cause vapor lock if the brake fl uid is too old.
Va por lock reduces braking power, increases
stopp ing distances and can even cause total
brake failure.
WARNING
• New tires and new brake pads do not pro­
v id e maximum grip, control or braking abilit y.
• To reduce the risk of losing control, a colli­
s ion and se rious persona l injuries, drive with
special ca re for the first
350 mil es (560 km).
• New brake pads do not have the best stop ­
ping power for the first
150 mil es (240 km) and
must be broken in. You can com pensate for
the slightly reduced braking ability by drivin g
w ith care and applying more pressure on the
brak e pedal.
• Never fo llow other vehicle s too close ly or
put yourse lf into other situ ations that might
r equ ire s udden , hard brakin g especially when
th e brake pads have not been broken in.
WARNING
Wet brake s or brak es coa ted ice or road
sa lt react slower and need longer stopping dis­
tanc es.
• Carefully apply brakes for a lest.
• Alwa ys dry brake s and clean olT ice coa t­
ings and salt coa tings with a few cautiou s
brake app lica tions.
• Always read and hee d all
in "Break ing in tir es and brake pads" on
page 7.
WARNING
Overheated brakes will reduce the vehicle's
s topping power and increase stoppin g di s­
tances.
• Always avoid over hea tin g the brakes!
• When driving downhill, the brakes have to
work hard and hea t up quickly .
• Before driving clown a long, steep hill, al­
ways red uce spee d and downshift to a lower
gea r. This will let th e ve hicle use engine
braking and reduce the load on the brakes.
• Always c han ge the brake fluid at least
every two years. Hard braking with old brake
fluid may cause a va por lock. Vapor lock re­
duces brakin g power, increases s topping dis­
tan ces and can even ca use to tal brake failure.
• A damaged front spoiler or new non stan­
dard spoile r ca n reduce the airflo w to the
brake s and cause them to overheat.
• Always sec an au thorized Vo lkswage n
dealer or qualil1ed workshop if yo u think th at
you may have damaged the front spoiler.
• Be sure to read and heed all WARNINGS
and the information =-page 27, "Accessories
and part s" before buying accessorie s.
8 Driving and protecting the environment

Operate your vehicle safely
For drivin g safely, alwa ys follow t he speci fied
maint enance interva ls in your maint enan ce
bo okle t =boo klet
I.I "M aint en an ce" -es peci ally
fo r chan ging brake fluid. H ard use , pri marily
s top and go dr iv in g, o perat io n in very dusty
areas, t ra ile r towi ng as we ll as other con dition s
m ay make
neces sary maint enance
im erva ls -see your authorize d Vo lksw agen
d ea ler.
Your vehicle 's condition is dir ect ly relot ed to
driving safety
Th erefo re, always be sur e
ob serve fol­
l ow ing points before yo u dr ive off:
• Check l ig ht s an d turn sig nals.
• Check f uel l eve l.
• Make sure
a ll ligh ts a nd all wi ndows are
clea n.
• Adjust
mirr ors .
• Make s ure
air intak e slo ts betwee n en gin e hood a nd wind shi eld are free of
l eaves, sn ow a nd ice.
• Check warning a nd indicato r light s when
s tarli ng the en g in e.
Your personal d riving style and attitude have a
lot to do with safety ..
T here fore , for you r ow n sa fe ty:
• Wear your safety bells a nd wear
pro p­
er ly , ev en if you ar e just driv in g in city o r lo
th e co rner =book le t 2 .1 "Sa fe ty first",
c h apt er "Safet y
• Make sur e th at all passe ngers wear their
sa fe ty belt s proper ly. even those in rea r 2.1 "Sa fe ty chapter "Safety
belt s." Pa sse ngers wea ring en ­
danger not onl y th em selves in cra sh, but al so dri ver and oth er passengers .
• Make su re th at children a lwa ys
on rear
sea t prop erl y res tra in ed by a res traint system a p­
propri ate for th eir size and age.
• Never tra nsp ort a child in a rear
c hild
or infant seat on the front passe nger seat
= bo oklet 2.1 "Safety
• Adju st yo ur sea t so that yo u ca n eas ily reac h
a ll co ntrol s whil e yo u are as from
Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
airb ag as pos sible but close r th an 10 inches
(25 cm ) = book let 2. 1 an d 3.1.
• The sea ting positi on is ve ry important for the
a irb ag perfo rm ance
2.l "S afety first",
cha pter "Air bag syste m.''
• Always a djust th e hea d res traints to
cor­
r ec t h eig ht . For maximum pro tec tion , ad just the
h ead res trai nt so that the upp er edge is as eve n
w ith the top of yo ur hea d as possi ble,
no
l owe r than eye le v el a nd so that is as close to
th e ba ck of your head as possib le = bo okle t 2. 1
"Safe ty
• Alw ays make s ure that the mov ement of peda ls is no t res tri cte d in an y way 3. 1,
c h ap te r " Peda ls ."
• Store luggage an d light it em s prop erl y in
luggage compartme nt and on roo f
=book let 3. 1, c hap ter" Luggage compa rtment "
an d
3.1, cha pter rack."
If you drink, do not drive !
T he use of a lco hol, dru gs a nd certain medi ca­
ti ons w ill seriously impa ir percept io n , reac tions
a nd dri vin g a bility ,
increa sin g th e
ri sk of an acci dent, cras h an d pe rso nal injury.
Do not drive if you are tired.
Make frequ ent rest stops , at le ast aft er every two
hours of dri ving.
Al ways adapt vehicle speed to traffic, road and
weather conditions.
H em ember , th at
o n sm ooth, slipp ery
roa ds, ve hicle han dling and br aking dep end a
d ea l on tire ad hes ion. On wet roa ds, the
front whee ls c an h ydrop lane, especi ally at
h ig her sp ee ds. If thi s hap pe ns, yo u will then no
l o nge r b e ab le to ste er or brak e prop erl y.
WARNING
• Alw ays observe the po sted spe ed Ii mils and
common sense. Your good judgment can
mean
diff ere n ce between arr iving safely at
your destination and being ser iously injur ed
in
crash or other kind of accide nt.
• Alway s rea d and hee d all WARNI NGS and
a dditi on al inform ation rega rding safety
= bookl et 2.1 "Safe ty
Driving and protecting the environment 9

Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice
Applies to veh icles: with o gaso line engi ne
Catalytic converter
Help the catalytic converter do its job
for a long time :
-Alwa ys use unl eaded gasol ine.
- Never
the ta nk complet ely empty .
- Do not put in too much en gin e oil
40, "Adding engine oil
-Never tow the ve hicle to start it, use
jump er cab les if n ecess ary
85.
If yo u notic e mi sfiring, uneve n runn ing or loss of
power w hen th e vehicl e is m ov ing , s low down
immediate ly and h ave the vehicl e in sp ec te d by
th e nea res t a uth oriz ed Volk swagen deal er or
qu alifi ed wo rksh op. These co nditions w ill u su­
a ll y be in dic ated b y an ind icator light
3. 1, chapt er "Warning light s." If thi s
happ ens, raw f uel ca n ge t int o th e ex hau st
sys te m , d am age t he ca ta ly ti c co nverte r and es­
ca pe int o th e atmosp here .
WARNING
A ca ta ly tic conver te r get s very hot and can
cau se lir e ca usin g se riou s personal injury.
• Neve r park where th e cata lytic converter
co uld come into conta ct with dry grass o r any
other flammabl e materials under the vehicl e.
Trailer towing
Technical requirements
Yo ur Volk sw agen was desig ned primaril y for
pas seng er tr an spor ta ti on. If yo u plan to
trai ler , plea se re m emb er th at yo ur ve hicle w ill be
p erformin g a serv ice for whi ch it w as not prim a­
ril y in ten ded. The addit io na l lo ad will affec t du­
r ability, hand lin g, econ omy and p erfor mance.
Tra iler to wing not only pl aces more s tress on the
ve hicle, it a lso calls for mor e co nce ntrati on from
t h e dr ive r.
WARNING (continued)
• Never appl y additional under coating or
ru st proofin g on or near the ex haus t manifold ,
exhaust pipes, ca ta ly tic conver te r or hea t
s hi elds.
39 , fig . 5 d o not sta rt the e ngi ne thi s co uld dama ge
the catalyt ic c onverter and the e ngin e! See an
a uthori zed Vo lkswage n dea le r or a qualifi ed
works hop.
• To avoi d dama ge to th e ca talyti c conve rter al­
ways rea d and hee d th e in formation on
=:page 32, "Fu el suppl y".
For the sake of environment
Even when th e e missio n co ntro l syste m is
worki ng perf ec tly, yo u may so metim es s mell
s ulfur from th e ex hau st d ep endin g on th e
a m ount of sulf ur in th e fu el you arc usi ng. T he
s m ell ca n usua lly be so lved by ch angin g to an ­
ot her brand of ga solin e. T railer
For th ese reason s, a lwa ys fo llow the o pera tin g
an d dri vi ng in stru ction s given a nd use comm on
se nse.
T railer hitch
U se a we ig ht -carry ing hitch co n fo rm ing
trail er hit ch re movab le
ball mount. ch eck with th e traile r hit ch
10 Driving and protecting the environment

manufactur er to make sur e th at yo u are using
t h e co rrec t hit ch
Do not use a bumper hitch.
Th e hit ch mu st be install ed so . that it does no t
int erf ere w ith th e impac t-a bso rbin g bu mpe r
sys tem . Do no t mak e any c han ges to th e ve hicl e
ex hau st and brak e sys te m s. Fro m t im e to tim e,
c h ec k tha t all hit ch -mo unting
rema in se­
c ur ely fas tened .
W hen yo u are not t ow in g a tra iler, re m ove the
t ra ile r hi tch ball m oun t. T his pr eve nts th e h itch
fr om causing dam age sh ou ld yo ur vehicl e be
s tru ck fr om b eh ind .
Engin e coo ling syste m
Tow ing a trai ler makes the e ngin e wo rk It is im portant th at th e engin e coo ling syste m is up to th e job . Make su re that th e coo ling sys te m has
e n ough flu id.
Trailer brokes
If yo ur t railer h as its own brakes, ch eck to be th at it confo rms to a ll regula tion s. The tra iler
b ra ke sys te m must n ever be directly co nn ecte d
to th e ve hicle's brake sys tem.
Sa fety chains
Alw ays use safety chain s betwee n yo ur ve hicle
a n d trail er.
Trai ler lights
Tra ile r lig ht s m ust m eet a ll reg ulati ons
Neve r co nnect th e trail er light sys te m di rectly to
t h e lig ht sy ste m of y our vehicl e. 13 e to c hec k
w ith your auth orize d Vol ksw age n d eale r fo r
rec t w irin g, sw itch es a nd relays .
Mirror s
If yo u canno t see the behind you using th e
r eg ula r outside mirror s, th en you mu st i ns tall
exte nded m irror s. It 's
th at yo u alw ays have
cl ea r vis io n to th e re a r.
Maximum power consumption for the trailer
Do not excee d the ra tin gs g iven in t he c hart
Booklet 3.2 Tips and Advice ®
Electrical load power
Tail lights to ta l
60 Watt s
T urn sig nals per sid e 54 Wa tts
Br ake light s to ta l 84 Wa tts
Back up ligh t to tal 54 W atts
WARNING
An improperl y in sta lled or in corre ct trailer
hit ch can cau se a tra iler to separate from the
t o win g ve hicle leadin g to ser iou s per son al in ­
j uri es.
• Never install a "weight distributing" or
" lo ad equa lizin g" trailer hitch on your v ehicle.
T he v ehicle wa s not de signed for these kinds
of trailer hit ch es . Th e hitch attachment ca n
fail ca using the trailer to tear loos e from th e
veh icle.
WARNING
Wh en you no lon ger need to tow a tra iler , re ­
move the ent ire tra ile r hitc h. Alwa ys s eal a ll
bolt h ole s to pre vent water and dead ly exhaust
fum es from ent ering th e vehicle.
Note
• Do no t use a trailer w hi ch h as LED (lig ht
em ittin g dio des) t ail light s. T hi s ty pe of ta il lig ht
ca n da ma ge t he elec trica l co ntrol un it of yo ur
ve hicl e.
• I f th e tra iler soc ke t i s in co rrec tly co nnecte d ,
d am age could r esult
10 t h e ve hicles elec trica l
sys te m.
• I f th e m ax imum p ower co nsum pti on fo r
trail er is exceede d, dam age c ould r esult to th e
e lec tr ica l sys te m of ve hicl e.
• Neve r co nn ect th e elec trical sys te m fur th e
dir ectly to elec trical co nn ectio ns fo r
th e rea r or to o ther u nsu itab le powe r
so urces . Use only s uit abl e socke t to pro ­
v id e powe r to th e
Driving an d protecting the environment 11

Booklet 3.2 Tip s and Advice
Operating instructions
Maximum trail er weight
Yo u ca n onl y tow 1y p ic al clas s I o r cla ss 2
I railers
w ith your vehicle.
T he m ax imum gross trailer weigh1 and 1h e
tongue loa d mu sl never exceed 1he s pecifica ­
tion s liste d in
3.3 "T ec hni cal
Neve r ex cee d 1h e gro ss v ehicle weigh 1, w hich i s
th e we ight of 1 he veh icle. includin g driv er, pa s­
se nge rs , lu ggage,
I raile r hi1 ch an d 1ongue wei gh I of t he loa ded trailer.
I n alt itude s abov e
3,000 f1. (1,000 redu ctio n
of 10% of co m bin ed lowing weight (v eh icle plu s
trai le r) fo r the beginn ing of every
3, 000 f1. (1,000 m ) shou ld be obser ved.
Trailer loa d distribution
sur e th e loa d in th e tra il e r is held secu rely in
plac e to gu ard against shif ting, b e ii forward ,
ba ckward or sidew ays. A load that shifl s can
mak e it hard or eve n imp ossib le 10 co n1rol your
ve hicl e, pa rticul arl y in an emergency s ituat ion.
Tongue load
F o r best ve hicl e handling when towing a tra iler,
adju st th e traile r load so
the tongue lo ad i s
at the maximum allow abl e or slightl y lo w er. You
ca n get an approxim ation o f th e tongu e load
wit h a bathroom scale or yo u can m ea sure the
load at a 1 rucking com pany or weig hing stat io n.
Th e to ngue lo ad in cre ases the we ig h t of t he rear
ax le and corres po ndingl y re du ces the oth er l oa d
that your vehicl e ca n
pressure
towing a trailer, inflat e th e tir es o fyourv e­
hicle to th e co ld tir e pre ss ure liste d on th e stic ker
on th e op en edg e of the dr ive r's door . Inflat e
tra iler tires to traile r and tire
s p ec ification s.
Light s
Al way s che ck th e head lig ht se 1tin gs wit h th e
tra iler hooked up befo re dri vin g off. A djust a s
n ecessary so
you can see th e road ahead but
n ot b lind oncom ing traffic .
C hec k and make sur e tha t all vehicl e and
light s are wo rki ng properl y-esp ec iall y the light s. S
af ety chains
sur e tr ailer safet y cha ins are properl y co n­
n ect ed from t he tra iler to the hi tch on th e ve­
h icl e. Leave e nou gh slack in the c hain s 10 turn
co rner s. Whe n yo u in s1a ll safery cha ins, m ake
s ur e th ey will not drag o n the road w hile you are
d ri vin g.
T he chains shuultl
u ntler t he traile r to prevent it from dropping to th e grou nd in cas e
of sepa rat ion from the hitch.
Electronic Stabilizat ion Program (ESP )
A lwa ys leave th e ES P swi1ched on w hen you tow
a trail er. The ES P makes it easi er to stab ilize the
trailer sh ould it start to swerve o r sw ay.
WARNING
A lways adjust your dri ving lo th e road, traffi c
and weather condition s. Do not let the extra
s af ety that ESP/AS R can provid e te mpi you
i nto laking extra risks.
WARNING
Ridin g in a trail er i s da ng erous and may be il­
leg al.
• A person who is not properly re str ain ed in
a m ov ing ve hicle ri sk ser iou s perso nal inju ry
a nd even death in a cras h.
• Nev er let anyone rid e in your vehicle
witho ut bein g prop erly restr ain ed.
• Never all ow
pa ssenger lo ride in trailer .
WARNING
Exceeding th e permi ssible weig ht
rat ings and permis sible trail er
we ig ht s ca n result in accident s leadi ng to se­
r ious persona l injury.
• Neve r le t th e ac tual Gross Axle Weight
Ratin g at th e front and rear
exceed the
pe rmi ssibl e we ig ht s. Also neve r le t th eir com­
b in atio n excee d th e Gross Vehicle Weig ht
Ra ting.
• Alw ays re member that the vehicle' s han­
dli ng will be
by the extra load. There-
fo re, adju st yo ur spee d accordin gly .
12 Driving and protecting the environment

WARN ING (continu ed)
• Exceed ing permi ssibl e weig ht ratings can
r es ult in ve hicl e da m age, accide nts, and per­
sona l
Driving tips
For th e best handlin g of ve hicle and trailer,
p lease note th e fo llowing:
• A "bala nce d" rig is easie r
operate and con­
trol. This m ean s th a t th e tow vehicl e should b e
loaded to th e extent p ossible and p ermi ssible
whil e keep ing th e trailer as light as po ssibl e
und er th e circum stanc es. Wh eneve r po ssib le,
tran sfe r som e cargo to the
co mpar tment
of the tow vehicl e w hile obs ervin g tongu e loa d
req uirem ents and vehicle loa ding consid er­
a tion s.
• The high er th e s pee d, the more
it be ­
come s fo r the drive r to control th e rig. Do not
dr ive at the maximum permis sibl e
• Always appl y br akes earl y. When driving
d ow nhill, d ownshi ft into a lower gear to u se the
e ng in e brak in g eff ec t to slo w down the ve hicle.
U se of the brake s alo ne ca n ca use them to ove r­
h ea t an d fail.
• The coo ling effect of the rad iator fan cann ot
b e in crease d by dow nsh ifti ng beca use fan sp ee d
i s ind epend ent of engine sp ee d. The re for e,
Trailer towing tips
Your vehicle handles diff ere nt ly wh en t ow in g a
t ra iler b ecause of the a ddit io na l weight and
weig ht d is tribut ion. S af ety. perform ance and
e conomy will gr ea tly depend on how car efull y
yo u load your tra iler
yo ur rig.
B efor e y ou actua lly
your tra iler, practice
t urn ing. stoppin g and backing up in an ar ea
away from
until yo u l earn the feel of your
ve hicle and trailer unit.
Backing up is
r e quir es prac tice .
S teer ing w hile backing up is generall y opposite
of th at wh en backing your vehicl e w ith out a
tra iler.
Booklet 3.2 Tip s and Advice
wh en dr iving uphill , yo u can alwa ys dri ve in the
hi gh est po ssible gea r wit h low e ngin e sp ee d. If
th e coo lant te mp erature warning light in the in­
s trument cluste r start s fla shin g in red , p ull off
the road , stop and le t th e e ngin e id le for abou t
minute s to pre vent hea t bu ildup and engin e
damag e.
WARNING
• Reduce you r speed even more under unfa­
vora ble load, wea ther or w ind condi tions
p artic ular ly w hen goi ng dow nhill.
• Be especia lly carefu l w hen passing o ther
veh icles. Redu ce ve hicle sp eed immediate ly if
the tra iler sh ow s the sli ghtest sig n of sway ing.
• Neve r try to stop the sway ing by acceler­
ating.
• Always heed speed lim its. In some a reas
speed lim its for vehicl es tow ing tra ilers are
l ower than for reg ular
Keep more di stan ce between your vehicl e and
th e one in front of you. will nee d m ore roo m
to stop.
To compens ate fo r th e traile r, yo u w ill n eed a
l a rger than normal tu rning
When passing , reme mber that you can not acce l­
erate as fast as you normall y wou ld because of
t h e added load. Make sur e yo u ha ve enough
room to pas s. After passing, allow plen ty of room
fo r yo ur tr aile r befor e changing la nes aga in.
Avoid jerk y s tart s, sharp turns or rapid lan e
c h ange s.
Driving and protecting the env ironment 13