air VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT 1997 Service Manual

Warranty
dress and Volkswagen Stat es has your
current addre ss on file, you will rece ive
fication automatically. If yo u are concerned that you may not have received notice
cerning a particular serv ice action, please
check with yo
ur dealer to dete rmin e whether
your vehicle is eligible for any re p ai r free of
c h arge.
In
other instan ces, Volkswage n of Am eri ca,
In
c. m ay offer assistance with a repair
yond wa rranty on a case-by-case basis. If you believe that your vehicl e needs a repair not
cove red by warran ty which Volk swagen of
A merica , Inc . should pay for in part or in
w hol e, ple ase disc uss the re
ques t w it h your
d eal er.
you are not satisfied with your
dealer's decision, please contact Volkswagen
of America, Inc. Customer CARE by
vid e the ve hicle identification number, the
mil eage,
maintenance his tory and an
n ation of w hy yo u believe th at th e repair
should be performed free of charge.
tive will review your re qu est and advise you of our
Customer CARE 29

tins.
Bulletins cover a wide variety
of s ubje cts: the
proper use and ca re o f your car, co stly
bulletin s describe repairs
about new or unexpected conditions.
d escribe improved repair procedures or
parts improvements. All of this information
can also h elp a qualifi ed technician better
service your vehicle . Most
bulletin s apply to
condition s affecting a
s mall
number of veh icle s. Your dealer or a
qualifi
ed technici an may hav e to determine if
a specific bu
lletin appli es to your vehicle. You
ca n order Volkswagen bulletins, Volkswag en
repair inform a
tion and Volkswagen
Literatur e 24 hours
if you prefer, you can contact our
Telephone: 1
572-1438
What you
A list of Volkswagen bulletins for 1985 and
la ter model years. covering all Nort h ican specification Volkswagen models.
Ordering and pri cin g information on how
to buy specific bulletin s.
Ordering and pri ce inform ation for
swagen Repair Manuals on paper format or
CD
Ordering and price inform ation for swagen Electrical Wirin g Diagram s.
Ordering and price inform ation for Literat ure
including:
Manuals
Maintenanc e Book le ts
Warranty Manuals
These bulletins are intended for qualified
t
echnicians . They are not meant for the
do-it-yourselfer. Qualified nicians have the equipment, tools, safety
instructions,
and know-how to do a job properly and safely. improperly
formed repairs or maintenance can
versely affect th e safety of your
erly and safely, you should not risk trying
to
do so.
Service

SAFETY
Dear
This contains important
airbags, seats
for and infants, safety and
head restraint
s.
ways remains with your
be
tures to ry in an accident. The is a of
just a few of the safety features in your
with
height adjustors
- front airbags
- side airbags
in the front seats
- Side
-
tem if they are not
sections provide important
portant. how they work to
contain important which you and your
injury.
Safety is everybody's

Safety
B6N-052M [
If a safety belt is too short because of body size or driving position, even when the
three point safety belt is ful ly extended and
when the adjustable upper shoulder belt
an­chorage (if so equipped) is in the lowest position, you can use a seat belt extender .
This extender can be used only if existing
belt is not long enough . The extender adds
approximately 8 inches
the front airbag deploy at a slightly higher rate of decel­
eration than if the belt is not being used.
Therefore, in a particular collis ion, it is pos ­
sible that
an airbag will not deploy at a seat­
ing position where the safety belt is being
used but
see page
17 for details.
For that reason, always remove the safety belt extender when it is not needed and stow it safely.
See your VOLKSWAGEN dealer for assis­
tance if the extender is required .
SAFETY
Using a safety belt extender when not needed can increase the
risk of injury in a collision.
Never use the safety belt extender if you can fasten the
safety belt without it.
Safety belts can work only when used properly. Never wear safety belts in any other way than
illustrated and described in this
chapter.
A driver or passenger who is not properly restrained can be serious­ly injured by striking the interior of
the passenger compartment or by the safety belt itself which can be displaced from stronger parts of
the body into sensitive areas like
the abdomen.
Never use more than one ex­tender with a safety belt. The use
of more than one extender can change the way the safety belt passes over the body and can cause serious injury.

Airbag system
Your
out of position or too
for the driver and
front seat passenger have switches that
the airbag if the safety
the safety
higher rate of
that an air­bag
at the position where the safety is not being used.
For that reason,
are there to offer
protection in those accidents in which air­
bags
are not supposed to or when
they have
is part of the
Therefore. wear your safety
pages 3 to 13.
the airbag system is designed to
reduce the
of serious injuries, it
can cause bruising, and minor
abras ions.

or have on the seat become
dangerous
When the system is activated, fine dust is This is
This dust is made up
The fine dust created when air­
bags deploy can cause breathing problems for people with a history of asthma or other breathing
conditions.
within a force.
The airbags
times. By keeping room
between your body and the front
of the
and
page
Booklet 3. 1, for
be chapter
receive serious or fatal injuries from the airbag if you are up against it or too close to it when it
inflates.
Always read and heed

SAFETY FIRST
ride in the rear seat.
B45-421K
Adjusting the driver's seat
For see
We recommend that you adjust the driver's
seat as follows:
- adjust the seat in fore and aft direction
so
that you can push the
keeping your knee
-adjust the steering
and chapter Booklet 3. 1.
-the distance from the center of your
breastbone to the center of the airbag
cover on the steering
must be at least inches (25 em) or more. See
--------------------AIRBAG

SAFETY
smash the
child seat and
ommend that children alway s sit in the back
seat. See
require that the following special
tions be taken :
see in this
22 --------------------AIRBAG

Front airbags
The airbag for the driver is
in the instrument
marked with See
is very important to remember that front
airbags
in some accidents in
which the is high
enough to activate the airbags.
Front airbags are not activated ...
if th e igni tion is swi tched off
in s ide
in rear-end
in
in certain fron­damage, repair costs
or even the
damage is not
provide protection for the ch est and face of the driv­
er
and the front seat passenger when ...
safety
the seats have been positioned so that
the occupant is
seated as far as from the airbag
and the head restraints have been prop­
part of the
body.
Safety
s e e next p ages.
AIR BAG SYSTEM--------------------23

How the front airbag system works
Both front airbags in some fron­
not in sions in which
cover every
of impact, since the circumstances vary
factors
rate
caused by the collision and registered by
the unit.
programmed into the unit. the airbags
with a propellant gas. break open the
padded covers, and between the
steering
of an
so fast that many don't even that the airbags have
be in their way when
they
airbags in combination with
worn safety down and
so that the front occupants can see through the
This is