User Manual - Page 94

For MII 2014.

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Operation
The
rate of wear of the brake pads depend
s
t
o a great extent on the conditions in which
the vehicle is used and the way the vehicle is
driven. If the vehicle is used frequently in city
traffic or for short trips or driven sport style,
visit a specialised workshop regularly, more
frequently than advised in the Maintenance
Programme, to have the brake pads checked.
If you drive with wet brakes, for example, af-
ter crossing areas of water, in heavy rainfall
or even after washing the car, the effect of
the brakes is lessened as the brake discs are
wet or even frozen (in winter). At higher
speed, “dry” the brakes as quickly as possi-
ble by braking gently several times. Only do
this without endangering vehicles behind
you or any other road users
.
A
layer of salt on the discs and brake pads
w
i
ll reduce the effectiveness of the brakes
and increase braking distance. If you drive for
a prolonged period on salted roads without
braking then brake carefully several times to
eliminate the layer of salt on the brakes
.
If the vehicle remains parked for considera-
ble lengths of time, is used little, or if the
brakes are not used, there may be corrosion
on the brake discs and a build up of dirt on
the brake pads. If the brakes are not used fre-
quently, or if rust has formed on the discs,
SEAT recommends cleaning the pads and
discs by braking firmly a few times at a mod-
erately high speed. Only do this without en-
dangering vehicles behind you or any other
road users .
Faults in the brake system
During braking, if you notice that the vehicle
does not react as usual (that the braking dis-
tance has increased suddenly) it may be pos-
sible that there is a fault in the braking sys-
tem. This is indicated by the warning lamp
. Take the vehicle to a specialised work-
shop immedi
at
ely and have the fault re-
paired. Drive at a moderate speed and be
prepared to use more pressure on the brake
pedal, and allow for longer stopping distan-
ces.
Brake servo
The brake servo only operates when the en-
gine is running and the pressure applied by
the driver on the brake pedal increases.
If the brake servo does not operate or the ve-
hicle must be towed, then the brake pedal
will have to be pressed with more force given
that the braking distance will be increased
when the brake servo does not operate
.
WARNING
New brake pads do not brake to full efficien-
cy.
For the first 320 km, new brake pads have
not yet reached their maximum braking ca-
pacity, and need to be “run in” first. For this,
to compensate for reduced braking efficiency
the brake pedal will have to be pressed with
more force.
To avoid losing control of the vehicle and
causing serious accidents, always take great
care when driving with new brake pads.
When running in new brake pads, always
respect the safety distances between you and
other vehicles and do not cause situations re-
quiring extreme braking performance.
WARNING
When brakes overheat, braking is less effi-
cient and braking distances increase.
When driving on slopes, brakes can be
overloaded and overheat quickly.
Reduce speed or change down a gear when
faced with steep and long slopes. This allows
you to use the engine braking effect and to
reduce the strain on the brake system.
Non-standard or damaged front spoilers
could restrict the airflow to the brakes and
cause them to overheat.
WARNING
Wet, frozen or salt-covered brakes take lon-
ger to engage and this increases braking dis-
tances.
Test the brakes carefully.
Dry the brakes, free them of ice and salt by
braking gently several times, when visibility,
92
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