Skoda Citigo Owner's Manual page 138

WARNING
It is prohibited to work with naked flames or lights.
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It is prohibited to smoke or carry out any activities that produce sparks.
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Never use a damaged vehicle battery – risk of explosion!
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Never charge a frozen or thawed vehicle battery – risk of explosion and
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chemical burns!
Replace a frozen vehicle battery.
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Never jump-start vehicle batteries with insufficient acid levels – risk of ex-
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plosion and chemical burns.
WARNING
When you charge a battery, hydrogen is released, and a highly explosive gas
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mixture is also produced. An explosion can be caused through sparkling over
during unclamping or loosening of the cable plug while the ignition is on.
Creating a bridge between the poles on the battery (e.g. with a metal object
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or cable) creates a short circuit - risk of melting the lead bars, and risk of ex-
plosion, battery fire and acid splashes.
Avoid creating sparks when working with cables and electrical devices.
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Strong sparking represents a risk of injury.
Before carrying out any work on the electrical system, switch off the engine,
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the ignition and all of the electrical components and disconnect the negative
terminal ( ) of the battery.
CAUTION
Improper handling of the battery can lead to damage. We recommend having all
work on the vehicle battery carried out by a specialist garage.
CAUTION
The vehicle battery must only be disconnected if the ignition is switched off,
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otherwise the vehicle's electrical system (electronic components) can be dam-
aged. When disconnecting the battery from the vehicle first disconnect the nega-
tive terminal ( ) and only then the positive terminal ( ) of the battery.
When connecting the battery to the electrical system, connect the positive ter-
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minal ( ) first and then the negative terminal ( ) of the battery. Under no circum-
stances must the battery cables be connected incorrectly – risk of a cable fire.
Ensure that battery acid does not come into contact with the bodywork – risk of
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damage to the paintwork.
Do not place the battery in direct daylight in order to protect the vehicle battery
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housing from the effects of ultra-violet light.
If the vehicle has not been driven for more than 3 to 4 weeks, the battery will
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discharge. This is because certain electrical components consume electricity (e. g.
control units) also in idle state. The battery discharge can be prevented by discon-
necting the negative terminal ( ) of the battery or by ensuring the battery is con-
tinuously charged with very low charging current.
If the vehicle is frequently used for making short trips, the vehicle battery will
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not have time to charge up sufficiently and may discharge.
For the sake of the environment
A vehicle battery that has been removed is a special type of hazardous waste.
These must be disposed of in accordance with national legal regulations.
Note
You should replace batteries older than 5 years.
Checking the battery electrolyte level
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First read and observe the introductory information and safety warn-
ings on page 134.
On vehicles with a vehicle battery fitted with a colour indicator, the so-called
magic eye » Fig. 110 , the electrolyte level can be determined by looking at the
change in colour.
Fig. 110
Vehicle battery: Electrolyte level
indicator
135
Inspecting and replenishing
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