Maintenance 309 R The vent holes of the cell caps must be open. Otherwise, gases cannot escape. Clean blocked vent holes with a suitable tool, e.g. a piece of wire. Unscrew the cell caps first. Otherwise, there is the risk of a short circuit. R Recharge batteries that are not in use with a no-load voltage of less than 12.4 V. Charging the batteries G WARNING During charging and jump-starting, explosive gases can escape from the battery. There is a risk of an explosion. Particularly avoid fire, naked flames, creating sparks and smoking. Ensure there is sufficient ventilation while charging and jump-starting. Do not lean over a battery. Battery fluid level : Max. mark ; Min.
mark Maintenance and care Observe the safety notes on handling batter- ies. X Remove the battery cover ( Y page 307). X Unscrew and remove the battery cell caps. X Check the battery fluid level and correct it if necessary. The fluid level in each battery cell must be approximately 15 mm above the top of the plate. Observe the min. and max. markings on the side of the battery compartment. G WARNING A discharged battery can freeze at tempera- tures below freezing point. When jump-start- ing the vehicle or charging the battery, gases can escape from the battery. There is a risk of an explosion. Allow the frozen battery to thaw out before charging it or jump-starting.
X Screw in the battery cell caps. X Connect the battery cover ( Y page 307). Battery care ! Please observe the following points: ! Use a commercially-available battery charger to charge the batteries. Make sure that the charging voltage is correct. Do not charge new batteries with rapid charging. The charge current of used batteries should be maximum 75 % of the battery capacity for rapid charging. Otherwise, you could damage the batteries. R Dirty battery terminals and battery sur- faces cause leak currents, which lead to the batteries discharging. Always keep the battery terminals and battery surfa- ces clean and dry.
Lightly grease the bat- tery terminals, especially the undersides, with acid-resistant grease. The charging current must not exceed 10% (or a maximum of 75% when rapid-charging) of the battery capacity. Do not rapid-charge new batteries. Observe the safety notes on handling batter- ies. R Only clean batteries with the cell caps fitted. Otherwise, dirt can enter the bat- tery cells. R Cleaning agents containing fuel corrode the battery housing. Only clean the bat- tery housing with commercially available cleaning agents. X Unscrew and remove the battery cell caps. X Disconnect the battery terminals ( Y page 308). Z