2011 AUDI A3 Owner´s Manual

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nected. These functions have to be relearned after the battery termi­
nals are connected again. To prevent this, the battery should only be
disconnected from the vehicle electrical system if absolutely neces­
sary.
Power window one-touch
up/down function
Reprogramming
~ page 51, "Reactivating the sys­
tem after battery disconnection"
Master key with remote control Synchronization~
page 43
Digital clock ~ page 9
ESP indicator light The indicator light goes out after
driving a few meters
Vehicles not driven for long periods and short­
distance operation
If you do not drive your vehicle for several days or weeks, e lectrical
consumers are gradually scaled back or switched off. Th is reduces
energy use and ensures the vehicle will be able to start after long
periods of time~
page 194. Some convenience functions such as
opening with the remote control key may not be available. These
convenience functions will be available again once you switch the
ignition on and start the engine. Even when consumers are switched
off, the battery will become deeply discharged by stand-by power
consumers if the vehicle is not driven for several months . Deep
discharging results in a chemica l reaction that destroys the inside of
the battery. The battery must be charged every month to prevent th is
~ page 241. Do not disconnect the battery or the anti-theft alarm
system* will not work.
Winter operation
Cold weather places higher demands on the battery. This results in
reduced starting abi lity. Have the battery checked and recharged if
necessary before the cold weather beg ins.
Avoid unnecessary power consumption, part icularly in city traffic or
when travel ing on ly short distances. Let your author ized Audi dealer
Safety first
check the capacity of the vehicle battery before winter sets in
~ page 241. A well charged battery will not only p revent start ing
problems when the weather is cold, but will also last longer.
(D Note
• All work on the battery requires techn ical knowledge. Please
contact an Audi dealership or another authorized facility for ques­
tions about the battery- danger of acid burns and explosion hazard!
• The battery m ust not be opened! Do not try to change the
battery's liquid level, otherwise detonating gas will escape from the
battery - explosion hazard!
• The AGM battery in the luggage compartment cannot leak,
because the electrolyte for this battery is absorbed into a specia l
glass mat . This leak -proof battery must not be replace with a conven ­
tional battery .
• Make sure the ventilation hose on the side of the battery is
connected, otherwise fumes or battery acid can leak out.
• Battery holder and terminals always have to be secured correctly .
• Before all work on the battery follow the
warnings below~ & in
"Working on the battery" on
page 239. •
Working on the battery
All work on the battery requires technical knowledge! Be
especially careful when working on or near the battery!
Before you check anything in the engine compartment,
always
read and heed all WARNINGS~ & in "Working in
the engine compartment" on
page 226 .
Always heed the safety warnings, when working on the vehicle
battery or the vehicle electrical system to prevent injury .
Vehicle care Technical data

-L~C::!h~e~c~k:.!_i~n~g~a~n~d~f~il~l:!_!in~g !...._ ________________________________________ _
The following WARNINGS are very important when
working on the battery:
Always heed the following WARNING SYMBOLS and safety pre­ cautions when working on the battery .
@
®
Always wear eye protection.
Battery acid contains sulfuric acid. Always wear
gloves and eye protection.
No
• s parks
- flames
• smoking .
When a battery is charged, it produces hydrogen
gas which is explosive and could cause persona l
injury.
Always keep the battery well out of reach of chil ­
dren .
& WARNING
Whenever working on the battery or on the electrical system,
there is the risk of injury , accident and even fire. Read and heed
the following WARNINGS:
• Always wear eye protection . Do not let battery acid or any lead
particles get on your skin or clothing. Shield your eyes . Explosive
gases can cause blindness or other injury!
• Battery acid contains sulfuric acid. Sulfuric acid can cause blindness and severe burns.
-Always wear gloves and eye protection. Do not tilt the
battery because acid could leak out of the ventilation open­
ings.
& WARNING (co ntinued )
-If you get battery acid in your eyes or on your skin, immedi­
ately rinse with cold water for several minutes and get medical
attention.
- If you should ingest any battery acid, seek medical attention
immediately.
• Do not expose the battery to an open flame, electric sparks or
an open light .
• Do not smoke.
• Do not interchange the positive and negative cables.
• When working on the battery , be sure not to short-circuit the
terminals with tools or other metal objects. This would cause the battery to heat up very quickly, which could lead to damage or
explosion and personal injury.
• When a battery is charged , it produces hydrogen gas which is
explosive and could cause personal injury.
• Always keep the battery well out of the reach of children.
• Before work is done on the electrical system, disconnect the
negative ground cable.
• Before performing any work on the electrical system, switch
off the engine and ignition as well as any electrical equipment.
The negative cable on the battery must be disconnected . If you are
just going to replace a light bulb, then it is enough to switch off the lights.
• Before disconnecting the battery, switch off the anti-theft
alarm system! Otherwise you will set off the alarm .
• When disconnecting the battery, first disconnect the negative
cable and then the positive cable .
• Before reconnecting the battery, make sure all electrical
consumers are switched off . Reconnect the positive cable first and
then the negative cable. Never interchange the cables· this could start a fire! ..,_

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& WARNING (continued)
• Never charge a frozen or a thawed-out battery. It could
explode! If a battery has frozen, then it must be replaced. A
discharged battery can freeze over at 32 °F (0 °C).
• Make sure the vent hose is always attached to the opening on
the side of the battery.
• Never use batteries which are damaged. There is the danger of
an explosion! Always replace a damaged battery.
& WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
• Battery posts, terminals and related accessories contain lead
and lead compounds, chemicals known to the State of California
to cause cancer and reproductive problems. Wash hands after
handling.
0 Note
• Do not disconnect the vehicle battery when the ignition is
switched on or when the engine is running, otherwise, you will
damage electronic components in the electrical system.
• When working on the engine, protect the battery housing from
ultraviolet (UV) rays by not parking the vehicle in direct sunlight .
• If your vehicle is going to stand for a long period of time without
being driven, protect the battery from "freezing", otherwise it will be
damaged and will then have to be replaced::::;,
page 241. •
Vehicle OP-eration
Charging of battery
All work on the battery requires technical knowledge!
Fig. 169 Engine
compartment: connec­
tors for a charger and
jump start cables
A charged battery ensures good starting performance. A
discharged battery can
freeze at temperatures of only O °C. A
frozen or thawed battery must be replaced, as the battery
housing may be cracked due to freezing and could therefore
leak acid.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS below==> & and
==> & in "Working on the battery" on
page 239.
-Switch off the ignition and all electrical consumers.
- Make sure the area is well ventilated when you charge the
battery .
- Connect charger cables .
Charger cables must always be
connected POSITIVE
G to POSITIVE G and NEGATIVE
Oto NEGATIVE (jump start pins) (:).
-Switch on the charger.
- Make sure the charging rate is not over 6 amps.
- Turn off the charger==> &.
- Disconnect the charger cables.
Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data

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- Connect both battery cables to the batt ery if necessary -
first plus, then minus .
The battery m ust not be opened!:::} 0 in "Gene ral informat ion" on
page 238.
Charging the battery
On ly use chargers with a m aximum charging voltage of 14.8 V. T he
ba ttery conne ct ing cab les do not need to be d isco nnected. Do not
open the battery when charg ing.
Read all of the manufacturer's instr uctions for the charge r be fore
charting the battery .
It is not necessary to remove the battery from the engine compart­
ment, and i t is also not necessa ry to disconnect the cables.
Norma lly, a battery should be charged at no more tha n 10 perce nt of
i t s rated capaci ty.
For example, a charging cu rrent of 4.5 amps wou ld b e used on a
battery rated at 45 Ah. Rate d capacity of the battery in your ve hicle is
listed on the batte ry housin g.
The bat tery caps shou ld
not be opened when charg ing a battery.
& WARNING
Charging a battery can be dangerous.
• Never charge a frozen battery . It may explode be cause of gas
trapped in the ice. Allow a frozen battery to thaw out first.
• Do not reuse batter ies wh ich were frozen . They must be
replaced. The battery housing may have cracked and weakened
when the battery froze .
• Charge th e battery in a w ell ventilated area. Keep away from
open flame or electrical spark . Do not smoke. Hydrogen gas gener­
ated by the battery is explosive.
• To reduce the danger of e xplosion, never connect or disconnect
c harger cable s while the charger i s operating.
& WARNING (c on tinued )
• Fast charging a battery is dangerous and should only be
attempted by a competent technician with the proper equipment .
• Battery acid that may spill during charging should be washed
off with a solut ion of warm water and baking soda to neutralize
the acid.
0 Note
• M ake s ure that the gas venting hose is always connected to the
or ig inal open ing o n the ba tte ry s ide . Othe rw ise gasses or battery aci d
co uld leak out .
• N ever use a fast cha rger as a booster to start t he eng ine . Th is will
ser iously damage sensitive electronic components, such as control
units, relays, radio , etc. , as well as the batte ry c harge r.
• Th e vehicle may be optionally equ ipped wi th a gel ba tte ry, which
can only be charged at a constant current-limited voltage . To prevent
damage to the batte ry and the electronics system, a gel battery that
is connected must under no c ircums tances be charged with a quic k
charger.
[I) Tips
• The veh icle battery must not be c harged with a standard sma ll
c harger that plugs in to the outlet.
• Only charge the battery th rough the connections in the engine
c omp artment .•
Battery replacement
T he new battery must have the s am e specific ations as the
old one.
Inte lligent energy management in yo ur vehicle is responsib le for
distr ib uting the elect rical e nergy througho ut your vehicle

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=:> page 194. The intelligent energy management system will keep
the eng ine battery charged bette r then vehicles withou t this system .
To make sure the additional electrical energy is available o nce again
after you have changed the battery, we recommend t hat you install
batteries of the same type and manufacture only (the same as those
installed at the time your vehicle was delivered). Specif ications are
listed on the batte ry ho using. Your authorized dealer must code the
battery in the energy management system to enable you to use the
ene rgy management functions correct ly after replacing the battery.
If it is not poss ible to use a battery of this type, the new battery must
have the same capacity, voltage (12 volts), amperage, construct ion
and plug sealing.
We recommend that you use maintenance-free or
c y cle-re sis ­
tant /le ak -proof
batteries that conform to the standards TL 82S 06
(from December 1997) and
VW 7 50 73 (from August 2001).
When installing the battery, make sure the ignition and all electrical
consumers are turned off.
0 Note
• Make s ure that the gas venting hose is always connected to the
original opening on the battery side . Otherwise gasses or battery acid
co uld leak out.
• Battery mounts and clamps must a lways be secured correctly.
• Read and follow the warn ings under=:>
page 239, "Work ing on
the batte ry" before performing any work on the battery .
c£> For the sake of the environment
Because of the problem of proper disposal of a battery, we recom­
mend your authorized Audi dealer change the battery for you.
Batteries contain sulfuric acid and lead and must always be d isposed
of prope rly in compliance with all env ironmenta l regulatio ns.
Disposing of vehicle batteries improperly is very dangerous to the
environment . M ake sure that the removed battery cannot overbal­
ance, otherw ise sulfur ic acid might escape! •
Vehicle OP-eration
Windshield washer container
Using plain water is not adequate for filling the wind­
shield washer system.
Fig . 1 70 En gine
co mpa rt ment : win d­
s hi eld w as her f luid
con taine r
The windshield wash er fluid container is loca ted on the right
side of the engine compartment:::::;, fig. 170 . The washer flui d
co nta iner is mar ked with the symbol~ is on its cap.
- Before you ch eck anythin g in t he e ngine compartment,
always
read and heed all WARNINGS=> & in "Working in
the e ng ine compartment" on
page 226.
- Lift t he fi ller cap tongue to add washer fluid. You can fill
th e container to the top.
- Press the cap back onto the filler neck after filling the
container.
You can find the reservoir capacity in the table in=> page 296.
Clean water should be used when fi lling up. If possible, use soft water
to prevent scaling on the washer jets . Always add a glass cleaner solu-
tion (with frost protection in the winter).
tJ,,,
Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data

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0 Note
Do not mix engine coolant antifreeze or any other add itives to fill up
the windshie ld washer reservoir. •

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Tires and wheels
Tires
General notes
Tires may be the least appreciated and most abused
parts of a motor vehicle.
T ir es may be the least appreciated and most abused pa rts of a motor
vehicle . Tires are, however, one of the most important parts of a
vehicle , pa rticul arly conside ring the comparat ive ly small patch of
rubber on eac h tire that assures that all-important contact between
you, your veh icle and the road.
Maintai ning t he cor rect tire pressu re, mak ing su re that your veh icle
and i ts tires do not have to carry more weight t han they can safely
hand le, avoid ing damage from road ha za rds and regularly inspecting
tires for damage includ ing cuts, s lashes irregular wea r and ove rall
condi tion a re the mos t important th ings that you can do to help avoid
sudden t ire failure including tread separation and blowouts.
Avoiding damage
If you have to d rive ove r a cur b or sim ilar obstacle, d rive very slowly
and as close as possible at a rig ht angle to the curb .
Always keep chemicals incl ud ing grease, oil, gaso line and brake f luid
o ff t he t ires .
Ins pect the ti res regularly for damage (cu ts, cracks o r blisters, e tc.) .
Remove any foreign bodies embe dded in the treads.
Storing tires
M ark tires w hen yo u remove t hem to indica te t he d ire ct io n of rota ­
tion . This ensures you to be ab le to mount them correctly when you
re insta ll them.
Whe n removed, t he wheels or tires should be sto red in a cool, dry and
preferably da rk p lace.
Safety first
Store tires in a v ertica l pos it io n if they a re not mount ed on rims, in a
hor izonta l posit ion if they are mounted on r ims.
New tires
N ew tires have to be broken in=> & .
Th e tre ad d epth of new ti res may v ary, accor ding t o th e type an d
make of t ire and the tread pattern .
Hidden damage
Damage to tires and rims is often not readi ly visible. If yo u notice
unu sual vib ra ti on o r the ve hicle pulls to one side, t his may in dica te
that one of the t ires has been damaged. The tires must be checked
im media tely by an auth oriz ed A ud i d eale r or qual ifie d wor ks hop.
Unidirectional tires
A un id irectional tire can be identified by arrows o n th e sidewall , th at
point in the direct ion the t ire is designed to rotate. You must fo llow
t he s peci fied dire ction o f ro tat io n . This is neces sary so t hat t hese
tires can deve lop their optimum cha racte ristics regard ing g rip, road
noise, we ar an d hy dropl aning res ist an ce. F o r more informat ion
:::>page 279 .
& WARNING
New tires or tires that are old , worn or damaged cannot provide
maximum control and braking ability.
• New tires tend to be slippery and must be broken in. To reduce
the risk of losing control, a collision and serious personal injuries, dri ve with special care for the first 350 miles (560 km).
• Driving with worn or damaged tires can lead to loss of control,
sudden tire failure , including a blowout and sudden deflation ,
crashes and serious personal injuries . Have worn or damaged tires
replaced immediately. _..
Vehicle care Technical data

-~_T_ ir_e_ s_ a_ n_ d_ w_ h_e_ e_ ls _______________________________________________ _
& WARNING (conti nu ed )
• Tire s age even if they are not being used and can fail suddenly ,
especially at high speeds . Tires that are more than 6 year s old can
only be used in an emergency and then with special care and at low
s peed .
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means the combined we ight (in excess of those sta nda rd items which
may be rep lace d) of automatic transmission, power steering, power
bra kes, powe r w indows , power seats, radio, and heater, to the extent
that these items are avai lab le as factory- installed equipment
(w het he r i nsta lled or no t).
Aspect ratio
me ans the ratio of t he he ight to t he w id th of the tir e in percent .
Numbe rs of 55 o r lower indicate a low sidewa ll for improved steer ing
respo nse an d be tter overa ll handling on dry p avemen t.
Bead
means the part o f the tire that is made of stee l w ires , wrap ped o r
re in forced by ply cords and that is shaped to fit the rim.
Bead separation
means a brea kdown of the bon d between components in the bead .
Cord
means the st rands forming the plies in the tire.
& W ARNING (continued )
• Never mount used tire s on your vehicle if you are not sure of
their "previous hi story ." Old used tires may have been damaged
eventhoughthedamagecannotbeseenthatcanleadtosudden
tire failure and lo ss of vehicle control.
• If you notice unu sual vibration or if the vehicle pull s to one side
when driving, alway s stop as soon as it is safe to do so and check
the wheels and tires for damage. •
Cold tire inflation pressure
means the tire pressure recommended by the vehicle ma nufa cturer
for a tire of a des ignated size t hat has not been driven for more than
a couple of m iles ( kilomete rs) a t low speeds in the t hree ho ur period
before the tire pressure is measured or ad justed.
Curb weight
mea ns the weig ht of a motor vehicle wit h standard equ ipment
including the max imum cap aci ty of f ue l, oil, and coo lan t, air condi ­
tioning and additiona l weight of optional equipment.
Extra load tire
means a t ire designe d to operate at higher loads and at higher infla­
t ion p ressures than the co rrespo nd ing standard t ire. Ext ra load tires
my be identif ied as "XL", "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or "RF" on the sidewa ll.
Gross Axle Weight Rating ( "GAWR ")
means the load -ca rry ing capacity of a s ingle ax le system, measured at
t he t ire-grou nd inte rfaces .
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating ("GVWR")
means the max imum total loaded we ight of the vehicle .