2012 AUDI A3 lock

Ignition lock and ignition switch
Ignition lock
The engine can be started or turned off with
the ignition key.
Fig. 102 I gni tion lock positio ns
Ignition off@
In position ¢ fig. 102@both the ignition and
engine are off, and the steering is locked.
To
lock the steering after you have removed
the ignition key, turn the steering wheel in ei­
ther direction until you hear it lock into place.
You shou ld always lock the steering whenever
you leave your vehicle. This makes a vehicle
theft even more difficul t
q ,&.
Ignition on CD
If it is difficult to turn the key after you have
inserted it into the ignition lock, turn the
steering wheel back and forth. This will take
the load off the steering lock mechan ism and
you will be able to turn the key freely and
start the engine. On vehicles with a diesel en­
g ine*, the system can preheat in this pos ition .
Starting the engine @
In this position the engine starts. While the
engine is starting, the power supply to the
headlights and other electrical consumers is
temporarily interrupted to conserve battery power. After the engine has started, release
the key and it will return to position @.
Before the starter can be operated again the
key must be turned back to position @. The
non-repeat lock prevents you from damag ing
the starter when the engine is running.
On the road 89
A WARNING
-Never remove the key from the ignition
lock wh ile the vehicle is moving. The
steering wheel will lock caus ing loss of
control.
- If you have to leave your vehicle - even
for just a minute -always remove the ig­
nition key and take it with you. This is es­
pecia lly important if you are going to
leave children behind in the vehicle. The
children could start the engine or use
other vehicle controls. Unsupervised use
of vehicle controls (for example, power
windows) can cause serious personal in­
juries.
(D Tips
If the vehicle battery has been disconnect­
ed and then reconnected, then you must leave the key in position @for about 5
seconds before you can start the engine.
Ignition key safety lock
Applies to vehicles: wit h automatic transmission
The ignition key can only be removed when
the selector lever is in the "P" (Park) position.
Place the selector lever in the "P" position be­
fore switching off the engine .
After switching off the ign ition, the ignition
key can on ly be removed from the ignition
lock when the selector lever is in the "P"
(Park) position. After you have removed the
key, the se lector lever is locked and cannot be
moved.

92 On the road
On ly afte r th e ve hic le has come to com­
plete stop, shou ld you f irm ly set t he park­
ing b rake and either move the gea rshift
lever into 1st. gear (manual transm iss ion)
or move the selector lever into "P" (Auto­
mat ic transm ission).
Parking
To prevent a parked vehicle from rolling
away, there are a few things you should do.
When you park your ve hicle, do the following:
• Stop the vehicle using the brake pedal.
• Set the parking brake firmly.
• Move the selector lever into the
P position
( automatic transmi ssion ) or move the gear­
shift lever into 1st. gear
( manual t ransmi s­
s ion )<=:> .&,. .
• Switch off the eng ine and remove the igni-
t ion key from the ignit ion lock.
What else you shou ld do when p ark ing
your vehicl e on an incline or decline
Turn the stee ring wheel so that if the vehicle
should start to ro ll, it will roll into the curb.
If you are parking on a
decl ine (the front of
your ve hicle facing downhill), turn the front
wheels to the right so that they point
toward
the curb .
If you are parking on an incline (the font of
your ve hicle facing up hill), turn the front
wheels to the left so that they po int
away
from the curb.
Move the selector lever into the P pos ition
( automatic transmiss ion ) or move the gear­
sh ift lever into 1st . gear
(manua l tran smis­
sion) .
A WARNING
This is how yo u can red uce the risk of i n­
jury whe n leaving your veh icle.
- N ever park the v ehicle whe re it can come
in co ntac t wi th dry grass, sp illed f uel or
any ot her flammable m ater ials.
-
- Never a llow anyone -espec ially sma ll
children -to remain in the veh icle when
it is locked. Locked doors make it more
difficult for rescue rs to access t he pas­
senger compartment in t he event of an
emergency . Danger to life!
- Never leave children unsuperv ised in the
veh icle. Children could release t he pa rk­
i n g b rake or move the gearsh ift leve r out
of gear. The vehicle cou ld start to ro ll
a way an d ca use an acc ident.
- No matte r what the season is, the tem ­
pe rat ure in a par ked veh icle can reach
d angerous leve ls .
Starting on hills
App lies to vehicles : wi th hill ho ld assist
Hill hold assist makes it easier to start on
hills .
Requirement: The dr iver's door m ust be
cl osed, the seat bel t m ust be buckled and the
engine m ust be running.
The system is activated w hen the brake peda l
is dep ressed
for a few se cond s.
After releasing the brake pedal, the brake
power is held for a
brief moment to p revent
the ve hicl e from rolling back when starting. At
t hi s time, you ca n easi ly beg in to move your
vehicle.
A WARNING
= -
- If you di d no t begin moving immed iate ly
after releasing the brake pedal , under
certain ci rcumstances, the vehicle would
begin to ro ll backward. Depress the
brake peda l immediately or engage the
hand brake.
- Sh ould the engine sta ll, depress the
brake peda l immediately or engage the
hand brake .
- In order to prevent the vehicle from roll­
i n g back unintentionally when starting in
stop-and-go traffic, keep the brake pedal
depressed fo r a few seconds before driv-
ing off.
Ii),

96 Transmis sion
Transmission
Manual transmission
Gearshift lever
Applies to vehicles: with manual transmission
The clutch pedal must be depressed all the
way before you can start the engine .
The manual transmission in your Audi is
equipped with an
interlock-feature.
• Depress the clutch pedal all the way.
• Start the engine with the gearshift lever in
Neutral and the clutch pedal depressed.
(D Note
Always depress the clutch pedal fully when
changing gears. Do not hold the vehicle on
a hill with the clutch pedal partially de­
pressed. This may cause premature clutch
wear or damage .
@ Tips
-Resting your hand on the gearshift lever
knob while driving will cause premature
wear in the transmission.
- The back-up lights go on when you shift
i nto Reverse with the ignition on.
Gearshift pattern (6-speed manual
transmission)
Applies to vehicles: with 6-speed manual transmission
Fig. 108 Gearshift pattern: 6 -speed manual t ransmis­
sion
Drive in 6th gear for optimum fuel economy
when cruising . However, if more acceleration
is required (when passing, for example), shift
down.
Engaging reverse gear (R)
• Move the shift lever all the way to the left,
press it down, then push it forward.
Especially after driving forward, stop the vehi­
cle completely, shift into
Neutral and rest the
shift lever briefly in Neutral before shift ing in­
to
Reverse.
S tronic transmission
· Introduction
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic®
Your vehicle is equipped with a S tronic trans­
mission, also called a double-clutch system/
transmission .
Power is transferred between the engine and
the transmission by means of two independ­ ent clutches. They replace the torque convert­
er of conventiona l automatic transmissions
and allow the vehicle to accelerate without a
not iceable break in the power flow.
With the aid of
tiptronic, the gears can op­
t ionally be shifted
manually ~ page 100.
Selector lever positions
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic®
All the selector lever positions are explained
in this section.
~-. -·~•-~ _ .. _....,-l
•+55 °F '
i} 340 mi
D
Fig. 109 Disp lay: Se lector lever posi tions
The instrument cluster display shows these­
lector lever position.
P -Park lock
In this position the gears are mechanically
locked.

The park lock must only be engaged with the
vehicle
stationary c::> &.
To engage P and to remove the lever from th is
position, you must depress the release b utton
(button in the selector lever handle)
and si­
multaneously you must step on the brake
pedal.
R · re vers e
I n th is position, reverse is engaged.
Reverse gear must only be engaged with the
veh icle
stationary and the eng ine runn ing at
id le speed
c::> ,&. .
To engage R, you have to depress the release
button
and s imultaneously step on the brake
pedal. In the R position, the back-up lights il­
lum inate with the ign ition on.
N • N eutra l
The transmission is in neutral in this position .
D -Norm al po sition f or d riving forwa rd
In this position, the forward gears are auto­ matica lly shifted up and down, depending on
engine load and vehicle speed.
To engage S from N, the brake pedal must be
depressed at speeds be low S km/h or when
the vehicle is stationary
c::> & .
In certain circumstances (driving in the moun­
tains for examp le) it can be beneficial to
switch temporarily to the manua l shift pro­
gram
c::> page 100 in order to adjust the gear
ratios to driving cond itions
manually.
S -Sport setting
The S se tt ing shou ld be selected for sporting
d riving . The power reserves of the engine can
be fu lly exp loited through later upshifts.
To engage S from N, the brake pedal must be depressed at speeds be low S km/h or when
the vehicle is stationary
c::> & .
Tra n sm iss io n 9 7
A WARNING
- Never p lace the selector lever in the R or
P posit ion while the veh icle is moving -
risk of an accident!
- With the engine running, it is necessary
to hold the vehicle with the foot brake in all se lector lever positions (except P and
N), because even at idle speed the trans­
fe r of power is never completely inter­
rupted -the vehicle "creeps". If the vehi­
cle is stationary and the transm ission is
engaged, the engine should never be
speeded up unintentionally (e .g. manual­
ly from under the hood). Otherwise the
veh icle w ill immediately start to move -
sometimes even if the park ing brake is
firmly applied -risk of an accident!
- Before you or other persons open the
hood and work on a running engine, the
selecto r lever must be moved to P and
the park ing brake applied f irmly - risk of
an accident! Follow the warning sticke rs
c::> page 187, Engine compartment.
(D Tips
If you have inadvertently shift ing into N
while the vehicle is moving, you shou ld re­
move you r foot from the accelerator and
wait unt il the engine speed has dropped to
idle before shifting back to Dor S .
Selector lever lock
Applies to vehicl es: with S tronic®
The selector lever lock prevents a gear from
being engaged accidentally and unintention­
ally setting the vehicle in motion.
F ig. 110 Selector lever locks

98 Transmission
The selector lever lock is released as fo llows:
,. Switch the ign ition on.
,. Step on the brake peda l
and simult aneously
ho ld down the re le ase but ton .
(~ Automatic selector lev er lock
The selector lever is locked in the P and N po­
sitions when the ignition is on . To move the
l eve r from these positions the d river must de­
p ress the brake pedal. As a reminde r to the
d river, the fo llow ing warning appea rs in t he
instr ument cluster d isp lay when the selecto r
is in P and N :
APPLY BRAKE WHEN ENGAGING GEAR WITH
VEHICLE STATIONARY
I n addition, the symbo l
< se lecto r lever lock illuminates in t he sh ift
gate.
The selector lever lock is effective only whe n
the vehicl e is stationary and at speeds be low
S km/ h. At higher speeds, the lock i n the N
position is automatic ally swi tched off .
The selector lever is no t locked when rapid
shifts a re made thro ugh the N pos ition (e .g .
from R to D). Thi s allows yo u to "rock " the ve­
h icle if i t becomes s tuc k.
If the lever is in the
N pos it ion for mo re tha n 1 second w ith the
b rake peda l not depressed, the se lector lock
e ngages automatica lly.
Release button
The release button in the se lector lever ha n­
d le preven ts accident al sh ifts in to cer tain se­
lector lever posit ions. When you press the re­
lease butto n, the selector lever lock is cancel­
led . In the illustration, the pos itions in which
the release button has to be pressed are high ­
lighted in
color c:>fig.110.
Ignition key removal lock
The ignition key can on ly be remove after the
ignitio n is switched off if the selector lever is
in P. As long as the ignit ion key is removed,
the selecto r lever is locked in P.
(D Tips
If the se lector lever does not engage,
the re is a ma lfunction . The engine is disa-
b led to prevent the vehicle from driving off
u nintentionally. To allow t he se lector lever
to engage aga in, p roceed as follows: P ress
and release the b rake pedal.
Driving Notes
Applies to vehicles: wit h S tronic®
The forward gears are shifted up or down au­
tomatically .
Fig. 11 1 Sect io n from center co nso le: Se lecto r lever
w it h re lease butto n
Starting from stop
.. Step on and hold the brake peda l.
,. Hold the release button (button in selector
lever) down, move the selector lever to the
desired position , for example D
c:> page 96,
and release the button .
,. Release the brake p eda l and accelera te
c:> &_ .
Stopping temporarily
.,. Bring the veh icle to a full stop with the
brake, e .g. at traff ic signals .
,. Do not acce le rate.
Parking
,. Step on and hold the brake peda l c:> &_.
,. App ly the par king brake firmly .
,. Hold the release button down , move these-
lector leve r to P and release the button . .,.

Stopp ing on an incline
"' Always hold the vehicle with the footbrake
or parking b rake in order to p revent "roll ­
back"
¢ A . Do not try to prevent the vehi­
cle from rolling back by revving the engine
while it is in gear.
St artin g on a h ill
"' Apply the hand brake fi rm ly.
"' With the engine in gear, gradua lly acce ler-
ate and release the hand brake.
The engine can only be
s tar te d with the selec ­
tor lever in P o r N
c::> page 90 . At low ambient
temperatures
(14 °F /-10 °C), it is only possi­
b le to start the engine with the selector lever
in
P.
When parking on level ground , it is sufficient
to p lace the se lector lever in
P. On a steeply
sloping road, you should first apply the park­
ing brake firmly and then place the selector
lever in
P. This way, you do not overload the
pawl mechanism and it is eas ier to move the
selector lever out of P .
A WARNING
-Never leave your vehicle with the eng ine
running wh ile in gear. If you must leave
yo ur vehicle wi th the engine running, set
the parking bra ke and engage the pa rk
lock.
- When the engine is running and the
transmission is in gear (D, Sor
R) or in
"tiptronic" mode, it is essentia l that you
stop the vehicle with the footbrake .
When idling, the transmission of power
does not stop completely -the vehicle
"creeps".
- Do not accelerate when you change the selector lever position with the vehicle
stationary and the engine running - risk
of an accident!
- Never place the selector lever in the R or
N position while the vehicle is moving -
risk of an accident!
- If you have to bring your vehicle to a stop
wh ile on an incl ine, keep the foot brake
Tran sm iss ion 99
depressed all the way down so that the
veh icle does not sta rt to roll backward.
You should never ho ld the vehicle us ing
the clutch if you are going to be stopped
on an incl ine.
If you do, the clutch w ill
start to slip when it ove rheats caused by
the constan t overload. This is dangerous
bec ause if the vehicle starts to roll bac k­
ward, yo u co uld cause an acc iden t.
If the
clutch should start to slip, you wi ll feel
the vehicle "jerk" and the se lector lever
disp lay w ill start blink ing.
- Before driving down a steep slope , re­
duce your speed and shift into a lower
gear with "tiptronic".
- Do not ri de the brakes or apply the brake
pedal too often or too long. Constant
brak ing causes the brakes to overheat
and substantially reduces braking per­
formance, increases braking d istance or
causes complete fa ilu re of the brake sys­
t e m .
, Hill Descent Assist
App lies to vehicles : wi th S tronic t ra nsmi ssio n and H ill
D escent Ass ist
Hill Descent Assist helps the driver when driv ­
ing down inclines.
Hill Descent Assist is activated by pressing the
brake while descending when the se lector lev­
er is in
0 /5 . The S tronic transmission auto­
matically shifts down to a gear suitable for
the incline. H ill Descent Assist attempts to
maintai n the current veh icle speed w hen the
braking occu rs, as far as physical and techn i­
ca l lim its allow .
It may be necessa ry to adjust
the speed using the bra kes.
Hill Descent Assist sw itches off when the in­
cli ne leve ls out o r when the gas peda l is p ress ­
ed.
On vehicles with cruise control*
c::> page 94,
Hill Descent Assist is also activated when the
speed is set .
I),

102 Transmi ssion
the warning does not turn off, do not continue
driving . See your authorized Audi dealer or
qua lified repair fac ility for assistance. Other ­
wise serious transmission damage could re­
sult. Once the indicator light has turned off,
drive to your authorized Audi dealer or quali­
fied repair fac ility immediately to have t he
malfunction corrected.
Emergency release for selector lever
Appl ies to vehicles: with S tro nic®
If the vehicle's power supply fails, the selec­
tor lever can be released in an emergency.
Fig. 115 Selector lever: Remove selector lever sleeve
Fig . 1 16 Selecto r lever : emerge ncy release from the
Park pos it io n
The emergency release mechanism is located
on the right front under the selector lever
shift gate. The release procedure requ ires pro ­
fess iona l dexterity . We recommend that you
seek assistance .
Removing the selector lever boot
.,. Engage the parking brake .
.,. Remove the screwdriver from the vehicle
tool kit . Use the flat side of the reversib le
screwdriver blade¢
page 234 .
.,. Carefully pry the cover out w ith the sc rew­
dr ive r and pull it¢
fig. 115 towa rd the shift- er
knob in the direction of the arrow . The
screwdriver must grip at the lower edge of
the cover to loosen it .
Emergency rel ease for selector lev er
.,. Press t he ye llow release lever in the direc ­
tion of the arrow ¢
fig. 116 and hold it in
that position.
.,. Press t he re lease button in the selector lev-
er @ and move the lever into the N position.
.,. Clip the s hift boot back into the shift gate.
If the vehicle has to be pushed or towed if the
power supply fai ls (e.g. battery is discharged),
the selector lever must be moved to the N po­
s ition using the emergency locking device.
A WARNING
-The selector must only be shifted from the
P position if the handbrake is firmly ap­
p lied. Otherwise the vehi cle wou ld start
moving unexpe ctedly on a grade when the
se lec tor lever is s hifted from the P pos ition
- increasing the risk of an accide nt.

~ Always keep both feet in the footwell so
that you are in control of the vehicle at all
times.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
driver's seat, see ¢
page 62, Adjusting front
seats manually
or ¢ page 63, Adjusting the
power seat .
A WARNING
Drivers who are unbelted, out of position
or too close to the airbag can be seriously
injured by an airbag as it unfolds. To help
reduce the risk of serious personal injury:
- Always adjust the driver's seat and the
steering wheel so that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between your breast­
bone and the steering wheel.
- Always hold the steering wheel on the
outside of the steering wheel rim with
your hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock positions to help reduce the risk of per­
sonal injury if the driver's airbag inflates.
- Never hold the steering wheel at the
12 o'clock position or with your hands at
other positions inside the steering wheel
rim or on the steering wheel hub. Hold­
ing the steering wheel the wrong way
can cause serious injuries to the hands,
arms and head if the driver's airbag de­
ploys .
- Pointing the steering wheel toward your
face decreases the ability of the supple­ mental driver's airbag to protect you in a
collision .
- Always sit in an upright position and nev­
er lean against or place any part of your
body too close to the area where the air­
bags are located.
- Before driving, always adjust the front
seats and head restraints properly and
make sure that all passengers are prop­
erly restrained.
- Never adjust the seats while the vehicle
is moving . Your seat may move unexpect­
edly and you could lose control of the ve­
hicle.
Driving Safely 105
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests
are tilted back, the greater the risk of in­
jury due to incorrect positioning of the safety belt and improper seating posi­
tion .
- Children must always ride in child safety
seats ¢
page 143. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat
on the front passenger seat¢
page 122.
Proper seating position for the front
passenger
The proper front passenger seating position
is important for safe, relaxed driving.
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of
injury in the event of an accident, we recom­
mend that you adjust the seat for the front
passenger to the following position:
~ Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is
in an upright position and your back comes
in full contact with it whenever the vehicle is
moving.
~ Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge
is as even as possible with the top of your
head. If that is not possible, try to adjust
the head restraint so that it is as close to
this position as possible
¢page 107.
~ Keep both feet flat on the floor in front of
the front passenger seat .
~ Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
¢page 116.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
front passenger's seat, see ¢
page 61.
A WARNING
Front seat passengers who are unbelted,
out of position or too close to the airbag
can be seriously injured or killed by the air­
bag as it unfolds. To help reduce the risk of
serious personal injury:
- Passengers must always sit in an upright
position and never lean against or place
any part of their body too close to the
area where the airbags are located.
-
•
•