2012 AUDI A3 ESP

is locked so that the child and child safety
seat will stay in place.
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
children , especially those 12 years and young­
er, should always ride in the back seat proper­
ly restrained for their age and size.
A WARNING
Improperly installed child safety seats in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury
and death in a collision.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re­
tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re­
tractor cannot hold the child safety seat
in place during normal driving or in a
crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a child is not sitting in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly around
during a sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always make sure that the rear seat
backrest to which the center rear safety
belt is attached is securely latched when­
ever the rear center safety belt is being
used to secure a child restraint.
- If the backrest is not securely latched,
the child and the child restraint will be
thrown forward together with the back­
rest and will strike parts of the vehicle
interior. The child can be seriously in­
jured or killed.
- Never install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the front pas­
senger seat . A child will be seriously in­
jured and can be killed when the passen­
ger airbag inflates.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat and child against the backrest, center
armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Forward-facing child safety seats or in­
fant carriers installed on the front pas-
Child Safety 153
senger's seat may interfere with the de­
ployment of the airbag and cause serious
injury to the child.
- It is safer to install a forward-facing
child safety seat on the rear seat.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
c=> page 143. Special
precautions apply when installing a child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
c=> page 12 3, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
A WARNING
Always take special precautions if you
must install a forward or rearward-facing
child restraint on the front passenger's
seat in exceptional situations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-facing
child restraint is installed on the front
passenger seat, the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light must come on and stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- If
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, perform
the checks described
c=> page 133, Moni­
toring the Advanced Airbag System.
- Take the child restraint off the front pas­ senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on .
- Improper installation of child restraints
can reduce their effectiveness or even
prevent them from providing any protec­
tion.
-An improperly installed child restraint
can interfere with the airbag as it de­ ploys and seriously injure or even kill the
child.
-Always carefully follow the manufactur­
er's instructions provided with the child
safety seat or carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis­
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can
cause injury in a crash.
~
•
•

154 Child Safety
A WARNING
Forward-facing child restraints:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
w ith a passenger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child re­
straint up, against or
very near the in­
strument panel.
-Always
move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the forward-facing child restraint . The
backrest must be adjusted to an upright
position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
Rearward-facing child restraints:
-A child in a rearward-facing child safety
seat installed on the front passenger
seat will be seriously injured and can be
killed if the front airbag inflates -
even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
armrest, door or roof.
- Always be especially careful if you must
install a rearward facing child safety seat
on the front passenger seat in exception­
al circumstances.
- A tight tether strap on a rearward-facing
child restraint attached to the front pas­
senger seat can put too much pressure on the weight-mat in the seat and regis­
ter a heavier weight in the Advanced Air­
bag System . The heavier weight regis­
tered can make the system work as
though an adult were on the seat and de­
ploy the Advanced Airbag when it must be suppressed causing serious or even
fatal injury to the child.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install the rear-facing child safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
dealer.
Activating the convertible locking
retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se­
cure a child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufactur­
er's instructions when installing a child re­
straint in your vehicle . To activate the conver­
tible Lacking retractor:
.,. Place the child restraint on a seat , prefera­
bly on the rear seat.
.,. Slowly pull the belt
all the way out.
.,. Route it around or through the child re­
straint belt path
~ _&..
.,. Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really tight.
.,. Insert the belt tongue into the buckle for
that seating position .
.,. Guide the safety belt back into the retractor
until the belt lies flat and snug on the child
safety seat.
.,. You should hear a "clicking " noise as the
belt winds back into the inertia reel. Test the
convertible locking retractor by pulling on
the belt. You should no longer be able to
pull the belt out of the retractor. The con­
vertible locking retractor is now activat ed.
.,. Make sure that the red release button is fac­
ing away from the child restraint so th at i t
can be unbuckled quickly .
.,. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt
is properly tight and fastened so that the
seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2.5 cm). .,.

-Never attach two child restraint systems
to one tether strap or tether anchorage.
- Never attach a tether strap to a tie-down
hook in the luggage compartment.
- Never use child restraint tether ancho­
rages to secure safety belts or other
kinds of occupant restraints.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or
other items to the LATCH lower ancho­
rages or to the tether anchors.
-If a tether or other strap is used to at­
tach a child restraint to the front passen­ ger seat, make sure that it is not so
t ight , that it causes the weight-sensi ng
mat to measure more weight than is ac ­
tually on the seat .
- The heav ier weight reg istered can make
the Advanced Airbag System work as
though an adult were on the seat and de­
ploy the Advanced Ai rbag when it must
be s uppressed causing serious o r even
f atal injury to the child.
- If you mus t install a rearward facing
child safe ty seat o n the fron t passenger
seat beca use of exceptional circ ums tan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on , im­
med iately install the rear -facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the a irbag system inspected by you r
Audi dealer.
Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
F ig. 1 49 Tether strap : prope r ro utin g and mountin g
Child S afety 159
Fig. 1 50 Tet her st rap: prope r routing an d mounti ng
Installing the tether str ap
.. Release or deploy the te ther s trap on the
child restraint according to the child re ­
straint manufacture r's instructions .
.. Guide the upper tether st rap
und er the rear
head restra int and into the rea r cargo a rea
r=;, fig . 150 (ra ise the head restraint if neces ­
sary) .
.. Slide the tether strap hook over the anchor
bracket.
.. Pull on the tether st rap hook so th at the
spring cat ch of the hook engages .
.. Tighten the tether strap firmly follow ing
the child restra int manufacturer's inst ruc ­
tions.
Relea sing the tether strap
.. Loosen the tension following the ch ild re­
strain t manufac turer 's ins truc tions .
.. Depress the spring catch on the hook and
release it from the anchorage .
(D Note
If you leave the child restraint w ith the
tether strap firm ly installed for several
days, this could leave a ma rk on the up­
ho lstery on the seat cushion and backrest
i n the area where the tether strap was in­
stalled. The upholstery would also be per ­
mane ntly stretched a round the tether
strap. T his app lies especia lly to leather
seats.
Using tether straps on rearward-facing
child restraints
Cu rrently, few rear-facing child restraint sys-
tems come with a tether . Please read and ...,

Intelligent technology Notice about data
recorded by vehicle
control modules
Your vehicle is not equipped with an Event Da­
ta Recorder (EDR), installed by some manu­
facturers for the express purpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or crash
event. EDR's are sometimes called "crash re­
corders".
Some state laws restrict the retr ieval or down­
loading of data stored by EDR's that were in­
stalled in a vehicle for the express purpose of
retrieving data after an accident or crash
event without the owner's consent.
Although your vehicle is not equipped with an
EDR, it is equipped with a number of electron­
ic control modules for various vehicle systems
such as, for examp le, engine function, emis­
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic control modules also record
vehicle-related data during norma l vehicle op­
eration for diagnostic and repair purposes.
The recording capacity of the electronic con­
trol modules is limited to data (no sound is re­
corded) and only a small amount of data is ac­
tually recorded over a very limited period of
time and stored when a system fault or other
condition is sensed by a control unit. Some of
the data then stored may relate to vehicle
speed, direction, braking as we ll as restraint
system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condition. Stored data can only be read and downloaded with special equip­
ment.
Electronic Stabilization
Program (ESP)
Description
ESP helps to improve road holding and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of
skidding and loss of veh icle control. It works
only when the engine is running. ESP detects
Intelligent technology 161
certain difficult driving situations, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw)
out of control and helps you to get the veh icle
back under control by se lectively braking the
wheels, and/or reducing engine power and
providing steering ass istance to help hold the
vehicle on the driver's intended course. The in­
dicator light
G] in the instrument cluster
blinks when ESP is taking action to help you
control the vehicle.
ESP has limitations. It is important to remem­
ber that ESP cannot overcome the laws of
physics.
It will not always be able to help out
under all conditions you may come up against.
For example, ESP may not always be able to
help you master situations where there is a
sudden change in the coefficient of friction of
the road surface. When there is a section of dry road that is suddenly covered with water,
slush or snow, ESP cannot perform the same
way it would on the dry surface . If the vehicle
hydroplanes (rides on a cushion of water in­
stead of the road surface), ESP will not be
able to help you steer the vehicle because con­
tact with the pavement has been interrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered .
During fast cornering, particularly on winding
roads, ESP cannot always deal as effectively
with difficult driving situations as at lower
speeds. When towing a trailer, ESP is not able
to help you regain control as it would if you
were not tow ing a trailer.
A lways adjust your speed and driving style to
road, traffic; and weather conditions. ESP can­
not override the vehicle's physical limits, in­
crease the available traction, or keep a vehicle
on the road if road departure is a result of
driver inattention. Instead, ESP improves the
poss ibility of keeping the vehicle under con­
trol and on the road dur ing extreme maneu­
vers by using the driver's steering inputs to
help keep the vehicle going in the intended di­
rection. If you are traveling at a speed that
causes you to run off the road before ESP can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESP .
•
•

162 Intelligent technology
ESP includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock brake system (ABS), brake assist sys­
tem and anti-slip regulation (ASR). ESP is
switched on all the time. In certain situations
when you need less tract ion, you ca n sw itch
off ESP by pressing the button [g] _ Be sure to
switch ESP on again when you no longer need l ess traction .
Anti-lock b raking system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up
when braking. The vehicle can still be steered
even during hard braking. Apply steady pres­
sure to the brake pedal. Do not pump the ped­
al. A puls ing in the b rake pedal ind icates that
the system is he lp ing you to b ra ke the vehicle.
Br ake a ssist system
The brake assist system can decrease braking
d istance. It increases braking power when the
d river presses the brake pedal quick ly in eme r­
gency situations. You must press and hold the
brake peda l until the si tuation is over .
Anti-slip regulation (ASR)
ASR reduces engine power when the drive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the fo rce to
the road co ndit io ns. This makes it easier to
start, ac celerate and drive up hills.
Electronic differential loc k (EDL )
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinn ing and
transfers the drive power to the other drive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
a ll-wheel d rive*. This funct ion is available up
to abo ut 60 mph (100 km/h).
In extreme cases, EDL automat ically switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked whee l
from ove rheating . EDL w il l switch on aga in au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to
n o rmal.
& WARNING
- ESP, A BS, ASR an d EDL cannot ove rcome
the laws of physics . This is espec ially im ­
portant on slippery or wet roads. If the
systems begin act ing to stab ilize your ve­
hicle, you should immediately cha nge your speed to matc
h the road and t raffic
conditions. Do not let the increased safe­
ty provided by these systems tempt you
to take risks. Do ing so w ill increase the
ris k of a loss of veh icle control , co llision
and serious pe rsonal inj uries .
- Always adapt your speed to road, traffic and weather conditions. The risk of los­
ing control of the vehicle inc reases when
d riving too fast, espec ially through
curves and on slippe ry or wet roads, and
when dr iv ing too close to vehicles up
ahead. ESP, ABS, the brake assist system, EDL an d ASR cannot prevent collisions.
- Always accelera te with special care on
even, smooth s urfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow.
The drive wheels can spin even w ith
these assistance systems that cannot al­
ways he lp to red uce the risk of loss of ve­
h icle control.
(D Tips
- ABS and ASR only work correct ly when
all four wheels are equipped with identi­
cal tires. Diffe rent tire sizes can lead to a
reduction in engine powe r.
- You may hear noises when the systems
descr ibed are working .
- If the indicator light
D] or m (USA
mode ls)/ KC] (Canada models) appears,
t here may be a malfunction~
page 18,
~page 18.
ESP switching on/off
Fig. 151 Ce nter conso le: ESP O FF butto n
The ESP is automat ically activated whe n the
engine is started, and it performs a se lf-test .
II>

As soon as the test is completed, the system
is in normal operating mode.
Switching off
E SP should normally be activated at all times
because this ensures optimum vehicle stabil i­
ty. In certa in situations, it might make sense
to a llow some slip . For example:
- Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Driving in deep snow or on loose ground
- Driving with snow cha ins
Press the
[!I button . The ESP indicator light I)
turns on and S tabil isat ion prog ram off ap­
pears in the d isp lay. ASR deact ivates com­
pletely and the stab ilizat ion effects from the
ESP system are lim ited.
S wi tc hing on
Press the [!I button again. The message S tab i·
li sa tion p rogram on
appears briefly in the dis­
play.
A WARNING
You should only sw itch the ESP off if your
driving ability and the traffic s ituation per­
m it. Please note that when ESP/ASR is de­
act ivated, the drive whee ls can sp in on icy
and slippe ry roads and the vehi cle can
break away - danger of skidding!
(j) Tips
If A udi magnetic ride* is malfunctioning,
the ESP may not switch off or it may
sw itch off automatically.
Braking
General information
What affects braking efficiency?
Operating condit ions and d riving habit s
The brakes on today's automobi les are st ill
subject to wear, depending largely on operat­
ing cond itions and dr iving habits
q .&. . On ve ­
hicles that are either driven mostly in stop­
and -go city traffic or are driven hard, the
brake pads should be checked by your author-
Int ellig ent technolog y 163
ized Audi dea ler more often than specified in
the
W arra nty & M aintenance booklet. Failure
to have your brake pads inspected can result
in reduced brake performance.
On steep slopes, you sho uld use the b raking
effect of the engine. This way, you prevent un­
necessary wear on the brake system. If you
must use your brakes, do not hold the brakes
down cont inuously. Pump the brakes at inter­
vals.
Noises may occur when braking depending on
speed, braking force and outs ide cond it ions
such as temperature and humidity.
Mo isture o r road sal t
If you are driving faster than SO mph (80 km/
h) and the windshield wipers are on, the brake
pads will briefly touch the brake discs in regu­
lar intervals so as to improve react ion time
when brak ing on wet surfaces. You, the driver,
will not not ice anything.
Under certain conditions, for example, when
driv ing through water or very heavy ra in, or
even after washing your veh icle, the braking
effect can be reduced due to moisture (or in
freez ing cond itions ice) on the brake pads. A
few cautious brake applications should dry off
the b ra ke pads or remove any ice coatings.
The effectiveness of the brakes ca n be reduced
when the vehicle is driven on a salt-cove red
road and the brakes are not used. l ikewise,
you clean off accumulated salt coating from brake d iscs and pads w ith a few cautio us ap­
plications o f the b ra ke
¢ .&, .
Corrosion
T here may be a tendency for di rt to b uild up
o n the brake pads and corros ion to fo rm on
the d iscs if the car is not d riven regu larly or
o nly for short tr ips w ith litt le use of the
brakes.
If the brakes a re not used frequently, o r if cor­
ros ion has formed on the discs, it is adv isable
to clean off t he pads and d iscs by braking
firmly a few times from a moderately high
speed ~.&. . .,.
•
•

However, do not expect that the ABS shortens
braking distance under
all circumstances.
When driving on grave l or on newly fallen
snow on top of icy surfaces, braking distance may be even longer, therefore, under these
circumstances, it is especially important that
you dr ive slowly and with great care .
How th e ABS syste m work s
An automatic check is made when a speed of
about 4 mph (6 km/h) is reached. When this
happens, a pumping noise can be heard .
If an individua l wheel begins to rotate too
slowly in relation to vehicle speed and tends
to lock, the ABS automatically reduces brake
pressure to prevent that wheel from locking.
This automatic adjustment process will cause
a
s light vib ration of the brake pedal and some
noises to alert you that vehicle speed must be
adapted to existing road and traff ic condi­
tions .
A WARNING
Although the ABS is very effective, always
remember that bra king capability is limit­
ed by t ire traction. Always adjust your dr iv­
ing speed according to the road and traffic
conditions . Do not let the extra sa fe ty af ­
forded bytheABStemptyou into taking
extra r isks. The ABS cannot overcome the
laws of physics.
(D Tips
- If ABS is not functioning properly, a
warning light will come on. See
¢ page 18.
- If a fault occurs in the ABS, the EDL is al ­
so not functioning . This is indicated by
the ABS warning light.
Brake assistant
The broke assistant is designed to achieve the
optimum broking effect .
The brake assistan t helps to increase the ef­
fective
b raking power and thus to achieve a
shorter stopping distance . If the driver
Int ellig ent technolog y 165
presses the brake peda l very quick ly, the brake
assistant automatically boosts the braking
force to the max imum level, up to the po int
where the anti-lock brake function (ABS) inter­
venes to stop the whee ls from locking. You
shou ld then keep the brake peda l pressed un ­
t il the vehicle has braked to the required
speed. The brake assistant switches itself off
as soon as you release the b ra ke peda l.
The brake ass istant wi ll not be operative if
there is a ma lfunction in the ABS.
A WARNING
P lease remember that the acc ident risk a l­
ways increases if you drive too fast, espe­
cially in corners or on a slippe ry road, o r if
you follow the vehicle ahead of yo u too
closely . An increased accident risk cannot
be compensated even by the brake assis ­
tant, so always mainta in a safe speed.
Electro-mechanical
power assist
The electro-mechanical power assist helps
the driver when steering .
The degree of power assist is electronically
matched to vehicle speed .
The power steering system assists the driver
so that he can steer the vehicle with reduced physical effort.
Power steering will not work if t he engine is
off . As a result, the steering wheel will be hard
to turn .
A WARNING
If the system deve lops a problem, you
must seek qualified professiona l assis­
tance.
(D Note
If there is an e lectronic malfunction, ser­
votronic
will still function like a conven-
tiona l power steering system, providing a
constant steering support force that is no
-
l onge r proportionate to the vehicle speed. ..,.
•
•

166 Intelligent technolog y
This is most noticeab le when turning the
steering whee l at low speeds (for examp le
when parking), -more effort will be re­
quired than usual.
- Be aware of the different than usual
steering response and adjust your steer­
i ng force accord ingly.
- Have the problem checked and set right
by an author ized Audi dealer as soon as
possible.
- If a steering malfunct ion occurs, this is
s ignaled with the
ts ~ or .• indicator
li ghts and a warning tone, see.
(D Tips
- If the power steering system shou ld fail,
or if the eng ine is not running (for exam­
ple, while being towed), you will st ill be
able to steer the veh icle. However, more
effort will be req uired to do so.
- If the power steering system is not func­
tioning properly, co ntact your authorized
A udi dealer immediate ly.
Driving with your
quattro ®
Appl ies to vehicles: with All Whee l Drive
With All Wheel Drive, all four wheels are driv ­
en.
General information
W ith All Whee l Dr ive, power is d istributed to
a ll fo ur wheels . This happens automa tic a lly
depending on your driv ing sty le and the road
conditions at the time . See also
¢ page 161.
Winter tires
When dr iv ing in the w inte r, your ve hicle w it h
A ll Whee l Drive has an advantage, even wi th
reg ular t ires. In win ter road condi tions it may
be adv isable to mo unt winter tires (o r all-sea ­
son tires) for improved driveability and b rak­
ing: these tires must be mounted on all four
wheels. See also ¢ page 22 7, Winter tires.
Snow chains
Where snow chains are manda to ry on ce rtain
roads, this norma lly also app lies to ve hicles
with all-wheel drive¢
page 228, Snow
chains.
Replacing wheels /tires
Vehicles with A ll Wheel D rive must a lways
have t ires o f the same s ize. A lso avoi d tires
with different t read depths . For deta ils see
page
¢ page 223, New tires and replacing
tires and wheels .
Off-Road driving?
Your Audi does no t have enough g round clea r­
ance to be used as an off-road vehicle .
It is
therefore bes t to avoid rough tracks a nd un ­
even terrain as much as possib le . Also refer to
¢ page 171.
A WARNING
-
Always ad just your dr iv ing to road and traf-
f ic conditions. Do not let the extra safety
afforded by the all-wheel dr ive tempt you
i nto ta king extra risks.
- Although the quattro ®all-wheel dr ive is
very effect ive, a lways remember that
b rak ing capac ity is limited by tire trac­
tion . You should therefore not d rive at
excessive speeds on icy or slippe ry road
sur faces.
- On wet road surfa ces, be careful not to
d rive too fast because the front whee ls
could begin to slide on top of the water
(hydroplaning). If this sho uld occ ur, you
will have no warning from a s udden in ­
crease in eng ine speed as w it h a front­
wheel d rive veh icle. Always drive at
speeds which are adjusted to the road
conditions - risk of c rash!