2012 AUDI A3 service indicator

2 Table of contents Vehicle literature .. .. .. .. .. ... .
About this Owner's Manual ...
Controls and equipment .. ... .
Ins truments and controls .. . .
General illus tration .... ... .. .. ... .
Instruments and warning /
indicator lights ..... ... .. .. .. . .
Ins trum ents . .. .. ..... ... .. .. ... .
War ning/ ind ic ator lights ... .. ... .. .
Driver information d isplay .. . .
Introduct ion . .. .. ..... ... .. .. ... .
On-Boa rd Diagnostic syst em (OBD) .. .
T rip compute r .. ... .... ..... .. .. . .
M en u dis pl ay ... ...... ... .. .. .. . .
Efficien cy progr am . ........ ... .. . .
Service in terval d is pl ay .. .. .. .. .. . .
E ng ine oi l tempe ratu re d is pl ay .... . .
S peed warn ing syste m ..... .. .. ... .
Opening and closing .... .. .. . .
Keys .. .. .. ................ ... . .
P ower locking sys tem . .. .. .. .. .. . .
D oors, power lo cks . .... ..... .. .. . .
P owe r win dows .. .. ... ... .. .. ... .
P anoram ic slid ing su nroof . ... ... .. .
Clear vision .. . ...... ... .. .. ... .
Lights ...... .. .. .. ... ... .. .. ... .
Int erior lights .. .. ..... ... .. .. ... .
V1s1on . .. .. .. . .. ..... ... .. .. .. . .
M irro rs . ... .... .. ... ...... .. .. . .
W iper and w asher sy stem .. .. .. ... .
Dig ita l comp ass ... .... ... .. .. .. . .
Seats and storage ..... .. .. ... .
General recommendat ions ... .. .. . .
Ad just ing front seats manua lly .. .. . .
Ad just ing the powe r sea t ... .. .. .. . .
Ad just ing the lumb ar su pport . .. .. . .
H ead res traints ... ....... .. .. .. . .
Ce nte r arm rest . .. ..... ... .. .. ... .
R ear s eats . .... .. ..... ... .. .. ... .
L uggag e com partm ent . ... .. .. ... .
Roof r ack* insta llat ion . .... .. .. .. . .
5
6
8
8
8
10
10
1 3
23
2 3
24
25
27
29
30
31
3 1
34
34
36
3 8
4 3
45
47
47
5 1
53
53
55
59
61
61
62
63
64
65
6 6
6 6
6 7
7 1
Cu p ho lde rs ... .. ... .. ..... .... . .
Sock et . ... .... .. .. ... ..... ... .. .
Storage ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .. .
Warm and cold ... .. ..... .... . .
Clima te cont rols .. .. .... .... ... .. .
E lect rically he ated front se ats .. .. .. .
Eng ine p rehe ater
On the road ... ... .. ..... ... .. .
Steer ing .. .. .. .. ...... ....... .. .
I g nit ion lock and ig ni tion sw it ch .. .. .
St arting and stopp ing the engine ... .
Pa rking brak e .. .. ............... .
Sta rt ing on h ills .. ... .. ..... ... .. .
A coustic parking sys tem . ....... .. .
C ruise con trol .. . .. ... ... ... .. ... .
Audi mag net ic r ide . .... ..... ... .. .
Transm ission .. ...... ....... .. .
Manua l transm ission . ... .... ... .. .
S tronic transmiss ion . .. ..... ... .. .
Safety first .. .. ...... ....... .. .
Driving Safely ... .... .... ... .. .
Gene ra l notes .... .. ... ..... ... .. .
Pro per occupant seat ing posit ions . . .
Pedal a rea . .. .. .. ...... ....... .. .
S tow ing lugg age . ... .. ..... ... .. .
Repo rting Safety Defects .......... .
Safety belts ... ...... ....... .. .
Gener al note s .... .... ...... ... .. .
Why safety belts? ... .. ..... ..... .
Safety belts . .. ............ ..... .
Safety be lt pretensioners . ........ .
74
75
75
79
79
85
86
88
88
89
90
91
92
93
9 4
95
96
96
96
103
103
103
104
108
109
1 11
113
113
114
116
120
Airbag sy stem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Important th ings to know . . . . . . . . . . 122
Fron t air bags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 26
Moni toring the Adv anced Ai rb ag
Syst em . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
133
Sid e airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Sid e curtain airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Child Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Important things to know . . . . . . . . . . 143
Child safety se ats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

16 Instrum ent s and w arn ing /indic ato r light s
immediately by your authorized Audi
dealer or a qualified workshop. Drive
slowly and avoid sudden, hard brake ap­ plication.
- Canada models: If both, the brake warn­
ing light . and the ABS warning light
Ii] come on at the same time, the rear
wheels could lock up first under hard braking. Lock-up of the rear wheel brakes
can cause loss of vehicle control and an
acc ident. Have your vehicle repaired im­
med iately by your authorized Audi dealer
or a qualified workshop. Drive slowly and avoid sudden, hard brake application
- If the brake warning/indicator light does not go out after a few seconds and the
park ing brake re leased, or lights up while
you are driving, the fluid level in the brake flu id reservo ir is too low. If you be­
lieve that it is safe to do so, proceed im­
med iately at low speed to the nearest
authorized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop and have the bra ke system inspect­
ed.
- Always keep in m ind that afte r several
brake applicat ions, you will need g reater
pressure on the b rake peda l to stop your
vehicle. Do not re ly on strained brakes to
respond with maxim um stopping power
in critical situations . You must allow for
increased brak ing distances. The extra
distance used up by fad ing brakes could
lead to an acc ident.
~ / ! .!r Safety systems
The I (USA models)/ . (Canada mode ls) in­
d icator light monitors the safety systems e.g.
a irbags, pretensioners a nd illum inates for a
few seconds each time you switc h the ign ition
on.
If the
I (USA models)/ . (Canada models)
indicator light does not go out, or if it illumi­
nates w hile you are driv ing, or if it sta rts to
b lin k, then there is a ma lf u nction somewhere
in the system. If the light does not illuminate
when you switch on the ignition, this also
means there is a ma lfunction.
A WARNING
If you have a ma lfunction in the safety sys­
tems, contact your authorized Audi dea ler
i mmediately. Otherwise the safety sys­
tems may not work properly in an acc i­
dent.
~ Safety belt warning light
App lies to veh icles : w ith safe ty belt warni ng lig h t
The warning light is a reminder to fasten
safety belts .
The warning lig ht . comes on for a few sec­
onds after the ignition is sw itched on as a re ­
minder to fasten your safety belt .
Additional information on safety belts
r::> page 113.
D Generator '
This warning/indicator light detects a mal ­
function in the generator or in the vehicle 's
electrical system.
The . warning/indicator light i llum inates
when you switch on the ignition and must go
out after the eng ine has started.
If the . warning/indicator light illuminates
whi le you are driving, you sho uld contact your
authorized Aud i dea ler. Since the vehicle bat­
tery is discharging, you shou ld sw itch
off any
unnecessary electr ica l consumers (for exam ­
ple, the air conditioner) .
~ Engine oil pressure
The red engine oil pressure warning symbol
requires immediate service or repair .
If the . symbo l appears in the d isplay and
flashes, the o il pressure is too low . In add ition
to the symbol, the following message a lso ap­
pears in the display:
Switch off engine! Oil pre ssure is too low
.. Pull off the road and stop the vehicle.
.. Shut the engine down.
.. Check the engine oil leve l¢
page 200.

Instruments and warning/indicator lights 21
If the message does not turn off, have your
authorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop
correct the malfunction .
Bil Fuel supply too low
When the (I symbol illuminates, this means
there are about 2.6 gallons (10 liters) of fuel left in the fuel tank. Time to refuel!
Qpage 191.
If the symbol lights up, even when there is
ample fuel in the tank, and the text
Tank sys­
tem malfunction! Please contact workshop
appears in the display, there is a fault in the
system. Contact a qualified workshop to have
the fault rectified.
Q Windshield washer fluid level too low
If the I! symbol illuminates, add windshield
washer fluid to the washer system
Q page211.
~ Defective light bulb warning
The defective light bulb warning tells you
when a vehicle light bulb hos become defec­
tive .
If a defective bulb has been detected by the
system or a light bu lb burns out , the ~ sym­
bol with a message appears in the disp lay to
tell you which bu lb is burnt out and where it is
located. For example:
Rear left turn signal
After 5 seconds, the message disappears . If
you want to recall the message into the dis­
p lay, press the C H ECK button
Q page 10,
fig. 3(?) .
There are three reasons why the defective
bulb message wo uld app ear in the display:
- T he light bulb has burnt out
Q page 246 .
-The fuse is "blown" c> page 243, Replacing
fuses .
-The w ire connection to the light bulb is de­
fective. Have the
bulb replaced or the connection re­
paired by your authorized Audi Service depart­
ment .
_& WARNING
- Light bulbs are pressurized and could ex­
plode wh ile they are being changed caus­
ing serious pe rsonal injury .
- Work with due care when handling the
high-vo ltage sect ion of gas discharge
(xenon) lamps. Failing to do so could re­
sult in death or serious injury!
BRAKE LIGHT!<@> Brake light defective
In case of a malfunction or component fail-
ure, the symbol (USA models)/
tlJ (Canada models) can appear. The follow­
ing electrical components should be checked,
repaired or replaced , as necessary:
- Brake light bulbs
- All wir ing con nections
- Brake light switch
Contact your authori zed Audi dea ler for assis­
tance if necessary.
(D Tips
The brake light switch is only inspected as
part of the functional chec k after the en­
gine is started.
i,0 Headlight range control defective
Applies to vehicles : wi th dynamic headl ig h t ra nge adjus t­
m ent
If the II illumi nates, the dynamic headlight
range contro l is no longer working p roperly.
Have the system checked and repaired at your
authori zed Aud i dealer.
§'0
Adaptive light defective
App lies to vehicles: with Ada ptive Light
FJl Adaptive light defective

24 Driver information d isplay
temperature. This is caused by the heat
being radiated from the engine .
- On vehicles with S tronic, the reminders
do not appear in the display until you se­
l ect a gear .
- On vehicles with Audi Navigation sys­
tem*, the displays may differ from their
norma l appearance during navigation.
Gearshift recommendation
App lies to vehicles: with gearshift ind icator and manual
transmiss ion
This indicator can help conserve fuel.
Fig. 8 Gears hi ft recommenda tion
In order to become familiar with the gearshift
indicator, begin driving as usual.
If the current
gear is not the best one for conserving fuel,
the indicator will display the recommended
gear . The display shows the current gear and
the recommended gear
c:> fig . 8 .
- Upshift ing: The display is to the right of the
current gear if a
higher gear is recommend­
ed .
-Downshift ing: The display is to the left of
the current gear if a
lower gear is recom­
mended .
Sometimes the ind icator w ill recommend
skipping a gear (3..,. 5).
(D Note
This indicator should help you conserve
fue l. It is not designed to recommend the
correct gear in all driving situations. Only
the dr iver can dec ide which gear is correct
in certa in driving situations such as when
accelerating or dr iving on h ills.
(D Tips
- The display switches off when the clutch
peda l is pressed.
- Gear shift recommendation can be deac­
tivated in the driver information system
c:>page 27.
On-Board Diagnostic
system (OBD)
On-Board Diagnostics
Fig. 9 Locat ion of Data Link Connector (DLC)
On-Boa rd Diagnostics monitors the compo­
nents of your em iss ion control system. Each
controlled component in your engine system
has been assigned a code . In case of a mal ­
function, the component wi ll be identified
and the fault stored as a code in the control
module memory.
The MIL lamp may a lso illuminate if there is a
leak in the on-board fuel vapor recovery sys­
tem. If the light illuminates after a refuelling,
pull off the road and stop the vehicle, then
check that the fuel filler cap is properly closed
c:> page 192.
In order to make an accurate diagnosis, the
stored data can only be displayed using spe ­
cial diagnostic equipment (generic scan tool
for 080) .
In order to connect the special diagnostic
equipment, push the plug into the Data Link
Connector (DLC). The DLC is located to the
right of the engine hood release lever
c:> fig. 9.
Your authorized Audi dealer or a qualified service station can interpret the code and per ­
form the necessary repair.

222 Tires and wheels
and luggag e loa d cap acit y
c alcul ated in St ep 4.
6 . If your v ehi cle will b e towing
a trail er, load fro m your trail ­
er will b e tr ansferr ed to your
vehi cle. Con sult thi s manual
to determin e how thi s re­
d uces the available cargo
and luggage lo ad capacity of
y our vehicle.
..., Check the tire sidewall
(q page 223, fi g . 171) to de­
termine the d esignated lo ad
rating f or a specific tire.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balan cing, correct tire pressure and driv­
ing style.
Fig. 16 9 Tire tread: trea d wea r in di cators (TWI)
fr
Fig. 1 70 Rotat ing t ires for more even wear
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The or ig inal tires on you r vehicle have
1/ 16 inch ( 1.6 mm) hig h "wear indica tors"
c::> fig. 169 ru nning across the tread . Depend­
ing on the ma ke, there will be six to eight of
them even ly placed aro und the tire. Marks on
the tire sidewall (for example "TWI" or other
symbols) ind icate the positions of the tread
wear indica to rs. Wor n tires must be replaced .
Different figures may apply in other countr ies
c::> .&_ .
Tire pressure
Incor rect t ire pressure causes premature wea r
and can cause sudde n tire blow-out . For this
reason, tire pressu re must be checked at least
o nce a month
c::> page 218 .
Driving style
Driving fast around c urves , heavy accelerat ion
and hard braking increase tire wear .
Rotating tires for more even wear
F or all four tires on your ve hicle to have the
same service life, we recomme nd that the
front and rear tires are rotated accord ing to
the tire manufact urer's suggested tire rota­
tion intervals. Please remembe r th e follow­
i ng:
- T ire rotation intervals may differ from the
veh icle service intervals o utli ned in your
Warranty
& M ain tena nce Booklet .
- The longer one tire is used in one location
on t he vehicle, the more it wears at certain
points; the refore , we recommend that you
follow the tire man ufac turer's suggested
tir e rotat ion intervals.
- Vehi cles with front -wheel dr ive experience
more trea d wear on the fro nt wheels com­
pa red to all-wheel d rive (q uattro ®).
- Please rotate tires as shown
c::> fig . 170 .
-Extra care must be taken when rotating di-
rection -spec ific tires
c::> page 241 .
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new ve hicles are balanced .
However, various s ituations during everyday
driv ing ca n cause them to become
...

264 Index .:..:..:..::....::..
...:..._ ___________________________ _
A
ABS
refer to Anti-lock brake system . ... .. . 164
Accessories .. ... .. ..... ... .. .. .. .. . 26 1
Acoust ic park assist ........ .. .. .... .. 93
AC (a ir cond itioner) ......... .. .. .. .. .. 81
Adapter for anti-theft wheel bolts . .. .. . 238
Adaptive light
defective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Adding Engine coolant .......... .... ..... . 204
Engine oil . ...... ....... ... .. .... . 200
Windshield washer fluid ............ 211
Addit ional accessories .......... .... . 261
Additional heater Climate controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Additives Engine oil . ............... ... .. .. . 200
Adj ustab le steering wheel column .... .. 88
Adjusting Steer ing wheel column ........ .. .... 88
Adjusting front seats ........ ... .... .. 61
Advanced Airbag System
Components ... .......... .. .. .. .. . 129
Fr ont airbags ................ .... . 127
How the components work together .. 130
Monitoring ................. ..... . 133
PASS ENG ER A IR BAG OFF light .. .... . 133
A irbag
Warning/indicator lights ............. 16
A irbag system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122, 139
Advanced Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Care . .. .. ............... .. .. .... . 135
Ch ildren . .... ........... .. .. .. .. . 144
Ch ild r estra ints ........... .. .. .. .. . 145
Components (front airbags) . ... .... . 129
Danger of fitting a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Disposal . ................. .. .... . 135
Front airbags . ........... .. .. .... . 126
How do the front airbags work? . . . . . . 131
H ow many airbags does my vehicle
have? ..... .......... ...... ... .. . 129
I mportant things to know .... .. .... . 122
I ndicator light ........... .. .. .. .. . 133
Monitoring ................. ..... . 133 Repairs ...
.... .. ............. .... 135
Side airbags ..... ................ . 137
S ide curtain airbags ................ 140
When must the system be inspected? 133
Airbag System
Weight-sensing mat .............. . 144
Air conditioner .. .. ................ .. 81
also refer to Climate controls .. .. .. .. . 79
Air conditioning Switching on and off ........... .. .. . 81
Air distribution Climate controls . ................. .. 83
Air outlets Adjusting the outlets for rapid defrost -
ing/defogging ... ................ .. 84
Climate controls . .............. ..... 84
Air quality sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Air recirculation . .. ... .......... .... . 83
Climate controls .. ............. .... . 82
When should I use the air recirculation? 82
Air recirculation mode Climate controls . ................. .. 82
All-wheel drive Winter tires ... .. ... .......... .... 227
Alloy wheels ...... ................ . 182
All Wheel Drive .... ............. .... 166
Alternator
refer to Generator ............. .. .. . 16
Aluminum alloy wheels .... ...... .... 182
Ambient lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Anti-lock brake system How the ABS system works ........ .. 164
Warning/ind icator lights ........ .. .. . 18
Anti -theft systems
Anti-Theft Alarm System . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Anti-theft wheel bolts ........... .... 238
Armrest Center armrest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Rear armrest .... ................ .. 67
Asterisk What does it mean when something is
marked with an aster isk? ........ .... .. 6
Audi magnetic ride . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22, 9S
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Indicator light ... ....... ...... .. .. . 22
Audi Service Repair Manuals and Litera-
ture 259

_______________________________ I~ n~ d:::: e~x 275
Temperature disp lay
Engine oi l .. .... .. .... ... .. .. .. .... 31
Tet he r anchors ............ .... .. ... 158
Tether strap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
The first 1,000 m iles (1,500 km) and after-
wards ..... .. .. ... .. ..... ... .. .. ... 169
Tie-downs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68, 110
Tips for the environment
Saving fuel .............. .... .. .... 74
Tire pressure ..... .. .... ... .. .. .. ... 218
T ire pressure monitor ing system ....... 230
L oss of air pressure ............ 19,231
M alf unct io n .. ........... .. .. .. ... 23 1
Rese tting ti re press ures . . . . . . . . 232, 233
Tires ...... ...................... .. 212
Replacing ...................... .. 223
Service life . ............. .... .. ... 222
speed rat ing letter code ... .. .. .. .. .
T ire man ufacturing da te ... .. .. .. .. .
r ·f · · rre speer 1ca t1ons ..... ... .. .. .. .. .
Tread depth . .. .. ..... ... .. .. .. .. . 224
224
224
222
Uniform tire quality grading . ... .. .. . 226
W inter t ires ............. .... .. ... 227
T ires/Wheels
L ow aspect ratio t ires ... ... .. .. .. .. . 229
Tire pressure monitoring system . 19,230
Tires and vehicle load limits .. .. .. .. .. . 220
Tires and wheels
Checking tire pressure .............. 218
Cold tire i nflat ion pressure .......... 216
o· . 1mens1ons .... .. .. ..... ... .. .. .. . 223
Gene ral notes ..................... 212
Glossary of t ire and load ing te rm inolo-
gy · · · · · · · · ................. .. ... 213
New tires and wheels ... ... .. .. .. .. . 223
Replacing .. .... .. .... ... .. .. .. ... 224
Snow chains . ..... .... ... .. .. .. ... 228
T ires and vehicle load limits .. .. .. .. . 220
Wheel bolts ............. .... .. ... 229
w· t · rn er tr res ............. .... .. ... 227
Tire service life 222
Torn or frayed safety belts ............ 116
Touch-up paint
Tow ing
Fr ont eyelet
Rear eyelet 181
2 51
252
Tow truck procedures ... ... .. .. .. .. . 25 1 T
PMS
Tire pressure monitoring system
T ra ile r tow ing 231
17 4
Operating instr uctions .......... .. .. 175
T echnical requirements . . . . . . . . 174, 175
T rai le r tow ing tips . .. ... .... ... .. .. 176
Transmission 6-speed . .. .. .. .. .... ........... .. . 96
Manua l tran sm ission ................ 96
S tronic transmission ........... .... . 96
T ransport Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
T read Wear Indicator (TWI) .... ... .. .. 222
T rip compute r ... .. .. . .............. . 25
Tr ip odometer ... .. ................. . 12
What does it mean when dEF appears in
the tr ip odomete r display? ........ .. . 12
Turn signals ... .... ... .. .. ..... ... .. . SO
Warning/ind icator lights ........ .. .. . 22
u
Undercoating ....... . .. .. ..... ... .. 183
Un fastening safety belts ............. 118
Uni directional tires .................. 212
Uniform tire quality grading
Un locking 226
Power locking sw itch .............. .. 39
Rea r lid ... .. .. .. .... ............. . 40
Remote contro l .. ................. . 37
U sing the fold-o ut key .. ..... ... .. .. . 38
V
V ·t . ani y mir ro r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Vehicle-care products ............ .... 178
Vehicle battery Stationary ... .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 207
Vehicle electri ca l sys tem .............. 16
Vehicle identification ................ 255
Vehicle identification label ..... ... .. .. 255
Vehicle Ident ificat ion Number (VIN) .... 255
Vehicle jack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234,239
Vehicle literatu re .. .... ......... .... .. S
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