2012 AUDI A3 wheel size

Seats and storage
General recommen­
dations
Why is your seat adjustment so important?
The safety belts and the airbag system can
only provide maximum protection if the front
seats are correctly adjusted.
There are several different ways you can ad­
just the driver's seat and the front passenger's seat so that it conforms to your body size.
It is
especia lly important that the seat be adjusted
properly so that:
- you can easily and quick ly reach all the
switches and controls in the instrument
panel
- your body is properly supported thus reduc­
ing physical stress and fatigue
- the safety belts and airbag system can offer
maximum protection ¢
page 122
In the following chapte rs, you will see exactly
how you can best adjust your seats.
There are special regulations and instructions
for installing a child safety seat on the front passenger's seat. Always heed the informa­
tion regard ing child safety provided in
¢ page 143, Child Safety .
A WARNING
Incorrect seating position of the driver and
all other passengers can result in serious
personal injury.
- Always keep your feet on the f loor when
the vehicle is in motion -never put your
feet on top of the instrument panel, out of the w indow or on top of the seat cush­
ion! This applies espec ially to the passen­
gers.
If your seating position is incorrect
you increase the r isk of injury in the case
of sudden braking or an acc ident. If the
airbag infla tes and the seating posi tion
is incorrect this could result in personal
injury or even death.
S eat s an d sto rage 61
-It is important for both the driver and
front passenger to keep a distance of at
least 10 inches (25 cm) between them­
selves and the steering wheel and/or in­
strument panel.
If you're s itting any
closer than th is, the airbag system can­
not protect you prope rly. In addition to
this, the front seats and head restra ints
m ust be adjusted to yo ur body height so
that they can give you maximum protec ­
tion.
'
- Always try to keep as much distance as
possible between yourself and the steer­
ing wheel or instrument pane l.
- Do not adjust the driver's or front pas­
senger's seat whi le the vehicle is moving .
Your seat may move unexpected ly, caus­
ing sudden loss of veh icle control and
personal injury. If you adjust your seat
while the veh icle is moving, you are out
of posit ion .
Driver's seat
The correct seat position is important for safe
and relaxed driving .
We recommend that you adjust the driver 's
seat in the fo llow ing manner :
.. Adjust the seat in fo re and aft direction so
that you can easily push the peda ls to the
floor wh ile keeping your knees slight ly bent
¢ .& in Why is your seat adjustment so im­
portant? on page 61.
.. Adjust the seatback so that when you sit
w ith your back against the seatback, you can
st ill grasp the top of the steering wheel.
.. Adjust t he head restra int so the upper edge
is as even as possible wi th the top of your
head . If that is not poss ible , try to adjust
the head restraint so that it is as close to
this position as possib le
<=:> page 65.
A WARNING
-Never place any objects in the dr iver's foot-
well. An object could get into the pedal
area and interfere with pedal funct ion. In

144 Child Safety
-Always install rear-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat in exceptional circumstances and
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately
install the rear-facing child safety seat in
a rear seating position and have the air­
bag system inspected immediately by
your authorized Audi dealer.
_& WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- 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 child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were
installed in a vehicle during a crash. Dam­
age to a child restraint that is not visible
could cause it to fail in another collision
situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re­
quirements for 3- and 6-year old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates . In addition, the system
has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front
passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system , all children, espe­
cially those 12 years and younger, should al­
ways ride in the back seat properly restrained
for their age and size. The airbag on the pas­
senger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to ride . The front
seat is not the safest place for a child in a for­
ward-facing child safety seat. It can be a very
dangerous place for an infant or a larger child
in a rearward-facing seat .
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight-sensing mat in the seat cush ­
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight -sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger
seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the .,..

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>

-Never mount used tires on yo ur vehicle if
you are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have been dam­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means the comb ined weight (in excess of
those standard items wh ich may be rep laced)
of automa tic tra nsmission, power steering,
power br akes, power w indows, power sea ts,
radio, and heater, to the ex tent that these
items are avai lab le as factory -installed equip ­
ment (whether installed or not).
Aspect ratio
means the rat io of the height to the w idt h of
the tire in percent. Numbers of 55 or lower in ­
d icate a low sidewall fo r improved s teer ing re ­
sponse and better overall handling on dry
pavement.
Bead
means the pa rt of the t ire t hat is made o f
s teel wires, wrapped o r rein force d by ply cor ds
and that is shaped to fit the r im.
Bead separation
means a b reakdown of the bond between
components in the bead.
Cord
means the strands forming the plies in the
tire.
Cold tire infl ation pressure
means t he tire pressure recommended by the
vehicle manufacturer for a t ire of a designated
size that has not been dr iven for more than a
couple of miles (kilometers) at low speeds in
the three hour period before the tire pressure
i s measu red or adjusted.
Tire s an d wheel s 213
-If you notice un usua l vibration or if the
veh icle pulls to one side when driv ing, a l­
ways stop as soon as it is safe to do so and check the wheels and tires for dam­
age.
Curb weight
mea ns the we ight of a motor ve hicle w it h
standard equipment in cl ud ing t he maximum
capa city of fuel, o il, and coolant, ai r cond i­
tion ing a nd addi tional weig ht o f optiona l
equipment .
Extra load tire
means a t ire designed to operate at higher
loads and at highe r inflat ion p ressu res tha n
th e co rresponding standard tire. Extra load
tir es my be i dent ified as "XL", "xl", "EXTRA
L O AD", or "R F" on t he sidewall.
Gross Axle Weight Rating ("GAWR ")
mea ns the load-carry ing capac ity of a s ingle
axle system, measured at the tire-ground in­
te rfaces.
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating ( "GVWR ")
means the maximum total loaded we ight of
the ve hicle.
Groove
means the space between two adjacent tread
ribs.
Load rating (code )
means the maximum load tha t a t ire is rated
to carry for a given inflation press ure. Yo u
may not find this information on all tires be­
ca use it is not required by law.
Maximum load rating
me ans the load r ating for a tire at the maxi­
mum pe rm issi ble inf lat ion pressure for that
ti re . •
•
...

214 Tires and wheels
Maximum loaded vehicle weight
means the sum of:
(a) Curb weight
(b) Accessory weight
(c) Vehicle capacity weight, and
(d) Production options weight
Maximum (permissible) inflation pressure
means the maximum cold inflation pressu re
to which a tire may be inflated. Also called
"maximum inflation p ressure."
Normal occupant weight
means 150 lbs. (68 kilograms) times the
number of occupants seated in the vehicle up
to the total seating capacity of your vehicle.
Occupant distribution means distribution of occupants in a vehicle .
Outer diameter means the overa ll diameter of an inf lated new
tire.
Overall width
means the linear distance between the exteri­
ors of the sidewalls of an inflated tire, includ­
ing e levations due to labeling, decorations, or
protective bands or ribs.
Ply
means a layer of rubber-coated parallel cords.
Production options weight
means the comb ined weight of those installed
regular production options weighing over 5
lbs . (2 .3 kg) in excess of those standard items
which they replace, not previously considered
in curb weight or accessory weight, including
heavy duty brakes, r ide leve lers, roof rack,
heavy duty battery, and specia l trim .
Radial ply tire
means a pneumatic tir e in which the p ly cords
that extend to the beads are laid at substan­
tially 90 degrees to the centerline of the
tread . Recommended inflation pressure
see
~
page 213, Cold tire inflation pressure.
Reinforced tire
means a t ire designed to operate at higher
loads and at higher inflation pressures than
the corresponding standard tire . Re inforced
t ir es my be identified as "XL", "xl", "EX TRA
LOAD", or "RF" on the sidewall.
Rim
means a metal support for a tire or a t ire and
tube assembly upon which the tire beads are seated.
Rim diameter
means nom inal d iameter of the bead seat. If
you change your wheel s ize, you w ill have to
purchase new tires to match the new r im di­
ameter .
Rim size designation
means rim diameter and width.
Rim width
means nominal distance between rim flanges .
Sidewall
means that portion of a tire between the
t read and bead.
Speed rating (letter code)
means the speed at which a tire is designed to
be driven for extended periods of time. The
ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h) to
186 mph (298 km/h)
~ page 224 . You may
not find this information on all tires because
it is not requ ired by law.
The speed rating letter code, where applica­
ble, is molded on the tire sidewall and indi­
cates the max imum pe rmissibl e road speeds
~ A in Winter tires on page 228.
Tire pressure monitoring system*
means a system that detects when one or
more of a veh icle's tires are underinflated and
illuminates a low tire pressure warning tell­
tale.

216 Tires and wheels
Cold tire inflation pressure
Tire pressure affects the overall handling, performance and safety of a vehicle .
Fig. 167 Tire press ure labe l: loca ted ei the r on dr iver 's
side 8-pillar or inside the fuel filler flap
Tire pressure generally refers to the amount
of air in a tire that it needs it to do its job and
safely carry the combined load of the entire
vehicle and its contents . Tire pressure is
measured in kilopascals (kPa), the interna­
tional measuring unit and in pounds per
square inch (PSI). Tire pressure is based in
part on the vehicle's design and load limit­
the greatest amount of weight that the vehi­
cle can carry safely and the tire size. The prop­
er tire pressure is frequently referred to as the
"recommended cold tire inflation pressure."
Air in the tires expands when the tire heats up
because of internal friction when it flexes in
use . The tire pressure is higher when the tire
has warmed up than when it is "cold ." It is the
inflation pressure in a "cold " tire that counts.
Therefore, you should never let air out of a
warm tire to match "cold tire inflat ion pres­
sure" recommendations. The tires would then
be underinflated and could fail suddenly .
Maintaining proper tire pressure is one of the
most important things you can do to help
avoid sudden tire failure. Underinflated tires
are a major cause of sudden tire failure. Keep­
ing tires at the right pressure is also impor­
tant for safe and responsive vehicle handling,
traction, braking and load carrying .
Tire pres­
sures are particularly important when the
vehicle is being driven at higher speeds, and
then especially when heavily loaded even
within the permissible load -carrying capaci­
ties approved for your vehicle.
,;
•(=~: I : I :,.. I)@ ~
The~-----~---w-o- ....... -e.....i -·· - ­u ........ -.-..,.0, ... -....,.,...tot~---....... ._.,. -..
....
-..... ...........
- KPA. a PSI
- KPA.
a PSI
- KPA. a PSI
Fig. 168 Tir e pressure label
SU OWNER'S MANUAl FOR AD0"10NAL l10N VOl!ILEMANU£1. DU _,...,
POUR Pl.US DE
REHSEKi.\'IEME NTS
The recommended tire pressures for your Audi
depend on the kind of tires on your veh icle
and the number of passengers and/or amount
of luggage you will be transporting .
On USA vehicles, the t ire pressure label is lo­
cated on driver's side B-pillar . On Canada vehi­
cles, the tire pressure label is located e ither
on the dr iver 's side B-pillar or inside the fuel
filler flap . The tire pressure label lists the rec­
ommended cold tire inflation pressures for
the vehicle at its maximum capacity we ight
and tires that were on your vehicle at the time
it was manufactured.
If you wish to improve comfort when operat­
ing the vehicle at normal load (up to 3 occu­
pants), you can adjust tire pressures to those
specified for normal vehicle load. Before op­
erating the vehicle at maximum load, you
must increase the tire pressures to those
specified for maximum vehicle load¢.&..
Bear in mind that the tire pressure mon itoring
system * can on ly monitor the tire pressures
yo u have stored. The system does not recog­
nize the load condition of your vehicle.
T he effectiveness of the tire pressure monitor­
ing system * wi ll be impaired if you store nor­
mal load pressures but then operate the vehi ­
cle at its maximum load
¢ .&..
See the illustration ¢ fig. 167 for the location
of the label either on driver's side B-pillar or
i nside the fuel fi ller flap (color of the actual
IJI>

Tires an d wheel s 21 7
labe l and exact location on the vehicle will
vary slightly).
Note that the fo llowing tab le is accurate at
t he t ime o f go ing to press and is subject to
change. In the event of discrepancies, the tire
pressure label (on USA vehicles, the tire pres ­
sure label is located on driver's side B -pillar;
on Canada vehicles, the tire pressure label is
located e ither on the driver's side B-pillar or inside the f
uel filler flap.) always takes prece­
dence.
T he table below lists the recommended cold
ti re inflat ion p ressu res for the Audi mode l
cove red by your Owner's Literat ure at the vehi­
cle's capacity weight and the tir e sizes instal­
l ed on the respect ive models as orig inal
equipment, or as a factory option.
Engine
(dis­
place­
ment in liter ) Tire designation
Tire pressure front Tire pressure rear
4- cylin ­
d er
2.0 TFSI (ga so­
line )
4-cylin -
der
2 .0
TOI
(clean
die sel) 205
/55 Rl6 91H All Sea-
son
2 25 /45 Rl7 91W High
Performance
22S /45 Rl7 94H XL All
Season
225 /45 Rl7 94Y XL High
Performance
225 /40 Rl8 92V XL H igh
Perfo rmance
Compact spare wheel
Tl25 /70 Rl8
205 /S5 Rl6 91H All Sea-
s on
225 /45 Rl 7 94H XL All
Season
225 /4S Rl 7 94V XL High
P erformance
225 /40 Rl8 92V XL High
Performance
C ompa ct spare whe el
Tl25 /70 Rl8 no
rmal load
condition
( upto 3 oc-
cupant s)
PSI kPA
36 250
•
JI
35 2 40
38 260
35 240
38 260
60 420
36 250
38 260
35 240
35 240
60 420
normal load
full load condition full load
condition (up to 3 oc- condition
cupant s)
PSI kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA
39 270 30 210 38 260
..
38 260 30 210 36 250
"
39 270 32 220 38 260
36 250 30 210 35 240
41 280 35 240 41 280
60 420
60 420 60 420
39 270 30 210 36 250
41 280 32 220
38 260
38 260 30 210 35 240
38 260 30 210 38 260
60 420 60 420 60 420
X L = reinforced or extra load tire. It may also appear as xl, EX TRA LOAD , or RF on the tire side­
wall.
The correct tire pressure for the spare wheel is
located on a label e ither on the driver's side B­
p illar or i nside the fuel filler flap . ways
compare the tire size designatio n on the
tire pressure label on your vehicle with the
tires on yo ur vehicle . Make sure that the t ire
s ize informat ion on the vehicle labe l is the
I
J
•
I
Because technical changes may be made to
vehicle equipment during the model year, al- same as the size of the tires on the veh
icle. .,.
•
•

H up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
V up to 149 mph (240 km/ h)
1
)
Z over 149 mph (240 km/h)1l
W up to 168 mph (270 km/h)
1 )
Y up to 186 mph (298 km/h)1l
Your vehicle is norma lly factory equipped with
tires, which possess excellent driving charac­
ter istics and give your Audi opt imum driving
comfort. An electronic speed limiter
c:> page 25 will normally prevent your vehicle
from go ing faster than the tire speed rating
¢ & .
U.S . DOT T ire Identific ation Numbe r (TIN)
and tire manufacture date
This is the t ire's "serial number" . It begins
with the lette rs "DO T" and indicates that the
tire meets all federal sta ndards. The next two
n umbers or le tters indica te the p la nt where it
was manufactured, and the last four numbers
represent the week and year of manufacture.
F or example, the numbers 2209 mean that
the t ire was produced in the 22nd week of
2009 . The other numbers are marketing co­
des that may or may not be used by the t ire
manufacturer . This information is used to con ­
tact consume rs if a tire defect requires a re­
call.
Aud i Original tire
Tires with the ident ificat io n "AO" or "RO" have
been spec ially matched with your Aud i. We
recommend using only t hese tires because
they meet the highest standards regard ing
safety and driving charac ter is t ics when used
correctly . Yo ur au thori zed Au di dealer w ill
g lad ly provide you with more information.
Maximum Load Rating
This number indicates the maximum load in
kilograms a nd pounds that ca n be carried by
the tire .
ll For tires wit h a max imum spee d capa bility over 149
mph (2 4 0 km/ h), ti re ma nufac tur ers somet imes use
t h e letters "Z R."
Tire s an d wheel s 225
Tire quality grading for treadwear,
traction, and temperature resi stanc e
Tread wear, traction and temperat ure grades
c:> page226.
Ma ximum Permissible Inflation Pressure
Th is number is the g reatest amount of a ir
pressure that should ever be put in the tire
u nder normal dr iv ing conditions.
.&_ WARNING ~
- Using incorrect o r unmatched tires and/
or wheels or improper tire and wheel
comb inat ions can lead to loss of control,
col lis ion and serious personal inj ury.
- Always use t ires, rims and whee l bolts
that meet the specifications of original
factory- installed tires or other combina­
tions that have been specifically ap­ proved by the vehicle manufacture r.
- T ires age even i f they are not being used
and can fail sudden ly , e specially at hig h
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 ye ars
old can only be used in an emergency
an d then w ith speci al care and at lower
speeds .
- Never mo unt used t ires on your veh icle if
you are not sure of thei r "previous histo­
ry." O ld used tires may have been dam ­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire fai lure
and loss of vehicle control.
- All fou r whee ls must be fitted with radial
tires of the same type , size (rolling cir­
cumference) and the same tread pattern.
Driving with different tires reduces vehi­
cle handling and can lead to a loss of
contro l.
- If the spa re tire is not the same as the
tires that are mounted on the vehicle -
for examp le w ith winter t ir e s -only use
the spare t ire fo r a short pe riod of time
•
•