2015 AUDI A3 CABRIOLET ESP

....,
N
" > co
rl I.O
"' rl
"' rl
Secure unused safety belts on the rear
seat
F ig. 148 Schematic overview: keep un used safety belts
away from chi ld re n in c hild saf ety seats .@ - outer rear
safety belt
If a child safety seat is used o n the rear bench,
espec ially with LATCH universal lower ancho­
rages, the unused safety belts
mu st be se­
cured so that the ch ild in the ch ild restra int
cannot reach them
¢ ,&. .
- Gu ide the safety belt webbing @behind the
head restraint of the seat where the child re­
stra int is ins ta ll ed
¢ fig. 148. When do ing
so , do not engage the switchable locking re­
tractor! You should not hear a "clicking"
sound when wind ing up the safety be lt.
- Let the belt re tractor wind up the safety be lt
webbing .
_& WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with
the LATCH lower anchorages or with the
standard safety belt or a child in a booster
seat on the rear seat could play with u n­ used rear seat safety belts and become en­
tangled . This could cause the child serious
pe rsonal in jury and even deat h.
-Always secure u nused rear seat safety
belts out of reach of ch ildren in ch ild
sea ts such as by properly routing them
around the head res traint of the sea t
whe re the child restraint is installed.
- Never act ivate the convertib le loc king re­
tra ctor when rout ing the safety belts
around the head res traints .
Child S afety 175
Child safety seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old
and 20 lbs. or 9 kg need special rearward-fac ­
ing child restraints that support the back,
neck and head in a crash .
Fig. 14 9 Schem atic ove rv ie w : re arward-fac ing in fant
se at, p rope rly insta lled on t he re ar seat
.. When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertib le locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from mov ing
¢ page 180 or install the seat
using the LATCH attachments .
.. Push the chi ld safety seat down w ith your
full weight to get the safety be lt really tight
so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm).
.. Secure unused safety bel ts on the rear seat
¢ page 175.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg)
a re best pro tected in spec ial infant carriers
and child safety seats designed for their age
group . Many experts believe that infants and
small ch ildren shou ld ride on ly in special re­
stra in ts in which the child faces the back of
the vehicle. These infa nt sea ts support the ba­
by 's back, neck and head i n a crash
¢ fig. 149 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentia lly dange rous place for a
ch ild to ride . The front seat is not the safest
place for a child in a fo rward-facing child seat.
It is a very dangerous place for an infant or a
larger child in a rearward-facing seat.
ll>

M N
" > co ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
developed, and they must not use the vehicle
safety belts without a suitable child restraint.
It is usually best to put these children in ap­
propriate booster seats. Be sure the booster
seat meets all applicable safety standards.
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder parts of the safety belt so that they pass
across the child's body in the right places. The
routing of the belt over the child's body is very
important for the child's protection, whether
or not a booster seat is used. Children age 12
and under must always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 in­
ches/1.45 meters) tall can generally use the
vehicle's three point lap and shoulder belts. Never use the lap belt portion of the vehicle's
safety belt alone to restrain any child, regard­ less of how big the child is . Always remember
that children do not have the pronounced pel­
vic structure required for the proper function
of lap belt portion of the vehicle's three point
lap and shoulder belts. The child's safety ab­
solutely requires that a lap belt portion of the
safety belt be fastened snugly and as low as
possible around the pelvis. Never let the lap
belt portion of the safety belt pass over the
child's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink
of an eye and with considerable force. In order
to do its job, the airbag needs room to inflate
so that it will be there to protect the occupant
as the occupant moves forward into the air­
bag.
A vehicle occupant who is out of position and
too close to the airbag gets in the way of an inflating airbag. When an occupant is too
close, he or she will be struck violently and
will receive serious or possibly even fatal in­
Jury.
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especial­
ly any children, who must be in the front seat
because of exceptional circumstances, be
properly restrained and as far away from the
airbag as possible. By keeping room between
Child Safety 1 79
the child's body and the front of the passen­
ger compartment, the airbag can inflate com­
pletely and provide supplemental protection
in certain frontal collisions.
A WARNING
Not using a booster seat, using the boos­
ter seat improperly, incorrectly installing a
booster seat or using the vehicle safety
belt improperly increases the risk of seri­
ous personal injury and death in a collision
or other emergency situation. To help re­
duce the risk of serious personal injury
and/or death:
- The shoulder belt must lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as possi­
ble and must lie flat and snug on the up­
per body. It must never lie across the
throat or neck. The lap belt must lie
across the pelvis and never across the
stomach or abdomen. Make sure that the
belt lies flat and snug. Pull on the belt to
tighten if necessary .
- Failure to properly route safety belts
over a child's body will cause severe inju­ ries in an accident or other emergency
situation
¢page 138.
- The rear side of the child safety seat
should be positioned as close as possible
to the backrest on the vehicle seat.
- For adjustable head restraints: adjust or
remove the rear seat head restraint if it
is difficult to install the child seat with
the head restraint in place¢
page 63. In­
stall the head restraint again immediate­
ly once the child seat is removed. Driving
without head restraints or with head re­
straints that are not properly adjusted increases the risk of serious or fatal neck
injury dramatically.
- Children on the front seat of any car,
even with Advanced Airbags, can be seri­
ously injured or even killed when an air­
bag inflates .
- Never let a child stand or kneel on any seat, for example the front seat.
- Never let a child ride in the cargo area of
your vehicle.
II>-
•
•
•

180 Child Safety
-Always remember that a child leaning
forward, sitting sideways or out of posi­
tion in any way during an accident can be
struck by a deploying airbag . This will re­
sult in serious personal injury or death .
- If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of excep ­
tional circumstances the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light must come on and
stay on, whenever the ignition is switch­
ed on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, perform
the checks described¢
page 158, 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.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in
ave­
hicle is being used¢ page 138, Safety
belts,¢ page 146, Airbag system
and
¢page 169, Important things to know .
Installing a child safety
seat
Securing a child safety seat using a
safety belt
Safety belts for the rear seats and the front
passenger can be locked with the convertible
locking retractor to properly secure child
safety seats.
The safety belts emergency locking retractors
for the rear seats safe ty belts and for the
front passenger's seat safety belt have a con­
vertible locking retractor for child restraints.
The safety belt must be locked so that belt
webbing cannot unreel. The retractor can be
activated to lock the safety belt and prevent
the safety belt webbing from loosening up
during normal driving. A child safety seat can
only be properly installed when the safety belt
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 si ze.
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.
- 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 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
¢ page 169. Special ..,.

Child Safet y 181
precautions apply when installing a chi ld -Always make sure the forward-facing
safety seat on t he front passenger seat seat has been designed and certified by
Q page 148, Child restraints on the front its manufacturer for use on a front seat
seat- some important things to know . with a passenger front and side a irbag .
- Never put the forward-facing child re-
_&. WARNING straint up, against or very near the in-
-strument panel.
Always take special precautions if you •
•
must install a forward or rearwa rd-facing -
Always move the passenger seat into its
child rest raint on the front passenger's rearmost position in t
he seat's fore and
sea t in except iona l situat ions: aft adjustment range, as fa
r away from
- Whenever a fo rward or rearward-facing the airbag as possible before installing
child restraint is installed on the front the forward-fa
cing ch ild restra int. The
passenge r seat, the
PASSENGER AIR b ackrest mu st be ad ju sted to an upright
BAG OFF light must come on and s tay on position
.
whenever the ignition is switched on . -
Ma ke sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light OFF light comes on and stays on all the
does no t come on and s tay on, per form time wheneve
r the ignit ion is switched
the checks described
Q page 158, Moni -on.
toring the Advanced Airbag System.
_&. WARNING - T ake the child restrain t off the front pas-~
senger seat and install it properly at one Rearward-facing child rest raints:
of the rea r seat positions if the
PASS EN-- A child in a re arward-facing chi ld safety
GER AIR BAG OFF light does not stay on
seat installed on the front passenger
whenever the ignition is switched on. seat will be seriously in jured and can be
- Improper installation of child restraints killed i
f the front airbag inflates -even
can reduce the ir effectiveness or even with an Advanced Airbag System.
prevent them from prov iding any protec-
-The inflating air bag will hit the ch ild
t ion .
safety seat or infant carrier with great
- An improperly installed child restraint force and will smash the child safety seat
can interfe re with the airbag as it de- and child against the backrest , center
ploys and serio usly injure or even kill the armrest, door or roof.
child .
-Always be especially careful if you must
- Always carefully follow the manufactur- install a rearward facing child safety seat
er's instructions provided with the child on the front passenger seat i n exception-
safety seat or carrier . al circumstances .
- After checking to make sure that the - Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
child restrain t is properly installed, make OFF light comes on and stays on all the
certain that the child restraint is correct- time whenever the ig nit ion is switch ed
Ly recog nized by the capacitive pa ssenge r on.
de te ct ion sys tem in t he front p assenger
-If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
sea t and that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG does not come on and stay on, immed i-
OFF light signals the correct front pas-
ately insta ll the rear-fa cing child s afety
senger fronta l airbag status.
seat in a rear seat ing pos ition and h ave
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
M
_&. WARNING • N dea le r. ,....
> co Forward-facing child restra ints: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,

186 Child Safet y
The purpose of the tether is to reduce the for­
ward movement of the child restraint in a
crash, in order to help reduce the r isk of head
injury that could be caused by striking the ve­
h icle interior.
F orward facing child restraints manufactured
after September 1, 1999, are required by U.S.
federal regulations to comply with new child
head movement performance requirements.
These new performance requ irements make a
tether necessary on most new ch ild safety
seats .
A WARNING
Imprope r insta llation of chi ld restrai nts
w ill increase the risk of inju ry and death in
a crash.
- Always follow the instructions p rov ided
by the manufacturer of the ch ild re ­
st raint you in tend to install in your Audi.
- Improper use of c hild restr aint anchors
(including tether anchors) can lead to in­
jury in a co llision. The anchors are de ­
signed to withstand on ly those loads im ­
posed by correctly fitted ch ild restraints.
- Never mount two ch ild restraint systems
on one LATCH lower anchor po int.
- Never a ttach two child rest ra int sys tems
to one tether strap or tether anchorage.
- Never attac h a tether st rap to a tie -down
hook in the luggage compartment.
- Never use c hild restra int te ther ancho­
rages to secure sa fety belts o r othe r
k inds of occupant restraints.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or
other items to the LATCH lowe r ancho­
rages or to the tether anchors .
- If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circ umstan­
ces and the
PAS SENGER 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 dea ler.
Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
Fig. 158 Tet her strap: proper ro u ting and mountin g
Installing the tether st rap
" Release or deploy the tether strap on the
child restraint according to the child re­
s tr aint manufacturer's instructions.
" Guide the upper t ether strap
und er the rear
head restra int~
fig. 158 (ra ise the head re­
s traint if ne cess ary) .
" Ti lt the recess flap up to expose the anchor
bracket .
" Attach the tether strap anchorage hoo k into
the opening of the tether anchorage.
" Pull on the tether strap hook so that the
spring catch of the hook engages.
" Tighten the tether strap firmly follow ing the
child r estraint manufacturer 's ins tructions.
Relea sing the tether strap
" Loosen the tension fo llow ing the child re­
straint manufacturer's instructions.
" Depress the spri ng catch on the hook and re­
lease it from the anchorage .
(D Note
If you leave the c hild restra int wit h the
tethe r strap firm ly installed for seve ral
days, this could leave a ma rk on the up­
ho lstery on the seat cushion and backrest
i n the area w here the tethe r strap was in­
s talled. The upholstery would also be per­
manent ly st retche d around the tether
strap. T his applies espec ia lly to leather
seats.

....,
N
r--. > co
rl I.O
"' rl
"' rl
Stee ring re comm endat ion
The ESC helps to stabilize the vehicle by
changing the steering torque.
Selective wheel torqu e control
Select ive wheel torque control is used when
driving on curves . The front wheel on the in­
side of the curve or both wheels on the inside
of the curve are braked selective ly as needed.
This a llows more precise driving in curves.
Automatic post -collisi on brakin g system
The "Automatic post-collision braking system "
can help to reduce the risk of slidi ng and of
other coll is ions afte r an accident. I f the airbag
con tro l modu le detects a collision above ace r­
tain vehicle speed, the vehicle is braked by the
ESC.
The vehicle does not brake automatically if:
- the driver presses the accelerator pedal, or
- the braking force generated by the pressed
brake pedal is greater than the braking force
that would be initiated by the system, or
- the ESC, the brake system or the vehicle
electrical system are not functioning.
A WARNING
-The ESC and its integrated systems can­
not overcome the limits posed by natura l
physical laws. This is especially impor ­
tant on s lippery or wet roads. If the sys-
Switching on/off
Sm art Te chnol og y 189
terns beg in acting to stabilize your vehi­
cle, you should immediately alter your
speed to match the road and traffic con­
ditions . Do not let the increased safety
provided tempt you into taking r isks .
This could increase your risk of a co lli­
SIOn.
- Please note the r isk of a coll is ion increas­
es when driving fast, especially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when dr iv ing too close to objects ahead.
The ESC and its integrated systems can ­
not a lways prevent collisions -there is
still a risk of accidents!
- Press the accelerator pedal caref ully
when acce lerating on even, slippery sur­
faces such as ice and snow. The drive
wheels can spin even when these control systems are installed and this can affect
driving stability and increase the r isk of a
coll is ion.
@ Tips
-ABS and ASR only function correctly
when all four wheels are equipped w ith
identical tires. Different t ire sizes can
lead to a reduct ion in engine power.
- You may hear noises when the systems
descr ibed are working.
- If the
Bl or [I] indicator light appears,
there may be a malfunction
¢ page 21.
ESC turns on automatically when you start the engine .
gi
Fig. 159 Upper c ente r conso le: ESC button
The ESC is designed to funct ion in levels . De­
pend ing on the level that is selected, the sta­
bilization funct ion of the ESC is lim ited or
swi tched off . The amoun t of stabilization con­
trol wi ll differ depending on the level.
In the follow ing unusual situations it may
make sense to switch the ESC sport mode on
to allow the wheels to sp in:
- Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Driving in deep snow or on loose ground
IJJ-

190 Smart Technology
Sport mode on ESC/ASR off Sport mode off or
ESC/ASR on
Beha vior
The ESC and ASR stabiliza- The stabilization funct ion The full stab ilization f unc-
tion funct ions are lim ited is not ava ilable
c> .&. . ESC tion of the ESC and ASR is
¢ _&. . and ASR are sw itched off. available agai n.
Operation Press the l.i; OFF ! button P ress and hold the 1.i; OFFI Press the l.i; OFF ! button
briefly. button lo
nger than 3 sec-
again.
onds.
Indicator II turns on. II and jf'ill•lH * tu rn on. II turns off or fl and
light s jf 'ill•li~* t ur n off.
Dr iver mes- Stabilization control Stab ilizat ion control Stabilization control
sages (ESC ): sport. Warning! (ESC ): off . Warning! Re- (ESC ): on
R estricted stability stricted stability
_& WARNING
You should only switch spor t mode on o r
switch ESC/ASR o ff if your driving abiliti es
an d road condi tions perm it.
- T he s tabilization func tio n i s limite d
whe n spor t mode is sw itche d on. T he
dr iv ing whee ls co ul d spin an d the vehicle
cou ld swe rve , especia lly on slick or slip­
pery road surfaces.
- The re is no vehicle stabilization w hen
ESC/ASR a re switched off .
@ Tips
- ESC/ASR c ann ot b e swi tc h ed off o r spor t
mode canno t be sw itche d on i f the cr uise
control system * or the a dapt ive cr uise
control * is switc hed on .
- Mal func tions in the Audi magne tic ride
may make it impossib le to sw itch t he
ESC/ASR off or to switch sport mo de on.
Brakes
New brake pads
-
N ew brake pads do not achieve their fu ll brak­
ing effect d urin g the first
400 km. They must
be "broken i n" first. However, yo u can com­
pensate for the slightly reduced braking force
by pressing fi rmly on t he brake pedal. Avo id
heavy brak ing dur ing the break- in period.
Wear
Brake pad
wear is largely dependent on the
way the vehicle is dr iven and on operati ng
condit io ns. This is especially true if you are
driv ing frequent ly in t he ci ty and o n curves or
with a spor ty d rivi ng s tyle.
Operating noise
Noises may occur when bra king depending on
the speed , braking force and outside condi­
t ions such as tempe rature and hum id ity.
Effect of water and road salt
In certa in situations, for examp le after dr iv ing
t hr ough water, in heavy rain, after overnight
condensation or after was hing your car, the
braking effect can be reduced by moisture or
ice on the brake rotors and brake pads. The
brakes must be "d rie d" first with a few carefu l
brake applicat ions .
At highe r speeds and with the winds hield wip­
ers tu rned on, the brake pads press against
the b rake ro to rs fo r a short a mount of t ime .
T h is act ion which is not felt by the d river hap­
pen s at reg ular i nte rvals an d facilit ates a bet­
te r rea ction t ime for the br akes in we t we ath­
er.
T he bra king effect can a lso be redu ced if you
are dr iv ing o n sal ted roads a nd you do not a p­
ply the br akes fo r long periods of time. The
l aye r of sa lt on the b rake roto rs and pads
must be wo rn off first when t he b rakes are ap -
plied. ..,..

M N
" > co ...... \!) 1.1'1
...... 1.1'1 ......
than the posted speed limit and weather con­
ditions permit. Reducing unnecessary idling
Even wh en your car is just idling it burns up
fuel.
.,. Shu t the engine off when you a re not dr iv ing
the vehi cle.
... Do not warm up the vehicle by letting the
engine run at idle.
It is effic ient to switch off the eng ine when
stopped at railroad crossings and long red
lights. Turning the engine
off for just 30-40
seconds saves more fu el than is burned by
starting the engine again.
It takes a long time fo r the engine to wa rm up
fu lly when it is running at idle. However , wear
and noxious emissions are especially high
when the engine is wa rming up. So you should
drive away as soon as you start the eng ine and
avoid running at h igh RPM while the engine is
still warm ing up.
Do not leave engine idling unattended af­
ter starting. If warning lights should come on to indicate improper operation, they
wou ld go unheeded. Extended idling also
p roduces heat, which cou ld result in over­
heating or other damage to the vehicle or
other prope rty .
Regular maintenance
A badly tuned engine unnecessarily wastes a lot of fuel.
.,. Have your vehicle serv iced at regular inter-
vals.
H aving your vehicle regularly serviced by an
author ized Audi dealer helps to ensure that it
runs properly and economically . T he condition
of your vehicle not only affects its safety and
ab ility to hold its value, it also affects fuel
c onsum ption.
Dri ving and the en vironm ent 199
Chec k your oil e ach t ime you fill your tank.
T he amou nt of oi l used is re lated to engine
load a nd speed.
It is normal for the oil consumption of a new
engine to reach its lowest value after a certa in
mileage has bee n driven.
You must drive your veh icle about 3,000 m iles
(5,000 kilometers) before you can properly
assess oil consumpt ion.
This also app lies to fue l consumption and en­
gine output .
(D Note
- Have your veh icle ma inta ined properly
and in accordance with the service rec­
ommendations in your Warranty
& Ma in­
tenance booklet . Lack of proper mainte­
nance as well as improper use of the ve­
hicle will impair the function of the
em iss ion cont ro l system and cou ld lead
t o damage.
- Do not alter or remove any component of
the Emission Control System unless ap­
proved by the manufacture r.
- Do not alter or remove any device, such
as hea t shie lds, switches, ign ition w ires,
valves, which are designed to protect
your vehicle's Emission Control System
and other important vehicle compo­
nents.
Fewer short trips
Fuel consumption will always be relatively
high on short trips.
... Try to avoid dr iving sho rt distances with a
cold engine .
T he eng ine and catalytic conve rter have to
reach their optimal operati ng t emperature to
reduce fuel consumption and noxious emis­
sions effectively.
Just after starting, a co ld eng ine in a mid-s ize
ca r only achieves a fuel economy of 6 -8 mi les
per gallon (30-40 l/100 km). After about a
half a mile, fuel economy climbs to 12 mpg ..,.
•
•
•