2015 AUDI A3 CABRIOLET oil change

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Service interval display
The service interval display detects when your
v e hicle is due for service .
Fig. 6 In str um en t cluste r: serv ice inte rva l d isp lay (ex ­
a m ple)
Fig. 7 Disp lay in th e MMI panel: se rv ice interval display
(exa mple )
The serv ice interva l display works in two
stages:
- Inspection or oil change reminder : After a
certain distance driven, a message appears
i n t he instr ument cluster d isp lay each time
the ignit ion is switched on or off
r=> fig. 6.
The remaining distance or t ime is d isplayed
briefly.
- Inspect ion or oil change due : If your vehicle
is due for a n insp ection or o il change or
bot h, a message appears br iefly in the in ­
strument cluster d isplay when switching the
ignition o n or off:
In spection due! or Oil
change due! or Oil change and in spection
due!.
Checking service intervals
You can check the remaining distance or time
until the nex t oil change or next inspection in
the M MI
¢ fig. 7. Se lect t he I MENU ! button >
Instruments and indicator lamps 13
Car > Systems* control button > Service &
control
> Service intervals .
Resetting the display
Your a uth orized Audi dea le r or auth oriz ed
A udi Se rv ice F acility will rese t the service in ­
te rv al disp lay after pe rfo rmi ng se rvice.
I f you perfo rm an o il change you rself to the
A udi spe cifications, yo u can reset yo u service
in terval disp lay.
T o reset the display, select the
!ME NUI button
> Car > Sy stem s* control button > Service &
control
> Servi ce interval s > Reset oil change
interval.
(D Note
- On ly r eset th e oil chang e indicato r if th e
oil was cha nged.
- Following the se rv ice intervals is critical
t o m ain ta ini ng th e se rv ic e life a nd val ue
o f yo ur v ehicl e, espe cially th e e ngine.
E ven i f the mile age on t he vehicle i s low,
d o no t exceed the time for th e nex t serv ­
ice.
- Calcu lating t he time to the next oil
c hange is in te rrupt ed whe n the vehicle
battery is dis connected. If t he vehicle is
n ot d riven f or a long period o f time,
check the ma intenance schedule so th at
you ca n follow the maintena nce inter­
vals.
Indicator lights
Description
Fig. 8 Instrum en t cluste r: example of a display in
vehicles wit h a mo noc hrome display
@ Ind icator light

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Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine oil used must conform to exact
specifications .
The service interval display in the instrument
cluster of your vehicle w ill inform you when it
is t ime for an oil change. We recommend that
you have your o il changed by an author ized
Aud i Service Advisor .
If you have to top off the oil between oil
changes, use the Aud i oil quality standard
specified in the table .
Audi oil quality standard
G asoline
VW 502 00 or
e ngin e vw 504 00
Using the proper engine o il is important for
the functionality and service life of the en­
g ine . Your engine was factory-filled with a
hi gh-quality oil which can usua lly be used
throughout the enti re yea r.
(D Note
Your Limited New Vehicle Warranty does
not cover damage or ma lfun ctions due to
fa ilure to fo llow recommended ma in te­
nance and use requ irements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manua l and Warranty
&
Maintenance book let.
- U se only a high q uality eng ine oi l that ex ­
pressly comp lies with the Audi oil quality
standard specified for your vehicle's en­
gine. Using any other oil can cause seri­
ous engine damage.
- Do not mix any l ubricants or other addi­
tives into the eng ine oi l. Doing so can
cause eng ine damage.
(D Tips
I f you need to add oi l and there is none
availab le that meets the Audi oil quality
standard your engine requires, you may
add a total of no more than 0.5 quart/liter
of a high-quality "synthetic"oil that meets
t he follow ing specifica tions.
Checking and Fillin g 217
-Veh icles with gasoline engine : ACEA A3
or AP! SM with a viscosity grade of
SAE O W-30, SAE 5W -30 or SAE SW-40 .
- For more information about engine o il
that has been approved for yo ur vehicle,
please contact either your authorized
Audi dealer or Aud i Customer Relations
at 1 (800) 822-2834 or visit our web site
at www .audiusa.com or
www.a udicanada.ca.
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all
of its moving parts .
In order to provide effective lubrication and
cooling of interna l eng ine components, all in ­
te rnal combust io n engines consume a certa in
amount of oil. Oil consumpt ion va rie s from
engine to engine and may change sign ifi can tly
ove r th e life of the engine. Typically, engines
wi th a spec ified break -in pe riod (see
¢ page 196) consume more oil during the
break-in pe riod than they cons ume after oi l
consumption has stabilized.
U nder normal cond itions, the rate o f oi l con ­
s u mption depen ds on the q ual ity and viscos ity
of the oil, the RPM (revolutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient
temperature and road conditions. Further fac­
tors are the amount of oil dilut ion from water
condensa tion or fuel residue a nd the oxida­
tion level of the oil. As any engine is subject to
wea r as m ileage builds up, the oil consump­
t ion may incre ase over time until replacement
of wo rn components may be come necessary.
With a ll these va riab les coming into p lay, no
standard rate of oil consumpt io n can be es ­
tabl is h ed or spec ified. There is no alte rn ative
to regul ar and frequent che cking of the o il lev ­
el , see
Note.
If the yellow engine o il leve l warning sy mbo l
Ill in the ins trument cl uste r lights up, you
sho uld check the oil leve l as soon as possib le
¢ page 2 18 . Top off the oil at your earliest
convenience
¢ page 218 . ll-
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A WARNING ,~
- When adding oil, do not let oil drip onto
hot engine components. There could be
risk of a fire.
- You must secure the cap on the oil filler
opening correctly so that oil does not
leak out onto the hot engine and exhaust
system when the engine is running, be­
cause this is a fire hazard.
-Always clean skin thoroughly if it comes
into contact with engine oil.
(D Note
- The oil level must not be above the G)
range ~page 218, fig. 166, because this
can cause damage to the catalytic con­
verter or the engine. Contact your au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified repair
facility to have excess oil extracted if
necessary.
- Do not mix any additional lubricants into
the engine oil. Damage cause by such ad­
ditives is not covered by the warranty.
@ For the sake of the environment
- Oil should never enter the sewer system
or come into contact with the ground.
- Pay attention to legal requirements
when disposing of empty oil containers.
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that have your oil changed by
an authorized Audi dealer or a qualified serv­
ice station.
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARN­
INGS
~ page 214.
The engine oil must be changed according to
the intervals specified in your Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet. This is very important
because the lubricating properties of oil di­
minish gradually during normal vehicle use.
Under some circumstances the engine oil
should be changed more frequently . Change
oil more often if you drive mostly short dis-
Checking and Filling 219
tances, operate the vehicle in dusty areas or
under predominantly stop-and-go traffic con­
ditions, or have your vehicle where tempera­
tures remain below freezing for extended pe­ riods.
Detergent additives in the oil will make fresh
oil look dark after the engine has been run­
ning for a short time. This is normal and is not
a reason to change the oil more often than
recommended .
Because of the problem of proper disposal,
along with the special tools and necessary ex­ pertise required, we strongly recommend that
you have your oil changed by an authorized
Audi dealer or a qualified service station.
If you choose to change your oil yourself, please note the following important informa­
tion:
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of personal injury if you
must change the engine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protection.
- To reduce the risk of burns from hot en-
gine oil, let the engine cool down to the
touch .
- When removing the oil drain plug with
your fingers, stay as far away as possible. Always keep your forearm parallel to the
ground to help prevent hot oil from run­
ning down your arm.
- Drain the oil into a container designed
for this purpose, one large enough to
hold at least the total amount of oil in
your engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous. Keep it well out
of the reach of children.
- Continuous contact with used engine oil
is harmful to your skin. Always protect
your skin by washing oil off thoroughly
with soap and water.
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220 Check ing and F illin g
Never mix oil additives with your engine
oil. These additives can damage your en­
gine and adversely affect your Audi Limit­
ed New Vehicle Warranty.
@) For the sake of the environment
- Before changing your oi l, f irst make sure
you know where you can properly dispose of the used o il.
- Always dispose of used engine oil proper­
l y. Do not dump it on garden so il, wood­
ed areas, into open streams or down
sewage dra ins.
- Recycle used engine oil by taking it to a
used engine oil collection facility in your
area, or contact a service station .
Cooling system
Coolant
The engine coolant performs two functions: it
keeps the engine from overheating and it pro­ tects the engine from freezing in the winter.
The cooling system is sea led and generally re­
q ui res little attention .
The cooling system has been filled at the fac­
tory with a pe rmanent coolant which does not
need to be changed. The coolant consists of a
mixture o f spec ia lly condi tioned water and the
manufacturer's glycol -based coolant addi -
tive G l3 antifreeze with anticorrosion addi­
tives (50% for USA models ; 60% for Canadian
models). This mixture both assures the neces­
sary frost pro tection and protec ts metal com­
ponents in the engine's cooling system from
corrosion and scaling . It also raises the boil­
i ng po int of the coo lant .
Do not red uce the concentr ation of the coo l­
ant in the summer by adding plain water.
The
proportion of coolant add iti ve mu st be at
least 50 % but not more than 60 %
to main­
tain antifreeze protection and cooling efficie n­
cy.
If t he coolant frost protect io n is too low,
the coo lant cou ld freeze and damage the veh i­
cle heating and engine cooling system. F
or year -ro und driving, antifreeze is added a t
the factory for temperatures down to :
- -31°F(-35°C)USA
- -40°F ( -40°C) Canada.
If you must add coolant, use a mixture of wa­
ter and coolant additive . Mix ing the coo lant
additive with distilled water is recommended .
.&, WARNING "---
Before you c hec k anyth ing in the engine
compartment, a lways read and heed a ll
WAR NIN GS ~
page 214.
0 Note
- Before wi nter sets in, have the coo lant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli­
ma te conditions. This is especi ally impo r­
tan t if you live in a reg ion where the win­
ter is extreme ly cold . If necessary, in­
crease the p roportion of coo lant add itive
to 60% .
- Whe n adding coolant additive to yo ur
cooling system, remembe r:
- We recommend us ing on ly coola nt ad­
d itive Gl2++ or Gl3 (check the labe l)
fo r your vehicle. This coolant additive is
a va ila ble at au thorize d Au di dea le rs.
Other types of antifreeze can sign ifi­
ca ntly reduce corrosion p rotection. The
resu lting corrosion can cause a loss of
coolant and serious engine damage.
- Do not add any type of radiator leak seal­
ant to yo ur vehicle's engine coolant .
Add ing radiator repair f luid may adverse­
ly affect the function and performance of
your cooling system and cou ld resu lt in
damage not covered by you r New Ve hicle
Limited Warranty.

222 Checking and Filling
After you switch the engine off, the auxiliary
fan can continue running for up to 10 minutes
- even with the ignition off. It can even switch
on again later by itself
c:> .&. , if
- the temperature of the engine coolant rises
due to the heat build-up from the engine in
the engine compartment, or
- the engine compartment heats up beca use
the vehicle is parked in intense sunlight.
A WARNING
- To reduce the risk of personal injury
nev­
er touch the radiator fan.
- The auxiliary electr ic fan is temperature
contro lled and can switch on sudden ly
even when the engine is not running.
- The auxiliary radiator fan switches on au­ tomatically when the engine coolant
reaches a certain temperature and will
continue to run until the coolant temper­
ature drops.
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
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Fig . 169 Engine compartment : cove r on the brake flu id
r eservoir
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN ·
INGS c:> page 214.
.. Read the brake fluid level from the brake
fluid reservoir
c:> fig.169, c:>poge216 ,
fig. 165.
The brake f luid level must be be­
tween the "MIN" and "MAX" markings.
The location of the brake fluid reservoir can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
c:> page 216 .
The fluid level may drop slightly after some
time due to the automatic adjustment of the
brake pads . This is not cause for a larm.
If the brake f luid level falls
considerably be ­
low the "MIN" mark, the brake warning/indi­
cator light . (U.S. models)
I. (Canad ian
models) will come on
c:> page 18 . Do not con ­
tinue to operate the vehicle. The complete brake system should be thoroughly checked
by an authorized Audi dealer or other quali ­
fied facility and the cause corrected. If the
brake fluid level is too low, the brake warning/
indicator ligh t will illuminate. Contact an au­
thorized Audi dea ler
immediately.
Changing brake fluid
Have the broke fluid changed by an experi­
enced technician.
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. If
the water content in the brake f luid is too
high, corrosion in the brake system may result
after a period of time. The boiling point of the
brake fluid will also decrease considerably and
decrease braking performance.
T he refo re, the brake fluid must be changed
every two years. Always use new brake fluid
wh ich conforms to Federal Motor Vehicle
Standard "FMVSS 116 DOT 4".
T he brake fluid reservoir can be difficult to
reach, therefore, we recommend that you
have the b rake fluid changed by your author­
ized
Audi dealer. Your dealer has the correct
tools, the right brake fluid and the know-how
to do this for you .
A WARNING
---Brake flu id is poisonous. It must be stor­
ed only in the closed or iginal container
out of the reach of children!
- Brake failure can resu lt from o ld or inap·
propriate brake flu id. Observe these pre·
cautions:
- Us e only brake fluid that meets SAE
specification
J 1703 and conforms to
Federa l Motor Vehicle Standard 116.

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tire failure and loss of
control.
-Excessive speed and/over­ loading can cause heat
build -up, sudden tire failure
and loss of control.
-If the tire pressure is too low or too high, the tires
will wear prematurely and
the vehicle will not handle
well.
-If the tire is not flat and you do not have to change a
wheel immediately, drive at
reduced speed to the near­
est service station to check
the tire pressure and add air as required.
(D Note
Driving without valve stem
caps can cause damage to
the tire valves. To prevent
this, always make sure that
factory installed valve stem caps on all wheels are secure­
ly mounted on the valve.
@ For the sake of the environment
Underinflated tires will also
increase the fuel consump­
tion.
Tires and wheels 243
Tires and vehicle load limits
'
There are limits to the amount of load or weight that any vehi­
cle and any tire can carry. Ave­
hicle that is overloaded will not
handle well and is more diffi­
cult to stop. Overloading can
not only lead to loss of vehicle
control, but can also damage important parts of the vehicle
and can lead to sudden tire fail­
ure, including a blowout and
sudden deflation that can cause
the vehicle to crash.
Your safety and that of your passengers also depends on
making sure that load limits are
not exceeded. Vehicle load in­
cludes everybody and every­
thing in and on the vehicle .
These load limits are technical­ ly referred to as the vehicle's
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
("GVWR").
The "GVWR" includes the
weight of the basic vehicle, all
factory installed accessories, a
full tank of fuel, oil, coolant and other fluids plus maximum ""
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No. Equipment Ampere
Door/front passenger's side
F39 doors (for examp le, power
30
windows)
F40 Sockets 20
F41 Reversible front
passenger's
25
side safety belt tensioners
F42 Central locking components,
40
windshield washer system
F43 Headlights, light ing 30
F44 all wheel drive
15
F49 Starte
r, clutch sensor, head-
5
light re lay coil
FS3 Rear window defogger 30
The power seats* are protected v ia
ci rc uit
b reaker s
that automatically sw itch on after a
few seconds after the overload has been re­
duced.
(D Tips
Note that the following table was accurate
at the time of print ing and is subject to
change.
Left engine compartment fuse
assignment
F ig. 193 Engine compartme nt: fuse assignment
No.
Fl
F2
F3
F4
F5
F6
F7
F8
F9
FlO
F ll
F12
Fl3
FlS
F l 6
F l 7
Fl8
F19
F20
F22
F23
F24
F3 1
F32
Fu se s and bulb s 2 71
Equipment Ampere
E5C contro l modu le 40
ESC contro l modu le 40
Engine control module (gas-
15/30
oli ne/d iesel)
Engine cooling, eng ine com-
ponents, auxiliary heater 5/10
coi l relay (1+2), secondary
air injection pump relay
Engine components, tank 7.5/10/
system 15
Brake light sensor 5
Engine components, wa ter 7.5/10/
pumps 15
Oxygen sensor
10/15
Engine compone nts, ex-
haust door, glow time con- 5/10/20
tro l module, SU LEV valve
Fuel injectors, fuel control
15/20
module
Auxiliary heater heating ele- 40
ment 2
Auxilia ry heater heat ing ele-
40
ment 3
Automat ic transmiss ion con-
15/30
t ro l module
Horn 15
Ignit ion coil 5/20
ESC contro l module, engine
7.5
control module
T ermina l 30 (reference volt-
5
age)
Windsh ie ld wipers
30
Horn 10
Termina l 50 diagnosis
5
Starter 30
Auxilia ry heater heat ing ele-
40
ment 1
Vacuum pump 15
L E D head lights 5

2 78 Emergency situations
fa ll from a lift if the re is a change in ve­
h icle we ight d istribution and balance.
This might happen, for example, when h eavy components such as the engine
b lock or transmiss io n are removed .
- When removing heavy components like
these, ancho r vehicle to ho ist or add cor­
r e spond ing weig hts to ma inta in the cen­
te r of g ravity . Othe rwise, the vehicle
m ight tilt o r slip off th e hois t, c aus ing
s er ious pers on al injury.
(D Note
-Be awa re of th e f ollowing poin ts b efo re
li fting th e vehicle:
- The vehicle should never be lifted or
jacked up from underneath the engine oil pan, the transmission housing, the
front or rear axle or the body side members. This could lead to serious
damage .
- To avoid damage to the underbody or
chassis frame, a rubber pad must be
inserted between the floor jack and
the lift points.
- Before driving over a workshop hoist,
check that the vehicle weight does not
exceed the permissible lifting capacity
of the hoist .
- Before driving over a workshop hoist,
ensure that there is sufficient clear­
ance between the hoist and low parts
of the vehicle.