2015 AUDI A3 heater

6 About this Owner's Manual
This owner's manua l contains important infor­
mation, tips, suggestions and warnings for
using your veh icle.
Keep this owner's manual in your vehicle at all
times. This is especially important if you loan
your vehicle to others or sell it.
This owner's manual descr ibes the
equipment
range
specified for this mode l at the time of
the editoria l deadline. Individual items of
equipment may not yet be available at the
time of pr int ing or may on ly be offered in cer­
tain countries.
Some sections in this owner's manua l do not
apply to a ll vehicles . When this is the case,
the beg inning of the section indicates the
val·
idity ,
for example "Applies to vehicles: with a
parking heater". Optional or vehicle-specific
equipment is also identified with an asterisk
"*"
The illustrations are designed as a general
gu ide and on your veh icle may look slightly
d ifferent than what is illustrated.
There is a
Table of Contents at the beg inning
of this owner's manual that lists all of the
topics covered in this book in the order that
they appear . There is also an alphabetically ar­
ranged
Index at the end of this owner's man­
ual.
All
direct ions such as "left", "right", "front"
and "rear" are based on the vehicle's direction
of travel.
* Opt
ional or vehicle-specific equipment.
..,. The section continues on the next page.
~ & Cross reference to a "WARNING" within a
section. If a page number is indicated, the
WARNING is located outside of the section.
8_ WARNING
Text with this symbol contains important
information on safety and how to reduce
the risk of personal injury or death.
(D Note
Text with this symbo l draws your attention
to potentia l sources of damage to your ve­
hicle.
@) For the sake of the environment
Text with this symbo l contains information
abo ut the environment and how you can
help protect it.
{!) Tips
Text with this symbo l contains special tips
and other information about gett ing the
most out of your vehicle and its features.

-Never remove the front passenger or
driver seat from the vehicle.
- Never remove the upholstery from the
front passenger seat.
- Never disassemble or remove parts from
the seat or disconnect wires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or put them on the seat. The capacitive passenger detection mat in the front
passenger seat will not function properly
if it is punctured .
- Never carry things on your lap or carry
objects on the front passenger seat.
Such objects can influence the capaci­
tance registered by the capacitive pas­ senger detection system, so that incor­
rect information is provided to the airbag
control unit.
- Never store items under the front pas­
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Air­
bag System under the passenger seat
could be damaged, preventing them and
the airbag system from working proper­
ly.
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholstery that have not been specifical­
ly approved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from recognizing child re­
straints or occupants on the front pas­
senger seat and prevent the side airbag
in the seat backrest from deploying prop­
erly .
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys­
tem on this seat.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets, or
similar items on the front passenger
seat. The additional layers prevent the
capacitive passenger detection system
from accurately measuring the capaci­
tance of the child safety seat and/or the
person on the seat and thus keep the Ad­
vanced Airbag System from working properly.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
Airbag system 149
games device, power inverter or seat
heater for child seats) on the front pas­
senger seat if the device is connected to
the 12-volt socket or the cigarette light­
er socket. Such devices can influence the
capacitance registered by the capacitive passenger detection system, so that in­
correct information is provided to the air­
bag control unit.
- If you must use a child restraint on the
front passenger seat and the child re­
straint manufacturer's instructions re­
quire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something else to properly position the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the child re­
straint is installed on the front passen­
ger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install child restraint in a rear seat­
ing position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
.&_ WARNING
If the front passenger seat gets wet, dry it
immediately.
- If liquid soaks into the front passenger
seat, this can keep the airbag system
from working properly and may, for in­
stance, deactivate the passenger frontal
airbag. If this happens, the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will come on and stay
on together with the airbag indicator light
fl in the instrument cluster.
- If liquid is pooled on the seat, but has
not soaked in, this may also keep the air­
bag system from working properly and
cause the passenger frontal airbag to be
enabled (turned on), even though there is a properly installed child restraint sys­
tem on the seat . Wet towels or other wet
things on the seat cushion can have the
same effect. If the front passenger fron­
tal airbag is turned on, the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will go out .
•
•
•

154 Airbag sys te m
- and i f th e e lec trica l capacitance registered
on the front passenger seat is equal to or
l ess than t he combined capacitance of a ty p­
ical 1 year-old infant and one of the rear ­
ward-facing o r forward-facing child re­
stra ints listed in Federal Motor Ve hicle Safe ­
ty Standard 208 w ith whic h the Adva nce d
Airbag System in your vehicle was ce rtified .
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS ­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght w ill stay on . Nev­
e r i nsta ll a rearwa rd-fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place fo r
a child in any kind of child restraint is at o ne
of the seat ing positions on the rear seat
¢ page 142, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 166, Child Safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on when one of the cond itions listed above is
met , be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignit io n is on . If t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
l ight does not appear on and does not
stay o n all the time, s top as soon as it is safe
to do so a nd
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off for more than 4 seconds and then tu rn­
i ng it on agai n;
- remove and re install the chi ld restraint.
Make su re that the child res traint is properly
insta lled and that the safety be lt fo r the
fron t passenger seat has been correct ly
ro uted throug h the child restrain t as descri ­
bed in t he chi ld restraint man ufact urer 's in­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea ­
ture on the safety be lt fo r the front passen ­
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight.
- ma ke sure that no e lectrica l device (such as
a laptop, CD playe r, electronic games device,
power inverter or seat heater for child seats)
is p laced or used on the front passenger seat
if the dev ice is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter soc ket;
- ma ke s ure that no seat heater has been ret ­
rofitted or otherwise added to the front pas­
senger seat;
- ma ke s ure that no thing can interfere with
the safety belt buck les an d that they are not
obstructed ;
- make sure that there are no wet objects (such as a wet towe l) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cushion.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still
does not c ome on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on and does not stay on con ­
t in uous ly (when the ignition is switched on),
- t ake the child restraint off the front passen -
ge r seat and install it proper ly at o ne of the
rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by yo ur Audi dealer immed iately.
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure t hat the c hil d is properly restra in­
ed in a c hild restra int that is appropriate for
its size and age .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should
NOT come on . ..
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when the ignit ion is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat. If t he
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes o n and s tays on o r
flashes fo r about S seconds w hile d riving, un ­
der these circumstances, make sure tha t:
- t he adult on the front passenge r sea t is
prope rly seated on the cente r of the seat
cushion wi th his o r her back up aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is no t re cli ned,
- t he adult is not tak ing we ight o ff the sea t by
holding on to the passenger assis t handle
above the front passenger door or s upport ­
ing their weight on the armrest ,
- t he sa fe ty belt is be ing properly wo rn and
t ha t the re is not a lot o f slack in the safety
be lt webbing,
- t here are no aftermar ket sea t covers or
cushions or other things (such as blankets) .,..

-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 Audi dealer.
_& WARNING
- Forward-facing child seats installed on
the front passenger seat may interfere
with the deployment of the airbag and
cause serious personal injury to the
child.
- If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's
safety and well-being require the follow­
ing special precautions to be taken:
- Always make sure that the forward-fac­
ing seat has been designed and certi­
fied by its manufacturer for use on a
front passenger seat with a front and side airbag.
- Always carefully follow the manufac­
turer's instructions provided with the
child seat or infant carrier.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if
the child restraint manufacturer's in­
structions require the top tether strap
to be used.
- Never put the forward-facing child re­
straint up against or very near the in­
strument panel.
- Always set the safety belt upper an­
chorage to the adjustment position
that permits proper installation in ac­
cordance with the child restraint manu­
facturer's instructions.
- Always move the passenger seat into
its rearmost position in the seat's fore
and aft adjustment range, as far away
.
Child Safety 167
from the airbag as possible before in­
stalling the child restraint. The back­
rest must be adjusted to an upright po­
sition.
- Always make sure that nothing pre­
vents the front passenger's seat from being moved to the rearmost position
in its fore and aft adjustment range.
- Never place objects on the seat (such
as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat
heater for child seats). These may in­
fluence the electrical capacitance
measured by the capacitive passenger
detection system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause serious personal injury.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat
heater for child seats) on the front pas­
senger seat if the device is connected
to the 12-volt socket or the cigarette
lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passen­ ger seat, never install any child re­
straint system on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or
other liquids on the front passenger
seat cushion.
- Always 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 forward-facing child
seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer.
- Always buckle the child seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it.
A loose child seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a collision.
~
•
•
•

-The child and the passenger can also
injure each other in an accident .
- 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 - even with an Ad­
vanced 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 install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Forward-facing child safety seats instal­
led on the front passenger's seat can in­
terfere with the airbag when it inflates
and cause serious injury to the child. Al­
ways install forward-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat.
- If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's
safety and well-being require that the
following special precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
-Always carefully follow the manufac­
turer's instructions provided with the
child safety seat or carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat
into the rearmost position of the pas­
senger seat's fore and aft adjustment
range, and as far away from the airbag
as possible before installing the child
restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing pre­
vents the front passenger's seat from
being moved to the rearmost position
in its fore and aft adjustment range .
- Always make sure that the backrest is
in the upright position.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat
Child Safety 1 71
heater for child seats) on the front pas­
senger seat if the device is connected
to the 12-volt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passen­
ger seat, never install any child re­
straint system on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or
other liquids on the front passenger
seat cushion .
- Never place objects on the seat (such
as a laptop, CD player, electronic games device, power inverter or seat
heater for child seats). These may in­
fluence the electrical capacitance
measured by the capacitive passenger
detection system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause serious
personal injury.
- 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 read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
<=> page 131, Safety
belts,
¢ page 140, Airbag system and
¢ page 166, Child Safety .
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat and the ignition is switched
on.
- 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.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Audi dealer immediate­
ly . •
•
•

It is a very dangerous place for an infant or a
la rger child in a rearward-facing seat.
A WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child safety seat or improperly in­ stalling a child restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death in a
crash.
- Never install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the front pas­
senger seat -even with an Advanced Air­
bag System. A child will be seriously in­
jured and can be killed when the inflat­
ing airbag hits the child safety seat or in­
fant carrier with great force and smashes
the child safety seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or
roof
c::> page 142, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- Always install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Never install a rear-facing child restraint
in the forward-facing direction. Such re­
straints are designed for the special
needs of infants and very small children
and cannot protect them properly if the
seat is forward-facing .
-If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
mediately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
Audi dealer.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat
heater for child seats) on the front pas­
senger seat if the device is connected to
the 12-volt socket or the cigarette light­
er socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
Child Safety 173
seat, never install any child restraint sys­
tem on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or
other liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as
a laptop, CD player, electronic games de­
vice, power inverter or seat heater for
child seats). These may influence the
electrical capacitance measured by the
capacitive passenger detection system
and can also fly around in an accident
and cause serious personal injury.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
c::> page 131, Safety
belts,
c::> page 140, Airbag system and
c::> page 166, Important things to know.
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats
can help protect toddlers and children over
age one who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9
and 18 kg) in a crash.
Fig. 134 Schematic overview: installat ion of the at­
tac hme nts applicab le to a LA T CH seat
Fig. 135 Sc hemat ic overv iew : installatio n of the seat
using the vehicle 's safety belt syste m
I),,

-Always follow the manufacturer's in­
struct ions provided with the child safety
seat or infant carrier.
- Always m ove the front passenger seat in­
to the rearmost position of the passen­ ger seat's f ore and aft adjustment range,
and as far away from the airbag as possi­
ble before install ing the child restraint.
- Always make sure that noth ing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being moved to the rearmost position in its
fore and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an
upr ight position .
- Never place o r use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electron ic
games dev ice, power inverter o r seat
heater for child se ats ) on the fr ont pas­
senger se at if the device is connected to
the 12-vo lt socket or the cigarette light ­
er socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys ­
tem on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or
other liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as
a laptop, CD player, electronic games de­
vice, power inverter or seat heate r for
child seats). These may influence the
elect rical capacitance measu red by the
capacit ive passenger detection system
and can a lso fly aro und in an accident
a nd cau se se riou s person al injury.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
lig ht comes on an d stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched
on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and s tay on, immedi­
ately install the forward-facing child seat
at a seating posit ion on the rear seat and
have the a irbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer. Child S
afety 175
- Ta ke the chi ld 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
li ght does not stay on
whenever the ignit ion is switched on.
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs. and
80 lbs . (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9 in . tall. 9 in . (57 inches/1 .45 meters)
tall.
F ig. 1 36 Rea r seat : ch ild p roperly res trained in a boos ­
ter seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit
most children until they are at leas t 4 ft . 9 in .
(57 inches/1.45 meters) tall and weig h about
80 lbs. (36 kg). Booster seats rai se t hese chi l­
dren up so that the safety belt w ill pass prop­
erly over the stronge r parts of the ir bodies
and t he safety be lt can he lp pro tect them in a
c rash .
.,. Do not use the convert ible lock ing retractor
when using the veh icle's safety be lt to re­
strain a ch ild on a booster seat .
.. The s houlde r belt must lie as close to the
center of the chi ld's collar bone as possib le
and must lie flat and snug on the upper
body. It must never lie across the throat or
neck . The lap be lt must lie across the pelvis
and never ac ross the stomach or abdomen .
Mak e su re the be lt lies flat and sn ug. P ull on
the belt to tighten if necessary .
.,. If you must tra nsport an older c hild in a
booste r seat on the front passenger sea t, .._

226 Tire s and wheel s
-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 t ire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
- If you notice unusual vibration or if the
vehicle pulls to one side when driving, al­
ways stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and check the wheels and tires for dam­
age.
(D Note
- Please note that summer and winter
tires are designed for the cond itions that
a re typ ica l in those seasons. Aud i recom­
mends using w inter t ires d uring the win-
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means t he comb ined we ight (in excess of
those standard items which may be rep laced)
of automatic transmission, power steering,
power brakes, power windows, power seats,
radio, and heater, to the extent that these
items are availab le as factory-installed equip­
ment (whether installed or not).
A spect ratio
means th e ratio of the height to the width of
the tire in percent. Numbers of 55 or lower in­
d icate a low sidewall for improved steer ing re­
sponse and better overall handling on dry
pavement .
Bead
means the part of the tire th at is made of
steel wires, wrapped or reinforced by ply cords
and that is shaped to fit the rim.
Bead s eparation
means a breakdown of the bond between
components in the bead.
Cord
means t he strands forming the plies in the
tire. ter months.
Low tempe ratu res signifi­
cantly decrease the elasticity of summer
tires, which affects traction and braking ability. If summer tires are used in very
co ld temperatures, cracks can form on
the tread bars, resu lting in permanent
tire damage that can cause loud driving
noise and unbalanced tires. Aud i is not
responsib le for this type of damage.
- Burn ished, polished or chromed rims
must not be used in winter weather. The
surfa ce of the rims does not have suff i­
c ien t cor rosion prote ct io n for this and
co uld be pe rmanen tly damaged by road
salt or simi lar substances. This damage
is not cove red by war ranty.
Cold tire inflat ion pre ssure
mea ns the t ire press ure recommended by the
vehicle manufacturer for a tire o f a des ignated
size that has not bee n driven for more than a
coup le of miles (ki lometers) at low speeds in
the three hour period before the tire press ure
is measured or adjusted.
Curb weight
means the weight of a motor vehicle w ith
standard equipment including the maximum
capacity of fuel, o il, and coolant, air condi­
tion ing and additional weight of optional
equipment.
E x tra load tire
means a tire design to operate at higher loads
and at higher inflation pressures than the cor­
responding standard tire. Extra load tires may
be identified as "XL", "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or
"RF" on the sidewall.
Gross A xle Weight Rating ("GAWR")
means the load-carrying capacity of a single
axle system, measured at the tire-ground in-
terfaces.
IJ>,