2015 AUDI A3 ECU

128 Driving safety
-Place heavy objects as far forward in
the luggage compartment as possible.
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rat­
ing or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
specified on the safety compliance stick­
er on the left door jamb. Exceeding per­
missible weight standards can cause the
vehicle to slide and handle differently .
- Please observe information on safe driv­
ing
~ page 121.
A WARNING
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas
from being drawn into the vehicle, always
keep the rear lid closed while driving.
- Never transport objects larger than
those fitting completely into the luggage
area because the rear lid cannot be fully
closed.
- If you absolutely must drive with the rear
lid open, observe the following notes to
reduce the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the power roof",
- Open all air outlets in the instrument
panel,
- Switch off the air recirculation,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest
speed.
A WARNING
Always make sure that the doors, all win­
dows, the power roof* and the rear lid are
securely closed and locked to reduce the
risk of injury when the vehicle is not being
used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make
sure that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your vehicle unattended, es­
pecially with the luggage compartment
lid left open. A child could crawl into the
vehicle through the luggage compart­
ment and close the rear lid becoming
trapped and unable to get out. Being
trapped in a vehicle can lead to serious
personal injury.
-
'
- Never let children play in or around the
vehicle.
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compartment. Vehicle occupants must
always be properly restrained in one of
the vehicle's seating positions .
(D Tips
-Air circulation helps to reduce window
fogging. Stale air escapes to the outside
through vents in the trim panel. Be sure
to keep these slots free and open.
- The tire pressure must correspond to the load. The tire pressure is shown on the
tire pressure label. The tire pressure la­
bel is located on the driver's side B-pillar.
The tire pressure label lists the recom­
mended cold tire inflation pressures for
the vehicle at its maximum capacity
weight and the tires that were on your
vehicle at the time it was manufactured.
For recommended tire pressures for nor­
mal load conditions, please see chapter
~ page 229.
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with
four tie-downs to secure luggage and other
items.
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo prop­
erly ~
page 12 7, Loading th e luggage com­
par tment.
In a collision, the laws of physics mean that
even smaller items that are loose in the vehi­
cle will become heavy missiles that can cause
serious injury. Items in the vehicle possess en­
ergy which vary with vehicle speed and the
weight of the item . Vehicle speed is the most
significant factor.
For example, in a frontal collision at a speed
of 30 mph (48 km/h), the forces acting on a 10-lb (4 .S kg) object are about 20 times the
normal weight of the item . This means that
the weight of the item would suddenly be about 200 lbs. (90 kg). You can imagine the
injuries that a 200 lbs. (90 kg) item flying ..,_

freely through the passenger compartment
could cause in a collision like this.
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used
to secure items to tie-downs can fail dur­ing hard braking or in a collision and cause
serious personal injury.
- Always use suitable mounting straps and
properly secure items to the tie-downs in
the luggage compartment to help pre­
vent items from shifting or flying for­
ward as dangerous missiles .
- When the rear seat backrest is folded
down, always use suitable mounting
straps and properly secure items to the
tie-downs in the luggage compartment
to help prevent items from flying for­
ward as dangerous missiles into the pas­ senger compartment.
- Never attach a child safety seat tether
strap to a tie-down.
Reporting Safety
Defects
Applicable to U.S.A.
If you believe that your vehicle
has a defect which could cause
a crash or could cause injury or
death, you should immediately
inform the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in addition to notify­
ing Audi of America, Inc.
If NHTSA receives similar com­
plaints, it may open an investi­
gation, and if it finds that a
safety defects exists in a group
of vehicles, it may order a recall
Driving safety 129
and remedy campaign. Howev­
er, NHTSA cannot become in­
volved in individual problems
between you, your dealer, or
Audi of America, Inc.
To contact the NHTSA, you may
either call:
Tel.: 1-888-327-4236 (TTY: 1-800-424-9153) or
1-800-424-9393
or you may write to:
NHTSA
U.S. Department of Transporta­
tion 1200 New Jersey Ave., S. E.
West Building
Washington, DC 20590
You can also obtain other infor­
mation about motor vehicle
safety from:
http:/ /www.safercar.gov
Applicable to Canada
If you live in Canada and you
believe that your vehicle has a
defect that could cause a crash,
injury or death, you should im­
mediately inform Transport
Canada, Defect Investigations
and Recalls. You should also no­
tify Volkswagen Group Canada,
Inc.
•
•
•

134 Safety belts
Important safety instructions about
safety belts
Safety belts must always be correctly posi­
tioned across the strongest bones of your
body.
,.. Always wear safety belts as illustrated and
described in this chapter.
,.. Make sure that your safety belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them
improperly increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death. Safety belts can
work only when used correctly .
- Always fasten your safety belts correctly
before driving
off and make sure all pas­
sengers are correctly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must always be positioned properly on
the body .
- Never strap more than one person , in­
cluding small children, into any belt.
- Never place a safety belt over a child sit­ ting on your lap.
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front
of the seat while the vehicle is being driv­
en .
- Never let any person ride with their feet on the instrument panel or sticking out
the window or on the seat.
- Never remove a safety belt while the ve­
hicle is moving. Doing so will increase
your risk of be ing injured or killed.
- Never wear belts twisted.
- Never wear belts over rigid or breakable
objects in or on your clothing, such as
eye glasses, pens, keys, etc., as these
may cause injury.
- Never allow safety belts to become dam­
aged by being caught in door or seat
hardware .
- Do not wear the shoulder pa rt of the belt
under your arm or otherwise out of pos i­
tion . -
Several layers of heavy clothing may in­
terfere with correct positioning of belts
and reduce the overall effectiveness of
the system .
- Always keep belt buckles free of anything
that may prevent the buckle from latch­
ing securely .
- Never use comfort clips or devices that
create slack in the shoulder belt . Howev­
er, special clips may be required for the
proper use of some child restraint sys­
tems .
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt hardware can break in an
accident. Inspect belts regularly .
If web­
bing, bindings, buck les, or retractors are
damaged, have belts replaced by an au ­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop.
- Safety belts that have been worn and
loaded in an accident must be replaced
with the correct replacement safety belt
by an authorized Audi dealer . Replace­
ment may be necessary even if damage
cannot be clearly seen . Anchorages that
were loaded must also be inspected.
- Never remove, modify, disassemble, or
try to repair the safety belts yourself.
- Always keep the belts clean. Dirty belts
may not work properly and can impair
the function of the inert ia reel
c::> ta­
ble Internal cleaning on page 203.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 117 B elt buck le and to ngue o n th e drive r's se at

To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer's body.
... Adjust the front seat and head restraint
properly
c::> page 53, Front seats.
• Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in an upright position and securely
latched in place before using the belt
c::> ,&..
... Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it even­
ly across the chest and pelvis
c::> ,&. .
""Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
c::>fig. 117.
.., Pull on the belt to make sure that it is se-
curely latched in the buckle.
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped with an automat­
ic belt retractor on the shoulder belt . This fea­
ture locks the belt when the belt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and in an accident.
The belt may also lock when you drive up or
down a steep hill or through a sharp curve. During normal driving the belt lets you move
freely.
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped with a belt pre­
tensioner that helps to tighten the safety belt
and remove slack when the pretensioner is ac­
tivated
c::> poge 137. The function of the pre­
tensioner is monitored by a warning light
c::> page 21.
Switchable locking feature
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a switchable locking fea­
ture that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the important information about this feature
c::> page 177 .
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious injury in an accident
c::> page 135, Safety belt position.
-Safety belts offer optimum protection
only when the seatback is upright and
Safety belts 135
belts are properly positioned on the
body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat
backrest to which the center rear safety
belt* is attached is securely latched
whenever the rear center safety belt is
being used. If the backrest is not secure­
ly latched, the passenger will move for­
ward with the backrest during sudden
braking, in a sudden maneuver and espe­
cially in a crash .
- Never attach the safety belt to the buck­
le for another seat . Attaching the belt to
the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt
effectiveness and can cause serious per­
sonal injury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrain­
ed can be seriously injured by the safety
belt itself when it moves from the stron­
ger parts of the body into critical areas
like the abdomen.
- Always lock the convertible locking re­
tractor when you are securing a child seat in the vehicle
c::> page 179.
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretension­
ers, refer to
c::> page 13 7.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting
maximum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 118 Safety belt position
Use the height adjustment to change the posi­
tion of the shoulder belt of the front safety
belts .
~

136 Safet y belt s
A WARNING
Imprope rly positioned safety belts can
cause serious persona l injury in an acci ­
dent.
-
- The shoulder belt shou ld lie as close to
the center of the collar bone as poss ible
and should fit we ll on the body. Hold the
belt above the latch tongue and pull it
evenly across the chest so that it sits as
low as possible on the pelvis and there is
no p ressure on the abdomen. The be lt
sho uld a lways f it snugly
¢ fig . 118. Pull
on the be lt to tighten if necessary.
- A loose-fitt ing safety be lt can cause seri­
o us in juries by s hifting its position on
yo ur body from the stro ng bones to more
vulnerab le, so ft tissue and cause serious
injury.
- Alw ays re ad and heed all WARN INGS and
other impor tant in format io n
¢ page 134.
Pregnant women must al so be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to moke
sure that expectant mothers always wear
safety belts correctly -throughout the preg­
nancy.
Fi g. 1 19 Safety be lt pos ition du ring preg nancy
To provide maxim um protection, safety belts
must always be pos it io ned correctly on the
wearer 's body
¢ page 135.
.,. Adjust the front seat and adjustable head
restraint* correctly
c::> page 53, Front seats .
.,. Ho ld the belt by the tongue and pu ll it even ­
ly across the chest and pelvis¢
fig. 119,
¢ _&..
.,. Insert the tongue into the correct buck le of
your seat unt il you hear it latch securely
¢page 134, fig . 117.
.,. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is se·
curely latched in th e buckle .
_& WARNING
Imprope rly posit io ned safety be lts ca n
c a use ser ious perso nal in ju ry in an a cci­
den t.
-
- Expe cta nt mo thers m ust alw ays wea r the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as
possible across the pelvis and below t he
round ing of the abdomen.
- Always read and heed all WA RNINGS and
other important information¢.&.
in Fas­
tening safety belts on page 135.
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped .
Fig. 120 Releas ing the tong ue fro m the buck le
.,. Push the red release button on the buckle
¢ fig. 120 . The be lt tongue will spring out
of the buckle
¢ _& .
.,. Le t the belt wind up on the retractor as you
gu ide the be lt tongue to its stowe d posi tion .
_& WARNING
Neve r unfa sten sa fety belt whi le the vehi­
cle is moving. Doing so will increase yo ur
risk of being in ju red o r killed.

1 70 Child Safety
-Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Audi dealer immediate­
ly.
The child seats listed in categories A to C have been statically tested by Audi only for
the Advanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correc t use of child safety seats substantially
reduces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safe­
ty of everybody in the vehicle, especially chil­
dren :
• Always use the right child safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
c:> page 172.
• Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child
safety seat.
• When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
cc> page 177.
• Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really tight so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm) .
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:>page 172.
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 size.
.&_ 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 . -
-All vehicle occupants and especially chil­
dren must be restrained properly when­
ever riding in a vehicle. An unrestrained
or improperly restrained child could be
injured by striking the interior or by be­
ing ejected from the vehicle during a
sudden maneuver or impact. An unre­
strained or improperly restrained child is
also at greater risk of injury or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- Commercially available child safety seats
are required to comply with U.S. Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
213 (in Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restraint, select one that fits your child and the vehicle.
- Only use child restraint systems that fully contact the flat portion of the seat cushion . The child restraint must
not tip or lean to either side . Audi does
not recommend using child safety
seats that rest on legs or tube-like
frames. They do not provide adequate
contact with the seat.
- Always heed all legal requirements per­
taining to the installation and use of
child safety seats and carefully follow
the instructions provided by the manu­
facturer of the seat you are using.
- Never allow children under 57 inches
(1.45 meters) to wear a normal safety
belt. They must always be restrained by a
proper child restraint system . Otherwise,
they could sustain injuries to the abdo­ men and neck areas during sudden brak­
ing maneuvers or accidents.
- Never let more than one child occupy a
child safety seat.
- Never let babies or older children ride in
a vehicle while sitting on the lap of an­
other passenger .
- Holding a child in your arms is never a
substitute for a child restraint system .
- The strongest person could not hold
the child with the forces that exist in
an accident. The child will strike the in­
terior of the vehicle and can also be struck by the passenger.

172 Child Safety
Secure unused safety belts on the rear
seat
Fig . 132 Schematic overview: keep unused safety belts
away from children in child safety seats.@-outer rear
safety belt,
® -center rear safety belr
If a child safety seat is used on the rear bench,
especially with LATCH universal lower ancho­
rages, the unused safety belts
must be se­
cured so that the child in the child restraint
cannot reach them¢,&..
- Guide the safety belt webbings @and
®*
behind the head restraint of the seat where
the child restraint is installed
¢fig . 132.
When doing so, do not engage the switcha­
ble locking retractor! You should not hear a
"clicking" sound when winding up the safety
belt.
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt webbing.
A 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 un­
used rear seat safety belts and become en­
tangled. This could cause the child serious personal injury and even death.
-Always secure unused rear seat safety
belts out of reach of children in child
seats such as by properly routing them
around the head restraint of the seat
where the child restraint is installed.
- Never activate the switchable locking re­
tractor when routing the safety belts
around the head restraints.
- Never let anyone sit at the center rear
seating position if the center rear safety belt has been routed around a rear head
restraint.
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. 133 Schemat ic overview: rearward -facing in fant
seat, properly installed on the rear seat
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
¢page 177 or install the seat
using the LATCH attachments.
.,. Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really tight
so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm).
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 172.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg)
are best protected in special infant carriers
and child safety seats designed for their age
group. Many experts believe that infants and
small children should ride only in special re­
straints in which the child faces the back of
the vehicle. These infant seats support the ba­
by's back, neck and head in a crash¢
fig. 133.
The airbag on the passenger 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 forward-facing child seat . ..,.

174 Child Safety
• When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking feature on the safety
belt to prevent the child safety seat from
moving
c::;, page 177 or install the seat using
the LATCH attachments .
• Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really tight so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
c::;, page 177.
• If the child safety seat is equipped with a
tether strap, attach it to the tether anchors
c::;, page 183.
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c::;, page 172.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in­
fant restraint if it is more than one year old
and weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
Toddlers and children who are older than one
year up to about 4 years old and weigh more
than 20 lbs (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must
always be properly restrained in a child safety
seat certified for their size and weight
c::;, fig. 134 and c::;, fig . 135.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a poten tially dangerous place for a
child to ride . The front seat is not the safest
place for a child in a forward-facing child safe­
ty seat.
It is a very dangerous place for an in­
fant or a larger 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
collision or other emergency situation.
- 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. A child in a rearward-facing
child safety seat installed on the front
passenger seat will be seriously injured
and can be killed if the front airbag in-
-
flates -even with an Advanced 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
arm rest, door or roof .
- 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 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.
- 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
c::;, page 55. 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.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
¢page 131, Safety
belts, c::;, page 140, Airbag system
and
c::;, page 166, Important things to know.
A WARNING
-
If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's safe­
ty and well-being require that the follow­
ing special precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed and certified by its manu­
facturer for use on a front seat with a passenger front and side airbag.