2015 AUDI Q3 instrument cluster

84 Automatic tr an smis sion
the overload. An indicator lamp mJ illu­
minates and a dr iver message appears
Q page 85 when the clutch is overload­
ed .
- If the engine must remain running, never
have any driving pos ition engaged whe n
checking under the hood . Make sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and is locked in P with the parking brake set
c!:> page 179. Othe rwise, any inc rease in
eng ine speed m ay set the vehicle in mo­
t io n, even wi th the park ing brake ap ­
plied.
(D Note
- When stopping on an i ncl ine, do not try
to hol d the veh icle in place by pressing
the accelerator peda l whi le a driving gear
is selected. This can cause the transmis­
s ion to overheat and can damage it. Acti ­
vate the park ing brake or press the brake
pedal to prevent the vehicle from ro lling .
- Allow ing t he vehicle to roll when the en­
gine is stopped and the selector lever is i n N will damage the transmiss ion be­
cause it is not lub ricated under those cir­
cumstances.
{DI Tips
For safety reasons, the park ing brake is re­
leased automatically only when the dr iv­
er 's safety belt is engaged in the buck le.
Hill descent control
The hill descent control system assists the
driver when driving down declines.
Hill descent control is activated when these­
lector lever is in D/S and you press the brake
pedal. The transmission automatically se lects
a gea r that is suitable for the incline . Hill de­
scent control tries to maintai n the speed ach­
i eved at the time of bra king, within physical
an d techn ic al limita tio ns.
If may still be ne c­
ess ary to adjust the speed with the bra kes . Hill descent contro
l sw itches off once the de ­
cline leve ls out or yo u press the acce lerator
peda l.
On vehicles wi th the cru ise contro l system
Q page 73, hill descent control is also activat ­
ed when the speed is set.
A WARNING
--
Hill descent control cannot overcome
physical lim itations, so it may not be ab le
to maintain a co nstant speed under a ll
conditions. A lways be ready to apply the
b rakes .
Manual shift program
Using the manual shift program you can
manually select gears .
Fig. 88 Center co nsole: s hifti ng t he gears ma nually
Fig . 89 Stee ring w hee l: Shi ft padd les•
Gear selection w ith selector lever
T he t iptronic mode can be selected either w ith
the vehicle stat io nary or on the move .
.,. Push the selector lever to the right from 0/
S. An M appears in the instrument cluster
d isp lay as soon as the transm issio n has
shifted .

114 Airbag sys te m
- Never permit salvaged or recycled air­
bags to be installed in your veh icle.
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
~ Be sure to read the important informat ion
and head the WARNINGS for important de­
ta ils about ch ildren and Advanced Airbags
c::>page 133.
Even though your vehicle is equ ipped with an
Advanced Airbag System, make certain that
a ll c hildren, especially those 12 years and
younger, a lways ride in the back sea t properly
restrained for their age and size . The airbag
on the passenger side makes the front seat a
potentially dangerous place for a chi ld to ride.
The front seat is not the safest place for a
child in a forward-facing child safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for an infant or
a child in a rea rward-facing seat .
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle
has been certified to comply with the Requ ire­
ments of United States Federa l Motor Veh icle
Safety Standard 208 as applicable at the time
your veh icle was manufactured .
The Standard requires the front a irbag on the
passenger side to be turned off ("sup ­
pressed") if a ch ild up to about one yea r of
age restra ined in one of the rear-facing or fo r­
ward-facing infan t restra ints listed in Federal
M otor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 w ith w hic h
the Advanced A irbag System in your vehicle
was certified has been installed on the front
passenger seat. Fo r a listing of the child re­
straints that were used to certify compliance
with the US Safety Standard
c::> page 135.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the in­
strument panel te lls you when the front Ad ­
vanced A irbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the e lectronic control unit.
Each time yo u turn on the ignition, the
PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght wi ll come on for a
few seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied, -
w ill s tay on i f there is a small ch ild or child
restraint on the front passenger seat,
- will go off i f the front passenger sea t is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing mat
c::> page 123, Monitor­
ing the Advanced Airbag System.
T he PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
whe n the control unit detects a tota l weight
o n the front passenger seat that req uires the
front airbag to be turned off .
If the total weight on the front passenge r
seat is more than that of a typica l 1 year -old
c h ild b ut less than the weight of a small
adult, the front airbag on the passenger side
can deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not come on). If the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on, the
front a irbag on the passenger side has not
been turned off by the elect ronic control unit
and can deploy if the cont rol uni t senses an
impact that meets the cond itions s tored i n its
memo ry .
For exampl e, th e ai rbag may deploy if;
- a small ch ild that is heav ier than a typical 1
year-old ch ild is on the front passenger seat
( r egardless of whether the child is in one of
the ch ild safety seats listed
c::> page 135) , or
- a child who has outgrown chi ld restraints is
on t he front passenger seat .
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in
the instrument cluster a nd stays on .
The front airbag on the passenger side may
not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not illum inate and stay lit) even if a
small adult o r teenager, or a passenger who is
not sitt ing up rig ht w ith their back against a
non- recl ined ba ck rest w it h their feet on the
vehicle f loor i n front o f the sea t is on t he front
passenge r seat
c::> page 95, Proper seating po ­
sition for the driver.
If the front passenger airbag dep loys, the
F edera l Standard req uires the airbag to meet
the "low risk" dep loyment criteria to red uce
t h e risk of injury t hro ugh interactio n with the ..,.

M N
M N
0 ::i co ,...., \!) ..,.,
,...., ..,., ,....,
-accessory seat covers or cushions or other
things that may cause an incorrect reading
or impression on the weight-sens ing mat
under the upholstery of the seat have been
removed from the front passenger seat,
- a safety be lt extender has not been left in
the safety belt latch for the front passenger seat.
In addition to the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel,
the message
PASS ENGER AIR B AG O FF or
PAS SENGER AIR B AG ON will briefly appear
in the instrument cluster display . Th is is to in­
form the driver of the current front passenger
a ir bag status .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash .
- If the airbag indicator l ight
c> page 16
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
have the system inspected immediately
by you r autho rized Aud i dea ler. It is pos­
sible that the a irbag will inflate when it
is not supposed to, or w ill not inflate
when it sho uld .
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates , a ch ild without
a child restraint, in a rearward-facing child
safety seat or in a forward-facing chi ld re­
straint that has not been properly insta lled
w ill be seriously injured and can be k illed.
- Even though your veh icle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that a ll children, especially 12
years and younge r, always ride o n the
back seat properly restrained fo r their
age and si ze.
- Always install forward or rea r-facing
child safety seats on the rear seat - even
with an Advance d Airbag System. A
irbag
sys tem 125
- If you must install a rearward-facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan­
ces and the
PA SS ENG ER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and stay on, imme­
diate ly install the rear-facing child safety
seat in a rea r seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspe cted by your au­
thorized A udi dealer.
- A t ight tether or other strap on a rea r­
ward-facing child restraint attached to
the front passenger seat can p ut too
m uch pressure on the weight-sensing
mat in the seat and registe r more weight
than is actually on the seat. The heavier
weight registered can make the system
work as though an adult were on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
must be suppressed causing ser ious or
even fata l injury to the ch ild.
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you
must install a forward-fac ing ch ild re­
straint on the front passenger seat, al­
ways move the seat into its rearmost po­
sition in the seat's fore and aft adjust­
ment range, as far away from the airbag
as possible . The backrest must be adjust­
ed to an upright pos ition. Make sure that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when­
ever the ignit ion is switched on.
A WARNING
...---
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out when an adult is sitting
on the front passenger sea t after taking
the steps described above, make su re the
adu lt is properly seated and restra ined at
one o f the rear seat ing pos itions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi dealer befo re trans­
porting anyone on the front passenger
seat.
(D Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front pas­
senger seat detects an empty sea t, the
front airbag on the passenger side wi ll be ..,.
•
•

M N
M N
0 ::i co ,...., \!) ..,.,
,...., ..,., ,....,
@ Tips
Your vehicle may be equipped with Audi
connect. Your use of certain Aud i connect
features req uires wireless serv ices that are
provided by a third party wireless telecom­
municat ions provider. For details regard­
ing how information obtained through
Aud i connect is collected, processed,
transmitted, used, and shared, please see
your contra ct w ith the wire less telecom ­
municat ions provider and the "About A udi
connect" tab in your vehicle's MMI:
!MENU !
button > Audi connect > About Audi con·
nect .
Electronic Stabilization
Control (ESC)
Description
ESC helps to improve road holding and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of
skidd ing and loss of veh icle control. It works
only when the eng ine is running. ESC detects
certain difficult driv ing s ituations, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw) out of cont ro l and helps you to get the vehicle
back under control by select ively brak ing the
wheels, and/or red ucing engine powe r and
p roviding steering assistance to help hold the
ve hicle on the driver's intended course . The in­
dicator light
m in the instrument cluster
blinks when ESC is taking action to help you
control the vehicle.
ESC has limitations.
It is important to remem­
ber that ESC cannot overcome the laws of
phys ics. It will not a lways be able to help out
under all conditions you may come up against.
For example, ESC may not always be able to
h elp you master situat ions where there is a
sudden change in the coefficient of fr iction of
the road surface. When there is a sect io n of
d ry road that is s udden ly cove red with water,
slush o r snow, ESC canno t perform the same
way it would on the dry su rface.
If the vehicle
hydroplanes (rides on a c ush ion of wate r in­
stead of the road surface), ESC wi ll not be
ab le to he lp you steer the veh icle because con-
Int ellig ent technolog y 153
tact with the pavement has been interrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered .
D uring fast corner ing, particular ly on wind ing
roads, ESC cannot always deal as effectively
with difficult dr iv ing s ituations than at lower
speeds. When towing a trailer, ESC is not able
to help you regain control as it would if you
were not tow ing a trailer.
Always adjust your speed and driving style to road, traffic and weather conditions . ESC can­
not override the vehicle's physical lim its, in­
crease the availab le tract ion, or keep a veh icle
o n the road if road departu re is a result of
driver ina ttent io n. Instead , ESC imp roves the
poss ibility of keep ing the vehicle under con­
trol and on the road during extreme maneu­
vers by using the driver's steering i nputs to
help keep the vehicle go ing in the intended di­
rect ion. If you are traveling at a speed that
causes you to run off the road before ESC can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESC.
ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock brake system (ABS), brake ass ist sys­
tem, ant i-slip regu lation (ASR), electron ic dif­
ferential lock (EDL), electron ic interaxle d iffe r­
ential lock*/se lective wheel torque co ntrol*
and hill descent assist. ESC is swit ched on a ll
the time. In ce rtain sit uat io ns when yo u need
less traction, you can sw itch off ASR by press­
ing the b utton
[fil ¢ page 155, fig. 13 7. Be
s u re to switch ASR on again when you no lon­
ger need less traction .
Anti-lock braking system (ABS )
ABS prevents the whee ls from locki ng up
when b raking. The vehicle can st ill be stee red
even during hard braking . App ly steady pres­
su re to the brake peda l. Do not pump the ped­
al. A pulsing in the brake pedal indicates that
the system is helping you to brake the vehicle.
Brake a ssis t sy ste m
The brake ass ist system can decrease braking
distance . It increases braking power when the
driver presses the brake peda l quickly in emer­
gency s ituations. You must press and hold the
brake pedal unti l the situation is over. .,,.
•
•

168 Trailer towing
• Do not drive at the maximum permissible
speed.
• Always apply brakes early.
• Monitor the temperature gauge.
Weight distribution
Towing a loaded trailer with an empty car re­
sults in a highly unstable distribution of
weight. If this cannot be avoided, drive at very low speeds only to avoid the risk of losing
steering control.
A "balanced" rig is easier to operate and con­
trol. This means that the tow vehicle should
be loaded to the extent possible and permissi­
ble, while keeping the trailer as light as possi­
ble under the circumstances. Whenever possi­
ble, transfer some cargo to the luggage com­
partment of the tow vehicle while observing
tongue load requirements and vehicle loading
considerations .
Speed
The higher the speed, the more difficult it be­
comes for the driver to control the rig . Do not
drive at the maximum permissible speed. Re­
duce your speed even more if load, weather or
wind conditions are unfavorable -particularly
when going downhill.
Reduce vehicle speed
immediately if the trail­
er shows the slightest sign of swaying.
Do not
try to stop the swaying by accelerating.
Observe speed limits . In some areas, speeds
for vehicles towing trailers are lower than for
regular vehicles.
Always apply brakes early. When driving
downhill, shift into a lower gear to use the en ­
gine braking effect to slow the vehicle. Use of
the brakes alone can cause them to overheat
and fail.
Coolant temperature
The coolant temperature gauge c:> page 10
must be observed carefully . If the needle
moves close to the upper end of the scale, re­
duce speed immediately and/or turn off the
air conditioner. If the coolant temperature warning light in
the instrument cluster starts flashing., pull
off the road, stop and let the engine
idle for
about two minutes to prevent heat build-up.
A WARNING
Anyone not properly restrained in a mov­
ing vehicle is at a much greater risk in an
accident . Never let anyone ride in your car
who is not properly wearing the restraints
provided by Audi.
Trailer towing tips
Important to know
Your vehicle handles differently when towing
-
a trailer because of the additional weight and
different weight distribution. Safety, perform­
ance and economy will greatly depend on how carefully you load your trailer and operate
your rig.
Before you actually tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you
have become completely familiar with the way
your vehicle-trailer combination behaves and
responds.
Backing up is difficult and requires practice.
Backing up with a trailer generally requires
steering action opposite to that when backing
up your vehicle without a trailer.
Maintain a greater distance between your ve­
hicle and the one in front of you. You will need
more room to stop. To compensate for the
trailer, you will need a larger than normal
turning radius.
When passing, remember that you cannot ac­
celerate as fast as you normally would be­
cause of the added load. Make sure you have
enough room to pass. After passing, allow
plenty of room for your trailer before chang­
ing lanes again.
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane
changes.

202 Tire s and whee ls
your veh icle and in this manua l and the kind
of driving you p lan to do .
Neve r e xcee d the m ax imum inflati on pres­
s u re list e d on th e tir e s ide wall f or a ny r ea­
s on.
Remember that the vehicle manufacturer, not
the tire manufacturer , determ ines the co rrect
tire pressure for the t ires on your veh icle .
It is important to check the tire pressure when
the tires a re cold .
- Read the required t ire pres sure from the tire
pressure label. The ti re pressure label is lo­
cated on the driver's side 8-p illar . The t ire
pressure label lists the recommended cold
t ire inflat ion p ressu res for the veh icle at its
maximum capacity we ight and the tires that
were on you r vehicle at the time it was man­
ufactured . For recommended tire pressures
for normal load condit ions, please see chap­
ter
9 page 199.
-Turn the valve stem cap counter-clockwise
to remove it from the tire valve.
- Place the a ir pressure gauge on the valve.
- T he tire pressures should on ly be checked
and adjusted when the tires are cold. The
s li ghtly raised pressures of warm tires must
not be reduced.
- Adjust the tire pressure to the load you are
carrying .
- Reinsta ll the va lve stem cap on the valve.
When should I check the tire pressur e?
The correct tire pressure is especially impor­
tant at high speeds. The pressure should
therefore be checked at least once a month
and always befo re starting a journey. Do not
forget to check the tire pressure for the spare wheel.
When should I ad ju st th e tire p re ss ures?
Adj ust the tire p ressure to the load you are
carry ing . After chang ing a wheel
or replacing
wheels you have to adjust the tire pressures
on all wheels . In addition, you must then in iti­
alize the new tire pressures in th e tire pres­
sure monito ring system*
c> page 213.
A WARNING
Incorrect tire pressures and/or underinfla­
tion can lead sudden tire fa ilure, loss of
control, collision, serious personal injury
or even death.
- When the
Rt] warning symbol appears in
the instrument cluster, stop and inspect
the t ires.
- Incorrect tire pressure and/or underinfla­
tion can cause increased tire wear and
can affect the hand ling of the vehicle and
stopping abi lity.
- I nco rrect tire pressures and/or underin­
f lation can also lead to sudden t ire fail­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
flation, ca using loss of vehicle contro l.
- The driver is responsible for the co rrect
tire pressures for all tires on the veh icle.
The applicable pressure values are locat ­
ed on a sticker on the driver's side B -pil­
lar.
- Only when all tires on the vehicle are fil­
led to the correct pressure, the tire pres­
sure monitoring system * can work cor­
rectly.
- The use of incorrect tire pressure va lues
can lead to acc idents or other damage.
Therefore it is essential that the driver
observe the spec ified t ire pressure values
for the tires and the correct pressures for
the function of the t i re pressure monitor­
ing system*.
- Always inflate t ires to the recommended
and correct t ire p ressure before dr iving
off.
- Driving with underinf lated tires bend
mo re, letting them get too hot resulting
in tread sepa ration, s udden tire failure
and loss of cont ro l.
- E xcessive speed and/overloadi ng can
cause heat b uild- up, sudden tire failure
and loss of cont ro l.
- I f the tire pressure is too low or too high,
the t ires will wear prema turely and the
vehicle wi ll not handle well. ..,

214 Tire s and wheel s
When the malfunction indicator is illuminat­
ed, the system may not be able to det ect or
signal low t ire pressure as intended . TPMS
malfunct ions m ay occur for a variety of re a­
sons, including the installa tion of replace­
ment or a lternate tires or wheels on the vehi ­
cle that prevent the TPMS from funct ioning
properly . Always check the TPMS malfunct ion
tellta le afte r replacing one or more t ires or
wheels on your veh icle to ensure that the re­
p lacement or a lternate tires and wheels allow
the TPMS to continue to function properly.
Tire pressure indicator appears
Applies to vehicles: with tire pressure monito ring system
The tire pressure indicator in the instrument
cluster informs you if the tire pressure is too
low or if there is a system malfunction.
F ig. 157 Display : under inflatio n warning
Using the ABS sensors, the tire pressure moni­
toring system compares the t ire tread circum­
ference and vibration characteristics of the in­
d iv idual tires . If the pressure decreases in one
or more tires, th is is indicated in the instru­
ment cluster w ith a warning symbo l
RE and a
message¢
fig. 157 . If on ly one ti re is affect ­
ed, the location of that tire will be indicated .
The t ire p ressu re monito ring system must be
reset each t ime the press ures a re adjusted (e.
g . when switching between partia l and full
l oad pressure) or after changing or replacing a
tire on your vehicle ¢
page 215. The TPMS in­
dicator only monitors the tire p ressu re that
you have previously s tored. You can find the
recommended tire pressures for your vehicle
on the label on dr iver 's side B -pillar
¢ page 199.
Tire tread circumference and vibration charac­
teristics can change and cause a tire pressure
warning if:
- t he t ire press ure in one or more tires is too
low,
- t he t ire has s tructural damage ,
- the t ire p ressure was changed, wheels rotat -
ed or replaced but the TPMS was not reset
¢ page 215,
-the spare t ire is mou nted.
Warning symbo ls
RE Loss of pressure in at least one tire¢.& .
Check the tire or tires and replace or repa ir if
necessary . Check/correct the pressures of all
four t i res and reset TPMS
¢ page 215 .
Ill (T ire Pressure Monitoring Sys tem) T ire
pr ess ure: S y ste m m alfun ction -If l!I ap ­
pears after switching the ignition on or wh ile
driv ing and the indicator light
RE in the in­
strument cluster b links for app rox imately one
minute and then stays on , the re is a system
malfunction . Attempt to sto re the correct tire
pressure
¢ page 215 . If the indicator light
does not turn off or if it turns on shortly
thereafter, immediately drive yo ur vehicle to
an authori zed Aud i dea ler or authori zed repa ir
facility to have the malfunction corrected .
A WARNING
--- If the tire pressure indicator appears in
the instrument cluster display, one or mo re of your t ires is sign ifi cantly unde r­
i n flated. Reduce yo ur speed immedi ately
and avoid any hard steer ing or b raking
maneuve rs. Stop as soon as possib le and
check the tires and their pressures. In­
f late the tire pressure to the proper pres­
sure as indicated on the vehicle's tire
pressure labe l
¢page 199. Driving on a
significantly under-i nflated tire causes
the t ire to overheat and can lead to ti re
fa ilu re. Unde r-inflation also is likely to
impair the vehicle's handling and stop­
p ing ability.