2015 AUDI Q3 ESP

142 Child Saf ety
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
9 page 138 .
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40
l bs. or 18 kg) are best protected in chi ld safe ­
ty seats designed for their age and weight. Ex­ perts say that the ske leta l structure, particu­
larly the pelvis, of these chi ldren is not fully
developed, and they must not use the vehicle
safety belts w ithout a su itable child restraint .
It is us ually best to put these children in ap­
propriate booster seats. Be sure the booster
seat meets all applicab le safety standards.
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition bot h the lap and shou lder
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 ch ild's protection, whether
or not a booster seat is used . Children age 12
and under must always ride in the rear seat.
Ch ildren who are at least 4
ft . 9 in. (S7 in­
ches/1.4S meters) tall can generally use the
vehicle's three po int lap and shoulder be lts .
Neve r use the lap belt portion of the veh icle's
safety be lt alone to restrain any child, regard­
l ess of how b ig the child is. Always remembe r
that c hildren do not have the pronounced pe l­
vic structure required for the proper function
of lap belt portion of the vehicle's thre e point
lap and shoulder be lts. The child's safety ab ­
solutely requires that a lap be lt portion of the
safety belt be fastened snugly and as low as
possible around the pelvis . Never let the lap
be lt po rtion of the safety belt pass over the
chi ld's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink
of an eye and with cons iderable force . In order
to do its job, the airbag needs room to inflate
so t hat it will be there to p rotect the occupant
as the occupant moves forw ard into the air­
bag.
A vehicle occupant who is out of position and
too close to the airbag gets in the way of an
i n flat ing airb ag. When an occupant is too
close, he or she wi ll be struc k violen tly and will
receive se rious or possib ly even fatal in ­
jury .
In orde r fo r the ai rb ag to offer protect ion, i t is
i mportan t that a ll vehicle occupants, espe cial­
ly any children, who m ust be in the front seat
because of exceptiona l circumstances , be
proper ly restrained and as far away from the
airbag as possible . By keeping room between
the child 's body and the front of the passen­
ger compartment, the airbag can inflate com ­
pletely and prov ide supplemental protection
in certain frontal collisions .
.&, WARNING
Not using a booste r seat, using the boos ­
ter seat improperly, in co rrectly installing a
boos ter seat or using the vehicle sa fety
belt imp roperly increases the risk of seri­
ous persona l injury and death in a collision
or other emergency situat ion. To he lp re­
d uce the risk of serio us personal injury
and/or death:
- The shou lder belt must lie as close to the
center of the ch ild's collar bone as possi­
b le and must lie flat and snug on the up­
per body . It must neve r lie across the
throat or neck . The lap belt must lie
across the pe lvis and neve r ac ross t he
s tomach o r abdomen. Make sure t he belt
liesflat and snug.Pullon thebelt to
tighten if necessary.
- Failure to p roperly ro ute s afe ty belts
over a child's body wi ll ca use seve re inj u­
ries in an accident o r other emergency
situation
¢ page 104 .
-The rear side o f the child sa fety seat
should be pos itioned as close as possib le
to the backrest on the vehicle seat. Ad­
just or remove the rear seat head re­ straint if it is diffic ult to install the ch ild
seat with the head restraint in p lace
c::> page 52 . Install t he head rest raint
aga in immediately once the ch ild seat is
removed . D riving without head restraints
or w ith head restra ints th at ar e not prop­
erly a djusted increases the risk of serious
.
or fatal neck in jury drama tically . ""

M N
M N
0 ::i co ,...., \!) ..,.,
,...., ..,., ,....,
-Children on the front seat of any car,
even with Advanced A irbags, can be seri­
ous ly injured or even killed when an a ir­
bag inflates.
- Never let a child stand or kneel on any
seat, for examp le the front seat.
- Never let a child ride in the cargo area of
your vehicle .
- Always remember that a ch ild lean ing
forward, sitt ing sideways or out of posi­
t ion in any way during an acc ident can be
struck by a deploying airbag . This will re­
sult in se rious personal injury or death .
- If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of excep­
t ional 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 123, Moni­
toring the Advanced Airbag System.
- Ta ke the child restrain t 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 104, Safety
belts,¢ page 112, Airbag system
and
c:> page 133, Important things to know.
Installing a child safety
seat
Securing a child safety seat using a
safety belt
Safety belts for the rear sea ts and the fron t
passenger can be locked wi th the convertible
locking retractor to properly secure child
safety seats .
The safety belts emergency lock ing retractors
for the rear seats safety belts and for the
front passenger's seat safety belt have a con ­
ve rtible locking retractor for child restraints.
Child Sa fet y 143
The safety belt must be locked so that be lt
webbing cannot unree l. The retractor can be
activated to lock the safety belt and prevent
the safety belt webbing from loosening up
during normal dr iving . A child safety seat can
only be properly installed when the safety belt
i s locked so that the chi ld and child safety
seat w ill stay in place .
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
ch ildren, especially those 12 years and young­
er, shou ld always r ide in the back seat proper­
ly restrai ned fo r the ir age and size.
A WARNING
Improperly installed chi ld safety seats in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury
and death in a collision.
- Always ma ke sure that the safety belt re­
tracto r is loc ked when installing a child
safety seat . An unlocked safety belt re­
tractor cannot hold the child safety seat
in place during normal dr iving or in a
crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a ch ild is not sitt ing in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly around during a sudden stop or in a collision .
- Always make sure that the rear seat
backrest to which the center rear safety
be lt is attached is securely latched when­
eve r the rea r center safety belt is being
used to secure a ch ild restra int.
- 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-fa cing child safety
seats or infant carrie rs on the front pas ­
senger seat . A child will be serio usly in­
jured and can be killed when the passen­ ger airbag inflates.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
~
•
•

144 Child Safety
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
c;,page 133. Special
precautions apply when installing a child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 114, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
A WARNING
Always take special precautions if you
must install a forward or rearward-facing
child restraint on the front passenger's
seat in exceptional situations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-facing
child restraint is installed on the front
passenger seat, the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light must come on and stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, perform
the checks described
c;, page 123, 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.
- Improper installation of child restraints
can reduce their effectiveness or even
prevent them from providing any protec­
tion.
- An improperly installed child restraint
can interfere with the airbag as it de­
ploys and seriously injure or even kill the
child. -
Always carefully follow the manufactur­
er's instructions provided with the child
safety seat or carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis­
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can
cause injury in a crash .
A WARNING
-Forward-facing child restraints:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag .
- Never put the forward-facing child re­ straint up, against or very near the in­
strument panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the forward-facing child restraint. The
backrest must be adjusted to an upright
position.
- Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on .
A WARNING
Rearward-facing child restraints:
- 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 inflates -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
armrest, door or roof.
- Always be especially careful if you must
install a rearward facing child safety seat
on the front passenger seat in exception-
al circumstances.
~

150 Child S afe ty
Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
Fig. 135 T ether strap: proper routing and mounting
Fig. 136 Tether strap: proper rou ting and moun ting
In sta ll ing the te th er strap
• Release or deploy the tether strap on the
child restraint according to the child re­
stra int manufacturer's instructions .
• Gu ide the upper tether strap
und er the rear
head restraint and into the rear cargo area
Q fig. 136 (raise the head restraint if neces­
sary).
• Slide the tether strap hoo k over the anchor
bracket.
• Pull on the tether strap hook so that the
spring catch of the hook engages.
• Tighten the tether strap firmly following the
child restra int manufacturer's instruct ions .
Releasin g the t ethe r stra p
• Loosen the tens ion following the child re­
straint manufacturer's instructions .
• Depress the spring catch on the hook and re­
lease it from the anchorage.
@ Note
If you leave the child restraint with the
tether strap firmly installed for several
days, this could leave a mark on the up- ho
lstery on the seat cushion and backrest
in the area where the tether strap was in­
stalled. The upholstery would also be per­
manently stretched around the tether
strap. This applies espec ia lly to leather
seats.
Using tether straps on rearward-facing
, child restraints
Currently, few rear-fac ing ch ild restrai nt sys­
tems come with a tether. Please read and
heed the child restraint system manufactur­
er 's instructions carefully to determine how to
proper ly install the tether.
A WARNING
= -A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild safety
seat installed on the front passenger seat
will be seriously injured and can be killed if
the front airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced A irbag System.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrie r with great
force and will smash the child safety seat and child aga inst the ba ckrest, center
armrest, or door .
- A t ight tethe r or other strap on a rear­
ward-facing child restraint attached to
the front passenger seat can p ut too
much pressure on the weight-mat in the
seat and register a heavier weight in the
Advanced Airbag System. 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 inju ry to the ch ild.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and s tay on, im­
mediately insta ll the rear-facing c hild
safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i dealer.

154 Intellig ent technolog y
Anti-slip r egulation (ASR )
ASR reduces engine power when the drive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the force to
the road conditions. This makes it easier to
start, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic diffe rential lock (EDL )
The ED L brakes wheels that are spinn ing and
transfers the drive power to the o ther d rive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all-wheel drive* . This function is available up
to about 60 mph (100 km/h).
I n extreme cases , ED L automat ica lly switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked whee l
from overheating . EDL wi ll switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to normal.
El ectron ic inte ra xle diff ere ntial lock */
se lec tive wheel t orque contr ol*
The electronic interaxle differential lock (front
wheel drive) or the select ive wheel torque
control (all-wheel drive) operates when driv­
ing through curves. The front wheel on the in·
side of the curve or both wheels on the inside
of the curve are braked select ively as needed .
This minimizes s lid ing in the front wheels a nd
allows for more p rec ise driving through
curves. The app licab le system may not acti­
vate when driving in wet or snowy conditions .
A WARNING
-ESC, ABS, ASR, EDL, the electronic inter­
axle differentia l lock* /selective whee l
torque control* and the hill descent as­
sist cannot overcome the laws of physics.
Th is is especially important on slippery
o r wet roads . If the systems begin acting to stabilize your vehicle, you should im­
mediately change your speed to match
the road and traffic conditions. Do not let the increased safety provided by
these systems tempt you to take r isks .
Doing so will increase the risk of a loss of
veh icle cont ro l, collision and ser ious per­
sonal injur ies.
- Always adapt your speed to road, traffic
and weather conditions. The risk of los­
ing control of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast , espec ially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when driving too close to vehicles up
ahead. ESC, ABS, the brake ass ist sys­
tem, ASR, EDL and the electronic inter­
axle d ifferential lock*/selective wheel
torque control* cannot prevent colli­
sions .
- Always accelerate with special care on
even, smooth surfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow .
The drive wheels can spin even w ith
these assistance systems t hat cannot al­
ways he lp to reduce the risk of loss of ve­
hicle control.
(D Tips
- ABS and ASR only wo rk correct ly when
all four wheels are equipped with identi­
cal tires. D ifferent tire sizes can lead to a
reduction in engine power.
- You may hear noises when the systems
described are working .
-If the ind icator light DJ or Ell (USA
mode ls)/ lCO)J there may be a malfunction~
page 16.

M N M N
0 ::i co
rl I.O
"' ,....,
"' rl
Intelligent technolog y 155
Switching on /off
ESC turns on automatically when you start the engine .
Fig. 137 Center console,~ OFF button
The follow ing s ituations are excep tions where
it may be useful to switch on offroad mode to
allow the whee ls to spin:
E SC Stufen
Offroad mode on
-Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Driving in deep snow or on loose ground
- Driving with snow chains
- Dr iving downh il l wh ile brak ing on loose
ground
- Dr iving on rough terrain when much of the
car's weight is lifted off the whee ls (axle ar­
tic ulat ion)
Offro ad mode off
Beha vio r
The ESC and ASR stabiliza tion funct ions The fu ll stab iliza tion f unction of the ESC
are limited¢ &..
Op erat ion Press the W button.
Indicat or Bturns on.
light s
Dr ive r m es- Sta biliza tion control (ESC ): Offroad
s age s Warning! Redu ced stab ilit y
_& WARNING
Yo u should only sw itch offroad mode on if
your driving abilities and road conditions
permit.
- T he stabilization function is limited
when offroad mode is switched on . The
driving whee ls cou ld spin and the vehicle
cou ld swerve, especially on slick or slip­
pery road surfaces.
- You should on ly sw itch offroad mode on
when driving offroad. and ASR
is available again.
Press the
W button again.
II turns off .
Stabilization contr ol (ESC ): On
Hill descent assist
The hill descent assist makes it possible to
drive down an incline at a constant speed.
Fig. 138 Cente r console : hill desce nt assist button
.,. Press the [el button in the center conso le
¢ fig. 138 or on the shift gate. The button
w ill illuminate.
.,. Press the button again to switch it off. The
diode in the button will go out.
IJi,,-

M N
M N
0 ::i co ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
Effect of w ate r and ro ad salt
In certain situa tions, for example after driving
through water, in heavy rain, after overnight
condensation or after washing your car, the braking effect can be reduced by moisture or
ice on the brake rotors and brake pads. The
brakes must be dried first with a few careful
brake applications.
At higher speeds and with the windshield wip ­
ers turned on, the brake pads press against
the brake rotors for a short amount of time.
This occurs at regular intervals w ithout the
driver noticing and provides for better brake response time under wet condit ions.
The effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced
when the vehicle is dr iven o n a salt-covered
road and the brakes are not used . Likewise,
you clean
off accumulated sa lt coating from
brake discs and pads with a few caut ious ap­
p lications of the brake¢.&. -
Cor ro sion
There may be a tendency for dirt to build up
on the b rake pads and corrosion to form on
the discs if the car is not dr iven regular ly or
only for short t rips with little use of the
brakes.
If the brakes are not used frequently, or if cor­ rosion has formed on the discs, it is advisable
to clean
off the pads and discs by b rak ing
fi rm ly a few times from a modera tely high
speed¢ .&..
Faults in the brake system
If you should notice a sudden increase in
brake pedal travel, then one of the two brake
circu its may have failed¢&. -
Low brake fluid le vel
Malfunct ions can occur in the brake system if
the brake fluid level is too low. T he brake fluid
level is monitored electronically .
Brake boo ster
The brake booster increases the pressure that
you generate with the brake pedal. It works
only when the engine is running .¢ .&.
Int ellig ent technolog y 157
Brak e lining we ar status
B rake lining wear may be checked by visual in­
spection o f the condition of the brake pads
thro ugh the openings in the wheel. If neces­
sary, the wheel may be removed for this in­
spection
¢ page 218, Changing a wheel.
A WARNING
-New brake pads don't have the best stop­
ping power and must be "broken-in" dur­
ing the initial 100 to 150 miles (150 to
200 kilometers) of normal c ity dr iving .
You can compensate for this by pressing
the brake pedal more firmly. This also
applies la ter when new pads are instal­
led.
- You should perform braking maneuvers
for the purpose of cleaning the brake
system only if road conditions permit .
Other road users must not be put at risk -
you may cause an accident!
- Before descending a steep grade, reduce
speed and shift transmission into a lower
gea r or lower dr iving range. Do not ride
the brakes or hold the pedal down too
long or too often. This could cause the
brakes to get hot and diminish braking
efficiency.
- Do not "ride the brakes" by rest ing your
foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to brake. This may cause the brakes to overheat, p remature wear and increased
s topping distance.
- Unde r ce rtain cl imati c and ope rat ing
conditions such as passing thro ugh wa­
ter, dr iv ing in heavy rain o r after washing
the vehicle, the effectiveness of the
brakes can be reduced. In winte r, ice can
accumu late on the brake pads, lin ings,
discs and drums. Carefully app ly brakes
for a test. Brakes w ill dry and ice coat­
ings w ill be cleaned
off after a few care­
ful brake applicat ions.
- Driving for an extended period of time on
salt-covered roads without using your brakes can a lso affect braking efficiency.
Clean
off accum ulated salt coating from
•
•

160 Intelligent technology
required, but on ly a little is generated. It is al­
so critical if the engine is not running and
e lectrical components are turned on. In this
instance energy is being consumed but none
is being genera ted.
It is in precisely these situations that you wi ll
notice energy management actively regulat­
ing the distrib ution of energy.
Vehicle stands fo r an e xte nded p eriod
If yo u do not drive you r vehicle over a pe riod
of severa l days or weeks, elect rical compo ­
nents are grad ually cut back or switched off.
This reduces energy consumption and main ­
tains starting capab ility over a longer period.
Some of the conven ience functions may not
operate, such as the inter ior lig hts or the
power seat adjustment . Th e conven ience
functions w ill be ava ilable again when you
switch on the igni tion and start the engine.
With the engine turned off
If you listen to the radio, for example, with
the eng ine turned off or use other MMI func­
tions, the ba tte ry is being d ischarged .
If starting capability is jeopardi zed due to en­
ergy consumpt ion, an error message appears
in the MMI display .
The warning message indicates that the sys ­
tem will be turned off automat ically. If you
wish to continue using the functions , you have
to start the engine .
With the engine running
Altho ugh electrical energy is generated when
the vehicle is being driven, the battery can be­
come discharged . T hi s happens most ly when
little energy is be ing generated and a great
deal consumed and the battery 's state of
cha rge is not optimal.
To br ing the energy balance back into equili­
brium, consumers which require especia lly
large amounts of energy are tem pora rily cut
back o r switched off . Heati ng sys tems in par­
ticular requ ire a g reat dea l of energy. If you
n otice, fo r example , that the heated se ats* or
the heated re ar window are not hea ting, they have been tempora
rily cut back or switched
off. These systems wi ll be available again as
soon as the energy balance has been restored .
You w ill also no tice th at engine id le speed h as
been increased slightly. This is normal and not
a cause for concern . By inc reasing engine id le
speed the additional energy required is gener ­
ated and the battery is charged.