2015 AUDI S3 weight

178 Child Saf ety
• When using the vehicle safety be lt to insta ll
a chi ld safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving ¢
page 181 or install the seat
using the LATCH attachments .
• Push the child safety seat dow n with your
full weight to get the safety belt rea lly t ight
so that the sea t ca nnot move forward or
s ideways more than one inch ( 2.5 cm)
¢page 181.
• If the child safety seat is eq uipped with a
tether strap, attach it to the tether anchors
¢ page 187.
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢ page 176.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in ­
fant restraint if it is more than one year o ld
and weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
Todd lers and c hildren who are o lder than one
yea r up to abo ut 4 years o ld and weigh more
than 20 lbs (9 kg) up to 40 lbs . (18 kg) must
a lways be properly restrained in a ch ild safety
seat certified for the ir s ize and weight
¢
fig . 141 and ¢ fig. 142.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to r ide . The fro nt seat is not the safest
p lace for a child in a forwa rd-facing child safe­
ty seat.
It is a very dange rous p lace for an in­
fant or a la rger chi ld in a rearwa rd-fa cing seat.
A WARNING
Not u sing a ch ild safety se at, using the
wrong ch ild safety sea t or improper ly in­
stal ling a child restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death in a
co llision or other emergency s ituation.
- Children on t he front seat of any car,
even w ith Advanced A irbags, can be seri­
o usly injured or even killed when an a ir­
bag inf lates. A child in a rearward-facing
child safety seat installed on the front
passenge r seat w ill be seriously injured
and can be kil led if the front ai rbag in-
-
f lates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
- The inflating air bag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child aga inst the backrest , center
arm rest, door or roof .
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild safety
seats on the rear seat .
- 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 stay on, im­
mediately insta ll t he rear-fac ing c hild
s a fety se at in a re ar seating positi on and
have the air bag system ins pected by your
Aud i deale r.
- T he rear side o f the child safety seat
should be pos itioned as close as possi ble
to the backrest on the vehicle seat .
- For a djustable head restra ints: adjust or
remove the rea r seat hea d restra int if it
is difficult to install the c hild seat w ith
the head restraint in place¢
page 59. In­
stall the head restraint again immed iate­
ly once the child seat is removed. Dr iv ing
without head restraints o r with head re­
s traints that are not properly adjus ted
increases the risk of serious or fatal neck
in jur y drama tically.
- Always read and heed all WAR NIN GS
wheneve r using a child restraine d in ave­
h icle is being u sed
¢ page 135, Safe ty
bel ts,
¢ page 1 44, Airbag system and
¢ page 170, Important things to know .
A WARNING
-
If exceptional circums tances require the
use of a fo rward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger 's seat, the child's safe­
ty and well -being require that the follow­
i ng spec ial precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward- facing seat has
been designed and cert ified by its man u­
facturer fo r use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.

180 Child Saf ety
you can use the safety belt he ight ad just­
ment to help adjust the shoulder portion
properly .
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢ page 176.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs
or 18 kg) are best protected in chi ld safety
seats designed for their age and weight. Ex­
perts say that the skeletal structure, particu­
larly the pelvis, of these ch ildren is not fully
developed, and they must not use the vehicle
safety belts without a su itab le child restraint .
It is usually best to put these children in ap­ propriate booster seats. Be sure the booster
seat meets all applicable safety standards .
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder parts of the safety belt so that they pass
across the child's body in the right places. The routing of the belt over t he ch ild's body is very
important for the ch ild's protection, whet he r
or not a booster sea t is used . Children age 12
and under must always ride in the rear seat.
C hil dren who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 in­
ches/ 1.45 meters) ta ll can generally use the
vehicle's th ree po int lap and shoulder be lts.
Never use the lap belt portion o f the veh icle's
safety belt a lone to restrain any child, regard­
less of how b ig the child is . Always remember
that ch ildren do not have the pronounced pe l­
vic structure required for the proper function of lap belt portion of the vehicle's three po int
lap and shoulder belts. The child's safety ab­
solutely requires that a lap belt portion of the
safety belt be fastened snugly and as low as possib le around the pelvis. Never le t the lap
be lt portion of the safety belt pass over the
chi ld's stomach or abdomen.
I n a crash, airbags must inflate within a b link
of an eye and with cons iderab le force. In orde r
to do i ts job , the airbag needs room to inflate
so that it will be there to protect the occupant
as the occupant moves forward into the air­ bag.
A vehicle occupant who is o ut of position and
too close to the airbag ge ts i n the way o f an inflating airbag. When an occ
upant is too
close, he or she will be st ruck violently and
will rece ive serious or possib ly even fatal in­
j ury.
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important that a ll vehicle occupants, especial­
l y any children, who m ust be in the front seat
because of exceptiona l circumstances, be
properly restrained and as far away from the
airbag as possible . By keeping room between
the ch ild's body and the front of the passen­
ger compa rtment, the a irbag can inflate com­
pletely and p rov ide supplementa l prote ction
i n cer tain frontal collisions.
A WARNING
N ot using a booste r seat, using the boos­
ter seat improperly, incorrectly installing a booster seat or using the vehicle safety
belt improperly increases the risk of seri­
ous persona l injury and death in a collision
or other emergency situat ion. To he lp re­
duce the risk of serious 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
pe r body.
It must neve r lie across the
throat or ne ck. The lap belt mus t lie
across the pe lvis and neve r ac ross the
stomach o r abdomen . Make sure that the
be lt lies flat and snug. P ull on the belt to
tighten if necessary .
- Fai lure to p roperly ro ute safety belts
over a child's body will ca use seve re in ju­
ries in an accident or other emergency
situation ¢
page 135.
-The rear side o f the child safety seat
should be pos itioned as close as possib le
to the backrest on the vehicle seat.
- For ad justab le head restraints: adjust or
remove the rear seat head restra int if it
is difficult to install the child seat w ith
the head restraint in place¢
page 59. In­
stall the head restraint again immed iate-
ly o nce the child seat is removed. Dr iv ing
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A WARNING ,~
Rearward-facing ch ild restraints:
-A chi ld in a rearward-facing child safety
seat installed on the front passenger
seat will be ser iously injured and can be
killed if the front airbag inflates -even
with an Advanced Airbag System .
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier w ith great
force and w ill smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against the backrest, cente r
armrest, door or roo f.
- Always be especially caref ul if you must
install a rearwa rd fa cing child safety seat
on the front passenge r sea t in exception­
al circumstances .
- Make su re that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and s tays 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 rea r-facing chi ld safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the a irbag system inspected by you r Audi
dealer.
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se­
cure a child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat ma nufactur­
er's instructions when install ing a chi ld re­
straint in your vehicle . To activate t he conver ­
tible locking retracto r:
.,. Place the child restraint on a seat, prefera­
bly on the rear sea t.
.,. Slow ly pull the be lt
all the way out .
.. Route it around or through the ch ild re­
st ra int be lt path ¢&, .
.,. Push the child safety seat dow n with your
f ull weight to ge t the safety belt really t ight.
.,. Insert the be lt tongue into the buckle for
that seating position .
Child Safet y 183
.,. Guide the sa fe ty be lt back into the retractor
until the be lt lies flat and sn ug on the child
safety seat .
.,. You shou ld hear a "clicking" noise as the
be lt winds back into the iner tia ree l. Test the
convert ible lock ing retractor by pulling on
the belt. You sho uld no lo nger be able to
pull the be lt out of the retracto r. T he con­
ver tible locking re trac to r i s now ac tiva ted .
.,. Mak e s ure t hat t he red release b utton is fac ­
ing away from the child rest rain t so t hat i t
can be unbuckled q uic kly .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety be lt
is properly tight and fastened so that the
seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2 .5 cm).
A WARNING
Using the wrong child restraint o r an im­
p roperly installed chi ld restraint can cause
serious pe rsonal injury or death in a crash.
- Always ma ke sure that the safe ty belt re-
tracto r is loc ked when insta lling a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re­
tracto r can not hold the child safety seat
in place dur ing no rma l driving o r in a
cras h.
- Always buckle the child sa fe ty seat firmly
in place even i f a ch ild is not sitt ing in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly aroun d
during a sudden stop or in a crash .
- Always ma ke s ure the seat backrest to
which the child restraint is installed is in
an upright pos ition and securely latched
into place and can not fold forward . Oth­
erw ise, the seatback with the child safety
seat attached to it could fly forward in
the ev ent of an accident o r othe r emer­
gency situatio n.
- Always read a nd heed al l WAR NINGS
wheneve r us ing a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used ¢
page 170. Special
pre cau tions apply whe n inst alling a child
safety sea t on the fron t passenger seat
¢ page 146, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
-
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202 Trailer towing
Trailer towing Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passen­
ger transportation .
If you plan to tow a tra iler, p lease remember
that the addit ional load will affect durab ility,
economy and performance .
T railer towing not on ly places more stress on
the vehicle, it also calls for more concentra­
tion from the driver.
F or this reason, always fo llow the operating
and drivi ng i nstr uctions provided and use
common sense.
Technical requirements
Traile r hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross trailer we ight. The hitch must be suita­
b le for your veh icle and trailer and mu st be
mounted secure ly on the ve hicle's chassis at a
technically sound location . Use only a trailer
h itch with a removab le ball mount. A lways
check with the tr ailer hitch manu fac tur er to
make sure tha t you are using t he cor rect
hitch.
Do not us e a bumper hitch .
The hitch must be installed in such a way t hat
it does not interfe re with t he impact-absorb­
ing bumper syst em . No mod ifications should
be made to the vehi cle exhaust and brake sys ­
tems . From time to time, check th at a ll hit ch
mo unt ing bo lts remain secure ly fastened.
When you are not towing a trail er, remove the
tra iler hitch ba ll mount. This prevents the
hi tch from causing d amage sho uld your ve hi­
cle be str uck from be hind
¢ A .
Trailer brakes
If you r tra ile r is eq uipped w ith a braking sys­
tem, check to be su re that it conforms to a ll
r egulat ions . T
he trailer hyd raulic brake system mus t not be
direct ly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
brake system .
Safety chains
Always use s afety chains be tween your ve hicle
and t he tra ile r.
Trailer lights
Tra ile r li ghts must meet all regulations. Be
su re to c hec k w ith your Audi dea le r fo r cor rect
wiring, swi tches and relays.
Mirrors
If you are unable to see the traffic behind you
u sing the regular o utside m irrors, then you
must insta ll ext ended mirro rs . It is important
t h at you
always have clea r vis io n to the rea r.
,8. WARNING
-
Afte r removing t he trailer hit ch, d o no t
s tore it in yo ur vehicle . In case of sudden
br aking, t he h itch cou ld fly forward an d in­
j ur e you or yo ur passengers .
Operating instructions
Maximum traile r weight
A trai le r fo r you r vehicle is limited to a typi cal
class 1 or class 2 trai le r.
Trailer load distribution
B e sure the load in the t ra ile r is held secure ly
i n p lace to p reven t it from shift ing forw ard,
backw ard or sideways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer
¢ A in Driving instru ctions on page 203.
Engine cooling system
Towing a trailer makes the engine work hard­
er . It is impo rtant that the cooling system 's
performance is up to the additional load .
Make su re that the coo ling system has enough
fl uid .
Tire pressure
When towing a trailer, inflate the tires of your
vehicle to t he cold tire pressure listed under
ll>

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"Full load" on the label located on the driver's
side B-pillar (visible when the door is open).
Inflate trailer t ires to tra iler and t ire manufac­
turers' specifications.
Lights
Check to make sure both vehicle and trailer
lights are working properly.
Safety chains
Be sure tra iler safety cha ins are properly con­
nected from the trailer to the hitch on the ve­
hicle. Leave enough slack in the chains to per­
mit turning corners. When you install safety
chains, make su re they wi ll not drag on the
road when you are driving.
The chains should cross under the tra ile r
tongue to prevent it from dropping in case of
separation from the hitch.
Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra
care and consideration.
To obtain the best poss ible handling of vehicle
and traile r, p lease note the following:
~ Do not tow a loaded tra iler when your car it­
self is not loaded.
~ Be especia lly careful when passing other
vehicles.
~ Observe speed limits .
~ Do not drive at the maximum permissible
speed.
~ Always apply brakes early.
~ Monitor the temperature gauge.
Weight distribution
Towing a loaded trai ler 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 poss ible and permiss i­
ble, wh ile keeping the trailer as light as poss i­
ble under the circumstances . Whenever possi-
Trailer towing 203
ble, transfer some cargo to the luggage com­
partment of the tow vehicle while observing
tongue load requirements and vehicle load ing
considerations.
Speed
T he higher the speed, the mo re difficult it be­
comes for the driver to control the rig. Do not
drive at the maximum permissib le speed. Re­
duce your speed even more if load, weather or
wind conditions are unfavorable -particularly
when going downhill.
Reduce veh icle 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 trai lers are lower than for
regular vehicles .
Always apply brakes early. When driving
downhi ll, shift into a lower gear to use the en ­
gine braking effect to s low the vehicle. Use of
the brakes alone can cause them to overheat
and fail.
Coolant temperature
The coolant temperatu re gauge <=> page 12
must be observed carefu lly. The coolant tem ­
perature can increase if you drive on long in­
clines in a low gear at high engine speeds. Re­
duce your speed immediately if the LEDs in
the top part of the display turn on.
For more information about indicator lights,
refer to .<=>
page 20.
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 d ifferently when towing
a trailer because of the additional weight and ..,.
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204 Trailer towing
different weight distribution. Safety, perform ­
ance and economy wi ll greatly depend on how
carefu lly you load your trailer and operate
your rig.
Before you actually tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in a n area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you
have become comp letely fam iliar with the way
your veh icle-trailer comb ination behaves and
responds.
Backing up is d iff icult and requires practice.
Backing up with a tra iler genera lly requires
steering action opposite to that when back ing
up your veh icle without a trailer.
Maintain a greater distance between your ve­
h icle 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 yo u 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
p lenty of room for your tra iler before chang­
ing lanes aga in.
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a tra iler dur ing the break-in
period of you r vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your Audi may re­
quire more frequent maintenance due to
the ext ra load
¢ page 289.
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If it can­
not be avoided, do so only after doing the fol­
lowing:
Wh en park ing:
.. Apply the foot brake .
.. Have someone place chocks under both the
vehicle and the trailer wheels. ..
With chocks in place, slowly release the
brakes unti l the whee l chocks absorb the
load.
.. Turn the whee ls towards the curb.
.. App ly the parking brake.
.. Select the P selector lever posit ion.
When re starting afte r park ing :
.. App ly the foot brake.
.. Start the engine.
.. Select the D/S se lector lever position.
.. Release the parking brake and s lowly pull
out and away from the wheel chocks .
.. Stop and have someone retr ieve the wheel
chocks .
@ Tips
If you move the selector leve r of the auto­
matic transmission to P befo re applying
the pa rking brake and before bloc king the
whee ls, you may h ave to use more force
la ter to move the lever out of the P posi­
tion .

Tires and wheels
Tires
General notes
Tires may be the least appreci­
ated and most abused parts of
a motor vehicle .
Tires may be the least appreci­
ated and most abused parts of
a motor vehicle. Tires are, how­
ever, one of the most important
parts of a vehicle, particularly
considering the comparatively
small patch of rubber on each
tire that assures that all-impor­
tant contact between you, your
vehicle and the road.
Maintaining the correct tire
pressure, making sure that your
vehicle and its tires do not have
to carry more weight than they can safely handle, avoiding
damage from road hazards and
regularly inspecting tires for
damage including cuts, slashes
irregular wear and overall con­
dition are the most important
things that you can do to help avoid sudden tire failure includ­
ing tread separation and blow-
~ outs.
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Tires and wheels 233
Avoiding damage
If you have to drive over a curb
or similar obstacle, drive very
slowly and as close as possible
at a right angle to the curb.
Always keep chemicals includ­ ing grease, oil, gasoline and
brake fluid off the tires.
Inspect the tires regularly for
damage (cuts, cracks or blis­
ters, etc.). Remove any foreign
bodies embedded in the treads.
Storing tires
Mark tires when you remove
them to indicate the direction
of rotation. This ensures you to be able to mount them correct­
ly when you reinstall them.
When removed, the wheels or
tires should be stored in a cool, dry and preferably dark place.
Store tires in a vertical position if they are not mounted on
rims, in a horizontal position if
they are mounted on rims.
New tires
New tires have to be broken in
¢ _&. .
The tread depth of new tires
may vary , according to the type .,.
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-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 de­
signed for the conditions
that are typical in those sea­
sons. Audi recommends us­ing winter tires during the
winter months. Low tem­ peratures significantly de­
crease the elasticity of
summer tires, which affects
traction and braking ability.
Tires and wheels 235
If summer tires are used in
very cold temperatures, cracks can form on the tread bars, resulting in perma­
nent tire damage that can
cause loud driving noise and unbalanced tires. Audi is not
responsible for this type of
damage.
-Burnished, polished or chromed rims must not be used in winter road condi­
tions. The surface of the
rims does not have suffi­
cient corrosion protection
for this and could be perma­
nently damaged by road salt
or similar substances.
' •
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Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means the combined weight (in
excess of those standard items
which may be replaced) of auto­ matic transmission, power
steering, power brakes, power
windows, power seats, radio, and heater, to the extent that
these items are available as fac­
tory-installed equipment (whether installed or not).
Aspect ratio
means the ratio of the height to
the width of the tire in percent. Numbers of 55 or lower indi­
cate a low sidewall for im­ proved steering response and
better overall handling on dry
pavement.
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