2016 AUDI A3 CABRIOLET Owners Manual

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@ Tips
The chi ld seats listed in categories A to C have
been statically tested by Audi only for the Ad­
vanced Airbag function .
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially re­
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safety
of everybody in the vehicle, especially children:
~ Always use the right child safety seat for each
child and a lways use it properly~
page 171.
~ Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child safe­
ty seat .
~ When using the vehicle safety be lt to install a
child safety seat , you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety be lt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
~ page 176.
~ Push the child safety seat down w ith your full
weight to get the safety be lt rea lly t ight 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 171.
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag sys tem, all
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always ride in the back seat properly re­
stra ined for their age and size.
_&, WARNING
Not using a ch ild safety seat , using the wrong
child sa fety seat or improperly installing a
child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death.
- All vehicle occupants and especia lly children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle . An unrestrained or improperly
restrained child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve­ hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
Ch ild safety
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is also at greater r isk of injury or death
through contact with an inf lating 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 restra int, select one
that fits your child and the vehicle.
- Only use child restraint systems that fully
contact the flat portion of the seat cush­
ion . The child restraint must not tip or
lean to either side. Audi does not recom­
mend using child safety seats that rest on
legs or tube-like frames. They do not pro­
vide adequate contact with the seat.
- Always heed all lega l requirements per­
ta ining to the installation and use of child
safety seats and carefully follow the in­
structions provided by the manufacturer
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 abdomen and
neck areas during sudden braking mane u­
vers or accidents.
- Never let more than one child occupy a chi ld
safety seat .
- Never let babies or o lder children ride in a
veh icle while sitting on the lap of another
passenger.
- Holding a child in your arms is never a sub­
stitute for a child restraint system .
- The strongest person cou ld not ho ld the
ch ild with the forces that exist in an acci­
dent . The child will strike the interior of
the vehicle and can also be struck by the passenger.
- The child and the passenger can also in­
jure each other in an accident.
- Never install rear-fac ing child safety seats
or infant car riers on the front passenger
seat. A child w ill be seriously injured and
can be killed when the passenger a irbag in­
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem .
169

Child safety
-The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof .
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the rear seat .
- Make sure there is enough space in front of
the child in the child seat . If necessary, ad­
just the angle and position of the seat in
front of the child seat.
- Forward -facing child safety seats installed
on the front passenger's seat can interfere
with the airbag when it inflates and cause serious injury to the child . Always install for­
ward-facing child safety seats on the rear
seat.
- If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child's safety and well-being require that the following
special precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its manu­
facturer for use on a front seat with a pas­ senger front and side airbag .
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier .
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest position in the up and down
adjustment range and move it back to the
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 .
- Always make sure that the safety belt up­
per anchorage is behind the child restraint
and not next to or in front of the child re­
straint so that the safety belt will be prop­
erly positioned .
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being
moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range .
- Always make sure that the backrest is in
the upright position .
170
-Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heat­
er for child seats) on the front passenger
seat if the device is connected to the 12-
volt socket or the cigarette lighter socket .
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys­
tem on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or oth­
er liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD player, electronic games de­
vice, power inverter or seat heater for
child seats). These may influence the elec­
trical capacitance measured by the capaci­
tive passenger detection system and can
also fly around in an accident and cause
serious personal injury.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in place even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a collision .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
<::;>page 135, Safety belts,
~ page 143, Airbag system
and
~ page 165, Child safety.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on whenever a child re­
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on.
- Take the child restraint off the front passen­ ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.

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Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
-------~
Fig. 1 45 Schematic overv iew : keep unused safety belts
away from ch ildre n in ch ild safety seats .@ -outer rear
safety belt
::!
If a child safety seat is used on the rear bench,
especially with LATCH universal lower anchorag­
es, the unused safety belts
mu st be secured so
that the child in the ch ild restraint cannot reach
them
9 &, .
-Guide the safety belt webb ing @ behind the
head restraint of the seat where the child re­
straint is installed
<=:> fig. 145. When do ing so,
do not engage the convertible locking ret rac­
tor! You sho uld not hear a "clicking" sound
when winding up the safety belt.
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety be lt
webbing .
_& WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with the
LA TCH lower anchorages or wit h the standard
safety belt or a child in a booster seat on the
rear seat could play with unused rear seat
safety belts and become entangled. This
cou ld cause the ch ild ser ious personal in jury
and even death .
- Always secure unused rear seat safety belts
out of reach of ch ildren in child seats such
as by properly routing them around the
head restraint of the seat where the child
restra int is ins tal led.
- Never act ivate the convertible locki ng re­
t racto r when routing the safety belts around
the head restra ints.
Ch ild sa fety
Child seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old and
20 lbs. or
9 kg need special rearward-facing
child restraints that support the back, neck and
head in a crash.
F ig . 14 6 Schematic overv iew: rearward -fac ing infant seat,
p roperly insta lled on the rea r seat
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertib le loc king re tractor on the safety belt
to p revent the chi ld safety seat from moving
9 page 176 or insta ll 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 171.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg) are
best protected in special infant carr iers and child
safety seats designed for the ir age group. Many
experts be lieve that infants and small ch ildren
sho uld ride o nly in special res tra ints in wh ich the
ch ild faces the back of the vehicle. These infant
seats support the baby's back, neck and head in a
c rash
r:::;, fig. 146 .
The airbag on the passenger s ide makes the fron t
seat a potent ially dangerous place for a child to
ride . The front seat is not the safest place for a
c h ild in a forward-facing child seat. It is a very
dangerous p lace for an infant or a larger child in
a rearward-facing seat.
171

Child safety
_& WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly install ing a
child restra int increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death in a crash.
- Never install rear-facing child safety seats or infant carr iers on the front passenger
seat -
even with an Advanced Airbag System.
A chi ld will be seriously injured and can be
k illed when the inflating airbag hits the
child safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and smashes the child safety seat and
child against the backrest, door or roof
c> page 144, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
-Always install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant carr iers on the rear seat.
- Never install a rear-facing child restraint in
the forward-facing direction. Such restraints are designed for the special needs of infants
and
very small children and cannot protect
them properly if the seat is forward-facing.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­ cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iate ly install
the rear-fa cing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag systetn inspected by your Audi dealer.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth­
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any ch ild restraint system on
this seat .
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenge r seat cushion .
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD player, elect ronic games dev ice,
power inverter or seat heater for child
seats). These may influence the e lectr ica l
172
capacitance measured by the capacitive pas­
senger detect ion system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause serious per­
sonal injury .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever us ing a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used.:.>
page 135, Safety belts,
r:=;,page 143, Airbag system
and
.:.> page 165, Important information.
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats can
help protect toddlers and children over age one
who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9 and 18 kg)
in a crash .
Fig. 147 Schema tic ove,v iew: installat ion of t he attach­
me nts applicable to a LA TCH seat
Fig. 148 Schematic oveiview : installat ion of th e seat using
the vehicle's sa fety belt system
.,. 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 176 or install the seat using the LATCH
attachments .
.,. Push the ch ild safety seat down with you r full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that .,..

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the seat cannot move forward or sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
c::!;> page 176.
~ If the child safety seat is equ ipped with a tether
strap, attach it to the tether anchors
<=> page 181.
~ Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
<=> page 171.
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) .
T oddlers and children who are o lder 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 ch ild safety seat cert ified
for the ir s ize and weight <=>
fig. 147 and
¢ fig. 148 .
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 fo rward-facing child safety seat. It is a
ve ry dangero us p lace for an infant or a larger
chi ld in a rearward-facing seat.
_.6 WARNING
-Not using a ch ild safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improper ly installing a
child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death in a collis ion or oth­
er emergency situation.
- Children on the front seat of any car, even
with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in­
jured or even killed when an airbag inf lates.
A ch ild 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 Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- T he inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and chi ld
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 fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat be-
Ch ild safety
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASS ENGER AIR BA G OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the a irbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
- The rear side of the ch ild safety seat should
be positioned as close as possible to the
backrest on the veh icle seat.
- For adjustable head restraints: adjust or re­
move the rear seat head rest raint if it is dif­
ficult to insta ll the ch ild seat with the head
restraint in place¢
page 55. Install the
head res traint again immed iate ly once the
child seat is removed. Driving witho ut head
restraints or with head restraints that are
not properly ad justed increases the r isk of
serious or fatal neck injury dramatically.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing used ¢
page 135, Safety belts,
<=> page 143, Airbag system
and
<=> page 165, Important information.
A WARNING
-
If exceptional c ircumstances requ ire the use
of a forward-facing ch ild restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child 's safety and
well-being req uire that the following special
precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-fac ing seat has been
des igned and certified by its manufacturer
for use on a front seat with a passenger
front and side ai rbag .
- Always follow the manufacturer's instr uc­
tions provided with the child safety seat o r
infant carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest position in the up and down ad­
justment range and move it back to the rearmost posit ion in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the a ir­
bag as possible, before install ing the for­
ward-facing ch ild restraint .
- Always make sure that the safety be lt upper
anchorage is behind the ch ild restraint and
not next to o r in front of the child restraint
~
173

Child safety
so that the safety belt will be properly
pos it ioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents the
front passenger's seat from being moved to
the rearmost position in its fore and aft ad­
justment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an up­
right position.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CO player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat
if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth­
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any ch ild rest raint system on
t h is seat.
- Make s ure that the re a re no wet objects
(s uch as a wet towe l) and no water or other
liquids o n the front passenger seat cushion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD player, electronic games dev ice,
power inverter or se at heater for child
seats) . These may influence the e lectrica l
capacitance measured by the capacitive pas­
senger detection system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause serious per­
sonal injury.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- If the
PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in­
stall the forward-facing child seat at a seat­ ing posit ion on the rear seat and have the
airbag system inspected by your author ized
Audi dealer.
- T ake the ch ild restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and insta ll it p roperly at one of the
rea r seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
l ight does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
174
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs . and 80
lbs. (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9
in . (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall.
Fi g. 1 49 Rear seat: ch ild prope rly restra ined in a booster
seat
The vehicle's safety belts a lone w ill not fit most
ch ild ren until they are at leas t 4 ft. 9 in. (57 in­
ches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about 80 lbs. (36 kg) . Booste r seats raise these ch ildren up so
that the sa fety belt will pass p roper ly over the
stronger parts of their bodies and the safety be lt
can help protect them in a crash.
.,. Do not use the convertib le locking re trac tor
when using the veh icle's safety be lt to restrain
a child on a booster seat.
.,. The shoulder belt must lie as close to the cen­
ter of the child's collar bone as possible and
must lie flat and snug on the upper body. It
must never lie across the throat or neck . The
lap belt m ust lie across the pelvis and never
across the stomach or abdomen . Make sure the
belt lies flat and sn ug. Pu ll on the be lt to tight­
en if necessary.
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c>page 171.
Children up to at least 8 years o ld (over 40 lbs or
18 kg) a re best protected in child safety seats de­
signed for their age and weight . Experts say that
the skeletal structure, part icu larly the pelvis, of
these ch ildren is not fully developed, and they
must not use the vehicle safety belts without a
su itable child restraint.

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It is usually best to put these children in appro­priate booster seats. Be sure the booster seat
meets all applicable safety standards.
Booster seats ra ise the seat ing pos it ion of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety be lt so that they pass across
the child's body in the right places . The rout ing of
the belt over the child's body is very important
for the child's protection, whether or not a boos­
ter seat is used. Children age 12 and under must
always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4 ft. 9 in. (57 inches/ 1.45 meters) tall can generally use the vehicle's
three point lap and shoulder belts. Never use the lap belt portion of the vehicle 's safety belt alone
to restrain any child, regardless of how b ig the
child is. A lways remembe r that children do not
have the pronounced pelv ic struc ture requ ired for
the proper function of lap belt portion of the ve­
hicle's three point lap and shoulder be lts. The
chi ld's safety absolutely requires that a lap belt
port ion of the safety be lt be fastened snugly and
as low as possible around the pelvis. Never let
the lap belt portion of the safety belt pass over
the child's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink of
an eye and with considerable force. In order to do its job, the airbag needs room to inflate so that it
will be there to protect the occupant as the occu­
pant moves forward into the a irbag .
A vehicle occupant who is out of position and too
close to the airbag gets in the way of an inflating
airbag. When an occupant is too close, he or she
will be struck v iolently and will receive ser ious or
possibly even fatal injury.
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is important that all vehicle occupants, especially
any children, who must be in the front seat be­
cause of exceptional circumstances, be properly
rest rained and as far away from the airbag as
possib le. By keep ing room be tween the child's
body and the front of the passenger compa rt­
ment, the airbag can inflate comp letely and pro­
vide supplemental protection in certain fronta l
coll isions.
Ch ild safety
_& WARNING
Not using a booster seat, using the booster
seat improperly, incorrectly installing a boos­
ter seat or us ing the vehicle safety belt im­
p roperly increases the r isk of serious personal
i njury and death in a collision or other emer­
gency situation. To help reduce the risk of se­ rious personal injury and/or death:
- The sho ulde r belt m ust lie as close to the
center of the ch ild's co llar bone as possible
and must lie flat and snug on the upper
body . It must never lie across the throat or
neck. The lap belt must lie across the pelvis
and never across the stomach or abdomen. Make sure that the belt lies f lat and snug.
Pull on the belt to tighten if necessary.
- Fa ilure to properly route safety belts over a
child's body w ill cause severe injuries in an
accident or other emergency situation
c:::>page 135.
- The rear side of the ch ild safety seat should
be positioned as close as possible to the
backrest on the veh icle seat.
- For adjustable head restraints: adjust or re­ move the rea r seat head rest raint if it is dif­
f icult to insta ll the ch ild seat with the head
rest raint in place
c:::> page 55. Install the
head restraint again immed iate ly once the
child seat is removed. Driving witho ut head
restraints or with head restraints that a re
not properly adjusted increases the risk of
serio us or fatal neck injury dramatica lly.
- Never let a chi ld put the shoulder belt under
the arm or behind the back, because it could
cause severe injuries in a crash.
- Chi ldren on the front seat of a ny car, even
with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in­
jured or even k illed when an airbag inflates.
- Never let a chi ld stand or kneel on any seat,
for examp le the front seat.
- Never let a chi ld ride in the cargo area of
your veh icle.
- Always remember that a chi ld leaning fo r­
ward, sitting sideways or out of position in
any way during an accident can be struck by
a dep loying airbag. Th is w ill result in serious
-
personal injury or death . ~
175

Child safet y
-If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of exceptional
circumstances the
P ASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light must come on and stay on, when­
ever the ignition is switched on.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, perform the
checks descr ibed
~ page 155, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag System.
- Take the ch ild restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and install it p roperly at one of the
rea r seat positions if the
PA SSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
l ight does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a veh icle is
being used~
page 135, Safety belts,
~ page 143, Airbag system and
~page 165, Important information.
Securing child seats
Securing a child safety seat using a safety
belt
---
Safety belts for the rear seats and the front pas­
senger can be locked with the convertible locking
retractor to properly secure child safety seats .
The safety belts emergency locking retractors for
the rear seats safety belts and for the front pas­
senger's seat safety belt have a convertib le lock­
i n g ret rac to r fo r child rest raints . The safety belt
m ust be locked so that belt webbing cannot un­
reel. The retractor can be activated to lock the
safety belt and prevent the safety belt webbing
from loosening up during normal driving. A child
safety seat can only be properly installed when
the safety belt is locked so that the child and
chi ld safety seat w ill stay in place .
A lways remember: Even though your vehicle is
equ ipped w ith an Advanced Airbag system, all
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always ride in the back seat properly re­
stra ined for their age and size .
176
A WARNING ,.
Improperly installed child safety seats in-
crease the r isk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
-
- Always make sure that the safety be lt re­
tractor is locked when installing a ch ild
safety seat . An unlocked safety be lt retrac­
tor cannot hold the ch ild safety seat in place
during normal d riving or in a c rash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a ch ild is not si tting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly a round dur ing
a sudden s top or in a collision.
- I f the backrest is not se curely latched, the
child and the ch ild restraint will be thrown
forward together with the backrest and w ill
strike parts of the veh icle interior. The child
can be seriously injured or killed.
- Never install rear -facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the front passenger
seat. A child w ill be seriously injured and
can be k illed when the passenger a irbag in­
flates.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild safety
seat or infant carr ier with great force and
w ill smash the child safety seat and child
aga inst the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild safety seats
or infant carriers on the rear seat .
- Forward-facing child safety seats or infant
carriers installed on the front passenger's
seat may interfere w ith the deployment of
the airbag and ca use serio us inju ry to the
child.
- It is safer to install a forward-facing child
safety seat on the rear seat.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
eve r us ing a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing used
c::!;> page 165. Special p recautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat~
page 144, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor-
tant things to know .
~