2016 AUDI A3 ECU

Child safety
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always ride in the back seat properly re­
strained for their age and size.
.&_ WARNING
-
Improperly installed child safety seats in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re­
tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat . An unlocked safety belt retrac­
tor cannot hold the child safety seat in place during normal driving or in a crash.
-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 make sure that the rear seat back­
rest to which the center rear safety belt* is
attached is securely latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used to se­
cure a child restraint.
- If the backrest is not securely latched, the
child and the child restraint will be thrown
forward together with the backrest and will
strike parts of the vehicle 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 will be seriously injured and can be killed when the passenger airbag in­
flates.
- 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.
- Forward-facing child safety seats or infant
carriers installed on the front passenger's
seat may interfere with the deployment 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 when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
220
being used¢ page 209. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 185, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor­
tant things to know.
.&_ WARNING
Always take special precautions if you must
install a forward or rearward-facing child re­
straint on the front passenger's seat in excep­
tional situations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-facing
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger 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 ¢
page 196, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag System.
- 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 whenever
the ignition is switched on.
- Improper installation of child restraints can
reduce their effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protection .
- An improperly installed child restraint can
interfere wi th the airbag as it deploys and
seriously injure or even kill the child.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier .
- After checking to make sure that the child
restraint is properly installed, make certain
that the child restraint is correctly recog­
nized by the capacitive passenger detection
system in the front passenger seat and that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light signals
the correct front passenger frontal airbag
status.
_&. WARNING
Forward-facing child restraints:
-

,....,
N
0 > co ,...., -Always make sure the forward-facing seat
has been designed and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up, against or very near the instrument pan­
el.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air­
bag as possib le before installing the for­
ward-facing child restra int. The backrest
must be adjusted to an up right posit ion.
- Make sure that the
PASSEN GER AI R BA G
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
_& WARNING
Rearwa rd-facing child restra ints:
- A ch ild in a rea rwa rd-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat wi ll be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System .
- The inflating airbag will 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 armrest, door
or roof.
- Always be especially careful if you must in­
stall a rearward facing child safety seat on
the front passenger seat in exceptional c ir­
cumstances.
- Make sure that the
PA SSEN GER AIR BA G
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on .
- If the
PASSEN GER A IR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in­
stall the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a
rear seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
system inspected by your Aud i deale r.
Ch ild safety
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint .
Always heed the ch ild safety seat manufacturer's
instruct ions when installing a child restraint in
your vehicle. To activate the convertible locking retractor:
.. Place the child restraint on a seat, preferably
on the rear seat.
.. Slowly pull the belt
all the w ay out .
.. Route it around or through the child restra int
be lt path
¢ & .
.. Push the ch ild safety seat down with you r full
weight to get the safety belt really tight.
.. Insert the belt tongue into the buckle for that
seating position.
.. Guide the safety belt back into the retractor un­
til the belt lies flat and snug on the child safety
seat.
.. You should hear a ''cl icking" noise as the belt
w inds back into the inertia reel. Test the con ­
vert ible lock ing retractor by pull ing on the belt.
You shou ld no longer be able to pull the belt
out of the retractor. The convertib le loc kin g re­
t ractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is facing
away from the c hild restraint so that it can be
unbuckled quickly .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt is
properly tight and fastened so that the seat
cannot move forward or sideways more than
one inch (2 .5 cm) .
_& WARNING
Using the wrong ch ild rest raint o r an improp­
e rly inst alled child restra int can cause se rious
personal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety be lt re­
tr actor is locked when installing a child
safety seat . An un locked safety be lt retrac­
tor cannot hold the ch ild safety seat in p lace
during normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat fi rm ly in
p lace even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly a round during
a sudden stop or in a crash. .,.
221

Child safety
-Always make sure the seat backrest to which
the child restraint is installed is in an up­
right position and securely latched into
place and cannot fold forward. Otherwise,
the seatback with the child safety seat at­
tached to it could fly forward in the event of
an accident or other emergency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
¢ page 209 . Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 185, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor­
tant things to know.
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The convertible Locking retractor for child re­
straints will be deactivated automatically when
the belt is wound all the way bock into the re­
tractor .
~ Press the red button on the safety belt buckle.
Th@ belt tongue will pop out of the buckle.
~ Guide the safety belt all the way back into its
stowed position .
Always let the safety belt retract completely into
its stowed position . The safety belt can now be
used as an ordinary safety belt without the con­
vertible locking retractor for child restraints .
If the convertible locking retractor should be ac­
tivated inadvertently, the safety belt must be un­
fastened and guided completely back into its
stowed position to deactivate this feature. If the
convertible lock ing retractor is not deactivated,
the safety belt will gradually become tighter and
uncomfortable to wear.
A WARNING
-
Improperly installed child safety seats in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deactivate
the convertible locking retractor for child re­ straints while the vehicle is moving . You
222
would not be restrained and could be seri­
ously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used¢
page 209. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
<=:> page 185, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor­
tant things to know.
LATCH system (Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children)
' Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a simpler and more practicable way to
attach the child restraint on the vehicle seat, Federal regulations require special lower ancho­
rages in vehicles and devices on new child re­
straints to attach to the vehicle anchorages .
In the United States, the combination of the
tether anchorages and the lower anchorages is
now generally called the LATCH system for
"Lower Anchorages and Tethers for Children" . In
Canada, the terms "top tether" with "lower uni­
versal anchorages" (or "lower universal anchor­
age bars") are used to describe the system .
In other countries the term "ISOFIX" is used to
describe the lower anchorages .
Forward-facing child restraints manufactured af­
ter September 1, 1999, are required by U.S. fed­
eral regulations to comply with new child head
movement performance requirements . These
new performance requirements make a tether
necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a child restraint that requires a top
tether without one can seriously impair the per­
formance of the child restraint and its ab ility to
protect the child in a collision. Installing a child
restraint that requires a top tether without the
top tether may be a violation of state law.
Child restraint manufacturers offer LATCH lower
anchorages on their child seats with hook-on or ...

push-on connectors attached to adjustable
straps .
I n addition to the LATCH lower anchorages, these
child restraint systems usually require the use of
tether straps to h elp keep the child restraint
firm ly in place.
A WARNING
Improper installation of child restraints will
increase the risk of injury and death in a
crash.
- Always follow the instructions provided by the manufacturer of the child restra int you
intend to install in your veh icle.
- Never install a child restra int w ithout a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instruct ions
requ ire the top tether strap to be used .
- Improper use of child restra int LATCH lower
anchorage po ints can lead to injury in a colli ­
sion. The LATCH lower anchorage points are designed to withstand only those loads im­
posed by correc tly fit ted child res traints .
- Never mount two chi ld restraint systems on
one LATCH lower anchorage poin t.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other
item to the LATCH lower anchorages .
Location
F ig . 178 Schematic overv iew: LATCH a ncho rage po int loca ­
t io ns (ex ampl e)
The illustration shows the seating locations in
your veh icle which are equipped with the lower
.....
"' anchorages system .
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..... I.Cl U"I
..... I.Cl .....
Child sa fety
Description
The lower anchorage positions are marked for
quick locating .
Fig . 1 79 Low er an cho ra g es, cov ers marked
Fig . 18 0 Rear s eats: l ower an chorag e brac ket lo ca tions
Lower anchorages
T he circular markings on the rear seat help you to
identify the location of lower anchorages for the
two outboard seating pos itions ¢
fig. 179. The
LATCH lower univ ersal anchorage attachment
points are between the rear seatba ck and rear
seat cushion .
Remove the covers¢
fig. 179 to access the lower
anchorage attachment points.
T he lower anc horage a ttac hment po ints a re v is i­
ble ¢
fig. 180.
Lower anchorages secure the child restra int in
the seat without us ing the vehicle's safety belts.
Anchorages provide a secure and easy-to- use at ­
tachment and minimize the possibility of improp ­
er child restraint installation .
All child restra in ts man ufact ured after Septem ­
ber 1 , 2002, must have lower anchorage attach-
ments for the
LATCH system. ..,.
223

Child safety
Please remember that the lower anchorage
points are only intended for installation and at­
tachment of child restraints specifically certified
for use with
LATCH lower anchorages. Child re­
straints that are not equipped with the lower an­
chorage attachments can still be installed in
compliance with the child restraint manufactur­
er's instructions on using vehicle safety belts .
A WARNING
Improper use of LATCH lower anchorages can
cause serious personal injury in an accident.
- Always carefully follow the child restraints
manufacturer's instructions for proper in­
stallation of the child restraint and proper
use of the lower anchorages or safety belts
in your vehicle.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other
items to the
LATCH lower anchorages.
- Always read and heed the important infor­
mation about child restraints in this chapter
and WARNINGS
¢ page 209, Child safety.
Installing a child restraint with LATCH
lower anchorages
Applies to veh icles: w ith Top Tether
Whenever you install a child restraint always fol­
low the child restraint manufacturer 's instruc­
tions.
Fig. 181 L owe r an ch orage s: proper mou nting (examp le)
Mounting
.. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench
is in the upright position and securely latched
in place .
.. Attach both hook-on connectors with the spring
catch release on the child safety seat onto the
224
LATCH lower anchorage so that the connectors
lock into place
¢ fig. 181.
.. Pull on the connector attachments to make
sure they are properly attached to the LATCH
lower anchorage.
.. Pull straps tight following the child restraint
manufacturer's instructions.
Releasing
.. Loosen the tension on the straps following the
child restraint manufacturer's instructions.
.. Depress the spring catches to release the an­
chorage hooks from the lower anchorages .
Remember: Use tether straps to help keep the
child restraint firmly in place.
A WARNING
-
Improper use of the LATCH system can in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in an accident .
- These anchors were developed only for child safety seats using the "LATCH" system.
- Never attach other child safety seats, belts
or other objects to these anchors .
- Always make sure that you hear a click when
latching the seat in place. If you do not hear
a click the seat is not secure and could fly
forward and hit the interior of the vehicle,
or be ejected from the vehicle.
A WARNING
Improper installation of child restraints will
increase the risk of injury in an accident.
- Always follow the child restraint system
manufacturer's instructions for proper in­
stallation of the child restraint system and
proper use of tether straps as well as the lower anchorages or safety belts in your ve­
hicle.
- Always read and heed the important infor­
mation and WARNINGS about child safety
and the installation of child restraint sys­
tems
¢ page 209, Child safety.
-

Tether anchors and tether straps
Fig. 182 A3 Sedan: Tether anchors: recess flaps behind the
rear seatbacks
Fig. 183 A3 Sportback : Tether anchors : recess flaps behind
the rear seatbacks
A3 Sedan : The tether anchors for the rear seating
positions are located in recesses in the rear win­
dow she lf
r::;, fig . 182
A3 Sportback: The tether anchors for the rear
seating positions are located on the backside of
the rear seatbacks
r::;, fig . 183.
A tether is a straight or V-shaped strap that at­
taches the top part of a child restraint to special
anchorage points in the vehicle .
The purpose of the tether is to reduce the for­
ward movement of the child restraint in a crash,
in order to help reduce the risk of head injury
that could be caused by striking the vehicle inte­
rior .
Forward facing child restraints manufactured af­
ter September 1, 1999, are required by U.S. fed­
eral regulations to comply with new child head
movement performance requirements . These
.... "' new performance requirements make a tether 0
iii necessary on most new child safety seats .
.... I.Cl U"I
.... I.Cl ....
Child sa fety
A WARNING
-Improper installation of child restra ints wi ll
i ncrease the risk of injury and death in a
crash .
- Always follow the instructions prov ided by
the manufactu rer of the ch ild restraint you
intend to insta ll in you r A udi .
- Improper use of chi ld restraint anchors (in­
cluding tether anchors) can lead to injury in
a co llision . The anchors are designed to
withstand on ly those loads imposed by co r­
rectly fi tted ch ild res traints.
- Never mo unt two child rest raint systems on
one LA TC H lowe r anchor point.
- Neve r attach two child restraint systems to
one tether st rap or tethe r anchorage.
- Never attach a tether strap to a tie-down
hook in the luggage compa rtment.
- Never use child restra int tether anchorages
to secure safety be lts or other kinds of occu­
pant restrain ts.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or othe r
items to the LA TCH lower anchorages or to
the tether anchors.
- If you must install a rearwa rd facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­
cause of excep tional ci rcumstance s and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG 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.
225

Check ing and F illing
Read and follo w the WARN IN GS before check­
ing anything in the engine compartment
c::> page 236, Working in the engine compart­
ment.
Make sure the wiper arms are not raised up from
the windshield. Otherwise the paint could be
damaged .
Applies to vehi cles w ith p lug-in hybrid dr ive* :
switch the ignition off before re leasing the hood
so that the gasoline engine does not start auto­ mat ica lly.
... With the driver's door open, pull the lever be­
low the instrument panel in the direction of the
arrow
c::> fig. 191 .
... Raise the hood s lightly c::> ,&. .
... Press the rocker switch under the hood upward
c::> fig. 192. This releases the catch.
... Open the hood .
A WARNING
Never open the hood when you see that steam
or coolant drips from the engine compart-
238
ment- there is a dange r of bu rns! Wait unt il
no steam or coolant flows out.
Closing the hood
... Push the hood down until the force of the strut
is overcome.
... Let the hood fall lightly into the latch .
Do not
press it in .
c::> ,&..
A WARNING
If the hood is not latched complete ly, it could
f ly up wh ile you are dr iving and obst ruct your
vision .
- For safety reasons, the hood m ust always be
closed securely while driv ing. Because o f
this, always chec k the hood after closing it
to make sure it is latched correctly. The
hood is latched if the front corners cannot
be lifted.
- If you notice that the hood is not latched
while you are driving, stop immed iate ly and
close it, because this increases the risk of an
accident.

,....,
N
0 > co ,...., Read and follow the WARNINGS before check­
ing anything in the engine compartment
c::> page 236, Working in the engine compart­
ment.
.. Turn the engine off.
.. Unscrew the engine oil filler opening cap~
c::>fig.197, c::>page239, fig.193 .
.. Carefully add 0.5 quart (0.5 liter) of the appro­
priate oil
c::> page 240.
.. Check the oil level again after two minutes
c::> page 242, Checking the engine oil level .
.,. Add o il, if necessary.
.. Close the engine oil filler cap and push the dip­
stick all the way in .
A WARNING ,--
- When adding oil, do not let oil drip onto hot
engine components . There could be risk of a
fire.
- You must secure the cap on the oi l filler
opening correctly so that oil does not leak
out onto the hot engine and exhaust system
when the eng ine is running, because this is
a fire hazard.
- Always clean skin thoroughly if it comes into contact with engine oil.
(D Note
-Applies to vehicles with a gasoline engine:
the oil level cannot be above the
0 range
c> page 242, fig. 195 or else yo u risk dam­
aging the catalytic converter and the en­
gine . Contact an authorized Audi dealer or
authorized Audi Serv ice Facility to have ex­
cess oil extracted if necessary .
-Applies to vehicles with a diesel eng ine: the
oil level must not be in the
G) range
c::>page 242, fig. 196-The oil must not be
extracted or else you risk damaging the en­
gine. Drive to an authorized Aud i dealer or
authorized Audi Service Facility immediate­
l y.
- Do not mix any additional l ubricants into
the engine o il. Damage cause by such addi­
tives is not covered by the warranty.
Checking and Filling
{® For the sake of the environment
-Oil shou ld never enter the sewer system or
come into contact with the ground.
- Pay attention to lega l requirements when
disposing of empty oil containers .
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that have your oil changed by an
authorized Audi dealer or a qualified service sta ­
tion .
Before you check anything in the engine compart­
ment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS
c::> page 236.
The engine o il must be changed according to the
intervals specified in your Warranty
& Mainte­
nance book let. This is very important because the
lubricating properties of oil diminish gradua lly
during norma l vehicle use.
Under some circumstances the engine oil shou ld
be changed more frequent ly. Change oil more of­
ten if you drive mostly short distances, operate
the vehicle in dusty areas or under predominantly
stop-and-go traff ic conditions, or have your vehi­
cle where temperatures remain below freezing
for extended periods.
Detergent additives in the oi l will make fresh oil
look dark after the engine has been running for a
short time. This is normal and is not a reason to
change the oil more often than recommended.
Because of the problem of proper disposal, along
with the special tools and necessary expertise re­
quired, we strongly recommend that you have
your o il changed by an authorized
Audi dealer or
a qualified service stat ion.
If you choose to change your oil yourself, please
note the following important information:
A WARNING ,-~
To reduce the risk of personal injury if you
must change the engine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protection.
243