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 ...
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.
-
Child safety
Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
Fig. 184 A3 Sedan : Tethe r strap : prope r rout ing and
m oun ting
F ig . 185 A3 Sportback: Tet her st rap: p roper rout ing an d
m oun ting. (!) cent er, @ outs ide
Inst all ing th e teth er strap
"' ' ~ I 0 :> gi
,... Release or deploy the tether strap on the child
restra int according to the child restraint manu
facturer's instructions .
,... Guide the upper tether strap
unde r the rear
head restraint (raise the head restraint if neces
sary) ¢
fig. 184 (A3 Sedan) ¢ fig. 185
(A3 Sportback) .
,... A3 Sedan: T ilt the recess flap up to expose the
anchor bracket .
,... A3 Sedan: Attach the tether st rap anchorage
hook into the opening of the tether anchorage.
226
,... A3 Sportback: Unlock the backrest and fold it
slightly forward ¢
page 65 and locate the teth
er anchor behind the rear seat backrest .
..
,... Pull on the tether strap hook so that the spring
catch of the hook engages .
,... Tighten the tether strap f irmly following the
child restra int manufacturer's instructions .
Releasing the tether str ap
,... Loosen the tension following the child restraint
manufacturer's instructions.
,... Depress the spr ing catch on the hook and re
lease it from the anchorage .
(D Note
If you leave the child restraint with the tether
strap firmly installed for several days, this
could leave a mark on the upholstery on the
seat cushion and backres t in the area where
the tether s trap was installed . T he upholstery
would a lso be permanently stretc hed around
the tether strap. This applies especially to
l eather seats .
Using tether straps on rearward-facing
child restraints
Currently, few rear -facing child restraint systems
come with a tether. Please read and heed the
ch ild rest raint system manufacturer's instruc
tions carefully to determi ne how to p roperly in
stall the te ther.
_.6 WARNING
A child in a rearward -facing ch ild safety seat
installed on the front passe nger seat will be
serious ly injured and can be killed if the front
airbag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- 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
against the backrest , center arm rest, or
door.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
Checking and Filling
Refueling
Fuel filler neck
The fuel filler neck is located on the right rear
side panel behind the fuel fi ller flap.
If the power locking system should fail, you can
still open the flap manually· for deta iled instruc
tions see~
page 232 .
You can find the fuel tank capacity of your vehicle
in
c::;, page 303 .
The label on the inside of the fuel filler flap tells
you the correct fuel for your vehicle . For more in
formation about fuel specifications, see
c::;, page 228 .
Your vehicle fuel tank has an onboard refuelling
vapor recovery system . This feature helps to pre·
vent fuel vapors from escap ing from the tank and
polluting the environment while you refuel your
veh icle. In order to fill the tank properly while
protecting the environment, please fo llow this
refueling procedure carefully .
.&, WARNING
Under normal operating conditions, never car
ry additional fuel containers in your car. Gas
canisters and other containers used to trans
port fuel can be dangerous . Such containers,
full or empty, may leak and could cause a fire
in a collision. If you must transport fuel to
use for your lawn mower, snow blower, etc.,
be very careful a nd always observe local and
state laws regard ing the use, t ransportation
and storage of such fue l containers. Make cer·
tain the container meets industry standards (ANSI/ASTM F852 · 86).
(D Note
Never drive yo ur vehicle unt il the fuel tank is
completely empty. The ir regula r supply of
fue l can cause misfiring. Gasoline could enter
the exhaust system and damage the catalytic
converter.
230
Fueling procedure
Fig. 186 R ig ht rea r side of t he ve hicle: ope ning the fuel
fil ler door
Fig. 187 Fuel fill er doo r wit h attached fue l cap
--0 > g:
Plug -in hybrid drive*: read and follow the instruc
tions for refueling unde r
c::;,page 109.
Read and follow the information and warnings
when filling AdBlue
c::;,page 234.
The fuel filler door is unlocked or locked by the
central locking system .
Opening the fuel cap
.. Press the left side of the fuel filler door to open
it -arrow-¢
fig. 186.
.,. Unscrew the tank cap counterclockwise .
.. Place the cap from above on the open fuel filler
door ¢
fig. 187.
Closing the fuel cap
.. Turn the fuel cap clockwise until you hear it
lock.
.. Close fuel f iller door until it latches .
Once the pump nozzle switches off, the fuel tank
is "full". Do not fill the tank more. Otherwise the
expans ion space in the tank will be filled .
IJ.
Checking and Filling
@ Tips
Fue l can age and may lead to prob lems when
starting. Audi recommends replacing the fuel
in your vehicle within six months.
@ Tips
- If the engi ne is running while fueling, va
pors can escape or the fuel can spill over.
Because of th is, the fuel no zzle switches off
before the tank is full.
- Do not fuel the vehicle when the ignition is
switched on. Otherwise, the fuel gauge may
not show t he correct level after fueling the
vehicle .
- Diesel veh icles are equ ipped with a diesel
misfueling guard
1>. It allows the vehicle to
be f ueled on ly w ith a diesel fuel pump noz
zle .
- A wo rn o r damaged nozzle or a nozzle that
i s too smal l may not be ab le to open the
diesel misfueling protector . If this is the
case, try t urning the nozzle before inserting
i t in the f uel fille r neck, u se a d ifferent fue l
pump or see an aut horized Audi dea ler or
a uthorized Audi Service Facility fo r assis
tance .
- The misf ueling guard does not open when
adding fue l from a fue l conta iner . You can
bypass it by adding the diesel fuel slow ly.
- The fuel filler door on your ve hicle does not
l ock when you lock the vehicle from the in
side.
l ) Ma rket -specifi c
232
Fuel filler door emergency release
If the cen tral locking system is faulty, the fuel
filler door can be unlocked manually .
Fig. 188 Right re ar l ug gag e compa rtm en t: em erg enc y re
lease (example)
T he emergency release mechan ism is located be
hind the right s ide trim panel in the luggage
compartment.
.,. Remove the cover in the side panel.
.,. Loosen the loop from the retainer and then pull
on the loop carefully-arrow-
~ CD. The fuel fill
er door is released .
.,. To open the f uel filler door, press on the left
side
~ page 230, fig. 186 .
Plug-in hybrid drive*: read and follow the instruc
tions unde r
Qpage 109.
(D Note
Only pu ll on the loop until you feel res ista nce .
You wil l not hear it re lease. Otherw ise you
could damage the emergency release mecha
n ism .
Catalytic converter
Applies to vehicles: with gasol ine engine
It is very important tha t your emi ssion control
sys tem (ca talytic conv erter) is functioning prop
erly to ensure that your vehicle is running in an
env ironmentally sound manner .
.,. Always use lead-free gasoline ~ page 228, Gas
oline grade .
.,. Never run the tank down all the way to empty . ..,.
.... N
0 > CX)
....
"' U"I
....
"' ....
Ad Blue,/' Ad Blue: sy stem fault! No re start in
600 miles (1000 km ). See owner' s manual.
This mes sage appea rs when it is only poss ible to
d rive the d ist an ce ind icated in the dr iver informa
tion system . Drive to the nearest autho rized Audi
dealer or authorized Audi Service Facility to have
the ma lfunction corrected . Otherwise the engine
w ill not start again if you stop it once the d is
tance indicated has been driven .
Ad Blue: system fault . Engine start
not possible! See owner 's manual
This message appears if the sys tem has de te cted
that the tank was filled incorrectly or that there
is a malfunction. Drive immediately to the near
est authorized Aud i dea ler or a uthorized Aud i
Service Facility to have the malfunction correct
ed. Otherwise you will not be able to start the en
g ine again once you stop it .
Filling AdBlue
Applies to vehicles: with selective catalyt ic redu ction
A special refill bottle must be used to fill the
AdBlue.
F ig. 1 89 Right rear s ide of t he veh icle: remov ing the AdB l·
ue cap
F ig. 190 Ad Blue filler neck: insert ing refill bottle
Checking and Filling
T he Ad Blue tank open ing is located near the d ie
sel tank opening. Add at least 1 gallon (3.8 lit
ers) of Ad B lue (two bottles) . This is the min imum
amount required to ensure the system detects
the refilling and to start the engine. You can add a max imum of approximately 4 gallons (15 l it
ers).
Opening the filler neck and refilling AdBlue
with a bottle
Requireme nt: T he request to add AdBlue must
appear in the instrument cluster disp lay .
.. Park your veh icle on a level s urface.
• Switch the ignit ion off.
• Open the tank door¢
page 230.
• Turn the cap on the tank opening to the left to
remove ¢
fig. 189.
• Remove the cap from the ref ill bo ttle.
• Posi tion the refill bo ttle on the fil le r tube and
turn the bottle clockwise until it stops t urning
• Press lightly against the bottom of the bottle
@ to empty it. Continue press ing the bottom
of the bottle until it is empty or until f luid
stops f low ing into the ta nk.
• Tu rn the bottle to t he left without pressing on
the bottom .
Closing the filler neck
.. Turn the Ad B lue cap to the right on the filler
tube until the cap clicks into place.
• Close the tank cover.
Afte r filling
The vehicle must be driven . The system may take
u p to two minutes to detect t hat the AdBl ue has
been filled.
• If the re w as no Ad B lue left in the tank and a
range of
O mi (0 km) was displayed in the in
strument cluster, switch the ign it ion on for
about 30 seconds before starting the engine.
A WARNING
-Ad B lue can irritate the sk in, eyes and respira-
tory system . If there is contact with the flu id,
flus h immed iate ly w it h plenty of water. Con-
su lt a phys ic ian if necessa ry.
~
235
.... N
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.... I.Cl U"I
.... I.Cl ....
corrosion can cause a loss of coolant and
serious engine damage .
- Do not add any type of radiator leak sealant
to your vehicle's engine coolant . Adding ra
diator repair fluid may adversely affect the
function and performance of your cooling
system and could result in damage not cov
ered by your New Vehicle Limited Warranty.
Adding coolant
F ig . 198 Engine compa rtment: mark in gs on t he coo lant
expa nsion tank
Read and follow the WARNINGS before check
ing anything in the engine compartment
¢ page 236, Working in the engine compart
ment.
Checking the engine coolant level
• Park your vehicle on a level surface .
• Switch the ignition off .
• Read the coolant level on the coolant expansion
tank
¢ fig. 198 . The coolant level must be be
tween the markings when the engine in cold .
When the engine is warm it can be slightly above the upper marking.
Adding coolant
Plug-in hybrid drive*: your vehicle has two cool
ant expansion tanks that are separate from each
other. The smaller of the two expansion tanks
must not be opened
¢ page 108. Read and fol
low the important safety precautions ¢
A in
Coolant on page 109.
Requirement: there must be a residual amount of
coolant in the expansion tank ¢(D .
• Let the engine cool down .
Checking and Filling
• Place a cloth over the coolant expansion tank
cap and unscrew the cap counterclockwise
¢ A .
• Add coolant mixed in the correct ratio
¢
page 244 up to the upper marking.
• Make sure that the fluid level remains stable.
Add more coolant if necessary.
• Close the cap securely .
A coolant loss suggests a leak. Immediately drive
your vehicle to an authorized Audi dealer or au
thorized Audi Service Facility and have the cool
i ng system inspected. If the cooling system is not
leak ing, a loss can come from the coolant boiling
through overheat ing and being pushed out of the
cooling system .
,&_ WARNING
-= -The cooling system is pressurized and can be
come very hot. To reduce the risk of burns
from hot coolant:
- Do not open the coolant expansion tank cap
with the engine hot. There is a risk of burns.
- Stop the engine and allow it to cool.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from es-
caping coolant and steam by covering the
coo lant tank cap with a large, thick cloth.
- Turn the coolant tank cap counterclockwise
slowly and keep light pressure on the cap.
- To reduce the risk of burns, do not allow any
antifreeze or coolant to drip onto the ex
haust system or hot engine components.
The ethylene glycol in engine coo lant can
catch fire under certain circumstances .
- The coolant additive and the coolant can be
dangerous to your health . For th is reason,
keep the coolant in the original container
away from children. There is a risk of poi
soning .
- When working in the engine compartment,
remember that the radiator fan can switch
on even if the ignition is switched off, wh ich
increases the risk of persona l injury.
(J) Note
Do not add coolant if the expansion tank is
empty . Air could enter the cooling system and
damage the eng ine.
If this is the case, do not ..,_
245
,....,
N
0 > co ,....,
you.
A WARNING
- Brake fluid is poisonous. It must be stored
only in the closed original container out of
the reach of chi ldren!
- Brake failure can resu lt from old or inappro
priate brake fluid. Observe these precau
t ions:
- Use only brake flu id that meets SA E speci
fication
J 1703 and conforms to Federal
Motor Vehicle Standard 116. Always check
with your authorized Audi dealer to make
sure you are using the correct brake fluid.
The correct type of brake fluid is also indi
cated on the brake flu id reservoir.
- The brake fluid must be new. Heavy use of
the brakes can cause a vapor lock if the
brake fluid is left in the system too long.
This can ser iously affect the efficiency of
the brakes as well as your safety. This
could result in an acc ident.
(D Note
Brake fluid w ill damage the pa int of your vehi
cle.
For the sake of the environment
Because of the prob lem of proper disposal of
brake flu id as well as the special tools re
quired and the necessary expertise, we rec
ommend that you have the brake fluid
changed by your author ized Audi dealer.
Battery
General information
All work on the battery requires expert knowl
edge.
Read and foll ow t he WARNING S before check
ing anything in the engine compartment
¢ page 236, Working in the engine comport
ment.
Ch eck ing and Filling
Plug -in hybrid drive* : you can find important in
formation about the high -vo ltage battery under
¢ page 98.
The battery in yo ur Audi does not need any ma in
tenance under
normal operating conditions . Audi
recommends having the electrolyte level check
by an authorized Audi dealer or author ized Audi
Service Facility when there are
high outside tem
peratures or when dr iving all day. The e lectrolyte
level should also be checked each time the bat
tery is charged¢
page 249.
Have the battery checked when you bring your ve
hicle in for an inspection. It is a good idea to re
place the battery if it is more than 5 years old.
D uring certa in types of a irbag deployments, the
battery is d isconnected from the veh icle electri
cal system for safety reasons¢
& in Repair, core
and disposal of the airbags on page 199.
Di sco nnecting the battery te rminal s
The battery should not be disconnected. Several
vehicle functions (power windows, for example)
will be lost when the battery is disconnected. The
funct ions must be reprogrammed after connect
ing the battery. To avoid this, the battery should
only be disconnected from the vehicle electrical
system when it is absolutely necessary.
To reprogram the functions, proceed as follows:
Function Reprogramming
Power window one-¢ page 44, Correcting
touch up/down func-power window molfunc-
tion tions
Remote control key or
If the vehicle does not
Convenience key react to the key, it must
be synchronized
¢page 37
Dig ita l clock ¢page 10
ESC indicator light The indicator light goes
out after driving a few
meters
247