2017 AUDI A3 SEDAN check engine

Checking and Filling
front of the engine compartment¢ page 319,
fig.271.
Audi recommends
~ castroL //g/:fl;[ff}g f'rf!J7.f'"«JD,'1A1.
Audi recommends Longlife high performance
engine oil from Audi Genuine Parts
Using the proper engine oil is important for the
functionality and s ervice life of the engine. Your
engine was factory-filled with a high -quality oil
which can usually be used throughout the entire
year .
(D Note
Your Limited New Vehicle Warranty does not
cover damage or malfunctions due to failure
to follow recommended maintenance and use
requirements as set forth in the Audi Owner's
Manual and Warranty
& Maintenance booklet .
-Use only a high quality engine oil that ex-
pressly complies with the Audi oil quality
standard specified for your vehicle's engine .
Using any other oil can cause serious engine
damage.
-Do not mix any lubricants or other additives
into the engine oil. Doing so can cause en­
gine damage.
(D Tips
If you need to add oil and there is none availa­
ble that meets the Audi oil quality standard
your engine requires, you may add a total of
no more than 0.5 qt (0.5 l) of a high-quality
"synthetic"oil that meets the following speci­
fications.
-ACEA A3 or API SM with a viscosity grade of
SAE 0W-30, SAE 5W-30 or SAE 5W-40.
-For more information about engine oil that
has been approved for your vehicle, please
contact either your authorized Audi dealer
or Audi Customer Relations at 1 (800) 822-2834 or visit our web site at
www .audiusa.com or www .audicanada.ca .
320
· Engine oil consumption
T he engine in your vehicle depends on on ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool oil of
its moving ports .
In order to provide effective lubrication and cool­
ing of internal engine components, all internal
combustion engines consume a certain amount
of oil. Oil consumption varies from engine to en­ gine and may change significantly over the life of
the engine . Typically, engines with a specified
break-in period
(see ¢ page 74) consume more
oil during the break-in period than they consume
after oil consumption has stabilized.
Under normal conditions, the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on the quality and viscosity of
the oil , the RPM (revolutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient tem­ perature and road conditions. Further factors are
the amount of oil dilution from water condensa­
tion or fuel residue and the oxidation level of the
oil. As any engine is subject to wear as mileage
builds up, the oil consumption may increase over
ti me until replacement of worn components may
become necessary.
With all these variables coming into play, no standard rate of oil consumption can be estab­
lished or specified . There is no alternative to reg­
ular and frequent checking of the oil level , see
Note.
If the yellow engine oil level warning symbol II
in the instrument cluster lights up, you should
check the oil level as soon as possible
¢ page 321. Top off the oil at your earliest con­
venience
¢ page 321.
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARN­
INGS
¢ page 316.
(D Note
Driving with an insufficient oil level is likely to
cause severe damage to the engine.
IJII,

a, a, ..... N
" N ..... 0 N > 00
@ Tips
- The oil pre ssure w arning display. i s not
an indicator of the oil level. Do not rel y on
it. Instead , check the oil level in your en­
gine at regular inte rval s, preferably each
t ime you refuel , and alway s befo re going
on a long trip.
- If you have the impression your engine con­
sumes excessive amounts of oil, we recom­
mend that you cons ult an autho rized Aud i
dealer to have the cause of your concern
properly d iagnosed . Keep in mind that the
accurate measurement of oil consump tion
requi res great care and may take some
time. An a uthorized Audi dea ler has instruc ­
tions about how to measure oil consump ­
tion accurately .
Checking the engine oil level and adding
engine oil
The engine oil dips tick varies depending on the
engine type .
Fig. 272 Oil dipst ic k: checking t he e ngin e oi l leve l (exa m­
p le)
F ig. 273 Engine co mpartment : engin e o il fil ling opening
cover (examp le )
I
>
"' IX)
Checking and Filling
Observe the safety precautions ¢ page 316,
Working in the engine compartment.
C hecking the engine oil level
- Park the vehicle o n a level su rface .
- Shut the eng ine off when it is warm . Wait ap-
proximate ly two minutes so tha t the eng ine oil
can flow back into the oil pan .
- Open the hood
¢ page 318 .
-Remove the oil d ipst ick ¢ page 319, fig . 271,
w ipe it off w ith a clean cloth and insert it all the
way in aga in .
- Remove the oil d ipst ick again and then read the
oil leve l ¢
table on page 321 .
- Add engine oil if necessary .
Areas o n the o il
d ipstick ¢ fig. 272.
CD If the engine oil level is just before the
marking
(D , then eng ine oil must be added .
See
¢ (I).
@ Do not add engine oil.
Adding engine oil
-Unscrew the cap "I=:?: ¢ fig . 2 7 3 for the eng ine
oil fill ing opening
¢ page 319, fig. 271.
-Carefully add 0 .5 quart (0.5 lite r) of the co rrect
oil
¢ pag e 319.
-Check the oil level aga in after two minutes .
- Add a smaller amo unt of engine oil if necessa-
ry. The
mar king@ ¢fig. 272 mus t not be ex­
ceeded
¢ (I).
-Screw the eng ine oi l filler cap 'l=:71 and s lide the
d ipstick a ll the way in .
_& WARNING
-When adding eng ine oi l, do not let oil d rip
onto hot engine components. This increases
the risk of a fire.
-You must sea l the cap on the oil filler open­
ing correct ly so that oi l does not leak out
onto the hot engine and exhaust system
when the engine is running, beca use this is
a fire hazard.
- Always clean skin thoroughly if it comes into
contact with eng ine oil.
,..
321

Checking and Filling
CJ) Note
-The engine oil level must not be under the
marking
(D r=> fig. 272, because this increas­
es the risk of engine damage.
- After adding engine oil, the oil level must
not be above the marking
@ c:> fig . 2 72, be­
cause this increases the risk of catalytic con­
verter and/or engine damage. Do not start
the engine. Contact an authorized Audi
dealer or authorized Audi Service Facility to
have excess engine oil extracted if necessa­
ry .
- Do not mix any additional lubricants into
the engine oil. Damage caused by such addi­
tives is not covered by the warranty .
@ For the sake of the environment
-Engine oil should never enter the sewer sys­
tem or come into contact with the ground under any circumstances.
- Pay attention to legal requirements when
disposing of empty oil containers.
@ Tips
The engine oil consumption may be up to
0 .S quart/600 miles (0.5 liter/1,000 km), de­
pending on driving style and operating condi­
tions. Consumption may be higher during the
first 3,000 miles (5,000 km). The engine oil
level must be checked regularly. It would be
best to check each time you refuel your vehi­
cle and before long drives.
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that hove your oil changed by on
authorized Audi d eal er or o qualified s ervice sta­
tion.
Before you check anything in the engine compart­
m ent,
always read and heed all WARNINGS
r=> page 316.
The engine oil must be changed according to the
intervals specified in your Warranty
& Mainte­
nance bookl et. This is very important b ecause the
lubric ating properties of oil diminish gradually
during normal vehicle use.
322
Under some circumstances the engine oil should
be changed more frequently. Chang e oil more of­
ten if you drive mostly short distances, operate
the vehicle in dusty areas or under predominantly
stop-and-go traffic conditions, or have your vehi­
cle where temperatures remain below freezing
for extended periods .
Detergent additives in the oil 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 oil changed by an authorized
Audi dealer or
a qualified service station .
If you choose to change your oil yourself, please
note the following important information :
,&. WARNING
To reduce the risk of personal injury if you
must change the engine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protection.
- To reduce the risk of burns from hot engine
oil , let the engine cool down to the touch.
- When removing the oil drain plug with your
fingers, stay as far away as possible . Always
keep your forearm parallel to the ground to
help prevent hot oil from running down your
arm.
- Drain the oil into a container designed for
this purpose, one large enough to hold at
least the total amount of oil in your engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous . Keep it well out of
the reach of children.
- Continuous contact with used engine oil is
harmful to your skin . Always protect your
skin by washing oil off thoroughly with soap
and water .
0 Note
Never mix oil additives with your engine oil.
These additives can damage your engine and
adversely affect your Audi Limited New Vehi­
cle Warranty .

a, a, ..... N
" N ..... 0 N > 00
@ For the sake of the environment
-Before changing your oil, first make sure
you know where yo u can properly dispose of
the used oil.
- Always dispose of used engine oil prope rly .
Do not dump it on garden soil, wooded
areas, into open streams or down sewage
drains.
- Recycle used engine oil by taking it to a used engine oil collection facility in your area, or
contact a serv ice stat ion.
Cooling system
Coolant
The engine coo ling system is filled with a mixture
of purified water and coolant additive at the fac­
tory. This coo lant must not be not changed.
The coolant leve l is monitored through
the . in­
d icator
light ¢ page 28. However, we do recom­
mend occasionally checking the coo lant level
manually.
I f you m ust add coolant, use a m ixture of water
and coolant addit ive. Mixing the coolant additive
with distilled water is recommended.
Coolant additive
The coolant addi tive is made of anti-freezing and
cor ros ion pro tection agents. Only use the follow­
ing coolant additives . These additives may be
mixed with each other.
Coolant additive Specification
G13 TL 774 J
G12++ TL 774 G
The amount of coo lant additive that needs to be
mixed with water depends on the climate where
the vehicle will be operated .
If the coolant addi­
tive percentage is too low, the coolan t can freeze
and damage the engine.
Checking and Filling
Coolant Freeze protec-
additive tion
Warm regions min.40% min. -13 °F
max. 45% (-25 °()
Cold reg
ions min. 50% max. -40 °F
max . 55 % (-40
°()
(D Note
-
Before the start of winter, have an a uthor ­
ized Aud i dea ler o r authorized Audi Serv ice
Facility check if the coo lant additive in your
vehicle matches the percentage appropriate
for the climate. This is especially important
when driving in colder climates.
- If the appropriate coo lant additive is not
available in an emergency, do not add any
other additive. You could damage the en­
gine . If this happens, on ly use water and re­
store the correct mix tu re ratio with the
specified coolant add it ive as soon as poss i­
ble.
- Only refill w ith new coolant.
- Radiator sealant must not be mixed with
the coolant .
Adding coolant
Fig. 27 4 En g in e compa rtment: ma rkings on the coolant
expansion tank
Observe the safety precautions ¢ page 316,
Working in the engine compartment.
Checking the engin e coolant level
.. Park the vehicle on a level su rface .
.. Switch t he ignit ion off.
.. Read the coolant level on the coolant expans ion
tank ¢ fig. 2 74. The coolant leve l must be be -
tween the ma rkings when the engine in cold .
..,
323

Checking and Filling
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 104. Read and fol­
low the important safety precautions ¢
A in
Coolant on page 105 .
Requirement: there must be a residual amount of
coolant in the expansion tank
¢ (D .
~ Let the engine cool down.
~ Place a cloth over the coolant expansion tank
cap and unscrew the cap counterclockwise
¢_&. .
~ Add coolant mixed in the correct ratio
¢page 323 up to the upper marking.
~ Make sure that the fluid level remains stable.
Add more coolant if necessary.
~ Close the cap securely.
Coolant loss usually indicates there is a leak . Im­
mediately drive your vehicle to an authorized
Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service Facility
and have the cooling system inspected.
If the
cooling system is not leaking, a loss can come
from the coolant boiling through overheating
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
when the engine is hot. This increases the
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
coolant 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.
324
The ethylene glycol in engine coolant can
catch fire under certain circumstances.
- The coolant additive and the coolant can be
dangerous to your health. For this reason,
keep the coolant in the original container
and away from children . There is a risk of
poisoning.
- When working in the engine compartment,
remember that the radiator fan can switch
on even if the ignition is switched off, which
increases the risk of injury.
(D Note
Do not add coolant if the expansion tank is
empty . Air could enter the cooling system and
damage the engine . If this is the case, do not
continue driving . See an authorized Audi deal­
er or authorized Audi Service Facility for assis­
tance.
- Before the start of winter, have an author­
ized Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service
Facility check if the coolant additive in your
vehicle matches the percentage appropriate
for the climate. This is especially important
when driving in colder climates.
- If the appropriate coolant additive is not
available in an emergency, do not add any
other additive. You could damage the en­
gine. If this happens, only use water and re­
store the correct mixture ratio with the
specified coolant additive as soon as possi­
ble .
- Only refill with new coolant.
- Radiator sealant must not be mixed with the coolant.
· Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by it­
self
An auxiliary electric radiator fan switches on and
off depending on coolant temperature and other
vehicle operating conditions.
After you switch the engine off, the auxiliary fan
can continue running for up to 10 minutes
-even
with the ignition off.
It can even switch on again
later by
itself ¢.& , if .,..

a, a, ..... N
" N ..... 0 N > 00
- the temperature of the engine coolant r ises due
to the heat bui ld-up from the engine in the en­
gine compartment , or
- the engine compartment heats up because the
vehicle is parked in intense su nlight .
_& WARNING
- To reduce the risk of personal injury never
touch the radiator fan .
- The auxiliary elect ric fan is temperature
contro lled and can switch on suddenly even
w hen the eng ine is not running.
- The auxiliary radiator fan switches on auto­ matically when the engine coo lant reaches a
certain temperature and will cont inue to run
until the coolant temperat ure drops.
Brake fluid
Fi g. 27 5 Engine co mpartment: cap on b rake f lu id reservoir
Observe the safety p recau tions ¢ page 316,
Working in the engine compartment .
Checking the brake fluid level
Read the brake f lu id leve l on the brake fl uid res­
e rvo ir
Q page 319 , fig. 271. The bra ke fluid level
must be be tween the M IN and MAX m ark ings
¢ _& .
The brake fluid level is mon itored a utomat ica lly .
Changing the brake fluid H ave the brake fluid changed regularly by an au­
thor ized Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service
Facility .
-
Checking and Filling
A WARNING
=
-If the brake fluid level is below the MIN
marking, it can impair the brak ing effect
and d riving safety, wh ich increase the risk of
a n accident . Do no t continue dr iving . See a n
a uthor ized Audi dealer or author ized A udi
Serv ice F acility for a ssistance.
- I f the b rake fl uid is old, b ubbles may form
i n t he bra ke sys tem dur ing heavy bra king.
This wo uld impair braking per formance an d
d riving safety, which increases the r is k of an
accident.
- T o ensu re the brake system fu nctions cor­
rectly, only use brake fluids that comp ly
with VW standard 501 14 or F M VSS -116 DOT 4.
(D Note
- If the brake flu id leve l is above the MAX
marking, bra ke f luid may leak o ut over the
edge of the reservo ir and result in damage
to the vehicle.
- Do not get any b rake fl uid on the vehicle
paint, because it wi ll corrode the paint.
Battery
General warnings about batteries
B ecause of the complex power supp ly, all work
o n batter ies such as d iscon necti ng, replac ing,
etc. should only be performed by an authori ze d
Audi dealer or au thor ized A udi Service Fac ility
Q _& .
The term "veh icle batte ry" refe rs to the 1 2 Vol t
battery in your vehicle .
P lug- in hybr id driv e*: For important informat ion
abou t the high-vol tage batte ry, refe r to
Qpage 94.
Detail ed warnings fo r the vehicle battery :
®
Wear eye protect ion.
A
Battery acid is h ighly corros ive. Wear pro-
tect ive gloves and eye protection.
@
F ir e, sparks, open flame and smoking are
forbidden .
325

Checking and Filling
A
A highly explosive mixture of gases can
form when charging batteries.
®
Keep children away from battery acid and
batteries.
A WARNING
All wo rk on the battery or electrical system in
your vehicle can result in injuries, chemical burns, accidents o r burns. Because of this, a ll
work m ust be performed
only by an author­
ized Aud i dea ler or a uthorized Audi Service
Facility.
A WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, termina ls and re lated acces­
sories contain lead and lead compounds,
chemicals known to the State of California
to cause cancer and reproduct ive p roblems.
Wash hands after handling.
(D Note
Protect the vehicle battery against freezing if
the vehicle will be parked for long periods of
time so that it is not destroyed by "freezing"
¢ page 326, Charging the vehicle battery.
Charging the vehicle battery
F ig. 276 Eng ine compartment: connectors for a charger
and jump start cables
Observe the safety precautions c:;;, page 316,
Working in the engin e compartment.
Plug-in hybrid drive*: ¢ page 104.
Req uirement: on ly use chargers with a maximum
charg ing current of 30 amps /14 .8 Volts .
The ve­
hicle battery cables rema in connected.
326
The battery is located in the engine compart ­
ment. The ground point
0 is always located on
the ve hicle body.
.. Read the wa rnings¢ A in General warnings
about batteries on page 326
and ¢ _& .
.. Switch off the ignition and all electrica l equip-
ment .
.. Open the hood ¢page 318.
.. Fold the battery cover upward.
.. Clamp the charger terminal clamps as instruct­
ed on the
battery terminal (+ ) and only on t he
bod y ground point (· ).
.,. Insert the power cable fo r th e cha rging dev ice
into the socket and switch t he device on .
.. At the end of the cha rging p rocess, switch the
charger off and pull the power cable out of the
socket.
.. Remove the charger terminal clamps.
.. Fold the cover back on the battery correctly.
.. Close the hood¢ page 318.
A WARNING
-A high ly explosive m ixture of gases can form
when charg ing batte ries. Only cha rge the
veh icle ba ttery in well-ven tila ted a reas.
- A dra ined vehicle battery can free ze at tem­
pe ratures arou nd
32 QF (0 QC). A frozen or
thawed vehicle bat tery must no t be cha rged
and must no t be used anymo re. The b attery
housing can crack and battery ac id can leak
out if ice forms, which increases the risk of
an explosion and chemical burns. Contact an
authorized Audi dealer or authorized A udi
Serv ice Facility fo r more info rmation.
- Do not connect or disconnect the charging
cable wh ile charging because this increases
the risk of an explos ion.
@ Tips
- Only charge the vehicle battery t hrough the
connect ions in the engine compartment.
- Read all of the manufacturer's instructions
for the c harger before charging the vehicle
battery.

CXl CXl .... N ,.__
N .... 0 N > 00
Windshield washer system
Fig. 277 Engine co mpa rtment: washer fluid reservoir cap
Observe the safety precautions ¢ page 316,
Working in the engine compartment.
M N
-N ~
"' a,
The windshield washer f luid reservoir~ contains
the cleaning solution for the windshield and the
headlight washer
system* ¢ page 319, fig. 2 71 .
The reservoir capacity can be found in
¢page 375 .
To reduce the risk of lime scale deposits on the
spray nozzles, use clean water with low amounts
of calc ium . Always add window cleaner to the wa­
ter. When the outside temperatures are co ld, an
anti-freezing agent should be added to the water
so that it does not freeze.
CD Note
-The concentration of anti-freezing agent
must be adjusted to the vehicle operating
conditions in the respective climate. A con­
centration that is too high can lead to veh i­
cle damage.
- Never add radiator anti-freeze or other addi­
tives to the washer fluid.
- Do not use a glass cleaner that contains
paint solvents, because this could damage
the paint .
Service interval display
The service interval display detects when your ve­
hicle is due for service .
The service interva l display works in two stages:
- Inspection or oil change reminder: after a cer-
ta in distance driven, a message appea rs in the
Checking and Filling
instrument cluster display each time the igni­
tion is switched on or off. The remaining dis­
tance or time is disp layed briefly.
- Inspection or oil change due: if your vehicle
has reached an inspection or oil change interval
or both intervals at the same time, the mes­
sage
Inspection due! or Oil change due! or Oil
change and inspection due!
appears briefly af­
ter sw itching the ignition on/off.
Checking service intervals
You can check the remaining distance or time un ­
til the next oi l change or next inspection in the
Infotainment system. Select in the Infotainment
system: the
! MENUI button> Vehicle> left con­
trol button
> Service & checks > Service inter­
vals.
Resetting the indicator
An authorized Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service Facility will reset the service interval dis­
play after performing service .
If you have changed the oi l yourself, you must re­
set the oil change interval.
T o reset the disp lay, select in the Infotainment
system: the
! MENUI button> Vehicle> left con­
tro l button
> Service & checks > Service intervals
> Reset oil change interval.
CD Note
-Only reset the oil change indicator if the oi l
was changed.
- Following the service intervals is critical to
maintaining the function, service life, and
value of your vehicle, especially the engine.
Even if the mileage on the vehicle is low, do
not exceed the time for the next service.
327