2017 AUDI Q3 Towing

Table of contents
About this Owner's Manual ... .. .
Cockpit ... .. ............... .... .. .
Cockpit overview ................ .
Controls at a glance ... .......... .. .. .
Instruments and indicator lights
Instruments .... ... .......... .. .. .. .
Indicator lights .. .. .......... .. .. .. .
On Board Diagnostic System (OBD) .. .. .
4
6
6
6
8
8
10
17
Driver information system . . . . . . 19
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
On-board computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Efficiency program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
21
Starting and driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Opening and closing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Central locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
L uggage compartment lid ......... ... .
Ch ild safety lock ... ........... .... .. .
Po wer wi ndows .. ............ .... .. .
Panorama gla ss roof .......... .... .. .
28
31
3 2
33
Lights and Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
E xterio r lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
I n terior lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
V1s1on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Windshield wipers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
40
Dig ital compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Seats and storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Front seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
H ead restra ints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Sockets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
L uggage compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Roof rack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
51
Warm and cold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Climate con trol system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Driving .. .. .. .. ... .. .. ..... ... .. .. . 58
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
2
Starting and stopping the eng ine
(vehicles with an ignition lock) . . . . . . . . . 60
Starting and stopping the eng ine
(vehicles with a convenience key) ..... . .
D river messages .. .. .. ............. . .
E le ctromechanical parking brake ...... .
Start ing from a stop .. ........ ..... . .
D rivi ng offroad . .. ... ...... ....... .. .
Automatic transmission
62
63
64
66
66
67
Trailer towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Driving with a trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
T raile r towing information . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Driver assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Assist ........ .. .. .. .. ........... .. 78
Speed warning system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Cruise control system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Audi side assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Audi drive select . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Parking systems
General information
Rear parking system 85
85
85
Parking system plus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Rearv iew camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Adjusting the display and the warning
tones ........ ... ... ...... ....... ... 90
Erro r messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
T ra iler hitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
91
Intelligent Technology . . . . . . . . . . 92
El ectronic Stabilization Control (ESC ) . . . . 92
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Electromechanical steering . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
A ll wheel drive (quattro) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Energy management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Notice about data recorded by the Event
Data Recorder and vehicle control
modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Safety first . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Driving safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Genera l notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Correct passenge r seat ing positions . . . . . 101
Pedal area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Storing cargo correctly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Reporting Safety Defects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Driving
This message appea rs and a warning tone sounds
if you open the driver's door when the ignition is
sw itched on.
Pr es s brake pedal to start engine
This message appears if you do not step on the
brake pedal to sta rt the eng ine on a vehicle wi th
an automatic transm ission .
Please engage N or P
This message appears when starting or stopping
the engine and Nor Pis not engaged. The engine
will not start/stop .
Ill Key not in veh icl e?
The indica to r li ght tur ns on and this message ap­
pears i f the convenience key* was removed from
the vehicle when the engine was running. If the
convenience key is no longer in the v ehicle, you
cannot switch the ignition on or start the engine
once you stop it . You also cannot lock the vehicle
from the outside.
Shift to P , vehicle can roll awa y. Doors can onl y
be locked in P .
This message appea rs for safe ty reasons a long
with a warning sound if the se lector lever is not
engaged in P after switching the ignition off .
Move the selector lever to the P position. Other­
wise the vehicle is no t protected from rolling and
it cannot be locked .
II No key identified. See owner' s manual.
This message appe ars if the re is no convenience
key * ins ide the vehicle or if t he system does not
recognize the key . The convenience key may not
be recognized, for example, if it is covered by an
object that
disrupts the signal (such as a brief­
case), or if the key batte ry is weak. Electronic de­
vices suc h as cell phones can also interfere w it h
the s ignal.
To still be able to start or stop the engine, refer
to
c:::> page 63.
64
Electromechanical
parking brake
Fig . 7 2 Ce nter co nso le: pa rk in g brake
You r vehicle is equipped with an electromechani­
ca l parking bra ke @
c:::> fig . 72. The parking brake
i s des igned to prevent the veh icle from ro lling
unintentionally and replaces the hand brake.
Setting /manually releasing the parking
brake
.. Pull the(®) switch to set the parking b rake . The
LED in the switch illum inates. The -
(U SA
mode ls)/ . (Canada models) indicator light al­
so turns on in the instrument cluster d isplay .
.,. To re lease the par king brake ma nually, press
the brake or accele rator peda l w hile the ign i­
tion is sw itched on and press the(®) switch at
t he same t ime. The L ED i n the bu tton and the
in dicator light in the d isp lay turn off.
Releasing the parking brake automatically
Requireme nt: the d river 's door must be closed,
the driver's saf ety be lt must be latched and the
par king b rake mus t be set .
.. To sta rt d riving and release the parking brake
automatically , press the accelerator pedal as
usual.
In add ition to releasing the parking brake auto­
matically, other convenience and safety functions
a re availab le when you start driving
c:::> page 66 ,
Starting from a stop.
Preventing the automatic parking brake
release
The veh icle could beg in rol ling u ninten tionally,
depending on the hill or if towing a tra iler . .,..

Driving
Under certain circumstances, (such as driving in
the mountains or towing a trailer), it may be use­
ful to switch temporarily to the manual shift pro­ gram in order to manually adapt the gear to the
driving conditions
c::> page 71.
On inclines, activate the parking brake first and
then move the selector lever to the P position
c::> page 65. This prevents the locking mechanism
from being loaded too heavily and will make it
easier to move the selector lever out of the P po ­
sition .
_& WARNING
-The vehicle can also roll when the engine is
stopped.
- Unintended vehicle movement can cause se­
rious injury.
- Never leave your vehicle with the engine
running while in gear. If you must leave
your vehicle when the engine is running, ac­
tivate the parking brake and move the selec­
tor lever to P.
- Power is still transmitted to the wheels
when the engine is running at idle. To pre­
vent the vehicle from "creeping", you must
keep your foot on the brake when the en­
gine is running and the selector lever is in D/
Sor R or "tiptronic" mode is selected.
- Do not press the accelerator pedal when
changing the selector lever position while
the vehicle is stationary and the engine is running .
- Never shift into R or P while driving.
- Before driving down a steep slope, reduce
your speed and shift into a lower gear with
"tiptron ic".
- Do not ride the brakes or press the brake
pedal too often or too long when driving
down a hill. Constant braking causes the
brakes to overheat and substantially re­
duces braking performance, increases brak­
ing distance or causes complete failure of
the brake system.
- To prevent the vehicle from rolling back
when stopping on inclines, always hold it in
place with the brake pedal or parking brake.
70
- Never hold the vehicle on an incline with a
slipping clutch. The clutch opens automati­
cally when it becomes too hot from the
overload. An indicator lamp . illuminates
and a driver message appears
c::> page 72
when the clutch is overloaded.
- If the engine must remain running, never
have any driving position engaged when
checking under the hood. Make sure these­
lector lever has securely engaged and is
locked in P with the parking brake set
c::> page 159. Otherwise, any increase in en­
gine speed may set the vehicle in motion,
even with the parking brake applied.
(D Note
- When stopping on an incline, do not try to
hold the vehicle in place by pressing the ac­
celerator pedal while a driving gear is se­
lected. This can cause the automatic trans­
mission to overheat and can damage it. Set
the parking brake or press the brake pedal
to prevent the vehicle from rolling.
- Allowing the vehicle to roll when th@ engine
is stopped while the selector lever is in the
N position will damage the automatic trans ­
mission, because it is not lubricated under
those circumstances
c::> page 211, Towing
with a tow truck.
- The transmission can overheat and be dam­
aged under certain driving and traffic condi­
tions such as frequent starts, creeping for a
long time, or stop-and-go traffic. If the.
indicator light turns on, stop the vehicle at
the next opportunity and let the transmis­
sion cool down
c::> page 72.
Hill descent control
The hill descent control system assists the driver
when driving down hills.
Hill descent control is activated when the selec­
tor lever is in the D or S position and you press
the brake pedal. The transmission automatically
selects a gear that is suitable for the hill. Hill de­
scent control tries to maintain the speed ach- ieved at the time of braking, within physical and ..,.

Trailer towing
Trailer towing
Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passenger
transportation.
If you plan to tow a trailer, please remember that
the additional load will affect durability, econo­my and performance.
Trailer towing not on ly places more stress on the
ve hicle, it also ca lls for more concentration from
the dr iver.
F or this reason, always follow the operating and
driving instructions provided and use common
sense.
Technical requirements
Trailer hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross tra iler weight. The hitch must be suitab le
for your veh icle and tra iler and must be mounted
securely on the vehicle's chassis at a technically
sound
locat ion . Use on ly a trailer hitch with a re­
movable ba ll mount . Always che ck with the t rail ­
er hitch man ufac tur er to make s ure t hat you are
using the co rrect hi tc h.
Do not use a bumper hitch.
The hitch must be installed in such a way that it
does not interfere with the impact -absorbing
bumper system. No mod ificat ions should be
made to the vehicle exhaust and b rake systems .
Fr om t ime to t ime, che ck that all hitch mo unti ng
bol ts rem ain securely f aste ned.
W hen you are not tow ing a tra iler, remove the
tra ile r hitc h ba ll mount . This prevents the hit ch
from caus ing damage s hou ld your veh icle be
s truck from be hind ¢
,&..
Trailer brakes
If you r trailer is equipped with a brak ing system,
check to be su re that it conforms to all regula­
tions .
74
The t rai ler hydraulic bra ke system must not be
directly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
bra ke system ¢&. .
Safety chains
Always use s afety chains be tween you r vehi cle
and t he tra ile r.
Trailer lights
Traile r lights must meet all regula tions . B e s ure
to check w ith your author ized Audi dealer for cor­
r ec t wir ing, swi tches, an d relays.
Mirrors
If you are unable to see t he traffic behind you us­
i ng t he regular outs ide mirrors, then yo u
must in­
stall ex tended mirro rs . It is impo rtant that you
al ways have clear vision to the rear.
.&_ WARNING
- If a tra ile r has e lectr ical brake s ple ase no te
t h at these b ra kes are not activated by the
factory -fit ted contro l unit -risk of accident!
- After removing the traile r h itch, d o no t
s t o re it in your vehicle. In case of sud den
braking, the hitch co uld fly forwar d and in ­
jure you or yo ur passenge rs.
- Never install a "we igh t distribu tin g" or
"loa d eq ualizing" trailer hitch on your veh i­
cle . The vehicle was not designed fo r these
kinds o f trailer hitches. The hitch attach­
ment can fail, ca us ing the tra ile r to tear
loose from the vehicle .
- The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating for your
veh icle, found on the safety compliance la­
be l on the driver's s ide B-pillar, must never
be exceeded under any circ umstances . Ex­
ceed ing the Gross Vehicle We ight Rat ing of
your veh icle is likely to damage yo ur vehicle,
a nd such d amage will no t be covered by
your Limi ted New Vehicle W arra nty . Exceed­
ing the Gross Ve hicl e We ight Rating will al ­
so change the pe rformance and han dling
characte ristics o f yo ur vehicle, which could
cause a crash result ing in se rious injury or
death.

00
00
......
"' ,....
"' ...... 0 0 :::,
00
Operating instructions
6" r-2
~·~
1/2"
1·1/2"
ill
Fig. 79 Perm itted ball pos itio n of th e t rail er hitch
Trailer towing weights
With a
factory-installed or an aftermarket trailer
hitch, the maximum permissible trailer weight is
2,200 lbs (1,000 kg) . The maximum permissible
unbraked trailer weight is 1,650 lbs (750 kg) .
These specifications apply when driving on roads having an incline of less than 12%.
Permissible tongue load
For best vehicle handling under these changed
conditions, adjust the trailer load so that the
tongue load is at the maximum allowable or
slightly lower. You can get an approximation of
the tongue load with a bathroom scale or you can
measure the load at a trucking company or
weighing station.
With a
factory-installed or an aftermarket trailer
hitch, the maximum permissible load on the ball
hitch may not exceed 220 lbs (100 kg) .
It is rec­
ommended to use the maximum permissible
load.
Trailer load distribution Be sure the load in the trailer is held securely in
place to prevent it from shifting forward, back­
ward or sideways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer ¢.&.
in Driving instructions on page 76 .
Ball mount
The trailer hitch may only be used with suitable ball mount and ball¢
fig. 79. Installation of the
hitch ball must be carried out in accordance with
the manufacturer's instructions .
Trailer towing
Engine cooling system
Towing a trailer makes the engine work harder. It
is important that the cooling system's perform­
ance is up to the additional load. Make sure that
the cooling system has enough fluid.
Tire pressure
When towing a trailer, inflate the tires of your
vehicle to the tire pressure listed under "Full
load" on the tire pressure label
¢page 181. In­
flate trailer tires to trailer and tire manufactur­
ers' specifications.
Lights
The headlight settings should be checked with
the trailer attached before driving off. Check to
make sure both vehicle and trailer lights are
working properly.
Safety chains
Be sure trailer safety chains are properly connect­
ed from the trailer to the hitch on the vehicle .
Leave enough slack in the chains to permit turn­
ing corners. When you install safety chains, make
sure they will not drag on the road when you are
driving.
The chains should cross under the trailer tongue
to prevent it from dropping in case of separation
from the hitch.
· Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra care
ond consideration.
Weight distribution
Towing a loaded trailer with an empty car results
in a highly unstable distribution of weight. If this
cannot be avoided, drive at very low speeds only
to avoid the risk of losing steering control.
A "balanced " rig is easier to operate and control.
This means that the tow vehicle should be loaded
to the extent possible and permissible, while
keeping the trailer as light as possible under the
circumstances. Whenever possible, transfer
some cargo to the luggage compartment of the
tow vehicle while observing tongue load require-
ments and vehicle loading considerations. .,.
75

Trailer towing
Sp eed
The higher the speed, the more d ifficult it be­
comes for the driver to contro l the rig. Do not
dr ive at the maximum permissible speed. Reduce
your speed even more if load, w eather or wind
conditions are unfavorable -particularly when
going downhill.
Red uce vehicle speed
immediatel y if the trai le r
shows the s lightest sign of swaying .
Do not try
to stop the swayin g by ac cele rating.
Observe speed limits . In some areas, speeds for
vehicles towing trailers are lower than for reg ular
ve hicles.
A lways apply b rakes early . When dr iving down­
hi ll, shi ft into a lower gear to use the engine
braking effect to slow the vehicle. Use of the
brakes a lone can cause them to overheat and fail.
Coolant temperature
The coolant temperatu re gauge ¢ page 8 must
be observed ca refully . If the needle moves close
to the upper end of the scale, reduce speed im ­
mediately and/or turn off the air conditioner .
I f t he coolan t temperature warn ing light i n the
instr ument cluster s tarts flashing ., pull off
the road, stop and let the engine
idle for about
two minutes to prevent heat bu ild-up .
A WARNING
Anyone not properly restrained in a moving
vehicle is at a much greater risk in an acci­
dent . Never let anyone ride in your car who is
not properly wearing the restraints provided
by Audi .
Trailer towing
information
Important to know
Your veh icle hand les different ly when tow ing a
tra iler because of the additional weight and dif ­
fe rent weight d istr ibut ion . Safety, performance
and economy w ill great ly depend on how careful­
ly you load you r trailer and operate your rig .
76
Before you actually tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area away
from traffic . Keep pract icing unt il yo u h ave be ­
come comp lete ly familiar w ith the way your vehi­
cle-tra iler combination behaves and responds.
Backing up is difficult and requires practice .
Backing up w ith a trailer generally req uires steer ­
i ng action opposite to that when backing up your
vehicle without a trailer.
Maintain a greater distance between your vehicle
and the one in front of you . You will need more
room to stop. To compensate for the trailer, you
will need a larger than normal turning radius.
When passing, remember that you cannot accel­ erate as fast as you normally wou ld because of
the added load. Make sure you have enough room
to pass. After passing, allow p lenty of room for
your trailer before changing lanes again.
Avo id jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a trailer during the break-in peri­
od of your veh icle.
- If you tow a trai ler, your Audi may requi re
more frequent maintenance due to the ex­
tra load
¢ page 218.
' Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If it cannot
be avoided, do so only after doing the following:
When parking:
.,. App ly the foot bra ke .
.,. Have someone place cho cks under bot h the ve­
hicle and the trailer wheels .
.,. With choc ks in place, slowly release the brakes
until the wheel chocks absorb the load.
.,. Turn the wheels towards the curb .
.,. App ly the parking brake .
.,. Move the selector lever to P .
When restarting after parking :
.,. App ly the foot brake .
.,. Start the eng ine .
.,. Move the se lector lever to D/S.

00
00
......
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"' ...... 0 0 :::,
00
~ Release the parking brake and slow ly pull out
and away from the whee l chocks.
~ Stop and have someone retrieve t he whee l
chocks .
(D Tips
If you move the selector lever of the a utomat­
ic transm ission to P before applying the park­
ing brake and before block ing the wheels, you
may have to use more force later to move the
lever out of the P position .
Trailer towing
77

Assist
Audi side assist
Description
Applies to: vehicles w ith Aud i side ass ist
F ig. 81 Sensor detection range
Fig. 82 Display on the exterior mirror
Side assist helps you monitor your blind spot and
traffic behind your vehicle. Within the limits of
the system, it warns you about vehicles that are
coming closer or that are traveling with you with­
i n sensor range
(D ¢ fig. 81: if a lane change is
classified as critical, the display@in the exter io r
mirror
¢fig. 82 turns on.
The display in the left exter ior mirror provides as­
sistance when mak ing a lane change to the left,
while the disp lay in the right exterior mirror pro­
vides assistance when making a lane cha nge to
the right .
Information stage
As long as you do not activate the turn signal,
side assist
informs you abou t veh icles tha t are
detected and classified as critical. The disp lay in
the mi rror turns on, but is dim .
The display remains dim in the in formation stage
so that your view toward the front is not distur ­
bed.
80 Warning stage
If you
activate the turn signal, side assist warns
you about vehicles that are detected and classi­
fied as critica l. The display in the respective mir­
ror blinks brightly.
If this happens, check traffic
by g lancing in the exterior mirrors and over your
shou lder ¢.&
in General information on
page 81.
{!) Tips
- You can adjust the brightness on of the dis·
play on the rearview mirror¢
page 82.
- Please refer to the instructions for towing a
trailer located in ¢
page 81.
General information
Applies to : vehicles wi th A udi side ass ist
®
®
©
Fig. 83 Dr iving situa tions
Fig. 84 Rea r of the vehicle: pos it io n of the sensors