2017 AUDI S3 SEDAN tow

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, econo­
my 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 tha t 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
c> ,&. .
Trailer brakes
If your trailer is equipped with a brak ing system,
check to be su re that it conforms to all regula­
tions .
120
The t rai ler hydraulic bra ke system must not be
directly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
bra ke system.
Safety chains
A lways use s afety chains between 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 Aud i dea le r fo r cor rect wir ing,
switches and relays .
Mirrors
If you are unable to see t he traffic behind you us­
i ng t he regular outs ide mir rors, then yo u
must in­
stall extended mirro rs . It is impo rtant that you
always have clear vision to the rear.
&, WARNING
Afte r remov ing the tr ailer hi tch, do not s to re
i t i n yo ur vehicle. In case o f su d den braking,
the hitch could fly fo rwa rd and injure you or
your passengers .
Operating instructions
Maximum trailer weight
A tra iler f or yo ur vehicle is lim ite d to a typical
class 1 or class 2 trailer.
Trailer load distribution
Be sure the load in the t rai le r i s he ld se curely in
pla ce to p revent i t from shi fting forward, bac k­
ward or si deways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer c> &.
in Driving instructions on page 121.
Engine cooling system
Towing a tra iler makes the engine work harder. It
is important that the cooling system's perform ­
ance is up to the additional load . Make sure tha t
the coo ling system has enoug h flu id.
Tire pressure
When towing a trailer, inf late the tires of your
vehicle to the tire pressure listed under "Full load" on the label
c> page 336. Inflate trailer

CXl CXl .... N ,.__
N .... 0 N > 00
tires to trailer and tire manufacturers' specifica­
tions.
Lights
Check to make sure both vehicle and trailer lights
are working p roperly.
Safety chains
Be sure trailer safety chains are properly connect ­
ed from the tra iler to the hitch on the vehicle.
Leave enough slack in the chains to permit turn­
in g corners . When you install safety cha ins, ma ke
sure they w ill not drag on the road when yo u are
driving .
The chains shou ld cross under the trailer tongue
to prevent it from dropping in case of separat ion
from the hitch.
Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra care
and consideration.
Weight distribution
Towing a loaded trailer w ith an empty car results
in a highly unstable distribution of weight . If this
cannot be avo ided, 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
keep ing the tra iler as light as possib le under the
circumstances. Whenever possib le, t ransfer
some cargo to the luggage compartment of the
tow vehicle whi le observing tongue load require­
ments and vehicle loading considerations .
Speed
The higher the speed, the more difficult it be­
comes for the driver to control the rig. Do not
drive at the maximum permissible speed. Reduce
your speed even more if load, weather or wind
conditions are unfavorable
-particu larly when
going downhill.
Reduce vehicle speed
immediately if the trailer
shows the s lightest sign of swaying .
Do not try
to stop the swaying by accelerating.
Tra iler towing
Observe speed limits. In some a reas, speeds for
vehicles towing trailers are lower than for regular
vehicles .
Always apply brakes early. When driving down­
hill, shift into a lower gear to use the engine
braking effect to slow the vehicle. Use of the
brakes alone can cause them to overheat and fa il.
Coolant temperature
T he coo lant tempe rature gauge ~ page 11 must
be observed carefully . The coolant temperature
can increase if you drive on long inclines in a low
gear at high engine speeds. Reduce your speed
immediately if the LEDs in the top part of the dis­
play turn on.
For more information about indicator lights, re­
fer
to . ~page 28.
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 Aud i.
Trailer towing
information
Important to know
Your vehicle handles differently when towing a
trailer because of the addit ional weight and dif­
ferent weight distribution . Safety, performance
and economy will g reatly depend on how careful­
ly you load your trailer and operate yo ur rig.
Before you actually tow your trailer, pract ice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area away
from traffic. Keep practic ing until you have be­
come complete ly familiar w ith the way your vehi­
cle-trailer combination behaves and responds.
Backing up is difficult and requires practice.
Backing up with a t railer genera lly requires steer ­
i ng action opposite to that when backing up your
vehicle without a tra iler.
Maintain a greater distance between your vehicle
and the one in front of you. You will need more
.,,.
121

Trailer towing
room to stop . To compensate fo r the trai ler, you
will need a larger than normal turning radius.
When pass ing, remembe r that you cannot accel­
erate as fast as you norma lly would because of
the added load. Make s ure yo u have eno ugh room
to pass . After passing, allow plenty of room for
your tra ile r before chang ing lanes again.
Avoid jer ky s tar ts, sharp turns or rap id lane
changes .
{D) Tips
- Do not tow a trailer during t he b reak-in per i­
od of yo ur vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your Aud i may require
more frequent m ain tenance d ue to the ex­
tra load
r:!) page 3 78.
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If it cannot
be avoided, do so only
a~er doing the following:
When parking:
.,. Apply the foot b rake .
.. Have someone place chocks under both t he ve­
hicle and the trai le r wheels .
.. With chocks i n place, slowly release the brakes
u nt il the whee l cho cks absorb the load .
.. T urn the wheels towards the curb .
.. Apply the parking brake .
.. Select the P selector lever position.
When restarting after parking:
.,. Apply the foo t bra ke .
.. Start the engi ne .
.. Se lect the D/S selector lever position .
.. Release the parking brake and slowly pull out
and away from the wheel chocks .
.. Stop and have someone retrieve the wheel
chocks.
(D Tips
If you move the se lector lever of the a utomat­
ic transm ission to P before apply ing t he park­
ing brake and before block ing the wheels, you
may have to use more fo rce later to move the
lever ou t of the P position .
122

Ass is tan ce sys tems
speed and the distance between your
vehicle and other vehicles.
- For safety reasons, cruise control should not
be used in the city, in stop-and-go traffic, on
winding roads and when road condit ions are
poor (such as ice, fog, gravel, heavy rain and
hydroplaning), because th is increases the
r isk of an accident.
- Switch the cruise control off temporar ily
when driving in turn ing lanes, h ighway exits
or in construction zones.
- Please note that unconsciously "resting" yo ur foot on the accelerator pedal prevents
the cruise control from braking. This is be­
ca use p ressing the acce le rato r pedal ove r­
rides the c ruise contro l system.
- If a bra ke system ma lf u nction such as over­
heating occu rs when the c ruise contro l sys­
tem is sw itched on, the braking function in
the system may be switched off . The rest of
the cr uise control system f unctions remain
active as long as the
(lj;(i)~i~ (USA models) /
Bl (Canada models) indicator light is on.
(D Note
Before driving downhill a long distance on a
steep hill, decrease your speed and select a
lower gear. Th is makes use of the eng ine
braking effect and relieves the brakes.
@ Tips
The brake lights turn on when the brakes a re
activated.
Changing the speed
A pp lies to: ve hicles w ith c ruise contro l system
.,. To increase or decrease the speed in incre­
ments,
tap the lever in the 0 10 d irection
¢ page 123, fig . 127 .
.,. To inc rease o r decrease the speed quickly, hold
the leve r in the 0 / 0 direct io n until the de­
s ir ed speed is reached.
124
' Overriding the speed
App lies to : vehicles wit h cruise co ntrol system
You can press the acce lera to r pedal to increase
you r speed, fo r example if you want to p ass
someone. The speed you set ear lier will resume
as soon as you release the acce lerator pedal.
However, if yo u are d rivi ng considerably faste r
t h an the s to red speed for a lo ng period of time
time, the cr uise con trol sys tem w ill temporari ly
switch off . The
(lj;(i)~i~ (USA models) !Bl (Canada
models) indicato r light in the instrument cluste r
turns off and the stored speed is maintained.
Preselecting a speed
App lies to : vehicles wi th cruise co ntrol system
You can pre -select your desired speed when the
vehicle is stationary.
.,. Switch the ignit io n on.
.,. Pull the lever into position (D ¢ page 123,
fig. 127 .
.,. To increase or decrease the speed, tap the lever
in the
0 10 direction.
This function makes it possible, for example, to
save the speed you want before d riving on t he
highway. Once on the highway, activate the
cruise contro l system by pu lling the lever toward
the position
(D .
' Switching off
App lies to: vehicles wit h cruise co ntrol system
Deactivating temporarily
.,. Press the brake pedal, or
.,. Press the lever into position @ (not clicked into
place) ¢ page 123, fig . 12 7, or
Switching off completely
.,. Press the lever into position @(clicked into
place), or
.,. Switch the ignit io n off.
The speed you stored will be maintained if the cruise contro l has been switched off temporarily .
To resume the stored speed, release the brake pedal and pull the lever to position
(D . ..,.

Assistance systems
In curves
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise contro l/Audi pre
sense front
Fig . 130 Example: dr iv ing into a curve
When driving into a curve r:!;> fig. 130 and out of a
curve, the system may react to a vehicle in the
ne ighbor ing lane and apply the brakes. You can
prevent that by pressing the accelerator pedal briefly .
Stationary vehicles
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise control
))))
Fig. 131 Example: veh icle changing lanes and stationary
veh icle
Adaptive cruise control
The adaptive cruise control system only reacts to
ve hicl es that being moving or to vehicles that the
system has already detected as moving. For ex­
ample, it can reac t when a vehicle that has al­
ready been detected
@turns or changes lanes,
but adaptive cruise control does not react to a
stationary vehicle @. Press the brake pedal to
slow the vehicle down.
128
Switch ing on /off
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise control
Fig. 132 Ope rating leve r: sw itching on and o ff
Fig. 133 Instrument cl uste r: ad apt ive c ruise contro l
ACC: you can set any speed between 20 and 95
mph (30 and 150 km/h) .
Indicator lights and messages in the instrument
cluster disp lay inform you about the current sit­
uation and setting .
Switching adaptive cruise control on
.,. Pull the lever toward you into position@
¢ fig. 132. ACC: standby appears in the instru­
ment cluster display.
Storing the speed and activating regulation
.,. To store the current speed and activate the reg­
ulation, p ress the
ISE TI button ¢ fig. 132 r:!;> .&,.
The stored speed is shown in the tachometer
LED line @and appears briefly in the informa­
tion line ®
Q fig. 133.
.,. To activate the regulation while stationary, you
must press the brake pedal.
Switching adaptive cruise control off
.,. Push the lever away from you into position @
until it clicks into place . The message ACC: off
appears .

a, a, ..... N
" N ..... 0 N > 00
The stored speed in the LED line is erased.
@ Indicator lights
It -Adaptive cruise control is switched on. No
vehicles are detected ahead. The stored speed is
maintained .
B-A vehicle driving ahead was detected. The
adaptive cruise control system regulates the
speed and distance to the vehicle ahead and
brakes/accelerates automatically.
r51 -Adaptive cruise control is switched on. Ave­
hicle was detected ahead. Your vehicle remains
stopped and will not start driv ing automat ically.
•-The automatic braking is not enough to
maintain a sufficient distance to a veh icle driving
ahead. You must intervene
c::> page 132, Driver
intervention request.
@ Instrument cluster display
I f adaptive cruise control is not shown in the in­
strument cluster display, yo u can call it up using
the mu ltifunction steering wheel buttons
c::> page 13.
Based on the g raphics in the disp lay, you can de­
termine if the system is maintaining a distance to
a vehicle ahead and what that distance to th is ve­
hicle is:
No vehicle -no vehicle was detected driving
ahead.
Silver vehicle -a veh icle was detec ted dr iv in g
ahead .
Red vehicle -request for driver intervention
<=:>page 132 .
The five distance bars on the gauge © represent
the set d istance (refer to
c::> page 131 for infor­
mat ion on how to change the distance) .
If you
fal l below the selected distance, the distance
bars become red from the bottom upward.
A WARNING
If you press the !SETI button when driving at
speeds below 20 mph (30 km/h), the vehicle
accelerates automatically up to 20 mph (30
Assistance systems
km/h), which is the minimum speed that can
be set.
(D Tips
-If you switch the ignition or the adaptive
cruise control system off, the set speed is
erased for safety reasons .
-The e lectronic stabilization control (ESC)
and the anti-slip -regulation (ASR) are auto­
matically switched on when the adaptive
cruise control is switched on.
Changing the speed
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise control
0
f
J
0
Fig. 134 Operat ing lever: changing the speed
.. To increase or decrease the speed in incre­
ments,
tap the lever in the 0 10 direction .
.. To increase or decrease the speed quickly, hold
the lever toward 010 until the red LED @
c::> page 128, fig. 133 reaches the desired
speed.
You can also preselect the speed when adaptive cruise control is not active by moving the lever in
the desired direction
0 10 . Act ivate the previ­
ously selected speed by pulling the lever into po­
s ition
@ c::> page 128, fig . 132.
After each change, the new stored speed appears
briefly in the status line
c::> page 128, fig. 133 ®·
When adaptive cru ise control is active, the ill or
• indicator light turns on, and when adaptive
cruise control is not active, the
ill ind icator light
turns on. In the Audi virtual cockpit*, the
II indi­
cator light t urns on instead.
129

Assistance systems
Driving in stop-and-go traffic
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise contro l
Fig. 135 In str um ent cluster : sa fe sta rt mo nitor
The adaptive cruise control system assists you in
stop -and -go traffic . If a vehicle that is detected
ahead stops, your vehicle will brake and stay at a
stop , within the limits of the system.
.,. To resume driving with adaptive cruise control,
tap the accelerator pedal or
... Pull the lever toward you into position @
9 page 130, fig. 136.
Starting to drive with adaptive cruise
control
1 )
As lo ng as the message ACC: automatic go is dis­
p layed and the object detected ahead starts to
move, your veh icle will continue driving
9 ,1.. You
can activate
ACC: automatic go again for a short
time by pulling the lever to position @.
The
ACC : automatic go sta rt mode ends when
the brake pedal is pressed.
For safety reasons, your vehicle will only start to
drive automatical ly if
- the driver's safety belt is fastened ,
- all doors and the hood are closed ,
-your vehicle is not stationary for more than
three minutes.
Safe start monitor
If an obstacle is detected when you sta rt driving,
you will be alerted to the danger by
the. indi­
cator light and the image in the instrument clus­
ter disp lay
9 fig. 135 9 &. . An audio signal will
also sound . Your vehicle will drive more s low ly
l) Thi s is not a vailable in som e coun trie s.
130
when starting . This may also happen in some sit ­
uations when there is no apparent obstacle.
- Press the brake pedal to slow yo ur vehicle
down.
&_ WARNING
If the message ACC : automatic go 1
l appears,
your vehicle w ill start driving even if there is
an obstacle between your vehicle and the ve­
hicle driving ahead. This increases the risk of
an accident.
(D Tips
If adaptive cruise control is active and your
vehicle does not start driving even though the
message
AACC: automatic go1l appears, you
can start driving by tapp ing the accelerator
pedal.
Interrupting cruise control
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise control
Fig. 136 Operating leve r
Requirement: adaptive cruise control must be
switched on.
Overriding cruise control
... To accelerate manua lly, pull the lever toward
you into posit ion @ and hold it there, or press
the accelerator pedal. The message
ACC: over­
ride
appears.
.,. To resume cruise control, release the lever or
take your foot off the accelerator pedal.
.,.

a, a, ..... N
" N ..... 0 N > 00
Inte rr upting crui se control while driving
• Move the lever into posit ion @. The message
AC C: standb y appears. Or
• press the brake pedal.
• To resume the stored speed, move the lever in­
to position
@ .
In te rrupting crui se contr ol when stopped
• Push the lever away from you into position @.
The message
A CC: sta ndb y appears.
• To resume cruise control, press the brake pedal
and pull the lever toward you into position @.
A WARNING
It is dangerous to activate cruise control and
resume the stored speed when the current
road, traffic or weather conditions do not per­
m it this . This inc reases the risk of an acc ident.
Setting the distance
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise contro l
,
0
Fig. 137 Operat ing lever : setting the d istance
• Tap the switch to display the current set dis­
tance
¢fig. 137 .
• To increase or reduce the distance in incre­
ments, tap the switch upward/downward
again. The d istance between the two vehicles
wi ll change in the instr ument cluster d isp lay.
When approach ing a vehicle driving ahead, the
adapt ive cruise control system brakes to match
that vehicle's speed and then adjusts to the set
d istance.
If the vehicle dr iv ing ahead ac celerates,
then the adaptive cruise control wi ll also acceler­
ate up to the speed that you have set.
The higher the speed, the greate r the d ista nce
¢ &, .T he Di stan ce 3 setting is recommended.
A ss is ta nce syst ems
That is equal to the general recommendation of
"ha lf the speed shown on the speedometer".
T he distances provided a re specified values. De­
pend ing on the driv ing s ituation and how the ve­
hicle ahead is d riving, the actua l distance may be
more or less than these target distances.
If you change the time gaps, the newly set value
appea rs briefly in the instrument cl uster d isplay,
f or example
II for Di stan ce 3 . This only occurs if
the adaptive cruise contro l is not current ly shown
i n the display ¢
page 128, fig. 133.
Dista nce 1 : this setting corresponds to a distance
of 92 feet (28 meters) when traveling at 62 mph
(100 km/h), or a time distance of 1 second.
Di stance 2 : this setting corresponds to a dist ance
of 118 feet (36 mete rs) when traveling at 62
mph (100 km/h), or a time distance of 1.3 sec ­
onds .
Distance 3: this setting corresponds to a distance
of 164 feet (SO mete rs) when traveling at 62
mph (100 km/h), or a time distance of 1.8 sec ­
onds .
Distance 4 : this setting corresponds to a dist ance
of 219 feet (67 mete rs) when traveling at 62
mph (100 km/h), or a time distance of 2.4 sec ­
onds .
Distance 5 : this setting corresponds to a distance
of 328 feet (100 meters) when traveling at 62
mph (100 km/h), or a time distance of 3.6 sec ­
onds .
A WARNING
-
When setting the distance, the driver is re -
sponsible for adhering to any applicable legal
regulations.
(D Tips
Your settings are automatically stored and as­
signed to the remote control key being used.
131