e-tron
e-tron Plug-in hybrid drive
Introduction
A pp lies to: ve hicles w ith plug -in hybrid drive
General information
The plug- in hybrid drive is a drive concept that al
lows yo u to choose between driving w ith the elec
tr ic moto r, with the gaso lin e engine o r using a
comb inat io n of both.
All work done on the high-voltage system must
only be performed by certified high-voltage tech
n icians at autho rized Aud i dea le rs or authorized
Aud i Serv ice Facilities in accordance with Audi
gu idelines.
The high-voltage system is composed of the fol low ing h igh-vo ltage components: the high-volt
age battery, the powe r electron ics, the e lectr ic
motor, the high-voltage A/C compressor, the
high-vo ltage heater, the charging system and
charging port as well as the orange high-voltage
wiring.
The pedal referred to in this sect ion of the Own
er's Manua l is the equivalent of the acce lerator
pedal (gas pedal) in a standard veh icle.
High-voltage battery
The high-voltage battery is located under the
rear bench seat in the veh icle and does not re
qu ire any maintenance from the driver. Addition
a l information about the high-voltage battery can
be found under
Q page 108 .
A WARNING
The voltage in the high-vo ltage system is life
threatening. Touching a damaged high-volt
age component can result in a fatal e lectr ic
shock. The components in the high-voltage
system are ma rked with a warning label which
wa rns against the h igh-vo ltage.
- The voltage level in the high-voltage system
is still dangerous and potentially life-threat
ening when the ignition is switched off.
- Never perform work on orange high-voltage
cables or on high-voltage components. Only
94
authorized repair facilities that are certified may perform work on the high-voltage sys
tem.
- Never damage, alter or remove the orange
high-voltage cable or disconnect it from the
high-voltage system.
- Never perform any work using c utting, shap
ing or sharp-edged too ls or heat sources
near the h igh-vo ltage system and high-volt
age cables.
- Aud i regulat ions must be followed during
all work performed on the high-voltage sys
tem and h igh-vo ltage components.
- When working on the h igh-vo ltage system
and h igh-voltage compone nts, make sure
the remote cont rol key is kept far enough
away from the vehicle so that there is no
ris k of the ignit ion be ing inadve rten tly
sw itched on.
- Gases that escape from the high-vol tage
b attery can be poisono us or flammable.
- Damage to the high-voltage battery could
cause the h igh-vo ltage battery to leak im
media tely or in the fu ture, and poisonous or
flammab le gases cou ld escape . Do not in
ha le the gases!
- Do not expose yourse lf to any leaking fluids
and do not come into contact with them .
- The high-volt age battery e lectroly te fl uid is
caustic. I f electrolyte fluid comes into con
tact with the sk in, f lush the affected area
for at least 15 minutes with clean water.
Then wash the affected area with soap.
Have the affected area examined by a med i
cal professional.
- In the event of a technical emergency, in
form the responders that the vehicle is
equ ipped with a high-voltage battery.
A WARNING
Never leave the vehicle unattended when in
drive ready
mode ~ page 96 with a gear en
gaged . The veh icle can start moving ("creep
ing") even if the gaso line engine is switched
off, since the e lectr ic motor is still operating.
This may cause collis ions and severe or fatal
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injuries. When the vehicle enters drive ready
mode, the status message
e-"'1 o I r.-.Al"'Y ap
pears briefly in the instrument cluster d isplay
and the needle in the power meter points to
READY ¢ page 9 7.
-Make sure that the selector lever is in the P
posit ion and the ignition is switched off
when leav ing t he veh icle.
([) Note
- The high-voltage system can be damaged if
the veh icle underbody comes into contact
with the ground. Immed iately drive your ve
hicle to a n author ized repair facility and
have it inspected.
- The electric drive motor can become very hot dur ing operation . Do not stop the veh i
cle if there is o il, fuel residue or other flam
mable s ubstances under or next to the vehi
cl e.
Special considerations for the high-voltage
battery
Appl ies to: vehicl es with plug- in hybrid drive
Please first read and note the introductory infor
mat ion and heed the
warn ings ¢ page 94.
All batteries age with use and over time. There
are things you should know about the care of the
h igh-vo ltage battery that will he lp it keep giving
you good service and reliab ility over t ime . Please
read and keep the following informat ion in m ind
while you enjoy the performance and economy of
your ve hicle .
- Be sure to charge the high-voltage battery be
fore leaving the vehicle parked and unused for a l onger period of time . Ideally the high-vol tage
batte ry sho uld have a charge leve l between
40
% and 60 % when par ked for a long t ime.
- If the batte ry charge level is below 3
%, never
park the vehicle for more than 21 days without
charg ing the high-vo ltage battery. Sho uld you
have to par k the vehicle fo r a long time, m ake
s u re that the charge leve l is sufficien t to help
prevent the battery from aging premature ly.
- Freq uent and consecutive charging of the high
vo ltage battery when the cha rge level is above
e-tron
98 % can also decrease the capacity o f the
highvo ltage battery . Make sure the charge leve l
is below 98
% when you start the charging
process.
- Should the vehicle be parked for longer than
2 days at temperatures below
-13 °F (-25 °C),
the high-voltage battery could free ze and not
be ab le to prov ide energy to the electric motor.
The battery will start working again, once it
warms up. The battery can be warmed up when
the outside temperature rises or when the vehi
cle is garaged app ropr iate ly. Th e battery w ill al
so warm up when bei ng used (sw itchi ng on the
air conditioner, the heater or by driving the ve
hicle) . Shou ld you have to park your vehicle at
very low temperatures for longer than 1 day, make sure that the h igh-vo ltage battery does
not freeze by parking the vehicle in a garage
that is heated or protected from the outside
temperature .
- The high-voltage battery can be damaged and
the capacity can be decreased when the vehicle
is parked for longer than 24 ho urs when the
ambient temperature is h igher than 118 °F
(48 °C). Always ma ke sure that the h igh-vo lt
age battery is not exposed to temperat ures
above 118 °F (48 °C) for a long time .
- Never pa rk the veh icle in areas that a re l ikely to
be flooded, s uch as beaches or rive r banks, and
never drive the vehicle in WA TER, on flooded
roads or through water that is higher than the
bottom of the vehicle body . The high -voltage
battery, along with other vehicle components,
can be damaged severe ly if the high-voltage
battery is exposed to open water especially for
a longer t ime . However, you ca n drive through
wate r o n roads under certain condi tions
~ page 74.
Failure to heed any of these requ irements can
age the battery prematurely and lead to a perma
nent decrease of the h igh-vo ltage battery's ca
pacity.
(D Tips
Always make sure that the high-voltage bat
tery is not exposed to extreme ly low and high
temperatu res as well as to water espec ia lly
fo r a longe r time. Fail ure to protec t and c are
IJ-
95
Airbag syste m
-If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restraint system on
this seat .
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets, or
similar items on the front passenger seat.
The additional layers prevent the capacitive
passenger detection system from accurately
measuring the capac itance of the ch ild safe
ty seat and/or the person on the seat and
th us keep the Advanced Airbag System from
working properly .
- Never place or use any electrical device
(s uch as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child safety seats) on the front passen ger seat if the dev ice is connected to the
12-
vo lt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
Such dev ices can influence the capac itance
reg istered by the capacitive passenger de
tection system, so that incor rect informa
t ion is provided to the airbag cont rol un it.
- If you must use a child restraint on the front passenger seat and the child restraint man
ufacturer's instructions require the use of a
towel, foam cushion or something else to properly position the ch ild rest raint, make
certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever the
child restraint is insta lled on the front pas
senger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in
stall child restraint in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If the front passenger seat gets wet, dry it im
mediately.
- If liquid soaks into the front passenger seat,
this can keep the a irbag system from work
ing properly and may, for instance, deact i
vate the passenger frontal airbag.
If this
happens, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
ligh t will come on and stay on togethe r with
276
the airbag indicato r light min the instru
ment cluster.
- If liq uid is pooled on the seat, but has not
soaked in, th is may also keep the airbag sys
tem from working proper ly and cause the
passenger frontal airbag to be enabled
(turned on), even though there is a p roperly
installed child restraint system on the seat.
Wet towels or other wet things on the seat
cushion can have the same effect. If the
front p assenger front al airbag is turned on,
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will go
out .
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced A irbag System and the side
airbags supp lement the protection offered by the
front th ree-point safety belts with pretens ioners
and load lim ite rs and the adj ustab le head re
straints* to help reduce the risk of i njury in a
wide range of accident and cras h situations. Be
s ur e to read the impo rtant informat ion about
sa fety and heed the WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Advanced A irbag System and
the activa tion of the safety belt pretens ioners de
pend on the dece lera tion measured by the crash
senso rs and registered by the electronic contro l
unit . Crash severity depends on speed and decel
eration as well as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object involved in the crash.
On the passenger side, regard less o f safety be lt
use, the front passenger frontal airbag will be
turned off if the e lectrica l capacitance measured
by the capacitive passenger detection system on
the front passenger seat is less than the amount
programmed in t he e lectronic contro l unit . The
front passenger frontal a irbag w ill also be tur ned
off if the capacitance measured by the system for
t h e front passenger seat equals that of an infant
of about o ne yea r of age in one o f the ch ild safety
seats that was used to cert ify the Advanced A ir
bag System under Federal Motor Veh icle Safety
Standard 208. The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on to tell you when the
front Advanced Airbag System on the passenger
s ide has been turned
off <=> page 279. ..,.
Airbag system
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will show
the status of the front seat passenger 's frontal
Advanced Airbag a few seconds after the igni
tion is switched on and the airbag indicator
light goes off . The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied;
- will stay on if the electrical capacitance meas
ured by the capacitive passenger detection sys
tem for the front passenger seat equals the combined capacitance of an infant up to about
one year of age and one of the rearward-facing
or forward-facing child restraints listed in Fed
era l Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 w ith
wh ich the Advanced Airbag System in your vehi
cle was certified; Fo r a lis ting of the child re
strain ts that were used to certify you r vehi cle's
compliance with the U.S. Safety Standard
¢ page 295 .
-will go out if the front passenger seat is occu
pied by an adult as registered by the capacitive
passenger detection system.
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must come
on and stay on if the ignition is on and ...
- a car bed has been installed on the front pas
senger seat, or
- a rearward -facing child restraint has been in
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
- a fo rwa rd-facing child restra int has been instal
led on the front passenger seat,
- and if the e lectrica l capac itance registered on
the front passenger seat is eq ua l t o or less than
the combined capacitance of a typica l 1 year
o ld infant and one of the rearward -facing or
forward-facing child restraints listed in Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 w ith which
the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was
certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied, the
front airbag will not deploy, and the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on. Never install a
rearward-fac ing c hild restraint on the front pas
senger seat, the safest place for a child in any
kind of child restraint is at one of the seating po
sitions on the rear seat
¢page 268, Child re-
280
straints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and ¢ page 292, Child safety.
If
the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when one of the conditions listed above is met,
be sure to check the light regularly to make cer
ta in that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
stays on continuously whenever the ignition is
o n. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not appear on and does not stay on all the time,
stop as soon as it is safe to do so and
- reactivate the system by turn ing the ignit ion
off for more than 4 seconds and then turn ing it
on again;
- remove and re install the child restraint. Make
sure that the child restraint is properly instal
led and that the safety belt for the front pas
senge r seat has been correct ly routed through
the child restraint as described in the child re
straint manufactu rer's inst ruct ions;
- ma ke sure that the convert ible lock ing retrac
to r on the safety belt for the front passenge r
seat has been activated and that the safety belt
has been pulled tight.
- make sure that no electric al device (s uch as a
laptop, CD p laye r, e lectronic games device,
power inverte r or seat heater for chi ld safety
seats) is placed or used on the front passenger
seat if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket;
- make sure that no seat heater has been retro
fitted or otherw ise added to the front passen
ger seat;
- make sure that nothing can interfere with the
safety belt buckles and that they are not ob structed;
- make sure that there are no wet ob jects (such
as a wet towel) and no water or other liquids on
the front passenger seat cushion .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still does
not come on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still does
not come on and does not stay on continuously
(when the ign ition is sw itched on),
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A WARNING
Child ren on the front seat of any car even w ith
Advanced Airbags can be seriously injured or
even killed when an airbag inflates. A child in
a rearward-facing child safety seat installed
on the front passenger seat will be seriously
injured and can be killed if the front airbag in
flates .
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the ch ild safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, or
door .
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat in
exceptiona l circumstances and the
PA SSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immediately insta ll the rear
facing child safety seat in a rear seating po
sition and have the airbag system inspected immediately by your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
- Forward-facing chi ld safety seats installed
on the front passenger seat may interfere
with the deployment of the airbag and cause serious personal injury to the child .
- If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward -facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat , the child's safety
and well-being require the following special
precautions to be taken:
- Always make sure that the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front passenger
seat with a front and side airbag.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or infant carr ier.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instructions require the top tether strap to be used .
Child safety
-Never put the forward-facing child re
straint up against or very near the instru
ment panel.
- Applies to: vehicles with safety be lt height
adjustment: Always set the safety belt up
per anchorage to the adjustment pos ition
that permits proper installation in accord
ance with the child restraint manufactur
er's instructions.
- Always move the front passenger seat to the highest position in the up and down
adjustment range and move it back to the
rearmos t position in the seat's fore and
aft ad justment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible, before installing
the forward-facing child restraint .
- Always make sure that the safety belt up
per anchorage is behind the chi ld restraint
and not next to or in front of the child re
straint so that the safety belt will be prop
erly pos it ioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being
moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CO player, electronic games de
vice, power inverter or seat heater for ch ild safety seats). These may influence
the e lectrical capacitance measured by the
capacit ive passenger detec tion system and
can a lso fly aro und in an accident and
cause serio us pe rsonal injury.
- Never place or use any elect rical device
(such as a laptop, CO player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heat
er for child safety seats) on the front pas
senger seat if the dev ice is connected to
the 12-volt socket or the cigarette lighter
socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or otherw ise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys
tem on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or oth
er liquids on the front passenger seat cush ion.
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-The child and the passenger can also in
jure each other in an accident.
- 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 -even with an Advanced Airbag Sys
tem.
- 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.
- Make sure there is enough space in front of
the child in the child safety seat.
If necessa
ry, adjust the angle and position of the seat
in front of the child safety seat.
- Forward-facing child safety seats installed
on the front passenger's seat can interfere
with the airbag when it inflates and cause
serious injury to the child. Always install for
ward-facing child safety seats on
the rear
seat.
- If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child's safety and well-being require that the following
special precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its manu
facturer for use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and side airbag.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
-Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest position in the up and down
adjustment range and move it back to the rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible, before installing
the forward-facing child restraint.
- Always make sure that the safety belt
up
per anchorage is behind the child restraint
and not next to or in front of the child re-
Child safety
straint so that the safety belt will be prop
erly positioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure that the backrest is in the upright position.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heat
er for child safety seats) on the front pas
senger seat if the device is connected to
the 12-volt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
-If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys
tem on this seat.
-Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or oth
er liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion.
-Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD player, electronic games de
vice, power inverter or seat heater for
child safety seats). These may influence
the electrical capacitance measured by the capacitive passenger detection system and
can also fly around in an accident and
cause serious personal injury .
- 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 read and heed all WARNINGS when ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
r::!> page 258, Safety belts,
r:::!> page 267, Airbag system and
r:::!> page 292, Child safety.
_& WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on whenever a child re
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on.
Ill>
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seats support the baby 's back, neck and head in a
crash
¢ fig . 253.
The a irbag on the passenger side makes the front
seat a potentia lly dangerous p lace for a child to
ride . The front seat is not the safest place for a
child in a forward-facing chi ld safety s eat . It is a
very dangerous place for an infant or a larger
child in a rearward-facing seat.
A WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
child restra int increases the r isk of serious
personal injury and death in a crash .
- Never install rear -facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the front passenger
seat
-even with an Advanced Airbag System.
A ch ild will be seriously injured and can be
killed when the inflating airbag hits the
child safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and smashes the child safety seat and child against the backrest, center armrest,
door or roof
c> page 268, Child restraints on
the front seat -some important things to
know .
-Always install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Never install a rear-facing child restraint in the forward-facing direct ion. Such restraints
are designed for the spec ial needs of infants
and very small children and cannot protect
them properly if the seat is forward-facing .
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptiona l circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iate ly install
the rear-fac ing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
- Never place or use any electrical device (such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games dev ice, power inverter or seat heater
for child safety seats) on the front passen
ger seat if the dev ice is connected to the 12-
volt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
Ch ild safety
-If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restra int system on
this seat .
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cush ion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD p layer, electronic games device,
power inverter o r seat heater fo r ch ild safe
ty seats) . These may influence the e lectrical
capacitance measu red by the capacitive pas
senger de tect io n system and can also fly
aro und in an accident and cause serious per
sonal injury .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever us ing a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing
u sed ¢ page 258, Safety belts,
c::!;> page 267, Airbag system and
c::!;> page 292, Important information.
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-For adjustable head restraints: adjust or re
move the rear seat head restraint if it is dif
ficult to install the child safety seat with the head restraint in place
q page 63 . Install
the head restra int aga in immediately once
t h e ch ild safety seat is removed . Driving
without head restra ints or with head re
st raints that are not properly adjusted in
creases the risk of ser ious or fatal neck in
jury dramatically .
-Always read and heed all WARN INGS when
ever using a child restrained in a veh icle is
being used
Q page 258, Safety belts,
q page 267, Airbag system and
q page 292, Important information.
A WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restra int on the
front passenger 's seat, the child's safety and
well-being require that the follow ing spec ial
precaut ions be taken:
-Make sure the forward-facing seat has been
designed and cert ified by its manufacturer
for use on a front seat with a passenger
front and side airbag .
-Always follow the manufacturer's instruc
tions prov ided with the ch ild safety seat or
infant carrier.
-Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest position in the up and down ad
justment range and move it back to the
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as fa r away from the air
bag as possib le, before insta lling the for
ward-facing child restraint.
- Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is beh ind the child restraint and
not next to or in front of the chi ld restraint
so that the safety belt will be properly pos i
t ioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents the
front passenger 's seat from being moved to
the rearmost position in its fore and aft ad
justment range .
- Always make sure the backrest is in an up
right position .
Child safety
-Never p lace or use any e lectrica l device
(such as a laptop, CD player, e lectron ic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child safety seats) on the front passen
ge r seat if the device is connected to the 12-
volt socket or the cigarette lighte r socket .
-If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passe nger seat,
never install any child restra int system on
this seat.
-Make sure that the re are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no wate r o r other
liqui ds on t he front passenger seat cush ion.
-N ever p lace objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, C D playe r, electro nic games device,
power inverter o r seat heater fo r ch ild safe
ty seats). These may influence the elec trical
capacitance measu red by the capacitive pas
senger detect ion system and can also fly
aro und in an accident and cause serious per
sonal injury.
-Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignit ion is switched on.
-If the PASSENGER A IR BAG OFF li ght does
not come on and stay on, immediately in
stall the forward-fac ing ch ild safety seat at
a seating posit io n on the rear seat and have
the airbag system inspected by your author
ized Audi dealer .
- Take the child restra int off the front passen
ge r seat and install it prope rly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does no t stay on whenever
the igni tion is switched on.
301