2018 AUDI A3 SEDAN ECU

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Storing cargo correctly
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be properly
stowed and secured in the luggage compart ­
ment.
Fig . 219 Safe load pos itio ning : place heavy objects as low
an d as far forward as poss ible.
g M 0
> a, a,
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift suddenly, chang ing vehicle handling charac­
ter istics . Loose items can also increase the risk of
serio us personal inj ury in a sudden vehicle ma­
ne uver or in a coll ision.
• Distribute the load evenly in the luggage com­
partment.
• Always place and properly secure heavy items in
the luggage compartment as far forward as
poss ible.
• Secure luggage using the tie-downs provided
¢ page 63.
• Make sure that the rear seatback is securely
latched in place .
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items can
fly through the vehicle causing serio us per­
sonal injury in the event of hard braking or an
accident . To help reduce the risk of serious
personal injury:
- Always put objects, fo r example, luggage o r
other heavy items in the luggage compart­ ment.
- Always sec ure objects in the luggage com­
partment using the tie-down hooks and
s u itable straps .
Driving safety
A WARNING
Heavy loads will influence the way your vehi­
cle handles. To help reduce the risk of a loss
of control lead ing to serious personal injury:
- Always keep in m ind when transport ing
heavy objects, that a change in the center of
gravity can a lso cause changes in vehicle
handling :
- Always distribute the load as evenly as
possible .
- Place heavy objects as far forward in the luggage compartment as possible.
- Never exceed the Gross Ax le Weight Rating
or the G ross Vehicle Weight Rating specified
on the safety compliance sticker on the left
door jamb. Exceeding permissible we ight
standards can cause the vehicle to slide and handle differently.
- Please observe information on safe driving
¢page 249 .
A WARNING
-
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas from
being drawn into the vehicle, always keep the
rear lid closed while driving.
- Never transport objects larger than those
fitting completely into the luggage area be ­
cause the rear lid cannot be fu lly closed.
- If you absolutely must dr ive with the rear lid
open, observe the following notes to reduce
the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the power roof*,
- Close the power top*,
- Open alt a ir outlets i n the instrument pan-
el,
- Switch off the air rec irculat ion ,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest speed.
A WARNING
--
Always make sure that the doors , all win­
dows, the power roof*, the power top* and
the rear lid are securely closed and locked to
r educe the risk of injury when the vehicle is
n ot being used.
255

Drivin g saf ety
- After closing the rear lid, a lways make sure
that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave yo ur vehicle unattended espe­
c ia lly w ith the rear lid left open. A ch ild
could crawl into the ve hicle through the lug­
gage compartment and close the rear lid be­
coming trapped and unable to get out . Be­
ing t rapped in a veh icle can lead to se rious
persona l injury.
- Never let children play in or around the veh i­
cle .
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compartment. Ve hicle occupants m ust al­
ways be prope rly rest ra ined in one of the ve­
hicle's seating posi tions.
(D Tips
- A ir c irculat io n helps to reduce window fog­
g ing . Stale air escapes to the outside
th rough vents i n the t rim panel. Be s ure to
k eep these slots free and open.
- The t ire pressu re must correspond to the
l oad. The tire p ressure is shown on the tire
p ressure labe l. Th e tire pressu re labe l is lo ­
ca ted on t he driver 's s ide B-p illar. The tir e
p ressure labe l lists the recommended cold
tire inflation pressures for the vehicle at its max imum capacity weig ht and the t ires t hat
were on your vehicle at the t ime it was man­
ufactured. For recommended tire pressures
for normal load cond itions, please see chap­
ter
¢ page 341.
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with four
tie -downs to secure luggage and other items .
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo proper ly
¢ page 255, Loading the luggage compartment.
In a col lision, the laws of p hysics mean that even
sma ller items that are loose in the vehicle will
become heavy missiles that can cause ser ious in­
jury. Items in t he ve hicle possess energy which
vary with vehicle speed and the weight of the item . Veh icle speed is the most s ignificant factor .
For examp le, in a frontal collision at a speed of
30 mph (48 km/h), the forces act ing o n a 10-lb
256
(4.5 kg) object are about 20 times the normal
weight of the item . This means that the weight
of the item would s udden ly be about
200 lbs. (90 kg). You can imag ine the in juries
that a 200 lbs. (90 kg) item flying freely through
the passenger compartment could cause in a col­
l is ion like t his.
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or imp roper straps used to
secure items to tie-downs can fa il dur ing hard
b raking or in a coll is ion and cause ser io us pe r­
sona l injury .
- Always use s uitable mo unt ing st raps and
p roper ly sec ure i tems to the t ie -downs in
the l uggage compa rtment to help preven t
items from shifting or flying forward as dan ­
ge rous missi les .
- W hen the rear seat backrest is fo lded down,
a lways use s uitable mo unting straps and
properly sec ure items to the tie-downs in
the luggage compartment to help prevent items from flying forward as dangerous
m iss iles into the passenger compartment.
- Never attach a child safety seat tether strap
to a t ie-down.
-

Drivin g saf ety
If the ro llover protection has triggered but the
vehicle was not invo lved in an accident, you can
retract the rollover protection yourself in an
emergency. Drive to an authori zed Aud i dea ler or
author ized Audi Service Facility immed iate ly to
have the malfunction corrected .
With the power top open
~ Pu ll the loop upward in the direction of the ar­
row and hold it in place
¢ fig . 222.
~ Slide the rollbar down.
~ Release the loop just before the rollbar reaches
its end position ( 1-2 in ./ 3 -S cm) .
~ Press the rollbar down until it stops .
~ Make su re the rollba r is secure befo re re leas ing
i t.
~ Close the cove r@ ¢ fig. 223.
~ Repeat t he p rocedure on t he other ro llba r.
With the power top closed
~ Switch the ign ition on .
~ Press t he power top switc h to ad just the power
top frame until it is
ve rtical ¢ fig. 223.
~ Pull t he loop upwa rd in the d irection of the ar­
row and hold it in place
¢ fig. 222 .
~ Slide the rollbar down.
~ Release the loop just before the rollbar r eaches
its end position (1 -2 in./ 3-5 cm).
~ Press the ro llbar down until it stops.
~ Make sure the rollbar is secure before releas ing
i t .
~ Close the cover @¢ fig. 223 .
~ Repeat t he p rocedure on t he other ro llba r.
~ Yo u can now close the power top again.
A WARNING
- Make s ure your head or other parts o f your
body are not located in the area above the
rollbar when pressing the rollbar down. If
the ro llbar is not secured correctly, it cou ld
deploy again as soon as you re lease it and
cause i njuries.
- Have the rollover protect ion system checked
by and authorized Aud i dea ler or authorized
Audi Service Facility if it malfunctions . Oth ­
erwise the system may not deploy correctly
in a coll is io n.
25 8
-Modifying the rollover protection system o r
ind ividual components is not perm itted.
- Work on the ro llover protection system
should on ly be performed by an authorized
Aud i dea ler or authorized Audi Serv ice Facili­
ty. Otherwise the system may not function
correct ly in a collis ion or it could dep loy un­
expectedly.
- Have the system inspected at service inter­
vals . This ensures the system will a lways be
ready fo r use . H ave an autho rized Aud i dea l­
er or author ized Audi Se rvice Facility check
the rollove r protect ion system eve ry two
ye ars at the latest.
Reporting Safety Defects
Applicable to U.S.A.
If yo u beli eve th at your vehicle
ha s a def ect w hi ch could cau se a
c ras h or co uld cause inju ry or
d ea th, you sh ould imm edi ate ly in­
form the N atio nal Highway Traffi c
Sa fet y Admini stration (NHT SA) in
a dditi on t o notif yin g Au di of
A m er ica, Inc.
If NHTSA rece ives s imilar com ­
plaints, it ma y ope n an in ve stiga­
tion , and if it find s that a safet y
defect s exis ts in a group of
v ehicle s, it ma y order a recall and
rem edy campaign. H owev er,
NHT SA cann ot become in vol ved in
indi vidual probl em s bet ween you,
y our dealer, or Audi of America,
In c.
T o co nt ac t the NHTSA , you ma y
either call :

u. 00 .-< N l'­ N .-< 0 N > 00
Although your Audi is equipped with ai rbags, yo u
still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front
airbags, for examp le, are activated on ly in some
frontal coll is ions. The front a irbags are not acti­
vated in all frontal coll is ions, in side and rear col­
lisions, in roll overs or in cases where there is not
enough deceleration through impact to the front
of the vehicle. The same goes for the other airbag
sys tems in yo ur Audi . So, always wea r you r safety
be lt and ma ke sure eve rybody in yo ur vehicle is
properly restrained!
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be correctly positioned across the strongest bones of your body.
~ Always wea r sa fety be lts as i llust ra ted and de ­
scribed in this chapter.
~ Make sure that your safety belts are a lways
ready for use and are not damaged .
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im ­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death . Safety be lts can work only
when used correctly.
- Always fasten your safety belts correctly be­
fore dr iving off and make sure all passen­
gers are correct ly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must
always be pos it io ned p roperly on the body .
- Never strap more tha n one person, includ­
ing small ch ildren, into any belt .
- Never place a safety be lt over a chi ld sitt ing
on your lap.
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front of
the seat w hile the vehicle is be ing driven.
- Never let any pe rson ride w ith their feet on
the instrument pane l or st icking out the
window or on the seat .
- Never remove a safety belt while the vehicle
is mov ing. Do ing so w ill inc rease your r isk of
being in ju red or k illed.
- Never wear belts twisted.
- Never wear belts over rigid o r breakab le ob-
jects in or on your clot hing, such as eye
Safet y be lts
g lasses, pens, keys, etc ., as t hese may ca use
in jur y.
- Never a llow safety belts to become dam ­
aged by be ing ca ught in door or seat hard­
ware.
- Do not wear t he shoulder part of the belt
under yo ur arm or otherwise o ut of pos ition.
- Several layers of heavy clothing may inter ­
fe re with co rrect pos ition ing of be lts and re ­
duce the ove rall effectiveness of the system.
- Always keep be lt buck les free of anything
that may prevent the buck le from latch ing
securely.
- Never use comfort cl ips or dev ices that cre­
ate s lack in t he shoulder belt. However, spe­
cial clips may be required for the proper use
of some child restraint systems.
- Torn or frayed safety be lts can tear, and
damaged be lt hardware ca n break in an acci­
dent. Inspect be lts regularly . If webb ing,
b indings, buckles, or retractors are dam­
aged, have belts rep laced by an author ized
Aud i deale r or q ualified wo rkshop.
- Safety belts that have been worn and loaded
i n an ac cident must be repla ced with the
cor rect replaceme nt sa fe ty belt by an a u­
thor ized A udi dealer. Rep lacement may be
necessary even if damage cannot be clea rly
seen . Anchorages t hat we re loaded must a l­
so be inspected.
- Neve r remove, modify, disassemble, o r try
to repair the safety belts yourse lf .
-A lways keep the belts clean. Dirty belts may
not wor k prope rly and ca n impair the func ­
tion of the inert ia reel
c> table Interior
cleaning on page 356.
263

Safe ty belts
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
F ig. 230 Belt buckle and tong ue o n the dr iver's seat
N ± ... a,
To prov ide max imum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wear ­
er's body .
"'Adjust the fro nt sea t and head restra int proper­
ly
¢ page 59 , Front seats .
"'Make su re the seatback of the rear sea t bench
is in an upright position and secure ly latched in
place before using the
belt ¢.&_ .
"'Pull the safety belt evenly across the chest and
pelvis ¢ fig. 230, ¢ .&_.
"'Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
you r seat until you hear it latch securely .
"' Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
l atched in the buck le.
Autom atic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped with an automatic
belt retractor on the shoulder belt . This feature
locks the belt when the belt is pulled out fast,
du ring hard braking and in an accident . The be lt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
h ill or th rough a sharp curve. Dur ing no rma l dr iv­
i n g the bel t lets you move freely.
Safety belt pretensioners
Safety belts w ith pretensioners help to tighten
the safety belt and remove slack when the pre­ tensioners a re
activated ¢ page 267. The func­
tion of the pretens ioner is moni to red by a w arn­
ing
light¢ page 26.
264
Convertible lock ing retractor
Eve ry safe ty belt except the one on t he d river
seat is equipped with a convertib le lock ing retrac ­
tor that
mu st be used when the safety be lt is
used to attach a ch ild seat. Be sure to read the
i mportant information about this feature
¢ page 305 .
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious inj ury in an
accident ¢ page 265,
Safety belt position .
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is up right and belts are
properly posit ioned on the body .
- Always make sure that the rear seat back ­
rest to which the center rear safety belt* is
at tached is securely latched whenever the
rear cen ter safety belt is being used.
If the
b ackrest is not sec urely latche d, the passen­
ger will move forward with the bac krest du r­
ing sudden b raking, in a sudden maneuver
and especia lly in a crash.
-Never attach the safety belt to the buckle
for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong buckle will reduce safety be lt e ffec­
tiveness and can cause serio us personal in­
jury.
-A passenge r who is not properly restrained
can be seriously injured by the safety belt it­
self when it moves from the stronger parts
of the body into cri tical areas like the abdo­
men .
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor when yo u are securing a c hild seat in the ve­
h icle
~ page 307.

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Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi­
mum protection from safety belts .
~
"' ,-.
9 r
Fig. 231 Safety belt pos it ion
"' a,
Standard feat ures on your vehicle he lp you adjust
the position of the safety be lt to match your body
size .
- belt he igh t adjustmen t fo r the front seats *,
- height-adjustable front seats.
.8, WARNING
Improperly posit ioned safety be lts ca n ca use
ser ious personal inj ury in an accident .
- T he shoulder belt sho uld lie as close to the
center of the co llar bone as possible and
should fit we ll on the body. Hold the belt
above the latch tong ue a nd pu ll it evenly
across the chest so that it sits as low as pos­
sible on the pelvis and there is no press ure
on the abdomen . The belt should always fit
snugly
Q fig. 231. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- The lap belt portion of the safety be lt must
be pos itioned as low as possible across pel ­
vis and never over the abdomen. Make sure
the belt lies flat and snug
Q fig . 231 . Pull on
th e belt to tighten if necessary.
- A loose-fitt ing safety be lt can cause ser ious
injuries by shifting its pos ition on you r body
fr om the st rong bones to more vu lne rable,
soft tiss ue a nd c ause ser ious injury.
- Always read and heed all WA RN INGS and
other importa nt inform ation¢
page 263.
Safet y bel ts
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
that expectant mothers always wear safety bel ts
correctly
-throughout the pregnancy.
F ig . 2 32 Safe ty bel t pos ition durin g pregnancy
To provide maximum protect ion, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wear­
er's
body ¢ page 265 .
.. Adjust the front seat and adjustable head re­
straint*
correctly¢ page 59, Front seats .
.,. Pull the safety belt evenly across the chest so
that it s its as low as possible on the pelvis and
there is no pressure on the abdomen
¢ fig. 232, Q .&, .
.,. Insert the tongue into the co rrect buckle of
your se at unt il yo u h ear i t latch secu rely.
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that i t is sec urely
latched in the buckle.
_& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can ca use
serious pe rsonal injury in an acc ident.
-Expectant mothers m ust always wea r th e
lap portion of the safety belt as low as pos­
sible across the pelvis and below the round­
ing of the abdomen.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important
i nformation¢ .&. in Fasten­
ing safety belts on page 264.
265

Child sa fety
- Take the chi ld restraint off the front passen ­
ger seat and insta ll it proper ly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PA SSEN GER AIR
BA G OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Aud i dealer immediately.
(D Tips
The chi ld seats listed in categories A to C have
been statica lly tested by Aud i only for the Ad­
vanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially re­
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safety
of everybody in the vehicle, especially chi ldren:
~ A lways use the right chi ld safety seat for each
c h ild and a lways use it properly
c::> page 300.
~ Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child safe ­
ty seat .
~ When using the vehicle safety be lt to insta ll a
c hi ld safety seat , you must first activate the
conve rtible locking retractor on the safety be lt
to prevent the child safety seat from mov ing
c::> page 305 .
~ Push the child safety seat down wit h your fu ll
weight to get the safety be lt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2.5 cm).
~ Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c::> page 300 .
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equ ipped w ith an Advanced Airbag system, all
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always r ide in the back seat prope rly re­
stra ined fo r th eir age and size.
_& WARNING
N ot using a c hild safety seat, usi ng the w rong
c hild safety seat or imp roper ly installing a
298
chi ld restraint increases t he risk of serious
personal injury and death.
- All vehicle occ upants and especially children
must be restra ined properly whenever rid ing
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restrained child cou ld be injured by strik ing
the inter ior or by being ejected from the ve­
h icle dur ing a sudden maneuve r o r i mpact.
An unrest rained or imprope rly rest rai ned
child is a lso at g rea ter r is k of inj ury o r death
through con ta ct w it h an infl ati ng a irbag.
- Commerc ia lly availab le child safety seats
a re requ ired to comply with U.S. Federal
Motor Vehicle S afety Standard ( FMVSS) 2 13
(in Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restra int, select one
that fits your chi ld and the vehicle .
- Only use child restra int systems that fully
contact the flat port ion of the seat cush­
i o n. The ch ild restraint must not tip or
lean to e ither side . Audi does not recom­
mend using child safety seats that rest on
l egs or tube -like frames. They do not p ro­
v ide adequate cont act wi th t he seat.
- Always heed all lega l req uirements per­
ta in ing to the inst allation and use of child
sa fe ty seats and caref ully follow the in ­
str uctions provided by the manufact urer
of the seat you are using .
- Never a llow children under 5 7 inc hes
( 1. 45 meters) to wear a normal safety be lt.
They must a lways be restrained by a proper
child restraint system. Otherwise, they
could sustain injuries to t he abdomen and
neck areas dur ing sudden brak ing maneu­
vers or accidents .
- Never let more than one c hild occupy a chi ld
safety seat.
- Never let babies or o lder ch ildren ride in a
ve hicle w hile sitting on the lap of a nother
passenger.
- Holding a c hild in your a rms is never a s ub­
stitute fo r a ch ild restraint system .
- The s tronges t person cou ld no t hold the
c hil d with the forces tha t exist in an acc i­
dent. The c hild will strike the inte rior of
the ve hicle and can also be struck by the
passenger.

Child safety
-Take the child restraint off the front passen­ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
-Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
l8 , ,.,_ _ g
---0
Fig. 247 Schematic overv iew: keep unu sed safety belts
away from chi ldren in chil d safety seats. @-outer rear
safety belt,@- center rear safety belt*
~
If a child safety seat is used on the rear bench,
especially with LATCH universal lower anchorag­
es, the unused safety belts
must be secured so
that the child in the child restraint cannot reach
them
c::> ,&. .
-Guide the safety belt webbings @and ®* be­
hind the head restraint of the seat where the
c hild restraint is installed
c::>fig. 247. When do­
ing so, do not engage the convertible locking
retractor! You should not hear a "clicking"
sound when winding up the safety belt .
-Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt
webbing .
A WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with the
LATCH lower anchorages or with the standard
safety belt or a child in a booster seat on the
rear seat could play with unused rear seat
safety belts and become entangled. This
could cause the child serious personal injury
and even death.
-Always secure unused rear seat safety belts out of reach of children in child seats such
as by properly routing them around the
300 head restraint of the seat where the child
restraint is installed .
- Never activate the convertible locking re­
tractor when routing the safety belts around
the head restraints.
-Never let anyone sit at the center rear seat­
ing position* if the center rear safety belt
has been routed around a rear head re­
straint.
Child safety seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old and
20 lbs. or
9 kg need special rearward-facing
child restraints that support the back, neck and
head in a crash.
Fig. 248 Sc hema tic ove rview : re arward -facing infan t seat ,
prope rly installed on th e rear seat
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
c::> page 305 or install the seat using the LA TCH
attachments .
.,. Push the child safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm) .
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c::> page 300 .
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg) are
best protected in special infant carriers and child
safety seats designed for their age group. Many
experts believe that infants and small ch ildren
should ride only in special restraints in which the
child faces the back of the vehicle. These infant
Ill-