manual transmission AUDI A3 2015 Owners Manual

2 Table of contents Vehicle literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
5
About this Owner's Manual . . . 6
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Cockpit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Overview illustration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Instruments and indicator
lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1 0
Instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Indicator lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Driver information system . . . 26
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Efficiency program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
On-Board Diagnostic system (OBD) . . . 29
Opening and closing . . . . . . . . . . 31
Central locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Luggage compartment lid . . . . . . . . . . 37
Child safety lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Power windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Panorama sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
40
Lights and Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 2
Exterior lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Inter ior light ing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
V1s 1on . .. ............... .. .. .. . .
Windshie ld wipers .......... .. ... .
Mirrors ......... ......... ... ... .
Digital compass ............ .. ... .
Seats and storage ....... .... . .
General information ....... ... ... .
Front seats ............... ... ... .
Head restraints ............ .. ... .
Socket . ................. .. .. ... .
Storage .............. ........ .. .
Roof rack .. ................ ... . .
Luggage compartment
Warm and cold ............... .
C limate control system .... .. .. .. . .
46
46
48
so
5 2
52
53
55
56
57
59
60
64
64
Driving ....... .. .......... ... ... 70
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Ig nition lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Starting and stopping the engine
(vehicles with an ignition lock) . . . . . . 70
Starting and stopping the engine
(vehicles w ith a convenience key) . . . . 73
Driver messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
El ectromechani cal parking brake . . . . 76
Hill hold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Speed warning system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Cruise control system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Audi adaptive cruise control .. 82
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Adaptive cruise control . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Driver messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Audi pre sense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Audi pre sense basic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Audi pre sense front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Driver messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Audi active lane assist . . . . . . . . 94
Lane assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Audi side assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
S ide assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Audi drive select . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Driving settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Automatic transmission . . . . . . 105
S tronic -transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Parking systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Rear parking system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Parking system plus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Rearviewcamera .............. .. . 116
Adjusting the display and the warning
tones.... ..... .. .. ..............
120
Error messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

12 Instrum ent s and indicator ligh ts
bottom LED illuminates red and the indicator
light
ti appears ¢ page 24 . The bottom
LED blinks red when the fuel level is very low.
The poss ible range based on the current fue l
leve l is shown in the on-board computer
¢ page 2 7, On-board computer display .
The fuel tank capacity of your veh icle is in the
techn ica l data ¢
page 266.
(1) Note
Never drive with the tan k completely emp­
ty. An irregu la r fuel supp ly can ca use the
eng ine to misfire. This leads to uncom­
busted fuel in the exhaust system. This
can cause overheating and damage to the
catalyt ic converter.
Engine coolant temperature gauge
The engine coolant temperature gauge@
¢
page 10 , fig . 3 only functions when the ig­
n ition is switched on . To prevent engine dam ­
age, observe the follow ing important points
concerning the temperature ranges.
Cold r ange
If only the LEDs at the bottom of the gauge
turn on, the engine has not reached operat ing
temperature yet . Avoid high eng ine speed, full
throttle, and heavy eng ine load.
Norm al ra nge
The engine has reached its operating temper­
ature once the LEDs up to the center of the
gauge turn on under normal driving condi­
tions . The LEDs higher up may turn on when
the eng ine is under heavy load or the exter ior
temperature is high . Thi s is not a cause for
concern as long as the. indicator light in
the disp lay does not turn on .
Hot range
If the LEDs in the upper area of the display
and the. indicator light in the instrument
cluster display turn on, the coolant tempera­
ture is too h igh ¢
page 20.
A WARNING
-Always observe the warn ing in
¢
page 210 before opening the hood
a nd checking the engine coolant level.
- Never open the eng ine hood if you see or
hear steam, or if you see engine coolant
dripping from the engine compartment .
You could bur n yourself. Let the engine
coo l off first u ntil yo u can no longer see
or hear steam or coolant escaping.
([) Note
-Add itional headlights and other compo­
nents in front of the a ir intake reduces
affect of the eff iciency of the coolant. At
hig h ou tside air temperat ures and wi th
heavy eng ine load, there is a ris k of the
eng ine overheating .
- T he front spoiler ensures the correct dis­
tribution of cooling air while driving . If
the spoi ler is damaged, the effect of the
coolant can be reduced and there is a risk
of the engine overheating. See your au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified repair
facility .
Shift indicator
Applies to veh icles: w ith shift indicator
This indicator can help conserve fuel.
Fig. 6 Inst rume nt cl uster: shift recommendat ions in
t ip tronic mode (a utomatic transmission)
N
"' s > o:> tD
When the selector lever is in D/S, the S tronic
transmission shifts up or down automat ica lly.
If you wish to shift the gears manually
¢ page 110, Shifting manually (tiptronic

18 Instruments and indicator lights
or
/:
or l
ig ht/ rain senso r*
c>page 25
Active lane assist"
c>p age 95
Transmission
c>page 111
Other indicator lights
D
y>))
~------------
Turn s ignals
c> pag e 25
USA models: Cru ise con trol sys ­
tem *
c>page 79
Canada models: Cr uise co ntrol
sys te m*
c>p age 79
Adaptive cruise cont ro l*
c> pag e 84
Adaptive c ruise cont ro l*
c>pag e 84
Adaptive c ruise cont ro l*
c> page 84
Active lane assist*
c> page 95
High beam
c> page 44
Convenie nce key
c>page 75
Electrome chanical pa rking bra ke
c>page 19
Adaptive c ruise cont ro l*
c> page 84
Active lane ass ist*
c>page 95
Aud i side assist *
c>page 100
Transm ission
c>page 111
Elect rome chanical par king b rake
<::>page 19
Rear s afe ty bel t* ,/
c::>page2 5
Rear safety bel t* ,/
c::> p ag e 2 5
BRAKE /(0) Brake system
If the indicator light turns on, t here is a ma l­
funct ion in the brake system .
• (USA models)/. (Canada models)
Please stop vehicle and check brake fluid lev ­
el!
Stop the ve hicle an d check t he b rake fluid lev­
el. See your authorized A udi d ealer or quali ­
fied repair facility, if necessary.
• (USA models). (Canada models)
Warning! Brake servo inoperative!
W he n t he bra king assist anc e ( brak e ass ist s ys­
t em) h as fa ile d, you mu st press the bra ke ped ­
al ha rder to bra ke . See your a uthorized Audi
dealer or qualif ied repair faci lity.
• (USA models)/. (Canada models)
Warning! Fault in brake system . Please con­
tact Service
If t he A BS ind icator light rJ1l;1 (U SA mod els)/
¢oJ ( C an ad a mod els), the ESP in d ic ato r lig ht
Ii) an d t he bra ke sys tem in dicator lig ht
• (US A mo dels)/ . (Can ada models) turn
o n an d th is message ap pears, the ABS, ES P
and braking distr ibutio n are not working
c::> & .
Dr ive to your au thor ized A udi dea ler or qu ali­
fi ed repa ir facility immed ia te ly to h ave the
malfunction corrected
c::> & .
• (USA models)/. (Canada models) Park ­
ing brake system fault! See owner's manual .,.

Automatic
transmission S tronic-transmission
Introduction
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic transmiss ion
Your vehicle is equipped with an electronical­
l y -controlled DSG transmission called S tronic.
T wo independent clutches transfer the power
between the engine and transmission. It al­
lows the vehicle to accelerate without a no­
ticeable interruption in traction .
T he transmission upshifts or downshifts auto­
matically. The driving style continuously influ­
ences the selection of the driving program .
When a
moderate driving style is used, the
transmission selects the most econom ica l
driving mode. The transmission upshifts at a
lower RPM and downshifts at a higher RPM to
improve fuel effic iency .
T he transmission switches to a sporty mode
after a kick-down or when the driver uses a
sporty driving style characterized by quick ac­
celerator pedal movements, heavy accelera­
tion, frequent changes in speed and traveling
at the maximum speed.
If desired, the driver can also select the gears
manually (tiptronic mode) r=> page 110,
Shifting manually (tiptronic mode) .
Selector lever positions
Applies to vehicles: with S tro nic transmission
Fig. 91 Instrument cluster: selector leve r positions
The instrument cluster display shows the cur­
rent selector lever position and current gear .
Automatic transmission 105
P -Park
The wheels are mechanically locked in this po­
sition. You can only shift into Park when the
vehicle is
stationary r=> &..
To shift in and out of the P selector lever posi­
tion, press the interlock button in the selector
lever
while pressing the brake peda l.
R- Reverse
Only shift into reverse gear when the vehicle is
stationary and the engine is running at idle
speed
r=> &. .
To select the R selector lever position, press
the interlock button
while press ing the brake
pedal. The back-up lights sw itch on in the R
pos ition if the ignition is switched on .
N -Neutral
The transm iss ion is in idle in this position .
DIS -Normal position for driving forward
In the D/S selector lever position , the trans ­
mission can be operated either in the normal
D mode or in the S sport mode. To select the S
spor t mode, pull the selector lever back brief­
ly. Pulling the lever back again will select the
normal D mode . The instrument cluster dis­
play shows the selected driving mode.
In the
normal mode D, the transmission auto­
matically selects the suitable gear ratio . It de­
pends on engine load, vehicle speed and driv­
ing style .
Select the
sport mode S for sporty driving .
The vehicle makes full use of the eng ine's
power. Shift ing may become noticeable when
acce lerat ing.
To move from selector lever position N to D,
you must press the brake pedal and the vehi­ cle must be traveling less than 1 mph (2 km/
h) or be stationary~ &.-
.&_ WARNING
Read and follow all WARNINGS.
- The vehicle can roll even if the ignition is
switched off. ...
.__ _____________ __J ....
•

110 Automatic transmission
Shifting manually (tiptronic mode)
A pplies to vehicles: with S tron ic t ransmiss ion/ s hift pa d­
d les
The tiptronic allow the driver to shift the
gears manually.
F ig. 94 Cente r console : manual shifting with the selec·
tor lever
Fi g. 95 Steering whee l: manual shift ing with the shift
paddles•
Shifting with the selector lever
You can shift into tiptronic mode while sta­
tionary and while driving.
.. To shift into triptronic mode, push the selec­
tor lever from the D/S setting to the right in
the triptronic shift gate. Once the transmis­
s ion has switched modes, the selector lever
pos ition
M is shown in the instrument clus­
ter display
c:> page 1 OS, fig. 91. For example
M4 , means the fourth gear is engaged.
.. To shift up a gea r, tap the selector lever for­
ward
0 c:> fig. 94.
.. To shift down a gear, tap the selector lever
to back Q.
Shifting with the shift paddles*
You can operate the shift paddles in the D/S or
M (tiptronic shift gate) selector lever posi­
tions. ..
To shift up one gear, tap the shift padd le
0
c:> fig. 95.
.. To shift down one gear, tap the shift paddle
o.
If the shift padd les are tapped while in the D/
S selector lever position, automatic mode
switches
off briefly . To switch from manually
shifting back to automatic sh ifting immedi­
ately, tap the shift paddle
0 c:> fig. 95 for 1
second.
To keep shifting using the shift paddles, move
the selector lever to the rig ht out of the D/
S position into the tiptronic shift gate.
The transmission automatically shifts up or
down before critical engine speed is reached.
T he transmission only allows manual shifting
when the engine speed is within the permit­
ted range.
(D Tips
- When you shift into the next lower gear,
the transmission will downshift only
when there is no possibility of over-rev­
ving the engine.
- When the kick-down comes on, the
transmission will shift down to a lower
gear, depending on vehicle and engine
speeds.
- Tiptron ic is inoperative when the trans­
mission is in the fai l-safe mode .
· Kick-down
Applies to vehicles : wi th S tronic tra nsmi ssio n
Kick-down enables maximum acceleration.
When you press the accelerator pedal down
beyond the resistance point, the automatic
transmission downsh ifts into a lower gear, de­
pending on vehicle speed and engine RPM . It
shifts up into the next higher gear once the
maximum specified engine RPM is reached.
A WARNING
Please note that the whee ls could spin on
slick or slippery roads when kick-down is
active.

Index 273
-----------------------------------.......
Audi drive select . ... .... ... .. .. .. .. . 102
Indicator light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Aud i magnetic ride
refer to Adaptive dampers . .. .. .. .. . 102
Aud i Service Repa ir Manuals and Litera-
ture .. .. .. ... ............. ... ... .. 268
AUTO Automatic climate control system . .. .. 67
Automatic headlights . .... .. .. .. .. .. 42
Auto Lock (centra l locking system) . ... .. 32
Automatic belt retracto r .. .. .. .. .. .. . 134
Automatic climate control system
refer to Climate control system (auto-
mat ic) ... .. ................. .. .... 66
Automatic headlights .... ... .. .. .. .. .. 42
Automatic transmission ............ .. 105
Dr iving t ips . ............. .... .. .. . 107
E mergency mode ......... .... .. .. . 111
H ill descent co ntrol ....... .. .. .. .. . 10 9
I gnition key safety in terlock . . . . . . . . . . 70
K ick -down .. .. ... .. ..... ... .. .. ... 110
L aunch Contro l-Program ... .. .. .. .. . 1 11
malfunction ............. .... .. .. . 106
Selector lever emergen cy rele ase .. .. . 112
Selector lever lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Selecto r lever pos it io ns ....... .... .. 105
Shift ing ma nua lly ............ .... .. 110
St eer ing whee l w ith shift paddles .. .. . 110
S tron ic .. .. .... ............. .. .. . 105
tiptronic . .. .... ........... .. .. .. . 110
Automatic wipe/wash system .. .. . ... .. 46
Auto Safety Hotline ..... ... .. .. .. .. . 129
Average consumpt ion ....... .. .. .. .. .. 27
Average speed .. ........... .. .. .. .. .. 27
B
Battery ... .. .. .. ........... .. .. ... 220
C harge level ............. .... .. .. . 190
C ha rging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20, 222
Energy management .......... ... .. 190
Impor tant war nings ....... ... ... .. 22 1
Indicator light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
J ump starti ng ............ .... .. .. . 259
L ocat ion . .. .. .. ........... .. .. ... 22 1
Replacing the ba ttery .. ... .. .. .. .. . 223
Wo rking on the battery . ... .. .. .. .. . 22 1
B efore dr iving ... .. ..... ... .. .. .. .. . 121 B
lended gaso line .... . .. .. ..... ... .. 206
B lowe r
automat ic Climate contro l system .. .. . 67
Manua l cli mate control system ... .. .. . 65
Booster seats . .. .. .. . ... ...... ... .. 175
B rake fluid
Changing the brake fluid ..... ... .. .. 219
Checking the brake fluid level ...... .. 219
Wha t is the correct brake fluid level? .. 219
Wha t should I do if the brake fluid warn-
. l' h ? mg 19 t comes on ................ . 219
Brakes ... .. .. .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 187
Brake assist system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Brake booster .. .. .... ............. 187
Ind icator light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18, 24
New brake pads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Pa rking brake .. .. .. .......... ...... 76
Brake system Brake fluid .. .. .. ................. 219
Brake fluid specifications for refill and re-
placeme nt ... .... ................ 219
B ra ke pads .. .. .. .. . .. .... .... .. .. 193
Fl uid reservo ir ..... ... .. ..... ..... 219
W orn brake pads symbo l . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Brak ing
Emergency brak ing funct ion ........ .. 78
Starting on inclines .. .. .. .. ... ... .. . 78
Break -in per iod .. ...... ............. 193
Brake pads .. .. .. ............... .. 193
Tires ..... .. .. .. ................. 193
Bulb s .... .. .. .. .... . ... ...... ... .. 258
C
Cali forn ia Pr oposition 65 War ning . .. .. 211
B attery specific .... . .. ... .... ... .. 222
Capacities Fuel tank .. .. .. .... .......... ..... 266
Washe r fl uid reservo ir .......... .... 266
Care ....... .. .. .. ................. 201
also refer to Cleaning ......... .... . 201
Cargo area . ... .. .... . ... ...... ... .. 127
Cargo net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Catalytic converter . ................. 194
CD -RO M playe r (nav igat ion) . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Cent ral indicator light .............. .. 14
•
•
•

278 Index
How many airbags does my vehicle have?
How often should I check my tire pres-148
sures? .. .. .... ............. ...... . 232
How safety belt pretensioners work .... 137
Hydroplaning .............. ... .... . 236
I
Ignition
Indicator light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
21
switching on and off (with button) ... .. 73
Ignition key safety interlock . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Ignition lock
mechanical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
70
Immobiliz er . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Important things to do before driving .. 121
Improperly worn safety belts . . . . . . . . . . 13 7
Indicator lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
14
Infant seats .............. .... .... . 172
Installing child safety seats
Safety belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
177
Insta lling the upper tether strap on the
anchorage ..... ........... .... .... .
183
Instrument cluster ......... ...... .. .. 10
Instruments ................. ..... .. 10
Adjusting the lighting ........... ... . 45
Interior lighting ..................... 45
Intermittent (windshield wipers) ... .... 46
]
Jump-starting 259
Jump er cables ... .......... .. .. .. .. . 260
K
Key ......... ........ ........ ....... 31
Checking the number ................ 31
Driver messages (mechanical ignition
key) ..... .. ................ ..... ..
75
Dr iver messages (with convenience key). 75
Key not recognized ......... ... .... .. 75
Key replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Replacing the battery ....... .. .. .. .. 33
un locki ng/locking . . . . . . . . . . . 33, 34, 35
Key recognition
automatic climate control system ... ..
66
Manual climate contro l system . . . . . . . . 65
Kick-down
Automatic transmission
110
Kn ee air bags ................... .... 157
Description .. .. .. ............. .. .. 157
How they work .................... 158
Important safety instructions ........ 159
L
Lane assist
refer to Active lane assist ........ ... . 94
LATCH ........ .... ............... . 180
Description .... .. .. .............. . 181
Installing a child restraint ........... 182
Location ......................... 181
Mounting and releasing the anchorage
hook ..... .... .. .. .............. .
182
Launch Control-Program (automatic trans-
m1ss1on) ....... .. .. ........... ....
111
Leather care/clean ing ................ 204
Leaving home ..... .................. 44
LED headlights
All-weather lights ..................
42
Lifting jack . .. .. .. ................. 251
Lifting vehicle .................. .... 263
Light
adaptive light .. .................. ..
42
Adjust ing automatic headlights ....... 44
Coming/Leaving home .............. . 44
Fog lights/rear fog light(s) ........... 42
Headlight flasher ................... 44
Headlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42, 44
Highway light .... ................ ..
43
Low beams ..................... ... 42
Parking light .......................
42
Switching daytime running lights on and
off ........... .. .. .............. .. 44
Light/rain sensor
Head lights ....................... . 42
Indicator light .....................
25
Intermittent (windshield wipers) ...... 46
Lighting
Exterior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Interior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
45
Lights
Ambient lighting ...................
45
Headlight range control system ... ... . 42
Interior/reading . ...................
45