transmission AUDI A3 CABRIOLET 2015 User Guide

114 Automatic tran smi ssion
the overload. The ml indicator light
turns on and a message appears
¢ page 116 when the clutch is overload­
ed .
- If the engine must run while you are
working in the eng ine compartment with
the hood open, make sure a gear is not
engaged. The selector lever must be
firmly in the
P pos it ion and locked in
place and the pa rking brake must be set
¢ page 214. Otherwise, the veh icle
cou ld beg in moving when the eng ine
speed is high, even with the parking
brake set.
@ Note
- When stopping on an incline, do not try
to hold the vehicle in place by pressing
the accelerator peda l while a driving gear
i s selected. This can cause the automatic
transmission to overheat and can dam­
age it. Set the park ing brake or press the
brake pedal to prevent t he veh icle from
r o lli ng .
- Allow ing the vehicle to roll when the en­
gine is stopped and the selector lever is
i n the N pos ition will damage the auto­
matic transmission beca use it is not lu­
bricated unde r those circu mstances.
- The transm ission can ove rheat and be
damaged under certa in driving and traf­
fic conditions such as frequent starts,
creeping for a long time, or s top-and -go
traff ic. W hen the
ml or . indicator
li ght turns on, stop the vehicle at the
next oppo rtunity and let the transmis ­
s ion coo l
¢ page 116 .
- Allow ing the ve hicle to roll when the en­
gine is stopped w ill damage the 5 tron ic
transmission because it is not lubricated
¢ page 2 75, Emergency towing with
commercial tow truck.
(D Tips
For safety reasons, the park ing brake re­
leases automatically only when the driver's
door is closed and dr iver's safety be lt is
fastened.
Hill descent control
Applies to veh icles: w ith S tronic transm iss io n
Hill descent control assists the driver when
driving down hills .
Hill descent contro l is activated when these­
lector lever is in the Dor 5 position and you
press the brake pedal. The transm ission auto­
matically selects a gear that is su itab le for the
incl ine. Hill descent cont ro l tries to ma inta in
t h e speed ac hieved at the t ime of b raking,
within physica l and tec hni cal limitations. If
may sti ll be necessary to ad just the speed
with the brakes . Because hill descent control
cannot shift down farther than 3rd gea r, it
may be necessary to sh ift into t iptronic mode
i n very steep areas . In this case, shift into 1st
or 2nd gear in t iptron ic mode to use the en­
gine's brak ing force to relieve the brakes .
Hill descent contro l sw itches off once the h ill
levels out or you press the accelerator pedal.
On vehicles with a cruise contro l system*
¢ page 85, hill descent control is also activat ­
ed when the speed is set.
A WARNING
--
H ill descent control cannot overcome
physical lim itations, so it may not be ab le
to maintain a constant speed unde r a ll
conditions. A lways be ready to apply the
b rakes.

....,
N
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Shifting manually (tiptronic mode)
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic transmission I shift pad­
dles
The tiptronic allow the driver to shift the
gears manually.
Fig. 108 Center console: manual shifting with these ­
lector lever
Fig . 109 Steering whee l: manua l sh ift ing with t he s hift
padd les*
Shifting with the selector lever
You can shift into tip tron ic mode while sta­
tionary and while driving.
~ To shift into tip tronic mode, push the selec­
tor lever from the D/S setting to the right in
t he tiptronic shift gate. Once the transmis­
s ion h as switched modes, the selector lever
position
M is shown in the instrument clus ­
ter display
¢page 110, fig. 105 . For exam­
ple
M4 , means the fourth gear is engaged.
~ To shift up a gear, tap the se lector lever for­
ward
0 ¢fig. 108.
~ 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 (tiptron ic shift gate) selector leve r pos i-
:;, tions.
"' ,....,
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Autom atic transm ission 115
~ To shift up one gear, tap the shift paddle 0
¢fig. 109.
~ To shift down one gear, tap the shift paddle
0-
If the shift padd les are tapped while in the 0/
S selector lever position, automatic mode
switches off briefly. To switch from manually
shifting back to automatic sh ifting immedi­
ate ly, tap the shift paddle
0 ¢ fig. 109 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 sh ifting
when the engine speed is within the permit­
ted range .
(D Tips
-If you shift to the next lowest gear, the
transmission will only shift if the engine
wil l not be over-revved.
- With kick-down, the transmission shifts
to a lower gear, depending on vehicle
speed and engine speed.
- tiptronic does not work if the transmis ­
sion is running in emergency mode.
Kick-down
App lies to vehicles: wit h S tronic tran smi ssio n
Kick-down enables maximum accelera tion.
When you press the accelerator pedal down
beyond the resistance point, the automatic
transmission downshifts 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 wheels could spin on
slick or slippery roads when kick-down is
active.

116 Automatic tran smi ssio n
Launch Control-Program
Ap plies to vehicles: with launch co ntrol
The Launch Control Program enables maxi­
mum acceleration .
Requirement: The engine must be at operat­
ing temperature and the steering wheel must
not be turned .
• With the engine running, press the
l~ OFFI
button briefly one time ll .
• Pull the selector lever back out of the D/S
position briefly to select the S position, or
press it toward the rig ht into the tipt ronic
pos it ion or select the
dynami c driving mode
in drive select*
~ page 107.
• Press the brake peda l firmly with your left
f oot and hold it all the way down for at least
1 second .
.. At the same time, press the gas peda l all the
way down with your right foot unti l the en­
gine reaches and stays at a high RPM level.
• Remove your left foot from the brake.
A WARNING
- Always adapt your driving to the traffic
flow.
- Only use Launch Contro l when road and
t raff ic conditions a llow it and othe r driv­
ers w ill not be endangered or impacted
by you r driv ing and the veh icle's acceler­
ation.
- Please note that the drive whee ls can
spin and the vehicle can brea k away
when sport mode is sw itched on, espe­
cially when the road is slippery.
- Once the vehicle has s tarted moving,
press the
I ~ OFF ! button br iefly to turn
the sport mode off.
@ Tips
- The transm ission tempera ture may in­
crease significantly after using the
l ) In vehicles with a drive r inform ation system, an ESC
l ig ht in t he in strume nt cl us te r stays on cont inuously
and the m essage
Stabili zatio n co ntrol (ESC): spo rt.
W arn ing! Restricted st ability
appears te mpo rarily.
Launch Control Program . If that hap ­
pens, the program may not be availab le
for a few minutes . It will be ava ilable
again after a cool-down period.
- When accelerating using the Launch
Contro l Program, all vehicle parts are
subject to heavy loads. Th is can lead to
increased wear.
Emergency mode
Applies to vehicles: wit h S tronic transm issio n
In the event of a system malfunction, there is
an emergency program.
If all of the selector lever positions are high­
li ghted with a light background in the instru­
ment cluster d isp lay, there is a system mal­
funct ion and the S tronic transmission is run­
ning in the emergency program . The vehicle
can still be driven in emergency mode, but on­
ly w it h reduced speed and not in all gears. In
some cases, the ve hicl e
cann ot driv e in re ­
v e rs e .
d) Note
If the transmission runs in emergency
mode, drive to your author ized Audi dealer
or q ualified repa ir fa cility immed iate ly to
have the ma lf u nct ion corrected.
Transmission malfunction
• Tran smi ssion m alfu ncti on! Please st op
the vehicle and select P
T he re is a malfunction in the transmiss ion .
Park the ve hicle securely and do not continue
driv ing. See an authorized A udi dealer or au­
thorized Audi Service Facility for assistance.
• Tran smi ssion o verheating! Plea se stop
the vehicle!
The transm iss ion is too hot and can become
damaged . Stop and let the t ransmission cool .,.

....,
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with the engine running (at id le) in the P se­
l ecto r lever positio n. The n the indicator light
and the message turn off , d rive to an author­
i z ed A udi dealer or qualified repair facility im­
mediately to have the malfunct ion corrected.
If the i ndicator light and the drive r message
do not tur n off, do not cont inue dr iv ing. See
an author ized Audi dealer or authori zed A udi
S ervi ce Fa cility for assis tan ce.
DD Transmiss ion malfunction: you can con­
tinue driving
Drive to an authori zed Aud i dea ler or a uthor­
ized Audi Service Facility immed iate ly to have
the ma lfunction corrected .
DD Transmission malfunction: no reverse
gear (you can continue driving )
Drive to an aut ho rized Aud i dea le r o r a uthor ­
ized A udi Service Facility immed iate ly to have
the ma lfunction cor rected .
DD Transmi ssion malfunction: You can con­
tinue dri ving in D until engine off
D rive t he ve hicle away from mov ing t raff ic and
par k. See an au thori zed A ud i d ealer or au tho r­
iz ed A udi Service Faci lity for assis tance .
DD Transmi ssion overheating! Please adapt
driving style
Continue dr iving moderate ly . W hen t he indi­
cator light tur ns off, you can continue dr iving
normally .
DD Transmiss ion : Please press brake pedal
and select gear again
I f the tra nsmission mal functions beca use the
temperature is too high , a message appears
when the transmission is cooled.
Autom atic transm ission 11 7
Selector lever emergency release
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic transmission
If the vehicle's power supply fails , the selec­
tor lever can be released in an emergency .
Fig. 110 Se lector leve r: remov ing t he cover
Fig . 1 11 Se lector lev er: Us ing t he e mergency re lea se
to move out of the Park pos it io n
The emergency release mechanism is located
in the right area under the selector lever sh ift
gate. Using the emergency release ca n be
complicated. We recommend contacting an
autho rized Aud i dea le r or a uthorized Audi
Se rv ice Facili ty for assistance, if necessa ry.
The screwdriver from the ve hicle too l kit locat­
ed in the luggage compa rtment is needed to
fo r the em ergency re lease <=:>
page 261 . Use
the flat side of the reversible screwdriver
blade .
Removing the selector lever cover
... Set the park ing brake «e)) <=:> &. to secure
your veh icle from rolling .
... Insert t he flat side of the scr ewdrive r side­
ways in the s lot near the s hift cover a nd p ry
t he shift cove r up
<=>fig. 11 0 .
... Pull u p the co rners of the s hift cove r ca reful­
ly wi th yo ur hands and fold it over the s hift-
er knob
r::!) fig. 111 . ..,.

118 Automatic transmission
Selector lever emergency release
.. Press and hold the yellow release button
with the screwdriver
r=>fig. 111 .
.. Press the release button in the selector lever
® and move the lever into the N position .
.. Clip the shift cover back into the shift gate
after using the emergency release.
If the vehic le must be pushed or towed due to
a power failure (for example, the battery is
dead), the selector lever must f irst be moved
to the N position using the emergency release
mechanism .
A WARNING
Only move the selector lever out of the P
position when the parking brake is set. If
that does not work, secure the vehicle with
the brake pedal. Otherwise, the vehicle
could start to move unintentiona lly when
the selector lever is moved out of the P po­
sition.

M N ,....
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Driving through water
on roads
Note the following to avoid vehicle damage
when driving through water, for example on
flooded roads:
- The water must not be any higher than the bottom of the vehicle body.
- Do not drive faster than wa lking speed.
A WARNING
After driving through water or mud, the
braking effect can be reduced due to mois­
ture on the brake discs and brake pads. A
few careful brake applications should dry off the brakes.
([) Note
Vehicle components such as the engine,
transmission, suspension or electrical sys­
tem can be severely damaged by driving
through water.
- Determ ine the depth before driving
through water.
- Do not stop the vehicle, drive in reverse
or switch the engine off when driving
through water .
- Keep in mind that oncoming vehicles may create waves that raise the water
level and make it too deep for your vehi­
cle to drive through safely.
- Avoid dr iving through salt water (corro­
s ion).
Catalytic converter
App lies to vehicles: with gasoline engine
It is very important that your emission con­
trol system (catalytic converter) is function­
ing properly to ensure that your vehicle is run­
ning in an environmentally sound manner.
.,. Always use lead-free gaso line¢ page 210,
Fuel supply .
.,. Never run the tank down all the way to emp-
ty .
Dri ving and the en vironm ent 197
.,. Never put too much motor oi l in your engine
¢ page 218, Adding engine oil 't:::r..
.,. Never try to push- or tow -start your vehicle.
T he catalytic converter is an efficient "clean ­
up" device bui lt into the exhaust system of
the vehicle . The cata lytic converter burns
many of the pollutants in the exhaust gas be­
fore they are released into the atmosphere .
The exclusive use of unleaded fuel is critically important for the life of the catalytic convert­
er and proper functioning of the engine.
A WARNING
The temperature of the exhaust system is h igh, both when driv ing and after stopping
the eng ine.
- Never touch the exhaust tail pipes once
they have become hot. This could result
in burns.
- Do not park or operate the vehicle in
areas where the hot exhaust system may
come in contact with dry grass, brush,
fue l spill or other material wh ich can
cause a fire.
- Do not apply additional undercoating or
rustp roofing o n or nea r the exhaust
manifold, exhaust pipes, catalyti c con­
verter or heat shields . Dur ing driving, the
substance used for undercoating could
overheat and cause a fire.
([) Note
-Be aware that just one tank filling with
leaded fuel w ill already ser iously de ­
grade the performance of the catalytic
converter .
- Do not exceed the cor rect engine oil level
~page 218.
-Do not drive until the fue l tank becomes
completely empty . The engine cou ld mis ­
fire . Unburned fuel could also get into
the exhaust system and th is cou ld cause
the catalytic converter to overheat.
- Do not switch off the ignition while the
vehicle is moving.
- Do not continue to operate your vehicle
under these conditions, as otherwise fuel ..,_ •
•
•

M N
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different weight distribution. Safety, perform­
ance and economy wi ll greatly depend on how
carefu lly you load your trailer and operate
your rig.
Before you actually tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you
have become comp letely familiar with the way
your vehicle- trailer combination behaves and
responds .
Backing up is d ifficult and requires practice.
Backing up with a trai ler generally requires
stee ring action opposite to that when backing
up your vehicle without a trailer .
Maintain a greater distance between your ve­
hicle and the one in front of you. You will need
more room to stop. To compensate for the
trailer, you will need a larger than normal
turn ing radius.
When passing, remember that you cannot ac­
celerate as fast as you normally would be­
cause of the added load. Make sure you have
enough room to pass . After passing, allow
p lenty of room for your tra iler before chang­
ing lanes again.
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a tra iler during the break-in
period of your vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your Audi may re­
quire more frequent maintenance due to
the extra load
¢ page 282 .
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If i t can­
not be avoided, do so only after doing the fol ­
lowing:
When parking:
.. Apply the foot brake.
.. Have someone place chocks under both the
vehicle and the trailer wheels.
Trailer towing 203
.. With chocks in place, slowly release the
brakes until the wheel chocks absorb the
load .
.. Turn the wheels towards the curb.
.. Apply the parking brake.
.. Select the P selector lever posit ion.
When re starting after parking:
.. App ly the foot brake.
.. Start the engine.
.. Select the
0/5 selector lever position.
.. Release the parking brake and slowly pull
out and away from the wheel chocks .
.. Stop and have someone retr ieve the wheel
chocks.
(D Tips
If you move the selector lever of the auto­
matic transmission to
P before applying
the parking brake and before blocking the
whee ls, you may have to use more force
lat er to move the lever out of the
P posi­
tion.
•
•
•

230 Tires and wheels
-If you notice unusual vibra­
tion or if the vehicle pulls to
one side when driving, al­
ways stop as soon as it is
safe to do so and check the
wheels and tires for dam­
age.
0 Note
-Please note that summer and winter tires are de­
signed for the conditions
that are typical in those sea­
sons. Audi recommends us­
ing winter tires during the
winter months. Low tem­ peratures significantly de­
crease the elasticity of
summer tires, which affects
traction and braking ability. If summer tires are used
in
very cold temperatures, cracks can form on the tread
bars, resulting in perma­
nent tire damage that can
cause loud driving noise and
unbalanced tires. Audi is not
responsible for this type of
damage.
-Burnished, polished or chromed rims must not be used in winter road condi­
tions. The surface of the
rims does not have suffi­
cient corrosion protection
for this and could be perma­
nently damaged by road salt
or similar substances.
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means the combined weight (in
excess of those standard items
which may be replaced) of auto­ matic transmission, power
steering, power brakes, power
windows, power seats, radio, and heater, to the extent that
these items are available as fac­
tory-installed equipment (whether installed or not).
Aspect ratio
means the ratio of the height to
the width of the tire in percent.
Numbers of 55 or lower indi­
cate a low sidewall for im­
proved steering response and
better overall handling on dry
pavement.
...

the tire chain before mounting the wheel
and tire is recommended.
- Loose items in the passenger compart­
ment can cause serious personal injury
during hard braking or in an accident.
Never store the inf latab le spare tire or
jack and tools in the passenger compart­
ment.
- Normal summer or winter tires must not
be mounted on the compact spare wheel
rim.
Removing the subwoofer
A pp lies to vehicles: with s ubwoofer
The subwoofer must be removed before the
spare wheel* can be removed.
Fig. 182 Spare wheel well: subwoofer
Removing the subwoofer
• Lift the cargo floor c:, page 262, fig. 180.
• Pull the latch (D c:> fig. 182 toward the ca­
ble.
• Press the locking tab @down .
• Remove the connector @ and set the re-
moved cable aside.
• Remove the bolt@.
• Carefully remove the subwoofer.
Installing the subwoofer
• Carefully place the subwoofer n the rim
well. The word "FRONT" on the subwoofer
must face forward .
• Insert the connector that was removed .
• Secure the subwoofer with the bolt.
~ • Fold the cargo floor cover back into place.
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What do I do now? 263
Changing a wheel
Before changing a wheel
Observe the following precautions for your
own and your passenger's safety when chang­
ing a wheel.
• After you experience a tire failure, pull the
car well away from moving traffic and try to
reach
level ground before you stop c:> _&..
• All passengers should leave the car and
move to a safe location (for instance, behind
the guardrail)
c:> _&..
• Engage the parking brake to prevent your
vehicle from rolling unintentionally
c:> _&. .
• Move selector lever to position P c:> ,&..
• If you are towing a trailer, unhitch the trailer
from your vehicle.
• Take the
jack c:, page 261 and the spare tire
r:> page 262 out of the luggage compart­
ment .
A WARNING
You or your passengers could be injured
while changing a wheel if you do not fol­
low these safety precautions:
-If you have a flat tire, move a safe dis­
tance off the road. Turn off the engine,
turn the eme rgency flashers on and use
other warning devices to alert other mo­
torists.
- Make sure that passengers wait in a safe
place away from the vehicle and well
away from the road and traffic.
- To help prevent the vehicle from moving
suddenly and possibly slipping off the
jack, always fully set the parking brake
and block the wheel diagonally opposite
the wheel being changed. When one
front wheel is lifted off the ground, plac­ ing the Automatic Transmission in P
(Park) will
not prevent the vehicle from
mov ing .
- Before you change a wheel, be sure the
ground is level and firm. If necessary,
use a sturdy board under the jack.
-

2 70 Fuses and bulbs
Interior fuse assignment
No. Equipment Ampere
Fl 3 Adaptive dampers contro
l
20
module
Fl4 Climate
control system
30
blower
Fl S E
lectronic steering column
10
lock
Fl6 MM I area 7.5
Fl7 Instrument cluster 5
Fl8 Rearview camera
7.5
F l9 Convince key
system control
7.5
module, tank system
F20 Tank system
7.5
F23 E
xterior lighti ng, heated
40
washe r fl ui d nozzles
Panorama sunroof/ power
F24 top control module, power 20/30
Fig. 192 Vehicle inter ior : fuse assignment top latch (Cabriolet)
No. Equipment Ampere
F25 Door/dr
iver's side doors (for
30
example power windows)
Fl Engine components 30 F26 Seat heat
ing 30
F2 Seat adjustment 10 F27
Sound-amplif
ier
30
F3 Hydraulic pump
cover (Cab-
40
riolet) F28
Power top control module,
5
elect ro ni cs (Cabr io let)
F4 M
M co ntrols, M MI-compo-
7.5
nents F29
Inte
rior lights
7.5
F3 1 E xterior lighting
40
F5 Gateway
5
F32 Driver ass istance systems 7.5
F 6 Anti-theft a
larm system
s F33 Airbag 5
Climate/heating control, se-
Button illumination, coils
lector lever (automatic
for upper cab in heating relay
F7 transmission), park ing heat- 10
er, rear window heater re lay F34 (Cabriolet) and socket relay,
7.5
in ter ior sound, back-up light
coil switch, temperature sensor,
Diagnosis, electrical parking oil level sensor
F 8 brake
switch, light switch,
10
rain/ light sensor, interior
light ing Diagnosis, headlight range
F35 co
ntrol system, a ir quality
10
sensor, a utomat ic dimming
F9 Steering column
switch
1
module
Fl0 D isp lay 5 rearview mir
ror
F36 Right
corner ing light/ right
15
LED-headlight
Fll Reversible driver's
side safe-
25
ty belt tensioners F37
Left corner
ing light/ left
15
L E D- headlight
Fl 2 M MI area 15/20