check engine light AUDI A3 CABRIOLET 2016 User Guide

Trailer mod e
load" on the la bel located on the driver's side B ­
pillar (visib le when the door is open) . Inflate
tra iler tires to trailer and tire manufacturers'
specif ications.
Lights
Check to make sure both vehicle and t railer lights
are working p roper ly.
Safety chains
Be sure t railer safety chains are properly connect­
ed from the trai le r to the hi tch on the veh icle.
L eave enough sla ck in the cha ins to permi t turn­
ing corners. When yo u install safety chains, ma ke
sure they wi ll not drag on the road when yo u are
driving .
The cha ins s hou ld cross under the trailer tongue
t o prevent it from dropping in case of separation
from the h itch .
Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra care
and consideration .
To obtain t he best poss ible handling of vehicle
and traile r, please note the fo llow ing :
.,. Do not tow a loaded trailer when your car itself
is not loaded.
.. Be especi ally ca ref ul when pass ing othe r
vehicles.
.. Observe speed limi ts .
.. Do not d rive at the maximum permissible
speed.
.. Always apply brakes early.
.. Monitor the temperature gauge .
Weight distribution
Towing a loaded t railer w ith an empty car res ults
in a high ly unstable distribution of weight . If this
cannot be avoided, drive at very low speeds on ly
to avoid the risk of losing steering control.
A "balanced" rig is easie r to operate and cont rol.
This means that the tow vehi cle should be loaded
to the extent possible and permissible, while
keep ing the tra iler as light as possib le under the
circumstances. Whenever possible, transfer
some cargo to the l uggage compartment of the
86
tow veh icle wh ile observing tong ue load require ­
ments and vehicle loading considerations.
Speed
The higher the speed, the mo re diff icu lt i t be­
comes for the driver to con trol the r ig. Do not
drive at t he maxim um permissible speed. Reduce
you r speed even more if load, weather or wind
con dit ions are unfavorab le - partic ularly when
go ing downh ill.
Reduce vehicle speed
immediately if the trailer
shows the slightest sign of swaying.
Do not try
to stop the swaying by accelerating.
Observe speed limi ts. In some areas, s peeds fo r
vehicles towing trailers are lower than for regular
vehicles .
A lways apply bra kes early. Whe n driving down­
hill, shift in to a lower gea r to use the engine
b raki ng effect to slow the vehi cle. Use of the
brakes alone ca n cause them to over heat and fai l.
Coolant temperature
The coolant temperature gauge 9 page 12 must
be obse rved caref ully. The coolant temperature
c a n incre ase if yo u drive o n long incl ines in a low
gear a t high engine speeds . Red uce your speed
immediately if the LE Ds in the top part of the dis­
play turn on .
Fo r more info rm ation abou t indicator lights, re­
fer to .
¢ page 16 .
A WARNING
-
Anyone not prope rly restrai ned in a moving
vehicle is at a much greate r risk in an acci ­
dent. Never let anyone ride in your car who is
not properly wear ing the restraints provided
by Aud i.
Trailer mode notes
Important to know
Your vehicle handles differen tly when towing a
trailer because o f the additiona l weight and di f­
ferent weight distribution. Safety, performance
and economy will g reatly depend on how caref ul-
l y you load your trai ler and operate you r rig. ..,_

Ass is t
- Your settings are automatically stored and
assigned to the remote control key being
used .
Driver messages
Applies to: ve hicles w ith Audi side assist
If the side assist switches off automatically, a
message appears in the instrument cluster dis­
play.
(ij Audi side a ssi st : cur rentl y un ava ilable No
s en so r v isi on
The radar sensors' vision is affected. Do not cover
the area in front of the sensors with bike wheels,
stickers, dirt or other objects . Clean the area in
front of the sensors, if necessary~
page 104,
fig. 105.
@j Audi side assist : cur rently un available
Side assist cannot be switched on temporar ily be­
cause there is a malfunction (for example, the
battery charge level may be too low).
@j Audi side a ssi st : S ystem fau lt!
The system cannot guarantee that it will detect
veh icles correctly and it is switched off. The sen­
sors have been d isplaced or are faulty . Have the
system checked by an authorized Audi dealer or
author ized Audi Service Facility soon .
Audi drive select (drive
settings)
Introduction
App lies to: vehicles with Aud i drive select
Audi drive select makes it possible to experience
d ifferent types of vehicle settings in o ne veh icle .
The drive r can select from three
Comfort , Auto
and D ynam ic modes us ing the te'i:.1 button in the
center console or the MMI to switch between a
sporty and a comfortable driving mode, for ex ­
ample. In the
Ind ividu al* mode, the settings can
be adjusted to your personal preferences. This
makes it poss ible to combine settings such as a
sporty eng ine setting w ith smooth steering.
106
A WARNING ,_
Using Aud i drive select incorrectly can lead to
coll is ions, other accidents and serious inju­
ries.
Description
App lies to: vehicles with Aud i drive se lect
The vehicle setup in each mode depends on the
vehicle's features. However, the engine a nd
steering are a lways affected.
Engine and automatic tr ansmiss ion
Depending on the mode, the engine and auto­
matic transmission* respond more qu ickly or in a
more ba lanced manner to accelerator pedal
movements.
Adapt ive damper s (Audi magneti c ride )*
The adaptive dampers use sensors to record in­
format ion regarding steering movements, brak­
i ng and acceleration operations by the driver,
road surface, driving speed, and load . W ith Aud i
drive select you can adjust the adaptive dampers
spo rty (dynamic), comfortable (comfort) o r bal­
anced (auto).
Ste ering
The steering adapts in terms of steering ass is­
tance. There are d ifferent modes
~page 107.
Ind irect steering that moves easi ly as in comfort
mode is espec ially suited to long d rives on a h igh­
way. The dynamic mode provides sporty, direct
steering.
Fo r vehicles with p rogress ive steering* the steer­
i ng perfo rmance is more agile.
Corn ering light*
The cornering light adjusts when driv ing on
curves at speeds between 6 mph (10 km/h) and 68 mp h (1 10 km/h) . The pivoting act ion and the
li ght ing are also adapted to the mode.
Adapt ive cruise cont rol*
The behavior whe n accelerating can be adjusted
from comfortable to sporty, depending on the
Audi drive select mode . Adaptive cruise control ..,.

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-On steep slopes, reduce the speed and se­
lect a lower gear or lower selector lever po­
sition. Dr ive as little as possible while press­
ing the brake pedal and avoid putt ing your
left foot on the brake pedal while driving.
Th is co uld cause the brakes to overheat and
impai r the efficiency of the brakes.
- Do not let the brakes "g rind " by a lways
keeping your foot on the brake pedal. This
can cause the br akes to overhea t, i ncrease
wea r and incre ase braking dis tance unneces­
sari ly.
- Certa in wea ther an d operat ing co ndi tio ns
s u ch as dr iving through wate r, d riving in
heavy ra in or d riving after washing your ve ­
hicle can impair the effectiveness of the
brakes . In the w inte r, ice may b uild up on
the brake pads, rotors and drums. Check
these components by braking ca refu lly . Ap­
plying the brakes carefu lly severa l times
dr ies the brakes and removes ice bu ild-up .
- The effic iency of the brakes can also be im­
paired by driving for long st retches on roads
cove red w ith salt without using the b rakes .
Yo u can remove sa lt deposits from the
bra ke rotors and pads by caref ully app lying
the brakes severa l t imes .
-If the front spoiler is damaged or you ins tall
ano ther spoiler, m ake sure the front wheel
bra kes are vent ilated p roper ly. O therwise,
the b rake system could overheat, whic h re ­
duces the ir effectiveness.
- Failure of a brake circuit impai rs b raking
performance, which increases braking dis­
tance . Avoid driving the vehicle . Have it tow ­
ed to the nearest authorized Aud i dealer or
authorized Audi Service Fac ility .
- Never let the vehicle roll while the engine is
stopped because this increases the risk of an
acc ident.
- If the brake booster is not working, you will
have to press m uch ha rder on the brake
peda l to compensate for the lack o f the
booster .
0 Note
-Never let the bra kes " rub" by pressing the
pedal lightly when braking is not really nee-
Intellig ent Technology
essary . This causes the b rakes to overheat
and increases braking distance and causes
wear .
- Before driving on a long st retch with steep
slopes, reduce your speed and shift to the
next lower gear Th is makes use of the en­
gine braking effect and relieves the brakes.
If you need to brake additionally, brake in
intervals and not continuously .
(D Tips
-If the brake booster is not work ing, you
must press the brake peda l with much more
force than normal.
- If you retrof it your vehicle with a front spo il­
er, wheel covers or sim ilar items, make sure
that the air flow to the fro nt wheels is not
inter rupted . Otherwise the b rake system
can become too hot.
Electromechanical
steering
The electromechanical steering supports the
driver's steering movement s.
Power steering adapts electronically based on
the ve hicle speed .
T he veh icle st ill has f ull s teer ing f unct iona lity if
t h e power steering fails or when the engine is
stopped (towing) . To steer, you must app ly m uch
more force than usual.
Indicator lights and messages
• Do not driv e vehicle : steering defective
If this indicator light turns on and stays on and
t hi s message appears , the power steering may
have failed .
Do
not continue dr iv ing . See an author ized Audi
dealer or authorized A udi Se rvice Fac ility for as ­
s istance .
• Do not dr ive vehicle: steering defecti ve
There is a ma lfunction in the e lectronic steering
l ock. You cannot turn the ignition on. ..,.
119

Check ing and F illing
Checking and Filling
Gasoline fuel
Gasoline grade
A pp lies to: ve hicles w ith gaso li ne engines
The correct gasoline grade is stated on the inside
of the fuel filler door .
The vehicle is equipped with a catalytic converter
and must only be driven w ith
unlead ed ga soli ne.
Aud i recommends using TOP TIER Detergent Gas­
oline. Additional information on TOP TIER Deter­
gent Gasoline can be found on the official web­
site (www .toptiergas.com) .
The individua l gasoline grades are differentiated
by
oct ane rating s. This value is given with (R +M)/
2 equating to AK I or in RON.
The fo llowing headings match the corresponding
sticker in the fuel fi ller door .
UNLEADED FUEL ONLY MIN. (R+M) /2 87
R egula r/ MIN. RON
91 Regular
Use regu lar gasoline with minim um 87 AKI/
9 1 RON ~@ .
The max imum engine power is only reached if
p rem ium gasol ine 91 AKI/ 95 RON is used.
UNLEADED FUEL ONLY PREMIUM MIN . (R
+M )/2
91 / SUPER MIN. RON 95
Using premium gasoline with m inim um 91 AKI/
95 RON is recommended.
If premium gasoline is not available, you can also
use regula r gasoline 87 AKI/ 91 RON . However
this does reduce the engine powe r slight ly.
CD Note
- Fil li ng the tank just one time with leaded
fuel or other meta llic additives will cause
permanent deteriorat ion to the cata lyt ic
conve rter func tion.
- When gasoline with an octane rati ng that is
too low is used , h igh speeds o r heavy engine
l oad can lead to engi ne dam age.
184
(D Tips
The vehicle can be fi lled with fue l that has a
h igher octane rating than what is requi red by
the eng ine.
Blended gasoline
App lies to : vehicles wit h gasol ine engi ne
U se of g asoline cont aining alcohol or MTBE
(m ethyl tertiary butyl ether )
You may use unleaded gasoline blended with al ­
cohol o r M TBE (commonly referred to as oxygen­
ates) if the blended m ixt ure meets the fo llow ing
c rit eria:
Blend of ga soline methanol (wood alcohol or
methyl alcohol)
- Anti-knock index must be 87 AKI or h igher.
- Blend must contain no more than 3% metha-
nol.
- Blend must contain more than 2% co-solvents.
Blend of ga soline and ethanol (grain alcoh ol or
ethyl alcohol)
- Anti-knoc k index must be 87 A KI or h igher.
- Blend must not conta in more than 15% etha-
nol.
Blend of gasoline and MTBE
- Anti -knock index must be 87 AKI or higher.
- Blend mus t contain no t more than 15% MTBE .
Seasonall y adjusted ga soline
Many gasoline grades are blended to perform es­
pecially well for winter or summer dr iv ing . Du r­
i ng seasonal change-over, we suggest that you
fill up at busy gas stat ions where the seaso nal
adjustment is mo re l ikely to be made in t ime .
CD Note
-Methanol fuels which do not meet these re­
quirements may cause corrosion and dam­
age to plasti c and rubber components in the
fue l system.
- Do not use fue ls that fa il to meet the speci­
fied cr iteria in th is chapter.
...

Checking and Filling
Opening the hood
The hood is released from the interior.
M ~
-...::;:;======== -d ~
Fi g. 159 Sect ion from th e driver's side footwell: release
l ever
F ig. 160 Rocker switc h under the hood
Read and foll ow the WARNING S before check­
ing anything in the engine compartment
r::;, page 188, Working in the engine comport­
ment .
m
Make sure the wiper arms are not raised up from
the w indshield . Otherwise the paint could be
damaged .
.,. With the driver's door open, pull the lever be­
low the instrument panel in the direct ion of the
arrow
r::;, fig. 159 .
190
.,. Raise the hood slightly r::;, .&, .
.,. Press the rocker switch under the hood upward
r::;, fig. 160. This releases the catch .
.,. Open the hood .
A WARNING
Never open the hood when you see that steam
or coolant drips from the engine compart­ ment- there is a danger of bu rns! Wait unt il
no steam or coolant flows out.
Closing the hood
.,. Push the hood down u ntil the fo rce of the strut
is ove rcome .
.,. Let the hood fall lightly into the latch .
Do not
press it in.
r::;, .&, .
A WARNING
If the hood is not latched complete ly, it could
fly up wh ile you are dr iving and obstruct your
vision.
- For safety reasons, the hood must always be
closed securely while driv ing. Because of
this, always check the hood after closing it
to make sure it is latched correctly . The
hood is latched if the front corners cannot
be lifted.
- If you notice that the hood is not latched
while you are driving, stop immed iate ly and
close it, because this increases the risk of an
accident .

Check ing and F illing
Audi oil quality standard
Gas olin e
VW 502 00 or
engi ne vw 50400
A udi reco mmend s
~Castrol I jgl[J,'fE{g ?r,w.:..~J ri, '.IA!,
Audi rec ommends Longlif e high perform ance
engi ne oil from Au di Genuin e Parts
Using the proper engine oil is important for the
functionality and service life of the engine. Your
engine was factory-filled with a h igh-quality oil
which can usually be used throughout the entire
yea r.
(D Note
Your Limited New Vehicle Warranty does not
cover damage or malfunctions due to failure
to follow recommended maintenance and use
requirements as set forth in the Audi Owner's
Manual and Warranty & Maintenance booklet .
- Use only a high qual ity eng ine oil that ex-
pressly complies with the Audi oil quality
standard specified for your vehicle's engine .
Using any other oil can cause serious engine
damage.
- Do not mix any lubricants or other additives into the engine oil. Doing so can cause en­
gine damage.
@ Tips
If you need to add oil and there is none availa ­
ble that meets the Audi oil quality standard
your engine requires, you may add a total of
no more than 0.5 quart/liter of a h igh-quality
"synthet ic"oil that meets the following speci­
fications.
- Vehicles w ith gasoline eng ine: ACEA A3 or
API SM with a viscosity grade of SAE OW-30,
SAE 5W-30 or SAE 5W-40.
- For more information about engine o il that
has been approved for your vehicle, please
contact either your authorized Audi dea ler
or Aud i Custome r Relat ions at
1 (800) 822- 2834 or visit ou r web site at
www.audiusa.com or www .aud icanada.ca.
192
· Eng ine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all of
its moving parts.
In order to provide effect ive lubricat ion and cool­
i ng of internal engine components, all internal
combust ion eng ines consume a certa in amount
of oil. Oil consumption var ies from engine to en­
gine and may change sign ificantly over the life of
the engine . T ypically, engines w ith a specified
break -in period (see¢
page 65) consume more
oi l during the break-in period than they consume
after oil consumption has stabilized.
U nder normal cond itions, the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on the quality and viscosity o f
the oil , the RPM (revo lutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient tem­ perature and road conditions. Further factors are
the amount of o il dilution from water condensa­
tion or fuel residue and the oxidation level of the
o il. As any engine is subject to wear as mileage
builds up, the o il consumption may increase over
ti me unt il replacement of wo rn compo nents may
become necessary.
With all these variables coming into play, no standard rate of o il consumption can be estab­
li shed or spec ified . T he re is no alte rnative to reg­
u la r and freq uent checki ng of the oi l level, see
Note.
If the yellow engine oil level warning symbo l II
in the instrument cluster lights up, you sho uld
chec k the o il level as soon as possible
¢
page 193. Top off the o il at your earlies t con­
venience
¢ page 193.
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARN­
INGS
¢page 188.
(D Note
Driving with an insufficient oil level is likely to
cause severe damage to the engine.
IJII,

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-Always dispose of used engine oil prope rly .
Do not dump it on garden soi l, wooded
areas, into open streams or down sewage
drains.
- Recycle used engine oil by taking it to a used
engine oil collection facility in your area, or
contact a serv ice stat ion.
Cooling system
Coolant
The engine coo ling system is filled wi th a mixture
of purified water and coolant additive at the fac ­
tory. This coo lant must not be not changed.
The coolant leve l is moni to red throug h the . in ­
d icator light
q page 16 . Howeve r, we do recom­
mend occasiona lly checking the coo lant level
manually.
If you m ust add coo lant, use a m ix ture of water
an d coolant addit ive. Mixing the coolant additive
with d isti lled water is recommended.
Coolant additive
The coolan t additive is made of anti-freezing and
corros ion pro tection agents. Only use the fol low­
in g coolant add it ives. The se addi tives may be
mixed wit h each other.
Coolant additive Specification
G13 TL 7
74)
G12 ++ TL 774 G
T he amount of coo lant additive that needs to be
mixed with water depends on the climate where
the vehicle will be ope rated. If the coolant addi­
tive percentage is too low, the coolant can freeze
and damage the eng ine.
Coolant Freeze protec-
additive tion
Warm reg ions min . 40% m in. -13 °F
max. 45% (-
25
°()
Cold regions min . 50% max . -40 °F
max. 55% (-40
°()
Checking and Filling
(D Note
-
Before the start of w inte r, have you r auth or­
ized Aud i dealer or a uthorized Aud i Serv ice
Facility check if the coolant addit ive in your
vehicle matches the pe rcentage appropriate
for the climate. This is especially important
when driving in colder climates .
- If the appropr iate coo lant add itive is not
availab le in an emergency, do not add any
other additive. Yo u could damage the en­
gine. If this happens, on ly use water and re­
store t he corre ct m ix tu re ratio with the
specified coolant ad ditive as soon as poss i­
ble.
- O nly refill w ith new coolant.
- Radiator sea lant must not be mi xed with
the coolant.
Adding coolant
Fig . 1 64 En g in e compa rtment: ma rki ngs o n the coolant
expans ion
t ank
Read and follow the WARNINGS befo re check­
ing anything in the engine compartment
i=> page 188, Working in the engine compart­
ment.
Che cking the engine coolant level
.. Park your vehicle on a leve l su rface .
.. Switch t he ignition off .
.. Read the coolant level on the coolant expansion
tank ¢
fig. 164. The coolant level must be be­
tween the markings when the eng ine in cold .
When the eng ine is warm it can be slig htly
above the upper marking.
195

Check ing and F illing
Adding coolant
Req uirement: the re must be a res idual amo unt of
coo lant in the expansion tank¢(!) .
"' Let the engine coo l down.
"' Place a cloth over the coolant expans ion tank
cap and unscrew the cap counter cloc kwise
¢ &_ .
"'Add coolant mixed in the correct ratio
¢page 195 up to the upper marking .
"' Make sure that the fluid level remains stable.
Add more coo lant if necessary.
"' Close the cap securely.
A coolant loss suggests a leak. Immediately dr ive
your veh icle to an authori zed Audi dealer or au­
thor ized Audi Service Facility and have the cool­
ing system inspected . If the cooling system is not
leaking, a loss can come from the coolant boi ling
through overheating and be ing pushed o ut of the
coo ling system.
_& WARNING
T he coo ling sys tem is pres suriz ed a nd can be­
come very ho t. To reduce the r is k of burns
from hot coolant :
- Do no t open the coo la nt expan sion tan k cap
with the engine ho t. There is a risk of burns .
- Stop the engine and allow it to cool.
- Prote ct your face, hands and arms from es -
c aping co o lant and steam by covering the
c oolant t ank cap with a large, th ick cloth.
- T urn the coo la nt tank cap co un terclo ckwise
slowly a nd kee p lig ht pressu re o n the cap .
- T o reduce the risk of burns, do not allow any
an tifreeze o r coolant to drip on to the ex­
haus t sys tem or hot engine components.
T he ethylene glycol in eng ine coolan t can
catch fire under certain circumstances .
- T he coo lant add itive an d the cool ant can be
dange rous to you r healt h. For this reason,
keep the coolant in the o rigina l container
away from c hildren. There is a risk of poi­
soning .
- When working in the engine compartment,
remember that the rad iator fan can switch
on even if the ign ition is switched off, which
increases the risk of personal injury .
196
(D Note
Do not add coo lant if the expansion tank is
empty. A ir cou ld enter the cooling system and
damage the eng ine. If this is the case, do not
continue driving. See an author ized Audi deal­
e r o r a uthorized Audi Serv ice Facility fo r ass is ­
tance .
Radiator fan
The radia tor fan switches on au tomatically by it­
self.
An a uxiliary e lectric radiator fan switches on and
off depend ing on coo lant temperature and other
vehicle ope rating conditions .
After yo u switch the engine off, the auxiliary fan
can continue running for up to 10 m inutes - even
with the ignit ion off.
It can even switch on aga in
l ate r by itself ¢.& , if
- the temperat ure o f the eng ine coolant rises due
to the heat build- up from the engine in the en­
gine compartment, or
- the engine compartment heats up because the veh icle is parked in intense s unlight.
_& WARNING
- To reduce the r isk of personal injury never
to uch the radiator fan .
- The auxiliary e lectric fan is temperature
controlled and can switch on suddenly even
when the engine is not ru nning .
- The auxiliary radiator fan switches on auto­
mat ica lly when the eng ine coolant reaches a
certain temperature and will continue to run
until t he coo lant tempe rature d rops.
-

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Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
Fig. 165 Engine compartment : cover on t he brake fluid
reservoir (examp le)
"' N N
~ .,
Before you check anything in the engine compart­
ment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS
¢page 188, Working in the engine compart­
ment.
.,. Read the brake fluid level from the brake fluid
reservoir
~fig. 165, ¢page 191, fig. 161 . The
brake fluid level must be between the "MIN"
and "MAX" markings .
The location of the brake fluid reservoir can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
¢page 191.
The fluid level may drop slightly after some time
due to the automatic adjustment of the brake
pads . This is not cause for alarm.
I f the brake fluid level falls
considerably below
the "MIN" mark, the brake warning/indicator
light
1111 (U.S. mode ls)/ . (Canadian models)
will come on¢
page 15. Do not continue to oper­
ate the vehicle . The complete brake system
should be thoroughly checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or other qualified facility and the
cause corrected. If the brake fluid level is too
low, the brake warning/indicator light will illumi­
nate. Contact an authorized Audi dealer
immedi­
ately.
Checking and Filling
Changing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experienced
technician.
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. If the
water content in the brake fluid is too high, cor­
rosion in the brake system may result after ape ­
riod of time . The boiling point of the brake fluid
will also decrease considerably and decrease braking performance.
Therefore, the brake fluid must be changed
every
two years. Always use new brake fluid which con­
forms to Federal Motor Vehicle Standard "FMVSS
116 DO T 4" .
The brake fluid reservoir can be difficult to reach,
therefore, we recommend that you have the
brake fluid changed by your author ized
Audi
dealer. Your dealer has the correct tools, the
right brake fluid and the know-how to do this for
you.
A WARNING
- Brake fluid is poisonous. It must be stored
only in the closed original container out of
the reach of children!
- Brake failure can result from old or inappro­
priate brake fluid . Observe these precau­
tions:
- Use only brake fluid that meets SAE speci­
fication
J 1703 and conforms to Federal
Motor Vehicle Standard 116. Always check
with your authorized Audi dealer to make
sure you are using the correct brake fluid .
The correct type of brake fluid is also indi­
cated on the brake fluid reservoir.
- The brake fluid must be new. Heavy use of
the brakes can cause a vapor lock if the
brake fluid is left in the system too long.
This can seriously affect the efficiency of
the brakes as well as your safety. This
could result in an accident.
(D Note
Brake fluid will damage the paint of your vehi-
cle. ..,.
197

Check ing and F illing
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the prob lem of proper disposal of
brake fluid as we ll as the special tools re­
quired and the necessary expertise, we rec­
ommend that you have the b rake fluid
changed by your author ized Audi dealer .
Battery ( 12 V)
General information
All work on the battery requires expert knowl­
edge .
Read and follow the WARNINGS
before check­
i n g a nyth ing in the engine compartment
c::> page 188, Working in the engine compart­
ment.
The batte ry in you r Aud i does not need any main­
tena nce unde r
normal operating cond itions. A udi
re commends hav ing the e lectro lyte level check
by an au thor ized A udi dealer or au thori ze d Audi
Serv ice Facility when there a re
high outs ide tem ­
peratures or when driving a ll day. The elect rolyte
level sho uld a lso be checked each time the bat­
tery is charged
c::> page 200.
Have the battery checked when you bring your ve ­
hicle in for an inspection. It is a good idea to re­
p lace the battery if it is more than 5 years old .
T he batte ry is located in the eng ine compar tment
and is practically
maintenance-free .
Disconnecting the battery terminals
The battery shou ld not be d isconnected. Severa l
veh icle functions (power w indows, for example)
w ill be lost w hen the b attery is disconne cted. The
f u nctions mus t be reprog rammed after connect­
in g the battery. To avo id th is, the battery shou ld
only be disconn ecte d from the vehicle e lectrica l
system when it is abso lutely necessary.
T o reprogram the func tions, proceed as follows:
198
Function Reprogramming
Power window one-c::> page 35, Correcting
touch up/down func-power window malfunc-
tion tions
Remote control key o r If the vehicle does no t
Convenience key react to the key, it must
be synchronized
c::> page29
Dig ita l cl ock c::>page 10
ESC indicator light The ind icator light goes
o ut after driving a few
meters
Not running the vehicle for long period s of
time
If you do not drive your vehicle for severa l days o r
weeks, electrical components are gradually re­ d u ced or switched off . This reduces energy con­
s u mp tion and mai ntain s the vehicle's ability to
st art over a long perio d of time
c::> page 1 21.
Some conven ien ce f unctions, such as inter ior
li ght ing o r power seats* may not wor k. T hese
convenience functions will be availab le aga in
once you sw itch the ignition on and start the en­
gine.
Winter operation
D ur ing the winte r mon ths, it is common for the
batte ry capac ity to decrease as the temperatures
become lower . This is because more power is
needed to start the vehicle and components such
as the headlights and the rear window defogger
a re used more freque ntly .
Avoid using power unnecessa rily, espec ia lly in
c ity dr iving o r on short t rips. Have your author­
i z ed Audi dealer or author iz ed Audi Se rvice Facili­
ty check the battery capacity be fore the start of
winter
c::> page 200 . A well -cha rged battery will
not only reduce sta rting prob lems in cold wea th­
e r, bu t it will a lso l ast longer.
.&_ WARNING
- W ork on the b attery requires e xper t knowl­
e d ge. Con tact an a uthor ized Audi dealer or
author ized Audi Se rvice Facility for info rma ­
tion rega rding the vehicle batte ry. There is a
-
ris k for chemical burns or e xplosions . ..,.