height AUDI S3 2015 Owners Manual

56 Seat s a nd s tor ag e
Seats and storage
General information
Important information
& WARNING
Refer to the chapter Driving Safely
r::!>poge 125, Driving safety for important
information, t ips, suggestions and warn­
ings that you should read and follow for
your own safety and the safety of your pas­ sengers.
Why is your seat adjustment so important?
The safety belts and the airbag system con
only provide maximum protection if the front
seats ore correctly adjusted.
There are various ways of adjusting the front
seats to provide safe and comfortable support
for the driver and the front passenger. Adjust
your seat properly so that :
- you can easily and quickly reach all the
switches and controls in the instrument
panel
- your body is properly supported thus reduc­
ing physical stress and fatigue
- the safety belts and airbag system can offer
maximum protection
r::!> page 144 .
In the following sections, you will see exactly
how you can best adjust your seats .
There are special regulations and instructions
for insta lling a child seat on the front pas­
senger's seat. Always follow the information regarding child safety provided in
r::!> page 170, Child Safety .
& WARNING
Incorrect seating position of the dr iver and
all other passengers can result in serious
personal in jury.
- Always keep your feet on the f loor when
the vehicle is in motion - never p ut your
feet on top of the instrumen t panel, out of the window or on top of the seat c
ush­
ion. This applies espec ially to the passen­
gers. If your seating position is incorrect,
you increase the risk of injury in the case
of sudden braking or an accident .
If the
airbag inflates and the seating position is incorrect, this could result in pe rsonal
inj ury or even death.
- It is important for both the drive r and
front passenger to keep a distance of at least 10 inches ( 25 cm) between them­
selves and the steering wheel and/or in ­
strument panel. If you're sitting any
closer than this, the airbag system can­ not protect you properly. In addition, the
front seats and head restraints must be
adjusted to your body height so that they
can give you max imum protect ion.
- Always try to keep as much distance as
possible between yourself and the steer­
ing wheel o r instrument panel.
- Do not adjust the driver's or front pas­
senger's seat whi le the vehicle is moving.
Your seat may move unexpectedly, caus­
ing sudden loss of veh icle cont ro l and
pe rsonal injury. If you adjust yo ur seat
while the veh icle is moving, yo u are ou t
of posit ion .
Driver's seat
The correct seat position is important for safe
and relaxed driving.
We recommend that you adjust the dr iver's
seat in the fo llow ing manne r:
.. Adjust the seat in fore and aft direction so
that you can easily push the peda ls to the
floor wh ile keeping your knees sl ightly bent
c::> &. in Why is your seat adjustment so im­
portant? on page 56.
.. Ad just the bac krest so tha t when you sit
w ith your back against the backrest, you can
still grasp the top of the steering wheel.
.. For adjustab le head restraints: adjust the
head restra int so the upper edge is as even
as poss ible with the top of your head. If that
is not possible, try to adjust the head ..,.

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is folded down. Because of this, the armrest
should not be folded down during city driving.
The arm rest can slide forward and back.
There is a storage compartment under the
arm rest.
Rear center armrest
A pplies to vehicles : wit h rear ce nter ar mres t
The storage compartment and cup holder are
integrated in the armrest.
Fig. 49 Rear armrest
Folding the armrest down
~ Tilt the armrest all the way down.
Opening the storage compartment
~ Lift the cover on the upper rim.
For more information on the use of the cup
holders, see
c:> page 61.
Headrests
Front head restraints
A ppl ies to vehicles : wit h adju stab le head restra ints
F ig. 50 Front seat: Ad justing th e head restraint
Seats and storage 59
Applies to vehicles with super sport seats* (no
illustration): The head restraints are integrat­
ed in the backrest and cannot be adjusted.
Adjust the head restraints so the upper edge
is as even as possib le with the top of your
head. If that is not possible, try to adjust as
close to this position as possible. Push the head restraint as close as possible to the back
of the head.
~ To move the head restraint up or forward,
slide it until it locks into place.
~ To move the head restraint down or back,
press the side button -arrow-
c:> fig. SO and
slide the head restraint until it locks into
place .
Refer to
c:> page 129, Proper adjustment of
head restraints
for guidelines on how to ad­
just the height of the front head restraints to
su it the occupant's body size .
.&_ WARNING
- Driving without head restraints or head
restraints that are not adjusted correctly
dramatically increases the risk of serious
or fatal neck injuries.
- Read and following the WARNINGS in
r::!) page 129, Proper adjustment of head
restraints.
(D Tips
Head restraints that are adjusted correctly
and safety belts are an extremely effective
combination of safety equipment.
Rear head restraints
Fig. 51 Outer rear head restraints : release point

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for a complete roof rack system. Additiona l
attachments or carrier systems are needed
to transport luggage and sports equipment.
We recommend using roof racks from the
Audi original accessories program.
- When installing the roof rack, make sure it
is only mounted on the designated locations
on the roof¢
fig. 57.
-We recommend that you keep the installa­
tion instructions for your roof rack system
together with your Owner's literature in the
vehicle .
When should the roof rack be remo ved ?
-Before going through an automatic car wash
(it is best to ask the car wash operator for
advice).
- When not in use, to reduce fuel consump­
t ion, w ind no ise and to guard against theft .
A WARNING
-Use of an unapproved roof rack or incor­
rect mount ing of an approved roof rack
can cause the roof rack or the items at­
tached to it to fa ll off the roof onto the
road.
- Objects fall ing from the roof of a veh icle
can cause a c rash and persona l injury.
- Only mount the roof rack on the desig­
nated locations on the roof¢
fig. 57.
-The roof rack system must be installed
exactly according to the instructions pro­
vided.
- When driving w ith a roof rack system,
changes to the center of g ravity and wind
resistance can change the veh icle han­
dling and lead to a collision. A lways
adapt your driving and your speed to the
c u rrent conditions.
(D Note
- Your veh icle warranty does not cover any
damages to the veh icle caused by using
r oof racks or mo unting structures not
approved by Audi for your vehicle. The
same applies to damage resulting from i ncorrect roof rack installation.
S eat s an d sto rage 63
- Always check the roof rack mountings
and hardware before each trip and dur­
ing a trip to make s ure everyth ing is se ­
curely tightened. If necessary, ret ighten
the mountings and check the entire sys­
tem from time to time.
- After mount ing a roof rack system, or
when you transport objects on the roof
of your vehicle, the height of the veh icle
is naturally increased . Be careful when
dr iving unde r low bridges or in parki ng
garages for example. This cou ld cause
damage to the load and even the vehicle
itself .
- Make sure the open rear lid and the sun­
roo f* do not come in to contact with the
roo f rac k.
Loading the roof rack
Always distribute loads evenly. Make sure
anything on the roof rack is securely tied
down .
.,. Always dis tribute the loads on the roof rack
even ly .
.,. Always attach items to the roof rack securely
before you drive off .
T he maxim um permissible roof we ight is
1 6 5 lb (75 kg ). The roof weight is the total of
the weight of the roof rack, the attachments
and the cargo you are carrying. You must a lso
not exceed the maximum load weight for the
roof rack you are using.
When using a roof rack system which has a
lower load carrying capacity, you must not use
up the tota l maximum permissible load carry­
ing capacity specified above. Instead, you
should load the roof rack system only to the
max imum capacity specified by the manufac­
ture r of the roof rack system .
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or imprope r straps used
to secure items to the roof rack can fail
during ha rd braking o r in a coll is ion and
cause ser ious persona l injury .
.
•

126 Driving safety
• Make sure that all lights and signals are op­
erating correctly .
• Make sure that the tire pressure is correct .
• Make sure that a ll windows are clean and af ­
ford good visibility to the o utside.
• Secure all luggage and other items ca refully
c:::> page 64, c:::>page 62 .
• Make sure that noth ing can i nterfere with
t h e pedals.
• Adjust front seat, head rest rain t and mirro rs
correct ly for your he ight .
• Instr uct passenge rs to adjust the head re­
straints according to their height.
• Make sure to use the right child restraint
correctly to protect chi ldren
c:> page 170 ,
Child Safe ty .
• Sit properly i n your seat and make sure that
you r passenge rs do the same
c:::> page 57,
Front seats .
• Fasten your safety be lt and wear it properly.
Also ins truc t your passengers to faste n their
sa fety belts proper ly
c:> pag e 13 5.
What impairs driving safety?
Safe driving i s direc tly rela ted to the condi­
tion of the vehicle, the driver as well as the
driver 's ability to concentrate on the road
without being distracted .
The driver is respons ib le for the safety of the
ve hicl e and a ll of its occupants . If you r ability
to drive is impaired , safety r is k s for everybody
in the vehicle increase and you a lso become a
hazard to everyone else on the road
c:> &_ .
Therefore:
• Do not let you rself be distracted by passen­
gers or by using a cellular telephone.
• NEV ER dr ive when your dr iv ing ability is im­
paired (by medicat ions, alcohol, drugs, etc.).
• Observe all traffic laws , rules of the road
and speed limits and plain common sense .
• ALWAYS ad just your speed to road, t raff ic
and weathe r condit ions .
• Take frequent breaks on long t rips. Do not
dr ive for mo re th an two hours a t a str etc h .
• Do N OT drive when you are t ired, under
pressure or when you are stressed .
A WARNING
-Impaired driving safety increases the r isk
of ser ious perso nal inju ry and death when ­
ever a vehicle is bei ng use d.
Proper occupant
seating positions
Proper seating position for the driver
The proper driver seating position is impor­
tant for safe, relaxed driving.
Fig . 11 4 Correct seat ing pos it io n
For you r own safety and to reduce t he risk of
injury in the event of an accident, we recom­
me nd that you adjust t he d river's seat to the
f o llow ing pos ition:
.,. Ad just the driver's seat so that you can easi­
ly p ush the pedals all the way to the floo r
while keep ing you r knee(s) slightly bent
c:>& ,
.,. Adj ust t he an gle of the seatba ck so th at it is
in an uprigh t position so that your back
comes in full contact with it when you drive.
• Adj ust the steering whee l so that t here is a
distance of at least 10 inches
(25 cm) be­
tween the steering wheel and your breast bone
c:::> fig. 114 . If not possible, see your a u­
thor ized Audi dealersh ip about adaptive
equ ipment .
.. Ad just t he steering whee l so that the steer­
ing wheel and airbag c over poi nts at your
ches t and not a t your f ace.
• Grasp the top o f the steering whee l with
your elbow(s) slightly bent .
• For ad justab le head restra ints : Adjust the
head restra int so the uppe r edge is as even
as poss ible with the top of your head. If that..,_

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To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer's body.
... Adjust the front seat and head restraint
properly
c::> page 5 7, Front seats.
• Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in an upright position and securely
latched in place before using the belt
c::> ,&..
... Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it even­
ly across the chest and pelvis
c::> ,&. .
""Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
c::> fig. 123.
.., Pull on the belt to make sure that it is se-
curely latched in the buckle.
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped with an automat­
ic belt retractor on the shoulder belt . This fea­
ture locks the belt when the belt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and in an accident.
The belt may also lock when you drive up or
down a steep hill or through a sharp curve. During normal driving the belt lets you move
freely.
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped with a belt pre­
tensioner that helps to tighten the safety belt
and remove slack when the pretensioner is ac­
tivated
c::> poge 142. The function of the pre­
tensioner is monitored by a warning light
c::> page 21.
Convertible locking retractor
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking re­
tractor that
must be used when the safety
belt is used to attach a child seat. Be sure to
read the important information about this
feature
c::> poge 181.
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious injury in an accident
o::> page 139, Safety belt position.
-Safety belts offer optimum protection
only when the seatback is upright and
Safety belts 139
belts are properly positioned on the
body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat
backrest to which the center rear safety
belt* is attached is securely latched
whenever the rear center safety belt is
being used. If the backrest is not secure­
ly latched, the passenger will move for­
ward with the backrest during sudden
braking, in a sudden maneuver and espe­
cially in a crash .
- Never attach the safety belt to the buck­
le for another seat. Attaching the belt to
the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt
effectiveness and can cause serious per­
sonal injury.
- A passenger who is not correctly restrain­
ed can be seriously injured by the safety
belt itself when it moves from the stron­
ger parts of the body into sensitive areas
like the abdomen.
- Always lock the convertible locking re­
tractor when you are securing a child seat in the vehicle
c::> page 183.
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretension­
ers, refer to
c::> page 142.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting
maximum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 124 Safety belt position
Use the height adjustment to change the posi­
tion of the shoulder belt of the front safety
belts .
~

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_& WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehi­
cle is movi ng . Doing so will increase your
r isk of being injured or killed .
Adjusting the safety belt latch tongue
Fig. 127 Safety be lt: la tc h ton gue clip (exa mple)
.. Slide the cl ip so that you can easi ly reach the
belt latch when putt ing the safety belt on.
Adjusting safety belt height
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust­
ment , the three point safety belt strap rout­
ing can be fitted to the shoulder area, accord­
ing to body size.
Fi g. 12 8 Safety be lt heig ht ad justment fo r th e fro nt
seats -loop -arou nd fitt ings
;g 0 0 6
" m
The sho ulder belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fit well on t he body
c::> A in Safety belt
position on page 140 .
.. Push
the loop-a round fittings up c::> fig . 128
@ , or
.. squee ze together the (D button, and push
the loop-around fitt ings down @.
Safety belts 141
.. Pull the belt to make sure that the uppe r at­
tachment is proper ly engaged .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNI NGS and
other important information
c::> page 138 .
{I) Tips
With the front seats, the height a djust­
ment of the seat can also be used to ad just
the position of the sa fety belts.
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause
severe injuries.
Wea ring sa fety belts improper ly can cause se ­
rious injury or deat h. Safety belts can o nly
wor k when they are correctly positioned on
the body. Imprope r seating positions reduce
the effectiveness of safety be lts and will even
increase t he risk of injury and death by mov­
ing the safety be lt to crit ica l areas of the
body . Improper seating positions also in­
cr ease the r is k of se rio us injury a nd death
whe n an airbag dep loys and st rikes an occu ­
pan t who is no t in the co rrec t seating posi­
t ion . A driver is respons ible for the safety of
all vehicle occupants and especially for chil­
dren. Therefore :
.. Never perm it anyone to assume an incor re ct
sitt ing pos ition in the vehicle while trave ling
c::> A .
A WARNING
Im properly worn safety be lts i ncrease the
risk of serious persona l injury and death
wheneve r a ve hicle is being used.
- Always make s ure t hat all vehicle occ u­
pa nts are co rrectly restra ined and stay in
a co rrect seati ng position whenever the
veh icle is being us ed .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS a nd
other impo rtant informat ion
c::> page 138.

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www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/per­chlorate. When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system includ ing airbag modules
and safety belts with pretensioners are
scrapped, all applicable laws and regula­
tions must be observed. Your authorized
Audi dealer is familiar with these require­
ments and we recommend that you have
your dealer perform this serv ice for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem performs in a crash. For example, using
tire-r im combinations not approved by Audi,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the springs, suspen­
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the electron ic control
unit. Some suspension changes can, for exam­
ple, increase the force levels measured by the
sensors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in which it would not deploy if the
changes had not been made. Other kinds of
changes may reduce the force levels meas­
ured by the sensors and prevent the airbag
from deploying when it should .
A WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension includ­
ing use of unapproved tire-rim combina­
tions can change Advanced Airbag per­
formance and increase the risk of serious
personal injury in a crash.
- Never install suspension components
that do not have the same performance characteristics as the components origi­
nally insta lled on your vehicle.
- Never use tire-rim combinations that
have not been approved by Audi.
Airbag system 161
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
Applies to vehicles: wi th knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained
front seat occupants.
Fig. 133 Driver's kn ee airbag
The dr iver knee airbag is in the instrument
panel underneath the steering wheel
¢
fig. 133, the airbag for the passenger is at
about the same height in the instrument pan­
el underneath the glove compartment.
The knee airbag offers additional protection
to the driver's and passenger's knees and up ­
per and lower thigh areas and supplements
the protection provided by the safety belts.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
also dep loy in frontal collisions when the de­
ployment threshold stored in the control unit
is met¢
page 154, More important things to
know about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function,
safety belts help keep the driver or front pas­
senger in position in a frontal collision so that
the airbags can provide supplemental protec­
tion.
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your vehicle. Al­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety be lt and wearing it properly. This
is why you should always wear your safety
belt, not just because the law requires you to
do so¢
page 135, General notes. ..,_

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-If you notice unusual vibra­tion 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.
(D Note
-Please note that summer and winter tires are de­
signed for the conditions
that are typical in those sea­
sons. Audi recommends us­ing winter tires during the
winter months. Low tem­ peratures significantly de­
crease the elasticity of
summer tires, which affects
traction and braking ability.
Tires and wheels 235
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.
' •

254 Tires and wheels
-Tires age even if they are
not being used and can fail
suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more
than 6 years old can only be
used in an emergency and
then with special care and at lower speeds.
-Never mount used tires on your vehicle if you are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have
been damaged even though
the damage cannot be seen
that can lead to sudden tire
fa ilure and loss of vehicle
control. New tires and replacing
tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to
be broken in.
Fig. 172 Tire specification codes on
the sidewall of a tire
No. Description
CD Passenger car tire (where
applicable)
@ Nominal width of tire in
millimeters
@ Ratio of height to width
(aspect ratio)
@) Radial
® Rim diameter code
® Load index and speed rat -
1ng
0 U .S . DOT tire identifica-
tion number

256 Tires and wheels
the Audi models covered by
your Owner's Literature.
The tire pressure label located
on driver's side B-pillar
(¢ page 240, fig . 169) lists the
specifications of the original
equipment tires installed on
your vehicle at the time it was
manufactured .
Federal law requires tire manu­
facturers to place standardized
information on the sidewall of
all tires
¢ fig. 172. This infor­
mation identifies and describes
the fundamental characteris­
tics, the quality grade of the
tire and also provides a tire identification number for safety
standard certification and in
case of a recall.
Tire specifications
Knowledge of tire specifications
makes it easier to choose the
correct tires . Radial tires have
the tire specifications marked
on the sidewall, for example:
255/40 R 19 100 H XL
This contains the following in­
formation :
P Indicates the tire is for pas­
senger cars (where applica­
ble)
255 Nominal tire width in mm
of the tire from sidewall
edge to sidewall edge. In
general, the larger the num­
ber, the wider the tire
40 Height/width ratio in per­
cent (aspect ratio)
R Tire construction: Radial
19 Rim diameter code (in in-
ches)
100 Load rating code
H Speed rating letter code
XL (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD" or
"RF") Indicates that the tire
is a "Reinforced" or an "Extra
Load" tire
M+S (or "M/5 ") Indicates that
the tire has some mud and
snow capability
The tires could also have the in­
formation of direction of rota­
tion
¢ page 234.
Tire manufacturing date
The manufacturing date is also
indicated on the tire sidewall
(possibly only on the
inner side
of the wheel) : .,..