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Another Newbie

17K views 70 replies 10 participants last post by  rebop 
#1 ·
A4 Avant Ultrasport owner just bought a Q3 Prestige Sport. A tad confusing, but have enjoyed the first 122 miles :)

Questions of course! And have learned a bit from reading here, so thanks for the knowledge base.

~Bob
 
#2 ·
Hey Bob - Welcome to the forum - you should find some good stuff here for your new Q - hope you enjoy the family -
 
#5 ·
Thanks. I am searching and not finding all.

What do you all prefer? All questions in one topic (I have 13 at the moment) or spread though the forum closer to topics or even here? Let em know protocol and I will ask away :)

BTW, got 140 miles on it now and read all but the MMI manual and have most things programmed. Some by accident :) My last new car was a 2005 Audi A4 Avant Ultrasport. Things have changed :)

~Bob
 
#7 ·
OK. Will start with a couple of easy ones :) I won't post them all at once:

1. Compass! I seem to be "right on the line" between two zones. How do you decide which to use for the setting?

2. Coming home lights timing...seems awfully short. Did I miss an adjustment preference for that? Someone mentioned can be done with Vag Com, but I would think there must be an easier way.

3. What in the world do you put into those compartments at the bottom front of the seats? Hardly big enough for a washcloth. Audi must have had something in mind, no? CD's don't fit. Nor a concealed carry :)

Maybe I will try 3 a day and continue to search to see what may have been answered.
 
#8 ·
rebob, remember, you may only get opinions here....and you'll have to choose the answer you like best. :rolleyes:

1. Does it really matter? The compass only gives you a change in indication every 45 degrees (N, NE, E, SE, etc.), so it is not meant to be precise or used for navigation.

2. You can use the MMI car setting to have the "coming home"/"leaving home" lights set to ON or OFF, but you have no control from the MMI for the length of time they remain on. I have found leaving home lights stay on a long time, but you are correct, once the doors are closed and locked, the coming home lights only stay on for about 10-12 seconds. (And as I'm sure you've discovered, the light switch must be in AUTO for those functions to work).

3. Haha, who knows what you can put in those little drawers as its contents really can't be viewed from the driver's seat!! As our Q3 is my wife's car...I asked her what she kept there, and it turns out she keeps the power cord to her phone under the seat, and a bag full of parking meter change in the little compartment under the dash below the headlights switch.
 
#9 ·
Thanks :) I have already placed my roll of quarters for parking meters in the same place.

Will consider coming home closed. A shame. 10-12 seconds is pretty short and I am not sure I am getting that.

Compass is interesting. I would have expected a little more accuracy. And, as you will see if not yet, I am a tweak and like to eek the best out of anything I engage with.

I was going to ask if all are happy with the MMI folding mod, but read the entire thread tonight. I want to do this, but have not yet found another mod in the forums I have to do. Looking for someone SF Bay Area to do the mod for me as I have recently learned an expensive lesson that I do not possess the skills of a watchmaker. Posted in that thread.

I was going to ask about Bose mods as I feel let down by the Bose quality in the Q3, but added my thoughts and questions to that thread.

So let's add a few more questions:

4. There was some discrepancy on tire pressure (dealer and manual 33, B pillar at 44). Took 515 bicycle pump pumps to go from 33 as delivered to 44 on 4 tires :) That seems to be the consensus for best pressure. Agree?

5. Why is "parking plus" affected by Dynamic Drive Setting? There is mention in the manual it may not work properly with Dynamic set. I do not see the connection.

6. For that matter, what is the relationship between Drive Mode Setting and "S"? How do they interact. Or do they?

Working through the list and appreciate the input.

~Bob
 
#11 ·
5. Why is "parking plus" affected by Dynamic Drive Setting? There is mention in the manual it may not work properly with Dynamic set. I do not see the connection.

6. For that matter, what is the relationship between Drive Mode Setting and "S"? How do they interact. Or do they?

Working through the list and appreciate the input.

~Bob
5 & 6. Your Q3 has Dynamic Drive and Drive Mode Settings? I didn't think that was available on US models. That's a head scratcher....:confused:
I think that you are referring to the Drive Select settings of Auto, Comfort & Dynamic. My understanding is that these settings just change the feel of the steering. They do not change the suspension in the Q3.

Sport mode changes the shift points for a more spirited ride.
 
#10 ·
4. Well, John and mlabas (Roger) had a discussion on this and both liked 44 front and 46 rear, as I recall, but again, I think it's personal preference. Roger wrote: Normal (i.e. lower) pressures give you a more softer and comfortable ride. Higher pressures reduce rolling resistance and can give you better mileage.

My wife is currently running 33/33 on her Q3, but only because that is the way they were set at the dealer, and she says she loves the ride. As one of our nephews is a driving instructor for the various police departments in the area, we will eventually take our Q3 to the track and will test some pressure settings on both slippery and dry surfaces.

5 & 6. Your Q3 has Dynamic Drive and Drive Mode Settings? I didn't think that was available on US models. That's a head scratcher....:confused:
 
#13 ·
Thanks on the tire pressure. I am surprised the rear would be higher as I am usually a sole occupant and the rear should not be heavier. I think I will see how 44 all around works for a bit. And interesting to know yours was deliver with 33 DampDuffer. I will look forward to your testing.

Perhaps let me clarify part two of that last question:

There are three Drive Modes for what, Comfort, Auto and Dynamic.

My manual states that Parking Assist is not accurate when set to Dynamic and that baffles me.

Then, there is "S" or Sport Mode below D or Drive. I want to know the interaction between, let's say, Dynamic and Sport Mode.

I don't think it is just steering and definitely does nothing to suspension. Seems to change shift points in a similar, but different way than Sport Mode. There must be some interaction between the two sets of choices.

And thanks for the replies. Once I get a handle on this one, I 'll post a few more questions. Since I have Bose and folding MMI going in other threads, I think I have only 7 left :) Many simple questions, some a bit more confusing like this relationship in drive modes above.

~Bob
 
#14 ·
I think that both Sport and Dynamic do similar things. I think Sport just take it a bit further with the shift points and throttle mapping. I am not sure that Sport has any affect on the steering that I can feel. I usually keep mine set to Dynamic and I have not noticed that hampers the working of the back up sensors. I haven't had a chance to use the parking assist as I don't get to parallel park very often.
 
#16 ·
Let me offer a comment on the Drive Select and S mode of the gearbox. Drive Select offers a change in ramp of accelerator (throttle) curve as well as steering input (it's an electrically controlled rack) - that's basically it. Sports mode on the gear selector alters the shift points and behavior of holding the gears before upshifts as well as downshifts, but does nothing to the the throttle map ramp. SprintBooster does the same as Dynamic for the throttle map ramp, only more aggressively - see the curves below :



The connection between Dynamic Drive Select and Park Assist is merely the calculations per throttle position to enhance the Park Assist audibles. Think of the assist's ability to keep up with real throttle inputs at low speeds - that's all. Park Assist is set to a fixed rate of throttle inputs (the Normal curve) for the audible warnings - if you adjust the throttle map more aggressively then the programmed fixed rate is now "slow" hence less accurate. In the real world you may not get the solid tone warning until you've actually hit something rather than have time to react ...

I have the SprintBooster set to red all the time and know to be VERY careful with the Park Assist at all but the slowest of speeds ...
 
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#17 ·
A SUPERB explanation. Thank you Roger!

Another question off the list :)

How about two easy ones?

1. Is the User Manual available to download anywhere? Would love to have a pdf copy on my computer. Have not found one.

2. There is an aluminum strip bottom rear of cargo area. My last Audi had this as well, but the Avant "felt" like bare metal. This one feels "coated" with plastic. Not quite like the blue covers they put on to protect and it doesn't look like it comes off, but it is tacky to the touch and seems like it should be removable. Is everyone's like this?

Maybe tonight I'll post Traffic and Audi Connect questions....

Very helpful forum folks. Thanks so much.

~Bob
 
#18 ·
2. There is an aluminum strip bottom rear of cargo area. My last Audi had this as well, but the Avant "felt" like bare metal. This one feels "coated" with plastic. Not quite like the blue covers they put on to protect and it doesn't look like it comes off, but it is tacky to the touch and seems like it should be removable. Is everyone's like this?

~Bob
My aluminum strip had some residual glue that I cleaned up with some Simple Green and elbow grease.:)
 
#19 ·
The one on the showroom floor had that. This is different. Almost like its not supposed to be removed. I'll be that glue was from removing this. I may have to ask the dealer.

Noting that Sirius radio has drop outs. My A4 never had this issue. A bit concerning. And no tree canopies or tunnels.

I'm surprised thee is nothing to hold the cargo floor open. The Avant folded back nicely. This is cumbersome,. Surprised it is not better thought out.
And I just do not understand the "cooler" in the glove box. What is that intended to cool? Certainly not cans of beer nor white wine. And since its the only place to hold the manuals, does not leave a lot of room.

I think all my remaining questions are MMI / Traffic / Audio Connect. Need to finish that manual and see what remains to ask.

~Bob
 
#20 ·
OK, new question.

Auto lights worked exactly as expected on the A4. On the Q3 they come on when it is still bright daylight! These are not the running lights, but full headlights. AND, there is no dash icon telling me they are on or off. Is that possible?

~Bob
 
#21 ·
That does not make sense to me. In broad daylight? Mine will come on in the garage but as soon as I get outside they turn off - except the LEDs.
 
#22 ·
Thanks John. This may be the first fixable bug so far. It was about 4 or 4:30 yesterday. Today, I went to the airport. You go from outside to under the level above and back to outside. Was not very responsive shutting off as light appeared.

Am I missing an indicator that lights are on somewhere? Have to check the manual (out in the car) I assume there is a brights indicator but have not tired that yet.

~Bob
 
#25 ·
I have not figured this one out. It vexes me every time. It will stay on presets on the Nav screen but not on the dash screen which is the one I want it to stay on!
 
#26 ·
Exactly. I would think this is the most used "band".

As to headlights, found the blue for brights exactly where I would expect to find it. But by "green", do you mean on the dashboard or the switch? If the switch, that is a very funny place for the headlight indicator.

~Bob
 
#27 ·
Yup - it's on the switch - as far as I know this is been true since 2006 ... My B7 A4 had it that way, so too my TT, S5, Q3 and R8 ...
 
#28 ·
Of course, Roger :) My last was a 2005 with it on the dash :)

OK, some updates and new important question:

I have isolated my sound system problems to the Sirius tuner. FM is good, CD is very good, Sirius unacceptable audio quality and has never been that way for me before. Anyone else find that? I may have to go in for this one right away.

Next, all cars drip water with the A/C on, but this one drips a lot. maybe 4 5 times what I might expect. Maybe 3. But you get the point. AND, it stains the asphalt. Every time. As if it is more than water.

Coolant is dead between high and low points. Not oil. What else could be going on here?

Coming home is only on for maybe 4 or 5 seconds. I do have to complain to the dealer for that. Not even the 10 that someone mentioned above.

And just a comment - do you know that Mercedes and BMW owners get 50% more loyalty than Audi owners on a new purchase? Really offended me to find this out.

Still 2 or 3 more questions to post when I get around to it.

~Bob
 
#30 ·
No - don't think so - you get your 6 months of Sirius everything - after that you're on your own ...
Of course they'll hound you every 2 weeks to sign up - hold out, every 2 weeks the deal gets sweeter until you can get another 6 months for like $10/mo - which is usually their B&F...
 
#33 ·
That would be a good thing. I'll try to find more. Thanks Roger.

Any comments on the air conditioning "water" would be appreciated. I'm working on the Sirius Tuner issue. My iPhone streaming Sirius is better through my home hi-fi than the Q3. And the A4 Sirius tuner was superb. I am hoping mine is defective. Maybe I can get them to install the folding MMI at the same time they repair this :)

~Bob
 
#35 ·
Regarding Sirius Radio....just took a 500+ mile trip and found that using seek or scan with the FM radio worked just fine and we have no need for Sirius, seriously!

I welcome four years of traffic info, but for the most part, what am I going to do about most traffic situations anyway....?

On a side note, I was very impressed with the clarity of the Bose system while listening to music, but it was especially good when listening to all the talk, news, and discussions on NPR. On other cars we've owned I could rarely hear what they were saying with any regularity.
 
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