A3 has two reversing lights? Or just one?

[rabh]

When I got out of my car at a car park today somebody informed me that only one of my reversing lights is working on my A3 8P.

Seems a very stupid question, but should there only be one? Or should they both be working? When my brake light went out I got a warning on the dash. If one has gone out, should I get a warning for this too?

Thanks.

 

[Roswell]

There is only one reversing light and one rear fog light.

 

[d3fy]

I have also been told on two seperate occasions that I have one out..

 

[Boydie]

thought that too when i first got the car - think ive been told once i have a reverse light out lol

 

[ianspibs]

A3 has one reverse light and one rear fog, A3 Sportback has two of each.

 

[Gti Jazz Blue]

Yes I can confirm only one reversing and one fog on the A3 3 door.

Mind personally I prefer the rear clusters on the 3 door, not that keen on the Sportback rear.

 

[stevehsv868]

Its a shame really you dont expect a quality car to have one rear fog light and one reversing light. for the sake of two extra bulbs i dont think Audi should have cut this corner

Ive been told Ive got a reversing light out several times.

 

[h5djr]

In Audi's home market in Germany most cars only have a single rear fog light.

 

[Gti Jazz Blue]

Its a shame really you dont expect a quality car to have one rear fog light and one reversing light. for the sake of two extra bulbs i dont think Audi should have cut this corner

Ive been told Ive got a reversing light out several times.

Point is that there isn't the room in the 3 door light clusters.

 

[Dandle]

Its a shame really you dont expect a quality car to have one rear fog light and one reversing light. for the sake of two extra bulbs i dont think Audi should have cut this corner

Ive been told Ive got a reversing light out several times.

I think you will find that the bulbs are there, the car just needs recoding with Vag-com to get them working in pairs.

 

[stevec]

In Audi's home market in Germany most cars only have a single rear fog light.

This is actually the reason why you only have one reversing light.

Before the days of rear central brake lights it was not easy to know the car in front was breaking or not, so only one hi-visibiltiy light was fitted. This has remained to this day. I personally think its a good thing as long as you get an alert via DSI that a bulb is out (whch you do)...

 

[Staz]

I think you will find that the bulbs are there, the car just needs recoding with Vag-com to get them working in pairs.

Nope that is incorrect. There is only circuitry for one fog and one reverse light.

 

[Dandle]

Nope that is incorrect. There is only circuitry for one fog and one reverse light.

That is incorrect for the fogs anyway I have both coded to work on my car.

heres the instuctions to Enable Rear Fog Lights:


* Click on '09-Central Elect'

* When you go into this module, it will scan for fault codes and go straight to a fault code screen. It should say 'No Fault Codes Found'. Click the 'Done, go back' button to get to the main screen for this module.

* Click on 'Long Coding - 07'

* You may get a pop-up warning, click 'yes' for long coding

* WRITE DOWN your original long code before doing anything else at all.

* Click on 'Long Coding Helper'

* In the Long Coding Helper, set:


o Byte 03 bit 01 to '0' for both rear fogs, or '1' for 1 rear fog

o Byte 04 bit 04 to '1'

o Byte 04 bit 06 to '0'


* Click 'Transfer Coding'

* Quit out of the Long Coding Helper

* See that the new Long Code differs from the original one

* Click 'Do it!'

* Verify that the new Long Code is stored.

* Click 'Done, go back'

* Click 'Close controller, Go Back'

You can find more info on the long coding sheet here http://oooo-a3.blogspot.com/2006/02/a3-can-system-long-coding-worksheet.html, i bet the instuctions for both reversing lights are there too.

 

[Gti Jazz Blue]

The key point here is that you have a Sportback, you can't do that on a 3 door as there is only physically 1 reversing and 1 fog.

Paul

 

[Staz]

The key point here is that you have a Sportback, you can't do that on a 3 door as there is only physically 1 reversing and 1 fog.

Paul

Yes that's what I was saying

 

[Dandle]

The key point here is that you have a Sportback, you can't do that on a 3 door as there is only physically 1 reversing and 1 fog.

Paul

The three door still has twin reversing lights lenses at the rear though doesnt it? The coding for the car will be no different as they are both on the 8P platform and use the same can gateway. Ive coded a mk5 golf and thats the same as mine. I cant see why the three door A3 would have its own software. On a side note the car doenst need a specific fog light bulb as the coding changes the amount of power a bulb gives out in %, so in theory any bulb fitted thats a high enough wattage can be coded for side light(lower %age) of fog light (100%). For instance I can make all three bulbs each side of my car work as brake lights and side lights if I code it that way.

 

[h5djr]

I'm not sure that it would only be a matter of coding, as with a 3 door A3 there are a number of different rear light cluster parts used depending on whether its for left or right hand drive and for the left and right hand side of the car.

Here is a page fron the ETKA parts catalogue showing all the different parts available.

Rear Light parts

 

[Dandle]

Yes but the canbus will be the same(as will the wiring across the cars) it will just be coded differently. The days of a wire running from a switch to a light unit are gone electrics pretty much all go through can gateways now, then the gateway controls what is turned on/off with what switch and what % in power the unit is supplied with.

 

[ianspibs]

I've had a 3 door and now have the Sportback.
I had the light cluster off the 3 door A3, in the hope that I could put the bulbs in for extra fogs lights and reversing lights.
I found that there was a space in the plastic moulding but no wiring and no metal pressed into the plastic to hold the bulb in place.
So no, you can't do it on the 3 door A3, at least not the one I used to have.

 

[Dandle]

Oh ok, I was under the impression that all the bulb holders with bulbs would be fitted to both sides. The sportback comes with lights that arent used but the lights are still fitted to these positions. My bad then.

 

[Serberus]

I asked Bedford Audi this same question and yes there's only one reversing light but they also said they'd had a customer in who had a second light wired up. By default the wiring is only installed for one light.

No idea what this cost.

 

[Von Maximo]

This is what someones done over at tyresmoke to modify the unused light

http://www.tyresmoke.net/ubbthreads/showflat.php/Cat/1,2,12,15,22,25,26,27,3/Number/885826/an/0/page/24#885826