Identifying the Symbols & Lights on Your Dashboard

Each of these Audi dashboard light guides is model-specific. They'll detail the various lights that can illuminate on your dashboard. You'll learn how to tell the difference between indicator lights and warning lights so you'll know how to respond when one appears.

These guides will cover what each symbol means so you can understand the issue or malfunction your vehicle is going through and which systems or components are affected.

Using These Audi Dashboard Light Guides

These dashboard light guides can come in handy when you experience a flashing light on your instrument cluster. They'll allow you identify what the light means, understand the severity of it, and know what you should do as soon as you see it appear on your dashboard.

Knowing what these lights mean can help you act fast and potentially prevent severe damage to your vehicle and its components. If you had no knowledge of these lights and their indications, you may have continued driving, not knowing there was a serious problem occurring with your vehicle.

Learning About the Different Lights and Symbols

While each Audi model comes with its own manual for deciphering the various symbols that can illuminate on your dashboard, there are many similar ones among all models. Below, we'll go over some of the most common symbols you can find in your dashboard light guide.

Indicator Lights

You'll see indicator lights most often. Depending on the particular symbol, this kind of light indicates that a function is either active or malfunctioning. Indicator lights come in several colors depending on the function they correlate to:

• Red
• Yellow
• Blue
• Green
• White

Red Indicator Lights

Among the red indicator lights, you'll find symbols like:

• Engine oil pressure
• Electrical system
• Brake system
• Safety belt
• Central indicator

When a red indicator light illuminates, you'll need to take immediate action to resolve it. While the safety belt symbol will be a quick fix as you just need to buckle your seat belt, something like the transmission symbol will take a visit to our service center to resolve.

Yellow Indicator Lights

There are many yellow indicator lights you'll notice from time to time.

The tire pressure symbol will illuminate when one or more of your tires needs inflation. However, the all-wheel drive symbol may light up in yellow when you either need to adjust your driving or visit a service center for an inspection.  

Driver-assistance systems will also illuminate in yellow when they're malfunctioning, either due to weather conditions or a system error.

Green and Blue Indicator Lights

Green indicator lights are simple. They merely indicate that a certain feature is engaged or active. When a driver-assistance feature is active and working correctly, you'll see it illuminated in a green color. Other symbols that illuminate in green include:

• Turn signals
• Stop/start system
• Cruise control

Blue indicator lights are exclusive to high beams. When your high beams are active, the symbol will illuminate in blue.

White Indicator Lights

White indicator lights can signal either a warning or that a feature is ready to be activated.

The parking brake symbol is an example of a white warning light. While this symbol can also illuminate in red or yellow, white does not mean that you need to visit a service center. Instead, it means that your vehicle might need to park on less of an incline.

A symbol that indicates a feature is ready to be engaged is the hold assist feature. This system will illuminate in white when it's ready, but optimal conditions (like a certain hill angle) have not yet been met.