Automatic gearbox
133
Using the system
Safety
Driving Tips
General Maintenance
Breakdown assistance
Technical Data
Information for driving with the automatic gearbox DSG* The abbreviation DSG means Direct shift gearbox (Direct shift gearbox). Two independent clutches are needed for the power transmission between the engine and the gearbox.
These replace the torque converter
of the conventional automatic gearbox. Their shifting is matched in such a way that there are no jerks when shifting the gear and the power trans-mission of the engine to the front wheels is not interrupted. Shifting up and down through the gears is perf
ormed automatically. You can also,
however, switch the gearbox over into the
Tiptronic mode
. This mode
makes it possible for you to also shift gears manually
⇒
page 136.
Starting-off and Driving – Depress the brake pedal fully and keep it depressed. – Press the Shiftlock button (button
in handle of the selector lever),
move the selector lever into the desired position, e.g. in
D, and then
release the Shiftlock button.
– Release the brake pedal and depress the accelerator
⇒
.
Stopping for a short time – The selector lever position
N does not have to be selected when stop-
ping just for a short time, such as at
a cross roads. It is absolutely suffi-
cient to hold the stopped vehicle stationary by depressing the foot brake. The engine can, however, be allowed just to idle.
Parking – Depress the brake pedal and hold it depressed. – Apply the handbrake firmly. – Press and Shiftlock button in the selector lever, move the selector
lever to
P and then release the Shiftlock button.
The engine can only be
started
when the selector lever is in position
P or N
⇒ page 124. At temperatures below -10 °C the engine can only be started in the selector lever position
P.
It is sufficient to engage
selector lever position
P when parking on a flat surface.
When parking on a slope you should first apply the handbrake firmly and then move the selector le
ver into position
P. This is to ensure that there is no excessive
pressure acting on the lock mechanism and
that it is easier to subsequently move
the selector lever out of position
P.
If the selector lever position
N is selected by accident while driving it is first neces-
sary to release pressure on the accelerato
r pedal and wait for idling speed of the
engine to be reached before engaging a drive position in the selector lever.
WARNING
•
Do not depress the accelerator when changing the position of the
selector lever if the car is stationary an
d the engine is running - risk of acci-
dent!•
Never move the selector lever into position R or P when driving - risk of
an accident!•
If you are stopping at a hill (downhill section), never try to hold the car
stationary with the gear engaged by me
ans of the “accelerator”, this means
by letting the clutch slip. This can lead
to overheating of the clutch. If there is
a risk of overheating of the clutch due
to overload, the clut
ch is opened auto-
matically and the vehicle rolls backward - risk of accident!•
If you must stop at a slope, depress and hold the brake pedal, so that you
can prevent the vehicle from rolling back.
Caution
•
The double clutch on the automatic gear
box DSG is equipped with an overload
protection. If you make use of
the uphill function on a vehi
cle which is stationary or
driving slowly uphill, it will result in an
increase of thermal stress of the clutches.
•
An overheating of the clutches can be detected by the flashing of the selector
level indicator and the “jerk” of the clutches, finally the clutches are opened. The power transmission from the engine to the front wheels is interrupted and as a
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Intelligent Technology
194
•
when driving with snow chains
•
when driving in deep snow or on a loose surface
•
when it is necessary to rock a vehicle when it has become stuck.
then you should switch on the ESP again.
WARNING
It is also not possible for the ESP to overcome the physical limits of the vehicle. Even if a vehicle fitted with ESP you should still always adapt your style of driving to the condition of the
road surface and the traffic situation.
This particularly applies when driving on slippery and wet roads. The increased safety offered must not tempt you to take greater risks than other- wise - risk of an accident!
Note
•
All four wheels must be fitted with the same tyres in order to achieve problem-
free operation of the ESP. Differing rolling
circumferences of the tyres can lead to an
undesirable reduction in the engine output.•
Changes to vehicle (e.g. on engine, on the brakes, on chassis or other assign-
ment of tyres and wheels) can influence the function of the ESP
⇒page 244,
“Accessories, changes and replacement of parts”.Electronic Differential Lock (EDL)* The electronic differential lock pr
events an individual wheel from
slipping.Models fitted with ESP are equipped with electronic differential lock (EDL). General The EDL makes it much easier, and sometimes at all possible, to start off, accelerate and climb a steep hill when the conditio
ns of the road surface are unfavourable.
Operating principle The EDL is activated automatically, that is
without any action on the part of the
driver. It monitors the speeds of the driven wheels with the aid of the ABS sensors. Should only
one
drive wheel begin spinning on a slippery surface there will be an
appreciable difference in the speed of the driven wheels. The EDL function brakes the slipping wheel and the differential transmits a greater driving force to the other driven wheel. This control proces
s is also accompanied by noises.
Overheating of the brakes The EDL switches off
automatically if unusually severe
stresses exist in order to
avoid excessive heat generation in the
disc brake on the wheel which is being
braked. The vehicle can continue to be driv
en and has the same characteristics as a
vehicle not fitted with EDL. The EDL switches on again
automatically as soon as the brake has cooled down.
WARNING
•
Carefully depress the accelerator when accelerating on uniformly slip-
pery road surfaces, such as ice and sn
ow. The driven wheels might still spin
despite the EDL and affect the stability
of the vehicle - risk of an accident!
•
You should always adapt your style of driving to the condition of road
surface and to the traffic situation even
when your vehicle is fitted with EDL.
The increased safety offered must not tempt you to take greater risks than otherwise - risk of an accident!
Note
•
If the ABS or ESP warning light comes on,
this may also indicate a fault in the
EDL. Please have the vehicle inspected as soon as possible by a specialist garage.•
Changes to vehicle (e.g. on engine, on
the brakes, on chassis or other assign-
ment of tyres and wheels) can in
fluence the function of the EDL
⇒page 244,
“Accessories, changes and
replacement of parts”.
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Towing a trailer
209
Using the system
Safety
Driving Tips
General Maintenance
Breakdown assistance
Technical Data
should be attached to folding arms. Adjust
the mirrors so that they provide you with
an adequate field of view to the rear. Headlights Before starting off with a hitched trailer, also check the setting of the headlights. Alter the setting as necessary with th
e aid of the headlight beam adjuster
⇒ page 63. Detachable ball head The ball rod is detachable on vehicles which feature a factory-fitted towing device. It is stowed together with separate fitting instructions in the spare wheel well in the luggage compartment of the vehicle. Further information on the towing device
⇒page 210.
Note
•
We recommend that you also have yo
ur vehicle inspected between service
intervals if you tow a trailer frequently.•
The handbrake on the towing vehicle
must be put on when coupling and
decoupling the trailer.Driving Tips Particular caution is required when towing a trailer.– Do not, as far as possible, drive
with your vehicle unladen and the
trailer laden.
– Do not make full use of the legal maximum speeds. This applies in
particular to downhill sections.
– Apply the brakes in good time.– Keep a check on the coolant temper
ature gauge if the outside temper-
ature is high.
Distribution of weight The distribution of the weight is very poor
if your vehicle is
unladen and the trailer
is laden. Maintain a particularly low speed if you cannot avoid driving with this combination. Driving speed Do not drive faster than 80 km/hour for safety reasons. This also applies for coun- tries in which higher speeds are allowed. The fact that the driving stability of the vehicle + trailer combination reduces with increasing speed means that the legally allowed speed should not be used when there are unfavourable road, weather or wind
conditions, particul
arly near accident
black spots. You must always reduce your speed immedi
ately as soon as you detect even just
the
slightest swaying
of the trailer. On no account attempt to stop the trailer from
“swaying” by
accelerating.
Apply the brakes in good time! If the trailer is fitted with a
trailer brake
, apply the
brakes gently at first and then brake firmly
. This will avoid brake jolts resulting from
the trailer wheels locking. Shift down gears
in good time before negotiating a down-
hill section to allow the engine to also act as a brake. Engine overheating Please keep a check on the coolant temperature gauge if you have to negotiate a lengthy slope in a low gear at a high engine speed when the outside temperature is very high
⇒page 18, “Coolant temperature gauge”.
If the needle of the coolant temperature gauge moves into the right-hand area or even the red area of the scale, reduce yo
ur speed immediately. Stop and switch off
the engine if the warning light
in the instrument cluste
r begins flashing. Wait a
few minutes and check the level of coolant in the coolant expansion bottle ⇒ page 229, “Inspecting the coolant level”. Please refer to the following guidelines
⇒page 36, “Coolant temperature/ Coolant
quantity
”.
The coolant temperature can be reduced by switching on the heating.Any increase in the cooling effect of the coolant fan through shifting down a gear and increasing the engine speed is not possible since the fan speed is independent
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