126 Transmission
Transmission Manual transmission
Gearshift lever
Applies to vehicles: with manual transmission
The clutch pedal must be depressed all the
way before you can start the engine.
The manual transmission in your Audi is
equipped with an
interlock-feature.
• Depress the clutch pedal a ll the way.
• Start the engine with the gearshift lever in
Neutral and the clutch pedal depressed.
(D Note
Always depress the clutch pedal fully when
changing gears. Do not hold the vehicle on
a hill with the clutch pedal partially de
pressed. This may cause premature clutch
wear or damage.
@ Tips
- Resting your hand on the gearshift lever
knob while driving will cause premature
wear in the transmission.
- The back-up lights go on when you sh ift
in to Reverse with the ignition on.
Gearshift pattern (6-speed manual
transmission)
Applies to vehicles: with manual transmission
Fig. 142 Gearshift patte rn: 6 -speed manual transmis
sion
Engaging reverse gear (R)
• Move the shift lever all the way to the left,
press it down, then push i t forward . Especially
after driving forward, stop the vehi
cle comp letely, shift into
Neutral and rest the
shift lever briefly in Neutral before shift ing in
to
Reverse.
Automatic
transmission
Introduction
Applies to vehicles: with automatic transmission
Your vehicle is equipped with an electronically
controlled automatic transmission. Upshift ing
and downshifting takes place
automatically.
The transmission is also equipped with tip
tronic. It allows the driver to shift gears
man
ually
if desired c:> page 130.
Driving the automatic transmission
Applies to vehicles: with automatic transmission
Fig. 143 Shift gate on the center console: selector lev
er with release button
Starting the engine
• The selector lever must be in
Nor P.
Starting off
• Press and hold the brake peda l.
• Press and hold the release button in these
lector lever hand le and move the selector
lever from
P or N to D and release the but
ton
c:> .&_ .
• Wait briefly until the transmission has s hift
ed (you w ill feel a slight movement) .
• Remove your foot from the brake pedal and
accelerate.
Rocking back and forth to becom e
un stuc k
~ Shift on ly between D and R when the vehi
cle is at a full stop and the e ngine is r unni ng
at idle speed .
Stopping
~ Press and ho ld the brake pedal unti l the ve
hicle has come to a complete stop .
~ Keep the brake pedal depressed so that the
vehicle cannot roll forward or backward
while it is idling¢ &_.
~ Once stopped, do not depress the accelera
tor pedal to rev up the engine ¢&_ .
Parkin g
~ Press and ho ld the brake pedal unti l the ve
hicle has come to a complete stop.
~ Set the parking brake firmly¢ page 97,
Parking.
~ Press and hold the release button in these
lector lever handle, move the selector lever
into
P a nd the n let go of the release button
¢,&_ .
The selector lever must be in Nor P. If one of
the dr iving pos it ions is engaged a safety
sw itch w ill prevent the engine from be ing
started. See also ¢
page 92.
Before you move the selecto r lever from the P
position, you must always apply the brake
pedal before and whi le dep ress ing t he button
i n the hand le of the se lec to r lever .
A WARNING
-Unintended ve hicle movement can cause
serious injury.
- When the selector lever is i n a dr iving
position, the ve hicle may creep, even at
i dl e speed . Therefo re do not release
the par king brake or foot b rake until
you are re ady to move, because powe r
is transmit ted to the whee ls as soon as
a dr iving position is engaged.
- Do not ac celera te while selecti ng a
d riving posi tion. At th is time the en
g ine must be at idle speed so t hat un-
Tran sm iss ion 12 7
due stress is not placed on the clutches
in the transmiss ion.
- Remember: Even when stopped briefly
with the automatic transmission in D,S
or R, eng ine power is being transmit
ted to the wheels. Your veh icle cou ld
"creep" forward or backward. When
stopped, keep the b rake pedal fu lly de
pressed and use the pa rking brake if
ne cessary to keep the vehicle from ro ll
i ng.
- I f the selecto r lever is un intent ionally
moved into N while you are dr iv ing, t ake
your foo t off the accelerator ped al and
wait for the engine to retu rn to idle
speed before se lecting a driving position .
- Never sh ift into
R or P when the vehicle is
in motion.
- Never get out of the driver's seat when
the engine is running.
- If you m ust ge t out of the vehicle, move
the selector lever secure ly into the P po
sition and apply the pa rking brake firmly.
- If t he eng ine mus t rem ain r unning , neve r
have any driving posit ion engaged w hen
checking under the hood. Make sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and
is locked in P w ith the park ing brake
firm ly set¢
page 230, Engine compart
ment.
Othe rwise, any inc rease in engine
speed may set the vehicle in motion,
even with the park ing brake applied .
128 Transmi ssion
Selector lever positions
Ap plies to vehicles: wit h au to mat ic tra nsmi ssio n
This section describes the selector lever posi
tions and driving ranges .
Fig. 144 D isp lay in the inst rume nt cluster: selector
lever in position P
The selector lever position engaged appears
next to the selector lever as well as in the in
strument cluster display .
P - P ark
In this selector lever position the transmis
sion is mechanically locked. Engage
P only
when the vehicle is
completely stopped q .&
in Driving the automatic transmission on
page 127 .
To shift in or out of position P, you must first
press and hold the brake pedal and then press
the release button in the selector lever handle
while moving the selector lever to or from
P .
You can sh ift out of this pos ition only with the
ignit io n on.
R - Rev ers e
The transmission will automat ically select the
l o west gear ratio when you shift into reverse .
Select
R on ly when the vehicle is at a full stop
and the eng ine is running at idle speed ¢.& in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 127.
Before you move the selector lever to R , press
both the button in the handle of the selector
lever
and the brake pedal at the same time.
When the ignit ion is on, the backup l ights illu
minate when the selector lever is moved into
R .
N -Neutral
The transm iss ion is in neut ral in this pos ition.
S h ift to this position fo r standing with the
brakes applied
¢ page 129 .
When the vehicle is stat ionary or at speeds
below 3 mph (5 km/h), yo u must always app ly
the foo tbrake be fore and whi le moving the
lever o ut of
N .
D -Normal position fo r driving forward
Position Dis fo r normal city and highway driv
i ng .
It ranges from zero to top speed and a ll
gears shift automatically, depend ing on en
gine load, driving speed and automatically se
lected shift programs.
When the vehicle is stat ionary or at speeds
below 3 mph (5 km/h), yo u must always app ly
the foot brake befo re and while moving the
lever to
D out of N .
In certa in circ umstances it may be advanta
geous to temporar ily sw itch to the manua l
shift program to manua lly select gear ratios
to match specific driving conditions
¢ page 130 .
S - Sport position*
Select t his posi tion fo r spo rtier pe rformance.
In this pos ition, the transmission will not up
shift as soon, a llowing the vehicle to use the
increased power available at higher engine
speeds to achieve livelier acceleration .
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds
below 3 mph (5 km/h), yo u must always app ly
the foot brake before and while moving the l ever to
S out of N .
A WARNING ,__
Read and follow all WARNINGS ¢ .& in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 127 .
(D Note
-
Coasting downhill with the transm ission in
N and the eng ine not running wi ll result in
damage to the automatic transmission
and possibly the cata lytic converter.
Automatic Shift Lock (ASL)
Applies to vehicles: with a utomat ic transm ission
The Automatic Shift Lock safeguards you
against accidentally shi~ing into a forward or
the reverse gear and causing the vehicle to
move unintentionally .
;_ '"''1
·- I , . ,......._
W'.o ,)
Fig. 145 Shift gate: selector lever lock positions and
in terlock b utto n highlighted
The selector lever lock is released as follows:
.. Turn the ignition on.
.. Step on the brake pedal.
At the same time
press and hold the interlock button on the
s ide of the gear selector knob
c::> fig. 145
with your thumb until you have moved the
selector lever to the desired position.
Automatic selector lever lock
The select or lever is Locked in the P and N po
sitions when the ignition is turned on. To
move the lever from these positions the driver
must depress the brake pedal. As a reminder
to the driver, the following warning appears in
the instrument cluster display when the selec
tor is in
P and N:
When stationary apply footbrake while se
lecting gear
A time delay element prevents the selector
lever from locking when it is moved through
the
N position (going from R to D ). The lock
ing element will lock the selector lever if the
lever is left in N (Neutral) for more than ap
proximately 1 second , without the brake ped
a l being pressed.
At speeds above about 3 mph (5 km/h) the
Automatic Shift Lock is automatically deacti
vated in the
N position.
Transmission 129
Interlock button
The lock button on the selector lever prevents
the lever from being accidentally shifted into
certain positions. Pressing this button deacti
vates the selector lever lock. Depending on
the direction of the shift, the selector lever
locks at different positions. The positions are
highlighted in the illustration
c::> fig . 145.
Ignition key safety interlock
The key cannot be removed from the ignition
unless the selector lever is in the
P park posi
tion. When the ignition key is removed, the
se lec tor Lever will be locked in the
P position.
Kick-down
App lies to vehicles: with automatic transmission
The kick-down feature allows the vehicle to
generate maximum acceleration .
When you press the accelerator pedal beyond
the resistance point that is reached at full
throttle, the transmission will select a lower
gear ratio based on vehicle speed and engine
RPM . The engine RPM will be controlled to
produce maximum vehicle acceleration as
long as you continue to press the accelerator
pedal beyond this resistance point.
.&, WARNING
Be careful when using the kick-down fea
ture on slippery roads. Rapid acceleration
may cause the vehicle to skid .
Dynamic shift program (DSP)
Applies to vehicles: wit h automatic transmission
The automatic transmission is electronically
controlled.
-
The transmission is self adapting and will au
tomatically
select the best sh ift program suit
ed to the driving conditions and driving style .
The transmission will select one of the
econo
my
programs when you drive at a steady
speed or a gradually changing speed w ithout
heavy acceleration. This achieves optimum ..,.
130 Transmi ssion
fuel efficiency, with ear ly upshifting and
de layed downshifting.
The transmission will a utomat ica lly select the
s port y shift prog rams when you drive at high
e r speeds, or w ith heavy acceleration and fre
quent ly changing speeds. Upshifts are de layed
to make full use of eng ine power. Downsh ift
ing takes p lace at h igher engine speeds than
in the economy programs .
The selection of the most suitab le shift pro
gram is a cont inuous, automatic process. The
driver can also make the transmission switch
to a sporty program by quickly pressing down
the gas pedal.
This causes the transmission to shift down to
a lower gear to achieve rapid acceleration, e.g.
for quickly passing another vehicle. You do not need to press the gas pedal into the kick -down
range . After the transmission has upshifted,
the orig inal program is se lected acco rding to
your d riving s tyle.
A n addit ional shift program allows the auto
mat ic transm iss ion to select the proper gear
for uphill and downhill gradients .
This keeps the transmission from shifting up
a nd down unnecessar ily on hills . The trans
miss ion will shift down to a lowe r gear when
the dr iver presses the brake pedal on a down
hill grad ient. This makes use of t he b raking ef
fe ct of the eng ine wi thout the need to shift
down manua lly. Manual shift program
Applies to
vehicles: with automatic transmission
Using the manual shift program you can
manually select gears .
Fig . 14 6 Ce nter conso le: sh ift ing the t iptron ic m an ua l·
l y
F ig. 14 7 Disp lay: manu al shi ft p rog ra m , se lected gear
hi ghlight ed
Switching to manual shift program
.,. Push the selector lever to the right from
D.
As soon as the transmiss ion has sw itched
over, the se lected gea r appears in the dis
p lay .
To upshift .,. Push the selecto r lever forwa rd to the p lus
position
0 ¢ fig . 146 .
To down shift
.,. Push the lever to the minus pos ition
0 -
When accelerating, t he transmission will au
tomatica lly shift into the next gear before the
engine reaches its maximum RPM.
If you apply a light throttle whe n accelerat-
ing, tiptronic wi ll automatica lly shift from 1st
to 2nd gear to save fuel. If you apply a heavy
throttle , the transm iss ion wi ll stay in 1st gear .,.
140 Homelink®
Homelink®
Universal remote
control
General information
Applies to vehicles: with Home link® universal remote
control
The Homelink ® feature can learn up to three
radio frequency codes for most current trans
mitters used for operating garage doors, es tate gates, home or outdoor lighting sys
tems, and other devices.
You must first program the Homelink ® trans
mitter before you can use the system
~ page 141, Programming the Homelink ®
transmitter.
In order to program the Home link ® transmit
ter for dev ices utilizing rolling code, a second
pe rson on a ladder who ca n safe ly reach the
garage door opener motor is recommended. I t is also necessary to locate the "learn" but
ton on your garage door opener motor . Refer
to the operating instructions for the opener,
as the location and color of this button may
vary by manufacturer.
You can still use the origina l remote contro l
for the device at any time .
.&_ WARNING
-
- Never use the Homelink ® transmitte r
with any garage door opener that does
have not the safety stop and reverse fea
tu re as requ ired by federa l safety stand
ards. Th is includes any garage door open
er mode l manufact ured before April 1,
1982.
- A garage door op ener which cannot de
te ct an object, signa ling the doo r to stop
and reverse does no t mee t current feder
al safety s tandards. Using a garage doo r
opener wi tho ut these features increases
risk of serious in jury or death.
- F or sa fety reasons never release the
par king brake or start the engine w hile
anyone is stand ing in front of the vehicle . -
A garage door or an estate gate may
sometimes be set in mot ion when the
Homelink ® remote control is being pro
grammed. If the device is repeatedly ac
tivated, this can overstrain motor and
damage its e lectr ical components -an
overheated moto r is a fire hazard !
- To avo id possible injuries or property
damage, please always make abso lutely
certain that no persons o r obje cts are lo
ca ted in the range of motion o f any
eq uipment being ope rated .
(D Tips
-If you would li ke more information on
Home link ®, w here to purchase the
Homel ink ® compatib le produc ts, or
would like to purchase the Homelink ®
Home Lighting Package , please ca ll to ll
free: 1-800-355-3515 .
- For Declaration of Compliance to United States FCC and Ind ustry Canada reg ula
tions~
page 296.
Why safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for
people riding in vehicles .
Fig. 166 U nbe lted occupa nts in a ve hicle hea ding for a
wall
F ig. 167 T he ve hicle c ras hes into t he wall
The physical principles are simp le. Both the
ve hicle and the passengers possess energy
which varies w ith vehicle speed and body
weight . Enginee rs call this energy "kinetic en
e rgy ."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the greater the vehicle 's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" i n the crash .
Vehicle speed is the most sign ificant factor . If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to
50 km/h) , the energy inc reases 4 t imes !
Because t he passengers of t his ve hicle are not
using safety belts
r::;, fig . 166, they w ill keep
moving at the same speed the vehicle was
mov ing just before the crash, unt il something
stops them -here, the wall
c:> fig . 167 .
The same pr inc iples apply to peop le sitting in
a vehicle that is involved in a frontal co llision .
Even at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50
km/h), the forces act ing on the body can
Safety belts 155
reach one ton (2,000 lbs . or 1,000 kg) or
more . At greater speeds, these forces are
even
higher .
People who do not use sa fe ty belts are also
not attached to their vehicle. In a frontal coll i
sio n they wi ll also keep moving forward at the
speed their veh icle was t ravell ing just before
the crash. Of co urse, the laws of physics don't
just app ly to frontal collisions, they determine
what happens in all kinds of acc idents and col
lis ions .
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelt ed o ccupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in
jured or killed. Always wear your safety belts!
Fig. 168 A driver not wear ing a safety belt is vi ole ntl y
thrown forwa rd
Fig. 1 69 A rear passeng er not w ear ing a safety be lt
w ill fly forwar d and s trike the d river
Unbelted occ upants a re not able to resist the
tremendous forces of impact by holdi ng tight
or bracing themselves . Without the benefit of
safe ty restra in t systems, the unrestrained oc
cupan t w ill slam violen tly i nto the s teer ing
whee l, instr ument pane l, w indshield, o r what
ever else is in the way ¢ fig. 1 68 . This impact Ill-
156 Safety belts
with the vehicle interior has all the energy
they had just before the crash. Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
additional protection. Airbags are not sup
posed to deploy in all kinds of accidents. Al
though your Audi is equipped with airbags, all
vehicle occupants, including the driver, must
wear safety belts correctly in order to mini mize the risk of severe injury or death in a
crash.
Remember too, that airbags will deploy only
once and that your safety belts are always
there to offer protection in those accidents in
which airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they have already deployed . Unbelted
occupants can also be thrown out of the vehi
cle where even more severe or fatal injuries
can occur.
It is also important for the rear passengers to
wear safety belts correctly. Unbelted passen
gers in the rear seats endanger not only them
selves but also the driver and other passen
gers <=>
fig. 169. In a frontal collision they will
be thrown forward violently, where they can
hit and injure the driver and/or front seat pas
senger.
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision. It's simply
not true!
Fig. 170 Drive r is co rrect ly res trained in a sudden brak
ing maneuve r
Safety belts used properly can make a big dif
ference . Safety belts help to keep passengers
in their seats , gradually reduce energy levels applied to
the body in an accident, and help
prevent the uncontrolled movement that can
cause serious injuries. In addition, safety belts
reduce the danger of being thrown out of the
vehicle .
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and give them the benefit of being slowed down
more gently or "softly" through the "give" in
the safety belts, crush zones and other safety
features engineered into today's vehicles. By
"absorbing" the kinetic energy over a longer
period of time, the safety belts make the
forces on the body more "tolerable" and less
likely to cause injury.
Although these examples are based on a fron
tal collision, safety belts can also substantial ly reduce the risk of injury in other kinds of
crashes. So, whether you're on a long trip or
just going to the corner store, always buckle
up and make sure others do, too. Accident sta
tistics show that veh icle occupants properly
wearing safety belts have a lower risk of being
injured and a much better chance of surviving
an accident. Properly using safety belts also
greatly increases the ability of the supplemen
tal airbags to do their job in a collision. For
this reason, wearing a safety belt is legally re
quired in most countries including much of
the United States and Canada .
Although your Audi is equipped with airbags,
you still have to wear the safety belts provid
ed . Front airbags, for example , are activated
only in some frontal collisions. The front air
bags are not activated in all frontal collisions,
in side and rear collisions, in roll overs or in
cases where there is not enough deceleration
through impact to the front of the vehicle.
The same goes for the other airbag systems in
your Audi. So, always wear your safety belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained!