2012 AUDI A7 Owners Manual

-Side assist cannot detect vehicles in time
to alert you when they approach from
behind at very high speed, or fall drop
back very quickly .
- The radar sensor 's
vision can be reduced
or entirely blocked by rain, snow, and
heavy spray . This can result in side assist
not adequately detecting vehicles or, in
some cases, not detecting them at all.
Always keep an eye on the direction you are traveling and the relevant area
around the vehicle.
- Please note that side assist indicates
there are approaching vehicles, or vehi­
cles in your blind spot, only after your ve­
hicle has reached a driving speed of at
least 19 mph (30 km/h).
- Side assist signal does not work around
tight corners (turning radius less than
328 feet, or 100 m).
- Side assist is no replacement for the driv­
er's full attention. The driver alone is re­
sponsible for lane changes and similar driving maneuvers. Always keep an eye
on the direction you are traveling and the
relevant area around the vehicle.
(D Note
To ensure that side assist is not adversely
affected, you should not block the area on
the rear bumper where the radar sensors
are located with foreign objects (such as
with stickers or bicycle racks).
If the positions of the radar sensors have
been changed as a result of a rear end-col­
lision, for instance, have side assist
checked by an authorized Audi dealer for
safety reasons.
Audi side assist 95

96 Audi drive select
Audi drive select
Driving settings
Introduction
Audi drive select makes it possible to experi­
ence different types of vehicle settings in one
vehicle. The driver can select three Comfort,
Auto and Dynamic modes in the MMI to
switch between a sporty and a comfortable
driving mode.
You can also adjust the setting according to
your preferences in the individual mode. For
example, you can combine settings such as a
sporty engine tuning with light steering.
Description
The vehicle setup in each mode depends on
the vehicle's features . The engine, transmis­
sion and steering are always involved . The cor ­
nering light* can also be adjusted. The revers i­
ble safety belt tensioners .:;,
page 182 are
adapted to the dynamic mode.
Engine and transmission
Depending on the mode , the engine and the
transmission respond more quickly or in a more balanced manner to accelerator pedal
movements . In the sporty dynamic mode, the
transmission shifts at higher RPMs.
Steering
The steering adapts in terms of steering effort
and steering ratios . Indirect steering that
moves easily as in comfort mode is especially
suited to long drives on a highway. In con­
trast, dynamic mode provides sporty, direct
steering .
The following applies to vehicles with dynamic
steering*: the steering ratio changes based on
vehicle speed in order to maintain optimum
steering effort for the driver at all times. This
sets the steering to be less sensitive at higher
speeds in order to provide improved vehicle
control. Cornering light*
The cornering light adapts to driving on
curves . The pivoting action and the lighting
are also adapted to the mode.
CJ) Tips
- In some models, the maximum vehicle
speed can only be reached in the Auto
and Dynamic modes.
- Selecting the Dynamic mode results in
sporty shifting characteristics. The
S
gear position engages automatically.
Selecting the driving mode
You can choose between Comfort, Auto, Dy­
namic and Individual.
Fig. 100 MMI: Drive select
.. To select the mode, select the following in
the M MI :
I CAR I function button > Comfort,
Auto, Dynamic or Ind ividual.
You can change the driving mode when the ve­ hicle is stationary or while driving. If traffic
permits, after changing modes, briefly take
your foot off the accelerator pedal so that the recently selected mode is also activated for
the engine .
Comfort - provides a comfort-oriented vehicle
setup and is suited for long drives on high­
ways.
Auto - provides an overall comfortable yet dy­
namic driving feel and is suited for every day
use .
Dynamic - gives the vehicle a sporty driving
feel and is suited to a sporty driving style .

Individual-¢page 97.
Adjusting the Individual mode
Audi drive select 97
A WARNING
Pay attention to traffic when operating Au­
d i drive select to prevent potential risk of
an accident.
You can adjust the vehicle settings to your personal preferences.
~ Se lect: ICARI function button > Set individ­
ual
control button. You can now adjust the
individual systems.
The
Individual driving mode will automatica l­
ly be activated when you have finished config-
uring the settings.
Systems Comfort
Engine/Transmission
balanced
Steering comfortable
Cornering light* comfortable
Belt tensioner* Standard
II
(D Tips
Your Individual mode settings are auto­
matically stored and assigned to the re­
mote contro l key being used. T
he equipment in your vehicle will determine
which settings you can adjust. The following
table provides an overview of the characteris­
tics of each driving mode.
Auto Dynamic
balanced sporty
balanced sporty
ba lanced sporty
Standard Deployment time
adapted
-

98 Night vision assistant
Night vision assistant
Night vision assistant
with detected pedestrian marking
Description
App lies to vehicles: with night v isio n ass istant
Fig. 101 D isplay: n ight vis ion assistant
"N ight v is ion assistant with pedestrian detec­
tion" uses an infrared camera to monitor the
area in front of your vehicle at night. Within
the limits of the system, it can display objects
up to about 1000 feet (300 meters) away. The
heat image of a pedestrian detected by the
camera is shown in the instrument cluster dis­
play
q fig. 101. Warm areas appear lighter
and cold areas appear darker .
Pedestrian detection
Applies to vehicles: with n ig ht v ision ass istant
Fig. 102 Display : yellow pedestrian marking
Fig. 103 Disp lay: symbo l w hen infrare d im age is not
visible
Night vision assistant can detect pedestrians
that are between about SO and 300 feet (15
and 90 meters) in front of the vehicle, under
ideal conditions . If a pedestrian is detected
when it is dark outside and the vehicle head­
lights are switched on, the pedestrian is high­
lighted in yellow
q fig. 102, q page 99,
General information. If another display such
as nav igation replaces the image from the
night vision assistant, the symbol
~11 appears
in a tab
qfig. 103.
(0 Tips
If
th e night vi.sion assistant image does
not appear when the system is switched
on, you can access it with the buttons on
the multifunction steering wheel
qpage 23.

Pedestrian warning
Applies to vehicles: with nig ht v ision assistant
F ig. 104 Display : pedestri an w arning
Fig . 105 D isp lay: pedestr ian warning w it h an ot her di s­
p lay
I f a pedestrian is detected in a n area in front
of the vehicle that the system considers criti­
cal, the pedestrian is high lighted in red
¢ fig . 104 and a warning tone sounds. This
area is based on the vehicle speed and steer­
ing angle. The pedestrian warning prompts
you to pay even close r attention to the area in
front of the vehicle and to watch out for pe­
destrians.
If another display such as the trip computer replaces the image from the night vision as­
sistant, the indicator light turns red when
there is a pedestrian warning
I ¢ fig. 105.
The pedestrian warn ing I appears in the
Head-up Display* .
(D Tips
The pedestrian marking and warn ing tone
can be adjusted in the MMI
¢ page 100.
N ig ht visi on ass is ta n t 99
General information
Applies to vehicles: with night vision assistant
...
-. . .--:::: ====::;;; ::;;;::;;;=== ==--......._ --~
Fig. 106 Fro nt o f th e ve hicle : n ight vis ion ass istant
camera
il!,
T he following situations may affect the func­
tion of the nigh t vision assis tant system:
- poor visibility such as snow, rain, fog or
heavy road spray
- dirty lens on the n ight vision assistant cam -
era
Make sure the night vision assistant camera
¢ fig . 106 is not covered by stickers, depos its
or any other obstructions because that can
prevent the camera from work ing properly .
For information on cleaning the lens, refer to
¢ page 202.
Pedestrian detection depends on the differ­
ence in temperature between the person and
the background. Pedestr ians may not be de­
tected if the temperature difference is too small . T he pedestrian high ligh ting feature is
deactivated at temperatures above 77 °F (25
°C) and when it is light outs ide.
A WARNING
-
Night vision assistant has limits and can­
not always detect pedestrians. Always pay
close attention to traffic and the area
around your vehicle even when night vision
assistant is sw itched on .
- Night vision assistant can only warn
about people located within the visual
range of the infrared camera. The visual
range corresponds to the image in the in­
strument cluster display.
- Night vision assistant may not detect
peop le and highlight them if

100 Night vision assistant
-they are not in an upright position, for
example if they are s itting, crouching
or lying down and/or
- if the o utline in the display is inc om­
plete or interrupted, fo r example be­
cause the person is partially hidden by
a parked vehicle.
{D) Tips
- Pedestrian detection and the pedestrian
warming are lim ited to objects that are
detected as pedestrians. The system
does not detect animals. Even though
the shape and warmth radiated by each
object detected is evaluated, the system
does have limitat ions and it can give in­
correct warnings.
- For techn ical reasons, the image pauses
in split second intervals .
Switching on and off
Applies to vehicles: with night vision assistant
Fig. 107 Area around the light switch: night vision as ·
sistant button
• Switch the ignition on and turn the light
switch to the
AUTO position or ~D.
• To switch night vision ass istant on, press
the
5:J button¢ fig. 107. The image from
the night vision camera appears in the in­
strument cluster display.
• Press the button
Ed again to switch night vi­
s ion assistant off .
Settings in the MMI
Applies to vehicles: with night vision assistant
Fig. 108 Display : example of pedestrian detection and
warning to ne switc hed off
• Select: I CAR I function button > Car systems
contro l button > Driver assist > Night vision
assist .
Highlight pedestrians -
You can switch pedes­
trian detect ion
on and off. If you switch pe­
destrian detection off, the pedestrian warning
tone also switches off . The symbols
II and ra
appear in the uppe r right area of the instru­
ment cluster display ¢
fig. 108.
Warning tone -You can switch the tone for
the pedestrian warning
on and off. When the
warning tone is switched off, a yellow symbol
for the deactivated warning tone with a line
through it appears in the upper right of the in­
strument cluster display¢
fig. 108.
Contrast -When the nig ht vision ass istant is
switched on and the image is visib le in the in­
strument cluster display, you can adj ust the
contrast in the image from
Min to Max .
Driver messages
Applies to vehicles: with night vision assistant
Night vision assistant: system malfunction!
The system cannot work properly and is
switched off. See your authorized Audi dealer
for assistance.
Night vision assistant: not available
T he system cannot detect properly under cur­
rent conditions and is switched off tempora ri-
~-~

Night vision assistant: only available in dark­
ness and with lights switched on
N ig ht visio n ass ist ant on ly wo rk s when i t is
d ar k outside and the headligh ts are on.
Night vision assistant : pedestrian detection
not available
T he system has deactivated the pedestr ian de­
t e ction f unction .
Night vision assistant 101

102 Automatic Transmission
Automatic
Transmission
tiptronic®
Introduction
Applies to vehicles: with tiptro nic
Your vehicle is equipped with an electronically
controlled automatic transmission. Upshifting
and downshifting takes place
automatically.
The transmission is also equipped with tip­
tronic ®.
It allows the driver to shift gears
manually if desired ¢ page 105.
Driving the automatic transmission
Applies to vehicles: with tiptronic
Fig. 109 Shift gate o n the center console: selecto r lev ·
er w ith release button
Starting the engine
• The selector lever must be in P or N.
Starting off
• Press and hold the brake pedal.
• Press and hold the release button in these­
lector lever handle and move the selector
lever from
P or N to 0/5 and re lease the but·
ton¢ .&_.
• Wait briefly until the transmission has shift·
ed (you will feel a slight movement).
• Remove your foot from the brake pedal and
accelerate.
Rocking back and forth to become
unstuck
• Shift only between D/5 and R when the ve·
hicle is at a full stop and the engine is run­
ning at idle speed.
Stopping
• Press and hold the brake peda l until the ve­
hicle has come to a comp lete stop.
• Keep the brake peda l depressed so that the
vehicle cannot roll forward or backward
while it is idling
c:> .&_ .
.,. Once stopped,
do not depress the accelera­
tor pedal to rev up the engine
c:> .&_ .
Parking
• Press and hold the brake pedal until the ve­
hicle has come to a complete stop.
• Set the parking brake firm ly
c:> page 75 ,
Parking .
.,. Press and hold the release button in these­
lector lever handle, move the selector lever
into
P and then let go of the release button
Q .&_.
The selector lever must be in
P or N. If one of
the driving positions is engaged a safety
switch will prevent the engine from being
sta rted . See also
c:>p age 71.
Before you move the selector lever from the P
posit ion, you must always apply the brake
peda l before and while depressing the button
in the handle of the selector lever.
_&. WARNING
- Unintended vehicle movement can cause
serious injury .
- When the selector lever is in a driving
pos ition, the vehicle may creep, even at
idle speed. Therefore do not release
the parking brake or foot brake unti l
you are ready to move, because power
is transmitted to the wheels as soon as
a driving position is engaged.
- Do not accelerate while selecting a
driving position. At this time the en­
gine must be at idle speed so that un­
due stress is not placed on the clutches
in the transmission .
- Remember: Even when stopped briefly with the automatic transmission in D/S
or R, engine power is being transmit·
ted to the wheels. Your veh icle cou ld