2012 AUDI A7 ignition

42 Clear vision
visibility conditions. For example, fog cannot be detected by the light sensors.
So always switch on the headlights
io
under these weather conditions and
when driving in the dark.
- Crashes can happen when you cannot see
the road ahead and when you cannot be
seen by other motorists . Always turn on
the headlights so that you can see ahead and so that others can see your car from
the back.
(D Note
The rear fog lights should only be turned
on in accordance with traffic regulation, as
the lights are bright for following traffic.
@ Tips
-In the event of a light sensor malfunc­
tion, the driver is notified in the instru­
ment cluster display~
page 21.
-You will hear a warning tone if you open
the driver door when the exterior lights
are switched on.
- Please observe legal regulations when
using the lighting systems described .
Emergency flasher
The emergency flasher makes other motorists
aware that you or your vehicle are in an emer­
gency situation.
Fig. 33 Center console : emerge ncy flasher switch
• Press the switch~~ fig. 33 to turn the
emergency flashers on or off.
When the emergency flasher is on, all four
turn signals blink at the same time. The turn signal
indicato r lights ¢ Q in the instrument
cluster, as well as the light in the emergency
fl asher switch ~ blink likewise. The emergen­
cy flashers also work when the ignition is
turned off.
The emergency flashers will turn on automati­
cally if you are in an accident where the airbag
has deployed .
(D Tips
You should turn on the emergency flashers
when:
- you are the last vehicle standing in a traf­
fic jam so that any other vehicles coming
can see you, or when
- your vehicle has broken down or you are
in an emergency situation, or when
- your vehicle is being towed by a tow
truck or if you are towing another vehicle
behind you.
· Adjusting the exterior lighting
The settings ore adjusted in the MMI.
• Select: I CAR I function button > Car systems
control button > Vehicle settings> Exterior
lighting.
Automatic headlights
You can adjust the following settings in the
Automatic headlights menu :
Headlights activation time -You can adjust if
the headlights switch on
Early , Med. or Late
according to the sensitivity of the light sensor .
Audi adaptive light* -You can switch adaptive
light
On and Off .
Daytime running lights
USA models:
You can switch the daytime run­
ning lights
on and off.
Canada models:
The function cannot be
turned off.
It is activated automatically each
time the ignition is switched on. This menu
item is shown "greyed out".

Coming home , Leav ing home
The coming home function il luminates the
area outside the vehicle when you switch the
ignition off and open the driver 's door . To turn
the function on, select
Light s when le aving
c a r > On .
The leav ing home function illuminates the
area outside the vehicle when yo u un lock the
veh icle . To turn the function on, select
Li gh ts
when unloc kin g ca r> On.
The coming home and leaving home functions
only operate when it is dark and the light
switch is in the
AUTO pos ition.
Turn signals and high beam lever
The lever on the le~ side of the steering col­
umn is used to operate the turn signals and
the high beam as well as the headlight flash­
er .
Fig. 3 4 Tu rn signal a nd h igh beam lever
The turn s ignal and high beam lever has the
followi ng functions:
Tu rn sign als ¢ ¢ @@
.. Push the lever up as far as it can go to turn
on the r ight turn signal or down to turn on
the left turn sig nal
c:::;, fig . 34 .
.. Move the lever b riefly until you meet resist­
ance and release it to flash three times .
.. Move the lever (up or down) unti l you mee t
resistance and ho ld it there to dete rmine
the f las hing t ime for the turn signals.
High beam [D @
.. Push the lever forward to switch on the high
beam.
Clear vi sion 43
.. Pull the lever back towards you to switch off
the high beam.
Headlight fla sher [D ©
.. Pull the lever towa rd the stee ring wheel to
use the headlight flasher.
Note s on these features
- The turn signals on ly work with the ignition
sw itched on . The indicator lights
f,j or II in
the inst rument cluste r
~page 11 also blink.
- After you have turned a corner, the turn s ig -
nal switches off automatically .
- The
high beam works only when the head ­
lights are on . The indicator light
Ill in the
instrument cluster illuminates when the
h igh beams are on.
- The
headlight flasher works only as long as
you hold the lever -even if the re a re no
lights turned on. The indicator light
Ill in
the inst rument cluster i lluminates whe n you
use the headlight flasher.
(D Note
Do no t use the high beam or headligh t
flasher if yo u know that these could blind
oncoming traffic.

44 Clear vis ion
Interior lights
Front and rear interior lighting
Fig. 35 Head liner: Fron t int eri or ligh ts
Fig. 36 Rear headlin er: R ead in g light
Press the appropriate b utton ~ fig. 35:
El -Interior lighting on/off
[j) -Door contact switch . The inter io r l ight ing
turns on automatically when you unlock the
vehi cle, open a doo r or switch the ignition off .
The interior lighting turns off several seconds
after you close the doors , when you lock the
vehicle or when you switch the ignition on.
When a door is open, the light t urns off after
a few minutes.
51 -Reading lights o n/off
~ -Sw itch ing the rear readi ng lights on/off
from the co ckpit.
I .,.. REAR !* -Switch ing the rear reading lights
on/off from the cockp it .
Ambience lighting
Appl ies to vehicles: wit h ambience lighting
You can adj ust the brightness for the amb i­
ence lighting. .,.
Select in the MM I: ICARlfunction button>
C ar sys tem s control button > Vehicle set­
ting s
> Interio r light ing > Brightne ss .
.,. To increase or reduce the brightness, turn
the knob and press it .
T he ambience lighting turns on when you turn
the headlights on while the ignition is switch­ ed on.
@ Tips
The setting is automatically stored and as­
signed to the remote control key that is in
use.
Instrument illumination
You can adjust the brightness of the instru ­
ment and display illumination as well as the
Head-up Display *.
F ig. 37 In strume nt ill umin ation
.,. Press the knob to re lease it .
~ 0 "'
.,. Tur n the knob toward "-" or"+" to redu ce or
increase the br ightness.
.,. Press the knob aga in to retu rn it to its origi ­
na l position .
(I} Tips
The instrumen t illum ina tion (for dials and
needles) lights on when the ignition is
switc hed o n and the vehicle lights are
turned off . As the daylight fades, the illu ­
mination of the dia ls likewise d ims auto­
matically and will g o out completely when
the outs ide light is very low. This feature is
meant to rem ind yo u to sw itch on the
headlights when outsid e light conditions
be come poo r.

46 Clear vis ion
vision system camera* are cleaned a utomati­
cally the first time the lever is press in posi ­
tion ® and every 8 times it is pressed after
that . They are also cleaned every time you
hold the lever in pos ition ® for longer than 8
seconds .
A WARNING
- The ra in sensor is only des igned to assist
and support the drive r. It remains entire­
ly the dr iver's respons ibility to monito r
o ut side weather conditions and to man­
ually activa te the wipers as soon as rain
or drizzle reduces visibility through the
windshield.
- The windshie ld m ust not be treated with
water -repe llent materials. They can in ­
c rease glare under poor visibi lity condi­
tions such as wetness, darkness, or when
the sun is low on the horizon. In addi­
t ion, they can cause the windshield wip­
ers to chatter .
- Proper ly functioning w indshie ld w iper
blades are required for a clear view and
safe dr iv ing
Q page 46, Replacing
windshield wiper blades .
([) Note
- In the case of frost, check whether the
winds hield wiper b lades are frozen to
the windshie ld. Switching on the wind­
shield wipers can damage the wiper
blades!
- Prior to using a car wash, the wi ndsh ield
wipe r system must be switched off (lever
i n position 0). This helps to preve nt unin­
tention al swi tching on and damage to
the windshie ld w iper system.
- Do no t use the wipe rs to cle ar a fros ted
window. Using the w ipers as a conven­
ient ice scraper will destroy the wiper
b lades .
(D Tips
- The w indshield wi pers are swi tched off
when the ignition is off . Activate the
windsh ield wipers after the ignition is
'
switched back on by moving the w ind ­
shield wiper lever to any position.
- Worn or d irty windshield wipe r blades
result in st reaking. This can affect the
rain sensor function . Check your wind­
shield wiper blades regularly.
- The washer fluid nozz les of the wind ­
shield washer system a re heated at low
tempe rat ures when the ignition is on .
- When stopping temporarily, e.g . at
a
traffic light, the set speed of the wind ­
shield wipers is automatically reduced by
one speed.
Replacing windshield wiper blades
Wiper blades in good condition help keep the
windshield clear .
Fig. 41 Re mov ing w in d sh iel d wipe r bl ades
Service position
... Switch the windshie ld w ipers off (position
@ Q page 45, fig . 40) .
.,. Switch t he ignit ion off and move t he wind ­
shie ld w iper lever to position@Q
page 45,
fig. 40.
Or
.,. Sele ct in the MMI: ICAR lfunction button>
Car sy stem s control button > Servicing
&
checks > Wiper service po sition > On . The
windsh ie ld wipers move in to the service po­
sition.
Removing the wiper blade
.,. Fold t he windsh ie ld w iper arm away from
t he wi ndshield .
.,. Press the locking knob
(D Q fig. 41 on the
wiper blade . Ho ld the wiper blade firmly . ..,.

.. Remove the wiper blade in the direction of
the arrow .
Installing the wiper blade
.. Inse rt the new wiper blade into the moun t
on the w iper arm @until you hea r it latch
i nto place.
.. Place the wiper arm back on the windshie ld .
.. Switch the ignition on.
.. Press the w indshield wiper lever.
Or .. Se lect : ICAR lf u nction button>
Car sy stem s
control button > Servicing & check s > Wiper
se rvice position
> Off .
A WARNING
-If the wi ndshield wipe rs smear the wind­
shield, clean the w iper blades with w ind­
shield washe r fl uid . If the wiper blades
are extremely d irty, yo u can also clean
th em with a soft sponge or cloth.
- For yo ur safe ty, you should replace the
wiper blades once or twice a year . See
yo ur aut horiz e d Aud i dea ler for rep lace­
me nt blades .
(D Note
-The wi ndshield wiper blades mus t only
b e fo lded away when in t he se rv ice posi ­
tion! Otherwise, you risk damaging the
paint on the hoo d or the wi ndshield wip­
e r mo to r.
- Y ou sho uld not m ove y our vehicle or
press the w indshie ld w iper lever when
the wiper arms are folded away from the
windsh ield . The windshield w ipers would
move back into the ir o rig inal position
and could damage the hood and w ind­
s h ield.
- To he lp prevent damage to the wiper sys­
tem, a lways loosen blades which are fro­
zen to the windsh ield before operat ing
wipers.
- To he lp prevent damage to w iper blades,
do not use gasoline, ke rosene, pa int
t hi nner, or othe r solve nts on or nea r th e
wipe r blades. Clear vi
sion 4 7
- T o help p revent damage to the wiper
arms or other components, do not at­
tempt to move the wipers by hand.
(D Tips
- Commercial hot waxes appli ed by a uto­
matic ca r washes affect the cleanability
o f the windshie ld .
- Yo u can also use the serv ice po sit ion, for
example, if yo u want to p rotect the
w indshield from icing by using a cover .
- Yo u cannot activate the se rv ice position
w hen the hood is ope n.
Mirrors
Adjusting the exterior mirrors
Fig. 42 Forwar d sect io n of dr ive r's ar mrest : power mir­
r o r cont rol s
Turn the knob to t he des ired po sition:
q;p -In this pos ition, you can adjust the
drive r's and fro nt pass enge r's exte rior mi rrors
by turning the knob in the desired d irection.
® -The mirrors are heated depending on the
outside temperature .
8 -The exterior mirrors fold in. In the MMI,
you can select if the mirrors fo ld in automati­
ca lly when you lock t he vehicle¢
page 32.
Driver exterior mirror tilt function
To he lp you see the curb when backing into a
par king space , the s urface of t he mirror tilts
slight ly. The knob must be in the
P position
for t his to happen .
You can adjust the tilted m irror surface by
turning the kno b in the desire d di rect ion.
When you move out of reverse and into

48 Clear vis ion
another gear, the new mirror position is stor ­
ed and assign ed to the key you a re using.
The mirror goes back in to its origina l posit io n
once yo u drive forward faster than 9 mph (15
km/h) or switch the ignition
off.
~ WARNING
- Curved ( i.e. convex) mirror s urfaces in­
crease your field of view. Remember that
vehicles or other objects will appear
smaller a nd fa rther away than when seen
in a flat m irror . If you use this mirro r to
est imate distances of following vehicles
when changing lanes, you cou ld estimate
incorrectly and cause an ac cident .
-
@ Note
-If the mirro r hous ing is moved uninten ­
t ionally (for example, whi le park ing your
vehicle), then you must first fo ld the mi r­
r or electri cally. Do not readjust the m ir­
r or ho us in g manua lly . You could damage
the motor which con trols the mirror .
- If you wash t he vehi cle in an au tomatic
c ar wash, yo u m ust fold the e xterior m ir­
rors in to reduce the risk of damage to
the mirrors. Never fold power fo lding ex ­
terior mi rrors* by hand. Only fold them
i n and out us ing t he power contro ls.
@ Tips
- The exterior mirror settings are stored
with the memory funct ion *
~ page 53.
- If there is a malfunct ion i n the elect rical
system, you can still adjust the exter ior
mirrors by pressing the edge of the mir­
ror.
Dimming the mirrors
F ig . 4 3 Auto ma tic d immin g rearview mirro r*
Manu al anti-glare adjustment
.,. Move the small leve r (located on the bot­
tom edge of the mirror) to the rear.
Automatically dimming mirrors*
.,. To dim the rearview m irror and both exteri­
or m irrors, press the@ button . The diode
® turns on . The rearview and exterior mir­
rors dim automatically when light shines on
them, for examp le from headlights on ave­
hicle to the rear .
A WARNING
=
Electrolyte fluid can lea k from automatic
d imm ing mirro rs if the g lass is broken .
E lectro lyte fluid can irr itate sk in, eyes a nd
r espira to ry system .
- Repeated or prolonged exposu re to e lec­
trolyte can ca u se irritation to the respira­
t ory sys tem, especially among people
wit h asthma or other resp iratory condi­
tions . Get fresh air immediately by leav ­
ing the vehicle or, if that is not possib le,
open w indows and doors all the way .
- If electrolyte gets into the eyes, fl ush
them thorough ly with large amou nts of
clean water for at least 15 minutes; medical attention is recommended.
- If electrolyte contacts skin, fl ush affect­
ed area with clean water for at least 15 minutes a nd then wash affected area
with soap and water; medical atte ntion
is recommended. Thoroughly wash af­
fect ed clothing and shoes before re use .

Front passenger's seat
Always move the front passenger seat into the rearmost position.
To avoid contact with the airbag while it is de­
ploying, do not sit any closer to the instru­
ment panel than necessary and always wear
the three-point safety belt provided adjusted
correctly. We recommend that you adjust the
passenger's seat in the following manner:
.. Move the front passenger seat into the rear­
most position of the fore and aft adjustment
range
~ .&. in Why is your seat adjustment
so important? on page 50.
• Bring the backrest up to an (almost) upright
position.
Do not ride with the seat reclined .
.. Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge
is as even as possible with the top of your
head. If that is not possible, try to adjust
the head restraint so that it is as close to
th is position as possible ¢
page 52.
.. Place your feet on the floor in front of the
passenger's seat .
Front seats
Controls
The operating logic for the switches corre­
sponds to the construction and function of
the seat.
Fig. 44 Front seat: adjusting the seat
@ -adjusting lumbar support*: press the but­
ton in the corresponding position¢.&,.
@ -Moving the seat forward/back: press the
button forward/back ¢ ,&. .
@ -Mov ing the seat up/down: press the but­
ton up/down ¢,&. . To adjust the front section
Seats and storage 51
of the seat, press the front button up/down
¢ ,&. .To adjust the rear section of the seat,
press the rear button up/down ¢,&. .
© -Backrest forward/back: press the button
forward/back
~ ,&. .
A WARNING
-
-Never adjust the driver's or front pas­
senger's seat whi le the vehicle is moving.
If you do this while the veh icle is moving,
you will be out of position. Always adjust
the dr iver's or front passenger's seat
when the vehicle is not moving.
- Be careful when adjusting the seat
he ight. Check to see that no one is in the
way, or serious injury cou ld result!
- Because the seats can be electrically ad­
justed with the ignition off, never leave
children unattended in the vehicle. Unsu­
pe rvised use of the electric seat adjust­
ments may cause serious injury .
- To reduce the risk of injury in the case of
sudden braking or accident, front pas­
sengers must never r ide in a moving ve­
hicle with the backrest reclined. Safety
be lts and the airbag system on ly offer
maximum protection when the backrest
is upright and the safety belts are prop­
erly positioned on the body. The more
the backrest is reclined, the greater the risk of personal injury from an incorrect
seating position and improperly posi­
tioned safety belts.
Armrest
There is a storage compartment under the
armrest.
Fig. 45 Cockp it : center armrest

12-volt sockets
Fig. 53 Section of the trim panel of the luggage com­
partment: 12-volt socket
Fig . 54 Rear center console: 12-volt socket
~ To reach the 12-volt socket in the luggage
compartment, press the net down or re­
move the bracket from the mounts
Qfig . 53.
There is an additional 12-volt socket in the
front and rear center console¢
fig. 54.
0 5 0 /li
The 12 volt sockets may be used for 12-volt
appliances with max imum cons umption of up
to 120 watts.
Before you purchase any accessories, always
r ead and fol low the information in
¢ page 2 75, Additional accessories and parts
replacement .
A WARNING
The sockets and the e lectrica l accessories
connected to them operate on ly when the
ignition is switched on. Incorrect usage
can lead to serious injuries or burns. To re­
duce the risk of injuries, never leave chil­
dren unattended in the vehicle with the ve­
hicle key.
S ea ts a nd s to rage 55
(D Note
To avoid damaging the socket, only use
plugs that fit properly.
- Never connect equipment that generates
electrical current, such as a solar pane l
or battery charger, to the 12 volt socket.
This could damage the vehicle's electri­ cal system.
- The 12 volt socket shou ld only be used
for a short period of ti me as a power
source for electrical equ ipment. Please
use the electr ical sockets in the vehicle
when con necting equ ipment for longer
periods.
- To avoid damaging the socket, only use
plugs that fit properly.
(D Tips
When the engine is off and accessories are
still plugged in and are on, the vehicle ba t­
tery can still be d rained.
Storage
(upholder
Fi g. 55 Ce nter console: cupholder
Fig. 56 Rear center armrest: cupholde r extended