2012 AUDI S7 towing

124 Driving Safel y
Floor mats used in your vehicle m ust be at ­
tached to these fasteners. Proper ly securing
the floor mats will prevent them from s liding
into pos itions that could interfere with the
pedals or impair safe operation of your vehicle
in other ways .
A WARNING
Pedals that cannot move freely can result
in a loss of veh icle contro l and increase the
r isk of serious personal injury .
- Always make sure that floor mats are
properly secured.
- Never place or insta ll floor mats or other
floor coverings in the vehicle that cannot be properly secured in place to prevent
them from slipping and interfering w ith
the pedals or the ability to control the
vehicle.
- Never place o r insta ll floor ma ts or other
floor coverings on top of a lready insta l­
led floor mats. Additional floor mats and
other coverings w ill reduce the size of
the pedal area and interfere with the
pedals.
- Always properly reinstall and sec ure floor
mats that have been taken out for clean­
ing.
- Always make sure that objects cannot fall into the driver footwe ll wh ile the ve­
hicle is moving. Objects can become
trapped under the b rake pedal and accel ­
erator peda l causing a loss of veh icle
c o ntrol.
Stowing luggage
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objec ts must be prop ­
erly stowed and secured in the luggage com ­
partment.
L oose items in the luggage comp art ment can
shift suddenly, changing veh icle hand ling
characteristics. Loose items can also increase
the risk of serious personal injury in a sudde n
vehicle maneuver or in a collision . ..
Distribute the load even ly in the luggage
compartment .
.. Always place and proper ly secure heavy
items in the luggage compartment as far
forward as possible .
.. Secure luggage using the tie -downs prov id ­
ed
¢ page 59, Luggage compartment.
.. Make s ure that the rear seatback is securely
la tc hed in place.
A WARNING
Imp roperly store d luggage or other items
can fly thro ugh the vehi cle causing ser ious
personal injury in the event of hard brak­
i ng or an accident. To help reduce t he risk
of ser ious personal in jury:
- Always put objects, fo r example, luggage
or other heavy items in the luggage com­ pa rtment.
- Always secure objects in the luggage
compartment using the t ie-down hoo ks
and suitable straps.
A WARNING
=
Heavy loads w ill influence the way yo ur ve-
hi cle handles . To help reduce the risk of a
l oss of contro l leading to serious pe rsonal
i njury :
-Always keep in mind when transporting
heavy objects, that a change i n the cen­
ter of gravity can also cause changes in
veh icle ha ndling:
- Always distribute the load as evenly as
poss ible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in
the luggage compartment as possible .
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rat­
ing or the Gross Vehicle We ight Rating
specified on the safety compliance stick­
er on the left door jamb. Exceed ing per­
miss ible weight standards can cause the
veh icle to slide and handle differently .
- Please observe information on safe dr iv­
ing
¢page 118.

184 Intelligent technology
Intelligent technology
Notice about data
recorded by vehicle
control modules
Your veh icle is not equipped with an Event Da­
ta Recorde r (EDR), ins talled by some manu­
facture rs fo r the express p urpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or cras h
event . EDR's are sometimes ca lled "crash re­
corders".
Some state laws restr ict the retr ieval or down­
loading of data stored by EDR's that were in­
stalled in a vehicle for the express purpose of retrieving data after an accident or crash
event without the owner's consent.
A ltho ugh yo ur vehicle is not equ ipped wit h an
EDR, it is equipped with a number of electron­
ic control modules for various vehicle systems
such as, for examp le, eng ine f unction, em is­
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic contro l modules also record
vehicle-re lated data during norma l vehicle op­
erat ion for diagnostic and repa ir purposes.
The recording capacity of the electronic con­
trol modules is limited to data (no sound is re­
corded) and only a small amount of data is ac­
tually recorded ove r a ve ry limited pe riod of
time and stored when a sys tem faul t or o ther
cond ition is sensed by a cont ro l u nit. Some of
the data then stored may re late to vehicle
speed, direction, braking as we ll as restraint
system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condit ion. Stored data can only
be read and downloaded w ith special equip­
ment.
Electronic stabilization
program (ESP)
Description
ESP helps to improve road holding and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of
skidd ing and loss of veh icle control. It works
only when the eng ine is running. ESP detects certain difficult driving situat
ions, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw) o ut of control and helps you to get the veh icle
back under contro l by se lectively braking the
whee ls, and/or reducing engine power and
providing steer ing ass istance to he lp hold the
vehicle o n the dr ive r's intended cou rse. The in­
dicato r light
G] in the instrument cluste r
blinks when ESP is taking action to help you
control the veh icle.
ESP has l imitations.
It is importa nt to remem­
ber that ESP cannot overcome the laws of
physics. It will not always be able to help out
under a ll cond it ions you may come up aga inst.
F or example, ESP may not always be able to
help you master situations where there is a
s u dden change in the coefficient of friction of
the road surface. When there is a section of dry road that is sudden ly covered w ith water,
s lush or snow, ESP cannot perform the same
way it wou ld on the dry surface . If the ve hicle
hydroplanes (rides on a cushion of water in­
stead of the road surface), ESP will not be
able to help you steer the vehicle be cause con­
tact with the pavement has been interrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered .
D uring fast cornering, particularly on winding
roads, ESP cannot a lways deal as effectively
with difficult driv ing situations than at lower
speeds. When towing a trailer, ESP is not able
to help you regain control as it would if you
were not tow ing a trailer.
Always adjust your speed and driving style to road, traffic; and weather condit ions. ESP can­
not override the vehicle's physical limits, in­
crease the availab le tract ion, or keep a ve hicle
on the road if road departu re is a result of
drive r inattent io n. Instead, ESP improves the
poss ibil ity of keeping the vehi cle under con ­
trol and on the road during extreme maneu­
vers by using the d river's steering inputs to
help keep the vehicle going in the intended di­
rection . If you are traveling at a speed that
ca uses you to run off the road before ESP can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESP .

188 Intelligent technology
road and the brakes are not used. Here too,
you should clean
off accumulated salt coating
from brake discs and pads with a few careful applications of the brake
i:> ,&. .
Corrosion
There may be a tendency for dirt to build up
on the brake pads and corrosion to form on
the discs if the car is not driven regularly or
only for short trips with little use of the
brakes .
If the brakes are not used frequently, or if cor­
rosion has formed on the discs, it is advisable
to clean
off the pads and discs by braking
firmly a few times from a moderately high
speed
i:> .&. .
Faults in the brake system
If you should notice a sudden increase in
brake pedal travel, then one of the two brake
circuits may have failed
i:> ,&. .
Low brake fluid level
Malfunctions can occur in the brake system if
the brake fluid level is too low. The brake fluid
level is monitored electronically.
Brake booster
The brake booster works with vacuum pres­
sure which is created only when the engine is
running
c> .&. .
Brake lining wear status
Brake lining wear may be checked by visual in­
spection of the condition of the brake pads
through the openings in the wheel. If neces­
sary, the wheel may be removed for this in­
spection
c> page 254, Changing a wheel.
,8. WARNING
-You should perform braking maneuvers
for the purpose of cleaning the brake
system only if road conditions permit.
Other road users must not be put at risk -
you may cause an accident!
- Before descending a steep grade, reduce
speed and shift transmission into a lower
gear or lower driving range. Do not ride the brakes or hold the pedal down too
long or too often . This could cause the
brakes to get hot and diminish braking
efficiency .
- Do not "ride the brakes" by resting your
foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to brake. This may cause the brakes to
overheat, premature wear and increased
stopping distance.
- Under certain climatic and operating
conditions such as passing through wa­
ter, driving in heavy rain or after washing
the vehicle, the effectiveness of the
brakes can be reduced. In winter, ice can
accumulate on the brake pads, linings,
discs and drums. Carefully apply brakes
for a test. Brakes will dry and ice coat­
ings will be cleaned
off after a few care­
ful brake applications.
- Driving for an extended period of time on
salt-covered roads without using your brakes can also affect braking efficiency.
Clean
off accumulated salt coating from
brake discs and pads with a few careful
brake applications.
- If you damage the front spoiler, or if you
install a different spoiler, be sure the air
flow to the front brakes is not obstruct­
ed. Otherwise the brake system could
overheat reducing the effectiveness of
the entire brake system.
- Failure of one brake circuit will impair
the braking capability resulting in an in­
creased stopping distance. Avoid driving
the vehicle and have it towed to the near­
est Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- Never let the vehicle roll to a stop with
the engine shut
off.
- If the brake booster is not working, for
example when towing your vehicle, or because the brake booster has somehow
been damaged, the brake pedal must be
pressed considerably harder to make up
for the lack of booster assistance .

Trailer towing Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passen­
ger transportation .
If you plan to tow a tra iler, p lease remember
that the addit ional load will affect durab ility,
economy and performance .
T railer towing not on ly places more stress on
the vehicle, it also calls for more concentra­
tion from the driver.
F or this reason, a lways fo llow the operating
and driving instructions provided and use
common sense.
Technical requirements
Traile r hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross trailer we ight. The hitch must be suita­
b le for your veh icle and trailer and must be
mounted secure ly on t he veh icle's chassis at a
technically sound location . Use only a t railer
h itch w ith a removab le ball moun t. A lways
check with the tr ailer hitch man ufac tur er to
make sure that you are using the correct
hitch.
Do not use a bumper hitch.
T he hitc h must be installed in such a way that
it does not inte rfe re with the impac t-absorb­
i ng b umper syst em. No modifica tions should
be made to the vehicle exhaus t and b rake sys­
tems . From t ime to time, check that a ll hitch
mo unt ing bolt s remain securely fas tened.
W hen you are not tow ing a trailer, remove the
trai le r hi tch ball moun t. T h is prevents the
hi tch from causing damage sho uld your ve hi­
cle be str uck from be hind
¢ &. .
Trailer brakes
If yo ur tra iler is equ ipped w it h a braking sys­
tem, check to be su re that it conforms to a ll
r eg ulat io ns.
Trailer towin g 197
The trailer hyd ra ulic bra ke system must not be
direct ly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
brake system .
Safety chains
Alw ays use saf ety chains between your ve hicle
and t he tra ile r.
Trailer lights
Tra iler lights must meet all reg ulations . Be
su re to check with your Audi dea ler fo r cor re ct
wir ing, swi tches and relays.
Mirrors
If you a re unable to see the traffic behind you
u sing the regula r outside m irrors, then you
must i nsta ll ext ended mir rors . It is important
t h at you
always have clea r vis ion to the rear .
.8, WARNING
-
Afte r removing the trailer hit ch, do no t
s tore i t in yo ur vehicle . In case of sudden
b raking, the h itch cou ld fly forwar d an d in­
ju re you or yo ur passengers .
Operating instructions
Maximum trailer weight
A tra ile r fo r you r vehicle is limited to a ty pical
cl ass 1 or class 2 tra ile r.
Trailer load distribution
B e sure the loa d in the tr aile r is held secure ly
i n place to p reven t it from shift ing forw ard,
ba ckward or sideways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer
¢&. in Driving instru ctions on page 198.
Engine cooling system
Towing a trailer makes the engine work hard­
er . It is impo rtant that the cooling system's
perfo rmance is up to the additional load .
Make sure that the coo ling syst em has enough
f lui d.
Tire pressure
When towing a trailer , inflate the tires of your
vehicle to t he cold tire pressure listed under .,..
•
•

198 Trailer towing
"Full load" on the label located on the driver's
side B-pillar (visible when the door is open) .
Inflate trailer t ires to tra iler and t ire manufac ­
turers' specif ications.
Lights
Check to ma ke s ure bot h ve hicle and trailer
lights are working proper ly.
Safet y chains
Be sure tra ile r safety cha ins are prope rly con­
nected from the trailer to the hi tch on the ve­
h icle. Leave enough s lack in the chains to per­
mit turning corners. When you install safety
chains, make sure they wi ll not drag on the
road when yo u are driving .
The cha ins shou ld cross under the tra ile r
tongue to prevent it from dropping in case o f
separation from the hitch.
Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra
care and consideration .
To obtain the best poss ible handling of vehicle
and tra ile r, p lease no te the following:
.. Do not tow a loaded tra ile r when your car it­
self is not loaded.
.,. Be especia lly ca reful whe n passing other
ve­
hicles.
.. Observe speed limits .
.. Do not d rive at the maximum permissible
speed.
.. Always apply brakes early .
.. Monitor the temperature gauge.
W eight distribution
Towing a loaded trai le r with an empty ca r re­
sults in a high ly unstable distribution of
weight . If this cannot be avoided, drive at
very
low speeds only to avoid the risk of losing
steering control.
A "balanced" rig is eas ier to operate and con­
trol. This means that the tow vehicle should be loaded to the extent poss ible and permiss i­
ble, while keeping the trailer as light as possi­
b le under the circumstances . Whenever possi- ble, transfer some cargo to the luggage com­
partment of the tow vehicle while observing
tong ue load requ irements and vehicle load ing
considerations.
Speed
T he higher the speed, the mo re d iff icu lt it be­
comes for the driver to control the rig . Do not
drive at the maximum permissible speed . Re ­
duce your speed
even more if load, weather or
wind conditions are unfavorable -particularly
when going downhill .
Red uce vehicle speed
immediatel y if the trail­
er shows the slightest s ign of sway ing.
Do not
try to stop the swaying by accelerating.
Observe speed limits. In some areas, speeds
for vehicles towing trai lers are lower than for
regular vehicles .
Always apply brakes early . When driving
down hill , shift into a lower gear to use the en ­
gine braking effect to s low the vehicle. Use of
the brakes alone can cause them to overheat
and fail.
Coolant temperatur e
The coo lant temperat ure gauge ¢ page 10
must be observed carefu lly. The coolant tem­
perature can increase if you drive on long in­
clines in a low gear at h igh engine speeds. Re­
duce your speed immediately if the LEDs in
the top part of the d isp lay turn on .
For more information about indicator lights,
referto .¢page
15 .
A WARNING
Anyone not properly restrained in a mov­
i ng vehicle is at a much greater risk in an
accident. Never let anyone ride in your car
who is not p roperly wea ring the rest raints
p rov ided by A udi.
Trailer towing tips
Important to know
Your vehicle handles differently when towing
a trai ler because of the additional weight and ..,.

different weight distribution. Safety, perform­
ance and economy wi ll greatly depend on how
carefu lly you load your trailer and operate
your rig.
Before you actua lly tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you
have become comp letely fam iliar with the way
your vehicle- trailer combination behaves and
responds .
Backing up is d ifficult and requires practice.
Backing up with a trai ler generally requires
steering action opposite to that when backing up your vehicle without a trailer .
Maintain a greater distance between your ve­
hicle and the one in front of you. You will need
more room to stop. To compensate for the
trailer, you will need a larger than normal
turn ing radius.
When passing, remember that you cannot ac­
celerate as fast as you normally would be­
cause of the added load. Make sure you have
enough room to pass . After passing, allow
p lenty of room for your tra iler before chang­
ing lanes again.
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a trailer during the break- in
period of your vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your Audi may re­
quire more frequent maintenance due to
the extra load
¢ page 2 73 .
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If i t can­
not be avoided, do so only after doing the fol ­
lowing:
When parking:
.. Apply the foot brake .
.. Have someone place chocks under both the
vehicle and the trailer wheels.
Trailer towing 199
.. With chocks in place, slowly release the
brakes until the wheel chocks absorb the
load .
.. Turn the wheels towards the curb .
.. Apply the parking brake.
.. Select the
P selector lever position .
When restarting after parking:
.. App ly the foot brake.
.. Start the engine .
.. Select the
D/S selector lever position.
.. Release the parking brake and slowly pull
out and away from the wheel chocks .
.. Stop and have someone retr ieve the wheel
chocks.
(D Tips
If you move the selector lever of the auto­
matic transmission to
P before applying
the pa rking brake and before blocking the
whee ls, you may have to use more force
lat er to move the lever out of the
P posi­
tion.
•
•

240 Tires and whee ls
transport so that you can make
sure that your vehicle will not
be overloaded .
Steps for Determining
Correct Load Limit
1. Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF OC­
CUPANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NEVER EXCEED XXX
KG OR XXX LBS" on your ve­
hicle's placard (tire inflation
pressure label)
c:::> page 235 ,
fig. 176 .
2. Determine the comb ined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined
weight of the dr iver and pas­
sengers from "XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds
shown on the sticker
c:::> page 235, fig . 176 .
4. The resulting figure equals
the available amount of car­
go and luggage load capaci­
ty. For example, if the
" XXX "
amount equals 1400 lbs .
and there will be five 150
l bs . passengers in you r vehi­
cle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load ca- pacity is 650 lbs. (1400-750
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs
.)
5. Determine the combined
weight of luggage and cargo being loaded on the vehicle .
That weight may not safely exceed the available cargo
and luggage load capacity
calcu lated in Step
4 .
6. If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer, load from your trail ­
er will be transferred to your
vehicle. Consult this manual
to determine how this re­
duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle .
.,. Check the ti re sidewall
(c:::> page 242 , fig. 180) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.

252 What do I do n ow ?
What do I do now?
Emergency warning
triangle
App lies to vehicles: with emerge ncy warning triangle
The warning triangle is located on the inside
of the trunk lid .
-
"' M ~ 0 6
~ ~
Fig. 183 Trunk lid: Warning triang le
.,. To open the cover, turn the locking mecha ­
nism and pull the cover downward .
" m
.,. Remove the warning triangle from its hold­
er.
The rear lid is only designed to hold the warn ­
ing triangle offered by the original accessories
program. If you would like to retrofit your ve­
hicle with a warning triangle, p lease contact
your authorized Audi dealer.
Vehicle tool kit
Vehicle tool kit and jack
The vehicle tool kit is located in the luggage
compartment under the cargo floor cover.
Fig . 184 Luggage compartment: cargo floor cover
folded upward/spa re t ire
Fig. 185 Trunk lid: Veh icle tool kit
.,. Fold the floor to the seatback with the help
of the handle .
.,. Tu rn the handwheel counter-clockwise
~ fig. 184 and remove the spare t ire to
reach the vehicle tool kit.
The onboard tool k it includes:
- Hooks to remove the wheel covers*
- Plastic hook to remove wheel bolt covers*
- Wheel bolt wrench
-Alignment pin for changing wheels
- Screwdriver with reversib le b lade
- Towing loop
-Jack
Before storing the jack, make sure it is wound
back down as far as it will go.
A WARNING
Improper use of the vehicle jack can cause
serious pe rsonal injuries.
- Never use the screw driver hex head to
tighten wheel bolts, since the bolts can­
not attain the necessary tighten ing tor­
que if you use the hex head, potentially
causing an acc ident.
- The factory-supplied jack is intended on­
ly for your vehicle model. Under no c ir­
cumstances sho uld it be used to
lift
heavy veh icles or other loads; you risk in­
juring yo urself.
- Never start the engine when the vehicle
is raised, which could cause an accident.
- Support the vehicle securely with appro­ priate stands if work is to be performed
underneath the vehicle; otherwise, there
is a potentia l risk for injury. .,.