84 On th e road
in the hy dra ulic valve adjusters. This is
norma l and not a cause for concern.
- If you leave the vehicle with the ignition
switched on, the ignition will switch
off
after a certain period of time . Please
note that e lectrica l equipment such as
exter ior lights w ill switch
off as well
when that happens.
Switching engine off
Applies to vehicles: with conven ience key
" Bring your vehicle to a complete stop.
" Automat ic transm iss ion: Move the selector
lever to the P or N pos it ion.
" Press the
!START ENGINE STOPI button
r::!;page 83, fig. 97.
St eering lock
The steering locks when you t urn the engine
off us ing the I STAR T ENGINE STOP I button
and open the dr iver's door. The locked stee r
i ng helps p reven t vehicle theft.
Emergency off
If necessary, the eng ine ca n be sw itched off
with the selector leve r in the R or D/S pos i
tions. To do so, step on the brake pedal and
p ress and hold the
I START ENGINE STOP I but
ton vehicle speed must be less th an 6 mph
(10 km/h).
_& WARNING
- Never turn off the eng ine before the ve
hicle has come to a complete stop . The
full f unction of the brake booster and the
power steering is not guaranteed. You
must use more force to turn or brake if
necessary. Because you cannot steer and
brake as you usua lly would, this could
lead to crashes and se rious injur ies.
- For safety reasons, you s hould always
par k your vehicle with the se lector lever
in P. Ot herwise, the ve hicle co uld i nad
vertent ly roll away.
- T he ra diator fan ca n continue to ru n for
up to 10 mi nutes even after yo u have
tu rne d
off the eng ine and remove d the ignit
ion key. The radiator fan can a lso
turn on again if the engine coo lant heats
up because of intense sunlight or heat
bu ild-up in the engine compartment.
- Always take the key w ith you whenever
you leave your ve hicle. Otherw ise, the
eng ine could be sta rted or electrical
equ ipme nt such as the power windows
could be ope rated. This can lead to seri
ous injury.
(D Note
If the engine has bee n under heavy load
fo r an extended pe riod, heat bu ilds up in
the engine compartment after the engine
i s sw itched
off -there i s a r is k of damag ing
the e ngine. A llow the eng ine to run at id le
for about two minutes before switching it
off.
Driver messages
Ignition i s on
This message appears and a warning tone
sounds if you open the d river's door when the
ignition is sw itched on.
No key id entified
This message appears when the
I S TART ENGI NE STOPI button is pressed if
there is no master key ins ide the veh icle or if
the system does not recognize it . Fo r exam
ple, the master key cannot be recognized if it
is covered by an object (e.g. al uminum b rief
case) which
screens the radio s ignal. Elec tron
ic dev ices such as cell phones can also inter
fere with the radio s ignal.
Pres s brak e pedal to start engine
This message appears if you do not press the
brake pedal to start the eng ine in a veh icle
with an automat ic transm iss ion.
Press clutch pedal to sta rt engine
T his message ap pears if you do not press the
clutch pedal to start the engine in a vehicle
with a manual transmission. .,.
86 On the road
Emerg ency b rake function
An emergency brake ensures t hat the vehicle
can be slowed down even if the
normal brakes
fail
c::> page 87 , Emergency broking.
Indicat or light s
-If the par king b rake is closed w ith the igni
t ion
s witc hed on the . (USA models) /
• (Canada mode ls) indica tor lights come
on in the instrum ent cluster and the switch .
-If the parking brake is closed w ith the igni
tion
s witc hed off the . (USA models) /
• (Canada mode ls) indicator lights come
on in the instrument clust er and th e switch
for about 20 seconds .
A WARNING
If a gear or a drive range (automat ic trans
m ission) is engaged with the vehicle sta
tionary and the engine runn ing, you must
in no instance accelerate o r release the
cl utch * careless ly. Otherw ise the vehicle
w ill sta rt to move immediately- r isk of an
accident .
@ Note
If the . symbol in the display or the
.. (USA models) . (Canada models)
ind icator light in the instr ume nt cl uster
flashes, there is a ma lf u nction in the brake
system. By pressing the
ISETI button, you
can bring up a driver message which ex
plains the malfunction in more detail. If
the driver message
Pa rking brake! ap
pears, there is an operating malfunction in
the park ing brake which you should have
repaired immediately by an authorized
Aud i deale r or other qualified workshop
c::> page 15.
(D Tips
- You can apply the parking brake at any
time - even w ith the ignition switched
off . Th e ignit ion must be t urned on in o r
der to release the par king brake. - Occasional noises when the parking
bra ke is applied and released are normal
and are not a cause for concern.
- When the vehicle is parked , the parking
brake goes through a self-test cycle at
regu lar interva ls. Any associated noises
are normal.
Parking
Parking
.,. Press the br ake ped al to s top the veh icle .
.,. Pull the button
@ c::> page 85, fig. 98 to set
the parking brake.
.,. Automatic transmission: Move the selector
lever to P.
.,. Tur n the engine off
c::> ,& .
.,. Man ual transmission: Shift into 1st gear.
In addition on inclines and gr ades
.,. Turn the steering wheel so that you r vehicle
w ill roll aga inst the curb in case it shou ld
s tart to move.
A WARNING
- When you leave yo ur vehicle -even if on
ly briefly -always remove the igni tion
key. This app lies particularly when chi l
dren remain in the vehicle. Otherwise the
children could start the eng ine, release
the park ing brake or operate electrical
equ ipme nt (e .g . power windows). There
is the risk of an acc ident .
- When the veh icle is locked, no one -par
ticularly not children should rema in in
the vehicle . Locked doors ma ke it mo re
d ifficult for em ergency worke rs to get in
to the vehicle -putting lives at r isk .
Starting from rest
The starting assist function ensures that the
parking brake is released automatically upon starting.
Stopping and applying parking brake
.,. Pull the switch @ c::> page 85 , fig . 98 to ap-
ply the parking brake . .,.
Starting and autom ati call y relea sing the
pa rking b rake
~ When you start to drive as usua l, the park
ing brake is automatically re leased and your
vehicle begins to move.
When stopping at a traffic signa l or stopp ing
in city traffic on vehicles with an automatic
transmission, the parking brake can be ap plied. The vehicle does not have to be held
w ith the footbrake . The park ing brake elimi
nates the tendency to creep with a drive range
engaged. As soon as you dr ive off as usual,
the park ing brake is released automatically
and the vehicle sta rts to move .
Starting on slop es
When starting on inclines, the start ing ass ist
prevents the vehicle from unintentionally roll
ing back. The braking force of the parking
brake is not released until sufficient dr iving
force has been b uilt up at the whee ls.
(D Tips
For safety reasons, the park ing brake is re
leased automatically only when the dr iv
er 's safety belt is engaged in the bu ckle.
Starting off with a trailer
To prevent rolling back unintentionally on an
incline, do the following:
~ Keep the switch@¢ page 85, fig . 98
pulled and depress the accelerator . The
park ing b rake stays app lied and p revents
the vehi cle from rolling backward.
~ You can release the switch @once you are
s u re that yo u are developing enough driving
force at the wheels by depressing the accel erator.
D epending on the weight of the rig (vehicle
and trai ler) and the severity of the incline, you
may roll backwards as you start. Yo u can pre
vent roll ing backwards by holding the parking
brake switch @pulled out and accelerating -
just as you would when starting on a hill wit h
a conventional hand brake .
On the ro ad 87
Emergency braking
In the event that the conventional brake sys
tem fails or locks .
~ In an emergency, pull the sw itch @
¢
page 85, fig. 98 and continue to pull it to
slow your vehicle down with the parking
brake .
~ As soon as you release the switch @ or ac-
celerate, the b ra ki ng process s tops.
If you pull the switch @and hold it above a
speed of about 5 mph (8 km/h), the eme rgen
cy bra king funct ion is initia ted . T he ve hicle is
braked at all four whee ls by activating the hy
draulic brake system. The brake performa nce
is similar to making an emergency stop¢&..
In order not to act ivate the eme rgency brak
ing by mis take, an audib le warning tone (buz
zer) so unds when the switch @is pulled. As
soon as the switch @ is re leased, or the acce l
erato r peda l is depressed, emergency braking
stops.
A WARNING
...--
Emergency braking should only be used in
an emergency, when the normal foot brake has fa iled or the brake pedal is obstructed .
Using the par king b rake to pe rform eme r
gency brak ing will slow your vehicle down
as if you had made a full bra ke application.
The laws of physics cannot be suspended
even with ESC and its associated compo
nents (ABS, ASR, EDS) . In corners and
when road or weather conditions are bad,
a full brake application can ca use the vehi
cle to sk id or the rear end to break away -
risking an accident.
Speed warning system
Overview
The speed warning system helps you to keep
your driving speed below a set speed limit.
The speed warn ing system warns if the driver
exceeds a p reviously sto red max imum speed .
A warn ing tone w ill sound as soon as the
Ill>
88 On the road
vehicle speed exceeds the set speed by about
3 mph (3 km/h). At the same time, a warning
symbol appears in the d isp lay . The symbol's
appeara nce m ight be d ifferent in some mod
els.
The speed warning system has one or two*
warn ing thresholds that f unct ion independ
ently of each other and that have somewhat
d ifferent purposes:
Speed warn ing 1
You can use speed warning 1 to set the maxi
m um speed w hile you are driv ing. T his setting
will remain in effect until you turn
off the igni
tion, assuming that you have not changed or
reset the setting.
The . (USA models)/ . (Canada models)
speed warning symbol in the warning 1 dis
p lay appears whe n you exceed the maximum
speed. It goes out when the speed fa lls below
the stored max imum speed .
The speed warning symbo l w ill also go out if
the speed
exceeds the stored max imum speed
by more than about 25 mph (40 km/h) for at
least 10 seconds. The stored maximum speed
is deleted .
Sett ing speed warning 1
c::> page 88.
Speed warning 2*
Sto ring warning 2 is recommended if you al
ways
want to be reminded of a certain speed,
for example when yo u are traveling in a coun
try that has a general maximum speed limit,
or if you do not want to exceed a specified
speed for winter tires.
The . (USA mode ls)/ . (Canada mode ls)
speed warning 2 symbo l appears in the dis
play when you exceed the stored speed lim it.
Unlike warning 1, it will not go out until the
vehicle speed drops below the stored speed
lim it.
Sett ing speed warning 2
c::> page 88.
(D Tips
Even tho ugh your vehicle is equipped with
a speed warning system, you should st ill watch the speedome
ter to ma ke s ure you
are not dr iving faster than the speed limit .
Speed warning 1: setting a speed limit
Warning threshold 1 is set by the ISETI but
ton.
F ig . 99 SET bu tton in the instr ume nt cluste r
Storing the max imum speed
.. Drive at the desired maximum speed .
.,. Press t he
ISE TI button in the instrument
panel disp lay
c::> fig . 99 for 1 second .
Resetting the maximum speed
.. Drive the vehicle at a speed of at least
3 mph (5 km/h)
.. Press the
ISET I button for more than 2 sec-
onds.
T he . (USA mode ls)/ . (Canada mode ls)
speed warning symbo l w ill appear briefly in
the display when you release the
I SE TI button
to indicate that the maximum speed has been
stored successfully.
The maximum speed remains stored until it is changed by pressing the
I SET ! button again
briefly or until it is deleted by a lengthy push
on the button.
Speed warning 2: setting a speed limit
App lies to vehicles: wi th trip co mp uter
The radio or MMI* control unit is used to set,
change or delete warning threshold 2.
.. Select: !CAR ! function b utton > In st rument
cluster > Speed warning .
Or
.. Select: ICARlfunction button> Car sys
t e m s*
control button > Drive r as sist >
Spe ed w arning.
Warning th resho ld 2 can be set in the speed
range starting from 20 mph to 150 mph (30
km/h to 240 km/h). Settings can each be ad
justed in intervals of 6 mph (10 km/h).
Cruise control
Switching on
The cruise control system makes it possible to
drive at a constant speed starting at 20 mph
(30 km/h).
®
f
®t
0
Fig. 100 Control lever wi th push -button
Fi g. 101 Disp lay: Se lected speed
.. Pull the lever to position (D ¢ fig. 100 to
switch the system on.
.. Drive at the speed to be controlled .
.. Press button @to set that speed.
The stored speed and the green symbol
[ij;jl)~i~ (US model)/ .. (Canadian model) are
shown in the display
¢fig. 101. The display
may vary, depending on the type of display in
your veh icle.
On th e road 89
The speed is kept constant by modifying en
gine power or through an active brake inter
vention.
_& WARNING
- Always pay attention to the traffic
around you when the cruise control is in
operation. You are always responsible for
your speed and the distance between
your veh icle and other vehicles.
- For reasons of safety, cru ise control
should not be used in the city, in stop
a nd-go traffic, on twisting roads and
when road cond itions are poor (such as
ice, fog, gravel, heavy rain and hydro
p lan ing) -risk of accident .
- Turn
off the cruise control temporar ily
when enter ing turn la nes, highway exit
lanes or in construction zones .
- Please no te that inadverten tly "resting"
your foot on the accelerator pedal causes
the cruise contro l not to brake. This is
because the cruise control is overridden
by the driver's acceleration.
- If a brake system malfunction suc h as
overheating occurs when the cruise con
trol system is switched on, the braking
function in the system may be switched
off. The other cruise contro l functions re
main active as long as the indicator l igh t
lijj(l)~i~ (US mode ls)/ Iii (Canad ian mod
e ls) is on.
@ Tips
- Veh icles with ma nual transmiss ion: You
can attain the set speed only if the gear
that is currently engaged will a llow it, or
if it does not tax the engine a nd allows i t
t o r un smoothly. Therefore shift in to a
higher or lower gear in a time ly manner.
- The bra ke ligh ts ill umina te as soon as
the brakes app ly au tomatically.
Changing speed
.. To increase/decrease the speed in incre
ments, tap the lever in the
010 direction
¢ page 89, fig. 100. Ill>
90 On the road
• To increase/dec rease the speed qu ickly,
hold the lever in the
G) !Q direction unti l
the des ired speed is d isplayed.
You can a lso press the accelerator pedal down
to increase your speed , e .g. if you want to
pass someone . The speed yo u saved earlier
will resume as soon as you let off of the accel
erator pedal.
If , however, you exceed your saved speed by
6 mph (10 km/h) for longer than S minutes ,
the cruise contro l will be turned off tempora
rily. The green symbol in the display turns
white . The saved speed remains the same .
Presetting your speed
You con preset your desired speed while the
vehicle is not moving.
• Switch on the ignition.
• Pu ll lever into pos ition
CD c:> page 89,
fig. 100.
• Press the lever in the 0 or O direction to
incr ease or decrease yo ur speed .
• Re lease the lever to save that speed .
This funct ion makes it possible, for example,
to save the speed you want before driving on
the hig hway . Once o n the hig hway, activate
the cruise contro l by pulling the lever towa rd
(D .
Switching off
Temporary deactivation
• Pres s the bra ke peda l, or
• Manual transmission : Keep the clutch pedal
pressed down
longer , or
• Press the lever into position @ (not clicked
into p lace) ¢
page 89, fig . 100, or
• Drive for longer than S minutes at more
t h an 6 mph (10 km/h) above the stored
speed .
Switching off completely
• Press leve r into position @(clicked into
place), or
• Switch the ignition off. The speed you saved will be retained if the
cruise control has been switched off tempora
rily . To resume the saved speed, let up on the
brake or clutch pedal and pu ll the lever to po
s ition (!).
Switching the ignition off erases the saved
speed.
_& WARNING
You shou ld only return to the saved speed
if it is not too fast for the current traffic
conditions -risk of an accident!
92 Transmission
vehicle to accelerate without a noticeable in
terruption in traction.
tiptronic transmission
I n the tiptronic transmission, power is trans
ferred by a torque converter.
Selector lever positions
Applies to vehicles: with multitronic/5 tronic/tiptronic
Fig. 103 Display in the in stru me nt duste r: selecto r
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 - Park
In this selector lever position the transmis
sion is mechanically locked. Engage P only
when the vehicle is
completely stopped ¢ &
in Driving the automatic transmission on
pag e 94 .
To shift in or out of pos ition P, you must first
press and hold the brake pedal and then press
the release button in the selector lever handle
wh ile mov ing the se lector lever to or from P.
You can shift out of this position only with the
ignition on .
R-Reverse
Select R only when the vehicle is at a full stop
and the engine is running at idle speed ¢ & in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 94 .
Before you move the selector lever to R, press
both the release button in the handle of the
selector lever
and the brake pedal at the same
time. When the
ignition is on, the backup lights illu
minate when the selector lever is moved into
R.
N -Neutral
The transmission is in neutral in this position .
Shift to this position for standing with the
brakes applied ¢
& in Driving the automatic
transmission on page 94.
When the vehicle is stat ionary or at speeds
below 1 mph (2 km/h), yo u must always apply
the footbrake before and whi le moving the
lever out of N.
D/S - Normal position for driving forward
In the D/S position, the transmission can be
operated either in the normal mode D or in
the sport mode S . To select the sport mode S,
pull the selector lever back briefly. Pulling the
lever back again will se lect the normal mode
D. The instrument cluster disp lay shows the
selected driving mode.
In the
normal mode D, the transmission auto
matically selects the suitable gear ratio.
It de
pends on engine load, vehicle speed and driv
ing style .
Select the
sport mode S for sporty driving .
T he vehicle makes full use of the engine's
power. Shift ing may become noticeable when
accelerating.
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds
below 1 mph (2 km/h), you must always app ly
the foot brake before and while moving the lever to D/S out of N.
A WARNING
Read and follow all WARNINGS ¢ & in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 94 .
(D Note
Coasting downhill with the transm ission in
N and the engine not running will result in
damage to the automatic transmission
and possibly the catalytic conve rter. .,..
@ Tips
-On vehicles with drive select*, you can
adjust the sporty shift characteristics in
the
Dynamic driving mode.Swill appear
in the instrument cluster display instead
ofD.
- If you accidentally select N while driving,
take your foot off the accelerator pedal
immediately and wait for the engine to
slow down to idle before selecting D/S.
- If there is a power failure, the selector
lever will not move out of the P position .
The emergency release can be used if
th is happens ~
page 98.
Automatic Shift Lock (ASL)
Applies to vehicles: with multitronic/5 tronic/tiptron ic
The Automatic Shift Lock safeguards you
against accidentally shifting into a forward or
the reverse gear and causing the vehicle to
move unintentionally.
Fig. 104 Shift gate: selector lever lock positions and
release button 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 release button on the
side of the gear se lector knob ¢
fig. 104
with your thumb until you have moved the
selector lever to the desired position.
Automatic selector lever lock
The selector lever is locked in the P and N po·
sitions when the ignition is turned on . You
must press the brake pedal and the release
button to select another position. As a re·
m inder to the driver, the following warning
Transmission 93
appears in the instrument cluster display
when the selector is in P and N:
When stationary apply brake pedal while se
lecting gear
The Automatic Shift Lock only functions when
the vehicle is stationary or at speeds below 1 mph (2 km/h).
At speeds above about 1 mph (2 km/h) the
Automatic Shift Lock is automatically deacti
vated in the N position .
A time delay element prevents the selector lever from locking when it is moved through
the N position (going from R to D/S). The lock
ing element will lock the selector lever if the
lever is left in N (Neutral) for more than ap
proximately 2 seconds, without the brake ped
al being pressed.
Release button
The release button on the selector lever pre
vents the lever from be ing accidentally shifted
into certain positions. Depending on the direc
tion of the shift, the selector lever locks at dif
ferent positions. The positions are highlighted
in the illustration¢
fig. 104 .
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
selector lever will be locked in the P position.
Driving the automatic transmission
Applies to vehicles; with mult itronic/S tronic/tiptronic
Fig. 105 Sh ift gate on the center console: selector lev-
er w it h re lease button ..,_