
78 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 79, 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 carelessly. Otherwise 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 77, fig. 77 to set
the parking brake.
"' Automatic transmission: Move the selector
lever to P.
.,. Turn t he engine off c::>
,& .
.,. Man ual transmission: Shift into 1st gear.
In addition on inclines and gr ades
.,. Turn the steering wheel so that your vehicle
w ill roll aga inst the curb in case it shou ld
start 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 make it mo re
d ifficult for emergency 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 77, fig . 77 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 starts 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 77, fig. 77
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 79
Emergency braking
In the event that the conventional brake sys
tem fails or locks .
~ In an emergency, pull the sw itch @
¢
page 77, fig. 77 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>

.. Select : ICAR lfunction button> Car systems
control button > Driver assist > Speed
warning.
Warning thresho 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. 79 Con tro l lev er w it h push-bu tton
Fig. 80 D isplay : S ele ct ed speed
.. Pull the lever to position (D ¢ fig. 79 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. 80. The display
may vary, depending on the type of display in
your vehicle. The indicator light
[ij;(l)~i~ (US model)/ B (Canadian model) w ill
also light up in the instrument cluster.
On the road 81
The speed is kept constant by modifying en
gine power or through an active brake inter
vention.
_& WARNING
- Always pay attent ion 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
and-go traffic, on twisting roads and
when road conditions are poor (such as
ice, fog, gravel, heavy rain and hydro
p lani ng) -risk of accident.
- Turn off the cruise control temporarily
when enter ing turn lanes, highway exit
lanes or in construction zones .
- Please note that inadvertently "resting"
your foot on the accelerator pedal causes
the cruise control not to brake. This is
because the cruise control is overridden
by the driver's acceleration .
-If a brake system malfunction such 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 control functions re
main active as long as the indicato r light
lijj(l )~i~ (US models) li'I (Canadian mod
e ls ) is on.
@ Tips
-Veh icles with manual transmiss ion: You
can attain the set speed only if the gear
that is currently engaged will allow it, or
if it does not tax the engine and allows i t
to run smoothly. Therefore shift into a
higher or lower gear in a timely manner.
- The brake lights illuminate as soon as
the brakes apply automatically.
Changing speed
.. To increase/decrease the speed in incre
ments, tap the lever in the
0 10 direction
¢ page 81, fig. 79. Ill>

82 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 5 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 81 ,
fig. 79.
• 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 81, fig . 79, or
• Drive for longer than 5 minutes at more
t h an 6 mph (10 km/h) above the stored
speed .
Switching off completely
• Press lever 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!

84 Transmi ssion
Driving the automatic transmission
App lies to vehicles: with multitron ic or tiptro nic
Fig. 82 Sh ift gate on the center co nso le : selector lever
with release button
Starting the engine
• The selector lever must be in N or P.
St arting 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 D/S and release 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
acce lerate .
Rocking back and forth to become
un stuc k
• Sh ift on ly between D/S and R when the ve
hicle is at a full stop and the engine is run
ning at idle speed .
Stopp ing
> Press and ho ld the brake pedal unt il the ve
hicle has come to a complete stop.
• Keep the brake pedal depressed so that the
vehicle cannot roll forward or backward
whi le it is idling ¢,&. .
• Once stopped,
do not depress the accelera-
tor pedal to rev up the engine¢,&..
Parking
If the selector lever is not in the P position
when you open the driver's door, the vehicle
could ro ll. The message
Tra nsmi ssio n: C ar
m ay roll! Shift to p ark!
appears. •
Press and hold the brake peda l until the ve
hicle has come to a comp lete stop.
• Set the park ing brake firm ly ¢
page 78,
Parking.
• Press and hold the release button in these
lector lever handle, move the se lector lever
into P and then let go of the release button
¢ ,&. .
The eng ine can only be
s ta rt e d when these
lector lever is in the P or N positions .
On s lopes, activate the parking brake first and
then move the selector lever to the P position.
This prevents too much stress from being
placed on the locking mechanism.
Vehicles with multitronic transmission: Your
vehicle is equ ipped with
hill hold as sist allow
ing you to start while on an incline . The sys
tem is activated when the brake pedal is
pressed down and held
f or a few s econd s. The
brake p ressu re will hold for
a moment after
the b rake peda l loosens to p reven t the veh icle
from roll ing bac kwards wh ile s tarting up .
_& WARNING
-= -
- Unintended vehicle movement can cause
serio us injury .
- When the se lector lever is in a driving
pos ition, the vehicle may creep, even at
idle speed. Therefore do not release
the pa rking bra ke o r foot brake u ntil
you are ready to move, beca use power
is transmitted to the wheels as soon as
a driving position is engaged.
- Do no t accelerate wh ile selecting a
driv ing 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 transmiss ion.
- Remember: Even when stopped briefly
with the automatic transmission in 0/5
or R, engine power is being transmit
ted to the wheels. Your veh icle cou ld
"creep" forward or backward . Whe n
stopped, keep the brake pedal fu lly de
pressed and use the parking brake if

necessary to keep the vehicle from
rolling.
- If the selector lever is unintentionally
moved into N while you are driving, take
your foot
off the accelerator pedal and
wait for the engine to return to idle
speed before selecting a driving position .
- Never shift 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 must get out of the vehicle, move
the selector lever securely into the P po
sit ion and apply the parking brake firmly.
- If the engine must remain running, never
have any driving position engaged when
checking under the hood . Make sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and
is locked in P with the parking brake
firmly set ¢
page 208, Engine compart
ment.
Otherwise, any increase in engine
speed may set the vehicle in motion,
even with the parking brake applied.
(D Tips
For safety reasons, the parking brake is re
leased automatically only when the driv
er 's safety belt is engaged in the buckle.
Selector lever positions
Applies to vehicles: with multit ronic or tiptronic
This section describes the selector lever posi
tions and driving ranges .
2
Radio WXRK
9:30-
12/5/2 011
121 19 .0mpg
1992 mi 40 .4
~= ~p +7 2~
Fig. 83 Display in the in str um ent cluste r: selecto r leve r
i n positi on P
Transmission 85
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
s ion is mechanically locked. Engage P only
when the vehicle is
completely stopped ¢ &
in Driving the automatic transmission on
page 84.
T o shift in or out of position P, you must first
press and hold the brake pedal and then press
the re lease button in the selector lever handle
while moving the selecto r lever to or from P.
You can shift out of this position only with the
ignition on.
R- Reverse
The transmission will automatically select the
lowest gear ratio when you shift into 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 84.
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 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 th is position for standing with the
brakes applied ¢
page 86.
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds
below 3 mph (S km/h), you must always apply
the footbrake before and while mov ing the
lever out of N.
D /S -Normal position for driving forward
In the D/S pos ition, the transmission can be
operated either in the normal D mode or in
the S sport mode . To select the S sport mode,
pull the selector lever back briefly . Pulling the
lever back again will se lect the normal D ...,

86 Transmission
mo de. The instr ument cluster display shows
the selected driving mode .
I n the
normal m ode D, the transmission auto
mat ica lly selec ts the best gea r ratio .
It de
pends o n engine load, vehicle speed and the
dynamic control program ( DRP) .
Selec t the
sport mode S fo r spo rty drivi ng.
The vehicle makes full use of the engine's
power . S hifting is more not iceable when accel
erating.
When the ve hicle is stationary o r at speeds
be low 3 mph (S km/h), you must always apply
the foot brake before and while moving the lever to D/S out of N.
I n ce rtain circumstances i t may be advanta
geous to tempo rarily swi tch to the manual
shift p rogram to manually se lect gear ratios
to match specific driving conditions
c::> page88.
.&_ WARNING
Read and follow a ll WARNINGS c:> & in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 84 .
(D Note
-
Coasting downhi ll with the transmission in
N and the e ngine not r unning w ill result in
damage to the automatic transmiss ion
and possibly the catalytic converte r.
(D Tips
On veh icles with Audi drive se lect *, you can
ad just the sporty shift characteristics in
the
Dynamic dr iving mode.Swill appear in
the instrumen t cluster display instead of
D .
Automatic Shift Lock {ASL)
Applies to vehicles: with multitronic or tiptro nic
The Automatic Shift Lock safeguards you
against accidentally shifting into a forward or the reverse gear and causing the vehicle to
move unintentionally.
Fig. 84 Shi ft ga te: se lec tor le ve r lock pos itio ns a nd in
te rlock b utton highl ig hte d
The selector lever lock is re leased as follows:
.. Turn the ignition on .
.. Step on the brake pedal.
At the same time
press and hold the in terlock button on the
side of the gear selector knob
c:> fig . 84 with
your thumb until you have moved the selec
t o r lever to the desired position.
Automatic selector leve r lock
The selector lever is locked in the P and N po
s itions when the ign it io n is tu rned on. You
mus t press the brake pedal and the inte rlock
button to select another position . As a re
minde r to the drive r, the following wa rnin g
appe ars in the in strumen t clus ter di splay
when the selector is in P and N:
When stationary apply brak e pedal while se
lecting gear
A time delay element p revents the selector
lever from locking when it is moved through
the N pos ition (going from R to D/S) . T he lock
ing element w ill lock the selec to r lever if t he
lever is le ft in N (Ne utra l) for more th an ap
proximate ly 1 second, withou t the bra ke ped
al be ing pressed .
At speeds above abou t 3 mph (S km/h) the
A utomat ic Shift Lock i s automatica lly deac ti-
vated in the N position .
IJJ>-

Interlo ck button
The lock b utton on the selector leve r prevents
the lever from being accidentally shifted into
certain positions. Pressing this button deacti
vates the se lector lever lock. Depending on
the direction of the shift, the se lector lever
locks at different positions. The positions are
hi ghlighted in the illustration
c:> fig. 84.
Ignition k ey sa fe ty int erlock
The key cannot be removed from the ignition
un less the se lector lever is in the P park posi
tion . When the ign ition key is removed, the
selector lever will be locked in the P pos ition.
Kick-down
App lies to vehicles: with multitronic or tiptro nic
The kick-down features allows maximum ve
hicle acceleration.
Appli es to v eh icl es with a multit ronic ®
t ran sm ission
When you depress the acce lerator pedal be
yond the resistance point, the transmission downshifts into a lower gear ratio depending
on the vehicle speed and engine speed . As
long as the accelerator pedal is depressed, the
engine speed is automat ica lly regulated for
max imum ac celeration.
Applie s to veh icles with a tiptronic
transmission
When you depress the accelerator pedal be
yond the resistance po int, the automat ic
transmission downshifts into a lower gear, de
pending on vehicle speed and engine speed .
The upshift into the next higher gear takes
p lace once the maxim um specified engine
speed is reached.
_&. WARNING
Please note that the drive whee ls can spin
if kick-down is used on a smooth slippery
road -there is a risk of skidding.
Tran sm iss ion 87
Dynamic shift program (DSP)
App lies to vehicles: wit h m ultitro nic or t iptronic
The automatic transmission is electronically
controlled .
The transm iss ion is self adapting and will
a u
tomati call y select the best sh ift program suit
ed to the driving conditions and driv ing style.
The transmission wi ll select one of the
eco no
m y
programs when you drive at a steady
speed or a gradually changing speed w ithout
heavy acceleration . This achieves optimum
fuel eff iciency, with early upshifting and de
l ayed downshift ing .
The transm iss ion w ill automatically select the
sporty sh ift programs w hen you drive at high
er speeds, or with heavy acceleration and fre quently changing speeds. Upsh ifts are delayed
to make full use of e ngine power. Downshift
ing takes place at highe r engine speeds than
in the economy programs .
T he selection of the most suitable sh ift pro
gram is a continuous, automatic process . The
drive r can a lso make the transm iss ion sw itch
to a sporty program by
quickl y pressing down
the gas pedal.
T h is causes the t ransm ission to shift down to
a lowe r gear to ach ieve rapid acce le rat ion, e.g.
f or quickly passing another vehicle . You do not
need to press the gas pedal into the kick-down
range . After the transmission has upshifted,
the or iginal program is selected according to
your driving style .
Vehicles with mult itronic t ransmission: when
driving on hills and mountains, the gear ratio
continuously adapts to the grade . The trans
mission downshifts automatically when driv
ing downh ill if the brake pedal is pressed . As a
result, the engine braking effect inc reases.
Vehicles with tiptron ic transm issions: when
driv ing on hills and mountains, the gear se lec
tion adapts to the grade. This prevents con
stant upshift ing and downsh ifting when driv
i ng uphill.