2013 AUDI A5 CABRIOLET steering wheel

dealer is familiar with these requirements
and we recommend that you have your
dealer perform this service for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem performs in a crash. For example, using
tire-r im combinations not approved by Audi,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the springs, suspen­
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the electronic control
unit. Some suspension changes can, for exam­
ple, increase the force levels measured by the
sensors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in which it would not deploy if the
changes had not been made . Other kinds of
changes may reduce the force levels meas­
ured by the sensors and prevent the airbag
from deploying when it should .
The sensors in the safety belt buckle for the
d river and front passenger seat tell the elec­
tronic control module if the safety belt is
latched or not. If the safety belt is being used,
the front airbag will deploy at a slightly high­
er rate of vehicle deceleration than if the safe ­
ty belt is not being used. Therefore, in a par­
ticular collision, it is possible that an airbag
will not deploy at a seating position where the safety belt is being used but will inflate at the
position where the safety belt is not being
used. It is important that nothing interfere
with the safety belt buckles so that the sen­
sors can send the correct information about
safety belt use to the electronic control unit.
.&_ WARNING
Changing the vehicle 's suspension includ­
ing use of unapproved tire-rim combina­
tions can change Advanced Airbag per­
formance and increase the risk of serious personal injury in a crash.
- Never install suspension components
that do not have the same performance
Airbag system 155
characteristics as the components origi­
nally installed on your vehicle .
- Never use tire-rim combinations that
have not been approved by Audi.
.&_ WARNING
= -
Items stored between the safety belt buckle and the center console can cause
the sensors in the buckle to send the
wrong information to the electronic con ­
trol module and prevent the Advanced Air­ bag System from working properly.
-Always make sure that nothing can inter-
fere with the safety belt buckles and that
they are not obstructed.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
Applies to vehicles: wit h knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained
front seat occupants.
Fig. 154 Driver 's knee airbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument
panel underneath the steering wheel
Q fig . 154, the knee airbag for the passenger
is at about the same height in the instrument
panel underneath the glove compartment .
The knee airbag offers additional protection
to the driver's and passenger's knees and up­
per and lower thigh areas and supplements
the protection provided by the safety belts.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
also deploy in frontal collisions when the de­ ployment threshold stored in the control unit
I),-

The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the airbags for the driver and front pas­
senger deploy in certain but not all frontal
collis ions.
I f the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
also deploy in fronta l collisions when the de ­
p loyment threshold stored in the control unit
is met.
When the system dep loys, the airbags fill
with a prope llant gas, and inflate between the
l ower part of the instrument panel and the
driver and the lower part of the instrument panel and the front passenger
c> fig. 152.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
cushion the impact and in this way they can
he lp to reduce the r isk of injury to the lower
extremities.
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don 't even realize that
the airbags have deployed. The airbags also inflate w ith a great deal of force and it is im­
portant for occupant safety that noth ing
should be in the ir way when they deploy .
Fu lly inflated airbags in comb ination with
properly worn safety belts slow down and lim­
it the occupant's forward movement and help
to reduce the r isk of injury.
Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
A ppl ies to vehicles: with knee a irbags
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al­
ways wear safety belts correctly and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers must know and do to help t he safety belts and
ai rbags to provide supp lemental p rotection .
_& WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can c ause ser ious
injury. Wear ing safety belts inco rrectly and
improper seating positions increase the
ris k of se rious personal injury and death
whenever a veh icle is being used.
A irbag system 157
-The knee a irbag system cannot p rotect
you proper ly if you a re seated too close
to any of the a irbag locat ions. When ad­
justing their seat pos itions, it is impor­
tant that both the driver and the front passenger keep the ir upper bod ies and
knees at the following m inimum safe
dist ances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instru­
ment panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- The risk of personal in jury increases if
you lean forward or to the s ide, or if the
seat is improperly positioned and you are
not wearing yo ur safety belt . The risk i n­
creases even more should the ai rbag de­
ploy.
- Always ma ke sure that the knee a irbag
can inflate without inte rfe rence. Objects
between yo u and the airbag can inc rease
the risk of in jury in an acc ident by inte r­
fering w ith the way the a irbag deploys or
by being p ushed into you as the airbag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, especia lly children
or anima ls ride in the footwell in front
of the passenge r seat. If the airbag de­
ploys, th is can result in serious or fa tal
i njur ies.
- Never carry obje cts of any kind in the
footwe ll area in front of the dr iver' s or
passenger 's sea t. Bulky objects (shop ­
ping bags, fo r example) can interfere
with o r prevent proper deployment of
the airbag. Small objects can be
thrown through the ve hicle if the air­
bag deploys and injure you or your pas­
sengers.
- Make sure there are no cracks, deep
scratches or other damage in the area of
the instrument panel where the knee air­
bags are located.
- If ch ildren are incorrectly seated, their
risk of injury increases in a collision
c> page 161, Child Safety.
•
•

162 Child Safety
-If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat in exceptional circumstances and
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately
install the rearward-facing child safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer.
.&, WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were
installed in a vehicle during a crash. Dam­
age to a child restraint that is not visible
could cause it to fail in another collision
situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with a front "Ad­
vanced Airbag System" in compliance with
United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the
time your vehicle was manufactured . The
Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re­
quirements for 3- and 6-year old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates . In addition, the system
has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front
passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, all children, espe­
cially those 12 years and younger, should al­
ways ride in the back seat properly restrained
for their age and size. The airbag on the pas ­
senger side makes the front seat a potentially
dangerous place for a child to ride . The front
seat is not the safest place for a child in a for­
ward-facing child safety seat.
It can be a very
dangerous place for an infant or a larger child
in a rearward-facing seat.
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight-sensing mat in the seat cush­
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight-sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger
seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the
seat. The weight of a child restraint and its "footprint" vary for different kinds of child re -
straints and for the different models of the .,.

Intelligent technology Notice about data
recorded by vehicle
control modules
Your vehicle is not equipped with an Event Da­
ta Recorder (EDR), installed by some manu­
facturers for the express purpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or crash
event. EDR's are sometimes called "crash re­
corders".
Some state laws restrict 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.
Although your vehicle is not equipped with an
EDR, it is equipped with a number of electron­
ic control modules for various vehicle systems
such as, for examp le, engine function, emis­
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic control modules also record
vehicle-related data during norma l vehicle op­
eration for diagnostic and repair 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 over a very limited period of
time and stored when a system fault or other
condition is sensed by a control unit. Some of
the data then stored may relate to vehicle
speed, direction, braking as we ll as restraint
system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condition. Stored data can only be read and downloaded with special equip­
ment.
Electronic Stabilization
Control (ESC)
Description
ESC helps to improve road holding and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of
skidding and loss of veh icle control. It works
only when the engine is running. ESC detects
Intelligent technology 179
certain difficult driving situations, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw)
out of control and helps you to get the veh icle
back under control by se lectively braking the
wheels, and/or reducing engine power and
providing steering ass istance to help hold the
vehicle on the driver's intended course. The in­
dicator light
JjJ in the instrument cluster
blinks when ESC is taking action to help you
control the vehicle.
ESC has limitations .
It is important to remem­
ber that ESC cannot overcome the laws of
physics.
It will not always be able to help out
under all conditions you may come up against.
For example, ESC may not always be able to
help you master situations where there is a
sudden change in the coefficient of friction of
the road surface. When there is a section of dry road that is suddenly covered with water,
slush or snow, ESC cannot perform the same
way it would on the dry surface. If the vehicle
hydroplanes (rides on a cushion of water in­
stead of the road surface), ESC will not be
able to help you steer the vehicle because con­
tact with the pavement has been interrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered .
During fast cornering, particularly on winding
roads, ESC cannot always deal as effectively
with difficult driving situations than at lower
speeds. When towing a trailer, ESC is not able
to help you regain control as it would if you
were not tow ing a trailer.
A lways adjust your speed and driving style to
road, traffic and weather conditions. ESC can­
not override the vehicle's physical limits, in­
crease the available traction, or keep a vehicle
on the road if road departure is a result of
driver inattention. Instead, ESC improves the
poss ibility of keeping the vehicle under con­
trol and on the road dur ing extreme maneu­
vers by using the driver's steering inputs to
help keep the vehicle going in the intended di­
rection. If you are traveling at a speed that
causes you to run off the road before ESC can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESC.
•
•

180 Intelligent technology
ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock brake system (ABS), brake assist sys ­
tem, anti-slip regulation (ASR) , e lectronic dif­
ferential lock (EDL), dynamic steering" and
e lectronic interaxle differentia l lock* /selective
wheel torque control* . ESC is switched on all
the t ime. I n certa in s ituations whe n you need
l ess t raction, you can switch off ASR by p ress­
i ng the bu tto n
[ru ¢ fig. 167 or ¢ fig. 168. Be
sure to sw itch ASR on ag ain when you no lon­
ger need less trac tion.
Anti -lock braking system (ABS)
ABS prevents t he wheels from locking up
when braking. The veh icle can still be st eered
even d uring ha rd b rak ing . Apply steady p res­
sure to the br ake pedal. Do no t pu mp the ped­
a l. A puls ing in t he bra ke peda l ind icates that
the system is he lping yo u to b rake the vehicle .
Brake assist system
The brake assist system can decrease bra king
d ista nce. It increases braking powe r w hen the
d river p resses the brake pedal quickl y in eme r­
gency situa tions . You mus t press and ho ld the
brake peda l until the situation is over. In
ve hicles with adaptive cruise contro l", the
brake assist system is more sensit ive if the
d ista nce detected to t he vehicle a head is too
smal l.
Anti-slip regulation (ASR)
ASR reduces engi ne power when the drive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the fo rce to
the road condit ions. This makes it easier to
start, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic diffe rential lock (EDL )
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinning and
tra nsfers t he d rive powe r to the other d rive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all-wheel drive*. This function is available up
to about 60 mph (100 km/h).
In extreme cases, EDL a utomatica lly switches
off to help keep the bra ke on the braked whee l
from overheating. EDL will switch on aga in au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to
normal.
Dynamic steering*
On vehicles wi th dynam ic s teering *, ESC he lps
sta bilize the steer ing in crit ica l sit uat ions.
Electronic interaxle differential lock*/
selective wheel torque control*
T he ele ctroni c in te raxle di fferentia l lock ( fron t
whee l drive) o r th e se lective whee l torque
control (all -whee l drive) operates when driv­
ing t hro ugh cu rves. The front wheel on the in­
s ide of the c urve or both whee ls on the inside
of the curve are braked selectively as needed .
Th is mi nimizes sliding in the front wheels and
allows for more precise d rivi ng through
cu rves . The a ppl icable syste m may not acti­
vate when dr iv ing in wet o r snowy cond itions.
_&. WARNING
- E SC, A BS, ASR, ED L d ynam ic steering *
a nd the elect roni c in ter ax le d ifferenti al
loc k* /se lective whee l torque control *
cannot ove rcome the laws of physics .
This is especia lly important on slippery
or wet r oads. If the systems beg in acting
to stabilize your veh icle, yo u should im­
mediately change you r speed to match
the road and t raff ic conditions. Do not
let the increased safety prov ided by
t hese systems temp t you to ta ke r is ks.
Doing so will increase the risk of a lo ss of
veh icle cont ro l, col lision an d ser io us per­
sonal injur ies.
- Always adapt your speed to ro ad, traff ic
an d wea ther conditions . The risk of los ­
ing contro l of t he vehicle increases when
driving too fast, es pec ially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when dr iv ing too close to vehicles up
a head. ESC, ABS, the brake ass ist sys­
t e m, ASR, EDL dynam ic s teer ing* and the
elec tronic inte raxle differe ntia l lock*/se­
lective whee l to rque contr ol* cannot p re­
vent co lli sion s.
- Always accelerate wi th special care on
eve n smooth s urfaces su ch as those that
'
ar e we t or covered w ith i ce and snow.
T he drive whee ls can spin even w ith
-
these assistance systems that can not ~

-You should perform braking maneuvers
for the purpose of clean ing the brake
system only if road condit ions permit.
Other road users must not be put at r isk -
you may cause an acc ident!
- Before descending a steep grade, reduce
speed and shift transmiss ion into a lower
gear or lower d riving range . Do not ride
the brakes or hold the pedal down too
long or too often. This cou ld cause the
brakes to get hot and dimin ish braking
effi ciency.
- Do not "r ide the b rakes" by resting your
foot on the pedal when yo u do not intend
to brake. This may cause the b rakes to
overheat, premat ure wear and increased
stopp ing distance .
- Under certain climatic and operating
conditions such as passing through wa­
ter, driving in heavy rain or after wash ing
the vehicle, the effect iveness of the
brakes can be reduced. In winter, ice can
accumulate on the brake pads, linings,
discs and d rums . Carefully apply brakes
for a test. Brakes will dry and ice coat­ ings will be cleaned off afte r a few ca re­
f ul brake appl ications.
- Driv ing fo r an ex tended pe riod of time on
salt-covered ro ads w ithout using yo ur
brakes can also affect braking efficiency.
Clean off accumu lated salt coating from
brake discs and pads with a few caref ul
brake applicat ions.
- 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 co uld
overheat reducing the effectiveness of
the ent ire brake system.
- Failure of one brake c ircuit will impair
the braking capability resulting in an in­
creased stopp ing distance. Avoid driv ing
the vehicle and have it towed to the near­
est author ized Audi dealer or qualified
wor kshop.
- Never let the v ehicle roll to a stop w ith
t he engine shu t off.
Int ellig ent technolog y 183
-If the brake booster is not working, for
examp le when towing your vehicle, or
because the brake booster has somehow
been damaged, the brake pedal must be
pressed conside rably harder to make up
for the lack of booster assistance .
Electro-mechanical
power assist, dynamic
steering
The electro-mechanical power assist helps
the driver when steering .
Power steer ing adapts electronically based on
the vehicle speed.
Indicator lights and messages
• Steering defecti ve! Do not d rive vehicle!
If this indicator light turns on and stays on
and t his message appears, the power steer ing
may have failed .
Do
not con tinue dr iv ing . See your author ized
Audi dealer or other qualified repair facility
fo r ass istance.
f-r,ij Dynamic st eering: System fault! You can
continue driving
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, the steering may be more diffi­
cu lt to move or more sensit ive tha n usual. The
stee ring wheel may a lso be at an angle when
driv ing straight .
Drive slowly to your a uthorized Audi dea ler or
qualified workshop to have the ma lfunction
correc ted .
fifl Dynamic steer ing: in itializing
If this drive r message appea rs and the indica ­
tor light is flash ing on the instrument panel,
dynamic steer ing * is being rein itia lized. Once
you start the engine after th is is finished, the
steering wheel will be easy to move. Re- init i­
al ization might be necessa ry if the steering
wheel was moved ha rd to the left a nd right
wh ile the vehicle was not moving. The display
goes ou t as soon as initialization is comp lete. .,.
•
•

184 Intelligent technology
_& WARNING
Have the dynamic steering* system mal­
function repaired as soon as possible by an
authorized Audi dealer or any qualified
workshop -risk of accident!
(D Tips
- If the . or
'-r,ij indicator light only stays
on for a short time, you may continue
driving.
- The dynamic steering* stability systems
are not available in the event of a system
malfunction.
- For additional information on dynamic
steering*, refer to¢
page 107.
Driving with your
quattro®
App lies to vehicles: with all-wheel dr ive
-
With all-wheel drive, all four wheels are driv­
en.
General information
With all-wheel drive, power is distributed to
all four wheels. This happens automatically
depending on your driving style and the road
conditions at the time . See also
¢ page 179.
A center differential distributes the driving
power variably to the front and rear axle . It
works together with selective wheel torque control, which activates when driving through
curves
c> page 180. With the sport differen­
tial*, power distribution to the rear wheels is
variable and can be adjusted with drive select
c:>page 107.
The all-wheel drive concept is designed for
high engine power . Your vehicle is exception­
ally powerful and has excellent driving charac­
teristics both under normal driving conditions
and on snow and ice. Always read and follow
safety precautions ¢
&.
Winter tires
When driving in the winter , your vehicle with
all-wheel drive has an advantage, even with
regular tires. In winter road conditions it may be advisable to mount winter tires (or all-sea­
son tires) for
improved driveability and brak­
ing: these tires must be mounted on all four
wheels. See also ¢ page 242, Winter tires.
Tire chains
Where tire chains are mandatory on certain
roads, this normally also applies to vehicles
with all-wheel drive¢
page 243, Snow
chains .
Replacing wheels/tires
Vehicles with all-wheel drive must always
have tires of the same size. Also avoid tires
with different tread depths. For details see
page
c> page 238, New tires and replacing
tires and wheels.
Off·Road driving?
Your Audi does not have enough ground clear­
ance to be used as an off-road vehicle.
It is
therefore best to avoid rough tracks and un­
even terrain as much as possible. Also refer to
c:> page 187.
_& WARNING
-Always adjust your driving to road and traf-
fic conditions. Do not let the extra safety
afforded by all-wheel drive tempt you into
taking extra risks .
- Although the all-wheel drive is very ef­
fective, always remember that braking
capacity is limited by tire traction. You
should therefore not drive at excessive
speeds on icy or slippery road surfaces.
- On wet road surfaces, be careful not to
drive too fast because the front wheels
could begin to slide on top of the water
(aquaplaning). If this should occur, you
will have no warning from a sudden in­
crease in engine speed as with a front­
wheel drive vehicle. Always drive at speeds which are suited to the road con­
ditions - risk of crash .

228 Tire s and wheel s
-Never mount used tires on yo ur vehicle if
you are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have been dam­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden t ire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
- If you notice unusual vibration or if the
vehicle pulls to one side when driving, al­
ways stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and check the wheels and tires for dam­
age.
(D Note
Please note that summer and winter tires
are designed for the cond itions that are
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means t he comb ined we ight (in excess of
those sta ndard items which may be rep laced)
of au toma tic tra nsmission, power steer ing,
power brakes, power windows, power seats,
radio, and heater, to the extent that th ese
items are availab le as factory -installed equip­
ment (whether installed or not) .
Aspect ratio
means t he ratio of the he ight to the w idth of
the tire in percent . Numbers of 55 or lower in ­
dicate a low sidewall for improved steering re­
sponse and better overall handling on dry pavement .
Bead
means the part of the ti re that is made of
steel wires, wrapped or reinforced by ply cords
and that is shaped to fit the rim.
Bead separation
means a b reakdown of the bond between
components in the bead.
Cord
means the strands forming the plies in the
tire . typ
ica l in those seasons . Audi recommends
using winter tires during the winter
months . Low temperatures signif icant ly
decrease the e lasticity of summer tires,
which affects tract ion and brak ing ability.
If summer tires are used in very co ld tem­
peratures, cracks ca n form on the tread
bars, res ulting in permanent tire damage
that can cause loud driving no ise and un­
balan ced t ires. Audi is not responsible for
th is type of damage .
Cold tire inflation pressure
means the tire p ressu re recommended by t he
vehicle manufacturer fo r a tire of a des igna ted
s iz e that has not bee n driven for more than a
coup le of miles (k ilometers) at low speeds in
t h e three hour period before the tire pressure
is measured or adjusted.
Curb weight
mea ns the we ight of a motor ve hicl e w ith
standard equipment including the max imum
capacity of fuel, oil, and coolant, air condi ­
tioning and additional weight of optiona l
equipment.
Extra load tire
me ans a t ire design to operate at higher loads
and at h igher inflation pressures than the cor­
responding standard tire . Extra load tires may
be identified as "XL", "x l" , "EXTRA LOAD", or
"RF" on the sidewall.
Gross A xle Weight Rating ("GAWR ")
means the lo ad -c a rry ing c apac ity of a s ingle
axle system , measured a t the tire-ground in­
terfaces.
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating ("GVWR ")
mea ns the maximum total loaded we ight of
t h e ve hicl e. .,.