82 On the road
Starting off with a trailer
To prevent rolling back unintentionally on an
incline , do the following:
.,. Keep the switch@¢ fig. 92 pulled and de
press the accelerator . The parking brake
stays applied and prevents the vehicle from rolling backward .
.,. You can release the switch @once you are
sure that you a re develop ing enough dr iv ing
f orce at the wheels by dep ress ing the accel
erator.
Depending on the weight of the r ig (veh icle
and tra iler) and the seve rity of the in cli ne , you
may roll backwards as you start . You can pre
vent rolling backwards by holding the parking brake switch @ pulled out and accelerating -
just as you would when starting on a hill with
a conventional hand brake.
Emergency braking
In the event that the conventional brake system
foils or locks.
... In an emergency, pull the switch @
¢
fig. 92 and continue to pu ll it to slow your
vehicle down with the parking brake.
.,. As soon as you release the sw itch @ or ac-
celerate, the braking process stops.
If you pu ll the switch @and ho ld it above a
speed of about 5 mph (8 km/h), the emergen
cy braking function is in iti ated. The vehicle is
braked at al l four wheels by activating the hy
d raul ic brake system . T he brake performance
is simi lar to making an eme rgency stop¢.&. .
In order not to activate the emergency brak ing by mistake, an audible warning tone (buz
zer) sounds when the switc h@ is pulled . As
soon as the switch @is released, or the accel
e rator pedal is dep ressed , emergency b ra ki ng
stops.
.&_ WARNING
Emergency braking sho uld only be used in
an emergency, when the normal foot brake
has failed or the brake pedal is obstructed . Using the par
king brake to pe rform emer
gency braking will s low your veh icle down
as if you had made a full brake application.
The laws of p hysics cannot be suspended
even with ESC and i ts associated compo
nents (ABS, ASR, EDS). In corners and
when road o r weathe r cond itions are bad,
a full brake appl ication can ca use the vehi
cle to s kid or the rear end to break away -
risking an acciden t.
Speed warning system
Overview
The speed warning system helps you to keep
your driving speed below a set speed limit.
T he speed warning system warns if the driver
e xc eeds a previously stored max imum speed .
A warning tone w ill sound as soon as the vehi
cle speed exceeds the set speed by abou t
3 mph (3 km/h) . At the same t ime, a warning
symbol appears in the display . T he symbol's
appea rance might be different in some mod
els .
The speed warn ing system has two warning
t hr esholds that funct io n in dependent ly of
each other and that have somewhat diffe rent
purposes:
Speed wa rning 1
You can use speed warning 1 to se t the maxi
mum speed while you are driving . T his setting
will remai n in effect unt il you turn off the ig ni
t io n, assuming that you have not changed or
r ese t the sett ing.
The . (USA mode ls)
I. (Canada mode ls)
speed warning symbol in the warning 1 dis
play appears when you exceed the maximum
speed .
It goes ou t when the speed falls be low
the stored maximum speed .
T he speed warn ing symbol will also go out if
the speed
exceeds the stored maximum speed
by more than about 25 mph (40 km/h) for at
least 10 seconds. The sto red max imum speed
is de leted . .,..
always help to reduce the risk of loss of
vehicle control.
(D T ips
- ABS and ASR on ly work correctly when
a ll four wheels are eq uipped with identi
ca l tires . Different tire s izes can lead to a
reduction in eng ine power.
- You may hear noises when the systems
described are working.
- If the indicator light
DJ or r.1:1::1 (U SA
models) ;tiJ (Canada mode ls) appears,
there may be a malfunction
c:> page 19,
c:> page 19.
Switching on/off
ESC turns on automaticolly when you start
the engine.
Fi g. 16 7 Version A: lowe r ce nter console,~ OFF but
to n
:.!;::.:-, I I ---- 1- n~I -
l.
~
- o~ -· \)1) 1./ .., l~c~~ ·-WJO -J •-MJTO -~, -
-----....... -... ~ ~ -~
Fi g. 16 8 Versio n 8: upper ce nter conso le,~ OFF but
to n
Tu rning off ASR
In some situations, it may be useful to switch
ASR off to allow the wheels to spin. For exam ple:
- Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Driving in deep snow or on loose ground
Intelligen t technolog y 181
- Driving with snow chains
Quick ly press the
lf3 O FF ! button c:> fig. 167
and c:> fig. 168. The I indica to r li ght turns on
and the message
Trac tion control (ASR ): Off.
Warning! Restri cted stabilit y
appears in the
display.
It i s only poss ib le to turn off the ASR up to
30 mp h (SO km/h) fo r vehicles with front
whee l drive. At about 45 mph (70 km/h) it au
tomatica lly turns on again. It is possible to
turn off the ASR at any speed for vehicles with
all wheel drive.
Turning off ESC
Press and hold the It, O FF I button fo r th ree
seconds. The
fl ESC indicator light t urns on
and the message
Stabil ization cont rol (ES C):
off. Wa rnin g! Restricte d stability
appears in
the d isplay. A5R is also switched off when ESC
is sw itched off.
Switching on
Press the I~ OF FI button again. The fl indica
tor lig ht t urns on and the message
Stabiliza
tion cont rol (ES C): O n
appears in the disp lay.
_.& WARNING
- Drive whee ls can sp in and you can lose
contro l of t he vehicle more eas ily w hen
ASR and ESC are sw itched off, especially
when the road is slipp ery .
- Sw itch A5R/ESC off only when your driv
ing skills, t raffic and weather conditions
pe rm it .
(D Tips
You cannot sw itch ASR and ESC off when
adaptive cruise control* is worki ng.
Braking
What affects braking efficiency?
Ne w brake p ads
During the first 250 miles (400 km), new
-
brake pads do not possess the ir full brak ing
effect, they have to be "broken in" first
c:> .&.. .,.
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 .
230 Tires and wheels
Speed rating (letter code)
means the speed at wh ic h a tir e is des igned to
be d riven for extended per io d s of t ime. The
ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h) to
186 mph (298 km/h) ¢ page 239 . You may
not find this in format ion on all tires because
it is not required by law.
The speed rating letter code, w here a pplica
b le, is molded on the tire s idewa ll and indi
cates the maxim um permissible road speeds
¢ &. in Winter tires on page 243.
Tire pressure monitoring sy stem*
means a system tha t d etects when one or
mo re of a vehicle's t ires are under inflated and
i llum ina tes a low t ire p ress ure warn ing te ll
tale.
Tread
means t hat port ion of a tire tha t comes into
con tact w it h t he road.
Tread separation
means pull ing away of the t read from the t ire
car cass .
Treadwear indicators (TWI)
means t he projections withi n the pr inc ipal
g rooves designed to give a v isua l ind ication of
the deg rees of wea r of the tre ad . See
¢ pag e 23 7, Tread W ear Indicator (TWI) for
mo re inf ormat io n on measu ring tire we ar.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
is a tire i nfo rmation system developed by the
United States Nat io nal Highway Traffic Safety
Admin istration (N HTSA) that is designed to
h e lp buye rs make re lative compa risons among
tires. The UT QG i s no t a safety r ating and no t a
g uar antee that a t ire will las t fo r a presc ribed
n umber of m iles (kilome ters) or pe rform in a
certain way. It s imply gives ti re bu ye rs addi
tional information to combine with other con -s
iderations, such as p rice , brand loya lty and
dealer recommendations. Un der UTQ G, tires
are grade d by the t ire manufacturers in three
areas : treadwea r, traction, and temperature
resistance. The UTQG informat ion on the tires,
molded into the sidewalls .
U.S. DOT Tire Identification Number (TIN )
This is the tire's "se ria l numbe r" . It be gins
with the letters "DOT" and ind icates that the
t ire meets all federa l standards . The next two
numbers or letters ind icate the plant where it
was ma nufactu red, and the last four numbe rs
r eprese nt the week and year of ma nufact ure.
Fo r exampl e,
DOT ... 2212 ...
means that the tire was produced in t he 22nd
wee k of 2012. The ot her numbers are market
ing codes that may or may not be used by the
t ire manufacturer. This information is used to
contact consumers i f a tire defect requires a
r ecall .
Vehicle capacity weight
means the rated cargo and luggage load plus
150 lbs. (68 k ilograms) times the vehicle's to
ta l seating capacity as listed on the label lo
cated on the driver's side B-pilla r.
Vehicle maximum lo ad on the tire
means that load on an individua l tire that is
determined by distributing to eac h axle its
share of the maxim um loaded vehicle weight
and divid ing by two .
Vehicle normal load on the tire
means that load on an individua l t ir e that is
determined by distributing to eac h ax le its
share of the curb weight, accessory weight,
and normal occ upant weig ht (d istr ibuted in
accorda nce wit h tab le below¢ page 231)
and divid ing by two .
and luggag e load c apaci ty of
y our vehicle.
.,. Check the tire sidewall
(c:::> fig . 18 6) to d etermine th e
de sign ated load rating f or a
s p ecific tir e.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balan cing , correc t tire pressure and driv
ing style.
Fi g. 1 84 Tire t rea d: tread we ar ind ic a tors (TWI)
.__ __ __,, ,.)
Fig . 185 Rotat ing t ires for more eve n wea r
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The origina l tires on your vehicle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm) high "wear indicators"
<=> fig. 184 running across the tread. Depend
ing on the make, there will be six to eight of
t hem evenly p laced around the t ire. Marks on
the t ire s idewall (for example ''TWI " or other
symbols) indicate the positions of the tread
wear ind icators . Worn t ires m ust be replaced.
D ifferen t fig ures may apply in o ther co untries
¢ ,& .
Tires and wheels 23 7
Tire pressure
Incorrect tire press ure c auses prema ture wear
and can cause sudden tire blow-out . For this
reason , tire pressure must be checked at least
once a month
r:!) page 233.
Driving style
Driving fast around c urves, heavy acce le ra ti on
and har d brak ing inc rease tire wear .
Rotating tires for more even w ear
For all four tires on your vehicle to have the
same service life , we recommend that the
front and rear t ires a re rotated a ccording to
the tire man ufactur er's suggested tire ro ta
tion intervals . Please remember the follow
ing:
- Tire rotation in tervals may differ from the
veh icle servi ce inte rv al s o utli ned in your
Ma intenance and Warranty Boo klet.
- The longer one tire is used in one lo cation
on t he veh icle, the more it wears a t cer tain
points ; the re fore, we recommend that you
follow the tire man ufact urer's suggested
tire rotation intervals .
- Vehi cles w ith front-wheel dr ive experience
more tread wear on the front wheels com
pared to a ll wheel drive (quattro ®).
- Please rotate tires as shown¢
fig. 185 .
-Extra care mus t be taken when ro ta ti ng di -
rection -specific tires
q page 2 54.
Wheel balancing
T he w heels on new ve hicles are balanced .
Howeve r, various s ituations duri ng eve ryday
driv ing ca n ca use t hem to become unba l
anced, resulting in vib rat ions you ca n usually
feel through the steer ing whee l.
Un balanced wheels must be rebalanced to
avo id excessive wear on steering, s uspension
and t ires. A whee l m ust also be reba lanced
when a new tire is insta lled .
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incor rect wheel alignment can cause exc es
s ive tire wear, impa iring the safe ty of the vehi-
cle. If tires show excessive wear, have the
)I>-
vehicle handling and can lead to a loss of control.
- If the spare tire is not the same as the
tires that are mounted on the vehicle -
for example with winter tires -only use
the spare tire for a short period of time and drive with extra care . Refit the nor
mal road wheel as soon as safely possi
ble .
- Never drive faster than the maximum speed for which the tires on your vehicle are rated because tires that are driven
faster than their rated speed can fail
suddenly.
- Overloading tires cause heat build-up,
sudden tire failure, including a blowout
and sudden deflation and loss of control.
- Temperature grades apply to tires that
are properly inflated and not over or un
derinflated.
- For technical reasons it is not always
possible to use wheels from other
vehicles -in some cases not even wheels
from the same vehicle model.
- If you install wheel trim discs on the ve
hicle wheels, make sure that the air flow
to the brakes is not blocked. Reduced air
flow to the brakes can them to overheat, increasing stopping distances and caus
ing a collision .
- Run flat tires may only be used on
vehicles that were equipped with them
at the factory. The vehicle must have a
chassis designed for run flat tires and a
factory-installed tire pressure monitor
ing system* that indicates a loss of tire
pressure. Incorrect use of run flat tires
can lead to vehicle damage or accidents.
Check with an authorized Audi dealer or
tire specialist to see if your vehicle can be
equipped with run flat tires . If run flat
tires are used, they must be installed on
all four wheels. Mixing tire types is not
permitted .
0 Note
-For technical reasons, it is not generally
possible to use the wheel rims from oth-
Tires and wheels 241
er vehicles. This can hold true for wheels
of the same vehicle type.
- If the spare tire is different from the
tires that you have mounted on your ve
hicle (for example winter tires or wide
profile tires), then use the spare tire for a
short period of time only and drive with
extra care. Replace the flat tire with the
tire matching the others on your vehicle as soon as possible .
- Never drive without the valve stem cap .
The valves could get damaged .
(® For the sake of the environment
Dispose of old tires in accordance with the
local requirements.
Uniform tire quality grading
-Tread wear
- Traction AA A B C
- Temperature AB C
Quality grades can be found where applicable
on the tire side wall between tread shoulder
and maximum section width 9 fig. 186.
For example: Tread wear 200, Traction AA,
Temperature A.
All passenger car tires must conform to Feder
al Safety Requirements in addition to these
grades.
Tread wear
The tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specified
government test course.
For example, a tire graded ISO would wear
one and one half (11/2) times as well on the government course as a tire graded 100.
The relative performance of tires depends upon the actual conditions of their use, how
ever, and may depart significantly from the norm due to variations in driving habits, serv
ice practices and differences in road character-
istics and climate.
1J1>
•
•
246 Tires and wheels
wheels on your vehicle to ensure that the re
p lacement or a lternate tires and wheels allow
the TPMS to continue to function properly.
Tire pressure indicator appears
Applies to vehicles: with tire pressure monitoring system
The tire pressure indicator in the instrument
cluster informs you if the tire pressure is too
low or if there is a system malfunction.
Fig. 187 Display: underinflation warning
N :;:; 9 a:
l:l
Using the ABS sensors, the tire pressure moni
tor ing system compares the tire tread circum
ference and vibration characteristics of the in
dividual tires.
If the pressure decreases in one
or mo re tires, this is indicated in the instru
ment cluster with a
[I] warning symbol and a
message
r:!> fig. 187 . The driver message in the
display goes out after S seconds. The driver
message can be displayed again by pressing
the
! SET ! button. If only one tire is affected,
the display will indicate its position.
The tire press ure monitoring system must be
reset via radio or MMI* each time the pres
sures are adjusted (e. g . when switching be
tween partial and full load pressure) or after
changing or replacing a tire on your veh icle
r:!> page 247 . The TPMS indicator only moni
tors the tire pressure that you have prev iously
stored . You can find the recommended tire
pressures for your vehicle on the label on driv
er's side 8-pillar
¢page 231.
Tire tread circumference and vibration charac
ter istics can change and cause a tire pressure
warning if:
- the tire pressure in one or more tires is too
low, - the
tire has structural damage,
- the tire pressure was changed, wheels rotat-
ed or replaced but the TPMS was not reset
c;, page 247.
Warning symbols
[I] Loss of pressure in at least one tire c;, .&,..
Check the tire or tires and replace or repa ir if
necessary. The
[I] indicator light in the instru
ment cluster also illuminates
¢page 13.
Check/correct the pressures of all four tires
and reset TPMS via radio or MMI*.
11Nl~1 (Tir e Pressure Mon itor ing System) Tire
pressure: System malfunction!.
IfllilB appears after switching the ignition
on or while driving and the
[I] indicator light
in the instrument cluster blinks for approx i
mately one minute and then stays on, there is
a system malfunction .
Attempt to store the correct tire pressu re
c;, page 247. If the indicator light does not
turn off or if it turns on shortly thereafter, im
mediate ly driv e your vehicle to an author ized
Audi dealer or authorized repair facility to
have the malfunct ion corrected.
A WARNING
-
- If the tire pressure ind icator appears in
the instrument cluster display, one or
more of your t ires is sign ificantly under
inflated . Reduce yo ur speed immediately
and avoid any hard steering or braking
maneuvers. Stop as soon as possible and
check the tires and their pressures. In
f la te the tire pressure to the prope r pres
sure as indicated on the vehicle's tire
pressure label
r:!> page 231. Driving on a
significantly under-inflated tire causes
the t ire to overheat and can lead to tire
fa ilure . Under -inflation also is likely to
impair the vehicle's handling and stop ping ability.
- The driver is responsible for maintaining
the co rrect tire pressures. You must
check the tire pressures regularly.