2013 AUDI A6 brakes

86 Audi adaptive cruise control and braking guard
Driv ing in stop-and-go traff ic
App lies to vehicles: with Audi adaptive cruise control
The adaptive cruise co ntro l system a lso as­
sis ts you in stop- and -go traff ic. If a previo us
detec ted veh icle ahead s tops, yo ur vehicle will
brake to a stop, within the limits o f the sys ­
tem .
,,. To resume driv ing wi th adap tive cruise con­
t ro l, tap the accelerator pe dal or
,,. Pu ll the lever toward yo u in to posit ion @
¢fig. 89.
@ Tips
-If ada ptive cruise con trol is a ctive an d
you r vehicle does not start driving as ex­
pected after pulling the lever once, you
can start out aga in by tapp ing the accel­
erato r pedal.
- If an obstacle is detected when yo ur ve­
h icle starts dr iv ing, the system w ill
prompt you to take over¢
page 87.
Your vehicle w ill drive more s low ly when
star ting . This may a lso happe n in some
s ituation s whe n no obstacle is apparent .
Interrupting cruise control
Applies to vehicles: with Audi adaptive cruise control
Fig. 89 Se lecto r leve l
Requ irement : adaptive cruise control must be
sw itched on.
Overriding crui se control
,,. To accelerate ma nually, pull the lever to­
ward you into position @and hold it there .
The message
ACC override appears . Or
,,. press the accelerato r peda l. ,,.
To res ume cruise cont ro l, re lease the lever
or take your foot off the accelerato r pedal.
Canceling cruise control while driving
,,. Move the lever in to posi tion @. The mes ­
s a ge
ACC standby ap pears. Or
,,. press t he br ake pedal.
,,. To res ume the stored spee d, move the lever
into position @.
Canceling cruise control when stopped
,,. Push the leve r away from yo u into pos it io n
@ . Th e message
ACC standby appe ars.
,,. To res ume cruise cont ro l, press the brake
pedal an d pull th e lever toward you into po­
sition @.
A WARNING
• -
Never resume the stored speed if the
sp eed is too high for p revailing r oad, traf­
f ic or weat her condit io ns .
Setting the distance
Applies to vehicles: with Aud i adapt ive cru ise contro l
Fig. 90 Se lecto r lever : setting t he distance
,,. Tap the switch to display the current set dis ­
tance
¢ fig. 90 .
,,. To increase or reduce the d istance by incre ­
ments, tap the switch again to the left or
r ight. The d istance between the two vehicles
w ill change in the instrument cluste r dis­
p lay .
When approac hing a mov ing vehicle up ahead,
the adaptive cruise control system automati ­
ca lly brakes to match th at object's speed and
Ill>

88 Audi adaptive cruise control and braking guard
Audi braking guard
Descript ion
App lies to vehicles: with Audi adap tive cruise control
F ig . 92 Instr ument cluster: approach warn ing
Braking guard uses radar sensors and a video
camera . It also functions within the lim its of
the system when adapt ive cruise control is
switched off .
What can braking guard do?
When detected in time, the system can assess
situations when a vehicle ahead brakes sud­
denly or if your own veh icle is traveling at a
h igh speed and approachi ng a veh icle up
ahead that is moving more slowly . Bra king
g ua rd does not react if it cannot detect th e
situ ation .
The system advises you of various situations:
- The
distan ce warning is given if you are too
close to the vehicle ahead for a long time. If
the vehicle ahead brakes sharply, you will not be able to avoid a coll is io n. The indicator
li ght
I in the display comes on .
- The
approach warning is g iven when a de­
tected veh icle up ahead in yo ur lane is mov ­
i ng much more slowly than you are o r if it
brakes sha rply . W hen this wa rning is given,
it m ay only be poss ible to avoid a collision
b y swerving or bra ki ng sh arply . Th e indi cator
li gh t
I and indi ca to r i n the disp lay wi ll warn
yo u about the danger¢
fig. 92. You will a lso
hear a n acoustic signa l.
If you do not re act fa st enoug h or do not re act
at all to the sit uat io n, b raking guard will inte r-
ll T hi s is not av ailable in som e coun tri es.
vene by braking and the message braking
guard intervention
wi ll appear.
- If a coll is ion is imm inent, the sys tem wi ll
fi rst prov ide an
acute warning by br iefly and
sharply ap plying the brakes.
- I f you do not re act to the acu te w arning,
brak ing g uard can brake w it h increas ing
force w it h in the lim its of the system . This
red uces the vehicle speed in the event of a
co llision.
- The system can initiate maximum b rak ing
short ly before a co llision
1l . Full dece leration
at high speeds occurs only in vehicles with
adapt ive cru ise control and side assist (pre
sense plus) .
- If the brak ing g uard senses that yo u are not
brak ing hard en ough w hen a co llision is im­
m inent, it can increase t he brak ing fo rce .
- The pre sense f unctions also engage whe n a
col lision is imm inent ¢
page 190 .
Which function s can be controlled?
You can switch b raking guard and the dis­
tance/approach warning on or off in the M MI
i=> page 89, Settings in the MMI.
A WARNING
-
Lack of attentio n can cause collisions, oth-
er accidents and serio us pe rsonal injuries.
Th e braking gua rd is an ass ist system and
ca nnot prevent a collision by it self. T he
dr ive r m ust always intervene. The dr ive r is
a lways res ponsib le f or br ak ing at the cor­
r e ct t ime.
- Always p ay clo se a ttent ion to traff ic,
even when the braking guar d is swi tched
o n. Be ready to in tervene and be ready to
take comp lete contro l whenever necessa­
ry. Always keep the safe and legal dis ­
tance between your ve hicle and veh icles
up ahead.
- Braking guard works within limits and
w ill not respond outside t he system lim­
its, for examp le w hen approachi ng a
stopped vehicle or stati onary obstacle ..,.

106 Autom atic Tran smissi on
N - N eutr al
The transmission is in neutral in this position.
Shift to this position for stand ing with the
brakes applied
q .&. in Driving the automatic
transmission on page 108.
When the ve hicle is stationary o r at speeds
be low 1 mph (2 km/h), you must always apply
the footbrake befo re and while moving the
l ever out of N .
DIS -Normal position for driving forward
In the D/S position, the transmiss ion can be
operated e ither in the normal mode Dor in
the sport mode S. To select the sport mode S,
pull the se lector lever back briefly . Pulling the
lever back aga in will select the normal mode
D. The instrument cluster display shows the
selected driving mode.
In the
normal m ode D, the transmission auto­
mat ica lly selects the suitab le gear ratio.
It de­
pends on engine load, veh icle speed and driv­
ing style.
Select the
s p or t mod e S for sporty driving.
The vehicle makes fu ll use of the engine's
power. Shifting may become noticeable when
accelerating.
When the ve hicle is stationary or at speeds
be low 1 mph (2 km/h), you must always apply
the foot brake before and while moving the lever to D/S out of N .
A WARNING
Read and follow all WARNINGS q .&. in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 108.
(D Note
-
Coast ing downh ill with the transmission in
N and the engine not running w ill result in
damage to the automatic transmiss io n
and possib ly the catalytic converter .
@ Tips
-Audi drive select : you can adjust the
sporty sh ift c haracte ristics in the
Dy-
namic driv ing mode.Swi ll appea r in the
instrument cluster display instead of D.
-If you acc identally select N whi le 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 fail ure, the selector
lever w ill not move out of the P position.
The emergency release can be used if
this happens
qpage 111.
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.
' ) ( )
F ig . 11 2 Shi ft gate: selector lever lock pos it ions a nd
release b utto n high lig h ted
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 re lease button on the
side of the gear selector knob
c::> fig . 112
with your thumb until you have moved the
selector lever to the desired posit ion .
Automat ic sel ect or lev er lo ck
The selector lever is locked in the P and N po­
s itions when the ignit ion is turned on . Yo u
must press the brake pedal and the re lease
button to select another position . As a re­
minder to the driver, the following warni ng
appears in the instrument clus ter display
whe n the selector is in P and N:
When stationary appl y brake peda l while se-
lec ting gear ..,_

108 Automatic Transmission
This prevents too much stress from being placed on the locking mechanism.
multitronic transmission : Your vehicle is
equipped with
hill hold assist allowing you to
start while on an incline. The system is acti­
vated when the brake pedal is pressed down
and held
for a few seconds. T he brake pres­
sure will hold for
o moment after the brake
pedal loosens to prevent the vehicle from roll­
ing backwards while starting up .
A WARNING
-The vehicle can also roll when the engine
is stopped .
- Unintended vehicle movement can cause serious injury.
- Never leave your vehicle with the engine
running while in gear. If you must leave
your vehicle when the engine is running, activate the parking brake and move the
selector lever to P.
- Power is still transmitted to the wheels
when the engine is running at idle. To
prevent the vehicle from "creeping ", you
must keep your foot on the brake when
the engine is running and the selector lever is in D/S or R or "tiptronic" mode is
selected.
- Do not press the accelerator pedal when
changing the selector lever position
while the vehicle is stationary and the
engine is running.
- Never shift into R or P while driving.
- Before driving down a steep slope, re-
duce your speed and shift into a lower
gear with "tiptronic".
- Do not ride the brakes or press the brake
pedal too often or too long when driving
down a hill. Constant braking causes the
brakes to overheat and substantially re­
duces braking performance, increases
braking distance or causes complete fail­
ure of the brake system.
- To prevent the vehicle from rolling back
when stopping on inclines, always hold it
in place with the brake pedal or parking
brake. -
Never hold the vehicle on an incline with
a slipping clutch. The clutch opens auto­
matically when it becomes too hot from
the overload . An indicator lamp
[O] illu­
minates and a driver message appears
~ page 110 when the clutch is overload­
ed.
- 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 set
~ page 219, Engine comportment. Oth­
erwise, any increase in engine speed may
set the vehicle in motion, even with the
parking brake applied.
(D Note
- 5 tronic ®- and tiptronic transmission :
When stopping on an incline, do not try
to hold the vehicle in place by pressing
the accelerator pedal while a driving gear
is selected . This can cause the transmis­
sion to overheat and can damage it. Acti­
vate the parking brake or press the brake
pedal to prevent the vehicle from rolling .
- 5 tronic ®- and tiptronic transmission : Al­
lowing the vehicle to roll when the en­
gine is stopped and the selector lever is
in N will damage the transmission be­
cause it is not lubricated under those cir­
cumstances.
(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.
Hill descent control
Applies to vehicles: with mult itronic/5 tronic/tiptronic
The hill descent control system assists the
driver when driving down declines.
Hill descent control is activated when these­
lector lever is in D/S and you press the brake
pedal. The transmission automatically selects .,.

a gear that is suitable for the incline. Hill de­
scent control tries to maintain the speed ach­
ieved at the time of brak ing, within physical
and technica l limitations. If may still be nec­
essary to adjust the speed with the brakes.
Hill descent control switches off once the de­
cline levels out or you press the accelerator pedal.
On vehicles with the cruise control system*
¢ page 79, hill descent control is also activat­
ed when the speed is set.
.&_ WARNING
-
H ill descent control cannot overcome
physical limitations, so it may not be able
to maintain a constant speed under all
conditions. Always be ready to app ly the
brakes .
Manual shift program
Applies to vehicles: with mult itronic/S tronic/tiptron ic
Using the manual shift program you can
manually select gears.
Fig. 114 Center co nsole: shi fting the gears manually
Fig. 115 Steering wheel: Shift buttons•
"' 8 0 CJ
cb
Automatic Transmission 109
Gear selection with selector lever
The tiptronic mode can be selected either with
the vehicle stationary or on the move.
"' Push the se lecto r lever to the right from D/
S. An M appears in the instrument cluster
display as soon as the transm ission has
shifted.
"' To upshift, push the se lector lever forward
to the plus position
0 ¢ fig . 114.
"' To downshift, push the lever to the minus
position
0 .
Gear selection with paddle levers*
The shift buttons are activated when these­
lector lever is in D/S or the tiptronic manual
shift program .
"'To upshift, touch the button on the rig ht G)
C) fig. 115 .
.,. To downshift, touch the button on the left
0 .
"' If you do not press a sh ift button within a
short time while in the D/S position, the
transm iss ion w ill retur n to automat ic mode.
To keep shifting using the sh ift buttons,
move the selector lever to the r ight out of
t he D/S posit ion.
The transmission automatically shifts up or
down before cr itical engine speed is reached .
The transm ission only a llows manual sh ifting
when the engine speed is w ithin the permit­
ted range.
(D Tips
- When you shift into the next lower gear,
the transmission will downshift only
when there is no possibility of over-rev­
ving the engine.
- When the kick-down comes on, the
transmission will shift down to a lower
gear, depending on vehicle and engine
speeds.
- T iptron ic is inoperat ive when the trans­
mission is in the fail-safe mode.

ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock brake system (ABS) , brake assist sys ­
tem, anti -slip regulation (ASR) , electronic dif­
ferential lock (E DL) and e lectronic interaxle
d ifferential lock*. ESC is swi tched on all the
time. In certain situat ions when you need less
traction , you can switch off ASR by pressing
the button
[ru ~ fig . 177 . Be sure to switch
ASR on again when you no longer need less
traction.
Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up
when braking. The vehicle can still be steered even during hard braking . Apply steady pres­
sure to the brake pedal. Do not pump the ped­
al. A puls ing in the brake pedal indicates that
the system is he lping you to brake the vehicle.
Brake assist system
The brake assist system can decrease brak ing
d istance.
It increases braking power when the
driver presses the brake pedal quickly in emer­
gency situations. You must press and hold the
brake pedal until the situation is over . In
vehicles with adaptive cruise control* , the
brake assist system is more sensitive if the
d istance detected to the vehicle ahead is too
small.
Anti-slip regulation (ASR)
ASR reduces engine power when the drive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the force to
the road condit ions. This makes it eas ier to
s tart, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinn ing and
transfers the drive power to the other drive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all-whee l drive*. This function is available up
to about 75 mph (120 km/h).
I n extreme cases , EDL automatically switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked wheel
from overheating. EDL wi ll switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to
normal.
Intelligent technology 193
Electronic interaxle differential lock*/
selective wheel torque control*
The electronic interaxle differential lock (front
whee l drive) or the se lective wheel torque
cont rol (all-wheel dr ive) operates when dr iv­
ing through curves . The front wheel on the in­
s ide of the curve or both wheels on the inside
of the curve are braked selectively as needed .
T his min imizes sliding in the front wheels and
allows for more precise driving through
curves . Th e applicable system may no t acti­
vate when driv ing in wet or snowy conditions.
A WARNING
-
-ESC, ABS, ASR, EDL and the electronic in­
teraxle differential lock function* cannot
overcome the laws of physics. This is es­
pecially important on slippery or wet
roads . If the systems begin acting to sta­
bilize your vehicle, you should immedi­
ately change your speed to match the
road and traffic conditions. Do not let
the increased safety provided by these
systems tempt you to t.;1ke risks. Doing
so will increase the risk o f a loss of vehi­
cle control, collision and serious personal
injuries.
-Always adapt your speed to road, traffic
and weather conditions . The risk of los­
ing control of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast, espec ially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when dr iving too close to vehicles up
ahead . ESC, ABS, the brake assist sys­
tem, EDL, ASR and the elec tronic inter­
axle differential lock function* cannot
prevent collisions .
- Always accelerate with special care on
even, smooth surfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow.
The drive wheels can spin even with
these assistance systems that cannot al­
ways he lp to red uce the risk of loss of ve -
hicle control. .,.
•
•

194 Intelligent technology
@ Tips
-ABS and ASR on ly work correctly when
all four wheels are equipped w ith identi­
cal tires. Different tire sizes can lead to a
reduction in engine power.
- You may hear noises when the systems
described are working.
- If the indicator light
DJ or 11:11 (USA
models) 1i] (Canada models) appears,
there may be a malfunction¢
page 20,
c> page 19.
Switching on and off
ESC
turns on automatically when you start
the engine.
Fig. 177 Center console w it h ESC OFF button
Switching sport mode on
Press the I~ OF FI button c::> fig . 177. The ac­
tions taken by the ESC system to stabilize the
vehicle are limited. In vehicles with front
wheel drive, the anti-slip regulation (ASR) is
limited. In vehicles with a ll-wheel drive, the
ASR is switched off. The
It) ESC indicator light
turns on and the message
Stabilization con­
trol (ESC): Off Warning! Reduced stability
¢.&. appears in the driver information system
d isplay.
The following examples are unusual situa­
tions where it may make sense to switch sport
mode on in order to allow the wheels to spin:
- Rocking the vehicle back and forth when it is
stuck
- Driving in deep snow or on loose ground
- Driving with snow cha ins
Switching sport mode off
Press the 1.$ OF FI button again. The I indica­
tor light turns off and the message
Stabiliza­
tion control (ESC): On
appears in the driver
information system display .
A WARNING
-
-Drive wheels can spin and you can lose
control of the vehicle more easily when
ASR and ESC are in sport mode, especial­
ly when the road is slippery.
- Sw itch to sport mode only when your
driving skills, traffic and weather condi­
tions permit.
@ Tips
You cannot sw itch sport mode on when
adaptive cruise control* is working.
Braking
General information
What affects braking efficiency?
-
Operating conditions and driving habits
The brakes on today's automobiles are still
subject to wear, depending largely on operat­
ing condit ions and driving hab its
c::> .&. . On
vehicles that are either driven most ly in stop­
and-go city t raff ic or are driven hard, the
brake pads should be checked by your author­
ized Audi dea ler more often than specified in
the
Warranty & Maintenance booklet. Failure
to have your brake pads inspected can result
in reduced brake performance .
On steep slopes, you should use the braking
effect of the engine . This way, you prevent un­
necessary wear on the brake system. If you
must use your brakes, do not hold the brakes
down continuously. Pump the brakes at inter­
vals .
Moisture o r road salt
Under certain conditions, for example, when
driving through water or very heavy rain, or
even after washing your vehicle, the braking
effect can be reduced due to moisture (or in .,,_

freezing conditions ice) on the brake pads. A
few careful brake applications sho uld d ry
off
the brake pads or remove any ice coatings.
When you are driving at h igher speeds wit h
the windshield wipers on, the brake pads will briefly touch the brake discs in regular inter­
va ls so as to improve reaction t ime when brak­
ing on wet surfaces. You the driver w ill not no­
tice anything.
The effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced
when the vehicle is dr iven on a salt -covered
road and the brakes are not used . Here too,
you should clean
off accumulated salt coat ing
from brake discs and pads with a few careful
applications of the brake
¢ ,&..
Cor ro sion
There may be a tendency for dirt to bui ld up
on the brake pads and corrosion to form on
the discs if the car is not dr iven regularly or
only for short trips with little use of the brakes .
If the brakes are not used frequently, or if cor­ rosion has formed on the discs, it is advisable
to clean
off the pads and discs by braking
f irmly a few times from a moderately high
speed ¢,&. .
Fa ult s in the b rake system
If you should notice a sudden increase in
brake pedal travel, then one of the two brake
circu its may have failed
c> ,&..
Lo w brak e flu id le vel
Malfunctions can occur in the brake system if
the brake fluid level is too low . The brake fluid
level is monitored electronically.
Brake boo ste r
The brake booster works with vacuum pres­
sure which is created only when the engine is
running ¢ ,&. .
Brake lining w ear statu s
Brake lining wear may be checked by vis ual in­
spection of the condition of the brake pads
through the openings in the whee l. If neces-
Int ellig ent technolog y 195
sary, the wheel may be removed for this in­
spection ¢
page 263 , Changing a wheel.
A WARNING
- You should perform braking maneuvers
for the purpose of cleaning the brake
system only if road conditions permit.
Other road users must not be put at risk -
you may cause an accident!
- Before descend ing a steep grade, reduce
speed and sh ift transmission into a lower
gear or lower dr iving range . Do not ride
the brakes or hold the pedal down too
long o r too often . Th is could cause the
brakes to get hot and diminish braking
efficiency .
- Do not "ride the brakes" by rest ing you r
foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to brake . This may cause the brakes to
overheat, p remature wear and increased
stopping distance.
- Under certain cl imatic and operating
conditions such as passing thro ugh wa ­
ter, dr iv ing in heavy rain or after washing
the vehicle, the effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced . In winter, ice can
accumu late on the brake pads, lin ings,
discs and drums . Carefully app ly brakes
for a test. Brakes will dry and ice coat­
ings w il l be cleaned
off after a few care­
fu l brake applicat ions.
- Driving for an extended period o f time on
salt- covered roads wi thout using your
brakes can a lso affect braking efficiency .
Clean
off accum ulated salt coating from
brake discs and pads with a few careful
brake applications.
- If you damage the front spoiler, or if you
install a different spoiler, be sure the air
f low to the front brakes is not obstruct­
ed. Otherw ise the brake system could
overheat reducing the effectiveness of
the entire brake system.
- Failure of one brake circuit will impair
the braking capab ility result ing in an in­
creased stopping distance . Avoid driving
the vehicle and have it towed to the near-
est A udi dealer or qualified wo rkshop.
~
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