2013 AUDI A7 tow

180 Child Safety
-The child and the passenger can also
injure each other in an accident.
- Never install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the front pas­
senger seat. A child will be seriously in­
jured and can be killed when the passen­ ger airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat and child against the backrest, center
armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Forward-facing child safety seats instal­
led on the front passenger's seat can in­
terfere with the airbag when it inflates
and cause serious injury to the child. Al­
ways install forward-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat.
- If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's safety and well-being require that the
following special precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
- Always carefully follow the manufac­
turer's instructions provided with the
child safety seat or carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat
into the rearmost position of the pas­
senger seat's fore and aft adjustment
range, and as far away from the airbag
as possible before installing the child
restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing pre­
vents the front passenger's seat from
being moved to the rearmost position
in its fore and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure that the backrest is
in the upright position .
- Never place or use any electrical device (such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device or power inverter) on the front passenger seat
if the device is
connected to the 12-volt socket or the
cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passen­
ger seat, never install any child re­
straint system on this seat .
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or
other liquids on the front passenger
seat cushion .
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device or power inverter). These
may influence the electrical capaci­
tance measured by the capacitive pas­
senger detection system and can also
fly around in an accident and cause se­ rious personal injury.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in place even if a child is not sitting in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly around during a sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
r::> page 140, Safety
belts, r::> page 149, Airbag system
and
r::> page 17S, Child Safety .
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat and the ignition is switched
on.
- Take the child restraint off the front pas­
senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Audi dealer immediate­
ly.

182 Child Safety
It is a very dangerous place for an infant or a
larger child in a rearward-facing seat.
.&_ WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child safety seat or improperly in­
stalling a child restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death in a
crash .
- Never install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the front pas­
senger seat -even with an Advanced Air­
bag System. A child will be seriously in­
jured and can be killed when the inflat­
ing airbag hits the child safety seat or in­
fant carrier with great force and smashes
the child safety seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or roof
c:> page 151, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- Always install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Never install a rear-facing child restraint
in the forward-facing direction. Such re­
straints are designed for the special needs of infants and very small children
and cannot protect them properly if the
seat is forward-facing.
-If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
mediately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
Audi dealer.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device or power inverter) on the
front passenger seat if the device is con­
nected to the 12-volt socket or the ciga­
rette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys­
tem on this seat. -
Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or
other liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion .
- Never place objects on the seat (such as
a laptop, CD player, electronic games de­
vice or power inverter). These may influ­
ence the electrical capacitance measured by the capacitive passenger detection
system and can also fly around in an acci­
dent and cause serious personal injury.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
c:> page 140, Safety
belts, ¢page 149, Airbag system
and
c> page 175, Important things to know.
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats
can help protect toddlers and children over
age one who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9
and 18 kg) in a crash.
Fig. 172 Schematic overview: installat ion of the at­
tac hments applicab le to a LA TCH seat
Fig. 173 Schemat ic overview: installat io n of the seat
using the vehicl e's safety belt syste m
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking feature on the safety
Ill>

184 Child Safety
-Always move the front passenger seat in­
to the rearmost position of the passen­
ger seat's fore and aft adjustment range,
and as far away from the airbag as possi­
ble before installing the child restraint .
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being
moved to the rearmost position in its
fore and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an
upright position .
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device or power inverter) on the
front passenger seat if the device is con­
nected to the 12-volt socket or the ciga­
rette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys­
tem on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or
other liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as
a laptop, CD player, electronic games de­
vice or power inverter). These may influ­
ence the electrical capacitance measured by the capacitive passenger detection
system and can also fly around in an acci­ dent and cause serious personal injury.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install the forward-facing child seat
at a seating position on the rear seat and
have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer.
- Take the child restraint off the front pas­
senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs . and
80 lbs . (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall.
Fig. 174 Rea r seat : child p rop erly res trained in a boos­
te r se at
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit
most children until they are at least 4 ft . 9 in .
(57 inches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about
80 lbs.
(36 kg). Booster seats raise these chil­
dren up so that the safety belt will pass prop­
erly over the stronger parts of their bodies
and the safety belt can help protect them in a
crash.
"" Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to re­
strain a child on a booster seat.
"" The shoulder belt must lie as close to th e
center of the child's collar bone as possible
and mu st lie flat and snug on the upper
body.
It must never lie across the throat or
neck . The lap belt must lie across the pelvis
and never across the stomach or abdomen .
Make sure the belt lies flat and snug . Pull on
the belt to tighten if necessary .
"" If you must transport an older child in a
booster seat on the front passenger seat,
you can use the safety belt height adjust­
ment to help adjust the shoulder portion
properly .
"" Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:;,page 181.
Children up to at least 8 years old (ove r 40 lbs
or 18 kg) are best protected in child safety
seats designed for their age and weight . Ex-
perts say that the skeletal structure, ..,.

188 Child Saf ety
time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
- If the
PASSENGER A IR BAG OFF li g ht
does not come on an d stay on, immedi­
ately install the rear-facing child safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the a irbag system inspected by your Audi
dealer .
Activating the convertible locking
retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se­
cure a child restraint.
A lways heed the child safety seat manufactur ­
er's instructions when install ing a ch ild re­
straint in your vehicle. To activate the conver­
tib le locking retractor:
,. Place the child restraint on a seat, prefera­
bly on the rear seat .
,. Slow ly pull the be lt
all the wa y out .
,. Route it around or thro ugh the ch ild re­
stra int be lt path¢ &.
,. Push the child sa fety seat down wit h your
f ull weight to get the safety belt rea lly tight .
,. Inse rt the be lt tongue into the buckle for
that seating position.
,. Gu ide the safety belt back into the retractor
until the belt lies flat and snug on the child
safety seat .
,. You should hear a "click ing" noise as the
belt w inds bac k into the ine rtia reel. Test the
conve rtible locking retractor by pull ing on
the belt . Yo u should no longe r be able to
pull the belt out of the ret ractor . The con­
vertib le locking retractor is now activated .
,. Make sure that the red re lease button is fac­
ing away from the ch ild restra int so that it
can be unbuck led quickly .
,. Pull on the be lt to make sure the safety belt
is properly t ight and fastened so that the
seat can not move forward or sideways more
t h an one i nch (2.5 cm).
A WARNING
Using the wrong child restraint or an im­
p roperly installed chi ld restraint can cause
se rious pe rsonal injury or death i n a c rash .
- Always make sure that the safety belt re-
tractor is loc ked when insta lling a child
safety seat. A n un locked safety belt re­
tracto r cannot hold the child safety seat
in place dur ing no rma l driving o r in a
crash.
- Always buckle the child safe ty seat firmly
in pl ace even if a ch ild is not si tt ing in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly around
du ring a s udden stop or in a crash .
- Always make sure the se at b ackrest to
which the child res traint is installed is in
an upright pos ition and securely latche d
into place and cannot fold fo rward. Oth­
erwise, the seatback with the child sa fety
seat attached to it could fly forward in
the event of a n accident or other emer­
gency si tuation.
- Always read and heed all WAR NINGS
wheneve r us ing a child restrained in ave­
h icle is being used
~ page 175. Special
p reca utions apply w hen insta lling a child
s afety sea t on the front passenger seat
¢ page 1 51, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
-
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The convertible locking retractor for child re ­
straints will be deactivated automatically when the belt is wound all the way bock into
the retractor.
,. Press the red b utton on the safety belt
buckle. The be lt tong ue will pop o ut of the
buckle.
,. Guide the safety be lt a ll the way back into
its stowed position .
Always let the safety be lt retract completely
into its stowed position. The safety belt can
now be used as an ordinary safety belt w ith­
out the convertible locking retracto r fo r child
r est raints .
...

If the convertible locking retracto r shou ld be
activated inadvertently, the safety belt must be unfastened and guided comp letely back in­
to its stowed position to deac tivate th is fea­
ture. If the co nver tible locking retractor is not
deactivated, the safety belt will gradually be ­
come tighter and u ncomfortable to wear .
A WARNING
Improperly insta lled child safety seats in­
crease the risk of ser ious personal inju ry
and death in a collision.
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deacti­
vate the convert ible lock ing ret ra ctor for
child restrain ts w hile the veh icle is mov­
ing. You would not be rest rained and
cou ld be seriously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS
whenever using a child rest rained in ave ­
hicle is being used
c:!) page 175. Spec ial
precautions apply when installing a ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat
c:!) page 151, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
LATCH Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a s impler and more pract icable way
to attach the child restraint on the vehicle
seat, Federa l regu lations require specia l lower
anchorages in vehicles and devices on new
chi ld restraints to attach to the vehicle ancho­
rages.
The combination of the tether anchorages and
the lowe r anchorages is now generally called
the
LAT CH system for " Lower Anchorages and
T ethers for Children."
F orward-facing child restraints manufactured
after September 1, 1999, are requi red by U .S.
federal regulations to comply with new child head movement performance requirements.
Child Sa fet y 189
These new performance requirements make a
tether necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a ch ild restra int that requires a top
tether without one can seriously impair the
performance of the child restraint and its abil ­
ity to protect the child in a collision . Insta lling
a chi ld restraint that requires a top tether
without the top tether may be a violat ion of
sta te law.
Child restraint manufacturers offer LA TCH
l ower anchorages on their child seats w ith
hook-on or push-on connectors attached to
adjustable st raps.
In addition to the LATCH lower anchorages,
these chi ld restraint systems usually require
the use of tether straps to he lp keep the child
restraint f irmly in place .
A WARNING
Improper installat ion of child restra ints
will increase the r isk of injury and death in
a crash .
-Always follow the instructions provided
by the manufacturer of the child re­
straint you intend to install in your vehi­
cle.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instruc­
tions require the top tether st rap to be
used .
- Improper use of child restraint LATC H
lower anchorage points can lead to injury
in a collision. The LATCH lowe r anchorage
points are designed to withstand on ly
those loads imposed by correctly fitted
child restraints.
- Never mo unt two child restraint systems
on one LATCH lower anchorage point.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or
other item to the LATCH lower anchorag­
es.
-
•
•

196 Intelligent technology
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 fo r the express purpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or crash
event . EDR's are sometimes ca lled "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.
A lthough 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, eng ine function, em is­
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic contro l modules also record
vehicle-re lated data during normal 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 pe riod 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
skidd ing and loss of vehicle control. It works
only when the engine is running. ESC detects certain difficult driving situat
ions, 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 assistance to help hold the
vehicle on the driver's intended course. The in­
dicator light
G) 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 wi ll 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 wou ld 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.
Always adjust your speed and driving style to road, traffic; and weather condit ions. 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
drive r inattention. Instead, ESC improves the
poss ibility of keeping the vehicle under con­
trol and on the road during ex treme 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.

200 Intellig ent technol ogy
briefly touch the brake d iscs in regular inter ­
va ls so as to improve reaction time when brak­
ing on wet surfaces. You the driver wi ll not no­
tice anything.
The effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced
when the vehicle is driven on a salt-covered road and the brakes are not used . Here too,
you should clean off accumu lated salt coating
from brake discs and pads with a few careful
applicat ions of the brake¢,& .
Co rrosion
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
firmly a few times from a moderately high
speed <=>,& .
Fa ul ts in th e brak e sys te m
If you should notice a sudden increase in
brake pedal travel, then one of the two brake
circu its may have failed¢,& .
Low b rak e flu id l evel
Malfunctions can occur in the brake system if
the brake fl uid level is too low. The brake fluid
level is monitored electronically .
Brake booster
The brake booster wor ks w ith vacuum pres ­
sure which is created only when the engine is running
c> ,& .
Brake lining wear st atu s
Brake lining wea r may be checked by visual in­
spection of the condition of the brake pads
through the openings in the whee l. If neces­
sary, the wheel may be removed for this in ­
spection ¢ page 269, Changing a wheel .
_& 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 ca use an accident!
- Before descend ing a steep grade, reduce
speed and sh ift transmission into a lower
gear o r lower dr iving range. Do not ride
the br akes or ho ld the pedal down too
long o r too often . T his could cause the
brakes to get hot and diminish braking
efficiency .
- Do not "ride the brakes" by resting your foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to brake. This may cause the brakes to
overheat, premature wear and increased
stopping distance.
- Under certain climatic and operat ing
conditions such as passing through wa­
ter, dr iving in heavy rain or after washing
the vehicle, the effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced . In winte r, ice can
accumu late on the bra ke pads, lin ings,
d iscs and drums. Carefully app ly bra kes
for a test. Brakes will dry and ice coa t­
ings wi ll be cleaned off after a few care­
fu l brake applicat ions.
- Driving for an extended period of t ime on
salt -covered roads without 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 a ir
f low to the front brakes is not obstruct­
ed. Otherwise the brake system could
overheat reducing the effective ness of
the entire brake system.
- Failure of one brake circuit will impa ir
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 workshop .
- Never let the vehi cle roll to a s top with
the eng ine shut off.

-If the brake booster is not working, for
example when towing your vehicle, or
because the brake booster has somehow
been damaged, the brake pedal must be
pressed considerably harder to make up
for the lack of booster assistance.
Electro-mechanical
power assist
The electro-mechanical power assist helps
the driver when steering.
Power steering adapts electronically based o n
the vehicle speed.
Ind icator light s and messages
• Steering d efecti ve ! Stop the vehicl e
If this ind icator lig ht turns on and stays on
and this message appears, the power steering
may have fa iled.
Do
not continue driving. See yo ur authorized
Aud i dealer or other qualified repa ir facility
for assistance .
'y. ij Steering: System mal function! You m ay
c ont in ue drivi ng
If the indicator lig ht turns on and the mes­
sage appears, the steering may be more diffi­
cult to move or more sensitive than usual.
Drive s low ly to your author ized Audi dealer or
qua lified workshop to have the malfunction
corrected.
(D Tips
If the . or 'I aj indicato r light only stays
on for a sho rt time, you may contin ue driv­
ing .
Int ellig ent technolog y 201
Driving with your
quattro ®
Applies to vehicles : with all-wheel drive
With all-wheel drive, all four wheels are driv­
en .
General info rmation
With all Wheel Drive, power is distributed to
all four wheels. This happens automatically
depending on your driving style and the road
cond it ions at the time . See also ¢
page 196 .
With the sport different ia l*, power dist ribu­
tion to the rear wheels is variable and can be
adjus ted with A udi drive select*
¢ page 102.
Always read and follow safety precautions
¢ ,0. .
Winter tires
When dr iving in the winter, your vehicle with
all-wheel drive has an advantage, even w it h
regular tires. In winter ro ad conditions it may
be advisable to mount winter tires (or all -sea ­
son tires) for improved driveability and brak­
ing: these tires must be mo unted on
all fou r
whee ls.
See also ¢ page 261, Winter tires.
Tire chains
Where tire chains are mandatory on certain
roads, this norma lly also applies to veh icles
with all-wheel drive¢
page 262, Snow
chains.
Replacing wheels /tires
Vehicles with al l-wheel d rive must always
have tires of the same s ize. A lso avoid tires
with different tread depths . For detai ls see
page ¢
page 2 5 7, New tires and replacing
tires and wheels .
Off-Road driving?
You r A ud i does not have enough gro und clea r­
ance to be used as an off-road vehicle .
It is
therefore best to avoid rough tracks and un ­
even terra in as much as possib le . Also refer to
¢ page 205. ll>
•
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