2013 AUDI A7 trailer

Error messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Trailer hitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Homelink ® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 8
Universal remote control . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Safety fir st . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Driving Safely . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Gene ral notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Proper occupant seating posit ions . . . 131
Driver and passenger side footwell . . . 135
Pedal area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
Stowing luggage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Report ing Safety Defects . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Safety belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Ge neral notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 40
Why safety be lts? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Safety belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 43
Safety bel t pre tens io ners . . . . . . . . . . 147
Airbag system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 9
I mpo rtan t th ings to know . . . . . . . . . . 1 49
Fr ont airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 53
M on itoring the Advanced Airbag
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
K nee airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Side airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Side curta in a irbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Child Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Important things to know . . . . . . . . . . 17 5
C hi ld safety seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Install ing a child safety seat . . . . . . . . 186
L ATC H Lower ancho rages and tethe rs
for ch ild ren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Addit ional Information 193
Audi pre sense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
P reven tat ive passenger p rotection 194
Vehicle operat ion . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Intelligent technology . . . . . . . . 196
N ot ice about da ta re cor ded by veh icle
control mod ules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Elec tronic Stabilization Control (ESC) . 196
Rear spoiler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Table of contents 3
El ectro -mechan ica l powe r ass ist . . . . . 201
Driving with your q uattro ® . . . . . . . . . 201
Energy management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Driving and environment . . . . . 20 4
The first 1,000 miles (1,500 km) and
afterwards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Catalytic converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Avoid damaging the vehicle . . . . . . . . . 205
Drivi ng throug h wate r on roads . . . . . 206
Operate your vehicle economically and
min imize poll ution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Trailer towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
D rivi ng wit h a trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209
T rai le r tow ing tips .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 211
Vehicle care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Cleaning and protection . . . . . . 213
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Care of ex terior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Care of inte rior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Fuel supply and filling your
fuel tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
225
Gasoline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Fuel tan k. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Checking and filling . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Engine hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
Engine compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Engine o il . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
E n gine cooling system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
Brake fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Windsh ie ld/headlight washer
co nta iner . .. .. .. .. .. ........... . 244
Tires and wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
T ires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
T ire pressu re mo nitor ing system 264
Do -it-yourself service . . . . . . . . . 26 7
What do I do now? . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
E mergency warn ing triangle . . . . . . . . 267
Vehicle tool kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Changing a wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
•
•

Instruments and warning/indicator lights 17
If the indicator light turns on and the mes ­
sage appears , the coo lant temperature is too
high or the coo lant level is too low.
.,. Pull
off the road.
.,. Stop the vehicle .
.,. Turn
off the engine.
.,. Check coo lant level
¢ page 23 7.
.,. Add coolant if necessary¢
page 238 .
.,. Continue driving only after the engine cool­
ant warning/indicator light goes out .
.,. Contact your authorized Aud i dealer for as-
s istance if necessary .
If the engine coolant level is correct, then the radiator fan may be the cause of the malfunc ­
tion .
• Coolant temperature too high! Please let
engine run with vehicle stationary
If the indicator light turns on and the mes ­
sage appears in trailer mode*, let the engine
run at idle for a few m inutes to cool down.
A WARNING
- If your veh icle should break down for
mechanical or other reasons, park at a
safe distance from moving traffic, turn
off the engine and turn on the hazard
warning lights ¢
page 44, Emergency
flasher.
-
- Never open the hood if you see or hear
steam or coolant escaping from the en­
gine compartment - you risk being scald­
ed. Wait until you can no longe r see or
hear steam or coo lant escaping .
- The engine compartment of any vehicle
is a dangerous area. Before you perform
any work in the engine compartment,
turn of the engine and allow it to cool.
Follow the warning stickers¢
page 224,
Engine compartment.
Do not continue driving if the . symbol
illuminates. There is a ma lfunct ion in the
eng ine cooling system -you cou ld damage
your eng ine .
0 Battery
This warning/indicator light detects a mal­
function in the generator or in the vehicle's
electrical system .
The .warning/ indicator light illuminates
when you switch on the ignition and must go
out after the engine has started .
• Alternator fault: Battery is not being
charged
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, there is a malfunction in the generator or veh icle electrical system.
Drive to your authorized A udi dealer or quali­
fied workshop immediate ly . Because the vehi­
cle battery is discharg ing, turn
off all unnec ­
essary electrical equipment such as the rad io.
Seek professional assistance if the battery
charge level is too low.
t•i low battery: battery will be charged
while driving
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, there may be limited starting
ability.
If this message turns
off after a little while,
the battery charged enough while driving.
If the message does not turn off, have your
a uthor ized Aud i dealer or qualified workshop
correct the malfunction.
~-Safety belts
This warning/indicator light reminds you to
put on your safety belt.
The . warn ing/ indicato r light illum inates
when the ignition is switched on to remind
the driver and any front passenger to put on
the safety be lt. Additiona lly, an acoustic warn­
ing (gong) wi ll also sound.
For more Info rmation ¢
page 140, ~ Safety
belt warning light.

Instrument s and warning /indicator lights 23
However, you can continue to turn the lights
on and off using the light switch . You can still
control all funct ions that are independent of
the rain sensor through the windshield wiper
lever.
Contact your authorized Audi dealer as soon
as possible to have the prob lem corrected .
I--i Sport differential
Applies to vehicles: with spo rt differe ntial
(II Sport differential: system fault
There is a malfunction with the sport differen­
tial.
Drive to your authorized Aud i dealer immedi­
ately to have the mal function corrected .
(II Sport differential : overheating
The transmission temperature has increased
sign ificantly due to the sporty dr iving manner .
Drive in a less sporty manner until the tem­
perature returns to the norma l range and the
indicator light switches of.
& WARNING
Contact your authorized Aud i dealer or a
qualified workshop if the sport differential
is faulty or ma lfunctioning. The repair
must be performed by trained personnel
using the correct oil in order to ensure
safety .
¢i Q Turn signals
-
The indicator light blinks when you use either
turn signal .
Whenever you use the left. or the right a
turn signal, the indicator light blinks. When
you use the emergency flashers, both indica ­
tor lights f lash.
If one of the turn s ignal light bulbs burn out,
the turn signal will blink twice as fast as nor­
mal. Carefully drive to your authorized Audi
de aler immediately to have the malfunction
correc ted. The indicator light does not indi­
cate a malfunction if a turn signal on the trail- er or on the vehicle
fails in trailer towing
mode.
a) Tips
For more information on the turn signals,
refer to
¢ page 45.
CRUISE t •(-') Crui se cont rol
The warning/indicator light IB;(l)~i~ (USA mod­
els)/lil (Canada models) illuminates when
the cruise control is activated¢ page
83.
Driver information
display
Overv iew
Fig. 4 Drive r informat io n sys te m in th e in strument
cl uster
Fig. 5 Disp lay: example of t he info rmatio n line
The driver information system contains infor­
mation @that is displayed on tabs @
¢
fig. 4 . The following content is possible de-
pending on vehicle equipment: ..,.

80 On the road
Starting and automatically releasing the
par king brake
.. When you sta rt to drive as usua l, the park­
ing brake is automatically re leased and your
vehicle begins to move.
When stopping at a traffic signa l or stopping
in city traffic, the parking brake can be ap­
plied. The veh icle does not have to be held
with the footbrake. The parking brake elimi­ nates the tendency to creep with a drive range
engaged . As soon as you dr ive off as usual,
the park ing brake is released automatically
and the veh icle sta rts to move .
Starting on slopes
When starting on inclines, the starting assist
prevents the vehicle from unintentionally roll­
ing back . The braking force of the parking
brake is not released until sufficient dr iving
fo rce has been bu ilt up at the whee ls.
(D Tips
For safety reasons, the park ing brake is re­
leased automatically only when the dr iv­
er 's safety belt is engaged in the buck le.
Starting off with a trailer
To prevent rolling back unintentionally on an
incline, do the following:
.. Keep the switch l pulled and depress the
accelerator. The park ing brake stays applied
and prevents the vehicle from rolling back­
ward.
.. You can release the switch
C®l once you are
sure that you a re developing enough for­
ward momentum at the wheels as you de­
press the accelerator .
Depending on the weight of the rig (vehicle
and trai ler) and the seve rity of the incline, 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 sys­
tem fails or locks .
.. In an emergency, pull the switch C®l and
con tinue to pull it to slow your vehicle down
w ith the park ing brake.
.. As soon as you release the switch (®) or ac-
celerate, the brak ing process stops.
If you pull the switch C®l and hold it above a
speed of about 5 mph (8 km/h), the emergen­
cy brak ing funct ion is initiated . T he vehicle is
braked at all fou r whee ls by activating the hy­
draulic brake system. The brake performance
is similar to making an emergency stop~&. .
In order not to act ivate the emergency brak­
ing by mis take, an audib le warning tone (buz­
zer) sounds whe n the switch(®) is pulled . As
soon as the sw itch C®l is released , or the accel­
erator pedal is depressed, emergency braking
stops.
_& WARNING
-Emergency braking should only be used in
an emergency, when the normal foot brake
has failed or the brake pedal is obstructed.
Using the parking brake to perform emer­
gency braking will slow your veh icle down
as if you had made a full brake application .
The laws of physics cannot be suspended
even with ESC and its associated compo­
nents (ABS, ASR, EDL) . In corners and
when road or weather conditions are bad,
a full brake application can cause the vehi­
cle to skid or the rear end to break away -
risking an accident.
Start-Stop-System
Description
Applies to vehicles: with Start -Stop -System
T he Start -Stop-System can help increase fuel
economy and reduce CO 2 emissions.
In the Start-Stop-mode, the engine shuts off
automat ically when the veh icle is stopped,
such as at a traffic light. The ignition remains .,.

98 Audi side assist
Audi side assist
Lane Change Assistant
Description
App lies to vehicles: wit h side ass ist
Fig . 101 Sensor detectio n ran ge
Fig. 102 Display on the exterio r mirro r
Side assist helps you monitor your blind spot
and traffic behind your vehicle. Within the
limits of the system, it warns you about
vehicles that are coming closer or that are
traveling with you within sensor range
(D
c:> fig . 101: if a lane change is class ified as crit­
ical, the display @ in the exterior mirror
¢fig. 102 turns on.
The display in the left exterior mirror provides
assistance when mak ing a lane change to the
left, while the display in the right exterior mir·
ror provides assistance when making a lane
change to the right.
Information stage
As long as you do not activate the turn signal,
side assist
informs you about vehicles that are
detected and class ified as critical. The display
in the respective mirror turns on, but is dim. The
display remains dim intentionally in the
information stage so that your view toward
the front is not disturbed.
Warning stage
If you activate the turn signal, side assist
warns you about vehicles that are detected
and class ified as critical. The display in the re­
spective mirror blinks brightly. If this hap­
pens, check traffic by glancing in the rearview
mirror and over your shoulder c:>
.&. in General
information on page 99.
(D Tips
- You can adjust the brightness of the dis­
play @c:>
page 100.
-Please refer to the instructions for tow·
ing a trailer located in
¢ page 99.

General information
Applies to vehicles: with side ass ist
®
©
Fig . 103 Dr iving situations
Fig. 104 Rear of t he ve hicle: positio n of t he se nsors
"' a, 0 0 " a,
Side assist functions at speeds above approx i­
mately 19 mph (30 km/h).
@ Vehicl es th at ar e approaching
In certain cases, a vehicle will be classified as
cr itical for a lane change even if it is still
somewhat far away. The faster a vehicle ap­
p roaches, the sooner the display in the exteri­
or m irror will t urn on.
@ Vehicles traveling with you
Vehicles traveling w ith you are indicated in the
exterior m irror if they are classified as cr itical
for a lane change. All vehicles detec ted by
side assist are indicated by the time they en­
ter your "blind spot", at the latest.
Audi side assist 99
@ Veh icle s left behind
If you s low ly pass a vehi cle that s ide assist has
detected (the difference in speed between the
vehicle and you r vehicle is less than 9 mph or
15 km/h), the display in the exterior mirror
turns on as soon as the vehicle enters your blind spot.
The disp lay will not t urn on if you quickly pass
a vehicle that side assist has detected (the dif­
ference in speed between the vehicle and your
vehicle is greater than 9 mph or 15 km/h).
Functi onal limitation s
The radar sensors are designed to detect the
left and right adjacent lanes when the road
lanes are the normal width. In certain situa­
tions, the d isp lay in the exterior mirror may
turn on even though there is no veh icle locat­
ed in the area that is cr itical for a lane change.
For example:
- if the lanes are narrow or if your are dr iving
on the edge of your lane.
If this is the case,
the system may have detected the vehicle in
another lane that is
not adjacent to your
current lane .
- if you a re driving through a curve. Side assist
may react to a vehicle that is one lane ove r
from the adjacent lane.
- if side assist reacts to other objects (such as
high or d isp laced guard rails) .
- In poor weather conditions. The side assist
functions are l imited .
Do not cover the radar sensors
c> fig. 104 with
stickers, depos its, bicycle wheels or other ob­
jects, because this will affect the funct ion. Do
not use s ide ass ist when towing a trailer. For
i nformation on cleaning, refer to
c> page 216 .
_&. WARNING
-Always pay attention to traffic and to t he
area around your ve hicl e. S ide assist can­
not replace a driver's attention. The driv­
er a lone is always responsible for lane
changes and similar driving mane uvers.

@ Tips
-Side assist is not active while you are
making the adjustment.
- Your settings are automatically stored
and assigned to the remote control key
being used.
Driver messages
App lies to vehicles: with side assist
If side assist switches off by itself, the LED in
the button turns off and a message will ap­
pear in the instrument cluster display:
Audi side assist: Currently unavailable. No
sensor vision
The radar sensors' vision is affected. Do not
cover the area in front of the sensors with bike
wheels, stickers, dirt or other objects. Clean
the area in front of the sensors, if necessary
c>fig. 104 .
Audi side assist: Currently unavailable
Side assist cannot be switched on temporarily
because there is a malfunction (for example,
the battery charge level may be too low).
Audi side assist: System fault!
The system cannot guarantee that it will de ­
tect vehicles correctly and it is switched off .
The sensors have been displaced or are faulty.
Have the system checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service Facility
soon.
Audi side assist: Unavailable when towing.
Side assist switches off automatically when a
factory-installed trailer hitch is connected to
the electrical connector on the trailer. There is
no guarantee the system will switch off when
using a retrofitted trailer hitch. Do not use
side assist when towing a trailer.
Audi side assist 101

(D Note
-Make sure there is enough clearance
above and below the veh icle when park­
ing. The height of the vehicle can change
once it is parked due to temperature
fluctuations, changes to the load cond i­
tions and changes to the dr iving modes,
which can affect clearance .
- When t ransporting the veh icle on a car
carr ier, tra in, ship or by other means, on­
l y tie the veh icle down at the runni ng
su rface of the tires, which is the outer
ci rcumference . Secur ing the vehicle at
the axle components, s uspension struts
or tow ing eyes is not pe rm itted because
the pressu re in the air suspension struts
can change during transport. The vehicle may not be secured sufficiently if this
happens.
- If you are going to tow a trailer, you
must activate the trailer operation mode
<=> page 209.
{!) Tips
- In some models, the maximum vehicle
speed can only be reached in the
Auto
and Dynami c modes.
- Selecting the
Dynami c mode results in
spo rty sh ifting character istics. The S
gear posit ion engages automatically.
- In vehicles with sport differential", the
Dynami c mode is deactivated when tow­
i ng a trailer.
Adjusting the Individual mode
Audi dri ve sele ct 103
Selecting the driving mode
You can choose between Comfort, Auto, Dy­
namic and Individual .
Fig. 10 6 MMI: D rive select
.,.. To se lect the mode, se lect the following in
the
MM I: ICARlf unction button> Comf ort ,
Auto , D ynamic or Individual.
You can change the d riv ing mode when the ve­
hicle is stationary or wh ile driving.
If traffic
permi ts, after changing modes, briefly take
yo ur f oot off the acce lerator pedal so that the
recently selected mode is a lso activated for
the engine.
Comf ort -prov ides a comfort-oriented veh icle
setup and is s uited for long drives on h igh­
ways .
Auto -provides an overall comfo rtable yet dy­
nam ic dr iving feel and is suited for every day
u se.
Dynamic -gives the vehicle a sporty driving
feel and is suited to a spo rty driving style .
Individual -<=> page 103 .
_.& WARNING
-Pay attention to traffic when operating
Audi d rive select to prevent potential risk
of an acc ident.
-
You can adjust the vehicle settings to your personal preferences .
.,.. Select : I CARI funct ion button> Set individ ­
ual
control button. You can now adjust the
individual systems . The
Ind
ividu al driving mode wi ll automatical­
ly be activated when you have finished config­
uring the sett ings.