2013 AUDI A8 differential

Instrument s and warnin g/indic ator ligh ts 19
If the indicator light DJ and the ABS indicator
light
r.t.1:1:1 (USA models) 1 11] (Canada mod­
e ls) turn on and the message appears, there is
a ma lfunction in the ABS system or e lectronic
d ifferential lock. This also interrupts the ESC.
The brakes still function with their normal power, but ABS is not active.
Drive to your authorized Aud i dea ler immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
If the battery terminals were disconnected
and re -connected, the vehicle was jump start­
ed or the battery is very weak, the ESC sensor
system goes through a learning process for
the first few yards. The warning/ind icator
light illuminates. The warn ing/ indicator l ight
goes out as soon as the learning process is
comp lete.
For more informat ion about the ESC
c::>page 198.
ABS/(@) Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
This warning/indicator light monitors the ABS
and the electronic differential lock (EDL).
The warning/indicator light
E (USA mod­
els)
Ill] (Canada mode ls) will come on for a
few seconds when the ignition is switched on.
The light will go out after an automat ic check
sequence is completed .
There i s a malfunction in the ABS when:
-The warning/ ind icator light does not illumi­
nate when you switc h the ignition on.
- The warning/indicator light does not go out after a few seconds.
- The warning/indicator light illuminates
whi le driving.
The ESC indicator light also illuminates if
there is a malfunction in the ABS. The mes­
sage
Stabilizatio n control (ESC /ABS ) Fault !
See owne r's manual
also appears in the in­
strument cluster display and a warning tone
sounds .
The brake s ystem will still respond even
without the assistance of the ABS s ystem .
See your authori zed Audi dealer as soon as po
ssible to re store full br aki ng performance.
For more information regarding the ABS
c::> page 198 .
Malfunction in the brake system
If the brake war ning l igh t c::> page 14 and the
ABS warning illum inate together th ere may be
a mal function in the ABS, and there may a lso
be a malfunction i n the brake system itself
c::> .& . The ABS will not wo rk and you will no ­
tice a change in b raking response and per ­
formance .
In the event of a malfunction in the brake
s y stem
the warning/indicator light 1111
(USA mode ls)/ . (Canada models) in the in­
strument cluster flashes
c::> page 14.
Malfunction in th e electronic diff erential
lock (EDL)
The EDL works together w ith the ABS. The
ABS warning light will come on if there is a malfunction in the EDL system¢ page 198 .
See your author ized Audi dealer as soon as
poss ible .
.&_ WARNING
- If the r.t.1:1:1 (USA mode ls)/ [IJ (Canada
models) w arning light does not go ou t,
or if it comes on whi le dr iving, t he ABS
system is not wor king properly. The vehi­
cle can then be stopped only wit h the
standard brakes (without ABS). You w ill
not have the protect ion ABS prov ides.
Contact your Audi dea ler as soon as pos­
sible.
- USA models: If the
1111 warning light,
the:
JjJ warning light and the E warn­
ing light come on together, the rear
wheels could lock up f irst under hard
brak ing. Rear wheel lock-up can ca use
loss of vehicle control and an accident.
Have your vehi cle repaired immediately
by your authorized A udi dealer or a quali ­
fied workshop . Drive slow ly and avoid
sudden, hard brake applications.
- Canada models:
If the brake warning
light ., the
D] warning light and the
ABS warning light
[I] come on together, ~

22 Instruments and warning/indicator lights
@.D Light/rain sensor
II Automatic headlights/automatic wipers:
system fault
If the indicator light turns on and this mes­
sage appears, the light/rain sensor is not
functioning correctly.
For safety reasons the low beams are turned
on permanently with the switch in AUTO .
However, you can continue to turn the lights
on and off using the light switch. You can still
control all functions that are independent of
the rain sensor through the windshield wiper
lever.
Contact your authorized Audi dealer as soon
as possible to have the problem corrected.
@! Dynamic steering
'T-ij Steering: system fault. you can continue
driving
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, the steering may be more diffi­
cult to move or more sensitive than usual. The
steering wheel may also be at an angle when
driving straight.
Drive slowly to your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop to have the malfunction
corrected.
(;y.ij Dynamic steering: initializing
If this driver message appears and the indica ­
tor light is flashing on the instrument panel,
dynamic steering is being reinitialized . Once
you start the engine after this is finished, the
steering wheel will be easy to move . Re-initi­
alization might be necessary if the steering
wheel was moved hard to the left and right
while the vehicle was not moving. The display
goes out as soon as initialization is complete.
A 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
- The dynamic steering stability systems
are not available in the event of a system
malfunction.
- For additional information on dynamic
steering, refer to¢
page 109.
~= Sport differential
I'll Sport differential: system fault
There is a malfunction with the sport differen­
tial.
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
I'll Sport differential: overheating
The transmission temperature has increased
significantly due to the sporty driving manner. Drive in a less sporty manner until the tem­
perature returns to the normal range and the
indicator light switches of.
.&_ WARNING
Contact your authorized Audi dealer or a
qualified workshop if the sport differential
is faulty or malfunctioning. The repair
must be performed by trained personnel
using the correct oil in order to ensure
safety.
¢i ¢ Turn signals
-
The indicator light blinks when you use either
turn signal.
Whenever you use the left Hor the right II
turn signal, the indicator light blinks. When
you use the emergency flashers, both indica­
tor lights flash .
If one of the turn signal light bulbs burn out,
the turn signal will blink twice as fast as nor­ mal. Carefully drive to your authori zed Audi
dealer immediately to have the malfunction
corrected. 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. ..,

Audi drive select Driving settings
Introduction
Aud i drive select makes it possible to experi­
ence different types of vehicle settings in one
veh icle. The driver can select th ree
Comfort,
Auto
and Dynamic modes in the MMI to
switch between a sporty and a comfortable
driving mode.
You can also adjust the setting according to
your preferences in the
individual mode. For
examp le, you can combine settings such as a
sporty engine tuning with comfortab le steer­
ing.
A WARNING
Improper use of the Audi drive select can
cause collisions, other acc idents and seri­
ous personal injury .
Description
The vehicle setup in each mode depends on
the vehicle's features. The engine, transm is­
sion, steering, reve rsible safety belt tension­
ers and adaptive air suspension are always in­
volved.
Engine and transmission
Depending on the mode, the engine and the
tra nsmission respond quicker or in a more bal­
anced manne r to acce lerator pedal move­
ments. In the sporty dynamic mode, the
transmission shifts at higher RPMs .
Air suspension
The adaptive air suspension/adaptive air sus­
pension sport*
( Air suspension in the MMI) is
an electronically con trolled air suspension and
damping sys tem. They are adjusted depend­
ing on the selected driving mode, the drive r's
steering, braking and acceleration input and
the road s urface, vehicle speed and load. A
sporty setting is generally used in vehicles
with adaptive air suspension sport*.
Audi drive select 109
The vehicle clearance varies depending on the
selected mode and the speed .
T he hig hway setting is activated automatically
when you drive above 75 mph (120 km/h) for
more than 30 seconds in the
auto or dynamic
mode. The ground clearance is increased auto­
matically if the speed drops below 44 mph
(70 km/h) for more than 120 seconds.
Steering
The steering adapts in terms of steering effort
and steering ratios . Indirect stee ring that
moves easily, like the steering in comfort
mode, is best suited to long drives on a high­
way . In contrast, dynamic mode provides
sporty, direct steer ing .
The following applies to vehicles with dynamic steering* : the steering ratio changes based on
vehicle speed in order to ma inta in optimum
steering effort for the driver at all times. This
sets the steering to be less sens itive at higher
speeds in order to provide improved vehicle
control. At reduced speeds, however, steer ing
is mo re direct in order to keep the steering ef­
fort as minimal as possible when the driver is
maneuvering the vehicle. At low and average
speeds, dynamic steering additiona lly pro­
vides more responsive steering performance.
Sport differential*
As a component of the all whee l dr ive system
(quattro ®)
<:!) page 203, the Sport differen­
tia l* distributes the driving power to the rear
axle depending on the situation . The distribu ­
tion of power varies depending on the select ­
ed mode, from balanced (comfort) to agile
(dynamic). The goal is a high level of agility
and ability to accelerate on curves . The vehicle
is very responsive to steering.
Curve light*
The curve light adapts to driving on curves.
The pivoting act ion and the lighting are also
adapted to the mode.
Adaptive cruise control*
The behavior when accelerating can be adjust­
ed from comfortab le to sporty, depending on .,..

Audi drive select 111
Adjusting the Individual mode
You can adjust the vehicle settings to your personal preferences.
"Se lect: ICARlf unction button> Set individ·
ual
control button. You can now adjust the
individual systems.
The
individual driving mode will automatical­
ly be activated when you have finished config­
uring the settings .
Systems Comfort
Engine
and Transmission balanced
Air suspension comfortable
Steering comfortable The equipment
in your vehicle will determine
which settings you can adjust. The following
table provides an overview of the characteris­
tics of each driving mode.
Dynamic
balanced sporty
---~-
sporty
balanced
Dynamic steering* comfortable/ind ire ct balanced/direct sporty
sporty/direct
sporty
Sport
differential *
Curve light*
Belt tensioner
Adaptive cruise control* Engine sound* balanced
comfortable
Standard
comfortable
subtle agile
---~· balanced
Standard
---~· balanced
subtle/sportyal
sporty
Deployment t ime
adapted
sporty
sporty
al Subt le in the d riving position D and sporty i n the driving pos itio n S
© Tips
Your individual mode settings are auto­
matically stored and assigned to the re­
mote control key being used.
Raising/lowering the
vehicle
Raising the vehicle
You can raise your veh icle temporarily, for ex­
ample to drive over a tall curb.
" Select the following in the MMI: ICARI func­
tion button >
Raise control button.
" Wait for the arrows in the display to stop
blinking and the vehicle to reach its final po­
sition .
Lowering the vehicle
" To lowe r the vehicle, select the following in
the MMI: ICARlfunction button>
Lower con­
t rol button. "
Wait for the arrows in the display to stop
blinking and the vehicle to lower comp lete­
ly.
(D Note
- Remember that your vehicle is not suita­
ble for driv in g offroad eve n when it is
raised. There is not enough ground clear­
ance.
- If the vehicle is raised, it will lower auto­
matically when driving 62 mph (100 km/
h) or faster.
Driver messages
Air suspension: vehicle currently too low.
Level control running
Air suspension: vehicle currently too high.
Level control running
The driver message switches off when the lev­
el control process is complete .

ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock braking system (ABS), brake assist
system, anti-s lip regulat ion (ASR), electronic
d ifferential lock (EDL), dynamic steering* and
electronic interaxle differential lock*. ESC is
sw itched on all the time . In certain s ituations
when you need less tract ion, you can sw itch
off ASR by pressing the button above
~ page 200, fig. 188 the se lector lever. Be
sure to sw itch ASR o n aga in when yo u no lon­
ger need less traction.
Anti -lock braking system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up
when braking. The veh icle can still be steered
even du ring ha rd b raking . Apply steady p res­
sure to the brake pedal. Do not p ump the ped­
a l. A pulsing in the brake peda l indicates that
the system is he lping you to brake the vehicle .
Brake as sist system
The brake assist system can decrease bra king
d istance.
It increases braking power when the
driver presses the brake pedal qu ick ly in eme r­
gency situations . You must p ress and ho ld the
brake peda l until the situation is over. In
vehicles with adaptive cruise control*, the
brake assist system is more sensit ive if the
d istance detected to the vehicle ahead is too
small.
Anti- slip regulati on (A SR )
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
start, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic diff erential lo ck (EDL )
The ED L brakes wheels that are spinning and
transfers the drive power to the other drive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all whee l drive*. This funct ion is available up
to about 75 mph (120 km/h).
In extreme cases, EDL automatica lly switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked whee l
from overheating. EDL w ill switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to normal.
Int ellig ent technolog y 199
Dynamic ste ering *
On vehicles with dynam ic steering, ESC helps
stabilize the steering in certain situations.
Electronic intera xle differential l ock
function*
T he electron ic i nteraxle differential lock f unc ­
tion activa tes when dr iving th ro ugh curves.
Braking is targeted toward the wheels on the
inside of the curve as needed. This he lps to
minimize front whee l skid, improves traction
and allows for more precise driving through curves .
A WARNING
- ESC, ABS, ASR, EDL, dynamic steering*
and the elect ronic interaxle differential
loc k function* cannot ove rcome the laws
of physics. This is espec ially important
on slippery or we t roads.
If the systems
begin acting to stabilize your veh icle, you
should immediately change yo ur speed
to match the road and traffic conditions .
Do not let the increased safety provided
by these systems tempt you to take risks.
Doing so will increase the risk of a loss of
veh icle contro l, collision and ser ious per­
sonal injur ies.
- Always adapt your speed to road, traffic and weather conditions. The risk of los­ing con trol of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast, espe cially through
curves a nd on slippe ry or wet roads, and
when dr iving too close to vehicles up
ahead. ESC, ABS, the brake assist sys­
tem, EDL, ASR, dynam ic steering* and
the electron ic interaxle d ifferential lock
function" cannot prevent co llisions.
- Always accelerate with spec ial care on
even, smooth surfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow.
The drive wheels can spin even w ith
these assistance systems that cannot al­
ways he lp to red uce the risk of loss of ve­
hicle control.
-
•
•

Driving with your
quattro ®
With All Wheel Drive, all four wheels are driv­
en .
Gene ral inform ation
W ith All Whee l Drive, power is distributed to
all four wheels . This happens automatically
depending on your driving style and the road
conditions at the t ime. See also
t::;> page 198.
W ith the spo rt differential*, power d istribu­
tion to the rear wheels is variable and can be
adj usted with Aud i drive select*
t::;> page 109.
Always read and fo llow safety precautions
c:> .&. .
Winter t ires
When driving in the winter , your vehicle with
All Wheel Dr ive has an advantage, even with
regular t ires. 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
a ll four
w he els .
See also c:> page 264, Winter tires.
Sn ow cha ins
Where snow cha ins a re mandatory on certa in
roads, th is normally a lso applies to vehicles
with A ll Wheel Drive
c:> page 265, Snow
chains .
Replacing whe els/ tires
Vehicles w ith All Whee l Dr ive must always
have tires of the same size. Also avoid t ires
with different tread depths. For details see
page
c:> page 260, 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:> page207.
Int ellig ent technolog y 203
A WARNING
Always adjust your driv ing to road and traf­
fic conditions. Do not let the extra safety
afforded by All Wheel Dr ive tempt you into
taking extra risks .
- Although the All Wheel Drive is very ef­
fective, always remember that braking capacity is lim ited by tire t raction. You
should therefore not d rive at excessive
speeds on icy or slippery road surfaces.
- On wet road surfaces, be careful not to
drive too fast because the fron t wheels
could begin to slide on top of the water (aquaplaning) . If this should occur, yo u
will have no warning from a s udden in­
crease in engine speed as w ith a front­
wheel drive veh icle. Always drive at
speeds which are su ited to the road con­
ditions - risk of crash.
Energy management
Starting ability is optimized
Energy management controls the distribution
of electrical energy and thus optimizes the
availability of electrical energy for starting
the engine .
If a vehicle with a conve ntiona l energy system
is not drive n for a long per iod of t ime, the bat­
tery is discharged by idling current consume rs
(e.g . immobilizer). In certain circumstances it
can resu lt in the re being insuff icient energy
available to start the engine.
Intelligent energy management in your vehi­
cle handles the distribution of e lectrica l ener­
gy. Starting ability is marked ly improved and
the life of the battery is extended.
Basica lly, energy management consists of
b atte ry diagno sis, i dling current man age­
ment
and d y namic ene rg y management .
Battery diagno sis
Battery diagnosis continuously determines
the sta te of the battery. Sensors determine
battery voltage, battery current and battery
Ii),,
•
•

304 Index
Declaration of compliance
Adaptive cruise control ............. 299
Audi side assist ................... 299
Cell phone package ....... .. .. .... . 299
Convenience key .......... .... .... . 299
Electronic immobilizer ......... .. ... 299
H omelink ® universal remote control .. 299
Remote control key ........... .. .. . 299
DEF What does this mean when it appears in
the trip odometer display? ..... .. .. .. 26
Defective light bulb warning . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Defrosting (windows) ....... .. .. .. .. . . 80
Deluxe automatic climate control . . . . . . . 79
Determining correct load limit ... .. .. . 258
Dig ital compass ..... ..... ... .. .. .. .. 55
Dimensions
. ...... ........ .. .. .... . 291
Dimming the rearview mirror .. .. .. .. . . 54
Distance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Door/rear lid warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Doors M echanical ch ild safety lock .. .. .... .. 40
Power child safety lock .... .. .. .. .. .. 40
Driver information system CD/radio display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Door/rear lid warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Eff iciency program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Ex terior temperature display . .. .. .. . . 23
On-boa rd comp uter ....... .. .. .. .. . .
Driver seating position
drive select
adaptive air suspension/sport ... .. .. .
Adaptive dampers ........ .. .. .... .
Curve light .. ... .... ..... .. .. .. .. .
Dynamic steering ............. .. .. .
Engine sound ......... .... ... .. .. .
Safety belt tensioner ...... .. .. .... .
Sport differential ......... .. .. .. .. .
Drive select
.. ... .. ..... ... .... .. .. .
Driving safely ... ........ .. .. .. .... .
Driving through water 24
135
109
109
109
109 109
109
109
109
134
208
Driving time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Duplicate key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Dust filter
refer to Pollutant filter (automatic A/C
system) .. .. ... .......... .. .. .. .. .. 78
Dynamic steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22, 109
E
Easy entry fea ture . .... .......... .. .. . 82
EDL
refer to Electronic differential lock .. .. 198
Efficiency program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Fuel economy messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Other equ ipment . .......... ...... .. 25
E lectrica l accessories (sockets) . . . . . 67, 73
El ectromechanical pa rking brake
Emergency b raking ............ .. .. . 87
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Parking ... .... .. .. ... ........ .. .. . 86
Releasing and closing ............ .. . 85
Starting assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Starting from rest ............. .... . 86
Starting off w ith a trailer ........ .. .. . 87
Warning/ind icator lights .. ... ..... .. . 15
E lectronic differential lock ........ .. .. 198
El ectronic differential lock (EDL)
Warning/indicator lights .......... .. . 19
Electronic immob ilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . 26, 31
Electronic power control (EPC)
warning/indicator light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
El ectronic speed limit er .......... .. .. . 29
Electronic Stabilization Control (ESC) ... 198
Warning/indicator lights .. ... ..... .. . 18
Emergency actuation Doors . ... .... .. .. ... .......... .. . 36
Luggage compartment lid ....... .... . 39
Parking lock ..... ............. .... 120
Power sunroof ... ..... ........... .. 43
Emergency braking ... ........... .. .. . 87
Eme rgency flasher .... .. ... ..... .. .. . 46
Warning/indicator lights .......... .. . 22
Emergency operation
Panoram ic sunroof ..... .. ... ..... .. .
Sun shade (roof) . ................ . .
Emergency starting 44
44
284
Emergen cy to wing ................ .. 286
Emergency warn ing triangle .. ... ... .. 270
Energy management ............ .. .. 203
En gine
Compartment .. .. ... .......... ... .
Coolant ... .. .. .. ............. .. . .
Data
. .. .. .... .. ... .. .......... ..
234
240
292
Start-Stop-System .. ........... .. .. . 87