108 Automatic Transmission
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 11 O.
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 io n can be
operated e ither in the normal mode Dor i n
the sport mode S. To select the sport mode S,
pu ll 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 mode D, the transmission a uto
mat ica lly selects the suitab le gea r ratio.
It de
pends on engine load, veh icle speed and driv
ing style.
Select the sport mode S for sporty driving .
The vehicle makes fu ll u se of the engine's
power. Shifting may become noticeable when
accelerating.
When the ve hicle is stationary o r 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 110.
(D Note
-
Coast ing downh ill with the transmission in
N and the e ngine not r unning w ill result in
damage to the automatic transm iss io n
and possib ly the catalyt ic converter.
@ Tips
- Audi drive select : you ca n adj ust the
sporty s hift c haracte ristics in th e
Dy-
namic driving mode.Swi ll appea r in the
instrument cluster display instead of D.
-If you a cc iden tally selec t N whi le driving,
take your foot off the accelerato r pedal
immediately and wa it for the engine to
slow down to idle before select ing D/S.
- If there is a power fai lure, the selector
lever w ill not move out of the P position.
The emergency release can be used if
this happens
c::>page 113.
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.
' ) ( )
Fig . 113 Shi ft gate: selector leve r lock pos it ions a nd
re lease button high lig h ted
The selector lever lock is re leased as follows:
.,. Tur n 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 . 113
with your thumb until you have moved the
selector lever to the desired posit ion.
Automatic selector leve r 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
appea rs in the instrument clus ter display
whe n the selector is in P and N:
When stationary apply brake peda l while se-
lecting gear ..,_
The Automatic Shift Lock only functions when
the vehicle is stationary or at speeds below
1 mph (2 km/h).
At speeds above about 1 mph (2 km/h) the
Automatic Shift Lock is automatically deacti
vated in the N position.
A time delay element prevents the se lector
l eve r from locking when it is moved thro ugh
the N position (going from R to 0/5). The lock
ing e lement will lock the selector lever if the
lever is left in N (Neutral) for more than ap
prox imately 2 second, without the brake ped
al being pressed.
R elease button
The release button on the selector lever pre
vents the lever from being accidenta lly shifted
into certain positions. Depending on the direc
tion of the shift, the selector lever locks at d if
ferent positions. The positions are h ighlighted
in the illustration
¢ fig . 113 .
Driving the automatic transmission
Applies to vehicles: with multitronic/S tronic/t iptronic
Fig . 114 Sh ift gate on the center conso le: selector lev
er w ith release button
Starting the engine
.., The selector lever must be in P or N .
Starting off
.., Press and ho ld the brake pedal.
.., Press and hold the release button in these
lector lever handle, se lect the desired selec
tor lever pos ition such as D/S and release
the button .
.., Wa it br iefly until the transmission has sh ift
ed (you will feel a slight movement).
Automatic Tra nsmi ssi on 109
.., Remove your foot from the brake pedal and
accelerate.
Stopping t emporarily
.., Keep the veh icle stationa ry using the brak
ing pedal , for example at traffic lights.
.., Do not press the accelerator peda l w hen do
ing this .
.., To prevent the vehicle from ro lling when you
start dr iving, set the parking brake when
stopping on steep inclines¢.&_ .
.., The parking brake will release automat ically
and the vehicle will start mov ing once you
press the accelerator pedal.
Stopping /parking
If the selector lever is not in the P position
when you open the driver's door, the vehicle
could roll. The message
Transm ission: Car
may roll! Shift to park !
appears.
.., Press and hold the brake peda l until the ve-
hicle has come to a complete stop .
.., Apply the parking brake¢
page 78, Parking.
.., Select the P selector lever posit ion c::> ,&. .
Stopping on a n incline
.., Always press the brake pedal to ho ld the ve
hicle in place and prevent it from "rolling
back"
c::> .&_ . Do not try to prevent the veh i
cle from "rolling back" when a gear is en
gaged by increas ing the engine speed
c:::, (D ,
Sta rting on an incline
.., Activate the parking brake .
.., With the driving gear selected, press the ac
celerator peda l carefully. The parking brake
w ill release automatically if your seat belt is
fastened .
Under certain circumstances, such as driving
in the mounta ins, it may be useful to switch
temporarily to the manual shift program in or
der to ad just the gears to the driv ing cond i
tions by han d
¢page 111.
On s lopes, activate the parking brake first and
then move the selector lever to the P position .
This prevents too much stress from being placed on the locking mechanism. .,.
110 Automatic Tran sm iss ion
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
f o r a few s econds . The brake pres
sure will hold for
a moment after the brake
pedal loosens to prevent the veh icle from roll
ing backwards whi le starting up .
A WARNING
- The veh icle can also roll when the engine
is stopped.
- Unintended veh icle movement can cause
serious injury .
- Never leave your vehicle with the eng ine
running wh ile in gea r. If you must leave
yo ur vehicle when the engine is running,
act ivate the park ing brake and move the
selector lever to P .
- Power is st ill transmitted to the whee ls
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 pos ition
wh ile the vehicle is stat io nary and the
engine is running .
- Never shift into R or P wh ile driving .
- Before driv ing 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 dr iving
down a hill. Constant braking causes the
brakes to overheat and substant ially re
duces b raking performance, inc reases
braking distance or causes comp lete fail
ure of the brake system.
- T o prevent the veh icle from rolling back
when stoppi ng on incl ines, always hold it
in place with the brake peda l or parking
brake.
- Never hold the veh icle on an incl ine with
a slipping clutch. The clutch opens auto
matically when it becomes too hot from the overload. An indicato
r lamp
[O] illu
minates and a driver message appears
¢ page 112 when the clutch is overload
ed.
- If the engine must remain running, never
have any driving posit io n engaged when
checking under the hood . Make sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and is locked in P with the park ing brake set
¢ page 224. O therwise, any increase in
engine speed m ay se t the vehicle in mo
tion, even with the parking brake ap plied .
(D Note
-S tronic- and tiptronic transmission :
When stopping on an incl ine , do not try
to hold the vehicle in place by pressing
the acce lerator pedal while a driving gear
is se lected. This can cause the transmis
sion to overheat and can damage it. Acti
vate the parking brake or press the brake
peda l to prevent the vehicle from roll ing.
- S tronic- and tiptronic transmission : A l
lowing the vehicle to ro ll when the en
gine is stopped and the selector lever is
in N will damage the transmission be
cause it is not l ubricated unde r those cir
cumstances.
{!) Tips
For safety reasons, the parking brake is re
l eased automatically only when the d riv
er's safety belt is engaged in the buckle.
Hill descent control
Applies to vehicles: with multitro nic/5 tronic/t iptronic
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 sui table fo r the incline. H ill de
scent contro l tries to ma inta in the speed ach-
ieved at the time of b raking, with in physica l .,.
and technical limitations. If may still be necessary to adjust the speed with the brakes.
H ill descent control switches off once the de
cline levels out or you press the accelerator
pedal.
On vehicles w ith the c ruise control system*
c::> page 82, hill descent con trol is also activat
ed when the speed is set.
A WARNING
-
Hil l 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
App lies to vehicles: with multitron ic/S tronic/t iptronic
Using the manual shift program you can
manually select gears.
Fig . 115 Center co nsole: sh ift ing the gears manually
Fig . 116 Steering wheel: S hift b uttons*
Gear selection with selector lever
The tiptron ic mode can be selected either with
the vehicle stationary or on the move .
.,. Push the selector lever to the right from D/
5. An M appears in the instrument cluster
Automatic Transmission 111
display as soon as the transmission has
shifted.
.,. To upshift, push the selector lever forward
to the plus position
0 c::> fig. 115 .
.,. To downshift, push the lever to the minus
position
0 .
Gear selection with paddle levers*
The shift buttons are activated when the se
lector lever is in D/S or the tiptronic manual
shift program.
.,. To upshift, touch the button on the right
0
c::>fig. 116.
.,. To downshift, touch the button on the left
0 .
.,. If you do not press a shift button within a
short time while in the D/S posit ion, the
transmission will return to automatic mode.
To keep shifting using the shift buttons,
move the selector lever to the r ight out of
the D/S position.
The transm iss ion automatically sh ifts up or
down before cr itical engine speed is reached.
The transmission only allows manual shifting
when the engine speed is with in the permit
ted range .
(D Tips
-When you shift into the next lower gear,
the transmission will downshift only
when the re 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 inoperative when the trans
mission is in the fail-safe mode.
112 Automatic Tran sm iss ion
Kick-down
Applies to vehicles: with multitron ic/S tronic/t iptronic
Kick-down enables maximum acceleration .
Applies to ve hicle s w ith a multit ro nic
t ransmi ssion
When you depress the accelerator pedal be
yond the resistance po int, the transmission
downshifts into a lower gear ratio depend ing
on the vehicle speed and engine speed. As
l ong as the accelerator peda l is depressed, the
engine speed is automat ica lly regulated for
maximum accelera tion.
Appli es to veh icl es with a S tronic -/,
tiptronic tran smi ssion
When you depress the accelerato r pedal be
yond the resistance po int, the a utomat ic
transmission downshifts into a lower gear, de
pending on vehicle speed and engine speed.
T he upshift into the next higher gear takes
p lace once the maximum specified engine
speed is reached.
A WARNING
,-
Please note that the drive wheels can spin
if kick-down is used on a smooth slippery
road - there is a risk of skidding .
Launch Control Program
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic
The Launch Control Program provides the
best acceleration possible when starting from
a stop .
Requirement : The engine must be at operat
ing temperature and the steering wheel must
not be turned .
.. Press the
I~ O FFI button c> page 196 while
the engine is running. The
1B indica tor light
illuminates in the instrument cluster and
Sta bilization contr ol (ESC ): Off Warn ing!
R educed stabi lit y
appears in the dr iver in
fo rmat io n system disp lay .
.. Move the selecto r lever to position D/S to
select sport mode (5) or select
D ynam ic
mode in Audi dr ive select <=> page 101 . ..
Press the brake pedal strongly with your left
foot and hold it down for at least 1 second .
.. At the same time, press the acce lerator ped
al down completely with your right foot un
til the eng ine reaches and maintains a high
RPM .
.. Remove your foot from the brake pedal
w ith in 5 seconds <=>,&. .
_&. WARNING
-Always adapt your dr iving to the traff ic
f low.
- On ly use the Launch Contro l Program
when road and t raff ic condi tions a llow it
and other d rivers w ill not be endangered
or annoyed by your driving and the vehi
cle's acceleration.
- Please note that the driving wheels can spin and the vehicle can b reak away
when sport mode is switched on, espe
cially when the road is slippery.
- Once you have accelerated, you shou ld
sw itch sport mode off by pressing the
I~ OFF I button.
(D Tips
- The transmission temperature may in
crease signif icantly after using the
Launch Control Program. If that hap
pens, the program may not be availab le
for a few minutes. It will be ava ilable
again after a cool-down period.
- When accelerating using the Launch
Contro l Program, all vehicle parts are
subject to heavy loads . Th is can result in
increased wear .
Transmission malfunction
Applies to vehicles: with multitronic/S tronic/tiptronic
[O] Tran smi ssio n: Pr ess brake pedal and se
lect ge ar again
Press the brake peda l and select the desired
selector lever position again. You can the n
continue d riving .
[O] Tran smi ssion overheating: Plea se drive
con servatively
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.
[O] Transmission malfunction: You can con
tinue driving
There is a system ma lfunction in the transmis
sion. You may continue driving. Drive to your
authorized Audi dealer or qualified repair fa
cility soon to have the malfunction corrected .
[O] Transmission malfunction: You can con
tinue driving with limited functionality
There is a system malfunction in the transmis
sion . The transmission is switching to emer
gency mode. This mode only shifts into cer
tain gears or will no longer shift at a ll. The en
gine may stall. Drive to your authorized Audi
dealer or qualified repair facility immediately
to have the malfunction corrected .
[O] Iii Transmission malfunction: No reverse
gear. You can continue driving
S tronic transmission: There is a system mal
function in the transmission. The transmis
sion is switching to eme rgency mode. This
mode on ly shifts into certain gears or wi ll no
longer shift at all. The engine may sta ll. You
cannot engage the reverse gear. Drive to your
authorized Audi dealer or qualif ied repair fa
cility immediately to have the malfunction
corrected .
[O] Transmission malfunction: Stop vehicle
and shift to P
Do not continue driving. Select the P selector
lever position and see your authorized Audi
dea ler or qualified repair facility for assis
tance.
(D Note
If the transmission switches to emergency
mode, you shou ld take the vehicle to an
author ized Audi dealersh ip as soon as pos
sible to have the cond ition corrected.
Automatic Transmission 113
Selector lever emergency release
Applies to vehicles: with multitronic/5 tronic/t iptronic
If the vehicle's power supply fails, the selec
tor lever can be released in an emergency .
Fig. 117 Front center console: se lector lever emergen ·
cy release
.,. To reach the emergency release mechanism,
remove the ashtray insert*.
.,. Loosen and remove the small cap in the ash
tray mount ~
fig. 117 .
.,. You now have access to a bolt. Using a
screwdriver or similar, press the bolt down
and hold it down .
.,. Now press the interlock and move the se lec-
tor lever to the N position.
T he selector lever can only be moved from the
P position if the ignition is turned on. If the
power supply fai ls (for example, the battery is
discharged) and the vehicle must be pushed
or towed, move the selector lever to the N po
sition first using the emergency release.
126 Homelink
Homelink
Universal remote
control
General information
Applies to vehicles: with Homelink u nive rsal remote con
tro l
The HomeLink universal remote control can
be programmed with hand-held transmitters
from existing equipment.
With Homelink, you can control devices such
as the garage door, security systems, house
lights, etc. comfortably from the inside of you
vehicle.
Homelink makes it possible for you to replace
three different remote controls from devices in your home with one universal remote . Th is
feature works for most garage door and exte
rior door motor signals. Programming the in
d iv idual remo te control fo r your remote con
trol takes p lace near the center of the radiator
grille. There is a control module attached at
this location .
A one-t ime programm ing of the sensor mus t
be performed before you are able to use sys
tems w ith Homelink.
A WARNING
- Never use the Homelink transmitter
with any garage door opener that does
have not the safety stop and reverse fea
ture as requ ired by federal safety stand
ards. Th is includes any garage door open
er model manufactured before April 1, 1982.
- A garage door opener which cannot de
tect an object, signaling the door to stop
and reverse does not meet current feder
al safety standards . Us ing a garage doo r
opener witho ut these fea tures increases
risk of serious injury or death.
- For safety reasons never release the
parking brake or start the engine while
anyone is standing in front of the vehicle .
- A garage door or an estate gate may
sometimes be set in motion when the Homelink remote control is being pro
grammed. If the device is repeatedly ac
tivated, this can overstrain motor and
damage its electrical components -an
overheated motor is a fire hazard!
- To avo id possible injuries or property
damage, please always make absolutely
certa in that no persons or objects are lo
cated in the range of motion of any
equ ipment being operated.
(0 Tips
- If you would like additional information
on the Homelink Un iversal Transceiver,
Homelink compatible products, or to
purchase other accessories su ch as the
Homelink Lighting Package, please con
tact Homelink at 1 -800-355-3515 or on
the Internet at www.homelink.com.
- For Declara tion of Comp liance to United
States FCC and Ind ustry Canada reg ula
tions¢
page 286 .
-For security reasons, we recommend that
you clear the programmed b uttons be
fore selling the ve hicle .
Operation
Appl ies to vehicles: wit h Ho melink
Fig . 14 2 Headliner: controls
M 0
9 (!)
~
Requirement: The buttons must be program
med
¢page 127.
"'To open the garage door , press the program
med b utton . The LED @ will light up o r
flash.
"' To close the garage door, press the button
again .
Ill>
-Failure to pay attention to the warning
light that come on, could lead to person
al injury.
Why safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for
people riding in vehicles .
Fig. 14 7 Unbe lted occupants in a ve hicle head ing for a
wall
Fig. 1 48 The vehicle cras hes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the
veh icle and the passengers possess energy
which varies w ith veh icle speed and body
weight . Engineers call this energy "kinetic en
e rgy."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the
greater the vehicle's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash .
Vehicle speed is the most significant factor . If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to
SO km/h), the ene rgy increases 4 t imes!
Because the passengers of th is vehicle are not
using safety belts¢
fig. 147, they will keep
mov ing at the same speed the vehicle was
mov ing just befo re the crash, unt il something
stops them - here, the wall ¢
fig. 148.
Safety belts 139
The same principles apply to people s itting in
a vehicle that is involved in a frontal coll ision .
Even at c ity speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50
km/h), the forces acting on the body can
reach one ton (2,000 lbs, or 1,000 kg) or
more . At greater speeds, these fo rces are even
highe r.
Peop le who do not use safety belts are also
not attached to their vehicle . In a frontal colli
s ion they will also keep moving forward at the
speed their veh icle was travel ling just before
the crash . Of co urse, the laws of physics don't
just app ly to frontal collisions, they determine
what happens i n all k inds of a cc ident s and col
li s ions.
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in
jured or killed. Always wear your safety belts!
F ig . 14 9 A driver not wea ring a safety be lt is vio lently
th row n forwa rd
F ig. 150 A rear passenger not wearing a sa fety belt
w ill fly forward a nd strike the d river
Unbelted oc cupants a re not able to resist the
tremendous forces o f impact by hold ing tight
o r bracing themse lves. Without the benefit of
safety restraint systems, the unrestra ined .,..