176 Safety belts
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!
Fig. 199 A driver not wearing a safety belt is violently
thrown forward
Fig. 200 A rear passenger not wearing a safety belt
will fly forward and strike the drive r
Unbelted occupants are not able to resist the
tremendous forces of impact by holding tight
or bracing themselves. Without the benefit of
safety restraint systems, the unrestrained oc
cupant will slam violently into the steering
wheel, instrument panel, windshield, or what
ever else is in the way
q fig. 199. This impact
with the vehicle interior has all the energy
they had just before the crash.
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
additional protection. Airbags are not sup posed to deploy in all kinds of accidents. Al
though your Audi is equipped with airbags, all
vehicle occupants, including the driver, must
wear safety belts correctly in order to mini
mize the risk of severe injury or death in a
crash.
Remember too, that airbags will deploy only
once and that your safety belts are always there to offer protection in those accidents
in
which airbags are not supposed to deploy or
when they have already deployed. Unbelted occupants can also be thrown out of the vehi
cle where even more severe or fatal injuries
can occur .
It is also important for the rear passengers to
wear safety belts correctly. Unbelted passen
gers in the rear seats endanger not only them
selves but also the driver and other passen gers¢
fig. 200. In a frontal collision they will
be thrown forward violently, where they can
hit and injure the driver and/or front seat pas
senger.
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision. It's simply
not true!
Fig. 201 Driver is correctly restrained in a sudden brak
ing maneuver
Safety belts used properly can make a big dif
ference. Safety belts help to keep passengers
in their seats, gradually reduce energy levels
applied to the body in an accident, and help
prevent the uncontrolled movement that can
cause serious injuries. In addition, safety belts
reduce the danger of being thrown out of the
vehicle.
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and
give them the benefit of being slowed down
more gently or "softly" through the "give" in
the safety belts, crush zones and other safety
features engineered into today's vehicles. By
"absorbing" the kinetic energy over a longer
period of ti me, the safety belts make the
lilJJ,
224 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 . EDRs are sometimes ca lled "crash re
corders".
Some state laws restrict the retr ieval or down
loading of data stored by EDRs 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, engine function, emis
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts .
These electronic contro l modules also record
vehicle-related 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 period 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
The Electronic Stabilization Control (ESC) rein
forces driver safety. It reduces the risk of slip
p ing and improves driving stability. ESC de
tects cr itical s ituations such as the vehicle oversteering and
understeering or the wheels
spinning . The vehicle is stabilized by applying
the brakes or reducing engine torque . Once
the ESC is active, the indicator light
G1 blinks
in the instrument cluster.
ESC includes the anti-lock brake system (ABS),
brake assist system, anti-slip regulation
(ASR), electronic differential lock (EDL) and
hill descent control.
Anti-lock brake system (ABS)
ABS prevents the whee ls from locking up
when braking. The vehicle can still be steered
even during hard braking. App ly steady pres
sure to the brake pedal. Do not pump the ped al. A pulsing in the brake pedal indicates that
the system is helping you to brake the vehicle .
Brake assist system
The brake assist system can decrease braking
distance. 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
distance 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 conditions. This makes it easier to
sta rt, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinning and
transfers the drive power to the other wheels .
This function is available up to about 60 mph
(100 km/h) .
In extreme cases, EDL automatically switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked wheel
from overheat ing. EDL will switch on again au
tomat ically when conditions have returned to
normal.
A WARNING 1-=
-ESC, ABS, ASR and EDL cannot overcome
the laws of physics. This is espec ially im
portant on slippery or wet roads. If the
systems begin act ing to stab ilize your ve
hicle, you should immediately change
your speed to match the road and traffic conditions. Do not let the increased sa fe
ty provided by these systems tempt you
to take r isks. Doing so will increase the
risk of a loss of vehicle control, collision
and ser ious persona l injuries.
- Always adapt your speed to road, traffic
and weather conditions. The risk of los
ing control of the vehicle increases when
dr iv ing too fast, especially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
w hen driving too close to vehicles up
ahead. ESC, ABS, the b rake assist sys
tem, ASR and EDL cannot prevent co lli
sions.
Switching on/off --- -
Intellig ent technolog y 225
-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 reduce the risk of loss of ve
hicle control.
@ Tips
- ABS and ASR only work correctly when
all four wheels are equipped with identi
cal tires. D iffe rent tire sizes can lead to a
reduction in engine powe r.
- Yo u may hear noises when the systems
descr ibed are working.
- If the ind icator light
DJ or ~ (USA
mode ls)/ ii] (Canada models) appears,
there may be a malfunction~
page 16,
¢page 18.
•
•
ESC turns on automatically when you start the engine .
. ...---------.,
--------------
Fig. 230 Upper center conso le : ~ O FF button
The fo llow ing situations are exceptions where
it may be useful to switch on offroad mode to
allow the whee ls to spin: -
Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Dr iving in deep snow or on loose ground
- Driving with snow chains
- Dr iving on roug h terrain when much of the
car's weight is lifted off the whee ls (ax le ar
ticu lation)
- Dr iving downhi ll wh ile braking on loose
ground
226 Intelligent technology
Offroad mode on Offroad mode off
Behavio r
The ESC and ASR stabilization functions The fu ll stabilization function of the ESC
are limited
c> Li::,. .
Operation Press the 1.$ OFFI button.
Indicator fl turns on.
lights
D rive r mes-
Stabilization control (ESC): Offroad.
sages Warning! Rest ricted stability
Hill descent control
The hill descent control is switched on in off
road mode. When slowly descending steep
gradients on loose ground or when the axles
are articulated, h ill descent control provides
assistance by automatically applying the
brakes to keep vehicle speed constant. The ve
h icle is also rendered easier to steer by selec
tive distribution of braking force . Hill descent
control intervenes when:
- the accelerator pedal is not pressed,
- the vehicle is trave lling less than 12 mph
(20 km/h),
- a steep gradient is detected,
-wheel behavio r indicates loose ground or
conditions with poor adhesion (e .g. also ax le
articulation) .
H ill descent control operates both driving for
ward and in reverse . Active hill descent con
trol is deactivated by pressing the accelerator
pedal until the conditions for activation al
ready listed are met again.
A WARNING
You should only switch offroad mode on if
your dr iving abilities and road cond itions
permit.
- The stabilization function is limited
when offroad mode is switched on. The
dr iv ing wheels could spin and the vehicle
cou ld swerve, especially on slick or slip
pery road surfaces.
- You should only sw itch offroad mode on
when driving offroad. and ASR
is available again.
Press the
1 .$ OF FI button again.
fl turns off.
Stabilization control (ESC): On
(D Tips
Offroad mode cannot be switched on when
adaptive cruise control* is switched on .
Brake system
Operating conditions and driving habits
The brakes on today's automobiles are still
subject to wear, depending largely on operat
ing conditions and driving habits
c> Li::,. . On
vehicles that are either driven most ly in stop
and-go city traffic or are dr iven hard, the
brake pads should be checked by your author
ized Audi dealer 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.
Noises may occur when braking depending on
the speed, b raking force and outs ide cond i
tions such as temperature and humidity.
Moisture or road salt
Under certain conditions, for example, when
driv ing through water or very heavy rain, or
even after washing your veh icle, the braking
effect can be reduced due to moisture (or in
freezing conditions ice) on the bra ke pads. A
f ew careful brake applications should dry off
the brake pads or remove any ice coatings.
jll,,
228 Intellig ent technol ogy
- Never let the vehicle ro ll to a stop with
the engine shut off.
- If the brake booster is not working, the
brake pedal must be pressed considera
bly harder to make up for the lack of
booster assistance.
Servotronic - advanced
power steering system
The power steering systems uses the power of
the running engine to allow precise steering
with little effort.
The advanced Servotronic power steering sys
tem senses the road speed and electronically
adjusts powe r assistance to provide comforta
b le and safe steering response exact ly match
ed to the vehicle speed.
Power steering w ill not work if the eng ine is
off. As a result, the steering wheel w ill be hard
to turn.
The power steering fluid level is checked dur
ing the scheduled ma intenance serv ices .
@ Note
If the re is an electronic malfunct ion, ser
votronic
w ill still function like a conven
tional power steer ing system, p roviding a
constant steer ing support force that is no
longer proportionate to the vehicle speed .
This is most noticeab le when turning the
steering whee l at low speeds (for examp le
when parking), -more effort will be re
quired than usual.
- Be aware of the different than usua l
steering response and adjust your steer i ng force accord ingly.
- Have the prob lem checked and set right
by an Aud i dealer as soon as possible.
- When the engine is running , never hold
the steering whee l turned all the way to
the right or to the left for longer than
15
seconds . The power steer ing pump w ill
overheat the hydraulic flu id if you keep holding the steering wheel turned all the
way . This is likely to damage the power
steering system.
- If the powe r stee ring system sho uld fail
entirely, or if the engine is not running
(for example, whi le be ing towed), you
will still be able to steer the ve hicle.
However,
considerably more effort will
be required to do so .
- If the power steering system should
have a leak, or is not functioning proper
ly, contact your author ized Audi dealer
immediately .
- The power steering system requ ires a
specially formulated hyd ra ulic fluid . The
powe r stee ring reservoir is the one locat
ed farthest to the rear on the left s ide of
the engine comp artment r=;,
page 259.
T he correct fluid level in the reservoir is
important for proper functioning of the
power steering .
Driving with your
quattro
With all-wheel drive , all four wheels are driv
en .
Gen eral information
With all-wheel drive, power is distributed to
all four wheels. This happens au toma tically
depending on your driving style and the road
condit ions at the time . See also r=;,
page 224 .
Winter tire s
When driving in the winter, yo ur vehicle with
a ll-wheel drive has an advantage, even wi th
regular tires . In winter road conditions it may
be advisable to mount winter tires (or all -sea
son tires) for improved dr iveability and brak
ing : these tires must be mounted o n
all four
wheels. See also r=;, page 288, Winter tires.
Tire chains
Where tire chains are mandatory on certain
roads, this normally also appl ies to veh icles
with all-wheel driver=;,
page 289, Snow
chains .
Replacing wh eels/ tire s
Vehicles w ith all-wheel drive must a lways
have tires of the same size. Also avoid tires
with different tread depths. For details see
page ¢
page 284, New tires and replacing
tires and wheels .
.&_ WARNING
Always adjust your driving to road and traf
fic conditions . Do not let the extra safety
afforded by all-wheel dr ive tempt you into
tak ing extra risks.
-Although the all-wheel dr ive is very ef
fective, always remember that braking
capacity is limited by t ire traction . You
sho uld therefore not dr ive at excessive
speeds on icy or s lippery road surfaces.
- On wet road su rfaces, be careful not to
dr ive too fast because t he front wheels
cou ld beg in to s lide on top of the wa ter
(aquaplaning). If this sho uld occ ur, you
w ill have no warning from a sudden in
crease in engine speed as with a front
whee l drive vehicle. A lways drive at
speeds wh ich are suited to the road con
ditions -risk of c rash.
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.
I f a vehicle w it h a conventional energy system
i s not driven for a long pe riod of time, the bat
tery is disch arged by idling c urrent cons umers
(e .g. immobilizer) . In ce rtain c ircumstances it
can result in there being insufficient energy
ava ilab le to start the engine .
I n tell igen t energy management in your vehi
cle hand les the d istribution of electrical ener
gy . Starting abi lity is marked ly imp roved and
the life of the battery is extended.
Int ellig ent technolog y 229
Basica lly, energy management consis ts of
batte ry diagnosi s, idling cur rent manage
ment
and dynamic energy management.
Battery diagnosis
B attery diagnosis continuously de termines
the state of the battery . Sensors determine
batte ry voltage, battery current and battery
temperature . This determines the current
state of charge and the power of the battery.
Idling current management
Id lin g cur ren t man agement reduces energy
consumption while the vehi cle is standing.
With the ig nition switched off, it controls the
energy supply to the various electrical compo nents. Data from battery diagnos is is cons id
ered.
Depend ing on the battery's state of cha rge,
individual cons umers are gradually turned off
to prevent excessive discharge of the battery
and thus maintain starting capability.
Dynamic energy manag ement
While the vehicle is being driven, dynamic en
ergy management distrib utes the energy ge n
erated according to the needs of the individ u
al components. It regulates consumption, so
that more electrical energy is not being used
than is be ing generated and ensures an opti
mal state of charge for the battery .
(D Tips
-But even e nergy management cannot
negate the limits of physics. Consider
t hat the powe r and l ife of a bat tery are
l imited.
- If start ing ability is threatened, you are
informed by a warning ¢
page 230,
Driver notification in the instrument
cluster display.
•
•
230 Intellig ent technol ogy
What you should know
The highest priority is given to maintaining
starting capability.
The battery is severely taxed in short-distance
driving, in city traffic and during the cold time
of year. Abundant electr ical energy is re
qu ired, but only a little is generated. It is also
cr itical if the e ngine is not running and elect ri
cal components a re turned on. In th is in
stance energy is being consumed but none is being generated .
I t is in precisely these situations that you w ill
notice energy management actively regulat
ing the distrib ution of energy.
Vehicle stand s for an ext ende d period
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period
of several days or weeks, electrical compo
nents are gradually cut back o r switched off .
This reduces energy cons umption and main
tains starting capab ility
over a longer period.
Take into consideration that when you un lock
your ve hicle, some convenience functions,
such as the interior ligh ts or the power seat
ad justmen t, may not be available. The con
venience functions will be available again
when you turn on the ignition and start the
engine.
With the engine turned off
I f you listen to the radio, for example, with
the eng ine turned off or use other MM I func
tions, the battery is being discharged .
I f sta rting capability is jeopa rdized due to en
e rgy consumpt ion, the follow ing warning ap
pears in the MMI disp lay:
Ple ase s tart engin e, otherwi se system will
s wit ch off in 3 minute s.
The warning ind icates that the system will be
turned off automatically after 3 m inutes .
If
you wish to cont inue us ing the functions, you
have to start the engine.
With the eng in e runnin g
Although e lectrical energy is gene rated when
the vehicle is being driven, the battery can be
come discharged. This happens mostly when
little energy is being generated and a great
deal consumed and the battery's state of
charge is not optimal.
To bring the energy balance back into equili brium, consumers which req uire especially
large amounts of energy are temporar ily cut
back or sw itched off. Heat ing systems in par
t icular require a great deal of energy. If you
notice, for example, that the heated seats* or
the heated rear window are not heating, they
have been tempora rily cut back or switched
off . These systems w ill be available again as
soon as t he energy balance has been restored.
You w ill also notice that engine id le speed has
been increased slightly . T h is is normal and not
a cause for con cern. By inc reas ing engine id le
speed the additional energy required is gener
ated and the battery is charged.
Driver notification in the instrument
cluster display
If battery power drops into the range where it
can limit the ability of the engine to start, this
is shown in the instrument cluster display
with the fo llow ing driver message:
(•) low batte ry charge: bat tery w ill be
ch arg ed whil e dri ving
This notificat ion reminds you that the starting
capability of the engine may be lim ited. As
soon as you start dr iv ing again, the battery
will be recharged and the not ificat io n will go
out .
Driver notific ation app ear s a nd goe s out
again
If this driver notification appears after the ig
nition is turned on or wh ile driving and it goes
out again after a while, the battery has been
adequately recharged. .,.
232 Driving and environment
Driving and
environment
The first 1,000 miles
(1,500 km) and
afterwards
New engine
The engine needs to be run-in during the first
1,000 miles (1,500 km).
For the fir st 600 miles (1,000
kilometers ):
.,. Do not use full throttle.
... Do not d rive at engine speeds that are more
than 2/3 of the max imum permitted RPM.
From 600 to 1,000 miles (1 ,000 to
1,500 kilomete rs):
.,. Speeds can gradually be increased to the
max imum pe rm iss ible road or eng ine speed .
During and after break-in per iod
... Do not rev the eng ine up to high speeds
when it is cold. Th is app lies whether the
transmission is in N (Neutra l) or in gear.
After the brea k-in period
... Do not exceed max imum engine speed un
der any circumstances.
... Upshift into the next higher gear before
reaching the red area at the end of the tach
ometer scale¢ page 10.
During the first few hours of driving, the en
g ine's inter na l friction is higher than later
when all the moving parts have been broken
i n. How well this break- in process is done de
pends to a conside rable extent on the way the
ve hicle is driven du ring the first 1,000 miles
(1, 500 kilome ters).
(D Note
E xtremely high engi ne speeds are auto
mat ica lly r educed. However, these rpm
lim its are programmed for a n engine well
r u n- in, not a new eng ine.
{® For the sake of the environment
Do not drive with unnecessarily high en
g ine speeds - upshifting ear ly saves fuel,
reduces no ise and protects the environ
ment.
, New tires
If your vehicle is runni ng on new tires, drive
part icularly caref ul for the first 350 miles
(500 kilomete rs) afte r fitt ing.
A WARNING
N ew tires tend to be sl ippery and mus t al
so be "b roken -in" . Be s ure to remember
this dur ing the fi rst 350 mi les (500 kilo
meters) . Brake gently . Avoid fo llow ing
closely behind other vehicles or other sit
uations that m ight require sudden, hard
braking.
New brake pads
Remember that new brake pads do not have a
full bra king effect dur ing the fi rst 250 m iles
(400 kilomete rs) afte r they a re insta lled.
New brake pads have to be "burnished in" be
fo re t hey have optima l grab¢
A .
During the break- in period, you should avoid
putting severe loads on the brakes. Severe
l oads include, for example, sudden hard brak
i ng, in particular at very high speeds or, for
example, on mounta in passes .
A WARNING
New b rake pa ds don't have t he bes t stop
pi ng power and mus t be "broke n-in " dur
i ng the in iti al 1 00 to 150 mi les (150 to
20 0 kilometers) of no rma l city driving . You
can compensate for this by pressing the
br ake peda l mo re f irm ly . This also applies
l ater when new pads are installed.