2014 AUDI S4 towing capacity

68 Seats and stor age
damage to the load and even the vehicle
itself.
- Make sure that the open rear lid and the
sunroof do not come into contact with
objects on the roof.
Loading the roof rack
Always distribute loads evenly. J\llake sure
anything on the roof rock is securely tied
down.
.. Always distribute the loads on the roof rack
evenly .
.. Always attach items to the roof rack securely
before you drive off.
The maximum permissible roof weight is
200 lb (90 kg). The roof weight is the total of
the we ight of the roof rack, the attachments
and the cargo you are carrying. You must also not exceed the maximum load weight for the
roof rack you are using .
When using a roof rack system which has a
lower load carrying capacity, you must not use
up the total maximum permissible load carry­
ing capacity specified above. Instead, you
should load the roof rack system only to the
maximum capacity specified by the manufac­
turer of the roof rack system.
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used
to secure items to the roof rack can fail
during hard braking or in a collision and
cause serious personal injury.
- Make sure the roof rack is installed exact­
ly as specified above
~ page 67.
- Always use suitable mounting straps for
securing items to the roof rack to help
prevent items from shifting or flying for­
ward.
- Items on the roof rack must always be
securely mounted.
- The use of a roof rack can negative ly af­
fect the way a vehicle handles. Cargo
that is large, heavy, bulky, long or flat
will have a greater negative influence on
.
the vehicle's aerodynamics, center of
gravity and overall handling. Always
drive slowly, avoid sudden braking and maneuvers when transporting cargo on
the roof of your vehicle.
- Never exceed the maximum permissible
load carrying capacity of the roof of your
vehicle, the permissible axle weights and
the permissible total weight of your vehi­
cle
~ page 2 72, Weights.
(D Note
Make sure that the opened rear lid does
not come in contact with the cargo on the
roof.
@ For the sake of the environment
As a result of the increased wind resist­
ance created by a roof rack, your vehicle is
using fuel unnecessarily. So remove the
roof rack after using it.
Luggage compartment
General information
A WARNING
Read and follow the important safety pre­
cautions on
~ page 134, Stowing lug­
gage.

186 Intelligent technology
Intelligent technology
Notice about data
recorded by vehicle
control modules
Your veh icle is not equipped with an Event Da­
ta Recorde r (EDR), ins talled by some manu­
facture rs fo r the express p urpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or cras h
event . EDR's are sometimes ca lled "crash re­
corders".
Some state laws restr ict 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 ltho ugh yo ur vehicle is not equ ipped wit h an
EDR, it is equipped with a number of electron­
ic control modules for various vehicle systems
such as, for examp le, eng ine f unction, 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 norma l vehicle op­
erat ion for diagnostic and repa ir 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 ove r a ve ry limited pe riod of
time and stored when a sys tem faul t or o ther
cond ition is sensed by a cont ro l u nit. Some of
the data then stored may re late to vehicle
speed, direction, braking as we ll as restraint
system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condit ion. Stored data can only
be read and downloaded w ith 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 ve hicle control. It works
only when the eng ine is running. ESC detects certain difficult driving situat
ions, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw)
o ut of control and he lps you to get the veh icle
back under control by se lectively braking the
whee ls, and/or reducing eng ine power and
providing steer ing ass istance to he lp hold the
vehicle o n the dr iver's intended course. The in­
dicator light
J.i) in the instrument cluster
blinks when ESC is ta king action to help yo u
control the veh icle.
ESC has limitations.
It is importa nt to remem­
ber that ESC cannot overcome the laws of
physics. It will not always be able to help out
under a ll cond it ions you may come up aga inst.
F or example, ESC may not always be able to
help you master situations where there is a
s u dden change in the coefficient of friction of
the road surface. When there is a section of dry road that is sudden ly covered w ith water,
s lush or snow, ESC cannot perform the same
way it wou ld on the dry surface . If the ve hicle
hydroplanes (rides on a cushion of water in­
stead of the road surface), ESC will not be
able to help you steer the vehicle be cause con­
tact with the pavement has been in terrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered .
D uring 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 availab le tract ion, or keep a ve hicle
on the road if road departure is a result of
driver inattent io n. Instead, ESC imp roves the
poss ibil ity of keeping the vehi cle under con ­
trol and on the road during extreme maneu­
vers by using the d river's steering inputs to
help keep the vehicle going in the intended di­
rection . If you are traveling at a speed that
ca uses you to run off the road before ESC can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESC.

240 Tires and wheels
pressure label) ¢ page 234,
fig. 189.
2. Determine the combined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers from
"XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds
shown on the sticker
¢ page 234, fig. 189.
4. The resulting figure equals
the available amount of car­
go and luggage load capaci­
ty. For example, if the
"XXX"
amount equals 1400 lbs.
and there will be five 150
lbs. passengers in your vehi­
cle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load ca­
pacity is 650 lbs. (1400-750
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs.)
5. Determine the combined weight of luggage and cargo
being loaded on the vehicle .
That weight may not safely exceed the available cargo
and luggage load capacity
calculated in Step 4.
6. If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer, load from your trail­
er will be transferred to your vehicle
. Consult this manual
to determine how this re­ duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle .
... check the tire sidewall
(¢ page 242, fig. 193) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balancing, correct tire pressure and driv­
ing style.
Fig. 191 T ire tread: tread wear ind icato rs (TWI)
____ Jj
Fig. 192 Rotating tires for more even wear
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The original tires on you r vehicle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm) high "wear indicators"
cf> fig. 191 running across the tread. Depend-
ing on the make, there will be six to eight of
them evenly placed around the tire. Marks on
the tire sidewall (for example "TWI" or other ..,.

266 Emergency situations
Emergency situations
General
This chapter is intended for trained emer­
gency crews and working per sonnel who
have the necessary tools and equ ipment to
perform these ope rations.
Starting by pushing or
towing
Q;) Note
Vehicle s with an automati c transmission
cannot be started by pushing or towing .
Starting with jumper
cables
If necessary, the engine can be started by
connecting it to the battery of another vehi­
cle.
If the engine should fail to start because of a
discha rged or wea k batte ry, the battery can be
connected to the battery o f
another vehicle,
using a
pair of jumper cables to start the en­
g ine .
Jumper cables
Use only jumper cab les of sufficiently
large cross section to carry the starter cur rent
safely. Refer to the manufact urer's spec ifica­
ti ons.
Use on ly jumper cables with
insulated te rmi­
na l clamps wh ic h are d istinctly mar ked :
plus (+) cable in most c ases co lore d red
minu s (-) cable
in most cases colored black .
A WARNING
Batterie s cont ain e lec tricity, a cid, a nd gas.
A ny o f these c an ca use ve ry ser io us or f atal
in ju ry . F ollow the i nstruc tio ns below for
safe ha ndling of your ve hicle's bat tery.
- Alw ay s sh ield yo ur eye s and a vo id le an­
ing over the batte ry w henever p ossib le . -
A discharged battery can freeze at tem­
pe rat ures just below 32 °F (0 °C). Before
connecting a jumper cable, you must
thaw the fr ozen battery complete ly , ot h­
e rwise it cou ld explode.
- Do not allow batte ry acid to contact eyes
or skin . Fl ush any contacted a rea wi th
wate r im media tely.
- Imp roper use of a booster battery to
s tart a vehicle may cause an explosion.
- Vehicle batter ies generate explosive gas­
es . Keep sparks, flame and lighted ciga­
rettes away from ba tte ries .
- Do not try to jump start a ny ve hicle w ith
a low ac id leve l in the battery .
- The vo ltage of the booster batte ry m ust
a lso have a 12-Vo lt rat ing . The capacity
(A h) of the booster batte ry should not b e
lowe r than that of the discharged bat­
tery . U se o f batt erie s of d iffe ren t voltage
or subs tanti ally diffe ren t "Ah" rat ing
may c ause an exp losion and person al in­
ju ry .
- N ever ch arge a fr ozen bat te ry. Gas t rap ­
ped in the ice may ca use an ex plosion .
- N ever ch arge o r use a batt ery th at has
been fro zen. T he battery case may have
be weakened.
- Us e of batt erie s of di ffere nt vo ltag e or
substan tially differen t ca pa city (Ah) rat ­
i ng may cause an exp losion and injury.
T he capac ity (Ah) of the booster battery
should not be lower than that of the dis­
charged batte ry.
- Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed a ll
W ARNI NGS¢
page 214.
(D Note
- App lyi ng a hig her voltage booste r bat­
tery wi ll cause expens ive damage to sen­
sitive e lectronic components, such as
cont ro l units, relays, rad io, etc.
- There must be no electrical contact be­ twee n the vehicles as otherwise current
co uld already start to f low as soon as t he
posi tive(+) terminals a re con nected . ..,.