2015 AUDI A4 warning lights

96 Transmission Starting the engine
.. The selecto r lever must be in P or N.
Starting off
.. Press and hold the brake pedal.
.. Press and hold the release button in these­
lector lever handle, se lect t he des ired selec­
tor lever position such as D/S and release
the button .
.. Wait briefly unti l the transmission has shift ­
ed (you will feel a slight movement) .
.. Remove your foot from the brake pedal and
acce lerate.
Stopping temporarily
.. Keep the vehicle stationary usin g the brak­
ing peda l, for examp le at traffic lights .
.. Do not press the accelerator pedal when do­
ing this .
.. To prevent the veh icle from rolling when you
start driving, set the parking brake when
stopping on steep inclines
c> _& .
.. The parking brake will release automatically
and the vehicle w ill start moving once you
press the accelerator pedal.
Stopping/parking
If the selector lever is not in the P position
when you open the dr iver's door, the vehicle
could roll. The message
Transmission: Car
may roll! Shift to park!
appears.
.. Press and hold the brake pedal until the ve-
hicle has come to a complete stop .
.. Apply the parking brake
c> page 88, Parking .
.. Select the P selector lever position c> _&.
Stopping on an incline
.. Always press the brake pedal to hold the ve­
hicle in place and prevent it from "rolling
back"
c> _& . Do not try to prevent the vehi­
cle from "roll ing back" when a gear is en­
gaged by increasing the eng ine speed
c> (D.
Starting on an incline
.. Activate the parking brake.
.. With the driving gear se lected, press the ac­
celerator pedal carefully. The park ing brake will release automatically if your seat
belt is
fastened .
Under certain circumstances, such as driving
in the mo untains, it may be usefu l to switch
temporarily to the manual shift program in or­
der to adjust the gears to the driving cond i­
tions by hand
c> page 98.
On slopes, 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 .
Vehicles with multitronic transmission: Your
vehicle is equipped with
hill hold assist allow­
ing you to start while on an incline. The sys­
tem is activated when the brake pedal is
pressed down and he ld
for a few seconds . The
brake pressure will hold for
a moment after
the brake pedal loosens to prevent the vehicle
from roll ing backwards wh ile starting up .
A WARNING
-The vehicle can also roll when the engine
is stopped.
- Unintended vehicle movement can cause
serious injury.
- Never leave your vehicle with the engine
r un ning while in gear. If you must leave
your veh icle when the engine is running,
activate the parking brake and move the
selecto r lever to P.
- Power is still transmitted to the wheels
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 position
while the veh icle is stationary and the
engine is running.
- Never shift into R or P while driving.
- Before driving down a steep s lope, re-
duce your speed and shift into a lower
gear with "tiptronic".

126 Driving Saf ely
Driving Safely
General notes
Safe driving habits
Please remember -safety first!
This chapter contains important information,
tips, instructions and warnings that you need
to read and observe for your own safety, the
safety of your passengers and others . We have
summarized here what you need to know
about safety belts, a irbags, ch ild restra ints as
well as child safety. Your safety is for us
priori­
ty number 1.
Always observe the info rmat ion
and warn ings in th is sect ion -fo r yo ur own
safety as well as that of your passengers .
The information in this se ction app lies to all
model ve rsions of your veh icle . Some of the
feat ures described in this sec tions may be
standard equipment on some models, or may
be optional equipment on others. If you are
not sure, ask your authorized Audi dealer.
A WARNING
-Always make sure that you follow the in­
struct ions and heed the WARNINGS in
this Manual. It is in your interest and in
the inte rest of you r passengers.
- Always keep the complete Owner's Liter­
ature in your Audi when you lend or sell
your vehicle so that this important info r­
mation will always be ava ilable to the
dr iver and passengers.
- Always keep the Owner's literature handy
so that you can find i t eas ily if you have
ques tions.
Safety equipment
The safety features are part of the occupant
restraint system and work together to help
redu ce the risk of injury in a wide variety of
accident situations.
Your safety and the safety of your passenge rs
should not be left to chance. Advances in
technology have made a varie ty o f fea tures
avai la bl e to he lp re duce the risk of injury in an accident
. The following is a list of just a few of
the safety features in your Audi:
- sophis tic ated s afety be lts fo r drive r and a ll
passenger sea ting pos it ions,
- be lt fo rce limi ters fo r the front seats,
- belt p retensioners for the seats,
- head restra ints for each seating positio n,
- front airbags,
- side airbags in the front seats,
- side curtain a irbags,
- specia l LATCH anchorages for child re-
s tr aints,
- ad justab le steer ing colum n.
These ind iv idual safety features, can work to­
gether as a system to he lp protect you and
you r passengers in a w ide range of accidents .
T hese fe atures canno t work as a system if
they a re not always correct ly adjusted and co r­
rect ly used.
Safety i s everybody' s respon sibility!
Important things to do before driving
Safety is everybody's job! Vehicle and occu­
pant safety always depends on the informed and careful driver.
Fo r yo ur safety and the safety of your passen­
gers,
before driv ing alway s:
.,. Make sure that all lights and signa ls are op­
erati ng correctly .
.,. Make su re that the t ire p ressu re is co rrect .
.,. Make s ure that all windows are clean and af­
ford good v is ibili ty to the outs ide.
.,. Sec ure all lugg age and o ther items c aref ully
qpage 66 .
.,. Ma ke s ure that nothing can inte rfere with
the peda ls .
.,. Ad just front seat, head restraint and mirrors
correctly for your height .
.,. Instruct rear seat passengers to adjust the
head restra ints according to their he ight .
.,. Make s ure to use the r ight child restraint
co rrectly to p rotect chi ldren ¢
page 165,
Child Safety. "'

136 Safety belts
Safety belts
General notes
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety be lts are nec ­
essary, how they work and how to adjust and
wear them correctly .
.. Read a ll the information that fo llows and
heed all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them
improperly increases the risk of ser ious
personal in jury and death .
- Safety belts are the sing le most effective
means avai lab le to reduce the risk of se­
r ious injury and dea th in a utomob ile acci­
dents. For your protection and that of
yo ur passenge rs, always co rrectly wear
safety belts when the vehicle is moving.
- Pregnant women, injured, or physically
im paired perso ns m ust also use safety
belts. Lik e all veh icle occup ants, they are
more like ly to be ser iously injured if they
do not wea r safety be lts . The best way to
protect a fetus is to protect the mother -
throughout the entire pregnancy.
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of five seating positions: two in the front and three in the rear. Each
seating position has a safety belt.
A WARNING
Not wea ring safety belts or weari ng them
improp erly increases the risk of ser ious
pe rsonal i njury and deat h.
- Never st rap more than one pe rson, in­
cl uding small ch ild ren, into any belt.
It is
e speci ally dange rous to pla ce a safety
belt over a child s itting on yo ur lap.
- N ever le t mo re people ride in the ve hicl e
than there are s afe ty be lts avail able. -
Be s ure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained w ith a separate safe ­
ty belt or child restra int.
Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle hos o warning system for the
driver and (on USA models only) front seat
passenger to remind you about the impor­
tance of buckling-up .
F ig. 142 Safety belt warni ng lig ht in the instrument
cluster -en larged
Before driv ing off, always :
.. Fasten yo ur safety belt and make sure you
are wearing it properly .
.. Make sure that your passengers also buck le
up and properly wear their safety be lts.
.. Protect your children wit h a child restraint
system approp riate fo r the size and age of
t he children.
The . war ning light i n the instrument clus­
ter lights up when the ig nition is switched on
as a rem inder to fasten the safety belts. In ad­
dition, you will hear a warning tone fo r a cer­
ta in pe riod of time.
Fasten your safety belt now and make sure
that your pa ssenger s also prope rly put on
their safety belts.

M N
~ co ,..,
I.O
"' ,..,
"' ,..,
Intelligent technology 187
Switching on/off
ESC turns on automatically when you start the engine .
Fig. 174 Version A: lower ce nter console,~ OFF but·
to n
The ESC is designed to function in levels. De·
pending on the level that is selected, the sta­
b ili zat ion function of the ESC is limited or
switched off . The amount of stab ilizat ion con ­
trol will differ depend ing on the level.
The following situations are exceptions where
it may be useful to switch on sport mode (Se·
dan) or offroad mode (allroad) to allow the
wheels to sp in:
Sedan: ESC levels
Fig. 175 Vers ion B: upper cente r console,~ OFF bu t·
ton
- Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Dr iving in deep snow o r on loose ground
- Dr iving with snow chains
- allroad : Driving on rough terrain when much
of the car's weight is lifted off the wheels
(axle articulation)
- allroad : Driving downhill while braking on
loose ground
Sport mode on ESC/ASR off Sport mode off or
ESC/ASR on
Behavior
The ESC and ASR stab iliza- The stabilization funct io n The full stab ilization func·
tion funct ions are lim ited is not available
c::> /1.. ESC tion of the ESC and ASR is
c:::> &. . and ASR are switched off. available again.
Operation Press the I~ OF FI button Press and hold the I~ OF FI Press the I~ OF FI button
briefly. button longer than 3 sec-
again.
onds .
Indicator fl turns on. II and lfilf•)H turn on . JI turns off or II and
lights If ilft)H turn off.
Driver mes- Stabilization control Stabilization control Stabilization control
sages (ESC): Sport. Warning! (ESC): off. Warning! Re- (
ESC) : On
Restricted stability stricted stability

190 Intelligent technology
overheat re ducin g the effectiveness of
the ent ire brake system.
- Failure of one brake circuit will impair
the braking capability resulting in an in­
creased stopp ing distance. Avoid driv ing
the vehicle and have it towed to the near­ est author ized Audi dealer or qualified
workshop .
- Never let the vehicle ro ll to a stop w ith
the engine shut off.
- If the brake booster is not working, the
brake pedal must be pressed conside ra­
bly harder to make up for the lac k of
booster assistance.
Electro-mechanical
power assist, dynamic
steering
The electro-mechanical power assist helps
the driver when steering.
Power stee ring adapts electronically based on
the vehicle speed.
Indicator lights and messages
• Steering defective! Do not drive vehicle!
If this ind icator lig ht tu rns on and stays on
an d th is message appears, t he power steer ing
may have f ailed.
D o
not cont in ue d riving. See yo ur autho rized
Aud i deale r or a q ua lifi ed r epa ir facility for as­
sistance.
'1:I Dynamic steering : System fault! You can
cont inue driv ing
If the indicator light t urns on and the mes­
sage appears, the steer ing may be more diffi­
cul t to move or more se nsitive than usual. The
steer ing wheel may also be at an angle whe n
d riving straight .
Drive s low ly to your author ized Audi dealer or
q ua lified workshop to have the malfunction
cor rected .
'y.ij Dynamic steering: initializing
If this driver message appears and the indica ­
tor light is f lashing on the instrument panel,
dynam ic steer ing * is being re in it ia lized. After
starting the engine, the steering wheel will move s light ly. Re- initialization might be nec­
essary if the steering wheel was moved hard
to the left and right wh ile the vehicle was not
moving . Th e display goes out as soon as ini ti­
ali za tion is complete.
_& WARNING
Ha ve the dy namic stee ring * system m al­
f u nction repa ired as soon as possib le by an
a uthorized Audi dea ler or qua lified work ­
shop -risk of acc ident !
@ Tips
-If the . or '1:I indic ator li ght only s tays
on fo r a shor t time, you m ay continue
dr iving.
- T he dynamic s teering * stabi lit y syste ms
are no t av ail ab le in the even t of a system
ma lf u nction.
- F or ad di tion al information on dynamic
steering *, refe r to
¢page 115 .
-
Driving with your
quattro
App lies to vehicles: wi th all-w hee l drive
With a/I-wheel drive, all four wheels are driv­
en .
General information
With a ll-wheel d rive, power is distr ib uted to
all four wheels. This happens automatically
depending on your driving style and the road
co ndit ions at the time . See also
¢ page 185.
A center d ifferential distributes the driving
power variably to the front and rear axle. It
wor ks together with selective w heel torque
co ntrol, wh ich activates when dr iving t hrough
c ur ves
c::;,page 186. With the sport differe n­
t ia l* , pow er d istr ibut ion to the rea r wheels is
variable a nd can be adjusted w ith drive se lect
c::;, page 115. .,..

196 Driving and en vironm ent
Reducing unnecessary idling
Even when your car is just idling it burns up
fuel .
.,. Shut the engine off when you are not dr iving
the vehicle.
.,. Do not warm up the vehicle by letting the
engine run at idle .
It makes sense to shut
off the engine in traffic
jams, when waiting for trains to pass at ra il­
road crossings, or at traff ic lights that have
l ong wa its on red . Turning the engine
off fo r
just 30-40 seconds saves more fue l than is
burned starting the eng ine again .
It takes a long time for the engine to warm up
fu lly when it is running at idle . Howeve r, wear
and nox ious em issions are especially high
when the engine is warming up. So you should
drive away as soon as you start the engine and
avoid running at high rpms while the engine is
still warming up .
(D Note
Do not leave engine idling unattended af­
ter starting . If warning lights shou ld come
on to indicate improper operation, they
wou ld go unheeded. Extended idling also
produces heat, which cou ld result in over­
heating or other damage to the vehicle or
other property .
Regular maintenance
A badly tuned engine unnecessarily wastes a
lot of fuel .
... Have your vehicle serviced at regular inter-
vals.
By having your vehicle regularly serviced by an
authorized Audi dealer he lps to ensure that it
runs properly and economically . The condition
of your vehicle not only affects its safety and
ab ility to hold its value, it also affects
fu el
con sumpt ion .
Check you r oil ea ch time you fill you r ta nk.
The amount o f oi l used is re lated to engine
load and speed.
It i s normal fo r the oil consump tion of a new
engine to reach its lowest value after a certa in
mileage has been d riven.
You must drive your veh icle about 3,000 m iles
(S,000 kilometers) before you can properly
assess oil consumpt ion.
This also app lies to fue l consumption and en­
gine output.
(D Note
- Have your veh icle ma inta ined properly
and in accordance with the service rec­
ommendations in your Wa rranty
& Main­
t enance boo klet . Lack of p roper ma inte­
nance as well as improper use of the ve­
hicle will impair the function of the
emission contro l system and cou ld lead
to damage.
- Do not alter or remove any component of
the Emission Control System unless ap­
proved by the manufacturer.
-Do not alter or remove any device, such
as heat sh ie lds, switches, ignition w ires,
valves, which are designed to protect
your vehicle's Emission Control System and other important vehicle compo­
nents.
Fewer short trips
Fuel consumption will always be relatively
high on short trips .
.,. Try to avoid dr iv ing short distances w ith a
cold engine .
T he engine and cata lytic converter have to
reach their opt imal
operat ing temperature to
reduce fuel consumpt ion and nox ious emis­
s ions effectively .
Just after starting, a co ld eng ine in a mid-s ize
car only achieves a fuel economy of 6-8 mi les
per gallon (30-40 l/100 km). After about a
half a mile, fuel economy cl imbs to 12 mpg
(20 l/100 km) . After about
2 .5 miles (4 km), ll>

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the engine is at its proper operating tempera­
ture and fuel economy has reached a normal
level. So you can see that you should avoid
short trips whenever possib le.
The
outside temperature is also critical in this
regard. Your car consumes more fuel in the
winter than in the summer .
allroad: Driving offroad
General information
Applies to vehicles: atlroad
When driving offroad, the funct ions for the
e lectronic stab ilization control (ESC) are ex­
panded. The ESC-Offroad-Mode can be activat­
ed in driving situations in which a wheel lock
or a differentia l lock function is needed
c::> page 187. In addition, your Audi provides
continuous all wheel drive .
Your Audi is however , not an offroad vehicle.
Never drive the vehicle in terrain which is not
suitable for the vehicle, or which exceeds
your driving skills. Never take any unneces­
sary risks!
After driving offroad
-After driving offroad, remove branches and
other debris from the radiator grille, under ­
body, and wheels. Look especially for objects
(stones) that have been caught in the tire
tread .
- Clean the body and the vehicle underbody
and inspect the vehicle for possible damag­
es.
- Clean off the dirty windows, headlights, tail
lights and the license plate.
- Perform a brake test (especially after driving through water).
A WARNING
- Be espec ially aware and attentive when
dr iv ing under diff icult conditions . Dam­
ages to the vehicle and injuries may oc­
cur when driving at an excess ively high
speed or with incorrect driving maneu­
vers.
Driving and environment 197
- Always adjust your speed and handling
to the roads, terrain, traff ic and weather
conditions. Drive especially slow if off­ road with low visibility.
- Please note that the wheels can spin and
the vehicle can break away when the ESC
Offroad Mode is switched off, especially
when the road is slippery .
- Driving stability is reduced in the ESC
Offroad mode .
® For the sake of the environment
Avoid harming the environment and take
nature into cons ideration.
(D Tips
Only drive where it is allowed and always
stay on the provided roads and paths.
Driver messages
Applies to vehicles : a ll road
There is only one right way to drive in difficult
conditions: slowly and with caution!
When dr iving offroad, observe the following:
... Never drive the vehicle i n terrain which is
not suitab le for the vehicle, or which ex­
ceeds your driv ing ski lls. Never take any un­
necessary risks!
... Drive slow ly and cautiously!
... Pay attention to the
ground clearance of
your vehicle! This may vary depending on the load and composition of the ground and
the environment. The driver is therefore re­
sponsible for deciding whether a veh icle can
handle a specific situation.
... Act ivate the
ESC -Offroad-Mode c::> page 18 7
as needed.
Difficult terrain
Never dr ive in areas that are not familiar to
you and drive slowly when offroad and be pre­
pared and expect the unexpected (e.g. pot­
holes, boulders, tree stumps, etc.)
To prevent the vehicle from bottoming and avo id damage to the underbody, you should
drive straight across severe bumps in the
IJII>
•
•

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Trailer towing Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passen­
ger transportation .
If you plan to tow a tra iler, p lease remember
that the addit ional load will affect durab ility,
economy and performance .
T railer towing not on ly places more stress on
the vehicle, it also calls for more concentra­
tion from the driver.
F or this reason, a lways fo llow the operating
and driving instructions provided and use
common sense.
Technical requirements
Traile r hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross trailer we ight. The hitch must be suita­
b le for your veh icle and trailer and must be
mounted secure ly on t he veh icle's chassis at a
technically sound location . Use only a t railer
h itch w ith a removab le ball moun t. A lways
check with the tr ailer hitch man ufac tur er to
make sure that you are using the correct
hitch.
Do not use a bumper hitch.
T he hitc h must be installed in such a way that
it does not inte rfe re with the impac t-absorb­
i ng b umper syst em. No modifica tions should
be made to the vehicle exhaus t and b rake sys­
tems . From t ime to time, check that a ll hitch
mo unt ing bolt s remain securely fas tened.
W hen you are not tow ing a trailer, remove the
trai le r hi tch ball moun t. T h is prevents the
hi tch from causing damage sho uld your ve hi­
cle be str uck from be hind
¢ &. .
Trailer brakes
If yo ur tra iler is equ ipped w it h a braking sys­
tem, check to be su re that it conforms to a ll
r eg ulat io ns .
Trailer towin g 199
The trailer hyd ra ulic bra ke system must not be
direct ly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
brake system
¢ &. .
Safety chains
Alw ays use s afety chains between your ve hicle
and t he tra ile r.
Trailer lights
Tra ile r lights m ust meet all reg ulations . Be
su re to check w ith your authorized Audi dealer
fo r c orrec t w iri ng, sw itches, and relays.
Mirrors
If you a re unable to see the traffic behind you
u sing the regula r outside m irrors, then you
must insta ll ext ended mir ro rs. It is important
t h at you
always have clea r vis io n to the rear .
.8, WARNING
- If a trai ler has elec trica l br ake s plea se
no te th at t hese bra kes are not activat ed
by the fa ctory -fit ted control unit -risk of
accident!
- After removing the t railer hi tch, do no t
s to re it in yo ur vehicle . In case of sudden
brak ing, the hitch could fly fo rward and
in ju re you or yo ur passenge rs .
Operating instructions
Maximum traile r we ight
-
A trai ler fo r you r vehicle is limited to a typical
class 1 or class 2 tra iler.
Trailer load distribution
B e sure the lo ad in the tra iler is h eld secure ly
i n p lace to p reven t it from shifting fo rward,
backward or sideways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer
¢ &. in Driving instru ctions on page 200.
Engine cooling system
T owing a t railer ma kes t he engine wor k hard ­
er . It is impo rta nt that the cooling system's
perfo rman ce is up to the additional load.
Make sure tha t the coo ling sys tem h as enough
f lu id . .,..
•
•