
M N M N
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equivalent of about 200 lbs (90 kg). One can
easi ly imagine the injuries that an item of that
weight flying free ly through the passenger
compartment can cause in a collision at a
speed considered relatively low.
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used
to secure items to t ie-downs can fail dur
ing hard brak ing o r in a collision and cause
ser ious personal injury.
- Always use suitable retaining straps and
properly secure items to the tie-downs in
the luggage compartment to help pre
vent items from shifting or flying for
ward.
- When the rear seat backrest is folded down, always use su itab le retain ing
st raps and proper ly sec ure items to the
tie-downs in the luggage compartment
to help prevent items from flying for
ward into the passenger compartment.
- Never attach a child safety seat tether
strap to a tie-down.
Ski sack
Appl ies to vehicles : wit h pass -t hr oug h and ski -sack
Long objects such as skis or snowboards can
be transported in the ski sack.
F ig. 69 Luggag .e compartment: pass-t hroug h cover
Sea ts a nd s to rage 61
Fig . 70 Rea r be nch seat : secu ring the ski sack
Lo ading
.. Fold the pass-through cover in the luggage
compartment down
¢ fig . 69 .
.. Slide the ski sack from the luggage com
partment through the pass-through with
the zipper at the rear ¢
,&.
Securing
.. Insert the ski sack strap@¢ fig. 70 in the
center buckle @.
.. Pull the safety belt taut on the free end of
the belt @.
8_ WARNING
-
-The s ki sack is intended only for the
transportat ion of sk is and other light ob
jects . To reduce the risk of serious per
sonal injury, never transport heavy or pointed objects in the sk i sack.
- When braking rapid ly or during an acci
dent, the load could be d isp laced and
cause injury to occupants.
- Sharp edges on the load must be covered
for protection. A lways fasten the belt
tightly around the sack and its contents
¢fig. 70.
- For safety reasons, do not transport
more than two pairs of skis in the ski
sack .
- You must secure the ski sack wit h the
strap after load ing.
- Make sure all objects that you are trans port ing in the pass-through are secured .
Otherwise they could slide around during
sudden braking maneuvers and cause in-
jury .
~

62 Seats and storage
@ Tips
- Never stow the ski sack away when it is
still wet or damp (for example, snow
melt ing from skis). Allow it to dry com
pletely before stowing it away.
- When transporting skis or snowboards, tighten the securing strap between the
bindings.
- Position skis in the ski sack w ith the
po inted ends facing the front and ski
po les with the pointed ends facing the
rear.
Reversible cargo area floor
The reversible cargo area floor can be used
with the dirt-resistant side or the decorative
side .
Fig. 71 Luggage compartment: cargo area floor
Reversing the cargo area floor
.,. To turn the dir t-resistant side upwards, lift
the cargo area floor by t he handle ~
fig. 71
or
.. To turn the decorative side upwards, lift the
cargo area floor by the handles on bothes
sides .
.. Flip the floor over and install it .

84 Automatic tr an smis sion
the overload. An indicator lamp mJ illu
minates and a dr iver message appears
Q page 85 when the clutch is overload
ed .
- If the engine must remain running, never
have any driving pos ition engaged whe n
checking under the hood . Make sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and is locked in P with the parking brake set
c!:> page 179. Othe rwise, any inc rease in
eng ine speed m ay set the vehicle in mo
t io n, even wi th the park ing brake ap
plied.
(D Note
- When stopping on an i ncl ine, do not try
to hol d the veh icle in place by pressing
the accelerator peda l whi le a driving gear
is selected. This can cause the transmis
s ion to overheat and can damage it. Acti
vate the park ing brake or press the brake
pedal to prevent the vehicle from ro lling .
- Allow ing t he vehicle to roll when the en
gine is stopped and the selector lever is i n N will damage the transmiss ion be
cause it is not lub ricated under those cir
cumstances.
{DI Tips
For safety reasons, the park ing brake is re
leased automatically only when the dr iv
er 's safety belt is engaged in the buck le.
Hill descent control
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 se lects
a gea r that is suitable for the incline . Hill de
scent control tries to maintai n the speed ach
i eved at the time of bra king, within physical
an d techn ic al limita tio ns.
If may still be ne c
ess ary to adjust the speed with the bra kes . Hill descent contro
l sw itches off once the de
cline leve ls out or yo u press the acce lerator
peda l.
On vehicles wi th the cru ise contro l system
Q page 73, hill descent control is also activat
ed when the speed is set.
A WARNING
--
Hill descent control cannot overcome
physical lim itations, so it may not be ab le
to maintain a co nstant speed under a ll
conditions. A lways be ready to apply the
b rakes .
Manual shift program
Using the manual shift program you can
manually select gears .
Fig. 88 Center co nsole: s hifti ng t he gears ma nually
Fig . 89 Stee ring w hee l: Shi ft padd les•
Gear selection w ith selector lever
T he t iptronic mode can be selected either w ith
the vehicle stat io nary or on the move .
.,. Push the selector lever to the right from 0/
S. An M appears in the instrument cluster
d isp lay as soon as the transm issio n has
shifted .

86 Automatic transmis sion
Selector lever emergency re lease
If the vehicle's power supply fails , the selec
tor lever can be released in an emergency .
Fig. 90 Selector lever: remov ing the cove r
Fig. 9 1 Selecto r leve r: u sing th e em ergen cy release to
move out of the Pa rk pos iti on
T he emergency re lease mechanism is located
in the right area under the se lector lever shift
gate. Using the emergency release can be
complicated . We recommend contacting you r
author ized Audi dealer or qua lif ied repair fa
cility fo r ass istance, if necessary.
The auxiliary tool located under the floor pan
e l is needed for the eme rgency release . Use
the flat si de of the auxiliary tool.
Removing the selector lever cover
.,. Set the parking brake{®) 9 .&. to secure
your vehicle from ro lling .
.,. Insert the f lat s ide of the auxilia ry tool in
the slot nea r the sh ift cover a nd p ry the shift
cove r up
9 fig . 90 .
.,. Pull the frame with the cover upwards . You
c an fo ld the cove r upwa rds over the selec tor
l ever knob.
Releasing the selector lever manually
.,. Press and ho ld the yellow release b utton
9 fig . 91 .
.,. Press the b utton on the selector lever and
move the selector lever to position N .
.,. Clip the frame w ith the cover in again.
_& WARNING
-
If you re lease the parking lock manually,
apply the park ing brake to prevent the ve
h icle from mov ing (o r use the brake peda l
i f the park ing brake is inoperationa l).
If
you do not apply t he b rake, the vehicle
may r oll aw ay and ca use a n accident .
-

94 Driving Safel y
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 it 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,
- be lt he ight adjustment for the front seats,
- head restra ints for each seating posit ion,
- front airbags,
- side airbags in the front seats,
- side curta in air bags w ith ejec tion mi tiga tion
features,
- speci al LATCH anchorages for child re-
st raints,
- adjustab le steeri ng colum n.
These ind iv idual safety features, can work to
gether as a system to help p rotect you and
you r passenge rs in a w ide range of accidents.
T hese features canno t work as a system if
they a re not always corre ct ly adjus ted and co r
rect ly used.
Safety is everybody' s respon sibil ity!
Important things to do before driving
Safety is everybody's job! Vehicle and occu
pant safety always depends on the informed
and careful driver.
For you r safety and the safety of your passen
gers,
b efore driv ing alway s:
.. Make sure that all lights and signals are op
erati ng correctly .
.. Make su re that the t ire p ressure is co rrect.
.. Make s ure that all windows are clean and af
ford good vis ibility to the outs ide .
.. Secure al l luggage and other items caref ully
qpage 100, qpage 54.
.. Ma ke s ure that nothing can interfe re wi th
the peda ls .
.. Adj ust front seat, head restraint and mirrors
co rrectly for your height.
.. Instruct passengers to adjust the head re
straints according to the ir height .
.. Make su re to use the r igh t child restraint
co rrectly to protect ch ildren
~ page 133,
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M N M N
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unfolds with great force in the blink of
an eye .
- Always make sure that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between the front
passenger's breastbone and the instru
ment panel.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of the ir own and properly fasten and
wear the safety belt be longing to that
seat .
- Before driving, always adjust the front
passenger seat and head restra int prop
erly .
- Always keep your feet on the f loor in
front of the seat. Never rest them on the
seat, instrument panel, out of the win dow, etc. The airbag system and safety
belt w il l not be ab le to protec t you prop
er ly and can even increase the risk of in
jury in a crash.
- Never drive with the backrest reclined o r
ti lted far back! The farther the backrests
are ti lted back, the greater the risk of in
jury due to incorrect positioning of the
safety belt and improper seating posi
t ion.
- Children must always ride in child safety
seats
c> page 133. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat
on the front passenger seat
c> page 112.
Proper seating positions for passengers
in rear seats
Rear seat passengers must sit upright with
both feet on the floor consistent with their
physical size and be properly restrained whenever the vehicle is in use.
To reduce the risk of injury caused by an incor
rect seat ing pos ition in the event of a sudden
brak ing maneuve r or an acc ident, your pas
se ngers on the rea r bench seat must always
observe the fo llow ing :
~ Make sure that the seatback is securely
latched in the upr ight position ¢
page 60.
~ If there is a passenger on the rear cen ter
seat ing pos ition, slide the center head re-
Dr ivin g Sa fely 97
straint upward at least to the next notch
<=>page 52.
~ Keep both feet flat in the footwell in front of
the rear seat .
~ Fasten and wear safety belts proper ly
<=>page 107.
~ Make sure that children are always properly
restrained in a child restraint that is appro
pria te fo r the ir s ize and age
c> page 133.
A WARNING
Passengers who are imp roperly seated on
the rea r seat can be seriously inj ured in a
crash .
- Each passenger must always si t on a seat
of their own and properly fasten and
wear the safety belt belonging to that
seat.
- Safety belts only offer maximum protec
tion when the seatback is sec urely latch
ed in the upright position and the safety
belts are properly posit ioned on the
body. By not sitting upright, a rear seat
passenger increases the risk of personal
in ju ry from improperly positioned safety
be lts!
- Always adjust the head rest raint p roperly
so that it can give maximum protection.
Proper adjustment of head restraints
Correctly adjusted head restraints are an im
portant port of your vehicle's occupant re
straint system and can help to reduce the risk
of injuries in accident situations .
Fig. 1 04 Head restra int: v ie wed from the front
The head restraints must be correct ly adjust-
ed to achieve the best protectio n. ..,.

M N
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Pedal area
Pedals
The pedals must always be free to move and
must never be interfered with by a floor mat
or any other object.
Make sure that all pedals move freely without
interference and that nothing prevents them
from returning to their original positions .
Only use floor mats that leave the pedal area
free and can be secured with floor mat fasten
ers .
If a brake circuit fails, increased brake pedal
travel is required to bring the vehicle to a
full
stop.
A WARNING
Pedals that cannot move freely can cause
loss of vehicle control and increase the risk
of serious injury.
- Never place any objects in the driver's
footwell. An object could get into the
pedal area and interfere with pedal func
tion. In case of sudden braking or an ac
cident, you would not be able to brake or
accelerate!
- Always make sure that nothing can fall
or move into the driver's footwell.
Floor mats on the driver side
Always use floor mats that can be securely
attached to the floor mat fasteners and do
not interfere with the free movement of the
pedals.
"' Make sure that the floor mats are properly
secured and cannot move and interfere with
the pedals ~
A,.
Use only floor mats that leave the pedal area
unobstructed and that are firmly secured so
that they cannot slip out of position. You can
obtain suitable floor mats from your author
ized Audi dealer.
Floor mat fasteners are installed in your Audi .
Driving Safely 99
Floor mats used in your vehicle must be at
tached to these fasteners. Properly securing
the floor mats will prevent them from sliding
into positions that could interfere with the
pedals or impair safe operation of your vehicle
in other ways.
A WARNING
Pedals that cannot move freely can result
in a loss of vehicle control and increase the
risk of serious personal injury.
- Always make sure that floor mats are
properly secured.
- Never place or install floor mats or other
floor coverings in the vehicle that cannot be properly secured in place to prevent
them from slipping and interfering with
the pedals or the ability to control the
vehicle.
- Never place or install floor mats or other
floor coverings on top of already instal
led floor mats. Additional floor mats and
other coverings will reduce the size of
the pedal area and interfere with the
pedals.
- Always properly reinstall and secure floor
mats that have been taken out for clean
ing.
- Always make sure that objects cannot
fall into the driver footwell while the ve
hicle is moving . Objects can become
trapped under the brake pedal and accel
erator pedal causing a loss of vehicle
control. •
•

100 Driving Safel y
Stowing luggage
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be prop
erly stowed and secured in the luggage com
partment.
Fig. 105 S afe load pos itio nin g: place heavy objects as
low a nd as far forward as possible .
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift suddenly, changing vehicle hand ling
characteristics. Loose items can also increase
the risk of serious personal injury in a sudden
vehicle maneuver or in a collision .
.. Distribute the load evenly in the luggage
compartment .
.. Always place and properly secure heavy
items in the luggage compartment as low
and as far forward as possible
c> fig. 105.
.. Secure luggage using the tie-downs provid
ed
c> page 60.
.. Make sure that the rear seatback is securely
latched in place .
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items
can fly through the vehicle ca using serious
personal injury in the event of hard brak
ing or an accident. To help reduce the r isk
of serious personal injury:
- Always put objects, for examp le, luggage
or other heavy items in the luggage com
partment.
- Always secure objects in the luggage
compartment using the tie-down eye lets
and suitable straps.
A WARNING
-Heavy loads will influence the way your ve-
hicle handles. To help reduce the risk of a
loss of control leading to serious personal
injury:
-Always keep in mind when transporting
heavy objects, that a change in the cen
ter of gravity can also cause changes in
veh icle handling :
- Always distribute the load as evenly as
possible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in
the luggage compartment as possible.
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rat
ing or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
specified on the safety compliance stick
er on the left door jamb. Exceeding per
missible weight standards can cause the
veh icle to slide and handle differently.
- Please observe information on safe driv
ing
c> page 94.
A WARNING
-
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas
from being drawn into the vehicle, a lways
keep the rear lid closed while driving.
- Never transport objects larger than
those fitting comp letely into the luggage
area because the rear lid cannot be fully
closed .
- If you absolutely m ust dr ive with the rear
lid open, observe the following notes to
reduce the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the Panoramic sliding sunroof *,
- Open all air outlets in the instrument
pane l,
- Switch off the air recirculat ion,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest
speed.
A WARNING
A lways make sure that the doors, all win
dows, the Panoramic sliding sunroof * and
the rear lid are securely closed and locked
-