2015 AUDI Q7 brakes

Automatic
transmission
tiptronic
Introduction
The automatic transmission is controlled elec­
tronically. The transmission upshifts or down­
shifts automatically depending on which drive
program is selected. The power is transferred
by a torque converter .
When a
mode rate d riv in g s ty le is used, the
transmission selects the most econom ica l
driving mode. It w ill then change up early and
delay the downshifts to g ive better fuel econ­
omy.
T he transmission switches to a sporty mode
after a k ick-down or when the driver uses a
spo rty driving sty le characterized by quick ac­
celerator pedal movements, heavy accelera­
tion, frequent changes in speed and traveling
at the maximum speed.
If desired, the driver can a lso select the gears
manually ( tiptronic mode ) ¢ page 142.
Selector lever positions
Fig. 160 D isp lay in t he i nst ru m en t cluster: selecto r
l ever in pos it ion P
The selector lever position engaged appears
next to the selecto r lever as well as in the in­
strument clus ter disp lay.
P- P ark
M N In th is selector lever pos ition the transmis-o
;;f_ sion is mechan ically locked . Engage P only
~ when the vehicle is completely stopped ¢ 11::.. 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
Automatic tran sm iss ion 139
in Driving the automatic transmission on
page 141.
T o shift in or out of posit io n P , yo u m ust first
press and ho ld the brake pedal and then press
the re lease button in the selector leve r handle
whi le moving the selector lever to or from P.
You can shift out of th is position only with the
ignition on.
R -Reverse
Se lect R on ly when the vehicle is at a full stop
and the engine is running at idle speed ¢ 11::.. in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 141.
Before you move the se lector lever to R, press
both the button in the hand le o f the selector
lever
and the brake pedal at the same t ime.
When the ignition is on, the backup lights illu­
minate when the selecto r lever is moved into
R .
N -Neutral
The t ransm iss ion is in neut ral in this pos ition.
S hi ft to t his position fo r standing with the
brakes appl ied ¢
11::.. in Driving the automatic
transmission on page 141 .
The vehicle can
also roll when the engine is stopped .
When the vehicle is stat iona ry or at speeds
below 1 mph (2 km/h), yo u m ust always apply
the footbrake before and whi le mov ing the
lever o ut of
N .
D - Normal position for driving forward
In the no rma l mode D, the t ransmission auto­
matically selects the s uitable gear ratio.
It de­
pends on engine load, vehicle speed and driv ­
i ng sty le.
S -Sport posit ion
Se lect the sport mode S for spo rty dr iv ing .
T he vehicle makes fu ll use of the eng ine's
power. Shift ing may become noticeable when
acce lerat ing.
When the vehicle is stat ionary or at speeds
below 1 mph (2 km/h), you must always app ly ...,

M
"' 0 _,
"". rl I.O
"' rl
"' rl
Driving the automatic transmission
Fig. 162 Shift g ate on the center co nso le: se lector lev­
er wi th release butt on
Starting the engine
~ The selector 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 , select the desired selec ­
tor lever pos ition such as D and release the
button .
~ Wait briefly until 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 us ing the brak­
ing pedal, for examp le at traffic lights.
~ Do not press the accelerato r pedal when do -
ing this.
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
Transmi ssion : Car
may roll! Shift to park! appears.
~ Press and hold the brake pedal unt il the ve­
hicle has come to a complete stop.
~ Set the parking brake firmly 9 page 112,
Parking.
~ Se lect the P selector lever position 9 &.-
Stopping on an incline
~ Always press the brake pedal to hold the ve­
hicle in place and prevent it from "rolling
back"
9 ,& . Do not try to prevent the vehi-
Autom atic transm ission 141
cle from "rolling back" when a gear is en­
gaged by increasing the engine speed
c::>(D.
Under certain circumstances, such as driving
in the mountains, it may be usefu l to switch
temporarily to the manual shift program in or­
der to adjust the gears to the driving condi­
tions by hand
c::> page 142 .
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.
A WARNING
- Unintended vehicle movement can cause
serious injury.
- Never leave your vehicle with the engine
running while in gear.
If you must leave
your veh icle when the engine is running,
apply the park ing brake firmly and move
the selector lever to P.
- Power is still transmitted to the wheels
when the engine is running at idle. To
prevent the vehicle from "c reeping ", you
must keep your foot on the brake when
the engine is running and the selector
lever is in D, Sor R or "tiptronic" mode is
selected.
- Do not press the accelerator pedal when
changing the se lector lever position
while the vehicle is stationary and the engine is running.
- Never shift into R or P while driving.
- Before driving down a steep slope, re-
duce your speed and shift into a lower
gear with "tiptronic".
- Do not ride the brakes or press the bra ke
pedal too often or too long when driving
down a hi ll. Constant braking causes the
brakes to overheat and substantially re­
duces braking performance, increases braking distance or causes complete fa il·
ure of the brake system.
- To prevent the vehicle from rolling back
when stopping on inclines, always hold it
in place with the brake pedal or parking
brake . .,..

142 Automatic tr an smis sion
- Never hold the veh icle on an incl ine with
a slipp ing clutch . The clutch opens auto­
matically when it becomes too hot from
the overload. An indicator lamp@] illu­
minates and a dr iver message appears
c!;> page 143 when the clutch is overload­
ed.
- If the engine must remain running, never
hav e any driving pos ition engaged when
che cking under the hood. Make sure the
selector lever has secure ly engaged and
is locked in P with the parking bra ke
firmly set¢
page 256. Otherwise, any
increase in engine speed may set the ve­
hicle in motion, even with the parking
brake applied.
(D Note
- When stopping on an incline, do not try
to hold the vehicle in place by pressing
the accelerator peda l while a driving gear
is selected. Th is can cause the transm is­
s io n to overheat and can damage it. Acti­
vate the park ing brake or p ress the brake
pedal to prevent the vehicle from ro lling .
- Allow ing the vehicle to roll when the en ­
gine is stopped and the selector lever is i n
N w ill damage the transmiss ion be­
cause it is no t lub rica ted under those c ir­
cumst ances.
Hill descent control
The hill d escent control system assists the
driver when driving down declines.
H ill desce nt co ntrol is activated when these­
lecto r lever is in D/S a nd you press the b rake
pedal. The tra nsmission a utomatically se lects
a gea r that is suitab le for the incline. Hill de­
scent control tries to maintain the speed ach­
i eved at the t ime of brak ing, within physical
a nd techn ica l limitations . It may st ill be nec­
essary to adjust the speed with the brakes.
H ill descent co ntrol sw it ches off once the de ­
cline levels out or you press t he accelerator
pedal. When the speed is set in the cruise con
trol
system
c!;> page 113, hill descent contro l is al­
so act ivated.
A WARNING
--
Hill descent control cannot overcome
physical lim itations, so it may not be ab le
to maintai n a co nstant speed under all
conditions . A lways be ready to apply the
b rakes .
· Manual shift program
Using the manual shift program you can
manually select gears.
Fig. 1 63 Center conso le: sh ift in g the gears m an ually
Fig . 1 64 St ee rin g whee l: S h ift paddle s•
Gear selection with selector lever
The tiptronic mode can be sel ected either w ith
the vehicle stat io na ry or on t he move.
.,. Push the se lector lever to the right from D.
An
M appears in the instrument cluster dis ­
play as soon as the transmission has shifted .
.,. To upshift, push the se lecto r lever forwa rd
t o the plu s position
0 c!;> fig. 163 .
.,. To downsh ift, pus h the lever to the min us
position
Q . 1J>-

M N
0 ...J
'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
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 for the express purpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or crash
event. EDRs are sometimes called "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.
Although 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 example, engine function, emis­
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic control modules also record
vehicle-related data during norma l 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 ­
ping and improves driving stability. ESC de­
tects critical s ituations such as the vehicle
Intelligent technology 223
oversteering and understeering or the whee ls
spinning . The vehicle is stabilized by applying
the brakes or reducing eng ine torque . Once
the ESC is active, the indicator light
GI blinks
in the instrument cluster.
The following systems are integrated in the
ESC:
Anti-lock brake system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up
when brak ing. The vehicle can sti ll be steered
even during hard braking. Apply steady pres­
sure to the brake peda l. 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 peda l 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
start, accelerate and dr ive up hi lls.
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinning and
transfers the drive power to the other wheels.
This function is not available at higher speeds .
In extreme cases, EDL automatically switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked wheel
from overheating. EDL will switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to
normal.
A WARNING
- The ESC and its integrated systems can­
not overcome the laws of physics. This is
especially important on slippery or wet
~
•
•

M N
0 ...J
'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
Hill descent c ontrol
The hill descent control is sw itched on in off­
road mode. When slowly descending steep
gradients on loose ground or when the axles
are articulated, hi ll 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 travelling less than 12 mph
(20 km/h),
- a steep gradient is detected,
- wheel behavior indicates loose ground or
conditions with poor adhesion (e .g. also ax le
articulation) .
H ill descent control operates both dr iv ing for­
ward and in reverse. Active hill descent con ­
trol is deactivated by pressing the acce lerator
pedal until the conditions for act ivation al­
ready listed are met again.
A WARNING
You should only switch offroad mode on if
your dr iving abilities and road conditions
permit .
- The stabilization function is limited
when offroad mode is switched on. The
dr iv ing wheels could spin and the vehicle
cou ld swe rve, especia lly on slick or slip­
pery road surfaces.
- You should on ly sw itch offroad mode on
when d riving offroad .
(D Tips
Offroad mode cannot be switched on when
adaptive cru ise control* is sw itched on.
Brake system
Operating condit ions and d riving hab it s
The brakes on today's automob iles are st ill
subject to wear, depending largely on operat­
i ng conditions and dr iv ing habits ~& . On
vehicles that are e ither driven mostly in stop-
Int ellig ent technolog y 225
and-go city t raff ic or are driven hard, the
brake pads should be checked by your author­
ized Audi dea ler more often than specif ied in
the
Warranty & Mainten ance boo klet . Failure
to have your brake pads inspected can result
in reduced brake performance.
On steep slopes, you sho uld 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 cont inuously . Pump the brakes at inter­
vals.
Noises may occur when braking depending on
the speed, braking force and outside condi ­
t ions such as temperature and humid ity .
Mo is ture or ro ad s alt
Under certa in conditions, for example, when
driv ing through water or very heavy ra in, or
even after washing your veh icle, the braking
effect can be reduced due to moisture (or in
freez ing cond itions ice) on the brake pads . A
few carefu l brake applications should dry off
the b rake pads or remove any ice coatings.
When you are drivi ng at higher speeds with
the windshield w ipers on, the brake pads wi ll
briefly touch the brake discs in regu la r i nter­
vals so as to improve react ion time when brak­
ing on wet sur faces. You, the drive r, wi ll no t
notice anything .
T he effect iveness of the brakes can be reduced
whe n the vehicle is d riven on a sa lt-cove red
road and the b ra kes are not used. He re too,
you should clean off accumulated sa lt coa ting
from brake discs and pads with a few caref ul
applications of the brake~& .
Corrosion
The re may be a tendency for di rt to b uild up
o n the br ake pads and corros io n to fo rm on
the d iscs i f the car is not driven regularly or
o nly for short trips with litt le use of the
brakes.
If t he brakes a re not used frequently, o r if cor­
ros ion has formed on the discs, it is adv isable
to clean off the pads and d iscs by braking .,.
•
•

226 Intellig ent technol ogy
firm ly a few times from a mode rately high
speed ¢.&. .
Faults in the brake system
If you should notice a sudden increase in
brake peda l travel, t hen one of the two bra ke
circ uits may have failed ¢.&. .
Low brak e flu id le vel
Malfunct ions can occur in the brake system if
the brake fluid level is too low . T he brake fluid
l eve l is monitored electronically .
Bra ke boo ster
The brake booster increases the pressure that
you generate w ith the brake pedal. It only op­
erates while the eng ine is running ¢,&. .
Brake lining we ar sta tu s
Brake lining wear may be checked by visual in­
spection of the condition of the brake pads
through the openings in the wheel. If neces­
sary, the wheel may be removed for this in­
spection ¢
page 307, Changing a wheel.
A WARNING
- You should perfo rm bra king maneuve rs
for the p urpose of clean ing the b rake
system on ly if road condit ions permit.
Other road users must not be put at risk -
you may cause an accident!
- Be fore descending a steep grade, reduce
speed and shift transmission into a lower
gear or lower driving range. Do not ride
the brakes or hold the pedal down too long or too often. This could cause the
brakes to get hot and dimin ish braking
efficiency .
- Do not "ride the brakes" by resting your
foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to brake . Th is may cause the brakes to
overheat, premature wear and inc reased
stopping distance.
- Under certain climat ic and operating
condit ions such as passing through wa­
ter, driving in heavy ra in or after wash ing
the vehicle, the effect iveness of the
brakes can be reduced . In winter, ice can accumu
late on the brake pads, linings,
discs and drums. Carefully app ly brakes
for a test. Brakes will dry and ice coat­ ings w ill be cleaned off after a few care­
ful brake applicat ions .
- Driving for an extended period of time on
salt-covered roads without using your
brakes can also affect braking efficiency .
Clean off accumulated salt coating from
b rake discs and pads with a few ca reful
brake applications.
- If you damage the front spoiler, or if you
i n stall a diffe rent spoiler, be s ure the a ir
f low to the front brakes is not obs truct­
ed . Otherwise the brake system could
overheat reducing the effectiveness of
the entire brake system .
- Fai lure of one brake circuit will impai r
the braking capability resulting in an in­
creased stopping distance . Avoid driving
the vehicle and have it towed to the near­
est authorized Audi dea ler or qualified
workshop .
- Never let the ve hicle roll to a stop with
the engine shut off.
- If the brake booster is not working, the
brake peda l must be pressed cons idera­
b ly 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.
T he advanced Servotronic power steer ing sys ­
tem senses the road speed and electronica lly
adjusts power assistance to provide comforta­
ble and safe steering response exactly match­
ed to the vehicle speed.
Power s teer ing will not work if the engine is
off. As a result, the steering wheel will be hard
to turn.
T he powe r steering fluid level is checked d ur-
ing the sched uled maintenance services . ..,.

230 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.

232 Driving and en vironm ent
,8. WARNING
-Do not park your vehicle over flammable
materials such as grass or leaves because
the high temperature of the diesel par­
t icu late filter could start a fire .
- Do not apply an underbody protectant in the exhaust system area or a fire could start.
Avoid damaging the vehicle
When you are driving on poor roads, or over
curbs, steep ramps, etc., make certain that
low-lying parts such as spoilers and exhaust
system parts do not bottom out and get dam­
aged.
This is especia lly true for vehicles with low­
slung chassis (sports chassis)* and fully load­
ed vehicles.
Shutting down vehicle
If you would like your vehicle to remain inop­
erative for a longer period of time, contact an
Audi or other specialized dealer . They can ad­
vise you on necessary precautions e.g . corro­
sion prevention, maintenance and storage. Pay attention to additional information con ­
cerning the battery. Refer to
c::> page 266 .
Operate your vehicle
economically and
minimize pollution
General
Your personal style of driving will determine
the economy of your vehicle, as well as ex­
haust and noise levels .
Fuel economy, environmental impact, and
wear on your engine, brakes and tires largely
depend on three factors:
- your personal driving style
- operating conditions
- technical limitations
If you anticipate what you need to do next and
drive economically, you can easily cut your
fuel consumption by 10-15 percent . This sec­
tion will give you some tips on how you can help the environment and your pocketbook.
(D Tips
The consumption estimates as published by ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
(EPA) and Transport Canada may not corre­
spond to your actual consumption on the road, which will vary depending upon vehi­
cle load and speed, road and weather con­
dit ions, trip length, etc.
· Drive smoothly and keep a lookout
ahead
Vehicles use the most fuel when they ore ac­
celerating.
., Avo id unnecessary accelerating and brak ing .
Vehicles use the most fuel when they are ac ­
celerating . If you anticipate what is going to
happen next, you will need to brake less and,
thus, acce lerate less. Let the vehicle coast
whenever possible -for examp le when you see
that the next traffic light is red.
Avoid full throttle
Driving at moderate speeds saves fuel and
improves your mileage.
., Try and keep well below your car's maximum
speed.
Accelerating gently reduces fuel consump­
tion, engine wear, and does not disturb the environment.
Fuel consumption, exhaust emissions and en­
gine noise increase disproportionately at high
speeds. If you drive at approximately three
quarters of top speed, fuel consumption w ill
be reduced by one half. Never drive faster
than the posted speed limit and weather con­
ditions permit.