2015 AUDI RS5 CABRIOLET ABS

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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. 142. 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. 143 Driver is correctly restrained in a sudden bral<·
ing maneuve r
Safety belts used properly can make a big dif­
ference . Safety belts help to keep passengers
in their seats, gradually reduce energy levels
Safety belts 125
applied to the body in an accident, and help
prevent the uncontrolled movement that can
cause serious injuries. In addition, safety be lts
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 time, the safety belts make the
forces on the body more "tolerable" and less
likely to cause injury.
Although these examples are based on a fron­
ta l collision, safety belts can also substantial­
ly reduce the risk of injury in other kinds of
crashes. So, whether you're on a long trip or
just going to the corner store, always buckle
up and make sure others do, too. Accident sta­
tistics show that vehicle occupants properly
wearing safety belts have a lower risk of being
injured and a much better chance of surviving
an accident. Properly using safety belts also
greatly increases the ability of the supplemen ­
tal airbags to do their job in a collision . For
this reason, wearing a safety belt is legally re­
quired in most countries including much of
the United States and Canada.
Although your Audi is equipped with a irbags,
you still have to wear the safety belts provid­
ed . Front airbags, for example, a re activated
only in some frontal collisions. The front air­
bags are not activated in all frontal collisions,
in side and rear collisions, in roll overs or in
cases where there is not enough deceleration
through impact to the front of the vehicle.
The same goes for the other airbag systems in
your Audi . So, always wear your safety belt
and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained!

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-Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis­
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can
cause injury in a crash.
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat
o ccupan ts.
F ig . 149 Location of driver airbag: in steering wheel
Fig. 150 Location of front passenger's airbag: in the in ­
st rument panel
Your veh icle is equipped w ith an "Advanced
Ai rbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (F MVSS) 208 as app licab le at the time your
ve hicle w as manufac tured. The safety be lts
for the seats have "pretensione rs" that help
to take slack out of the belt system . The pre­
tensioners are a lso activated by the electronic
contro l unit for the airbag system.
The front safety belts a lso have load limiters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
in a crash.
The airbag fo r the driver is in the s teer ing
wheel hub
~ fig. 149 and the airbag for the
A irba g sy stem 135
front passenger is in the instr ument panel
~ fig. 150 . The general location of the airbags
is marked "AIRBAG".
T he re is a lot you need to know about t he a ir­
bags in your vehicle . We urge you to read the
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
chapters that make up the owner's literature.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS - they
are extremely important for your safety and
the safety o f your passengers, especially in­
fants and small children .
.&_ WARNING
Neve r rely on airbags alone for p rotec tion.
- Even w hen they deploy, airbags provide
only suppleme nta l protect ion.
- Airbag work most effectively w hen used
with p roperly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, always wear your safety belts and make sure that eve rybody in your ve­
hicle is p rope rly r est rained .
.&_ WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, es­
pe cially infants and sma ll children, w ill re­
ceive ser io us i njuries and can even be kil­
led by being too close to the airbag when it inflates .
- Altho ugh the Advan ced A irbag Sys tem in
your veh icle is designed to turn off the
fro nt passenge r airbag if a n infant or a
sma ll child is on the front passenger
seat , nobody can absolutely gua rantee
that deployment under these special conditions is impossible i n all conceiva­
ble sit uat ions that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicl e.
- The Advanced Airbag System can dep loy
in acco rdance with the "low risk" option
un der the U.S . Fede ral S tanda rd if a child
that is heavie r th an the typical one-yea r
old child is on the front passenge r seat
a nd the ot her condit ions for a irbag de ­
ployment are met .
-

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-a small child that is heavier than a typical 1
year-o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regardless of whether the c hild is in one of
t h e chi ld safety seats listed
¢ page 154),
-a chi ld who has outgrown child restraints is
on the front passenger seat.
I f the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OF F light in the center
of the instrument pane l w ill come on and stay
on.
The front ai rbag on the passenger side may
not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not illuminate and stay lit) if:
- a small ad ult or teenager is o n the front pas ­
senger seat
- a passenger who is not sitt ing upright w ith
their back against a non -reclined backrest
with their feet on the vehicle floo r in front
of the seat is on the front passenger seat .
I f the front passenger airbag deploys, the
F ederal Standard requires the airbag to meet
the " low risk" deployment criteria to help re ­
d uce the risk of inj ury through interaction
with the airbag. " Low risk" deployment occurs
in those crashes that take place at lower de­
celerations as defined in the electronic co ntrol
u ni t.
¢ page 141
Always remember: Even tho ugh you r vehicle
is equipped with Advanced Airbags, the safest
p lace for children is properly restrained on the
back seat . Please be sure to read the impor ­
tant information i n the sect ions that follow
and be sure to heed a ll of the WARNINGS.
.8, WARNING
To redu ce the risk of injury whe n an airbag
in flates, always wear safety belts prope rly.
- If you are unres trained, lean ing fo rward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of in jury is much higher.
- You w ill also receive serio us inju ries and
c ou ld even be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in­
fla tes -even with an Advanced Airbag
Q page 131 .
Airbag system 137
.8, WARNING
-
A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild safety
seat installed on the front passenger seat
will be ser iously injured and can be killed if
the front airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced A irbag System .
- Al tho ugh the A dvanced Airbag Sys tem in
your veh icle is designed to tur n off the
fro nt airbag whe n a rea rward-facing
child res tra int has been insta lled on the
front passenger seat, nobody can abso ­
lutely g uarantee that dep loyment is im­
possible in all conceivable situations that
may happen dur ing the usefu l life of your
veh icle.
- The in flating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and chi ld against the backrest , center
armrest, doo r, or roof.
- Always install rearward-facing chi ld re­
straints in the back seat .
- If you must install a rearward fac ing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan­
c e s and t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
lig ht does not come o n and stay on, im­
media tely insta ll the rear -fa cing ch ild
safety sea t in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer .
A WARNING
-=
If, in e xceptiona l circumstances, you must
i nstall a forward -facing child restraint on
the front passenger 's seat:
- Always make sure the forward- facing
seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and s ide a irbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child re­
straint up against or very near the instru­
ment panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost pos ition in the seat's fore and
aft ad justment range, as fa r away from
the airbag as possible, before install ing •
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-Never attach any objects such as cu­
pholders or telephone mountings to the
surfaces covering the airbag units.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one
moistened with plain water. Solvents or
cleaners could damage the airbag cover
or change the stiffness or strength of the
material so that the airbag cannot de­
ploy and protect properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the airbag system.
-All work on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, front seats or electrical sys­
tem (including the installation of audio
equipment , cellular telephones and CB
radios, etc.) must be performed by a
qualified technician who has the training
and special equipment necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that you see your
authorized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop.
- Never modify the front bumper or parts
of the vehicle body .
- Always make sure that the side airbag
can inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replace­
ment upholstery over the front seat­ backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags
inflate.
- Damage to the original seat covers or
to the seam in the area of the side air­
bag module must always be repaired
immediately by an authorized Audi
dealer.
- The airbag system can be activated only
once. After an airbag has inflated, it must be replaced by an authorized Audi
dealer or qualified technician who has
the technical information, training and
special equipment necessary.
- The airbag system can be deployed only
once. After an airbag has been deployed,
it must be replaced with new replace-
Airbag system 145
ment parts designed and approved espe­
cially for your Audi model version . Re­
placement of complete airbag systems
or airbag components must be per­
formed by qualified workshops only. Make sure that any airbag service action
is entered in your Audi Warranty
& Main­
tenance booklet under
AIRBAG REPLACE­
MENT RECORD.
- In accidents when an airbag is deployed,
the vehicle battery separates the alterna­
tor and the starter from the vehicle elec­
trical system for safety reasons with a pyrotechnic circuit interrupter.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit inter­
rupter must only be performed by a
qualified dealer -risk of an accident!
- If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter
is scrapped, all applicable safety pre­
cautions must be followed.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and preten ­
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate
Material -special handling may apply, see
www .dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/per-
ch lorate. When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
safety belts with pretensioners are scrap­
ped, all applicable laws and regulations
must be observed. Your authorized Audi
dealer is familiar with these requirements
and we recommend that you have your
dealer perform this service for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem performs in a crash. For example, using
tire-rim combinations not approved by Audi ,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the springs, suspen­
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the airbag
sensors and sent to the electronic control unit. Some suspension changes can, for
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@ Tips
Your vehicle may be equipped with Audi
connect. Your use of certain Aud i connect
features req uires wireless serv ices that are
provided by a third party wireless telecom­
municat ions provider. For details regard­
ing how information obtained through
Aud i connect is collected, processed,
transmitted, used, and shared, please see
your contra ct w ith the wire less telecom ­
municat ions provider and the "About A udi
connect" tab in your vehicle's MMI*:
!MENU ! button> Audi connect > About
Audi con nect .
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 veh icle control. It works
only when the eng ine is running. ESC detects
certain difficult driv ing situations, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw) out of cont ro l and he lps you to get the vehicle
back under control by select ively b rak ing the
wheels, and/or red ucing engine power and
p roviding steering assistance to help hold the
ve hicle on the driver's intended course . The in­
dicator light
DJ in the instrument cluster
blinks when ESC is taking action to help you
control the vehicle.
ESC has limitations.
It is important to remem­
ber that ESC cannot overcome the laws of
phys ics. It will not a lways be able to help out
under all conditions you may come up against.
For example, ESC may not always be able to
help you master situat ions where there is a
sudden change in the coefficient of fr iction of
the road surface. When there is a sect io n of
d ry road that is s udden ly cove red with water,
slush o r snow, ESC canno t perform the same
way it would on the dry su rface.
If the vehicle
hydroplanes (rides on a c ush ion of water in­
stead of the road surface), ESC wi ll not be
ab le to he lp you steer the veh icle because con-
Int ellig ent technolog y 171
tact with the pavement has been interrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered .
D uring fast corner ing, particular ly on wind ing
roads, ESC cannot always deal as effectively
with difficult dr iv ing s ituations 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 conditions . ESC can­
not override the vehicle's physical lim its, in­
crease the availab le tract ion, or keep a veh icle
o n the road if road departu re is a result of
driver ina ttent io n. Instead , ESC imp roves the
poss ibility of keep ing the vehicle under con­
trol and on the road during extreme maneu­
vers by using the driver's steering i nputs to
help keep the vehicle go ing in the intended di­
rect ion. If you are traveling at a speed that
causes you to run off the road before ESC can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESC.
ESC is switched on all the time. In certain sit­
uat ions when you need less traction, you can
switch off ASR by pressing the butto n
[ill
~ page 173, fig. 166 or~ page 173,
fig. 167. Be sure to sw itch ASR on aga in when
you no lo nger need less traction.
The following systems are integrated in the
ESC:
Anti-lock bra king sy stem (ABS )
ABS prevents the whee ls from locking up
when brak ing. T he vehicle can st ill be steered
even dur ing hard braking. App ly steady pres­
su re to the brake peda l. Do not pump the ped­
al. A pulsing in the brake pedal ind icates that
the system is helping you to brake the veh icle .
Brake assi st system
The brake ass ist system can decrease braking
distance. It increases brak ing power when the
drive r presses the brake peda l quickly in emer­
gency s ituations. You must press and hold the
brake pedal unti l the s ituation is over. In
vehicles with adaptive c ruise control*, the
brake assis t system is more sensitive if the
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172 Intelligent technology
distance detected to the vehicle ahead is too
smal l.
Anti-slip regulation (ASR )
ASR reduces eng ine power when the drive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the fo rce to
the road condit ions. This makes it eas ier to
start, accelerate and drive up hills .
Electronic differential lock (EDL )
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinn ing and
transfers the d rive powe r to the other wheels.
This f unct ion is available up to abo ut 60 mph
(100 km/h) .
In extreme cases, ED L automat ica lly switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked whee l
from ove rheating. EDL wi ll switch on aga in a u­
tomatically when conditions have returned to
norma l.
Steering recommendation
The ESC helps to stabilize the ve hicle by
changing the steering to rque.
In vehicles with dynam ic steeri ng*, ESC also
helps to stabilize the stee ring in critical s itua­
tions.
Select ive wheel torque control
Selective whee l torque control is used when
driving on curves . The front wheel on the in­
side of the curve or both wheels on the inside
of the curve are braked selective ly as needed.
This a llows mo re prec ise d riving in curves. The
appl icable system may no t activate when d riv­
i ng in wet or snowy condi tions.
A WARNING
- The ESC and its integrated systems can ­
not overcome the laws of physics. This is especia
lly important on slippery o r wet
roads. If the systems begin acting to sta­
bilize your veh icle, you should immedi­
ately change your speed to match the
road and traffic cond itions. Do not let
the increased safety provided by these
systems tempt you to take risks. Do ing
so will in crease the r is k of a loss of vehi­
cle control, collision and serious person al
in juries.
- Always adap t your speed to road, traffi c
and weather conditions . The risk of los ­
ing control of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast, especially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when dr iv ing too close to vehicles up
ahead. The ESC and its integrated sys­
tems cannot a lways p revent collisions -
there is still a risk of acc idents!
- Always accelerate with special care on
even, smooth s urfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow.
T he drive w heels can spin even w ith
these assistance sys tems that cannot al­
ways he lp to re duce the risk of loss of ve ­
h icle control.
(D Tips
- ABS and ASR o nly wo rk correctly when
a ll four wheels are equipped wi th iden ti­
c al tires. D ifferen t tire sizes can lead to a
reduction in engine powe r.
- Yo u may hear noises when the systems
descr ibed are workin g.
-If the ind icator light DJ or Ea (USA
mode ls)/ lCOj t here may be a malfunction
~ page 18,
<=>page 19.

174 Intelligent technology
Braking
What affects braking efficiency?
New brake pad s
Du ring the first 2 50 miles (400 k m), new
b ra ke pads do not possess their fu ll braking
effect , they have to be "broken in" first¢.&. .
The break-in period can be considerably lon­
ger for vehicles with ceramic brake rotors*.
You can compensate for this slightly reduced br aking power by push ing harder on the brake
pedal. Avoid heavy braking loads during the
b reak-in per iod.
Operating conditions and d riving h abits
The brakes on today's automobi les are st ill
subject to wear, depend ing largely on operat­
ing conditions and dr iv ing habits ¢.&. . On
vehicles that are e ithe r dr iven mostly in stop­
and-go city traffic o r are driven ha rd, the
b rake pads should be checked by you r aut hor­
iz ed A udi de aler more often than specified in
the
Warrant y & Maintenan ce booklet . Fail ure
to have your b ra ke pads inspected can resu lt
in red uced brake performance.
On steep slopes, yo u sh ou ld use t he b ra ki ng
effect of the eng ine. Th is w ay, you preven t un­
necessa ry wear on the brake system . If you
must use yo ur brakes, do not ho ld the brakes
down continuously. P ump the brakes at inter ­
va ls.
Operating noise
N oises may occur when braking depending on
the speed, braking fo rce and outside condi­
tions s uch as temperature a nd h umidity.
Due to the na ture of the mate rials used i n ce­
ramic brake rotors*, noises may become more
apparent at low speeds.
Effect of water and road salt
I n ce rtain situat ions, for exampl e after d riving
throug h wate r, in heavy ra in, after overn igh t
conde nsation or afte r washi ng your c ar, the
b ra ki ng effect can be reduced by moisture or
ice on the bra ke rotors and b rake pads. The brakes must be dr
ied first with a few careful
brake applications .
At highe r speeds and with the winds hield wip­
ers t urned on, the b ra ke pads press against
the b rake roto rs fo r a short amount o f time .
This occurs at regular intervals without the drive r not icing and p rov ides for better brake
response time under wet conditions.
The effectiveness of the brakes can be red uced
whe n the vehicle is driven on a sa lt -covered
road and the brakes are not used . Likewise,
you clean off accumulated salt coating from brake d iscs and pads with a few cautious ap­
plicat ions of the bra ke
¢ .&. .
D ue to the ir s urface characteristics, ceramic
brake rotors* absorb moisture in such condi­
tions . T his can cause a temporary reduction in
braking force compared to dry brakes . You can
compensate for th is by pressi ng the brake
p eda l harde r.
Corrosion
There may be a tende ncy for dirt to build up
on the brake pads and corros ion to form on
the d iscs if the car is not driven regu larly or
only for short trips w it h litt le use of the
brakes .
If the brakes are not used frequently, or if cor­
ros io n has formed on the discs, it is adv isable
to clean off the pads and discs by braking
firmly a few times from a moderately h igh
speed ¢.&. .
Faults in the brake system
If you shou ld notice a sudden increase in
brake pedal trave l, then one of the two brake
c ir cuits may have fa iled
c::> .&. .
Low brake fluid level
Malfunctions can occur in the brake system if
t h e brake fluid level is too low. The brake flu id
level is monitored electro nically .
Brake boo ster
The brake booster increases the pressure that
yo u generate with the brake peda l. It works
on ly when the engine is running
. ¢ .&. .,.

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Vehicl e ca re a nd cl eanin g 18 7
Component Situ ation Solution
P las tic parts
Dirty Damp cloth
Heavily soiled Mild soap solutional, solvent-free plastic cleaning solu-
t ion, if necessary
Di spl ays Dirty Soft cloth with LCD cleaner
Co nt rols Dirty Soft brus
.h, then a soft cloth with a mild soap solutio nal
S afe ty be lt s Dirty Mild soap solutional, allow to dry before letting them re-
tract
Tex tile s, Stains adhering to
Vacuum cleaner
Vin yl, the surface
Alcantara Water-based stains Absorbent cloth and m ild soap solutional
such as coffee, tea,
blood, etc.
Oil-based stains Apply a mild soap solutional, blot away the dissolved oil
such as oil, make- or dye, treat afterward w ith water, if necessary
up, etc.
Special stains such Special
stain remover, blot with absorbent material,
as ballpoint pen, treat afterward with mild soap solutional, if necessary
nail polish, latex
paint, shoe polish,
etc.
N atur al lea ther Fresh stains Cotton cloth with a mild soap solutiona>
Water-based stains Fresh stains: absorbent cloth
such as coffee, tea, Dried stains: stain remover suitable for leather
blood, etc.
Oi l-based stains Fresh stains: absorbent cloth and stain remover suitable
such as oil, make- for leather
up, etc. dried stains: Oil cleaning spray
Special stains such Sta in remover sui table for leather
as ballpoint pen, nai l polish, latex
pa int, shoe polish,
etc.
Ca re Regularly apply condit ion ing c ream that protects from
light and penetrates into the mater ial. Use specially-col-
ored condit ioning cream, if necessary.
Carb on p art s Dirty Clean the same way as plastic parts
al Mild soap solution: maximum two tablespoons neu tral soap in 1 quart ( 1 lite r) of water
& WARNING
T he windshie ld may not be treated with
wate r-repelling windshie ld coating agents .
Unfavorab le conditions such as wetness,
darkness, or low sun can result in in-
-
creased glare. Wiper b lade chatter is also
possib le.
(D Note
- Hea dlight s/tail ligh ts
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