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Storing cargo correctly
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be properly
stowed and secured in the luggage compart
ment.
Fig . 120 Safe load position ing: place heavy objects as low
and as far forwa rd as poss ible.
"' N .,. ~ ,,: CX) ID
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift suddenly, changing vehicle handling charac
teristics. Loose items can also increase the risk of
serious personal injury in a sudden veh icle ma
neuver or in a coll is ion.
,.. Distribute the load evenly in the luggage com
partment.
,.. Always place and p roperly secure heavy items in
the luggage compartment as low and as far for
ward as possible
¢ fig . 120.
,.. Secure the load with the cargo net* or with
non-elastic straps secured to the tie-downs
Qpage 64.
,.. Make sure that the rear seatback is securely
latched in place.
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items can
fly through the veh icle causing serious per
sonal injury in the event of ha rd braking 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 compart
ment.
- Always secure objects in the luggage com
partment us ing the tie-down eye lets and
suitable straps.
Dri vin g s afe ty
A WARNING
-Heavy loads wi ll influence the way your vehi-
cle 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 center of
grav ity can also cause changes in vehicle
handling:
- Always distribute the load as evenly as
possible .
- Place heavy objects as far forward in the
luggage compartment as possib le .
- Never exceed the Gross Axle We ight Rating
or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating specified
on the safety compliance s ticker on the left
door jamb. Exceeding permissib le weight
standards can cause the vehicle to slide and
handle differently .
- Please observe information on safe dr iving
¢page 111 .
A WARNING
-To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas from
being drawn into the vehicle, always keep the
rear lid closed wh ile driving.
- Never transport objects la rger than those
fitting completely into the luggage area be
cause the rear lid cannot be fully closed .
- If you absolutely must dr ive with the rear lid
open, observe the following notes to reduce
the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the s unroof,
- Open all a ir outlets in the ins trumen t pan-
el,
- 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 windows,
the sunroof and the rear lid are securely
closed and locked to reduce the risk of injury
when the vehicle is not being used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make sure that it is properly closed and locked.
~
117
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Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
that expectant mothers always wear safety belts
correctly -throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 129 Safety belt pos it io n during p regnancy
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wear
er's body
c:> poge 124.
.. Adjust the front seat and head restraint correct
ly
c> page 53, Seats and storage .
.. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench is
in an upright position and securely latched in
place before using the belt .
.. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest and pelvis
c:>fig . 129, c:> &_.
.. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
c:>poge 123, fig . 127 .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
_& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious personal injury in an accident.
- Expectant mothers must always wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as pos
sible across the pelvis and below the round
ing of the abdomen .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
~.& in Fasten
ing safety belts on page 124.
Safety belts
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only o~er the vehicle hos stopped .
J-L
Fig. 130 Releasing the tongue from the buck le
.. Push the red release button on the buckle
c:> fig. 130. The belt tongue will spring out of
the buckle
c> &_ .
.,. Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
_& WARNING ,-
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is
moving . Doing so will increase your risk of be
ing injured or killed.
Improperly worn safety belts
0 ..... N 0 :i:
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Incorrectly positioned safety belts con cause se
vere injuries .
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause seri
ous injury or death . Safety belts can only work
when they are correctly positioned on the body.
Improper seating positions reduce the effective
ness of safety belts and w ill even increase the risk
of injury and death by moving the safety belt to
critical areas of the body. Improper seating posi
tions also increase the risk of serious injury and
death when an airbag dep loys and strikes an oc
cupant who is not in the correct seating position.
A driver is responsible for the safety of all vehicle occupants and especially for children . Therefore:
.. Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect sit-
ting position in the vehicle while traveling
c> &_ . ~
125
Airbag system
restraints or occupants on the front passen
ger seat and prevent the side airbag in the
seat backrest from deploying properly.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger seat.
The additional padding will prevent the
weight-sensing mat in the seat from accu rately registering the child restraint or per
son on the seat and prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from functioning properly.
- If you must use a child restraint on the front
passenger seat and the child restraint man
ufacturer's instructions require the use of a
towel, foam cushion or something else to
properly position the child restraint, make
certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever the
child restraint is installed on the front pas
senger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in
stall child restraint in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Audi dealer.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the side
airbags supplement the protection offered by the
front three-point safety belts with pretensioners and load limiters and the adjustable head re
straints to help reduce the risk of injury in a wide
range of accident and crash situations. Be sure to
read the important information about safety and
heed the WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Advanced Airbag System and
the activation of the safety belt pretensioners de
pend on the deceleration measured by the crash
sensors and registered by the electronic control
unit . Crash severity depends on speed and decel
eration as well as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object involved in the crash.
On the passenger side, regardless of safety belt
use, the airbag will be turned off if the weight on
the passenger seat is less than the amount pro
grammed in the electronic control unit . The front
136
airbag on the passenger side will also be turned
off if one of the child safety seats that has been
certified under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 has been recognized on the seat.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on to tell you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off
¢ page 129, Child restraints on the front seat
some important things to know .
.&_ WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag in
flates, always wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning forward, sit
ting sideways or out of position in any way,
your risk of injury is much higher.
- You
will also receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
r::!;>page 128.
More important things to know about front
airbags
Fig. 133 Inflated front airbags
-,... N 0 :i: ;;i;
Safety belts are important to help keep front seat
occupants in the proper seated position so that
airbags can unfold properly and provide supple
mental protection in a frontal collision.
The front airbags are designed to provide addi
tiona l protection for the chest and face of the
driver and the front seat passenger when:
- safety belts are worn properly,
- the seats have been positioned so that the oc-
cupant is properly seated as far as possible
from the airbag, .,._
Child safety
-Always make sure the seat backrest to which
the child restraint is installed is in an up
right position and securely latched into
place and cannot fold forward. Otherwise,
the seatback with the child safety seat at
tached to it could fly forward in the event of
an accident or other emergency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used¢
page 150 . Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 129, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The convertible locking retractor for child re
straints will be deactivated automatically when
the belt is wound all the way back into the re
tractor .
~ Press the red button on the safety belt buckle.
Th@ belt tongue will pop out of the buckle.
~ Guide the safety belt all the way back into its
stowed position .
Always let the safety belt retract completely into its stowed position . The safety belt can now be
used as an ordinary safety belt without the con
vertible locking retractor for child restraints.
If the convertible locking retractor should be ac
tivated inadvertently, the safety belt must be un
fastened and guided completely back into its
stowed position to deactivate this feature .
If the
convertible locking retractor is not deactivated,
the safety belt will gradually become tighter and
uncomfortable to wear.
_& WARNING
Improperly installed child safety seats in
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
-
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deactivate
the convertible locking retractor for child re
straints while the vehicle is moving. You
162
would not be restrained and could be seri ously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used¢
page 150. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
c> page 129, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
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shared, please see your contract with the
wireless telecommunications provider and the
"About Aud i connect" tab in your vehicle's
MMI*:
IMENU I button> Audi connect > About
Audi connect .
Electronic Stabilization
Control (ESC)
Description
ESC helps to improve road holding and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of skid
ding and loss of vehicle control. It works only
when the engine is running. ESC detects certain
d ifficu lt driving situations, including when the ve
hicle is beginn ing to spin (yaw) out of control and
helps you to get the vehicle back under control by
selectively braking the whee ls, and/or reducing
engine power and prov iding steer ing ass istance
to help hold the vehicle on the driver's intended
course. The indicator light
Bl in the instrument
cluster blinks when ESC is taking action to help
you control the veh icle.
ESC has limitations.
It is important to remember
that ESC cannot overcome the laws of physics. It
will not always be able to help out under all con
ditions you may come up against. For example, ESC may not always be able to help you master
situations where there is a sudden change in the
coefficient of frict ion of the road surface . Whe n
there is a section of dry road that is suddenly cov
ered with water, slush or snow, ESC cannot per
form the same way it wou ld on the dry surface. If
the vehicle hydroplanes (rides on a cushion of wa
ter instead of the road surface), ESC will not be
ab le to he lp you steer the vehicle because contact
with the pavement has been interrupted and the
vehicle cannot be braked or steered . During fast
cornering, particularly on winding roads, ESC
cannot always deal as effectively with difficult
driving situations than at lower speeds. Whe n
tow ing a trailer, ESC is not able to help you regain
con trol as it wou ld if you were no t towing a trail
er .
A lways adjust your speed and dr iving sty le to
road, traffic and weather conditions. ESC cannot
override the vehicle's physical limits, increase the
Smart Technology
available traction, or keep a vehicle on the road i f
road departure is a result of driver inattention.
Instead, ESC improves the possibility of keeping
the vehicle under control and on the road dur ing
extreme maneuvers by using the driver's steering
inputs to help keep the vehicle go ing in the in
tended direction. If you are traveling at a speed
that causes you to run off the road before ESC
can prov ide any assistance, you may not expe ri
ence the benefits of ESC.
ESC is switched on all the time . In certain situa
t ions when you need less traction, you can switch
off ASR by pressing the button
[ru ~ page 170,
fig. 152 or ~page 170, fig . 153. Be sure to
switch ASR on again when you no longer need
less traction.
T he following systems are integrated in the ESC:
Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up when braking. The vehicle can still be steered even dur
i ng hard braki ng. Apply steady pressure to the
brake pedal. Do not pump the pedal. A pulsing in
the brake pedal indicates that the system is he lp
ing you to brake the vehicle.
Brake assist system
The brake ass ist system can decrease braking dis
tance . It increases braking power when the driver
presses the brake peda l quickly in emergency sit
u at ions. You must press and hold the brake pedal
until t he situat ion is over. In vehicles with adap
tive cruise control*, the brake assist system is
more sensitive if the distance detected to the ve
hicle ahead is too sma ll.
Anti-slip regulation (ASR)
ASR red uces eng ine power when the drive wheels
begin to spin and adapts the force to the road
conditions. This makes it easier to start, acce le r
ate and drive up hills.
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
T he EDL brakes whee ls that are spinning and
transfers the drive power to the other wheels.
T his function is available up to about 60 mph
(100 km/h).
169
Smart Technolog y
-If y ou dama ge the front spo iler, or if you in
sta ll a di fferent spoile r, be sure the air flow
to the front brakes is not obstructed . Other
wise the brake system co uld overheat reduc
ing the effectiveness o f the enti re brake sys
tem .
- Failure of one brake c ircuit will impair the
braking capab ility r esult ing in a n increased
stopp ing distance. Avoid driving the veh icle
and have it towed to the nearest au thorized
Audi de aler or qualified workshop.
- Never let the vehicle ro ll to a stop with the
engine shut off .
-If the brake booster is not work ing, the
brake pedal must be pressed considerably
harder to make up for the lack of booste r as
sistance .
Electro-mechanical
power assist, dynamic
steering
The electro-mechanical power assist helps the
driver when steering .
Power steering adapts electronically based on
the vehicle speed .
Indicator lights and me ss a ges
• Steering defe cti ve! Do not dri ve vehicle!
If th is indicator light tu rns on and stays on and
this message appears, the power steering may
have fa iled .
D o
n ot co ntinue driving. See yo ur authorized
Audi dealer or a qua lified repair fac ility for assis
tance.
l;r-ij Dynamic steering : System fault! You can
c on tinu e drivin g
If the indicator light tu rns on and the message
appears, the steer ing may be more difficult to
move or mo re sensitive than usual. The steer ing
wheel may a lso be at an ang le when dr iv ing
straight.
Drive s low ly to your author ized Audi dealer or
qua lified wor kshop to have the malfunction cor
rected.
174
':r-ij Dynamic stee ring: initializing
If this drive r message appears and the indicator
li gh t is flashing on the instr ument pane l, dynam
i c s teer ing* is being rein itia lized. After sta rting
the engine, the steering wheel w ill move slightly.
Re-initialization might be necessary if the steer
i ng whee l was moved hard to the left and right
while the vehicle was not moving. The display goes out as soon as initialization is comp lete.
A WARNING
H ave the dynamic steering* system malfunc
tion repaired as soon as possible by an author ized A udi dealer or qualified wo rkshop -risk
of accident!
@ Tips
- If the . or ':rfl indicator light only stays on
for a sho rt time, you may cont inue driving.
- The dynamic steering* stab ility systems are
not availab le in the event of a system mal
function.
- For add itiona l information on dynamic
steering*, refer to~ page 101.
Driving with your quattro
With all-wheel drive, all four wheels are driven .
General information
With all-wheel drive, power is distributed to all
four wheels . This happens automatically depend
i ng on your driving style and the road conditions
at the t ime . See also ~ page 169.
A center d ifferential distributes the driving power
variably to the front and rear axle. It works to
gether w ith select ive whee l torque control, which
activates w hen d rivi ng throug h curves
~ page 170 . With the spo rt diffe rential*, power
dist ribution to the rear wheels is variab le and can
be adjusted with drive select~ page 101.
The all-whee l dr ive concept is des igned for hig h
engine power . Yo ur vehicle is exceptiona lly pow
e rfu l and has excellen t drivi ng cha racte rist ics
both unde r normal d riving condi tions and o n
snow and ice . Always read and follow sa fe ty pre-
ca utions ~& .
1111>
Driving and th e environment
(D Tips
-Check the depth of the water before driving
through it.
- Do not stop the veh icle, drive in reverse or
switch the engine
off when driving through
water.
- Keep in mind that oncoming vehicles may
create waves that raise the water level and
make it too deep for your vehicle to dr ive
through safely.
- Avoid driving through sa lt water because it
can cause corrosion.
Warming up and cooling down
By carefully warming up and cooling down your
veh icle, you can help ensure that it is not over
stressed unnecessar ily du ring sporty dr iv ing.
When warming up, the vehicle is driven at a max imum engine speed of 6000 RPM in order to ra ise
the engine oil temperature to a m inimum of
140 °F (60 °C). T he tires also only reach their full
road holding capab ility once they have wa rmed
up.
The cooling fan can continue to run in your vehi
cle after the eng ine is switched
off. However,
d riving the vehicle to cool it dow n is part icu larly
important. During sporty d riving, the engine and
brakes , the exhaust system, and the transmission
all become extremely hot. Before you park the
vehicle, you should drive it for a few mi les/kilo
meters at light load in the low rpm range to al
low it to cool down.
Catalytic converter
It is very important that your emission control
system (catalytic converter) is functioning prop erly to ensure that your vehicle is running in on
environmentally sound manner .
.. Always use lead -free gasoline c::> page 183,
Fuel supply.
.. Never ru n the tank down a ll the way to empty.
.. Neve r pu t too m uch motor oil in your engine
c::> page 191, 't:::?: Adding engine oil .
178
.. Never try to push -or tow-start your vehicle .
The catalytic converte r is an effi cient "clean-up"
device b uilt into the exha ust system of the veh i
cle. The cata lytic conve rter burns many o f the
po llutants in the exhaust gas before they are re
l eased into the atmosphere.
The exclusive use of unleaded fue l is c ritically im
po rtant for the life of the catalytic conver ter and
proper functioning of the engine .
A WARNING
-The temperature of the exhaust system is
high, both when driving and after stopping
the engine.
- Never touch the exhaust tail pipes once they
have become hot. Th is could resu lt in burns.
- Do not park or operate the vehicle in areas
where the hot exha ust system may come in
contact with dry grass, brush, fuel spill or
other material which can cause a fire.
- Do not apply additional undercoating or rustproof ing on or near the exhaust mani
fold, exhaust pipes, catalytic converter or
heat shields. During dr iving, the substance
used for unde rcoat ing could overheat and
cau se a fire.
@ Note
- Be aware that just one tank fill ing with lead
ed
fuel w ill al ready ser iously degrade the
performance of the catalytic converter.
- Do not exceed the correct engine oil level
c::>poge 191.
-Do not drive until the fue l tank becomes
completely empty . T he engine cou ld m isfire .
Unburned fu el could also get into the ex
haus t sys tem a nd this could cause the cata
lyt ic converte r to overheat.
- Do not turn
off the ignition while the vehicle
is
moving.
- Do not continue to operate your veh icle un
der these condi tions, as otherwise f uel can
re ach the cat aly tic converter. This could re
s u lt in ove rheat ing of the c onve rter, requ ir
ing its replacement .
- T o assure efficient oper ation of the Emission
~
Cont ro l System: ..,_
Wheels
Model Tire designation Tire pressure
Engine normal load condition full load condition
(up to 2 occupants)a l
front rear front rear
PSI kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA
PSI kPA
RS 5 Coupe: 265/35 Rl9 98V XL
4.2 liter High Performance
39 27
0
35 2
40 44
300 41
280
8-cylinder
275/30 R20 97V XL
High Performance
39 270 35 240
44 300 41 280
XL= reinforced or extra load tire. It may also appear as xl, EXTRA LOAD, or RF on the tire sidewall.
a) 2 people in the front
_& WARNING
Please note the important safe
ty precautions regarding tire pressure ¢
page 206 and load
limits ¢
page 208.
Tires and vehicle load limits
There are limits to the amount of
load or weight that any vehicle
and any tire can carry. A vehicle
that is overloaded will not handle
well and is more difficult to stop. Overloading can not only lead to
loss of vehicle control, but can al
so damage important parts of the
vehicle and can lead to sudden
tire failure, including a blowout and sudden deflation that can
cause the vehicle to crash .
Your safety and that of your pas sengers also depends on making
sure that load limits are not ex
ceeded. Vehicle load includes ev-
208
erybody and everything in and on
the vehicle. These load limits are
technically referred to as the vehi cle's
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
("GVWR").
The "GVWR" includes the weight of the basic vehicle , all factory in
stalled accessories, a full tank of
fuel, oil, coolant and other fluids plus maximum load . The maxi
mum load includes the number of
passengers that the vehicle is in
tended to carry ("seating capaci
ty") with an assumed weight of
150 lbs. (68 kg) for each passen
ger at a designated seating posi
tion and the total weight of any luggage in the vehicle . If you tow
a trailer, the weight of the trailer hitch and the tongue weight of
the loaded trailer must be includ- ed as part of the vehicle load. ..,.