
98 Audi drive select
Adjusting the Individual mode
You can adjust the vehicle settings to your personal preferences .
• Se lect : I CAR ! function button > Set individu
al
control button. You can now adjust the in
dividual systems.
The
Individual dr iving mode will automatica l
ly be activated when you have finished config
uring the settings .
Systems Comfort
Engine /Transmission
balanced
Air suspension* comfortable
Steering comfortable The equipment
in your vehicle will determine
which settings you can adjust. The following
table provides an overview of the characteris
tics of each driving mode.
Auto Dynamic
balanced sporty
balanced sporty
balanced sporty
Dynamic steering* comfortable/indirect balanced/direct sporty direct
Adaptive dampers* comfortable balanced sporty
Sport differential* balanced agile sporty
Adaptive
cruise control* comfortable balanced sporty
Engine sound subtle subtle/sportyal sporty
a)
Subt le in the dri ving posit ion D an d sporty in the driving positio n S.
@ Tips
Your
Individual mode settings are auto
matica lly stored and assigned to the re
mote control key being used.
Raising/lowering the
vehicle
App lies to vehicles: with adaptive air suspension
Raising the vehicle
You can raise your vehicle temporarily, for ex
ample to drive over a tall curb .
• Se lect the following in the MMI : ICAR !func
tion button
> Raise contro l button.
• Wait for the arrows in the display to stop
blinking and the vehicle to reach its final po
s it ion.
Lowering the vehicle
• To lower the vehicle, select the following in
the MMI: ICARI function button
> Lower con
trol button. •
Wait for the arrows in the display to stop
blinking and the vehicle to lower comp lete
ly.
(D Note
- Remember that your vehicle is not suita
ble for driv ing offroad even when it is
raised . There is not enough ground clear
ance.
- If the vehicle is raised, it wi ll lower auto
matically when driving 62 mph (100 km/
h) or faster.
Driver messages
Air suspension : vehicle currently too low.
Level control running
Air suspension: vehicle currently too high.
Level control running
T he dr iver message switches off when the lev
el control process is complete.

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Automatic Transmission
tiptronic
Introduction
The automatic transmission is controlled elec
tronically. The transmiss ion upsh ifts or down
shifts automatically depending on which drive
program is selected.
When a
moderate driving style is used, the
transmission selects the most econom ical
driving mode. It will then change up early and
delay the downshifts to give better fuel econ
omy.
The transmission switches to a sporty mode
after a kick-down or when the driver uses a
sporty driving style 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 also select the gears
manually (tiptronic mode) ¢ page 107.
In the tiptronic transmission, power is trans
ferred by a torque converter .
Selector lever positions
Fig. 117 Disp lay in the instrument cluster: selector
lever posit ion
The selector lever position engaged appears
next to the selector lever as well as in the in
strument cluster display.
P - Park
In this selector lever position the transmis
sion is mechanically locked. Engage P only
Automatic Transmission 103
when the vehicle is completely stopped ¢ &
in Driving the automatic transmission on
page 105.
To shift in or out of position P, you must first
press and hold the brake pedal and then press
the re lease button in the selector lever handle
whi le moving the selector lever to or from P.
You can shift out of this position only with the
ignition on.
R- Reverse
Select R on ly when the vehicle is at a full stop
and the engine is running at idle speed¢.&. in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 105.
Before you move the selector lever to R, press
both the button in the hand le of the selector
lever
and the brake pedal at the same time .
When the ignition is on, the backup lights illu
minate when the selector lever is moved into
R.
N -Neutral
The transmission is in neutral in this position.
Shift to this position for standing w ith the
brakes applied ¢
& in Driving the automatic
transmission on page 105 .
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds
below 1 mph (2 km/h), you must always apply
the footbrake before and whi le mov ing the
lever out of
N.
D/S -Normal position for driving forward
In the D/S position, the transmission can be
operated either in the norma l mode D or in
the sport mode S. To select the sport mode S,
pull the selector lever back briefly. Pulling the
lever back again will se lect the norma l mode
D. The instrument cluster display shows the
selected driving mode.
In the normal mode D, the transmission auto
matically selects the suitable gear ratio. It de
pends on engine load, vehicle speed and driv
ing style.
Select the sport mode S for sporty driv ing.
The vehicle makes full use of the engine's

104 Autom atic Tran smi ssi on
power. Shifting may become noticeable when
accelerating .
When the veh icle is stationary or at speeds
be low 1 mph (2 km/h), you must always apply
the foot brake before and while moving the lever to D/S out of N .
.&_ WARNING
Read and follow all WARNINGS <=:> & in
Driving the automatic transmission on
page 105.
([) Note
Coasting downhi ll with the transmission in
N and the engine not running wi ll result in
damage to the automatic transmission
and possibly the catalytic converter.
(D Tips
- Audi drive select: you can adjust the
sporty shift characteristics in the
D y
namic driving mode.Swill appear in the
i nstrument cluster display instead of D .
- If you accidentally select N while driving,
take your foot off the acce lerator pedal
i mmediately and wait for the engine to
slow down to idle before selecting D/S.
- If there is a power failure, the selector
lever will not move out of the P position.
The emergency release can be used if
this happens
<=:> page 108.
Automatic Shift Lock {ASL)
The Automatic Shift Lock safeguards you
against accidentally shifting into a forward or the reverse gear and causing the vehicle to
move unintentionally.
. I r )
Fig . 118 Shift gate: selecto r lever lock pos it ions and
r elease button highl ig h ted
The selector lever lock is released as follows:
... Turn the ignition on .
.,. Step on the brake pedal.
At the same time
press and hold the release button on the
gear selector knob <=:>
fig. 118 w ith your
thumb until you have moved the selector
lever to the desired position .
Automatic selector le ve r lock
The selector lever is locked in the P and N po
sitions when the ign ition is turned on . You
must press the brake pedal and the release
button to select another position . As a re
minder to the driver, the following wa rning
appea rs in the instrumen t clus ter display
when the selector is in P and N:
Wh en stationar y appl y brak e peda l w hile se
le ct in g gear
The Automatic Shift Lock only funct ions when
the veh icle is stationary or at speeds below
1 mph (2 km/h) .
At speeds above about 1 mph (2 km/h) the
Automat ic Shift Lock is automatically deacti
vated in the N position .
A time delay element prevents the selector lever from locking when it is moved through
the N pos it ion (going from R to D/S) . The lock
ing element w ill lock the selector lever if the
Ill>

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lever is left in N (Neutral) for more than ap
proximately 2 second, without the brake ped
al being pressed .
Release button
The release button on the selector lever pre
vents the leve r from being accidentally shifted
into certa in positions. Depending on the direc
tion of the shift, the se lector lever locks at d if
ferent positions. The positions are highlighted in the illustration
c!> fig . 118.
Driving the automatic transmission
Fig. 119 Shift gate on the c ente r conso le: se lector le v
er with release button
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
l ector lever handle, se lect the desired se lec
tor lever position such as 0/5 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 using the brak
ing pedal, for example at traffic lights .
.,. Do not press the accelerator pedal when do
ing this .
.,. To prevent the vehicle from rolling when you
start driving, set the parking brake when
stopping on steep inclines
c!> .&,.
Automatic Transmission 105
.,. The parking brake will release automatica lly
and the vehicle will start moving once you
press the acce lerator pedal.
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
Transmission: Car
may roll! Shift to park!
appears .
.,. Press and hold the brake pedal un til the ve-
hicle has come to a complete stop .
.,. App ly the parking b rake
c::> page 77, Parking.
.,. Select the P selector lever position c::> .&,.
Stopping on an incline
.,. Always
press the brake pedal to hold the ve
hicle in place and prevent it from "rol ling
back"
c::> .&, . Do not try to prevent the vehi
cle from "rolling back" when a gear is en
gaged by increasing the engine speed
c::>(D.
Starting on an incline
.,. Activate the parking brake.
.,. With the driving gear selected, press the ac
celerator pedal carefully. The parking brake
wi ll release automatically if your seat belt is
fast ened .
Under certain circumstances, such as driving
in the mountains, it may be useful to switch
temporarily to the manual shift program in or
der to adjust the gears to the driving condi
tions by hand
c::>page 107.
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
-
- The vehicle can also roll when the engine
is stopped .
- 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,

106 Automatic Tran sm iss ion
activate the parking brake and move the
selector lever to P.
- Power is sti ll transmitted to the whee ls
when the engine is running at idle. To
prevent the vehicle from "creeping", you
must keep your foot on the brake when
the engine is runn ing and the selector
lever is in D/S or R or "tiptronic" mode is
selected.
- Do not press the accelerator pedal when changing the selector lever pos ition
wh ile the vehicle is stat ionary and the
eng ine is running.
- Never shift into
R or P wh ile driving.
- Before driv ing down a steep slope, re-
duce your speed and shift into a lower
gear with "tip tronic".
- Do not ride the brakes or press the brake
peda l too often or too long when dr iving
down a hill. Constant braking causes the
brakes to ove rheat and s ubstant ially re
duces braking per formance, increases
braking distance or causes comp lete fail
ure of the brake system.
- To prevent the veh icle from rolling back
when stopping on inclines, a lways hold it
in place with the brake peda l o r parking
brake.
- Never hold the ve hicle on an incl ine with
a slipping clutch . The clutch opens auto
matically when it becomes too hot from
the overload. An indicator lamp
ml illu
minates and a dr iver message appears
¢ page 1O7when the clutch is overload
ed.
- If the engine must remain running, never
hav e any driv ing pos ition engaged when
c heck ing under the hood . M ake sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and
is locke d in P with the parking brake se t
¢page 211. Otherwise, any increase in
engine speed may set the vehicle in mo
t ion, eve n with the park ing brake ap
plied.
Qd) Note
- When stopping on an incline, do not try to hol d the vehicle in place by pressing the acce
lerator pedal while a d riving gear
is se lected. This can cause the transmis
sion to ove rheat and can damage it. Acti
vate the parking brake or press the brake peda l to prevent the vehicle from rolling.
- Allowing the vehicle to ro ll when the en
gine is stopped and the selector lever is
in N will damage the transmission be
cause it is not lubricated under those cir
cumstances .
(D Tips
For safety reasons, the parking brake is re
leased automatically only when t he driv
er's safety belt is engaged in the buckle.
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 selects
a gear that is suitable fo r the incline . H ill de
scent cont ro l tries to ma inta in the speed ach
ieved a t the time o f braking, with in phys ica l
and tec hni cal lim it a tions. If may st ill be nec
essary to ad just the speed with the brakes.
Hill descent contro l sw itches off once the de
cl in e leve ls o ut o r yo u press the a cce le rato r
peda l.
On vehicles with the cru ise cont ro l system*
~ page 79, hill descent control is also activat
ed whe n the speed is set.
A WARNING
-
Hill desce nt cont ro l cannot overcome
physical lim itations, so it may not be a ble
to maintain a constant speed unde r a ll
conditions. A lways be ready to apply the
brakes .

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Manual shift program
Using the manual shift program you can
manually select gears.
,
Ir_
Fig. 120 Ce nter console : sh ift ing the gears manually
Fig. 121 Stee rin g wheel : S hi ft paddles
Gear selection with selector lever
The t iptron ic mode can be selected eithe r with
the vehicle stationary or on the move.
• Push the selector lever to the right from
0/
S. An M appears in the instrument cluster
display as soon as the transmission has
shifted.
• To upshift, push the selector lever forward
to the plus posi tion 0
~ fig. 120.
• To downshift, push the lever to the minus
position
0 -
Gear selection with shift paddles
The shift paddles are activated when these
lector lever is in D/S or the tiptron ic manual
shift program.
• To upsh ift, touch the shift paddle on the
right 0~fig.121 .
• To downshift, touch the shift paddle on the
left
0 .
• If you do not press a shift paddle within a
short time while in the
0/5 posit ion, the
transmission will return to automatic mode .
Automatic Transmission 107
To keep shifting using the shift paddles,
move the selector lever to the right out of
the D/S pos ition.
When accelerating, the transmission does
not
automatically shift to the next gear shortly
before the maximum permitted engine RPM is
reached.
If you have se lected a lower gear than the cur
rent one, the automatic transmission will shift
down only when the engine will not be over
revved.
With kick-down , the transmission shifts into a
lower gear depending on speed and engine
RPM.
(D Tips
Tiptronic is inoperat ive when the transmis
sion is in the fa il-safe mode.
Kick-down
Kick-down enables maximum acceleration.
When you depress the accelerator peda l be
yond the resistance point, the automatic
transmission downshifts into a lower gear, de
pending on vehicle speed and engine speed .
The upshift into the next higher gear takes
place once th e maximum specified engine
speed is reached .
A WARNING
Please note that the drive wheels can spin
if kick-down is used on a smooth slippery
road - there is a risk of skidd ing.
Transmission malfunction
[!l Transmission : Press brake pedal and se
lect gear again
Press the brake pedal and select the desired
selector lever position again . You can then
continue driving.
[!l Transmission overheating: Please drive
conservatively

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-Failure to pay attention to the warning
light that come on, could lead to person
al injury.
Why safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for
people riding in vehicles .
Fig. 149 Unbelted occupants in a ve hicle heading for a
wall
Fig. 150 The vehicle cras hes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the
vehicle and the passengers possess energy
which varies w ith veh icle speed and body
weight . Engineers call this energy "kinetic en
ergy."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the
greater the vehicle's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash.
Vehicle speed is the most significant factor . If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to
50 km/h), the energy increases 4 t imes!
Because the passengers of this vehicle are not
using safety belts¢
fig. 149, they will keep
moving at the same speed the vehicle was
mov ing just before the crash, until something
stops them - here, the wall ¢
fig. 150.
Safety belts 131
The same principles apply to people sitting in
a vehicle that is involved in a frontal collision.
Even at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50
km/h), the forces acting on the body can
reach one ton (2,000 lbs, or 1,000 kg) or
more . At greater speeds, these forces are even
higher.
People who do not use safety belts are also
not attached to their vehicle . In a frontal colli
sion they will also keep moving forward at the
speed their vehicle was travelling just before
the crash . Of course, the laws of physics don't
just app ly to frontal collisions, they determine
what happens in all kinds of accidents and col
lisions.
What happens to occupants not wearing safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in
jured or killed. Always wear your safety belts!
Fig. 151 A driver not wea ring a safety be lt is vio lently
th rown forward
Fig. 152 A rear passenger not wearing a safety belt
w ill fly forward and strike the driver
Unbelted occupants are not able to resist the
tremendous forces of impact by holding tight
or bracing themselves. Without the benefit of
safety restraint systems, the unrestrained .,..

13 2 Safety belts
occupant will slam violently into the steering
wheel, instrument panel, windshield, or what
ever else is in the way
c::> fig. 151. This impact
with the vehicle interior has all the energy
t hey had just before the crash.
Never rely on a irbags 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 othe r passen
gers
~ fig. 152. 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. 153 Driver is co rr ect ly re strain ed in a sudd en brak
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
applied to the body in an accident, and help
prevent the uncontrolled movement tha t can
cause serious injuries . In addition, safety belts
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 ti me, 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
tal collision, safety belts can also substantial
ly reduce the r isk 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 airbags,
you still have to wear the safety belts provid
ed. Front airbags , for example, are 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 no t enough decelera tion
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!