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rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air
bag as possible before installing the for
ward-facing child restra int. The backrest
must be adjusted to an upright posit ion.
- Make sure that the
PA SSEN GER AI R BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
Rearwa rd-facing child restra ints:
- A ch ild in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat wi ll be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System .
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and chi ld
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
- Always be especially careful if you must in
stall a rearward facing child safety seat on
the front passenger seat in exceptional c ir
cumstances.
- A tight tether strap on a rearward-facing
child restraint attached to the front passen
ger seat can put too much pressure on the
we ight-mat in the seat and register a heavi
er we ight in the Advanced Airbag System.
The heavier we ight registered can make the
system work as though an adult were on the
seat and deploy the Advanced Airbag when
it m ust be suppressed c ausing serious or
even fatal injury to the child.
- Make sure tha t the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on .
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in
stall the rearward-facing child safety seat in
a rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer.
Ch ild safety
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint .
Always heed the ch ild safety seat manufactu rer 's
ins truct ions when installing a child restraint in
your vehicle . To activate the convertible locking
retractor:
.. Place the child restraint on a seat, prefer ably
on the rear seat .
.. Slowly pull the belt
all the w ay out .
.. Route it around or through the child restra int
be lt path
¢ & .
.. Push the ch ild safety sea t down with you r full
weigh t to ge t the safety belt really tight.
.. Insert the belt tong ue into the b uck le for that
seating position .
.. Guide the safety belt back into the retractor un
til the belt lies flat and snug on the child safety
seat .
.. You should hear a ''cl icking" noise as the belt
w inds back into the inertia reel. Test the con
vert ib le lock ing retractor by pull ing on the belt .
You shou ld no longer be able to pull the belt
out of the re tractor. The convertib le loc kin g re
t ractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is facing
away from the c hild restraint so that it can be
unbuckled quickly .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt is
properly tight and fastened so that the seat
cannot move forward or sideways more than
one inch (2 .5 cm) .
A WARNING
Using the wrong ch ild rest raint o r an improp
e rly inst alled child restra int can cause se rio us
personal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety be lt re
tr actor is locked when installing a child
safety seat . An un locked safety be lt retrac
tor cannot hold the ch ild safety seat in p lace
during normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat fi rm ly in
p lace even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly a round during
a sudden stop or in a crash. .,.
169
Child safety
_& WARNING
Improper installation of child restraints will
increase the risk of injury and death in a
crash.
-Always follow the instructions provided by
the manufacturer of the child restraint you intend to install in your Audi.
- Improper use of child restra int anchors (in
clud ing tether anchors) can lead to injury in
a collision. The anchors are designed to
withstand only those loads imposed by cor rectly fitted child restraints.
- Never mount two chi ld restraint systems on
one LATCH lower anchor po int.
- Never attach two child restraint systems to
one tether strap or tether anchorage.
- Never attach a tether strap to a tie-down
hook in the luggage compartment.
- Never use ch ild restraint tether anchorages
to secure safety belts or other kinds of occu
pant restra ints.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other
items to the LATCH lower anchorages or to
the tether ancho rs.
- If a tether or other strap is used to attach a
child res traint to the front passenger seat,
make sure that it is not so tight, that it
ca uses the we ight-sens ing mat to measure
more weight than is ac tually on the seat.
- T he heav ier we igh t registered can make the
Advanced Airbag System work as though an adult were on the seat and dep loy the Ad
vanced Airbag when it must be suppressed
ca using serious or even fatal injury to the
child.
- If you must install a rearward facing chi ld
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PA SSEN GE R AIR BA G OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iate ly install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seat ing posit ion and have the airbag system
inspec ted by your a uthorized Aud i dea ler.
174
.
Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
Fig. 171 Sedan Tether strap: prope r routing and mount ing
Fig. 172 allroad Tether strap: proper routing and mount
ing
Installing the tether st rap
... Release or deploy the tether strap on the chi ld
restraint according to the child restraint manu
facturer's instructions.
.., Guide the upper tether strap
under the rear
head restraint<=>
fig. 171 or<=> fig. 172 (raise
the head restraint if necessary).
.., Sedan: Tilt the recess flap up to expose the an
chor bracket.
.., Sedan: Attach the tethe r st rap anchorage hook
into the open ing of the tethe r anchorage.
... allroad: Slide the tether strap hook over the an
chor bracket.
... Pull on the tether strap hook so that the spring
catch of the hook engages.
.., Tighten the tether strap firm ly following the
child restra int manufacturer's instructions.
Relea sing the tether strap
... Loosen the tension following the child restraint
manufact urer's instructions .
... Depress the spr ing catch on the hook and re
lease it from the anchorage.
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If you leave the child restraint with the tether
strap firmly installed for several days, this
could leave a mark on the upholstery on the
seat cushion and backrest in the area where
the tether strap was installed . The upholstery
would also be permanently stretched around
the tether strap . This applies especially to
leather seats .
Using tether straps on rearward-facing
child restraints
Currently, few rearward -facing child restraint
systems come with a tether. P lease read and
heed the child rest raint system manufacturer's
instruc tions care fully to de termine how to prop
erly install the tether.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat installed on the front passenge r seat w ill be
ser ious ly injured and can be killed if the front
airbag infla tes · even w ith an Advanced A irbag
System.
- T he inflating a irbag wi ll hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and chi ld
against the backrest, center armrest, or
door .
- A tight tether or other strap on a rearward
facing child restra int attached to the front
passenger seat can put too much pressure
on the weight-mat in the seat and register a heavier weight in the Advanced Airbag Sys
tem . The heav ier weight registered can
make the system wo rk as though an adult
we re o n the seat a nd deploy the Advanced
Airbag when it must be supp ressed caus ing
serious o r even fatal in jury to the c hild.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
sa fety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptiona l circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediate ly install
the rearward-facing child safety seat in a rear seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
Ch ild safety
system inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer .
Additional information
Sources of information about child
restraints and their use
There are a number of sources o f additional in
formation about child restraint se lection, instal
lation and use :
N HT SA advises tha t the best ch ild safety seat is
the one that fits your child and fits in your vehi
cle, and that you wi ll us e correct ly and consis
tent ly.
T ry before you buy!
U.S National H igh way Traffic Safety Administra
tion
T el. : 1-888 -327-4236 ( TTY: 1-800 -424-9153)
www.nhtsa .gov
Nati onal SAFE KIDS Campaign
Tel. : (202) 66 2-0600
www .safekids.org
Saf ety BeltSaf e U.S .A
T el. : (800) 745-SAFE (English)
T el. : (800) 747-SANO (Spanish)
www .carseat.org
Tran sport C anada Information Centr e
Tel. : 1-800-333-0371 o r ca ll 1-613-998-86 16 if
you are in the Ottawa area
http://www.tc.gc.ca/ eng/ roadsafety/men u. htm
Audi Cu stom er Re lations
T el. : (800) 822-2834
175
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wireless telecommunications provider and the
"About Aud i connect" tab in your vehicle's
MMI*:
IMENU I button> Audi connect > About
Audi conn ect.
Electronic Stabilization
Control (ESC)
Description
ESC helps to improve road ho ld ing and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of skid
d ing and loss of veh icle control. It works only
when the engine is runn ing . E SC detects certain
d ifficult dr iving sit uat ions, including when t he
ve hicl e is begin ning to spin (yaw) out of co ntro l
a nd helps you to ge t the veh icle back under con
tro l by se lective ly bra king the wheels, and/or re
d ucing engine powe r and provid ing steering as
sistance to help hold the vehicle on the dr iver's
intended course. The indicator light
GJ in the in
strument cluster blinks when ESC is taking action
to help you co ntro l the vehicle.
ESC has limitations. It is important to remember
that ESC cannot overcome the laws of physics. It
will not a lways be able to help out under all con
d itions you may come up aga inst. For example,
ESC may not always be able to help you master
situations where there is a sudde n change in the
coeff icient of friction of the road surface. When
there is a section of dry road that is sudde nly cov
e red with wate r, slush o r snow, ESC cannot pe r
form the same way i t wo uld on the dry s urface . If
the vehicle hydrop lanes (rides on a cushion of wa
ter i nstead of t he road su rface), ESC wi ll not be
ab le to he lp you steer the ve hicle because contact
with the pavement has been interrupted and the
ve hicle cannot be b raked or steered. Dur ing fast
cornering, pa rticula rly on w inding roads, ESC
cannot always deal as effect ively w it h difficult
d riving si tuations tha n at lowe r speeds. When
tow ing a t raile r, ESC is no t able to help you re
g ai n con trol as it would if you we re not towing a
tra iler .
A lways adjust yo ur speed and driving sty le to
road, traffic and weathe r co nd itions. ESC canno t
override the vehicle's physical lim its, increase the
Intellig ent Technology
available t ract ion, or keep a vehicle on the road if
road depart ure is a resu lt of driver inattention .
Instead, ESC improves the possib ility o f keeping
the vehicle under contro l and on the road d uring
extreme maneuvers by us ing the driver's steer ing
i nputs to help keep the veh icle go ing in the in
tended direction.
If you are traveling at a speed
that causes you to run off the road before ESC
c an p rovide any assistan ce, you may not exper i
en ce the benefi ts of ESC.
ESC is swi tched o n all the time . In certa in s itua
t ions when you need less tract ion, you can sw itch
off AS R by press ing the button
11) c:> page 178,
fig. 173 o r c:> page 178, fig . 174. Be s ure to
swi tch ASR on again w hen you no longe r need
l ess trac tion.
T he following systems are integ ra ted in the ESC:
Anti-lock brak ing system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up w hen
braking. The vehicle can still be steered even d ur
i ng hard braking. Apply steady p ressure to the
brake pedal. Do not pump the peda l. A p uls ing in
t h e br ake peda l indicates that the system is help
i ng yo u to b rake the vehi cle.
Brake assist system
T he brake assist system can decrease braking dis
tance . It increases b raking powe r when the dr iver
presses the b rake peda l quickly in emergency sit
u at io ns. You mus t press and ho ld the br ake pedal
u nt il t he s ituat ion is ove r. In vehicles wi th adap
tive cru ise 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 reduces engine powe r whe n the dr ive whee ls
begi n to spin and adapts the fo rce to the road
co ndit ions . Thi s makes it easier to start, acce ler
ate and d rive up hills .
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
T he ED L brakes wheels t hat are spi nning and
transfe rs the dr ive power to the o ther dr ive
whee l or wheels if the vehicle is equ ip p ed with
all -wheel drive*. This function is not ava ilab le at
higher speeds. .,.
177
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may be useful to switch on sport mode (Sedan)
or offroad mode (allroad) to allow the wheels to
spin:
- Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Driving i n deep snow or on loose gro und
Sedan : ESC levels
Intellig ent Technology
- Driving with snow chains
- allroad: Dr iv ing o n ro ugh te rra in when much of
the car's weight is lifted off the whee ls (axle ar
tic ulation)
- allroad: Dr iv ing down hill while brak ing on loose
gro und
Sport mode on ESC/ASR off Sport mode off or
ESC/ASRon
Behavi or
The ESC and ASR stabili za- The stabilization funct io n is The f ull stabilization f unc -
t ion f unct ions are lim ited not avai lab le
~ &. . ESC and tion of the ESC and ASR is
~ &. . ASR are switched off . avai
lab le aga in.
Op eration Press the!.$ OFFI button Press and hold the!.$ OFFI Press the!.$ OFFI button
briefly . button longer than 3 sec- aga in .
o nds.
Ind icato r II turns on. fl and It'll•)~~ turn on. II turns off or II and
lights It'll•)~~ turn off.
D river me s-Stabilization contr ol (ES C): Stabilization cont rol (ESC ): S tabilization control
s age s Sport. Warning! Re stricted off. W arning! Restricted (ESC
): On
s tability stabilit y
all road: ESC levels
Offroad mode on Offroad mode off
Behavio r
The ESC and ASR stabilization f unctions The fu ll stabiliza tion f unction of the ESC
are limited
¢ & .
Operation Press the I.$ OFF I button .
In d icato r fl turns on .
light s
Driv er me s- Stabi lization control (E SC): Offro ad .
sage s Warning! Re stri cted stabili ty
It is only possible to turn off the ASR up to 30
mph (50 km/h) for vehicles w it h front wheel
drive. At about 45 mph (70 km/h) it automatical
l y turns on again. It is possible to turn off the
ASR at any speed for vehicles with all whee l
drive.
A WARNING
You should only switch sport mode/offroad mode on or switch ESC/ ASR off if your dr iv ing
abilities and road conditions perm it .
- The stabilization function is limited when
sport mode/offroad mode is switched on .
The driving wheels could sp in and the veh i-
-
and ASR is avai lable again.
Press the I.$ OF FI button aga in .
II turns off.
Stabilizat ion control (ESC ): On
cle could swerve, espe cially on s lick o r slip
pery road surfaces.
- Sed an: There is no veh icle stabili zation
when ESC/ASR are switched off .
(D Tips
ESC/ASR cannot be switched off or sport
mode/offroad mode cannot be swi tched on
when cru ise cont rol or adapt ive cr uise con
tro l* is switched on.
179
Intelligent Technology
Braking
What affects braking efficiency?
New brake pads
During the firs t 25 0 miles (400 km), new b rake
pads do not possess their full braking effect , they
have to be "broken i n" first ¢& . You can com
pensate for this slight ly reduced braking power
by push ing harder on the brake pedal. Avoid
heavy braking loads during the break-in period .
Operating conditions and driving habits
The brakes on today's automobiles a re still sub
ject to wear, depend ing largely on ope rating con
ditions and driving habits¢& . On vehicles that
are either dr iven most ly in stop-and-go city traf
f ic or are driven hard, the brake pads should be
checked by you r authorized Aud i dea ler more of
ten than spec ified in the
Warranty & Mainte
nance booklet .
Failu re to have your brake pads
i n spected c an resu lt in reduced bra ke pe rform
ance.
O n steep slopes, you sho uld use the braking ef
fect of the eng ine . This way, you prevent unnec
es sary wear on t he b rake system. If yo u m ust use
your b rake s, d o not hold the brakes down cont in
uously. Pum p th e b rakes at intervals.
Operating noise
Noises may occur when brak ing depend ing on the
speed, b raking force and outs ide cond it ions such
as tempe ra tu re and humidi ty.
Effect of water and road salt
In certain s ituations, for example after driving
through water, in heavy ra in, afte r ove rnig ht con
densat ion or after washing your car, the b raking
effect can be reduced by mo isture or ice on the
b rake rotors and b rake pads . T he brakes must be
d ried first w ith a few careful b rake a pplica tions.
At highe r speeds and with t he windsh ield wipers
tur ned on, the br ake pads press aga inst the brake
rotors for a sho rt amoun t of time. This occur s at
regular intervals w it h out t he dr iver noticing and
p rov ides for better bra ke response time under
wet conditions.
180
The effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced
when the vehicle is driven on a salt-covered road
and t he b rakes are not used . Likewise, yo u clean
off accum ulated salt coating from brake discs
and pads with a few caut ious app lications of the
brake ¢& .
Corrosi on
There may be a tendency fo r dirt to build up on
the b rake pads and corrosion to form on the discs
i f the car is not driven regu larly or only for short
trips with little use of the brakes .
If the bra kes are not used frequent ly, or if corro
s ion has formed on the discs, it is advisable to
clean off the pads and discs by braking firmly a
few times from a moderately high speed ¢ &.
Faults in th e brake system
If you shou ld notice a sudden increase in brake
pedal travel , then one of t he two brake circu its
may have failed¢& .
Low brake fluid level
Malfu nctions can occu r in the brake system if the
br ake fluid level is too low . The brake fluid leve l
is mo nitored electronica lly .
Brake booster
The bra ke booster i ncreases the press ure t hat
yo u ge nera te with the brake ped al.
It works only
whe n the eng ine is ru nning .¢ &
Brake lining wear status
Brake lining wea r may be c hecked by visua l in
spection o f the condition of the brake pads
t hr ough t he openings in t he wheel. If necessary,
t h e wheel m ay be removed fo r thi s inspe ction
¢ page 240, Replacing wheel s.
_& WARNING
- New brake pads don't have the be st sto p
ping power and m ust be " broken-in" du ring
the initial 250 miles (400 kilometers). You
can compensate for this by p ressing the
brake pedal more firmly. This also app lies
later w hen new pads are installed.
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the p urpose of clean ing the brake system
only if road conditions permit. Other road
users must not be put at risk - you may
cause an accident!
- Before descend ing a steep grade, reduce
speed and shift transm iss io n into a lower
gear or lowe r d riv ing range. Do not ride the
bra kes or hold the pedal down too long or
t oo often. This could ca use the bra kes to get
hot an d diminish brak ing efficiency.
- Do not "r ide t he b rakes" by resting your foot
on the pe dal when yo u do not inten d to
br ak e. This may cause the br akes to over
heat, p remat ure wea r and increased stop
ping distance.
- Under certa in climatic and operating condi
tions such as passing thro ugh water, driving
in heavy ra in or after washing the vehicle,
the effectiveness of the brakes can be re
duced. In w inte r, ice can acc umulate on the
brake pads, linings, discs and drums. Care
fully apply brakes for a test. Brakes will dry and ice coatings w ill be cleaned off after a
few careful b rake applica tions.
- Driv ing for an ex tended period of time on
salt-covered roads witho ut using your
bra kes can also affe ct bra king efficie ncy .
C le an off a ccumula ted s alt co ating from
bra ke discs and pads with a few caref ul
bra ke app lications.
- If you dam age the fro nt sp oiler, or if yo u in
st all a diff erent spoi le r, be sure the ai r flow
to the front brakes is not obstr ucte d. Othe r
wise the bra ke system could overheat reduc
ing the e ffectiveness of the entire b rake sys
tem.
- Failure of one brake circuit will impair the
brak ing capability resulting in an increased
stopp ing distance. Avoid driving the vehicle
and have it towed to the nearest authorized
Audi dealer or qualif ied workshop.
- Never let the veh icle roll to a stop w ith the
engi ne shut off .
-If the brake booster is not working, the
bra ke pedal m ust be pressed conside rably
harder to make up for the lac k of booster
assista nee .
Intellig ent Technology
Electro-mechanical
power assist, dynamic
steering
The ele ctro-mechanical power a ssist helps the
driver when steering .
P ower s teer ing adapts electronically based on
t h e veh icle spee d.
Indicator lights and messages
• Steering defective! Do not drive vehicle!
If this indicator light turns on and stays on and
t hi s message appears, the power steering may
have failed.
Do
not continue driving. See your author ized
Audi dealer or a qualified repair facility for assis
tance.
' :r, y Dynamic steering: System fault! You can
continue d riving
If the indic ator l igh t turns on and the message
appe ars, the steering may be more diffic ult to
move o r more sensitive than usu a l. T he steering
whee l may a lso be at an angle w hen d riving
straight .
Drive slowly to you r autho rized Audi dea le r or
qualified wo rks hop to have the malfunction cor
rected .
,T u Dynamic steering: initializing
If this drive r message appea rs and t he indicator
li ght is flashing on t he instrument pane l, dynam
ic s teer ing* is being re ini tialized. After s tarting
t h e engine, t he steer ing w heel w ill move sligh tly.
Re- ini tializa tion might be necessary if the s teer
ing wheel was moved hard to the left a nd right
whi le the vehicle was not moving . The display
goes out as soon as initialization is comp lete.
A WARNING ~
Have the dynam ic steeri ng* system malfunc -
tion repaired as soon as poss ible by an au
thor ized Audi dealer or qualified workshop -
r isk of acc ident!
181
Intelligent Technology
(D Tips
- If the . or
,~ n ind icator light only stays on
fo r a short time, you may continue driving.
- The dynamic steering* stability systems are
not available in the event of a system mal
funct ion.
- Fo r additional information on dynamic
steering*, refer to¢
page 111 .
Driving with your
quattro
Applies to veh icles: w ith all-wheel drive
With all-wheel drive, all four wheels are driven.
General information
With all-whee l drive, power is distributed to all
four wheels . This happens automatically depend
ing on your dr iv ing style and the road condit ions
at the time . See also ¢
page 177 .
A center differentia l distrib utes the driv ing power
variably to the front and rear axle. It works to gether with selective wheel torque control, which
activates when driving through curves
¢
page 178 . With the sport differentia l*, power
d istr ibut io n to the rear wheels is variable and can
be adj usted w ith d rive select¢
page 111.
The all -wheel drive concept is designed for high
engine power . Your veh icle is exceptionally pow
erful and has excellent driving characterist ics
both under normal dr iv ing condit io ns and on
snow and ice. Always read and fo llow safety pre
cautions ¢
A.
Winter tires
When d rivi ng in the winter, your vehicle with all
wheel drive has an advantage, eve n with regular
tires. In winter road conditions it may be adv isa
b le to mount w inte r ti res (or all-season tires) fo r
improved driveability and braking: these tires
must be mounted on all four wheels . See a lso
¢ page 232, Winter tires.
Tire chains
Where ti re chains are mandatory on certain
roads, this norma lly also applies to vehicles w ith
all -whee l drive ¢
page 233, Snow chains .
182
Replacing wheels /tires
Vehicles with all-wheel d rive must a lways have
tires of the same size. Also avoid t ires with differ
ent tread depths. For detai ls see page
¢ page 224, New tires or wheels .
Off-Road driving?
You r A udi does not have eno ugh ground clear
an ce to be used as an off-road vehicle.
It is there
fore best to avoid ro ugh tracks and uneven ter
rain as much as possib le. Also refer to
¢ page 185.
A WARNING
A lways adjust your dr iving to road and traffic
conditions . Do not let the extra safety afford
ed by all-whee l drive tempt you into taking
extra risks .
- Although the all-wheel drive is very effec
tive, always remember that braking capacity
is limited by ti re tract ion. You s hou ld there
fore not drive at excessive speeds on icy or
slippe ry road s urfaces.
- On wet road surfaces, be careful not to dr ive
too fast because the front wheels could be
gi n to slide on top of the water (aquaplan
ing) . If th is should occur, you will have no
warning from a s udden increase in engine
speed as with a front-wheel drive vehicle.
Always drive at speeds which are suited to
the road conditions -risk of crash .
Energy management
Starting ability is optimized
Energy management controls the distribution of
electrical energy and thus optimizes the availa
bility of electrical energy for starting the engine .
If a vehicle with a conventional energy system is
not driven for a long period of time, the batte ry is
discharged by id ling current consumers (e.g . im
mobilizer). In ce rtain circumstances it can resu lt
i n the re being insufficient energy avai lab le to
start the engine .
Intelligent energy management in yo ur vehicle
hand les t he d istribution of elect rical energy. .,.