
Child safety
body and the front of the passenger compart
ment, the airbag can inflate completely and pro
vide supplemental protection in certain frontal
collisions.
.,&. WARNING
Not using a booster seat, using the booster
seat improperly, incorrectly installing a boos
ter seat or using the vehicle safety belt im
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death in a collision or other emer
gency situation. To help reduce the risk of se
rious personal injury and/or death:
- The shoulder belt must lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as possible
and must lie flat and snug on the upper
body.
It must never lie across the throat or
neck. The lap belt must lie across the pelvis
and never across the stomach or abdomen .
Make sure the belt lies flat and snug. Pull on
the belt to tighten if necessary .
- Failure to properly route safety belts over a
child's body will cause severe injuries in an
accident or other emergency situation
~ page 143.
-The rear side of the child safety seat should
be positioned as close as possible to the
backrest on the vehicle seat . Adjust or re
move the rear seat head restraint if it is dif
ficult to install the child seat with the head
restraint in place
~page 67. Install the
head restraint again immediately once the
child seat is removed. Driving without head
restraints or with head restraints that are
not properly adjusted increases the risk of
serious or fatal neck injury dramatically.
- Children on the front seat of any car, even
with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in
jured or even killed when an airbag inflates.
- Never let a child stand or kneel on any seat, for example the front seat.
- Never let a child ride in the cargo area of
your vehicle.
- Always remember that a child leaning for
ward, sitting sideways or out of position in
any way during an accident can be struck by
a deploying airbag . This will result in serious
personal injury or death.
180
-If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of exceptional
circumstances the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light must come on and stay on, when
ever the ignition is switched on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, perform the
checks described
~ page 161, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag System .
-Take the child restraint off the front passen
ger seat and install it properly at one of the rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
~ page 143, Safety belts,
~page 151, Airbag system
and
~ page 171, Important information.
Securing child seats
' Securing a child safety seat using a safety
I _l:>elt
Safety belts for the rear seats and the front pas
senger can be locked with the convertible locking
retractor to properly secure child safety seats.
The safety belts emergency locking retractors for
the rear seats safety belts and for the front pas
senger's seat safety belt have a convertible lock
ing retractor for child restraints. The safety belt
must be locked so that belt webbing cannot un
reel. The retractor can be activated to lock the
safety belt and prevent the safety belt webbing
from loosening up during normal driving . A child
safety seat can only be properly installed when
the safety belt is locked so that the child and
child safety seat will stay in place .
Always remember : Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always ride in the back seat properly re -
strained for their age and size . ..,.

,....,
N
co
er::
co
,....,
Improperly installed child safety seats in
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision .
- Always make sure that the safety belt re
tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat . An unlocked safety belt retrac
tor cannot hold the child safety seat in place during no rma l driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly around d uring
a sudden stop or in a collision .
- Always ma ke sure that the rear seat bac k
rest to wh ich the center rea r safety be lt is
attached is secure ly latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used to se
cure a ch ild rest raint.
- If the backrest is not securely latched, the
child and the child restraint will be thrown
forward together with the backrest and will
strike parts of the vehicle interior. The ch ild
can be seriously injured or killed.
- Never install rear-facing child safety seats or infant carriers on the front passenger
seat. A child will be serious ly injured and
can be killed when the passenger airbag in
flates .
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the ch ild safety seat and ch ild
against the backrest, center armrest, door
o r roof.
- Always install rear-faci ng child safety seats
o r infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Forward-fac ing ch ild safety seats or infant
c a rriers ins talled on the front passenge r's
seat may inte rfe re with t he deployment of
the a irbag and cause serious injury to the
child.
- It is s afe r to ins tall a forward-fac ing ch ild
sa fety seat on the rear seat.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS when
ever using a child res trained in a veh icle is
being used
r:o page 171. Spec ia l precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
¢ page 152, Child
Ch ild safety
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
A WARNING
-A lways take special precautions if you must
i nstall a forward or rearward-facing child re
stra int on the front passenger's seat in excep
tional s ituations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-fac ing
child restraint is installed on the front pas
senger seat, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light must come on and stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
- I f the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, perform the
checks desc ribed
r:o page 161, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag System.
- T ake the child restra int off t he front passen
ge r seat an d install it prope rly at one of the
rear seat positions i f the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on .
- Improper installat ion of child res traints can
reduce their effectiveness or even prevent
them f rom providing any protect ion .
- An improperly installed child restraint can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
serio usly injure or even kill the chi ld.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instr uctions provided with the child sa fety
seat o r carr ie r.
- Never p lace additiona l items on the seat
that can increase the total weight registered
by the weight-sensing mat and can cause in
jury in a crash.
A WARNING
-Forward-facing child restra ints:
- Always make sure the forward- facing seat
has been des igned and certified by its man
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and side airbag .
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up, against or very near the instrument pan-
-
el. ~
181

Child safety
-Always move the passenger seat into its
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 restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on .
A WARNING
Rearward-facing child restraints:
-A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child
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 cir 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
weight-mat in the seat and register a heavi er weight in the Advanced Airbag System.
The heavier weight registered can make the
system work as though an adult were on the
seat and deploy the Advanced Airbag when
it must be suppressed causing serious or
even fatal injury to the child.
- Make sure that 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 rear-facing child safety seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Audi dealer .
182
· Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufacturer 's
instructions when installing a child restrain t in
your vehicle . To activate the convertible locking
retractor:
.. Place the child restraint on a seat, preferably
on the rear seat .
.. Slowly pull the belt
all the way out .
.. Route it around or through the child restraint
belt path
~ .& .
.. Push the child safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight.
.. Insert the belt tongue into the buckle 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 "clicking" noise as the belt
winds back into the inertia reel. Test the con
vertible locking retractor by pulling on the belt.
You should no longer be able to pull the belt
out of the retractor. The convertible locking re
tractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is facing
away from the child 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 child restraint or an improp
erly installed child restraint can cause serious
personal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re
tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt retrac
tor cannot hold the child safety seat in place
during normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a crash.

Child safety
Tether anchors and tether straps
Fig. 182 Tether anchors: attachm ent hook locatio ns be
hind the rear seatbacks
The tether anchors fo r the rear seating positions
are located on the backside of the rear seatbacks
~ fig. 182 .
A tether is a stra ight or V-shaped strap tha t at
taches the top part of a child restra int to speci al
anchorage points in the vehicle.
The purpose of the tether is to red uce the for
ward movement of the child restraint in a crash,
in order to help red uce the risk of head injury
that could be caused by strik ing the vehicle inte
rior.
Forward fac ing child restraints manufactured af
ter September 1, 1999, are required by U.S. fed
eral regulations to comply with new child head
movement performance requirements. These
new perfo rmance requirements make a tethe r
necessary on most new child safety seats.
A WARNING
Improper installation of ch ild restraints will
increase the r isk of injury and death in a
crash.
- Always follow the instructions provided by
the manufacturer of the child restra int you
intend to install i n your Audi .
- Improper use of child restra int anchors (in
clud ing tether anchors) can lead to inj ury in
a collision . The ancho rs are designed to
withs tand only those loads imposed by cor
rectly fitted child restra ints.
- Never mount two chi ld restraint systems on
one LATCH lower a nchor po int.
186
- 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 child restraint tether anchorages
to secure safety be lts or other kinds of occu
pant restraints.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or othe r
items to the LATCH lower anchorages or to
the tether anchors.
- If a tether or other strap is used to attach a
child restraint to the front passenger seat,
make sure that it is not so tight, that it
causes the weight-sensing mat to measu re
more weight than is actually on the seat.
- The heavier weight reg istered can make the
Advanced A irbag System wor k as though a n
adu lt were on the seat and deploy the Ad
vanced Ai rbag when it must be suppressed
causing ser ious o r even fatal injury to the
child .
-If you must install a rea rwa rd facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of excep tio nal circ ums tances a nd the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OF F light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rea r-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dea ler.

Child safet y
-If you must install a rearward facing ch ild
safety 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, immed iate ly install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seat ing pos ition and have the airbag system
inspec ted by your A udi dealer.
Additional information
Sources of information about child
restraints and their use
There are a number of so urces of addit io nal in
formation about child restra int selection, insta l
lation and use:
NHTSA advises that the best child safety seat is
the one that fits your ch ild and fits in you r vehi
cle, and that yo u will use co rrectly and consis
t ently.
Try before you buy!
U.S National Highw ay Traffic Safety Administra
tion
Tel.: 1-888-327-4236 (TTY : 1-800-424-9153)
http :/ /www.nhtsa .gov
National SAFE KIDS Campaign
Tel.: (202) 662-0600
http ://www.safek ids.org
Safety BeltSafe U.S.A
Tel.: (800) 745 -SAFE (English)
Tel.: (800) 747-SANO (Span ish)
http ://www.carseat.org
Transport Canada Information Centre
Tel.: 1-800-333-0371 or call 1 -613 -998 -8616 i f
you are in the Ottawa a rea
http ://www.tc.gc.ca/ eng/roadsafety/menu .htm
Audi Customer Relation s
Tel.: (800) 822-2834
188

Intelligent Technology
shared, please see your contract with the
wireless te lecommunications provider and the
"About Aud i connect" tab in your vehicle's
MMI*:
I MENU ! button > Audi connect > About
Audi connect .
Electronic Stabilization
Control (ESC)
Description
The Electroni c Stab ili z at ion Control (ESC) re infor
ces driver safety. It reduces the r isk of slipping
and improves driving stability. ESC detects crit i
cal s ituations suc h as the vehicle overstee ring
and understeering o r the wheels sp inning. The
ve hicl e is stab ilized by applying the b rakes o r re
ducing e ngine torque . Once t he ESC is acti ve , the
i n dicator light
m bli nks in the instrument cl us
ter.
The fo llow ing sys tems a re integrated in the ESC:
Anti-lock b rake system (ABS)
ABS preve nts the wheels from lock ing up when
b raking . The veh icle can sti ll be steered even dur
i n g ha rd brak ing . Apply steady press ure to the
b rake pedal. Do no t pump t he pedal. A pulsing in
the brake pedal indicates tha t the system i s help
i n g you to br ake the vehicle .
Brake assist system
The brake assist system can decrease brak ing dis
tance . It increases brak ing power when the d river
p resses the brake pedal q uic kl y in eme rgency si t
uations . You m ust press and hold t he b rake pedal
until the situa tion is over. In vehi cles w it h ad ap
tive cruise contro l* , the brake assist system is
mo re sensit ive if the distance detected to the ve
h icle ahead is too small.
Anti -slip regulation (ASR)
A SR re duces eng ine power when the drive w heels
begin to spin and adapts the force to the roa d
conditions. This makes it easie r to sta rt, acceler
ate and drive up hi lls.
190
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
The EDL brakes wheels that are spi nning and
transfers the drive power to the other w heels .
This function is not ava ilable at higher speeds.
I n ext reme cases , ED L automat ica lly swi tches off
to help keep the b rake on the bra ke d whee l from
overheating . EDL will sw itch on again automa ti
ca lly w hen conditions have returned to normal.
Steering recommendation
The ESC he lps to stabilize the vehicle by cha ng ing
t h e s teer ing torque .
On vehicles with dynam ic steering*, ESC helps
stab il ize the steer ing in crit ica l sit uat ions .
Selective wheel torque control
Selective wheel torque cont rol is used when d riv
i ng o n curves. The front whee l on the inside of
the curve or both wheels on the i nside of the
curve are braked selectively as needed . Th is al
l ows mo re prec ise driving in c urves . The applica
ble sys tem may not a ctivate w hen d riv in g in we t
o r snowy cond it ions.
_8. WARNING
- The ESC and i ts integ ra ted systems cannot
overcome the laws of physics . This is espe
cially important on slippery or wet roads. If
the systems begin act ing to stab ilize your
veh icle, you should immediately change
your speed to matc h the road and traffic
conditions. Do no t let the increased safe ty
provided by t hese systems tempt yo u to
t ake risks. Doing so will i ncreas e th e risk of
a loss of vehicle con trol, collisi on and se ri
ou s person al injur ies .
- Always a dap t your spee d to road , traffic and
weather condi tions. The risk of los ing con
t rol of the vehicle in cr eases w hen driving
t oo f ast, es pecially throu gh curves and on
slippe ry or wet roads, and when driving too
close to ve hicles up ahea d. The ESC and its
integ rated systems cannot always prevent
col lisions - there is still a risk of accidents!
- Always accelerate w ith special ca re on even,
smooth surfaces s uch as those that are wet
o r covered with ice and snow. The drive .,..

..... N
co ~ CX)
..... I.Cl U"I
.... I.Cl .....
wheels can spin even with these ass istance
systems that cannot always he lp to reduce
the risk of loss of vehicle control.
@ Tips
-ABS and AS R on ly work correctly when a ll
fo ur whee ls are e quipped w ith ide ntical
Switching on /off
Intelligent Technology
tires. Diff eren t tire s izes can lead to a red uc
tion i n engine po wer .
- You may hear noises when t he sy stems de
scribe d are workin g.
- Whe n in sta lling a facto ry-s up plied roo f ra ck
system o n the roof r ailing , the ESC wi ll
adapt itself to a different center of gravity .
ESC turns on automatically when you start the engine.
Fig . 18 5 Versio n A: Lowe r cente r conso le,~ OFF b utto n
The follow ing s ituations are except ions where it
may be usef ul to sw itch on offroad mode to allow
the wheels to spi n:
- Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Driv ing in deep snow or on loose ground
Offroad mode on
~ Q:)01_1 _ --.!'3.- -ft.
- Driving with snow chains
- Dr iving down hill wh ile braking on loose ground
- Dr iving on ro ugh te rra in when m uch of the car's
weight is lifted off the wheels (axle articula
tion)
Offroad mode off
Behavio r
The ESC and AS R stabilization f unctions Th
e fu ll sta bilization f unction of the ESC
a re limited
c:> &. .
Operation Press the 1.$ OFF I button.
Indicator II turns on.
lights
Driver mes- Stabilization
control (ESC): Offroad.
sages Wa rning! Restricted stability
A WARNING
- You should only sw itch o ffroad mode o n if
yo ur dr iv ing abilit ies a nd road cond it io ns
permit.
- The stabilization function is limited when offroa d mode is switched on. The dr iv ing
wheels co uld spi n and th e vehicle cou ld
swerve, es pec ially on s lick o r sli ppery roa d
s ur fac es. and ASR
is avai lab le again.
P ress t he
1.$ OFFI button aga in.
II turns off.
Stabilization control (ESC ): On
(D Tips
Offro ad mode ca nno t be switche d on whe n
adaptive c ruise co ntro l* is switched on.
191

Intelligent Technology
brake. This may cause the brakes to over
heat, premature wear and increased stop
ping distance.
- Under certain climatic and operating condi
tions such as passing through water, driving
in heavy rain or after washing the vehicle,
the effectiveness of the brakes can be re duced . In winter, ice can accumulate on the
brake pads, linings, discs and drums. Care
fully apply brakes for a test. Brakes will dry
and ice coatings will be cleaned off after a
few careful brake applications.
- Driving for an extended period of time on
salt-covered roads without using your
brakes can also affect braking efficiency.
Clean off accumulated salt coating from
brake discs and pads with a few carefu l
brake app lications .
-If you damage the front spoiler, or if you in
stall a different spoiler, be sure the air flow
to the front brakes is not obstructed. Other
wise the brake system could overheat reduc ing the effectiveness of the entire brake sys
tem .
- Failure of one brake circuit will impair the
braking capability resulting in an increased
stopping distance. Avoid driving the vehicle and have it towed to the nearest author ized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- Never let the vehicle roll to a stop with the
engine shut off.
- If the brake booster is not working, the
brake pedal must be pressed considerably
harder to make up for the lack of booster
assista nee.
Electromechanical power
assist, Dynamic steering
The electromechanical power assist helps the
driver when steering.
Power steering adapts electronically based on
the vehicle speed.
Indicator lights and messages
• Steering defective! Do not drive vehicle!
194 If
this indicator light turns on and stays on and
this message appears, the power steering may
have failed.
Stop the vehicle in a safe location as soon as pos
sible. Do
not continue driving . See your author
ized Audi dealer or other qualified repair facility
for ass istance .
'-r, ij Dynamic steering: System fault! You can
continue driving
If the indicator l ight turns on and the message
appears, the steering may be more difficult to
move or more sensitive than usual. The steering
may also be at an angle when driving straight.
Drive slowly to your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop to have the malfunct ion cor
rected.
1 :r- ij Dynamic steering: Initializing
Audi drive select* : if the indicator light blinks and
the driver message appears, the dynamic steer i ng* is reinitial ized. After start ing the engine, the
steering wheel will move slightly . Re-initial iza
tion might be necessary if the steering wheel was
moved hard to the left and right while the vehicle
was not moving. The display turns off if the initi
alization was successful.
(D Tips
- If the . or 1:r- ij in dicato r light only stays on
for a short time, you may continue driving.
- T he dynamic steering* stab ility systems
¢ page 190 are not available in the event of
a system malfunction.
- For additional information on dynamic
steering*
¢page 119.
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
ing on your driving style and the road conditions
at the time. See also
c> page 190. ..,.