
Child safety
exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system inspected immediately by your Audi dealer .
A WARNING
-Forward-facing child seats installed on the
front passenger seat may interfere with the deployment of the airbag and cause serious
personal injury to the child.
- If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child's safety
and well-being require the following special
precautions to be taken:
- Always make sure that the forward-facing seat has been designed and certified by its
manufacturer for use on a front passenger
seat with a front and side airbag.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child seat
or infant carrier.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instructions require the top tether strap to be used.
- Never put the forward-facing child re
straint up against or very near the instru
ment panel.
-Always set the safety belt upper anchor
age to the adjustment position that per
mits proper installation in accordance
with the child restraint manufacturer's in
structions.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing the
child restraint. The backrest must be ad
justed to an upright position .
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range .
160
-Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD player, electronic games de
vice, power inverter or seat heater for
child seats) . These may influence the elec
trical capacitance measured by the capaci
tive passenger detection system and can
also fly around in an accident and cause
serious personal injury.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heat
er for child seats) on the front passenger
seat if the device is connected to the 12-
volt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger seat, never install any child restraint sys
tem on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or oth
er liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion.
- Always 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, immediate ly install the forward-facing child seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer.
- Always buckle the child seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child seat can fly around during a
sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restraint in a vehi
cle
¢ page 12 7, Safety belts, ¢ page 135,
Airbag system
and ¢ page 159, Impor
tant information.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were in
stalled in a vehicle during a crash. Damage to
a child restraint that is not visible could cause
it to fail in another collision situation.

Child safety
-Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its manu
facturer for use on a front seat w ith a
passenger front and side airbag .
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer 's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat o r carrier .
- Always move the front passenger seat into
the rearmost position of the passenger
seat's fore a nd aft adjustment range, and
as far away from the airbag as possible be
fore insta lling the child restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenge r's seat from be ing
moved to the rearmost posit ion in its fore
and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure that the back rest is in
the upr ight position .
- Never place or use any e lectr ica l device
(such as a laptop , CD player , e lectron ic
g ames device, power inve rter or sea t heat
er for ch ild seats) on the front passenger
seat if the device is connected to the 12 -
volt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any chi ld restraint sys
tem on th is seat .
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or oth
er liqu ids on the front passenger seat
cushion .
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a laptop, CD p layer, electron ic games de
vice, power inverter or seat heater for
child seats). These may influence the elec
trical capacitance measured by the capaci tive passenge r detection system and can
a lso fly around in an accident and cause
serio us personal in jury.
- Always bu ckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a child is not s itting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a collisio n.
- Always re ad a nd heed all WARN INGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
¢ page 12 7, Safety belts,
164
c::> page 135 , Airbag system and
c::> page 159 , Child safety .
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on whenever a ch ild re
stra int is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ign ition is switched on .
- Take the child restra int off the front passen
ge r seat and install it prope rly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does no t stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
author ized Audi dealer immed iate ly.
Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
~ - --,..---.-- --,,. N
Fig. 16 4 Schem ati c overv iew: keep unused safety belts
away from child re n in c hild safety seats. @· ou te r rear
s afety belt
"' ~
If a child safety seat is used on the rear bench,
especially with LATCH universal lower anchorag
es, the unused safety belts
must be sec ured so
that the c hild in the child rest raint cannot reach
them
c::> _&. .
- Guide the safety belt webbing @ behind the
head rest raint of the seat where the child re
st raint is installed
c::> fig . 164. When doing so,
do not engage the convert ib le loc king re trac·
to r! Yo u should not he ar a "cl icking " so und
when winding up the safety bel t.
- Let the belt retracto r wind up the safety belt
webbing.

Child safety
seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your Audi dealer.
- Never place
or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat
if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restraint system on
this seat .
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenge r seat cushion .
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD player, electronic games dev ice,
power inverter or seat heater for child
seats). These may influence the e lectr ical
capacitance measured by the capacitive pas
senger detection system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause serious per
sonal in jury .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
c:;, page 12 7, Safety belts,
c:;, page 135 , Airbag system
and
c:;, page 159, Important information.
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats can
help protect toddlers and children over age one
who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9 and 18 kg)
in a crash.
Fig. 166 Schemat ic ov erv iew : in stallat ion of the at tac h
m ents app licabl e to a LATCH seat
166
Fig. 167 Schem at ic ove rv iew: installat ion of t he seat usin g
t he vehicle's sa fety bel t system
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
c:;, page 169 or install the seat using the LATCH
attachments .
.,. Push the child safety sea t down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2 .5 cm)
¢ page 169.
.,. If the child safety seat is equipped with a tether
strap, attach it to the tether anchors
c:;, page 175.
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:;, page 164.
A toddler o r child is usually too large for an in
fant restraint if it is more than one year old and
weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg).
Toddlers and children who are older than one
year up to about 4 years old and weigh more than
20 lbs (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must always be
properly restrained in a child safety seat certified
for their size and we ight
c:;, fig . 166 and
¢ fig. 167.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the front
seat a potent ially dangerous place for a child to
ride . The front seat is not the safest place for a
ch ild in a forward-fac ing ch ild safety seat .
It is a
very dangerous place for an infant or a larger
child in a rearward-facing seat .
& WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
chi ld safety seat or improperly insta lling a ..,.

child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death in a collision or oth
er emergency situation.
- Children on the front seat of any car, even
with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in
jured or even killed when an airbag inflates. A child 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.
- T he inflating a irbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the ch ild safety seat and chi ld
against the backrest, center arm rest, door
or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptiona l circumstances and the
PA SSENGER 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
seating pos it ion and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
- The rear side of the child safety seat should
be pos it ioned as close as poss ible to the
backrest on the vehicle seat.
- For adjustable head restraints : adjust or re
move the rear seat head restraint if it is d if
ficult to install the child seat with the head
restra int in place ¢
page 56. Install the
head restraint again immediately once the
child seat is removed. Driving w ithout head
restraints or with head restraints that are
not proper ly adjusted increases the risk of
serious or fatal neck injury dramatically.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used ¢
page 12 7, Safety belts,
¢ page 135, Airbag system and
¢ page 159, Important information.
A WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restra int on the
Ch ild safety
front passenger's seat, the ch ild's safety and
well-being requ ire that the following special
precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-fac ing seat has been
des igned and certified by its manufacturer
for use on a front seat with a passenger
front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's instruc
tions provided with the child safety seat or infant carrie r.
- Always move the front passenger seat into
the rearmost pos ition of the passenger
seat's fore and aft adjustment range, and as
fa r away from the airbag as possib le befo re
installing the ch ild rest raint.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents the
front passenger's seat from being moved to the rea rmost pos ition in its fore and aft ad
justment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an up
right position.
- Never p lace or use any electr ica l device
(such as a lap top, CD player, e lectron ic
g ames device, power inve rter or sea t heater
for child sea ts) on the front passenger seat
if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restra int system on
this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cush ion.
- Never p lace objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD p laye r, electronic games device,
power inverter or seat heater for ch ild
seats). These may influence the electrical
capacitance measu red by the capacitive pas
senger detect ion system and can also fly
aro und in an accident an d cause se rious per
sonal injury.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and st ays on a ll the time
wheneve r the ignit ion is swit ched on.
- I f the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immedia tely in
stall the forward-fac ing ch ild seat at a
167

Child safety
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The conver tible locking re trac tor for child re
s train ts will be deactivated automatically when
the belt is wound all the way bock into the re
tractor .
.,. Press the red button on the safety belt buckle.
The belt tongue w ill pop out of the buckle .
.,. Gu ide the safety belt all the way back into its
stowed pos ition .
Always let the safety belt retract completely into its stowed position . The safety belt can now be
used as an ordinary safety be lt without the con
ve rt ible locking retractor for child restraints .
If the convert ible lock ing retractor should be ac
tivated inadvertently, the safety belt must be un
fastened and guided completely back into its
stowed position to deact ivate this feature. If the
convertible lock ing re tractor is not deactivated,
the safety belt w ill gradually become tighte r and
uncomfortable to wea r.
A 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
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 159. Special precaut ions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 136, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
172
LATCH system (Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children)
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a s impler and more practicab le way to
attach the ch ild rest raint on the vehicle seat,
Federal regulations require special lower ancho
rages in vehicles and devices on new ch ild re
straints to attach to the vehicle anchorages .
In the United States, the combination of the
tether anchorages and the lower anchorages is
now generally called the LATCH system for
" Lower Anchorages and Tethers for Children". In
Canada, the terms "top tether" with "lower uni
versa l anchorages" (or "lower universal anchor
age bars") are used to describe the system .
In other countries the term "ISOFIX" is used to
describe the lower anchorages.
Forward-facing child restraints manufactured af
te r September 1, 1999, are required by U.S. fed
eral regu lations to comply with new child head
movement performance requirements . These
new performance requ irements make a tether
necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a chi ld rest raint that requires a top
tether without one can seriously impair the per
formance of the child restraint and its ability to
protect the child in a collision. Installing a child
restraint that requires a top tether without the
top tether may be a violation of state law .
Child restraint manufacturers offer LA TCH lower
anchorages on their child seats with hook-on or push-on connectors attached to adjustable
straps .
In addition to the LA TCH lower anchorages, these
child restraint systems usually require the use of
tether straps to help keep the child restraint
firmly in place .
A WARNING
Improper installation of child restra ints w ill
increase the risk of injury and death in a
crash.

Intelligent Technology
-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 careful
brake applications .
- 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 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
assistance.
Electromechanical
steering, dynamic
steering
The electromechanical steering supports the
driver's steering movements.
Power steering adapts electronically based on
the vehicle speed .
Indicator lights and messages
• Do not drive vehicle: Steering defective
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 an authori zed
Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service Facility for
assistance.
'Jij Steering: System fault You can continue
driving
184
If the indicator light turns on and the message
appears, the steering may be more difficult to move or more sensitive than usual. The steering
wheel may also be at an angle when driving
straight.
Drive slowly to your authorized Audi dealer or au
thorized Audi Service Facility to have the mal
function corrected.
':r-ij Dynamic steering: Initializing
If the indicator l ight is blinking and this message
appears, dynamic steering* is being initialized.
The steering wheel will be easy to move after
starting the engine. Re-initialization might be
necessary if the steering wheel was moved hard
to the left and right while the veh icle was not
moving. The display turns off if the initialization
was successful.
(D Tips
- If the . or ':r-ij indicator light only stays on
for a short time, you may continue driving.
- The dynamic steering stability systems
opage 180 are not availab le in the event of
a system malfunction.
- For additional information on dynamic
steering, refer to
c> page 95.
All wheel drive (quattro)
Applies to: vehicles with all wheel drive
In all wheel drive, all four wheels are powered.
General information
In all wheel drive, the driving power is divided be
tween all four wheels. This happens automatical
ly depending on your driving behavior as well as
the current road conditions. Refer to
c> page 180,
Electronic Stabilization Control (£SC).
A center differential distributes the driving power
variably to the front and rear axle. It works to
gether with selective wheel torque control, which
activates when driving through curves
<=> page 181 . With the sport differential*, power
distribution to the rear wheels is variable and can
be adjusted with drive select
q page 95 . .,..

CD Note
-Vehicle components such as the engine,
transm ission, suspension or electrical sys
tem can be severely damaged by driving
through water.
- Determine the depth before driv ing through
water.
- Do not stop the vehicle, drive in reverse or
switch the eng ine off when dr iving through
water.
- Keep in mind that oncoming veh icles may
create waves that raise the water level and
make it too deep for your vehicle to drive
through safely .
- Avo id d riving through salt water (corrosion).
Warming up and cooling
down
By carefully warm ing up and cool ing down your
veh icle, you can he lp ensure that it is not over
stressed un necessa rily during sporty driving.
When warming up, the vehicle is dr iven at a max
i mum eng ine speed of 6000 RPM in order to raise
the eng ine oi l temperature to a min imum of
140 °F (60 °C). The tires a lso on ly reac h their f ull
road ho ld ing capability once they have warmed
up .
The cooling fan can continue to run in your vehi cle after the engine is swi tched off. Howeve r,
d riving the vehicle to cool it dow n is particularly
important. D uring sporty dr iv ing, the engine and
brakes, the exhaust system, and the transmission
a ll become extremely hot. Before you park the
ve hicle, you shou ld drive it for a few m iles/kilo
meters at light load in the low rpm range to al
low it to cool down.
Driving and the envir onment
Catalytic converter
Applies to: veh icles w ith gasoli ne e ngi ne
It is very important that your emission control
system (catalytic converter) is functioning prop
erly to ensure that your vehicle is running in an
environmentally sound manner .
.. Always use lead-free gasoline¢ page 198,
Fuel supply.
.. Never run the tank down all the way to empty.
.. Never put too much motor o il in yo ur engine
¢ page 20 7, Adding engine oil 9:::r. .
.,. Never try to pus h- or tow-start your veh icle.
The catalytic co nverter is an efficient "clean-up"
device built into the exhaust sys tem of t he ve hi
cle. The catalyt ic conv erter b urns ma ny of the
po llutants in the exhaust gas before they are re
leased into the atmosphere.
The exclusive use of un leaded fuel is cr itically im
po rtant fo r the life of the catalytic converte r and
prope r fu nct io ni ng of the eng ine.
_&. WARNING
The tempe ra tu re o f th e exh aus t sys tem is
hi gh, bot h when driv ing and a fter stopping
the engine.
- Never tou ch the e xhaus t tail pipes on ce they
have become hot. This cou ld res ult in burns.
- Do not p ark or operate the vehicle in ar eas
where the hot exhaus t sys tem may come in
contact w ith dry grass, b rush, fuel spill or
other mate rial which can ca use a fire.
- Do not app ly additiona l undercoating or
r u stp roofing on or near the exhaust mani
fold, exha ust pipes, cata lytic converter or
heat shields. D uring driving, the substance
used for undercoat ing could overheat and
cause a fire.
CD Note
- Be aware that just one tank fi lling with
leaded fuel w ill already seriously degrade
the performance of the catalytic converter.
- Do not exceed the correct engine oil leve l
¢page 207.
189

Wheels
Model/ Tire designation Tire pressure
Engine Normal load Maximum load
(up to 2 people)a>
front rear front rear
PSI
RS 7 275/35 ZR20 102Y XL
Sportback: High Performance
36
4.0L 275/30 ZR21 98Y XL
8 cylinders High Performance
44
a) 2 people in the front
A WARNING
Please note the important safe
ty precautions regarding tire
pressure ¢
page 228 and load
limits ¢
page 230.
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
erybody and everything in and on
230
kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA
25 0 33 230 39 270
39 270
30 0 39 270 45 310 45
310
the vehicle. These load limits are
technically referred to as the vehi
cle's
Gross Vehicle Weight Rat
ing
("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.
The
Gross Axle Weight Rating
("GAWR") is the maximum load