2016 AUDI S6 service

Safety belt s
"'Push the loop -around fittings up c> fig . 155 @,
or
"'squeeze together the (D button, and push the
loop-around fittings
down @.
"'Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at­
tachment is properly engaged.
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth­
er impo rtant informat ion
c> page 136.
(D Tips
With the front seats , the height adjustment
of the seat can also be used to adjust the po­
sition of the safe ty belts.
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause se­
vere injuries.
Wearing safety belts imprope rly can cause seri­
ous injury or death. Safety belts can only work
when they a re correctly pos itioned on the body.
Imp roper seating positions reduce the effect ive­
ness of safety be lts and will even inc rease the
ris k of injury a nd deat h by mov ing the safety bel t
to cr it ica l areas of the bo dy. Imp roper seating
positions a lso increase the risk of serio us inj ury
and deat h when an airbag deploys and strikes an
occ upant who is not in the co rrect seat ing pos i­
tion. A driver is responsible for the safety of all
ve hicle occupants and especia lly for children.
Therefore:
"' Never permit anyone to assume an inco rrect
s itting position in the vehicle wh ile trave ling
c> ,&. .
A WARNING
Impro perly wor n safety belts increase t he risk
of se rious personal injury a nd death wheneve r
a vehicle is bei ng use d.
- Always make sure tha t all veh icle occupa nts
are co rrectly restra ined and stay in a co rrect
seat ing pos ition w heneve r the veh icle is be­
ing used.
140
- Always read and heed all WAR NINGS and
o ther impo rtant in format ion
c> page 136.
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear-end collisions above a
particular severity and in a rollover, safety belts are tensioned automatically.
Reversible safety belt tensioner s
The safety belts on the front seats are equipped
with power revers ible tensioners. The following
funct io ns are available when the dr iver's/front
passenger 's safety belts are faste ned:
- Automatic tensione rs: at the start of a drive,
the safety belts automat ica lly adjust to the
passenger after a certain time period or ve hicle
spee d. To switch the a utomat ic tens ioners off,
select the following in t he M MI :
!CARI function
button
> ( Car )* systems > Vehicle settings >
Seat s > Driver's seat or Pas senger's seat > Au ·
tomatic belt tensioner > Off .
-In certain drivi ng s ituations, the s afe ty bel ts
m ay tighten w ith a reversib le tensioning func ­
tion
c> page 184.
- The s afety be lts may also tigh ten with this re-
vers ible tension ing f unct io n in m ino r collisions .
Pyrotechnic safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are eq uipped w it h safety bel t
pretensione rs. The system is activa ted by se nsors
i n front, s ide a nd r ear-end collisions of grea t se ­
verity and in a ro llover. This tig htens the bel t and
takes up belt slack
c> &. in Service and disposal of
safety belt pretensioner on page 141.
Taking up
the slack helps to reduce forward occupant
movement during a collision.
A WARNING
-It is poss ible for the pretensioners to dep loy
incorrectly .
- The pyrotechnic system can only p rovide
protection for one collision. If the py rotech­
nic pretens ioners deploy, the pretensioning
sys tem must be rep laced.

@ Tips
The pyrotechnic safety belt pretensioners can
only deploy once.
- The safety belt pretensioners do not dep loy
in minor fronta l and side co llisions, in rear­
end collisions, in rollovers and in collisions involv ing very little impact force.
- A fine dust is released when the pyrotechnic
safety be lt pretens ioners deploy. This is nor­
mal and is not caused by a fire in the vehi­
cle.
- The re levant safety requirements must be
observed when the veh icle or components
of the system are scrapped . A qualified
dealersh ip is familiar w ith these regulations
and will be p leased to pass on the informa­
tion to you.
- Be sure to observe all safety, environmental
and othe r regulations if the veh icle or indi­
v idual parts of the system, particularly the
safety be lt or airbag, are to be disposed. We
recommend yo u have your author ized Audi
dealer perform this serv ice for you.
Service and disposal of safety belt preten­
sioner
T he safety belt pretens ioners are parts of the
safety belts on your Audi . Installing, removing ,
servic ing o r repa iring of belt p retensioners can
damage the safety belt system and prevent it
from wor king cor rec tly in a collision .
There are some importa nt th ings you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of the
system w ill not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or poll ute the
environment .
_& WARNING
= -
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing a safety be lt preten­
sioner from activating when needed or acti­
vating it unexpectedly :
- The be lt pretensione r system can be act ivat­
ed only once . If belt pretensioners have
S afet y be lts
been activated, the system must be re­
placed.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the safety belt system .
- Safety belt systems including safety belt
pretensioners cannot be repai red. Special
procedures are required for removal, instal­
lation and disposal of this system.
- For any work on the safety belt system, we
strong ly recommend that you see your au­
thor ized Audi dealer or qualified techn ician
who has an Audi approved repa ir manual,
tra ining and special equipment necessary .
® For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and pretension­
ers might be classif ied as Perchlorate Materi­
al -special handling may apply, see
www .dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo­
r ate . When the vehicle or pa rts of the re­
straint sys tem including ai rbag modu les safe­
t y belts with p re t ensioners are scrapped, all
applicable laws and regu lations mus t be ob­
se rved . Your authorized Audi dealer is familiar
with these requirements and we recommend
that you have your dealer perform this service
for you.
141

(D Tips
If the capacitive passenger detection system
determines that the front passenger seat is
empty, the frontal airbag on the passenger
side will be turned off, and the
PA SSENGER
A IR BAG OFF
light will stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at many
d ifferent p laces on your Aud i. Installing, remov­
ing, servic ing o r repa iring a part in an area of the
vehicle can damage a part of an airbag system
and p revent that system from working properly
in a co llision.
There are some important things you have to
know to make su re t hat the effectiveness of the
system w ill not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environment .
A WARNING
Improper care, serv icing and repa ir proce­
dures can increase the r isk of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de­
ploying when needed or deploying an airbag
unexpectedly:
-
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer­ ing wheel horn pad or a irbag cover or the in­
strument panel or mod ify them in any way.
- Never attach any objects such as cup holders or te lephone mountings to the su rfaces cov­
er ing the airbag units.
- For cleaning the ho rn pad or instrument
pane l, use on ly a soft, dry cloth or one mois­
tened with plain water. Solvents or cleaners cou ld damage the a irbag cover or change
the stiffness or strength of the mater ial so
that the airbag cannot dep loy and protect
properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instr ument
pane l, front seats or electrical system (in ­
cluding the installation of audio equipment,
cellu lar telephones and CB rad ios, etc.)
must be performed by a qualified technician
Airb ag sys tem
who has the t raining and spec ial equ ipment
necessary.
- For any wo rk on the airbag system, we
strong ly recommend that you see yo ur au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- Never modify the front b umper or parts of
the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate w ithout interference:
- Never ins tall seat covers or replacement
u pholste ry ove r the front seatbacks that
have not been specifica lly approved by
Audi.
- Never use addi tional seat cushions that
cove r the areas where the side airbags in­
flate.
- Damage to the orig inal se at cove rs or to
the se am in the area of the s ide airbag
module must a lways be repaired immedi­
ate ly by an authorize d Aud i dealer.
- The airb ag system can deploy on ly on ce. Af­
ter an airbag has been deployed, it must be
replaced with new replacement parts de­
signed and approve d espec ially for your
Aud i model version. Replacement of com­
p lete airbag systems or airbag components
m ust be performed by qualified workshops
only . Make sure that any airbag service ac­
tion is entered in you r A udi Warranty
&
Maintenance boo klet under AIRBAG R E­
PLAC EM ENT R ECORD.
- For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starte r are separated from
the vehicle ba tte ry with a pyro te chnic cir cui t
interrupter.
- Work on the pyrotechnic c ircuit interrupt­
er must on ly be performed by a qualif ied
technic ians who have the exper ience, in­
format ion and specia l tools necessa ry to
perfo rm the wor k safely.
- If the vehicle or the circuit interr upte r is
scrapped, all applicable safety p recautions
must be followed.
157

Airbag system
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modu les and pretension­
ers might be classified as Perchlorate Materi­
al -special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo­
rate . When the vehicle or parts of the re­
straint system including airbag modules and
safety belts w ith pretensioners are scrapped,
all applicable laws and regulations must be
observed. Your authorized Audi dealer is fa­
m iliar with these requirements and we recom­
mend that you have your dealer perform this
service for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
cha nge the way that the Advanced Airbag System
pe rforms in a crash. For example, using tire-r im
comb inat ions not approved by Audi, lower ing the
veh icle, changing the stiffness of the suspens ion,
including the spr ings, suspension struts, shock
absorbers etc . can change the forces that are
measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the
electronic control unit . Some suspens ion changes
can, for example, increase the force levels meas­
ured by the sensors and make the airbag system
deploy in crashes in wh ich it would not deploy if
the changes had not been made. Other ki nds of
changes may reduce the force levels measured by
the sensors and prevent the airbag from deploy­
ing when it should .
A WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension including
use of unapproved tire-rim combinations can
change Advanced A irbag performance and in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury in a
crash.
- Never install suspension components that
do not have the same performance charac­
teristics as the components originally insta l­
led on your veh icle.
- Never use tire-rim comb inations that have
not been approved by Audi.
158
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
App lies to vehicles: with knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supplemen­
tal protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants.
Fig. 160 Driver 's knee airbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument panel
underneath the steering whee l
¢fig. 160, the
airbag for the passenger is at about the same
height in the instrument panel underneath the
glove compartment.
The knee airbag offers additiona l protection to
the driver 's and passenger's knees and upper and
lower thigh areas and supplements the protec­
tion provided by the safety belts.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags a lso
deploy in frontal collisions when the deployment
threshold stored in the control unit is met
c> page 151, More important things to know
about front airbags .
In addition to their normal safety function, safe­
ty belts help keep the dr iver or front passenger in
position in a frontal collision so that the airbags
can provide supplemental protection .
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall occu­
pant restraint system in your vehicle. Always re­
member that the airbag system can only help to
protect you if you are wear ing your safety belt
and wearing it p roperly. This is why you shou ld
always wea r your safety be lt, not just because
the law requires you to do so
c> page 134, Gener-
al information. ..,..

Audi pre sense
Audi pre sense
Preventative passenger
protection
A pp lies to ve hicles : w ith Audi p re se nse
Pre sense can initiate steps to protect vehicle oc­
cupants in certain dangerous situations. The
functions described are available depending on
veh icle equipment :
Pre sense basic*
The following functions can be triggered in cer­
tain driving situations:
- Tensioning of the safety belts (for example,
during heavy braking): The front safety belts
have reversible belt pretensioners. If a collision
does not occur, the safety belts loosen slightly
and are ready to trigger again .
- Closing the windows and the sunroof* (for ex­
ample, when
over-or understeering): The door
windows and the sunroof* are closed almost
completely until only a small gap is open .
Audi pre sense basic functions can be triggered at
speeds
above 20 mph (30 km/h).
Drive select : The dep loyment time is adapted in
Dynamic mode.
Pre sense front (vehicles with adaptive cruise
control*}
Pre sense front contains the functions of pre
sense basic . In addition, the likelihood of a rear­
end collision with the vehicle ahead is also calcu­
lated, within the limits of the system. If the risk
of a collision is detected, the following functions
can trigger :
- Braking guard
c:> page 90
- Tensioning of the safety belts
- Closing the windows and the sunroof*
Pre sense rear (vehicles with side assist*)
Pre sense rear contains the functions of pre sense
bas ic. In addition, the likelihood of a rear-end
coll ision from the vehicle beh ind is also calculat­
ed, within the limits of the system. If the risk of a
collision is detected, the following functions can
trigger:
184
- Tensioning of the safety belts
- Closing the windows and the sunroof*
Pre sense plus*
Pre sense plus contains the functions of pre
sense front and pre sense rear .
Error message
Audi pre sense: Unavailable
Preventative passenger protection is not availa­
ble. Drive to your authorized Audi dealer or au­
thorized Audi Service Facility immediately to have
the malfunction corrected.
A WARNING
Pre sense cannot overcome natural physical
laws. It is a system designed to assist and it
cannot prevent a collision . Do not let the in­
creased safety provided tempt you into taking
risks. This could increas e your risk of a colli­
sion.
- The system can deploy incorrectly .
- Please note that the sensors do not always
detect all objects . This increases the risk of
a collision .
- Pre sense does not react to people or ani­
mals or objects that are crossing the vehi­
cle 's path or are difficult to detect
c:> page 84.
- Reflective objects such as guard rails or the
entrance to a tunnel, heavy rain and ice can
affect the function of the radar sensors and
the system's ability to detect a collision risk.
(D Note
The sensors can be displaced by impacts or
damage to the bumper, wheel housing and
underbody. Pre sense can be impaired by this.
Have an authorized Aud i dealer or authorized
Audi Service Facility check their function.
{!) Tips
-Certain pre sense front functions switch off
when sport mode is switched off or when
driving in reverse.
1J11>

Intelligent Technology
Intelligent Technology
Notice about data
recorded by the Event
Data Recorder and
vehicle control modules
Event Data Re corder
This vehicle is equipped wi th an Event Data Re ­
corder (EDR) . The main purpose of an E DR is to
record, in certain crash or near crash -like situa­
tions, such as an airbag deploym ent or h itting a
road obstacle, data that will assist in understand­
ing how a veh icle 's systems performed . The EDR
is designed to record data related to veh icle dy­
namics a nd safety systems for a sho rt period of
time, typically 30 seconds or less . The E DR in this
veh icle is designed to reco rd s uch data as :
- How various systems in your vehicle were oper­
at ing;
- Whether or not the driver and passenger safety
belts were buckled/fastened;
- How far ( if at all) the driver was depressing the
acce lerator and/or brake peda l; and,
- How fast the ve hicle was trave ling.
These data can help provide a better understand­ ing of the ci rc u mstances in which c rashes and in ­
juries occur. NOT E: EDR data are recorded by yo ur
veh icle only if a non-trivia l crash situat ion occurs;
no data are recorded by the EDR under normal
driving conditions and no personal data (e .g .,
name, gender, age, and crash location) a re re­
corded . H owever , other pa rties , such as law en­
forcement, cou ld combine the EDR data w it h the
type o f person ally identifyi ng dat a routine ly ac­
qu ired dur ing a crash invest igat ion .
To read data reco rded by an EDR, specia l equip­
men t is req uire d, and access to the veh icle or the
E DR is needed. In ad dition to the vehicle manu­
facturer, other parties, s uch a s law enforcement,
that have t he specia l equipment, can read the in­
formation if they have access to the vehicle or the E DR.
Some s tate laws restrict the re trieva l or down­
loading of data stored by ED Rs insta lled in a vehi ­
cle fo r the express purpose of retrieving data af -
186
ter an accident or crash event withou t the own ­
er 's consent.
Audi will not access the EDR and /or sim ilar data
o r g ive it to others -
- unless t he ve hicle ow ner (o r lessee if the vehi­
cle has been leased) ag rees; o r
- upon the offic ial request by the police; or
- upon the order of a court of law or a govern-
ment agency; or
- for the defense of a lawsuit through the jud icia l
discovery process.
- Audi may also use the data for research about
veh icle operation and safety perfo rmance or
prov ide the data to a th ird party for research
purposes w itho ut identify ing t he specific vehi­
cle or info rmat ion about the ident ity of its own­
er or lessee and only afte r th e re co rded vehicle
d ata has been a ccessed.
Vehicle control modules
You r vehicle is also equ ipped with a number of
e lectronic cont rol modules for va rious vehicle
syste ms, such as engine ma nagement, em iss io n
contro l, air bag s, a nd safety be lts.
These electronic control modules record data
dur ing norma l vehicle operation t hat may be
n eeded by tra ined techn ic ians for d iagnost ic and
r ep air pur poses. The re cording capab ility of these
modules is lim ited to dat a (no sou nd is recor d­
ed). Only a sma ll amount of data is actually re ­
corded over a very limited period of time, or stor­
ed when a system fault is detected by a contro l
module . Some of the data stored may relate to
vehicle speed, direction, or braking, as well as re­
straint system use and performance in the event
of a crash . Stored data can also only be read a nd
down loaded w it h specia l equipment that is d i­
r ec tly connec ted to the vehicle.
(D Tips
Your vehicle may be e quipped w it h Aud i con­
n ect . Yo ur use of certain Aud i connect fea­
tures requires wire less services that are p ro­
v ided by a third party wireless telecomm uni­
cations provider. Fo r de tails regarding how in ­
fo rmation obtained through Aud i connect is
collecte d, processe d, transmitted, use d, an d ..,.

Indicator lights and m essa ges
• Do not dri ve v ehicle : steerin g defe ctive
If th is ind icator light turns on and stays on and
this message appears, the power steer ing may
h ave fa iled.
Stop the vehicle in a safe locat ion as soon as pos ­
sib le . Do
not continue dr iving. See an authorized
Aud i deale r or autho rized Aud i Serv ice Facility fo r
assistance .
'1:I Stee ring: System fau lt You ca n continu e
dri ving
If the indicator light turns on and the message
appears, the steering may be more difficult to
move or more sensit ive tha n usual. The steering
wheel may also be at an angle when driving
stra ight.
Drive s lowly to your author ized Audi dealer or au­
thor ized Audi Service Fac ility to have the mal ­
function corrected.
kr.ij D ynam ic steering : Ini tializing
If the indicator lig ht ls b link ing and th is message
appears, dynamic steering* is being initialized.
Once you start the engine after this is finished,
the steering wheel will be easy to move. Re-in iti­
alization m ight be necessary if the steering wheel
was moved hard to the left and right wh ile the
ve hicle was not moving . The display turns off if
the initialization was successfu l.
{D) Tips
-If the . or '1:I indicator light only stays on
for a short time, you may continue driving .
- The dynamic steering stability systems
¢ page 187 are not available in the event of
a system ma lf u nction.
- For additional informat io n on dynamic
steering, refer to¢ page 100.
Intelligent Technology
All wheel drive (quattro)
Applies to vehicles: with all wheel drive
In all wheel drive, all four wheels are powered.
General informat ion
In all whee l dr ive, the dr iving power is div ided be­
tween all fou r wheels . This happens automatical­
ly depending on yo ur driving behavior as we ll as
the cur rent road conditions . Refer to ¢ page 187,
E lectronic Stabilization Control (ESC).
A center d ifferential d istribu tes the driving power
variab ly to the front and rear axle. It works to­
gether with selective whee l torque contro l, w hich
activates when driving through curves
¢ page 188. With the sport d ifferential*, power
distribution to the rear wheels is variable and can
be adjusted with drive select¢ page 100 .
The all wheel drive concept is designed for high
engine power. Your vehicle is except ionally pow­
erfu l and has excellent driv ing characteristics
both under normal driving conditions and on
snow and ice . Always read and follow safety pre­
cautions ¢
..1:)..
Winter tires
By using all wheel dr ive, your veh icle has good
forward motion with standard tires in w inter con­
ditions. However, in w inter we recommend using
winter or all seaso n tires on all four wheels, be­
ca use this will improve the brak ing effect.
Snow chains
If there are snow chain laws, snow cha ins must
also be used on veh icles w ith all wheel dr ive
¢ page 246 , Snow chains .
Replacing tires
For vehicles with a ll wheel drive, on ly wheels with
the same roll ing circumference should be used.
Avo id whee ls with different tread depths
¢ page 238, New tires or wheels .
Offroad vehicle?
Your Audi is not an offroad vehicle - there is not
enough ground clearance. For this reason, avoid
difficult terrain. ..,.
191

CD Note
-Vehicle components such as the engine,
transmission, suspension or electrical sys­
tem can be severely damaged by driving
through water.
- Always switch the Start-Stop-System* off
when driving through water
9 page 79.
@ Tips
- Determine the depth before driving through
water.
- Do not stop the vehicle, drive in reverse or
switch the engine off when driving through
water.
- Keep in mind that oncoming vehicles may
create waves that raise the water level and
make it too deep for your vehicle to drive
through safely.
-Avoid driving through salt water (corrosion).
Catalytic converter
Applies to vehicles: with gasoline engine
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 9 page 208,
Fuel supply.
... Never run the tank down all the way to empty.
.,. Never put too much motor oil in your engine
9 page 220, Adding engine oil~-
.,. Never try to push- or tow-start your vehicle.
The catalytic converter is an efficient "clean-up"
device built into the exhaust system of the vehi­
cle. The catalytic converter burns many of the
pollutants in the exhaust gas before they are re­
leased into the atmosphere.
The exclusive use of unleaded fuel is critically im­
portant for the life of the catalytic converter and
proper functioning of the engine.
A WARNING
The temperature of the exhaust system is
high, both when driving and after stopping
the engine.
Driving and the environment
- Never touch the exhaust tail pipes once they
have become hot. This could result in burns.
- Do not park or operate the vehicle in areas
where the hot exhaust system may come in contact with dry grass, brush, fuel spill or
other material which can cause a fire.
- Do not apply additional undercoating or
rustproofing on or near the exhaust mani­
fold, exhaust pipes, catalytic converter or heat shields. During driving, the substance
used for undercoating could overheat and
cause a fire.
CD Note
- Be aware that just one tank filling with
leaded fuel will already seriously degrade
the performance of the catalytic converter .
- Do not exceed the correct engine oil level
9page220.
- Do not drive until the fuel tank becomes
completely empty . The engine could mis­
fire. Unburned fuel could also get into the
exhaust system and this could cause the
catalytic converter to overheat.
- Do not switch off the ignition while the vehi­
cle is moving.
- Do not continue to operate your vehicle un­
der these conditions, as otherwise fuel can
reach the catalytic converter. This could re­
sult in overheating of the converter, requir­
ing its replacement .
- To assure efficient operation of the Emis­
sion Control System:
- Have your vehicle maintained properly and
in accordance with the service recommen­
dations in your Warranty
& Maintenance
booklet.
- Lack of proper maintenance as well as im­
proper use of the vehicle will impair the
function of the emission control system
and could lead to damage.
@ For the sake of the environment
Even when the Emission Control System is op­
erating properly, the exhaust gas can have a
sulfur-like exhaust gas smell under some op­
erating states. This depends on the sulfur
195