
Automatic  transmission 
Automatic  transmission S  tronic,  tiptronic 
Introduction 
The  automatic  transmission  is controlled  elec
tronically.  The  transmission upshifts  or  down
shifts  automatically  depending  on  which  drive 
program  is selected. 
When  a 
moderate driving style is  used,  the 
transmission  selects  the  most  economical  driving 
mode.  The transmission  upshifts  at  a lower  RPM 
and  downshifts  at  a  higher  RPM to  improve  fuel 
efficiency. 
The  transmission  switches  to a sporty  mode  after 
a  kick-down  or  when  the driver  uses a 
sporty 
driving style 
characterized  by quick  accelerator 
pedal  movements,  heavy  acceleration,  frequent 
changes  in speed  and  traveling  at  the  maximum 
speed. 
If  desired , th e driver  can also  select  the gears 
manually (tiptronic  mode) 9 page  110. 
Various  automatic  transmissions  may  be  instal
led,  depending  on  the  model: 
S tronic  transmission 
The  S  tronic  is  a  dual-clutch  transmission.  Power 
is transferred  using  two  clutches  that  work  inde
pendently  from  one  another.  They replace  the 
torque  converter  used  in conventional  automatic 
transmissions  and  allow  the vehicle  to  accelerate 
without  a  noticeable  interruption  in traction. 
tiptronic  transmission 
In  the  tiptronic  transmission,  power  is transfer
red  by a  torque  converter. 
106 
Selector  lever  positions 
Fig. 115 Display in the  instrument  cluster: selector  lever 
position 
The  selector  lever  position  engaged  appears  next 
to  the  selector  lever  as  well  as  in the instrument 
cluster  display. 
P  -Park 
In  this  selector  lever  position  the  transmission  is 
mechanically  locked.  Engage  P only when  the ve
hicle  is 
completely  stopped¢&. in Driving  the 
automatic  transmission  on page  108. 
To shift  in or  out  of  position  P, you  must first 
press  and  hold  the  brake  pedal and  then press 
the  release  button in the  selector  lever  handle 
while  moving  the  selector  lever  to  or  from  P. You 
can  shift  out  of  this  position  only  with  the igni
tion  on. 
R  -Reverse 
Select  R only  when  the  vehicle  is  at a full stop 
and  the  engine  is  running  at  idle  speed¢&. in 
Driving the  automatic  transmission  on 
page  108. 
Before  you  move  the  selector  lever to  R, press 
both the  button  in the  handle  of  the  selector  lev
er 
and the  brake  pedal  at  the  same  time. 
When  the  ignition  is  on,  the  backup  lights  illumi
nate  when  the selector  lever  is  moved into R. 
N -Neutral 
The  transmission  is in  neutral  in this  position. 
Shift  to  this  position  for  standing  with  the  brakes 
applied 
9 A in Driving the  automatic  transmis
sion  on page  108. 
...  

shared,  please see your  contract  with  the 
wireless  telecommunications  provider  and the 
"About  Aud i connect"  tab  in your  vehicle's 
MMI: 
! MENUI button> Aud i 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  vehicle  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  contro l 
and  helps you to  ge t the  veh icle  back under  con
tro l by se lective ly braking  the  wheels,  and/or  re 
ducing  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 ntrol  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 sudden  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  water,  slush  o r snow,  ESC cannot  pe r
form  the  same way it  wo uld on the  dry  s urface . If 
the  vehicle  hydrop lanes (rides  on a cushion  of  wa
ter  i nstead  of  the  road su rface),  ESC wi ll not  be 
ab le to  he lp you steer  the  veh icle because contact 
with  the  pavement  has been interrupted  and the 
ve hicle cannot  be braked  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. 
Always adjust  your  speed and driving  style  to  road , traffic  and weather  cond itions . ESC cannot 
override  the  vehicle's  physical  lim its,  increase  the 
ava ilab le traction,  o r keep a ve hicle on the  road  if 
road departure  is a resu lt  of  driver  in attention . 
I nstead,  ESC imp roves the  possibi lity  of  keep ing 
Intellig ent  Technology 
the  vehicle  under  contro l and on the  road d uring 
extreme  mane uvers by using  the  driver's  steering 
i nputs  to  help  keep the  vehicle  go ing  in the  in
tended  direction.  If  you  are traveling  at  a speed 
that  causes you  to  run  off  the  road  before  ESC 
can provide  any assistance, you  may not  exper i
ence the  benefits  of  ESC. 
ESC is switched  on  all  the  time.  In  certain  s itua
tions  when  you  need  less tract ion, you can sw itch 
off  ASR by press ing the  button 
lm c> page 188, 
fig . 177 . Be sure to  switc h ASR on again  whe n 
you  no longer  need  less traction. 
The following  systems  are integrated  in the  ESC: 
Anti-lock  braking  sy stem  (ABS ) 
ABS prevents  the  wheels  from  locking  when  brak 
ing.  The vehicle  can still  be steered  even dur ing 
hard  braking.  Apply  steady  pressure  to  the  brake 
pedal.  Do not  pump  the  pedal.  A pulsing  in the 
brake  pedal  ind icates that  the  system  is acting  to 
stab ilize the  veh icle . 
Brake assist system 
The brake  assist  system  can decrease braking  dis
tance.  It  increases  braking  power  when  the  dr iver 
presses the  brake  peda l quickly  in emergency  sit
uat ions. You must  press and  ho ld the  brake  pedal 
unt il the  dange rous situation  is over . In  vehicles 
with  adaptive  c ruise cont rol*,  the  b rake ass ist 
system  is more  se nsitive  if  the  distance  detected 
to  the  ve hicle  ahead  is too  sma ll. 
Anti-slip  regulation  (ASR) 
ASR reduces engine  power  whe n the  dr ive wheels 
begin  spin ning  and adapts  the  force  to  the  road 
co ndit ions.  This makes  it  eas ier  to s tart,  acce ler
ate a nd d rive up  incl ines. 
Electronic  differential  lock  (EDL) 
The EDL brakes wheels  that  are spinning  and 
transfers  the  drive  power  to  the  other  dr ive 
wheel  or wheels  if  the  vehicle  is equ ipped with  all 
whee l drive*) . This function  is  not  available  a t 
highe r speeds . 
In  extreme  cases, EDL automat ica lly switches  off 
to  keep t he brake  o n the  braked  wheel  from  over
hea ting . T he veh icle is still  working  co rrectly.  EDL 
IJJ> 
187  

Wheels 
- These  tires  may  wear  more  q uickly  than  othe rs. 
- Please  also  remembe r th at,  w hile  these  tires 
deliver  responsive  handling,  they  may  r ide  less 
comfortably  and  make  more  noise  than  ot her 
cho ices. 
Reduced performance  in wint er/ cold season 
condit ion s 
All tires  are  designed  for  certain  purposes.  The  low  aspect  ratio,  ultra  high  pe rformance  tires 
or iginally  insta lled  on  yo ur vehicle  are  intended 
for  maximum  d ry and  wet  road  performance  and 
handling.  They  are  not  suitable  for  cold,  snowy  or 
icy weathe r cond itions . 
If you  drive  under  those 
circumstances,  you  should  equ ip your  ve hicle 
with  all-season  or  winter  tires,  wh ich  offe r bette r 
traction  under  those  condit ions.  We  sugges t you 
use  the  recommended  snow  or  all-season  tires 
specified  for  yo ur vehicle,  or  their  eq uivalen t. 
Refer  to¢ 
page  246 for more  deta iled  info rma· 
tion  reg arding  w in ter  ti res. 
Uniform  tire  quality  grading 
- Tread  we ar 
- Tra ction  AA A  B C 
- Temperature  ABC 
Qua lity  grades  can  be  found  where  app licab le  on 
the  t ire  side  wall  betwee n tread  s hou lder  and 
maximum  sect io n  w idth ¢ 
page  231,  fig . 193. 
For e xample:  Tread  wear  200 , T raction  AA, Tern· 
pe rature  A. 
All passenger  car  tires  must  conform  to  Federa l 
Safety  Requirements  in  addition  to  these  grades . 
Tread wear 
T he 
tread  wear grade  is a  compara tive  ra ting 
b a se d on  the  wea r rate of  the  t ire when  tes ted 
under  contro lled  conditions  on  a  specified  gov · 
ernment  test  co urse. 
F or  examp le,  a tir e  graded  150  would  wear  one 
a nd  one  ha lf ( 11/2)  times  as  well  on  t he  gove rn· 
men t course  as  a tire  graded  100 . 
T he  rela tive perfo rmance  of  t ires  depends  upon 
the  a ct u a l c ondi tions  of  their  use,  howeve r, and 
may  depart  s ignific ant ly from  the  norm  d ue to 
248 
variations  in  driving  habits,  service  p ract ices  an d 
differences  in  road  characteristics  and  climate. 
Traction 
The 
traction grades , from  hig hest  to  lowest , a re 
AA , A, B and 
C. Those  grades  rep resent  the  tire's 
a bility  to stop  o n wet  p avement  as  measure d un
der  controlled  conditions  on  specified  govern · 
ment  test  s urfaces  of  asphalt  an d concrete.  A tire 
marked  C may  have  poor  traction  perfo rmance 
¢ ,& . 
Temperature 
The 
temp eratur e grades  are  A ( the  highest),  B, 
and  C,  representing  the  tire 's  resistance  to  the 
generatio n of  heat  and  its  ability  to  dissipate 
heat  when  tested  under  contro lled  conditions  on 
a  specified  indoor  laboratory  test  wheel. 
Sustained  high  temperature  can  cause  the  mate· 
rial  of  the  tire  to  degenerate  and  reduce  tire  life, 
and  excessive  temperature  can  lead  to  s udden 
tire  failure¢ ,&. 
The  grade  C cor responds  to  a  level  of  perform · 
ance  which  all  passenger  car  tires  must  meet  un· 
der  the  Federal  Motor  Vehicle  Safety  Standard 
No . 109 . Grades  Band  A represent  hig her  levels 
of  performance  on  the  laboratory  test  wheel  than 
t h e  m inim um  requ ired  by  law . 
A WARNING 
-
The  tract io n  grade  assigned  to  this  t ire  is 
based  on  st raig ht-a head  braking  tr action 
tes ts,  and  do es  not in clude  acceler ation,  cor· 
n erin g,  hy droplaning  or  pe ak  traction  ch arac
teristics. 
A WARNING 
T he  tem pera ture  grade  fo r  thi s  tire  is esta b· 
lishe d for  a  tire  that  is  properly  inflated  and 
not  ove rloaded . Excessive  speed,  underinfla · 
tion,  o r excessive  load ing,  either  separately  or 
in comb inat ion,  can  cause  heat  bu ildup  and 
-
possible  tire  failure .  ..,