
e-tron
for the high-voltage battery can lead to serious damage and/or a decrease of the capacity
void coverage under the New Vehicle Limited
Warranty.
Starting/driving the vehicle
Applies to: ve hicles w ith plug -in hybrid drive
The vehicle is started and stopped with the
I START STOP I button. Please also read the in
formation under
c::> page 78, Starting the engine .
Establishing drive ready mode
See c::> A in Introduction on page 94.
Requirement: a charging cable must not be con
nected to the vehicle
c::> page 117 and the selec
tor lever must be in the P or N position.
- Press the brake pedal.
- Press the
I STAR T STOPI button .
When the vehicle enters drive ready mode, the
status message
e-tron READY appears briefly in
the instrument cluster display and the needle in
the power meter points to
READY c::> page 97.
Driving
The vehicle starts with the electric motor after
establishing the dr ive ready mode and if the con
ditions for electric drive mode have been met
c::> page 100.
The conditions to drive are essentially the same
as for the automatic transmission
c::> page 85 .
You and your passengers should anticipate the
possibility of a sporty acce leration.
Ending drive ready mode
- Place the selector lever in the P position.
- Switch the ignition off with the
I STAR T STOPI
button.
Vehicle sound
The vehicle generates an electronic engine sound
so that your vehicle can be heard from the out
side when in electr ic drive mode. The veh icle
sound automatically fades out at higher speeds
when the sounds from the tires and wind start in
creasing.
96
Switching the ignition on/off
You can switch the ignition on without establish
ing drive ready mode.
- Press the
I START STOP ! button to switch the
ign ition on and off. Do not press the brake ped
al whi le doing this.
When the ignition is sw itched on, the needle
points at
OFF @c::>page 97, fig. 103 or OFF is
displayed @c::>page97, fig .103.
No indicator lights stay turned on when the igni
tion is switched off .
Ignition is switched off automatically
To prevent the vehicle battery from draining, the
ignition will switch off automatically under the
follow ing cond it ions:
- The vehicle must have already been driven.
- The vehicle is stationary.
- The gasoline engine must not be runn ing .
- The driver's door must be open.
- The driver's safety belt must be unbuckled .
- The brake pedal must not be pressed.
In this case, the activated low beam is replaced
by the parking light. The message
Side marker
lights automatically shut off in
30 minutes. See
owner's manual
appears in the instrument clus
ter display . The parking lights w ill switch off af
ter approx imately 30 minutes or when you lock
the veh icle.
If the gasoline engine was not stopped, the mo
tor continues runn ing and the ignit ion does not
automat ica lly switch off
c::> A .
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of poisoning, never allow
the eng ine to run in confined spaces.
(D Tips
The vehicle cannot start when outs ide tem
peratures are below-18 °F (-28 °C)
c::> page 98.
-

a, a, ..... N
" N ..... 0 N > 00
_& WARNING
-Read and follow t he warn ings in
¢page 316, Working in the engin e com
partment before opening the hood and
che cking the coo lan t level.
- The e xpansion ta nk @ may only be ope ned
and filled by an a uthorized Aud i dea le r or
au tho riz e d Au di Service Fac ility.
- Coo lant can en ter the inside of the high
voltage battery when filling the expa nsion
t an k@ and ca use a short circui t, which in
cr eases the ris k of fire.
Refueling
Opening the fuel filler door
App lies to: ve hicles with plug-in hybrid drive
Fig. 112 Dr ive r's doo r: Butto n il
The tan k system must be vented be fore refueling
.. Swi tch the ign ition off with the I
button.
.. Pull on the ~ switch.
.. The fue l filler door wi ll open automatica lly af-
ter venting is com plete .
R ead and fo llow the directions for inserti ng the
f u el pump noz zle
¢ page 105.
Re ad and fo llow the inst ruct ions for re fueling
¢ page 313.
e-tron
Inserting the fuel pump nozzle
Applies to: vehicles with pl ug-in hybrid drive
Fig. 11 3 Fueling proced ure: i nsert t he f uel p ump nozz le
correct ly
M ake s ure w hen inse rting the fuel pump noz zle
t h at you do no t press o n the fuel filler door o pen
er (!) with the fue l pump nozzle . See the label in
the f uel fi ller
door @. Otherwise, a va lve wi ll
close in the fue l filler neck and fueling w ill stop
even if t he tank is not full.
Yo u m ust vent the tank system again if you press
on the fue l filler doo r opener . The fuel p ump noz
zle can stay in the fuel filler neck when doing
t hi s. Vent the tank system by pu lling
the @!
switch in the dr iver 's door ¢ page 105 .
Messages
Applies to: vehicles with pl ug -in hybrid drive
ti Tank flap open . Please press button again to
refuel
Fueling is possib le for a certain amount of time
after press ing
the~ button . Yo u m ust press the
@I button again if th is time is exceeded .
ti Tank flap malfunction! Unlock tank flap
manually . See owner's manual
T he re is a ma lfunction. Yo u must manually un
lock the fue l fi ller door
¢ page 106 .
ti Warning! Limited power
The fue l tank is almos t emp ty . You must ant ici
p at e a sign ifi can t power loss. Drive immed iate ly
t o a ga s st at ion .
POWER LIMIT Warning! Limited power
105

e-tron
Charging dock
Applies to: vehicles with plug -in hybrid drive and charging
dock
F ig . 11 7 Opening/clos ing t he charg ing dock
®
F ig . 118 Cha rg in g dock : mount ing th e c harg ing sys te m
You can store the charg ing system in the charg
ing dock.
Opening /closing the charging dock
• If necessary, you can u nlock/ lock the charg ing
dock using the key provided by turning it to the
unlocked position @ or locked position @
¢fig. 117 .
• Opening/closing the door on the charging dock.
Mounting the cha rging system in the
charging dock
• Open the door on the charging dock.
• First insert the control unit in the bottom tabs
on the charging dock and then into the upper
tabs.
• Push the control un it toward the rea r and let it
lock into place .
• Guide the vehicle cable th rough the opening @
¢fig _ 118.
• Wrap the extra cab le length around the adapt
er @ .
• Plug the power cable into the socket in the
charging dock .
110
• Close the door.
• After charging, you can p lace the vehicle charg
ing
connector ©¢ page 108 , fig. 114 in the
holder on the charging dock
door ¢ fig. 117.
Removing th e charging system from th e
charging dock
• Open the door on the charging dock .
• Remove the power cable connector from the
socket in the charging dock.
• Unwrap the cable from the adapter @.
• To loosen the contro l unit from the holder,
press the re lease tabs above the cont rol un it @
r=:> fig. 118 .
(D Tips
-Always keep the door on the cha rging dock
closed.
- Do not place any objects on the door or the
charging dock .
Charging clip
Applies to: vehicles with plug-in hybrid drive and charging clip
Fig. 119 Cha rg in g cl ip: c harg ing sys tem co nnected
Connecting the char ging system to the
charging clip
• First insert the control unit in the bottom tabs
on the charging clip and then into the upper
tabs .
• Push the con trol uni t towa rd the rear -ar row
¢ fig. 119 and let i t lock into place .
• Wrap the extra cable length around the charg
ing connector mount
(D .
• Plug the power cable into the socket @.
• After charging, you can hook the vehicle charg
ing
connector ©¢ page 108, fig. 114 to the
charging connector mount
(D ¢ fig . 119. ..,.

e-tron
After charging
Applies to: vehicles with p lug -in hybrid drive
Unlocking the vehicle charging connector
.,. Press the re lease
.,. Remove the veh icle charg ing connector @.
Closing the charging unit
.,. Put the cap back on the cha rging port
¢ page 112, fig. 124 .
.,. Carefully slide the cove r back in i ts or igina l po
si tion .
.,. T ur n the lock to the horizonta l position
¢ page 11 2, fig . 123.
Fig . 12 5 R ad ia tor g rille : unl ocking and re mov ing the ve hi
cl e c harg ing connector
@ Note
After com plet ing the charging or clima te control
p rocess, the vehicle enters a sleep mode . No d is
p lays are visib le on t he cha rging unit dur ing this
pe riod . I
f yo u drive with an o pen charg ing unit, both
the cover and the electronics installed behi nd
i t cou ld be damaged .
(D Tips
Deactivating sl eep mode
.,. Unl ock the vehicle ¢ page 34 . Or
.,. Open the driver's door. Or
.,. Press the b utton @¢ page 111 , fig. 122.
Status displays
Applies to: veh icles with plug-in hybrid drive
T he ins trumen t clu ster wi ll show if the charg
ing unit is open. However, please check if the
cover is locked befo re every trip after cha rg
i ng .
You can check the va rious ope rating statuses us
ing the L ED @ , the disp lay fie ld on the control unit
@
¢ page 111, fig . 121 and the stat us LED
@ ¢page 111, fig.122 .
Charging system : control unit
Symbol Error code LED on the control
unit@
Blue Flashe s
On
Green Flashes
Whi te On
330, 340 Red On
114
Mean ing
Self te st
Cable inse rted correctly
Cable inserted and charg· ing
Self test comple ted s uc
cessfully , cab le is not con-
Solution
nected or is connected in -Insert the cable cor rec tly.
correct ly to the vehicle
charging port.
Cable inserted incorrectly
or fau lty. Chec
k the cable and insert
i t co rrectly o r rep lace t he
cab le.
IJi,,

Driving safety
-Close the power top*,
- Open all air outlets in the instrument pan-
el,
- Switch off the air recirculation,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest speed.
.&, WARNING
-
Always make sure that the doors, all win
dows, the power roof*, the power top* and
the rear lid are securely closed and locked to
reduce the risk of injury when the vehicle is
not being used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make sure
that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your vehicle unattended espe cially with the rear lid left open. A child
could crawl into the vehicle through the lug
gage compartment and close the rear lid be
coming trapped and unable to get out. Be
ing trapped in a vehicle can lead to serious
personal injury.
- Never let children play in or around the vehi
cle.
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compartment. Vehicle occupants must al
ways be properly restrained in one of the ve
hicle's seating positions.
(D Tips
- Air circulation helps to reduce window fog
ging . Stale air escapes to the outside
through vents in the trim panel. Be sure to
keep these slots free and open.
- The tire pressure must correspond to the load. The tire pressure is shown on the tire
pressure label. The tire pressure label is lo
cated on the driver's side B-pillar. The tire
pressure label lists the recommended cold
tire inflation pressures for the vehicle at its
maximum capacity weight and the tires that
were on your vehicle at the time it was man ufactured. For recommended tire pressures
for normal load conditions, please see chap ter
c:> page 336.
254
· Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with four
tie-downs to secure luggage and other items .
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo properly
c:> page 253, Loading the luggage compartment .
In a collision, the laws of physics mean that even
smaller items that are loose in the vehicle will
become heavy missiles that can cause serious in
jury . Items in the vehicle possess energy which
vary with vehicle speed and the weight of the
item . Vehicle speed is the most significant factor .
For example, in a frontal collision at a speed of
30 mph (48 km/h), the forces acting on a 10-lb
(4 .5 kg) object are about 20 times the normal
weight of the item. This means that the weight
of the item would sudden ly be about
200 lbs. (90 kg). You can imagine the injuries
that a 200 lbs. (90 kg) item flying freely through
the passenger compartment could cause in a col
lision like this.
.&, WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used to
secure items to tie-downs can fail during hard
braking or in a collision and cause serious per
sonal injury.
- Always use suitable mounting straps and
properly secure items to the tie-downs in
the luggage compartment to help prevent
items from shifting or flying forward as dan
gerous missiles.
- When the rear seat backrest is folded down, always use suitable mounting straps and properly secure items to the tie-downs in
the luggage compartment to help prevent
items from flying forward as dangerous
missiles into the passenger compartment.
- Never attach a child safety seat tether strap
to a tie-down.
-

Airbag system
-Therefore, always wear your safety belts and
make sure that everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained.
- Always hold the steering wheel with both
hands on the outside of the steering wheel
rim at the 9:00 o 'clock and 3 :00 o'clock po
sitions to help reduce the risk of personal in
jury if the driver's airbag inflates .
- Never hold the steering wheel at the 12
o'clock position or with your hands any
where inside the steering wheel or on the steering wheel hub. Holding the steering
wheel the wrong way increases the risk of
severe injury to the arms, hands, and head if
the driver airbag deploys.
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer
ing with the way the airbag unfolds and/or by
being pushed into you as the airbag inflates.
- Always make sure nothing is in the front air-
-
bag deployment zone that could be struck
by the airbag when it inflates.
- Objects in the zone of a deploying airbag
can become projectiles when the airbag de
ploys and cause serious personal injury.
- Never hold things in your hands or on your lap when the vehicle is in use .
- Never place accessories or other objects
(such as cup holders, telephone brackets,
note pads, navigation systems, or things
that are large, heavy, or bulky) on the doors;
never attach then to the doors or the wind
shield; never place them over or near or at
tach them to the area marked
,.AIRBAG" on
the steering wheel, instrument panel or the
seat backrests; never place them between
these areas and you or any other person in
the vehicle.
- Never attach objects to the windshield
above the passenger front airbag, such as
accessory GPS navigation units or music players. Such objects could cause serious in
jury in a collision, especially when the air bags inflate .
272
-Never recline the front passenger seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the deployment area of the side airbags or
the front airbag during breaking or in a sud
den maneuver . Objects near the airbags can
fly dangerously through the passenger com
partment and cause injury, particularly
when the seat is reclined and the airbags in
flate.
A WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, espe
cially infants and small children, will receive
serious injuries and can even be killed by be ing too close to the airbag when it inflates .
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in
-
your vehicle is designed to turn off the front
passenger airbag if an infant or a small child
is on the front passenger seat, nobody can
absolutely guarantee that deployment un
der these special conditions is impossible in
all conceivable situations that may happen
during the useful life of your vehicle.
-The Advanced Airbag System can deploy in
accordance with the .,low
risk" option for 3-
and 6-year-old children under the U.S . Fed
eral Standard if a child with electrical capac
itance greater than the combined capaci
tance of a typical one-year old infant re
strained in one of the forward facing or rear
facing child safety seats with which your ve
hicle was certified is on the front passenger
seat and the other conditions for airbag de
ployment are met.
- Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating position.
- For their own safety, all children, especially
12 years and younger, should always ride in
the back properly restrained for their age and size.
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208, as
well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
..,.

CXl CXl .... N r--N .... 0 N > 00
-Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up, against or very near the instrument pan
el.
-Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest position in the up and down
ad
justment range and move it back to the
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air
bag as possib le, before insta lling the
for
ward-facing child restra int.
- Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is beh ind the child restraint and
not next to or in front of the chi ld restraint
so that the safety belt will be properly pos i
tioned.
-Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on .
,&. WARNING t-==
Rearward-facing child restraints:
-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.
-The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the chi ld 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 c ir
cumstances .
-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 PASSENGE R AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in
sta ll the rear-fac ing ch ild safety sea t in a
rea r seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
system inspected by your Aud i 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 manufacturer's
instruct ions when installing a child restraint 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 w ay out .
.. Route it around or through the child restra int
be lt
path ¢&. -
.. Push the ch ild safety seat down with you r 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 ''cl icking" noise as the belt
w inds back into the inertia reel. Test the con
vert ible lock ing retractor by pull ing on the belt .
You shou ld no longer be able to pull the belt
out of the retractor. 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) .
,&. WARNING
Using the wrong ch ild rest raint o r an improp
e rly inst alled child restra int can cause se rious
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 firm 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.
.,.
305

Checking and Filling
Fueling
Fig . 265 -Applies to: veh icles wi tho ut p lug -in hybrid dr ive
ri ght rea r side of t he veh icle: ope nin g the fuel filter door
Fig. 266 Fue l fi ll er doo r w it h attached fuel cap
Plug-in hybrid drive* : Please a lso read the infor
matio n under
¢page 105, Refueling.
The fuel filler door is unlocked or locked by the
central locking system.
Op en ing th e fuel cap
"' Applies to : vehicles with p lug-in hybri d drive :
Also read the information found
in c> page 105,
Opening the fuel filler door .
"'Applies to : vehicles wi tho ut plug-in hybrid
dr ive: Press the left side of the fuel filler door
to open it-arrow-
¢ fig . 265.
"' Unscrew the tank cap counterclockw ise.
"' Place the cap from above on the open fue l filler
door ¢ fig. 266.
Closing th e fu el cap
"' Turn the fuel cap clockwise until you hear it
lock.
"' Close the fuel fille r door unt il it l atches.
Once the pump nozzle sw itches off, the fuel tank
is
" full" . Do not fi ll the tank more . Otherw ise the
expansion space in the tank will be f illed.
314
The correct fuel type for your vehicle can be
found on a label located on the inside of the fuel
filler door. For additional informat ion on fuel,
see
¢ page 312.
The fuel tank capacity of your ve hicle is listed in
the
T echn ical Dat a section ¢ page 375.
To avoid fuel spilling or evaporat ing from the fuel
tank always close fue l fi ller cap properly and
completely . An improperly closed fuel fi ller cap
may also cause the MIL
l amp ¢ page 23 to come
on .
_& WARNING
Not pay ing attention when fueling or han
dling fuel incorrectly can lead to fires, explo
sions or serious injur ies.
-Fue l ignites easily and can cause serious
burns and other injur ies.
-
-If you do not switch the engine off when fu
eling and/or do not insert the fuel nozzle
completely into the tank open ing, fuel can
leak out or run over . Leaked fuel ca n ign ite
and start a fire.
-Do not use the telephone while f ueling. The
elec tromagnetic rays ca n cause sparks,
which can ignite fue l vapors and start a fire.
- Do not sit in your vehicle wh ile fue ling. If
you must make an exception and ente r your
veh icle agai n while fueling, close the door
an d touch me tal to d ischarge stat ic elect ric
ity before to uching the f uel nozz le . Static
electricity can create spa rks, which can ig
nite vapors when fueling.
-Do not smoke or have an open flame in the
area when fueling your vehicle or fi lling a
fue l container because this increases the
risk of an explosion.
-For your safety, carrying fuel containers in
your vehicle is not recommended. W hether
fu ll or empty, the container can leak and
cause a fire in the event of an acc ident.
- If you must make an exception and trans- port a fuel container, note the fo llow ing:
- Never fill the fuel container with fuel
while i t is in o r on the vehicle. Static e lec
tricity is discharged whe n filling w hich can
.,._