2017 AUDI A4 light

Trailer towing
Trailer towing
Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passenger
transportation.
If you plan to tow a trailer, please remember that
the additional load will affect durability, econo­my and performance.
Trailer towing not on ly places more stress on the
ve hicle, it also ca lls for more concentration from
the dr iver.
F or this reason, always follow the operating and
driving instructions provided and use common
sense.
Technical requirements
Trailer hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross tra iler weight. The hitch must be suitab le
for your veh icle and tra iler and must be mounted
securely on the vehicle's chassis at a technically
sound
locat ion . Use on ly a trailer hitch with a re­
movable ba ll mount . Always che ck with the t rail ­
er hitch man ufac tur er to make s ure t hat you are
using the co rrect hi tc h.
Do not use a bumper hitch.
The hitch must be installed in such a way that it
does not interfere with the impact -absorbing
bumper system. No mod ificat ions should be
made to the vehicle exhaust and b rake systems .
Fr om t ime to t ime, che ck that all hitch mo unti ng
bol ts rem ain securely f aste ned.
W hen you are not tow ing a tra iler, remove the
tra ile r hitc h ba ll mount . This prevents the hit ch
from caus ing damage s hou ld your veh icle be
s truck from be hind ¢
,&..
Trailer brakes
If you r trailer is equipped with a brak ing system,
check to be su re that it conforms to all regula­
tions .
90
The t rai ler hydraulic bra ke system must not be
directly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
bra ke system ¢&. .
Safety chains
Always use s afety chains be tween you r vehi cle
and t he tra ile r.
Trailer lights
Traile r lights must meet all regula tions . B e s ure
to check w ith your author ized Audi dealer for cor­
r ec t wir ing, swi tches and relays.
Mirrors
If you are unable to see t he traffic behind you us­
i ng t he regular outs ide mirrors, then yo u
must in­
stall ex tended mirrors . It is impo rtant that you
al ways have clear vision to the rear.
.&_ WARNING
Afte r remov ing the tra ile r hi tc h, do not s tore
it i n y our vehicle. In case o f su dden brak ing,
the hitch could fly fo rward and injure you or
your passengers.
Operating instructions
Maximum trailer weight
A tra iler f or yo ur vehicle is lim ite d to a typical
class 1 or class 2 trailer.
Trailer load distribution
Be sure the load in the t rai le r i s he ld se curely in
pla ce to p reve nt i t from shi fting forwar d, bac k­
ward or si deways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer ¢ &.
in Driver messages on page 91.
Engine cooling system
Towi ng a tra iler makes the engine work harder. It
is important that the cooling system's perform ­
ance is up to the additional load . Make sure tha t
the coo ling system has enoug h fluid.
Tire pressure
When towing a trailer, inflate the tires of your
vehicle to the cold tire p ressure listed under "Full
load" on the t ire press ure label. The t ire pressure
1111-

label is located on the driver's side B-pillar. In­
f late trai ler tires to trailer and tire manufactur­
ers' specifications.
Lights
The headlight settings should be checked with
the trailer attached before driving off. Check to
make sure both vehicle and trailer lights are
working properly.
Safety chains
Be sure trailer safety chains are properly connect­
ed from the tra iler to the hitch on the vehicle.
L eave enough slack in the chains to permit turn­
ing corners. When you install safety chains, make
sure they wi ll not drag on the road when you are
driving.
The chains shou ld cross under the trailer tongue
to prevent it from dropping in case of separation
from the hitch.
Driver messages
Driving with a trailer requires extra caution .
Weight distribution
Towing a loaded trailer w ith an empty car results
in a high ly unstable dist ribution of weight . If this
cannot be avo ided, drive at very low speeds only
to avoid the risk of losing steering control.
A "balanced" rig is easier to operate and cont rol.
This means that the tow vehicle should be loaded
to the extent possible and permissible, while
keeping th e trailer as light as possib le under the
circumstances . Whenever possib le, transfer
some cargo to the luggage compartment of the
tow vehicle whi le observing tong ue load require­
ments and vehicle loading considerations.
Speed
The higher the speed, the more difficult it be­
comes for the driver to contro l the rig. Do not
drive at the maximum permissible speed. Reduce
your speed even more if load, weather or wind
<( conditions are unfavorable -particularly when a,
;::; going downhill. ,....
N .... 0 0
3 a,
Trailer towing
Reduce vehicle speed immediately if the trailer
shows the slightest sign of swaying.
Do not try
to stop the swaying by accelerating.
Observe speed limits. In some areas, speeds for
vehicles towing trailers are lower than for regular
vehicles .
Always apply brakes early. When driving down­
hill, shift into a lower gear to use the eng ine
braking effect to slow the vehicle . Use of the
brakes alone can cause them to overheat and fail.
Coolant temperature
T he coolant temperature gauge~ page 11 must
be obse rved carefully. The coolant temperature
can increase if you drive on long inclines in a low
gear at high engine speeds . Reduce your speed
immediately if the LEDs in the top part of the dis­
play turn on.
For more information about indicator lights, re­
fer to.
~ page 31 .
A WARNING
= -
Anyone not properly restrained in a moving
vehicle is at a much greater risk in an acci­
dent. Never let anyone ride in your car who is
not properly wearing the restraints provided
by Aud i.
Trailer towing
information
Important to know
Your vehicle handles differently when towing a
trailer because of the addit ional weight and dif­
ferent weight distribution . Safety, performance
and economy will greatly depend on how careful­
ly you load your trailer and operate you r rig.
Before you actually tow your trailer, pract ice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area away
from traffic . Keep pract ic ing until you have be­
come complete ly familiar w ith the way your vehi­
cle-trailer combination behaves and responds.
91

Assist Electronic speed limiter
Your vehicle may be factory equipped with t ires
that are rated for a maximum speed of 130 mph (210 km/h). This is less than the maximum speed
of your vehicle. To reduce the risk of sudden tire
failure and loss of control if the vehicle is operat­
ed at excessive speeds, your vehicle also has an
electronic speed limiter . The electronic speed
limiter prevents your vehicle from going faster
than the t ire speed rating. For mo re information
¢page 317.
If the engine control unit receives faulty vehicle
road speed s ignals, the Malfunction Indicator
L amp (M IL)
¢..ij will illuminate. If this occurs,
contact the nearest autho rized Audi dealer for
assistance.
_& WARNING
Always observe the posted speed limits and
adjust you r speed to suit prevailing road, traf­
fic and weather condit ions. Never drive your
vehicle faster than the max imum speed rating
of the tires installed.
Speed warning system
Introduction
Applies to: vehicles with speed warning system
The speed warning system helps you to stay un­
der a specified maximum speed. -
The
speed warning system warns you if you are
exceeding the maximum speed that you have
stored . You will hear a warning tone when yo ur
speed exceeds the sto red va lue by approximate ly
3 mp h (3 km/h). The indi cator light also tur ns on
in the instrument cluster display
Eel (USA mod­
e ls)/
Hll (Canada mode ls) as well as the message
Manually set speed limit XXX mph (km /h ) ex­
c eeded .
The ind icator light [01 / (OJ turns off
when the speed decreases below the stored max­
imum speed.
Sett ing a threshold is recommended if you would
like to be reminded when you reach a certain
maximum speed. Situations where you may want
A ss ist
to do so include driving in a co untry with a gener­
al speed limit or if there is a specified maximum
speed for winte r tires.
(D Tips
Regardless of t he speed warning system, you
s h ou ld always monitor your speed using the
speedometer and make s ure yo u are fo llow ing
the lega l speed limit.
Setting the warning threshold
Appl ies to : vehicles with speed warni ng system
You can set, change and delete the warning
threshold in the Infotainment system.
.,. Sele ct in the Infotai nment system: I MENU ! but­
ton
> Vehicle > left control b utton > Driver as­
sistance
> Speed warning > Manu al.
You can set a ny thresho ld between 20 mp h
(30 km/h) and lS0 mph (240 km/h) . Settings
can eac h be adjusted in increments of 5 mph (10
km/h).
Cruise control system
Switching on
Applies to: vehicles with cruise control system
The cruise control system makes it possible to
drive at a constant speed starting at 15 mph (20kmlh).
0
f
~
0
Fig. 88 Operating lever: cru ise control system
.,. To switch t he system on, pull the lever into po­
sition
(D ¢ fig. 88.
.,. Drive at the speed to be maintained.
.,. To store the speed, press the button @.
93

Ass is t
The stored speed and the [ij;ji j~i4 (USA models)/
Ill (Canada mode ls) indicator light appear in the
instrument cluster disp lay . An add itiona l indica­
tor appears in the Head -up display*.
The speed is maintained by modifying engine power or through an active brake intervention.
A WARNING
- Always pay attention to the traffic around
you when the cruise control system is in op­
eration. You are always responsible for your
speed and the distance between your vehi­
cle and other veh icles .
- For safety reasons, cruise control should not
be used in the city, in stop-and-go traffic, on
winding roads and when road condit ions are
poo r (such as ice, fog, gravel, heavy rain and
hydroplaning), because t his increases the
risk of an accident.
- Switch the cruise cont rol off temporar ily
when d riving i n turn ing lanes, h ighway exits
or in construction zones .
- Please note tha t unconsciously "resting"
yo ur foot on the accelerator pedal prevents
the cruise control from braking. This is be ­
cause pressing the acce lerato r pedal ove r­
rides the cruise contro l system.
- If a brake system ma lf u nction such as over ­
heating occurs when the cruise control sys­
tem is sw itched on, the braking function in
the system may be sw itched off. The rest of
the cruise control system functions remain
active as long as the
[ij;(l)~i4 (USA models) I
i:I (Canada models) indicator light is on.
(D Note
Before driving a long d istance on a steep
downward hill, decrease your speed and se­
lect a lower driving gea r. This makes use of
the engine b raking effect and relieves the
brakes.
(0 Tips
The b rake lights turn on when the brakes are
app lied automatically .
94
· Changing the speed
Applies to: vehicles with cruise control system
.,. To increase/decrease the speed in 1 mph (1
km/h) incremen ts, briefly
tap the lever toward
0 10 c::> page 93, fig . 88 to the first level.
.. To increase/decrease the speed in
S mph (10
km/h) increments, briefly tap the lever toward
0 10 to the second leve l.
.. To increase or decrease the speed qu ickly,
hold
the lever toward 0 10 to the first or second
level unt il the desired speed is reached .
Overriding the speed
Applies to: vehicles with cruise control system
You can press the acce lerator pedal down to in­
c rease yo ur speed, for example if you want to
pass someone. The speed yo u sto red earl ie r w ill
r esume as soon as yo u release the acceler ator
pedal.
Howeve r, if yo u are exceedi ng the stored speed
by a considerable amount fo r a long time, the
c ruise contro l system will temporarily switch off.
The m:iJm (U SA mode ls) ! Ill (Canada models) in­
dicator light in the instrument cl uster turns off
and the stored speed is retained.
Preselecting a speed
App lies to: vehicles wit h cruise control system
You can pre -select your desired speed when the
vehicle is stationary.
.,. Switch o n the ignition.
.. Pull the lever into pos ition
(I) c::> page 93,
fig. 88 .
.. To increase or decrease the speed, tap the lever
in the
0 10 direction.
This function makes it possible, for example, to
save the speed you want before driving on the highway. Once on the expressway, act ivate the
cruise contro l by pull ing the lever into posit ion
(I) .

Assist
(D Note
The sensors can be displaced by impacts or
damage to the bumper , whee l housing and
underbody. This can impair the adaptive
cruise control. Have an authorized Audi dea ler
or authorized Audi Service Fac ility check their
function .
In curves
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise control
Fig . 9 1 Exa mple: drivin g in to a curve
When driving into a curve<=> fig. 91 and ou t of a
curve, the adaptive cruise control may react to a
veh icle in the neighboring lane and apply the
brakes . You can prevent that by pressing the ac­
celerator pedal b rief ly.
Stationary vehicles
Applies to : vehicles with Aud i adaptive cruise contro l
Fig. 92 Example: vehicl e chang ing lane s and sta tiona ry ve ­
hi cle
Adaptive cruise control can react to a limited ex­
tent to stationary vehicles
c:> fig . 92, as long as
you are driving slow er than SO km/h and the sys­
tem classifies as possible passing maneuver as
low . For example, if a vehicle that was already
detected @turns or changes lanes, the adaptive
98
cruise contro l reacts to the stationary vehicle
ahead of it@ .
Switching on/off
Applies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise control
Fig. 93 Operating lever : sw itc hin g on and off
Fig. 94 Inst rument cluster : adap tive cr uise cont rol
You can set any speed between 20 and 9S mph
(30 and lSO km/h).
Indicator lights and messages in the instrument
cluster display inform you about the cu rrent sit­
uation and setting .
An add itional indicator appears in the Head-up
display *.
Switching adaptive cruise control on
.. Pull the lever toward you into position (D
c=> fig. 93. ACC: standby appears in the display.
Saving the speed and activating regulation
.. To store the current speed, press the ISE TI but­
ton
c:> fig . 93 . The stored speed is shown in the
speedometer in the LED line@ and appears
briefly in the status line
@ c:> fig. 94.
.. To activate the regulation while sta tionary, also
press the brake pedal. .,.

Switching adaptive cruise control off
• Push the lever away from you into position @
unti l it clicks into place. The message
ACC: off
appears.
@ Indicato r lights
I'll -adaptive cru ise control is switched on. No
vehicles are detected ahead. The stored speed is
maintained.
• -A vehicle driving ahead was detected. The
adapt ive cr uise control system regulates the
speed and distance to the vehicle dr iv ing ahead
and accelerates/brakes automatically.
• -adaptive cru ise cont rol is switched on . Ave­
h icle was detected ahead. Yo ur vehicle is stat ion­
ary and will not star t driving automatically.
(-j -adaptive cru ise control is switched on . No
vehicles we re detected ahead . Your vehicle is sta­
tionary and will not start dr iving automati cally.
• -T he automatic brak ing is not enough to
maintain a sufficient distance to a veh icle dr iving
ahead . You must intervene
¢ page 102, Request
for driver intervention.
© In strum ent cluster display
If Dr ive r assis t is not shown in the instrument
cluster display, you can open it using the multi­
function steering wheel buttons
¢ page 12.
Based on the graphic display, you can determine
if the system is maintaining a distance to the ve­
h icle dr iving ahead and what that distance is .
No vehicle -no vehicle was detected driving
ahead .
Silver vehicle -a vehicle was detected driv ing
ahead.
Red vehicle -request for the dr iver to take action
¢page 102.
The five distance bar s on the gauge© rep resent
the set d istance (refer to
~ page 101 for infor­
mat io n on how to change the dis tance) . If you
fa ll below the se lected distance, the distance
bars become red from the bottom upward.
A ss ist
A WARNING
If you press the !SET ! button when driv ing at
speeds below 20 mph (30 km/h), the veh icle
accelerates automatically up to 20 mph (30
km/h), wh ich is the minim um speed that can
be set.
@ Tips
- If you switch the ignition or the adaptive
cruise cont rol sys tem off, the set speed is
erased for safety reasons.
- The e lectronic stabilization control (ESC)
and the an ti-slip-regula tion (ASR) are auto­
matically switched on when the adap tive
cruise cont rol is swit ched on.
Changing the speed
Appl ies to: vehicles wit h Aud i ada ptive cru ise control
0
f
'
0
Fi g. 95 Operat ing lever: changing the speed
"'To increase/decrease the speed in 1 mph (1
km/h) increments, b riefly
t a p the lever toward
0 10 ¢ fig. 95 to the firs t level.
• To increase/dec rease the speed in 5 mph
(5 km/h or 10 km/h) increments, brief ly
tap
the lever toward 0 10 to the second level.
• To increase or decrease the speed quick ly,
hold
the lever toward 0 10 up to the first or second
level unt il the red LED@ reaches the desired
speed¢
page 98, fig . 94 .
You can also preselect the speed when adaptive
cruise contro l is not act ive by moving the lever in
the des ired direction
0 10 . Activate the previ­
ously selected speed by pulling the lever into po ­
sition
(D ¢ page 98, fig . 93 .
After every adjustment, the new stored speed ap­
pears briefly in the status line ¢
page 98, fig. 94 ..,.
99

Ass is t
@ . The B indicator light also turns on when
adaptive cruise control is active and the
Ill indi­
cator light turns on when adaptive cruise contro l
is not active .. In the Audi v irtual cockpit*, the
II
indicator light appears instead.
Driving in stop-and-go traffic
Applies to: vehicles with Aud i adapt ive cruise contro l
Fig. 96 Instru ment cluste r: safe sta rt mo nito r
The adaptive cruise control system also assists
you in stop-and-go traff ic.
If a vehicle dr iv ing
ahead stops, your vehicle will brake and stay at a
stop within the limits o f the system.
• To resume d riving w ith adapt ive cr uise control,
tap the accelerator peda l or
• Pull the lever toward you in to position @
¢page 100, fig . 97.
Starting to drive w ith adaptive cruise
control
1 )
As long as the message ACC: automatic go d is­
p lays and the vehicle d rivi ng ahead starts to
move, your veh icle w ill sta rt driving ¢& . You can
reactivate
ACC: automatic go for a short time by
pu lling the lever to position @.
F or safety reaso ns, your vehicle will only start to
d rive automatically if
- the driver's safety belt is fastened,
- all doors and the hood are closed,
- your vehicle is not stationary for more than
three minutes .
The . indicator light and the indicator in the in­
strument cluster display wi ll warn you about the
danger¢
fig. 96 . An audio signal will also sound.
l) Thi s is no t a vail able in so me c oun tries.
100
- Press the brake pedal to slow yo ur vehicle
down.
A WARNING
If the message ACC: automati c go1l appears ,
your vehicle w ill start driving even if there is
a n obstacle between your vehicle and t he ve­
hi cle dr iving ahead. This increases the ris k of
an accident .
¢j) Tips
- If adaptive cruise control is active and your
vehicle does not start driving even though
the message
ACC: automatic go1> appears,
you ca n start driving by tapp ing the acceler­
ato r pedal.
- If an obstacle is detected when your veh icle
sta rts mov ing, the safe s tart monitor ap­
pea rs ¢
fig. 96. Yo ur vehicle will drive more
slowly when sta rting. This may a lso happe n
in some s itu ations when the re is no a ppa­
rent obstacle .
Interrupting cru ise control
Applies to: vehicles wit h Audi adaptive c ruise control
Fig. 97 Selector leve r
Requirement : adaptive cruise cont rol m ust be
swi tched on.
Overriding cruise control
• To accelerate manua lly, pull the lever toward
you into posit ion @ and hold it there or press
the acce lerato r pedal. The message
ACC : over ­
ride
appears. ...

<( a, .... N ,....
N .... 0 0
3 a,
Indicator in the instrument cluster display
When the adaptive cruise control is switched on
for the first time, th e availability of predictive
control is displayed in the status line with the m essage
ACC: 1111 + B active.
The symbol appears when the system
is regulating the speed to match a speed limit. As
an example, the system is regulating a speed of
50 mph (80 km/h) in this scenario. The speed is
then taken over by the adaptive cruise control.
The speed in the speedometer LED line also ad­
justs to the speed to be maintained
c::> page 98,
fig .
94. The 111B c::> fig . 100 symbol appears
when there is an adaptation to the route ahead .
If you are in the
Driver assist display in the in­
strument cluster, then the following symbols will indicate which occurrence the system is currently
responding to .
Symbol Meaning
MPH
USA models:
Speed limit
km/h
Canada models:
Speed limit
Ir
Curve
_J!L
-1:r
Intersection
~
Traffic circle
A WARNING
- Read the warnings on c::> & in General infor ­
mation on page 97
and on c::> & in Descrip­
tion on page 24 .
- Pay attention to traffic and the area around
your vehicle when predictive control is switched on. The driver is always responsi­
ble for correctly assessing the traffic situa­
tion.
- There is an increase in the risk of an acci­
dent, because the system does not consider
"right of way" rules and also does not re­
spond to traffic lights .
- The system only considers traffic signs that
give a speed limit.
Assist
- The permitted speed can be exceeded if the
adaptation to a speed limit is incorrect. The
driver is responsible for adhering to the per­
mitted speed.
- The speed at which a curve is driven through
does not necessarily match your own driving
style . Brake the vehicle yourself when need ­
ed to reduce the risk of an accident.
(D Tips
-If a speed limit is detected, the stored
speed is also adjusted in the speedometer
LED line when the adaptive cruise control is
not active.
- The adaptation by the system depends on
the driving mode set in drive select* .
- Switching off predictive control, for exam­
ple when driving in low traffic zones, does
not cause the adaptive cruise control to
switch off .
-After switching on the ignition, the system
initially adjusts to a speed of 80 mph
(130 km/h) when driving onto highways
without a speed limit. Then the system ad­
justs to the last speed stored by the driver.
- There is no adaptation to speed limits when
driving through highway interchanges and
when driving on or off the expressway.
- There is no predictive control at speed limits
under 20 mph (30 km/h).
- If a speed limit is only detected by the cam­
era and the actual speed is significantly
higher, then the speed limit will blink in the
display until you have reached the required
speed
c::> page 25.
- Incorrect values from the camera-based traffic sign recognition* or outdated naviga­
tion system map data can lead to incorrect
or implausible control.
- When route guidance is switched on, the
system adapts to the route provided by the
navigation system. Driving without route
guidance or leaving a route can result in im­
plausible control.
- The system switches
off when outside of a
road system that is recorded in the naviga­
tion system map data.
103