2017 AUDI A7 light

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\.J - greater than the amount being generated in or­
der to maintain an optima l vehicle battery charge
l evel.
(D Tips
- Energy management cannot overcome the
laws of physics. Note that the charge level
and length of the vehicle batte ry life are
li mited.
- When the starting ability is endangered, the
(•j indicator light turns on ¢ page 14.
What you should know
Maintaining the starting ability is the highest
priority .
A lot of stress is placed on the vehicle battery
when driving short distances, during c ity driving,
and at co ld times of the year. A lot of energy is
used but little is generated. It is a lso critical
when the engine is not running but e lectr ica l
equ ipment is switched o n. In th is case, energy is
used but none is generated .
In s ituations like this, energy management will
actively regu late the distribution of ene rgy.
Long periods w ithout use
If yo u do not drive you r vehicle for several days or
weeks, e lectrica l equipment is gradually sca led
back or switched off. This reduces energy use and
ens ures the veh icle w ill be able to start after long
periods of time. Some convenience functions,
such as interior lighting or power seat adjust­
ment, may not be available under certain circum­
stances . These convenience functions will be
ava ilable again once you switch the ig nition on
an d s tart the engi ne.
With the engine switched off
T he vehicle battery will drain if yo u use I nfota in ­
ment f unctions such as listening to the rad io
while the eng ine is switched off .
The vehicle's ability to start may be impaired by
the energy use, a message will appear in the In ­
fotainment system d isplay .
The message ind icates that the system will
switch off automatically soon. If you wou ld like
Intellig ent Technology
to cont inue using the functions, you must start
t h e engine.
With the engine running
Alt hough e lectr ica l energy is ge nerated wh ile
dr iv ing , the ve hicle ba ttery can dra in. This ca n
happen if li ttle ene rgy is generate d but much is
u sed , and the charge level of the vehicle battery
is not optimal.
T o res to re the balance of ene rgy, componen ts
t h at require large amoun ts of ene rgy are tempo ­
rarily scaled back or switched off . Heat ing sys ­
tems in partic ula r req uire a great dea l of energy .
If you notice, for example, that the seat heating*
or rear window defogger is not work ing, then it
has been tempora rily reduced or sw itched off.
These systems are availab le aga in as soo n as the
energy sup ply has bee n restored .
In add ition, you may notice that the idle speed
has slig htly increased. That is normal and no
cause for concern . By increas ing the idling speed,
the addit ional required energy will be generated
and the vehicle battery will be charged .
Notice about data
recorded by the Event
Data Recorder and
vehicle control modules
Event Data Recorder
Th is vehicle is equ ipped w ith an Event Data Re­
corder (EDR) . The ma in purpose of a n EDR is to
r ecord, in certai n cras h or nea r crash-like situa­
ti ons, s uch as an airbag deployme nt o r hi ttin g a
road obsta cle, da ta t hat w ill ass ist in underst and­
i ng how a vehicle 's systems performed . The EDR
is des igned to record data related to vehicle dy ­
namics and safety systems for a short perio d of
t ime, typ ica lly 30 seconds or less . The EDR in this
vehicle is designed to record such data as:
- How va rious systems in your vehicle were ope r­
ating;
- W het her o r not the drive r and passenge r safety
be lts were b uckled/fastened;
- How far (if at all) the driver was dep ressing the
accelerator and/or bra ke pedal; and, .,,.
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\.J ' Driving safety
Basics
Safe driving habits
Please remember -safety first!
This chapter contains important information,
tips, instructions and warnings that you need to
read and observe for your own safety, the safety
of your passengers and others . We have summar­
ized here what you need to know about safety
belts, airbags, child restraints as well as child
safety. Your safety is for us
priority number 1. Al­
ways observe the information and warnings in
this section - for your own safety as well as that
of your passengers.
The information in this section applies to all
model versions of your vehicle. Some of the fea­
tures descr ibed in this sections may be standard
equipment on some models, or may be optional
equipment on others. If you are not sure, ask
your authorized Audi dealer.
A WARNING
- Always make sure that you follow the in­
structions and heed the WARNINGS in this
Manual. It is in your interest and in the in­
terest of your passengers .
-
-Always keep the complete Owner's Litera­
ture in your Audi when you lend or sell your
vehicle so that this important information
will always be available to the driver and
passengers.
- Always keep the Owner's literature handy so
that you can find it easily if you have ques­
tions.
Safety equipment
The safety features are part of the occupant re­
straint system and work together to help reduce the risk of injury in a wide variety of accident sit­
uations.
Your safety and the safety of your passengers
should not be left to chance. Advances in tech­
nology have made a var iety of features available
to help reduce the risk of injury in an accident.
Driving safety
The following is a list of just a few of the safety
features in your Audi:
- sophisticated safety belts for driver and all pas-
senger seat ing pos itions,
- safety belt pretensioners,
- safety belt force limiters for the front seats,
- safety belt height adjustment systems for the
front seats,
- front airbags,
- knee airbags for the front seats*
- side airbags in the front seats and outer rear
seats*,
- side curtain airbags with ejection mitigation
features,
- special LATCH anchorages for child restraints,
- head restraints for each seat ing position,
- adjustab le steering column.
These individual safety features, can work to­ gether as a system to help protect you and your
passengers in a wide range of accidents . These
features cannot work as a system if they are not
always correctly adjusted and correctly used.
Safety is everybody's responsibility!
Important things to do before driving
Safety is everybody 's job! Vehicle and occupant
safety always depends on the informed and care­
ful driver .
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers,
before driving always:
.,. Make sure that all lights and signals are operat­
ing correctly .
.,. Make sure that the tire pressure is correct.
.,. Make sure that all windows are clean and afford
good visibility to the outside .
.,. Secure all luggage and other items carefully
¢ page 55, ¢ page 54.
.,. Make sure that nothing can interfere with the
pedals.
.,. Adjust front seat, head restraint and mirrors
correctly for your height .
.,. Instruct passengers to adjust the head re­
straints according to their height .
129

Driving safety
• Make sure to use the right child restraint cor­
rectly to protect children
c::> page 172, Child
saf ety .
• Sit properly in your seat and make sure that
your passengers do the same
c::> page 48, Sea ts
and storage.
• Fasten your safety belt and wear it properly . Al­
so instruct your passengers to fasten their safe­
ty belts properly
c::> page 140 .
What impairs driving safety?
Safe driving is directly related to the condition of
the vehicle, the driver as well as the driver 's abili­
ty to concentrate on the road without being dis­
tracted .
The driver is responsible for the safety of the ve­
hicle and all of its occupants. If your ability to
drive is impaired, safety risks for everybody in the
veh icle increase and you also become a hazard to
everyone else on the road
c::> ,&. . Therefore :
• Do not let yourself be distracted by passengers
or by using a cellular telephone .
• NEVER drive when your dr iv ing ability is im ­
pa ired (by medications, alcohol, drugs, etc .).
• Observ e all traffic laws, rules of the road and
speed limits and plain common sense .
• ALWAYS adjust your speed to road, traffic and
weather conditions .
• Take frequent breaks on long trips . Do not drive
for more than two hours at a stretch .
• Do NOT drive when you are tired, under pres­
sure or when you are stressed .
.&, WARNING
Impaired driving safety increases the risk of
serious personal injury and death whenever a
vehicle is being used.
130
.
Correct passenger
seating positions
Proper seating position for the driver
The proper driver seating position is important
for safe, relaxed driving.
Fig. 142 Correct seating pos it ion
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of in­
jury in the event of an accident, we recommend
that you adjust the driver's seat to the following position :
• Adjust the driver's seat so that you can easily
push the pedals all the way to the floor while
keeping your knee(s) slightly bent
c:> .&_ .
• Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is in
an upright position so that your back comes in
full contact with it when you dr ive.
• Adjust the steering wheel so that there is a d is­
tance of at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
steering wheel and your breast bone
r::!) fig. 142.
If not possible, see your authorized Audi deal­
e rship about adaptive equipment.
• Adjust the steering wheel so that the steering
wheel and airbag cover points at your chest and
not at your face .
• Grasp the top of the steering wheel with your
elbow(s) slightly bent.
• For adjustable head restraints: Adjust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi­
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos ­
sible, try to adjust the head restraint so that it
is as close to this position as possible. Move the
head restraint so that it is as close to the back
of the head as possible .
• Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
c::> page 143 . .,.

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 tensioners. 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 win­
dows and the sunroof* close until there is only
a small gap open.
The function of the pre sense basic is activated at
a speed of 20 mph (30 km/h) or higher.
Drive select: the deployment 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 94
- 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:
138
- 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 increase 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 89.
- 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. ..,.

Safety belt s
Safety belts
General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety be lts are neces­
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them correctly.
.. Read all the information that follows and heed
all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
&_ WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Safety belts are the s ingle most effective
means ava ilable to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents.
For your protect ion and that of your passen­
gers, always co rre ctly wea r safety be lts
when the vehicle is moving .
- Pregnant wome n, inju red, o r physically im­
paired persons mus t also use safety be lts.
L ik e all vehicle occ upants, they are mo re
likely to be serio usly injured i f they do not
wea r safety be lts. The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mother -throughout
the ent ire pregnancy .
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of four seating positions:
two in the front and two in the rear. In some
veh icles, there are f ive seating positions: two in
the front and three in the rear . Each seating posi­
tion has a safety belt .
&_ WARNING
Not wea ring safety belts or weari ng them im­
pro perly in cre ases the risk of ser io us personal
injury and dea th.
- Never st rap more tha n one perso n, includ­
ing small ch ild ren, in to any be lt .
It is espe­
c ia lly da ngerous to place a safety belt over a
child sitting on your lap .
140
-Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are safety be lts available .
- Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained with a separate safety
be lt or ch ild restraint.
~ Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle has a warning system for the driver
and front seat passenger (on USA models only) to remind you about the importance of buckling­
up .
Fig. 1 44 Safety belt wa rning lig ht in th e i nst rument clus ·
ter · en larged
Befor e dri ving off , always:
.. Fasten your safety belt and make sure you are
wearing it properly.
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.. Make sure that your passengers also buckle up
and properly wear their safety belts.
.,. Protect children with a c hild restraint system
app ropr iate for the size and age .
The warning lig ht . in the instrument cluster
lights up when the ig nition is o n as a reminder to
fasten the safety belts. In addition, you will hear a war ning tone for a certain period of time .
Fasten your safety belt and make su re that your
passengers al so properly put on th eir safety
b e lts.
&_ WARNING
- Safety belts are the sing le most effective
means available to red uce the risk of serio us
inj ury and death in a utomobile accidents.
F or your protection and t hat of yo ur passen­
ge rs, a lways correct ly wear safety belts
when t he vehicle is moving .
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<.,;) 'SI"
-Failure to pay attention to the warn ing light
that come on, could lead to persona l injury.
Why use safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for peo­
ple riding in vehicles .
Fig. 145 Unbelted occupants in a vehicle heading for a wall
Fig. 146 The vehicle crashes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the vehi­
cle and the passengers possess energy which var­ ies with vehicle speed and body weight. Engi­
neers call this energy "kinetic energy."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the greater the vehicle's we ight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash.
Veh icle speed is the most significant factor. If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to 50
km/h), the energy increases 4 t imes!
Because the passengers of this vehicle are not us­
ing safety belts¢
fig. 145, they will keep moving
at the same speed the vehicle was moving just
before the crash, until something stops them -
here, the wall¢
fig. 146 .
Safety belts
The same p rinciples apply to people sitting in a
vehicle that is invo lved in a fronta l co llision. Even
at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50 km/h),
the forces acting on the body can reach one ton
(2,000 lbs, or 1,000 kg) or more. At greater
speeds, these forces are even higher.
People who do not use safety belts are a lso not
attached to the ir vehicle. In a frontal collis ion
they will also keep moving forward at the speed
their vehicle was travelling just before the crash .
Of course, the laws of physics don't just apply to
frontal collisions, they determine what happens in all kinds of accidents and collisions .
What happens to occupants not wea ring
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in­
jured or killed. Always wear your safety belts!
Fig. 14 7 A driver not wearing a safety belt is violently
thrown forward
Fig . 148 A rear passenger not wearing a safety belt will fly
forwa rd and strike the driver
Unbelted occupants are not able to resist the tre­
mendous forces of impact by holding tight or
bracing themselves . Without the benefit of safe­
ty restraint systems, the unrestrained occupant
will slam v iolently into the steering wheel,
Ill>-
141

Safe ty belts
Autom ati c s afet y belt retr actors
Every safety belt is equ ipped with an automa tic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. This feature
locks the belt when the belt is pulled out fast,
during hard braking and in a n accident . The belt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
hill or through a sharp curve. Dur ing normal driv­
ing the belt lets you
move freely .
Safety belt p ret en sion ers
The safety belts are equipped with a belt preten­
sioner that helps to t ighten the safety belt and
remove slack when the pretensioner is activated
¢
page 146 . The function of the pretensioner is
mon itored by a warn ing light¢
page 17.
Con vertible loc king retracto r
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac­
tor that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
¢ page 183 .
.&_ WARNING
Improperly pos it ioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious injury in an accident ¢
page 144,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat bac k­
rest to which the center rea r safety belt* is
attached is secure ly latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used. If the
backrest is not securely latched, the passen­
ger will move forward with the backrest dur­
ing sudden braking, in a sudden maneuver
and especially in a crash.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong b uckle will reduce safety belt effec­
t iveness and can cause serious persona l in­
jury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrained can be seriously in jured by the safety be lt it­
self when it
moves from the stronger parts
144
of the body into critical areas like the abdo­ men.
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child seat in the ve­
hicle
¢ page 185.
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretensioners,
refer to¢
page 146 .
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi­
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 151 Safety belt posit ion
Use the height adjustment to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
.&_ WARNING
Imp roperly positioned safety belts can cause
serio us pe rsonal injury in an a cc ident.
- The shou lde r belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fi t well on the body. Ho ld the belt
above the latch to ngue and pull it evenly
across the chest so that it sits as low as pos ­
sible on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should a lways f it
snug ly ¢
fig. 151. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
injuries by sh ifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious i nju ry .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat ion
r=;, page 142 .

Airbag syste m
about children and Advanced Airbags
¢page 172 .
Even tho ugh your vehicle is equipped with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System, make certain that all chi l­
dren, especially those 12 years and younger, al­
ways ride in the back seat proper ly restrained for
their age and size. The airbag on the passenger
side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to ride. The front seat is not the
safest place for a child in a forward-facing child
seat . It ca n be a very dangerous place for an in­
fant or a c hild in a rearward-fac ing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle has
been cert ified to comply with the requirements
of United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard ( FMVSS) 208, as well as Canada Motor
Veh icle Safety Standa rd (CMVSS) 208 as applica­
b le at the time your vehicle was man ufa ct ur ed.
According to requi rements, the front Advanced
Airbag System on the passenger side has been
certified for "suppression" for infants of about 12 month old and younger and for "low risk de­
ployment" for children aged 3 to 6 years o ld (as
defined in the standard) .
The
PAS SENGER AIR BAG O FF light in the instru­
ment panel tells you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off by the electronic control unit.
Each time you switch on the ignition, the
PAS ­
S ENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on for a
few seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if the electrical capacitance meas ­
ured by the capacitive passenger detection sys ­
tem for the front passenger seat equals the
combined capacitance of an infant up to about one year of age and one of the rearward-facing
or forward-facing child restraints listed in Fed­
eral Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208 with which the Advanced Airbag System in
you r vehicle was ce rt ified. For a listing of the
ch ild rest raints that we re used to certify yo ur
vehicle's compliance with the Safety Standard
¢ page 174 .
150
- will stay on if there is a sma ll child o r chi ld re­
straint on the front passenger seat,
- wi ll go off if the front passenger seat is occu­
pied by an adult as registered by the capacitive
passenger detectio n system
~ page 160, Mon­
itoring the Advanced Airbag System.
The PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht comes on
when electrical capacitance registered on the
front passenger seat is equal to or less than the
combined capacitance of a typical 1 year-old in­
fant and one of the rearward-facing or forward­
facing child restraints listed in Federal Motor Ve­ hicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208 with which
the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was
ce rt ified.
If the total electr ical capacitance registered o n
the front passenger seat is more than that of a
typ ical 1 year-old chi ld but less than the weight
of a sma ll adult, the front airbag on the passen­
ger side can deploy (the
PAS SENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light does not come on).
If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on, the front airbag on the passenger side
has not been t urned off by the electron ic con trol
u nit and can dep loy if the con trol uni t senses an
impact t hat meets the conditions stored in its
memo ry.
For exampl e, the airbag ma y depl oy if:
- a small ch ild that is heav ier than a typ ical 1
year-old child is on the front passenger seat (regard less of whethe r the child is in one of the
child seats listed ¢
page 17 4), or
- a child who has outgrown ch ild restraints is on
the front passenge r seat.
If the front passenger a irbag is turned off, the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in the
i nst rument cluster and stays on .
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the Feder­
al Standard requires the airbag to meet the "low
risk" dep loyment criteria to reduce the r isk of in­
ju ry through interaction w ith the airbag . "Low
r isk" dep loyment occurs in those crashes that
take place at lower decelerations as defined in
the e lectronic contro l unit ¢
page 160, PASSEN-
GER AIR BAG OFF light. .,_