2017 AUDI A8 automatic transmission

Table of contents
About this Owner's Manual ... .. .
Cockpit ... .. ............... .... .. .
Cockpit overview ................ .
Controls at a glance ... .......... .. .. .
Instrument cluster .. .......... .. .. .. .
Multifunction steering wheel ... .. .. .. .
Driver information system ............ .
Time and date display ...... ... .. .... .
H ead-up Display .... .. .. ..... ... .. .. .
Indicato r lights . ................ ... .
On Board Diagnostic System (OBD) .... .
Starting and driving ............ .
Opening and closing .. .... .... .. .
Central locking .... ........... .... .. .
L uggage compartment lid ...... .... .. .
Child safety lock ........... ..... .. .. . 6
7
7
7
9
11
12
16
16
17
25
27
27
27
33
36
Power
window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Sunroof. .. ... ... .. .......... .. .. .. . 38
Panorama glass roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Valet parking function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
40
Garage door opener (Homelink) . . . . . . . . 41
L ights and Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Exterior lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Interior lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
V1s1on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Windshield wipers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SO
Digital compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Seats and storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Front seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Rear seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Head restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
58
Memory function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
12 volt sockets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
llSvoltsocket .............. .... ... 61
Full-length center console. . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Sto rage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Luggage compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Pass-through with ski bag . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Refrigerator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Warm and cold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Deluxe automatic climate control . . . . . . . 69
2
Driving ..... .. .. .. .. ... .......... . .
General information . .... .......... . .
Steering .......... .. .. . .......... . .
Start ing and stopping the eng ine ..... . .
Start/Stop system .. .. ............. . .
E le ctromechanical parking brake ...... .
Start ing from a stop .. ........ ..... . .
Automat ic transmission
Trailer mode .. .. .. ........ ..... . .
D rivin g with a trailer .. .............. .
T raile r mode notes .. .. ............. . .
Driver assistance .. .............. .
Assist .... .. .. .. .. .. ... .. ... ... .. . .
Speed warning system ... ........... . .
Cruise control system .... .......... . .
Audi adaptive cruise control .......... .
Audi active lane assist (lane departure 73
73
75
76
78
81
82
83
89
89
91
92
92
92
92
94
assist) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Audi side assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
N ight vision assist w ith pedestrian and
wild animal detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
107
Audi drive select (drive settings) . . . . . . . . 110
Parking systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Parking system plus ........ ....... ... 115
Rearv iew camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Peripheral cameras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Adjus ting the display and the warning
tones. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
124
Error messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
T railer hitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Intelligent Technology . . . . . . . . . . 126
E lectronic Stabilization Control (ESC) . . . . 126
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
E lectromechanical steering, dynamic
steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
129
All wheel drive (quattro) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Energy management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Notice about data recorded by the Event
Data Recorder and vehicle control
modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
132

C) C0 ....
"' " "' .... 0 0 :r -Hill hold assist cannot hold the veh icle in
place on all h ills (for example, if the ground
is slippery or icy).
- To reduce the risk of an accident, always
make sure the vehicle is situated safely
wh ile stat io nary.
Automatic transmission
Introduction
The automat ic transmission is cont rolled e lec­
tron ica lly . Power is transferred using a torque
converter.
The transm ission shifts up or down a utomat ica lly
depending on w hich drive program is sele cted.
When a
moderate driving style is used , the
transmission selects the most economical d riving
mode. The t ransm iss ion upsh ifts at a lowe r RPM
a nd downshifts at a highe r RPM to imp rove fuel
effi ciency .
The transm ission sw itches to a spo rty mode after
a ki ck-down or when the drive r uses a
sporty
driving style
c haracterized by quick accelerator
pedal movements, heavy acce leration , freq uent
changes in speed and traveling at the maximum
speed.
If desired , the dr iver can also select the gears
manually (tiptronic mode)
c::> page 86 .
Indicator in the display
Fig . 9 5 Inst rumen t cluste r: s elec to r leve r po sit io n
@ -The current sele ctor leve r position is d is­
p layed continuously. In manua l mode, an Mis
d isp layed in addi tion to the gea r.
D rivi ng
@ -This display appea rs brief ly if you change the
sel ector lev er posit ion or if you pr ess the button
on the selector lever
c::> pag e 83 , fig . 96. The
current selector lever pos ition is shown with a
white background.
Selecting the selector lever position
Fi g. 9 6 Selecto r lever
-- p----
----R--- --1
----N - -- ---
- D/S--
Fig . 97 Pres sin g the b utto n on the se lector leve r
The current se lector lever position is disp layed on
t h e se lector lever
c::> fig. 96 .
.,. You may need to release the selector lever lock
depending on wh ich selector lever pos ition is
selected and which one yo u wou ld like to se lect
c::> page 84, Selector lever lock .
.,. To engage the ne arest se lector lever posi tion,
move the selector lever forw ard/back until you
fee l the first pressure po int. The selector lever
wi ll return to its orig inal position .
.,. To skip ove r one (or two) selector lever posi ­
tions, move the selector lever past the first
(and second) pressure po int into the desired
position . T he selector lever will return to its
or iginal position .
For example, to move directly from the D selec-
tor lever position to P when stopping the vehicle,
ll>
83

Driving
you can shift past the N and R selector lever positions.
Selector lever lock
The selector lever lock prevents you from select­ ing a position unintentionally, causing the vehicle
to roll. When engaging some selector lever posi­
tions, you must press the button on the selector lever ¢
fig. 96 and/or press the brake pedal.
You must press the brake pedal to engage a se­ lector lever position when the engine is running
and the vehicle is stationary. The arrows ~
fig. 97
indicate when you need to press the button on
the selecto r lever.
The selector lever does not lock if you shift from D to R within one second. This allows you to
"rock" the vehicle to free it when it is stuck.
P - Park
This selector lever position prevents the vehicle
from rolling . Only shift into park when the vehi­
cle is stationary ~&. . To engage the P selector
lever position, press the button on the selector
lever and shift into the P position.
You can only shift out of park when the engine is
running and you are pressing the brake pedal. To
release the parking lock. press the button on the
selector lever and select the desired position.
P engages automatically when you switch the en­
gine off while D, Sor R is engaged or in manual
mode.
If you switch the engine off when the N position
is selected, the transmission remains in N for ap­
proximately 30 minutes and then Pis engaged.
You must use the parking lock emergency release
before towing the vehicle~
page 88.
R- Reverse
The reverse gear is engaged in this position. Only
select reverse gear when the vehicle is stationary
and the engine is running at idle speed ~,&. . To
engage the R selector lever position, press the
button on the selector lever, press the brake ped­
al and move the selector lever into the R position.
84
The reverse lights turn on when you select the R
selector lever position while the engine is run­
ning.
N -Neutral (idle)
The transmission is in idle in this position. To en­
gage the N selector lever position, press the but­
ton on the selector lever and shift into the N po­
sition.
If you switch the engine off when the N position
is selected, the transmission remains in N for ap­
proximately 30 minutes and then Pis engaged .
You cannot select the N position when the igni­
tion is switched off. When driving through an au­
tomatic car wash, first select the N position and
then turn the engine off¢
page 306.
For safety reasons, the vehicle cannot be locked
when the transmission is in the N position.
DIS -Driving forward
When the transmission is in the D/S position, it
can be operated either in the normal D mode or
in the S sport mode . Move the selector lever back
to engage the S sport mode. You can only select
the S selector lever position when Dis engaged.
To select the D selector lever position again when
S is engaged, move the selector lever back~&. .
To shift from N to D when traveling at speeds be­
low 1 mph (2 km/h), press the brake pedal and
shift into the D position ~&. .
In the
normal mode D, the transmission auto­
matically selects the suitable gear ratio . It de­
pends on engine load , vehicle speed and driving
style.
Select the
sport mode S for sporty driving. The
vehicle makes full use of the engine's power. Shifting may become noticeable when accelerat­
ing.
The S selector lever position engages automati­
cally when you select dynamic mode in drive se­
lect .
_&, WARNING
- The vehicle can roll even if the ignition is
switched off.
-

Driving
-Do not inadvertent ly press the acce lerator
pedal when the vehicle is stationary. Other­
wise the vehicle will start to move immedi­
ately, eve n if the parking brake is set. This
cou ld resu lt in a crash .
(D Tips
For safety reasons, the parking brake is re­
leased automatically only when the dr iver's
safety belt is engaged in the buckle .
Hill descent control
The hill descent control system assists the driver
when driving down hills .
Hill descent control activates when the transmis­
sion is in the Dor S pos ition and you press the
brake pedal. The transmiss ion automatically se­
lects a gear that is suitable for the hill . H ill de­
scent control tries to mainta in the speed ach­
ieved at the time of braking, within phys ical and
technical limi tations. If may sti ll be necessary to
adj ust the speed with the b rake pedal.
H ill descent contro l switches off o nce the hill lev­
e ls out o r you press the accelerator peda l.
When operating the cruise contro l system
i::> page 92, hill descent control is also activated
when the speed is set.
A WARNING
H ill descent control cannot overcome phys ica l
lim itations, so it may not be able to maintain
a constant speed under all condit ions. Always
be ready to apply the brakes .
86
Manual shifting
The shi~ paddles allow the driver to shift the
gears manually .
Fig. 98 Steer ing whee l: s hifting man ually
.., To shift to a higher or lowe r gear temporari ly,
tap the
0 or 0 shift padd le i::> fig . 98 .
.., To switch manua l mode on , press the~ but­
ton. Mand the gear that is currently engaged
@ appear in the instrument cluster display
i::>page 83, fig. 95.
I :i: .. m
.., To shift up one gear, tap the right shift paddle
G) c::>fig . 98.
.., To shift down one gear, tap the left shift pad­
dle
Q .
.., To switch manua l mode off, press the ~ but-
ton again, or
.., Move the se lector lever back and re lease it.
When yo u accelerate or reduce the speed, the
transmission au tomatically shifts into the correct
gear shortly before reaching the RPM limit. If yo u
select a lower gear than the one currently shown
in the disp lay, the automatic transmission will
only shift down once there is no dang .er of ex­
ceeding the maximum RPM.
The eng ine braking effect increases when you
downshift when going downh ill.
Kick-down
Kick-down enables maximum acceleration.
When yo u press the accelerator pedal down be­
yond the res istance point, the automatic trans­
mission downshifts into a lower gear and the en­
gine ut ilizes its full power, depending on vehicle
speed and engine RPM. It shifts up into the next .,,_

0 co .... N ,..._
N .... 0 0 :c ' use the hex head, potentially causing an ac­
cident.
- The factory-supplied jack is intended only
for your vehicle model. Under no circum­
stances should it be used to lift heavy
vehicles or other loads; you r isk injuring
yourself .
- Never start the engine when the vehicle is
ra ised, which could cause an accident.
- Support the veh icle secure ly with appropri­
ate stands if work is to be performed under­
neath the vehicle; otherwise, there is a po ­
tent ial risk for injury .
- Never use the jack supplied with your Audi
on anothe r vehicle, particularly on a heav ier
one . The jack is only suitable for use on the
vehicle it came w ith.
(D Tips
The vehicle jack* in your vehicle is mainte­
na nee-free.
Replacing wheels
Before changing a wheel
Observe the following precautions for your own
and your passenger's safety when changing a
wheel .
.,. After you experience a tire fail ure, pull the car
well away from moving t raff ic and try to reach
le vel ground before you stop¢,&. .
.,. All passengers should
lea ve the ca r and move
to a safe location (for instance, behind the
guardrail) ¢,&. .
.,. Engage the
parking brake to prevent your vehi­
cle from rolling unintentionally¢,&. .
.,. Move
sel ecto r le ve r to pos it ion P ¢ ,&. .
.,. If you a re towing a trailer, unh itch the trailer
from your veh icle.
.,. Take the
jack and the s pare tir e out of the lug ­
gage compartment
¢ page 312.
WARNING
You or your passengers co uld be injured while
chang ing a wheel if you do not follow these
safety precautions:
Em ergenc y ass is tanc e
-If you have a flat tire, move a safe distance
off the road. Turn off the eng ine, turn the
emergency flashers on and use other warn­ ing dev ices to alert other motorists .
- Make sure that passengers wait in a safe
p lace away from the vehicle and well away
from the road and traff ic .
- To help prevent the veh icle from moving
suddenly and possib ly slipping off the jack,
always fully set the park ing brake and block
the wheel d iagonally opposi te the wheel be­
ing changed. When one front whee l is lifted
off the groun d, p lacing the Automatic
Transmission in "P" (Park) w ill
not prevent
the vehicle from mov ing.
- Before you change a wheel, be sure the
g round is leve l and firm. If necessary, use a
sturdy board under the jack .
- Always s tore the vehicle tool kit, the jack
and the replaced tire in the luggage com­
partment
r::> page 213 .
(D Tips
Befo re c hanging the w heel, you must activate
t he jacking mode, so that the a utomat ic co n ­
tro ls for the Adaptive Air Suspension do not
make it more difficult to lift the vehicle with
the jack
¢ page 315.
Changing a wheel
When you change a wheel, follow the sequence
described below step-by-step and in exactly that
order .
1. Activate the vehicle jack mode ¢ page 315 .
2. Remove the decorative wheel cover *. For
more detai ls see also
r:::> page 314, Decora­
tive wheel covers
or ¢ page 314, Wheels
with wheel bolt caps.
3. Loosen the wheel bolts r:=> page 315 .
4. Locate the proper mounting point for the
jack a nd align the jack below that point
r:::> page 315 or ¢page 316.
5. Raise the ca r wi th the jack ¢ page 315 or
r:::> page 316 .
6. Remove the whee l with the flat tire and then
insta ll
the spare r:::>page 318 . IJII>
313

0 co .... N ,..... N .... 0 0 :c ' Emergency situations
General
This chapter is intended for trained emergency
crews and working personnel who have the nec­
essary tools and equipment to perform these
ope rations.
Starting by pushing or
towing
CD Note
Veh icles with an automatic transmission can­
not be started by pushing or towing.
Starting with jumper
cables
If necessary, the engine can be started by con­
necting it to the battery of another vehicle.
If the engine shou ld fail to start because of a dis ­
charged or weak battery, the battery can be con­
nected to the battery of
another vehicle, using a
pair of jumpe r cables to start the engine.
Jumper cables
Use only jumper cables of suffic iently large cross
section
to carry the starter current safely. Refer
to the manufacturer's specifications.
Use only jumper cables with
insulated term inal
clamps which are dis tinct ly marked:
plus (+) cable in most cases colored re d
minus( -) cable
in most cases colored black.
A WARNING
Batteries contain electricity, acid, and gas.
Any of these can cause very serious or fatal in­
jury. Follow the instructions below for safe
handling of your vehicle's battery.
- Always shield your eyes and avo id leaning
over the battery whenever poss ible.
- A dead battery can freeze at temperatures
around 32 °F (0 °C). If the vehicle battery is
frozen, you must thaw it before connecting
the jump start cab les. If you do not, this in-
Emergency situations
creases the risk of an explosion and chemi­
cal burns. After jump starting the vehicle,
drive to an authorized Aud i dealer or author­
ized Audi Service Facility immediately to
have the vehicle battery checked.
- Do not allow battery ac id to contact eyes or
skin . Flush any contacted area with water
immed iately.
- Improper use of a booster battery to start a
veh icle may cause an explosion .
- Veh icle batteries generate explosive gases.
Keep sparks, flame and lighted cigarettes
away from batter ies.
- Do not try to jump start any vehicle with a
low acid level in the battery .
- The voltage of the booster battery must also
have a 12-Volt rat ing. The capacity (Ah) of
the booster battery should not be lower
than that of the discharged battery. Use of
batter ies of different voltage or substantial­
ly different "Ah" rating may cause an exp lo­
sion and personal injury.
- Never charge a frozen battery. Gas trapped
in the ice may cause an explosion.
- Never charge or use a battery that has been
frozen . T he battery case may have be weak­
ened.
- Use of batteries of different voltage or sub­
stantially different capacity (Ah) rating may
cause an exp losion and injury . The capacity
(Ah) of the booster battery should not be
lower than that of the discharged battery.
- Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
qpage 271.
CD Note
-App lying a higher voltage booster battery
wi ll ca use expensive damage to sensitive
electronic components, such as control
units, relays, radio, etc.
- There must be no electrical contact between
the vehicles as otherwise current could al­
ready start to flow as soon as the positive
(+) terminals are connected.
327

Emergency situations
@ Tips
The discharged battery must be properly con­
nected to the vehicle's electrical system .
When jump starting or charging the battery,
never connect the negative ground cable to
the battery negative post because the battery
manager system must be able to detect the
battery's state of charge. Always connect the
negat ive ground cable to the negative ground
pos t of the battery manager control unit.
Using the jump start
cable
Both jump start cables must be connected in the
correct order!
Fig. 290 E ngin e compartme nt: co nn ectors for jump start
cables and a charger
Fig. 291 Jump starting using a battery in anot her vehicle:
A -prov idin g current, B -drai ned
The procedure for connecting jump start cables
that is descr ibed next is designed to help jump
start your vehicle.
Vehicle with discharged battery:
... Turn off lights and accessories, move automatic
transmission lever to N (Neutral) or P (Park)
and set parking brake.
328
Connecting the positive cable (red) to the
positive terminal
... Open the cover on the positive terminal
qfig . 290.
1. Secure one end of the pos itive cable (red) to
t he jump start pin
(D q fig. 291 (pin under
the cover = "plus") on the vehicle that needs
to be started @.
2. Secure the other end of the positive cable
(red) to the positive terminal @on the bat­
te ry provid ing the cur rent @.
Connecting the negative cable (black) to the
negative terminal
3. Secure one end of the negative cable (black)
to the negative terminal @ on the battery
that is providing the current @.
4. Secure the other end of the negative cable
(black) to the jump start pin@ (hex head pin
= "negative") on the vehicle that needs to be
started @.
Starting the engine
... Sta rt the eng ine on the vehicle providing the
jump start @and let it run at idle .
... Now start the engine on the vehicle with the
drained battery @.
... If the engine does not start, stop the starting
procedure after 10 seconds and then repeat it
after approximately 30 seconds .
... Remove the cables whe n the engi nes are run­
ning. Remove them in reverse order from the
way they were installed.
" Close the cover on the positive terminal.
The battery is vented to the outside to prevent
gases from enter ing the vehicle interior. Make
sure that the jumper clamps are well connected
with their
metal parts in full contact with the
battery terminals .
A WARNING
To avoid serious personal injury and damage
to the vehicle, heed all warnings and instruc­
tions of the jumper cable manufacturer. If in
doubt, call for road service .
- Jumper cables must be long enough so t hat
the vehicles do not touch.
Ill>

0 co .... N ,..... N .... 0 0 :c ' today's automobiles, have steadily reduced the
scope of maintenance and repairs which can be
carried out by vehicle owners.
Also, safety and
environmental
concerns place very strict limits
on the nature of repairs and adjustments to en­
gine and transmission parts which an owner can perform .
Maintenance, adjustments and repairs usually re­
quire special tools, testing devices and other
equipment available to specially trained work ­
shop personnel in order to assure proper per­
formance, reliability and safety of the vehicle and
its many systems.
Improper maintenance, adjustments and repairs
can impair the operation and reliability of your
vehicle and even void your vehicle warranty .
Therefore, proof of servicing in accordance with
the maintenance schedule may be a condition for upholding a possible warranty claim made within
the warranty period.
Above all , operational safety can be adversely af­
fected, creating unnecessary risks for you and
your passengers.
If in doubt about any servicing, have it done by
your authorized Audi dealer or any other properly equipped and qualified workshop. We strongly urge you to give your authorized Audi dealer the
opportunity to perform all scheduled mainte­ nance and necessary repairs. Your dealer has the
facilities, original parts and trained specialists to keep your vehicle running properly .
Performing limited maintenance yourself
The following pages describe a limited number of
procedures which can be performed on your vehi­
cle with ordinary tools, should the need arise and
trained personnel be unavailable. Before per­
forming any of these procedures, always thor­
oughly read all of the applicable text and careful­ ly follow the instructions given . Always rigorously
observe the
WARNINGS provided .
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARNINGS
c::> .&. and c::> .&. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 271 .
Consumer information
A WARNING
-Serious personal injury may occur as a result
of improperly performed maintenance, ad ­
justments or repairs .
- Always be extremely careful when working
on the vehicle. Always follow commonly ac­
cepted safety practices and general com­
mon sense. Never risk personal injury.
- Do not attempt any of the maintenance,
checks or repairs described on the following pages if you are not fully familiar with these
or other procedures with respect to the ve­ hicle, or are uncertain how to proceed.
- Do not do any work without the proper tools
and equipment. Have the necessary work
done by your authorized Audi dealer or an­
other properly equipped and qualified work­
shop.
- The engine compartment of any motor vehi­ cle is a potentially hazardous area. Never reach into the area around or touch the radi­
ator fan.
It is temperature controlled and
can switch on suddenly - even when the en­
gine is off . The radiator fan switches on au ­
tomatically when the coolant reaches a cer­
tain temperature and will continue to run
until the coolant temperature drops.
- Always switch off the ignition before anyone
gets under the vehicle .
-Always support your vehicle with safety
stands if it is necessary to work underneath
the vehicle . The jack supplied with the vehi­
cle is not adequate for this purpose and
could collapse causing serious personal in­
jury.
- If you must work underneath the vehicle
with the wheels on the ground, always make
sure the vehicle is on level ground, that the
wheels are always securely blocked and that
the engine cannot be started.
- Always make sure the transmission selector
lever (automatic transmission) is in "P"
(Park position) and the park brake is ap-
plied.
~
337