
Driving
Driving
General information
Breaking in
A new vehicle must be broken in, and the break in distance should be 1,000 miles (1,500 km).
For the first 600 miles (1,000 km), do not drive
at speeds that are more than 2/3 of the maxi
mum permitted RPM, avoid full acceleration and
do not tow a trailer. You may gradually start in
creasing the RPM and the speed between 600 miles (1,000 km) and 1,000 miles (1,500 km) .
During the first hours of use, the engine has a
higher internal friction than later on when all
moving parts have settled into place with each
other.
How the vehicle is driven during the first 1,000
miles (1,500 km) also affects the engine quality.
Drive at moderate engine speeds after the initial
break-in period, particularly when running a cold
engine . This will reduce engine wear and improve
the mileage .
Do not drive at too
low of an engine speed (rpm).
Shift down if the engine stops running "smooth ly". Extremely high engine speeds are automati
cally reduced .
Avoid damaging the vehicle
When you are driving on poor roads, or over
curbs, steep ramps , etc., make certain that low
lying parts such as spoilers and exhaust system
parts do not bottom out and get damaged.
This is especially true for vehicles with low-slung
chassis (sports chassis)* and fully loaded
vehicles.
Driving through water on roads
Note the following to reduce the risk of vehicle
damage when driving through water, for example
on flooded roads:
- The water must not be any higher than the bot
tom of the vehicle body.
- Do not drive faster than walking speed.
58
A WARNING ,_
After driving through water or mud, the effec
tiveness of the brakes may be reduced due to
moisture on the brake rotors and brake pads.
A few careful brake applications should dry
off the brakes.
([) Note
Vehicle components such as the engine,
transmission, suspension or electrical system
can be severely damaged by driving through
water.
(D Tips
- Determine the depth before driving through
water.
- Do not stop the vehicle, drive in reverse or
switch the engine off when driving through
water.
- Keep in mind that oncoming vehicles may
create waves that raise the water level and
make it too deep for your vehicle to drive
through safely.
-Avoid driving through salt water, because
this can cause corrosion.
Economical and environmentally-friendly
driving
The amount of fuel consumption, the environ
mental impact and the wear to the engine,
brakes and tires depends mostly on your driving
style . With an anticipatory and economic driving
style, fuel consumption can be reduced by ap proximately 10-15%. The following tips will help
you conserve the environment and your money at
the same time.
Anticipatory driving
A vehicle uses the most fuel when accelerating .
When you drive with anticipation, you do not need to brake as often and so you accelerate less.
When possible , let your vehicle coast with a gear
engaged, for example, when you notice that the
next traffic light is red. This produces an engine
braking effect, which helps to protect the brakes
and tires and reduces the emissions and fuel
...

00
00
......
"' ,....
"' ...... 0 0 :::,
00
E quipment that uses a lot of electricity is switch
ed off temporari ly when you start the engine.
I f the engine does not start im mediately, stop
the s tart ing proced ure and repeat afte r 30 sec
onds. To restart the engine, t urn the ignition key
back to position @.
A WARNING
-Never allow the engine to run in confined
spaces -danger of asphyxiation .
- Never remove the ignition key from the igni
tion look while the vehicle is moving. Other
wise, the steering lock could suddenly en gage and you would not be able to steer the
vehicle .
- Always take the key with you whenever you
leave your vehicle. Otherw ise, the engine
could be started or electrical equ ipme nt
such as the power windows cou ld be operat
ed . T his can lead to serious injury.
- Never leave children or persons requiring as
sistance unattended in the vehicle. The
doo rs can be loc ked using the remote trans
mitter, preventing people from escap ing
from the vehicle on the ir own in the event o f
an emergency. Depend ing on the t ime of
year, peop le inside the vehicle can be ex
posed to very high or very low tempera
tures .
(D Note
Avoid high engine speed, full throttle, and
heavy engine load if the engine has not
reached operating temperature yet. You could
damage the engine.
@ For the sake of the environment
Do not let the engine run while parked to
warm up. Begin driving immediately . This re
duces unnecessary emissions.
(D Tips
- If it is difficu lt to turn the key to position
(D, turn the steering wheel back and forth
slightly to release the steering wheel lock .
- Some noise after starting the engine is nor
mal and is no cause for concern.
D riving
Stopping the engine
App lies to : vehicles wi th ignition lock
Stopping the engine
.,. Br ing the veh icle to a full stop.
.,. Tu rn the key to position @.
Engaging the steering lock
Requirement: the selector lever must be in P.
.,. Remove the ignition key in position @
¢ page 60, fig. 69 ¢ .&_.
.,. Turn the steering wheel until you hear the
steering whee l lock .
The locked steering helps prevent vehicle theft.
A WARNING ....._ --Never turn off the engine before the vehicle
has come to a complete stop. The full func
tion of the brake booster and the power
steer ing is not guaranteed. You must use
more force to turn or brake if necessary. Be
cause yo u cannot stee r and brake as you
usually would, th is could lead to crashes
and serious injuries .
- For safety reasons, you should always park
your veh icle w ith the selector lever in P.
Otherwise, the vehicle could inadvertently
ro ll away .
- The radiator fan can continue to run for up
to 10 minu tes even after you have turned
off the engine and removed the ignition key.
The radiator fan can also turn on again if the
engine coolant heats up because of intense
sunlight or heat build-up in the eng ine com
partment.
- Always take the key with you whenever you leave your vehicle. Otherwise, the engine
could be started or electrical equipment
such as the power windows could be operat
ed. This can lead to ser ious injury.
- Never leave children or persons requ iring as
sistance unattended in the vehicle . The
doors can be locked using the remote t rans
mitter, preventing people from escaping
from the vehicle on their ow n in the event of
an emergency . Depending on the time of
year, people inside the vehicle can be
61

a:,
a:,
...... N r--. N .-< 0 0 ::, a:,
Engaging the steering lock1
)
The steering locks when you tu rn the engine off
using the
! S TART ENGINE ST OP I butto n and
open the driver's door. The locked stee ring he lps
p revent vehicle theft .
Emergency off function *
If it is absolutely necessary, the engine can also
be turned off while driv ing at speeds starting at
4 mph (7 km/h). To switch the engine off, p ress
the
! STA RT ENGINE ST OP I button twice in a row
bri efly or press and hold for long er than two sec
onds.
A WARNING
- Never turn off the engine before the veh icle
has come to a complete stop. The f ull func
ti on of the brake booster and the power
steering is not gua ranteed. You must use
more fo rce to turn or b rake if necessary. Be
c a use you canno t steer and brake as you
usually wou ld, this could lead to c rashes
and serious injuries .
- For safety reasons, you should always par k
yo ur vehicle wi th the selector lever in P .
Otherwise, the vehicle could inadvertently
roll away .
- The radiator fan can continue to run for up
to 10 min utes even afte r you have turned
off the engine and removed the ignition key.
The radiator fan can also tu rn on again if the
engine coolant heats up because of intense
sunlight or heat bui ld -up in the engine com
partment.
- Always take the key with you whenever you
leave your vehicle. Otherw ise, the engine
cou ld be sta rted or electrical equ ipme nt
such as the power w indows cou ld be opera t
ed . T his can lead to se rious inj ury.
(D Note
If the eng ine has been under heavy load for
an extended per iod of t ime, heat builds up in
the engine compa rtme nt after the eng ine is
sw itched off and there is a risk of dam aging
ll Th is fun ctio n is not a vail able in al l countries .
Drivi ng
the engine. For th is reason, let the engine run
at idle for approximate ly two minutes before
shutting it off .
Starting the engine when there is a
malfunction
Applies to: vehicles with convenience key
Other circumstan ce s can cause the engine no t to
s tar t, such as the battery in the remote control
key has drained , there is interference with the
key or there is a system malfunction.
F ig . 7 1 Steer ing co lumn/remo te con trol k ey: star ting the
eng ine if t here is a ma lfun ction
Requirement: the message No key id entified .
S ee owner's manual.
must be displayed and the
m ind icator light must be on .
.,. Hold the remote control key vertically in the lo
cation indicated
y> l) q fig. 71 .
.,. Press the brake pedal.
... Press the
!START E NGINE STOP ! button. The
eng ine will start.
.,. Dr ive to an a uthorized Audi dea ler or a uthor
ized Aud i Servi ce Fa cili ty immediately to have
the malfunct ion correc ted.
(D Tips
You can view the message ag ai n by pressing
the
I START ENGI NE STOP I bu tton.
Driver messages
Turn off ignition . Battery discharging
63

Driving
This message appea rs and a warning tone sounds
if you open the driver's door when the ignition is
sw itched on.
Pr es s brake pedal to start engine
This message appears if you do not step on the
brake pedal to sta rt the eng ine on a vehicle wi th
an automatic transm ission .
Please engage N or P
This message appears when starting or stopping
the engine and Nor Pis not engaged. The engine
will not start/stop .
Ill Key not in veh icl e?
The indica to r li ght tur ns on and this message ap
pears i f the convenience key* was removed from
the vehicle when the engine was running. If the
convenience key is no longer in the v ehicle, you
cannot switch the ignition on or start the engine
once you stop it . You also cannot lock the vehicle
from the outside.
Shift to P , vehicle can roll awa y. Doors can onl y
be locked in P .
This message appea rs for safe ty reasons a long
with a warning sound if the se lector lever is not
engaged in P after switching the ignition off .
Move the selector lever to the P position. Other
wise the vehicle is no t protected from rolling and
it cannot be locked .
II No key identified. See owner' s manual.
This message appe ars if the re is no convenience
key * ins ide the vehicle or if t he system does not
recognize the key . The convenience key may not
be recognized, for example, if it is covered by an
object that
disrupts the signal (such as a brief
case), or if the key batte ry is weak. Electronic de
vices suc h as cell phones can also interfere w it h
the s ignal.
To still be able to start or stop the engine, refer
to
c:::> page 63.
64
Electromechanical
parking brake
Fig . 7 2 Ce nter co nso le: pa rk in g brake
You r vehicle is equipped with an electromechani
ca l parking bra ke @
c:::> fig . 72. The parking brake
i s des igned to prevent the veh icle from ro lling
unintentionally and replaces the hand brake.
Setting /manually releasing the parking
brake
.. Pull the(®) switch to set the parking b rake . The
LED in the switch illum inates. The -
(U SA
mode ls)/ . (Canada models) indicator light al
so turns on in the instrument cluster d isplay .
.,. To re lease the par king brake ma nually, press
the brake or accele rator peda l w hile the ign i
tion is sw itched on and press the(®) switch at
t he same t ime. The L ED i n the bu tton and the
in dicator light in the d isp lay turn off.
Releasing the parking brake automatically
Requireme nt: the d river 's door must be closed,
the driver's saf ety be lt must be latched and the
par king b rake mus t be set .
.. To sta rt d riving and release the parking brake
automatically , press the accelerator pedal as
usual.
In add ition to releasing the parking brake auto
matically, other convenience and safety functions
a re availab le when you start driving
c:::> page 66 ,
Starting from a stop.
Preventing the automatic parking brake
release
The veh icle could beg in rol ling u ninten tionally,
depending on the hill or if towing a tra iler . .,..

Driving
-If t here is a power fa ilure, the pa rking brake
will not set if it is re leased, and it will not
r elease i f it is set¢.&. . See an authorized
A udi dealer or authorized A udi Service Fa
cility for ass istance.
Starting from a stop
Vario us convenience and safety functions may be
ava ilable when the vehicle begins driving, de
pending on vehicle eq uipment .
Starting on hills with the parking brake set
R eq uir ement: the driver's door must be closed .
.,. To start dr iving co m fo rtab ly when o n a hill, set
t he parking brake and begin dr iv ing as usu al.
The brak ing force of the par king brake does not
release automatically until t he wheels build up
enough dr iv ing force .
Starting on hills with hill hold assist
Hill hold ass ist m akes i t ea sie r to st art on hills.
Re qui remen t: the driver's door must be closed
and the eng ine must be r unning .
.,. To activate hill ho ld assist, press a nd ho ld the
brake pedal for several seconds. The veh icle
must be i n an uph ill direction o f travel.
After releasing the brake peda l, the bra king pow
er is ma intained for a brief moment¢
A to pre
ve nt the vehicle from rolling back when starting.
D ur ing th is ti me, you can eas ily beg in to move
your ve hicle.
.8, WARNING
Appl ies to: ve hicles wit h hil l hol d ass ist
- If you do not begin dr iving immediately or
the engine sta lls after releas ing t he b rake
peda l, yo ur vehicle may begin to roll back
ward. P ress the brake pedal o r set the park
ing bra ke immed iate ly.
- The intelligent tec hno logy of hill hold assist
cannot overcome the lim itations imposed by
natura l phys ical laws . The incr eased comfo rt
of fered by h ill hold ass ist sho uld not cause
yo u to
ta ke safe ty risks.
66
- Hill hold ass ist cannot hold t he ve hicle in
place on a ll hills (for examp le, if the ground
is s lippery or icy).
- To reduce the r is k of an accident, always
make sure the veh icle is situated safely
w hile stationary .
Driving offroad
General information
Applies to: vehicles with offroad mode
The ele ct ronic st abiliz ation con trol ( ES C) f unc
tions we re enh ance d for driving off road. ESC o ff
road mode can be activated in driving sit uat ions
i n which a whee l lock o r a differential lock func
tion is needed ¢
page 93. The h ill descent as
s ist is a lso available , which automatically brakes
the ve hicle and main tains a constant speed as a
r esul t¢
pag e 94.
However , your Aud i is not an offroad vehicle .
Only drive in terrain that is suitable for the vehi
cle and your driving ability. Never take any un necessary risks!
After driving offroad
- After d riving off road, remove branches and
other deb ris from the rad iator g rille, under
body, and wheels. Look especially fo r fo reign
objects (such as stones) that may be st uck in
the t ire t read.
- Clean the vehicle body and u nderbody a nd i n
spect the veh icle for poss ible damage.
- Clean the windows, headlights, tail lights a nd
the license p late if they are dirty .
- Perform a brake test (espec ia lly after driving
throug h water) .
.8, WARNING
-Be especially aware a nd at tentive whe n driv
ing un der diff icu lt con ditions . Vehicl e dam
age a nd injuries may o ccur when driving at
e xc es sively high speed s or with i ncorr ec t
d riving maneuvers.
- Always a djust yo ur sp eed and drivi ng s ty le
to the roa ds, terr ain, tra ffi c and weat he r
condition s. Drive especi ally slowly if t here i s
low visibili ty when o ffroad .
~

Driving
Selector lever positions
Fig. 73 Instrument cluste r: selector leve r positions
Fig. 74 Selecto r lever
The selector lever position that is engaged is
shown in the instrument cluster display
<=> fig . 73 .
.,. Switch the ignition on .
.. In the P/N position, you must release the selec
tor lever lock
c:> page 68.
• Move the selector leve r into the desired pos i
tion . The engaged selector lever pos ition is
shown in the sh ift gate .
Automatic shift lock (ASL )
The selector lever is locked in the P and N pos i
tions when the ignition is sw itched on . The re
move it from these posit ions, the driver must
press the brake pedal and press the lock button
at the same time. The following message ap pears in the instr ument cluster disp lay when t he
selec to r l ever is in the P or N posi tion to remi nd
the driver:
Pr ess brake to change gear while stationar y.
The automatic shift lock only functions when the
veh icle is stationary or at speeds below 1 mph
(2 km/h). At h igher speeds , the lock is automati
cally dea ctivated i n the N position.
68
The selector leve r is not locked whe n shifting
quick ly through N , for example from R to D. This
makes it possible to free the veh icle when it is
stuck by "rocking" it. The selector lever lock en
gages if the lever stays in the N pos ition longer
than 2 seconds when the brake peda l is not
pressed .
Interlock button
The interlock b utton in the selector lever hand le
prevents you from moving the selector lever in
advertently wh ile in some selector lever posi
tions. The positions that requ ire the interlock
button to be pressed a re marked in colo r in t he il
l ustrat ion <=>
fig. 74.
P - Park
This selector lever position prevents the vehicle
from rolling. You can only shift into Park when
the ve hicle is
stationary c:> A .
To sh ift in and out of the P selector lever posi
tion, press the interlock button in the selector
lever
while pressing the brake pedal.
R -Rever se
Only s hift i nto reve rse gear when the veh icle is
stationary and the engine is running at id le
speed ¢
A.
To se lect the R selector leve r position, press the
interlock button
while pressing the brake pedal.
The reverse lights turn on when you select the R
selector lever position while the engine is run
ning .
N -Neutral
The transmission is in idle in th is posi tion .
To engage the
N sele ctor leve r pos it ion, press the
b utton on the selecto r leve r and shift into the N
pos ition.
To move from selector leve r pos it ion out of
N,
you m ust press the brake peda l and the vehicle
mus t be trave ling less than 1 mph (2 k m/h) or be
stationary.
D IS -Normal position for driving forward
In the D/S se lector lever position, the transmis
s io n can be operated eithe r in the normal D mode ..,_

00
or in the 5 sport mode. The instrument cluster
display shows the selected driving mode.
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 5 for sporty driving. The
vehicle makes full use of the engine's power.
Shifting may become noticeable when accelerat
ing.
To move from selector lever position N to D, you
must press the brake pedal and the vehicle must
be traveling less than 1 mph (2 km/h) or be sta
tionary ¢&. .
A WARNING
Read and follow all WARNINGS¢&. in Driv
ing tips on page
70.
@ Note
Coasting downhill with the transmission in N
and the engine not running will result in dam
age to the automatic transmission and possi
bly the catalytic converter.
(D Tips
- If you accidentally select N while driving,
take your foot off the accelerator pedal and
wait for the engine to slow down to idle be
fore selecting Dor 5.
- If there is a power failure, the selector lever
will not move out of the P position. The
emergency release can be used if this hap
pens ¢
page 72.
Driving tips
Starting the engine
.. The selector lever must be in the P or the N po
sition.
Starting from a stop
.. Press and hold the brake pedal.
~ .. Press and hold the interlock button in these-
"' ~ lector lever handle, select the desired selector .... 0 0
:::,
00
Driving
lever position such as D ¢ page 68 and release
the lock button.
.. Wait a moment until the transmission shifts.
You will notice a slight movement when the
gear engages.
.. Release the brake pedal and press the accelera
tor pedal ¢_& .
Stopping temporarily
.. Press the brake pedal to stop the vehicle, for
example at a traffic light. Do not press the ac
celerator pedal when doing this.
.. To prevent the vehicle from rolling when you
start driving, set the parking brake when stop
ping on steep inclines¢,& .
.. The parking brake will release automatically
and the vehicle will start moving once you press
the accelerator pedal.
Stopping/parking
If the selector lever is not in the P position when
you open the driver's door, the vehicle could roll.
In vehicles with a convenience key*, the message
Shift to P and turn off ignition, or vehicle can
roll away
appears.
.. Press and hold the brake pedal¢ _&.
.. Set the parking brake .
.. Select the P selector lever position.
Stopping on an incline
.. Always press the brake pedal to hold the vehi
cle in place and prevent it from "rolling back"
¢
&_ . Do not try to prevent the vehicle from
" rolling back" when a gear is engaged by in
creasing the engine speed
¢(D .
Starting on a hill
.. Set the parking brake .
.. Select the D position .
.. Press the accelerator pedal carefully. If your
safety belt is fastened, the parking brake is au
tomatically released and your vehicle begins to
move.
69

Driving
Under certain circumstances, (such as driving in
the mountains or towing a trailer), it may be use
ful to switch temporarily to the manual shift pro gram in order to manually adapt the gear to the
driving conditions
c::> page 71.
On inclines, activate the parking brake first and
then move the selector lever to the P position
c::> page 65. This prevents the locking mechanism
from being loaded too heavily and will make it
easier to move the selector lever out of the P po
sition .
_& WARNING
-The vehicle can also roll when the engine is
stopped.
- Unintended vehicle movement can cause se
rious injury.
- Never leave your vehicle with the engine
running while in gear. If you must leave
your vehicle when the engine is running, ac
tivate the parking brake and move the selec
tor lever to P.
- Power is still transmitted to the wheels
when the engine is running at idle. To pre
vent the vehicle from "creeping", you must
keep your foot on the brake when the en
gine is running and the selector lever is in D/
Sor R or "tiptronic" mode is selected.
- Do not press the accelerator pedal when
changing the selector lever position while
the vehicle is stationary and the engine is running .
- Never shift into R or P while driving.
- Before driving down a steep slope, reduce
your speed and shift into a lower gear with
"tiptron ic".
- Do not ride the brakes or press the brake
pedal too often or too long when driving
down a hill. Constant braking causes the
brakes to overheat and substantially re
duces braking performance, increases brak
ing distance or causes complete failure of
the brake system.
- To prevent the vehicle from rolling back
when stopping on inclines, always hold it in
place with the brake pedal or parking brake.
70
- Never hold the vehicle on an incline with a
slipping clutch. The clutch opens automati
cally when it becomes too hot from the
overload. An indicator lamp . illuminates
and a driver message appears
c::> page 72
when the clutch is overloaded.
- If the engine must remain running, never
have any driving position engaged when
checking under the hood. Make sure these
lector lever has securely engaged and is
locked in P with the parking brake set
c::> page 159. Otherwise, any increase in en
gine speed may set the vehicle in motion,
even with the parking brake applied.
(D Note
- When stopping on an incline, do not try to
hold the vehicle in place by pressing the ac
celerator pedal while a driving gear is se
lected. This can cause the automatic trans
mission to overheat and can damage it. Set
the parking brake or press the brake pedal
to prevent the vehicle from rolling.
- Allowing the vehicle to roll when th@ engine
is stopped while the selector lever is in the
N position will damage the automatic trans
mission, because it is not lubricated under
those circumstances
c::> page 211, Towing
with a tow truck.
- The transmission can overheat and be dam
aged under certain driving and traffic condi
tions such as frequent starts, creeping for a
long time, or stop-and-go traffic. If the.
indicator light turns on, stop the vehicle at
the next opportunity and let the transmis
sion cool down
c::> page 72.
Hill descent control
The hill descent control system assists the driver
when driving down hills.
Hill descent control is activated when the selec
tor lever is in the D or S position and you press
the brake pedal. The transmission automatically
selects a gear that is suitable for the hill. Hill de
scent control tries to maintain the speed ach- ieved at the time of braking, within physical and ..,.