AUDI A4 2015 Owners Manual

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-Passengers must always sit in an upright
position and never lean against or place
any part of their body too close to the
area where the airbags are located.
- Passengers who are unbelted, out of po­
sition or too close to the airbag can be
seriously injured by an airbag as it un ­
folds with great force in the blink of an
eye .
- Always make sure that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between the front
passenger's breastbone and the instru­
ment panel.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat
of their own and properly fasten and
wear the safety belt belonging to that seat.
- Before driving, always adjust the front
passenger seat and head restraint prop­
erly.
- Always keep your feet on the floor in
front of the seat. Never rest them on the
seat, instrument panel, out of the win­
dow, etc. The airbag system and safety
belt will not be able to protect you prop­
erly and can even increase the risk of in­
jury in a crash .
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests
are tilted back, the greater the risk of in­
jury due to incorrect positioning of the
safety belt and improper seating posi­
tion.
- Children must always ride in child safety
seats <=:>
page 165 . Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat
on the front passenger seat <=:>
page 144.
Proper seating positions for passengers
in rear seats
Rear seat passengers must sit upright with
both feet on the floor consistent with their
physical size and be properly restrained
whenever the vehicle is in use.
To reduce the risk of injury caused by an incor­
rect seating position in the event of a sudden
braking maneuver or an accident, your pas-
Driving Safely 129
sengers on the rear bench seat must always
observe the following:
.,. Make sure that the seatback is securely
latched in the upright position <=:>
page 71.
.,. If there is a passenger on the rear center
seating position, slide the center head re­
straint upward at least to the next notch.
.,. Keep both feet flat in the footwell in front of
the rear seat .
.,. Fasten and wear safety belts properly
<=:> page 139 .
.,. Make sure that children are always properly
restrained in
a child restraint that is appro­
priate for their size and age
<=:> page 165.
& WARNING ~
Passengers who are improperly seated on
the rear seat can be seriously injured in a
crash.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat
of their own and properly fasten and
wear the safety belt belonging to that seat.
- Safety belts only offer maximum protec­
tion when the seatback is securely latch­
ed in the upright position and the safety
belts are properly positioned on the
body. By not sitting upright, a rear seat
passenger increases the risk of personal
injury from improperly positioned safety
belts!
- Always adjust the head restraint properly
so that it can give maximum protection . •
•

130 Driving Saf ely
Proper adjustment of head restraints
Appl ies to vehicles: with a djustable head restra ints
Correctly adjusted head restraints are an im­
portant part of your vehicle's occupant re­
straint system and can help to reduce the risk of injuries in accident situations.
F ig . 14 0 Head restrain t: viewed from the front
The head restraints must be correctly adjust­
ed to achieve the best protection.
• Adjust the head restraints so the uppe r edge
is as even as possible with the top of your
head. If that is not possib le, try to adjust
the head restraint so that it is as close to
this position as possible
c:> fig. 140.
• If there is a passenger on the rear center
seat ing pos ition, slide the center head re­
stra int upward at least to the next notch .
Ad justing head restraints
<:>page 63.
A WARNING
All seats are equipped with head re­
straints. Dr iv ing without head restraints or
w ith head restra ints that are not properly
adjusted increases the risk of ser ious or fa­
t al nec k injury dramat ica lly. To help reduce
t he risk of inju ry:
- Always drive with the head restra ints in
place and properly adjusted.
- Every pe rson in the veh icle must have a
properly adjusted head restra int.
- Always make sure each pe rson in the ve­
hicle properly adjusts the ir head re­
stra int. Adjust the head rest raints so the
upper edge is as even as possib le with
the top of your head. If that is not possi ­
ble, try to adjust the head restra int so that
it is as close to this posit ion as pos­
sible.
- Never attempt to ad just head restraint
while driving. If you have driven off and
must adjust the driver headrest for any
reason, first stop the vehicle safely be­
fore attempting to adjust the head re­
straint.
- Chil dren must a lways be prope rly re­
strained in a child restraint that is appro­
p ria te fo r their age and size
c:> page 165.
Examples of improper seating positions
The occupant restraint system can only re­
duce the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are
properly seated.
Improper seating positions can cause serious
injury or death. Safety belts can only work
when they are properly positioned on the
body . Improper seating positions reduce the
effectiveness of safety belts and w ill even in­
c rease the r is k of i njury and dea th by moving
the safety be lt to cr itical are as of the body.
Improper seating posi tions a lso increase the
risk of serio us injury and death when an air­
bag deploys and str ikes an occupant who is
not in the proper seating posit ion. A dr iver is
responsible for the safety of all veh icle occu­
pants and espec ially for children. Therefore :
• Never allow anyone to assume an incorrect
seating position when the vehicle is being
used
c:> ,& .
The following bulletins list on ly some samp le
pos itions that will increase the risk of serious
injury and death. Our hope is that these exam­
ples will make you more aware of seat ing po­
s itions that are dangerous .
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is
moving:
- neve r stand up i n the vehicle
- never stand on the seats
- never kneel on the seats
- never ride wit h the sea tback reclined
- neve r lie down o n the rear seat
- neve r lean up against the instrument panel ..,.

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-never sit on the edge of the seat
- never sit sideways
- never lean out the w indow
- never put your feet out the window
- never put your feet on the instrument panel
- never rest your feet on the seat cushion or
back of the seat
- never ride in the footwe ll
- never ride in the cargo area
8_ WARNING
-
Improper seat ing positions increase the
r isk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a veh icle is being used .
- Always make sure that all vehicle occu­
pants stay in a proper seating pos ition
and are properly restra ined whenever the
vehicle is be ing used.
Pedal area
Pedals
The pedals must always be free to move and
must never be interfered with by a floor mat
or any other object.
M ake sure that all pedals move freely without
i nte rferen ce and that no thing prevents them
from re tu rning to the ir origin al posi tions.
Only use floor mats that leave the pedal area
free and can be secured w ith floor mat fasten­
e rs.
If a brake circuit fails, increased brake peda l
travel is required to br ing the vehicle to a full
stop.
8_ WARNING
Pedals that canno t move freely ca n cause
loss o f vehicle control a nd incr ease the r is k
o f serious injury.
- Never pl ace any ob jects in the d river's
f ootwell. An object could ge t into the
peda l area and inter fere with pedal func­
tion . In case of s udden braking or an ac­
c ident, you would not be able to brake or
accele rate!
Dr iving S afel y 131
-Always ma ke sure that nothing can fall
or move into the driver's footwel l.
Floor mats on the driver side
Always use floor mats that can be securely
attached to the floor mat fasteners and do
not interfere with the free movement of the
pedals.
.,. Make s ure t hat the f loor mats are properly
secured and cannot move and interfere with
the peda ls
c> &_ .
Use only f loor mats that leave the peda l area
u nobstructed and that are firmly secured so
that they cannot slip o ut of position. You can
obta in suitable floor mats from your author­
ized Audi dealer.
Floor mat faste ners are insta lled in your Audi.
Floor mats used in yo ur vehicle mus t be at­
tached to these fastene rs . P rope rly securing
the floor mats wi ll prevent them from sliding
into positions that could interfere with the
pedals or impair safe operat ion of your vehicle
in other ways.
8_ WARNING
Pedals that cannot move free ly can result
in a loss of vehicle control and increase the
risk of serious persona l injury.
- Always make sure that floor mats are
properly secured .
- Never p lace or install floor mats or other
f loor coverings in the vehicle that cannot
be prope rly secured in p lace to prevent
them from slipping and interfer ing with
the peda ls o r the a bility to cont ro l t he
veh icle.
- Never place or ins tall floor mats o r other
f loor coverings on top o f al ready in stal­
led floo r mats . Ad ditiona l floo r mats and
o ther cover ings will red uce the size of
the peda l area and interfere with the
pedals.
- Always prope rly reinstall and secure floo r
mats that have been taken out for clean­
ing .
•
•

132 Driving Safel y
-Always make sure that objects cannot
fall into the driver footwe ll wh ile the ve­
hicle is moving. Objects can become
trapped under the brake pedal and accel­
erator peda l causing a loss of veh icle
contro l.
Stowing luggage
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be prop­
erly stowed and secur ed in the luggage com­
partment.
Fig. 141 S afe load positio nin g: place heavy objects as
l ow a nd a s far forward as pos sible.
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift suddenly, changing vehicle hand ling
characteristics. Loose items can also increase
the risk of serious personal injury in a sudden
vehicle maneuver or in a collision .
.,. Distribute the load even ly in the luggage
compartment .
.,. Always place and properly secure heavy
items in the luggage compartment as low
and as far forward as possible¢
fig. 141.
.,. Secure the load with the cargo net* or with
non -elastic straps secured to the tie-downs*
¢ page 73 ¢page 74.
.,. Make sure that the rea r seatback is secu rely
latched in place.
.&_ WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items
can fly throug h the vehicle ca using serious
personal inj ury in the event of hard brak­
ing or an accident. To help reduce the r isk
of serious personal injury: -
Always put objects, for example, luggage
or other heavy items in the luggage com ­
partment.
- Always secure objects in the luggage
compartment using the t ie-down eyelets
and suitable straps.
.&_ WARNING
-
Heavy loads w ill influence the way your ve­
hicle handles . To help reduce the risk of a
l oss of cont rol leading to serious personal
in jury:
- Always keep in mind when transporting
heavy objects, that a change in the cen­
ter of gravity can also cause changes in
veh icle handling :
- Always distribute the load as evenly as
possible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in
the luggage compartment as possible .
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rat­
ing or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
specified on the safety compliance stick­
er on the left door jamb. Exceeding per­
miss ible weight standards can cause the
veh icle to slide and hand le differently.
- Please observe information on safe dr iv­
ing
c:> page 126.
.&_ WARNING
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas
from being drawn into the vehicle, always
keep the rear lid closed while driving.
- Never transport objects larger than
those fitting completely into the luggage
a rea because the rear lid cannot be fully
closed.
- If you absolutely m ust dr ive with the rear
lid open, observe the following notes to
red uce the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the sunroof,
- Open all air outlets in the instrument
panel,
- Switc h off the ai r rec irc ulat ion,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest
speed.

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A WARNING
Always make sure that the doors, all win­dows, the sunroof and the rear lid are se ­
curely closed and locked to reduce the risk
of injury when the vehicle is not being
used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make
sure that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your vehicle unattended es­
pecially with the rear lid left open . A
child could crawl into the vehicle through
the luggage compartment and close the
rear lid becoming trapped and unable to
get out. Being trapped in a vehicle can
lead to serious personal injury.
- Never let children play in or around the
vehicle .
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compartment. Vehicle occupants must
always be properly restrained in one of
the vehicle's seating positions.
(D Tips
- Air circulation helps to reduce window
fogging. Stale air escapes to the outside
through vents in the trim panel. Be sure
to keep these slots free and open .
- The tire pressure must correspond to the
load. The tire pressure is shown on the
tire pressure label. The tire pressure la­
bel is located on the driver's side B-pillar.
The tire pressure label lists the recom­
mended cold tire inflation pressures for
the vehicle at its maximum capacity
weight and the tires that were on your
vehicle at the time it was manufactured.
For recommended tire pressures for nor­
mal load conditions, please see chapter
c:>poge234.
Driving Safely 133
Tie-downs
App lies to veh icles : w ith tie -d owns
The luggage compartment is equipped with
four tie-downs to secure luggage and other
items .
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo prop­
erly
c:> page 132 , Loading the luggage com ­
partment .
In a collision, the laws of physics mean that
even smaller i tems that are loose in the vehi­
cle will become heavy missiles that can cause
serious injury. Items in the vehicle possess en­
ergy which vary with vehicle speed and the
weight of the item. Vehicle speed is the most
significant factor.
For example, in a frontal collision at a speed
of 30 mph (48 km/h), the forces acting on a
10-lb (4.5 kg) object are about 20 times the
normal weight of the item . This means that
the weight of the item would suddenly be
about 200 lbs. (90 kg). You can imagine the
injuries that a 200 lbs. (90 kg) item flying
freely through the passenger compartment could cause in a collision like this.
A WARNING
----Weak, damaged or improper straps used
to secure items to tie-downs can fail dur­
ing hard braking or in a collision and cause
serious personal injury.
- Always use suitable mounting straps and
properly secure items to the tie-downs in
the luggage compartment to help pre­
vent items from shifting or flying for­
ward as dangerous missiles.
- When the rear seat backrest is folded
down, always use suitable mounting
straps and properly secure items to the
tie-downs in the luggage compartment
to help prevent items from flying for­
ward as dangerous missiles into the pas­
senger compartment .
- Never attach a child safety seat tether
strap to a tie-down . •
•

134 Driving Safely
Reporting Safety
Defects
Applicable to U.S.A.
If you believe that your vehicle
has a defect which could cause
a crash or could cause injury or
death, you should immediately
inform the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in addition to notify­
ing Audi of America, Inc.
If NHTSA receives similar com­
plaints, it may open an investi­
gation, and if it finds that a
safety defects exists in a group
of vehicles, it may order a recall
and remedy campaign. Howev­
er, NHTSA cannot become in­
volved in individual problems
between you, your dealer, or
Audi of America, Inc.
To contact the NHTSA, you may
either call:
Tel.: 1-888-327-4236 (TTY:
1-800-424-9153) or
1-800-424-9393
or you may write to : NHTSA
U.S. Department of
Transporta­
tion
1200 New Jersey Ave., S.E .
West Building
Washington, DC 20590
You can also obtain other infor­ mation about motor vehicle
safety from :
http://www.safercar.gov
Applicable to Canada
If you live in Canada and you
believe that your vehicle has a
defect that could cause a crash
injury or death, you should im-
I
mediately inform Transport
Canada, Defect Investigations
and Recalls. You should also no­
tify Audi Canada .
Canadian customers who wish
to report a safety-related de­
fect to Transport Canada, De­
fect Investigations and Recalls, may either call Transport Cana­
da toll-free at:
Tel. : 1-800-333-0510 or
Tel.: 1 -819-994-3328 (Ottawa
region and from other coun­
tries)
TTY for hearing impaired: Tel.:
1-888-675-6863 .,.

or contact Transport Canada by
mail at:
Transport Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Investiga­
tions Laboratory 80 Noel Street
Gatineau, QC
J8Z OAl
For additional road safety infor­
mation, please visit the Road
Safety website at:
http://www. tc.g c. ca/en g/
roadsafety/menu.htm
Driving Safely 135
•
•
'

136 Safety belts
Safety belts
General notes
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety be lts are nec ­
essary, how they work and how to adjust and
wear them correctly .
.. Read a ll the information that fo llows and
heed all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them
improperly increases the risk of ser ious
personal in jury and death .
- Safety belts are the sing le most effective
means avai lab le to reduce the risk of se­
r ious injury and dea th in a utomob ile acci­
dents. For your protection and that of
yo ur passenge rs, always co rrectly wear
safety belts when the vehicle is moving.
- Pregnant women, injured, or physically
im paired perso ns m ust also use safety
belts. Lik e all veh icle occup ants, they are
more like ly to be ser iously injured if they
do not wea r safety be lts . The best way to
protect a fetus is to protect the mother -
throughout the entire pregnancy.
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of five seating positions: two in the front and three in the rear. Each
seating position has a safety belt.
A WARNING
Not wea ring safety belts or weari ng them
improp erly increases the risk of ser ious
pe rsonal i njury and deat h.
- Never st rap more than one pe rson, in­
cl uding small ch ild ren, into any belt.
It is
e speci ally dange rous to pla ce a safety
belt over a child s itting on yo ur lap.
- N ever le t mo re people ride in the ve hicl e
than there are s afe ty be lts avail able. -
Be s ure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained w ith a separate safe ­
ty belt or child restra int.
Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle hos o warning system for the
driver and (on USA models only) front seat
passenger to remind you about the impor­
tance of buckling-up .
F ig. 142 Safety belt warni ng lig ht in the instrument
cluster -en larged
Before driv ing off, always :
.. Fasten yo ur safety belt and make sure you
are wearing it properly .
.. Make sure that your passengers also buck le
up and properly wear their safety be lts.
.. Protect your children wit h a child restraint
system approp riate fo r the size and age of
t he children.
The . war ning light i n the instrument clus­
ter lights up when the ig nition is switched on
as a rem inder to fasten the safety belts. In ad­
dition, you will hear a warning tone fo r a cer­
ta in pe riod of time.
Fasten your safety belt now and make sure
that your pa ssenger s also prope rly put on
their safety belts.

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Why safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for
people riding in vehicles .
Fig. 143 Unbelted occupant s in a ve hicle heading for a
wall
Fig. 144 The vehicle c ras hes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the
vehicle and the passengers possess energy
which varies with vehicle speed and body
weight . Engineers call this energy "kinetic en ­
ergy ."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the greater the vehicle's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash .
Vehicle speed is the most significant factor . If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to
50 km/h) , the energy increases 4 times!
Because the passengers of this vehicle are not
using safety belts
r::;, fig. 143, they will keep
moving at the same speed the vehicle was
moving just before the crash, until something
stops them -here, the wall
c:> fig . 144.
The same principles apply to people sitting in
a vehicle that is involved in a frontal collision .
Even at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to
50 km/h) , the forces acting on the body can Safety belts
13 7
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 also
not attached to their vehicle. In a frontal colli­
sion 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 col ­
lisions .
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in­
jured or killed. Always wear your safety belts!
Fig. 145 A driver not wear ing a safety belt is vio lently
thrown forward
Fig.
146 A rear passeng er not wearing a safety belt
w ill fly forward and strike the driver
Unbelted occupants are not able to resist the
tremendous forces of impact by holding tight
or bracing themselves . Without the benefit of
safety restraint systems, the unrestrained oc­
cupant will slam violently into the steer ing
wheel, instrument panel, windshield, or what­
ever else is in the way ¢ fig. 145 . This impact Ill-

138 Safet y belt s
with the vehicle interior has all the energy
they had just before the crash.
Neve r rely on airbags a lone for p rotec tion.
Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
addit io nal p rotection . Airbags are not sup­
posed to deploy in all kinds of accidents. Al­
though your Audi is equipped with a irbags, all
vehicle occupants, including the driver, must
wear safety belts correctly in order to min i­
mize the risk of severe injury or death in a
crash .
Remember too, that airbags wi ll deploy on ly
once and that your safety belts are always
there to offer protection in those accidents in
which airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they have a lready deployed . Unbelted
occupants can also be thrown out of the vehi­
cle whe re even more severe o r fatal in juries
can occu r.
It is also impo rtant for the rear passenge rs to
wear safety belts correctly. Unbelted passen­
gers in the re ar seats end anger no t on ly them­
selves but a lso the d river a nd other passen­
gers ~
fig. 146. In a frontal collision they will
be thrown forward violent ly, where they can
h it and injure the dr iver and/or front seat pas ­
senger.
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision. It's simply
not true!
F ig . 14 7 Driver is co rrectly re st ra ined in a s udden b rak ·
i n g m an euve r
Safety belts used properly can make a big dif­
ference . Safety be lts he lp to keep passengers
in their seats, gradually reduce energy levels applied to the body in an accident, and help
prevent the
uncontrolled movement that can
ca use serio us in juries . In addition, safety be lts
reduce the danger of being thrown out of the
vehicle .
Safety be lts attach passengers to the car and
give them the benefit of being slowed down
more gently or "softly" through the "give" in
the safety belts, crush zones and other safety
features engineered into today's vehicles. By
"abso rbing" t he kinetic energy over a longer
per iod of t ime, the safety belts make the
forces o n the body more " tolerable" and less
l ikely to ca u se inju ry.
Although these examples are based on a fron­
ta l co llision, saf ety belts can a lso substantia l­
ly red uce the r isk of injury in other kinds of
cr ashes. So, whether you're on a long t rip o r
j u st going to the corner store, a lways buckle
u p and make sure others do, too. Accident sta­
tistics show that veh icle occupants properly
wearing safety belts have a lower risk of be ing
injured and a much better chance of surviving
an accident. Properly using safety be lts also
greatly increases the ability of the supplemen ­
tal airbags to do the ir job i n a collision. Fo r
t hi s reason, wea ring a safety belt is legally re­
quired in mos t countr ies includi ng mu ch of
t h e Un ited States and C anada .
Althoug h your Aud i is equipped with a irbags,
you still have to wear the safety be lts prov id­
ed . F ront ai rbags, fo r example , a re ac tivated
o nly in some front al coll isions. The fron t air­
bags are not act ivated in a ll fron tal collis ions,
in side and rear co llisions, in roll overs or in
cases where there is not eno ugh deceleration
through impact to the front o f the veh icle.
The same goes for the other a irbag systems in
your Audi. So, always wear your safety belt and make su re everybody in your veh icle is
properly restrai ned !