brake AUDI R8 SPYDER 2014 Owner's Manual

If you turn off the engine while in the N posi­
ti on and leave the vehicle key in the ignition,
the transm ission remains in the N pos ition for
approximately 20 mi nutes an d then act ivates
th e automatic parking lock. If vehicle
move­
ment is detected within tha t 20 minutes
based on rotat ion of the wh eels, th en the
time will increas e according ly.
A WARNING
- If a gear is engaged when the vehicle is
stationa ry, the acce lerator must not be
pressed inadvertently under any circum­
stances. Otherwise the vehicle will im­
med iately start to
move -sometimes
even if the parking brake is firmly ap­
plied.
- Before you or other persons open the en­
gine compartment lid and work on a ru n­
ning eng ine, se lect neutral position
N
and firmly apply the handbrake. A lways
read and follow the applicable warn ings
¢ page 172, Working in the engine
compartment.
(i) Tips
- If you accidentally shifted into N while
driving, you can engage a gear in the nor­ mal way using the selecto r lever.
-An indicator light is displayed if a mal­
funct ion occ urs while in S tronic. Refe r to
qpage 81.
Manual mode
Appl ies to vehicles : wit h S t ronic
S tronic allows the driver to shift gears man­
ually.
Starting from a stop
.. Press and ho ld the brake pedal.
.. Move the selector lever to the left.
.,. Tap the selector lever forward
0 -
.. Re lease the brake pedal and press the accel­
erato r peda l¢ ,& .
Tran sm iss ion 79
Shifting
.,. To shift up, tap the selec to r l ever forwa rd
0-
.. To shift down, tap the selector lever to the
rear Q.
Stopping temporarily
.. Press the b rake pedal to p revent the veh icle
from mov ing, fo r ex ample at tra ffic l ights.
Parking
.. Press and hold the brake pedal¢ ,& .
.. Act ivate the park ing brake .
.,. Tu rn off the ignition and remove the key.
Stopping on an incline
.. Always keep th e vehicle stat ionary using the
foot brake to prevent it from "rolling back"
¢ ,& . D o
not try to p revent the veh icle from
"rol ling back" when a gear is engaged by in­
creasing e ng ine speed.
.. Ac tiva te the pa rk ing br ake.
Starting on a hill
.. With a gear engaged, remove your foot from
th e brake, accelerate and slowly release the
park ing brake.
When accelerat ing, S tronic sh ifts i nto the
next gear i n gears 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 shortly
before the max imum pe rm issib le eng ine
speed is reached.
If you have se lected a lowe r gear tha n the cur­
r ent one, S tron ic will s hift down only when
the engine will not be
over- revved .
You can switch to automat ic operation at any
time
q page 80.
A WARNING
-Never leave your vehicle with the engine
ru nning while in gear . If you must leave
your veh icle w ith the engine r unning, set
the par king brake firm ly and engage neu­
tral
N.
- W ith the engine r unning and a gear en­
g aged, you have to hold the ve hicle with
the foot bra ke.

80 Transmi ssion
-Do not accelerate when you shift gears
with the vehicle stationary and the en­
gine running.
- Before driving down a steep slope, re­
duce your speed and shift into a lower
gear with S tron ic.
- Do not ride the brakes or press the brake pedal too often or too long. Constant
braking causes the brakes to overheat
and substantially reduces brak ing per ­
formance, inc reases braking distance or
c auses comp lete failure of t he b rake sys­
tem.
0 Note
If you must stop on an incline, always hold
t he vehicle in place w it h the foot bra ke to
p revent it from roll ing ba ck. Do not t ry to
preven t the vehicle from r oll ing bac k when
t he ge ar is engaged by increasing speed,
as t his may damage the clutch .
Automatic mode
Applies to vehicles: with 5 tronic
The transmission shifts up and down auto­
matically when in the driving gears.
Starting from a stop
.. Press and hold the brake peda l.
.. Tap the se lector lever towards A.
.. Re lease the brake pedal and press the accel­
era to r peda l¢
A in Manual mode on
page
79 .
Unde r certain circumstances (d riving in the
mo unt ains fo r example), it can be beneficia l
to switch tempo rari ly to the manua l shift pro ­
gram ¢
page 79 in order to adjust the gear ra­
tios to driving conditions
manually .
Kick-down
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic
When you depress the acce lerator pedal be ­
yond the resistance po int, S tronic downshifts
i n to a lower gear , depending on vehicle speed
l) Market- sp ec ifi c
and engine rpm . It shifts up into the next
higher g ear once the maximum specified en ­
gine RPM is reached. Except ion: you have acti ­
vated the sport func tion .
A WARNING
Please note that the whee ls cou ld spin on
slick or slippe ry roads when kick-down is
active .
Launch control program
Applies to vehicles: wit h S tronic
The Launch Con trol Program enables maxi­
mum acceleration .
Requirement: The eng ine must be at operat­
ing temperature and the steering wheel must
not be turned.
.. With th e engine running, press the
(fill
!ESC OFF!1l
button one time. The I ind ica­
tor light and the message
ESC Spo rt -Cau ­
tion! Lim ited stabil ity!
appears in the driver
information system display .
.. Press the brake pedal with your left foot a nd
hold it down .
.. Engage a gea r.
.. Press the
I SPOR T! button on the selecto r lev ­
er cover .
.. Press the accelerator peda l at the same time
with your right foot unti l the engine has
reached a constant speed .
.. Remove your left foot from the brake¢,&. .
A WARNING
--Always adapt your dr iving to the traff ic
f low.
- Onl y use t he Launch contro l program
when road and t raff ic conditions a llow it
a nd other d rivers w ill not be e ndangered
or both ered by your dr iving and the vehi­
cle 's ac celera tion.
- Pl ease note that the d riving wheels ca n
sp in a nd the vehicle can b reak away
-

when ESC is switched off, especially
when the road is slippery.
- Once you have accelerated, you should
switch the ESC back on by pressing the
[fil
button.
(D Tips
- The transmission temperature may in­
crease significantly after using the Launch Control Program. If that hap­
pens, the program may not be available
for a few minutes. It will be available again after a cool-down period.
- When accelerating using the Launch
Control program, all vehicle parts are
subject to heavy loads. This can result in
increased wear.
Steering wheel with shift paddles
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic
The shift paddles allow you to select gears
manually on the steering wheel .
Fig . 85 Steering wheel: shift paddles
~ To shift down, press the paddle on the left
0 -
~ To shift up, press the paddle on the right G).
You can continue to use the manual sh ift pro­
gram with the selector lever in the center con­
sole.
Transmission malfunction
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic
[O] Transmission: please press the brake ped­
al and select the position again Transmission 81
Press the brake pedal and select the desired
selector lever position again. You can then
continue driving.
[O] Transmission too hot: please modify driv·
ing style
The transmission temperature has increased
significantly due to the sporty driving manner.
Drive in a less sporty manner until the tem­
perature returns to the normal range and the
indicator light switches of.
[O] Transmission: System malfunction! You
may continue driving
There is a system malfunction in the transmis­ s ion. You may continue driving. Drive to your
authorized Audi dealer or qualified repair fa­
c ili ty soon to have the malfunction corrected.
Bii·Transmission: System malfunction !
You may continue driving in A until you turn
the engine off.
There is a system malfunction in the transmis­
sion. The transmission is switching to emer­
gency mode . Drive to your authorized Audi
dealer or qualified repair facility immediately
to have the malfunction corrected.
[O] Transmission: System malfunction ! Driv­
ing ability is restricted
There is a system malfunction in the transmis­
s ion . The transmission is switching to emer­
gency mode . This mode only shifts into cer­
tain gears or will no longer shift at all. The en­
gine may stall. Drive to your authorized Audi
dealer or qualified repair facility immediately
to have the malfunction corrected .
[oJ;t Transmission: System malfunction !
Driving ability is restricted. No reverse gear
There is a system malfunction in the transmis­
sion. The transmission is switching to emer­
gency mode . This mode only shifts into cer­
ta in gears or will no longer shift at all. The en ­
gine may stall. You cannot engage the reverse
gear. Drive to your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified repair facility immediately to have
the malfunction corrected.

82 Transmission [O] Risk of rolling! P not possible. Plea se set
the parking brake
- T he pa rking lock was released using the
eme rgency release
r=;, page 82. Or
- T he pa rking lock can no longer be engaged.
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified repair facility immediately to have
the malfunction corrected.
• Transmission: System malfunction ! Stop
the vehicle
Do not cont inue driving. Turn off the ignition
and contact your nearest authorized Audi
dealer for assistance.
There is a serious system malfunction . Con­
tinuing to drive could result in subsequent
damage.
0 Note
If S tronic has switched to emergency op­
eration mode, you should have the mal­
function corrected as soon as possible.
Parking lock emergency release
Appl ies to vehicles: with S tronic
The parking lock must be released using the
emergency release before towing the vehicle .
Fig. 86 Engine compartment: emergency release
Fig. 87 Engine compa rtment: pa rking lock emergency
r e lease
The emergency release is located in the en­
gine compartment.
Releasing the parking lock using the
emergency release
.,. Turn the engine off.
.,. Set the parking brake to prevent the vehicle
from rolling unintentionally.
.,. Remove the removable plastic key from the
luggage compartment and extend the key to
its full length .
.,. Remove the cover over the emergency re­
lease mechanism .
.,. Insert the plastic key into the emergency re­
lease mechanism and turn it all the way to
the right
r=;, fig. 87.
Resetting the parking lock
.,. Tu rn the key all the way to the left .
.,. Install the cover.
The
[O] indicator light appears in the instru­
ment cluster if the park ing lock was released
from P using the emergency release. The mes­
sage
Risk of rolling! P not possible. Please
set the parking brake
also appears .
.&_ WARNING
- Only activate the emergency release
while on a level surface or a slight slope.
-If you release the parking lock using the
emergency release, secure you r vehicle
wit h the parking brake. The vehicle can
roll away if it is not secured and cause a
crash.

90 Homelink®
Homelink®
Universal remote
control
General information
The Homelink universal remote control can
be programmed with hand-held transmitters
from existing equipment.
You must first program the Homelink ® trans­
mitter before you can use the system
~ page 90, Programming the Homelink ®
transmitter.
I n o rder to prog ram the Homelink ® transmit­
ter for devices utilizing rolling code, a second pe rson on a ladder who can safely reach the
garage doo r opener motor is recommended.
It is also necessary to locate the "learn" but­
ton on your garage door opener motor . Refer
to the operating instructions for the opener,
as the location and color of this button may
vary by manufacturer .
You can still use the original remote control
for the device at any time.
A WARNING
-
- Never use the Homelink® transmitter
with any garage door opener that does
have not the safety stop and reverse fea­
ture as requ ired by federa l safety stand­
ards. This includes any garage door open­
er model manufactured before April 1,
1982.
- A garage door opener which cannot de­
tect an object, signa ling the door to stop
and reverse does not meet current feder­
al safety standards. Using a garage door
opener without these features increases
risk of serious injury or death.
- For safety reasons never release the
parking brake or start the engine while
anyone is stand ing in front of the vehicle.
- A garage door or an estate gate may
sometimes be set in motion when the
Homelink ® remote control is being pro­
grammed. If the device is repeatedly ac- tivated, this can overstrain motor and
damage its e
lectrical components -an
overheated motor is a fire hazard!
- To avoid possib le injuries or property
damage, please always make absolutely
certain that no persons or objects are lo­
cated in the range of motion of any
equ ipment being operated.
(!) Tips
- If you would like more information on
Homelink ®, where to purchase the
Homelink ® compatible products, or
would like to purchase the Homelink®
Home Lighting Package, please call toll­
free: 1-800-355-3515.
- For Declaration of Compliance to United
States FCC and Industry Canada regula­
tions~
page 230.
Programming the Homelink ®
transmitter
The transmitter is programmed in two phas­
es. For rolling code transmitters, a third
phase is also necessary.
Fig. 99 Overhead co nsole: Homelink ® keypad
I
'-.. ~0000 - - ,r.;-_ - -
Fig. 100 Fro nt bumper : location of tra nsmi tter unit

Phase 1:
p rogramming the overhead keypad
1. Make sure your vehicle is wit hin operating
range of the remote contro lled garage
door opener .
2. Set the parking brake
q A in General in­
formation on page 90 .
3. Turn the ignition on . Do not start the en­
gine!
4. Press and hold the two outs ide Home­
Link ® buttons
(D and @for approxi­
mately 20 seconds until indicator light@
c:!;> fig. 99 begins to flash. Then re lease
both buttons. Do not ho ld the buttons for
longer than 30 seconds .
.,. This procedure only needs to be performed
once . It erases the factory-set default codes
and does not have to be repeated to pro­
gram addit ional remote controls .
S . Press and hold the Home Link ® button
(D ,
® or @ until the indicato r light @
starts flashing
slowly . Release the button.
.,. The system will remain in programming
mode for 5 minutes . Co to the front of the
vehicle and proceed with phase 2 .
Phase 2:
programming the bumper mounted trans
mitter
6. Hold the original remote control at a dis­
tance between 0 -6 in . (0 -15 cm) from the
bumper below the appropriate headlight
for your vehicle
c:!;> fig. 100 (use the short­
est distance possible).
7. A im the remote con trol just below the
driver side headlight.
8. Press and hold the activation button on
the remote control.
.,. May be different in Canada.
If so, press and
re-press (cycle) the act ivation button on your
remote control every two seconds.
9 . The emergency flashers will flash
three
times
(after about 15-60 seconds) when
the programm ing is successful. Release
the butto n on the remote control.
.,. To program more devices, repeat steps 4 to
9.
Homelin k® 91
10. Press and hold the trained Homelink ®
button and observe the indicator light @
qfig. 99.
.,. If the ind icator light is solid/continuous,
programm ing is complete and your device
should activate when you press and release
the trained Homelink ® button .
.,. If the ind icator light blinks rapidly for 2 sec­
onds and is then a solid/continuous light,
proceed w ith phase 3 to program a rolling
code device.
Phase 3: rolling code programming
.,. A second person o n a ladder who can safely
reach the garage door opener motor is rec­
ommended .
11. Locate the "learn" button on the gar age
door opener motor (re fer to the operating
instructions for the opener, as the loca­
tion of t his button may vary by manufac­
turer) .
12 . Press and release the learn button on the
garage door opener motor .
.,. Note : once the button is pressed, there are
30 seconds in which to initiate the next
step.
13. On the Home link® keypad inside the vehi­
cl e, firmly press and hold the Homelink®
button prev iously programmed in phases
1 and 2 for two seconds and release . Re­
peat this sequence
twice.
.,. Some vehicles may require the press/hold/
release sequence up to three times to com­
plete the train ing process .
.,. Homelink ® should now activate your rolling
code equipped device.
If the 5 m inute time limit is exceeded, the
emergency flashers will flash one time to in ­
dicate that the process has been term inated .
In this case, repeat steps 4 through 9.
If the emergency flashers do not flash
three
times (after about lS-60 seconds), program­
ming was not successful. In this case, repeat
steps 4 through 9 .
Remote contro l units for garage door openers
in Canada are set to stop transmitting radio
frequency signals after two seconds. This time ..,.

98 Driving Safely
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.
Make sure that all pedals move freely without
interference and that nothing prevents them
from returning to their original positions .
Only use floor mats that leave the peda l area
free and can be secured with floor mat fasten­
ers.
If a brake circuit fails, increased brake peda l
travel is required to bring the vehicle to a full
stop.
A WARNING
Pedals that cannot move freely can cause
loss of vehicle control and increase the r isk
of serious injury.
- Never place any objects in the driver 's
footwell. An object could get into the
peda l area and interfere w ith pedal func­
tion. In case of sudden braking or an ac­
cident, you would not be ab le to bra ke or
accelerate!
- Always make su re that nothing can fall
or move into the driver's footwell.
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 su re that the floor mats are properly
secured and cannot move and interfere with
the pedals~ .&_.
Use only floor mats that leave the pedal a rea
unobstructed and that are firmly secured so
that they cannot s lip out of position. You can
obtain suitable floor mats from your author­
ized Audi Dealer.
Floor mat fasteners are installed in your Audi . Floor mats used in your vehicle must be at
­
tached to these fasteners . Properly securing
the floor mats will prevent them from sliding
into positions that could interfere with the
pedals or impair safe operat ion of your vehicle
in other ways.
A WARNING ,-
Pedals that cannot move freely can result
i n a loss of vehicle control and increase the
r isk of ser ious persona l injury.
- Always make sure that floor mats are
p roperly secured.
- Never place or install floor mats or other
f loor coverings in the vehicle that cannot
be prope rly secured in place to prevent
them from slipping and interfer ing wi th
the peda ls or the ability to contro l the
vehicle.
- Never pla ce or install floor mats or other
floor coverings on top of already instal ­
led floor mats . Additiona l floor mats and
other coverings will reduce the size of
the pedal area and interfere with the
pedals.
- Always properly reinsta ll and secure floor
mats that have been taken out for clean­
ing.
- Always make sure that objects cannot
fall into the dr iver footwell while the ve­
hicle is moving . Objects can become
trapped under the brake pedal and accel­
erator pedal causing a loss of vehicle
control.
Stowing luggage
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be prop­ erly stowed and secured in the luggage com­
partment.
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift s udden ly, changing vehicle handling
characteristics. Loose items can a lso increase
the risk of serious persona l injury in a sudden
vehicle maneuver or in a co llision.

144 Intelligent technology
Intelligent technology
Notice about data
recorded by vehicle
control modules
Your veh icle is not equipped with an Event Da­
ta Recorde r (EDR), ins talled by some manu­
facture rs fo r the express p urpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or cras h
event . EDR's are sometimes ca lled "crash re­
corders".
Some state laws restr ict the retr ieval or down­
loading of data stored by EDR's that were in­
stalled in a vehicle for the express purpose of retrieving data after an accident or crash
event without the owner's consent.
A ltho ugh yo ur vehicle is not equ ipped wit h an
EDR, it is equipped with a number of electron­
ic control modules for various v ehicle systems
such as, for examp le, eng ine f unction, em is­
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
sa fety belt s.
These electronic contro l modules also record
vehicle-re lated data during norma l vehicle op­
erat ion for diagnostic and repa ir purposes.
T he recording capacity of the electronic con­
trol modules is limited to data (no sound is re ­
corded) and only a small amount of data is ac­
tually recorded ove r a ve ry limited pe riod of
time and stored when a sys tem faul t or o ther
cond ition is sensed by a cont ro l u nit. Some of
the data then stored may re late to vehicle
speed, direction, braking as we ll as restraint
system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condit ion. Stored data can only
be read and downloaded w ith special equip­
ment .
Electronic Stabilization
Control (ESC)
Description
ESC helps to improve road holding and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of
skidd ing and loss of ve hicle control. It works
only when the eng ine is running . ESC detects certain difficult driving situat
ions, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw)
o ut of control and he lps you to get the veh icle
back under control by se lectively braking the
whee ls, and/or reducing eng ine power and
providing steer ing ass istance to he lp hold the
vehicle o n the dr iver's intended course . T he in­
dicator light
G) in the inst rument cluster
blinks when ESC is ta king action to help yo u
control the veh icle.
ESC has limitations.
It is importa nt to remem­
ber that ESC cannot overcome the laws of
physics. It wi ll not always be able to help out
under a ll cond it ions you may come up aga inst.
F or example, ESC may not always be able to
help you master situations where there is a
s u dden change in the coefficient of friction of
the road surface . When there is a section of
dry road that is sudden ly covered w ith water,
s lush or snow, ESC cannot perform the same
way it wou ld on the dry surface . If the ve hicle
hydroplanes (rides on a cushion of water in­
stead of the road surface), ESC will not be
able to help you steer the vehicle because con­
tact with the pavement has been in terrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered .
D uring fast cornering, particularly on winding
roads, ESC cannot always deal as effectively
with difficult driving situations as at lower
speeds.
Always adjust your speed and driving style to road , traffic and weather conditions. ESC can­
not override the vehicle's physical limits, in­
crease the available tract ion, or keep a ve hicle
on the road if road departure is a result of
driver inattent ion . Instead, ESC imp roves the
poss ib ility of keep ing the veh icle under con­
t rol and on the road during extreme maneu­
vers by using the d river 's steering inputs to
help keep the vehicle go ing in t he i nte nded di­
rection . If you are t raveling at a speed tha t
ca uses you to run off the road before ESC can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESC.
ESC includes and/o r works togethe r with the
anti- lock b rake system (ABS), brake assist sys-
tem and anti-slip reg ulation (ASR). ESC is .,..

switched on all the time. In certain situations
when you need less traction, you can switch
off ESC by pressing the button
lru. Be sure to
switch ESC on again when you no longer need
less traction.
Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up
when braking . The vehicle can still be steered
even during hard braking . Apply steady pres ­
sure to the brake pedal. Do not pump the ped­
al. A pulsing in the brake pedal indicates that
the system is helping you to brake the vehicle.
Brake assist system
The brake assist system can decrease braking
d istance. It increases braking power when the
driver presses the brake pedal quickly in emer­
gency si tuations. You must press and hold the
brake pedal until the situation is over .
Anti-slip regulation (ASR)
ASR reduces engine power when the drive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the force to
the road condit ions. This makes it easier to
start, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinning and
transfers the drive power to the other drive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all-wheel drive*. This function is available up
to about 60 mph (100 km/h) .
In extreme cases, EDL automat ica lly switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked wheel
from overheating. EDL w ill switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to
normal.
..&, WARNING
- ESC, ABS, ASR and EDL cannot overcome
th e laws of physics. This is especially im ­
portant on slippery or wet roads.
If the
systems begin acting to stabilize your ve­
hicle, you should immediately change
yo ur speed to match the road and traffic
condit ions. Do not let the increased safe­
ty provided by these systems tempt you
Intelligent technology 145
to take risks. Doing so will increase the
risk of a lo ss of vehicle control, co llision
and serious personal injuries.
- Always adapt your speed to road, traffic
and weather conditions. The risk of los­
ing control of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast, especially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when driving too close to vehicles up
ahead. ESC, ABS, the brake assist sys­
tem, EDL and ASR cannot prevent colli­
sions.
- Always accelerate with special care on
even, smooth surfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow.
The drive wheels can spin even with
these assistance systems that cannot al ­
ways he lp to reduce the risk of loss of ve­
hicle control.
@ Tips
- ABS and ASR only work correct ly when
all four whee ls are equipped with identi­
cal tires. D ifferent tire si zes can lead to a
reduction in engine power.
- You may hear noises when the systems
described are working.
- If the ind icator lightD] orE (USA
models)/ [iJ (Canada models) appears,
there may be a malfunction¢
page 16,
¢ page 15.
Switching on/off
£SC turns on au tomatically when you start
the engine.
-
SPORT •
Fig. 1 28 Cent er console w it h t b utton

146 Intelligent technology
ESC sport mode
In ce rtain situat ions, it migh t make sense to
a llow some slip. For example :
- Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Driving in deep snow or on loose ground
- Driving with snow cha ins
Press the[!] button briefly¢
fig. 128 . The I
indicator light turns on and Sport control
Warning! Restricted stability
appears in the
driver information system display . Driving sta­
b ili ty is limited in sport mode .
Switching ESC off
Press and hold the [!I button for three sec­
onds . The ESC indicator light
ti turns on and
Stabilization program off appears in the dis­
play. ASR is also sw itched
off when ESC is
switched
off .
Switching on
Press the[!] button aga in. The message Stabi ­
lization program on
appears briefly in the d is­
play.
A WARNING
You should only switch the ESC off if your
driving ability and the traffic s ituation al­
low. This could increase the risk of slip­
ping.
- The stabilizing function is limited in ESC
sport mode. The driv ing whee ls could
spin and the vehicle could swerve, espe­
cially on slick or slippery road surfaces.
- T here is no vehicle stabilization when
E SC is switched
off.
0) Tips
If there is a malfunction in the retractable
rear spo iler* or the Audi magnet ic r ide*, it
may not be possible to activate ESC spo rt
mode or normal mode may activate again
automatically.
Braking
General information
What affects braking efficiency?
New brake pads
During the first 250 miles (400 km), new
brake pads do not possess their full braking
effect, they have to be "broken in" first. The
distance can be ten times longer in vehicles
with ceramic brakes*. You can compensate for
th is slightly reduced braking power by push­
ing harder on the brake pedal. Avoid heavy
braking loads during the break-in period.
Operating conditions and driving habits
The brakes on today's automobiles are still
subject to wear, depending largely on operat ­
ing condit ions and driving habits ¢.&, . On
vehicles that are either driven mostly in stop­
and-go city traffic or are driven hard, the
brake pads should be checked by your author­
ized Audi dea ler more often than specified in
the
Warranty & Maintenance booklet. Failure
to have your brake pads inspected can result
in reduced brake performance.
On steep slopes, you should use the braking
effect of the engine. This way, you prevent un ­
necessary wear on the brake system. If you
must use your brakes, do not hold the brakes
down cont inuously. Pump the brakes at inter­
vals.
Moisture o r road salt
Under certain conditions, for example, when
driving through water or very heavy rain, or
even after washing your vehicle, the braking
effect can be reduced due to moisture (or in
freezing conditions ice) on the brake pads . A
few cautious brake applications should dry
off
the brake pads or remove any ice coatings .
When you are driving at higher speeds with
the windshield wipers on, the brake pads will briefly touch the brake discs in regular inter ­
vals so as to improve reaction time when brak­
i ng on wet surfaces. You, the driver, will not
notice anything. .,.