automatic transmission AUDI S4 CABRIOLET 2009 User Guide

_______________________________________________________ T_ ra_ n_s_ m __ is_s_ io_ n ____ llJIII
- Tur n t he ignition on.
- Step on the brake pedal.
At the same time press and hold
the interlock butto n on the side of the gear selector knob
=> page 128, fig. 141 with your thumb until you have
moved the selector lever to the desi red posi tion .
Autom atic s elect or l ever l ock 53
The se lector lever is locked in the
P and N positions when the igni ­
tion is turned on. To move the lever from these positions the driver must depress the brake pedal. As a reminder to the driver, the
f ollow ing warning appears in the instrument c luster display when
the selector is in
P and N :
When sta tionary apply footbr ake whil e selecting gear
In addition, the symbol 53 will light up on the shift gate at the base
of the selector lever.
A time delay e lement prevents the selecto r lever from locking when
it is moved through the
N position (going from R to Dl. The locking
element will lock the selector lever if the lever is left in N (Neutral)
for more than approx imately 1 second, without the brake pedal
being pressed .
At speeds above about 3 mph (5 km/h) t he Automatic Shif t Lock is
automatically deactivated in the
N position.
Int erlock button
The lock button on the selector lever prevents the lever from be ing
accidentally shifted into certain positions . Pressing this bu tton
deactivates the selector lever lock . Depending on the direction of
the shift, the se lec tor lever locks at different posi tions. The positions
are highlighted in the illustration~
page 128, fig. 141 .
Ignition key safety int erlo ck
The key cannot be removed from the ignition un less the selector
lever is in the
P park position. When the ignitio n key is re moved, the
selector lever wil l be locked in the
P position. •
Controls and equip ­
ment
App lies to veh icles: with 6-speed automatic transmission
Kick-down
T he kick-down feature allows the vehicle to generate
ma ximum acceler ati on.
When you press the accelerator peda l beyond the resistance point
that is reached at ful l throttle, the transmission will select a lower
gear ratio based o n vehicle speed and engine RPM. The engine RP M
wil l be control led to produce maximum vehicle acceleration as long
as you continue to press the acce lerato r pedal beyond this resis­
tance point.
& WARNING
Be care ful when using the ki ck-down feature on slippery road s.
Rapid acceleration may cause the vehicle to skid . •
App lies to vehicles: with 6-speed automatic transm iss ion
Dynamic shift program (DSP)
T he aut omatic transmission is electronically controlle d.
The transmission is se lf adapting and will auto matically se lect the
best sh ift program suited to the driving conditions and driving style.
The transmission wil l select one of the
e conomy programs when
you drive at a steady speed or a gradually changing speed without
heavy acceleration. This achieves optimum fuel efficiency, with early
upshifting and delayed downshifting.
The transmiss ion w ill automatically select the
s porty shift programs
when you drive at higher speeds, or with heavy acceleration and
frequently changing speeds . Upshifts are delayed to make full use
of engine power. Downshifting takes place at higher engine speeds
than in the economy p rog rams . _,.

• .___T_ r_a _n_ s_ m_ is_ s_io _ n ______________________________________________________ _
The selection of the most suitable shift program is a continuous,
automatic process . The driver can a lso make the transmission
switch to a sporty program by
qu ickly pressing down the gas pedal.
This causes the transmission to shift down to a lower gear to achieve rapid acceleration, e .g. for quickly passing another vehicle.
You do not need to press the gas pedal into the kick -down range.
After the transmission has upshi fted , the original program is
selected according to your driving style.
An additiona l shift program allows the automatic transmission to
select the proper gear for uphill and downhill gradients.
This keeps the transmission from shifting up and down unneces ­
sari ly on hills . The transmission will shift down to a lower gear when
the driver presses the brake pedal on a downhill gradient . This
makes use of the braking effect of the engine wi thout the need to
shift down manua lly .•
Ap plies to ve hicles: wit h 6-spee d automat ic tr ans mission
Manual shift program
Using the manual shift program you can manually select
gears.
Fi g. 142 Cente r
co nso le: s hifting the
t ipt roni c® manu ally Fig.
143 Dis play :
m an ual s hift p rogram,
se lec te d g ear h igh ­
lig hted
Switching to m anual shift program
With the se lector lever in D, push the lever to t he right .
The disp lay w ill s how
6 5 4 3 2 1 as soon as the selector
lever is moved. The gear you selec t will also be high­
lighted => fig. 1 43.
To upshift
Push the selector lever forward to t he p lus position 0
=> fig. 142 .
To downshift
-Push th e lever to the minus position Q.
When accelerating, the transm ission will automatica lly shift into the
next higher gear before the engine reaches the maximum RPM .
I f you apply a light throttle when accelerating, tiptronic® will auto ­
matically shift from 1st to 2nd gear to save fuel. If you apply a heavy
throttle, the transmission will stay in 1st gear until near maximum
RPM is reached, or until the driver sh ifts into 2nd gear.
If you take your foot off the accelerator peda l when driving down a
steep inc lin e, tiptronic® will downshift from the selec ted gear into
the next lower gear until it reaches 1st gear, based on road speed
and engine RPM. Automatic downshif ting is interrup ted as soon as
you apply the thrott le again . .,_

Transmi ssio n -_______________ ___,
[ i J Tip s
• When you shi ft into the next lower gear, the transmission wi ll
downshi ft only when there is no poss ibi lity of over -rew ing the
engine.
• When the kick -down com es on, the transmission will shift down
to a lower gear, depending on vehicle and engine speeds .
• The tiptronic® is inoperative when the transmission is in the fail ­
sa fe mode .•
A pplies to vehicles : wit h 6-s pee d aut om ati c tra nsm is si on
Steering wheel with tiptronic ®
The shift buttons on the steering wheel allow the driver to
shift gears manually.
F ig . 14 4 Steer ing
w heel: Shi ft button s
-To downshif t, touch the button on the left Q .
To upshift, touch the button on the right G) .
The shift buttons are activated when the selector lever is in D, Sor
in the manual shift program (tiptronic).
Of course, you can continue to use the manual shift program with
the selector lever on the center console .•
Contro ls and eq uip­
ment
A pp lies to vehicles: w ith 6-speed automat ic tra nsmission
Fail -safe mode
If tiptronic® suffers a malfunction, the fail-safe mode
maintains minimum drive ability .
In the event of particular system malfunct ions, the automatic trans­
m ission switches to th e fail -saf e mode. This is signalled by all the
seg ments in the display illuminating or going out .
You can continue to move the selec tor lever to all positions . The
manual shift program (tiptronic) is switched off in the fail -safe
mode .
In selector lever posi tions D and Sand in the manual shift program,
the transmission remains in 3rd gear if 1st, 2nd or 3rd gear was engaged previous ly. The transmission remains in 5th g ear, if 4th , 5th
or 6 th gear was engaged previous ly .
The next time you drive off o r start the engine , 3rd gear is engaged .
You can continu e to use reverse gear . But the electron ic lockout for
reverse gear is turned off.
0 Note
If the transmission sw itches to fail -sa fe mo de, you should take the
vehicle to an authori zed Audi dea le rship as soon as possib le to have
the condition corrected .•
multitronic ®
Applies t o vehic les: w it h mu lt itr on ic® Co nti nuous ly V aria ble Trans mission (CVT )
General information
Your vehicle is equipped with a electron ically controlled continu ­
ously variable transmission (mult itronic ®l. Inside the multitronic ®
system, the gear ratios are not shifted in finite steps as in a conven ­
tional automatic transm ission, but rath er
contin uousl y. As a result, ...
~ehicle care Technical data

-Tr
ansmi ssion
.___ ______________ _
engine power is applied smoothly and comfortably , and better fuel
economy is achieved.
The transmiss ion selects the appropria te gear ra tio (upshifts and
downshiftsl automatically based on set driving programs
=> page 136.
You can a lso manually select a shift program (tiptronic®)
=> page 136 .
You should note, that the multit ronic transmission differs from a
conventional Automatic Transmission. In the multitronic transmis­
sion the engine power is transferred via a link -plate chain, rather
than by a conventional torque converter. The multitronic transmis ­
sion greatly reduces vehicle "creep"" when at a standstil l and the
transmission is in
D Sor R. •
Ap plies to vehicles: with mult it ro nic® Contin uous ly Va ria ble Transm iss ion ( CVT)
Driving the multitroni c®
The gear ratio is continuously adapted to vehicle speed
and load.
Start ing the engine
- The s ele ctor lever mus t be i n Nor P.
Fi g. 14 5 Sec tion of th e
ce nte r c on sol e:
s ele ctor leve r wit h lo ck
b utt on
St arting off
- Press and hold the brake pedal.
- Press and hold the release butto n in the se lector lever
handle and move the selector lever from
P (a lternatively
N ) to D (alternatively S) and release the button.
- Wait br iefly u ntil the transm ission has shif ted (you will
fee l a slight movem ent) .
- Rem ove your foot from the b rake p edal a nd acce lera te
=> & .
Rocking ba ck and forth to b ecom e unstu ck
- Shift only between D and R when the ve hicle is at a fu ll
stop and the eng ine is runn ing at idle speed .
Stopping
- Press a nd h old the brake pedal un til the vehicle has com e
to a comp le te stop.
- Keep the brake pedal depressed so that the vehic le
cann ot ro ll forwa rd or ba ckw ard while it is id lin g => & .
- Once stop ped,
do not depress the acce lera to r p edal to
r ev up the engine => & .
Parking
- Press and hold the brake pedal until the vehicle has come
to a complete stop .
- Set t he park ing brake firmly =>
page 121, "Parking" .
- Press and hold the release button in the se lector lever
handle, m ove the select or leve r in to
P and then let go of
the releas e button => & . .,

Tra nsmission -
----------------
Your vehicle is equipped with a starting assis t that a llows for easier
starting on inclines. The system is activated when the brake pedal is
depressed for a few sec onds. After releasing the brake pedal, the
brake power is he ld for a moment to prevent the vehicle from rol ling
back when starting .
The se lector lever must be in Nor
P. If one of the driv ing positions
is engaged a safety switch will prevent the eng ine from being
star ted. See also=>
page 120.
Before you move the selector lever from the P position, you must
a lways apply the brake peda l before and while depressing the
button in the handle of the selecto r lever.
& WARNING
• Unint ended vehicle movement can cau se seriou s injury.
- When the select or lever i s
in a dri ving p osition , th e vehi cle
may cre ep , even at idle speed . Ther efore do not release the
parking br ake or foot br ake until you are r eady to move ,
because powe r is tran smitted to the wheel s as soon as a
driving po sition i s engaged.
- Do not acce lerate while sele cting a driving po sition. At thi s
time th e engine mu st be at idle spe ed so th at undu e stre ss is
not pla ced on the c lut che s in the transmis sion .
- Remember : - even when stopp ed briefly with the automatic
tran smi ssion in "D ", "S " or "R ", eng ine power is being tran s­
mitted to the wheel s. Your vehicle could "creep " forw ard or
b ac kw ard . Wh en stopped , keep th e brake pedal full y depre ssed
a nd u se the parking br ake if nece ssary to keep the vehicle from
rolling.
- If the selector lev er i s unintentionally moved into N while you
are dr iv ing , take your foot off the accelerator ped al and wait for
the eng ine to return to idle speed before selecting a driving
p osition .
- Never shift into "R " or ''P " when the vehicle is in motion .
- Never get out of the dr iver 's seat when the engine is running.
Controls and equip ­
ment
& WAR NING (conti nued )
- If yo u mu st get out of the vehicle , move the selector lever
s ecurel y into the P po sition and apply the pa rking br ake fir mly.
- If the engine mu st remain running , never have any driving
po sition eng aged when che cking under the h ood. M ake sure
t he selector lever ha s secure ly engaged and i s lo cked in "P "
w ith the parkin g brake firmly set =>
page 242, "Engine
c ompartment ". Otherwise , any incre ase in eng ine speed may
s et the vehicle in motion , e ven with the parking brake
a ppl ied.•
Ap plies to vehic les : wit h mu lt itro nic® Conti nuous ly Va riab le Tra nsmissi on (CVT )
Selector lever positions
This section describes the selector lever positi ons and
drivi ng r anges.
Fig . 1 46 Dis pl ay in th e
in strum ent c lust er:
s el ector le ver in po si­
tion P
The se lector lever posit ion engaged appears next to the se lector
lever as w ell as in the instrum ent clust er display .
P -Pa rk
In this selector lever position the transmission is mechanica lly
locked .

....... _T _r_a _ n_ s_m _ i_s _s _i_o _n ______________________________________________________ _
Engage P only when the vehicle is completely stopped=> & in
"Driving the multitronic®" on
page 132
To shift into or out of position P, you must first press and hold the
brake pedal
and then press the release button in the selector lever
handle while moving the selector lever to
P.
R -Reverse
The transmission will automatically select the lowest gear ratio
when you shift into reverse.
Select R only when the vehicle is at a
full stop and the engine is
running at idle speed=>
& in "Driving the multitronic®" on
page 132.
Before you move the selector lever to R, press both, the button in the
handle of the selector lever
and the brake pedal at the same time.
When the ignition is on, the backup lights illuminate when the
selector lever is moved into
R.
N -Neutral
Shift to this position for standing with brakes applied=> page 135.
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds below 3 mph (5 km/h),
you must always apply the footbrake before and while moving the
lever out of
N.
Do not use N for coasting downhill.
D -Normal driving position for forward
Depending on the load on the engine, vehicle speed and the
dynamic control program, the transmission will select the
optimal
gear ratio.
In certain circumstances it may be advantageous to temporarily
switch to the manual shift program to manually select gear ratios to
match specific driving conditions=>
page 136.
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds below 3 mph (5 km/h),
you must always apply the footbrake before and while moving the lever to
D out of N.
S -Sport position
Select this position for sportier performance. In this position, the
transmission will not upshift as soon, allowing the vehicle to use the increased power available at higher engine speeds to achieve live­
lier acceleration.
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds below 3 mph (5 km/h),
you must always apply the foot brake before and while moving the
lever to
S out of N.
& WARNING
Read and follow all WARNINGS=> & in "Driving the multitronic®"
on
page 132.
0 Note
Coasting downhill with the transmission in N and the engine not
operating will result in damage to the automatic transmission and
possibly the catalytic converter. •

Transmission -
----------------
Applies to vehi cles : wit h m ultit r o ni c® Con tin uous ly Variab le Tra nsmi ssion (CVTl
Automatic Shift Lock (ASL)
The Automatic Shift Lock safeguards you against acciden­
tally shifting into a forward or the reverse gear and
causing the vehicle to move unintentionally.
Fig. 147 Shift gate:
selector lever lock
positions and interlock
button highlighted
The selector lever lock is released as follows:
-Turn the ignition on.
- Step on the brake pedal.
At the same time press and hold
the interlock button on the side of the gear selector knob
=> page 128, fig. 141 with your thumb until you have
moved the selector lever to the desired position.
Automatic selector lever lock CS,
The selector lever is lock ed in the P and N positions when the igni­
tion is turned on. To move the lever from these positions the driver
must depress the brake pedal. As a reminder to the driver, the
following warning appears in the instrument cluster display when
the selec tor is in
P and N :
When stationary apply footbrake while selecting gear
In addition, the symbol~ will light up on the shift gate at the base
of the selector l ever.
Controls and equip ­
ment
A time delay element prevents the selector lever from locking when
it is moved through the
N position (going from R to D). The locking
element will lock the selector lever if the lever is left in N (Neutral)
for more than approximately 1 second, without the brake pedal
being p ressed .
At speeds above about 3 mph (5 km/h) the Automatic Shift Lock is
automatically deactivated in the
N position.
Interlock button
The lock button on the selecto r lever prevents the lever from being
acc identally sh ifted into certain positions. Pressing this button
deactivates the selector lever lock. Depending on the direction of
the shift, the sel ector lever locks at different positions . Th e positions
are highlighted in the illustration=> fig. 147.
Ignition key safety interlock
The key cannot be removed from the ignition unless the selector
lever is in the
P park posit ion . Wh en the ignition key is removed , th e
selector lever will be locked in the P position. •
Applies to vehicl es : wit h mu lt itro nic® Co nti nuous ly V ariab le Tra nsmi ssion ( CVTl
Kick-down
The kick-down feature allows the vehicle to generate
maximum acceleration.
Wh en you press the accel erator pedal beyond the res istance point
that is reached at full throttle , the transmission will select a lower
gear ra tio based on veh icle speed and engin e RPM . The eng ine RPM
will be controlled to produce maximum vehicle acceleration as long as you cont inu e to press the accelerator pedal beyond this resis ­
tance point.
& WARNING
Be careful when using the kick-down feature on slippery roads.
Rapid acceleration may cause the vehicle to skid . •

• .___T_ r_a _n_ s_ m_ is_ s_io _ n ______________________________________________________ _
Applies to vehicles: with mult it ron ic® Contin uously Variable Transm iss io n (CVT )
Dynamic shift program (DSP)
The multitronic® transmission is electronically
controlled .
The transmission selects the appropriate gear ratio (upshifts and
downshiftsl automatically based on preset driving programs .
The transmission will select one of the
economy programs when
you drive at a steady speed or a gradually changing speeds without heavy acceleration. This gives best fuel efficiency, with early
upshifting and delayed downshifting .
The transmission will automatically select th e
sporty shift programs
when you drive at higher speeds, or with heavy acceleration and
fr equ ently changing speeds. Upshifts are d elay ed to make full use
of engine power. Downshifting takes place at higher engine speeds
than in the economy programs .
The selection of the most suitable shift program is a continuous,
automatic process . The driver can also make the transmission
switch to a sporty program by
quickly pressing down the gas pedal.
This causes the transmission to shift down into a lower gear ratio
a n d makes quick acceleration possible (to pass another vehicle) You
do not need to press the gas pedal into the kickdown range. After
the transmission has upshifted, the original prog ram is selected
according to your driving style .
An additional shift program allows the automatic transmission to select the prop er gear for uphill and downhill gradients .
This prevents the transmission from shifting up and down unneces ­
sarily on hills. The transmission
will shift down to a lower gear ratio
when the driver presses the brake pedal on a downhill gradient . This
makes use of the braking effect of the engine without the need to
shift down manually.
If you are driving in hills and mountains, the transmission will
continuously adjust the g ear ratio to the road grade . If you press the brake pedal when driving downhill, the transmission will downshift
automatically. This increases the braking effect
of the engine.
If the cruise control is on when you are trave.ling downhill, the trans­
mission will automatically select a lower gear ratio in order to main ­
tain the set vehicle speed. This will cause the engine speed to
increase. •
Applies to vehic les: with mult it ro ni c® Continu ous ly Varia ble Trans mission (CVT )
tiptronic ® manual shift program
Using the manual shift program (tiptronic®) you can
manually shift between seven pre -programmed gear
ratios (transmission positions).
I
Fig . 148 Center
console: shifting
manually
Fig. 149 Display:
manual shift program ,
selected gear high-
lighted ._

_______________________________________________________ T_ r _a_ n_s_ m __ is_ s_ io_ n _ ___,_
Swi tching to m anual shift pro gra m
- With the selector lever in D, push lever to the right. The
display will show7
6 5 4 3 21 as soon as the selector lever
is switched over. The gear you select wi ll also be h igh­
lighted in the display:::::,
page 136, fig. 149 .
To up shift
Push the selecto r lever forward to the plus position
:::::, page 136, fig. 148 G) .
To d ownshift
- Pu sh the lever to the mi nus positio n Q.
When accelerating, the transmission wi II a utomatica I ly shift into the
next higher gear before the engine reaches the maximum RPM .
When accelerating, if you apply a light throttle, the tiptronic® wil l
automatically shift into the next higher gear to save fuel. If you app ly
a heavy throttle, the transmission will stay in gear engaged until
near maximum RPM are reached, or until the driver manually shifts
into a higher gear .
If you take your foot off the accelerator peda l when driving down a
steep incline, the tiptronic ® wi ll downshift from the selected gear
into the next lower gear based on road speed and engine RPM . The
automatic downshifting is interrupted as soon as you apply throttle
again .
[ i ] Tips
• When you shift into the next lower gear, the engine will down ­
shift only when there is no possibility of over-revving.
• When the kick -down comes on, the transmission wi ll sh ift down
to a lower gear depending on vehicle and engine speeds.
• The tiptronic® is inoperative when the transmission is in the fai l­
safe mode .•
Contro ls and eq uip­
ment
Ap plies to vehicles : w it h mu ltit ron ic® Co nti nuou sly V ariable Transmi ssion ( CVT)
Steering vvheel vvith t iptronic ®
The shift buttons on the steering wheel allow the driver to
shift gears manually.
F ig. 15 0 Stee ring
w he el: S hift b utto ns
To downshift, touch the button on the left Q .
To upshift , touch the button on the r ight G) .
The shif t buttons are activated when the selector lever is in D, S or
in the manual shift program (tiptronic).
Of course, you can continue to use the manual shift program with
the selector lever on the center console. •
Applies to vehicles : wi th mu lt itro nic® Co nti nuously Var iab le Tra nsmis sion (CVT)
Fail -safe mode
If the multitronic® suffers a malfunction the fail-safe
mode maintains minimum driveability.
In the event of particular system malfunctions, the automatic trans ­
mission switches to the fai l-safe mode. This is signal led by all the
segments in the display illuminating or going out . _,,,
~ehicle care irechnical data

[ i ] Tip s
• Do not tow a trailer during the break-in period of your vehicle.
• If you tow a trailer, your Audi may require more frequent mainte ­
nance due to the ex tra load=>
page 316 . •
Parking on a slope
---'--------------------
Do not park with a trailer on a slope. If it cannot be
avoided, do so only after doing the following:
Wh en p arking :
-Apply the foot brake.
- Have someone p lace chocks under both the veh ic le and
the trailer wheels .
- Wit h chocks in p lace, s low ly release t he brakes until
wheel blocks absorb t he load.
- T urn t he wheels towards the curb .
- Apply the parking brake .
- Place an automatic transmission in
P , respect ively a
manual transmission in first or reverse gear.
Wh en restarting after p arking :
- Start the e ngine .
- Shift transmiss ion into gear.
- Re lease the parking brake and slowly pull out and away
from the w heel blocks.
- Stop and have someone retr ieve t he wheel blocks.
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
Tr
aile r to wing
[ i ] Tip s
If you move the selector lever of the automatic transmission to P
before applying the parking brake and before blocking the wheels,
you may have to use more force later to move the lever out of the
P
position .•
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data