steering wheel AUDI TT ROADSTER 2014 User Guide

110 Airbag system
angle of impact that will always trigger the
airbags, since the circumstances will vary con­
siderably between one collision and another.
Important factors include, for example, the
nature (hard or soft) of the object which the
car hits, the angle of impact, vehicle speed,
etc. The front airbags will also not inflate in
side or rear collisions, or in roll-overs.
Always remember: Airbags will deploy only
once, and only in certain kinds of collisions.
Your safety belts are always there to offer pro­
tection in those situations in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy, or when they have
already deployed; for example, when your ve­ hicle strikes or is struck by another after the
first collision.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is
a supplementary restraint and is not a substi­
tute for a safety belt. The airbag system
works most effectively when used with the
safety belts. Therefore, always properly wear
your safety belts¢
page 101.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel or
instrument panel will decrease the effec­
tiveness of the airbags and will increase
the risk of personal injury in a collision .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm)
to the steering wheel or instrument pan­ el.
- If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
(25 cm) from the steering wheel, investi­
gate whether adaptive equipment may
be available to held you reach the pedals
and increase your seating distance from
the steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You will also receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against
the airbag or too close to it when it in­
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag.
- To reduce the risk of injury when an air­
bag inflates, always wear safety belts
properly
c::> page 104, Safety belts.
- If children are not properly restrained,
they may be severely injured or killed
when an airbag inflates.
- Never let children ride unrestrained or
improperly restrained in the vehicle. Ad­
just the front seats properly.
- Always sit as far as possible from the steering wheel or the instrument panel
¢ page 93, Proper occupant seating po­
sitions.
- Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat.
- Never place your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the floor in front of the seat to help prevent serious injuries to the legs
and hips if the airbag inflates.
A WARNING
Airbags that have deployed in a crash must
be replaced.
- Use only original equipment airbags ap­
proved by Audi and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary tools
and diagnostic equipment to properly re­
place any airbag in your vehicle and as­
sure system effectiveness in a crash.
- Never permit salvaged or recycled air­ bags to be installed in your vehicle.
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.. Be sure to read the important information
and head the WARNINGS for important de­
tails about children and Advanced Airbags
¢page 130.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentially dangerous place for a
child to ride. The front seat is not the safest
place for a child in a forward-facing child safe­
ty seat.
It can be a very dangerous place for an
infant or a child in a rearward-facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
has been certified to comply with the Require­
ments of United States Federal Motor Vehicle .,.

Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants .
Fig. 112 Location of dri ver airbag: in steering whee l
Fig. 113 Location of front passe nger's ai rb ag : in the in­
strument panel
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured . The safety belts
for the front seats have "pretensioners" that
help to take slack out of the belt system. The
pretensioners are also activated by the elec­
tronic control unit for the airbag system.
The front safety belts also have load limiters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
in a crash .
The airbag for the driver is in the steering
wheel hub¢
fig. 112 and the airbag for the
front passenger is in the instrument panel
¢fig. 113. The general location of the airbags
is marked "AIRBAG".
There is a lot you need to know about the air­
bags in your vehicle. We urge you to read the
Airbag system 113
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
chapters that make up the owner's literature .
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS - they
are extremely important for your safety and
the safety of your passengers, especially in ­
fants and small children.
A WARNING ,.;;
Never rely on airbags alone for protection .
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide
only supplementa l protection.
- Airbag work most effectively when used
with properly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, always wear your safety belts
and make sure that everybody in your ve­
hicle is properly restrained.
A WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, es­
pecially infants and small children, will re­
ceive serious injuries and can even be kil­
led by being too close to the airbag when
it inflates .
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the
front passenger airbag if an infant or a
small child is on the front passenger
seat, nobody can absolutely guarantee
that deployment under these special
conditions is impossible in all conceiva­
ble situations that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicle .
- The Advanced Airbag System can deploy
in accordance with the "low risk" option
under the U.S. Federal Standard if a child
that is heavier than the typical one-year
old child is on the front passenger seat
and the other condit ions for airbag de­
ployment are met.
- For its own safety, a child should always
ride properly restrained for its age and
size.
Advanced front airbag system
-
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United
Ill>

-The inflating airba g will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier wit h great
f o rce and w ill smash t he ch ild safety seat
and child aga inst the backrest, center
arm rest, d oor or roof.
- Never install a r earward facing child
sa fety seat on the front pass eng er s eat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light c omes on and stays on. If the PAS­
S ENGER AIR BAG OFF
ligh t does no t
come on and stay on, the inflating airbag
will hit the child safety seat or infant car­
rier with great force and will smash the
child safety seat and child against the
backrest, door or roof. Have the airbag
system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the a irbag will
increase the risk of injury in a crash by in­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds
or by being pushed into you as the a irbag
inflates.
- Never hold th ings in your hands or on
your lap when the vehicle is in use .
- Never transport items on or in the area
of the front passenge r seat. Objects
cou ld move into the area of the front air­
bags dur ing braking or other s udden ma­
neuver and become dangerous projec ­
ti les that can cause serious personal in­
jury if the airbags inflate.
- Never place o r attach accessories or oth­
er objects (such as cup ho lders, tele­
phone brackets, large, heavy or b ulky ob­
jects) on the doors, over or near the area
marked "AIRBAG" on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat backrests or be­
tween those a reas and yourself. These
objects could cause injury in a crash, es­
pecially when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger's seat
to transport objects. Items can also
move in to the area of the side airbag or
the front airbag dur ing braking or in a
sudden maneuver . Objects near the air -
-
Airbag system 119
bags can become projectiles and cause
inju ry, partic ularly when the seat is re­
clined.
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing prob lems for people
with a history of asthma or other breath­
ing cond itions.
- To reduce the risk of breath ing problems,
those with asthma o r other respiratory
conditions shou ld get fresh air r ight
away by getting o ut of the veh icle or
open ing windows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy, was h your hands and fa ce with
mild soap and wate r before ea ting.
- Be ca reful not to get the dust into your
eyes, o r into any cuts or sc ratches .
- If the resid ue should get into your eyes,
f lush them w ith wate r.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
t!~ Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advan ced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indi cator light and the
PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light.
T he Advanced A irbag System (including the
electron ic co ntro l unit, sensor circu its and sys­
tem wir ing) is monitored con tinuously to
make sure that it is functioning properly
whenever the ignition is on. Each time you
turn on the ignition, the a irbag mon itoring in­
dicator light
I will come on for a few seconds
(self diagnostics).
The sy stem mu st be in spected when th e
indicator light
I :
- does not come on when the ignition is
sw itched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have switched on t he ignition, or
•
•

122 Airbag sys te m
- If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan­ ces and the
PA SSEN GE R AIR BA G OFF
light does not appear and stay on have
the a irbag system inspected by your Audi
dealer.
- A tight tether or other strap on a rear­
ward-fac ing child restra int attached to
the front passenger seat can put too much pressure on the weight-sens ing
mat in the seat and register more weight
than is actually on the seat. The heavier
weight registered can make the system
work as though an adu lt were on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
must be suppressed caus ing serious or
even fatal injury to the child.
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you
must install a forward-facing child re­
straint on the front passenger seat, al­
ways move the seat into its rearmost po­ sit ion in the seat's fo re and aft adjust­
ment range, as far away from the airbag
as possib le . The backrest m ust be adjust­
ed to an upright position. Make sure that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the t ime when­
ever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out when an adult is sitting
on the front passenger seat after taking
the steps described above, have the air­ bag system inspec ted by your Audi deal­
er before transporting anyone on the
front passenger seat.
(D Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front pas­
senger seat detects an empty seat, the
front airbag on the passenge r side will be
turned off, and
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
w ill stay on.
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Pa rts of the airbag system are i nstalled at
many diffe rent p laces o n your Aud i. Insta llin g,
removi ng, servicing or repa iring a part in an
area of the veh icle can damage a part of an
airbag system and prevent that system from
working properly in a coll is ion.
T he re a re some important t hings you have to
k now to make sure that the effectiveness o f
t h e system wi ll not be impaired and that dis­
carded components do not cause injury or pol ­
l ute the environment.
A WARNING
Improper care, serv ic ing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal in­
j u ry and death by prevent ing an a irbag
from deploying when needed or dep loying
an a irbag unexpec tedly:
- Never cover, obst ruct, or change the
steer ing whee l horn pad or ai rbag cover
or the in st rument panel or mod ify them
in any way .
- Never attach any obje cts s uch as c up
holders or telephone mountings to the
sur faces covering the a irbag un its.
- For cle aning the horn pad or instr ument
panel, use only a soft, dry clo th or one
moistened with pla in water. Solvents o r
cleaners could damage the airbag cover
or change the st iffness or strength of the
material so that the airbag cannot de­
p loy and protect properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the a irbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, front seats or e lectr ica l sys­
tem (including the installation of audio
equ ipment, cellu lar telep hones and CB
radios, etc.) must be performed by a
qualified technic ian who has the training
and specia l equipment ne cessary.
- For any wo rk on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that you see your
author ized Audi dealer or qualified work-
shop. ..,.

124 Airbag system
with the safety belt buckles so that the sen­
sors can send the correct information about
safety belt use to the electron ic control unit.
,&. WARNING
Changing the vehicle 's suspension includ­
ing use of unapproved tire-rim combina­
tions can change Advanced Airbag per­
formance and increase the risk of serious personal injury in a crash.
- Never install suspens ion components
that do not have the same performance
characteristics as the components origi­
nally insta lled on your vehicle.
- Never use ti re-rim combinat ions that
have not been approved by Audi.
,&. WARNING
-
Items stored between the safety belt
buckle and the center console can cause
the sensors in the buckle to send the
wrong information to the electronic con­
trol modu le and prevent the Advanced A ir ­
bag System from working properly.
- Always make sure that nothing can inter-
fere with the safety belt buckles and that
they are not obstructed.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained
front seat occupants.
Fig. 116 Driver's airbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument
panel underneath the steering wheel
~ fig. 116, the airbag for the passenger is at
about the same height in the instrument pan­
el underneath the glove compartment .
T he knee airbag offe rs addi tional p rotec tion
to the driver 's and passenger's knees and up­
per and lower thigh areas and supplements
the protection by the safety belts.
If t he front a irbags dep loy, the k nee a irbags
also dep loy in frontal collisions when the de­
ployment threshold stored in the control unit
is met
~ page 118, More important things to
know about front airbags .
In addition to their normal sa fety function,
safety belts help keep the driver or front pas­
senger in position in a fronta l collision so that
the a irbags can provide supplemental protec­
t ion.
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overa ll oc ­
cupant restraint system in your vehicle. A l­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only he lp to protect you if you are wearing
you r safety belt and wea ring it properly. This
is why you should a lways wear your safety
belt, not just because the law requi res you to
do so~
page 101, General notes.
The safety belt buckle for the driver and front
seat passenger have switches that tell the air­
bag control module if the safety bel t is being
u sed or not .
If the safety belt is be ing used,
t h e knee a irbag w ill deploy at a s light ly h igher
rate of dece leration than if the belt is not be ­
ing used. Therefore, in a particular co llision, it
is possib le that an airbag will not dep loy at a
seating position where the safety belt is being
used but will inflate at the position where the
safety belt is not being used .
Remember too, airbags will deploy on ly once
and only in certa in kinds of accidents - your
safety belts are always there to offer protec­
t ion in those accidents in which airbags are
not supposed to deploy o r whe n they have al­
ready dep loyed, for example when your vehi­
cl e s trikes or is st ru ck by ano ther after the
first collision . ..,.

126 Airbag system
Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al­
ways wear safety bel ts correctly and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passenger
must know and do to help the safety belts and
a irbags to provide supp lemental protection.
.&_ WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause serious
injury. Wearing safety belts inco rrectly and
improper seating positions increase the
r isk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a veh icle is being used.
-
- The knee airbag system cannot protect
you properly if you are seated too close
to any of the airbag locations. When ad­
just ing their seat positions, it is impor­
tant that both the driver and the front
passenger keep their upper bodies and
knees at the fo llowing min imum safe
distances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and t he steering wheel/ instru­
ment panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- The risk of persona l injury increases if
you lean forward or to the side, or if the
seat is imp roperly posit ioned and you are
not wearing your safety belt. The r isk in­
creases even more should the airbag de­
ploy.
- Always make sure that the knee a irbag
c an in flate without interference. Obje cts
between you and the airb ag can increase
the risk of inju ry in an acc iden t by inter ­
f ering with the way the airbag dep loys or
by being pushed into you as t he a irbag
dep loys .
- Never let anybody, especially ch ild ren
or an imals ride in the footwe ll in front
of the passenger seat.
If the airbag de- ploys, this can result in serious or fatal
injur
ies.
- Never ca rry objects of any kind in the
footwell area in front of the dr iver's or
passenger 's seat. Bulky objects (shop­
ping bags, for example) can interfere
with or prevent proper deployment of
the a irbag. Small objects can be
th rown thro ugh the ve hicle if th e air­
bag deploys and injure yo u or your pas­
sengers.
- Make sure there are no cracks, deep
scr atc hes or o ther dam age in the area of
the ins trumen t panel where the knee a ir­
bags are lo cated .
- If chi ld ren are incorrectly se ated, their
ris k of injury increases in a co llision
~page 130, Child Safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants.
Fig . 11 8 Side airb ag locat ion in th e drive r's seat
The side airbags are loca ted in the sides of t he
fron t seat b ackrests
q fig. 118 fa cing the
doo rs . They are identif ied by the word "A IR­
BAG".
Th e side airbag sy stem ba sic ally consi st s of:
- the electron ic contro l module and external
side impact sensors
- the two side airbags located in the sides of
the front backrests
- the airbag warning light in the instrument
cluster .

A WARNING
-=
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
-Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be
adjusted to an upright position.
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were
installed in a vehicle during a crash. Dam­
age to a child restraint that is not visible
could cause it to fail in another collision
situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk " re­
quirements for 3- and 6-year old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the
driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates. In addition, the system
Child Safety 131
has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard .
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, a child should al­
ways ride in the seat properly restrained for
its age and size . The airbag on the passenger
side makes the front seat a potentially dan­
gerous place for a child to ride. The front seat
is not the safest place for a child in a forward­
facing child safety seat .
It can be a very dan­
gerous place for an infant or a larger child in a
rearward-facing seat.
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight-sensing mat in the seat cush­
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight-sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger
seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the
seat. The weight of a child restraint and its
"footprint" vary for different kinds of child re­
straints and for the different models of the
same kind of child restraint offered by child restraint manufacturers.
The weight ranges for the individual types,
makes and models of child restraints that the
NHTSA has specified in the Safety Standard
together with the weight ranges of typical in­
fants and typical 1 year-old child have been
stored in the control unit of the Advanced Air­
bag System. When a child restraint is being
used on the front passenger seat with a
ll-
•
•

142 Intelligent technology
Intelligent technology
Notice about data
recorded by vehicle
control modules
Your vehicle is not equipped with an Event Da­
ta Recorder (EDR), installed by some manu­
facturers fo r the express purpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or crash
event . EDR's are sometimes ca lled "crash re­
corders".
Some state laws restrict 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 lthough your vehicle is not equipped with an
EDR, it is equipped with a number of electron­
ic control modules for various vehicle systems
such as, for examp le, eng ine function, em is­
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic contro l modules also record
vehicle-re lated data during normal vehicle op­
eration for diagnostic and repair purposes.
The 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 over a very limited pe riod of
time and stored when a system fault or other
condition is sensed by a control unit. Some of
the data then stored may relate to vehicle
speed, direction, braking as we ll as restraint
system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condition. Stored data can only
be read and downloaded with 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 vehicle control. It works
only when the engine is running. ESC detects certain difficult driving situat
ions, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw)
out of control and helps you to get the veh icle
back under control by se lectively braking the
wheels, and/or reducing engine power and
providing steering assistance to help hold the
vehicle on the driver's intended course. The in­
dicator light
G) in the instrument cluster
blinks when ESC is taking action to help you
control the vehicle.
ESC has limitations.
It is important to remem­
ber that ESC cannot overcome the laws of
physics. It wi ll not always be able to help out
under all conditions you may come up against.
For example, ESC may not always be able to
help you master situations where there is a
sudden change in the coefficient of friction of
the road surface. When there is a section of
dry road that is suddenly covered with water,
slush or snow, ESC cannot perform the same
way it wou ld on the dry surface . If the vehicle
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 interrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered.
During 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
cannot override the vehicle's physical limits,
increase the available traction, or keep a vehi­
cle on the road if road departure is a result of
driver inattention . Instead, ESC improves the
poss ibility of keeping the vehicle under con­
t rol and on the road dur ing extreme maneu­
vers by using the driver's steering inputs to
help keep the vehicle go ing in the intended di­
rection . If you are traveling at a speed that
causes you to run off the road before ESC can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESC.
ESC includes and/or works togethe r with the
anti- lock brake system (ABS), brake assist sys-
tem and anti-slip regu lation (ASR). ESC is .,..

146 Intellig ent technolog y
gear or lower driving range. Do no t ride
t h e brakes or hold the pedal down too
long or too often. This cou ld cause the
bra kes to get hot and dimin ish braking
efficiency .
- Do no t "ride the brakes" by resting your
foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to brake . Th is may cause the brakes to
overheat, prematu re wear and inc reased
stopp ing distan ce.
- Under certain climat ic and operating
c ondit ions such as passing through wa­
ter, driving i n heavy ra in or after wash ing
the vehicle, the effect iveness of the
brakes can be red uced . In winter, ice can
accumulate on the brake pads, linings,
discs and d rums . Carefully apply brakes
for a test . Brakes will dry and ice coat­
ings will be cleaned off after a few care­
ful brake applications.
- Driving for an extended period of time on
salt-covered roads w ithout us ing your
brakes can also affect braking efficiency .
Clean off accumulated salt coating from
brake d iscs and pads w it h a few cautious
brake appli cat ions.
- If you damage the fro nt spo iler, or if you
ins tall a different spoiler, be su re the air
flow to the fron t bra kes is not o bstr uct­
ed. O therwise the brake system co uld
overheat reducing the effectiveness of
the entire brake system.
- F ailure o f one bra ke c ircuit will impair
the b raking capability resulting in an in­
creased stopp ing distance . Avoid driv ing
the vehicle and have it towed to the near­
est Aud i dea le r o r qualified workshop.
- Never let the vehicle ro ll to a stop w ith
the engine shut off.
- If the brake booster is not working, t he
brake pedal must be pressed considera­
bly harder to make up for the lack of
booster assistance . Electro-mechanical
power assist
The electro-mechanical power assist helps
the driver when steering .
The degree of power assi st is electronically
matched to vehicle speed .
T he power steering system assists the driver
so that he can steer the vehicle with reduced
physical effor t.
Power steering will not work if t he engine is
off . As a result, the steering wheel will be hard
to turn.
A WARNING
If the system develops a problem , you
must seek qualified profess iona l assis ­
tance .
(D Note
-
If there is an e lectronic malfunction, ser­
votronic
will still function like a conven­
tiona l power steering system, providing a
constant steering support force that is no
l onge r proportionate to the vehicle speed .
This is most not icea ble whe n tu rni ng the
s tee ring w heel a t low speeds (fo r example
when pa rking), -more effort w ill be re­
q uired than us ua l.
- Be aware o f the diffe rent than usual
steering response and adjust your steer ­
ing force acco rdingly.
- Have the problem checked and set right
by an autho rize d Aud i dealer as soon as
possible.
- If a s teer ing mal func tion occurs, this is
signa led wit h the
,'Zr~ or .• indicato r
lights and a warning tone, see.
(D Tips
- If the powe r stee ring system sho uld fai l,
or if the engine is not ru nning (fo r exam­
ple, whi le being towed), you will still be
able to steer the vehicle. However, more
effort will be required to do so.
11-

-If the power steering system is not fu nc ­
tioni ng properly, contact your a uthorized
Audi dealer immediate ly.
Driving with your
quattro
App lies to vehicles: with a ll-wheel drive
With all-wheel drive, all four wheels are driv­
en.
Gene ral inform ati on
With all-wheel drive, power is distributed to
all four wheels. This happens automatically
depending on your dr iving sty le and the road
conditions at the t ime. See a lso
r=;, page 142.
The all-wheel drive concept is designed for
h igh engine power. Your vehicle is exception­
ally powerful and has excellent dr iving charac­
ter istics both under normal driving conditions
and on snow and ice. Always read and follow
safety precautions
c::;, ,&. .
Winter t ire s
When drivi ng in the w inter, your ve hicle w ith
all-wheel drive has an advantage, even with
regular t ires. In winter road conditions it may
be adv isable to mount winter t ires (or all-sea­
son t ires) for improved driveability and brak­
ing: these tires must be mounted on
a ll f our
w heel s.
See also c::;, page 196, Winter tires.
Snow chains
Where t ire cha ins are mandatory on certain
roads, th is normally a lso applies to vehicles
w ith a ll-wheel d rive
c::;, page 19 7, Snow
chains .
Replacing wheels /tire s
Vehicles w ith all-wheel drive must always
have tires of the same size. Also avoid t i res
with d iffe ren t tread depths. For details see
page
c::;, page 192 , New tires and replacing
tires and wheels.
Off-Road driving?
Your Audi does not have enough ground clear­
ance to be used as an off-road veh icle.
It is
Int ellig ent technolog y 147
therefore best to avoid rough tracks and un ­
even terrain as much as possib le . Also refer to
r=;, page 151.
_& WARNING
Always adjust your dr iv ing to road and traf­
fic conditions. Do not let the extra safety
afforded by all-wheel drive tempt you into
taking extra risks .
- Although the all-wheel drive is very ef­
fective, always remember that braking
capacity is lim ited by tire tract ion. You
should t herefore not d rive at excessive
speeds on icy or slippe ry road s urfaces.
- On wet road surfaces, be careful not to
drive too fast because the front wheels
could begin to slide on top of the water
(aquaplaning) . If th is should occur, yo u
wi ll have no warning from a s udden in ­
crease in engine speed as with a front­
wheel drive veh icle. Always drive at
speeds which are su ited to the road con­
ditions. -risk of crash.
Energy management
Starting ability is optimized
Energy management controls the distribution
of electrical energy and thus optimizes the
availability of electrical energy for starting
the engine.
If a vehicle with a conventiona l energy system
is not d rive n for a long per iod of t ime, the bat­
te ry is discharged by idling current consumers
(e.g . immobilizer). In certain circumstances it
can res ult in there being insufficient energy
available to start the eng ine.
Intellige nt energy managemen t in your vehi­
cle handles the dis tribution o f electrica l ene r­
gy. Starting ability is marked ly improved and
the life of the battery is extended .
Bas ica lly, energy managemen t consis ts of
batt ery diagno sis, idling cur rent man age­
ment
and dyn amic energ y management .
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