Safe mode audi a6 2006
All you want to do is something simple, basic, such as changing the radio station or CD, or resetting the “climate control system.” Why do I need a degree from MIT to work Audi’s MMI? You say: “Do this.” It responds: “What do you mean?” It drives me nuts. You turn them one way, or another, and they generally do what they’re told.īut working with Audi’s MMI system, which displays its various monitoring messages on a seven-inch, color screen in the instrument panel, is more like trying to reason with a smart aleck teenager. It’s a new world.īut I still like dials, especially for doing things such as turning on the car radio and adjusting the air conditioner’s temperature setting and fan speed. We “text-and-photo-message.” And we’re getting to the point where we don’t make love as much as we “interface.” I understand. We “e-mail.” We don’t just talk on telephones. But none of the rival systems I’ve used are as complicated and redundant as that found in the new A6 - two ignition modes and two separate buttons, as opposed to one found in competitive automobiles, to handle the “Start” and “Stop” functions in the “advanced key” program.Īnd then there is MMI, which stands for Multi Media Interface. Many luxury and entry-level luxury cars nowadays have that feature. Of course, push-button ignition is nothing new. At the end of your journey, you shut the car down by pushing a “Stop” button. An electronic pulse transmitter in the “advanced key system” communicates with the ignition and steering systems, preparing both for operation at the push of a “Start” button. You keep the ignition key on or near your person. That’s simple enough.īut Audi has added a twist of its own - an optional companion push-button starter that requires no key insertion. You can start the car the traditional way by twisting a key after inserting it into the ignition lock. I experienced higher levels of frustration instead. The company says it is offering new levels of convenience in its automobiles. In its obsessive bid to become a high-end automobile manufacturer, Audi has abandoned simplicity in pursuit of excess. It was a matter of dealing with too much. My estrangement came in the padded luxury of the 2005 Audi A6 4.2 Quattro sedan. But that sort of thing often occurs in nondescript economy cars. Sometimes, there is no communication between car and driver. We met as strangers and remained that way.