I have an S-tronic 3.0tdi Quattro Avant with standard cruise control (non-adaptive) which I purchased second-hand last year. I have discovered that it uses the brakes to maintain speed when going downhill. My two previous A4 3.0tdi Quattro Avant automatics (B7 models) did not do this and I find it disconcerting and believe it is even potentially dangerous. According to my local Audi dealer, it should not do this but it definitely does, as I can see the reflection of the high-level brake light coming on when driving at night. Is there any way of disabling this function. I am used to manually selecting a lower gear (paddle shifts make it easy) when driving down a long hill, and believe this is the correct way to manage the cars' speed but sometimes the brakes come on before I have a chance to downshift.

 

This is an old post, but wondering the same thing. It's very annoying when driving on cruise control via empty roads and every downhill kills the speed - not good for the consumption either. Any ideas anyone? VCDS coding?...