2008 AUDI S6 cooling

Operating instructions
Max im um tra iler weight
A trailer for your vehicle is limited to a typical class 1 or class 2
trailer.
T ra ile r l oa d di stributio n
Be sure the load in the trailer is he ld securely in place to prevent it
from shifting forward, backward or sideways .
Never allo w a passe nger to r ide in a tr aile r~ & in "Driving instruc­
tions" .
Engin e c oolin g sys te m
Towing a trailer makes the eng ine work harder. It is important that
the cooling system's performance is up to the additiona l load. Make
sure that the coo ling system has enough fluid .
Tire pr ess ure
When towing a trailer, inflate the tires of your vehicle to the co ld tire
pressure listed under "Full load" on the labe l located either on the
driver's side B -pil lar (visible when the door is open) or inside the fuel
filler flap . Inflate trai ler tires to trai ler and tire manufacturers' spec­
ifications.
L ig ht s
The head light settings should be checked wit h the trai ler attached
before driving off. Check to make sure both vehicle and trai ler lights
are working properly .
Safe ty c ha in s
Be sure traile r safety chains are properly connected from the trailer
to the hitch on the vehicle. Leave enough slack in the chains to
perm it turning corners . When you i nsta ll safety chains, make sure
they will not drag on the road when you are driving.
T he chains should cross under the trailer tongue to prevent it from
dropping in case of separat ion from the hitch.
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
Tr
aile r t owing
0 Note
If you are going to tow a trai ler, you must activate the trailer opera­
tion mode ~
page 184, "Towing a trailer". •
Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra care and
consideration.
To obtain the best possible handling of veh icle and trailer,
please note t he following :
- Do not tow a loaded trailer when your car itself is not
loaded.
Be espec ia lly careful whe n passing other vehicles.
- Observe s peed limits .
Do not drive at the maximum permiss ible speed .
Always apply brakes ear ly.
Moni tor t he temperature ga uge.
Weight distr ibution
Towing a loaded trailer with an empty car results in a highly
unstable distr ibution of weight. If this cannot be avoided, drive at
very low speeds only to avoid the risk of losing steering control.
A "balanced" rig is easier to operate and control. This means that
the tow vehicle should be loaded to the extent possible and perm is ­
s ib le, while keeping the trailer as light as possib le under the circum ­
stances . Whenever possible, transfe r so me cargo to t he luggage
compartment of the tow vehicle whi le observing tongue load
requirements and vehicle loading considera tions . .,
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

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because the lubricating properties of oil diminish gradually during
normal vehicle use .
Under some circumstances the engine oil should be changed more
frequently . Change oil more often if you drive mostly short
distances, operate the vehicle in dusty areas or under predomi ­
nantly stop -and -go traffic conditions, or have your vehicle where
temperatures remain below freez ing for extended periods.
Detergent additives in the oi l will make fresh oil look dark after the
engine has been running for a short time. This is normal and is not
a reason to change the oi l more often than recommended .
Because of the problem of proper disposal, along with the specia l
tools and necessary expertise required, we strongly recommend
that you have your oi l changed by an authori zed
Audi dea ler or a
qual ified service stat ion.
If you choo se to cha nge yo ur oi l y ou rse lf, please no te the following
important information:
& WARNING
To reduce the risk of per sonal injury if you m ust change the engine
o il in you r veh ic le y our self :
• Wear eye protection.
• To reduce the ri sk of burn s from hot engine oil , let the engine
c ool down to the tou ch.
• When removing the oil drain plug with your fing ers , sta y as far
away as po ssi ble . Alw ay s k eep your f orearm par allel to the gr ound
to help pre vent hot oil from running down your arm .
• Drain t he oil int o a contain er de signed for thi s purpo se , one
large enough to hold at l ea st th e total amount of oil in your eng ine .
• Engine oil i s poi sono us. K eep it well out of the rea ch of ch ildr en .
• Continuou s contact with u sed engine oil i s harmful to your
sk in. Al wa ys prote ct you r ski n by washing oil off thoroughl y with
s oap and w ater.
0 Note
Never mix oil addi tives with your engine oil. These add itives can
damage your engine and adversely affect your Audi Limited New
Vehicle Warranty .
c£> For the sake of the environment
• Before changing your oi l, first make sure you know where you
can properly dispose of the us ed oil.
• Always dispose of used engine oil properly. Do not dump it on
garden soil , wooded areas, into open streams or down sewage
drains .
• Recycle used engine oil by taking it to a used engine oil collec ­
tion fac ility in your area , or contact a service station. •
Engine cooling system
Coolant
The engine coolant performs two functions: it keeps the
engine from overheating and it protects the engine from
freezing i n the winter.
The cooling system is sea led and generally requires little attention.
The coo ling system has been fi lled at the factory with a permanent
coolant which does not need to be changed . The coolant consists of
a mixture of water and the manufac turer's glycol-basedcoolant
additive G 12+ an tifreeze with anticorrosion additives (50% for USA
models; 60% for Canadian models). This mixture both assures the
necessary frost protection and protects metal components in the
engine 's cooling system from corrosion and scaling . It also raises
the boiling point of the coolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the coo lant in the summer by
adding plain water.
The p ropo rt ion of co ola nt additiv e mu st be at .,_
Vehicle care
I t •

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le as t 50% b ut not mor e th an 60 % to maintain antifreeze protection
and cooling efficiency . If the coo lant frost protection is too low, the
coo lant could freeze and damage the vehicle heating and engine
cooling system.
For year -round driving, antifreeze is added at the factory for temper­
atures down to:
• -31 °F ( -35 °C) USA
• -40 °F ( -40 °C) Canada.
You can m ix the
Gl 2 + coolant additive with other add itives (for
example
Gl 1 or Gl 2). A lways check with your authorized Audi
dea ler .
& WARNING
Before you check anyt hing in the engine comp artment , alw ays
re ad and heed all WARNINGS ~
& in "Working in the eng ine
co mpar tm ent " o n
pag e 297.
0 Note
• Before win ter sets in, have the coolant checked to see if the
coolant additive in your vehicle is sufficient to meet the climate
conditions. This is especia lly important if you live in a region where
the winter is extremely cold. I f necessary, increase the proportion of
coo lant additive to 60%.
• When adding coolant additive to your coo ling system,
remember:
-We recommend using only coolant additive
Gl 2+ (check the
label) for your vehicle. This coolant addit ive is available at autho ­
rized Audi dealers. Other types of antifreeze can significantly
reduce corrosion protect ion . T he resulting corrosion can cause a
loss of coolant and serious engine damage.
• Do not add any type of radiator leak sealant to your vehicle's
engine coolant. Adding radiator repair fluid may adversely affect the function and performance of your cooling system and cou
ld result
in damage not c overed by your New Vehicle Limited Warranty. •
Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with a quick
glance.
F ig . 235 Eng ine
c o mpartm ent : Cool ant
ex pa nsion tank
Before you check anything in the engine compartment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS~
& in "Working in
the e ngin e compa rtment" on
page 297 .
Turn off the ignition.
Re ad the en gine coo lant leve l from the coo lant exp an­
sio n ta n k~ fig. 235. With a cold eng ine, the coolan t leve l
sho uld be between the "m in" and "max" markings. W hen
t h e eng ine is warm, the level may be s lightly abov e the
"max" marking .
The location of the coolant expansion tank can be seen in the
engine compartment illustration~
page 298.
To obtain an accurate reading, the engine must be switched off .
T he expansion tank in your vehicle is equipped with an e lectric
coo lant leve l sensor.

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When the coolant level is too low , the warning light in the Auto­
Check System =>
page 33will blink un til you add coo lant and the
level has been restored to normal. Even though there is an electric
coolant leve l sensor, we still recommend you check the coo lant level
from time to time .
Coola nt lo ss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling system . In the event
of coolant loss, the coo ling sys tem should be inspected immedi ­
ately by your authorized Audi dealer . It is not enough merely to add
coolant.
In a
s ealed system, losses can occur only if the boiling po int of the
coolant is exceeded as a result of overheating.
0 Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak sea lant to your vehicle's engine
coolant . Adding radiator repair fluid may adversely affect the func ­
tion and performance of your cooling system and could resu lt in
damage not covered by your New Vehic le Limited War ranty .•
Adding coolant
Be very careful when adding engine coolant.
Before you check anything in the engine compartment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS => & in "Working in
the engine compartment" on
page 297 .
- Tu rn off the engine .
- L et the engine coo l dow n.
- Place a t hick rag over the coolant expansion tank
=> page 304, fig . 235 and carefully tw ist t he cap counter­
cloc kw ise
=> & .
- Add coolant. - Twist the cap
on agai n
tightly.
Replacement engine coolant must conform to exact specifications
=>
page 303, "Coolant". If in an emergency coolant additive G12 + is
not avai lable, do
not use a different additive . Use p lain water
instead until you can get the correct additive and can restore the
correct ratio . This should be do ne as soon as possible.
If you have lost a considerable amount of coolant, then you should
add cold antifreeze and cold water only when the engine is cold .
Always use
new engine coolant when refilling .
Do not fil l coolant above the "MAX" mark. Excess coolant will be
forced out through the pressure relief va lve in the cap when the
engine becomes ho t.
& WARNING
• The cooling system is under pressure and can get ver y hot.
Redu ce the risk of sc alding from hot coolan t by follow ing the se
s tep s.
- Turn off th e en gine and allo w it to cool down .
- Protect your fa ce , ha nd s and arm s from e sc a pi ng fluid and
s tea m by cov ering the c ap with a large , thick rag.
- Tur n the cap slo wly an d very ca refully in a counter -clockw is e
dire ction whil e applying light , downward pres sure on the top
o f the cap.
- To av oid bei ng burn ed , do n ot spill antifree ze or cool ant on
the e xhau st sy stem or h ot e ngi ne part s. Under cert ain co ndi­
tion s, the ethylen e gl ycol in engin e co olant c an c atch fire .
• Antifr eeze is po iso nous. Alwa ys store antifree ze in its or igin al
c ontainer and well out of the reach of c hildren .
• If you dra in t he coola nt, it mu st b e ca ught and sa fel y stor ed in
a prop er container clearly mark ed "poi son ".
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Vehicle care I t •