___ A_ ir_b _a_ g;:::;_ s--:.. y_s _t _e _m _________________________________________________ _
• in front-end collisions
• in rear-end collisions
• in rollovers.
In some types of accidents the front airbags, side curtain airbags
and side airbags may be triggered together.
& WARNING
• Safety belts and the airbag system will only provide protection
when occupants are in the proper seating position
=> page 208.
• If the airbag indicator light comes on when the vehicle is being
used, have the system inspected immediately by your authorized
Audi dealer . The airbag may not work properly when the vehicle
acceleration in a side collision is high enough to activate the
airbag. •
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help reduce the risk
of upper torso injuries for occupants who are properly
restrained.
Fig . 201 Inflated side
airbags on left side of
vehicle
When the system is triggered, the airbag is filled with propellant gas
and breaks through a seam in the seat surface area marked "
AIRBAG ". It expands between the side trim panel and the
passenger. In order to help provide this additional protection, the
side airbag must inflate within a fraction of a second a t very high
speed and with great force. The supplemental side airbag could
injure you if your seating position is not proper or upright or if items
are located in the area where the supplemental side airbag expands.
This applies especially to children=>
page 213, "Child Safety".
Supplemental side airbags inflate between the occupant and the
door panel on the side of the vehicle that is struck in certain side
collision => fig. 201.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can "cushion" the impact
and in this way they can help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper
part of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag deploys. This is normal
and does not m ean there is a fire in the vehicle .•
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always prop
erly wear safety belts and ride in a proper seating posi
tion.
There is a lot that you and your passengers must know and act
accordingly to help the saf ety bel ts and airbags do their job to
provide supplemental protection.
& WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious or fatal injury. Improp
erly wearing safety belts and improper seating positions increase
the risk of serious personal injury and death whenever a vehicle is
being used.
• In order to reduce the risk of injury when the supplemental side
airbag inflates:
~
Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank
Blend of gasoline and ethanol (grain alcohol or ethyl alcohol}
• Anti -knock index must be 87 AKI or higher.
• Blend must not contain more than 10% ethanol.
Blend of gasoline and MTBE
• Anti-knock index must be 87 AKI or higher.
• Blend must contain not more than 15% MTBE.
Seasonally adjusted gasoline
Many gasoline grades are blended to perform especially well for
winter or summer driving. During seasonal change -over, we suggest
that you fill up at busy gas stations where the seasonal adjustment
is more likely to be made in time.
0 Note
• Methanol fuels which do not meet these requirements may
cause corrosion and damage to plastic and rubber components in
the fuel system.
• Do not use fuels that fail to meet the specified criteria in this
chapter.
• If you are unable to determine whether or not a particular fuel
blend meets the specifications, ask your service station or its fuel
supplier.
• Do not use fuel for which the contents cannot be identified.
• Fuel system damage and performance problems resulting from
the use of fuels different from those specified are not the responsi
bility of Audi and are not covered under the New Vehicle or the
Emission Control System Warranties.
• If you experience a loss of fuel economy or driveability and
performance problems due to the use of one of these fuel blends,
we recommend that you switch to unblended fuel. •
Gasoline additives
A major concern among many auto manufacturers is carbon
deposit build-up caused by the type of gasoline you use.
Although gasoline grades differ from one manufacturer to another,
they have certain things in common . All gasoline grades contain
substances that can cause deposits to collect on vital engine parts,
such as fuel injectors and intake valves. Although most gasoline
brands include additives to keep engine and fuel systems clean,
they are not equally effective.
Audi recommends using TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline. For more
information on TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline, please go to the offi
cial website (www.toptiergas.com).
After an extended period of using inadequate fuels, built-up carbon
deposits can rob your engine of peak performance.
(D Note
Damage or malfunction due to poor fuel quality is not covered by
the Audi New Vehicle Limited Warranty. •
Fuel tank
Fuel filler neck
The fuel filler neck is located on the right rear side panel behind the
fuel filler flap.
If the power locking system should fail, you can still open the flap
manually - for detailed instructions see=
page 269.
You can find the fuel tank capacity of your vehicle in Technical Data
=p~enz ~
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•
Fast charging the battery {charging rate above 14 .8
Volts )
For technical reasons do not use a battery charger that uses vo ltage
greater than 1 4.8 Vo lts to charge y our ve hic le 's battery.
& WARNING
Charging a battery can be dangerous .
• Always follow the operating instruct ions provided by the
battery charger manufacturer when charging your battery.
• Never charge a frozen battery. It may explode because of gas
trapped in the ice . Allow a frozen battery to thaw out first.
• Do not reuse batteries which were frozen. The battery housing
may have cracked and weakened when the battery froze .
• Charge the battery in a well ventilated area. Keep away from
open flame or electrical spark . Do not smoke . Hydrogen gas gener
ated by the battery is explosive.
• To redu ce the danger of e xplos ion , never connect or disconnect
charger cables while the charger i s operating.
• Fast charging a battery is dangerous and should only be
attempted by a competent technician with the proper equipment.
• Battery acid that may spill during charging should be washed
off with a solution of warm water and baking soda to neutralize
the acid .
0 Note
Never use a fast charger as a booster to start the engine . T his wil l
se rious ly da mage sen sit ive elec tronic componen ts, such a s control
un its, re lays, radio, etc., as well as the battery charger. •
Battery replacement
Th e ne w batt ery must hav e the sam e speci ficat ions and
d im en sions as t he o rigin al equi pmen t b att ery.
Intel ligent energy management in your vehicle is respons ib le for
d istr ibut ing t he e lectr ica l energy t hro ugh out your ve hicl e
~ page 241. The intelligent energy management syste m wil l keep
t h e eng ine ba ttery charge d better then veh icles without t his system .
T o make sure the additional electrical energy is available once again
af te r you hav e cha nged the battery, w e re co mmend tha t you in sta ll
batteries of the same type and manufacture on ly (the same as those
i nsta lled at t he time your vehic le was delive re d ). S pecifi cations a re
listed on the battery housing . Your authorized Audi dea ler wi ll then
code the batter y ma nageme nt control u nit.
If it is not poss ible to use a batt ery o f this ty pe, the new ba ttery must
have the same capacity, voltage (12 vo lts) , amperage, constr uction
and p lug sea lin g.
W hen installing the batter y, ma ke sure the ignition and all electrical
c o nsumers are tur ned off .
0 Note
Make sure the ven tilat io n hose on t he side o f the ba ttery is
conn ected, otherwise fumes or b att ery ac id can leak out .
<£' For the sake of the environment
Because of the proble m of proper d isposal o f a ba ttery, we recom
mend your authorized Audi dealer change the battery for you.
B at teri es co nt ain sulf uric acid a nd lead an d mu st alwa ys be
disposed of proper ly in comp liance with a ll environmental regula
t ions. Dispos ing o f v ehicle bat ter ie s i mproper ly is very danger ous to
the environment .•
Vehicle care I t •
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•
Tires and wheels
Tires
General notes
Tires may be the least appreciated and most abused parts
of a motor vehicle.
Tires may be the least appreciated and most abused parts of a
motor vehicle. Tires are, however, one of the most important parts
of a vehicle, particularly considering the comparative ly sma ll patch
of rubber on each tire that assures that all- important contact
between you, your vehicle and the road .
Maintaining the correct tire pressure, making sure that your vehicle
and its tires do not have to carry more weight than they can safely
handle, avoiding damage from road hazards and regu lar ly
inspecting tires for damage inc luding cuts , slashes irregular wear
and overa ll condition are the most important things that you can do
to help avoid sudden tire failure including tread separation and
b lowouts .
Avoiding dama ge
If you have to drive over a curb or similar obstacle, drive very slow ly
and as close as possible at a right angle to the curb.
A lways keep chemica ls includ ing grease, oil, gasoline and brake
f luid off the tires.
I nspec t the tires regularly for damage (cuts, cracks or blis ters, etc.l.
Remove any foreign bodies embedded in the treads.
Storing tires
Mark tires when you remove them to indicate the direction of rota
tion . This ensu res you to be ab le to mount them correctly when you
reinstal l them. When removed, the wheels or tires shou
ld be stored in a coo l, dry
and preferably dark place.
St ore t ires in a vertical posit ion if they a re not mounted on rims, in
a horizontal position if they are mounted on rims.
New tire s
New tires have to be broken in~&.
The tread dep th of new tires may va ry, according to the type and
make of tire and the tread pattern.
Hidden d ama ge
Damage to tires and rims is often not readily visible. If you notice
unusua l vibration or the vehicle pul ls to one side, this may indicate
that one of the tires has been damaged . The tires must be checked
immed iately by an authorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
Unidire ction al tir es
A unidirectio nal tire can be iden tif ied by arrows on the s idewa ll, that
point in the direction the tire is designed to rotate. You must follow
the specified direction of ro tation . This is necessary so that these
tires can deve lop their optimum characteristics regarding grip, road
noise, wear and hydroplaning resistance . For more information
~ page 318.
in. WARNING
Ne w tire s or tire s that are old , worn or damaged cann ot pro vide
m aximum cont rol and braking ability.
• New tires tend to b e slippery and mu st also be broken-in . To
redu ce the ri sk of lo sin g control , a colli sion and seriou s per sonal
inj uries , dri ve wi th spe cia l c are for t he first 350 m iles ( 560 km l.
• Driving with worn or damaged t ire s can lead to lo ss of co ntrol ,
s udd en tire failure , in clu ding a blowout a nd sudden deflation , .,,_
Vehicle care
I t •