2011 AUDI A6 load capacity

The maxim um permiss ible roof we ight is 220 lb (100 kg). T he roof
we ight is mad e up of the wei ght of th e ro of ra ck sy stem and the
we ight of the ob ject b eing trans ported .
Wh en usin g a roof rack system whic h has a lower load carry ing
capac it y, you mus t not use up the t otal ma ximum permi ssible load
carrying ca pac ity spe cified above. Instead, you s hould lo ad t he roof
r ack s yst em o nly to t he ma ximum c apacity speci fied by the man ufa c­
turer of the roof rack system.
& WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used to secure items to the
roof rack can fail during hard braking or in a collision and cause
serious personal injury.
• Make
sure the roof rack is installed exactly as specified above
=> page 88.
• Always use suitable mounting straps for securing items to the
roof rack to help prevent items from shifting or flying forward.
• Items on the roof rack must always be securely mounted.
• The use of a roof rack can negatively affect the way a vehicle
handles . Cargo that is large, heavy, bulky , long or flat will have a
greater negative influence on the vehicle's aerodynamics , center
of gravity and overall handling. Always drive slowly, avoid sudden
braking and maneuvers when transporting cargo on the roof of
your vehicle.
• Never exceed the maximum permissible load carrying capacity
of the roof of your vehicle, the permissible axle weights and the
permissible total weight of your vehicle=>
page 341, "Weights ".
• Always drive slowly, avoid sudden braking and maneuvers
when transporting cargo on the roof of your vehicle.
'£> For the sake of the environment
Some times i t may be eas ie r t o le ave a roof ra ck in sta lled even though
you a re not using i t. Due to th e increased air resistanc e your veh icle
Con trol s and equ ip­
m ent Vehicle
OP-eration
Seats and storage
will unnecessa rily use more f ue l. Remove t he roo f rack if you a re not
g oing to use it. •
Cupholder
Cupholder in center console
The c up hold er is located un der a co ve r.
.. .. . .
' .
' '
' .
. . . . ' '
'
' . '
'
'
' . ' '
' '
.. . ' . ' ' . ..
'• N ' • Lil : : ~ : : tL : : ~ ' • a,
.. . .
' . "' '. 0 : : ~ : : tL '' ... : : G:l
' ' . '
'
. . ' ..
Fig. 82 Center
co nso le: (upholder
Fig . 83 Cente r
c on sole: Adap ter for
c upholder
- To open the c upholde r, p re ss the fo rward e dge of th e
cove r.
- Ins ert or re mov e the ada pter in to th e cu phold er, a s ne ces-
s ar y. .,
Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data

________________________________________________ D_ r_ i_ v _i_n ""'g "-- S_a_ f_ e_ l _,,y'-- __
the dr iver's side 8-p illar (v isib le when the door is open). The tire pres­
s u re label lists t he recommen d end cold t ire infl ation pressures fo r
the vehicle at its maximum capacity weight and t he tires that were on
yo ur vehicle at the time it was ma nufact ured. For recommended ti re
pressures for normal load cond it ions, please see chapter
=> page 299. •
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equi pped with f our tie­
downs to secur e luggage and other items.
Use the t ie-downs to sec ure yo ur cargo prope rly => page 183,
"Load ing the luggage compartment" .
In a co llision, the laws of physics mean that even sma ller items that
are loose i n the vehicle will become heavy m issiles t hat can c ause
serious injury. Items in the vehicle possess energy wh ich vary w ith
vehicle speed and the we igh t o f the i tem. Vehi cle spee d is t he m ost
significant factor.
For examp le, in a frontal coll ision at a spee d of 30 mph (48 km/h),
the forces acting on a 10- lb (4 .5 kg) object are abo ut 20 times the
normal weight of the item . T his means that t he weight of t he item
wou ld s uddenly be abo ut 200 lbs. (90 kg). You can imagine the inju­
r ies that a 200 lbs . (90 kg) item flying free ly throug h the passenge r
c ompa rtmen t cou ld cause in a collision lik e this.
& WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used to secure items to tie­
downs can fail during hard braking or in a collision and cause
serious personal injury .
• Always use suitable mounting strap s and prope rly secure items
to the tie -downs in the luggage compartment to help prevent
items from shifting or flying forward as dangerous missiles.
• When the rear seat backrest is folded down, always use suit­
able mounting straps and properly secure items to the tie-downs
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first Vehicle operation
& WARNING
(co ntinued )
in the luggage compartment to help prevent items from flying
forward as dangerous missil es into the passenger compartment.
• Never attach a child safety seat tether strap to a tie -down. •
Reporting Safety Defects
Applicable to U.S.A.
If you belie ve that your veh icle has a defect
which could cause a crash or could cause injury
or death , you should immediately inform the
National Highway Traffic Safety Admini stration
(NHTSA) in addition to notifying Audi of
America, Inc.
If NHTSA receives similar complaints, it may
open an investig ation, and if it find s that a
safety d efe cts exist s in a group of vehicle s, it
ma y order a rec all and remedy campaign.
However , NHTSA cannot become involved in
individual problems between you , your dealer,
or Audi of America , Inc.
To contact NHTSA , you may call th e Vehicle
Safety Hotline toll-free at:
Tel.: 1-888-327-4236 (TTY: 1-800-424-9153)
or write to:
Administrator
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

Intelligent technology
'-----------------------------------------------
Intelligent technology
Notice about data recorded by
vehicle control modules
Your vehicle is not equipped with an Event Data Recorder (EDR),
installed by some manufacturers for the express purpose of
capturing data for retrieva l after an accident or crash event. ED R's are
sometimes called "crash recorders".
Some state laws restrict the retrieval or downloading of data stored
by ED R's that were installed in a vehicle for the express purpose of
retrieving data after an accident or crash event without the owner's
consent.
Although your vehicle is not equipped with an EDR, it is equipped w ith
a number of electronic control modu les for various vehicle systems
such as, for example, engine function, emission control, as well as for
the airbags and safety belts.
T hese electronic contro l modules also record vehicle-re lated data
during normal vehicle operation for diagnostic and repair purposes .
Th e recording capacity of the e lectronic control modu les is limited to
data (no sound is recorded) and only a sma ll amount of data is actu­
ally recorded over a very limited period 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 well as restraint system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condition. Stored data can only be read and down­
loaded with special equipment.
Electronic Stabilization Program
(ESP)
General information
The ESP improves the vehicle stability.
l, I
Fig. 201 Center
console with ESP
switch
ESP is des igned to help you maintain vehicle control in s ituations
where the car approaches the limits of "grip", especia lly when accel­
erat ing and cornering. ESP reduces the risk of skidd ing and imp roves
stability under all road conditions.
Th e system operates across the entire speed range in combination
with the ABS system. If the Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) malfunc­
tions, the ESP will also shut down.
How the system works
The Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS), Electronic Differential Lock (EDL)
and the Anti-Slip Regulation System (ASR) are integrated in the elec­
tronic stabilizatio n pro gram. In addition to the data provided by
these funct ions, the ESP control unit requires additional measure­
ment data provided by high performance sensors. The rotational
speed of the vehicle about its vertical axis, veh icle acceleration in the ...

-~_T_ ir_e_ s_ a_ n_ d_ w_ h_e_ e_ ls _______________________________________________ _
& WARNING (conti nu ed )
• Tire s age even if they are not being used and can fail suddenly ,
especially at high speeds . Tires that are more than 6 year s old can
only be used in an emergency and then with special care and at low
s peed .
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means the combined we ight (in excess of those sta nda rd items which
may be rep lace d) of automatic transmission, power steering, power
bra kes, powe r w indows , power seats, radio, and heater, to the extent
that these items are avai lab le as factory- installed equipment
(w het he r i nsta lled or no t).
Aspect ratio
me ans the ratio of t he he ight to t he w id th of the tir e in percent .
Numbe rs of 55 o r lower indicate a low sidewa ll for improved steer ing
respo nse an d be tter overa ll handling on dry p avemen t.
Bead
means the part o f the tire that is made of stee l w ires , wrap ped o r
re in forced by ply cords and that is shaped to fit the rim.
Bead separation
means a brea kdown of the bon d between components in the bead .
Cord
means the st rands forming the plies in the tire.
& W ARNING (continued )
• Never mount used tire s on your vehicle if you are not sure of
their "previous hi story ." Old used tires may have been damaged
eventhoughthedamagecannotbeseenthatcanleadtosudden
tire failure and lo ss of vehicle control.
• If you notice unu sual vibration or if the vehicle pull s to one side
when driving, alway s stop as soon as it is safe to do so and check
the wheels and tires for damage. •
Cold tire inflation pressure
means the tire pressure recommended by the vehicle ma nufa cturer
for a tire of a des ignated size t hat has not been driven for more than
a couple of m iles ( kilomete rs) a t low speeds in the t hree ho ur period
before the tire pressure is measured or ad justed.
Curb weight
mea ns the weig ht of a motor vehicle wit h standard equ ipment
including the max imum cap aci ty of f ue l, oil, and coo lan t, air condi ­
tioning and additiona l weight of optional equipment.
Extra load tire
means a t ire designe d to operate at higher loads and at higher infla­
t ion p ressures than the co rrespo nd ing standard t ire. Ext ra load tires
my be identified as "XL", "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or "RF" on the sidewall.
Gross Axle Weight Rating ( "GAWR ")
means the load -ca rry ing capacity of a s ingle ax le system, measured at
t he t ire-grou nd inte rfaces .
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating ("GVWR")
means the max imum total loaded we ight of the vehicle .

-~_T_ ir_e_ s_ a_ n_ d_ w_ h_e_ e_ ls _______________________________________________ _
Sidewall
means that portion of a tire between the tread and bead.
Speed rating (letter code)
means the speed at which a tire is designed to be driven for extended
periods of time. The ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h) to 186
mph (298 km/h) =>
page 309. You may not find this information on
all tires because it is not required by law.
The speed rating letter code, where applicable, is mo lded on the tire
sidewall and indicates the maximum permissible road speeds=>
& in
"Winter tires" on
page 311.
Tire pressure monitoring system*
means a system that detects when one or more of a vehicle's tires are
unde rinflated and illuminates a low tire pressure warning te lltale.
Tread
means that portion of a tire that comes into contact with the road.
Tread separation
means pulling away of the tread from the tire carcass.
Treadwear indicators (TWI)
means the projections within the princ ipal grooves designed to give a
visual ind ication of the degrees of wear of the tread. See=>
page 306,
"Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)" for more information on measuring
tire wear.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
is a tire informat ion system developed by the United States National
H ighway Traff ic Safety Adm inistration (NHTSA) that is designed to
help buye rs make relative comparisons among tires. The UTQG is not
a safety rating and not a guarantee that a tire will last for a prescribed
number of miles or perform in a certain way. It simply gives tire
buyers additional information to comb ine with other considerations,
such as price, brand loyalty and dealer recommendations. Under
UTQG, tires are graded by the tire manufacturers in three areas: treadwear
, traction and temperature resistance. The UTQG informa­
tion on the tires, molded into the sidewa lls.
U.S. DOT Tire Identification Number (TIN)
This is the tire's "ser ial number" It begins with the letters "DOT" and
indicates that the tire meets all federal standards. The next two
numbers or letters ind icate the plant where it was manufactu red, and
the last four numbers represent the week and year of manufacture.
For examp le,
DOT ... 2210 ...
means that the tire was produced in the 22nd week of 2010. The
o ther numbers are marketing codes that may or may not be used by
the t ire manufacturer. Th is informat ion is used to contact consumers
if a tire defect requires a recall.
Vehicle capacity weight
means the rated cargo and l uggage load plus 150 lbs. (68 kilograms)
times the vehicle 's total seating capacity as listed on the label located
on the driver's side B-pillar.
Vehicle maximum load on the tire
means that load on an individual tire that is determined by dist rib­
uting to each axle its share of the maximum loaded vehicle weight
and divid ing by two.
Vehicle normal load on the tire
means that load on an individua l tire that is determined by distrib­
uting to each axle its share of the curb weight, accessory weight, and
normal occupant weight (distributed in accordance with table below
=>
page 299) and dividing by two. .,_

________________________________________________ T_ i_ re _ s_ a_ n_d_ w_ h_ e_ e_l _s _ ........
Occupant loading and distribution for vehicle normal load for various designated seat ing capacities
Designated seating capacity, num- Vehicle normal load, number of Occupant distribution in a nor­
mally loaded vehicle
ber
of occupants occupants
5 3 2 in front, 1 in back seat
Co ld tire inf lation pressure
Tire pr essur e affects the overall handling, performance and safety of a vehicle .
Fig. 216 Tire pressure
label : lo cated o n
dr iver 's sid e B·pillar
Tire pressure generally refers to t he amo unt of a ir i n a tire tha t it
needs it to do its job and safe ly carry the comb ined load of t he entire
vehicle and its contents . Tire p ressure is measured in kilopasca ls
(kPa), the inte rnationa l measur ing unit and in poun ds per squar e in ch
(PSI). Tire press ure is based in part on the ve hicle 's design and load
limit -the greatest a mount of weight that the vehi cle can c arry safe ly
and the tire s ize. The proper tire pressure is frequently refer red to as
the "re commen ded cold t ire inflation p ressure. " Air in t he tires
expands when the tire heats up because of internal friction when it
flexes in use. T he tire press ure is hig her w hen the tir e h as warme d up
than whe n it is "cold." It is the inflation pressure in a "cold" tire that
c o unts. The refo re, you sho uld never let air o ut of a warm t ire to
match "cold ti re inflation pressure " recommendations . The t ires
wou ld then be under in flated and could fail s uddenly.
------------------.. ,::
.(
... TINGc.worv TOTAA. I """" I .... I)(··-) :& NOMBAE DE P\.ACES TOTAi. 4VANT ARAIERE _,, rt-.oomblNd-...glllolOCCIUPll"Matlll~liio.Mn ~a:.u•d •"'M _ .. Uooldt IOUol -~ Ill du dltH-gt11'Nffl N dolt j._11, cibtl-loo !IQ lb.
TIRE SClE COI.O TIN! PMSSUAE PN(U DIMfN 5'0NS NW:S.St()N OU PNEUS A fflOIO
""""
SUOWN'EA'S MANUAl F AO:DrTIONAL
INFORMATION
VOIR U MANUEL DU PROJl'RIETAIRE
POUR PLUS OE
RENS£1Gf\1£MENTS Fig . 217 Tire pre ssur e
label
Ma intain ing prope r tire pressure is one o f the most importa nt things
you can do to he lp avoid sudde n tir e fa il u re . Under inflated tires are a
majo r ca use of sudden tire fa ilure . Keeping t ires at the rig ht pressure
is a lso important for safe and responsive vehicl e ha nd ling , traction,
braki ng an d load ca rryi ng.
Tire pressures are particularly impo rtant
when the vehicle is being driven at higher speed s, and then espe·
cially when heav ily loaded even within the permissible load ·
carrying capacities approved for your vehicle .
The recommended tire pressures for your Audi depend on the kind of
t ires on your vehicle and the num be r of passengers and/or amou nt o f
luggage you will be tra nspo rt ing .
The t ire pressure labe l is located on t he dr iver's side B-pilla r. The tire
pressure labe l lists th e recommended cold tire inflat ion p ress ures for
the vehicle at its maximum capacity weight and t ires t hat were on
•
your vehicle at the time it was manu fact ured. _,,,
Vehicle OP-eration Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data

-~_T_ i_ re _ s_ a_n _ d_ w_ h _e_ e_ ls _________________________________________________ _
If you wish to improve comfort when operating the vehicle at
normal load (up to 3 o ccupants ), you can adjust tire pre ssures to
those specified for normal vehicle load . Before operating the
vehicle at maximum load, you must inc rease the tire pressures to
those specified for maximum vehicle load
=> & .
Bear in mind that the tire press ure monitoring system* can on ly
m oni tor the tire pressu res you have sto red . The system does no t
recogn ize the load condit ion of your vehicle.
T he effectiveness of the tire pressure monitoring system * w ill be
impaired if you store norma l load p ressu res b ut the n operate th e
vehicle at its maxim um loa d=> & .
Tire designation
See the illustration=> fig. 216 for the locat ion of the labe l on dr iver's
side B-p illar (colo r of the actu al labe l and ex act loc ation o n the
veh icle will vary slight ly) .
N ote that the following tab le is accurate at the time of going to press
and i s su bje ct to change. I n the even t of discrepancie s, t he tire pres­
sure label is located on the driver's side B-pillar always takes prece­
de nce.
The table below lists the recommended co ld tire inf lation pressures
fo r the Audi mode l covered by your Owner 's Literat ure at the vehicle's
capacity weight and t he tire sizes installed on the respective mode ls
as o rigina l equipment, or as a factory option.
Tire pressure front Tire pressure rear
Engine
(displace­
ment in liter) normal load
normal load
6-cylinder
3.0
6-cylinder
3 .2
245 /45 Rl 7 99H XL All Season
245 /40 R18 97H XL All Season
245/40 R18 97Y XL High Performance
255 /35 R19 96Y XL High Performance
245/ 45 Rl 7 99 H XL All Season
245 /40 R18 97H XL All Season
245 /40 R18 97Y XL High Performance
255 /35 R19 96Y XL High Performance
condition (up
to 3 occu- pants)
PSI
35
38
3 5 24 0
39 270
33 230
36
33
39
full load
condition
PSI kPA
38 260
41 280
3 5 260
44 300
36 250
39 270
36 250
44 300
condition (up
full load
to 3 occu- condition
pants)
PSI kPA kPA
32 220 270
35 240 42
290
3 2 220 38 260
33 230 45 310
30 210 36 250
33 230 39 270
30 210 36 250
33 230 45
310

lffllL-_T.:..:..: ir:....:e~ s=---= a~ n:..:..: d:......: w..:....:.. h:....:e~ e= ls=--------------------------------------------------
Yo ur sa fety and that of your passengers also depends o n mak ing s ure
t h at loa d limits are no t ex ceede d. Vehicle lo ad incl udes eve rybody
and everyth ing in and on the vehicle. These load limits are tech nica lly
referred to as the ve hicle 's
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating ("G VW R").
T he "G VWR" includes the we igh t of the b asic ve hicl e, all fa ctory
installe d accesso ries, a fu ll tank of fue l, o il, coo lant and other fluids
p lu s m aximu m lo ad. Th e maxi mum lo ad include s th e num ber of
passengers that the vehicle is intended to carry ("seating capacity")
w ith a n assu med we ight of 150 l bs (6 8 kg) for e ach p assenger at a
designated seating position and the tota l weight of any luggage in
t he vehicle . If you tow a trai le r, t he weight o f the t railer hitch and t he
tongue we ig ht of the loaded trailer must be included as pa rt of the
veh icle load .
T he
Gross Axle Weight Rating ("GAWR") is the m aximum load tha t
can be applied at each of the vehicle's two ax les.
Th e Gross Vehi cle We ight Ratin g a nd the Gross Axle Weigh t Ra ting
are listed o n the safety compliance sticker label located on the
dr ive r's side B-pillar. You r A udi has 5 sea ting positions, 2 in the fron t
and 3 in the rear fo r tota l seati ng ca pac ity of 5 . Eac h seat ing position
has a safety belt ~
page 18 7, "Safety belts".
T he fa ct t hat t here is an upper lim it to your ve hicle's G ross Veh icle
We ight Rating means that t he total weight of whatever is being
c arried in t he ve hicle (includi ng the wei ght of a tra ile r hit ch an d the
tongue weig ht of the loaded tra iler) is limited. The more passengers
i n th e ve hicl e or p assenge rs who are heavier th an the stan dard
we igh ts assumed mean that less we igh t can be ca rried as luggage.
The tire pressure label on yo ur A udi a lso lists the max imum combined
w eight of all of th e occ upants and luggag e or o ther cargo that th e
vehicle ca n car ry. Fo r the location o f the labe l~
page 299, fig . 216.
& WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of vehicle control , a crash or
other accident, serious personal injury, and even death.
& WARNING (co ntinued )
• Carrying more weight than your vehicle was de signed to carry
will prevent the vehicle from handling properly and increase the risk of the loss of vehicle control.
• The brakes on a vehicle that has been overloaded may not be
able to stop the vehicle within a safe di stance.
• Tires on a vehicle that has been overloaded can fail suddenly,
including a blowout and sudden deflation, causing loss of control
and a crash .
• Always make sure that the total load being transported -
including the weight of a trailer hitch and the tongue weight of a
loaded trailer -does not make the vehicle heavier than the
vehicle's Gros s Vehicle Weight Rating. •
Determining correct load limit
Use the example below to calculate the
total weight of the passengers and luggage or other things that you plan to transport so
that you can make sure that your vehicle
will not be overloaded. .-.