2011 AUDI R8 SPYDER cooling

-Have you r vehicle maintained properly
and in accordance with the service rec­
ommendat ions in your Warranty
& Main­
tenance booklet.
- Lack of proper maintenance as well as
improper use of the vehicle will impair
the function of the Emission Control Sys­
tem and could lead to damage.
Sporty driving
Warming up and cooling down
By carefully warming up and cooling down
your vehicle, you can he lp ensure that it is not
overstressed unnecessarily during sporty driv ­
ing.
When warming up, the vehicle is driven at a maximum engine speed of
6000 RPM
(Vl0 engine) or 7000 RPM (V8 engine) in or­
der to raise the engine oil temperature to a minimum of
140 °F (60 °(). The tires also on­
ly reach their full road holding capability once
they have warmed up .
The cooling fan can continue to run in your ve­ h icle after the engine is switched
off. H owev­
er, driving the vehicle to cool it down is part ic ­
ularly important. During sporty driving, the
engine and brakes, the exhaust system, and
the t ransm ission all become ex treme ly hot.
Before you park the vehicle, you shou ld d rive
it for a few mi les/kilometers at light load in
the low rpm range to allow it to coo l down .
Driving on a track
Before you take your vehicle out on a track,
ensure that it is in perfect condition. For ex­
ample, you should check the tire tread and the brake pads . It is best to increase t ire pressure
by about 0 .3 bar .
When driving on a track, oil consumption may be somewhat higher than in "normal" opera­
tion ¢page
180.
You shou ld definitely inspect your vehicle af­
ter subjecting it to severe condit ions. Are the
brake pads OK? Is there anything unusual
Dri vin g and en vironm ent 159
about the ti res, including the inner and outer
sidewa lls (e.g . tread, blistering)? Are the air
intakes free of leaves and tire dust? Is the o il
l evel OK?
Your authorized Audi dea ler or qua lified work­
shop will be happy to undertake an inspection
before and after use on the race track.
(D Tips
- Some race tracks (e.g . steeply banked
t u rns) may affect the response of the
ESP .
- When driven on a race track, all vehicle
parts are severe ly stressed. This can re ­
sult in increased wear.
Operation and maintenance
Fuel economy, env ironme nta l impact, and
wear on your eng ine, brakes and tires largely
depend on three factors:
- your personal driving style
- operating conditions
- technical limitations
By having your ve hicle reg ularly se rv iced by an
authorized Aud i dea ler helps to ens ure that i t
r uns properly and econom ica lly. The condition
of your veh icle not only affects its safety and
ability to ho ld its va lue, it a lso affects
f u el
con sumptio n.
The amount o f oi l used is re lated to engine
load and speed .
It is normal fo r the oil consump tion of a new
engine to reac h its lowest value after a certa in
mileage has been d riven.
You must drive your veh icle about 3,000 mi les
(5,000 kilometers) before you can p rope rly
assess oil consumpt ion.
This also app lies to fue l cons umption and en­
gine output.
(D Note
- Have your veh icle ma inta ined properly
and in accordance with the service
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•

The engine oil and oil filter must be changed
according to the mi leage (kilometers) and
time interva ls specified in your vehicle's War­
ranty & Maintenance booklet. Do not exceed
these intervals -harmful deposits from old
engine o il can reduce engine performance and
can lead to expensive engine repairs.
Changing the o il at the recommended inter­
vals is so very important because the lubricat­
ing properties of oil decrease gradually during
normal vehicle use . If you are not sure when
you have your oi l changed, ask your author­
i zed A udi Service Advisor.
Under some circumstances the engine o il
should even be changed more frequently.
Change o il more often if you drive mostly
short distances, ope ra te the vehicle in dusty
areas or mostly under s top-and-go traffic con­
d itions, or when yo u use your vehicle whe re
temperatures stay below freezing point for
l ong periods.
D etergen t additives i n the o il w il l make fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run ­
ning for a short time . This is norma l and is not
a reason to change the oi l more often than
recommended.
Damage or malfunction s due t o lack of
m aintenance
It is essen tial that you change your oil at the
r ecommended inte rva ls using only engine o il
that complies with A udi oil standard
VW 502 00. Yo ur Limited New Vehicle War ­
ranty does not cover damage or malfunctions
d ue to fai lure to fo llow recommended mainte­
nance and use req uirements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manua l and Warranty&
Ma intenance book let . Your autho rized Aud i
deale r will have to deny warranty coverage un­
l ess you present to the dealer p roof in the
fo rm of Se rvice o r Repair Orde rs t hat all
sched uled main tenance w as performed in a
time ly manner .
Checkin g and fillin g 179
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all
of its moving parts .
In order to provide effective lubrication and
cooling of interna l eng ine components, all in ­
te rnal combust io n engines consume a certain
amount of oil. Oil consumpt io n va ries from
engine to e ngine and may change sig nifican tly
ove r the life of the engine. Typically, engines
with a spec ified break -in pe riod (see
c::> page 158) consume more oil d uri ng the
break-in pe riod than they consume afte r oi l
consumption has stabilized.
U nder normal cond itions, the rate of oi l con ­
s u mption depends on t he q uality and viscos ity
of the oil, the RP M (revolut ions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient
temperature and road conditions. Further fac­
tors are the amount of oil dilut ion from water
condensa tion or fue l residue a nd the oxida­
tion level of the oil. As any eng ine is subject to
wear as m ileage builds up, t he oil co nsump­
t ion may increase over time until repla cement
of wo rn components may be come necessary.
Wi th a ll these va riab les coming into p lay, no
standard rate of oil consumpt io n can be es­
t a bl is h ed o r spec ified . There is no alte rnative
to regular and frequent chec king of the o il lev ­
el, see
Note.
If the yellow engine o il level wa rning symbo l
i n the instrument cluster
1\11 lights up, yo u
sho uld check the oil leve l as soon as possib le
c::> page 180 . Top off the oil at your ear liest
convenience
c::> page 180 .
A WARNING
-Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed a ll
WARNINGS
c::> & in Working in the engine
compartment on pag e 175.
(D Note
Driving w ith an insufficient o il level is like-
-
ly to cause severe damage to the engine. .,.
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A WARNING ,~
- While topping off, the oil must not come
in contact with hot engine pa rts -fire
hazard!
- The oil fil ler cap must be properly se­
cured to prevent oil from being sprayed
on the hot engine and exhaust system
when the eng ine is running -fire hazard!
- If your skin has come in contact w ith the
engine oil, yo u must subsequently
cl eanse it tho roughly.
CD Note
- The oil level must not be above range G)
- danger of converter or eng ine damage!
Contact an authorized Audi dealer to
draw off oil, if ne cessa ry.
- Audi does not recommend the use of oil
additives. They may damage the engine
and adverse ly affect your New Vehicle
Warran ty.
@) For the sake of the environment
- Under no ci rcumstances ca n the oil come
i n conta ct wit h the sewage network o r
the soil.
- Observe and fo llow lega l regu lations
when d isposing of empty oil con taine rs.
Engine cooling system
Coolant
The coolant provides cooling for the engine.
The percentage of the coolant additive deter­
mines the freeze protection of the coolant in the winter.
The cooling system has been filled at the fac ­
tory with a permanent coo lant which does not
need to be changed. The coolant consists of a
mixture of water and the manufacturer's gly­
col-based coolant additive Gl2++ ant ifreeze
with ant icor rosion add itives (SO% fo r USA
models; 60% for Canad ian models).
Checkin g and fillin g 181
Coolant additive
The percentage of the coo lant add itive de­
pends on the climatic cond itions in wh ich the
vehicle is operated . If the percentage of
freeze protection i n the coo lant is too low, the
coolant can freeze, leading to a failure o f the
cooling and heating circuit.
T he percentage of coolant addit ive has al­
ready been adjusted at the factory for the ve­
hicle's climatic conditions.
T he m ix rat io for USA models is SO% wa ter
and SO% coolant addit ive, for Canadia n mod­
els 40% water and 60% coolant additive. This
mixture both ass ures the necessary frost pro ­
tection (-31 °F/-3S °C for USA models, -40 °F/-40 °C for Canada models) a nd protects
metal components i n the engine's cooling sys ­
tem from corrosion and scaling. It also ra ises
t h e boili ng poi nt of the coo la nt.
Summer time
Do not reduce the concentrat ion of the cool­
ant in the summer by adding p la in water.
The
proportion of coolant additive must be at
least 50 % but not more than 60 %
to main­
ta in an tifreeze pro te cti on and cooling eff ic ien­
c y.
A WARNING
B efore you c hec k anything in the engi ne
compartment, a lways rea d and heed a ll
WAR NIN GS~ .&.
in Working in the engine
compartment on page 175.
CD Note
- Be fore winter sets in, have the coo lant
checke d to see if the coolan t additive in
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli­ mate conditions. This is especia lly impor ­
tant if you live in a region where t he win­
ter is extreme ly cold. If necessary, in­
crease the p ropo rtion of coo lant add itive
to 60% .
-
-Only Gl2+ +, an additive meeting specif i­
cat io n "T L-VW 774G" may be used as a
coolant additive. Oth er coo lant add itives
IJJ,
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182 Checking and filling
may seriously degrade the corros ion pro­
tection. The resu lting damage can cause
l oss of coo lant and subsequent ly lead to
se rious engine damage.
- The coolant additive
Gl2++ must not be
mixed w it h other coo lant add itives.
- Do not add any type of radiator leak sea l­
ant to your ve hicle's engine coo lant.
Adding rad iator repair fluid may adve rse­
ly affect the function and performance of
your cooling system and could result in
damage not covered by your New Vehicle
Limited Wa rranty.
Checking the engine coolant level
Proceed carefully when checking the coolant .
Fig. 145 Convert ible top: serv ice pos iti on
Fig. 146 Convert ible top storage bay: coo la n t expa n­
s ion tank
Before you check anything i n the eng ine com­
pa rtment,
alway s read and heed all WARN­
INGS c:::> ,&. in Working in the engine compart ­
ment on page 175.
T he coolant expa nsion tank is located i n the
r ight s ide of the co nvertib le top s to rage bay
under the ro und metal cover
c::>fig. 146. The
conver tible top must be in the servi ce position
to check the coolan t leve l
c:::> fig. 145 .
Bringing the closed convertible top into
the service position
.,. Switch t he ignition on.
.,. Pull and ho ld the convertib le top switch.
.,. Press and hold the rear window switc h too
until the convert ible top moves into the
service pos ition
c:::> fig. 145 .
Bringing th e open convertible to into the
service position
.,. Switch th e ignit ion on.
.,. Press and hold the convert ible top switch.
.,. Press and hold the rea r window switc h too
until t he convert ible top moves into the
service pos it ion
c:::> fig. 145.
Opening the coolant expansion tank cover
.,. Stop the engine a nd a llow it to cool.
.,. Switch t he ignit ion off .
.,. Carefully remove the bolts in the cover
(D
using a sc rewd river and remov e th e cover.
The coolan t rese rvo ir i s located be low
c:::> fig. 146 .
Checking the engine coolant level
.,. Place a rag or cloth on the cap of the coolant
e xpansion tank a nd turn the cap
carefully to
the left ( counte r-cloc kw ise)
c:::> .&_ .
.,. Read the coolan t leve l inside the coolan t ex ­
pa nsion tank
c:::> fig. 1 46. W it h a co ld eng ine,
it must be above the "min" mark . With a hot
engine, it can be a litt le above the indicated
range.
T o obtain an acc urate reading, the engine
must be sw itched off.
T he e xpansion ta nk in your vehicle is eq uipped
with an electr ic coo lant level senso r
c::> page 32. We s till rec om mend you check the
coolant leve l from time to time.
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling
system. In t he eve nt of cool ant los s, the cool­
ing system should be inspec ted immedi ately
by your a uthorized Audi dea ler . I t is not
eno ugh mere ly to a dd coo lant .
ll-

In a se ale d system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheat ing.
A WARNING
- The cooling system is under press ure. Do
not open the cap of the coolant expan­
sion tank when the eng ine is hot. You
risk being scalded .
- The coo lant add itive, and therefore the
coolant itse lf, is hazardous to health.
Keep the coolant additive in the origina l
co nta iner out of the reach of children.
It
is a poison hazard.
CD Note
Do not add any type of rad iator leak seal ­
ant to your vehicle's eng ine coolant. Add­
ing radiator repair f luid may adve rsely af­
fect the fu nction and performance of your
coo ling system and could res ult in damage
not covere d by your New Vehicle Limited
Warranty .
Adding coolant
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS ¢ & in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 175 .
.. Add coolant .
.. Tw ist the cap on again
t ightly.
.. Tighte n the cap (D ¢ page 182, fig. 146
again .
Replacement engine coolant must conform to
exact specifications ¢
page 181, Coolant. If
the coolant additive Gl2++ is not available in
an emergency, you must not add any other ad­
d itive . In th is case, use only water and restore
the co rrec t mix ratio wi th the specified cool­
ant add itive as soon as possib le.
Always use
new engine coolant when ref illing .
Do not fill coolant above the " MAX" mark. Ex­
cess coolant will be forced out through the p ressure relief valve i n the cap when the en ­
g ine becomes hot .
Checking and fillin g 183
With a major loss of coolant, you shou ld add
the coolant only when the engine has
cooled.
In this way you prevent engine damage.
A WARNING
- The cooling system is unde r pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of
scalding from hot coolant by followi ng
these steps .
- Turn off t he engine and allow it to coo l
down.
- Protect you r fa ce, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by covering
the cap with a large, th ic k rag.
- Turn the cap s lowly and very carefully
in a counter -clockwise direction while
applying light, downward pressure on
the top
of the cap.
- To avoid being bu rned, do not spill an­
tifreeze or coolant on the ex haust sys ­
tem or hot engine pa rts. Under certain
cond itions, the ethylene glycol in en­
gine coolant can catch fire .
- Antifreeze is poisonous . Always store an­
tifreeze in its origina l container and well
out of the reach of children .
- If you dra in the coo lant, it m ust be
caught and safely stored in a proper con­
taine r clearly marked " poison" .
CD Note
- Coolant pollutes the environment and
cou ld cause an engine fire. Excess cool­
ant will be forced out through the pres­
sure relief valve in the cap w hen the en­
gine becomes hot .
- If, in an eme rgency, o nly wate r can be
added, the co rrec t ratio between wa ter
and antifreez e
¢page 181 must be re­
stored as soon as poss ible.
@) For the sake of the environment
D ra ined coola nt sho uld not be reused. Al­
ways d ispose of used coolant while observ­
i ng a ll environmental regula tions. •
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