166 Cleaning and protection
- Serious injuries can result if plastic parts
come loos e when the airbag is deployed.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
the informat ion
¢ page 161.
(D Note
Clean ing agents containing solvents will
attac k the material and can change the
way it behaves .
Carbon-fiber parts
Applies to vehicles: with carbon-fiber parts
The carbon-fiber parts of your vehicle have a
pa inted surface . They do no t requi re any spe·
cial care and a re cleaned like plast ic parts
¢ page 165.
Fabrics and fabric coverings
Fabrics and fabr ic coverings (e.g . seats, doo r
tr im pane ls, etc.) should be cleaned at reg ular
inte rva ls with a vac uum cle aner . Th is removes
surface dirt particles which could become em·
bedded in the fabric through use. Steam
cleaners shou ld not be used, because th e
steam tends to push the dirt deeper into the
fabric and lock it the re.
Normal cleaning
Gene rally, we recommend usi ng a soft sponge
or a lint -free microfiber cloth to the clean fab ·
ric . Brushes should only be used for carpets
and floor mats, s ince other fabric s urfaces
could be harmed by brushes.
N ormal surface sta ins can be cleaned using a
comm ercia lly available foam cleaner. Spread
the foam on the surface of the fab ric with a
soft sponge and work it in gently. Do not satu·
rate the fabric. Then pat t he foam dry using
absorbent, d ry cloths (e .g . microfibe r cloth)
and vacuum it afte r it has dr ied comp lete ly .
Cleaning stains
Stains ca used by beverages (e.g. coffee, fruit
ju ice, etc. ) can be treated with a mild deter
gent solut ion . App ly the detergent so lution
with a sponge. In the case of st ubbor n stains , a dete
rgent paste can be applied directly to
t h e stain and worked i nto the fabric. After·
wards, use copious amounts of clean water to
remove the rema ining detergent. Apply the
water wit h a damp cloth or sponge and pat
the fabr ic dry with an abso rbent, dry cloth.
Stains from choco late or ma keup sho uld have
detergent paste (e.g. ox-gall soap) rubbed in
to them. Afterwards, remove the soap with
water (damp sponge) .
Alcohol can be used to treat sta ins from
grease, o il, lipstick o r a ballpoint pen . M elted
grease or dye must be patted
off using ab
sorbent mater ial. It may be necessary to re
t reat the areas with de tergent paste and wa
te r.
In the case of general soiling of the uphols
te ry and cover mate rial, we recommend hir ing
a spec ia list t hat has the equipment to clean
the seat cove rs and othe r fabr ic surfaces by
shampooing a nd spray ext ra ction.
A WARNING
A lw ays rea d and heed all W ARNIN GS an d
the info rmation
¢ page 1 61.
@ Tips
Open Velcro fasteners on yo ur cl othing can
damage the sea t cover. Please make s ure
t h at Velc ro fas teners are cl osed.
Natural leather
Appl ies to vehicles: with natural leather
Audi mak es great efforts to maintain the
properties, natural look and feel of in terior
leather.
General
We offer many d iffe ren t types of leathe r o n
o ur vehicles . Most a re d iffe rent types of nappa
l eat her, which has a smooth s urfa ce a nd
c omes in var ious colo rs.
The intensity of the co lor determi nes the visu
al characterist ics and appea rance . If the su r
f ace of the leather has a typ ica l natural look,
t h en the leather is a napp a le at her that has .,.
been left in a re latively natural condition. This
l eather offers particularly good comfort and
breathes well. F ine veins, closed grains, insect
b ites, skin folds, and subtle variations in color
remain visible. These characteristics demon
strate that the mater ial is natural.
Natural nappa leather is not covered by a col
or finish. It is therefore more sensitive to soil ing and wear, wh ich is something you need to
consider if children, animals or other factors
might prove to be particularly hard on the
leather.
By contrast, leather types that are covered by
a co lored finish layer are more durab le. This
has a posit ive effect on the leather's resist
ance to wear and soiling in daily use. On the
other hand, the typical cha racte rist ics of natu
r a l lea ther a re ba re ly or no t apparent. Howev
er, this does not mean that the leather itself
is of in ferior quality .
Care and handling
Because of the exclusive nature of the types of
leather that Audi uses and the ir unique prop
er ties (such as sensitivity to o ils, grease, so il
ing, etc.), you will need to be somewhat care
fu l with these leathers, and a certain type of
care is required . For examp le, dark clot hing
materials can discolor leather seats (especial
ly if such cloth ing is damp and was not dyed
correctly). Dust and d irt part icles in pores,
folds, and seams can have an abras ive effect
and can damage the leathe r su rface as well as
weaken seams.
The leather should be cleaned regularly as
needed . After having been used for a relatively
long t ime, your leather seats will acquire a
r ich aged finish. This is a characteristic of nat
ura l leather and a sign of true quality.
In order to ma intain the va lue of th is natural
p roduct ove r the life of your vehicle, you
should follow the recommendations below :
«I) Note
- To keep your leather from bleaching out,
do not allow it to be exposed to bright
Cleaning and protec tion 167
sunlight for long periods of time . If you
have to leave the vehicle parke d outside
for long per iods, cover the leather to
protect it from direct exposure to s un
light.
- Sharp objects on clothing, such as zip pers, rivets or sharp pieces on belts can
leave permanent scratches or scrape
marks on the surface of t he leather.
@ Tips
- After each time you clean the leather and
at regular intervals, use a leather preser
vative creme that contains UV-blockers
and that works into the leathe r. Th is
creme w ill nour is h and mo istu riz e the
lea ther, helping it to breathe and s tay
s u pple. It also helps to build up a protec
t ive coating on the sur face.
- Clean t he leather every 2 -3 mon ths,
and clean any areas that get soi led.
- Remove fresh marks made by ballpo int
pens, ink, lipstick, shoe pol ish, etc. as
soon as poss ible .
- P rese rve the color of the leather as need
ed by using a specia l co lore d lea the r ca re
creme to touch up areas of uneven color .
Cleaning and caring for leather
upholstery and trim
Applies to vehicles : wit h natural leather
Natural leather requires special care and at
tention .
Normal cl eaning
.,. Clean soiled areas with a slightly moistened
cotton o r woo len cloth .
More stubborn dirt
.,. More stubbor n di rt ca n be removed us ing a
cloth satu rated with a mild soap solut ion (2
t ablespoons mild liq uid soap).
.,. Never allow t he soap sol ution to saturate
t he leather, and make ce rtain that no water
soaks into the seams .
.,. Wipe
off the soap so lution with a soft, dry
cloth. ..,_ •
•
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. •
•