2011 AUDI S8 light

A WARNING ,~
- Always read and heed all WAR NINGS and
other information
c:> pag e 206.
- The w indshield must not be treated with
water -repe llent materials. They can in­
creas e glare under poor visibility condi­
t ions such as wetness, darkness, or when
the sun is low on the horizon. In addi­
ti on, they can cause the windshield wip­
ers to cha tter.
(D Note
- Never use warm or hot water to remove
snow and ice from windows and m irrors.
This cou ld cause the g lass to c rack.
- To prevent damage to the wires of the
r ear defogger, do not place a ny ad hesive
stickers on the inside of the rear wi ndow
ove r the wires .
- To he lp prevent di rt from sc ratching the
window, always scr ape in a forw ard d i­
rection - p ush ing the scraper away from
you - never back and fo rth.
Weatherstrips
Complete car care includes the weatherstrips
as well .
.,. Apply a suitab le rubber condi tioner to the
weathe rstrips from time to time.
To be able seal p roperly, the weatherstr ips
a round the hood, doors, rear lid, e tc. m ust re­
main pliable . Spray the weatherstrips w ith sil­
i cone or coat them with talcum powder or
g lycerine to retain the flexibility of the rubber
and to protect them against freezing in the
winter .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and other information
c:> page 206.
Keep s ilicone sprays off the windsh ield to
avoid wiper smear in ra in.
Cleaning and protec tion
Cast (light) alloy wheels
Cast (light) alloy wheels require special care.
.,. Wash the wheels with a sponge or hose
brush every other week.
.,. For deep clean ing afterwards, use o nly a
ded icated acid-fr ee cast alloy wheel cleaner .
.,. Rub a coat of liquid wax onto the rims every
three month. Be sure to reach and treat all
pa rts of the rim.
To preserve the decorative appearance of the cast alloy wheels, som e special care is neces­
sa ry. In addi tion to road d irt and salt, brake
dust is a lso co rrosive . If left on fo r too long,
brake d ust can cause pitt ing.
Use only spec ia l
acid-free cleaners formulated
fo r alloy r ims. Safe produc ts are ava ilab le at
yo ur Audi dealer. Never leave the cleane r on
the rims longer than specified on the label. If
not rinsed off prompt ly, the acid con tained in
some cleaners can attack the threads on the
whee l bolts .
Never use abrasive o r metal po lis hi ng clean­
ing agents .
If the protective coating has been
c h ipped, e.g . by kicked up road dirt, to uch it
u p as soon as possible .
A WARNING
--Moisture and ice o n brakes may affect
brak ing eff ic iency
c:> page 192, General
information.
Test the brakes ca refully
each time you wash the vehicle.
- Always read and heed a ll WARNINGS and
other info rmation
¢ page 206.
Body cavity sealing
The body cavity sealing does not need to be
checked.
A ll body cavities which could be affected by
corros ion have been thorough ly protected at
the factory.
T his sealing does not require any inspection or
additional treatment. If any wax should seep
o ut of the cavity when the ambient
Iii>-
21 1
•
•

212 Cleaning and protection
tem pera ture is high, it can be removed with a
p lastic scraper and a suitable solvent.
A WARNING
So lvents can be dangerous.
- Benzine is flammable and toxic. If you
use benzine for removing the wax, keep
sparks, f lame and lighted cigarettes
away. Never dump benzine on the
ground, into ope n streams or down sew­
age drains .
- Be sure to observe all safety and env iron­
menta l regulations. Follow all instruc­
t ions on the container.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
ot her information ¢
page 206.
Chassis
Have the undercoating checked for damage
from time to time.
The lower body shell of your Audi is a lso thor­
ough ly protected against corrosion.
Any damage to the under coating caused by
road hazards shou ld be repaired promptly.
A WARNING
Too much undercoating in the wrong pla­
ces can cause a f ire.
- Do not apply additional undercoating or
rustproofing on o r near the exha ust
man ifold, exhaust p ipes, catalytic con­
verter or heat shie lds. W hile driving, the
substance used for undercoating cou ld
over heat and cause a fire .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
ot her information ¢
page 206.
Exhaust tail pipes
Road salt and other cor ros ive ma ter ials wi ll
damage th e material in the exha ust ta il p ipes
if they are no t cleaned reg ula rly. Do no t clean
the tail p ipes with whee l cleaner, p aint po lish ,
ch rome polish or ot her abrasive cleaners .
C lean the tail p ipes with car care prod ucts
that are s uita ble for stain less stee l. Your a
uthorized Audi dea ler can provide clean ­
ing products that have been tested and ap­
proved for yo ur vehicle.
Care of interior
Infotainment components
T he M MI/RS E* display may be cleaned wit h a
soft clot h and commerci ally-available " LCD
cl eaner". The clot h should be co ated lightly
whe n the cleaning solution when clea ning t he
display.
T he M MI/RS E* con trols m ust be cleaned first
with a b rush so tha t d irt does not en ter the
u nit or enter between the buttons and the
ho using. T hen wiping the cont ro ls with a cloth
dampened with dish detergent and water is
recommended.
(D Note
To prevent scratches, only clean the dis­
p lay when it is dry.
- To prevent damage, make sure fluids do
not enter the contro ls .
· Aluminum trim
U se only neutral -pH products to remove spots
and deposits from a luminum surfaces.
Chrome care products and a lkaline cleaners
will attack a luminum surfaces and can dam­
age t hem over t ime.
A WARNING
A lways rea d and heed all WAR NIN GS an d
o ther in fo rmation
¢page 206 .
Fabrics and fabric coverings
Fabr ics and fab ric cover ings (e.g . seats, door
trim pa ne ls, etc.) sho uld be cleaned at regular
intervals wit h a vacuum cleaner . This removes
s ur face dirt particles which cou ld become em­
bedded in the fabric throug h use. Steam
cleaners should not be used, because the
steam tends to push the dir t deeper into the
fabric a nd lock it the re . ..,_

214 Cleaning and protection
leathe r, whi ch has a smooth surface and
comes in various co lors .
The intensity of the color determines the v is u ­
a l charac ter istics and appearance. If the sur­
face of the leather has a typical natu ral look,
then the leather is a nappa leather that has been left in a relatively natural cond ition. This
leather offers particularly good comfort and
breathes well. F ine veins, closed grains, insect
b ites, skin folds , and subtle var iations in co lor
remain visible . These c haracteristics demon­
strate that the mater ia l is natural.
Natural nappa leather is not covered by a col­
or fi nish . It is therefore more sensitive to soil ­
i ng and wear, w hich is something you need to
consider if ch ild ren , an ima ls or othe r factors
might prove to be particular ly hard on the
l eathe r.
By contrast, leat her types that are covered by
a co lored finish layer a re mor e durable . This
has a posit ive effect o n the leather's resist­
a nce to wear and soil ing in daily use. On the
o ther hand , the typical characteris tics of na tu­
ra l leather a re barely or not apparent. Howev ­
e r, this does not mean that the leather itself
is of infer ior quality.
Care and handling
Because of the exclusive na ture of the types of
l eather that Audi uses and the ir unique prop­
erties (such as sensitivity to oils, grease, soi l­
ing, etc.), you will need to be somewhat care­
fu l w ith these leathers, and a ce rtain type of
care is required. For examp le, dark clot hing
materials can d iscolor leather sea ts (especial­
ly if such clot hing is damp and was not dyed
correctly) . Dust and d irt part icles in po res,
folds , and seams can have a n ab ras ive effect
and can damage the leathe r sur face as well as
weaken seams.
The leather should be cleaned regula rly as
needed. After havi ng been used for a re lative ly
l ong time, yo ur leather sea ts will acqui re a
ri ch aged finish. This is a charac ter istic of n at­
u ra l lea ther and a sign o f true quality . In order to maintain the val
ue of this nat ural
product over the life of your vehicle, you
sho uld follow the recommendat ions be low :
(D Note
- To keep your leather from b leaching o ut,
do not allow it to be exposed to b right
sunlight for long periods of time . If you
have to leave the ve hicle parked outside
for long per iods, cover the leather to
protect it from direct exposure to sun ­
light .
- Sharp objects on cloth ing, such as zip­
pers, rivets or sharp pieces on belts can
leave permane nt sc ratches or sc rape
ma rks on the su rface of the leather.
(0 Tips
- After each time you clean the leather and
at regular intervals, use a leathe r preser­
vative c reme that contains UV-b locke rs
and tha t works into the leat he r. Thi s
c reme will nour ish a nd moistu rize the
leather, helping it to breathe and stay
supple. It a lso helps to build up a p rotec­
tive coating on the surface.
- Clean the leat her every 2 -3 months,
and clean any a reas that get soi led .
- Remove fresh ma rks made by ballpo int
pe ns, ink, lipstick, shoe polish, etc. as
soon as poss ible.
- P reserve the color o f the leather as need ­
ed by using a specia l co lore d leathe r care
creme to touch up areas of uneven color .
Cleaning and caring for leather
upholstery and trim
Applies to vehicles: with natural leather
Natural lea ther requires special care and at­
tention .
Normal cleaning
.. Clean soiled areas with a slightly moistened
cotton or woolen cloth . .,.

More stubborn dirt
"' More stubborn dirt can be removed using a
cloth saturated with a mi ld soap so lution (2
tablespoons mi ld liquid soap).
"'N ever allow the soap so lution to saturate
the leather, and make certa in that no water
soaks into the seams .
"' Wipe
off the soap solution with a soft, dry
cloth .
Cleaning spots
"' Remove fresh water-based spots (such as
coffee, tea, juices, blood) w ith an absorbent
cloth or paper towel.
"' Remove fresh
grease or oil -based spots
(such as butter, mayonnaise, chocolate) with
an absorbent cloth or paper towel, or use
t h e cleane r from the leathe r care kit if the
spot has not yet penetrated into the surface
of the leather.
"'U se an oil/grease dissolving spray, if
oil/
grease spots have d ried on.
"' Remove spec ific kinds of spots (ballpoint
pen, felt marker, fingernail polish , water­
based paint, shoe polish, etc.) with a spot
remover specifically formulated for leather .
Leather care
"'Every half year use an approved leather care
product (available from your Audi dealer) to
care for the leather.
"' Apply the product very sparingly.
"' Wipe it
off with a damp cloth .
If you have any questions abo ut cleaning and
caring for the leather in your vehicle, it is best
to contact your author ized Audi dealer, who
will be glad to help you and tell you about our
fu ll range of leather care products, suc h as:
- Leather cleaning and care k it
- Creams to care for colored leather
- Spot removers for ballpoint pens, shoe pol-
ish, etc.
- Oil/grease dissolving spray
- New and upcoming prod ucts.
Cleaning and protection 215
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other information
¢ page 206.
(D Note
-Never use chemica l so lvents (e.g. lighter
fluid, turpentine), waxes, shoe polish or
similar products on the leather surfaces
in your Audi.
- To avoid damage, have stubborn sta ins
removed by a commercial clean ing spe­
cialist.
Cleaning Alcantara ® (synthetic suede)
App lies to veh icles: w it h Alca nta ra upho lstery
Removing dust and dirt
"' Moisten a cloth, squeeze out excess water
and wipe down the seat surfaces.
Removing stains
"' Moisten a cloth with lukewarm water or
w ith diluted
ethyl (rubbing) alcohol.
"' Dab at the stain . Start at the outside and
work inwards .
"' Once the stain is no longer visible, use a soft
d ry cloth or tissue to soak up the moisture .
Do not use leather cleaning products on A l­
cantara .
You may use a suitable shampoo for remov ing
dust and dirt.
Dust and grit in the pores and seams can
scratch and damage the surface.
If the car is
left stand ing in the sun for long per iods, the
Alcantara covers should be protected aga inst
direct sunlight to prevent it from fad ing .
Slight color variations will develop in normal
use and are not an indication of mate rial dete­
rioration .
(D Note
-Never use chemical so lvents (e .g. lighter
fluid, turpentine), waxes, shoe polish or
similar products on Alcantara ® surfaces. .,.. •
•

216 Cleaning and protecti on
- To avoid damage, have stubborn stains
removed by a commercial cleaning spe­
cialist.
- Do not use br ushes, stiff sponges or sim­
ilarly abrasive cleaning aids.
Safety belts
Only well-maintained safety belts work relia ­
bly when needed .
> Keep belts clean.
> For cleaning, use a mild soap and wate r sol­
ution . Let be lts dry thoroughly and away
from direct sunlight .
> Do not allow inertia reel safety be lts to re­
tract before they are completely dry.
> Check the condition of your safety belts reg­
ularly .
Heavily soiled safety belts may not retract
properly.
.&_ WARNING
Damaged safety belts can break in a crash.
- Anything that might damage your safety
belts could mean that you and your pas­
sengers would not be adequately pro­
tected in an acc ident.
- Safety belt performance depends on cor­
rect installation. Never remove belts
from the vehicle to clean them.
- Do not use chemical cleani ng agents,
bleach or dyes. They have corrosive prop­
ert ies which weaken the webbi ng.
- When cleani ng your safety belts, inspect
them for damage.
If you discove r dam­
age, see you r A udi dealer.
- Always read and heed all WARNI NGS and
other information
c:> page 206.
Cooler
A ppl ies to vehicles: with cooler
A layer of ice or frost in the cooler interferes
with its cooling performance .
Clean ing
The refr igerator sho uld be cleaned reg ularly.
> Wash the coo ler with lukewarm wate r and a
mild cleaning solution, if necessary.
> Then wipe the cooler dry.
> Dust and d irt will accumulate near the venti­
lation openings in the luggage compart­
ment due to normal cooler usage. This
should be cleaned regularly.
D ef rosting
> Switch the coo ler off c:> page 72.
> Remove any food or beverages and allow the
coo ler to defrost with the door open.
> W ipe the inside of the cooler dry and clea n
the cooler, if necessary .
Defrost the cooler if you will not be us ing it
for extended periods of time .
(D Note
- Do not try to speed up the defrosting
process by apply ing heat.
- To reduce the risk of persona l injury or
damage to the refr igerator,
- do not use any abrasive cleaners, sol­
vents, wax, agg ress ive clean ing solu ­
tions, solut io ns w it h strong frag rances,
etc.,
- d o no t clean the co oler w ith cleaning
tools su ch as s teel woo l.
Engine compartment
Be especially careful when cleaning the en ­
gine comportment.
Alway s switch off the ignit ion b efor e cle an­
ing the engine
c:> ,&. .
Plenum panel
Remove leaves from the plenum panel in front
of the w indshield under the eng ine compart ­
ment . This prevents the wate r drain holes
from becom ing b locked, and it preve nts de­
br is from entering the vehicle inte rior through
the heat ing and ven tilat ion duc ts.
Corrosion protection
The eng ine compartment and transmission
have been corrosion-protected at the factory .
ll-

218 Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank
Fuel supply and filling
your fuel tank
Gasoline
Fuel supply
Using the righ t fuel helps keep the environ­
ment clean and preven ts engine damage .
Fuel recommendation
The fuel recomme nded for you r vehicle is un­
lead ed premium
g rade gasoline . See also
¢ pag e 282, Data . Audi recommends usi ng
T OP TIER D eterge nt Gaso line wi th a mini mum
octane r atin g of 9 1 AK I (95 RON). For more
info rmation on TO P TI ER De tergent Gaso line,
p lease go to t he officia l webs ite (www.toptier ­
gas.com).
T he re commended g asoline oct ane r ating for
your engine can a lso be fo und on a la bel locat­
e d on the ins ide of the fue l filler flap . This rat ­
ing may be specif ied as A KI or RON.
Your veh icle m ay also be oper ated using un­
l eaded regular gas oline with a min imum o c­
tane rating of 87 AKI/91 R ON. However, using
87 AKI/91 RON octa ne f ue l w ill slightly re ­
d uce eng ine perfo rmance.
Use unleaded gasoline only. Unleaded g aso­
line is available th rougho ut the USA, Ca nada ,
and in most E uropean countries . We recom­
mend that you do not ta ke yo ur vehicle t o
areas or countries where unleaded gasoline
may not be avai lable.
F or mo re informat io n on refue ling your ve hi­
cle, see
¢ page 219.
Octane rating
Octa ne r ating in dicates a g aso line's abili ty to
res ist engine damaging "knock" ca used by
p remature ign ition and detonation. Therefore,
buy ing the correct grade of gaso line is very
important to help prevent possible engine
damage and a loss of engine performance.
Gasoline most commonly used in the Unite d
States an d Canada has the following octane r
at ings t hat can usu a lly be found on the fi ller
pump:
- Pre mium Gra de: 91 -96 A KI
- Regular Grade : 87 -90 AKI
Explanation of the abbreviations:
AKI = Anti K nock Index= (R+M) /2 = (RO N
+ MON)/2
R ON= Resea rch Octane Numb er
MON = Motor Octane Number .
(D Note
-Do not use a ny f ue l w it h octane rat ings
lower tha n 87 A KI or 91 RO N othe rwise
expensive engine damage w ill occur.
- Do
not use leaded gasoline. The use of
leaded gasoline w ill severely damage
yo ur v ehicl e's catalytic co nve rter a nd its
ability to co ntrol exha ust em ission s.
Blended gasoline
U se of gasoline containing alcohol or
MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether)
You may use unleaded g asoline blende d with
alcohol o r MTBE (commonly referred to as
oxygenates) if the blende d mixture meets t he
f o llow ing criteria :
Blend of gasoline methanol (wood alcohol or
methyl alcohol)
-Anti -kno ck index mus t be 87 A KI or higher.
- Blend must contain no mor e than 3% me th-
anol.
- Blend must contain more than 2% co-sol-
ve nts .
Blend of gasoline and ethanol (grain alcohol
or ethyl alcohol)
- Anti -knoc k index must be 87 AKI or higher .
- Blend must not conta in mo re than 10%
ethanol.
Blend of ga soline and MTBE
- Anti-knoc k index must be 87 AKI or high er. ll-

222 Checking and filling
Checking and filling Engine hood
Releasing the engine hood
The engine hood is released from inside the
vehicle .
Fig. 175 Driver foo twell: release lever
AUD I
Fig. 176 Rocker switch un der the hood
Make sure the wiper arms are not raised up
from the windshield. Otherwise the paint
could be damaged.
.,. Pull the lever under the instrument panel in
the direction of the arrow
¢ fig. 175.
.,. Raise the hood slightly¢,&. .
... Press the rocker switch under the hood up­
ward ~
fig. 176. This releases the catch.
... Open the hood.
&_ WARNING
Hot engine coolant can burn you.
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine compartment . Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood .
' Working in the engine compartment
Be especially careful whenever you work in
the engine compartment.
Whenever you must perform any work in the
engine compartment, for example checking
and filling different fluids, there is a risk of injury, burns and accidents. To prevent per­
sonal injury always observe the following
WARNINGS. The engine compartment of any
vehicle is a hazardous area
¢ ,&. .
/n.. WARNING
To help avoid injury, before you check any­
thing under the hood:
- Turn off the engine.
- Switch off the ignition .
- Apply the parking brake.
- Move selector lever to "P" (Park) .
- Always let the engine cool down. Hot
components will burn skin on contact.
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine
compartment. Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood.
- Keep children away from the engine com­
partment.
- Never spill fluids on hot engine compo­
nents . They can cause a fire .
- Never touch the radiator fan. The auxili­
ary electric fan is temperature controlled
and can switch on suddenly .
- Never open the coolant reservoir cap
when the engine is still warm . The cool­
ant system is pressurized and hot cool­
ant could spray out.
- Protect your face, hands and arm from
steam or hot engine coolant by placing a
thick rag over the cap when you open the
coolant reservoir.
- If work on the fuel system or the electri­
cal system is necessary:
- Always disconnect the battery.

224 Checking and filling
Engine compartment
Engine compartment overview
These are the most important items that you can check.
Fig . 177 Typ ical layout for conta iners a nd eng ine o il filler cap
(D W indshield/head light washer
t . (?::..) con
amer ~ .... ... . ... .. . 236
@ Jump start point(-) with hex
h ead screw, ................
235, 273
@ Jump start point(+) unde r a cov-
e r, . ...... .... ......... .. .
23 5, 273
© Eng ine oi l filler cap ('t::r.) . . . . . 227
® B rak e fluid reservo ir ((0)) . . . . . 232
® Coolant expansion tank (J-) . . . 229
0 Power steering reservoir . . . . . . 194
The engine oil filler neck (item@) may be lo­
cated in a d ifferent area depending on the ver­
sion of the engine .
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WAR NINGS¢
A in Working in the engine
compartment on page 222.
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine oil used in your Audi needs the
right kind of oil.
T he eng ine in your Audi is a sophisticated
powerplant that was built to exacting specifi ­
cations . Th is engine needs the right k ind of
engine oil that meets specifications regarding
quality and v iscosity so that it can run
smoothly and reliab ly . Choosing th e right o il
and changi ng oil within the t ime and mileage
in tervals prin ted in you r vehicle's Warr anty
&
Maintenan ce booklet matte rs a lot more to­
day tha n it did years ago . Audi has develope d
a spec ia l quality standard for engine oil that
will help assure that you r vehicle's engine w ill
get the lubr ication it needs for proper opera-
t ion. ..,.