
220 Fuel su ppl y and filli ng your fu el t ank
transport fue l to use for your lawn mower,
snow blower, etc., be very careful and al
ways observe local and state laws regard
ing the use, transportat ion and storage of
such fuel containers . Make certain the con
tainer meets industry standards (ANSI/
AS TM F852 - 86) .
(D Note
Never drive your vehicle until the fuel tank
is completely empty. The irregular supply
of fuel can cause misfiring . Gasoline could
enter the exhaust system and damage t he
catalyt ic converter.
Refuelling
Fig. 172 Rig ht rea r vehicle s ide: Ope ning t he fuel fille r
f lap
Fig . 173 Fuel filler fla p with attached fuel c ap
When activating the central locking, the fuel
fi ller flap is automatically un locked or locked.
Refue l the vehicle with the ignition switched
off.
Taking the fu el cap off
• Press the left side of the fuel filler flap to
open it
q fig . 172 -arrow-.
• Unsc rew fuel filler cap counter-clockwise
and hang it on the fuel fill er flap
¢ fig. 173 . Refuell
ing proc edur e
• Insert the fuel nozzle from the gasoline
pump into the fuel fi ller neck as far as it wi ll
go .
• Sele ct a med ium r efuelling rate so that the
no zz le switches off automatically when the
tank is full .
Putting th e fu el cap ba ck on
• After filling your tank, twist the fuel filter
cap clockwise as far as it w ill go.
• Close the fue l fill er flap.
T o avoid fuel spilling or evaporating from the
fuel tank always close fuel filter cap properly and completely. An improperly closed fuel fi ll
er cap may also cause the MIL lamp
cc> page 2 7
to come on.
A WARNING
Improper refue ling or handling of fuel can
cause fire, explosion and severe burns.
- Fuel is highly flammable and can cause
severe burns and other injur ies .
- Fai lure to shut the engine off while refu
eling and/or to insert the pump nozzle
fully into the fuel filter neck could cause
fuel to spray out of filler neck or to over
flow. Fue l spray and overflowing fuel can
cause a fire .
- Never use a ce llular telephone whil e re
fue ling . T he electromagnet ic rad iat io n
can cause sparks that can igni te fuel va
pors and cause a fire.
- Never get back into your vehicle whi le re
fuel ing.
If in exceptional circumstan ces
you must get back in your vehicle while
ref ueling, make certain that you close
the door and touch metal to discharge
static electricity before touching the fill
er nozzle again . Static electricity can
cause sparks that can ignite fuel vapors
released during refueling .
- Never smoke or have an open f lame any
where in or near your veh icle when refu
eling or filling a portable fue l conta iner .
- For your safety, we strongly recommend
that you do not travel with a portable

fuel container in your vehicle. The con
tainer, full or empty may leak and co uld
cause a fire, especially in a crash.
- If, under exceptional circumstances, yo u
must transport a portable fuel container,
please observe the following:
- Never fi ll a po rtable fue l container
while it is anywhe re in or on the vehicle
(for examp le, in the luggage compar t
ment, or on the tr unk). Static electric i
ty can bui ld up while fi lling and can ig
n ite fue l vapors causing a fire .
- Always p lace a portable fuel container
on the gro und before filling.
- Always keep the fi ller nozzle comp lete
ly inside the po rtable conta iner before
and during filling.
- If filling a portable container made of
metal, the filler nozz le must always be
in contact with the container. Th is w ill
he lp prevent static electricity from dis
charging and cause a fire .
- Never sp ill fuel inside the vehicle or
luggage compartment. Fue l vapors are
h ighly f lammable .
- Always observe local and state/provi n
cial laws regarding the use, storage
a nd tra nsporta tion of fuel co ntainers .
- Make certai n the fuel container meets
ind ustry standards (ANSI/ ASTM
F852 -86) .
(D Note
If any f uel has spilled onto t he car, it
should be removed immediate ly to prevent
damage to the paint.
~ For the sake of the environment
As soon as the correctly operated nozzle sw itches off automatically fo r the fi rst
time, the tank is full . Do not try to add
more fue l because fue l may spill out . In
add it io n, th e expans ion space in the fuel
t ank will be fi lled -cau sing the fue l to
overfl ow whe n it be come s w arm and pol
lu te the env iro nment.
Fuel suppl y and filling your fuel t ank 221
@ Tips
- Running your eng ine whi le refue lli ng
may cause vapors to escape or even
cause fuel to sp ill out of the tank. T his
would t hen shut off the fuel nozzle be
f o re the ta nk is f ull.
- Do not refuel your vehicle with the ign i
tion switched on. The fuel gauge may
ot herwise not ind icate the correct fue l
lev el after ref uell ing .
- The fue l filler flap of yo ur vehicle is not
locked when you lock t he veh icle from
t he ins id e.
Fuel filler flap emergency release
You can open the fuel filler flap by hand if the
power locking system should fail .
Fig. 1 74 R ig ht s ide tr im panel in t he luggage compart
m en t: emerge ncy re lease mechan is m
The emergency release mechanism is located
behind the right side trim panel in the lug
gage compar tment .
.,. Loosen the loop
¢ fig. 174 from t he reta iner
and then pull on the loop carefully
¢ (D.
.,. Press on the left side of the fue l filler door
to open
¢ page 220, fig . 172 .
(J) Note
Only p ull on the loop until yo u feel res ist
a nce . You w ill not hea r it release. Other
wis e yo u could damage the eme rg ency re
l ease mec hani sm .

-Never smoke or work near heate rs or
open flames. Fluids in the engine com
partment could start a fire.
- Keep an approved fire extinguisher im
mediately ava ilable.
- To avoid elect rical shock and persona l in
jury while the engine is running or be ing
started, never touch:
- I gnition cables
- Othe r components of the high voltage
e lectronic ignition system.
- If you must pe rform a check or repair
with the engine running:
- F irst, fully apply the pa rking brake,
move selector lever to "P" (Park) .
- Always use extreme caution to prevent
clothing, jewelry, or long hai r from get
ting caught in the radiator fan, V-belts
or other moving parts, or from contact ing hot parts. T ie back hair before
starting, and do not wear cloth ing that
will ha ng or droop into the eng ine.
- Min imize exposure to emission and
c h emical hazards
c:> &,.
A WARNING
California Propos ition 65 Warning:
- Engine exhaust, some of its constituents,
and certai n veh icle components co nta in
or em it chemicals known to the State of
Californ ia to cause cancer a nd b irth d e
fects a nd rep roduct ive ha rm. In addi tion,
c e rta in fluids cont ained in vehicle s and
c ertain p rod ucts of component wear con
tain or emit chemicals known to the
State of Ca lifo rnia to cause cancer and
birth defects or other reproductive harm.
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac
cessories contain lead and lead com-
Checkin g and fillin g 223
poun ds, c hemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc
tive harms. Wash hands after handling.
([) Note
When adding fluids, always make su re that
they are poured into the p roper conta iner
or fi ller opening, otherwise serious dam
age to vehicle systems w ill occur .
@ For the sake of the environment
To detect lea ks in time, inspect the vehicle
floor pan from underneath regular ly. If
you see spots from oil or other veh icle flu
i ds, have you r vehicle inspected by an au
thorized Audi dea ler.
Closing the engine hood
.. Pull the hood down until the pressure from
t he st ruts is reduced.
.. Let the hood
drop down a nd l atc h in pla ce.
Do not try to push it shut; it may fail to en
gage ~ A_.
A WARNING
-
A hood that is not completely latched
could fly up and block your view while dr iv
i ng.
- When you close the engine hood, chec k it
to make sure t he safety catch has prope r
ly engaged. The hood shou ld be flush
with the surround ing vehicle body parts .
- If you notice while driv ing that the hood
is not secured prope rly, stop at once and
close it. •
•

230 Check ing and filling
th e "min" and "max" markings. When the
engine is wa rm, the level may be slightly
above the "max" marking.
The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment ill us
tration ¢
page 224 .
To obtain an accurate read ing , the engine
must be switched
off .
The expans io n tank in you r vehicle is equipped
with an e lectric coolant level se nsor.
When the coolant level is too low, the warning light in the A uto-Check System ¢
page 15 will
i llum inate u nti l you add coolant and the level
has been restored to normal. Even though
there is an electric coolant level sensor , we
still recommend you check the coolant leve l
from time to time.
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling
system. In the event of coolan t loss, the cool
ing system should be inspected immedia tely
by your authorized Audi dealer. It is not
enough mere ly to add coolant.
I n a
se aled system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheat ing.
A WARNING
T he cooling system is unde r pressure and
can get ve ry hot . Reduce the risk of sca ld
ing from hot coolant by following these
steps.
- Turn off the engine and allow it to cool
down.
- Protect yo ur face, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by cove ring the
cap with a large, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefu lly in
a counter-clockwise direction wh ile ap
plying light, downward pressure on the
top of the cap .
- To avoid being b urned, do not spill ant i
freeze or coolant on the exhaust system or hot eng ine parts . Under ce rtai n condi -
'
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine coo l
ant can catch fire.
@ Note
Do not add any type o f radiato r leak sea l
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant. Add
i ng radiator repa ir fluid may adverse ly af
fect the funct ion and performance of your
cooling system and could result in damage not covered by your New Veh icle L imited
Warranty .
Adding coolant
Be very careful when adding engine coolant.
Before you check anyth ing in the engine com
partment,
always read and heed all WARN
INGS
c> .&. in Working in the engine compart
ment on page
222 .
• Turnoff the engine .
• Let the eng ine cool down.
• Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank
c> page 22 9, fig . 180 and carefully
tw ist t he cap co unter-clockwise c> ,& .
• Add coo lant .
• Twist the cap o n again
tightly.
Replacement engine coo lant must conform to
exact spec ificat ions ¢
page 229, Coolant .
Even in a n emerge ncy, if coo la nt addi-
t ive G 12++ , G12+ or G12 is not ava ilable , do
not use a d iffe ren t addit ive. Use plain water
instead unt il you can get the cor rect add itive
and can restore the correct ratio . This sho uld
be don e as soon as possible.
If you have los t a consider able amount o f
coolant, then you sho uld add cold ant ifreeze
and cold wate r on ly when the engine is cold.
Always use
new engine coo lant when refilling.
Do not f ill coolant above the "MAX" mark. Ex
cess coola nt w ill be fo rced o ut through the
pressure relief valve in t he cap when the e n-
gine becomes ho t.
Ill>

A WARNING
-=
-The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot . Reduce the risk of
scald ing from hot coolant by following
these steps .
- Turn
off the engine and a llow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by covering
the cap with a large, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in a counter-clockwise direction while
applying light, downward pressure on
the top of the cap.
- To avoid being burned, do not spi ll an
tifreeze or coolant on the exhaust sys
tem or hot engine parts. Under certa in
conditions, the ethylene glycol in en
g ine coolant can catch fire.
- Antifreeze is poisonous. Always store an
t ifreeze in its original container and well
out of the reach of children.
- If you drain the coolant, it must be
caught and safely stored in a proper con
tainer clearly marked "poison".
(D Note
- Coolant pollutes the env ironment and
could cause an engine fire. Excess cool
ant w ill be forced out through the pres
sure relief valve in the cap when the en
gine becomes hot.
- If, in an emergency, only water can be
added, the correct ratio between water
and antifreeze
Q page 229 must be re
stored as soon as possible.
@ For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant should not be reused. Al
ways dispose of used coolant while obse rv
ing all environmental regulations.
Checkin g and fillin g
Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by
itself .
The rad iator fan is dr iven by the engine via the
V-belt. The viscous clutch regulates the speed
of the fan according to the temperature of the
coolant .
An auxiliary electric radiator fan* switches on
and
off depending on coolant temperature
and other vehicle operat ing cond it ions .
After you switch the engine
off, the aux iliary
fan can continue running for up to 10 minutes - even with the ignition
off. It can even switch
on again later by itself
Q &., if
- the temperature of the engine coo lant rises
due to the heat build-up from the engine in
the engine compartment, or
- the engine compartment heats up because the vehicle is parked in intense sunlight.
A WARNING
- To reduce the risk of personal in jury nev
er touch the radiator fan .
- The auxiliary electric fan is temperature
controlled and can switch on suddenly
even when the engine is not running.
- The auxiliary radiator fan sw itches on au
tomatically when the engine coolant reaches a certa in temperature and w ill
continue to ru n until the coolant temper
ature drops.
231
•
•

232 Checking and filling
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
The brake fluid level can be checked with a
quick glance .
Fig. 181 Engine compartme nt: markings on the brake
flu id reservoir
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 222.
.. Read the brake fluid level from the brake
fluid reservoir ¢
fig. 181. The brake fluid
level must be between the "MIN" and
" MAX " markings .
The location of the brake fluid reservoir can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
c:::,page224 .
The fluid level may drop slightly after some
time due to the automatic adjustment of the
brake pads . T hi s is not cause for alarm.
If the brake fluid level falls
considerably be
low the "MIN" mark, the brake warning/indi
cator light. (U.S. models)/ . (Canadian
models) will come on ¢
page 14. Do not con
tinue to operate the vehicle . The complete
brake system should be thoroughly checked
by an authorized Audi dealer or other quali
fied facility and the cause corrected.
If the
brake fluid level is too low, the brake warning/
indicator light will illuminate. Contact an au
thorized Audi dealer
immediately .
Changing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experi
enced technician .
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. If
t he water content in the brake fluid is too
high, corrosion in the brake system may result
after a period of time . The boiling point of the
brake fluid will also decrease considerably and
decrease braking performance.
Therefore, the brake fluid must be changed
every two years . Always use new brake fluid
which conforms to Federal Motor Vehicle
Standard "FMVSS 116 DOT 4".
The brake fluid reservoir can be difficult to reach, therefore, we recommend that you
have the brake fluid changed by your author
ized
Audi dealer. Your dealer has the correct
tools, the right brake fluid and the know-how
to do this for you .
A WARNING
-Brake fluid is poisonous. It must be stor
ed only in the closed original container
out of the reach of children!
- Brake failure can result from old or inap
propriate brake fluid. Observe these pre
cautions:
- Use only brake fluid that meets SAE
specification
J 1703 and conforms to
Federal Motor Vehicle Standard 116.
Always check with your authorized Audi
dealer to make sure you are using the
correct brake fluid. The correct type of brake fluid is also indicated on the
brake fluid reservoir.
- The brake fluid must be new. Heavy use
of the brakes can cause a vapor lock if
the brake fluid is left in the system too
long . This can seriously affect the effi
ciency of the brakes as well as your
safety. This could result in an accident.
(D Note
Brake fluid will damage the paint of your
vehicle.

@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the problem of proper disposa l
of brake fl uid as we ll as the special tools
requ ired and the necessary expert ise, we
recommend that you have t he brake fluid
changed by your author ized Audi dealer .
Battery
General information
Under normal operating conditions, the bat
tery in your Audi does not need any mainte
nance. With
high outside temperatures or
long daily dr ive s we recommend that you have
the electro lyte level checked by a service fa
cility . The electrolyte level shou ld a lso be
checked each time the battery is charged
¢ page 235.
Have the battery checked when you take your
ve hicle in for service . Yo u are well adv ised to
replace a battery that is older than 5 yea rs .
W ith certa in types of a irbag deployment, t he
b attery is d isconnected from the vehicle elec
tr ica l system for safety reasons¢.&.
in Re
pair, care and disposal of the airbags on
page 159.
Disconnecting the battery terminals
Some vehicle functions (power w indow regu
lators , for example) are lost if the battery ter
m inals a re d isconnected. These func tions have
to be re lea rned after the batte ry term inals a re
connected agai n. T o prevent this , the bat tery
should only be d isconnec ted from the vehicle
e lec tric al system when absolu tely necessa ry
for repairs .
Vehicles not driven for long periods
If you do not drive you r vehicle over a period
of severa l days or weeks, elec trical compo
nen ts are gr adually cut b ack o r swi tched off .
This redu ces energy cons umption and main
tains starting capab ility over a longer per io d
¢ page 195.
Be aw are tha t when you unlock yo ur vehicle ,
some of the conven ien ce f unct ions may no t
Checkin g and fillin g 233
opera te , such as the Conven ience key*, the re
mote control or the power seat adjustment .
T he convenience functions will be ava ilab le
again when you switch on the ign ition and
start the eng ine.
Winter operat ion
D uring the w inte r mon ths, bat tery capacity
tends to dec rease as temperatures drop . This
is beca use more power is a lso consumed wh ile
starting, and the headlights, rear window de
fogger, etc., are used more often.
Avoid unnecessary powe r consum ptio n, pa r
ticu lar ly in city traffic or when traveling only
short distances. Let your autho riz ed Audi
dealer check the capacity of the vehicle bat
te ry before w inter sets in¢
page 235 . A well
c h arged battery will not on ly prevent s tarti ng
problems w hen the weather is cold, but wi ll
also last longer.
(D Tips
If you r vehicle is left s tandi ng for seve ral
weeks at extremely low temperatures, the
vehicle ba ttery s hould be removed an d
s to red w here i t w ill not fr eeze . T his w ill
p revent it from be in g damaged and having
to be replaced.
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the bat tery.
T he battery is lo cated in the l uggage compa rt
ment unde r the floo r. B efo re you che ck a ny
thi ng in the luggage com partmen t,
read and
heed all WARNINGS
¢ .&, .
Alw ays heed t he safety warning s, when work
ing on the vehicle b atte ry or the vehicle e lec -
t rical system to prevent i njury. .,..
•
•

Remember that the vehicle manufacturer, not
the tire manufacturer, determines the correct
tire pressure for the t ires on your vehicle.
It is impor tan t to check the tire pressu re when
the t ires a re cold .
- Read the requ ired ti re p ressure from the tire
pressure label. On USA veh icles, the t ire
pressure label is located on the drive r's side
B-pi llar . On Canada vehicles, the tire pres
sure label is located on the driver's side B
pillar.
- Turn the valve stem cap counter-clockwise
to remove it from the tire valve.
- Place the air pressure ga uge on the valve.
- T he tire pressures sho uld only be chec ked
and adjusted when the t ires are cold. The
s li ght ly raised pressures of warm tires must
not be reduced .
- Adjust the tire pressure to the load you are
ca rrying .
- Re insta ll the va lve stem cap on the valve.
When should I ch eck the tire pressur e?
The cor rect tire pressure is espec ially impor
tant at high speeds. The pressure should
therefo re be checked at least once a month
a nd a lways before start ing a journey. Do no t
forget to check the tire pressure for the spare
wheel
r:!> page 261 .
When should I adjust the tire pressures ?
Adjust the tire p ressure to the load you are
carry ing. Afte r changing a wheel
or replacing
wheels you have to adjust the tire pressures
on all wheels . In addition, you must then
store the new tire pressures i n the tire pres
sure monitoring system *
r:!> page 256.
A WARNING
Incorrect tire pressures and/or underinfla
tion can lead sudden tire failure, loss of contro l, col lision, ser ious persona l injury
or even death.
- When the warning symbo l
[I] appears in
the instrument cluster, stop and inspect
the tires .
Tires an d wheel s 245
-Inco rrect tire pressure and/or underinfla
tion can cause increased tire wear and
can affect the handli ng of the vehicle and
stopping ability .
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin
flation can a lso lead to sudden t ire fail
ure, including a blowout and sudden de
flation, caus ing loss of veh icle cont rol.
- The drive r is responsib le for the correct
tire pressures for all tires on the ve hicle.
The appli cable pressure values a re locat
ed on a sticke r o n the dr iver's s ide B -pil
lar.
- Onl y when all tir es on the vehicle are fil
led to the co rrect p ressu re, the t ire pres
sure mon itor ing* syste m can work cor
rectly.
- Th e use of incorrect tire p ress ure v alues
can lead to a cciden ts or o ther d amage.
T herefore it is essential that the drive r
observe the specified tire press ure va lues
for the tires and the correct pressures for
the function of the t i re p ress ure monito r
ing system*.
- Always inflate t ires to the recommended
and correct t ire pressure before dr iv ing
off.
- Driving with underinf lated tires bend
more, lett ing them get too hot resulting
in tread separation, sudden tire failure
a nd loss of cont rol.
- Excessive speed and/overloading can
cause heat build- up, sudden tire failure
a nd loss of cont rol.
- If the tire pressure is too low or too high,
the t ires will wear prematurely and the
veh icle w ill not handle well.
- If the tire is not flat and you do not have to change a wheel immediately, d rive at
red uced speed to t he nearest servic e sta
tion to che ck the t ire p ress ure and add
air as req uired.
0 Note
Driving w ithout valve stem caps can cause
damage to the tire valves. To prevent this,
a lways make sure that factory insta lled
•
•