2011 AUDI TT ROADSTER warning

184 Checking and filling
- If your skin has come in contact with the
engine oil, you must subsequent ly
cleanse it thoroughly.
- The oil level must not be above range
G)
-danger of converter or engine damage!
Contact an a uthorized dea lership to draw
off o il, if necessary.
- Audi does not recommend the use of o il
addit ives. They may damage the engine
and adve rsely affect you r New Vehicle
War ranty .
@i For the sake of the environment
-Under no circumstances can the oil come
i n contact with the sewage network or
the soil.
- Observe and follow lega l regu lations
when disposing of empty oil containers.
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that have your oil changed by
an authorized Audi dealer or a qualified serv­
ice station .
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN·
INGS
¢ .&. in Working in the engine comport·
menton page 178 .
The engine oil must be changed according to
the intervals specified in your Warranty
&
Maintenance book let . T his is very important
because the l ubricating prope rties of oil di­
minish gradua lly dur ing no rmal veh icle use .
Under some circumstances the engine o il
should be changed more frequently . Change
oil more often if you drive most ly short dis­
tances , ope rate the vehicle in dusty areas or
u nder predominantly stop -and-go t raffi c con­
d itions, or have your veh icle w here tempe ra ­
tures rema in below free zin g fo r ex tended pe­
riods .
D ete rge nt add it ives in the o il w ill ma ke fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run­
n ing fo r a shor t time. This is no rm al and is not a
reason to change t he oil more often than
recommended.
B ecau se of the p rob lem of p roper dispos al,
along wi th the specia l tools and necessa ry ex ­
pert ise req uired, we st rongly recommend tha t
yo u have your oil changed by an a uthorized
Audi dealer or a qualified service station.
If you choo se to change your oil your self ,
please note the fo llowing important info rma ­
tion:
A WARNING
-To reduce the risk of pe rsonal in jury if you
must change the eng ine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protection.
- To reduce the risk of burns from hot en-
g ine oil, let the engine cool down to the
touch.
- When removing the o il dra in p lug with
your fingers, stay as far away as possib le.
Always keep your forearm parallel to the
ground to help prevent hot oil from run·
n ing down your arm.
- Dra in the oil into a container designed
for this purpose, one la rge enough to
hold a t least the tota l amount of oi l in
your e ng in e.
- Engine oil is poisonous . Keep it we ll out
of the reach of childre n.
- Continu ous contact wit h used eng ine o il
is harmful to yo ur s kin. Always protec t
your skin by washing oil off tho ro ughly
wit h soap an d wate r.
(D Note
Never mix oil additives with your engine
o il. These additives can damage your e n·
gin e and adversely affect your Audi Limit­
ed New Veh icle Warranty.
@ For the sake of the environment
-Befo re changi ng your oil, first make s ure
you know where you can prope rly dispose
of t he used oil.
- Always dispose of used eng ine oi l proper -
ly. Do not dump it on garden soil,
IJJ,-

wooded areas, into open streams or
down sewage drains.
- Recycle used engine oil by taking it to a
used engine oil collection facility in your
area, or contact a service station.
Engine cooling system
Coolant
T he engine coolan t performs two functions: it
keeps the engine from overheating and it pro ­
tects the engine from freezing in the winter .
The cooling system is sealed and generally re­
quires little attention .
T he cooling system has been filled at the fac­
tory with a permanent coolant which does not
need to be changed . The coolan t consis ts of a
mixture of water and the manufacturer 's gly ­
col-basedcoolant additive G12 ++ antifreeze
with anticorrosion additives (50% for USA
models; 60% for Canad ian models). This mix­
ture both assures the necessary frost protec­
tion and protects metal components in the
engine 's cooling system from corrosion and
scaling. It also raises th e boiling point of the
c oolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the coo l­
ant in the summer by adding plain water .
The
proportion of coolant additive must be at
least 50% but not more than 60%
to main­
tain antifree ze protection and cooling efficien­
cy . If the coolant frost protection is too low,
the coolant could freeze and damage the veh i­
cle heating and eng ine cooling system .
For year-round driving, an tifree ze is added at
the factory for temperatures down to:
- -31 ° F ( - 3 5 °C) USA
- -40 °F ( -40 °C) Canada.
You can mix the G12 ++ coolant addit ive with
other additives (G12+ or G12) . Always check
with your authorized Audi dealer.
& WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
-
Checkin g and fillin g 185
WARNINGS c:::> .& in Working in the engine
compartment on page 178.
(D Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli­
mate conditions. This is especially impor­
tant if you live in a region where the win­
ter is extreme ly cold . If necessary, in­
crease the proportion of coo lant add itive
to 60% .
- Whe n adding coolant additive to your
cooling system, remember :
- We recommend using only coo lant ad­
ditive G12++ (check the labe l) for your
vehicle . This coolant additive is avai la­
ble at authorized Audi dealers. Other
types of ant ifreeze can significantly re­
duce corrosion protection . The result­
ing corrosion can cause a loss of cool ­
ant and ser ious eng ine damage.
- Do not add any type of rad iator leak seal ­
ant to yo ur vehicle's engine coolant .
Add ing radiator repair fluid may adverse­
ly affect the function and performance of
your cooling system and could resu lt in
damage not covered by your New Vehicle
Limited Warranty .
Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with
a quick glance.
Fig. 141 E ng ine compart men t: coo lant ex pansion t ank Ill>

186 Checking and filling
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
alwa ys r ea d and heed all WARN­
INGS ¢ A in Working in the engine
comportment on page 178.
• Switch the ignition off .
• Read the coo lant level at the coolant expan­
s ion tank ¢
fig. 141 . With a co ld engine, it
must be above the "min" mark. W ith a hot
engine, it can be a little above the indicated
range.
The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus­
tration .
To obtain an accurate reading , the engine
must be switched
off.
The expansion tank in you r vehicle is equipped
with an e lectric coolant level sensor .
When the coolant level is too low, the warning light in the Auto- Check System ¢
page 31 will
blink until you add coo lant and the level has
been restored to no rma l. Even though there is
an electric coolant level sen sor, we still rec­
ommend 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 coolant loss, the cool­
ing system should be inspected immediately
by your authorized A udi dealer. It is not
enough merely to add coolant .
In a
sealed system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheating.
@ Note
Do not add any type of ra diator leak seal­
ant to yo ur vehicle's eng ine coolant. Add ­
ing radiator repair f luid may adversely af­
fect the function and performance of your
cooling system and could result in damage
not covered by your New Vehicle Limited
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 ¢ A in Working in the engine comport­
ment on page 178 .
•Turnoff the engine.
• Let the eng ine cool down.
• Place a thick rag ove r the coolant expansion
tank
¢ page 185, fig . 141 and carefully
tw ist the cap counter-clockwise ¢&_ .
• Add coolant.
• Twis t the cap o n aga in
tightly.
Replacement engine coolant must conform to
exact spec ificat ions
¢ page 185, Coolant.
E ven in a n emerge ncy, if coo lant addi -
t ive G1 2++, G12+ or G12 is not ava ilable , do
not use a d ifferen t addit ive. Use plain water
instead unti l you can get the cor rect additive
and can restore the correct ratio . This sho uld
be done as soon as possible .
If you have los t a considerab le amo unt o f
coolant , then you sho uld add cold ant ifreeze
and co ld wate r on ly w hen the engine is cold.
Always use
new engine coo la nt whe n refilling .
Do not fill coola nt above the "MAX" mark. Ex­
cess coo la nt wi ll be fo rced o ut through the
pressure relief valve in t he cap w hen the en­
gine becomes hot.
,&. WARNING ~ -
- T he cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of
scalding from hot coolant by followi ng
these steps.
- T urn
off the engine and allow it to coo l
down.
- Protect you r face, hands and a rms from
esca ping fluid and steam by covering
the cap w ith a large, t hick rag.
- T urn the cap slowly a nd ve ry carefully
in a counter-clo ckwise direction while
applying light, downward pres sure on
the top o f the cap.

-To avoid being burned, do not sp ill an­
tifreeze or coolant on the exhaust sys­ tem or hot engine parts. Under certa in
conditions, the ethylene glyco l in en­
g ine coolant can catc h fire.
- Antifreeze is poisonous. Always store an­
t ifreeze in its or iginal co ntaine r and well
o ut of the reach of children.
- If you drain the coolant, it must be
caught and safely stored in a proper con­
tainer clearly ma rked "poison".
(D Note
- Coolant pollutes the env ironment and
could cause a n engine fire. Excess cool­
ant wi ll be forced out through the pres­
su re re lief va lve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot.
- If, in an emergency, only water can be
added, the cor rect ratio be tw een wate r
and antifreeze
¢page 185 must be re­
store d as soon as possib le.
@ For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant s hould no t be reused. Al­
ways dispose of use d coolan t w hile obse rv ­
ing all envir onmental reg ulations.
Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by
i tself
The electric radiator fan is contro lled by ther­
moswitches that switch on and off depend ing
on coolant and eng ine compa rtment tempera­
tures.
An aux iliary electr ic radiator fa n* switches on
and off depen ding on coolant t emperature
and other ve hicl e operation conditions.
After you switch t he engine off, the a uxiliary
fan ca n cont inue runn ing fo r up to 10 minutes
- even with the ignition off .
It can even sw itch
on agai n later by i tself
c::> &., , if
- the temperature of the eng ine coolant rises
due to the heat bui ld-up from the eng ine in
t h e engine compartment, o r
Checking and fillin g 187
- the engine compartment heats up because
the vehicle is parke d in intense sunlight.
A WARNING
-To reduce the risk of persona l in ju ry nev­
er touch the radiator fan .
- The a uxiliary electric fan is tempe rat ure
contro lled and can switch on suddenly
even when the engine is not running.
- The a uxiliary radiator fan sw itches on a u­
tomatically when the engine coo lant
reaches a certa in temperature and w ill
continu e to run until the coo lant temper­
ature drops.
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
T he brake fluid level can be checked wi th a
qui ck gl ance.
Fi g. 142 Engin e compart ment : brake flu id reservoir
Before you check anyth ing in the eng ine com­
partment,
alw ays read and heed all WARN­
INGS c::> A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 178 .
.,. Read the brake fluid level from the brake
fluid reservoir
c::> fig. 142. The brake fluid
level must be between the "MIN" and
"MAX" markings.
The brake fluid reservoir is located behind the
rear partition of the engine compartment on
the left side
c::> page 180.
The fluid level may drop slightly after some
time due to the automatic adjustment of the
brake pads. This is not cause for alarm.
IJ1'-

188 Checking and filling
If the brake fluid level falls considerably be ­
l ow the "MIN" mark, the brake warning/indi­
cator light (U .S . mode ls: . , Canadian
models: .) will come on
¢ page 16 and
¢ page 30. Do not continue to operate the ve­
h icle . The complete brake system shou ld be
thoroughly checked by an authorized A ud i
dea ler o r othe r qualified facility and t he cause
corrected. If the bra ke fluid level is too low,
the bra ke warning/ind ic a tor ligh t will illum i­
nate . Contact an authorized Aud i dea ler
im­
mediatel y.
Changing brake fluid
Hove the broke fluid changed by on experi­
enced technician.
B rake fl uid abso rbs mois ture from the a ir. If
the water content in the b ra ke fluid i s too
h igh, corros ion in the brake sys tem may result
after a period of t ime . The boi ling point o f the
b rake fluid wi ll also decrease considerab ly and
decrease braking per formance.
T herefore, the brake flu id mus t be changed
every two year s. Always use new b rake fluid
which conforms to Fede ral Motor Vehicle
Standard "FMVSS 116 DOT 4".
T he brake flu id rese rvoi r can be difficul t to
reach, therefo re, we recommend that yo u
have the brake f luid changed by yo ur autho r­
ized
Audi dealer . Your dealer has the correct
too ls, the right b rake f luid and the know-how
to do this for you.
A WARNING
- B rake fluid is poiso nous . It mus t be stor­
ed only in th e closed orig inal con tainer
o ut of the reac h of children!
- Brake fa ilure can result from old o r inap ­
propriate b ra ke fluid. Observe these pre­
c aut ions:
- Use o nly brake fluid t hat meets SAE
specif ication
J 1703 and confo rms to
Federal Motor Vehicle Standard 116.
Always check with your a uthorized Audi
dealer to make s ure you are using the
correct brake fl uid. T he correct type of brake flu
id is also ind icate d on the
brake f lu id rese rvoir.
- The brake fl uid must be new . Heavy use
of the brakes can cause a vapo r lock if
the brake fluid is left in the system too
long . This can se riously affect the effi ­
c iency of t he brakes as well as your
safe ty. This co uld resu lt in a n accide nt.
([) Note
Brake fluid will damage the paint of your
vehicle.
@ For the sake of the environment
Because o f the prob lem of prope r disposal
of brake fluid as well as t he spec ial too ls
required and the necessary expertise, we
recomme nd t hat yo u have th e brake flu id
cha nged by yo ur autho rize d Au di dea le r.
Battery
General information
Your ve hicl e is equipped with a specia l bat ­
tery, an
ACM battery. This battery is located
in t he luggage compartment and must be re­
placed with an origina l equipment battery.
U nder normal opera ting condit ions, the bat­
te ry is
maintenance-fr ee .
Have the battery checked when you take your
vehicle in for se rv ice . You a re well advised to
replace a battery that is o lde r th an 5 years .
Disconnecting the battery terminals
Some vehicle functions (power window reg u­
lators, for example) are lost if the battery te r­
mina ls are disconnected. T hese functions have
to be relearned after the battery termina ls are
connected aga in . T o prevent t his, t he battery
shou ld only b e disconne cted from the ve hicle
ele ct ric al sy stem w hen abso lutely ne cessary
f o r rep air s.
Vehicles not driven for long periods
If you are go ing to let your vehicle stand for a
long time a nd not drive it, you should remem­
ber there are elect rical components which a re
Ill-

still functioning and they will draw energy
from the battery and drain it, for example, the
engine immobilizer . To prevent this, you can
e ither charge the battery occasionally to keep
it in good working condi tion or you can d is­
connect the negat ive cable on the battery .
Winter ope ration
During the winter months, battery capacity
tends to decrease as temperatures drop . This
is because more power is also consumed while
start ing, and the headlights, rear window de­
fogger, etc ., are used more often .
Avoid unnecessary power consumption, par­
ticularly in c ity traffic or when traveling on ly
short distances. Let your authori zed Audi
dealer check the capacity of the vehicle bat ­
tery before winter sets in
¢ page 192. A well
charged battery w ill not only prevent starting
p rob lems when the weathe r is cold, but will
a lso last longer .
Replacing b attery
The new battery m ust have the same capaci ­
ty, voltage (12 volts), amperage, construction
a n d p lug sealing, as the origina l batte ry. Spec­
ifications are listed on the batte ry housing.
Batteries specially developed by A udi f ulfill
the ma intenance, output, and safety require ­
ments.
When insta lling the bat tery , make sure the ig­
n ition and all e lectr ica l cons umers are sw itch­
ed
off ¢ (j) .
We recommend that you use ma intenance­
free or
cy cle-re sis tant /le ak -proof batteries
according to the standards TL 825 06 (from
December 1997) and VW 7 SO 73 (from Au ­
gust 200 1).
Replacing the battery should be ca rried by a
qua lified workshop. Please follow the instruc­
tions on the battery cover.
(D Note
- All work on t he battery requires techni­
ca l knowledge. Please contact an A udi
dealership or anothe r authorized facili ty
Checkin g and fillin g 189
for questions abo ut the batte ry - danger
of acid burns and exp losion hazard!
- T he battery must not be opened! Do not
try to change the battery's liquid level,
otherwise detonating gas will escape
from the battery - explosion hazard!
- The AGM battery in the luggage com­
partment cannot leak, because the elec ­
tro lyte for this battery is absorbed into a
special glass mat. This leak-proof battery
must not be replace with a convent iona l
battery.
- Make sure the ventilation hose on the
side of the battery is connected, other­
w ise fumes or battery ac id can leak out.
- Battery holder and terminals always
have to be secured correctly.
- Before all work on the battery follow the
warnings below ¢.&. in Working on the
battery on page 190.
@) For the sake of the environment
Because of the prob lem of proper disposal
of a battery, we recommend your author ­
ized Audi dealer change the battery for
you. Batteries contain sulfur ic acid and
l ead and must always be disposed of prop­
erly in compl iance with a ll environmental
regulat ions. Disposing of vehi cle batter ies
improperly is very dangerous to the envi ­
ronment. Make sure that the removed bat­
tery cannot overbalance, otherwise sulfu­ ric acid might escape!
(D Tips
If your vehicle is left standing for several
weeks at extremely low temperatures, the
vehicle battery shou ld be removed and
stored where it w ill not freeze. This will
prevent it from be ing damaged and having
to be replaced . •
•

190 Checking and filling
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the battery!
Fig . 14 3 Luggage compartment: AGM battery
The battery is loca ted in the luggage compart­
ment.
~ Swing up the luggage compartment floor.
The positive( +) battery terminal is p rotected
by a plast ic cover . This cover must be removed
to access the positive( +) termina l when con­
necting jumper cables to start the eng ine .
Always heed the
safe ty war nings, when work­
ing on the vehicle battery or the vehicle elec­
tr ica l system to prevent injury .
The following WARN INGS are ver y
import ant when w orking on the battery:
Alw ays heed t he follow ing W ARNING SYM ·
BOLS a nd safety precautions wh en working
on th e bat tery.
® Always wear eye protection .
I).. Battery acid contain s sulfuric acid. Al ­
~ ways wear gl oves a nd e ye prot ecti on.
I/£ No
\l:!S' -spar ks
• flames
- smoking.
When a batter y is ch arged , it pr odu ce s
h y d rogen g as which i s ex plosi ve and
could cau se personal injury.
----Always keep the battery well out of
re ach of children .
®
.&_ WARNING
Whenever working on the battery or on
the elect rical system, there is the risk of
i njury, accident and even fire. Read and
heed the fo llowing WARNINGS:
-Always wear eye protection. Do not let battery ac id or any lead particles get on
your skin o r clothing. Shield your eyes.
E xp losive gases can cause blindness or
o ther inju ry.
- Ba ttery acid conta ins sulfuric acid. Sulfu­
ric acid can ca use blindness and severe
burns .
- Always wear gloves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because acid
could leak out of the ventilat ion open ­
ings .
- If you get battery acid in your eyes or
on your skin, immediately rinse w ith
cold water for several minutes and get
medica l attent ion.
- If you shou ld ingest any battery acid,
seek medical attention immediately.
- Do not expose the battery to an open flame, e lectr ic sparks or an open light .
- Do not smoke.
- Do not interchange the positive and neg-
ative cables.
- When working on the battery, be sure
not to short-circuit the terminals with
tools or other metal objects . Th is would
cause the battery to heat up very quickly,
which could lead to damage or explosion and personal injury.
- When a battery is charged, it produces
hydrogen gas which is explos ive and
could cause pe rsonal in ju ry.
- Always keep the battery well out of the
reac h of children.
- Before work is done on the electrical sys­
tem, disconnect the negat ive g round ca­
b le.
- Before performing any work on the e lec­
tr ica l system, switch off the engine and
ignit ion as well as any elec trical equip­
ment. The negative cable on the bat tery

must be disconnected. If you are just go­
ing to replace a light bulb, then it is
enough to switch off the lights.
- Before disconnecting the battery, switch
off the anti-theft alarm system! Other­
wise you will set off the alarm.
- When disconnecting the battery, first
disconnect the negative cable and then
the positive cable.
- Before reconnecting the battery, make
sure all electrical consumers are switch­
ed off. Reconnect the positive cable first
and then the negative cable. Never inter­
change the cables -this could start a fire!
- Never charge a frozen or a thawed-out battery. It could explode! If a battery has
frozen, then it must be replaced. A dis­
charged battery can freeze over at 32 °F
(0 oc).
-Make sure the vent hose is always attach­
ed to the opening on the side of the bat­
tery.
- Never use batteries which are damaged.
Danger of explosion! Always replace a
damaged battery.
A WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac­
cessories contain lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc­
tive problems. Wash hands after han­
dling.
CD Note
- Do not disconnect the vehicle battery
when the ignition is switched on or when
the engine is running, otherwise, you will
damage electronic components in the
electrical system.
- If your vehicle is going to stand for a
long period of time without being driven,
protect the battery from "freezing", oth­
erwise it will be damaged and will then have to be replaced.
Checking and filling 191
Checking the battery acid level on magic
eye batteries*
The battery acid level in the battery can be
checked through the clear inspection window .
Fig. 144 Luggage compartment: Battery With magic
eye.
On top of the battery, there is a round "win­
dow". This window (magic eye) changes color
as the battery charge and acid level change.
.. Read and heed all WARNINGS
c::> &_ in
Working on the battery on page 190
.. Read the acid level from the window on the
battery
c:> fig. 144.
Air bubbles in the window can cause an inac­
curate reading . Carefully tap on the side of
the window.
- If the window is
green, the battery acid level
is correct.
- If the window has no color or is bright yel­
low ,
the battery acid level is too low . Have
the battery tested by your authorized Audi
dealer or a qualified workshop.
- If the window is
black , then the battery is
insufficiently charged . Recharge the battery
as soon as possible
r:::, page 192 .
CD Note
Do not overfill the battery, otherwise bat­
tery acid will overflow through the vent
opening. This can damage the paint and
cause corrosion .