2012 AUDI A6 oil change

Engine cooling system
Coolant
The engine coolant 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 .
The cooling system has been filled at the fac­
tory with a permanent coolant which does not
need to be changed. The coolant consists of a
mixture of water and the manufacturer's gly ­
col-based coolant additive G12++ antifreeze
with anticorrosion additives (50% for USA
models; 60% for Canadian 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 the boiling point of the
coolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the cool­
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 vehi ­
cle heating and engine cooling system.
For year-round driving, antifreeze 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 additive 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
WARNINGS
~ .&. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 220.
(D Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
Checking and filling 22 7
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 extremely cold. If necessary, in­
crease the proportion of coolant additive
to 60% .
- When adding coolant additive to your
cooling system, remember :
- We recommend using only coolant ad­
ditive G12++ (check the label) for your
vehicle. This coolant additive is availa­
ble at authorized Audi dealers. Other
types of antifreeze can significantly re­
duce corrosion protection. The result­
ing corrosion can cause a loss of cool­
ant and serious engine damage.
- Do not add any type of radiator leak seal­
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant.
Adding radiator repair fluid may adverse­
ly affect the function and performance of
your cooling system and could result 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.
M AX f
MINf
Fig.174 Engine compar tment: markings on the coo l­
an t expa nsion tank
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 220 .
"' Park your vehicle on a level surface .
"' Switch off the ignition.
"' Read the engine coolant level from the
coolant expansion tank~
fig. 174. With a

-If the ti re is not flat and y ou do not have
to change a wheel immed iate ly, drive at
reduced speed to the nearest service sta­
t ion to check the tire pressure and add
air as required.
(D Note
Dr iving without va lve stem caps can cause
damage to the t ire va lves . To prevent this,
always make sure that factory installed
valve stem caps on all wheels are secu re ly
mounted on the va lve .
@) For the sake of the environment
Underinflated tires will a lso increase the
fue l consumption.
Tires and vehicle load limits
There are limits to the amount of load or
weight t hat any veh icle and any t ire ca n car ry.
A vehicle that is overloaded w ill not handle
well and is more difficult to stop. Overload ing
can not on ly lead to loss of vehicle contro l,
but can a lso damage important parts of the
vehicle and can lead to sudden tire failure, in ­
cluding a blowout and sudden deflation that
can cause the ve hicle to crash.
Your safety and that of yo ur passenge rs a lso
depends on making sure th at load limits are
no t exceeded. Vehicle load includes everybody
and everyth ing in and on the vehicle. These
load limits a re tech nica lly referred to as the
ve hicle's
Gross Veh icle Weight Rating
("GVWR").
The "GVWR" includes the we ight of the basic
ve hicle, all factory installed accessories, a full
tank of f uel, oil, coo lant and othe r fluids plus
max imum load. The maximum load includes
the number o f passenger s that the ve hicl e is
intended to carry ("se ating capacity") w it h an
assumed weig ht o f 150 lbs (68 kg) for each
passenger at a designated seating position
and the tota l weight of any luggage in the ve­
h icle. If you tow a trailer, the weight of the
trailer hitch and the tong ue weight of the
Tire s an d wheel s 243
loaded tra ile r must be included as part of the
vehicle load .
T he
Gro ss Ax le Weight Rating (" GAWR") is
the max imum load th at can be applied at each
of the vehicle's two axles .
T he Gross Vehicle Weight Rat ing and t he
G ross Ax le Weig ht Ra ting are l iste d on the
s af ety comp liance s tic ke r la bel lo cated on the
driver's side 8 -pillar . Yo ur Audi has 5 sea ting
positions,
2 in the front and 3 in the rear fo r
total seating capacity of
5. Eac h seating posi ­
tion has a safety be lt
c> page 133 , Safety
belts.
The fact that there is an upper limit to yo ur
vehicle's Gross Vehicle We ight Rating means
that the total weig ht of whatever is being car ­
ried in the vehicle (includ ing the weight of a
tra ile r hitch a nd the tongue weight of the
loaded tra ile r) is lim ited . The more passen­
gers in the vehicle or passengers w ho are
heavier than the sta ndard we ights assumed
me an t hat less we igh t ca n be ca rried as lug ­
gage.
T he tire pr essure label on your Audi also lis ts
t h e maximum combined weight of a ll of the
occupants and l uggage or other cargo that
t h e ve hicl e can carry. For the locat ion of the
label
c> page 239, fig . 178.
.&_ WARNING
-=
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve-
h icle cont ro l, a c rash or other accident, se­
rious pe rsonal injury, and even death.
- Ca rrying more we ight tha n your veh icle
was des igned to carry wi ll prevent the
veh icle from handling properly and in­
crease the risk of the loss of vehicle con­
trol.
- The brakes on a vehicle that has been
overloaded may not be able to stop the
ve hicle w it hi n a safe distance .
- Tires o n a vehicle that has been over load­
ed can fail suddenly, including a blowout
a nd sud den defla tion , causing loss of
cont rol and a crash .
li1'-
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Fuse panel@ (bl ack )
No. Equipment
Vehicle electrical system control
6 module 1, Vehicle e lectr ica l sys-
tern control module 2
7 Audi adaptive cruise control
8
Airbag control module, front
passenger 's seat sensor system
9 Gateway
Homelink (garage door opener),
10 night vision system contro
l
module
Image processing (Audi active
11 lane assist , Audi adaptive cruise
control)
12 Steering
13 Terminal 15 in the luggage com-
partment
14 Terminal 15 in the
instrument
panel (front passenger's s ide)
15 Terminal 15 engine
16 Starter
Fuse panel e (brown)
No . Equipment
1 Gateway
2 Climate control
3 ESP co ntrol module
Front door (driver's side)
5
Power seat adjustment (dr iver's
seat)
6
Steering
7 Sunroof
8
Rear door control module (driv-
er's side)
9
Lumbar suppor t (Fro nt p assen-
ger seat)
11 Sunroof, rear spoiler
12 Driver door control mod ule
Amps
5
10
5
5
5
10
5
15
30 15
4 0
Amps
5
10
10
30
7,5 35
20 1 5
5
20
15
Fu se s and bulb s 265
Fuse panel © (red )
No. Equipment
2 Fue l pump
3 Brake light sensor/brake pedal
sensor system
4 Engine acoust ics
5 Rear door control module (driv-
er's side)
6 Left rear seat
7 Horn
8 Win dsh ield wipe r
9 Light/rain sensor
10 L
u mbar support (dr iver seat)
11 Front passenge
r door control
module
12 Right rear door control mod
ule
Front passenger side cockpit fuse
assignment Amps
2
5
5/5
7,5 30
7,5 15
30
5
5
15 15
Fi g. 198 Fro nt passe nge r side cock pit : fu se pa nel with
p last ic bracket
Fuse panel A (black )
No. Equipment
1 Head-up D isplay
2 MMI Display
3 CD/DVD changer
Chip card reader (not in all coun-
5 tr ies)
6 Instrument cluster
Amps
5
5
5
7,5
5
5
7 Steeri ng col umn switch module 5

272 Emergency situations
@ Tips
Check carefully to make sure the hook- up
is sec ure before moving the ca r up the flat ­
bed truck ramp.
Lifting vehicle
Lifting with workshop hoist and with
floor jack
T he vehi cle may only be li~ed at the lifting
points illustra ted .
Fig. 207 Fr ont lift in g po int
Fi g. 208 Rear lift ing point
• Read and heed WARNING q &_ .
• Locate lifting points q fig. 207 and
qfig. 208.
• Adjust lift ing arms of workshop hoist or
floor jack to match vehicle lifting points.
• Inse rt a r ubber pad betw een the floor jack/
wor kshop hoist and the lifti ng points.
If you must lift your vehicle with a floor jack
to work underneath, be sure the vehicle is
safely supported on stands intended for thi s
purpose .
Front lifting point
The lifting point is located on t he floor pan re­
i n forcement about at the same level as the j
ac k mounting po int
~ fig. 20 7. Do not lift
the veh icle at the vertical sill reinforcement .
Rear lifting point
The lifti ng po int is located o n the vert ica l rein­
f orcemen t of the lowe r sill for the on- boar d
j a ck
q fig . 208.
Lifting with vehicle jack
Refer to ¢ page 261.
A WARNING
-- To reduce the risk of s erio us injury and
ve hicl e damage.
- Always lift the vehicle only at the spe­
c ia l workshop hoist and floor jack lift
po ints illustrated
¢ fig. 207 and
q fig. 208.
-Fail ure to lift the ve hicle at these
po ints could cause the vehicle to tilt or
fall from a lift if there is a change i n ve­
h icle weight distribution and balanc e.
T his mig ht happen, fo r example, whe n
h eavy com ponen ts such as the eng ine
b lo ck o r trans mission a re remove d.
- W hen removi ng heavy compone nts like
t hese, anch or vehicle to h oist or ad d cor ­
resp onding we ig hts t o main tain t he cen­
t er of gravity. Oth erwise, t he ve hicle
might tilt or slip off the ho ist , ca using
serio us personal injury.
(D Note
- B e aw are o f the followin g poin ts before
li ft ing t he vehicle:
-The vehicle should never be lifted or
jacked up from underneath the engine oil pan, the transmission housing, the
front or rear axle or the body side
members. This could lead to serious
damage .
- To avoid damage to the underbody or
chas sis frame, a rubber pad must be
inserted between the floor jack and
the lift points.
-
- Before driving over a workshop hoist,
check that the vehicle weight doe s not .,..

Data
310 hp, 3.0 liter 6-cylinder engine
Applies to vehicles: with 3.0 liter 6-cylinder engine and all-wheel drive
Engine data
Maximum output SAE ne t
Maximum torque SAE net
No. of cylinders
Displacement
Stroke
Bore
C ompression ratio
Fuel
Dimensions (approx .)
L eng th (wit h license pl ate brac ket)
Width (across mirrors) He igh t (unloaded)
310@ 5500-6500 hp@ rpm
lb-ft@ rpm
-.. .--
C ID (cm3
)
in (mm)
in (mm)
__ ,
-~-- ,
325 @ 290 0-4500
6
182 (2995)
3.50 (89.0)
3 .33 (84.5)
10.3: 1
Premium unleaded (91 AKI) Recommended for maxi­
mum engine performance. Further details¢
page 215,
Gasoline
in (mm) 193.9 ( 4925)
in (mm) 82.1 (2086)
in (mm) 57 .8 ( 1468)
Turning circle diameter (curb to curb) ft. (m) 39.0 (11.9)
Capacities (appro x.)
Fuel tank
- Total capac ity
- Reserve (o f to tal capacity)
Windshield fluid container
Windshield and headlight washer
fluid container *
Engine oil with filter change gal (liters)
19.8 (75.0)
gal (li
ters) 2. 6 (10.0)
quarts (liters) 3.7 (3.5)
qu arts ( liters) 5 .2 ( 4.9)
quarts (lite rs) 7.2 (6.8)
277
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2 78 Consumer Information
Consumer Information
Warranty coverages
You r Audi is covered by the following war­
ranties:
- New Vehicle Limited Warranty
- Limited Warranty Against Corrosion Perfo-
ration
- Emissions Control System Warranty
- Emissions Performance Warranty
- California Emissions Control Warranty (USA
vehicles only)
- California Emissions Performance Warranty
(USA vehicles only)
Detailed information regarding your warran­
ties can be found in your
Warranty & Mainte­
nance booklet .
Operating your vehicle
outside the U.S.A. or
Canada
Government regu lations in the United States
and Canada require that automobiles meet
specific emission regulations and safety
standards. Therefore, veh icles built for the
U.S.A . and Canada differ from vehicles sold in
other countries .
If you p lan to take your vehicle outside the
continental limits of the United States or Can­
ada, there is the possibility that
- unleaded fuels for vehicles with cata lytic
converter may not be available;
- fuel may have a considerably lowe r octane
rating. Improper fuel may cause engine
damage ;
- service may be inadequate due to lack of
proper service facilities, tools or testing
equipment ;
- replacement pa rts may not be readily availa­
ble.
- Navigation systems for vehicles built for the
U.S.A. and Canada will not necessar ily work
in Europe, and may not work in other coun­
tries outside North America .
(D Note
Audi cannot be responsible for mechanical
damage that could result from inadequate
fuel, service or parts availability.
Audi Service Repair Manuals and Literature
Audi Official Factory Service Manuals and Lit­
erature are published as soon as possible after
model introduction. Service manuals and lit­
erature are available to order from the Audi
T echnical Literature Ordering Center at:
www.audi.techliterature.com
Maintenance
General
Your vehicle has been designed to help keep
maintenance requirements to a minimum.
However, a certain amount of regular mainte­
nance is still necessary to assure your vehicle's
s afety, economy and rel iability. For detailed
vehicle maintenance consult your Warranty &
Maintenance booklet.
Under difficult operating conditions, for ex­
ample at extremely low outside temperatures,
i n very dusty regions , when towing a trailer
very frequently, etc., some service work
should be performed between the intervals
specified. This applies particularly to:
- oil changes, and
- cleaning or replacing the air filter .
(® For the sake of the environment
By regularly maintaining your vehicle, you
help make sure that emission standards
are maintained, thus minimizing adverse
effects on the environment.
Important considerations for you and
your vehicle
The increasing use of electronics, sophisticat­
ed fuel injection and emission contro l sys-
tems, and the genera lly increasing technical
liJJ,

28 0 Con sum er Inf ormation
-Always make sure the transmission se­
lector lever (automatic transmiss ion) is
in "P" (Park position) and the park brake
is f irmly app lied .
@) For the sake of the environment
-Changing the engine settings wi ll ad­
versely affect em iss ion levels. This is det­
rimental to the environment and increas­
es fuel consumption .
- Always observe env ironmental regula­
tions when dispos ing of old engine oil,
used brake fluid, dirty engine coolant,
spent batteries or worn o ut tires.
- Undeployed airbag modules and preten­
s ioners might be classified as Perchlo ­
rate Material -spec ial handling may ap­
ply, see www.dtsc.ca .gov/hazardous­
was te/perch lorate . When the veh icle or
parts of the res traint system including
airbag modules safety belts wit h preten ­
sioners are scrapped, all applicable laws
and regulations must be observed. Your
authori zed Aud i dea ler is familiar with
these requirements and we recommend
that you have your dealer perform this
serv ice for you .
Additional accessories,
modifications and
parts replacement
Additional accessories and parts
replacement
Always consult an authorized Audi dealer be­
fore purchasing accessories.
Your veh icle incorporates the latest safety de­
sig n featu res ensu ring a high standard of a c­
tive and passive safety .
This safety could be comp romised by non-ap­
proved changes to the ve hicle. For this reason ,
if pa rts have to be replaced , please obse rve
the following points when install ing addition­
a l accessories: Approved Audi accessories and genuine Aud
i
parts are available from authorized A udi deal­
ers.
T hese dea le rs a lso have the necessary facili­
ties, tools and tra ined specialists to install the
parts and acc essories proper ly .
A WARNING
-Using the wrong spare parts or using non-
approved accessories can cause damage to
the veh icle and ser ious persona l injury.
- Use on ly accessories express ly approved
by Audi and gen uine Audi spare parts
- These parts and accessories have been
specia lly designed to be used on yo ur ve­
h icle .
- Never install accessor ies such as tele­
phone crad les or beverage ho lders on a ir­
bag covers or within the airbag deploy­
ment zones . Do ing so will increase the
risk of injury if a irbags are triggered in an
accident!
- Before you check anything in the engine
compa rtment, always read and heed a ll
WARNI NGS
9 page 214 .
(D Note
-If items other than genu ine Audi spare
parts, add-on equipment and accessory
items are used or if repair work is not
performed accord ing to specified meth­
ods, this can resu lt in seve re damage to
your vehicle's eng ine and body (such as
corrosion) and adversely affect yo ur vehi ­
cle's warranty .
- If emergency repairs must be performed
elsewhere, have the vehicle examined by
an authorized Audi dealer as soon as
possible .
- The manufacturer cannot be held liable
for damage wh ich occ urs due to failure
to comply with these stipu lations.