2012 AUDI A6 tire pressure

236 Tires and wheels
-Never mount used tires on yo ur vehicle if
you are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have been dam­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means the comb ined weight (in excess of
those standard items which may be rep laced)
of automatic transmission, power steering, power brakes, power windows, power seats,
radio, and heater, to the extent that these
items are availab le as factory -installed equip ­
ment (whether installed or not) .
Aspect ratio
means the ratio of the he ight to the w idth of
the tire in percent. Numbers of 55 or lower in­
dicate a low sidewall for improved steering re­
sponse and better overall handling on dry
pavement.
Bead
means the part of the tire that is made of
steel wires, wrapped o r reinforced by ply cords
and that is shaped to fit the r im.
Bead separation
means a breakdown of the bond between
components in the bead.
Cord
means the strands forming the plies in the
tire.
Cold tire inflation pressure
means the tire pressure recommended by the
vehicle manufacturer for a tire of a designated size that has not been driven for more than a
couple of miles (kilometers) at low speeds in
the three hour period before the tire pressure
is measured or adjusted. -
If you notice unusual vibration or if the
veh icle pulls to one side when driv ing, a l­
ways stop as soon as it is safe to do so and check the wheels and tires for dam­
age.
Curb weight
means the weight of a motor vehicle w ith
standard equipment including the maximum
capacity of fuel, oil, and coolant, air condi­
tioning and additional weight of optiona l
equipment.
Extra load tire
means a t ire design to operate at h igher loads
and at higher inflation pressures than the cor­
responding standard tire. Extra load tires may
be identified as "XL", "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or
"R F" on the sidewall .
Gross Axle Weight Rating ( "GAWR ")
means the load-carrying capacity of a s ingle
axle system, measured at the tire-ground in­
terfaces .
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating ("GVWR")
means the maximum total loaded weight of
the vehicle.
Groove
means the space between two adjacent tread
ribs .
Load rating (code)
means the maximum load that a tire is rated
to carry for a given inflation pressure. Yo u
may not find this information on all tires be­
cause it is not required by law.
Maximum load rating
means the load rating for a tire at the maxi­
mum permissib le inflation pressure for that
tire.

Maximum loaded vehicle weight
means the sum of:
(a) Curb weight
(b) Accessory weight
(c) Vehicle capacity weight, and
(d) Production options weight
Maximum (permissible) inflation pressure
means the maximum cold inflation pressure
to which a tire may be inflated. Also called
"maximum inflation pressu re."
Normal occupant weight
means 150 lbs. (68 k ilograms) times the
number of occupants seated in the vehicle up
to the total seating capacity of your vehicle.
Occupant distribution
means distribution of occupants in a vehicle .
Outer diameter means the overall diameter of an inflated new
tire.
Overall width
means the linear distance between the exteri­
ors of the sidewalls of an inflated tire, includ­
ing e levations due to labeling, decorations, or
protective bands or ribs.
Ply
means a layer of rubber-coated para llel cords.
Production options weight
means the comb ined weight of those installed
regular production options weighing over 5
lbs . (2 .3 kg) in excess of those standard items
which they replace, not previously considered
in curb weight or accessory weight, including
heavy duty brakes, r ide leve lers, roof rack,
heavy duty battery, and specia l trim .
Radial ply tire
means a pneumatic t ire in which the p ly cords
that extend to the beads are laid at substan­
tially 90 degrees to the centerline of the
tread.
Tires and wheels 237
Recommended inflation pressure
see~
page 236, Cold tire inflation pressure.
Reinforced tire
means a t ire design to operate at higher loads
and at higher inflation pressures than the cor­
responding standard tire. Reinforced tires
may be identified as "XL ", "x l", "E XTRA LOAD",
o r "R F" on the sidewall.
Rim
means a metal support for a tire or a t ire and
tube assembly upon which the tire beads are
seated.
Rim diameter
means nom inal d iameter of the bead seat. If
you change your wheel s ize, you w ill have to
purchase new tires to match the new r im di­
ameter.
Rim size designation
means r im diameter and width.
Rim width
means nom inal distance between rim fla nges.
Sidewall
means that portion of a tire between the
tread and bead.
Speed rating (letter code)
means the speed at which a tire is designed to
be driven for extended periods of time. The
ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h) to
186 mph (298 km/h)
~ page 247 . You may
not find this information on all tires because
it is not requ ired by law.
The speed rating letter code, where applica­
ble, is molded on the tire sidewall and indi­
cates the max imum pe rm issib le road speeds
~ .&. in Winter tires on page 251.
Tire pressure monitoring system*
means a system that detects when one or
more of a veh icle's tires are underinflated and
illuminates a low tire pressure warning tell­
tale.
•
•

Tires and wheels 239
Cold tire inflation pressure
Tire pressure affects the overall handling, performance and safety of a vehicle .
Fig . 1 78 Tir e pr essur e labe l: located on drive r's s ide B ·
p ill ar
Tire pressu re genera lly refers to the amount
of air in a t ire tha t it needs it to do its job and
safely carry the combined load of the entire
vehicle and its contents . Tire pressure is
measured in kilopasca ls (kPa), the i nterna­
tional measuring unit and in pounds pe r
square inc h (PSI). Tire pressure is based in
pa rt o n the vehicle's desig n an d load limit­
the greatest amount of weight that the vehi­
cle can carry safe ly and the ti re size . The prop ­
er tire pressure is freq uent ly referred to as the
"recommended cold tire inf lation pressure ."
Air in the tires expands when the tire heats up
because of interna l frict io n when it flexes in
use . The ti re p ressu re is higher when the tire
has warmed up than when it is "cold ." It is the
i nflat io n pressure i n a "cold" tire that counts.
Therefo re, you s ho ul d never let air ou t of a
warm tire to match " cold tire infla tion p res­
sure" recommendations . The tires wo uld then
be underinf lated a nd could fail suddenly.
M ain taining proper t ire press ure is one of the
most impor tan t thi ngs you c an do to he lp
avoid sudden tire failure. Underinfla ted tires
are a major cause of s udden tire failure . Keep­
ing tires at the r ight pressure is also impor­
tant for safe and responsive vehicle handling,
traction, b rak ing and load carrying .
Tire pres­
sures are part icularly important wh en th e
vehicle is being driven at higher speeds , and
then especially when h eavily loaded even
within the permi ssible load -carrying capaci­
tie s approved for your vehi cle.
~
"' ~
,.------------------- ~
•(=~: I := I ~ I )§ :ll
,.,,. ........................ ...., .... ~----.... _ ... t.._.. .... _..,.. .... ......,... .. ~--......... ·- ..
- KPA. . PSI
- KPA. . PSI
- KPA. . PSI
Fig. 17 9 Tir e pressu re labe l
The recommended tire pressures for your Audi
depe nd on the kind of tires on your ve hicle
and t he number of passe ngers and/or amount
of luggage you w ill be t ransporting .
The tire pressure label is located on the driv­
er's side 8-pillar . The tire pressure labe l lists
the recommended cold t ire inflat io n pressures
for the veh icle at its maximum capac ity
weight and tires that we re o n your veh icle at
t h e time it was manufactu red.
If you wish to improve comfort when op erat­
ing the ve hicle at normal load (up to 3 occu­
pant s), you can adju st tire pres sures to those
spe cified for normal vehi cle load . Before op­
erating the vehicle at maximum load, you
must increase the tire pressure s to those
speci fied for maximum vehicle load
¢ .&.
Bear in mind that the tire pressure mon itor ing
system* can on ly mon itor the tire p ress ures
yo u have sto red. The sys tem does not recog ­
nize the load condi tion of your veh icle.
T he effectiveness of the t ire p ress ure monitor­
ing system * w ill be impa ired i f you s to re no r­
m al load pressures but t hen opera te the veh i­
cle a t its maximum load
¢ .& .
See the ill ustration 9 fig. 178 fo r the lo cat ion
of the label o n driver's s ide B-pillar (color of
the actu al label a nd exact lo cat ion on the ve­
hicle will vary s light ly).
Note t hat the follow ing table is accu rate at
the time of going to press and is s ubject to

240 Tires and wheels
change. In the event of discrepancies, the tire
pressure labe l is located on the driver's side B­
p ill ar a lways takes precedence.
The table below lists the recommended cold
tire inflation pressures for the Audi model covered
by your Owner's Literature at the vehi ­
cle's capacity weight and the tire sizes instal­
l ed on the respective models as orig inal
equipment, or as a factory option.
I Engine Tire designation Tire pressure front Tire pressure rear I
(displace-
normal load full load normal load full load
ment
in li-condition condition condition condition
I
ter) PSI II kPA PSI JI kPA PSI II kPA PSI II kPA :
4-cylinder 225/55 Rl 7
97H
2.0 All 5eason
32 220 35 240 29 200 38 260
245/45 Rl8 lOOH XL '
32 220 35 240
29 200 38 260 All Season I
255/40 Rl9 lOOH XL
32 220 35 240 29 200 38 260
All Season
255/40 Rl9 lOOY XL
30 210
33 230
30 2 10 36 250
High Performance
255/35 R20 97V XL
35 240 38 260 32 220 41 280
High Performance
I 6-cylinder 225/55 Rl7
97H '
35 240 38 260 32 220 41 280
3.0 All Season .. -. • .. .. .. .. ..
All Season 35 240 38 260 32 220 41 280
245/45 Rl8 100H XL
255 /40 R19 lOOH XL
'
35 240 38 260 32 220 41 280 All Season I
255/40 Rl9 lOOY XL 36 250
39 270
33 230 42 290
High Performance
255/35
R20 97V
XL '
39 270 44 300 36 250 46 320
High Performance
I
XL= reinforced or extra load tire. It may also appear as xl, EXTRA LOAD, or RF on the tire side­
wall.
The correct tire pressure for the
spare wheel i s
located on a label on the driver's side B-pillar.
Because technical changes may be made to
vehicle equipment during the model year, a l­
ways compare the tire size designation on the
tire pressure label on your vehicle with the
tires on your vehicle. Make sure that the tire
size information on the vehicle label is the
same as the size of the t ires on the vehicle.
This is especia lly important if the vehicle be­
l ongs to someone else or you bought the veh i­
cle with different rims/tires or you bought the
vehicle as a previously owned vehicle. Remember, your safety and that of your pas­
sengers also depends on making sure that load limits are not exceeded. Vehicle load in­
cludes everybody and everything in and on the
vehicle . These load limits are techn ically refer­
red to as the veh icle's Gross Vehicle Weight
Rating ("GVWR"). The Gross Axle We ight Rat­
i ng ("GAWR") is the maximum load that can
be applied at each of the vehicle's two axles.
The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and the
Gross Axle Weight Rating are listed on the
safety comp liance sticker label located on the
driver's side B-pillar . The tire pressure label on .,.

your Audi lists the maximum combined weight of all of the occupants and luggage or
other cargo that the vehicle can carry. For the locat ion of the tire pressure label¢
fig. 178.
& WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
hicle control, a crash or other accident, se­
rious personal injury, and even death.
- Carry ing more weight than your vehicle
was designed to carry will prevent the
vehicle from handling properly and in­ crease the risk of a loss of veh icle con­
t rol.
- The bra kes on a veh icle that has been
overloaded may no t be able to stop the
vehicle within a sa fe distance.
- T ires on a vehicle that has been ove rload­
ed can fail suddenly causing loss of con­
tro l and a c rash.
- Always make sure that the tota l load be­
ing t ransported -including the we igh t of
a tra iler hitch and the tongue weight o f a
loaded trailer -does not make the vehi ­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle Weight Rating.
& WARNING
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can lead to a serious or fatal acci­
dent .
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­ flation cause increased tire wear and can
affect the handling of the vehicle.
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can also lead to sudden tire fa il­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
fla tion, causing loss of vehicle control.
Checking tire pressure
-
The correct tire pressure for the tires original­
ly installed on your vehicle is listed on the tire
pressure label located on driver's side 8-pil­ lar .
The recommended t ire pressures are on the
tire pressure label and in the tab le
Tire s an d wheel s 241
¢ page 239, Cold tire inflation pressure .This
means that the pressure m ust be checked and
adjusted when the t ire has not been dr iven fo r
more than a couple of miles (kilometers) at
low speeds during the previous three hours.
Air in the tires expands when the t ire heats up
as a result of internal frict io n as it flexes in
u se . T he tire pressure is higher when the tire
has warmed up t han whe n it is " cold. "
It is the inflation pressure in a "cold" tire that
counts. Therefore, you should never le t air out
of a wa rm tire to match "Cold t ire inflat io n
pressure" recomme ndat io ns ¢
page 239. Th e
t ir es wo uld then be unde rinflated and co uld
fail suddenly.
T he tir e pressure label on your Audi lists the
recommended co ld tire inflation pressures at
maximum cap acity for the new, or ig inal
equipmen t tires tha t were on your ve hicl e at
the time it was ma nufactured. For the loca ­
tion of the labe l
¢page 239, fig. 178.
Most tires lose air naturally over t ime . They
can a lso lose some air if yo u drive over a pot­
ho le or hit a curb while park ing. It is usually
not possible to see whether the radial tires
used today are underinflated just by looking
at them.
Therefore, be sure to check tire press ures at
l east once a month and a lways befo re going
on a long trip. Make s ure to take the number
of peop le and the amount of luggage into ac­
count when adjusting tire pressure for a trip -
even one that you would not consider to be
"long. " See
¢ page 243, Tires and vehicle
load limits
for more important information .
Always use an accurate tire pressure gauge
when checking and ad justing inflation pres ­
sures . Check all of the tires and be sure not to
forget the spare tire. If the pressure in any t ire
is too h igh when the ti re is "cold," let a ir out
of the t ire s low ly w ith the edge o f the tire
gauge and keep checking the pressure until
you reach the pressure that is correct for the
load (passengers and luggage) and kind of
driv ing you plan to do. •
•

24 2 T ire s and wheel s
If the pressure in any tire is too low, note the
difference between the pressure in the cold
tire and the pressure you need and add the air
that you need to reach the correct pressure for
the vehicle load (passengers and luggage) for
the tires on your veh icle as listed on the on
your veh icle and in this manual and the k ind
of dr iving you p lan to do.
Ne ver exceed the m aximum inflat ion pres ­
s ur e liste d on th e tir e si dewall for any r ea ­
son.
Remember that the vehicle manufacturer, not
the tire manufacturer, determ ines the correct
tire pressure for the tires on your vehicle .
It is important to check the tire pressure when
the tires are cold.
- Read the required ti re p ressure from the tire
pressure label. The tire pressure labe l is lo ­
cated on the driver's side 8-p illar.
- Turn the valve stem cap counter-clockwise
to remove it from the tire valve.
- Place the air pressu re ga uge on the valve.
- T he tire pressures sho uld on ly be chec ked
and adjusted when the tires are cold. The
slightly raised pressures of warm tires must
not be reduced .
- Adjust the tire pressure to the load you are
carrying .
- Reinsta ll the va lve stem cap on the valve.
When should I ch eck the tire pressur e?
The correct tire pressure is especially impor­
tant at high speeds. The pressure should
therefo re be checked at least once a month
and a lways befo re start ing a journey. Do no t
forget to check the tire pressure for the spare
wheel
¢ page 257 .
When should I adju st the tire p res sures?
Adjust the tire p ressu re to the load you are
carry ing. After 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 in the tire pres­
sure monitoring system*¢
page 253.
_& WARNING
Incorrect tire pressures and/or underinfla­
tion can lead sudden tire fa ilure, loss of
control, collision, serious personal injury
or even death.
- When the warn ing symbol
[I) appears in
the instrument cluster, stop and inspect
the t ires.
- Inco rrect tire pressure and/or underinfla­
tion can cause increased tire wear and
can affect the hand ling of the vehicle and
s topping abi lity.
- I nco rrect tire pressures and/or unde rin­
f lation can a lso lead to sudden t ire fail­
ure, including a blowou t and sudden de­
flation, ca us ing loss of veh icle contro l.
- The drive r is responsible for the co rrec t
tire pressures for all tires on the veh icle.
The applicable pressure values are loca t­
ed on a sticker on the driver's s ide 8 -pil­
lar.
- On ly when all tires on the vehicle are fil­
led to the correct pressure, the tire pres­
sure mon itoring* system can work cor­
rectly.
- The use of incorrect tire pressure va lues
can lead to acc idents or other damage.
Therefore it is essential that the driver
observe the spec ified t ire pressure values
for the tires and the correct pressures for
the function of the t i re p ress ure monito r­
ing system*.
- Always inflate tires to the recommended
and correct t ire pressure before dr iv ing
off.
- Driving with underinf lated tires bend
mo re, letting them get too hot resulting
in tread separation, s udde n tire f ailure
and loss of cont ro l.
- Excessive speed and/overloading can
cause heat build- up, sudden tire failure
and loss of cont ro l.
- I f the tire pressure is too low or too high,
the t ires will wear prema turely and the
vehicle wi ll not handle well. ..,

-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'-
•
•

244 Tires and wheels -Always make sure that the total load be­
ing transported -including the weight of
a trailer hitch and the tongue weight of a
loaded trailer -does not make the vehi­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle Weight Rating.
Determining correct load limit
Use the example below to cal­
culate the total weight of the
passengers and luggage or oth­
er things that you plan to trans­
port so that you can make sure
that your vehicle will not be
overloaded.
Steps for Determining
Correct Load Limit
1. Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF OC­
CUPANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NEVER EXCEED XXX KG OR XXX LBS" on your ve­
hicle's placard (tire inflation
pressure label)
¢ page 239,
fig. 178.
2. Determine the combined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers from
"XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds shown on the sticker
¢ page 239, fig. 178.
4. The resulting figure equals
the available amount of car­
go and luggage load capaci­
ty. For example, if the
"XXX"
amount equals 1400 lbs.
and there will be five
150
lbs. passengers in your vehi­
cle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load ca­
pacity is
650 lbs. (1400-7 50
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs.)
5. Determine the combined
weight of luggage and cargo being loaded on the vehicle.
That weight may not safely
exceed the available cargo
and luggage load capacity
calculated in Step
4.
6.
If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer, load from your trail­
er will be transferred to your
vehicle. Consult this manual
to determine how this re­ duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle.
... Check the tire sidewall
(¢page 246, fig. 182) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.