2012 AUDI A6 warning

230 Check ing and filling
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
always r ea d and heed all W ARN­
INGS
¢ A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 220.
• Read the brake fluid leve l from the brake
fluid reservoir
¢ fig. 175. The brake fluid
l evel must be between the
"MIN" and
"MAX" markings .
The location of the brake fluid reservoir can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
co page 222.
The fl uid level may drop slightly after some
time due to the automatic adjustment of the brake pads . This is not cause for alarm .
I f the b rake fluid level falls
considerably be­
l ow the "MIN" mark, the brake wa rning/indi ­
cator light- (U.S.
models) ;II (Canadian
models) will come on
¢ page 14. Do not con ­
tinue to operate the vehicle. The comp lete
brake system shou ld be thoroughly checked
by an authorized Audi dealer or other quali­
fied fac il ity and the cause corrected. If the
brake fluid level is too low, the brake warn ing/
i ndicator light w ill illuminate. Contact an au­
thor ized Audi dealer
imm ediatel y.
Changing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experi­
enced technician .
Brake fluid absorbs moistu re from the a ir . If
the water content in the brake fluid is too
h igh, corrosion in the brake system may result
after a per iod of t ime . The bo iling po int of the
b rake fluid w ill also decrease considerably and
dec rease braking per formance.
Therefore, the brake flu id must be changed
ev ery tw o y ear s. Always use new b rake fluid
which confo rms to Fede ral Motor Vehicle
Standard "FMVSS 1 16 DO T 4".
The brake flu id rese rvoi r can be difficult to
r each, therefo re , we re commend that yo u
have the brake fl uid changed by yo ur a utho r­
ized
Audi dealer. Your dea ler has the correct tools, the
right brake flu id and t he know -how
to do this for you.
A WARNING
-- Brake flu id is poisonous. It must be stor-
ed only in the closed or igina l container
out of the reach of children!
- Brake failure can resu lt from o ld or inap­
propriate brake f lu id. Observe these pre­
cautions:
- Use only brake f luid that meets SA E
spe cifi cation
J 17 03 and conforms to
Federa l Motor Vehicle Standard 1 16 .
Always chec k with your authorized A udi
dealer to make sure yo u are using the
correct brake fluid. The cor rect type of
brake flu id is also ind icated on the
brake f lu id reservoir.
- The brake fluid must be new. Heavy use
of the brakes can cause a vapor lock if
the brake fluid is left i n the system too
long . This can se riously affect the effi­
c iency of the brakes as well as your
safety . T h is i:ou ld result in an ai;i;ident.
(D Note
Brake fluid will damage the pai nt of you r
vehicle .
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the prob lem of proper disposal
of brake fluid as well as the spec ial too ls
r equired and the necessary expertise, we
r ecommend that yo u have the brake flu id
changed by yo ur autho rized Aud i dea le r.
Battery
General information
Under normal operat ing cond itions, the bat­
te ry in your Audi does not need any ma inte­
nance. With
high outside temperatures or
long da ily drives we recommend that you have
the e lectrolyte leve l che cked by a se rv ice fa­
c il ity. The electroly te leve l should also be
chec ked each time the battery is cha rged
¢ page 233 .

Have the battery checked when you take your
vehicle in for service. Yo u are well advised to
replace a battery that is older than 5 years .
W ith certa in types o f airbag deployment, the
battery is disconnec ted from the vehicle elec ­
trica l system for safety reasons
c::> &. in Re­
pair, care and disposal of the airbags on
page 158.
Disconn ecting the battery terminal s
Some vehicle functions (power w indow regu­
l ators, for example) are lost if the battery ter­
minals are disconnected . These functions have
to be re learned after the battery terminals are
connec ted again. To prevent this, the battery
should only be disconnected from the vehicle
e lectrical system when absolutely necessary
for repairs .
Vehicles not driven for long period s
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period
of several days or weeks, electrical compo­
nents are gradually cu t back or switched off .
This reduces energy consumption and main ­
tains starting capability over a longer per iod
c::> page 194. Some of the convenience func­
tions may not operate, s uch as the inte rior
lights o r power seat adjus tme nt. The conven­
i ence functions will be ava ilable again when
you switch on the ignition and start the en­ gine.
Winter operation
D uring the winter months, ba ttery capaci ty
t ends to decrease as tempe rat ures d rop . This
is because more powe r is also consumed while
starting , and the headlights, rear window de ­
fogger, etc., are used more often.
Avoid unnecessary power cons umption, par­
ticularly in c ity t ra ff ic or when t raveling on ly
short distances. Let your a uthorized Audi
dealer check the capac ity of the vehicle bat ­
tery before winter sets inc::>
page 233. A well
charged battery w ill not only prevent starting
problems whe n the weather is cold, but will
also last longer .
Checkin g and fillin g 231
(D Tips
If your vehicle is left standing for seve ral
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 .
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the battery.
The battery is located in the l uggage compart­
ment under the floor. Before you check any­
th ing in the luggage compartment,
read and
h eed all WARNINGS
c::> &_ .
Always heed the safety warnings , when work­
ing on the vehicle battery or the vehicle e lec­
trical system to prevent injury.
The following WARNINGS are very
important when working on the battery:
Alw ays heed the follo wing WARNING SYM­
BOLS and safety precautions when working on the battery.
@
®
Always wear eye protection.
Battery acid contains sulfuric acid.
Always w ear gloves and eye prot ec­
tion .
No
- sparks
-flames
- smoking .
When a battery i s charged, it produ­
ce s hydrogen gas wh ich is e xplosive
and could cause per sonal injury .
Always keep the battery well out of ]
reach of children .
_& WARNING ~
Whenever working on the battery o r on
the electrical system, there is the risk of injury, accident and even fire . Read and
heed the following WARNINGS:
•
•

232 Checking and filling
-Always wear eye protection. Do not let
battery acid or any lead particles get on
your skin or clothing . Shield your eyes .
Explosive gases can cause blindness or
other injury .
- Battery acid contains sulfuric acid . Sulfu­
ric acid can cause blindness and severe
burns .
- Always wear gloves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because acid
could leak out of the ventilation open­
ings.
- If you get battery acid in your eyes or
on your skin, immediately rinse with
cold water for several minutes and get
medical attention .
- If you should ingest any battery acid,
seek medical attention immediately.
- Do not expose the battery to an open
flame, electric 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. This 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 explosive and
could cause personal injury .
- Always keep the battery well out of the
reach of children .
- Before work is done on the electrical sys­ tem, disconnect the negative ground ca­ble.
- Before performing any work on the elec­
trical system, switch
off the engine and
ignition as well as any electrical equip ­
ment . The negative cable on the battery
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 °C) .
-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.
There is the danger of an explosion! Al­
ways replace a damaged battery.
A WARNING
California Proposition 6S 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.
(D Note
- Do not disconnect the vehicle battery
when the ignition is on or when the en­ gine is running, otherwise, you will dam­
age electronic components in the electri­
cal 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 .

Battery charging
Starting the engine requires a well charged battery .
Fig. 176 Eng ine compartment : connectors for a charg ­
er and jump sta rt cab les
A lwa ys re ad and heed all WARNING S below
c:> &. and c:> &. in Working on the battery on
page 231 .
.. Switch off the ignit ion and all electrical con­
sumers .
.. Make sure the area is well ventilated when
you charge the battery .
.. Open the engine hood
c:> page 220 .
.. Open the red cove r on the posit ive pole
c:>fig. 176.
.. Connect the charger connectors accord ing
to the instructions to the
jump start b olts .
(Bolts under the red cover= "positive", Bolts
with hex head= "negative").
.. Only now plug the mains lead for the charg­
ing equipmen t into the wall outlet and turn
it on
c:> 8_ .
.. Ma ke sur e t he charging rat e is not over
30 amp s/14 .8 Vol t.
.. When the batte ry is fully charged: Turn the
charging eq uipment off a nd remove the
ma ins lead from the wall outlet .
.. Now remove the clamps for the charging
equipment.
.. Close the red cover on the positive pole.
.. Close the hood
c:> page 2 21.
A discharged battery can free ze at tempera­
tures of on ly 32 F
0 (0 °C). A llow a frozen bat­
tery to thaw completely before attempt ing to
charge it
c:> .&. . However, we recommend not
using a thawed battery again because the bat-
Checkin g and fillin g 233
tery casing can be cracked due to ice forma ­
tion and can leak battery acid.
Battery charging (Maximum charging rate
of 30 amps /14.8 Volt )
When charging at low voltages (e.g. with a
trickle cha rger ), the battery cables do not
have to be disconnected f irst . The battery
caps should
not be opened when charging a
battery.
It is not necessary to remove the battery from
the luggage compartment, and it is also not
necessary to disconnect the cables.
Fast ch arging the batte ry (charging rat e
a bove 14.8 Volt s)
For technica l reasons do not use a battery
charger that uses voltage greater than 14.8
Volts to charge your vehicle's battery .
A WARNING
-
Charging a battery can be dange rous .
- Always follow the operating instructions
provided by the battery charger manu­
facturer when charg ing your battery .
- Never charge a frozen battery. It may ex­
plode because of gas trapped in the ice .
Allow a frozen battery to thaw out first.
- Do not reuse batteries wh ic h were fro­
zen. The battery housing may have
cracked and weakened when the battery
froze.
- Cha rge the battery in a well ventilated
area . Keep away from open flame or elec­
trical spar k. Do not smo ke. Hyd rogen gas
generated by the bat tery is explos ive.
- To reduce the danger of explosion, never
connect or d isconnect charger cab les
while the charger i s ope rat ing.
- Fast cha rging a batte ry is dange rous and
should only be at tempted by a compe­
tent techn ician wi th the prope r equip­
ment .
- Ba ttery acid that may spi ll dur ing charg­
ing should be washed off with a solution
of warm water and baking soda to neu ­
tralize the ac id.

234 Checking and filling
(D Note
Never use a fast charger as a booster to
start the engine. This will seriously dam­
age sensitive electronic components, such
as control units, relays, radio, etc., as well
as the battery charger.
Battery replacement
The new battery must have the same specifi­
cations and dimensions as the original equip­
ment battery.
Intelligent energy management in your vehi­
cle is responsible for distributing the electri­
cal energy throughout your vehicle
~ page 194. The intell igent energy manage­
ment system will keep the engine battery
charged better than vehicles without this sys­
tem. To make sure the additional electrica l en­
ergy is available once again after you have
changed the battery, we recommend that you install batteries of the same type and manu­
facture only (the same as those installed at
the time your vehicle was delivered). Specifi­
cations are listed on the battery housing. Your
author ized dealer must code the battery in
the energy management system to enable you
to use the energy management funct ions cor­
rectly after replacing the battery .
The new battery must have the same capacity,
voltage (12 volts), amperage, construct ion
and plug sealing.
When installing the battery, make sure the ig­
nition and all electr ical consumers are switch ­
ed off.
(D Note
Make sure the ventilation hose on the side
of the battery is connected, otherwise
fumes or battery ac id can leak out.
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the problem of proper disposal
of a battery, we recommend your author­
ized Audi dealer change the battery for
you . Batteries contain su lfuric acid and l
ead and must always be disposed of prop­
erly in compliance with all environmental
regulations. Disposing of vehicle batter ies
i mproperly is very dangerous to the envi­
ronment.
Windshield/head Light
washer container
Fig. 177 En g in e compart men t: w inds hield and head ­
lighr washer fluid reservoir
The washer fluid conta iner is marked w ith the
symbol~ on its cap.
"' Before you check anything in the engine
compartment,
always read and heed all
WARNINGS ~.&. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 220.
"' Lift the filler cap tongue to add washer flu ­
id. You can fill the container to the top.
"' Press the cap back onto the filler neck after
fi lling the container.
You can find the reservoir
capacity in the table
in
~ page 2 76.
Clean water should be used when filling up. If
possible, use soft water to prevent scaling on
washer jets. Always add a glass cleaner solu­
tion (with frost protection in the winter).
@ Note
Do not mix engine coolan t ant ifreeze or
any other additives to fill up the wind­
shield washer reservoir .

Tires and wheels
Tires
General notes
Tires may be the least appreciated and most
abused parts of a motor vehicle .
Tires may be the least appreciated and most
abused parts of a motor vehicle . T ires are,
however, one of the most important parts of a
vehicle, particularly considering the compara­
tively small patch of rubber on eac h tire that
assures that a ll- important contact between
you, you r vehicle and the road.
Maintaining the correct tire pressure, mak ing
sure that your vehicle and its tires do not have
to carry mo re weight than they can safely han­
d le, avoiding damage from road hazards and
r eg ularly inspec ting t ires for damage i nclud­
ing cuts, slashes irregu la r wear and ove rall
condition are the most important things that
you can do to he lp avoid sudden tire failure in­
cluding tread separat ion and blowouts.
Avoiding damage If you have to d rive over a curb or similar ob­
stacle, drive very slow ly and as close as possi ­
b le at a right angle to the curb.
A lways keep chemicals includ ing grease, o il ,
gasoline and brake fluid off the t ires .
I nspect the t ires regularly for damage (cuts,
cracks or b listers, etc.). Remove any fo reign
bod ies embedde d in the treads.
Storing tires Mark tires when you remove them to indicate
the direction of rotation . T his ensures you to
be ab le to mount them correctly when you re­
i nstall them .
When removed, the whee ls or t ires should be
sto red in a cool, d ry and preferably dark place .
Store tires in a vertical pos ition if they are not
mounted on rims, in a horizontal pos it ion if
they are mounted on rims .
Tires an d wheel s 235
New tires
New tir es have to be broken in ¢ & .
The tread depth of new t ires may vary, accord­
ing to the type a nd make of t ire and the tread
pa tte rn.
Hidden damage
Damage to tires and r ims is ofte n not readily
visible . If you notice unusual v ib rat io n or the
vehicle p ulls to one s ide, th is may ind icate
that one of the t ires has been damaged . T he
ti res m ust be chec ked immed iate ly by an au­
thorized Audi dea le r or q ua lified wor kshop .
Unidirectional tires
A un idirectional tire can be identified by ar­
rows on the s idewa ll, that po int in the direc­
tion the t ire is designed to rotate. You mus t
f ol low the specified di rection o f rotation . T his
is necessary so that these tires can develop
their optimum characteristics regarding grip, road noise, wear and hydrop laning resistance.
For more information
¢ page 263.
A WARNING
New tires or t ires that are o ld, worn or
damaged cannot provide maximum con­
trol and braking ability .
-
-New tires tend to be slippery and must
be broken in. To reduce the r isk of losing
control, a co llision and ser ious personal
in ju ries, d rive with special ca re fo r the
fi rst 350 m iles ( 560 km).
- Driving with worn or damaged tires can
lead to loss of control, sudden tire fail­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
fl ation, c ras hes and se riou s personal in­
juries . Have wo rn or damaged t ires re­
placed immediate ly.
- Ti res age even if they are not being used
and can fai l sudden ly, especially at hig h
spee ds. Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
and then w ith special care and at low
speed.
•
•

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.
•
•

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. •
•