2012 AUDI A6 checking oil

222 Checking and filling
Engine compartment
Engine compartment overview
These are the most important items that you can check.
Fig. 171 Typ ical layout for contai ners and eng ine o il filler cap
(D Jump start point(-) with hex
head screw .... ............. 233, 268
@ Jump start point(+) under a cov-
er .. .. ............... .... . 233,268
@ Brake fluid reservoir ((0)) .. .. .
© Engine oil filler cap ( ® Coolant expansion tank (-L) .. .
® Windshield/headlight washer
t . (.'R) con ainer ,,.., ............ . .
229
225
227
234
The engine oil filler neck (item @) may be lo­
cated in a different area depending on the ver­
sion of the engine.
~ WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
¢ &. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 220.
-
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine oil used in your Audi needs the
right kind of oil.
The engine in your Audi is a sophisticated
powerplant that was built to exacting specifi­
cations . This engine needs the right kind of
engine oil that meets specifications regarding
quality and viscosity so that it can run
smoothly and reliably . Choosing the right oil
and changing oil within the t ime and mileage
intervals printed in you r vehicle's Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet matters a lot more to­
day than it did years ago . Audi has developed
a special quality standard for engine oil that
will help assure that your vehicle's engine will
get the lubrication it needs for proper opera-
tion. ..,.

Checking the engine oil level
Fig . 172 D is p la y : o il level indi ca tor
• Park your vehicle on a lev el surfac e.
• Shut the engine off when it is warm.
• Switch only the ignition b ack on.
• W ait approxima tely two minutes .
• Se lect :
ICARI function button > Car s ystem s
control button > Servicing & ch eck s > Oil
level.
• Check the o il leve l in the display ¢ fig. 172 .
Add engine oil if the bar of the oil level indi­
cator is near "min "
~page 225.
Depending on the way the veh icle is driven
and the operating conditions, oil consumpt ion
can be up to 1/2 q uart per 600 m iles (0.5 li ter
pe r 1,000 km) . Consumption may be higher
within the f irst 3 ,000 miles (5,000 km).
(D Tips
The oi l level indicator in the MMI Dis play is
only an in format ion disp lay . If the oil leve l
is low, a minimum oi l warning appears in
the instrument cluster. Add oi l
q page 225. If the hood has been opened,
the curre nt oil level is shown in the instru­
ment cluste r the next time the ign ition is
sw itched on .
Checkin g and fillin g 225
Adding engine oil 'i=:1:
Fig. 173 Engin e compa rtm en t: co ve r on the engine o il
filler n eck
Before you check anything in the eng ine com­
partment ,
alw ay s re ad and he ed all WARN­
INGS ¢&.
in Working in the engine compart ­
ment on page 220.
• Uns crew the cap~ to the eng ine oi l filling
hole
¢ fig . 173.
• Caref ully top off with the appropr iate oil in
0.5 liter doses .
• Check t he oil level aga in after two minutes
¢ page 225 .
• Top off the o il aga in, if necessary .
• Screw the cap back on the filling hole .
A WARNING
-Wh ile topping off, the o il must not come
i n contact w ith hot engine parts -fi re
hazard!
- The oi l filler cap must be p roperly se­
cured to prevent oil from bei ng sprayed
on the hot engine and exhaust system
when the engine is runn ing -fire ha zard!
- I f your ski n has come in contact with the
engine o il, you mus t subse quently
cleanse it thoroughly.
(D Note
- Check the oil level using the MMI. If the
message
Please reduce oil level appe ars,
c ontact yo ur a uth ori zed Aud i dea ler o r
ot her qualified workshop to have excess
oil ext racted if necessary.
- Audi d oes not re commend the u se of oil
additiv es. They m ay damage the engine
1111-

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

252 Tire s and wheel s
Where snow chains are mandatory oncer­
tain roads, this normally also applies to ve­
hicles with all-wheel drive.
Wheel bolts
Wheel bolts must always be tightened to the
correct torque .
The design of whee l bolts is matched to the
factory insta lled rims . If different rims are fit­
ted, the correct wheel bolts with the r ight
length and correctly shaped bolt heads must
be used. This ensures that wheels are fitted
securely and that the brake system functions
correctly .
In certain circumstances, you may not use
wheel bolts from a different vehicle -even if it
is the same model
r=> page 280.
A WARNING
Imprope rly tightened o r maintained wheel
bolts can becom e loose ca using loss of
c ont ro l, a co llision and serious persona l in­
Jury .
- Always keep the w heel bolts an d the
threads in the wheel hubs clean so the
w heel bolts can turn easily and be p rop­
er ly tigh tened .
- N ever grease or oil the wheel bo lt s an d
the threads in the w heel hubs. They can
become loose while d riving if greased or
oi led, even if tightened to the specified
torq ue.
- Only use wheel bolts that belong to the
rim being installed.
- N ever use different whee ls bolts on your
vehicle.
- Alw ays maintain the co rrec t tighten ing
torq ue fo r th e wheel bo lts to reduce the
risk of a wheel loss . If the tightening tor­
que of the wheel bo lts is too low, they
can loosen and come out w hen the veh i­
cle is moving. If the tighteni ng torque is
too high, the whee l bolts and threads can be damaged and the whee
l can be­
come loose.
@ Note
The specified torque for the whee l bolts is
90 ft lb (120 Nm) with a tolerance of± 7,4
ft lb(± 10 Nm) . Torque whee l bolts diago­
nally. After changing a whee l, the torque
must be checked as soon as possible with a
torque w rench -preferably by an author­
i zed Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
Low aspect ratio tires
Your A udi is facto ry-eq uipped w it h low aspect
ra tio tires. These tires have been tho roughly
tested and been se lected specific ally fo r your
model fo r their superb perfo rmance, road fee l
and hand ling under a variety of d riving condi ­
t ions . Ask your author ized A udi dealer for
more details.
T he low aspect ratio of these tires is ind icated
by a numera l of
55 or less in the tire's s ize
designation. The n umera l represents the ratio
of the tire's sidewa ll height in relation to its
tread width expressed in percentage. Conven­
t iona l tires have a he ight/w idth rat io of 60 or
more .
The performance of low-aspect -ratio tires is
particularly sens iti ve to imp roper inflation
pressure. It is therefore important that low
a spect ratio tires are inflated to the specified
pre ssure and that the inflation pressure i s
regularly ch ecked and maintain ed. Tire pre s·
sure s should be checked at lea st once a
month and always before a long trip
r=> page 241, Checking tire pressure .
What you can do to avoid tire and rim
damage
Low aspect ra tio tires can be d amage d more
easily by impact w it h potholes, curbs, g ull ies
or ridges on t he road, particularly if the tire is
u nd eri nflated.

28 4 Index
Automatic transmission . . . . . . . . . 10 1, 106
Automatic Shift Lock (ASL) . . . . . 103, 109
Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101, 107
Dynamic shift program . . . . . . . . 104, 110
Emergency mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106, 111
Emergency release . . . . . . . . . . . . 106, 112
Kick-dow n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104, 109
M anual sh ift program . . . . . . . . . 105, 1 10
Selec to r l eve r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 , 108
Shift b uttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105, 1 11
Steer ing whee l w ith mu lti tronic ... .. . 105
Steering whee l with tiptronic ....... . 11 1
Automatic wipe rs ........... ... .. ... . 46
Auto Safety Hotline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Average consumption ....... .. .. .... .. 24
Average speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Avoid damaging the vehicle . ... ... ... . 197
B
Battery ..... .. . .. ..... ... .. .. .... . 230
Charging .... .. .. ..... ... .. .. .... . 233
Important warnings . ... .. .. ... ... . 23 1
Jump starting .............. .. .... . 268
Locat ion . ............... .. .. .... . 231
low . .. .. .. ... .. ..... ... .... .. .. . 194
Replacing the battery ......... .. ... 234
State of charge ..... ...... .. .. .. .. . 194
W inter operation ......... .. .. .. .. . 230
Wo rking on the battery .... .. .. .. .. . 231
Before driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Blended gasoline .. ..... ... .. .. .... . 215
Blower (automatic climate cont rol) .. .. .. 67
Blower (climate control) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Body cav ity sealing ....... .. .. .. .. .. . 209
Booster seats .............. ... .. .. . 177
Brake fl uid
Changing the brake fl uid ... .. .. .... .
230
Check ing the brake fluid level . .. ..... 229
What is the correct brake flu id leve l? .. 229
What should I do if the brake fluid warn -
ing light comes on? ........ ..... .. .
229
Brake system
Anti-lock braking system ... .... .... ..
19
Brake ass ist system ....... .. .. .. .. . 189
Brake booster .. .... ...... .. .. .. .. . 192
Brake fl uid . ..... ......... ... .. ... 229
B rake fluid specifications fo r r efill and re -
placement . ..... .. ... ..... ... .. ..
230
Brake light defective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Brake pads .... .. ............. .... 196
Electromechanical parking brake . .... . 73
Fluid reservo ir . .. ................ . 229
How does moisture or road salt affect the
brakes? ....... .. .. ........ ...... .
191
Warning/ind icator lights ...... .. .. .. . 14
Worn b rake pads symbo l ........ .. .. . 20
braking guard . .. .. .......... ...... .. 78
Messages ... .. .. .. ... .. ... ..... .. . 85
Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Break -in period .. .. ... .......... .. .. 196
Brake pads .... .. ............. .... 196
Tires ...... ... .. .. ... ........... . 196
Bulbs . ... .. .... .. .. ... ..... ... .. .. 267
C
Cali forn ia Proposition 65 Warn ing . .... 221
Battery specific . ... ... ..... ... .. .. 232
Capac,t,es ...... .. .. ... ........... . 276
Engine oil . .. .. .. ............. .. .. 2 22
Car care .... .... .. ............. .... 204
Exterior . .. .. ... ... ... .. ... ... .. .. 204
Interior ...... ... .. .............. . 210
Cargo area ...... .. ... .. .. ... .... . .. 129
Cargo ne t ... .. .. .. .. ........... .... . 61
Catalytic converter . ............. .. .. 197
Center armrest
Cockpit ... .... .. .. .... . ... ... .. .. .
51
Central lock ing .. .. ............. .. ... 32
E mergency loc king ............... .. . 36
Certification ...... ............... .. 281
Changing a wheel . ... ... ..... ... .. .. 258
Changi ng engine oil ................ . 226
Chassis (undercoat ing) ............. .. 209
Checking
Engine coolant level ..... .... ... .. ..
227
Tire pressure ..... ... .. ..... .... . .. 241
Child rest raints
Danger of using child rest rain ts in t he
fron t seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
144
Where can I get additional in format ion
about child restraints and their use? . .
186
Child rest raint system a nchors .. .. .. .. 182

Engine oi l ... .. .... ..... .. .. .. .. ... 222
Adding .... .... .. .... ... .. .. .. ... 225
Addit ives ... .... ...... ... .. .. .. .. . 225
Changing .. ............. .... .. ... 226
Checking the eng ine o il level .. .. .. .. . 225
Indications and cond it ions requ iring ex -
tra check ing ..... .. ...... .. .. .. .. . 225
I ndicator light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
O il consumption .......... .. .. .. .. . 224
O il gr ad es .. ............. .... .. ... 22 2
O il level symbol ....... ... .. .. .. .... 21
P ressu re mal function ... ... .. .. .. .. .. 17
Recommended oil check intervals .. .. . 225
Sensor defective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Specification and viscos ity .. .. .. .. .. . 222
E ng ine speed limi tat ion .. ... .. .. .. .. .. 21
E ng ine start system (ind icator l ights) .. .. 18
Environment Break- in period ........... .... .. ... 196
Catalytic converter ........ .. .. .. .. . 197
Disposing of your vehicle batte ry .. .. . 234
Driving at h igh speeds ........ .... .. 199
Driving to m inim ize pollution and no ise 198
F ue l ..... .. ................. .. ... 2 17
Fu el economy ............ .... .. .. . 198
L eaks under your ve hicle ... .. .. .. .. . 220
L ett ing the ve hicle stand and wa rm up. 199
Prope r disposal of drained brake fluid . 230
Prope r disposal of dra ined engine coo l-
ant ..... .. ................. .. ... 228
Proper disposal of drained engine
oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225, 226
Recycling used engine o il . ..... .... .. 225
Un leaded f uel ......... ...... .... .. 215
Wha t should I do wi th an old batte ry? . 234
ESP (Electronic s tabilization program)
War ning/ indicator lights ... .. .. .. .. .. 19
Event Data Recorder (EDR) ... .. .. .. .. . 189
E xhaust tail p ipes .... ...... .... .. .. . 210
Expansion tank ............ .... .. .. . 227
E xterior lighting . ... .... ... .. .. .... .. 41
E xterior mirrors
Ad justing ............ .... ... ... ... 48
D imming . .. ............. .... .. .... 48
H eating .. .. .. ........... .. .. .. .... 48
Exterior temperature d isplay ..... ... ... 23
Inde x 287
F
Fastening
Booster seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Convertib le child safety seats . ... .. .. 175
Infant seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 4
Fl oor ma ts .. .. .. .. .. .. ........... .. 1 28
Foot peda ls .... ... .. ..... .......... 128
Fo r th e sake of the environment
Gasoline fumes and the env ironment . . 217
Red ucing engine noise by early upshift -
ing ....... .. .. .. ................. . 11
Refueling . .. .. .... .. ........ ..... 217
Sav ing fuel by early upsh ifting ...... .. 11
Fo ur-zone automatic climate control ... . 66
Fron t air bags
D es cription . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
How they wor k . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Frontal coll is io ns and the laws of p hys ics 134
Front seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Adjusting . .. .. .. .. .. ........... .. 125
Child restraints in the front seat ...... 144
Fuel Additives . ... .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 215
B lended gaso line ..... ............. 215
C u rre nt consumption ........... .. .. . 24
Economy messages (effic iency program) 25
Fuel fil le r flap emergency re lease . .... 218
Fuel fi ller nec k ... .. .. .. ...... .... . 216
Fuel gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Gasoline .. .. .. .. ... ............ .. 215
Gasoline ad di tives .... ........... .. 216
L ow fue l level symbol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Octane rat ing . ..... . .. .. ..... ... .. 215
Recommendation ... . .. .. ... ... .. .. 215
Ref uel ling ... .. ...... ............. 217
Reserve ... .. .. .. ... ............ .. . 12
Tank capac ity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12, 276
Fuses Ass ignment ..... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 264
Rep lacing . .. .. .. ................. 264
G
Ga rage door opener (Homelink ®) . ... .. 120
Ga rment hooks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Gas discharge lamps ............. .... 267
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