2012 AUDI A6 headlights

Instrument s and warning /indicator lights 11
Instruments and warning/indicator lights
Instruments
Instrument cluster and controls
The instrument cluster is your central source of information.
Fig. 3 Overv iew of the instrument cluster
CD Coolant temperature gauge .. .
@ Tachometer (eng ine rev counter)
@ Turn signals ............... .
@ Display with
®
®
-Driver information system .. .
- Wa rning/ind icator lights
Tachometer Fuel gauge
@ Tips
11
12
43
23
12
12
The instrument illumination (for dials and
needles) turns on when the ignition is on
and the vehicle lights are turned off. As
the daylight fades, the illumination of the
dials likewise dims automatically and wil l
go out completely when the outside light
is very low. This feature is meant to rem ind
you to switch on the headlights when out­
side light conditions become poor.
Engine coolant temperature gauge
The engine coolant gauge CD¢ page 11, fig. 3
only works when the ignition is on. To prevent
damage to your eng ine, please note the fol­
l owing important points:
Engine cold
If only the LEDs at the bottom of the gauge
turn on, the eng ine has not reached operating
temperature yet . Avoid high engine speeds,
heavy engine loads and heavy throttle applica­
tions.
Normal temperatu re
The engine has reached its operating temper­
ature once the LEDs up to the center of the
gauge turn on under normal driving cond i­
t ions. The LEDs higher up may turn on when
the engine is under heavy load or the exterior
temperature is high. This is no need to worry
as long as the. warning light in the instru ­
ment cluster does not illuminate . If the LEDs
in the upper area of the display and the indica­
tor light . in the instrument cluster display
turn on, the coolant temperature is too high
¢page 16.
A WARNING
-Always observe the warn ing in
¢ page 214, Engine compartment, be­
fore opening the hood and checking the
engine coolant level.

Instruments and warning/indicator lights 21
!?i Engine speed limitation
A ppl ies to vehicles: wit h en gin e s pee d l im itat ion
(II Engine speed maximum XXXX RPM
The engine speed is automatically limited to
the speed displayed in the driver information
system. This protects the engine from over­ heating.
The engine speed limitation deactivates once
the engine is no longer in the critical tempera­
ture range and you have released the accelera­
tor pedal once.
If the engine speed limitation was activated by an engine control malfunction, the indica­
tor light~ also turns on. Make sure that the
speed does not go above the speed displayed.
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
~ . Engine oil level
II Add oil, max. x qt (l). You may continue
driving
When the symbol Ill and driver message ap­
pear, add the amount of oil appearing in the
display at the next opportunity ¢
page 225.
~ .... Engine oil sensor
II Oil level! Sensor defective
If the symbol illuminates, contact your au­
thorized Audi dealer and have the oil sensor inspected. Until you have this done, check the
oil level each time you refuel just to be on the
safe side¢
page 225.
Bil Fuel level indicator
Ii Please refuel
If the indicator light turns on for the first
time and the message appears, there are
about 2.6 gallons (10 liters) of fuel left in the
tank . Time to refuel
¢ page 216.
Ii Tank system malfunction! Contact dealer
If the indicator light turns on and this mes­
sage appears, there is a malfunction in the
tank system.
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
C> Windshield washer fluid level
II Please refill washer fluid
If the symbol illuminates, add windshield
washer fluid to the washer system/headlight
washer system* ¢
page 234.
~ Windshield wipers
rlJ Windshield wiper defective
There is a malfunction with the windshield
wipers.
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
~/0$ Defective light bulb warning
f'a-If the indicator light turns on, a bulb has
failed. The message indicates the location of
the bulb.
IJ-if a rear fog lamp has failed, the indicator
light turns on to indicate the location on the
vehicle.
Vehicle lights: malfunction
If the message appears, there is a malfunc ­
tion in the headlights or light switch .
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
A WARNING
- Light bulbs are pressurized and could ex­
plode while they are being changed caus­
ing serious personal injury.
- Work with due care when handling the
high-voltage section of gas discharge
(xenon) lights. Failure to do so could re­
sult in death or serious injury.

22 Instruments and warning/indicator lights
Have the bulb replaced or the connection
repaired by you r aut horized Aud i Service
department.
i,lD Headlight range control
II Headlight range control: defective !
If the symbo l illuminates, t he headlight range
contro l is no longer working properly . Have
the system checked and repaired at your Aud i
dealer .
l§O Adaptive Light
Applies to vehicles: with Adapt ive Light
II Audi adaptive light: system fault
If the indicator light t urns on and th is mes­
sage appears, there is a malfunction in the
adapt ive light system . The headlights still
f u nction .
Go to an aut hori zed dea lership to have the
h eadlights or the contro l unit for t he Adapt ive
Light repai red .
~D Light/rain sensor
f'al Automatic headlights /automatic wipers:
system fault
I f th e i ndicator lig ht turns on and t his mes­
sage appears, t he lig ht/ra in sensor is no t
f u nctioni ng cor rec tly .
For safety reasons the low beams are turned
on permanent ly w ith the switch in
AUTO .
However , you can continue to turn the ligh ts
on an d off using the light swi tc h. Y ou can still
con trol a ll fu nct ions tha t are indepe ndent of
t h e rai n sens or throug h the win dshi eld wipe r
l eve r.
Contact your au thor ized Audi deal er as soon
as poss ible to have the prob le m cor recte d.
¢ Q Turn signals
The indicator light blinks when you use either
turn signal .
Whenever yo u use the left B o r th e right rl
turn s ignal , the indicator light blinks. Whe n
you use the emergency flas he rs, both indica­
tor lights flash .
If one of the turn signa l light bulbs b urn o ut,
the turn signal w ill blink twice as fast as nor ­
mal. Carefu lly dr ive to your aut horized Aud i
dealer immed iate ly to have th e malfu nction
cor rected. The indicator lig ht does not indi­
cate a m alfu nction if a tur n signal on t he tra il­
er o r on the veh icle fails in trail er t ow ing
mode .
(D Tips
For m ore inf orm ation on the t urn sign als ,
r e fer to ¢
page 43 .
CRUISE/" (-) Cruise control
The warning/in dicator lig ht mIDJm (U SA mod ­
els)ll'II (Canada models) ill umi nates when
the cr uise c ontrol is activated ¢
page 76 .

Clear vision Lights
Switching the headlights on and off
Fig . 32 Instrument pane l: lig ht sw itc h wit h all -weath­
er lights•
The headlights only wo rk when the ignition is
switched on. Wh ile start ing the eng ine o r
when switching off the ign ition, the head­
lights will go off and on ly the side marker
lights will be on .
If the system is not operating p rope rly, a
war ning symbol in the dr iver information dis­
p lay is d isplayed
c::> page 22 .
Light switch ·'t!- -
Tu rn the switch c::> fig . 32 to the correspond ing
position . When the lights a re switched on, the
:oo: symbo l tu rns on .
0 -The lig hts are off or the dayt ime runn ing
lights are on:
- USA models: The daytime running ligh ts
will come on automatically when the igni­
t ion is on and the light switch
c::> fig . 32 is in
the O posit ion or the AUTO position (only in
daylight cond itions). The Daytime running
light s function can be turned on and off in
the MMI
c::> page42, c::>A .
-Ca nada model s: The daytime running lig hts
will come on automa tically when the igni­
t ion is on and the light switch
c::> fig . 32 is in
the O position, the
:oo: pos ition or the AUTO
position (only in daylight conditions)
c::> A .
AUTO -Automatic headlights swi tch on and
off depend ing o n brightness, for example i n
tw ilight, during rain or in tunnels
c::> &. .
:oo: -Side marke r lights
io -Low beam headlights
~ -All-weather lig hts*
Clear vi sion 41
[Q!l -Rear fog lights* . When th e rear fog lights
a re on, the symbol
0$ on the switch will illu­
mina te.
All-weath er lights*
In vehicles with all-weather lights, the front
li ghts are adj usted automatically so that you
are less like ly to see glare from your own
headligh ts, for example when driving on a wet
road .
Automatic headlight range cont rol*
The head lights do not blind oncoming traffic
if the vehicle load changes . The headlight
range also ad justs automatica lly when brak­
i ng and accelerat ing .
Light function s
T he following light funct ions are avai lab le de­
pending on vehicle equipment and on ly func­
tion when the light switch is i n the AUTO posi­
tion. You c an deactiv ate these functions in the
MMI under Audi adaptive light
c::> page 42 .
Vehicles w ith Static cornering light* : the cor­
ner ing light sw itches on automatica lly when
the stee ring whee l is tu rned at a ce rta in angle
at speeds up to approx imately 44 mph (70
km/ h) and when the turn signa l is ac tiva ted a t
speeds up to approximately 25 mph (40 km/
h) . The area to the s ide of the vehicle is illumi­
nated bette r whe n turn ing .
Vehicles with Dynamic curve light* : the
curve
li ght only functions at speeds betwee n ap ­
proximately 6 mph (10 km/h) and 68 mph
(110 km/ h) and adapts itself to the cu rves in
the ro ad.
_& WARNING
- Autom atic headlig hts are only intended
to assist the driver. They do not relieve
the dr iver of his responsibility to check
the head lights and to turn them on man -
ually accord ing to the current light and
~

42 Clear vision
visibility conditions. For example, fog cannot be detected by the light sensors.
So always switch on the headlights
io
under these weather conditions and
when driving in the dark.
- Crashes can happen when you cannot see
the road ahead and when you cannot be
seen by other motorists . Always turn on
the headlights so that you can see ahead and so that others can see your car from
the back.
(D Note
The rear fog lights should only be turned
on in accordance with traffic regulation, as
the lights are bright for following traffic.
@ Tips
-In the event of a light sensor malfunc­
tion, the driver is notified in the instru­
ment cluster display~
page 22.
- You will hear a warning tone if you open
the driver door when the exterior lights
are switched on.
- Please observe legal regulations when
using the lighting systems described .
Emergency flasher
The emergency flasher makes other motorists
aware that you or your vehicle are in an emer­
gency situation.
Fig. 33 Center console : emerge ncy flasher switch
• Press the switch~~ fig. 33 to turn the
emergency flashers on or off.
When the emergency flasher is on, all four
turn signals blink at the same time. The turn signal
indicato r lights ¢ Q in the instrument
cluster, as well as the light in the emergency
fl asher switch ~ blink likewise. The emergen­
cy flashers also work when the ignition is
turned off.
The emergency flashers will turn on automati­
cally if you are in an accident where the airbag
has deployed .
(D Tips
You should turn on the emergency flashers
when:
- you are the last vehicle standing in a traf­
fic jam so that any other vehicles coming
can see you, or when
- your vehicle has broken down or you are
in an emergency situation, or when
- your vehicle is being towed by a tow
truck or if you are towing another vehicle
behind you.
· Adjusting the exterior lighting
The settings ore adjusted in the MMI.
• Select: I CAR I function button > Car systems
control button > Vehicle settings> Exterior
lighting.
Automatic headlights
You can adjust the following settings in the
Automatic headlights menu :
Headlights activation time -You can adjust if
the headlights switch on
Early , Med. or Late
according to the sensitivity of the light sensor .
Audi adaptive light* -You can switch adaptive
light
On and Off .
Daytime running lights
USA models:
You can switch the daytime run­
ning lights
on and off.
Canada models:
The function cannot be
turned off.
It is activated automatically each
time the ignition is switched on. This menu
item is shown "greyed out".

44 Clear vis ion
Interior lights
Front and rear interior lighting
Fig. 35 Head liner: Fron t int eri or ligh ts
Fig. 36 Rear headlin er: R ead in g light
Press the appropriate b utton ~ fig. 35:
El -Interior lighting on/off
[j) -Door contact switch . The inter io r l ight ing
turns on automatically when you unlock the
vehi cle, open a doo r or switch the ignition off .
The interior lighting turns off several seconds
after you close the doors , when you lock the
vehicle or when you switch the ignition on.
When a door is open, the light t urns off after
a few minutes.
51 -Reading lights o n/off
~ -Sw itch ing the rear readi ng lights on/off
from the co ckpit.
I .,.. REAR !* -Switch ing the rear reading lights
on/off from the cockp it .
Ambience lighting
Appl ies to vehicles: wit h ambience lighting
You can adj ust the brightness for the amb i­
ence lighting. .,.
Select in the MM I: ICARlfunction button>
C ar sys tem s control button > Vehicle set­
ting s
> Interio r light ing > Brightne ss .
.,. To increase or reduce the brightness, turn
the knob and press it .
T he ambience lighting turns on when you turn
the headlights on while the ignition is switch­ ed on.
@ Tips
The setting is automatically stored and as­
signed to the remote control key that is in
use.
Instrument illumination
You can adjust the brightness of the instru ­
ment and display illumination as well as the
Head-up Display *.
F ig. 37 In strume nt ill umin ation
.,. Press the knob to re lease it .
~ 0 "'
.,. Tur n the knob toward "-" or"+" to redu ce or
increase the br ightness.
.,. Press the knob aga in to retu rn it to its origi ­
na l position .
(I} Tips
The instrumen t illum ina tion (for dials and
needles) lights on when the ignition is
switc hed o n and the vehicle lights are
turned off . As the daylight fades, the illu ­
mination of the dia ls likewise d ims auto­
matically and will g o out completely when
the outs ide light is very low. This feature is
meant to rem ind yo u to sw itch on the
headlights when outsid e light conditions
be come poo r.

46 Clear vis ion
Wiper and washer
system
Switching the windshield wipers on
F ig. 4 1 Windsh ie ld wipe r lever
Move the windshield wiper lever to the corre­
spond ing pos ition:
@ -Windshie ld wipers off
(I) -Rain sensor mode . The windshield w ipers
switch on once the vehicle speed exceeds ap­
proximately 2 mph (4 km/h) and it is raining.
The higher the rain sensor sens it ivity is se t
(switch @to the right), the earlier the wind ­
shield wipers react to moisture on the wi nd­
shie ld. You can deact ivate rain sensor mode in
the MMI, which w ill then activate intermi ttent
mode. Selec t:
ICAR I function bu tton > C ar s ys­
t e m s
contro l bu tton > Dri ver a ssis t > Rain
se nsor
> Off . In intermittent mode, you can
adjust the interval time using the switch @.
@-Slow wiping
@-Fast wiping
©-Single wipe. If you hold the lever in this
posi tion longer, the wipers sw itch from slow
wiping to fast wip ing .
® - Clean the windshield . The wipers wipe
one time after several seconds of driv ing to
remove water drop le ts. You can switch this
function off by mov ing the lever to position ®
within 10 seconds after the afterw ipe . The af­
terw ipe fun ct ion is react ivated the next time
you swit ch the ig nitio n on .
Clean ing the headlights . The headlight wash ­
e r system* only functions when the lights are
switched on . The headlights and the night vi- s
ion system camera * are cleaned automatical ­
ly the first time the lever is press in position
® and every 8 times it is pressed after that.
They a re also cleaned every time you ho ld the
lever in posit ion ® for longer than 8 seconds.
A WARNING
--The rain sensor is only designed to assist
and support the dr iver .
It rema ins enti re­
ly the d river's responsibility to monitor
outs ide weather cond itions and to ma n­
u a lly activate the wipe rs as soon as rai n
or drizzle reduces visibility through the
windshie ld .
- The windsh ield mu st not b e tre ate d w ith
water -repellent materials . They can in ­
crease glare under poor v isibility condi­
tions such as wetness, da rkness, or when
the sun is low on the hor izon. In addi­
tion , they can cause the w indshield w ip­
ers to chatter.
- Properly function ing windsh ield wiper
b lades are req uired for a clea r view and
safe driving
i::> page 47, Replacing
windshield wiper blades.
(D Note
- In the case of frost, check whether the
w indshield wiper blades are fr ozen to
the windsh ield . Sw itching on the wind ­
shield wipers can damage the wiper blades!
- Pr ior to us ing a car wash, the w indshield
w iper system must be sw itched off ( lever
in posit ion 0). This he lps to prevent un in­
t en tional switch ing o n and dam age to
t he winds hield wiper system.
- Do not use the w ipers to clear a frosted
w indow. Us ing the wipers as a conve n­
ient ice scraper will destroy the wiper
blades.
(D Tips
- T he windshie ld wipers are sw itched off
w hen the ig nit io n is off . Activate the
windshield wipers after the ignition is
switched back o n by moving the w ind­
shield wiper lever to any position.

206 Cleaning and protec tio n
directly at locks, or at door or hatch
openings -they can freeze shut.
- Never use sponges designed to remove insects, or any kitchen scouring sponges
or similar products . They can damage
your paint finish.
- Never use a dry cloth or sponge to clean
the headlights . Only use wet cloths or
sponges to prevent scratches. It is best
to use soapy water.
- You should remove debris (such as in­
sects) from the headl ight lenses on a
regular basis, for example when refuel­
i ng your vehicle. Never clean the head­
li ghts w ith a dry cloth or sponge. Use a
wet cloth or sponge.
It is best to use
soapy wa ter.
@ For the sake of the environment
In the interest of the envi ronment, the ve­
hicle sho uld only be washed i n special
was h bays.
Washing your vehicle with a power
washer
Cleaning the exterior of your car with a high­
pressure power washer is safe as long as you
observe a few simple rules.
.. Befo re using the power washer , make sure
yo u have read and understood the WARN­
INGS¢
A in General information on
page 204.
.. Always fo llow the operating instructions for
the power washer .
.. Make sure that the jet o n the spray hose
produces a "fan shaped spray" .
.. Do
not hold the spray nozzle too close to
soft materia ls .
When cleaning the veh icle with a power wash­
er
always follow the operating instructions .
This applies particularly to the
op erating
pr essure
a nd the s pray ing di stance . Keep a
d ista nce from soft materials such as rubber
hoses o r insulat ing ma ter ial as well as sensors
and camera lenses . Do not use a jet which sprays water in a
d
ir ect
stream
or one t hat has a rotating jet .
Water temper ature sho uld not ex ceed 140 °F
(60 °().
A WARNING ~ -
Neve r wash tires with a jet that sprays wa­
ter i n a direct stream. This could cause in ­
vis ib le damage to the t ires and weaken
them, even if the spray is from a re lative ly
l ong distance and for a short time. Dam­
aged and weakened tires can fail and cause
accidents and personal inj ury.
'
([) Note
To avoid damaging your vehicle, a lways
make sure that there is suffic ient d istance
between the spray head and soft materia ls
like rubber hoses, plast ic pa rts and sound­
deaden ing mater ials as w ell as sensors
and camera lenses. Neve r aim t he sp ray
head at the same point for a long time.
This also applies to cleaning headligh ts
and painted bumpers. Remembe r: the
closer the nozzle is to the surface of the
materia l, the greater the stress on the ma ­
terial.
Sensors and camera lenses
- Remove snow with a hand br ush and remove
ice with a de- ic ing spray that does not con­
tain so lvents .
- Clea n the sensors (adaptive cruise control*,
pa rk ing system*) w ith a cleaning so lution
that does not contain so lvents and a soft
cloth .
- The camera lens or the area in front of the
came ra le ns is no rmally cleaned by the
w indshie ld w ipers o r he adlig ht wipers (night
vision system *).
If the lens or the area is ex­
ceptionally di rty, clean the area wit h glass
cleaner and a soft, dry cloth .
(D Note
-If you was h your veh icle with a pres sure
washer,