2012 AUDI A7 service interval

22 Instruments and warning/indicator lights
Driver information
display
Overview
Fig. 4 Driver informat ion system in the instrument
cluste r
Fig. S Display: example of the informat ion line
The driver information system contains infor­
mation @ that is displayed on tabs @
c:;, fig. 4. The following content is possible de­
pending on vehicle equipment:
@
Tab
1
2
3
®
Content
Vehicle functions :
On-board computer c::>page 23
Efficiency program* c> page 24
Digital speedometer
Cruise control*
c:;, page 77
Adaptive cruise control and Audi braking guard*
c::> page 79
Display darkened
Indicator lights and messages
Warning when a door, the hood or the rear lid is not closed
Service interval display
c:;, page 25
Speed warning system c:> page 77
Night vision assistant*
c:> page 98
-@ ®
Tab Content
4 Audio/video
5 Telephone*
6 Navigation*
The second and third tabs are only visible ifat
least one indicator light or message is shown
or if that system is switched on.
The status line © is located in the bottom
part of the display ¢
fig. 4. It displays the ex­
terior temperature, time, selector lever posi­
tion, trip odometer and odometer.
For some vehicle functions, you can access the
trip information from the temporary memory
c:> page 23 in the line (D c::> fig. 5.
A WARNING
--
-Never rely exclusively on the outside
temperature display to determine if a
road surface is icy or not. Keep in mind
that road surfaces , especially bridges
and overpasses, could be ice covered and
slippe ry even at an outside temperature
above 41 °F (+S °C).
- Always remember, even if the "snow­
flake" symbo l (ice warning) does not ap­
pear in the d isp lay, black ice cou ld be on
the road.
- Always reduce your speed and drive with
specia l care in cold weather conditions
when the chance of encountering icy
road surfaces increases.
(D Tips
- At temperatures below 14 °F (+ 5 °C) a
snowf lake symbol appears ahead of the
temperature display. It is intended to re­
mind the driver to pay special attention
to
ice on the road c:> .&.. If the vehicle is
stationary, or if you are driving at a very
low speed, the temperature shown in the
display might be slightly h igher than the
actual outside temperature. This is
caused by the heat being radiated from
th e engine.

Instrument s and warning /indicator lights 25
Odometer
Fig . 1 0 Instrument cluste r: Odomete r an d reset b ut­
to n
The o dome ter shows yo u how many miles
(kilometers) yo u have driven. You ca n sw itch
the disp lay from m iles to kilome ters and vice
ve rsa v ia the M MI.
Upper odometer
Th e trip odom eter shows the distance d riven
since i t was last reset.
It can be used to meas­
ure short d istances. The las t digit ind icates
1/1 0 of a m ile (1 00 mete rs).
You ca n reset the trip o dom eter to ze ro by
pr ess ing t he Reset button~-
Lower odometer
T he lower odometer shows the total number
of mi les (kilometers) drive n.
Malfunction message
If t here is a ma lfunction in the instr ument
cluster,
DEF will appear in the trip odometer
d isplay area. Contact your authorized A udi
dealer to have t he p roblem corrected .
Time and date display
Fig. 11 Inst rumen t clust er: clock a nd date
You can set the time and the date disp lay in
the MMI. Refer to the M MI owner's man ual
for inst ructions.
When y ou open the dr iver's door, the da te a nd
time a ppear in the ins trumen t cluster d isp lay
for 30 seconds .
Service interval display
The service in terval display reminds you wh en
your next service is due.
Fig . 12 In st rument clus te r: Serv ice inte rv al d ispl ay
The schedule for t he next oi l change or inspec­
t ion is ca lculated automatically and disp layed
accord ingly. T he d isp lay works in two stages:
Service reminder
30 days be fore the next service is d ue, a serv­
ice reminder appears in the display when you
switch the ig nition on
c:> fig. 12.
After about 5 seco nds the display switches
back to norma l. The distance and time re­
main ing are updated each t ime the ignit io n is
switched on until the date due for service is r eached .
Service due
When the due date for se rvice is reached, t he
message
Service due! appears in the instru ­
ment cluster immed iate ly after you sw itch the
ignition o n. Add itio na lly, a warning to ne
sou nds . After about 5 seconds t he disp lay
switches bac k to normal.
Calling up the service schedules
If or when an oil change or inspection is due,
can be shown in the M MI display by selecting
the service interval d isp lay in the ca r menu. .,..

26 Instruments and warning /indicator lights
Selec t the I CAR I func tion b utton > Car sy s­
tems
co ntrol button > Servicing & checks >
Se rvice interval disp lays . In new vehicles, the
sched ule can only be called up after approxi­
mately 500 km.
Resetting the serv ice interval display
Your authori zed A udi dealer wi ll reset the cor ­
respo nding service sched ule after performing
the appropriate serv ice on yo ur vehicle . Yo u
a lso have the possibility to reset the oi l
change schedule after having performed an
oil c hange accord ing to Audi specifications.
Selec t the
I CAR I func tion b utton > Car sys­
tems
co ntrol button > Servicing & checks >
Service interval displays > Reset oil change
interval.
(D Note
If you disconnect the bat tery t ermi na ls, no
cal culat ions can be m ade for the serv ice
in terv al displ ay du ring t his time and no
service rem inder w ill ap pear . Remembe r
that obse rving the prope r serv ice interva ls
is vita lly im portant to extend ing the life of
y o ur veh icle , part icu larly the eng ine, and
maintaining its va lue . Even if the mileage
driven is low, the maxim um period of o ne
yea r from one se rvic e to the next must not
be exce eded.
@ Tips
- Do not reset t he display between oil
c hanges, otherw ise the display will be i n­
correct.
- The information in the Service Re minder
r ema ins sto red even when the vehicle
batte ry is discon nected. Head-up Display
A
pp lies to vehic les : wi th H ead-up Dis play
Fig . 13 Example : indica to rs in the Head -up D isplay
Fig. 14 I nstrument pa nel: k nob for the Head-up Dis ­
p lay
T he Head- up D isp lay projects certain wa rnings
o r se lecte d infor mation from the ass ista nce
systems* or naviga tion* on t he windshie ld.
T he disp lay appears wi thin the drive r's fie ld o f
vision .
Switching on/off
"' Press t he knob~ to switch the Head-up
Displ ay o n/off
c;, fig. 14 .
Adjusting the height
The heig ht of t he d is play can be adjusted to
the individual dr iver .
"' Make s ure you are seated correct ly
c:;,page 119.
"' Turn th e knob~ to adjust the disp lay.
Sett ings in the MMI
"' Select:
!CAR I function b utton > Car systems
cont ro l button > Driver assistance > Head­
up D isplay
> Head-up Display content or
Display br ightness . Ill>

220 Checking and filling
temperatures stay below freezing point for long periods.
Detergent additives in the oil w il l make fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run­
ning for a short time . This is norma l and is not
a reason to change the oi l more often than
recommended.
Damage or malfun ctions due to lack of
maintenance
It
is essential that you change your oil at the
recommended intervals using only engine o il
that complies with Audi oi l standard
VW 502 00. Your Limited New Vehicle War­
ranty does not cover damage or malfunctions
due to fail ure to fo llow recommended mainte­
nance and use requ irements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manual and Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet . Your dealer will have to
deny warranty coverage unless you present to
the dea ler proof in the form of Service or Re­
pa ir Orders that all scheduled ma intenance
was performed in a timely manner.
Eng ine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all
of its moving parts.
In order to provide effective lubrication and
cool ing of internal engine components, all in­
ternal combustion eng ines consume a certain
amount of oil. Oil consumption varies from
engine to engine and may change significantly
over the life of the engine. Typically, engines
with a specif ied break-in period (see
¢
page 192) consume more oil during the
break-in period than they consume after oil
consumption has stabilized.
Under norma l conditions, the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on the quality and viscosity
of the oil, the RPM (revolutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient
temperature and road condit ions . Further fac­
tors are the amount of oil d ilution from water
condensat ion or fuel residue and the oxida­
tion level of the oil. As any engine is subject to wear as mi
leage builds up, the oil consump­
tion may increase over time until replacement
of worn components may become necessary.
With all these variables coming into play, no
standard rate of oil consumption can be es­
tablished or specified. There is no alternative
to regu lar and frequent checking of the o il lev ­
el, see
Note .
If
the yellow engine oil leve l warning symbo l
in the instrument cluster
II! lights up, you
shou ld check the oil leve l as soon as possible
¢
page 221. Top off the oil at your earliest
convenience ¢
page 221.
A WARNING '"---
Before you check anythi ng in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS¢
A in Working in the engine
compartment on page 216.
(D Note
Driving with an insufficient o il level is like­
ly to cause severe damage to the engine.
(D Tips
-The oil pressure warning display. is
not an indicator of the oil level. Do not
rely on it. Instead, check the oil level in
your engine at regular intervals, pref­
erably each time you refuel, and always
before going on a long trip.
- If you have th e impression your engine
consumes excessive amoun ts of oil, we
recommend that you consult your Audi
dealer to have the cause of your concern
properly diagnosed. Keep in mind that
the accurate meas urement of oil con­
sumption requ ires great care and may
take some t ime. Your Audi dealer has in­
structions about how to measure oil con­
sumption accurately.
-

222 Check ing and filling
and ad versely a ffect yo ur New Vehicl e
W arr ant y.
@) For the sake of the environment
- Under no circumstances can the oil come
in contact with the sewage network o r
the soil.
- Observe and follow lega l regu lations
when disposing of empty oil containers .
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that have your oil changed by
an authorized Audi dealer or a qualified serv­
ice station.
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
a lw ays rea d an d h eed all WARN­
INGS c::> .& in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 216.
The engine oil must be changed accord ing to
the intervals specified in your Warranty
&
Maintenance book let. This is very important
because the lubricating properties of oil di­
minish gradua lly during normal vehicle use .
Under some ci rcumstances the engine oi l
should be changed more frequently. Change
oil more often if you drive most ly short dis­
tances, operate the vehicle in dusty areas or under predominantly stop-and-go traffic con­
ditions, or have your vehicle where tempera­
tures remain below freezing for extended pe ­
riods .
Detergent addit ives in the oil w ill make fresh
oil look dark after the engine has been run­ n ing for a short time. This is normal and is not
a reason to change the oil more often than recommended.
Because of the problem of proper disposal,
along w ith the special tools and necessary ex ­
pertise required , we strongly recommend that
you have your o il changed by an authorized
Audi de ale r or a qual ified servi ce station.
If you choo se to c hang e y our oi l y our self,
please note the followi ng important informa­
tion :
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of personal injury if you
must change the eng ine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protect ion.
- To reduce the risk of burns from hot en- gine oil, let the engine cool down to the
touch.
- When removing the o il dra in plug with
your fingers, stay as far away as possible.
Always keep your forearm parallel to the
ground to help prevent hot oil from run­n ing down you r arm.
- Dra in the oil into a container designed
for this purpose, one large enough to
hold at least the total amount of oil in
your engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous. Keep it we ll out
of the rea ch of childre n.
- Continuous contact with used eng ine o il
is harmfu l to your sk in. Always protect
your skin by washing oil off tho roughly
with soap and wate r.
@ Note
Never mix oil additives with your engine
oi l. These additives can damage your en­
g ine and adversely affect you r A ud i Limit­
ed New Veh icle War ranty.
@ For the sake of the environment
- Before changing your oil, first make su re
you know where you can prope rly dispose
o f the used oil.
- Always dispose of used eng ine oi l proper­
ly. Do not dump it on garden soil, wood­
ed areas, into open streams or down
sewage drains.
- Recycle used engi ne oil by taking it to a
used engine oil collection facility in you r
area, or contact a service station.

Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balancing, correct tire pressure and driv­
ing style.
F ig. 178 Tire tread: tread wea r ind ica tors (TWI)
Fi g. 179 Rotat ing t ires fo r m ore even wea r
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The origina l tires on your veh icle have
1/16 in ch (1.6 mm) high "wear ind icators"
r::!;> fig . 178 run ning across the tread. Depend ­
ing on the make, there will be six to eight of
them evenly p laced around the t ire . Marks on
the t ire s idewall (for example "TWI" or other
symbols) indicate the positions of the tread
wear ind icators . Worn t ires must be replaced.
Different fig ures may apply in other countries
r::!) & .
Tir e pressure
Incorrect tire pressure causes premat ure wear
and can cause sudden tire blow-out . For th is
reason, tire pressure must be checked at least
once a month
r::!;> page 23 7.
Dri ving sty le
Driving fast around curves , heavy acceleration
and hard braking increase tire wear. Tires and wheels 241
Rotating tires for more even wear
For all four tires on your ve
hicl e to have the
same service life, we recomme nd that the
front and rear tires are rotated according to
the tire manufacturer 's suggested tire rota­
tion inte rvals. Please remember the follow ­
ing :
- Tire rotation intervals may differ from the
veh icle service inte rva ls o utlined in your
Warranty & Maintenance booklet.
- The longer one tire is used in one location
on the vehicle, the more it wears at certain
points ; therefore, we recommend that you
follow the tire manufactu rer 's suggested
tire rotation intervals .
- Vehicles w ith front-wheel dr ive exper ience
more tread wear on the front wheels com­
pared to all -wheel d rive (quattro ®).
- Please rotate tires as shown
r::!;> fig. 179.
-Extra care must be taken when rotat ing di-
rection-specific tires
r::!;> page 258 .
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new veh icles are balanced .
However, various situations during everyday
driving can cause them to become unba l­
anced, resulting in vibrat ions you can usually
feel through the steer ing wheel.
Unbalanced wheels must be rebalanced to
avoid excessive wear on steering, s uspension
and t ires. A whee l must also be reba lanced
when a new tire is insta lled.
Inco rrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment can cause exces­
sive tire wear, impair ing the safety of the vehi­
cle . If tires show excessive wear, have the
whee l alignment checked by an authori zed
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
All-whe el drive
Vehicles wi th quattro ® mus t always have tires
of the same size, construction and tread type. For details see
r::!;> page 189.

Consumer Information
Warranty coverages
Your 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 yo ur warran ­
ties can be found in your
Warranty & Mainte­
nance booklet .
Operating your vehicle
outside the U.S.A. or
Canada
Government regulations 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 .
I f 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 lower octane
rating . Improper fuel may cause engine
damage;
- service may be inadequate due to lack of
proper service facilities, tools or testing
equipment;
- replacement parts may not be readily availa­
ble.
- Navigation systems for vehicles built for the
U.S.A. and Canada will not necessari ly work
in Europe, and may not work in other coun­
tries outside North America .
Consumer Information 273
@ Note
Audi cannot be responsible for mechanical
damage that could result from inadequate
fuel, serv ice or parts availab ility.
Audi Service Repair
Manuals and Literature
Audi Offic ial Factory Service Manuals and Lit ­
erature are published as soon as possible after
model introduct ion. Service manuals and lit­
erat ure 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 m inimum.
However, a certain amount of regular mainte­
nance is still necessary to assure your vehicle's
safety, economy and reliability . For detailed
vehicle maintenance consult your Warranty &
Maintenance booklet.
Under difficult operating conditions , for ex­
ample at extremely low outside temperatures,
in very dusty regions, when towing a trailer
very frequently, etc., some serv ice work
shou ld be pe rformed 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 veh icle, you
help make sure that emission standards
are maintained, thus min imiz ing adverse
effects on the environment .
Important considerations for you and
your vehicle
The increasing use of electronics, sophistica t­
ed fuel injection and emission contro l sys-
tems, and the genera lly increasing technica l ..,_
•
•

286 Index
Replacing Fuses . ..... ... . ...... ... .. .. .... . 260
Light bulbs .... ... .... ... .. .. .... . 263
Tires and whee ls ......... .. .. ..... 243
W indshield wiper blades ..... .. .... .. 46
Report ing Safety Defects . ... .. ... ... . 12 6
Rese t button . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Retractor ...... ........... ........ . 131
Revers ible ma t .......... .. .. .. .. .. .. 6 2
R ims (cleaning) ............. ... .. ... 205
Roof rac k ..... .. .. ..... ... .. .. .... .. 57
L oading . ... .. . .. ..... ... .. .. .... .. 58
Roof weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
s
SA FE .. ... ... .. .. ..... ... .. .. .... .. 25
S afe d riving hab its ......... .. .. .. .. . 118
Safety belt position ........ .. .. .. .. . 132
Safety belt he ight ad justment .. .... . 134
Safety belts worn by p regnant women . 133
Safety belt pretensioner ... .. .. .. .. ... 135
Service and disposal .......... .. .. . 135
S afety bel t pre tens io ners
Pr e sense . .... .. ..... ... .. .. .... . 18 2
Safety belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 1
cleaning . .. ................ ... ... 209
D anger to passe ngers w ho do not wea r a
s a fety be lt .............. .. .. ..... 129
F asten ing . .... .. ..... ... .. .. .... . 13 1
Height adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Imp roperly worn . ..... ... .. .. .... . 134
Not worn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Safety belt position ....... .. .. .. .. . 132
Safety instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Secur ing ch ild safety seats . . . . . . . . . . 17 4
Specia l co nsiderations fo r pregnant
women .. .. ............. .. .. .. .. . 133
Unfaste ning .. ........... .... .... . 133
War ning/ indica to r li gh t .... .. .. ..... 12 8
Warn ing ligh t . ... ..... ... .. .. .... .. 16
Why YOU MUST wear them ... ... ... . 128
Worn properly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Safety bel t tensione r
d rive sele ct . ... .......... .. .. .. .. .. 9 6
Safety belt warn ing light .. .. .. .. .. .. . 128
Safety compliance sticker ... .. .. .. .. . 270 Sa
fety eq uipment . .... .. ..... ... .. .. 118
Safety featu res for occupant rest ra int and
protection .. .... .. ............. .... 118
Safety gu idelines
Seat adjustment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Safety instr uctions
E ngine compartment . .. ..... ... .. .. 216
for side c urtain airbags ......... .... 161
for using child safety seats .... .. .. .. 167
fo r using safety belts ........... .. .. 131
Monitoring the Advanced Airbag Sys -
tem .. ..... ... .. .. .......... .... . 152
Safety systems Warning/ind icator lights ........ .... . 17
S eat adjustment
Contro ls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Drive r's seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Front passenger's seat .............. . 51
Front seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Head restra ints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52, 122
Safety gu idelines . ................ .. 50
Seat be lts
WhyYOUMUSTwearthem .... .. .. .. 128
Seat heating/ven tila tion (automat ic cli-
mate control) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Seat heating (climate con trol) . . . . . . . . . . 66
Seating position Driver .... .... ................... 119
Front passenger ............... .... 120
How to adj ust the front seats .... .. .. 120
Incorrect seat position .............. 122
Occu pan ts .. ... .. ..... ....... ... .. 119
Rea r passengers .. ............. .... 121
Seat memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Seats ( number) .... ... .. ..... ... .. .. 128
Se lective unlock feature . .......... ... . 32
Se lector lever ... .. .. .... .... ... .. .. 103
Emergency re lease ............. .... 107
Se rv ice and d isposa l
Safety be lt pre tensioner ..... .... . .. 135
Se rv ice interval display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
S hi ft buttons .. .. .. ............. .. .. 106
S id e ai rbags
D escription . ..... .. .... .... ... .. .. 15 7
How they wor k ... .. ... ..... ... .. .. 158