2012 AUDI A8 warning

2 58 What do I do n ow ?
Space-saving spare tire (compact spare
tire)*
Applies to vehicles: with space-saving spare tire
The spare tire/wheel is located in the luggage
compartment under the cargo floor cover. It
is intended for short-term use only.
Fig. 194 Spare tire
Tak ing out th e spar e tir e
• Lift the cargo floor by the plastic handle
¢fig. 194.
• Hook the handle into the luggage compart­
ment weather strip.
• Turn the large screw¢
fig. 194 counter­
clockwise.
• Take out the spare tire .
• Always store the vehicle too l kit, the jack*
and the repla ced ti re in the l uggage com­
partment~
page 130.
• Unhook the cargo floor before clos ing the
rear lid.
Using the spare tire (compact spare tir e)
The compact spare tire is on ly intended for
emergenc ies until you can reach a repair shop.
Replace it as quickly as poss ible with a stand­
ard wheel and tire.
There are some restrictions on the use of the compact spare tire. The compact spare t ire
has been des igned specifically for your type of
vehicle.
It must not be swapped with a com­
pact spare tire from another type of vehicle .
Snow chains
Fo r technical reasons, the use of snow chains
on the compa ct spare tire is
not p ermitt ed .
If you do have to dr ive with snow cha ins and a
front tire fails, mount the spare whee l w ith ti
re instead of a rear tire. Install the snow
chains on the rear tire and use it to replace
the defect ive front t ire.
A WARNING
=
- Never use the spare tire if it is damaged
or if it is worn down to the tread wear in­
d icators.
- If the spare tire is more than 6 years old,
use it only in an emergency and with ex­
treme caution and careful driv ing.
- The spare tire is intended only for tem­
porary and short-term use. It should be
replaced as soon as poss ible with the
normal whee l and tire.
-Afte r mounting the compact spare tire,
the t ire pressure must be checked as
soon as possible. The tire pressure of the
compact spare t ire must be 4. 2 bar; oth­
e rwise, you risk having an a cciden t.
- D o not dr ive faste r th an 50 mph (80 km/
h). Yo u ris k havi ng a n accident.
- Avoid full-thrott le acceleration, heavy
b rak ing, and fast corne ring. You risk hav­
i n g a n accident.
- Neve r d rive using more than one spa re
wheel and ti re. You r is k having an acci­
dent.
- Normal summer or win ter t ires must not
be mou nte d on the compa ct spare wheel
rim.
- For technical reasons, the use of t ire
chains on the spare tire is not permit ted .
If it is necessary to drive with t ire chains,
the spare wheel must be mounted on the
front ax le in the event of a flat in a rear
tire. The new ly available front wheel
must then be installed in place of the
rear whee l with the flat tire. Installing
the t ire chain before mounting the whee l
and tire is recommended.
- Loose items in the passenger compa rt­
ment can cause se rious personal injury
du ring hard b raking or in an accident.
Never store the i nflatable spare tire or
jack and tools in the passenger compart­
men t.

Spare wheel
Applies to vehicles: with spare wheel
The spare wheel is stored in the wheel well
underneath the floor panel in the luggage
compartment.
F ig. 1 95 Luggag e compartment: spare wheel
Taking out the sp are whee l
• Lift the cargo floor by the plast ic handle
c:> fig . 195.
• Hook the hand le into the luggage compart ­
ment weather strip .
• Turn the large screw
c:> fig. 195 counter­
clockwise.
• Take out the spare tire.
• Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack*
and the replaced tire i n the luggage com­
partment
c:> page 130 .
• Unhook the ca rgo floor before closing the
rear lid.
& WARNING
Loose items in the passenger compa rt­
ment can cause serious pe rsonal in jury
during hard braking or in an accident.
- Never store the spare wheel or jack and
tools in the passenger compartment.
@ Tips
Check the inflat io n press ure of the spare
tire periodically to keep the tire ready for
use.
-
What do I d o now ? 259
Changing a wheel
Before changing a wheel
Observe the following precautions for your
own and your passenger's safety when chang­
ing a wheel.
• After you experience a tire failure, pull the
car well away from mov ing traffic and try to
reach
le vel ground before you stop c:> ,&.
• All passengers should leave the car and
move to a safe location (for ins tance, behind
t he guardra il)
c:> ,& .
• Engage the parking brak e to prevent your
vehicle from rolling unintentionally
c:> ,& .
• Move sele ctor lever to po sit ion Pc:> &_ .
• If you are towing a trailer, unhitch the trail­
er from your vehicle.
• Take the
jack and the spare tire out of the
luggage compartment
c:> page 257,
c:> page258 .
& WARNING
You or you r passengers could be i njured
while changing a wheel if you do not fo l­
low these safe ty pre caut ions :
-I f you have a flat tire, move a safe d is­
tance off the road. Turn off the e ngine,
turn the emergency flashers on and use
other warning devices to a lert other mo­
torists .
- Make sure that passengers wait in a safe
place away from the vehicle and well
away from the road and traffic.
- To help prevent the vehicle from moving
suddenly and possib ly slipping off the
jack, always full y set the parking brake
a nd b lock the wheel d iagonally opposite
the wheel be ing changed. When one
front wheel is lifted off the ground, plac­ ing the Au tomatic Transmission in "P"
( P ar k) will
not prevent the vehicle from
mov ing .
- Before you chang e a whee l, be s ure the
g round is level and firm. If necessary,
use a sturdy board un der the jac k.
- After insta lling the spare wheel , make
sure that you replace t he f lat t ire/wheel
-

260 What do I do now ?
in its storage area properly and tighten
the knurled retaining screw securely.
@ Tips
Before changing the wheel, you m ust acti ­
vate t he jacking mode , so that the auto­
matic controls for the Adaptive Air Sus­
pension do not make it more diff icu lt to
lift the vehicle with the jack
q page 262.
Changing a wheel
When you change a wheel, follow these­
quence de scribed below s tep-by-s tep and in
exac tly tha t order.
1. Act ivat e the vehicle jack mod e
¢page 262.
2. Remove the de corat ive wh eel co ver* . For
more details see also¢
page 260, Deco­
rative wheel covers
or ¢ page 261 ,
Wheels with wheel bolt cops.
3 . Loosen the wheel bolts¢ page 261 .
4. Locate the proper mo unt ing po int for the
jack and align the jac k below that point
¢ pag e 262.
5. R ais e the car with the jack¢ page 262.
6. Remove the wheel with the fl at tire and
then in stall
the spare ¢ page 263 .
7. Tigh ten all wheel bol ts ligh tly.
8 .
Lo wer the veh icle with the jack .
9 . Use the whee l bolt wrench and
firml y
tighte n all whee l bolts ¢ page 261.
10. Replace the decorative wheel c over*.
11. De activate the veh icle jack mode in the
MMI:
! CARI function button> Ca r syst em s
control button > Se rv icing & chec ks > Air
sus p.: jack mode > Off.
The vehicle jac k mode sw itches off automati­
cally at speeds above 10 km/h.
A WARNING
Always read and follow all WARNINGS and
information
¢ &. in Raising the vehicle on
page 262
and ¢ page 264.
After changing a wheel
A wheel change is not complete without the
doing the following .
.,. Alw ays store the vehicle tool kit, the jack*
and the repl aced tire in the luggage com­
pa rtment
¢ page 130.
... Check the tir e pres su re on the spare wheel
immed iate ly afte r mounting it.
.,. As soon as possib le, have the
tight ening
torque s
on all whee l bolts checked with a
torque wrench . The correc t tightening tor ­
que is 90 ft lb (120 Nm).
... Hav e the flat tire
repl aced as soon as possi­
ble .
@ Tips
-If you notice that the wheel bo lts are
corroded and difficult to turn while
changing a tire, they should be rep laced
before you check the tightening torque.
- Dr ive at reduced speed until you have the
tightening torques checked.
- After changing a whee l, the t ire press ure
in all four tires must be checked/correct­
ed and the tire pressure monitoring ind i­
cator must be stored in the MMI
¢ page 255.
' Decorative wheel covers
Applies to vehicles: w ith decorative whee l covers
The decora tive wheel covers mus t be removed
first to access the wheel bolts.
Fi g. 1 96 Chang ing a whee l: Re mov ing th e w hee l cov er
Removing
.,. Insert the hook (prov ided with the vehicle
too l kit) in the ho le in the whee l hub cover . .,..

.. Pull off the dec orati ve wheel cover
Qfig. 196 .
Wheels with wheel bolt caps
Applies to vehicles: with wheel bolts with caps
The caps must be removed first from the
wh eel bolts befor e th e bolts can be un­
screw ed .
Fig. 197 C hangin g a whee l: re m ov in g the w hee l bo lt
c ap s
Rem oving
.. Push the pla stic clip (provided w ith the ve­
hicle tool kit) over the wheel bol t cap until
the inner retainers on the clip alig n with the
edge of the cover.
.. Remov e the cap with the
plast ic clip (vehi­
cle tool kit) ¢
fig. 197.
Refitting
.. Place the caps over the wheel bo lts and
push them back on.
The caps are to protect and keep the wheel
bol ts clean.
What do I d o now ? 261
Loosening and tightening the wheel
, bolts
The wheel bolts must be loosened before rais­
ing the vehicle .
Fig . 1 98 Chan ging a wh eel: loos ening th e w hee l bo lts
Loo sening
.. Slide the wheel wr ench onto the wheel bo lt
as far as it will go .
.. Take tight hold of the
end of the wrench
handle and tu rn the wheel bolts
c ounter­
cloc kwis e
about one single turn in the d irec­
tion of arrow¢
fig. 198.
T ight enin g
.. Sli de the wheel wrench onto the wh eel bolt
as far as it w ill go.
.. Take tigh t hold of the
end of the wrench
handle and tu rn each wheel bolt
clo ck wi se
until it is seated .
A WARNING
- Do not use fo rce or hurry when changing
a wheel - you can ca use the vehicle to slip
off the jack and cause ser ious pe rsonal
inj uries.
- Do not loosen the wheel bo lts more than
one turn
befo re you raise the vehicle with
the jack . - Yo u risk an injury .
(D Tips
-Never use the hexagona l soc ket in the
hand le of the screwdr iver to loosen or
t igh ten the wheel bolts.
- If a wheel bolt is very tight, you may find
it eas ier to loosen by carefully pushing
down on the end of the wheel bolt
wrench with
one foot only. As you do so, Ill>-

262 What do I do now ?
ho ld on to the car to keep your ba lance
and take care not to slip .
Raising the vehicle
The vehicle must be lifted with the jack first
before the wheel can be removed .
Fig. 199 Sill panels: markings
Fig. 200 Sill: posit ion ing t he veh icle jack
.. Activate the vehicle jack mode in the MMI:
I CAR ! function button > Ca r sys te m s control
button>
S ervic ing & c h ecks > Air susp .:
jack mod e > On .
.. Engage the par king brake to prevent your
vehicle from ro lling u ninten tionally.
.. Move the
se lector l ever to po siti on P .
.. Find the marking (imprint) on the sill that
is nearest the wheel that will be changed
o fig. 199 . Behind the marking, there is a
lifting point on the s ill for the vehicle jack .
.. Turn the
ve hicle jack located under the lift­
ing point on the si ll to raise the jack until its
arm @
o fig. 200 is located under the des ­
i gnated plastic mount
o ,& o0.
.. Align the jack so that its arm @ o fig. 200
engages in the designated lifting po int in
the door sill and the movable base @ lies
flat on the ground. The base @ must be
ver­
tical
under the lifting point @. ..
Wind the jack up fu rther until the f lat tire
comes off the ground
o .&, .
Position t he vehicle jack o nly under the desig ­
nated lifting points on the si ll
¢fig. 199.
There is exactly one location for each wheel.
The jack must not be positioned at any other location
c:> .&, c:>Q).
An un sta ble surf ace under the jack ca n cause
the vehicle to slip off the jack . Always provide
a firm base for the jack on the ground . If nec­
essary place a sturdy board or similar support
under the jack. On
hard, sl ipp ery su rfaces
(such as tiles) use a rubbe r mat or similar to
prevent the jack from slipping
c:> .&, .
A WARNING ~
-You or your passengers could be injured
while changing a wheel if you do not fo l­
low these safety preca utio ns:
- Position the vehicle jack on ly at the
designated lifting points and align the
jack. Otherwise, the vehicle jack could slip and cause an injury if it does not
have sufficient hold on the vehicle.
- A soft or unstable surface under the
jack may cause the vehicle to slip off
the jack . Always provide a firm base for
the jack on the ground. If necessa ry,
use a stu rdy board under the jack.
- On hard, s lippery surface (such as t iles)
use a rubber mat or simi lar to prevent
the jack from slipping.
- To help prevent injury to yourself and
your passe ngers:
- Do not raise the vehicle until you are
sure the jack is securely engaged.
- Passengers must not remain in the ve­
hicle when it is jacked up.
- Make sure that passengers wait in a
safe place away from the vehicle and
well away from the road and traffic .
- Make sure jack pos ition is correct, ad ­
just as necessary and then continue to raise the jack.
- Changes in temperature or load can af­
fect the height of the vehicle.

264 What do I do now?
and the hub. Remove all dirt from these
surfaces before remo unting the wheel.
Tires with unidirectional tread design
Tires with unidirectional tread design must be
mounted with their tread pattern pointed in
the right direction.
Using a spare tire with a tread pattern
intende d fo r use in a specific direction
When using a spare tire with a tread pattern
intended for use in a specific direction, p lease
note the fo llowing:
- T he direction o f rotation is marked by an a r­
row on the side of the tire.
- If the spare t ire has to be installed in the in ­
correct di rection, use the spare tire only
temporarily since the tire will not be able to achieve its optimum performance character­
ist ics with regard to aquaplaning, noise and
wear.
- We recommend that you pay particular at­
tent ion to this fact during wet weather and
that you adjust your speed to matc h road
condit ions .
- Replace the flat tire w ith a new one and
have it installed o n your ve hicle as soon as
poss ible to restore the handling advantages
of a un id irect iona l tire .
Notes on wheel changing
Please read the information i:> page 246, New
t ires and repla cing tires and wheels
if you are
going to use a spare tire which is differen t
from the tires on your ve hicle.
Afte r you cha nge a tire :
-Check the t ire pressure on the spare imme ­
diately after installation .
- Have the wheel bolt tightening torque
checked with a torqu e wrench as soon as
possib le by your authorized Audi dealer or
a qualified servi ce station .
- With st eel and alloy wheel rims , the wheel
bolts are correctly tightened at a torque of
90 ft lb (120 Nm) . -
If you notice that the wheel bolts are cor­
roded and difficult to turn while chang ing
a tire , they should be repl aced before you
check the t ightening torque.
- Repl ace the flat ti re w ith a new one and
have it installed on your vehicle as soon a s
possible. Remount the wheel cover .
Until then , dri ve with extra care and at re­
duced speeds.
A WARNING
- I f you are going to equip your vehicle
with tires or rims which differ from those
which were factory installed, then be
sure to read the information
i:> page 246,
New tires and replacing tires and
wheels.
- Always make sure the damaged wheel o r
even a flat tire and the jack and tool ki t
are properly secu red in the luggage co m­
p ar tment and are no t loo se in the pas­
senger compartment .
- I n an accident or sudde n maneuver they
could fly forward, injuring anyone in the
veh icle.
- Always s to re dam aged wheel, j ack a nd
t oo ls sec urely in the l uggage compa rt­
men t. Othe rwise, in an accident or s ud ­
den maneuver they could fly forwa rd,
causing injury to passengers in the vehi­
cle.

Fuses and bulbs
Fuses
Replacing fuses
Fuses that have blown will have metal strips
that have burned through.
Fig. 203 Dr iver side of the cockp it: fuse panel cover
~~
-----~ ~~
F ig. 20 4 Luggage compartment: fuse panel cover
The fuses a re located on the left and right
front sides of the cockp it and in the luggage
compartment behind the rear seat tr im panel.
.. Switch the ignition and the affected electri-
ca l equipment off .
.. Check the following table to see which fuse
belongs to the consume r .
.. Remove the appropriate cover .
.. To remove the purple plastic clip if necessa­
ry
1l, hold onto it at the small side and pull
it out of the fuse panel
c> page 265,
fig. 205.
.. Remove the clamp from the rear side of the
fuse cover
c> fig. 203 .
.. Remove the fuse using the clamp and re­
pla ce the blown fuse w ith an identical new
one.
11 You can dis pose of the plastic clip after remov ing it.
Fu se s and bulb s 265
A WARNING
Do not repair fuses and never replace a
blown fuse with one that has a higher amp
rating . Th is can ca use damage to the elec­
tr ical system and a fire .
(D Note
If a new fuse burns out again after shortly
have you have installed it, have the electri­
ca l system checked by your authorized Au­
d i dealer.
{i) Tips
- The following table does not list fuse lo­
cat ions that are not used .
- Some of the equipment items listed are
opt ional or only available on certa in
model configurations.
Driver side cockpit fuse assignment
Fig . 205 Dr iver side cockpit: fuse pane l with p lastic
b racket

Fuse panel® (brown)
No. Equipment
= 11 Radio receiver
12 Rearview camera (park
ing
a id), Top view
Bulbs
Replacing light bulbs Amps
' ' 7,5
5
For your safety, we recommend that you have
your authorized Audi dealer replace burned out bulbs for you.
It is becoming increas ingly more and more
d iff icu lt to replace vehicle light bulbs since in
many cases, other parts of the car must first
be removed before you are able to get to the
bu lb. This applies especially to the light bulbs
in the front of your car which you can on ly
reach through the engine compartment.
Sheet metal and bulb ho lders can have sharp
edges that can cause serious cuts, and parts must be correctly taken apart and then prop­
erly put back together to help prevent break­
age of parts and long term damage from wa­
ter that can enter housings that have not been properly resealed.
For your safety, we recommend that you have
your authorized Audi dealer replace any bulbs for you, since your dealer has the proper tools,
the correct bulbs and the expertise.
Gas discharge lamps (Xenon lights):
Due to the high electrical voltage, have the
bulbs replaced by a qualified technician.
Headlights with Xenon light can be identified
by the high voltage sticker.
LED headlights * require no maintenance .
Please contact your authorized Audi dealer if a
bu lb needs to be replaced.
A WARNING
Contact with high-voltage components of
the electrical system and improper re­
placement of gas discharge (Xenon) head-
Fuses and bulbs
light bulbs can cause serious personal in­
jury and death.
- Xenon bulbs are pressurized and can ex­
plode when being changed.
- Changing Xenon lamps requires the spe­
cial tra ining, instructions and equip­
ment.
- On ly an authorized Audi dealer or other
qualified workshop should change the bulbs in gas discharge lamps .
A WARNING
There are parts with sharp edges on the
openings and on the bulb holders that can
cause serious cuts.
- If you are uncertain about what to do,
have the work performed by an author­
ized Audi dealer or other qualified work­
shop . Ser ious personal injury may result
from imprope rly performed wo rk.
Q) Tips
-If you must replace the light bulbs your­
self, always remember that the eng ine
compartment of any vehicle is a hazard­
ous area to work in. A lways read and
heed all WARNINGS
~page 213, Engine
compartment
Q & .
-It is best to ask your authorized Audi
dealer whenever yo u need to change a
bulb .
-
269
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