2012 AUDI Q7 load capacity

84 Seats and storage
can cause the roof rack or the items at­
tached to it to fall off the roof onto the
road.
- Objects falling from the roof of a vehicle
can cause a crash and personal injury.
- Only mount the system between the
markings shown in~
page 84, fig. 95 .
-The roof rack system must be installed
exactly according to the instructions pro­
vided.
(D Note
- Your vehicle warranty does not cover any damages to the vehicle caused by using roof racks or mounting structures not
approved by Audi for your vehicle . The
same applies to damage resulting from incorrect roof rack installation .
- Always check the roof rack mountings
and hardware before each trip and dur­
ing a trip to make sure everything is se ­
curely tightened . If necessary, retighten
the mountings and check the entire sys­
tem from time to time.
- After mounting a roof rack system, or
when you transport objects on the roof
of your vehicle, the height of the vehicle
is naturally increased. Be careful when
driving under low bridges or in parking
garages for example. This could cause
damage to the load and even the vehicle
itself.
Roof rack mounting locations
Roof racks must be installed only at the loca­
tions marked on the roof rails .
i
-
Fig. 95 Roof rails: front and rea r mo unting locatio ns
Mount the front and rear cross bars between
the punched markings on the inside of the
roof railings ~
fig. 95. The markings are locat­
ed on the inside of the railings.
Loading the roof rack
Always distribute loads evenly. Make sure
anything on the roof rack is securely tied
down.
.,. Always distribute the loads on the roof rack
evenly .
.,. Always attach items to the roof rack secure -
ly before you drive off .
The max imum permissible roof weight is
220
lb (100 kg).
The roof weight is made up of
the weight of the roof rack system and the
weight of the object being transported .
When using a roof rack system wh ich has a
lower load carrying capacity, you must not use
up the total maximum permissible load carry­
ing capacity specified above. Instead, you
should load the roof rack system only to the maximum capacity specified by the manufac­
turer of the roof rack system .
.&_ WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used
to secure items to the roof rack can fail
during hard braking or in a collision and
cause serious personal injury.
- Make sure the roof rack is installed exact­
ly as specified above~
page 84.
-Always use suitable mounting straps for
securing items to the roof rack to help
prevent items from shifting or flying for­
ward .
- Items on the roof rack must always be
securely mounted.
- The use of a roof rack can negatively af­
fect the way a vehicle handles. Cargo that is large, heavy, bulky , long or flat
will have a greater negative influence on the vehicle's aerodynamics, center of
gravity and overall handling. Always
drive slowly, avoid sudden braking and .,,.

maneuvers when transporting cargo on
the roof of your vehicle.
- Never exceed the maximum permissible
load carrying capacity of the roof of your
vehicle, the permissible axle weights and
the permissible total weight of your vehi­ cle¢
page 314, Weights.
CD Note
Make sure that the opened rear lid does
not come in contact with the cargo on the
roof.
@ For the sake of the environment
As a resu lt of the increased wind resist­
ance created by a roof rack, your vehicle is
using fuel unnecessarily. So remove the
roof rack after using it.
Cupholder
Front cupholders
The cupholders are located in the center arm­
rest.
Fig. 96 Center armrest: Beverage holder
.. Open the cover at the recess on the side
¢fig. 96.
A maximum of two beverages can be accom­
modated in the center armrest. The second
beverage holder is located under a cover.
A WARNING
Spilled hot liquid can cause an accident
and personal injury.
- Never carry any beverage containers with
hot liquids, such as hot coffee or hot tea,
Seats and storage 85
in the vehicle while it is moving . In case
of an acc ident, sudden braking or other
vehicle movement, hot liquid could spill,
causing scalding burns. Spilled hot liquid
can also cause an accident and personal injury.
- Use only soft cups in the cupholder. Hard cups and glasses can cause injury in an
accident.
CD Note
Only drink containers with lids should be
carried in the cupholder. liquid could spill
out and damage your vehicle's electron ic
equipment or stain the upholstery, etc.
(upholder in the rear center armrest
The cupholder is located in the center con­
sole.
Fig. 97 Rear center armrest: cupholder extended
.. To open, press on the symbol 'i ¢fig. 97 .
.. To close, press the corrugated area @ and
fold the cover down.
The holder @adjusts to the beverage holder.
T he cupholder is designed to hold no more
than two cups or cans.
A WARNING
Spilled hot liqu id can cause an accident
and personal injury.
-
-Never carry any beverage containers with
hot liquids, such as hot coffee or hot tea,
in the vehicle while it is moving. In case
of an acc ident, sudden braking or other
veh icle movement, hot liquid could spill,
causing scalding burns. Spilled hot liquid ..,.

to reduce the risk of injury when the vehi­
cle is not be ing used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make
sure that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your vehicle unattended es­
pecially with the rear lid left open . A
child could crawl into the vehicle through
the luggage compartment and close the
rear lid becoming trapped and unable to
get out . Be ing trapped in a vehicle can
lead to serious persona l injury .
- Never let children play in or around the vehicle .
- Never let passe ngers r ide in the luggage
compartment . Ve hicle occupants must
always be properly restrained in one of
the vehicle's seating positions.
(D Tips
- Air c irculation helps to reduce window
fogging . Sta le air escapes to the outside
th rough vents in the trim pane l. Be su re
to keep these slots free and open .
-The t ire pressure must correspond to the
load. The t ire pressur e is shown o n the
tire p ress ure label. The tire pressure la­
bel is loc ated on the d river's s ide B-pi ll a r.
The t ire pressure label lists the recom­
mended cold ti re inflat ion pressu res for
the vehicle at its maximum capacity
weig ht and the tires that were on you r
vehicle at the time it was man ufactured .
For recommended t ire pressures fo r nor­
mal load conditions, please see chap ter
c:> page278 .
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with
four tie-downs to secure luggage and other
items .
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo prop­
erly
c:> page 166, Loading the luggage com ­
partment.
In a coll is ion, the l aws of phys ics mean that
even smalle r items that are loose in the vehi­
cle will become heavy missiles that can cause
Dr iving S afel y 167
serious injury. Items in the ve hicle possess en ­
ergy which vary with vehicle speed and th e
weight o f the item . Vehicle speed is the most
s ignificant factor.
Fo r example, in a fronta l collision at a speed
of 30 mph (48 km/h), the forces acting on a
10 -lb (4.5 kg) object are about 20 t imes the
no rmal weight of the item. This means t hat
the weigh t of the item would sudden ly be
about 200 lbs. (90 kg) . You can imag ine the
i njur ies that a 200 lbs . (90 kg) item fly ing
fr eely th ro ugh the passenger compar tme nt
c ould cause in a co lli sion like this.
A WARNING
We ak, dam aged or imprope r str aps used
to secure items to tie -downs can fail dur­
ing hard braking or in a collision and cause
serio us personal injury .
-Always use s uita ble mount ing stra ps and
properly secu re items to the tie-downs in
the l uggage compa rtme nt to he lp pre­
vent items from shift ing or f ly ing fo r­
ward as dangerous missiles .
-When the rea r seat backrest is folded
down, a lways use suitable mounting
straps and properly secure items to the
tie-downs in the luggage compartment
to hel p prevent items from fly ing for­
ward as da ngerous missiles into the pas­
s enger compartment .
- Never attach a chi ld safety seat te th er
s trap to a t ie- down .
Reporting Safety
Defects
Applicable to U.S.A.
If you b elieve that your v ehi cle
has a d efe ct whi ch could cause
a crash or could cause injury or
d eath, you should imm ediately
inform the National Highway
Tr affic Safet y Admini stration ..,.
•
•

Intelligent technology Notice about data
recorded by vehicle
control modules
Your vehicle is not equipped with an Event Da­
ta Recorder (EDR), installed by some manu­
facturers for the express purpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or crash
event. EDRs are sometimes called "crash re­
corders".
Some state laws restrict the retr ieval or down­
loading of data stored by EDRs that were in­
stalled in a vehicle for the express purpose of
retrieving data after an accident or crash
event without the owner's consent.
Although your vehicle is not equipped with an
EDR, it is equipped with a number of electron­
ic control modules for various vehicle systems
such as, for example, engine function, emis­
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic control modules also record
vehicle-related data during norma l vehicle op­
eration for diagnostic and repair purposes.
The recording capacity of the electronic con­
trol modules is limited to data (no sound is re­
corded) and only a small amount of data is ac­
tually recorded over a very limited period of
time and stored when a system fault or other
condition is sensed by a control unit. Some of
the data then stored may relate to vehicle
speed, direction, braking as we ll as restraint
system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condition. Stored data can only be read and downloaded with special equip­
ment.
Intelligent technology 219
Electronic Stability
Control (ESC)
General information
The ESC improves the vehicle stability.
. ..---------..
------- -
Fig. 218 Center console with ESC sw itch
ESC is designed to help you maintain vehicle
control in situations where the car approaches
the limits of "grip", especially when accelerat­
ing and cornering. ESC reduces the risk of
skidding and improves stability under all road
condit ions .
The system operates across the entire speed range in combination with the ABS system. If
the Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) malfunc­
tions, the ESC will also shut down.
How the system works
The Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS), Electronic
Differential Lock (EDL) and the Anti-Slip Regu­
lation System (ASR) are integrated in the Elec­
tronic Stability Control. In addition to the da­
ta provided by these functions, the ESC con­
trol unit requires additional measurement da­
ta provided by high performance sensors. The
rotational speed of the vehicle about its verti­
cal axis, vehicle acceleration in the fore-and­
aft and lateral directions, the brake pressure and the steering angle are all measured.
T he direction in wh ich the driver wishes to
travel is determined with the aid of the steer­
ing angle and vehicle speed and is continually
compared with the actua l behavior of the ve­
hicle. If the two do not match, for example,
when the vehicle starts hydroplaning on a wet
road, ESC will automatically brake the appro-
priate wheel to correct the problem. ..,_
•
•

2 76 Tires and wheels
M aximum loaded vehicle weight
means t he sum of:
(a) Curb weight
(b) Accessory weight
( c ) Vehicle capacity we ight, and
(d) P rod uction options weight
Maximum (permissible) inflation pressure
means t he max imum co ld inflation pressu re
to which a tire may be in flate d. Also called
"maxim um inflation p ress ure."
Normal occupant weight
means 150 lbs. (68 kilog rams) times the
nu mbe r of o ccupants seated in t he vehicle up
to the tota l sea ting capaci ty of yo ur vehicle .
Occupant distribution means dist ribution of occupants in a veh icle .
Outer diameter means t he overa ll diameter of a n inf lated new
tire.
Overall width
means t he linear dis tan ce between the ex ter i­
ors o f th e sidewalls of an inflated tire, in cl ud­
ing e levations due to labeling, decorations, or
p rotective bands o r ribs.
Ply
mea ns a laye r of r ubber-coate d parall el c ords.
Production options weight
means t he comb ined we ight of those installed
regular produc tion options weigh ing ove r 5
l bs . (2 .3 kg) in excess of t hose standard items
which they repla ce, no t previously considered
in cur b weight o r acc essory weig ht, incl uding
h eavy duty brakes, r ide leve le rs, roof ra ck,
h eavy duty ba ttery, a nd specia l trim .
Radial ply tire
means a pneumatic t ire in which the p ly co rds
that ex tend to the beads are laid a t sub stan ­
ti ally 9 0 degrees to the ce nt erline o f the
tread . Recommended inflation pressure
see
~
page 2 75, C old tire infla tion pressure.
Reinforced tire
means a t ire design to operate at h igher loads
and at h igher inflation pressures than t he cor­
r espondi ng stan da rd tire. Reinforced tires
may be identifie d as "X L", "xl" , "EX TRA LOAD",
o r "RF " on t he sidewal l.
Rim
means a metal su ppo rt 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 wi ll have to
purchase new tires to match th e new r im di­
ameter .
Rim size designation
means r im diameter and width.
Rim width
means nom inal d ista nce between rim flanges .
Sidewall
means tha t po rtion of a t ire betw ee n t he
t read and bead.
Speed rating (letter code)
means the speed at which a tire is designed to
be driven for extended periods of time. The
r a ti ngs range from 93 mph ( 150 km/h) to
186 mph (298 km/h)
~ page 286 . You may
not fi nd this information o n all ti res because
it is no t re quir ed by law.
T he speed rating letter code, wh ere applica­
ble , is molde d on the tire sidewall a nd indi­
c ates the max imum pe rmissibl e road speeds
~ A in Winter tire s on page 290 .
Tire pressure monitoring system
mea ns a system that detects when o ne or
more of a ve hicle 's tires are unde rinf lated an d
i lluminat es a low tir e pr essure wa rning t ell-
tal e. ..,_

Tires and wheels 2 77
Tread
means that portion of a tire that comes into
contact with the road.
Tread separation
means pull ing away of the tread from the tire
carcass .
Treadwear indicators (TWI)
means the projections within the principal
grooves designed to give a visual indication of
the degrees of wear of the tread. See
c:> page 284, Tread Wear Indicator (TWI) for
more informat ion on measuring tir e wear.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
is a tire information system developed by the
United States National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) that is designed to help buyers make relative comparisons among
tires. The UTQG is not a safety rating and not a
guaran tee that a tire will last for a prescribed
number of miles (kilometers) or perform in a
certain way.
It simply gives tire buyers addi ­
tional information to combine with other con ­
siderat ions, such as pr ice, brand loya lty and
dealer recommendations. Under UTQG, tires
are graded by the tire manufacturers in three
areas: treadwear, traction, and temperature
res istance . The UTQG information on the tires,
mo lded into the sid ewa lls.
U.S . DOT Tire Identification Number (TIN)
This is the t ire's "serial number" It begins
with the letters "DOT" and indicates that the tire
meets all federal standards. The next two
numbers or letters indicate the plant where it
was man ufactured, and the last four numbers
represent the week and year of man ufacture.
For example,
DOT . .. 2211 ...
means tha t the tire was produced in the 22nd
week of 2011. The other numbers are market­
ing codes that may or may not be used by the
tire manufacturer . This information is used to
contact consumers if a tire defect requires a
recall.
Vehicle capacity weight
means the rated cargo and luggage load plus
150 lbs. (68 k ilograms) times the vehicle's to­
ta l seating capacity as listed on the label lo­
cated on the driver's side B-pillar.
Vehicle maximum load on the tire
means that load on an individu al tire that is
determined by distributing to each axle its
share of the maximum loaded vehicle weight
and dividing by two.
Vehicle normal load on the tire
means that loa d on an individua l tire that is
determined by distributing to each axle its
share of the curb weight, accessory weight,
and normal occupant weight (distributed in
accordance with tab le be low
c:> page 2 77)
and dividing by two.
Occupant loading and distribution for vehicle normal load for various designated seating
capacities
Designated seating capacity,
number of occupants 5/6*/7* Vehicle normal load, number Occupant distribution in a nor-
of occupants
_____ mally loaded vehicle
3 2 in front, 1 in second seat
•
•

Tires an d wheel s 2 79
change. In the event of discrepancies, the tire
pressure label located on the driver's side 8-
p ill ar a lways takes precedence.
The table be low lists the recommended cold
tire inf lation pressures for the A udi model
I Engine Tire designation
covered by your Owner 's Literat ure at the vehi­
cle's capacity weight and the tire sizes instal­
l ed on the respect ive models as orig inal
equipment, or as a factory option.
Tire pressure
normal load condition full load condition front rear front rear
I
PSI II kPA PSI kPA PSI j[ kPA PSI kPA
2 55/5 5 Rl8 109H XL
All Sea son
265 /50 Rl9 ll0H XL
All Sea son
3.0 /3 .0 TDI 275 /45 R20 ll0H XL
6 -cy lind er All S ea son
275 /45 R20 110V XL
High Performance
295 /35 R21 107V XL
High Performance
35 240 35
35 240 35
35 240 35
35 240 35
36 250 35 240
44
300 49 340
240 44 300 49 340
240 44 300 49 340
•
240 44 300 49 340
I
240 44 300 49 340
XL= reinforced or extra load tire. It may also appear as xl, EXTRA LOAD, or RF on the tire side­
wall.
The correct tire pressure for the spare wheel i s
l ocated on a label on the driver's side 8-pilla r.
Because technical changes may be made to
vehicle equ ipment dur ing the model year , al­
ways compare the tire size designation on the
tire pressure label on your vehicle w ith the
tires on you r vehicle. Ma ke su re that the tire
si ze information on the ve hicle label is the
same as the s ize of the t ires on the vehicle.
This is especially important if the vehicle be­ l ongs to someone else or you bought the vehi­
cle with different rims/tires or you bought the
ve hicle as a previously owned vehicle.
Remember, your safety and that of your pas­
sengers also depends on making sure that
l oad limits are not exceeded. Vehicle load in­
cludes everybody and everything in and on the
vehicle. These load limits are technically refer­ red to as the vehicle's Gross Vehicle We ight
Rating ("GVWR") . The Gross Axle Weight Rat­
i ng ( "GAWR") is the maximum load that can
be appl ied at each of the veh icle's two axles.
The G ross Vehicle Weight Rating and the Gross Axle Weig
ht Rating are listed on the
safety comp liance sticker label located on the
drive r's side 8-pillar . The tire pressure labe l on
yo ur A udi lists t he maxim um combined
weight of all o f the occ upants and luggage or
othe r cargo that t he vehicle can carry. Fo r the
location of the tire press ure label ¢
fig. 23 7.
A WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
h icle control, a crash or other accident, se­
rious personal injury, and even death.
- Carrying more we ight than your veh icle
was des igned to carry will prevent the
veh icle from handling properly and in­
crease the risk of a loss of vehicle con­
trol.
- The brakes on a vehicle that has been overloaded may not be able to stop the
veh icle w ith in a safe distance.
- T ires on a vehicle that has been overload ­
ed can fail suddenly ca using loss of con-
trol and a crash . ..,.
•
•

28 0 T ire s and wheel s
-Always make su re that t he tota l load be­
ing t ransp orted -includ ing the we ight of
a tra ile r hitch a nd the tongue weight of a
loaded trailer -does not make the veh i­
cle heav ier than the veh icle's Gross Vehi­
cl e Weight Rating.
A WARNING
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can lead to a serious or fatal acci­
dent .
- Incorrect tire pressures and/o r underin­
flation cause increased tire wear and can affect the handling of the vehicle.
- Incor rect tire pressures and/or underin­
fla tion can also lead to sudden tire fa il­
ure, incl uding a b lowo ut and sudden de ­
flation, 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 loc;ated on driver's side 8-pil­
lar.
The recommended t ire p ress ures are o n the
tire pressure label and in the tab le
¢ page 278, Cold tire inflation pressure.This
means that the pressure must be checked and
ad justed when the tire has not been driven for
more than a couple of m iles (kilometers) at
l ow speeds during the previous three hours.
A ir in the tires expands when the tire heats up
as a result of internal fr iction as it flexes in
use . The t ire pressure is higher when the tire
has wa rmed up than when it is "cold ."
It is the inflat ion pressure in a "cold" tire that
counts. Therefore, you should never let air out
of a warm t ire to match "Cold tire inflation
p ressu re" recommendations ¢
page 2 78. The
tires would then be under inflated and cou ld
fa il suddenly .
The t ire pressure label on you r Audi lists the
r ecommended cold t ire inflat io n pressu res at
maximum capacity fo r the new, o rigi na l
eq uipment t ires that were on your vehicle at the time
it was man ufactu red. Fo r the loca ­
tion of the labe l
~page 278, fig . 237.
Most tires lose air natur ally over t ime. They
can a lso lose some air if yo u drive over a pot­
hole or hit a curb while park ing.
It is usually
not possible to see whether the radial tires
u sed today are underinflated just by looking
at them.
The re fore, be sure to check ti re p ress ures at
least once a mo nth and a lways before going
on a long trip . Make s ure to take the n umber
of peop le and the amount of luggage into ac­
count when adjust ing tire pressure for a trip -
even one that you wou ld not consider to be
"long. " See
~ page 2 82, Tires and vehicle
load limits
for mo re important information .
Always use an accurate tire pressure gauge
when checking and adjusting inflat ion pres ­
s ur es. Check all of the tires and be sure not to
forget the spare tire .
If the pressure in any t ire
i s too high when the t ire is "cold," let air out
of the t ire s low ly w ith the edge of the tire
gauge and keep checking the pressure until
yo u reach the pressure that is correct for the
l oad (passengers and l uggage) and kind of
driv ing you plan to do.
If the pressure in any ti re is too low, note the
difference between the pressure in the co ld
tire and the pressure you need and add the air
that you need to reach the correct pressure for
the vehicle load (passengers and luggage) for
the tires on your vehicle as listed on the on
your vehicle and in this ma nual and the kind
of d riving you plan to do.
Ne ver e xceed the ma ximum infl ation pres­
sure listed on the ti re sidewall for an y rea ­
son .
Remember that the vehicle manufacturer, not
the tire manufact urer, determines the correct
t ire press ure for the tires on your vehicle.
It is important to check the ti re pressure whe n
the tires are co ld.
- Read the required tire pressure from the t ire
pressure labe l. The tire pressure label is lo -
cated o n the driver's side B-pillar . T he tire
liJJ>