2012 AUDI R8 SPYDER cooling

A WARNING
-While top ping off, the oil must not come
in contact with hot engine pa rts -fire
hazard!
- The oil fille r cap must be prope rly se­
cured to preve nt o il from being sprayed
on the hot engine and exhaust system
when the eng ine is r unning -fire hazard!
- If your skin has come in contact w ith the
engine oil, yo u must subseque ntly
cl eanse it tho roughly.
(D Note
- The oil level must not be above range G)
- danger of conver ter or eng ine damage!
Co ntact an authorized Audi dea ler to
draw off oil, if necessa ry.
- Audi does not recommend the use of oil
additiv es. They may damage the engine
and adverse ly affec t your New Vehicle
Warr an ty.
@) For the sake of the environment
- Under no ci rcumstances ca n the o il come
i n cont act w it h the sewage network o r
the soil.
- Observe and fo llow lega l regu lations
when d isposing of empty oil con taine rs.
Engine cooling system
Coolant
The coolant provides cooling for the engine.
The percentage of the coolant additive deter­
mines the freeze protection of the coolant in the winter.
The cooling system is sea led and generally re­
q ui res 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 o f water and the man ufacture r's g ly­
col-based coolant additive Gl3 ant ifreeze
w ith a nticorros ion add itives (50% for USA
models; 60% for Canad ian models). This mix­
ture bot h assures the n ecessary frost protec-
Checkin g and fillin g 175
tion and protects meta l components in t he
engine's cooling system from corrosio n and
sca ling . It a lso raises the boiling point of the
coolant.
Do not reduce the concen tration of the cool ­
ant in the s ummer by adding p lai n wate r.
The
proportion of coolant additive must be at
least 50 % but not more than 60 %
to main­
ta in antifreeze protect io n and coo ling eff ic ien­
cy. If the coo la nt frost protection is too low,
t h e coolant could freeze and damage the vehi­
cle heating and engine cooling system .
For year-round driving, antifreeze is added at
the factory fo r temperatures dow n to:
- -31°F( -35°C)USA
- -40 °F ( -40 °C) Canada .
A WARNING ~
Before you chec k anything in the engi ne
compartment, always read and heed a ll
WARNINGS¢
& in Working in the engine
compartment on page 169.
-
(D Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coo lant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli ­
mate condit ions. This is especially impor­
t ant if you l ive i n a region where the win-
t er is extremely cold. If necessary, in-
cr ea se t he p ropo rtion of coo lant add itive
t o 6 0%.
- Whe n ad ding coolant addi tiv e to yo ur
c oo ling sys te m , reme mbe r:
- We recommend using on ly coo lant ad­
d itive Gl2 ++ or Gl3 (check the labe l)
for your vehicle. This coolant additive is ava ilable at authorized Aud i dea lers .
Othe r ty pes of antifreeze ca n sig nifi­
ca ntly reduce cor ros io n protec tion . The
r esu lting co rrosion can cause a loss of
coo lant a nd serio us e ng ine da mage.
- Do not add any type of rad iator l eak seal­
ant to yo ur vehicle's engi ne coo lant .
A dd ing radia to r r epair f luid m ay adverse-
ly affect the f unction and pe rformance of .,.. •
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1 7 6 Che cking and filling
your cooling system and could result in
damage not covered by your New Vehicle Limited Warranty .
Checking the engine coolant level
Proceed carefully when checking the coolant.
Fig . 1 43 Co nvert ible top: se rv ice pos it ion
F ig . 14 4 Convert ib le top storage bay: coolant expan·
sio n tank
Before you check anything in the engine com ­
partment,
a lwa ys r ead and heed all WARN ­
INGS ¢.&.. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page
169 and park your vehicle on a
level surface .
The coolant expansion tank is located in the right s ide of the convertible top storage bay
under the round metal cover¢
fig. 144 . The
convertible top must be in the service position
to check the coolant leve l
¢fig . 143 .
Bringing the closed con ve rtible top into
th e s ervic e position
~ Switch the ignition on .
~ Pull and hold the convert ible top switch .
~ Press and hold the rear window switch too
u nti l the convertib le top moves into the
service position¢
fig. 143.
Bringing the op en conv ertible to into the
service position
~ Switch the ignition on.
~ Press and hold the convertible top switch.
~ Press and hold the rear window switch too
until the convertible top moves into the
service position¢
fig . 143 .
Opening the coolant e xpan sion tank cover
~ Stop the engine and allow it to cool.
~ Switch the ignition off.
~ Carefully remove the bolts in the cover (D
using a screwdriver and remove the cover.
The coolant reservoir is located below
¢fig. 144.
Chec king the engine cool ant level
~ Place a rag or cloth on the cap of the cool­
ant expansion tank and turn the cap
careful­
ly
to the left (counter-clockwise) ¢ .&_.
~ Read the coolant level inside the coolant ex­
pans ion tank ¢
fig. 144 . With a co ld engine,
it must be above the "min" mark. With a hot
eng ine, it can be a little above the indicated
range.
T o obtain an accu rate reading, the engine
must be switched off.
The expansion ta nk in your vehicle is equ ipped
with an electric coo lant level sensor
¢page 15. We still recommend you check the
c oolant level from time to time.
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling
system . In the event of coolant loss, the cool­
i ng system shou ld be inspected immediately
by your aut horized Audi dea ler. It is not
eno ugh me rely to add coolant.
In a
s ea le d system, losses can occur on ly if
the boiling point of the coo lant is exceeded as
a resu lt of overheating.

A WARNING ,~
- The cooling system is under pressure. Do
notopenthecapofthecoolantexpan­
sion tank when the engine is hot . You
risk being scalded .
- The coolant additive, and therefore the coolant itself, is hazardous to health.
Keep the coolant additive in the original
container out of the reach of children. It
is a poison hazard.
(D Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak seal­
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant. Add­
ing radiator repair fluid may adversely af­
fect the function and performance of your cooling system and could result in damage
not covered by your New Vehicle Limited
Warranty.
Adding coolant
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 169.
.. Add coolant .
.. Twist the cap on again
tightly .
.. Tighten the cap (D ¢ page 176, fig . 144
again.
Replacement engine coolan t must conform to
exact specifications ¢
page 175, Coolant . If
the coolant additive G12+ + is not available in
an emergency, you must not add any other ad­
ditive. In this case, use only water and restore
the correct mix ratio with the specified cool­
ant additive as soon as possible.
Always use
new engine coolant when refilling .
Do not fill coolant above the "MAX" mark. Ex­
cess coolant will be forced out through the pressure relief valve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot .
With a major loss of coolant, you should add
the coolant only when the engine has
cooled.
In this way you prevent engine damage .
Checking and filling 177
A WARNING
-The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot . Reduce the risk of
scalding from hot coolant by following
these steps .
- Turn off the engine and allow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from escaping fluid and steam by covering
the cap with a large, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in a counter-clockwise direction while
applying light, downward pressure on
the top of the cap.
- To avoid being burned, do not spill an­
tifreeze or coolant on the exhaust sys­
tem or hot engine parts. Under certain
conditions, the ethylene glycol in en­
gine coolant can catch fire .
- Antifreeze is poisonous. Always store an­
tifreeze in its original container and well
out of the reach of children.
- If you drain the coolant, it must be
caught and safely stored in a proper con­
tainer clearly marked "poison".
Q) Note
-Coolant pollutes the environment and
could cause an engine fire. Excess cool­
ant will be forced out through the pres ­
sure relief valve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot.
- If, in an emergency, only water can be
added, the correct ratio between water
and antifreeze ¢
page 175 must be re­
stored as soon as possible.
@ For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant should not be reused. Al­
ways dispose of used coolant while observ­
ing all environmental regulations.
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