2013 AUDI A4 oil level

222 Check ing and filling
Modern engine lubrication has taken a quan­
tum leap in the last few years. Many synthetic
oils ava ilable today provide better engine lu­
brication that can outlast traditional petrole­
um-based oils, making them a smart choice
for use throughout the life of your Audi .
Whether you use synthetic or petroleum ­
based engine oil, the oil that you use must
conform to Audi 's oil quality standard
VW 502 00 to he lp keep your vehicle's engine
running smoothly and help prevent the for­
mat ion of harmfu l deposits, sometimes called
"sludge ", that ove r time can lead to expensive
repairs .
At the time of pr int ing , engine o ils available in
the U .S . and Canada that meet the exacting
specifi cations of Audi oi l standard VW 502 00
a re synthetic engine oils. This does not mean,
however, that every syn thetic engine oil will
meet Audi oil standard VW 502 00. So always
be sure that you use an approved oil.
To help prevent the format ion of harmful de ­
posits use only oi l with the fo llowing specifi­
cations printed on the oil container :
Audi oil standard VW 502 00
O il container labe ls may carry the specif ica ­
tion s ingly or in comb inat ion with other des ig­
nations and oil qua lity standards .
Viscosity
Engine oi ls are graded according to their vis­
cosity. The proper viscosity grade oil for your
engine depends on cl imactic or seasonal con­
d itions where you drive. You can use oil with a
viscosity grade of SA E SW40 across all tem ­
pe ratu re ranges for normal driving conditions .
However, if eng ine o il viscos ity grade SA E
SW40 is not avai lab le, you can also use viscos­
ity grade SAE SW -30 or SAE OW-40 as long as
it meets Audi o il quality standard VW 502 00
specif ications .
Because engine oil that meets the Audi oil
standard may not be available everywhere
when you need it, we strongly recommend
that you always carry with you an ext ra quart (
li te r) of oil that exp ress ly con forms to the
VW 502 00 spec ification, in case you have to
top
off the oil while on the road.
Only if the level of the o il is a t or be low the
min imum mark -and no oi l that expressly
conforms to Audi oil standard VW 502 00
specifications is available - may you top
off
with a high quality engine o il, preferab ly syn ­
thet ic-based, tha t mee ts ACEA A3 or API SM
specifications, but even then , only in v iscosity
grades SAE SW-40 , SAE SW-30, o r SA E
OW-40. However, dur ing the entire time be­
tween oil change inte rva ls , never top
off with
more than a total of 0.5 q t/ liter engine o il
t h at does not con form to Audi oi l specification
vw 502 00.
For more informa tion about eng ine oi l tha t
has been approved for your veh icle, please
contac t either yo ur authorized Aud i deale r or
Audi C ustome r Re lations at 1 (800) 822 -2834
or visit our web site at www .audiusa.com or
www.aud icanada .ca. Here you w ill also find a
current list of oils (manufacturers, brand
names e tc.) tha t conform to Audi oil s tanda rd
vw 502 00 .
Changing the engine oil
The eng ine oi l and oil fi lter must be changed
according to the mileage (kilometers) and
time intervals specified in your ve hicle's War­
ranty
& Maintenance booklet. Do not exceed
these intervals -harmful deposits from old
engine oil ca n reduce eng ine performance and
can lead to expensive engine repa irs .
Changi ng the oil at the recommended inter­
vals is so very important because the lubricat­ ing proper ties of oil decrease gradually during
norma l veh icle use . If you are not sure when
you have your oil changed, ask your author­ ized Audi Serv ice Adv isor.
Under some circumstances the engine oil
shou ld even be cha nged more frequent ly .
Change oil more often if you drive mostly
sho rt distances, operate the ve hicle in dusty
areas o r most ly unde r stop-and-go t raff ic con-
di tions, o r when you use your vehi cle where .,..

temperatures stay below freezing point for l ong periods.
Detergent add itives in the o il w il l make fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run ­
ning fo r a short time . This is norma l and is not
a reason to change the oi l more often than
recommended.
D am ag e or m alfun ction s due to lack of
ma intenanc e
It is essential that you change your oil at the
r ecommended inte rva ls using only engine o il
t hat complies wi th A udi oi l standard
VW 502 00 . Your Limited New Vehicle War ­
ranty does not cover damage or malfunctions
d ue to fa ilure to fo llow recommended mainte­
nance and use requ irements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manua l and Warranty
&
Maintenance book let . Your dea ler will have to
deny warranty coverage u nless you present to
the dea ler p roof in the fo rm of Serv ice or Re­
pa ir Orde rs that all s chedu led maintenance
wa s pe rformed in a t imely manner .
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle dep ends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all
of its moving parts.
In o rder to provide effective lubrication and
cool ing of i nternal engine components, a ll in­
ternal comb ustion eng ines consume a cert ain
amo unt of o il. Oil cons umption varies from
engine to engine and may change significantly
over the life of the engine. Typ ica lly, engines
with a specified break-in per iod (see
¢
page 194) consume more oil during the
break-in per iod than they consume after oil
consumption has stabilized .
Under norma l conditions, the rate of oil con ­
sumpt ion depends on the quality and viscosity
of the oil, the RPM (revo lutions per m inute) at
which the engine is operated, the amb ient
temperature and road condit ions. Furthe r fac­
tors ar e the amount of o il d ilution from wate r
condensation or fuel residue and the ox ida­
tion level of the oi l. As any engine is s ubje ct to
Checkin g and fillin g 223
wear as m ileage builds up, the oil consump ­
tion may increase over time until replacement
of worn components may become necessary.
Wi th a ll these variab les coming into p lay, no
standard rate of oil consumpt ion can be es ­
tablished or specified. There is no alternative
to regular and frequent check ing of the o il lev ­
el, see
Note .
If the yellow engine oil leve l warning symbo l
1\1 in the instrument cluster lights up , you
sho uld check the oil leve l as soon as possib le
¢
page 224. Top off the oil at your earliest
convenience ¢
page 224.
A WARNING
Before you check anythi ng i n the engi ne
compartment, always read a nd heed all
WARNINGS¢ .&.
in Working in th e engine
c ompartment on page 219.
(D Note
D riving w ith an insufficient o il level is like­
ly to cause sever e damage to the engine .
(D Tips
- The oil pressure warning display. is
not an indicator of the oil le vel. Do not
rely on it . Instead, check the oil level in
your engine at regu lar intervals, pref­
erably ea ch time you refuel, and always
before going on a long trip .
-If you have the impression yo ur engi ne
c ons umes ex ce ss ive amoun ts of o il, we
recommend that you consul t an a uthor­
ized Aud i dea ler to have the cause of
your concern properly d iagnosed. Keep in
mind that the accurate measu rement of
oil consumption requ ires great care and
may take some t ime. An authorized Aud i
dealer has instructions about how to
measu re oil consumption accurately.
-
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224 Checking and filling
Checking the engine oil level
Fig . 185 MMI Disp lay : O il le ve l indic ator
Read oil level
• Park your vehicle so that it is horizontally
level.
.. Shut the engine off when it is at operating
temperature.
.. Switch only the ignition back on.
• Wait approx . two minutes .
> Select: Funct ion button ICARI > Oil level. Or
> Se lect : Funct ion button ICARI > Car sys-
tems *
control button > Servicing & checks >
Oil level.
• Read the oil leve l in the MMI* Display
~fig. 185. Add eng ine oi l if the bar o f the
oil level indicator is near "min"
c::> page 224
Depending on the way the vehicle is driven
and the operating conditions, oil consumption
can be up to a 1/2 quart per 600 mi les (0 .5 li­
ter per 1,000 km). Consumption may be high­
er within the first 3,000 mi les (5,000 km).
The o il level indicator in the MMI* Display
is only an information display. If the o il
level is too low, a min imum oil warning ap­
pears in the instrument cluster. Add o il
c::> page 224. If the hood has been opened,
the current oil level is shown in the instru­
ment cluste r the next time the ign ition is
switched on.
~ Adding engine oil
Fig. 186 En g in e compart ment: Cover on the oil filler
neck
• Before yo u check anything in the engine
compa rtme nt,
always read and heed all
WARNINGS
c::> .A in Working in the engine
compartment on page 219 .
.. Unscrew the cap hole
q fig .186, qpage221, fig.184 .
.. Carefully top off with the appropriate oil in
0.5 liter doses.
.. Check the oil level again after two minutes
qpage224.
• To p off the o il aga in, if necessary.
• Screw the cap back on the filling hole.
.8_ WARNING
- While topping off, the oil must not come
in contact with hot engine parts - fire
hazard!
- The oil filter cap must be properly se­
cured to prevent oil from being sprayed
on the hot engine and exhaust system
when the engine is running - fire hazard!
- If your skin has come in contact with the
engine oi l, you must subsequently
cleanse it thoroughly.
(D Note
- Check the oil level using the radio or
M Ml*.
If the message Please reduce oil
level
appears, contact your authorized
Audi dealer or other qualified workshop
to have excess oil extracted if necessary.
- Audi does not recommend the use of oil
additives. They may damage the engine
and adversely affect your New Vehicle
Warranty . .,..

226 Check ing and filling
Engine cooling system
Coolant
The engine coolant performs two functions: it
keeps the engine from overheating and it pro ­
tects the engine from freezing in the winter .
The cooling system is sealed and generally re­
quires 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 of water and the manufacturer's gly ­
col-basedcoolant additive G 13 antifreeze with
anticorrosion add itives (SO% for USA mode ls;
60% for Canadian models). This mixture both
assures the necessary frost protection and protects metal components in the engine's
cooling system from corrosion and scaling. It
a lso raises the boiling point of the coolant .
Do not reduce the concentration of the coo l­
ant in the summer by adding plain water .
The
p ro po rti on of c ool ant add it iv e mu st b e at
lea st 50 % but not mo re th an 60%
to main­
tain antifree ze protection and cooling efficien­
cy. If the coolant frost protect ion is too low,
the coolant could freeze and damage the veh i­
cle heating and eng ine cooling system .
For year-round driving, antifreeze is added at
the factory for temperatures down to:
- -31° F(-3S°C)USA
- - 40 ° F ( - 40 °C) Canada.
_& WARNING
Before yo u check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
¢ &. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 219.
(]) Note
-
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coo lant additive in
your vehicle is s uffic ient to meet the cli­
mate cond it ions . Th is is especially impor­
tant if you live in a region where the w in­
ter is extremely cold . If necessary, in- crease the p
roportion of coo lant additive
to 60%.
- When adding coolant additive to your
cooling system, remember:
- We recommend us ing on ly coolant ad­
d itive G12++ or G13 for your veh icle .
This coolant additive is availab le at au­
thor ized Audi dealers. Other types of
ant ifreeze can s ignificantly reduce cor­
rosion pro tection. The resulting cor ro­
sion can cause a loss o f coolant and se ­
rious engine damage.
- Do not add any type of rad iator leak seal­
ant to yo ur vehicle's engine coolant .
Adding radiator repair fl uid may adverse ­
ly affect the function and performance of
your cooling system and cou ld resu lt in
damage not covered by your New Veh icle
Limited Warranty.
' Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with
a quick glance.
F ig. 187 En gin e compa rtm en t: Cover o n the coo la n t
expans io n ta nk
-"' -"' >< .,
"'
.. Before yo u check anything in the engine
compartment,
alwa ys read and heed all
W ARNINGS ¢ .&. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 219 .
.,. Park your vehicle o n a level surface .
.,. Tu rn off the ignition .
.. Read t he engine coolant level from the
coo la nt expansion tank ¢
fig. 187 ,
r=:> page 221, fig . 184 . With a cold engine,
the coolant leve l should be between the
"MIN" and "MAX" markings . When the en­
gine is warm, the level may be slightly above
the "MAX" marking.
IJII,

The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus­
tration
q page 221 .
To obtain an accurate read ing , the eng ine
must be switched off .
The expa nsion tank in you r vehicle is equipped
with an elec tric coolant level sensor.
When the coolant level is too low, the warning
light in the Auto-Check System
q page 18 wi ll
b lin k until you add coo lant and the level has
been restored to norma l. Even t hough the re is
an e lec tric coolant level sensor, we s till rec ­
ommend you check the coolant leve l from
time to time .
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indi cate a leak in the coo ling
sys tem. In the event of coolant loss, the cool­
ing system should be inspected immedia tely
by your authorized A udi dealer. It is not
enough merely to add coolant.
I n a
s ealed system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheating.
A WARNING
The cooling system is unde r press ure and
can get ve ry hot. Reduce the risk of sca ld­
ing from hot coolant by following these
steps.
- Turn off the engine and allow it to coo l
down.
- Protect yo ur face, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by covering the
cap with a large, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefu lly in
a counter-clockwise direction wh ile ap­
plying light, downward pressure on the
t op of the cap .
- To avoid being bu rned, do not spill ant i­
freeze or coo lant on the exhaust system
o r hot eng ine parts . Unde r certai n condi­
t ions, the ethy lene g lycol in engine cool­
an t ca n catc h fire.
Checkin g and fillin g 22 7
@ Note
Do not ad d any type of radiator leak sea l­
ant to your ve hicle's engine coolant. Add ­
i ng radiator repa ir flui d may adverse ly af­
fect the funct ion and performance of your
cooling system and could result in damage not cove red by your New Vehicle l imi ted
Warranty .
Adding coolant
Be very careful when adding engine coolant.
Before you check anyth ing in the eng ine com ­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS q & in Working in the engine compart ­
ment on page 219 .
.,. Turn off the engine.
.,. let the engi ne cool down.
.,. Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank
q page 226, fig . 187 and carefully turn
the cap counter-clockwise
~ &_ .
.,. Add coo la nt.
.,. Twist the cap o n aga in
tightly.
Rep lacement engine coo lant must confo rm to
exact specificat ions ~
page 226, Coolant. We
recommend using on ly coo lant additive G 12+
+ , G 13 or in an eme rgency G12+. Do
not use a
different additive. In an emergency use pla in
water until you can get the correct additive
and can restore the correct ratio . This sho uld
be done as soon as possible.
If you have los t a cons iderab le amount o f
coolant , then you sho uld add cold antifreeze
and co ld water on ly when the engine is cold.
A lw ays use
new engine coo lant w hen refilling.
Do not f ill coo lant above t he "MAX" mark. Ex­
cess coola nt w ill be fo rced o ut through t he
pressure relief valve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot.
A WARNING
- The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of ..,.
•
•

28 2 Con sum er Inf ormation
-Always make sure the transmission se­
lector lever (automatic transmiss ion) is
in "P" (Park position) or Neutral (manual
transmission) and the park brake is firm­
ly applied.
@) For the s ake of the environment
-Changing the engine settings will ad­
versely affect emission levels. This is det­
rimental to the environment and increas­
es fuel consumption .
- Always observe environmental regula­
tions when disposing of old engine oil,
used brake fluid, dirty engine coolant,
spent batteries or worn out tires.
- Undeployed airbag modules and preten­
s ioners might be classified as Perchlo­
rate Material -spec ial handling may ap­
ply, see www.dtsc.ca .gov/hazardous­
waste/perch lorate. When the veh icle or
parts of the restraint system including
airbag modules safety belts with preten­
sioners are scrapped, all app licable laws
and regulations must be observed . Your
authorized Audi dealer is familiar with
these requirements and we recommend
that you have your dealer perform this
serv ice for you .
Additional accessories,
modifications and
parts replacement
Additional accessories and parts
replacement
Always consult on authorized Audi dealer be­
fore purchasing accessories.
Your veh icle inco rporates the latest safety de­
sign featu res ensuring a high standard of ac­
tive and passive safety.
This safety could be compromised by non-ap­
proved changes to the veh icle. For this reason ,
if pa rts have to be replaced , please observe
the following points when installing addition­
a l accessories: Approved Audi accessories and genuine Audi
parts are available from authorized Audi deal­
ers.
T hese dea lers a lso have the necessary facili­
ties, tools and trained specialists to install the parts and acc essories proper ly.
A WARNING
-Using the wrong spare parts or using non-
approved accessories can cause damage to
the veh icle and ser ious personal injury.
- Use on ly accessories expressly approved
by Audi and genuine Audi spare parts
- These parts and accessories have been
specially designed to be used on your ve­
h icle .
- Never install accessories such as tele­
phone crad les or beverage ho lders on a ir­
bag covers or within the airbag deploy­
ment zones . Do ing so will increase the
risk of injury if a irbags are triggered in an
accident!
- Before you check anything in the engine
compa rtment, always read and heed a ll
WARNINGS
9 page 213 .
(D Note
-If items other than genu ine Audi spare
parts, add-on equipment and accessory
items are used or if repair work is not
performed accord ing to specified meth­
ods, this can resu lt in seve re damage to
your vehicle's eng ine and body (such as
corrosion) and adversely affect yo ur vehi ­
cle's warranty .
- If emergency repairs must be performed
elsewhere, have the vehicle examined by
an authorized Audi dealer as soon as
possible .
- The manufacturer cannot be held liable
for damage wh ich occ urs due to failure
to comply with these stipu lations.

-----------------------------~I~ n~d~ e~x 289
Emergency operation
Emergency braking function (parking
brake) ... .. .. .. ........ ... .. .. .. .. 87
E me rgency sta rting ........ .. .. .. .. . 269
Emergency towing .. .... .... . .. .. .. . 271
Energy management .... ... .. .. .. .. . 192
Battery power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 7
Driver notification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
E ng ine
Compartment ..... .... ... .. .. .. ... 221
Coolant .... .. ... ..... ... .. .. .. ... 226
Hood . ..... .. .. ... . .... ... .. .. ... 219
Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80, 83
Start ing with jumper cables .. .. .. .. . 269
Stopping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82, 84
Eng ine compartment
Safety instructions ..... ... .. .. .. .. . 2 19
Working the engine compartment 219
E ng ine coolan t
I ndicator light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
E ng ine coolant system .......... ... .. 226
Adding coolant .............. ... ... 227
Chec kin g coolant leve l ..... .. .. .. .. . 226
Checking the eng ine coolan t leve l .. .. . 226
Ra diato r fan ............. .... .. ... 228
E ng ine coolant temperature
Temperatu re ga uge .... ...... .... ... 10
Eng ine data .. ............. .... .. ... 277
E ng ine hood
C losing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
How to release the hood ... .. .. .. .. . 2 19
E ng ine oi l .. ................. ... ... 221
Adding .. .. ............. .. .. .. .. . 224
Addi tives . .. ............. .... .. ... 224
Changing .. ... .. ..... ... .. .. .. ... 225
Check oil leve l .. .. .... ... .. .. .. ... 224
Consumption ..... .... ... .. .. .. ... 224
Indicator light ........... .... .. 17,21
O il consumption .......... .. .. .. .. . 223
O il grades .. ............. .... .. ... 221
O il level symbol ............. .... ... 21
Pressu re malfunction ...... .. .. .. .. .. 17
Sensor defective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1
Specification and vis cos ity .. .. .. .. .. . 22 1
Eng ine speed limitat io n ..... .. .. .. .. .. 21 Environment
Break-in period ..... . ... ...... ... .. 194
Catalytic converter . .. .. ..... ... .. .. 195
Dispos ing of your ve hicle battery ... .. 233
Driving at high speeds .............. 196
Driving to minimize po llution and noise 196
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Fuel economy .. .. .. ..... ......... .
Lea ks unde r you r vehicle ........ ... .
Let ting the vehicle stand and warm up .
Proper disposal of d rained brake flu id .
Proper disposal of drained engine cool ­
ant
. ... .. .. .. .... . ... ...... ... ..
Proper disposal of drained eng ine 196
2 19
196
229
227
o il . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224, 22S
Recycling used engine oil ............ 224
Roof rack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Un leaded fuel .. .. .. . .. .... .... .. .. 214
What shou ld I do with an o ld battery? . 233
EPC
refer to Electron ic power control . . . . . . 20
ESC ( Electronic Stabi lization Contro l)
Warning/indicator lights ..... ... .. .. . 19
E thy l alco ho l (Fuel) . ............. .. .. 215
Event Data Recorder (EDR) .......... .. 185
E xhaust tai l pipes
Cleaning . ... .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 209
Expansion tank
Exterior lighting
E xterior m irrors 226
. .. ............... .. . 47
Adjusting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . SO
D' . 1mming .. .. .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. . 51
Heating ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .... ... .. . SO
F
Fan
Radiator
Fasten ing
B oos ter sea ts 228
17 4
Convertib le child sa fe ty seats .... .. .. 173
Infant seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Fasten ing eyes
refer to Tie-downs .... ........... .. . 72
Flat tire Chang ing . .. .. .. .. . .. ....... ... .. 259
flexib le fue l
Floor
. .. .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 215
75
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