2013 AUDI A4 SEDAN fuel

200 Cleaning and protec tio n
Automatic car wash
The vehicle can be washed in almost any
modern automatic car wash .
The vehicle paint is so durable that the vehicle
can normally be washed without problems in
an automatic car wash. However, the effect on
the paint depends to a large extent on the de­
sign of the facility, the filtering of the wash
water, the type of wash and care mater ial , etc.
I f the pa int has a dull appearance afte r going
through the car wash or is scratched, bring
this to the attention of the operator immedi­
ately.
If necessary, use a different car wash.
Before going through a car wash, be sure to
take the usual precautions such as closing the
windows and the roof . Factory installed an­
tennas must not be removed.
I f you have installed additional accessor ies on
the vehicle - such as spoilers, roof rack, etc. -
it is best to ask the car wash operator if these
should be removed .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other information
c;, page 199.
Before washing the vehic le in an automatic
car wash, p lease make sure to retract the
exterior m irrors to prevent them from be­
ing damaged.
Washing the vehicle by hand
A lot of water is needed when washing a vehi­ cle by hand.
• Before you start washing, make sure you
have read and understood the WARNINGS
r:::;, A in General information on page 199 .
• First soak all dried di rt until it is soft, then
rinse it off .
• As you clean your vehicle, start with the
roof and work your way down to the bottom,
us ing a sponge, a sponge glove o r a clean
brush. •
Rinse the sponge or the sponge g love often,
flushing it clean each time .
• Use spec ial car shampoo only for very per­
sistent d irt .
• Rinse the car thoroughly with wa ter .
• Use a chamo is leather to gently w ipe the ex-
ter ior dry .
Use a separate sponge for cleaning the
wheels, door sills and other regions exposed
to road dirt . In this way, you will not scratch
the pa int with coarse particles imbedded in
the sponge the next t ime you wash the car.
&_ WARNING
- Do not clean the underside of the chas­
sis, fenders, wheel covers, or o ther ha rd
to reach parts withou t protecting you r
hands and arms. You may cut yourself on
sharp-edged metal parts .
-A lways read and heed a ll WARNINGS and
other info rmation
c;, page 199.
{D Note
- N ever try to remove dirt, mud or dust if
t he su rface of the veh icle is dry . Neve r
use a dry cloth or sponge, since this
cou ld scratch your vehicle's paint or win­
dows .
- Never wash your car in bright s unli ght .
Drops of wate r act as magn ifying lenses
and may damage your paint .
- When you wash your car in the winter: if
you rinse yo ur vehicle with a hose, be
careful not to aim the stream of water
directly at locks, or at door or hatch
openings - they can freeze shut .
- Never use sponges designed to remove
insects, or any k itchen scouring sponges
o r simi lar p roducts . They can damage
your pai nt finish .
- You should remove debris (such as in ­
sects) from the headlight lenses on a
regu lar basis, for example when refuel­
ing your vehicle . Never use a d ry cloth o r
sponge to clean the headlights. On ly use
wet cloths o r sponges to prevent
scratches. It is best to use soapy water.
-

Corro sion prot ecti on
The engine compa rtment and transmiss ion
have been corrosion-protect ed at the factory.
Good ant i-corrosion treatment is very impor­
tant , particularly in the winter. If the veh icle
is frequent ly driven on sa lt treated roads , the
enti re engine compartment and plenum panel
should be thoroughly cleaned at the end of
wint er and retreated to pr ev ent sa lt damage .
At the same time, the underside of the vehicle
should be washed as we ll.
If the engine compartment is cleaned at any
time with gr ease r emoving solutions
1l, or if
you have the engine washed, the anti-corro­ sion treatment is a lmost always removed as
well. It is therefore essential to have a long­
lasting corrosion protection reapplied to all
surfaces, seams, joints and components in the
e ngine compartment .
.8, WARNING
Be aware: The engine compa rtment of any
motor vehicle is a po ten tially h azardous
area .
- Before working i n the engine compart ­
ment, be s ure to read the in format ion
Q page 215 .
-Be fore rea ching into the front plenum
pane l, always remove the ignition key .
Otherw ise, the windshield wiper system
cou ld uni ntentiona lly be switched on,
poss ibly causing personal injury from the
moving wiper linkage.
- Never reach into the area around or
touch the radiator fan. The auxiliary fan
is temperature controlled and can switch
on suddenly -even when the ig nition is
off .
- Do not wash, wax or dry the engine w ith
the engine running . Moving or hot parts
cou ld inju re you .
- Do not clean the underside of the chas ­
sis, fenders, wheel cove rs, or other hard
l ) Use o nly t he co rr ect clean in g s olu tio ns. Ne ve r use ga s­
o line or d ie sel fuel.
Cleaning and protec tion 209
to reach parts without protecting your
hands and arms . You may cut yourself on
sharp-edged metal parts.
- Always read and heed a ll WARNINGS and
other information
Q page 199.
•
•

210 Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank
Fuel supply and filling
your fuel tank
Gasoline
Fuel supply
Using the righ t fuel helps keep the environ­
ment cle an and preven ts engine dam age .
Fuel recommendation
The fuel recomme nded for you r vehicle is un­
lead ed premium
g rade gasoline . See a lso
¢ pag e 270, Data . Audi recommends usi ng
T OP TIER D eterge nt Gaso line wi th a mini mu m
octa ne ra tin g of 9 1 AKI (95 RON). For more
in fo rmation on TO P TI ER De tergent Gaso line,
p lease go to the officia l webs ite (www.toptier ­
gas.com).
Th e re commended g asoline oct ane r ating for
your engine can a lso be fo und on a label loca t­
e d on the ins ide of the fue l filler flap . This rat ­
ing may be specified as A KI or RO N.
Your veh icle m ay also be oper ated using un­
l ea ded regular g asoline with a min imum o c­
tane rating of 87 AKI/91 R ON. However, using
87 AKI/91 RON octa ne f ue l w ill slightly re ­
d uce eng ine perfo rmance.
Use unleaded gasoline only. Unleaded g aso­
line is availab le th rou gho ut the USA, Canada ,
and in most E uropean countries . We recom­
mend that you do not ta ke yo ur vehicle t o
areas or countries where unleaded gasoline
may not be avai lable.
F or mo re in format io n on refue ling your ve hi­
cle, see
¢ page 212.
Octane rating
Octa ne r ating in dicates a gaso line's abili ty to
res ist engine damaging "knoc k" ca used by
p remature ign ition and detonation. Therefore,
buy ing the correct grade of gaso line is very
important to help prevent possible engine
damage and a loss of engine performance.
Gasoline most commonly used in the Unite d
States a nd Canada has the following octane r
at ings t hat can usu a lly be found on the fi ller
pump:
- Pre mium G ra de: 91 -9 6 A KI
- Regular Grade : 87 -90 AKI
Explanation of the abbreviations:
AKI = Anti K nock Index= (R+M) /2 = (RO N
+ MON)/2
R ON= Resea rch Octane Numb er
MON = Motor Octane Num ber .
(D Note
-Do not use a ny f ue l w it h octane rat ings
lower tha n 87 A KI or 9 1 RO N othe rwise
expensiv e engine damage w ill occur.
- Do
not use leaded gasoline . The use of
lead ed gasoline w ill severely damage
yo ur v ehicl e's catalytic co nve rter a nd its
ability to co ntrol exha ust em ission s.
Blended gasoline
Use of gasoline containing alcohol or
MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether)
You may use unleaded g asoline blende d with
alcohol o r MTBE (commonly re ferred to as
oxygenates) if the blende d mixture meets t he
f o llow ing criteria:
Blend of gasoline methanol (wood alcohol or
methyl alcohol)
- Anti -kno ck index mus t be 87 A KI or higher.
- Blend must contain no mor e than 3% me th-
anol.
- Blend must contain more than 2% co-sol-
ve nts .
Blend of gasoline and ethanol (grain alcohol
or ethyl alcohol)
- Anti -knoc k index must be 87 AKI or higher .
- Blend must not conta in mo re than 10%
ethanol.
- Ve hicl es w ith flexible f uel engine: blend
m ust not contain more t han 85% etha no l.
Blend of gasoline and MTBE .,.

-Anti-knock index must be 87 AKI or higher.
- Blend must contain not more than 15%
MTBE.
Seasonally adjusted gasoline
Many gasoline grades are blended to perform
especially well for winter or summer driving. During seasonal change-over, we suggest that
you fill up at busy gas stations where the sea­ sonal adjustment is more likely to be made in
time.
CD Note
- Fuels containing a high percentage of
ethanol such as ESO and E85 may only
be used in vehicles with flexible fuel en­
gines. Using high ethanol fuel in vehicles
not equipped with flexible fuel engines
can cause severe engine damage.
- Methanol fuels which do not meet these
requirements may cause corrosion and
damage to plastic and rubber compo­
nents in the fuel system.
- Do not use fuels that fail to meet the
specified criteria in this chapter.
- If you are unable to determine whether
or not a particular fuel blend meets the
specifications, ask your service station or
its fuel supplier.
- Do not use fuel for which the contents
cannot be identified.
- Fuel system damage and performance
problems resulting from the use of fuels
different from those specified are not
the responsibility of Audi and are not
covered under the New Vehicle or the
Emission Control System Warranties.
- If you experience a loss of fuel economy
or driveability and performance prob­
lems due to the use of one of these fuel
blends, we recommend that you switch
to unblended fuel.
Ethanol fuel (Bio-ethanol)
Applies to vehicles: with flexible fuel engine
Vehicles with flexible fuel engines may be op­
erated with bio-ethanol fuels such as E85
Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank 211
(85% ethanol and 15% gasoline) or with un­
leaded gasoline (91 AKI/ROZ 95). The vehicle
may also be operated with a mixture of these
fuels.
Your fuel consumption will increase when us­
ing bio-ethanol fuels due to the lower amount
of energy contained per unit volume in etha­
nol.
Warming up the Flexible fuel engine in low temperatures
Due to the chemical composition of bio-etha­
nol, a certain amount of fuel ends up in the
engine oil when driving short distances in very
low temperatures . This fuel evaporates again
when the engine is warmed up .
II Please warm up engine.
If the driver message appears in the instru­
ment cluster display, drive with a warm en­
gine to reduce the oil level.
CD Note
- Never fill with methanol or with a higher
percentage of bio-ethanol than 85%
(E85). A higher percentage of bio-etha­
nol in the fuel can cause damage to the
engine or to the fuel system.
- Read and follow the information and tips
about gasoline¢
page 210.
Gasoline additives
A major concern among many auto manufac­
turers is carbon deposit build-up caused by
the type of gasoline you use .
Although gasoline grades differ from one manufacturer to another, they have certain
things in common . All gasoline grades contain
substances that can cause deposits to collect
on vital engine parts, such as fuel injectors
and intake valves. Although most gasoline brands include additives to keep engine and
fuel systems clean, they are not equally effec­
tive.
Audi recommends using TOP TIER Detergent
Gasoline. For more information on TOP TIER ..,.
•
•

212 Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank
Detergent Gasoline, please go to the official
websit e (www.toptiergas .com) .
After an extended period of using inadequate
fuels, built -up carbon deposits can rob your
engine of peak performance.
CD Note
Damage or malfunction due to poor fuel
quality is not covered by the Audi New Ve­
hicle Limited Warranty.
Fuel tank
Fuel filler neck
The fuel filler neck is located on the right rear
side panel behind the fuel fi ller flap.
If the power locking system should fail, you
can st ill open the flap manually -for detailed
instructions see¢
page 214 .
You can find the fuel t ank ca pa city of your ve­
hicle in
Technical Data¢ page 270.
The label on the inside of the fuel filler flap
tells you the correct fuel for your veh icle. For
more inform ation about fuel specifications,
see
¢page 210 .
Your vehicle fuel tank has an on-board refuel­
ling vapor recovery system . This feature helps
to preven t fuel vapors from escaping from the
ta nk and polluting the environment while you
refuel your vehicle . In order to fill the tank
properly while protect ing the env ironment,
p lease follow this refueling procedure careful­
l y .
& WARNING
Under normal operating conditions, never
carry add itiona l fuel containers in your car .
Gas canisters and other containers used to
transport fuel can be dangerous. Such con­
tainers, full or empty, may leak and could
cause a f ire in a collision. If you must
transport fuel to use for your lawn mower,
snow blower, etc ., be very careful and al ­
ways observe local and state laws regard­
ing the use, transportation and storage of such
fuel containers . Make certain the con­
tainer meets industry standards (ANSI/
ASTM F852 -86).
CD Note
Never drive your vehicle until the fue l tank
is completely empty. The irregular supply
of fue l can cause misfir ing. Gasoline could
enter the exhaust system and damage the
catalytic converter .
Refuelling
Fig. 161 Righ t rea r v ehicle s ide: Opening th e fuel filler
flap
Fig . 16 2 Fuel fille r flap wit h at tac hed fuel ca p
When act ivat ing the central locking, the fuel
filler flap is automatically unlocked or locked.
Refuel the vehicle with the ignition turned
off.
Taking the fuel cap off
.,. Turn off the igni tion .
.,. Press the left side of the fuel filler f lap to
open it¢
fig. 161 -arrow -.
.,. Unscrew fue l cap counter-clockwise and
hang it on the fue l filler flap
¢ fig . 162.

Refuelling procedure
"' Inse rt the fue l nozzle from the gasoline
pump into the fue l filler neck as far as it will
go.
"' Se lect a m edium refuelling rate so that the
noz zle switches off automatically when the
tank is full.
Putting the fuel cap back on
"' After filling your tank, twist the fuel cap
clockwise as far as it will go.
"' Close the fuel filler flap.
To avoid fuel spi lling or evaporating from the
fuel tank always close fuel cap properly and
comp letely.
A WARNING
Improper refueling or handling of fuel can
cause fire, explosion and severe burns.
- Fuel is highly flammable and can cause
severe burns and other injuries.
- Failure to shut the engine off while refu ­
eling and/or to insert the pump nozzle
fully into the fuel f iller neck could cause
fuel to spray out of filler neck or to over­
flow. Fuel spray and overflow ing fuel can
cause a fire.
- Never use a cellular telephone wh ile re­
fueling. The electromagnetic radiation
can cause sparks that can ign ite fue l va­
pors and cause a fire.
- Never get back into your vehicle while re­
fueling. If in exceptiona l circumstances
you must get back in your vehicle wh ile
refue ling, make certain that you close
the door and touch me tal to discharge
static electricity before touching the fill­
er nozzle again . Static electricity can
cause sparks that can ignite fuel vapors
released during refueling.
- Never smoke or have an open flame any­
where in or near your vehicle when refu­
eling or filling a portable fuel container.
- For your safety, we strongly recommend
that you do not travel with a portable
fuel container in your vehicle. The con-
Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank 213
tainer, full or empty may leak and could
cause a fire, especially in a crash.
- If, under exceptional circumstances, you
must transport a portable fuel container,
please observe the following:
- Never fill a portable fuel container
while it is anywhere in or on the vehicle
(for example, in the luggage compart­
ment, or on the trunk) . Static electrici­
ty can build up while filling and can ig­
nite fuel vapors causing a fire.
-Always place a portab le fue l container
on the ground before fi lling .
- Always keep the filler nozzle complete­
l y inside the portab le container befo re
and during filling.
- If filling a portable container made of
metal, the fi ller nozzle must always be
in contact with the container. This will
help prevent static electricity from dis­
charging and cause a fire .
- Never spill fuel inside the vehicle or
luggage compartment . Fuel vapors are
highly flammable .
-Always observe loca l and state/provin­
cial laws regarding the use, storage
and transportation of fuel containers .
- Make certain the fuel container meets
industry standards (ANSI/ ASTM
F852-86) .
(D Note
If any fuel has spi lled onto the car, it
should be removed immediately to prevent
damage to the paint.
@ For the sake of the environment
As soon as the correct ly operated nozzle
switches off automat ically for the first
time, the tank is full. Do not try to add
more fuel because fuel may spill out . In
addition , the expansion space in the fuel
tank w ill be filled -causing the fuel to
overflow when it becomes warm and pol­
l ute the environment. •
•

214 Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank
@ Tips
-Running your engine while refuelling
may cause vapors to escape or even
cause fue l to spill out of the tank. This
would then shut off the fuel nozzle be­
fore the tank is full.
- Do not refuel your vehicle w ith the igni­
tion turned on. The fuel gauge may oth­
erwise not ind icate the correct fuel level
after refuell ing.
- The fuel filler flap of your vehicle is not
locked when you lock the vehicle from
the inside.
Unlocking the fuel filler flap by hand
You can open the fuel filler flap by hand if the
power locking system should fail .
Fig. 163 Luggage compartme nt: opening the side tr im
Fig. 164 Luggage compartment: Emerge ncy open ing
of fuel filler flap
The emergency opening mechanism is located
behind the right side trim panel in the lug­
gage compartment.
Opening the side trim
.,. Insert a too l such as a screwdriver
¢
page 251 or the emergency key into the
right side of the upper gap ¢
fig. 163.
.,. Pry upward to release the trim.
Fuel filler door emergency release
.,. Loosen the strap from its bracket and pull
on it ¢
fig. 164. You can now open the fuel
fi ller flap as usual¢
page 212.

216 Checking and filling
-Apply the parking brake.
- Move selector lever of automatic trans- mission to "P" (Park); put manual trans­
mission in Neutral.
- Always let the engine cool down. Hot
components will burn skin on contact.
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine
compartment . Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood .
- Keep children away from the engine com­
partment .
- Never spill fluids on hot engine compo­
nents. They can cause a fire.
- Never touch the radiator fan. The auxili­ ary electric fan is temperature controlled
and can switch on suddenly.
- Never open the coolant reservoir cap when the engine is still warm. The cool­
ant system is pressurized and hot cool­
ant could spray out .
-Protect your face, hands and arm from
steam or hot engine coolant by placing a
thick rag over the cap when you open the coolant reservoir .
- Do not remove the engine cover under
any circumstances. This increases the
risk of burns.
- If work on the fuel system or the electri­
cal system is necessary:
- Always disconnect the battery .
- Never smoke or work near heaters or
open flames. Fluids in the engine com­
partment could start a fire.
- Keep an approved fire extinguisher im­
mediately available.
- To avoid electrical shock and personal in­
jury while the engine is running or being
started, never touch:
- Ignition cables
- Other components of the high voltage
electronic ignition system.
- If you must perform a check or repair with the engine running: -
First, fully apply the parking brake,
move selector lever of automatic trans­
mission to "P" (Park); put manual
transmission in Neutral.
- Always use extreme caution to prevent
clothing, jewelry, or long hair from get­
ting caught in the radiator fan, V-belts
or other moving parts, or from contact­ ing hot parts. Tie back hair before
starting, and do not wear clothing that
will hang or droop into the engine.
- Minimize exposure to emission and
chemical hazards~&, .
.&_ WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Engine exhaust, some of its constituents,
and certain vehicle components contain
or emit chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and birth de­
fects and reproductive harm. In addition, certain fluids contained in vehicles and
certain products of component wear con­
tain or emit chemicals known to the
State of California to cause cancer and
birth defects or other reproductive harm.
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac­
cessories contain lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc­
tive harms. Wash hands after handling.
(D Note
When adding fluids, always make sure that
they are poured into the proper container
or filler opening, otherwise serious dam­
age to vehicle systems will occur.
@ For the sake of the environment
To detect leaks in time, inspect the vehicle
floor pan from underneath regularly . If
you see spots from oil or other vehicle flu­ ids, have your vehicle inspected by an au­
thorized Audi dealer.