2013 AUDI A4 SEDAN oil type

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.
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206 Cleaning and protec tio n
Open Velcro fasteners on your clothing can
damage the seat cover. Please make sure
that Velcro fasteners are closed.
Plastic parts and instrument panel
Always use a clean cloth moistened in clear
water to clean these areas . For pers istent dirt
use an Audi approved
so lv ent-fr ee plastic
cleaner/protectant.
_& WARNING
So lvents can change the propert ies of
some plastics and make it harder for the
airbag to dep loy.
-
- Never clean the instr ument pane l or the
surface of airbag modules with cleaning
products that contain solvents.
- Products containing solvents w ill make
the surface o f this part porous.
- Serious injur ies can result if plastic pa rts
come loose when the airbag is deployed .
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS and
other information
¢page 199.
(D Note
Cleaning agents contain ing solvents will
attac k the mater ial and can change the
way it behaves.
Natural leather
Appl ies to vehicles: with natural leather
Audi makes great efforts to maintain the
properties, natural look and feel of interior
leather.
General
We offer many different types of leather on
our veh icles . Most are differe nt types of nappa
l eather, which has a smooth surface and
comes in var ious co lors .
The intensity of the color determines the v isu ­
al character istics and appearance .
If the sur­
face of the leather has a typical natural look,
the n the leather is a nappa leat her that has been left in a relative
ly natura l condition . This
leather offers particularly good comfort and
breathes we ll. Fine veins, closed grains, insect
bites, skin fo lds, and s ubt le variations in color
rema in v is ible. These character istics demon­
strate that the material is natural.
Natura l nappa leather is not covered by a co l­
or finish. It is therefore more sensit ive to soil­
ing and wear, which is someth ing you need to
consider if children, animals or other factors
mig ht prove to be part icularly hard o n the
l eather .
By contrast, leather types that are covered by
a colored finish layer are more durable. This has a positive effect on the leather's resist­
ance to wear and soiling in da ily use . On the
othe r hand, the typica l charac teristics of natu­
ral le a the r are barely o r not appa rent. Howev­
er, th is does not mean that the leather itse lf
is of inferior quality.
Care and handling
Because of the exclusive nature of the types of
leather that Aud i uses and their uniq ue p rop­
erties (such as sens itivity to oils, grease, soil­
ing, etc.), yo u w ill need to be somewhat ca re ­
ful with these leathers, and a certain type of care is requi red . For example, dark clothing
mater ials can disco lor leather seats (especia l­
ly if such clothing is damp and was not dyed
correct ly). Dust and dirt particles in pores,
folds, and seams can have an abrasive effect
and can damage the leather surface as well as
wea ken seams .
The leather should be cleaned regularly as needed . After hav ing been used for a relat ively
long time, your leather seats will acq uire a
rich aged fi nish. This is a character istic of nat­
ur al leathe r and a s ign of true quality.
In order to maintain the value of this natural
product over the life of your veh icle, you
shou ld follow t he recomme ndat io ns be low: ..,.

-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 ..,.
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222 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 215.
(]) 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. 170 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 215 .
.,. 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. 170 ,
r=:> page 217, fig . 167. 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 217 .
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 223
@ 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
215 .
.,. Turn off the engine.
.,. let the engi ne cool down.
.,. Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank
q page 222, fig . 170 and carefully turn
the cap counter-clockwise
q &_ .
.,. Add coo la nt.
.,. Twist the cap o n aga in
tightly.
Rep lacement engine coo lant must confo rm to
exact spec ificat ions
q page 222, 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 ..,.
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•

designated seating position) and luggage
weight~&. .
Gros s Axle W eight Rating
The G ross Axle Weight Rating is the maximum
l oad that can be applied at each axle of the
vehicle
q .&. .
Vehicle capacit y weight
The vehicle capac ity we ight (max. load) is list­
ed on the driver 's side 8-p illar.
Roof weight
The maximum permissible roof weight is
19 8 lb s. (9 0 kg ). The roof weight is made up
of the weight of the roof rack system and the
weight of the object be ing transported
q page 64, Loading the roof rack .
..&, WARNING
- T he actual Gross Axle Weight Rat ing at
the front and rea r axles sho uld not ex­
ceed the permissible weights, and their
combination must not exceed the Gross
Vehicle Weight Rating.
- Exceeding permissib le we ight ratings can
result in vehicle damage, accidents and
persona l injury.
Q) Note
- The vehicle capacity weight figures app ly
when the load is distributed evenly in the
vehicle (passengers and luggage). When
transporting a heavy load in the luggage
compartment, carry the load as near to
the rear axle as possible so that the veh i­
cle's handling is not impaired .
- Do not exceed the maximum permissible
axle loads or the maximum gross vehicle
weight. Always remember that the vehi­
cle's handling will be affected by the ex­
tra load. Therefore, adjust your speed ac­
cord ingly.
- Always observe local regu lations.
-
G ene ral in formation 269
Dimensions
The specifications refer to the basic model.
Differences may occur depending on the mod­
el type and options ordered, for example, tire
sizes.
(D Note
When driving up steep ramps, on rough roads, over curbs, etc. it is important to re­
member that some parts of your vehicle,
such as spoilers or exhaust system compo­ nents, may be close to the ground . Be
careful not to damage them .
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