192 Trailer towing
Tire pre ss ure
When towing a trai le r, inflate the t ires of your
vehicle to the co ld tire pressure listed under
"Full load" on the label located on the driver 's
side B-pillar (visible when the door is open).
Inflate trailer tires to trailer and tire manufac
turers' specifications.
Light s
The headlight settings should be checked with
the trailer attached before dr iving off. Check
to make sure both vehicle and tra iler lights
are working properly.
Saf ety chains
Be sure tra iler sa fe ty cha ins a re p roperly con
nected from the trailer to the hitch on the ve
hicle. Leave eno ugh slack in the chains to per
mit turning corners. When you install safety
cha ins, make sure they w ill not drag on the
road when you are driving.
The chains shou ld cross under the trai ler
tongue to prevent it from dropping in case of
separation from the hitch.
Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra
care and consideration.
To obtain the best possible handling o f vehicle
and trai ler, p lease note the following:
.,. Do not tow a loaded tra iler whe n your car it
self is no t loaded .
.,. Be especia lly careful when passing other
vehicles .
.,. Observe speed limits .
.,. Do not drive at the maximum permissible
speed.
.,. Always apply brakes early .
.,. Monitor the temperature gauge.
Weigh t di stribution
Towing a loaded trai ler with an empty car re
sults in a highly unstable distribution of
weight . If this cannot be avo ided, drive at very
low speeds only to avoid the risk of losing
steer ing control. A "ba
lanced' ' rig is easier to operate and con
trol. This means that the tow vehicle should be loaded to the extent possible and permissi
ble, while keep ing the trai ler as light as possi
ble under the c ircumstances. Whenever poss i
ble, transfer some cargo to the luggage com
partment of the tow veh icle while obse rving
tongue load requ irements and vehicle load ing
considerations.
Speed
The higher the speed, the more d iff icu lt it be
comes for the driver to control the rig. Do not
drive at t he maximum permissible speed. Re
duce your speed even more if load, weather or
wind conditions are unfavorable -pa rtic ularly
whe n going downhill.
Reduce veh icle speed
immediately if the trail
er shows the slightest s ign of sway ing.
Do n ot
try to sto p th e swaying by acc elerating .
Observe speed limits. In some areas, speeds
fo r vehicles tow ing tra ile rs a re lower than for
regular veh icles .
Always apply brakes early. When driving downh ill, shift into a lower gear to use the en
gine braking effect to slow the vehicle . U se of
the brakes alone can cause them to overheat
and fail.
Coolant tempe rature
The coo lant temperature gauge c> page 10
must be observed carefu lly. If the needle
moves close to the upper end of the scale, re
duce speed immediately and/or turn off the
air conditioner.
If the coolant temperature warning light •
i n t he i nstrument cluster starts flashing, pull
off the road, stop and let the engine
idle for
abo ut two min utes to prevent he at build-up .
_& WARNING
Anyone not proper ly restra ined in a mov
i ng vehicle is a t a much greater risk in an
accident . Never let anyone ride in yo ur car
who is not p roperly wea ring the rest raints
prov ided by Audi.
-
Trailer towing tips
Important to know
Your vehicle hand les different ly when tow ing
a trailer because o f the addit ional weight and
d iffe ren t weight distribution . Safety, perform
ance and economy w ill greatly depend on how
caref ully you load your trailer and operate
your rig.
B efore you actua lly tow your trailer, pr actice
turning, stopp ing and bac king up in an area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you have become comp lete ly fam iliar with the way
your veh icle-trailer comb ination behaves and
responds.
Backing up is d ifficu lt a nd requires practice .
Backing up with a tra iler genera lly requires
steer ing action opposite to that when backing
up your vehicle without a trailer.
M aintain a g reater distance betwee n your ve
h icle and the one in front o f you . You will need
mo re room to stop. To compensate for the
trailer, you will need a larger than normal
turning radius .
W hen pass ing, remember that yo u cannot ac
celerate as fast as yo u normally wo uld be
cause of the added load. Make sure you have
e nough room to pass . After passing , allow
p lenty o f room fo r your tra iler before chang
in g la nes aga in .
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rap id lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do n ot tow a tra ile r during the break-in
period of you r vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your A udi may re
quire more frequent maintenance due to
t h e ext ra load
o page 269.
Trailer towin g 193
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer . If it can
not be avoided, do so only after doing the fol lowing:
When parking:
.. App ly the foot brake.
"' Have someone p lace chocks under both the
veh icle and the tra iler wheels .
"' With chocks in place, slowly release t he
bra kes unt il t he whee l chocks absorb the
load .
.. Tur n the whee ls towa rds t he curb .
.,. App ly the parking brake.
.. Move the se lector lever to P.
When restarting after parking:
.. App ly the foot brake .
.,. Sta rt t he engine .
.. Move the se lector lever to D/S .
.. Release the pa rking brake and s low ly pull
out a nd away from the wheel chocks .
.. Stop and have someone retr ieve the wheel
chocks .
(D Tips
If you move the selector leve r of the auto
matic transmission to P befo re a pplying
the parking brake and before bloc king the
whee ls, you may have to use more force
l ater to move the l ever out of the P posi
tion .
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194 Cleaning and protection
Cleaning and
protect ion
General information
Regular core preserves vehicle value .
Any automobile is exposed to industrial
fumes, corrosive road salt, etc. A well cared
for Audi can look like new many years after
purchase . Regular and correct care w ill con
tr ibute to maintaining the beauty and value of
your Aud i.
Furth erm ore, goo d car e m ay be a c onditi on
for substantiat ing a warrant y claim shou ld
c orrosion dam age or paint d efe ct s occ ur.
Your author ized Audi dealer has a variety of
d ed ica ted vehicl e-ca re product s and can ad
vise which ones to use for cleaning the exter i
or and inte rior of your vehicle .
Whether you use products recommended by
Aud i or other commercially ava ilable clean ing
agents, please make sure you apply them cor
rectly .
A WARNING
-Cleaning agents may be poisonous. Keep
them out of the reach of children.
- Heed all caut ion labels.
- Always read directions on the container
before using any product . Follow the di
rect ions carefu lly.
- Most chemical cleaners are concentrated
and have to be diluted.
- Use spot removing fluids only in well
ventilated areas.
- Do not use gasoline, kerosene, d iesel
fuel, nail pol ish remover or other volati le
fluids. They may be toxic, flammab le or
haza rdous in other ways. Do not wash,
wax or dry the vehicle with the ignit ion
on or the engine running.
- Do not clean the undersides of chassis,
fenders, wheel covers, etc. without pro
tecting your hands and arms. You may
c u t yourself on sharp-edged metal parts . -
Moisture and ice on brakes may impair
brak ing eff ic iency
c::> page 181. Test the
brakes carefully each time you wash the
veh icle.
@ For the sake of the environment
Select on ly environ mentally friendly clean
i ng products. Leftover cleaning products
should not d isposed of in the househo ld
waste .
Care of exterior
Washing
Frequent washing protects the vehicle .
The best protection against environmental in
fluences is
frequent washing and waxing . How
often this is required depends on:
- How much the veh icle is used
- Where the veh icle is parked (garage, in the
open under trees, etc.)
- The seasona l and weather conditions
- Environmental infl uences
T he longer b ird droppings, insects, tree resin,
road and indus tria l gr ime, ta r, soot, road salt
and other materials remain on the vehicle body, the more lasting their destr uctive ef
fects wi ll be . High temperatures caused by ex
pos ure to intense sun light intens ify the corro
s ive effect, particularly when humid ity is high
as well.
Under certain circumstances,
weekl y washing
may be necessary. Under other cond itions, a
monthly washing and waxing may be ade
quate .
After the winter, the underside of the vehicle
should be thoroughly washed, preferably in a professional car wash.
Vehicles with matte finish paint
c::> poge 197.
A WARNING
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other information
c::> page 194.
(D Note
- Never use chemical solvents (e.g . lighter
flu id, turpentine), waxes, shoe polish or
s imilar products on Alcantara ® surfaces.
- To avoid damage, have stubborn stains
removed by a commercia l cleaning spe
cialist.
- Do not use brushes, stiff sponges or sim
ilarly abrasive cleaning aids.
Safety belts
Only well-maintained safety belts work relia
bly when needed.
.. Keep belts clean .
.. For cleaning, use a mi ld soap and water sol
ution . Let be lts dry thoroughly and away
from direct sunlight.
.,. Do not allow inertia reel safety belts to re
tract before they are completely dry.
.,. Check the condition of your safety belts
reg
ularly .
Heavily soiled safety belts may not retract
properly .
A WARNING
Damaged safety belts can break in a crash.
- Anything that might damage your safety
belts could mean that you and your pas
sengers wou ld not be adequately pro
tected in an acc ident.
- Safety belt performance depends on cor
rect installation. Never remove belts
from the vehicle to clean them.
- Do not use chemical cleaning agents,
bleach o r dyes. They have corros ive prop
erties whi ch weaken the webbing.
- When cleaning your safety belts, inspect
them for damage.
If you discover dam
age, see your a uthorized Audi dea ler.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS and
other information
Qpage 194.
l) Use o nly the correct cleaning sol utions. Neve r use gas
oline or d iese l fuel.
Cleaning and protec tion
Engine compartment
Be especially careful when cleaning the en
gine compartment.
A lw ays switch o ff the ign it ion before cle an
i ng the eng ine
c> ,& .
Plenum pan el
Remove leaves from the plenum panel in front
of the windshield under the engine hood. This
prevents the water drain holes from becoming
blocked, and it prevents debris from enter ing
the vehicle interior through the heating and
vent ilat ion ducts.
Co rro sio n protect ion
The engine compartment and transmission
have been corrosion-protected at the factory.
Good anti -corrosion treatment is very impor
tant, partic ularly in the winter.
If the vehicle
is frequently driven on salt treated roads, the
entire engine compartment and p lenum panel
should be thoroughly cleaned at the end of
winter and retreated to prevent salt damage.
At the same time, the underside of the vehicle
shou ld be washed as well.
If the engine compartment is cleaned at any
time with grease remov ing solutions
1> , or if
you have the engine washed, the anti-corro
s ion treatment is almost always removed as
well.
It i s therefo re essentia l to have a long
lasti ng cor rosion pro tect ion reapplied to all
surfaces, seams, joints and components in the
engine compartment .
A WARNING
Be aware: The engine compartment of any
motor vehicle is a potentially hazardous
area.
- Before work ing in the engine compart
ment, be sure to read the information
c> page 212.
- Before reaching into the front plenum
panel, a lways remove the ignit ion key.
205
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206 Cleaning and protec tio n
Otherwise, the windshield wiper system
cou ld unintentionally 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 ignit ion 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
to reach parts w ithout protecting your
hands and arms. You may cut yourse lf on
sharp-edged metal parts.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other informa tion ~
page 194.
Fuel supply and filling
your f uel tank
Gasoline
Fuel supply
Using the right fuel helps keep the environ
ment clean and prevents engine damage.
Fuel recommendation
The fuel recommended for you r vehicle is un
leaded premium
g rade gasolin e. See also
¢ page 267, Data . Audi recommends usi ng
TO P TI ER Deterge nt Gaso line wi th a minim um
oc ta ne ra ti ng of 9 1 AK I (9 5 RON). For more
in fo rmation on TO P TI ER De tergent Gaso line,
p lease go to the official website (www.toptier
gas.com).
The re commended g asoline octane r ating for
your engine can a lso be fo und o n a label loca t
e d on the ins ide of the fuel filler flap . This rat
ing may be specif ied as A KI or RO N.
Your veh icle m ay also be oper ated using un
l e aded regular gasoline with a minimum oc
tane rating of 87 AKI/91 RON . However, using
87 AKI/9 1 RO N octa ne f ue l w ill sli ghtly re
d uce eng ine perfo rmance .
Use unleaded gasoline only. Unleaded gaso
line is available th rougho ut the USA, Canada,
a nd in most E uropean cou ntries . We recom
mend that you do not ta ke yo ur vehicle to
areas or count ries where unleaded gasoline
may not be ava ilable.
F or mo re informat io n on refue ling your ve hi
cle, see ¢
page 209.
Octane rating
Octane r ati ng in dicates a gaso line's abili ty to
r es ist engine damaging "knock" ca used by
p remature ign ition and detonation. Therefore,
buy ing the correct grade of gaso line is very
i mportant to help prevent possible engine
damage and a loss of engine performance.
Gasoline most common ly used in the Unite d
States and Canada has the followin g octane
Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank 207
ra tings that can usu a lly be found on the fi ller
p ump :
- Premium Gr ade: 9 1 -9 6 AKI
- Regular Grade : 87 -90 AKI
Explanation of the abbreviations:
AKI = Anti K nock In d ex = (R+M )/2 = (RO N
+M ON)/2
RON= Resear ch O ctane Num ber
MO N= Motor Octane Number.
(D Note
- Do not use a ny fue l w it h octane rat ings
lower than 87 A KI or 9 1 RO N othe rwise
e xpensive engi ne damage w ill occur.
- Do
not use leaded gasoli ne . The use of
leaded gasolin e w ill severely damage
yo ur vehicl e's cata lytic co nve rter and its
ability to control exh aust em iss ions.
Blended gasoline
U se of gasoline containing alcohol or
MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether)
You may use unleaded g asoline blende d with
a lcohol o r MTBE (commonly re fer red to as
oxygenates) if the blende d mixture meets the
fo 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% meth-
anol.
- Blend must co ntain more than 2% co-sol-
vents .
Blend of gasoline and ethanol (grain alcohol
or ethyl alcohol)
- Anti -knoc k index must be 87 A KI or higher.
- Blend must not conta in mo re tha n 10%
ethanol.
- Ve hicl es w ith flex ible f uel engine : blend
m ust not contain more t han 85% ethanol.
Blend of ga soline and MTBE ..,_
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208 Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank
-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 stat ions 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 flex ible fuel en
gines. Using high ethano l fuel in vehicles
not equipped with flexib le fue l eng ines
can cause severe engine damage.
- Methanol fuels which do not mee t 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 identif ied.
- Fuel system damage and performance
problems resulting from the use of fuels
different from those specified are not
the respons ibility 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 driveab ility and performance prob
le ms due to the use of one of these fuel
blends, we recommend that you switch
to unblended fuel.
Ethanol fuel (B io-ethanol)
App lies to veh icles : w ith flex ible fue l en g in e
You can recognize vehicles with a flexible fuel
engine by looking at the label on the inside of
the fuel filler flap.
Vehicles with flexible fuel engines may be op
erated with bio -ethanol fuels such as E85
(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 w ill increase when us
ing bio-ethanol fue ls 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 b io-etha
nol , a certain amount of fuel ends up in the
engine oil when driving short distances in very
low temperatures. This fue l 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 o il level.
CD Note
- Never fill with methanol o r with a higher
percentage of b io-ethanol than 85%
(E85). A higher percentage of bio-etha
nol in the fuel can cause damage to the
engine or to the fue l system.
- If you use only E85, it is recommended
to fill the fuel tank complete ly with un
leaded premium grade gaso line every
5,000 miles.
- If you experience starting, rough id le or
hesitation driveability problems, fill the
fue l tank comp letely with unleaded pre
m ium grade gasoline and dr ive it nor
mally until the gasoline is used. See your
authorized Audi dealer if the problem
persists .
-Inform your authorized Audi dealer that
you are operating or have operated the vehicle with E85.
- Read and follow the information and tips
about gasoline
¢ page 207.
(D Tips
It may take longer to start the engine
when the outside temperature is very cold.
If possible, use winterized fuel if tempera
tures are below freezing.
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.
Aud i recommends using TOP TIER Detergent
Gasoline . For more information on TOP TIE R
Detergent Gasoline, please go to the official
website (www.toptiergas .com) .
After an extended pe riod of using inadequate
fuels, built-up carbon deposits can rob your
engine of peak performance.
(D Note
- Damage or malfunction due to poor fuel
quality is not covered by the Audi New
Vehicle Limited Warranty.
- Do not add aftermarket fuel addit ive
products to your fuel tank.
Fuel tank
Fuel filler neck
T he fuel filler neck is located on the right rear
side panel behind the fuel filler flap.
Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank 209
If the power locking system should fail, you
can still open the flap manually -for detailed
instructions see
¢ page 211.
You can find the fuel tank capacity of your ve
hicle in
Technical Data ¢ page 267.
The labe l on the inside of the fuel fi ller flap
tells you the correct fuel for your veh icle. For
more information about fuel specifications,
see¢page207.
Your vehicle fuel tank has an on-board refuel
ling vapor recovery system. This feature helps
to prevent fuel vapors from escaping from the
tank and polluting the environment while you
refue l your vehicle. In order to fi ll the tank
properly while protecting the environment,
please follow this refueling procedure careful
ly.
A WARNING
Under normal operating conditions, never
carry addit ional fuel conta iners 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 fire in a collision. If you must
transport fuel to use for your lawn mower,
snow b lower, etc., be very careful and al
ways observe loca l 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) .
(D Note
Never drive your vehicle until the fuel tank
is completely empty. The irregular supply
of fuel can cause m isfiring . Gasoline could
enter the exhaust system and damage the
catalytic converter .
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