2013 AUDI A5 COUPE tire type

Tires and wheels
Tires
General notes
Tires may be the least appreciated and most
abused parts of a motor vehicle .
Tires may be the least appreciated and most
abused parts of a motor vehicle . Tires are,
however, one of the most important parts of a
vehicle, particularly considering the compara­
tively small patch of rubber on each tire that
assures that a ll- important contact between
you, your vehicle and the road.
Maintaining the correct tire pressure, mak ing
sure that your vehicle and its tires do not have
to carry more weight than they can safely han­
d le, avoiding damage from road hazards and
r eg ularly inspect ing t ires for damage i nclud­
ing cuts, slashes irregu la r wear and ove rall
condition are the most important things that
you can do to he lp avoid sudden tire failure in­
cluding tread separat ion and blowouts.
A vo idin g damage
If you have to drive over a curb or similar ob­
stacle, drive very slow ly and as close as possi ­
b le at a right angle to the curb.
A lways keep chemicals includ ing grease, o il ,
gasoline and brake fluid off the t ires .
I nspect the t ires regularly for damage (cuts,
cracks or b listers, etc.). Remove any fo reign
bod ies embedded in the treads.
Storing tires Mark tires when you remove them to indicate
the direction of rotation . Th is ensures you to
be ab le to mount them correctly when you re­
i nstall them .
When removed, the wheels or t ires should be
sto red in a cool, dry and preferably dark place .
Store tires in a vertical pos ition if they are not
mounted on rims, in a horizontal pos it ion if
they are mounted on rims .
Tires an d wheel s 231
New tires
New ti res have to be broken in¢& .
The tread depth of new t ires may vary, accord­
ing to the type a nd make of t ire and the tread
patte rn.
H idden damage
Damage to tires and r ims is often not readily
visible . If you notice unusual v ib rat ion or the
vehicle pulls to one s ide, th is may ind icate
that one of the t ires has been damaged . T he
ti res m ust be chec ked immed iate ly by an au­
thorized Audi dea le r or q ua lified wor kshop .
Unidirectional tires
A un idirectional tire can be identified by ar­
rows on the sidewa ll, that po int in the direc­
tion the t ire is designed to rotate. You must
f ol low the specified di rection of rotation . T his
is necessary so that these tires can develop
their optimum characteristics regarding grip, road noise, wear and hydrop laning resistance.
For more information ¢
page 258.
A WARNING
New tires or t ires that are o ld, worn or
damaged cannot provide maximum con­
trol and braking ability .
-
-New tires tend to be slippery and must
also be broken-in. To reduce the risk of losing control, a collision and serious
personal injuries, drive w ith special care
for the first 350 miles (560 km).
- Driving with worn or damaged tires can
lead to loss of control, sudden tire fail­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
fl ation, cras hes and se riou s personal in­
juries . Have worn or damaged t ires re­
placed immediate ly.
- Tires age even if they are not being used
and can fai l sudden ly, especially at hig h
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
and then w ith special care and at low
speed.
•
•

Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balancing, correct tire pressure and driv­
ing style.
F ig. 178 Tire tread: tread wea r ind ica tors (TWI)
___ __,J.)
Fi g. 179 Rotat ing t ires fo r m ore even wea r
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The origina l tires on your veh icle have
1/16 in ch (1.6 mm) high "wear ind icators"
r::!;> fig . 178 run ning across the tread. Depend ­
ing on the make, there will be six to eight of
them evenly p laced around the t ire . Marks on
the t ire s idewall (for example "TWI" or other
symbols) indicate the positions of the tread
wear ind icators . Worn t ires must be replaced.
Different fig ures may apply in other countries
r::!) & .
Tir e pressure
Incorrect tire pressure causes premat ure wear
and can cause sudden tire blow-out . For th is
reason, tire pressure must be checked at least
once a month
r::!;> page 23 7.
Dri ving sty le
Driving fast around curves , heavy acceleration
and hard braking increase tire wear. Tires and wheels 241
Rotating tires for more even wear
For all four tires on your ve
hicl e to have the
same service life, we recomme nd that the
front and rear tires are rotated according to
the tire manufacturer 's suggested tire rota­
tion inte rvals. Please remember the follow ­
ing :
- Tire rotation intervals may differ from the
veh icle service inte rva ls o utlined in your
Ma intenance and Warranty Booklet.
- The longer one tire is used in one location
on the vehicle, the more it wears at certain
points ; therefore, we recommend that you
follow the tire manufactu rer 's suggested
tire rotation intervals .
- Vehicles w ith front-wheel dr ive exper ience
more tread wear on the front wheels com­
pared to all w heel drive (quattro ®).
- Please rotate tires as shown
r::!;> fig. 179.
-Extra care must be taken when rotat ing di-
rection-specific tires
r::!;> page 258 .
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new veh icles are balanced .
However, various situations during everyday
driving can cause them to become unba l­
anced, resulting in vibrat ions you can usually
feel through the steer ing wheel.
Unbalanced wheels must be rebalanced to
avoid excessive wear on steering, s uspension
and t ires. A whee l must also be reba lanced
when a new tire is insta lled.
Inco rrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment can cause exces­
sive tire wear, impair ing the safety of the vehi­
cle . If tires show excessive wear, have the
whee l alignment checked by an authori zed
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
All wheel drive
Vehicles wi th quattro ® must a lways have tires
of the same size, construction and tread type. For details see
r=> page 190 .

-All four wheels must be fitted with radial
tires of the same type, size (rolling cir­
cumference) and the same tread pattern .
Driving with different tires reduces vehi­
cle handling and can lead to a loss of
control.
- If the spare tire is not the same as the
tires that are mounted on the vehicle -
for example with winter tires -only use
the spare tire for a short period of time and drive with extra care. Refit the nor­
mal road wheel as soon as safely possi­
ble.
- Never drive faster than the maximum
speed for which the tires on your vehicle
are rated because tires that are driven
faster than their rated speed can fail
suddenly.
- Overloading tires cause heat build-up,
sudden tire failure, including a blowout
and sudden deflation and loss of control.
- Temperature grades apply to tires that
are properly inflated and not over or un­
derinflated .
- For technical reasons it is not always
possible to use wheels from other
vehicles -in some cases not even wheels
from the same vehicle model.
- If you install wheel trim discs on the ve­
hicle wheels, make sure that the air flow
to the brakes is not blocked. Reduced air­
flow to the brakes can them to overheat,
increasing stopping distances and caus­
ing a collision.
- Run flat tires may only be used on
vehicles that were equipped with them at the factory. The vehicle must have a
chassis designed for run flat tires and a
factory-installed tire pressure monitor­ ing system* that indicates a loss of tire
pressure. Incorrect use of run flat tires
can lead to vehicle damage or accidents.
Check with an authorized Audi dealer or
tire specialist to see if your vehicle can be
equipped with run flat tires .
If run flat
tires are used, they must be installed on
all four wheels. Mixing tire types is not
permitted.
Tires and wheels 245
@ Note
- For technical reasons, it is not generally
possible to use the wheel rims from oth­
er vehicles. This can hold true for wheels
of the same vehicle type.
- If the spare tire is different from the
tires that you have mounted on your ve­
hicle (for example winter tires or wide
profile tires), then use the spare tire for a
short period of time only and drive with
extra care. Replace the flat tire with the
tire matching the others on your vehicle
as soon as possible.
- Never drive without the valve stem cap .
The valves could get damaged.
(® For the sake of the environment
Dispose of old tires in accordance with the
local requirements.
Uniform tire quality grading
- Tread wear
- Traction AA A B C
- Temperature ABC
Quality grades can be found where applicable
on the tire side wall between tread shoulder
and maximum section width
c:> page 242,
fig. 180 .
For example: Tread wear 200, Traction AA,
Temperature A.
All passenger car tires must conform to Feder­
al Safety Requirements in addition to these
grades.
Tread wear
The tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specified
government test course.
For example, a tire graded 1S0 would wear
one and one half (1 1/2) times as well on the
government course as a tire graded 100.
1JJ>
•
•

246 Tires and wheels
The relative performance of tires depends
upon the actual conditions of their use, how­
ever, and may depart significantly from the norm due to variations in driving habits, serv­
ice practices and differences in road character­
istics and climate.
Traction
The traction grades , from highest to lowest,
are AA, A, Band
C. Those grades represent the
tire's ability to stop on wet pavement as measured under controlled conditions on
specified government test surfaces of asphalt
and concrete . A tire marked C may have poor
traction performance ¢.&, .
Temperature
The tempera ture grades are A (the highest),
B, and
C, representing the tire's resistance to
the generation of heat and its ability to dissi ­
pate heat when tested under controlled condi­
tions on a specified indoor laboratory test
wheel.
Sustained high temperature can cause the
material of the tire to degenerate and reduce
tire life, and excessive temperature can lead
to sudden tire failure~.&, .
The grade
C corresponds to a level of perform ­
ance which all passenger car tires must meet under the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Stand­
ard No.
109. Grades Band A represent higher
levels of performance on the laboratory test
wheel than the minimum required by law.
A WARNING
The traction grade assigned to this tire is
based on straight-ahead braking traction
tests, and does not include acceleration,
cornering, hydroplaning or peak traction
characteristics.
A WARNING
The temperature grade for this tire is es­
tablished for a tire that is properly inflated
and not overloaded . Excessive speed, un­
derinflation, or excessive loading, either
-
separately or in combination, can cause heat buildup and possible tire failure.
Winter tires
Winter tires can improve vehicle handling on
snow and ice. At temperatures below 45 °F (7 °C) we recommend changing to winter
tires.
In some heavy snow areas, local governments
may require true winter or "snow" tires, those
with very deeply cut tread . These tires should
only be used in pairs and be installed on all
four wheels . Make sure you purchase snow
tires that are the same size and construction
type as the other tires on your vehicle .
Your vehicle is equipped with all wheel drive,
this will improve traction during winter driv ­
ing, even with the standard tires. However, we
strongly recommend that you always equip all
four wheels on your vehicle with correctly fit­
ted winter tires or all-season tires, when win­
ter road conditions are expected. This also im­
proves the vehicle's braking performance and
reduces stopping distances.
Summer tires provide less grip on ice and
snow.
Winter tires (snow tires) must always be fitted
on all four wheels.
Ask your authorized Audi dealer or qualified
workshop for permitted
winter tire sizes . Use
only radial winter tires.
Winter tires lose their effectiveness when the
tread is worn down to a depth of
O .15 7 inch
(4 mm).
Only drive with winter tires under winter con­
ditions. Summer tires handle better when
there is no snow or ice on the roads and the
temperature is above 45 °F (7 °().
If you have a flat ti re, see notes on spare
wheel
¢page 242.
Please always remember that winter tires may
have a lower speed rating than the tires origi-
nally installed on your vehicle at the time it .,.

has been designed specifically for your type of
vehicle.
It must not be swapped with a com­
pact spare t ire from another type of veh icle .
Snow cha ins
F or techn ica l reasons, the use of snow chains
on the compact spare tire is
not p ermitt ed .
If you do have to dr ive with snow cha ins and a
front tire fails, mou nt the spare whee l w it h
tire ins tead of a rea r tir e. Install the snow
chains on the rear t ire and use it to replace
the defective front tire .
A WARNING
-Never use the spare tire if it is damaged
or if it is worn down to the tread wear in ­
dicators.
- If the spare tire is mo re than 6 years o ld,
use it only in an emergency and w ith ex­
treme caution and careful driving.
- The spare tire is intended only for tem­
porary and short-term use. It should be
replaced as soon as possib le w ith the
normal wheel and t ire .
- After mounting the compact spare tire,
the tire pressure must be checked as
soon as poss ible. The tire pressure of the
compact spa re tire must be 4.2 bar ; oth­
erwise, you risk hav ing an accident.
- Do not drive faster than SO mph (80 km/
h). You risk having an acc ident .
-Avo id full-throttle acce lerat ion, heavy
braking, and fast corner ing . You risk hav­
ing an acc ident.
- Never drive us ing more t han one spare
wheel and tire . You risk hav ing an acci­
de nt.
- No rma l summer or winte r tires must not
be mounted on the compact spare whee l
rim.
- For technical reasons, the use of ti re
ch ains on the spare tire is no t permitted.
If it is necess ary to dr ive wi th tire ch ain s,
the spare whee l must be moun ted on the
front axle in the event o f a flat in a rear
t ire. The newly ava ilable front w heel
must then be installed in place of the
What do I do now? 253
'
rea r whee l w ith the flat tire. Installing
the t ire cha in be fore mounting the whee l
and tire is recommended.
- Loose items in the passenger compart­
ment can cause serious personal injury
during hard brak ing or in a n accident.
Never store the inflatable spa re tire or
jack and tools in the passenge r compart­
ment.
Changing a wheel
Before changing a wheel
Observe the following precautions for your
own and your passenger 's safety when chang ­
ing a wheel .
.,. After you expe rie nce a tir e fail ure, p ull the
car we ll away from mov ing traffic and try to
reac h
level ground before you stop ¢ .&, .
.,. All passengers should
leave the car and
move to a safe location ( for instance, behind
the guardra il) ¢ .&, .
.,. Engage the
park ing brake to prevent your
veh icle from rolling unintentionally¢.&, .
.,. Shift into
1st gear on veh icles with man ual
transm iss ion, or move th e
selector lever to
the P po sition
on vehi cles w ith automa tic
t ra nsm iss io n.
.,. If you are towing a tra iler : u nhi tch the trail­
er from your vehicle .
.,. Take the
ja ck r=:> page 252 and the spare tire
r=:> page 252 out of the luggage compart­
ment.
A WARNING
You o r you r passengers could be i njured
while changing a w heel if you do not fo l-
low these saf ety p recaut ions :
- If you have a fla t tire, move a safe d is­
tance off th e road . T urn off the engine,
tur n the eme rgency flashers on and use
o ther warni ng devi ce s to a le rt other mo­
t oris ts.
- Ma ke sure tha t passenge rs wait in a safe
p la ce aw ay from the vehicle and well
-
away from the road and tra ffic. .,. •
•

2 70 General information
designated seating position) and luggage
weight ¢.&, .
Gross Axle Weight Rating
The Gross Axle Weight Rating is the maximum
lo ad that can be applied at each axle of the
vehicle ¢Lr!, .
Vehicle capacity 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 165
lbs. (75 kg). The roof weight is made up of
the we ight of the roof rack system and the
weight of the object be ing transported
¢ page 62, Loading the roof rack .
.&_ WARNING
- T he actual Gross Axle Weight Rating at
the front and rear axles should not ex­
ceed the permissible weights, and their
combination must not exceed the Gross
Vehicle Weight Rating .
- Exceeding permissib le weight ratings can
result in vehicle damage, accidents and
persona l injury.
(D Note
- The vehicle capacity weight figures apply
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 vehi­
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
cordingly.
- Always observe loca l regu lations .
.
Dimensions
The specifications refer to the basic model.
Differences may occur depending on the mod­
el type and options ordered, for example, tire
sizes.
~ 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 spo ilers or exhaust system compo­
nents, may be close to the ground . Be
careful not to damage them .