2013 AUDI A6 cooling

Error messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Trailer hitch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Homelink ® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Universal remote control . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Safety fir st . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Driving Safely . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Gene ral notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Proper occupant seating posit ions . . . 12 7
Driver and passenger side footwell . . . 131
Pedal area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Stowing luggage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Report ing Safety Defects . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Safety belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Ge neral notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Why safety be lts? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Safety belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Safety bel t pre tens io ners . . . . . . . . . . 1 43
Airbag system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
I mpo rtant th ings to know . . . . . . . . . . 145
Fr ont airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 49
M on itoring the Advanced Airbag
System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Knee airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Side airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Side curta in a irbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Child Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Important things to know . . . . . . . . . . 171
C hi ld safety seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Install ing a child safety seat . . . . . . . . 182
L ATC H Lower ancho rages and tethe rs
for ch ild ren . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Addit ional Information 189
Audi pre sense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
P reven tat ive passenger p rotection 190
Vehicle operat ion . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Intelligent technology . . . . . . . . 19 2
Not ice about da ta re cor ded by veh icle
control mod ules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
Elect ronic Stabilization Control (ESC) . 192
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
E lectro-mechanical power assist . . . . . 196
Table of contents 3
Driving with your q uattro ® . . . . . . . . . 196
Energy management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Driving and environment . . . . . 199
The first 1,000 miles (1,500 km) and
afterwards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Catalytic converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Avoid damaging the vehicle . . . . . . . . . 200
Drivi ng throug h wate r on roads . . . . . 201
Operate your vehicle economically and
min imize poll ution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Trailer towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
D rivi ng with a trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
T ra ile r tow ing tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Vehicle care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Cleaning and protection . . . . . . 208
General infor mation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Care of ex ter ior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Care of interior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Fuel supply and filling your
fuel tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
220
Gasoline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
F uel tank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Checking and filling . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Engine hood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Engine compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Engine oi l . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Engine cooling system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Brake fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235
Windsh ield/headlight washer
co ntaine r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Tires and wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
T ires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
T ire pressu re mo nitoring system 258
Do-it-yourself service . . . . . . . . . 261
What do I do now? . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
T ru nk escape handle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
E mergency warn ing triangle . . . . . . . . 261
Vehicle tool kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 2
Changing a wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
•
•

12 Instrum ent s and w arn ing /indic ato r light s
-Never open the engine hood if you see or
hear steam, or if you see engine coolant
dripping from the engine compartment.
You could burn yourself . Let the engine
cool off first until you can no longer see
o r hear steam or coo lant escaping.
@ Note
- Mounting additional lights or accessories
i n front of the a ir inlets reduces the cool­
i ng effect of the rad iator . At h igh outside
temperatures or high eng ine load, the
engine could overheat.
- The front spo iler has been designed to
proper ly distribute the cooling air when
t h e ve hicle is moving.
If the spoiler is
dam aged, th is co uld red uce the cooling
effect and the engine co uld then over­
heat . Ask your authorized Audi dea ler for
assistance .
Tachometer (engine rev counter)
The tachometer indicates the engine RPM
(revolutions per minutes).
If engine RP M drops be low 1,500, yo u should
downshift to the next lower gear. The red a rea
at the end of the sca le indicates maximum
perm iss ib le engine RPM after the break-in pe­
riod. Before reaching this area, move these­
lector lever to position D/S (Drive) or ease
your foot off the accelerator pedal.
(D Note
The tachometer needle should on ly br iefly
be in the red zone: you could damage your
engine! The beginn ing of the red zone var­
ies depending on the engine .
@ For the sake of the environment
Upshifting early saves fuel and reduces en­
gine noise.
Fuel gauge
The fuel gauge only works when the ignition is
on .
If the fuel level d rops below 2 . 6 ga llons (10 liters), the bottom LED turns red and the
indicator light
Em turns on ¢ page 21. T
he
bottom LED blinks red when the fuel level is
very low.
T he possible range based on the current fuel
level is shown in tab@<=>
fig. 4.
(D Note
Never run the tank completely dry. An ir ­
r egular supply of f uel can cause engine
misfiring and fuel could enter the ex haust
system . The catalytic converter could then
overheat and be damaged.
Warning/indicator lights
Description
The ind icator lights in the instrument cluster
blink or turn on. They indicate funct ions or
malfunc tions <=>,& .
Messages may appear with some indicato r
lights. A warning signal will sound at the
same t ime. The indicator lights and messages
in the center of the displays may be rep laced
by other d isplays . To show them again, select
the tab for ind icator lights and messages us­
i ng the multifunction steering wheel
Q page 23. If t here are several malfunc­
t ions, you can display them one at a time us­
ing the thumbwheel.
Some indicato rs lights in the d isplay can turn
on in severa l co lors.
A WARNING
- F ailure to heed w arning l igh ts and other
important vehicle in forma tion may res ult
in ser io us personal inj ury or vehicle dam­
age .
- Whenever stalled or stopped for repair, move the vehicle a safe d istance off the
road, stop the engine, and turn on the
emergency flasher<=>
page 42.
-The engine compartment of any motor
veh icle is a potentially hazardous area.
Before you chec k anything in the engine

Instrument s and warnin g/indic ator ligh ts 13
compartment, stop the engine and let it
cool down. Always exercise extreme cau­
t ion when working under the hood
<=> page 219, Engine compartment
@ Tips
Ma lf u nctions or faults wi ll be identified ei­
ther with a red symbo l (pr iority 1 -Dan­
ger!) or with a yellow symbol (pr iority 2 -
Warn ing).
Overview
Some ind icator lights turn on briefly to check
the function of that system when you switch
the ignition on. These systems are ma rked
with a ,/ in the following tables. If one of
these indicator lights does not turn on, there is a malfunction in that system.
Red indicator lights
Red symbols indicate a prio rity malfunction -
D anger!
- Pull off the road.
- Stop the vehicle.
-Turn off the engine.
- Check the ma lf u nctioning system . Contact
your authorized Audi dea ler or a qualified
workshop for assistance.
USA mode ls:
Brake ma lf u nction,/
Qpage 15
Canada models:
Brake malfunction,/
Qpage 15
USA models:
- Electromechanical parking brake
____ ,
D
<=> page 16
Canada models:
Electromechanical parking brake
<=>page 16
Engine cooling system
<=>page 16
Engine oil pressure
<=>page 17
Engine oil level
Q page 18
Battery
<=>page 17
Safety belt
<=>page 17
Electromechanical steering ,/
<=>page 196
Electronic steering column lock
<=>page 18
Engine start system
<=>page 18
Speed warning system
<=>page 79
Adaptive cruise control*,/
<=>page84
Air suspension*
Qpage 18
Pedestrian warning*
Qpage 101
Yellow indicator lights
Yellow symbo ls indicate a p rior ity 2 malfunc­
t ion -W arning!
I
USA models: Safety systems
<=>page 19 .
El
Canada models: Safety systems
<=>page 19
II
Electronic Stab ilization Control
(ESC) ./
<=>page 19
I
Electronic Stabil ization Control
( E SC) ,/
<=>page 19
USA models:
tm
Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
defective ,/
Qpage20
I

16 Instrum ent s and w arn ing /indic ato r light s
wheels co uld lock up first under hard
braking. Rear wheel lock-up can cause
loss of vehicle control and an accident.
Have your vehicle repaired immediately
by your authorized Aud i dealer or a qua li­
fied workshop. Drive slowly and avoid sudden, hard brake applications.
- Canada models: If the brake warn ing
light ., the
DJ warning light and the
ABS warning light
[iJ come on togethe r,
the rear wheels could lock up fi rst unde r
hard braking. Rear wheel lock-up can
cause loss of vehicle control and an acci­
dent. Have your vehicle repaired immedi­
ately by your authorized Audi dealer or a
qualified workshop. Dr ive slowly and
avo id sudden, hard brake applicat ions.
- If the brake warning/indicator light does not go out after a few seconds and the
park ing brake is released, or lights up
wh ile you are driving, the fluid level in
the brake f luid reservoir is too low . If you
believe that it is safe to do so, proceed
immediately at low speed to the nearest
authorized Audi dealer or qualified repair
facility and have the brake system in ­
spected.
- Always keep in mind that after several
brake applications, yo u will need greater
pressure on the brake peda l to stop your
vehicle. Do not re ly on stra ined brakes to
respond w ith maximum stopp ing power
in critical situations. You must allow for
increased brak ing distances . The extra
distance used up by fad ing brakes could
lead to an acc ident.
PARK/ (®) Electromechanical parking
brake
The warning/indicator light monitors the
electromechanical parking brake.
If the indicator light- (USA models)/ .
(Canada models) tu rns on, the park ing brake
was set . If the parking brake is set when the
ignit ion is off, the indicato r light turns off af­
ter about 20 seconds . The warning/indicator light wi
ll go out when
the parking brake is re leased.
- (USA m odels) /. (C an ada mod els)
C a uti on: V eh icle p ark ed t oo stee p
If the indicator light b links and the message
appea rs, there is not enough braking power to
keep the vehicle from roll ing . T he b rakes have
overheated. The veh icle cou ld roll away even
on a sma ll incline.
Pr ess brake p edal to r ele ase parking brake
To release the park ing brake, press the brake
pedal and press the button
@ii or start driving
with starting assist at the same time
~ page 75.
Pl ease re le a se park ing brak e
To release the parking brake manually, press
the brake pedal and press the button
@ii at the
same t ime. The parking brake only releases
automat ica lly if the driver's safety belt is fas­
tened .
IIJ Parking b rake!
If the IIJ indicator light turns on and th is
message appears, there is a parking brake
malfunction. Drive to your authorized Audi
dealer or qualif ied workshop immediately to
have the malfunct ion corrected.
- L Engine cooling system malfunction
A malfunction in the engine cooling system
must be repaired as soon as possible .
• Switch off engin e and check coolant le vel
If the indicator l ight turns on and the mes­
sage appea rs, the coolant temperature is too
high or the coolant leve l is too low .
"' Pull off the road.
"' Stop the vehicle .
"' Tur n off the engine.
"' Check coolant level ~
page 232.
"'Add coolant if necessary ~ page 233.
"' Continue driving on ly after the engine cool­
ant warning/ind icator light goes out.
"' Contact your authorized Audi dealer for as­
sistance if necessary .

Instrument s and warnin g/indic ator ligh ts 17
If the engine coolant level is correct, then the
radiator fan may be the cause of the malf unc­
tion .
• Coola nt te mpera tur e too high! Plea se let
e n gi ne r un with veh icle st atio nar y
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears in trailer mode*, let the engine
r u n at id le for a few m inutes to cool down.
A WARNING ,_________
- If your vehicle should break down for
mechanical or other reasons, park at a
safe distance from moving traffic, turn off the engine and turn on the ha zard
warning lights
q page 42, Emergency
flasher.
- Never open the hood if you see or hear
steam or coolant escap ing from the en­
gine compartment -you risk being scald ­
ed . Wait until you can no longer see or
hear steam or coo la nt escaping.
- The engine compartment of any veh icle
is a dangerous area . Before you perform
any work in the engine compartment,
t ur n of the eng ine and allow it to cool.
Follow the warning sticke rs
q page 219,
Engine compartment .
(D Note
Do not continue driving if the. symbol
illuminates . There is a ma lf u nct ion in the
eng ine cooling system -you co uld damage
your engine.
0 Battery
This warning/indicator light detects a mal­
function in the generator or in the vehicle's
electrical system .
The. warning/ind icator light illuminates
when you switch on the ignition and must go
out after the engine has started .
• Alternator fault : Batt ery i s not being
c h arg ed
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, there is a malfunction in the
generator or veh icle electrical system .
Drive to your authorized A udi dealer or quali­
fied workshop immediate ly . Because the vehi ­
cle batt ery is discharging , turn off all unnec­
essary electrical equipment such as the rad io.
Seek professiona l assistance if the ba ttery
charge level is too low.
(•) Low b atte ry : b atte ry will be cha rged
w hil e driv ing
If the indica tor ligh t turns on and the mes­
sage appears, there may be limited starting
ab ility .
If this message t urns off afte r a lit tle while,
the battery charged enough while driving.
If the message does not turn off, have your
autho rized Aud i dea ler o r qualified workshop
cor rect the ma lfu nction .
,{,_ Safety belts
This warning/indicator light reminds you to
put on your safety belt.
The . warn ing/ indicator light illum inates
when the ignition is switched on to remind
the d river and any front passenger to put on
the safety be lt. Addit ionally, an aco ustic warn­
i ng (gong) wi ll also so und .
For more Informat io n
q page 136, ~ Safety
belt warning light.
't::7: Engine oil pressure malfunction
The red engine oil pressure warning symbol
requires immediate service or repair. Driving
with a low-oil-pressure indication is likely to
inflict severe damage to the engine .
• Switch off engine and ch eck o il leve l
If the indicator light tu rn s on and the mes­
sage appears, the oi l pressure is too low .
.. Pull off the road .
.. Stop the vehicle .
.. Turn off the engine.

58 Seats and storage
vehicle movement, hot liquid could spill,
causing scalding burns. Spilled hot liquid
can also cause an accident and personal
injury .
- Use only soft cups in the cupholder. Hard
cups and glasses can cause injury in an
accident .
- Never use the cupholder or adapter as an
ashtray- risk of fire.
([) Note
Only drink containers with lids should be
carried in the cupholder. Liquid could spill
out and damage your vehicle's electronic
equipment or stain the upholstery, etc.
Cooled glove compartment
Ap plies to vehicles: with coole d glove compa rtm ent
The cooled glove compartment only functions
when the AIC system is switched on.
Fig. 60 Glove compa rtment: switc hing cooling mode
o n/off
~ Turn the knob@ counterclockwise to
switch cooling on. The symbols on the knob
indicate the correct position.
~ Turn the knob @ clockwise to switch cool-
ing off .
The glove compartment cooling mode only
functions when the vehicle A/C system is
switched on .
If the heating is switched on,
switching the glove compartment cooling
mode
off is recommended .
_& WARNING
Always leave the lid on the glove compart­
ment cover closed while driving to reduce
th e risk of injury.
Additional storage
Ther e are a variety of storage compartments
and fasteners in various places in the vehicle.
- Storage compartments in the doors
- Compartment in the glove compartment
(cooled*) . The glove compartment can be
locked using the mechanical key
r::;, page 32.
-Storage compartment for (sun)glasses* in
the roof (near the interior mirror)
- Storage compartments under the center
armrests
- Storage compartment on the rear side of
the front seat* . The compartment can hold a
maximum weight of 1 kg .
- Compartments* on the back of the front
seat backrests
- Garment hooks on the sides of the pillars in
the rear of the vehicle and in the rear grab
handles
- Compartment in the rear center armrest
- Two mounting hooks* under the base of the
rear window inside the luggage compart­
ment. You can attach light objects to these
hooks . The mounting hooks are spring -load­
ed and will return to their normal position
when not in use.
_& WARNING
- Always remove objects from the instru­
ment panel. Any items not stored could
slide around inside the vehicle while driv­
ing or when accelerating or when apply­
ing the brakes or when driving around a
corner.
- When you are driving make sure that
anything you may have placed in the cen­
ter console or other storage locations
cannot fall out into the footwells. In case
of sudden braking you would not be able
to brake or accelerate.
- Always keep the lid of the compartment
for (sun)glasses* closed while driving to
reduce the risk of injury during a sudden
braking maneuver or in the event of an
accident.
-

64 Warm and cold
Warm and cold
Climate controls
Description
A pplies to vehicles: with three-zone cl imate cont ro l or
four-zone a uto mat ic climate contro l
The climate control system warms, cools and
adds humidity to the air in the vehicle interior. It is the most effective when the windows and
sunroof* are closed .
If the temperature inside
the parked veh icle becomes very warm, open ­
ing the w indow br iefly will speed up the cool­
ing process.
In all heating mode functions except
defrost,
the blower on ly switches to a highe r speed
once the engine coolant has reached a certain
temperature.
Condensat ion from the cooling system can
d rip and form a puddle of wate r under the ve­
h icle. This is normal and does not mean there
is a leak .
Pollutant filt er
The pollutant filter removes pollutants such
as dust and po llen from the air.
The air pollutants filter must be changed at
the intervals spec ified in your Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet, so that the air condi­
tioner can properly work .
If you drive your vehicle in an area with high
a ir pollution, the filter may need to be
changed more freq uently than specified in
your Aud i Warranty & Ma intenance booklet. If
i n doubt, as k your author ized Audi Se rvice Ad­
visor for adv ice.
K ey coded setting s
Three-zone climate control: The blower set­
ting and air distribution are stored automati­
cally and assigned to the remote control key
that is in use.
Four-zone automatic climate control: The cli­
mate control settings are automatica lly stor­
ed and assigned to the remote control key
that is in use.
A WARNING
Reduced visibility is dangerous and can
cause accidents.
-
- For safe driving it is very important that
all windows be free of ice, snow and con­
densat ion .
- Comp lete ly fami liarize yourse lf with the
proper use and funct ion of the heat ing
and ventilation system and especially
how to defog and defrost the w indows.
- Never use the windshield wiper/washer system in freez ing weather unt il you
have wa rmed the windshie ld first, using
the heating and ventilation system. The
washer sol ution may freeze on the w ind­
shie ld and red uce visib ility.
(D Note
- If you suspect that the air conditioner
has been damaged, switch the system
off to avoid further d amage and have i t
inspected by a q uali fied dealership .
- Repairs to the Audi air conditioner re­
quire speci al technical know ledge and
special tools. Contact an authorized Audi
dea ler fo r ass istance.
@ For the sake of the environment
By reducing the amount of f uel you use,
you also red uce the amount of pollutants
emitted into the air.
(D Tips
- Keep the air intake s lo ts (in front o f the
windshield) free from ice, snow and de ­
bris in order to maintain the proper func­
tion of the climate control system.
- The energy management system may
switch the seat heating* or rear window
defroster off temporar ily. These systems
are available again as soon as the energy
balance has been restored .
-Air escapes through vents under the rear
w indow. When plac ing items of cloth ing
on the luggage compartment cover, en­
sure that the openings are not covered.

Warm and cold 65
Three-zone climate control
Operation
Applies to vehicles: with three-zone climate control
We recommend pressing the !AUTOI button and setting the temperature to 72 °F (22 °C).
F ig. 68 Three -zone cl imate control : controls
Press the buttons to turn the funct ions on or
off. The dial adjusts the temperature and the
blower . The LED in the buttons illuminates
when the funct ion is active.
IAUTO I Switching automatic mode on
Automatic mode mainta ins a constant tem­
peratu re inside the vehicle. Air temperature,
airflow and air d istribution are controlled au­
tomatically.
e °F e Adjusting the temperature
The temperature can be adjusted individually
for the driver and front passenger using the
d ials (!) and @.
~ Adjusting the airflow
Using the dial@, you can manually adjust the
amount of air generated by the blower to suit
your preferences . To have the airflow regulat­
ed automatically, press the
! AUTO ! button.
~. rill, [2] Adjusting the air distribution
You can manually se lect the vents where the
air will flow. To have the air distribution regu­ lated automatically, press the
!AUTOI button .
l""" I Switching recirculation mode on/off
In recirculation mode, the air inside the vehi­
cle is circulated and filtered. This prevents the
unfiltered air outside the veh icle from enter­
ing the vehicle interior . We recommend
switching recirculation mode on when dr iving
through a tunnel or when sitting in traffic
~.& -
The !AUTO ! button or~ button switches recir­
cu lation mode off.
I OFFI Switching the climate control
system on/off
The ! O FF! button switches the climate con trol
system on or off.
It also switches on when yo u
turn the dial or press any button. Airflow from
outside is blocked when the climate control
system is switched off.
IACI Switching cooling mode on/off
The air is not coo led and humidity is not re­
moved when cooling mode is switched off .
This can cause fog on the w indows. Cooling
mode switches off automatically when the
outside temperature is be low zero.