2013 AUDI A6 engine overheat

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

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 .

80 On the road
The stored speed and the ind icator light
A;(l)~i~ (US mo dels) 1,'I (Canadian mode ls) a p­
pea r in the instrument cluster d isp lay
c::> fig. 81. The display may vary, depending on
the type of d isplay in your vehicle .
This informat ion is also shown briefly in the
Head -up Display*.
The speed is kept constant v ia an engine o ut­
put adjustment or active b rake intervention.
A WARNING
- Always pay attention to traffic even when
the cruise control is switched on. You are
always responsible for your speed and
the distance between your vehicle and
other vehicles .
- For safety reasons, the cruise control
should not be used in the city, in stop­
and-go traff ic, on twist ing roads and
when road conditions are poor (such as ice , fog, grave l, heavy ra in and hydro­
planing) -risk of accident.
- Turn
off the cruise control temporar ily
when entering turn lanes, highway exit lanes o r in construc tion zones.
- Please note that inadvertently "rest ing"
yo ur foot on the accelerator peda l causes
the cruise control not to brake . T his is
because the cr uise control is overridden
by the d river's acce leration .
- If a brake system malfunc tion such as
overheating occurs when the cruise con ­
tro l system is switched on, the braking
function in the system may be switched
off. The other cruise control functions re­
ma in active as long as the indicator light
[~;rn~i~ (US models) !Ill (Canad ian mod ­
els) is on .
(j) Tips
The brake lights illuminate as soon as the
brakes decelerate automat ica lly.
Changing speed
Applies to veh icles: w ith cru ise control
., To increase/decrease the speed in inc re­
ments, tap the lever in the
0 10 direc tion
c::> fig . 80
., To increase/decrease the speed quic kly,
hold t he lever in the
0 10 direction until
the desired speed is displayed.
You can also press the accelerator pedal down
to increase your speed, e.g . if you want to
pass someone . The speed you saved earlier
will res ume as soon as you release the acceler­
ator pedal.
If, however, you exceed your saved speed by
6 mph (10 km/h) for longer than 5 m inutes,
the cr uise control wi ll turn
off temporari ly.
The green symbol
A;(l)~i~ (US mode ls) 1,'I
(Canadian mode ls) in the display will go out
but the saved speed rema ins the same .
Presetting your speed
Applies to veh icles : w ith cru ise control
You can preset your desired speed while the
vehicle is not moving.
., Switch on the ignition.
., Pull lever into position
(D c::> fig . 80.
., Press t he lever in the 0 or 0 direction to
increase or decrease your speed .
., Release the lever to save that speed .
This function makes it possible, for examp le,
to save the speed you want before dr iving on
the h ighway. Once on t he h ighway, act ivate
the cru ise control by pulling the lever toward
(D .
Switching the system off
Applies to veh icles: w ith cruise control
Temporary deactivation
., Press the b rake pedal, or
., Press the leve r into posi tion @(n ot clicked
into place)
c::> fig. 80, or
... Drive for longer t han 5 min utes at more
than 5 mph (10 km/h) above the stored
speed.

108 Automatic Transmission
This prevents too much stress from being placed on the locking mechanism.
multitronic transmission : Your vehicle is
equipped with
hill hold assist allowing you to
start while on an incline. The system is acti­
vated when the brake pedal is pressed down
and held
for a few seconds. T he brake pres­
sure will hold for
o moment after the brake
pedal loosens to prevent the vehicle from roll­
ing backwards while starting up .
A WARNING
-The vehicle can also roll when the engine
is stopped .
- Unintended vehicle movement can cause serious injury.
- Never leave your vehicle with the engine
running while in gear. If you must leave
your vehicle when the engine is running, activate the parking brake and move the
selector lever to P.
- Power is still transmitted to the wheels
when the engine is running at idle. To
prevent the vehicle from "creeping ", you
must keep your foot on the brake when
the engine is running and the selector lever is in D/S or R or "tiptronic" mode is
selected.
- Do not press the accelerator pedal when
changing the selector lever position
while the vehicle is stationary and the
engine is running.
- Never shift into R or P while driving.
- Before driving down a steep slope, re-
duce your speed and shift into a lower
gear with "tiptronic".
- Do not ride the brakes or press the brake
pedal too often or too long when driving
down a hill. Constant braking causes the
brakes to overheat and substantially re­
duces braking performance, increases
braking distance or causes complete fail­
ure of the brake system.
- To prevent the vehicle from rolling back
when stopping on inclines, always hold it
in place with the brake pedal or parking
brake. -
Never hold the vehicle on an incline with
a slipping clutch. The clutch opens auto­
matically when it becomes too hot from
the overload . An indicator lamp
[O] illu­
minates and a driver message appears
~ page 110 when the clutch is overload­
ed.
- If the engine must remain running, never
have any driving position engaged when
checking under the hood. Make sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and
is locked in P with the parking brake set
~ page 219, Engine comportment. Oth­
erwise, any increase in engine speed may
set the vehicle in motion, even with the
parking brake applied.
(D Note
- 5 tronic ®- and tiptronic transmission :
When stopping on an incline, do not try
to hold the vehicle in place by pressing
the accelerator pedal while a driving gear
is selected . This can cause the transmis­
sion to overheat and can damage it. Acti­
vate the parking brake or press the brake
pedal to prevent the vehicle from rolling .
- 5 tronic ®- and tiptronic transmission : Al­
lowing the vehicle to roll when the en­
gine is stopped and the selector lever is
in N will damage the transmission be­
cause it is not lubricated under those cir­
cumstances.
(D Tips
For safety reasons, the parking brake is re­
leased automatically only when the driv­
er's safety belt is engaged in the buckle.
Hill descent control
Applies to vehicles: with mult itronic/5 tronic/tiptronic
The hill descent control system assists the
driver when driving down declines.
Hill descent control is activated when these­
lector lever is in D/S and you press the brake
pedal. The transmission automatically selects .,.

110 Automatic Tran sm iss ion
Kick-down
Applies to vehicles: with multitron ic/S tronic/t iptronic
Kick-down enables maximum acceleration .
Applies to ve hicle s w ith a multit ro nic ®
t ra nsmission
When you depress the accelerator pedal be­
yond the resistance po int, the transmission
downshifts into a lower gear ratio depend ing
on the vehicle speed and engine speed. As l ong as the accelerator peda l is depressed, the
engine speed is a utomat ica lly regulated for
maximum accelera tion.
Appli es to veh icl es with a S tronic ®-/ ,
tiptronic tran smi ssion
When you dep ress the accele rator pedal be­
yond the resistance po int, the a utomat ic
transmission downshifts into a lower gear, de­
pending on vehicle speed and engine speed.
The upshift into the next higher gear takes p lace once the maximum specified engine
speed is reached.
A WARNING
,-
Please note that the drive wheels can spin
if kick-down is used on a smooth slippery
road - there is a risk of skidding .
Launch Control Program
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic
The Launch Control Program provides the
best acceleration possible when starting from
a stop .
Requirement : The engine must be at operat­
ing temperature and the steering wheel must
not be turned .
.. Press the
I~ O FF I button ¢ page 194 while
the engine is running. The
IJ indica tor light
illuminates in the instrument cluster and
Sta bilization contr ol (ESC ): Off Warn ing!
R educed stabi lit y
appears in the dr iver in­
fo rmat io n system disp lay .
.. Move the selecto r lever to posit ion D/S to
select sport mode (5) or select
D yna mic
mode in Audi dr ive select c:> page 99 .
.. Press the b rake pedal strongly with you r left
foot and hold it down for at least 1 second .
.. At the same time, press the accelerator
pedal down complete ly with your r ight foot
until the engine reaches and mainta ins a
high RPM .
.. Remove your foot from the brake pedal
w ith in
5 seconds c:> ,&. .
_&. WARNING
-Always adapt your dr iving to the tr aff ic
f low.
- Onl y use the Launch Cont ro l Program
when road and t raff ic condi tions a llow i t
and other d rivers w ill not be endangered
or annoyed by your driving and the vehi ­
cle 's acceleration.
- Please note that the driving wheels can spin and the vehicle can b reak away
when ESC is switched off, especially
when the road is slippery .
- Once the vehicle has started moving,
press the
1 1' OFFI button brief ly to turn
the ESC on .
(D Tips
- The transmission temperature may in ­
crease signif icantly after using the
launch control program. If that happens,
the program may not be ava ilable for a
few minutes. It w ill be available again af­
ter a cool-down per iod.
- When accelerating using the launch con­
tro l program, all vehicle parts are subject
to heavy loads . This can resu lt in in­
creased wear .
Transmission malfunction
Applies to vehicles: with multitronic/S tronic/tiptronic
[O] Tran smi ssi on: Pr ess brake pedal and se­
lect gear again
Press the brake peda l and select the desired
selector lever position again. You can the n
continue d riving .
[O] Transmi ssion overheating: Plea se drive
con servatively

124 Homelin k®
Homelink ®
Universal remote
control
General information
Applies to vehicles: with Homelink® unive rsal remote
co ntrol
The Homelink universal remote control can
be programmed with hand-held transmitters
from existing equipment.
With Homelink, you can control devices such
as the garage door, security systems, house lights, etc. comfortably from the inside of you
vehicle.
Homelink makes it possible for you to replace
three different remote controls from devices in your home with one universal remote . Th is
feature works for most garage door and exte­ rior door moto r signals. Programming the in­
d iv idual remote control fo r you r remote con ­
trol takes p lace near the center of the radiator
grille. There is a control module attached at
this location .
A one-t ime programm ing of the sensor mus t
be performed before you are able to use sys­
tems w ith Homelink.
A WARNING
- Never use the Homelink ® transmitter
with any garage door opener that does have not the safety stop and reverse fea­
ture as required by federal safety stand­
ards. This includes any garage door open­
er mode l manufact ured before April 1,
1982.
- A garage door opener which cannot de­
tect an object, signaling the door to stop
and reverse does not meet current feder­
al safety s tandards. Us ing a garage doo r
o pener witho ut these fea tures increases
risk of serious inj ury or death.
- F or safety reasons never release t he
parking brake or s tart the engine while
anyone is standing in front of the vehicle .
- A garage door or an est ate gate may
sometimes be set in motion when the Homelink
® remote control is being pro­
grammed. If the device is repeatedly ac ­
tivated, this can overstrain motor and
damage its electrica l components - an
overheated motor is a fire hazard!
- To avo id possible injuries or property
damage, please always make absolutely
certa in that no persons or objects are lo­
cated in the rang e of motion of any
equ ipme nt being ope rated.
(0 Tips
- If you would like add itional information
on the Home Link® Unive rsal Transce iver,
Homelink compatib le products, or to
purc hase other accessories s uch as the
HomeL ink® Light ing Package, please
contact Homelink at 1-800 -355 -3515 or
on the Internet at www.homelink .com.
- For Declaration of Comp liance to United
States FCC and Ind ustry Canada reg ula ­
tions
¢page 288.
-For security reasons, we recommend that
you clear the programmed b uttons be­
fore selling the vehicle .
Operation
Applies to vehicles: wit h Ho meli nk
Fig . 14 1 Headliner: controls
M 0
9 (!)
~
Req uirement: The bu tto ns must be program­
med ¢
page 125 .
"' To open the garage doo r, press the pro­
grammed b utton. The LED @ will light up o r
flash.
"' To close the ga rage doo r, press the button
again .
Ill>

ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock brake system (ABS) , brake assist sys ­
tem, anti -slip regulation (ASR) , electronic dif­
ferential lock (E DL) and e lectronic interaxle
d ifferential lock*. ESC is swi tched on all the
time. In certain situat ions when you need less
traction , you can switch off ASR by pressing
the button
[ru ~ fig . 177 . Be sure to switch
ASR on again when you no longer need less
traction.
Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up
when braking. The vehicle can still be steered even during hard braking . Apply steady pres­
sure to the brake pedal. Do not pump the ped­
al. A puls ing in the brake pedal indicates that
the system is he lping you to brake the vehicle.
Brake assist system
The brake assist system can decrease brak ing
d istance.
It increases braking power when the
driver presses the brake pedal quickly in emer­
gency situations. You must press and hold the
brake pedal until the situation is over . In
vehicles with adaptive cruise control* , the
brake assist system is more sensitive if the
d istance detected to the vehicle ahead is too
small.
Anti-slip regulation (ASR)
ASR reduces engine power when the drive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the force to
the road condit ions. This makes it eas ier to
s tart, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic differential lock (EDL)
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinn ing and
transfers the drive power to the other drive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all-whee l drive*. This function is available up
to about 75 mph (120 km/h).
I n extreme cases , EDL automatically switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked wheel
from overheating. EDL wi ll switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to
normal.
Intelligent technology 193
Electronic interaxle differential lock*/
selective wheel torque control*
The electronic interaxle differential lock (front
whee l drive) or the se lective wheel torque
cont rol (all-wheel dr ive) operates when dr iv­
ing through curves . The front wheel on the in­
s ide of the curve or both wheels on the inside
of the curve are braked selectively as needed .
T his min imizes sliding in the front wheels and
allows for more precise driving through
curves . Th e applicable system may no t acti­
vate when driv ing in wet or snowy conditions.
A WARNING
-
-ESC, ABS, ASR, EDL and the electronic in­
teraxle differential lock function* cannot
overcome the laws of physics. This is es­
pecially important on slippery or wet
roads . If the systems begin acting to sta­
bilize your vehicle, you should immedi­
ately change your speed to match the
road and traffic conditions. Do not let
the increased safety provided by these
systems tempt you to t.;1ke risks. Doing
so will increase the risk o f a loss of vehi­
cle control, collision and serious personal
injuries.
-Always adapt your speed to road, traffic
and weather conditions . The risk of los­
ing control of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast, espec ially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when dr iving too close to vehicles up
ahead . ESC, ABS, the brake assist sys­
tem, EDL, ASR and the elec tronic inter­
axle differential lock function* cannot
prevent collisions .
- Always accelerate with special care on
even, smooth surfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow.
The drive wheels can spin even with
these assistance systems that cannot al­
ways he lp to red uce the risk of loss of ve -
hicle control. .,.
•
•

freezing conditions ice) on the brake pads. A
few careful brake applications sho uld d ry
off
the brake pads or remove any ice coatings.
When you are driving at h igher speeds wit h
the windshield wipers on, the brake pads will briefly touch the brake discs in regular inter­
va ls so as to improve reaction t ime when brak­
ing on wet surfaces. You the driver w ill not no­
tice anything.
The effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced
when the vehicle is dr iven on a salt -covered
road and the brakes are not used . Here too,
you should clean
off accumulated salt coat ing
from brake discs and pads with a few careful
applications of the brake
¢ ,&..
Cor ro sion
There may be a tendency for dirt to bui ld up
on the brake pads and corrosion to form on
the discs if the car is not dr iven regularly or
only for short trips with little use of the brakes .
If the brakes are not used frequently, or if cor­ rosion has formed on the discs, it is advisable
to clean
off the pads and discs by braking
f irmly a few times from a moderately high
speed ¢,&. .
Fa ult s in the b rake system
If you should notice a sudden increase in
brake pedal travel, then one of the two brake
circu its may have failed
c> ,&..
Lo w brak e flu id le vel
Malfunctions can occur in the brake system if
the brake fluid level is too low . The brake fluid
level is monitored electronically.
Brake boo ste r
The brake booster works with vacuum pres­
sure which is created only when the engine is
running ¢ ,&. .
Brake lining w ear statu s
Brake lining wear may be checked by vis ual in­
spection of the condition of the brake pads
through the openings in the whee l. If neces-
Int ellig ent technolog y 195
sary, the wheel may be removed for this in­
spection ¢
page 263 , Changing a wheel.
A WARNING
- You should perform braking maneuvers
for the purpose of cleaning the brake
system only if road conditions permit.
Other road users must not be put at risk -
you may cause an accident!
- Before descend ing a steep grade, reduce
speed and sh ift transmission into a lower
gear or lower dr iving range . Do not ride
the brakes or hold the pedal down too
long o r too often . Th is could cause the
brakes to get hot and diminish braking
efficiency .
- Do not "ride the brakes" by rest ing you r
foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to brake . This may cause the brakes to
overheat, p remature wear and increased
stopping distance.
- Under certain cl imatic and operating
conditions such as passing thro ugh wa ­
ter, dr iv ing in heavy rain or after washing
the vehicle, the effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced . In winter, ice can
accumu late on the brake pads, lin ings,
discs and drums . Carefully app ly brakes
for a test. Brakes will dry and ice coat­
ings w il l be cleaned
off after a few care­
fu l brake applicat ions.
- Driving for an extended period o f time on
salt- covered roads wi thout using your
brakes can a lso affect braking efficiency .
Clean
off accum ulated salt coating from
brake discs and pads with a few careful
brake applications.
- If you damage the front spoiler, or if you
install a different spoiler, be sure the air
f low to the front brakes is not obstruct­
ed. Otherw ise the brake system could
overheat reducing the effectiveness of
the entire brake system.
- Failure of one brake circuit will impair
the braking capab ility result ing in an in­
creased stopping distance . Avoid driving
the vehicle and have it towed to the near-
est A udi dealer or qualified wo rkshop.
~
•
•