2013 AUDI A7 warning

transport fuel to use for your lawn mower,
snow blower, etc., be very careful and al­
ways observe local and state laws regard­
ing the use, transportation and storage of
such fuel containers. Make certain the con­
tainer meets industry standards (ANSI/
ASTM F8S2 -86) .
@ Note
Never drive your vehicle until the fuel tank
is completely empty. The irregular supply
of fuel can cause misfiring. Gasoline could
enter the exhaust system and damage the
catalyt ic converter.
Refuelling
Fig. 183 Right rear vehicle s ide: Opening the fuel filler
flap
Fig. 184 Fuel filler flap with attached fuel cap
When activating the central locking, the fuel
f ill er flap is automatically un locked or locked.
Refuel the vehicle with the ignition switched
off.
Taking the fuel cap off
• Press the left side of the fuel filler flap to
open it¢
fig. 183 -arrow-.
• Unscrew fuel filler cap counter-clockwise
and hang it on the fuel filler flap~
fig. 184.
Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank 22 7
Refuelling procedure
• Insert the fuel nozzle from the gasoline
pump into the fuel filler neck as far as it will
go.
• Select a medium refuelling rate so that the
nozzle switches off automatically when the
tank is full.
Putting the fuel cap back on
• After filling your tank, twist the fuel filler
cap clockwise as far as it will go.
• Close the fuel filler flap.
To avoid fuel spill ing or evaporating from the
fuel tank always close fuel filler cap proper ly
and completely. An improperly closed fuel fill­
er cap may also cause the MIL lamp ¢
page 29
to come on.
A WARNING
Improper refueling or handling of fuel can
cause fire, explosion and severe burns.
- Fuel is highly flammable and can cause
severe burns and other injuries.
- Failure to shut the engine off while refu­
eling and/or to insert the pump nozzle
fully into the fuel filler neck could cause
fue l to spray out of filler neck or to over­
flow. Fuel spray and overflowing fuel can
cause a fire.
- Never use a cellular telephone while re­
fue ling. The electromagnet ic rad iation
can cause sparks that can ignite fuel va­
pors and cause a fire.
- Never get back into your vehicle while re­
fueling.
If in exceptional circumstances
you must get back in your vehicle while
refueling, make certain that you close
the door and touch metal to discharge static electricity before touching the fill­
er nozzle again. Static electricity can
cause sparks that can ignite fuel vapors
released during refueling.
- Never smoke or have an open flame any­
where in or near your vehicle when refu­
eling or filling a portable fue l container.
- For your safety, we strongly recommend
that you do not travel with a portable

230 Checking and filling
Checking and filling Engine hood
Releasing the engine hood
The engine hood is released from inside the
vehicle .
Fig. 187 Driver foo twell: release lever
Fig. 188 Rocker switch un der the hood
Make sure the wiper arms are not raised up
from the windshield. Otherwise the paint
could be damaged .
.,. Pull the lever under the instrument panel in
the direction of the arrow
~ fig. 187.
.,. Raise the hood slightly~,&. .
... Press the rocker switch under the hood up­
ward
~ fig. 188. This releases th e catch.
... Open the hood.
&_ WARNING
Hot engine coolant can burn you.
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine compartment . Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood .
'Working in the engine compartment
Be especially careful whenever you work in
the engine compartment.
Whenever you must perform any work in the
engine compartment, for example checking
and filling different fluids, there is a risk of injury, burns and accidents. To prevent per­
sonal injury always observe the following
WARNINGS. The engine compartment of any
vehicle is a hazardous area
~ ,&. .
A WARNING
To help avoid injury, before you check any­
thing under the hood:
- Turn off the engine.
- Switch off the ignition .
- Apply the parking brake.
- Move selector lever to P (Park).
- Always let the engine cool down. Hot
components will burn skin on contact.
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine
compartment. Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood.
- Keep children away from the engine com­
partment.
- Never spill fluids on hot engine compo­
nents . They can cause a fire .
- Never touch the radiator fan. The auxili­
ary electric fan is temperature controlled
and can switch on suddenly .
- Never open the coolant reservoir cap
when the engine is still warm . The cool­
ant system is pressurized and hot cool­
ant could spray out.
- Protect your face, hands and arm from
steam or hot engine coolant by placing a
thick rag over the cap when you open the
coolant reservoir.
- Do not remove the engine cover under
any circumstances. This increases the
risk of burns.
- If work on the fuel system or the electri­
cal system is necessary:

-Always disconnect the battery.
- Never smoke or work near heaters or open flames. Fluids in the engine com­
partment could start a fire.
- Keep an approved fire extinguisher im­
mediately available.
- To avoid electrical shock and personal in­
jury while the engine is running or being
started, never touch :
- Ignition cables
- Other components of the high voltage
electronic ignition system.
- If you must perform a check or repair
with the engine running:
- First, fully apply the parking brake,
move selector lever to P (Park).
- Always use extreme caution to prevent
clothing, jewelry, or long hair from get­
ting caught in the radiator fan, V-belts
or other moving parts, or from contact­ ing hot parts. Tie back hair before
starting, and do not wear clothing that
will hang or droop into the engine.
- Minimize exposure to emission and
chemical ha zards c:::> & .
A WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Engine exhaust, some of its constituents,
and certain vehicle components contain
or emit chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and birth de­
fects and reproductive harm. In addition ,
certain fluids contained in vehicles and
certain products of component wear con­
tain or emit chemicals known to the
State of California to cause cancer and
birth defects or other reproductive harm .
Checking and filling 231
-Battery posts, terminals and related ac­
cessories contain lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc­
tive harms. Wash hands after handling.
(D Note
When adding fluids, always make sure that
they are poured into the proper container
or filler opening, otherwise serious dam­
age to vehicle systems will occur.
(® For the sake of the environment
To detect leaks in time, inspect the vehicle
floor pan from underneath regularly . If
you see spots from oil or other vehicle flu­ ids, have your vehicle inspected by an au­
thorized Audi dealer.
Closing the engine hood
.,. Pull the hood down until the pressure from
the struts is reduced.
.,. Let the hood
drop down and latch in place.
Do not try to push it shut; it may fail to en­
gage
c:::> ,A .
A WARNING
-
A hood that is not completely latched
could fly up and block your view while driv ­
ing .
- When you close the engine hood, check it
to make sure the safety catch has proper­ ly engaged. The hood should be flush
with the surrounding vehicle body parts.
- If you notice while driving that the hood
is not secured properly , stop at once and
close it. •
•

232 Checking and filling
Engine compartment
Engine compartment overview
These are the most important items that you can check.
Fig. 189 Typ ical layout for contai ners and eng ine o il filler cap
(D Jump start point(-) with hex
head screw .... .............
243, 279
@ Jump start point(+) under a cov-
er .. .. ............... .... .
243,279
®
©
®
®
Brake fluid reservoir ((0)) . . . . . 239
Engine oil filler cap ( Coolant expansion tank
(-L) ...
Windshield/headlight washer
237
t . (.'R) con ainer ,,.., ............ . . 244
The engine oil filler neck (item @) may be lo­
cated in a different area depending on the ver­
sion of the engine.
~ WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
¢ &. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 230.
-
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine oil used in your Audi needs the
right kind of oil.
The engine in your Audi is a sophisticated
powerplant that was built to exacting specifi­
cations . This engine needs the right kind of
engine oil that meets specifications regarding
quality and viscosity so that it can run
smoothly and reliably . Choosing the right oil
and changing oil within the time and mileage
intervals printed in you r vehicle's Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet matters a lot more to­
day than it did years ago . Audi has developed
a special quality standard for engine oil that
will help assure that your vehicle's engine wi ll
get the lubrication it needs for proper opera-
tion. ..,.

234 Checking and filling
temperatures stay below freezing point for long periods.
Detergent additives in the oil w il l make fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run­
ning for a short time . This is norma l and is not
a reason to change the oi l more often than
recommended.
Damage or malfun ctions due to lack of
maintenance
It is essential that you change your oil at the
recommended intervals using only engine o il
that complies with Audi oi l standard
VW 502 00. Your Limited New Vehicle War­
ranty does not cover damage or malfunctions
due to fail ure to fo llow recommended mainte­
nance and use requ irements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manual and Warranty &
Maintenance booklet . Your dealer will have to
deny warranty coverage unless you present to
the dea ler proof in the form of Service or Re­
pa ir Orders that all scheduled ma intenance
was performed in a timely manner.
Eng ine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all
of its moving parts.
In order to provide effective lubrication and
cool ing of internal engine components, all in­
ternal combustion eng ines consume a certain
amount of oil. Oil consumption varies from
engine to engine and may change significantly
over the life of the engine. Typically, engines
with a specif ied break-in period (see
¢ page 204) consume more oil during the
break-in period than they consume after oil
consumption has stabilized.
Under norma l conditions, the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on the quality and viscosity
of the oil, the RPM (revolutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient
temperature and road condit ions . Further fac­
tors are the amount of oil d ilution from water
condensat ion or fuel residue and the oxida­
tion level of the oil. As any engine is subject to wear as mi
leage builds up, the oil consump­
tion may increase over time until replacement
of worn components may become necessary.
With all these variables coming into play, no
standard rate of oil consumption can be es­
tablished or specified. There is no alternative
to regu lar and frequent checking of the o il lev ­
el, see Note.
If the yellow engine oil leve l warning symbo l
in the instrument cluster
II lights up, you
sho uld check the oil leve l as soon as possible
c:> page 235. Top off the oil at your earliest
convenience
c:> page 235.
A WARNING '"---
Before you check anythi ng in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
c:> A in Working in the engine
compartment on page 230.
(D Note
Driving with an insufficient o il level is like­
ly to cause severe damage to the engine.
(D Tips
- The oil pressure warning display . is
not an indicator of the oil level. Do not
rely on it. Instead, check the oil level in
your engine at regular intervals, pref­
erably each time you refuel, and always
before going on a long trip.
- If you have th e impression your engine
consumes excessive amounts of oil, we
recommend that you consult your Audi
dealer to have the cause of your concern
properly diagnosed. Keep in mind that
the accurate meas urement of oil con­
sumption requ ires great care and may
take some t ime. Your Audi dealer has in­
structions about how to measure oil con­
sumption accurately.
-

Checking the engine oil level
Fig . 190 D is p la y : o il level indi ca tor
• Park your vehicle on a lev el surfac e.
• Shut the engine off when it is warm.
• Switch only the ignition b ack on.
• W ait approxima tely two minutes .
• Se lect :
ICARI function button > ( C ar)* sys ­
t e m s
control button > Se rvicing & c h ecks >
Oil l ev el.
• Check the o il leve l in the display ¢ fig. 190.
Add engine oil if the bar of the oil level indi­
cator is near "min "
¢page 235.
Depending on the way the veh icle is driven
and the operating conditions, oil consumpt ion
can be up to 1/2 q uart per 600 m iles (0.5 li ter
pe r 1,000 km) . Consumption may be higher
within the f irst 3 ,000 miles (5,000 km).
(D Tips
The oi l level indicator in the MMI Dis play is
only an in format ion disp lay . If the oil leve l
is low, a minim um oi l warni ng appears in
the instrument cluster. Add oi l
<=> page 235. If the hood has been opened,
the curre nt oil level is shown in the instru­
ment cluste r the next time the ign ition is
sw itched on .
Checkin g and fillin g 235
Adding engine oil 'i=:1:
Fig. 191 Eng in e compa rtm en t: co ve r on the engine oi l
filler n eck
Before you check anything in the eng ine com­
partment ,
alw ay s re ad and he ed all WARN­
INGS ¢&.
in Working in the engine compart ­
ment on page 230.
• Uns crew the cap ce:r. to the eng ine oi l filling
hole
¢ fig . 191, ¢fig. 189.
• Caref ully top off with the appropr iate oil in
0.5 liter doses .
• Check t he oil level aga in after two minutes
¢ page 235 .
• Top off the o il aga in, if necessary .
• Screw the cap back on the filling hole .
A WARNING
-Wh ile topping off, the o il must not come
i n contact w ith hot engine parts -fi re
hazard!
- The oi l filler cap must be p roperly se­
cured to prevent oil from bei ng sprayed
on the hot engine and exhaust system
when the engine is runn ing -fire ha zard!
- I f your ski n has come in contact with the
engine o il, you mus t subse quently
cleanse it thoroughly.
(D Note
- Check the oil level using the MMI. If the
message
Please reduce oil level appe ars,
c ontact yo ur a uth ori zed Aud i dea ler o r
ot her qualified workshop to have excess
oil ext racted if necessary.
- Audi d oes not re commend the u se of oil
additiv es. They m ay damage the engine
1111-

236 Check ing and filling
and ad versely a ffect yo ur New Vehicl e
W arr ant y.
@) For the sake of the environment
- Under no circumstances can the oil come
in contact with the sewage network o r
the soil.
- Observe and follow lega l regu lations
when disposing of empty oil containers .
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that have your oil changed by
an authorized Audi dealer or a qualified serv­
ice station.
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
a lw ays rea d an d h eed all WARN­
INGS c::> .& in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 230.
The engine oil must be changed accord ing to
the intervals specified in your Warranty
&
Maintenance book let. This is very important
because the lubricating properties of oil di­
minish gradua lly during normal vehicle use .
Under some ci rcumstances the engine oi l
should be changed more frequently. Change
oil more often if you drive most ly short dis­
tances, operate the vehicle in dusty areas or under predominantly stop-and-go traffic con­
ditions, or have your vehicle where tempera­
tures remain below freezing for extended pe ­
riods .
Detergent addit ives in the oil w ill make fresh
oil look dark after the engine has been run­ n ing for a short time. This is normal and is not
a reason to change the oil more often than recommended.
Because of the problem of proper disposal,
along w ith the special tools and necessary ex ­
pertise required , we strongly recommend that
you have your o il changed by an authorized
Audi de ale r or a qual ified servi ce station.
If y ou choo se to c hang e y our oi l y our self,
please note the followi ng important informa­
tion :
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of personal injury if you
must change the eng ine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protect ion.
- To reduce the risk of burns from hot en- gine oil, let the engine cool down to the
touch.
- When removing the o il dra in plug with
your fingers, stay as far away as possible.
Always keep your forearm parallel to the
ground to help prevent hot oil from run­n ing down you r arm.
- Dra in the oil into a container designed
for this purpose, one large enough to
hold at least the total amount of oil in
your engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous. Keep it we ll out
of the rea ch of childre n.
- Continuous contact with used eng ine o il
is harmfu l to your sk in. Always protect
your skin by washing oil off tho roughly
with soap and wate r.
@ Note
Never mix oil additives with your engine
oi l. These additives can damage your en­
g ine and adversely affect you r A ud i Limit­
ed New Veh icle War ranty.
@ For the sake of the environment
- Before changing your oil, first make su re
you know where you can prope rly dispose
o f the used oil.
- Always dispose of used eng ine oi l proper­
ly. Do not dump it on garden soil, wood­
ed areas, into open streams or down
sewage drains.
- Recycle used engi ne oil by taking it to a
used engine oil collection facility in you r
area, or contact a service station.

Engine cooling system
Coolant
The engine coolant performs two functions: it
keeps the engine from overheating and it pro ­
te cts the engine from freezing in the winter .
The cooling system is sealed and generally re­
qu ires 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-based coolant additive G13 ant ifreeze
w ith anticorrosion add itives (50% fo r USA
models; 60% for Canad ian models). This mix­
ture bot h assu res the ne cessary frost protec­
tion and protects metal components in the
engine's coo ling system from corrosion and
scaling. It also raises the boili ng po int of t he
coolant.
D o not red uce the concentration o f the coo l­
ant in the summer by adding plain water .
The
proportion of coolant addit ive must be at
least 50% but not mo re than 60 %
to main­
tain antifree ze protection and cooling efficien­
cy. If the coolant frost protection is too low,
the coolant cou ld freeze and damage the veh i­
cle heating and eng ine cooling system .
For year-round driving, antifree ze is added at
the factory for temperatures down to:
- -3 1°F (-35°C)USA
- -40 ° F ( - 4 0 °C) Canada.
A WARNING
Before yo u check anything in the engine
compartment , always read and heed a ll
WARNINGS
¢ & in Working in the engine
compartment on page 230.
(D Note
- Befo re winter sets i n, have the coolant
chec ked to see i f th e coo lant ad dit ive i n
you r vehicle is suffic ient to meet the cli­
mate cond itions . T hi s is especially impor­
ta nt if yo u live in a regi on whe re the w in-
-
Checkin g and fillin g 237
ter is ex treme ly co ld. If necessary, i n­
crease t he p ro po rtion of coo lant additive
to 60%.
- W hen a dding coolant additive to yo ur
cooling system , remembe r:
- We recommend us ing on ly coo la nt ad­
di tive G 12++ or G 13 (check the labe l)
fo r you r ve hicl e. This coolant additive is
a v ailabl e at author ized Aud i de alers.
Ot he r ty pes of antifree ze can signifi­
cantly reduce corros ion p rotec tion. The
r es ulting co rrosion can cause a loss of
coolant and serio us engine damage .
- Do not add any ty pe of rad iator leak seal ­
ant to you r vehicle's engine coo lant .
Add ing radiator repair flu id may adverse ­
ly affect t he fu nction and performance of
your cooling system and cou ld result in
damage not covered by yo ur New Ve hicle
L imited Warranty .
Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with
a quick glance.
Fig. 19 2 Engine co mpart ment: cover on t he coo la nt
expansio n ta nk
Before you check a nyth ing in the eng ine com­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS <=>&.
in Working in the engine compart ­
ment on page 230 .
.,. Park yo ur vehicle on a level surface .
.,. Switch off the ignition .
.,. Read the e ngine coolant level from the
coo la nt expansion tan k<=>
fig . 192,
¢ fig. 189 . With a cold engine, the coolant
level s hou ld be be tween the "m in" and
" max" mar kings. Whe n the engi ne is w arm,
Ill>-