2013 AUDI A8 engine

24 2 Ch ecking and filling
scalding from hot coolant by following
these steps .
- Turn off the eng ine and a llow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from escaping flu id and steam by cover ing
the cap with a large, thick rag .
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully
i n a counter-clockwise direction while
apply ing l ight, downwa rd press ure on
the top of the cap .
- To avo id being burned, do not spi ll an­
tifreeze or coolant on the exhaust sys­
tem or hot engine parts . Under certain
conditions, the ethylene glyco l in en­
gine coolant can catch f ire .
- Antifreeze is poisonous . Always store an­
tifreeze in its or iginal container and we ll
out of the reach of children.
- If you drain the coolant, it must be
caught and safely stored in a proper con­
tainer clear ly marked "poison".
@ Note
- Coolant po llutes the env ironment and
could cause an engine fire . Excess coo l­
ant will be forced out through the pres­
sure re lief valve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot.
- If, in an emergency, only water can be
added, the correct ratio between water
and antifreeze
c::> page 240 must be re­
stored as soon as possible .
@ For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant should not be re used. Al­
ways dispose of used coolant while observ­
ing all environmental regulat ions .
Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by
itself
T he radiator fan is driven by the engine via the
V-be lt . The viscous clutch regulates the speed
of the fan accord ing to the temperature of the
coolant. An a
uxiliary electric radiator fan* switches on
and off depend ing on coolant temperature
and other vehicle operat ing condit ions .
After yo u sw itch the engine off, the aux iliary
f an can continue running for up to 10 minutes
- eve n wit h the ignit ion off. It can even switc h
on again later by itself
c::> &. , if
- t he tempe rature of the engine coo lant rises
due to the heat build -up from the engine in
the engine compartment, or
- the engine compa rtment heats up because
the vehicle is parked in i ntense sunlight.
_& WARNING
- To reduce the risk of personal injury nev­
er touch the radiator fan.
- The auxiliary electric fan is temperat ure
controlled and can sw itch on suddenly
even when the engine is not running.
- The a uxiliary radiator fan sw itches on au­
tomatically when the engine coo lant
reaches a certai n temperature and will
continue to run until the coolant temper­
ature drops .
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
The brake fluid level can be checked with a
quick glance.
F ig . 201 E ngin e compart men t: cover on the brake fluid
r eservo ir
Before you check a nyth ing in the engine com­
partment,
always read and hee d all WARN ­
INGS c::> .&. in Working in the engine compart-
ment on page 232. .,..

~ Read the brake fluid level from the brake
fluid reservoir ¢
fig. 201, ¢ page 234. The
brake f luid leve l must be between the "MIN"
and "MAX" markings.
The location of the brake fl uid reservoir can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
¢page 234.
The fluid level may drop slightly after some
time due to the automatic adjustment of the brake pads . This is not cause for alarm .
If the brake fluid level falls considerably be­
l ow the " MIN" mark, the bra ke wa rning/indi ­
cator light
1111 (U .S . models)/ . (Canadian
models) will come on
¢ page 14. Do not con­
tinue to operate the vehicle. The comp lete
brake system shou ld be thoroughly checked
by an authorized Audi dealer or other quali­
f ied fac ility and the cause corrected. If the
b rake fluid level is too low, the brake warn ing/
i ndicator light w ill illuminate . Co ntact an au­
thor ized Audi dealer
immediately .
Changing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experi­
enced technician .
Brake fluid abso rbs moistu re from the a ir . If
the water content in the brake fluid is too
h igh, cor ros ion in the b rake system may result
after a per iod of t ime . The bo iling po int of t he
b ra ke fluid w ill also decrease considerab ly and
decrease braking performance.
Therefore, the brake flu id must be changed
e very two year s. Always use new b rake fluid
which confo rms to Fede ral Motor Vehicle
Standard "FMVSS 1 16 DOT 4".
The brake flu id rese rvoi r ca n be difficult to
r eac h, therefo re , we re commend that yo u
h ave the brake fl uid changed by you r autho r­
i zed
Audi dealer . Your deale r has the correct
too ls, the right brake fluid and the know-how
to do this fo r you .
Checkin g and fillin g 243
A WARNING
-Brake flu id is poisonous. It must be stor­
ed only in the closed original co ntainer
out of the reach of children!
- Brake failure can resu lt from o ld or inap­
prop riate brake f lu id . Observe these pre ­
cau tions:
- Use only brake fluid tha t meets SA E
s p ecification
J 1703 an d conforms to
Federa l Moto r Ve hicle Standard 116.
Always check with your authorized Audi
dealer to make sure yo u are using the
correct brake fluid. The cor rect type of
brake f lu id is also ind icated on the
brake flu id rese rvoir .
- The brake fluid must be new . Heavy use
of the brakes ca n cause a vapo r lock if
the b ra ke fluid is left i n the system too
l ong. This can se riou sly affect the effi ­
c ien cy of the brakes as well as your
safe ty. This co uld resu lt in an accident.
(D Note
Bra ke fluid will damage the paint of you r
vehicle.
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of t he p rob lem of prope r disposal
of b ra ke fluid as well as the spec ial too ls
r equired and the necessary exper tise, we
r e comme nd th at yo u have the brake fl u id
changed by yo ur autho rized Aud i dea le r.
Battery
General information
U nder normal operating cond itions, the bat­
te ry in your Audi does not need any ma inte­
nance . With
high outside tempe rat ures o r
l ong da ily drives we re commend t hat yo u h ave
the e lec trolyte leve l chec ked by a serv ice f a­
ci lity. The electrolyte leve l should also be
c h ecked each t ime the battery is charged
¢ page 246. IJ,,
•
•

244 Checking and filling
Have the battery checked when you take your
vehicle in for service. You are well advised to replace a battery that is older than 5 years .
W ith certa in types o f airbag deployment, the
battery is disconnected from the vehicle elec ­
trica l system for safety reasons¢
& in Re­
pair, core and disposal of the airbags on
page 166.
Disconnecting the battery terminals
Some veh icle functions (power window regu­
lators, for example) are lost if the battery ter­
minals are disconnected. These functions have
to be re learned after the battery terminals are
connected again. To prevent this, the battery
should only be disconnected from the vehicle
electrical system when absolutely necessary
for repairs .
Vehicles not driven for long period s
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period
of several days or weeks, electrical compo­
nents are gradually cut back or switched off.
This reduces energy consumption and main ­
tains starting capability over a longer period
¢
page 203. Some of the convenience func­
tions may not operate, such as the inte rior
lights or the power seat adjustment . Th e con­
venience functions will be available again
when you switch on the ignition and start the
engine.
Winter operation
During the winter months, battery capacity
tends to decrease as tempe rat ures drop . This
is because more powe r is also consumed while
starting , and the headlights, rear window de ­
fogger, etc., are used more often.
Avoid unnecessary power consumption, par­
ticular ly in city traffic or when traveling on ly
short distances. Let your authorized Audi
dealer check the capacity of the vehicle bat ­
tery before winter sets in
¢ page 246. A well
charged battery w ill not only prevent starting
prob lems when the weather is cold, but will
also last longer .
(D Tips
If your vehicle is left standing for seve ral
weeks at extremely low temperatures, the
vehicle battery sho uld be removed and
stored where it w ill not freeze . This will
prevent it from being damaged and having
to be replaced .
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the battery.
The battery is located in the luggage compart­
ment under the floor. Before you check any­
th ing in the luggage compartment,
read and
heed all WARNINGS
¢ ,& .
Always heed the safety warnings, when work­
ing on the vehicle battery or the vehicle elec­
trical system to prevent injury.
The following WARNINGS are very
important when working on the battery:
Always heed the following WARNING SYM­BOLS and safety precautions when working
on the battery.
®
Always wear eye protection.
Battery acid contains sulfuric acid.
Always wear gloves and eye protec­
tion.
No
- sparks
- flames
- smoking.
When a battery is charged, it produ­
ces hydrogen gas which is explosive
and could cause personal injury.
Always keep the battery well out of
I
reach of children .
_&. WARNING ~
Whenever working on the battery or on
the electrical system, there is the risk of
injury, accident and even fire . Read and
heed the following WARNINGS:
-

-Always wear eye protection. Do not let
battery acid or any lead particles get on
your skin or clothing. Shield your eyes .
Explosive gases can cause blindness or
other injury.
- Battery acid contains sulfuric acid . Sulfu­
ric acid can cause blindness and severe
burns.
- Always wear gloves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because acid
could leak out of the ventilation open­
ings.
- If you get battery acid in your eyes or
on your skin, immediately rinse with
cold water for several minutes and get
medical attention .
- If you should ingest any battery acid,
seek medical attention immediately.
- Do not expose the battery to an open
flame, electric sparks or an open light.
- Do not smoke.
- Do not interchange the positive and neg-
ative cables .
= When working on the battery, be sure
not to short-circuit the terminals with
tools or other metal objects. This would cause the battery to heat up very quickly,
which could lead to damage or explosion and personal injury.
- When a battery is charged, it produces
hydrogen gas which is explosive and
could cause personal injury .
- Always keep the battery well out of the
reach of children.
- Before work is done on the electrical sys­
tem, disconnect the negative ground ca­ ble .
- Before performing any work on the elec­
trical system, switch off the engine and
ignition as well as any electrical equip ­
ment. The negative cable on the battery
must be disconnected . If you are just go­
ing to replace a light bulb, then it is
enough to switch off the lights.
- Before disconnecting the battery, switch
off the anti-theft alarm system! Other­
wise you will set off the alarm.
Checking and filling 245
-When disconnecting the battery, first
disconnect the negative cable and then
the positive cable.
- Before reconnecting the battery, make
sure all electrical consumers are switch­
ed off. Reconnect the positive cable first
and then the negative cable . Never inter ­
change the cables -this could start a fire!
- Never charge a frozen or a thawed-out
battery . It could explode! If a battery has
frozen , then it must be replaced . A dis­
charged battery can freeze over at 32 °F
(0 °C) .
-Make sure the vent hose is always attach­
ed to the opening on the side of the bat­
tery .
- Never use batteries which are damaged.
There is the danger of an explosion! Al­
ways replace a damaged battery.
&_ WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- 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 problems. Wash hands after han­ dling.
(D Note
- Do not disconnect the vehicle battery
when the ignition is on or when the en­ gine is running, otherwise, you will dam­
age electronic components in the electri­
cal system.
- If your vehicle is going to stand for a
long period of time without being driven,
protect the battery from "freezing", oth­
erwise it will be damaged and will then
have to be replaced.
•
•

246 Checking and filling
Battery charging
Starting the engine requires a well charged
battery.
Fig . 202 Engine co mpartme nt: connectors fo r a charg ­
er and jump sta rt cables
Always read and heed all WARNINGS below
c:> A and c:> A in Working on the battery on
page 244 .
.,. Switch off the ignition and all electrical con­
sumers .
.,. Make sure the area is well ventilated when
you charge the battery .
.,. Open the engine hood
r:::.> page 232 .
.,. Remove the cover© by press ing on the ar­
row
c:>fig . 202.
.,. Open the cover @on the positive term inal.
.,. Connect the charger connectors according
to the instructions to the
jump start bolts.
(Bolts under the red cover= "positive" , Bolts
with hex head = "negative").
.,. Only now plug the mains lead for the charg­
ing equipment into the wall outlet and turn
it on
r:::.> &_ .
.,. Make sure the charging rate i s not over
30 amps/14.8 Volt.
.,. When the battery is fully charged: Turn the
charging equipment off and remove the
mai ns lead from the wall outlet.
.,. Now
remove the clamps for the charging
equipment.
.. Close the red cover on the posit ive pole .
.,. Close the hood
c:> page 233 .
A discharged battery can freeze at tempera­
tures of only 32 F
0 (0 °C). Allow a frozen bat­
tery to thaw completely before attempting to
charge it
r:::.> &. . However , we recommend not
using a thawed battery again because the bat -tery casing can be cracked due to ice forma
­
tion and can leak battery acid.
Battery charging (Maximum charging rate
of 30 amps/14.8 Volt)
When charging at low voltages (e.g. with a
trickle charger), the battery cables do not
have to be disconnected f irst. The battery
caps should
not be opened when charging a
battery.
It i s not necessary to remove the battery from
the luggage compartment, and it is also not
necessary to disconnect the cables.
Fast charging the battery (charging rate
above 14 .8 Volts )
For technical reasons do not use a battery
charger that uses voltage greater than 14.8
Volts to charge your vehicle's battery .
A WARNING
Charging a battery can be dangerous.
- Always follow the operating instructions
provided by the battery charger manu­
facturer when charg ing your battery .
- Never charge a frozen battery. It may ex­
plode because of gas trapped in the ice .
Allow a frozen battery to thaw out first .
- Do not reuse batteries wh ich were fro­
zen. The battery housing may have
cracked and weakened when the battery
froze.
- Charge the battery in a well ventilated area . Keep away from open flame or elec­
tr ica l spar k. Do not smoke. Hydrogen gas
generated by the battery is explos ive .
- To reduce the danger of explosion,
never
connect or disconnect charger cables
while the charger is operating .
- Fast charging a battery is dangerous and
should only be attempted by a compe­
tent technician with the proper equip­
ment .
- Battery acid that may spill dur ing charg­
ing should be washed off with a solution
of warm water and baking soda to neu­
tralize the acid.

CD Note
Never use a fast charger as a booster to
start the engine . This will seriously dam­
age sensitive electronic components, such
as control units, relays, radio, etc ., as well
as the battery charger .
Battery replacement
The new battery must have the same specifi­
cations and dimensions as the original equip­
ment battery .
Intelligent energy management in your vehi­
cle is responsible for d istributing the electr i­
cal energy throughout your vehicle
c::> page 203 . The intelligent energy manage­
ment system w ill keep the engine battery
charged bette r than vehicles w ithout t his sys­
tem. To make sure the additional electr ica l en­
ergy is available once again after you have
changed the battery, we recommend that you
install batteries of the same type and manu­
facture only (the same as those installed at
the time your vehicle was delivered). Specifi­
cations are listed on the bat tery hous ing. Your
author ized dealer must code the battery in
the energy management system to enable you
to use the energy management functions cor­
rectly after replac ing the battery .
T he new battery must have the same capacity ,
voltage (12 volts), amperage, construction and p lug sealing.
When installing the battery, make sure the ig­
n ition and all electr ical consumers are sw itch­
ed off .
CD Note
-Make sure the ventilat ion hose on the
s ide of the battery is connected, other­
wise fumes or battery acid can leak out.
- Vehicles with the Start-Stop-System* are
equipped with a special cycle-proof AGM
battery. Insta lling a different type of
batte ry can cause prob lems in the vehi­
cle elect rical system. When replacing the
vehicle battery, always insta ll one wi th
Checkin g and fillin g 247
the same specifications as the origina l
battery .
- Battery mounts and clamps must always
be sec ured correct ly .
- Read and fo ll ow the warnings under
c::> page 244, Working on the battery be ­
fore performing any work on the battery.
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the prob lem of p roper disposal
of a ba ttery, we recommend your author­
ized Audi dealer change the battery for
you. Batteries contain sulfuric acid and l ead and must always be disposed of prop­
erly in compliance with all environmental
regulat ions. Disposing of vehicle batter ies
i mproperly is very dangerous to the envi­
r o nment .
Windshield/headlight
washer container
.., N
-N
" ~
Fig. 203 Eng in e compa rtm ent: cove r on the w inds hield
washer flu id rese rvo ir
T he washer fluid container is marked w ith the
symbol-$ on its cap
c::>fig. 203, c::>page 234.
.,. Before you check anything in the engine
compa rtment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS c::> A in Working in the engine
compartment on page 232.
.,. Lift the filler cap tongue to add washer flu­
id. You can fi ll the container to the top .
.,. Press the cap back onto the f iller neck after
filling the container .
You can find the reservoir capacity in the table
inc::>page292. ""
•
•

248 Checking and filling
Clean wate r sho uld be used when fill ing up. I f
possib le, use soft wate r to prevent sca ling on
washer jets . A lways add a glass cleane r solu ­
tion (with frost protection in the winter).
Do not mix engine coo lant antifreeze or
any ot her add itives to f ill up the wind­
shie ld washer reserv oir.

Vehicle tool kit
Vehicle tool kit and jack
The vehicle tool kit is located in the luggage
compartment under the cargo floor cover.
Fi g. 213 Luggage compartme nt: cargo floor cover
folded upward
Fig. 214 Trunk lid: Vehicle too l kit
.. Lift the cargo floor by the plastic handle.
.. Hook the handle into the luggage compart­
ment weather strip¢
fig. 213.
.. Remove the spare wheel to reach the veh i-
cle tool kit .
.. Remove the foam p iece.
The onboard tool kit includes:
- Hooks to remove the wheel covers* or whee l
hub covers
- Plastic hook to remove wheel bolt covers*
- Wheel bolt wrench
- Al ignment p in for changing wheels
- Screwdriver with reversible blade
- Towing loop
- Jack
Before storing the jack, make sure it is wound
back down as far as it will go.
What do I d o now ? 271
A WARNING
Im proper use of the vehicle jack can cause
serious personal injur ies.
- Never use the screw driver hex head to
tighten wheel bolts, since the bolts can­
not attain the necessary tighten ing tor­
que if you use the hex head, potentially
causing an accident.
- The factory-supplied jack is intended on­
ly for yo ur vehicle model. Under no c ir­
cumstances sho uld it be used to lift
heavy veh icles or other loads; you risk in­
ju ring yo urself.
- Never start the engine when the vehicle
is raised, wh ich could cause an acc ident.
- Support the vehicle securely with appro­
priate stands if work is to be performed
underneath the vehicle; otherwise, there
is a potentia l risk for injury.
- Never use the jack supplied wit h your
Audi on another vehicle, particularly on a
heavier one. The jack is only s uitable for
use on the vehicle it came with.
(D Tips
- Some of the onboard items listed above
are provided on certain models only or
are optional ext ras .
- Before yo u can raise your vehicle using
the jack, you must activate the jacking
mode ¢
page 2 76 .