2013 AUDI A8 Owners Manual

The correct tire pressure for the spare wheel is
l ocated on a label on the driver's side B-pillar.
Because tec hnical changes may be made to
veh icle equ ipment dur ing the model yea r, a l­
ways compare the tire size designation on the
tire pressure label on your vehicle wit h the
tires on your vehicle . Make s ure that the tire
size information on the veh icle label is the
same as the s ize of the t ires on the vehicle.
This is especially important if the vehicle be ­
longs to someone else or you bought the veh i­
cle with different rims/tires or you boug ht the
ve hicle as a previously owned vehicle.
Remember, your safety and that of your pas­
sengers also depends on mak ing su re that
l oad l imits are not exceeded. Vehicle load in­
cludes everybody and everything in and on the
veh icle. These load limits are technically refer­
red to as the vehicle's Gross Vehicle Weight
Rating ("GVWR") . The Gross Ax le Weight Rat ­
ing ("GAWR") is the maximum load that can
be app lied at each of the veh icle's two axles.
The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and the
Gross Axle We ight Rating are listed on the
safety compliance st icker label located on the
driver's side B-p illar . The t ire pressure label on
your Aud i lists the maximum combined
weight of a ll of the occupants and luggage or
other cargo that the vehicle can carry. For the
l ocat ion of the tire pressure labe l
c;, fig. 204.
A WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
hicle control, a crash or other accident, se­
rious personal injury, and even death.
- Car rying more weight than yo ur vehicle
was designed to carry will prevent the
vehicle from handling properly and in­
crease the risk of a loss of veh icle con­
trol.
- The brakes on a veh icle that has been
overloaded may not be able to stop the
vehicle within a safe distance .
- Tires on a vehicle that has been overload­
ed can fail suddenly causing loss of con­
t rol and a crash.
Tire s an d wheel s 255
-Always make sure that the total load be­
ing transported - includ ing the weight of
a trailer hitch and the tongue we ight of a
loaded trailer -does not make the vehi­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle Weight Rating.
A WARNING
- Inco rrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can lead to a ser ious or fatal acci­
dent.
- Inco rrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation cause increased tire wear and can
affect the handling of the vehicle.
- Inco rrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can a lso lead to sudden t ire fail­
ure, including a blowou t and sudden de­
flation, caus ing loss of veh icle contro l.
Checking tire pressure
The correct tire pressure for the tires original­
ly installed on your vehicle is listed on the tire
pressvre label located on driver's side 8-pil ­
lar.
T he recommended tire pressures are on the
ti re pressure label and in the table
c;, page 253, Cold tire inflation pressure .This
means that the pressure m ust be checked and
adjusted when the tire has not been dr iven for
more than a couple of miles (kilometers) at
low speeds during the previous three hours.
Air in the tires expands when the tire heats up
as a result of internal frict ion as it flexes in
use. The tire pressure is h igher when the tire
has warmed up t han when it is "cold."
It is the inflation pressure in a "cold" t ire that
counts. Therefore, you should never let a ir out
of a warm tire to match "Cold t ire inflat ion
pressure" recommendat io ns
c;, page 253 . The
ti res wo uld then be unde rinfl ated and co uld
fail suddenly.
T he tire pressure label on your Audi lists the
recommended co ld tire inflation pressures at
max imum capacity for the new, or ig inal
equipment tires that were on your vehi cle at
1J1>
•
•

256 Tires and wheels
the time it was manufactured . For the
location of the label~
page 253, fig . 204.
Most tires lose air naturally over time. They
can also lose some air if you drive ove r a pot­
hole or hit a curb while parking . It is usually
not possible to see whether the radial tires
used today are under inflated just by looking
at them.
Therefore, be sure to check tire pressures at
least once a month and always before going
on a long tr ip. Make sure to take the number
of people and the amount of luggage into ac­
count when adjusting tire pressure for a trip -
even one that you would not consider to be
"long." See~
page 257, Tires and vehicle
load limits
for more important information.
Always use an accurate tire pressure gauge
when checking and adjusting inflation pres­
sures. Check all of the tires and be sure not to
forget the spare t ire. If the pressure in any tire
is too high when the tire is "cold," let air out
of the tire slowly with the edge of the tire
gauge and keep checking the pressure until
you reach the pressure that is correct for the
l oad (passengers and luggage) and kind of
driving you plan to do.
If the pressure in any tire is too low, note the
difference between the pressure in the cold
tire and the pressure you need and add the air
that you need to reach the correct pressure for
the vehicle load (passengers and luggage) for
the tires on your vehicle as listed on the on
your veh icle and in this manual and the kind
of dr iving you plan to do .
Never exceed the maximum inflation pres­
sure listed on the tire sidewall for any rea­
son.
Remember that the vehicle manufacturer, not
the tire manufacturer, determ ines the correct
tire pressure for the tires on your vehicle.
It is important to check the tire pressure when
the tires are cold.
- Read the req uired ti re pressure from the tire
pressure label. The tire pressure label is lo ­
cated on the driver's side B-pi llar . -
Tu rn the va lve stem cap counter -clockwise
to remove it from the tire va lve .
- Place the air pressure gauge on the va lve.
- The tire pressu res should only be checked
and adjusted when the tires are cold. The
slightly raised pressures of warm tires must
not be reduced.
- Adjust the tire pressure to the load you are
carrying.
- Reins tall the valve stem cap on the valve.
When should I check the tire pressure?
The correct tire pressure is especially impor­
tant at high speeds. The pressure should
therefore be checked at least once a month
and always before starting a jour ney. Do not
f orget to check the tire pressure for the spare
whee l
~page 272.
When should I adjust the tire pressures?
Adjust the tire pressure to the load you are
carrying. After changing a wheel
or replacing
whee ls you have to adjust the tire pressures
on all whee ls. In addition, you m ust then
store the new tire pressures in the tire pres­
sure monitoring system*~
page 267.
A WARNING
Incorrect tire pressures and/or underinfla­
tion can lead sudden tire fa ilure, loss of
control, collision, serious personal injury
or even death.
- When the warning symbol
Rt] appears in
the instrument cluster, stop and inspect
the tires.
- Incorrect tire pressure and/or underinfla­
tion can cause increased tire wear and
can affect the handling of the vehicle and
stopping abi lity.
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can also lead to su dden t ire fail­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
flation, causing loss of veh icle control.
- The driver is responsible for the correct
tire pressures for all tires on the vehicle.
The applicable pressure values are locat­ ed on a sticker on the driver's side B-pil-
la~
~

-Only when a ll tires on the vehicle are fi l­
led to the correct pressure, the tire pres­
sure monitoring* system can work cor­ rect ly.
- The use of incorrect tire pressure values
can lead to accidents or other damage.
Therefore it is essential that the d river
observe the specif ied tire pressure values
for the tires and the co rrect p ress ures for
the f un ct ion of t he tire pressure mo nitor­
ing sy stem*.
- Always inflate ti res to the recommended
and co rrec t tire pressu re befo re dr ivi ng
off.
- Driv ing wi th under infla ted ti res bend
more, letti ng them get too ho t res ulting
in t read separation, sudden t ire fail ure
and loss of control.
- Excessive spee d and/ove rloading can
ca use heat bui ld -up, sudden tire fa il ur e
and loss of control.
- If the t ire pressure is too low or too high,
the tires w ill wea r prematu rely an d the
vehicle will not hand le we ll.
-If the t ire is no t flat and you do no t have
to change a w heel imme diate ly, drive at
reduced speed to the nearest service sta­
t ion to check the tire pressure and add
air as required.
(D Note
Driving without va lve stem caps ca n cause
damage to the t ire va lves. To prevent this,
always make s ure that facto ry installed
valve stem caps on all wheels a re secure ly
mounted on the va lve .
@) For the sake of the environment
Underinflated tires will a lso increase the
fue l consumption .
Tires and vehicle load limits
There are limits to the amount of load or
weight that any veh icle and any t ire can carry .
A vehicle that is ove rloaded w ill not ha ndle
well and is more difficult to stop . Overload ing
can no t on ly lead to loss o f vehi cle con tro l,
Tire s an d wheel s 257
but can also damage important parts of the
vehicle and ca n lead to sud den tire fai lure, in ­
clud ing a b lowout and s udden def lation that
can cause the vehicle to cras h.
Your safety and that of your passengers also depends on making sure that load limits are
not exceeded . Vehicle load includes everybody
and everything in and on the veh icle. These
load lim its are technically referred to as the
vehicle's
Gross Vehicle We ight Rating
("GVWR ") .
The "GVWR" includes the weight of the basic
vehicle, all factory installed accessories, a full
tank of fuel, o il, coo lant and other fluids plus
maximum load . The max imum load includes
the number of passenge rs that th e vehicle is
i n tended to car ry ("seat ing capa city") wi th an
ass umed we igh t of 150 lbs (68 kg) fo r each
passenger at a designated seating posi tion
and t he tota l weight of any luggage i n the ve­
hicle . If you tow a trai ler, the weight of the
tra iler hitch and the tongue weight of the
loaded tra iler must be included as part of the
vehicle load.
T he
Gro ss Axle Weight Rating ("GAWR") is
the maximum load that can be applied at each
of the vehicle's two axles.
T he Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and the
G ross Ax le Weig ht Rating are listed on the
safety comp liance sticker label located on the
driver's side B-pillar. Your Audi has 5 seat ing
pos itions, 2 in the front and 3 in the rea r fo r
total seating capacity of 5 . Vehicles with pow­
er ind iv idual rea r seats* have 4 seat ing pos i­
tions, 2 in the front and 2 in the rea r fo r total
seat ing capac ity o f 4. Each seating position
has a safety belt~
page 144, Safety belts.
The fact that there is a n uppe r limit to you r
vehicle's G ross Vehicle We ight Rating means
t h at the to tal weig ht of whatever is bei ng car ­
ried in the vehicle ( in cl ud ing t he weight of a
trai ler hitch and the tongue weigh t of t he
loa ded trai le r) is limite d. The more passen­
gers in the vehicle or passengers who are
heavier than the standard we ights assumed
•
•

258 Tires and wheels
mean that less weight can be carried as
luggage.
The tire pressure label on your Audi also lists
the maximum combined weight of all of the
occupants and luggage or other cargo that
the vehicle can carry. For the location of the
label ¢
page 253, fig. 204.
.&_ WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
hicle control, a crash or other accident, se­
rious personal injury, and even death.
- Carrying more weight than your vehicle
was designed to carry will prevent the
vehicle from handling properly and in­
crease the risk of the loss of vehicle con­
trol.
- The brakes on a vehicle that has been
overloaded may not be able to stop the
vehicle within a safe distance.
- Tires on a vehicle that has been overload­
ed can fail suddenly, including a blowout
and sudden deflation, causing loss of
control and a crash.
- Always make sure that the total load be­
ing transported -including the weight of
a trailer hitch and the tongue weight of a
loaded trailer -does not make the vehi­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle Weight Rating.
Determining correct load limit
Use the example below to cal­
culate the total weight of the
passengers and luggage or oth­
er things that you plan to trans­
port so that you can make sure
that your vehicle will not be overloaded.
Steps for Determining
Correct Load Limit
1. Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF QC­
CU PANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NEVER EXCEED XXX KG OR XXX LBS" on your ve­
hicle's placard (tire inflation
pressure label)¢
page 253,
fig. 204.
2. Determine the combined
weight of the driver and pas­sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined
weight of the driver and pas­
sengers from "XXX" kilo­
grams or "XXX" pounds
shown on the sticker
¢ page 253, fig. 204.
4. The resulting figure equals the available amount of car­go and luggage load capaci­
ty. For example, if the "XXX"
amount equals 1400 lbs.
and there will be five 150 lbs. passengers in your vehi­
cle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load ca­
pacity is 650 lbs. (1400-7 50
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs.)
5. Determine the combined weight of luggage and cargo ..,

being load ed on th e ve hicle .
Th at w eight ma y no t safely
e xce ed the av ailabl e car go
a nd lug gag e lo ad ca pacity
c alcul ated in St ep 4 .
6. If y our vehicle will be t owing
a tr aile r, lo ad from your trail­
er will b e tr an sfe rred to yo ur
ve hicle. Con sult thi s m anu al
t o de te rmine ho w th is re­
d uce s th e av ailable car go
a nd lug gage loa d ca pacit y of
y o ur ve hi cle .
_,.. Check the tire sidewall
( c:> pag e 260 ~ fig. 208 ) to de­
t e rmin e the d esign ated lo ad
rating f or a sp ecifi c ti re.
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 . 2 06 Tire tread : tread wear ind icators (TWil
Tires and wheels 259
{ '"------
F ig. 207 Rotat ing tires for more eve n wea r
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The orig inal tires on your vehicle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm) high "wear indicators"
9 fig. 206 r u nning across the tread. Depend­
ing on the ma ke, there will be six to e ight of
them evenly pla ced aro und the tire. Marks on
the tire sidewall (for e xamp le "T W I" or other
symbols) indicate the positions of the tread
wear indicators . Worn tires must be replaced .
D ifferent figures may apply in othe r countries
9 & .
Tire pres sure
Incor rect t ire press ure ca uses premature wear
and can cause sudde n tire blow-out . For this
reason, tire pressure must be checked at least
once a month
9 page 255.
Driving style
Driving fast around curves, heavy a ccele rat io n
and har d brak ing inc rease tire wear.
Rotating tires for more even w ear
For all four tires on your vehicle to have the
s a me service life, we recommend that the
front and rear t ires are rota ted accord ing to
the tire m anufact urer's suggested tire ro ta ­
tion intervals . Please remember the follow ­
ing:
- Tire rotation in tervals may d iffer from the
veh icle service inte rva ls o utlined in your
Warranty & Main tenance booklet.
- The longer o ne tire i s used in one lo cation
on the vehi cle, the more it wears at cer tain
points ; therefore, we recommend t hat you
follow the tire manufact urer's suggested
tire rotation intervals .

260 Tires and wheels
-Vehicles with front-wheel drive experience
more tread wear on the front wheels com­
pared to all-wheel drive (quattro ®).
- Please rotate tires as shown
¢fig. 207.
- Extra care must be taken when rotating di-
rection-specific tires
¢ page 2 78.
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new vehicles are balanced .
H owever, various situations during everyday
driving can cause them to become unbal­
anced , resu lting in vibrations you can usually
feel through the steering wheel.
Unba lanced wheels must be rebalanced to
avoid excessive wea r on steering , suspens ion
and tires . A wheel must also be rebalanced
when a new tire is installed.
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incorrect whee l alignment can cause exces­
sive tire wear, impair ing the safety of the vehi­
cle .
If tires show excess ive wear, have the
wheel alignment checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
All Wheel Drive
Vehicles with quattro® must always have ti res
of the same size, construction and tread type.
F or details see
¢page 203.
A WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead to loss of con­
trol, a crash and serious personal injury!
- Never drive a vehicle when the tread on
any tire is worn down to the wear indica­
tors.
- Worn tires are a safety hazard, they do
not grip well on wet roads and increase
your risk of "hydrop laning" and loss of
control.
- Always keep chemicals that can cause
tire damage, such as grease, oil, gasoline
and brake fluid away from tires.
- Tires age even if they are not be ing used
and can fail suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 years old can only be used in an emergency and then with specia
l care and at lower
speeds.
- Never mount used tires on your vehicle if
you are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have been dam­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
New tires and replacing tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to be broken in.
Fig. 208 Tir e spec ificatio n codes on the s idewall of a
tire
No.
©
®
®
0
®
®
@
Description
Passenger car tire (where applicable)
Nominal width of tire in mill imeters
Ratio of height to width (aspect ratio)
Rad ial
Rim diameter code
Load index and speed rating
U.S. DOT tire identification number
Aud i Original tire
Sever snow conditions
Tire ply composition and materials
used
Maximum load rating

@ Treadwear, traction and temperature grades
@ ·· Maximum permissible inflation pres­
. . sure
The tires and rims are essential parts of the
vehicle's design. The tires and r ims approved
by Aud i are specially matched to the charac­
ter istics of the vehicle and can make a major
contribution to good road ho ld ing and safe
handling when in good condition and properly
inflated ¢
&.
We recommend that all work on tires and
wheels be performed by an authorized Audi
dea ler. They a re familiar with recommended
procedu res and have the necessary spec ial
too ls and spare par ts as we ll as the prope r fa ­
cilities for disposing of the old tires.
Author ized Audi dealers have the necessary
informat ion about techn ica l requ irements for
installing or changing tires and r ims.
R eplacing t ires and whe els
Tires should be replaced at least in pairs and
not individua lly (for example both front tires
or both rear tires togethe r) .
Be sure to read and heed the information to
the t ire pressure monitoring system*
¢page 267 .
Always buy replacement radial tires that have
the same specifications as the tires approved
for your vehicle by Audi . Replacement t ires
must always have the same load rating speci­
fication as the or iginal equipment or app roved
optional ti res listed in the table ¢
page 253.
Audi-approved specification tires are specially
matched to you r vehicle and its load lim its,
and can cont ribute to the important road ho ld­
i ng, d riving character istics, and safety of the
vehicle . The table(¢
page 253) lists spec ifica ­
tions of the tires approved for the A udi mod­
e ls covered by your Owner's Literature.
The ti re p ress ure label located on dr iver's side
B-pillar
(¢page 253, fig. 205) lists the speci­
fications of the original equipment tires in-
Tire s an d wheel s 261
stalled on your vehicle at the time it was man­
u factured.
Federa l law requ ires tire man ufactu rers to
place standardized info rmation on the side­
wall of all tires¢
fig. 208. This information
identifies and descr ibes the fundamenta l
characteristics, the q uality grade of the t ire
and also provides a t ire identification number
for safety standard certification and in case of
a reca ll.
Tir e s pecific ation s
Knowledge of tire specifications makes it eas­
ier to choose the correct tires . Radial tires
have the tire specifications marked on the
s idewall, for example:
2 55 /45 R 19 104 H
T his conta ins the following information:
P Indicates the tire is for passenger cars
(where app licab le)
2 55 Nom inal tire w idth in mm of the t ire
from sidewall edge to sidewall edge . In
general, the larger the number, the wider
the tire
45 Height/w idth ratio in perce nt (aspect ra-
t io)
R Tire construct ion : Radial
19 Rim diameter code (in inches)
104 Load rating code
H Speed rating letter code
XL (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD" or "RF") Indicates
that the tire is a "Reinforced" or an "Extra Load" tire
M+S (or "M/S") Indicates that the tire has
some mud and snow capability
T he tires could also have the informa tion of
direction of rotat ion ¢
page 249.
Tire manufacturing date
The manufactu ring date is also indicated on
the tire sidewall (possibly on ly on the
inner
s ide of the whee l):
"DOT ... 2212 ... " means, for example, the t ire
was produced in the 22nd week of 2012 . ..,.
•
•

262 Tire s and wheels
Speed rating (letter code)
The speed rating letter code on the wheels in­
dicates the maximum pe rmissib le road speeds
¢ & in Winter tires on page 265 .
p up to 93 mph (150 km/h)
Q up to 99 mph (158 km/h)
R up to 106 mph (170 km/h)
s up to 110 mph (180 km/h)
T up to 118 mph (190 km/h)
u up to 124 mph (200 km/h)
H up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
V up to 149 mph (240 km/h)1l
z over 149 mph (240 km/h)1l
w up to 168 mph (270 km/h)1l
y up to 186 mph (298 km/h)1l
Your vehicle is normally factory equipped with
tires, which possess excellent driving charac­
teristics and give your Audi optimum driving
comfort. An electronic speed limiter
<=> page 29 will normally prevent your vehicle
from go ing faster than the tire speed rating
<=> & .
U.S . DOT Tire Identification Numbe r (TIN)
and tire manufacture date
This is the t ire's "serial number". It begins
with the letters "DOT" and indicates that the
tire meets all federal standards. The next two
numbers or letters indicate the plant whe re it
was manufactured, and the last four numbers
represent the week and year of manufacture.
F or example, the numbers 2212 mean the tire
was produced in the 22nd week of 20 12. The
other numbers are marketing codes that may
or may not be used by the t ire manufacturer.
This information is used to contact consumers
if a tire defect requires a recall.
Audi original tire
Tires with the identification "AO" or "RO" have
been specially matched with your Audi. We
recommend using only these tires because
they meet the highest standards regarding
ll For tires wit h a max imum speed capab ility over 149
mph (240 km/h), tire man ufactur ers sometimes use
the letters "ZR."
safety and driving characterist ics when used
correct ly . Your authorized Audi dealer will
gladly provide you w ith more information.
Tire ply composition and materials used
The number of plies indicates the number of
layers of rubber-coated fabric in the tire. In
genera l, the greater the number of plies, the
more weight a tire can support. Tire manufac ­
turers also must indicate the materials in the
tire, which include steel, nylon, polyester, and
others.
Maximum Load Rating
This number indicates the maximum load in
kilograms and pounds that can be carried by
the tire.
Tire quality grading for treadwear,
traction , and temperature resistance
Tread wear, traction and temperat ure grades
<=> page 2 63.
Maximum Permissible Inflation Pressure
Th is number is the greatest amount of air
pressure that should ever be put in the tire
under normal driving conditions.
A WARNING
-Using incorrect or unmatched tires and/
or wheels or improper tire and wheel
comb inat ions can lead to loss of control,
coll is ion and serious personal injury.
- Always use tires, rims and wheel bolts
that meet the specif ications of original
factory- installed tires or other combina­
tions that have been specifically ap­
proved by the vehicle manufacturer.
- T ires age even if they are not being used
and can fail suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
and then with specia l care and at lower
speeds.