2013 AUDI A8 oil temperature

Instrument s and warnin g/indic ator ligh ts 11
gauge turn on under normal d riving condi ­
tions . The LEDs higher up may turn on when
the eng ine is under heavy load or the exter ior
temperature is high . This is no need to worry
as long as the. warning light in the instru­
ment cluster does not illuminate . If the LEDs
in the upper area of the display and the ind ica­
tor light . in the instrument cluster d isplay
turn on, the coolant temperature is too high
¢page 16.
A WARNING
-Always observe the warning in
~ page 226, Engine compartment, be­
fore opening the hood and checking the
engine coolant level.
- Never open the engine hood if you see or
hear steam, or if you see engine coolant
dr ipping from the engine compartment.
You could burn yourself. Let the engine
cool off first so that you cannot hear or
see any steam or engine coolant .
(D Note
- Mounting additional lights or accessories
in 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 co uld overheat.
- The front spo ile r has been designed to
properly distrib ute the cooling air when
the veh icle is moving. If the spoiler is
damaged, this cou ld red uce the cooling
effect and t he engine co uld then over­
heat . Ask your aut ho rized Audi dea le r for
ass istance.
Tachometer (engine rev counter)
The tachometer indicates the engine RPM
(revolutions per minutes).
If engine R PM drops be low 1,500, you should
downshift to the next lower gear. The red a rea
at the end of the sca le ind icates maxim um
perm iss ible engine RPM after the break-in pe­
riod. Before reaching this area, move these­
lector lever to position "D (Drive)" or ease
your foot off the accelerator pedal.
@ Note
The tachometer need le should only briefly
be in the red zone: yo u could damage your
engine! The beg inning of the red zone var ­
i es depending on the engine.
@ For the sake of the environment
Upsh ifting early saves fuel and reduces en ­
gine noise.
Fuel gauge
The fuel gauge only works when the ignition is
o n.
If the fue l level drops below 4 gallons (15
l ite rs), the bottom LE D tu rns red and the indi­
cator light~ turns on
c::> page 21. The bot­
tom LED b link s red when the fue l level is very
l ow .
The possible range based on the current fuel
level is shown in tab@~
page 23, fig. 4.
(D Note
Never run the ta nk complet ely dry. An ir­
r egular supply of f uel can cause engine
misfiring and fuel cou ld enter the exha ust
system. The cata lytic converter could t hen
overheat and be damaged.
Warning/indicator lights
Description
T he ind icator lights in the ins trument clus ter
blink or turn on. They indica te f unct ions or
malfunctions
c;;> ,& .
Messages may appea r with some indicato r
li ghts. A warning signal will sound at the
same t ime. The indica tor lights and messages
in the center of the displays may be rep laced
by other disp lays. To show them again, select
the tab for ind icator lights and messages us­
ing the multifunction steering whee l
c;;> page 23. If there are several malfunc­
tions, you can display them one at a time us- ing the thumbwheel. ..,.

22 Instruments and warning/indicator lights
@.D Light/rain sensor
II Automatic headlights/automatic wipers:
system fault
If the indicator light turns on and this mes­
sage appears, the light/rain sensor is not
functioning correctly.
For safety reasons the low beams are turned
on permanently with the switch in AUTO .
However, you can continue to turn the lights
on and off using the light switch. You can still
control all functions that are independent of
the rain sensor through the windshield wiper
lever.
Contact your authorized Audi dealer as soon
as possible to have the problem corrected.
@! Dynamic steering
'T-ij Steering: system fault. you can continue
driving
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, the steering may be more diffi­
cult to move or more sensitive than usual. The
steering wheel may also be at an angle when
driving straight.
Drive slowly to your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop to have the malfunction
corrected.
(;y.ij Dynamic steering: initializing
If this driver message appears and the indica ­
tor light is flashing on the instrument panel,
dynamic steering is being reinitialized . Once
you start the engine after this is finished, the
steering wheel will be easy to move . Re-initi­
alization might be necessary if the steering
wheel was moved hard to the left and right
while the vehicle was not moving. The display
goes out as soon as initialization is complete.
A WARNING
-
Have the dynamic steering system mal­
function repaired as soon as possible by an
authorized Audi dealer or any qualified
workshop -risk of accident!
(D Tips
- The dynamic steering stability systems
are not available in the event of a system
malfunction.
- For additional information on dynamic
steering, refer to¢
page 109.
~= Sport differential
I'll Sport differential: system fault
There is a malfunction with the sport differen­
tial.
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
I'll Sport differential: overheating
The transmission temperature has increased
significantly due to the sporty driving manner. Drive in a less sporty manner until the tem­
perature returns to the normal range and the
indicator light switches of.
.&_ WARNING
Contact your authorized Audi dealer or a
qualified workshop if the sport differential
is faulty or malfunctioning. The repair
must be performed by trained personnel
using the correct oil in order to ensure
safety.
¢i ¢ Turn signals
-
The indicator light blinks when you use either
turn signal.
Whenever you use the left Hor the right II
turn signal, the indicator light blinks. When
you use the emergency flashers, both indica­
tor lights flash .
If one of the turn signal light bulbs burn out,
the turn signal will blink twice as fast as nor­ mal. Carefully drive to your authori zed Audi
dealer immediately to have the malfunction
corrected. The indicator light does not indi­
cate a malfunction if a turn signal on the trail ­
er or on the vehicle fails in trailer towing
mode. ..,

the stored position as soon as you switch on
the ignition.
Starting and stopping
the engine
Starting the engine
This button switches on the ignition and
starts the engine.
Fig. 85 Center console: S TART ENGINE S TOP b utton
Switching the ignition on/off
• To switch the ignition on/off, press the
I START ENGINE STOPI button. Do not press
the brake pedal while doing this.
Starting the engine
• Press the brake pedal QA .
• Press the !START ENGINE STOPI button
Q fig . 85. The engine will start.
If the engine does not start immediately, the
starting process is automatically stopped af­
ter a short time. Repeat starting procedure.
Start-Stop-System*:
When you stop and the Start -Stop -System*
turns off the engine, the ignition still remains
switched on.
- If you press the !S TART ENGINE STOPI but­
ton now, the ignition will be switched off.
The engine will not start
¢page 89.
- Make sure that the ignit ion is switched off
before exiting the vehicle.
Switching the ignition/engine off
automatically*
The follow ing applies to vehicles with Start­
Stop-System*: to prevent the battery from
On the road 83
draining, the ignition and the engine will
switch off automatically under the following
cond itions:
- The vehicle has already been driven.
- The driver's door is opened.
- The driver's seat belt is removed .
- The brake pedal is not pressed down.
- The vehicle is stationary.
In this case, the activated low beam will be re­
placed by the side marker lights. The side
marker lights will switch off after a certain pe­
riod of time or when you lock the vehicle .
A WARNING
-Never allow the engine to run in conf ined
spaces -danger of asphyx iation.
- Never turn off the engine until the vehi­
cle has come to a complete stop.
- The brake booster and power steering
only work when the engine is running. If
the engine is off, you have to use more
force when steering or braking. Because
you cannot steer and brake as you usual­
ly would, this could lead to crashes and
serio us injuries.
(D Note
- Avo id h igh engine rpm, full throttle and
heavy engine loads until the engine has
reached operating temperature - other­
w ise you risk engine damage.
- The engine cannot be started by pushing
or towing the vehicle.
@ Tips
-After a co ld engine is started, there may
be a brief period of inc reased noise be­
cause oil pressure must first build up in
the hydraulic valve adjusters. This is nor­
ma l and not a cause for concern.
-If you leave the vehicle with the ignition
switched on, the ignition w ill switch off
after a certain period of time. Please
note that electrical equipment such as
exterior lights will sw itch off as well
when that happens.

(D Note
-Never try to remove dirt, mud or dust if
the surface of the vehicle is dry. Never
use a dry cloth or sponge, since this
could scratch your vehicle's pa int or w in­
dows .
- Never wash your car in bright sunlight.
Drops of water act as magnifying lenses
and may damage your paint.
- When you wash your car in the w inter : if
you r inse your vehicle w ith a hose, be
careful not to aim the stream of water
direct ly at locks, or at door or hatch
openings - they can free ze shut.
- Never use sponges des igned to remove
i nsects, or any kitchen scouring sponges
or similar products. They can damage
you r paint finish .
- Never use a dry cloth o r sponge to clean
the headligh ts. On ly use we t cloths or
sponges to prevent scratches .
It is best
to use soapy wate r.
- You sho uld remove debris (su ch as in­
sects) from the head ligh t lenses on a
r egular basis, for example when refuel ­
ing your vehicle . Never clean the head­
li ghts w ith a dry cloth or sponge. Use a
wet cloth or sponge. It is best to use
soapy water.
@ For the sake of the environment
On ly wash the vehicle in facilit ies specially
designed for that purpose. Th is w ill reduce
the risk of d irty water contaminated with
oil from entering the sewer system . In
some areas, wash ing vehicles outs ide of
these facilit ies is prohib ited.
Washing your vehicle with a power
washer
Cleaning the exterior of your car with a high ­
pressure power washer is safe as long as you observe a few simple rules .
~ Before usi ng the power washe r, make sure
yo u have re ad an d u nderstood the WARN-
Cleaning and protec tion 217
INGS ¢ A in General information on
page 215 .
~ Always follow the operating instr uctions for
the power washer.
~ Make sure that the jet on the spray hose
produces a "fan shaped spray" .
~ Do not hold the spray nozzle too close to
soft mater ials .
Keep a distance from soft materia ls suc h as
rubbe r hoses or insulating material as well as
senso rs and camera lenses .
When cleaning the vehicle with a power was h­
er
always follow the operating instructions .
This applies part icu larly to the operati ng pres ­
su re and the spraying d istance . Do not point
the spray d irectly at the seals around the side
windows, around the doo rs, on t he rear lid or
o n the sunroo f*. L ikewise, do no t poi nt i t di­
re ct ly a t tires, rubbe r hoses, insula tion mate ­
ria l or senso rs ~
page 218 . Hold the spray
nozzle at least 1.3 ft (0.4 m) away from the
vehicle.
Do no t use a high-pressure power was her to
remove snow and ice.
Do not use a jet which sprays wate r in a d irect
stream o r one that has a ro ta ti ng jet.
Water temperature should not exceed 140 °F
(60 °().
&_ WARNING
N eve r wash tires wi th a jet that sprays w a­
ter in a direc t stream . T his co uld ca use in­
v isi ble damage to the t ires and weaken
them, even i f the spray is from a re lative ly
l ong distance and for a sho rt time. Dam ­
aged and weakened tires can fail and cause
accidents and personal in jury.
Q) Note
To avoid damaging yo ur vehicle, a lways
make sure that there is suffic ient d istance
between the spray head and soft materia ls
lik e rubber hoses, plast ic parts a nd sound­
deaden ing mater ia ls as well as sensors
and camera lenses . Never a im t he spray
head at the same point fo r a long time .
•
•

236 Check ing and filling
Only if the level of the oi l is at or below the
minimum mark -and no oil that expressly
conforms to Audi o il standard VW 502 00
specifications is ava ilable - may you top off
with a high quality eng ine oil, preferably syn­
thetic -based, that meets AC EA A3 or API SM
specif ications, but even then, only in viscos ity
grad es SAE SW-40, SA E SW-30 , or SAE
OW-40. Howeve r, during the en tire t ime be­
tween oi l change intervals, never top off with
more than a tota l of 0.5 qt/liter eng ine oi l
that does not conform to Audi oil specification
vw 502 00 .
F or more informa tion about engine oil that
has been approved for yo ur vehicle , please
contact either your authorized Audi dealer or
Audi Customer Relations at 1 (800) 822-2834
or visit our web site at www.audiusa.com or
www.audicanada.ca . Here you will a lso find a
current list o f oils (manufacturers, brand
names etc .) that conform to Audi o il standard
vw 502 00.
Chang ing the engine oil
The engine oil and oi l filter must be changed
according to the m ileage (ki lometers) and
time interva ls specified in your vehicle's War­
ranty
& Maintenance booklet. Do not exceed
these in tervals -harmful depos it s from old
engine o il can reduce engine performance and
can lead to expensive eng ine repairs .
Changing the o il at the recommended inter­
va ls is so very important because the lubricat­
ing p roperties of o il decrease gradually during
norma l vehicle use. If you are not sure when
you have you r o il changed, ask you r autho r­
iz ed Audi Service Advisor.
Under some c ircumstances the engine o il
should even be changed more frequently .
Change oi l mo re often if you drive mostly
short d istances , ope rate the vehicle in dusty
a reas or mostly under s top-and-go tr affic con­
d itions , or when yo u use your vehicle whe re
temperatures stay below freezing point for l ong periods .
D etergen t add itives in the o il w ill mak e fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run- ning for a sho
rt time. This is normal and is not
a reason to change the oil more often than
recommended.
Damage or malfunctions due to l ack of
maintenance
It is essentia l th at you c hange yo ur oil at the
r ecommended intervals usi ng on ly eng ine oil
that comp lies with Audi oi l standa rd
VW 502 00. You r Limited New Vehicle War ­
r anty does not cover damage or ma lf u nctions
due to failure to follow recommended ma inte­
nance and use requirements as set forth in
the Aud i Owner's Manual and Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet. Your dealer will have to
deny warranty coverage unless you present to
the dealer proof in the form of Service o r Re­
pair Orders that all scheduled maintenan ce
w as performed in a time ly m anner.
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubri cate and
cool all
of its moving por ts .
In order to p rovide effective lubricat ion and
c ooling of inte rna l eng ine compo nents, all i n­
tern al combust ion engines co nsume a cer tain
amount of oil. Oil consumpt ion varies from
engine to engine and may change significantly
over the life of the engine . Typically , engines
with a spec ified break-in period (see
¢ page 206) consume more oil duri ng the
break-i n period than they consume after o il
consumption has stabilized .
Under normal cond itions , the rate of oi l con­
s u mption depends on the q uality and viscos ity
of the oil, the RPM (revolut ions per minu te) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient
temperature and road conditions. Further fac­
tors a re the amount of oil dilut ion from water
c o ndensa tion or fue l resid ue a nd the oxida -
t ion level of the oil. As any engine is subjec t to
wea r as m ileage b uilds up, the oil consump-
tion may increase over time until replacement of wo rn components may become necessary. ..,..

238 Checking and filling
Checking the engine oil level
App lies to vehicles: with oi l dipst ick
Fig. 198 Oil dipsti ck: marking fields
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
always read an heed all WARN ­
INGS c::;,page 232.
Determining the oil le vel
.. Park your vehicle on a leve l surface .
.. Let the engine run in id le b riefly while it is
at operating temperature and then shut the
engi ne off.
.. Wait approximately two min utes .
.. Remove the oil d ipst ick . W ipe off the oil
dip stic k w it h a clean cloth a nd insert i t all
t h e way in aga in .
.. Remove the dipstick again and t hen read
t h e oi l level
¢ fig . 198. Add engine oil if nec­
essary
¢ page 238.
Oil level in the~ area
.. Do not a dd any oi l.
Oil level in the @area
.. You may add oil. After adding oil, the level
shou ld be i n the
G) area.
Oil level in the 0 area
.. You must add o il. Afte r adding oil, t he leve l
sho uld be in the
G) area .
D epending on the way the vehicle is drive n
a nd the operating conditions, oil consumpt ion
can be up to 1/2 q uart per 600 mi les (0.5 liter
per 1 ,000 km) . Cons umption may be higher
wit hin the f irst 3,000 mi les (5,000 km) . Be­
cause of th is, t he engine o il level must be
checked regularly . It would be best to check each time you ref
ue l your vehicle and before
lo ng d rives .
Adding engine oil~
0 N ,.
"' 0:, m
Fig. 199 En g in e co mpa rtm ent : cove r on th e eng in e o il
f il le r neck
Befo re you check anyth ing in the engine com ­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS c::;, A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 232 .
.. Unscrew the cap "l!:ir. to the eng ine oi l filling
hole
c::;, fig . 199, c::;, page 234 .
.. Carefully top off with t he appropr iate oil in
0 .5 li ter doses.
.. Check the oil level again after two minut es
c::;, page 237 or ¢ page 238 .
.. Top off the o il agai n, if neces sary.
.. Scr ew the ca p ba ck on the fi lling hole.
A WARNING
- W hil e to ppin g off, the o il m ust not co me
i n contact with hot en gine parts -fir e
hazard!
- Th e o il filler cap must be pr ope rl y se­
cured to p revent oil from being sprayed
on the hot engi ne and e xhaust system
when t he engine is runn ing -fire haza rd !
- If you r skin has come in contact wit h the
e ng ine o il, you must subseq uently
cleanse it thor oughly.
(D Note
- Check the oil leve l. If the message
Please reduce oil level appears, contact
yo ur authorized A ud i d ealer or othe r
qualified worksh op to have excess oil ex-
t ract ed if necessa ry. .,,_

240 Checking and filling
Engine cooling system
Coolant
The engine coolant performs two functions: it
keeps the engine from overheating and it pro ­
tects the engine from freezing in the winter .
The cooling system is sealed and generally re­
quires 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 Gl3 ant ifreeze
with anticorros ion add itives (50% for USA
models; 60% for Canadian models). This mix­
ture both assures the necessary frost protec­
tion and protects metal components in the
engine's cooling system from corrosion and
scaling. It also raises the boiling point of the
coolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the coo l­
ant in the summer by adding plain water .
The
proportion of coolant additive must be at
least 50% but not more than 60%
to main­
tain antifree ze protection and cooling efficien­
cy. If the coolant frost protection is too low,
the coolant could freeze and damage the veh i­
cle heating and engine cooling system .
For year-round driving, antifree ze is added at
the factory for temperatures down to:
- -31°F(-35°C)USA
- - 40 °F ( - 40 °C) Canada.
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
c:> &. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 232.
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli­
mate conditions. This is especially impor­
tant if you live in a region where the w in- ter
is extreme ly cold . If necessary, in­
crease the proportion of coolant additive
to 60%.
- When adding coolant additive to your
cooling system, remember:
- We recommend using only coolant ad­
ditive Gl2++ or Gl3 for your vehicle .
This coolant additive is available at au­
thorized Audi dealers. Other types of
antifreeze can significantly reduce cor­
rosion protection. The resulting corro­
sion can ca use a loss of coolant and se­
rious engine damage.
- Do not add any type of radiator leak seal ­
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant .
Add ing radiator repair fluid may adverse­
ly affect the function and performance of
your cooling system and could result in
damage not covered by your New Vehicle
Limited Warranty.
Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with
a quick glance .
Fig. 200 Engin e compar tmen t: cover on t he coolant
expansio n ta nk
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS c:> &. in Working in the engine compart ­
ment on page 232 .
Park your vehicle on a level surface .
.,. Switch off the ignition.
.,. Read the engine coolant level from the
coo lant expansion tank
c:> fig. 200,
c:> page 234. With a cold engine, the coolant
level should be between the "min" and
"max" markings. When the engine is warm, ..,

250 Tire s and wheel s
-Never mount used tires on yo ur 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 t ire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
- If you notice unusual vibration or if the
vehicle pulls to one side when driving, al­
ways stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and check the wheels and tires for dam­
age.
(D Note
Please note that summer and wi nte r tires
are designed for the cond itions that are
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means t he comb ined we ight (in excess of
those sta ndard items which may be rep laced)
of au toma tic tra nsmission, power steer ing,
power brakes, power windows, power seats,
radio, and heater, to the extent that th ese
items are availab le as factory -installed equip­
ment (whether installed or not) .
Aspect ratio
means t he ratio of the he ight to the w idth of
the tire in percent . Numbers of 55 or lower in ­
dicate a low sidewall for improved steering re­
sponse and better overall handling on dry pavement .
Bead
means the part of the ti re that is made of
steel wires, wrapped or reinforced by ply cords
and that is shaped to fit the rim.
Bead separation
means a b reakdown of the bond between
components in the bead.
Cord
means the strands forming the plies in the
tire . typ
ica l in those seasons . Aud i recommends
using winter tires during the winter
months . Low temperatures signif icant ly
decrease the e lasticity of summer tires,
which affects tract ion and brak ing ability.
If summer tires are used in very co ld tem­
peratures, cracks ca n form on the tread
bars, res ulting in permanent tire damage
that can cause loud driving no ise and un­
balan ced t ires. Audi is not responsible for
th is type of damage .
Cold tire inflation pressure
means the tire p ressu re recommended by t he
vehicle manufacturer fo r a tire of a des igna ted
s iz e that has not bee n driven for more than a
coup le of miles (k ilometers) at low speeds in
t h e three hour period before the tire pressure
is measured or adjusted.
Curb weight
mea ns the we ight of a motor ve hicle with
standard equipment in cl uding the max imum
capacity of fuel, oil, and coolant, air condi ­
tioning and additional weight of optiona l
equipment.
Extra load tire
me ans a t ire design to operate at higher loads
and at h igher inflation pressures than the cor­
responding standard tire . Extra load tires may
be identified as "XL", "x l" , "EXTRA LOAD", or
"RF" on the sidewall.
Gross A xle Weight Rating ("GAWR ")
means the lo ad -c a rry ing c apac ity of a s ingle
axle system , measured a t the tire-ground in­
terfaces.
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating ("GVWR ")
mea ns the maximum total loaded we ight of
t h e ve hicl e. .,.