2013 AUDI Q7 coolant

-The brake booster and servotronic only
work when the engine is running. With
the ignition turned off, you have to apply
more force when steering or braking .
S ince you cannot steer and stop normal­
ly, this can lead to accidents and ser ious
injuries.
- The rad iator fan can continue to run for
up to 10 min utes even after you have
turned off the engine and removed the ign ition key. The radiator fan can also
turn on again if the engine coolant heats
up because of intense sunlight or heat
build -up in the engine compartment.
«I) Note
Do not stop the engine immed iate ly after
hard or extended dr iving. Keep the engine
running for approximately two minutes to
prevent excessive heat build-up .
Starting and stopping
the engine with
Convenience key
Starting the engine with the~
button
App lies to vehicles: with Convenie nce key
This bu tton swi tches on the ign ition and
starts the engine .
Fig. 121 Co nvenie nce k ey: ENG INE START b utton
The I S TAR T! button is provided w ith two -sta ge
o p era tion
¢ fig. 121.
Switching the ignition on
.. Press the !START I button once to the fir st
stage to switch on only the ign ition .
On th e road 107
Gasoline eng in e: St arting th e engine
.. Step on the brake.
.. Move the se lector lever to the P or N posi ­
tion ¢,&. .
.. Press the
r::1s=Tc:- A=RT =I button to th e seco nd
stage to start the engine .
Diesel en gine : Starting the engine
.. Step on the brake.
.. Mov e the selector lever to the P or N posi­
tion ¢,&. .
.. Press the
r::1s=TAc:-=R T=I button down to the fi rst
level to begin the preheating process . The
glow plug indica tor light
II illumina tes
when t he glow plug system is active .
.. When the indicator light
II switches off,
press the
I ST ART ! button down to the se c­
ond
level to star t the eng ine .
After a cold engine is started, there may be a br ief period of increased no ise because oil
pressure must first build up in the hydraulic
valve adjuste rs. This is norma l and not a cause
for concern .
If the engine does not start immediately, stop
trying after 10 seconds and then try to restart
the engine abou t 30 seconds later .
Glow plug system *
Di ese l engine s
are equ ipped with a glow plug
system whose preheating time is controlled
by the coolant and outs ide temperature . Start
the engine
immediately afte r the glow plug
indicator light
II sw itches off .
The glow plug indicator light will only illumi ­
nate fo r approximate ly 1 second when the en­
gine is warm or the outs ide temperature is
highe r than 46 °F (8 °C) . That means yo u can
start the eng ine
immediately .
WARNING
Never allow the engine to run in confined
spaces -danger of asphyxiation .
(D Note
-Avo id h igh engine rpm, full thrott le and
heavy engine loads until the eng ine has

108 On the road
reached operating temperat ure -other ­
wise yo u risk engine damage.
- The eng ine cannot be sta rted by pushing
or towing the vehicle.
@ For the sake of the environment
Do not allow the engine to warm up with
t he vehicle stationary. Start driving righ t
away . In th is way you avoid unnecessa ry
emissio ns.
@ Tips
If you open the drive r's door when the ig ­
nition is switched o n, a buzze r sounds and
the message
Ignition is on appears i n the
instrument cluster disp lay. Please switch
the ignition off.
Switching engine off with the~
button
App lies to vehicles: with Convenience key
Fig. 122 Convenience key: ENGINE STOP butto n
.. Bring your vehicle to a complete stop.
.. Move the selector lever to the P or N posi-
t ion.
.. Pressthe !STOP !button
¢fig.122.
Press ing the I STOP I button once switches off
the engine and the ignition. If you press the
ISTOPI button again for more than 1 second,
the steering is locked, provided that the selec­
tor lever is in t he P pos it ion
¢ & .
Emergency OFF function
If necessary, the engine can be switched off
with the selector lever in the
R, Dor S posi­
tions . To do so, step on the brake peda l and press and ho
ld the !STOP ! b utton (vehicle
speed must be less than 6 mph/ 10 km/ h).
.&_ WARNING
-
- Never turn off the engine until the vehi-
cle has come to a complete stop.
- The brake booster and servotronic only
work when the engine is running. With
the ignition turned off, you have to apply mo re force when steeri ng or brak ing.
Since you cannot steer and stop normal­
ly, t his can lead to acc idents and se rious
. . . in Juries.
- For safety reasons, you sho uld a lways
pa rk your vehi cle wit h the selector lever
i n P. O therwise, the vehicle could inad­
ver ten tly roll aw ay.
- Afte r the eng ine has been switch ed off,
t he r adi at or f an can co ntinu e to run f or
up to 10 minu tes -even with the igni tion
switched off . It can also switch on again
after some t ime if the coolant tem pera ­
ture rises as the resu lt of a heat b uildup
or if the engine is hot and the engine
compa rtment is additionally heated by
the sun's rays.
(D Note
If the engine has been under heavy load
for an extended pe rio d, heat b uilds up in
the engine compartment after the engi ne
i s sw itched off -there is a r isk of damag ing
the e ng in e. A llow th e engi ne to run a t id le
fo r abo ut 2 minutes befor e switching it
off .
Driver messages in the instrument
cluster display
Applies to vehicles: with Co nvenience key
If a func tion is not present, a driver message
appears .
No key identified
This message appears when t he I STAR T I but-
ton is pr essed if there is no master key ins id e
the vehi cle or if t he system does not recogn ize
IJ,-

238 Driving off road
Driving off road
Driving in difficult road
conditions and offroad
General information
The operation of the E lectronic Stabilization
Control (ESC) is expanded for operation away
from paved roads. In situations where slip or a
differential locking function is required, the ESC offroad mode can be activated
c::> page 225 . Hill descent control is also availa­
ble in the ESC offroad mode, which automati­
cally brakes the vehicle and thereby keeps
speed constant when diffe rent wheel speeds
a re detected when descending a hill
c::> page 226. Your Audi also has permanent
a ll-wheel drive in addition.
H owever, your Aud i is not a pure off road vehi­
cle .
It was not built for d riving unde r extreme
conditions, e.g. fo r trips that are in the nature
of an expedition.
Dri ve only on road s and offroad section s
which mat ch the de sig n of your vehi cle and
y our a biliti es as a driver. Ne ver t ake ris k s!
Before driving offroad
- Check the eng ine oil level, tire pressure,
coolant level , and the fluid level in the w ind­
shield washe r reservo ir.
- Stow luggage items and other objects in the
luggage compartment, and secure them
against s lid ing aro und .
After driving offro ad
- After trips offroad, remove any twigs and
other foreign objects from the grill, the un­derbody and the wheels. Pay spec ia l atten­
t ion to fore ign objects (stones) which have
become lodged in the tire tread.
- Clean the body and the veh icle unders ide,
and inspec t the veh icle for poss ible damage.
- Clean dirty w indows , headlamp lenses , rear
l ights, and license plates .
- Perform a brake check (part icularly after
t ravel ling through water) .
A WARNING
-Drive especially attentively and plan
ahead in d iff icu lt road conditions and
when offroad. Excessive speed o r inco r­
rect maneuvers can cause injuries and
damage to the vehicle.
-
- Always adapt your speed and driving
style to road, offroad, t raff ic, and weath­
er cond itions. Drive especially slowly off­
road when you r view is res tricted.
- Please be awa re that in ESC off road
mode, particularly on a smoo th and s lip­
pery road, the wheels may have an in­
creased tendency to spin and the vehicle may break away -danger of skidding!
- Stability is limited in the ESC off road
mode .
@) For the sake of the environment
Avoid damage to the environment and re­
spect nature .
(D Tips
Only drive w here it is permitted and stay
on marked roads and paths.
Explanation of some technical terms
T he following data refe r to ideal cond itions.
Depend ing on veh icle load and ground condi ­
tions and the environment, the numbers may
vary. It is the driver's responsibility to decide
whether a vehicle can overcome a specific s it­
uat ion
c::> ,&. .
Gradient angle
The number of meters in alt itude gained over
a distance of 109.4 yards or 100 meters
(grade) are given as a percentage or degrees.
Information about the gradient the vehicle
can climb under its own power (depends in
part on the road surface and engine power) .
Max imum perm itted grade : 3 1
°
Late ral angle (slope of vehicle )
Indicates the angle up to which the vehicle
can be driven diagonally or across the fall line ..,.

chains, make sure they will not drag on the
road when you are driving.
The cha ins shou ld cross under the trai le r
tongue to prevent it from dropping in case of
separation from the hitch.
(D Note
If you are going to tow a trailer, you must
activate the trailer operation mode
¢page 159, Towing a trailer.
Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra
core and consideration.
To obtain the best poss ible handling of vehicle
and traile r, p lease note the following:
.,. Do not tow a loaded tra iler whe n your car it­
self is not loaded.
.,. Be especially careful when passing other
vehicles .
.. Observe speed limits.
.. Do not d rive at the maximum permissible
speed.
.. Always apply brakes early.
.. Monitor the temperature gauge.
Weight distribution
Tow ing a loaded trai ler with an empty ca r re­
sults in a high ly unstable distribution of
weight. If this cannot be avoided, drive at very
l ow speeds only to avoid the risk of losing
steering control.
A "balanced" rig is easier to operate and con ­
trol. This means that the tow vehicle should
be loaded to the extent possible and permiss i­
ble, while keeping the trailer as light as possi­
ble under the circumstances. Whenever possi­
ble, transfer some cargo to the luggage com­
partment of the tow vehicle wh ile observing
tongue load requirements and vehicle loading
considerations .
Speed
The higher the speed, the more difficult it be­
comes for the driver to control the rig . Do not
drive at the maximum permissible speed. Re-
Trailer towing 243
duce your speed even more if load, weather or
wind conditions are unfavorable - particularly
when going downhill.
Red uce veh icle speed
immediately if the trail­
er shows the slightest sign of sway ing.
Do not
try to stop the swaying by accelerating.
Observe speed limits. In some areas, speeds
f or vehicles towing trailers are lower than for
regular vehicles.
Always apply brakes early. When driving
downh ill, shift into a lowe r gear to use the en­
gine braking effect to slow the vehicle. Use of
the brakes alone can cause them to overheat
and fail.
Coolant temperature
The coolant temperature gauge¢ page 10
must be observed carefully. If the need le
moves close to the upper end of the scale, re­
duce speed immediately and/or turn off the
air conditioner.
If the coolant temperature warning light in
the instrument cluster starts flashing ., pull
off the road, stop and let the engine
idle for
about two minutes to prevent heat build -up .
A WARNING
Anyone not properly restrained in a mov­
ing vehicle is at a much greater risk in an
accident. Never let anyone ride in your car
who is not properly wearing the restraints
prov ided by Audi .
Trailer towing tips
Important to know
-
Your vehicle handles differently when towing
a trai ler because of the additional weight and
different weight distr ibution. Safety, perform­
ance and economy will great ly depend on how
carefully you load your trailer and operate
your rig.
Before you actua lly tow your tra iler, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you
•
•

-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. Wa it 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:
Checking and filling 265
- 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 hazards~&. .
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.
- 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.
Q) 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. •
•

266 Checking and filling
Engine compartment
These are the most important items that you can check .
Fig. 243 Typical layout for containers, engine oil di pstick and engine oil fille r cap
CD W indshield/head light washer
. ( ") container O ......... ... .. . 279
@ Coolant expansion tank (-L) ... 272
® E
ng ine oi l filler cap ('t".:r.) ... .. . 270
© Eng ine oil dipstick (orange) . .. . 269
® Brake fluid reservoir ((0)) ...... 274
® Power steering reservoir ... .. . 230
(j) Jump start connector(+) under
a cover, ( -) with hex head screw
277, 314
The position of the engine o il fi lling hole and
the engine oil dipstick
r=;, fig. 243 (position ®
and @) can vary according to the type of en­
gine .
_&. WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS ¢.&.
in Working in the engine
comportment on page 264.
-
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 sophist icated
powerplant that was built to exacting specifi­
cations. This engine needs the right kind of
engi ne oil that meets specifications regard ing
quality and v iscosity so that it can run
smooth ly and reliab ly. Choosing the right oil
and changing oil within the time and mileage
intervals printed in your vehicle's Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet matters a lot more to­
day than it did years ago . Audi has developed
a spec ia l quality standard for eng ine oil that
will help assure that your vehicle's engine w ill
get the lubrication it needs for proper opera­
t ion .
Modern engine lubr ication has taken a quan ­
tum leap in the last few years. Many synthetic "'

a reason to change the oil more often than recommended.
A WARNING
Stop! Before working in the engine com­
partme nt, always read and heed all WARN­
INGS
q & in Working in the engine com­
partment on page 264.
The engine com­
partme nt of any motor veh icle is a poten­
tially dangerous a rea and can cause ser i­
ous pe rsonal injury.
A WARNING
If you must change the engine o il i n your
vehicle:
- Always wea r eye p rotection.
- To reduce the r isk of burns from hot en-
gine oil let the engine cool down to the
t ouch.
- When removing the oil drain plug with
yo ur finge rs, stay as far away as possible.
Always kee p your forea rm pa ra llel to the
ground to he lp prevent ho t oi l from r un­
ning down your arm.
- Drain the o il into a co nt ainer designed
f or this p urpose, one large enough to
hold at least the total amount of oil in
yo ur engine .
- T o reduce the r is k of po ison ing, never use
empty food or beverage containers that
might mis lead someone into drinking
from them.
- Engine oil is poisono us. Keep it well out
of the reach of chi ldren.
- Cont in u ous contact with used engi ne oil
is harmful to your skin. Always protect
yo ur sk in by washing tho ro ughly with
soap and water.
(D Note
Never mix oi l addit ives with your engine
oil. These additives can damage your en ­
gine and adverse ly affect your Audi Limit­
ed New Vehicle Warranty.
-
Checkin g and fillin g 2 71
@) For the sake of the environment
-Before changing the oil, first make sure
you know where you can prope rly dispose
of the old o il.
- Always dispose of used oil p ro perly. Nev­
er dump it on garden soil, in wooded
areas, into streams or down sewage
dra ins.
- Recycle used o il by tak ing it to a used en ­
gine oil collection facility in your area, or
contact a service station.
- We strongly recommend that yo u have
your oil cha nged by an authorized Audi
dealer or a qualified wo rkshop with the
special tools a nd expert ise required, and
proper m eans of disposa l.
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.
T he cooling sys tem is sealed and genera lly re­
quires little attention.
T he cooli ng system has bee n filled a t the fac­
t ory with a permanent coolant which does not
need to be c hanged . The coo lant cons ists of a
mixture of water and the manufacturer's gly ­
col-based coo lant additive G l3 antifreeze
with anticorrosion additives (50% for USA
models; 60% for Canadian mode ls). This m ix­
ture both assures the necessary frost protec­
tion and protects meta l compone nts in t he
engine's cool ing system from corros io n and
sca ling.
It also raises the boiling point of the
c oolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the cool ­
ant in the s ummer by adding p lai n water .
The
proportion of coolant additive must be at
lea st 50 % but not more than 60 %
to main ­
tai n antifree ze pro te ct io n a nd coo ling eff icien­
cy .
If the coo lant fros t protection is too low,
the coo lant co uld freeze and damage the vehi-
cle heating and engine cooling system. .,..
•
•

272 Che cking and filling
For year-round driving, antifreeze is added at
the factory for temperatures down to:
- -31° F(-35°C)USA
- - 40 °F ( - 40 °C) Canada.
_& WARNING
-
Before yo u check anything in the e ngine
compar tment, alw ays read and heed all
WARN INGS
¢.&. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 264 .
(D Note
- Befo re win ter se ts in, have the coolan t
che cked to see if t he coolant ad dit ive in
you r vehicle is s ufficien t to mee t the cli ­
mate conditions. T his is especially impor­
tant if yo u live in a region where the w in­
ter is extremely co ld. If necessary, in­
crease the proport io n of coolant additive
to 60%.
- When adding coolant addit ive to your
cooling system, remember:
- We recommend using only coolant ad­
ditive G1 2++ o r G13 fo r your vehicle.
Thi s coo lant add itive is available at au­
thorized A ud i dealers. Other types of
antifreeze can significantly reduce cor­
rosion protection. The res ulting corro ­
sion can cause a loss of coo lant and se­
r ious eng ine damage.
- Do not add any type of radiator leak sea l­
ant to your ve hicle's engine coo lant.
Adding rad iator repair fluid may adve rse­
ly affec t the function and perfo rmance of
you r cooling system and could result in
damage not cove red by your New Vehicle
Limited Wa rranty.
Checking the engine coolant level
T he engine coolant level can be checked with
a quick glance .
Fig . 2 4 7 Engin e compa rtm en t: Coo lant expansio n ta nk
Befo re you check anyth ing in the en gine com­
partment,
alway s read and h eed all WARN­
INGS ¢ A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 264.
.,. Park yo ur vehicle on a level surf ace .
.,. Tur n off the ignition.
.,. Let the engine cool down.
.,. Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank ¢
fig. 24 7, ¢ page 266, fig . 243 and
carefull y twist the cap counter-clockwise
¢,&. .
.,. Read the engine coolant level in the open
coo lant expansion ta nk. W ith a cold eng ine,
the coolant level should be between the "min " and "max " mar kings. When t he en­
g ine is wa rm, the level may be slightly above
the "max" mark ing.
T he locat ion of the coo lant expansion tan k
c an be see n in the engine compartmen t illu s­
t ration
¢ page 266.
T o obtain an accu rate reading, the engine
must be switched off.
The expansion tank in your veh icle is equipped
with an electr ic coo lant level senso r.
When the coolant leve l is too low, the warning
light in the Auto-Check System¢
page 32 will
blink unti l you add coolant and the level has
been resto red to normal. Even though there is
an electric coo lant level senso r, we still rec­
ommend you check the coolant level from
time to t ime .