2013 AUDI S4 rims

208 Clea ning and protec tio n
- Damage or ma lfunction of electrical
components due to water damage or any
other outside influence is not covered by
the Aud i New Vehicle Limited Warranty.
See your Warranty
& Maintenance book­
l et for additional details about your war­
ranty.
Cast (light) alloy wheels
Cast (light) alloy wheels require special care.
.. Wash the whee ls with a sponge or hose
brush every other week.
.. For deep cleaning afterwards, use only a
dedicated
aci d-fr ee cast alloy wheel cleaner.
.. Rub a coat of
liqui d wax onto the r ims every
three month . Be sure to reach and treat a ll
parts of the rim.
To preserve the decorat ive appearance of the
cast alloy wheels, some specia l care is neces­
sary. In addit ion to road d irt and sa lt , brake
dust is a lso cor ros ive.
If l eft on for too long,
brake dus t can cause pitting.
Use only specia l
acid-free cleaners formulated
for a lloy rims. Safe p roducts are available at
your author ized Audi dealer. Never leave the
cleane r on the rims longer than specified on
the label. If not rinsed
off promptly, the acid
contained in some cleaners can attack the
threads on the whee l bolts.
Never use ab ras ive or metal polishing clean­
ing agents. If the protective coating has been
chipped, e .g. by kicked up road dirt, touch it
up as soon as possible .
.&, WARNING
-Moisture and ice on brakes may affect
braking efficiency¢
page 188. Test the
brakes carefully each time you wash the
vehicle .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other information
¢ page 202.
Body cavity sealing
The body cavity sealing does not need to be
checked .
All body cav ities which could be affected by
corros ion have been thoroughly protected at
the factory .
This sealing does not require any inspection or additional treatment. If any wax should seep
out of the cavity when the ambient tempera­
ture is high, it can be removed with a plastic scraper and a suitable solvent .
.&, WARNING '"-'--
Solvents can be dangerous .
- Benz ine is flammable and toxic. If you
use benz ine for removing the wax, keep
spa rks, flame and lighted cigarettes
away. Never dump benz ine on the
g round, into open streams or down sew ­
age drains .
- Be s ure to observe all safety and environ­
mental regulations. Follow all instruc­
tions on the container.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other information ¢
page 202.
Chassis
Have the undercoating checked for damage
from time to time.
The lower body shell of your Aud i is also thor­
oughly p rotected against corros ion.
Any damage to the undercoat ing caused by
road hazards should be repaired promptly .
.&, WARNING
Too much undercoating in the wrong p la­
ces can cause a fire.
- Do not app ly additional undercoating or
r u stp roofing on or nea r the exhaust
manifold, exhaust pipes, catalyti c con­
ver ter or heat shields. While driving, the
substance used for undercoating could
overheat and cause a fire.

234 Tire s and wheel s
Tires and wheels
Tires
General notes
Tires may be the least appreciated and most
abused parts of a motor vehicle .
Tires may be the least appreciated and most
abused parts of a motor vehicle . Tires are,
however, one of the most important parts of a
vehicle, particularly considering the compara­
tive ly small patch of rubber on each tire that
assures that a ll-impo rtant contact between
you, your vehicle and the road.
Maintaining the correct tire pressure, mak ing
sure that your vehicle and its tires do not have
to carry mo re weight than they can safe ly han­
d le, avoiding damage from road hazards and
reg ularly inspecting t ires for damage includ­
ing cuts, slashes irregu la r wear and ove rall
condition are the most important things that
you can do to he lp avoid sudden tire failure in­
cluding tread separat ion and blowouts.
Avoiding damage I f you have to drive over a curb or similar ob­
stacle, drive very s low ly and as close as possi ­
b le at a right angle to the curb.
A lways keep chem ica ls includ ing gre ase, o il,
gasoline and b rake fluid off the ti res .
Inspect the t ires regularly for damage (cuts,
cracks or b listers, etc.). Remove any fo reign
bod ies embedded in the treads.
Storing tires Mark tires when you remove them to indicate
the direction of rotation . Th is ensures you to
be ab le to mount them correctly when you re­
install t hem.
When removed, the whee ls or t ires should be
stored in a cool, d ry and preferably dark place .
Store tires in a vertical pos ition if they are not
mounted on r ims, in a horizontal pos it ion if
they are mounted on rims. New tire
s
New t ires have to be broken in¢&,. .
T he tread depth of new t ires may vary, accord­
ing to the type a nd make of t ire and the tread
pa tte rn .
Hidden damage
Damage to tires and r ims is ofte n not readily
vis ible . If you notice unusual v ibrat ion or the
vehicle p ulls to one s ide, th is may ind icate
t h at one of the t ires has been damaged . Th e
t ir es m ust be checked immed iate ly by an au ­
tho rized Aud i dea le r or q uali fied wor ks hop.
Unidirectional t ires
A un idirectional tire can be identified by ar­
rows on the s id ewa ll, that po int in the direc­
t ion the t ire is desig ned to rotate. You mus t
f ol low the specified d irection of rotation . This
is necessary so that these tires can develop
their optimum characterist ics regarding grip,
road no ise, wear and hyd rop laning resistance.
For more information
¢ page 263.
A WARNING
-New tires or tires that are o ld, worn or
damaged cannot provide maximum con­
trol and braking ability .
-
-New tires tend to be slippery and must
also be broken-in. To reduce t he risk of
losing control, a collision and se rious
pe rsonal injuries, drive w it h specia l care
for the first 350 miles (560 km).
- Driving with worn or damaged tires can
le ad to loss of control, sudden tire fail­
ure, including a blowou t and sudden de­
fl ation, c rashes and seriou s personal in­
juries . Have wo rn or damaged t ires re­
p laced immediate ly .
- T ires age even if they are not being used
an d can fai l sudden ly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
and then w ith specia l care and at low
speed.

240 Tires and wheels Model Tire designation Tire pressure
Engine normal load condition full load condition
(up to 3 occupants )
front rear front rear
I
PSI II kPA PSI II kPA PSI II kPA PSI II kPA :
S4 Sedan : 245 /40 Rl8 93H
3 .0 liter All Season
36 250 32 220 41 280 41
280
6-cylinder
24S/40 Rl8 93V
I High Performance
39 270 35 240 41 280 41 280
255/35 Rl9 96V XL
High Performance
39 270 33 230 41 280 41 280
XL= reinforced or extra load tire. It may also appear as xl
, EXTRA LOAD, or RF on the tire side­
wall.
The correct tire pressure for the spare wheel i s
l o cated on a label on the dr ive r's side B-p illa r.
Because tec hnical cha nges may be made to
ve hicle equ ipment dur ing the model yea r, a l­
ways compa re the tire siz e designation on the
tire pressure labe l o n you r vehi cle w it h the
tires on your vehicle. M ake s ure that the t ire
size info rmation on the veh icle label is the
same as the size of the t ire s on the vehicle.
This is especially important if the vehicle be ­
l ongs to someone else or you bought the veh i­
cle with different rims/tires or you boug ht the
ve hicle as a p reviously owned vehicle.
Remembe r, your safety and that of your pas ­
sengers also depends on mak ing s ure that
load limits are not exceeded. Vehicle load in­
cludes everybody and everything in and on t he
ve hicle . These load lim its are technically refer ­
red to as th e vehicle's G ross Vehicle We ight
Rati ng ("GVWR"). The G ross Ax le Weight Rat­
i ng ( "GA WR ") is the ma ximum load tha t can
be applied at each o f the veh icle 's two axles.
T he G ross Vehicle We ig ht Rating and the
Gross Axle Weight Rating a re listed on the
safety compliance st ic k er labe l located on the
driver's side B-p illar. The tire pressure label on
your Aud i lists the maximum combined
A WARNING
Overloadin g a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
h icle cont ro l, a c rash or other accident, se­
rious pe rsonal injury, and even death.
- Ca rrying more we ight tha n your veh icle
was des igned to carry will prevent the
veh icle from handling properly and in­
crease the risk of a loss of vehicle con ­
trol.
- The brakes on a vehicle that has been
overloaded may not be able to stop the
veh icle w ith in a safe distanc e.
- Tires on a vehicle that has been overload­
ed can fail s uddenly ca us ing loss of con­
trol and a crash.
- Always make sure that the total load be­
i n g transported - including the weight of
a trailer hitch and t he tongue we igh t of a
loaded tr ail er -does not ma ke t he ve hi­
cle he avier th an the vehicle' s Gro ss V ehi­
cle Weigh t Ra tin g.
.&_ WARNING
- In cor rect tire pressure s and /or u nderin­
fl ation can lead to a serio us or fatal acci ­
dent .
- I nco rrec t tire pressures an d/or un derin­
fla tion ca use increased ti re wear an d can
'
I
weight of all of the occupants and luggage or
other cargo tha t the vehicl e can carry . For the
l ocat io n of the ti re pressu re labe l~
fig . 191 .
affect the handling of the vehicle. ..,_

246 Tires and wheels
New tires and replacing tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to be broken in .
Fig. 195 Tire speci fication codes o n the sidewal l of a
t ir e
No. 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
(j) U.S. DOT tire identification number
@ Audi Original tire
® Sever snow conditions
@) Tire ply composition and materials
used
Maximum load rating
Tr eadwear, traction and temperature
grades
Maximum permissible inflation pres­
sure
The tires and rims are essential parts of the
vehicle's design . The tires and rims approved
by Audi are specially matched to the charac­
ter istics of the vehicle and can make a major contribution to good road holding and safe
handling when in good condition and properly
inflated
¢
&..
We recommend that all work on tires and
whee ls be performed by an authorized Audi
dealer. They are familiar with recommended
procedures and have the necessary special
tools and spare parts as well as the proper fa­
cilities for disposing of the old tires.
Authorized Audi dea lers have the necessary
information about technical requirements for
insta lling or changing tires and rims .
Replacing tires and wheels
Tires should be replaced at least in pairs and
not individually (for example both front tires
or both rear tires together).
Be sure to read and heed the i nformation to
the tire pressure mon itor ing system*
<:!> page 253 .
Always buy replacement radia l tires that have
the same spec ificat ions as the tires approved
for your vehicle by Audi. Replacement tires
must a lways have the same load rating speci­
fication as the origina l equipment or approved
optiona l tires listed in the table¢
page 238 .
Audi-approved specification tires are specia lly
matched to your vehicle and its load limits,
and can contribute to the important roadhold­
ing, driving characteristics, and safety of the
vehicle. The table
(c;, page 238) lists specifica­
tions of the tires approved for the Audi mod­ els covered by your Owner's Literature .
The tire pressure label located on driver's side
B-pillar
(c;, page 238, fig. 192) lists the speci­
fications of the original equipment tires in­
stalled on your vehicle at the time it was man ­
ufactured .
Federal law requires tire manufacturers to
place standardized information on the side­
wall of all tires co
fig. 195 . This information
identifies and descr ibes the fundamenta l
characteristics, the quality grade of the t ire
and also provides a tire identification number ..,.

248 Tire s and whee ls
Tir e pl y c ompo sit ion and materi als used
The numbe r of plies ind icates the number of
l ayers of rubber -coated fabric in the tire. In
general, the greater the number of p lies, the
more weight a tire can support . Tire manufac­
turers also must indicate the materials in the
tire, wh ich include steel, nylon, polyester, and
others .
Max imum Load R ating
This number indicates the maximum load in
kilograms and pounds that can be carried by
the tire .
Tire quality grading for treadw ear ,
tr act ion, a nd t emper ature re sis tan ce
Tread wear, traction and temperature grades
c:> page249.
Max imum Permiss ibl e Inflation Pressur e
This numbe r is the greatest amo unt of air
p ressure that should ever be put in the ti re
under normal driving conditions .
A WARNING
-Using incorrect or unmatched tires and/
or wheels or improper tire and wheel
combinations can lead to loss of contro l,
collision and serious persona l injury .
- Always use tires, rims and wheel bo lts
that meet the specifications of orig inal
factory-installed t ires or other combina­
t ions that have been spec ifically ap­
proved by the vehicle manufacturer.
- Tires age even if they are not be ing used
and can fail suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tir es that are more than 6 years
o ld can only be used in an emergency
and then with special care and at lower
speeds.
- Never mount used ti res on yo ur vehicle if
yo u are not su re 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.
- All four wheels must be fitted with radia l
t ires of the same type, size (roll ing c ir- cumference) and the same tread pattern
.
Driving with different tires reduces vehi­
cle handling and can lead to a loss of
control.
- If the spare tire is not the same as the
tires that are mounted on the vehicle -
for example with winter tires -only use
the spare t ire fo r a short period of time
and drive with extra care . Refit the nor­
mal road wheel as soon as safely poss i­
b le.
- Never drive faster than the max imum
speed for which the tires on you r vehicle
are rated because tires that are dr iven
faster than their rated speed can fai l
suddenly .
- Overloading tires cause heat build-up,
sudden tire fa ilure, including a blowout
and sudden deflation and loss of contro l.
- Temperature grades apply to tires that are properly inflated and not over or un­
derinf lated .
- For technica l reasons it is not always
possible to use whee ls from other
veh icles -in some cases not even wheels
from the same veh icle model.
- If you install wheel trim discs on the ve­
hicle wheels, make sure that the a ir flow
to the brakes is not blocked. Reduced air­
f low to the brakes can them to overheat,
increas ing stopp ing distances and caus­
ing a co llision.
- Run flat tires may only be used on veh icles that were equipped with them
at the factory. The veh icle must have a
chassis designed for run flat tires and a
f a ctory -insta lled tire pressure monitor­
ing system* that indicates a loss of tire
pressu re . I ncorrect use of run flat tires
can lead to vehicle damage or accidents.
Check with an authorized Audi dealer or
tire specialist to see if your vehicle can be
equ ipped w ith run flat t ires. If run flat
tires are used, they must be installed on
all fou r wheels . Mix ing tire types is not
pe rm itted.

(D Note
-For technica l reasons, it is not genera lly
possib le to use the whee l rims from oth­
er vehicles. This can hold true for wheels
of the same vehicle type.
- If the spare ti re is different from the tires that you have mounted on your ve­hicle (for example w inter t ires or wide
profile t ires), then use the spare t ire for a
short period of time only and drive with
extra ca re. Replace the flat tire with the
tire match ing the others on you r vehicle
as soon as possible.
- Never dr ive without the valve stem cap.
The valves could ge t damaged.
@) For the sake of the environment
Dispose of old t ires in accordance with the
local requ irements.
Uniform tire quality grading
- T read wear
- T raction AA A BC
- T emperature ABC
Quality grades can be found where applicable
on the tire side wall between tread shoulder
and maximum sect ion w idth
¢ page 246,
fig . 195.
For e xample: Tread wear 200 , Tract ion AA ,
Temperature A.
All passenger car tires must confo rm to Feder­
a l Safety Requirements in addition to these
grades.
Tr ead wea r
The tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specified
government test course.
F or examp le, a tire graded 150 wou ld wear
one and one half (1 1/2) times as well on the
government course as a tire graded 100 .
The rela tive performance of t ires depends
upon the actua l conditions of their use, how -
Tires an d wheel s 249
ever, and may depa rt s ignificantly from the
norm due to variations in driving habits , serv­
ice practices and differences in road character­
istics and cl imate.
Traction
T he traction grades, from highest to lowest,
are AA, A, Band
C. Those g rades represent the
ti re's ability to stop on wet pavement as
measured under contro lled conditions on
specified government test surfaces of asphalt
and concrete. A tire marked C may have poor
traction performance
¢ A .
Temper ature
The temperature grades are A (the highest),
B, and C, representing the tire's resistance to
the generation of heat and its ability to dissi­ pate heat when tested under controlled condi­
tions on a specif ied indoor laboratory test
whee l.
Sustained h igh temperature can cause the
mater ial of the tire to degenerate and reduce
tire life, and excessive temperature can lead
to sudden tire failure
¢ A .
The grade C corresponds to a level of perform­
ance which all passenger car tires must meet
under the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Stand ­
ard No . 109 . Grades Band A represent higher
levels of perfo rmance on the labo rato ry test
whee l than the minim um requ ired by law.
,&. WARNING
The t ra ction gr ade assigned to t his tire i s
based on s traight -ahead braking traction
tests, and does not include acce leration,
cornering, hydroplaning or peak t raction
characterist ics .
,&. WARNING
The temperature grade for this tire is es­
tablished for a tire that is properly inf lated
and not overloaded. Excess ive speed, un­
de rinflation, or excess ive l oad ing, e ither
separately or in combinat ion, can ca use
h eat bui ldup and possib le tire failure.
-
•
•

Snow chains
Snow chains may be fitted only to the front
wheels, and only to certain tire sizes. Ask your
authorized Audi dealer on which tire sizes
snow chains can be used.
The snow chains must have low-profile links
and must not be thicker than 0.53 inch
(13.5 mm), including the lock .
Remove wheel center covers and trim discs
before putting snow chains on your vehicle
~ 0. For safety reasons cover caps must then
be fitted over the wheel bolts. These are avail­
able from authorized Audi dealers.
~ WARNING
Using the wrong snow chains for your vehi­
cle or installing them incorrectly can in­
crease the risk of loss of control leading to
serious personal injury.
- Snow chains are available in different sizes. Always make sure to follow the in­
structions provided by the snow chain
manufacturer .
- When driving with snow chains never
drive faster than the speed permitted for
your specific snow chains.
- Always observe local regulations.
(D Note
- Remove snow chains before driving on
roads not covered with snow to avoid
damaging tires and wearing the snow
chains down unnecessarily.
- Snow chains, which come into direct con­
tact with the wheel rim, can scratch or
damage it . Therefore, make sure that the
snow chains are suitably covered . Check
the position of the snow chains after
driving a few yards and correct if neces­
sary. Follow the instructions from the
snow chain manufacturer when doing so.
(j) Tips
Where snow chains are mandatory oncer­
tain roads, this normally also applies to
vehicles with all wheel drive.
Tires and wheels 251
Wheel bolts
Wheel bolts must always be tightened to the
correct torque.
The design of wheel bolts is ma tched to the
factory inst alled rims. If diffe ren t rims are fit­
ted, the correct wheel bolts with the right length and correctly shaped bolt heads must
be used. This ensures that wheels are fitted
securely and that the brake system functions
correctly.
In certain circumstances, you may not use
wheel bolts from a different vehicle -even if it
is the same model~
page 282 .
&_ WARNING
Improperly tightened or maintained wheel
bolts can become loose causing loss of
control , a collision and serious personal in­
jury.
- Always keep the wheel bolts and the threads in the wheel hubs clean so the
wheel bolts can turn easily and be prop­
erly tightened.
- Never grease or oil the wheel bolts and
the threads in the wheel hubs. They can become loose while driving if greased or
oiled, even if tightened to the specified
torque .
- Only use wheel bolts that belong to the
rim being installed .
- Never use different wheels bolts on your
vehicle.
-Always maintain the correct tightening torque for the wheel bolts to reduce the risk of a wheel loss. If the tightening tor­
que of the wheel bolts is too low, they
can loosen and come out when the vehi­
cle is moving.
If the tightening torque is
too high, the wheel bolts and threads
can be damaged and the wheel can be­
come loose.
(I} Note
The specified torque for the wheel bolts is
90 ft lbs. (120 Nm) with a tolerance of
± 7,4 ft lbs. (± 10 Nm). Torque wheel bolts .,.. •
•

264 What do I do now?
-Check the tire pressure on the spare imme­
diately after installation.
- Have the wheel bolt tightening torque
checked with a torque wrench as soon as possible by your authorized Audi dealer or
a qualified workshop.
- With steel and alloy wheel rims , the wheel
bolts are correctly tightened at a torque of
90 ft lbs . (120 Nm).
- If you notice that the wheel bolts are cor­
roded and difficult to turn while changing
a tire, they should be replaced before you
check the tightening torque .
- Replace the flat tire with a new one and
have it installed on your vehicle as soon as
possible. Remount the wheel cover.
Until then, drive with extra care and at re ­
duced speeds .
A WARNING
-If you are going to equip y our veh icle
with t ires or rims w hich diffe r from t hose
w hich wer e facto ry ins talled, th en be
su re to read t he in forma tion ~
pag e 24 6,
N ew tir es and replacing tires and
wheel s.
- Always make su re the damaged w heel or
eve n a fla t tire and the ja ck and to ol kit
a re prop erly secure d in the lug gage com­
par tment and are not loose in the pas ­
senger com partment .
- In an a cciden t or sud den m ane uver they
cou ld fly forwar d, inju ring anyone in the
vehicle.
- Always s tore d amage d w hee l, ja ck a nd
tool s secure ly in the lu g gage com part ­
me nt. Otherw ise, in an acc ident or sud­
den maneuver they cou ld fly fo rward,
causing injury to passenge rs in the veh i­
cle .
@ Note
Do not use commerc ia lly available t ire
sea lants. Othe rwise, the elect rical compo­
ne nts of the tire pressure mon itor ing sys­
tem* will no longer wo rk p roperly and the
sensor for th e tire p ressur e monito rin g system
* wi ll h ave to be repla ced by a
qu alified works ho p.