2013 AUDI S6 check engine

the level may be slightly above the "max"
marking .
The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus­
tration ¢ page 22 7.
To obtain an accurate reading, the engine must be switched
off.
The expansion tank in your vehicle is equipped
with an electric coolant level sensor.
When the coolant level is too low, the warning
light in the Auto-Check System ¢page 16will
illuminate until you add coolant and the level
has been restored to normal. Even though
there is an electric coolant level sensor , we
still recommend you check the coolant level
from time to time.
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling
system. In the event of coolant loss, the cool­
ing system should be inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer.
It is not
enough merely to add coolant.
In a
sealed system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheating.
& WARNING
The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of scald­
ing from hot coolant by following these
steps.
- Turn
off the engine and allow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by covering the
cap with a large, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in
a counter-clockwise direction while ap­
plying light, downward pressure on the
top of the cap.
- To avoid being burned, do not spill anti­ freeze or coolant on the exhaust system or hot engine parts . Under certain condi­
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine cool ­
ant can catch fire .
Checking and filling 233
@ Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak seal­
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant. Add­
ing radiator repair fluid may adversely af­
fect the function and performance of your
cooling system and could result in damage not covered by your New Vehicle limited
Warranty .
Adding coolant
Be very careful when adding engine coolant.
Before you check anything in the engine com ­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS ¢ & in Working in the engine compart ­
ment on page 225 .
.,. Turn
off the engine .
.,. let the engine cool down.
.,. Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank ¢ fig .
187 and carefully twist the cap
counter-clockwise ¢&_ .
.,. Add coolant.
.,. Twist the cap on again tightly.
Replacement engine coolant must conform to
exact specifications ¢ page
2 32, Coolant. We
recommend using only coolant additive G12+
+, G13 or in an emergency G12+. Do
not use a
different additive. In an emergency use plain
water until you can get the correct additive
and can restore the correct ratio. This should
be done as soon as possible.
If you have lost a considerable amount of
coolant, then you should add cold antifreeze
and cold water only when the engine is cold.
Always use new engine coolant when refilling.
Do not fill coolant above the "MAX" mark. Ex­
cess coolant will be forced out through the pressure relief valve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot.
A WARNING
- The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of
II-
•
•

234 Checking and filling
scalding from hot coolant by following
these steps .
- Turn off the eng ine and a llow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from escaping flu id and steam by cover ing
the cap with a large, thick rag .
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully
i n a counter-clockwise direction while
apply ing l ight, downwa rd p ress ure on
the top of the cap .
- To avo id being burned, do not sp ill an­
tifreeze or coolant on the exhaust sys­
tem or hot engine parts . Under certain
conditions, the ethylene glyco l in en­
gine coolant can catch f ire .
- Antifreeze is poisonous . Always store an­
tifreeze in its or iginal container and we ll
out of the reach of children .
- If you drain the coolant, it must be
caught and safely stored in a proper con­
tainer clear ly marked "poison".
@ Note
- Coolant po llutes the env ironment and
could cause an engine fire . Excess coo l­
ant will be forced out through the pres­
sure re lief valve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot.
- If, in an emergency, on ly water can be
added, the correct ratio between water
and antifreeze
c::> page 232 must be re­
stored as soon as possible .
@ For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant should not be re used. Al­
ways dispose of used coolant while observ­
ing all environmental regulat ions .
Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by
itself
An auxiliary e lectr ic radiator fan switches on
and off depending on coolant temperature
and other vehicle operating cond itions. After you switch the engine off, the aux
iliary
fan can cont inue running for up to 10 minutes
- even w it h the ignition off. It can even switc h
on again later by itself
c::> .&. , if
- the temperatu re of the engine coo lant rises
due to the heat build-up from the engine in
the engine compartment, or
- the engine compartment heats up because
the vehicle is parked in intense sunlight.
A WARNING
-- To reduce the risk of persona l injury nev-
er touch the radiator fan.
- The a uxiliary electric fan is temperat ure
contro lled and can sw itch on suddenly
even when the engine is not running.
- The auxiliary radiator fan switches on a u­
tomatically when the engine coo lant
reaches a certain temperature and will
continue to run until the coolant temper­
ature drops .
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
Fig. 1 88 En gin e compa rtme nt: cove r on t he brake fluid
reservoi r
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS c:> A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 225.
.,. Read the brake fluid level from the brake
fluid reservoir
c::> fig. 188, c:> fig . 184. The
brake fluid level must be between the "MIN"
and "MAX" markings.
IJ>

The location of the brake fl uid reservo ir can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
c::> page227.
The fl uid level may drop slightly after some
time due to the automatic adjustment of the
brake pads. This is not cause for alarm .
If the brake fluid level falls considerably be­
l ow the "MIN" mark, the bra ke wa rning/ind i­
cator light
1111 (U .S . models)/ . (Canadian
models) will come on
c::> page 15. Do not con­
tinue to operate the vehicle. The comp lete
brake system sho uld be thoroughly checked
by an author ized Audi dealer or other quali­
fied fac ility and the cause corrected . If the
brake fluid level is too low, the brake warn ing/
i ndicator light w ill illuminate . Contact an au­
thor ized Audi dealer
imm ediately .
Changing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experi­
enced technician .
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the a ir. If
the water content in the brake fluid is too
h igh, corrosion in the brake system may result
after a per iod of t ime . The bo iling po int of t he
brake fluid w ill also decrease consider ably and
dec rease b raking per formance.
Therefore, the brake flu id must be changed
ever y two years . Always use new b rake fluid
whi ch confo rms to Fede ral Motor Vehicle
Standard "FMVSS 1 16 DO T 4".
The brake flu id rese rvoir ca n be difficult to
r eac h, therefo re , we re commend that yo u
have the brake fl uid changed by y our autho r­
i z ed
Audi dealer . Your deale r has the correct
too ls, the right brake fluid and the know -how
to do this for you .
A WARNING
-Brake fluid is po isonous . It must be stor­
ed only in the closed orig inal container
out of t he reac h of children!
- Brake fa ilure can result from old o r inap ­
propr iate brake fluid. Observe these pre­
caut ions:
Checkin g and fillin g 235
-Use only brake f luid that meets SAE
spec ificat ion
J 1703 and conforms to
Federal Motor Ve hicle Standard 116.
Always check with your autho rized Audi
dealer to make sure yo u are using the
correct brake fluid . The correct type of
brake f lu id is also ind icated on the
brake flu id rese rvoi r.
- The bra ke fluid must be new. Heavy us e
of the brakes can cause a vapo r lock if
the b ra ke fluid is left i n the system too
l ong . This can se riously affec t the effi ­
ciency of the b rakes as well as your
safety . This co uld resu lt in an accident.
(D Note
B rak e fluid wi ll damage the pa int o f you r
vehicle .
~ For the sake of the environment
Because o f the p rob lem of pro per disposal
of bra ke fluid as well as the spe cial too ls
r equired an d the necessary exper tise, we
r ecommend that yo u have the brake flu id
changed by yo ur authorized Aud i dea le r.
Battery
General information
U nder normal ope ra ti ng cond itions , the bat­
te ry in yo ur Audi doe s not need any ma inte ­
nance. With
high outside tempera tures or
l ong daily drives we recommend that you have
the e lectrolyte level checked by a service fa­
c ili ty. The electrolyte leve l should a lso be
checked each t ime the battery is charged
c:> page 237.
Have the battery checked when yo u take your
vehicle in for service. You are well advised to
replace a batte ry that is older than 5 years .
Wi th certain types of airbag deployment, the
battery is disconnected from the vehicle elec­
trical system for safety reasons
c> & in Re­
pair , care and disposal of the airbags on
page 161.
~
•
•

-Always wear gloves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because acid
could leak out of the ventilation open­
ings .
- If you get battery acid in your eyes or
on your skin, immediately rinse with
cold water for several minutes and get
medical attention.
- If you should ingest any battery acid,
seek medical attention immediately.
- Do not expose the battery to an open
flame, electric sparks or an open light .
- Do not smoke.
- Do not interchange the positive and neg-
ative cables .
- When working on the battery, be sure
not to short-circuit the terminals with
tools or other metal objects. This would cause the battery to heat up very quickly,
which could lead to damage or explosion
and personal injury .
- When a battery is charged, it produces
hydrogen gas which is explosive and
could cause personal injury .
- Always keep the battery well out of the
reach of children .
- Before work is done on the electrical sys­
tem, disconnect the negative ground ca­
ble.
- Before performing any work on the elec­ trical system, switch off the engine and
ignition as well as any electrical equip­
ment. The negative cable on the battery
must be disconnected.
If you are just go­
ing to replace a light bulb, then it is
enough to switch off the lights.
- Before disconnecting the battery , switch
off the anti-theft alarm system! Other­
wise you will set off the alarm.
- When disconnecting the battery, first
disconnect the negative cable and then
the positive cable.
- Before reconnecting the battery, make
sure all electrical consumers are switch­
ed off. Reconnect the positive cable first
and then the negative cable. Never inter­
change the cables - this could start a fire!
Checking and filling 237
- Never charge a frozen or a thawed-out
battery . It could explode! If a battery has
frozen, then it must be replaced. A dis­
charged battery can freeze over at 32 °F
(0 oc).
-Make sure the vent hose is always attach­
ed to the opening on the side of the bat­
tery .
- Never use batteries which are damaged.
There is the danger of an explosion! Al ­
ways replace a damaged battery .
A WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac­
cessories contain lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc­
tive problems . Wash hands after han­
dling .
(D Note
-Do not disconnect the vehicle battery
when the ignition is on or when the en­
gine is running, otherwise, you will dam­
age electronic components in the electri­
cal system.
- If your vehicle is going to stand for a
long period of time without being driven,
protect the battery from "freezing", oth­
erwise it will be damaged and will then
have to be replaced.
Battery charging
Start ing the engine requires a well charged
battery.
Fig . 189 Eng in e compart ment : co nnecto rs for a charg ·
e r and jump st art cable s
1111>

238 Check ing and filling
Al ways read and h eed all WARNING S below
¢ A and ¢ A in Working on the bottery on
page 236.
.,. Switch off the ignit ion and all electrical con­
sumers .
.,. Make sure the area is well venti lated when
yo u charge the battery.
.,. Open the engine hood
¢page 225.
.,. Open the red cover on the posit ive pole
¢ fig . 189 .
.,. Connect the charger connectors accord ing
to the instruct ions to the
jump start bol ts.
(Bolts under the red cover= "positive", Bolts
with hex head= "negative") .
.,. Only now plug the mains lead for the charg­
ing equipment into the wall outlet and turn
it on ¢.&_ .
.,. Ma ke s ure the charging ra te i s n ot o ver
30 amp s/14. 8 Volt.
.,. When the battery is fully charged: Turn the
charging equ ipment off and remove the
mains lead from the wall outlet .
.,. Now remove the clamps for the charging
equipment.
.,. Close the red cove r o n the pos it ive pole.
.,. Close the hood
¢ page 226.
A discharged batte ry can fre eze at tempera­
tures of on ly 32 F
0 (0 °C). A llow a frozen bat­
tery to thaw completely befo re attempt ing to
charge it¢
A . Howeve r, we recommend not
using a thawed battery again because the bat­
tery cas ing can be cracked d ue to ice forma­
tion and can leak battery acid.
Batt ery charging (Ma ximum charging rate
of 30 amp s/14 .8 Volt)
When charging at low voltages (e.g . w ith a
tr ickle ch arger ), the battery cables do not
have to be d isconnected first. The battery
caps should
not be opened when charging a
battery .
It is not necessary to remove the battery from
the luggage compartment, and it is also not
necessary to disconnect the cables .
Fast charging the battery (ch arging rate
a bo ve 14 .8 V olts)
For technical reasons do not use a battery
charger that uses voltage greater than 14.8
Volts to charge your vehicle's battery.
A WARNING
--Charging a battery can be dangerous .
-Always follow the operating instructions
provided by the battery charger manu­
facturer when charg ing your battery .
- Never charge a frozen battery. It may ex­
plode because of gas trapped in the ice.
Allow a frozen battery to thaw out f irst .
- Do not reuse batteries wh ich were fro­
zen. The battery housing may have
cracked and weakened when the battery
froze.
- Charge the battery in a well ventilated area. Keep away from open flame or elec­
tr ica l spark. Do not smoke. Hydrogen gas
generated by the battery is explos ive .
- To reduce the danger of explosion, never
connect or d isconnect charger cab les
while the charger is ope rat ing .
- Fast charging a battery is dangerous and
should only be attempted by a compe­
tent techn ic ian wi th the proper equip­
ment .
- Battery acid that may sp ill dur ing cha rg­
ing should be washe d off wi th a solut ion
of wa rm water and baking soda to neu ­
tralize the ac id.
(D Note
Neve r use a fast charger as a booster to
start the eng ine. Th is w ill seriously dam­
age sensit ive e lectronic components, such
as contro l units, re lays, radio, etc., as well
as the battery charger.

Battery replacement
The new battery must have the same specifi­
cations and dimensions as the original equip­
ment battery.
Intell igent energy management in your vehi­
cle is respons ible for d istributing the electri­
cal energy throughout your vehicle
~ page 197. The intel ligent energy ma nage­
ment system w ill keep the eng ine batte ry
charged be tte r than vehicles w ithout t his sys­
tem . To make sure the additional e lectrical en ­
ergy is available once again after you have
changed the battery, we recommend that you
install batteries of the same type and man u­
facture only (the same as those installed at
the time your vehicle was delivered). Specifi­
cations a re listed on the battery hous ing . Your
author ized dealer must code the battery in
the energy management system to enable you
to use the energy managemen t fu nctions co r­
rectly a fter replacing the battery .
The new battery must have the same capacity,
voltage (12-vo lts), a mperage, construct ion
and p lug sealing.
When installing the battery , make sure the ig ­
n ition and all e lectr ica l cons umers are sw itch­
ed off.
CD Note
Make sure the ventilation hose on the s ide
of the battery is connected, ot herwise
fumes or battery ac id can leak out.
- Vehicles with the Start-Stop-System* are
equipped with a specia l cycle-proof AGM
batte ry. Insta lling a different type of
batte ry can c ause prob lems in the vehi­
cle electrical system . When rep lacing the
vehicle battery, always insta ll one with
the same specifications as the original battery.
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the problem of proper disposa l
of a battery, we recommend your author­
ized Aud i dea ler change the battery for
you. Batter ies contain sulf uric ac id and
Checkin g and fillin g 239
lead and must always be disposed o f prop ­
erly in compliance with a ll environmental
regulations. Disposing of vehicle batter ies
i mproperly is very dangerous to the envi­
ronment.
Windshield/headlight
washer container
Fi g. 1 90 Engine compar tment: cover on th e windshield
and headl ig ht* washe r flu id reservo ir
The washer fluid conta iner is marked w ith the
symbol ~ on its cap
~ fig . 190, ~fig. 184.
... Before you check anything in the engine
compartment,
always r ead and heed all
WARNINGS ¢ _& in Working in the engine
compartment on page 225.
... Lift the fil le r cap tongue to add washer flu­
id. You can fi ll the containe r to the top.
... Press the cap back onto the fi lle r neck after
filling the container.
You can find the reservo ir
cap acit y in the table
in
¢ page 282.
Clean water should be used when filling up. If
poss ible, use soft wa ter to prevent scaling on
washer jets . Always add a g lass cleaner solu­
tion (with frost protection in the winter).
CD Note
Do not mix engine coo lant antifreeze or
any o ther additives to fill up t he wind­
sh ield washer reservoir .
•
•

264 What do I do now?
&_ WARNING
You or your passengers could be injured
while changing a wheel if yo u do n ot fol­
low t hese safety precautions:
- If you have a flat t ire, move a safe dis­
tance
off the road. Turn off the engine,
turn the emergency flashers on and use other warning dev ices to alert other mo­
torists.
- Make sure that passengers wait in a safe
place away from the vehicle and well
away from the road and traff ic.
- T o help p revent the veh icle from mov ing
sudden ly and possibly slipping off the
ja ck, always fully set the parking b rake
and bloc k the whee l diagona lly opposite
the whee l being changed. When one
front whee l is lifted off the gro und, plac­
ing the Automat ic Transmiss ion in P
(Park) will
not prevent the vehicle from
moving.
- Before you change a wheel, be sure the
ground is level and firm. If necessary,
use a sturdy board under the jack.
- Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack
and the replaced t ire i n the luggage com­
partment
¢ page 132.
Before chang ing the wheel, yo u m ust acti­
vate the jacking mode, so that the auto­ mat ic cont rols for the Adaptive Air S us­
pens ion* do not make it more difficult to
lift the vehicle with the jack
c> page 266.
Changing a wheel
When you change a wheel, follow these­
quence described below step-by-step and in
exactly that order .
1. Activate the vehicle jack mode*
~page 266.
-
2. Remove the decorative wheel cov er* . For
mo re details see also ¢
page 265, Deco­
rative wheel covers
or c> page 265,
Wheels with wheel bolt caps.
3 . L oosen the wheel bolts¢ page 265.
4. Locate the proper mounting point for the
jack and alig n the jack below that point
¢ page 266 .
5.
Raise the car with the jack¢ page 266.
6. Remove the wheel with the flat tire and
then insta ll
the s pare ¢page 267.
7. Tighten all whee l bolts lightly.
8 . Lower the vehicle with the jack .
9. Use the wheel bolt wrench and firmly
t igh ten al l w heel bo lts¢ page 265.
10. Rep lace the decorat ive wh eel co ver* .
11. Deactivate the vehicle jack mode* in the
MMI:
ICARI f u nction button > (Car )* sys­
tems
control button > Se rvicing & chec ks
> A ir susp .: jac k mode > Off .
The vehicle jack mode * switches off automati­
ca lly at speeds above
6 mph (1 0 km/h) .
&_ WARNING ,.__
Always read and follow all WARNINGS and
i nformat ion¢ &.
in Raising the vehicle on
page 266
and c> page 268.
After changing a wheel
A wheel change is not complete without the doing the following.
.,. Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack *
and the rep laced tire in the luggage com­
partment
¢ page 132.
.,. Check t he ti re pressu re on the spare whee l
immed iate ly after mounting it .
.,. As soon as possib le, have the
tightening
torques
on all whee l bolts checked with a
t o rque wrenc h. The co rrect tighte ning tor ­
que is 90 ft lb (120 Nm).
.,. Have the flat tire
replaced as soon as possi­
b le.
(D Tips
- If you not ice th at the wheel bo lts a re
co rroded and difficult to turn while
changing a tire, they should be rep laced
before you check the tightening torque.
- Drive at reduced speed until you have the
tightening torques checked .
ll-

2 7 4 Emergency situations
Emergency situations
General
This chapter is intended for trained emer­
gency crews and working personnel who
have the necessary tools and equipment to
perform these ope rations.
Starting by pushing or
towing
Q;) Note
Vehicles w ith an automatic transmission
cannot be started by pus hing o r tow ing.
Starting with jumper
cables
If necessary, the engine can be started by
connecting it to the battery of another vehi­
cle.
If the engine should fail to start because of a
discharged or weak battery, the battery can be
connected to the battery of
another veh icle,
using a
pair of jumpe r cables to start the en­
g ine .
Jumper cables
Use only jumper cables of sufficiently large
cross section to carry the starter current safe­
ly. Refer to the manufacturer's specif ications.
Use only jumper cables with
insulated termi­
na l clamps which are distinctly marked:
plus(+) cable in most cases colored red
minu s(-) cable
in most cases colored black .
A WARNING
Batteries contain electricity, acid, and gas.
Any of these can cause very serious or fatal
inju ry. Follow the instructions below for
safe handling of your veh icle's battery.
- Always shield you r eyes and avoid lean­
ing over the battery whenever possible.
- A discharged battery can freeze at tem­
peratures just be low 32 °F (0 °C). Before connecting a
jumper cable, you must
thaw the frozen battery complete ly, oth­
erwise it could explode.
- Do not allow battery acid to contact eyes
or skin . Flush any contacted area with
water immediately .
- Improper use of a booster battery to start a vehicle may cause an explosion.
- Vehicle batteries generate explosive gas­
es. Keep sparks, flame and lighted ciga­
rettes away from batteries.
- Do not try to jump start any vehicle with a low acid level in the battery.
- The vo ltage of the booster battery must
also have a 12-volt rating. The capacity
(Ah) of the booster battery should not be
lower than that of the discharged bat­
tery . Use of batteries of d ifferent voltage
or substantially different "Ah" rating
may cause an exp losion and personal in­
jury.
- Never charge a frozen batte ry. Gas trap­
ped in the ice may cause an explosion.
- Never charge or use a battery that has
been frozen. The battery case may have
be weakened.
- Use of batter ies of different voltage or
substantially different capacity (Ah) rat­
ing may cause an exp losion and injury.
The capacity (Ah) of the booster battery
should not be lower than that of the dis ­
charged battery.
- Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed a ll
WARNINGS
¢page 219, Engine com­
partment.
«I) Note
-Applying a higher voltage booster bat­
tery will cause expensive damage to sen­
sitive electronic components, such as
contro l units, relays, rad io, etc .
- There must be no electrical contact be­
tween the vehicles as otherwise current
could already start to flow as soon as the
positive(+) terminals are connected. ..,_