190 Driving and en vironm ent
Reducing unnecessary idling
Even when your car is just idling it burns up
fuel .
.,. Shut the engine off when you are not dr iving
the vehicle.
.,. Do not warm up the vehicle by letting the
engine run at idle .
It makes sense to shut
off the engine in traffic
jams, when waiting for trains to pass at ra il
road crossings, or at traff ic lights that have
l ong wa its on red . Turning the engine
off fo r
just 30-40 seconds saves more fue l than is
burned starting the eng ine again .
It takes a long time for the engine to warm up
fu lly when it is running at idle . Howeve r, wear
and nox ious em issions are especially high
when the engine is warming up. So you should
drive away as soon as you start the engine and
avoid running at high rpms while the engine is
still warming up .
(D Note
Do not leave engine idling unattended af
ter starting . If warning lights shou ld come
on to indicate improper operation, they
wou ld go unheeded. Extended idling also
produces heat, which cou ld result in over
heating or other damage to the vehicle or
other property .
Regular maintenance
A badly tuned engine unnecessarily wastes a
lot of fuel .
... Have your vehicle serviced at regular inter-
vals.
By having your vehicle regularly serviced by an
authorized Audi dealer he lps to ensure that it
runs properly and economically . The condition
of your vehicle not only affects its safety and
ab ility to hold its value, it also affects
fu el
con sumpt ion .
Check you r oil ea ch time you fill you r tank.
The amount o f oi l used is re lated to engine
load and speed.
It i s normal fo r the oil consump tion of a new
engine to reach its lowest value after a certa in
mileage has been d riven.
You must drive your veh icle about 3,000 m iles
(S,000 kilometers) before you can properly
assess oil consumpt ion.
This also app lies to fue l consumption and en
gine o utput.
(D Note
- Have your veh icle ma inta ined properly
and in acco rdance with the service rec
ommendations in your Wa rranty
& Main
t enance boo klet . Lack of p roper ma inte
nance as well as improper use of the ve
hicle will impair the function of the
emission contro l system and cou ld lead
to damage.
- Do not alter or remove any component of
the Emission Control System unless ap
proved by the manufacturer.
-Do not alter or remove any device, such
as heat sh ie lds, switches, ignit ion w ires,
valves, which are designed to protect
your vehicle's Emission Control System and other important vehicle compo
nents.
Fewer short trips
Fuel consumption will always be relatively
high on short trips .
.,. Try to avoid dr iv ing short distances w ith a
cold engine .
T he engine and cata lytic converter have to
reach their opt imal
operat ing temperature to
reduce fuel consumpt ion and nox ious emis
s ions effectively .
Just after starting, a co ld eng ine in a mid-s ize
car only achieves a fuel economy of 6-8 mi les
per gallon (30-40 l/100 km). After about a
half a mile, fuel economy cl imbs to 12 mpg
(20 l/100 km) . After about
2 .5 miles (4 km), ll>
-To reduce the r isk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine
compartment . Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before ca re
fully opening the hood .
- Keep children away from the engine com
partment.
- Never spill flu ids on hot engine compo
nents. They can cause a fire .
- Never touch the radiator fan. The aux ili
ary e lectr ic fan is temperature controlled
and can switch on suddenly .
- Never open the coolant reservoir cap
when the eng ine is still warm . The cool
ant system is pressur ized and hot coo l
ant could spray out.
- Protect your face, hands and arm from
steam or hot eng ine coolant by placing a
thic k rag over the cap when you open the
coolant reservoir.
- Do not remove the engine cover under
any c ircumstances. Th is increases the
risk of bu rns.
- If wo rk on the fuel system or the electri
cal sys tem is ne cessary:
- Always disconnect the battery.
- Never smoke or work near heaters or
open flames . Fluids in the engine com
partment co uld start a fire.
- Keep an approved fire extinguisher im
mediately ava ilable.
- To avoid electrical s hock and persona l 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 repa ir
with the engine running:
- Fir st, fully apply the parking brake,
move se lector lever of a utomatic trans
mission to "P" (Park).
Checkin g and fillin g 207
-Always use extreme caut ion to prevent
clothing, jewelry, or long hair from get
ting caught in the radiator fan, V-be lts
or other moving parts, or from contact
i ng hot parts . Tie back hair before
starting, and do not wear clothing that
will hang o r droop into the engine.
- Minimize exposure to em ission and
chemical hazards
9 .&, .
&_ WARNING
Califo rnia Proposition 65 Wa rni ng:
- Engi ne exhaust, some of its const ituents,
and certa in vehicle components contain
or emit chemi cals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and birth de
fects and reproduc tive harm. In addition,
certain fl uids con tained in vehicles and
certain products of component wear con
tain or emit chemica ls known to the
State of California to cause cancer and
birth defects or other reproductive harm.
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac
cessories conta in lead and lead com
pounds, c hemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc
tive harms. Wash hands afte r handling .
(D Note
When adding flu ids, always make sure that
they are poured into the proper conta iner
or f iller opening, otherwise serious dam
age to vehicle systems w ill 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 veh icle flu
i ds, have you r vehicle inspected by an au
thori zed Audi dealer. •
•
208 Checking and filling
Engine compartment
Engine compartment
These are the most important items that you can check.
Fig . 17 5 Typical layout for containers and eng ine o il filler cap
(D Eng ine oi l filler cap ("1::::r.) . . . . . 211
@ Jump start point(+) under a cov-
er .. .. .... ... ....... .... ..
219, 256
@ Brake fluid reservo ir (0)) . . . . . 216
@ Coolant expansion tank (-L) . . . 214
® Jump start point(-) with hex
head sc rew ..... .......... ..
219, 256
® Windshield/headlight* washer
. (" ') container o ........ ... .. . 220
The pos ition of the engine o il fi lling hole
¢ fig . 175 (item @) can differ depending on
the engine design.
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS ¢.&. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 206.
-
Engine oil
· Engine oil specifications
The engine in your Audi needs the right kind
of oil.
The eng ine in your Audi is a sophist icated
power plant that was bu ilt to exacting specifi
cations . Th is engine needs the right k ind of
engine oil that meets specifications regarding
quality and v iscosity so that it can run
smooth ly and reliab ly. Choosing the right o il
and changing oil within the t ime and mileage
i n tervals prin ted in you r vehicle's Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet matters a lot more to
day than it did years ago . Aud i has developed
a specia l quality standard for engine oil that
will help assure that your vehicle 's engine wi ll
get the lubr ication it needs for proper opera-
t ion . ..,_
Modern eng ine lubrication has taken a quan
tum leap in the last few years . Many synt hetic
oils ava ilable today provide better engine lu
brication that can outlast traditional petrole
um-based o ils, making them a smart choice
for use throughout the life of your Audi.
Whether you use synthetic or petroleum based engine oil, the oil that you use must
conform to Audi's oil quality standard
VW 502 00 to help keep your vehicle's engine running smoothly and help prevent the for
mat ion of harmfu l deposits, sometimes called
"sludge", that ove r time can lead to expensive
r epairs.
At the t ime of pri nting, engine o ils available in
the U.S . and Canada that meet the exacting
specifications of Audi oi l standard VW 502 00
are synthetic engine oils. This does not mean, h owever, that every synthetic engine oil w ill
meet Audi oil standard VW 502 00. So always
be sure that you use an approved oi l.
To help preve nt the format ion of harmful de
posits use only oi l with the fo llowing spec ifi
cations printed on the oil container:
Audi oil standard VW 502 00
O il conta iner labels may carry the specif ica
tion s ingly or in comb inat ion w ith other des ig
nations and oil qua lity standards.
Viscos ity
Engine oi ls are graded according to their vis
cosity. The proper v iscosity grade oi l for your
engine depends on cl imactic or seasonal con
d itions where you dr ive. You can use oil with a
viscosity grade of SAE SW40 across all tem
pe rature ranges for normal d riving conditions .
However, if eng ine oi l viscosity grade SAE
SW40 is not avai lab le, you can also use viscos
ity grade SAE SW-30 or SAE OW-40 as long as
it meets Audi o il quality standard VW 502 00
specifications.
Because engine oil that meets the Audi oil
standard may not be available everywhere
when you need it, we st rongly recomme nd
that you always carry with you a n ext ra quart
Checkin g and fillin g 209
(li ter) of oil that exp ress ly con forms to the
VW 502 00 specificatio n, in case you have to
top
off the o il while on the road.
Only if the level of the o il is at or be low the
minimum mark -and no oi l that expressly
confo rms to Audi oil standard VW 502 00
spec ifications is available -may you top
off
with a h igh quality engine o il, preferab ly syn
thet ic-based, that meets ACEA A3 or API SM
spec ifications, but even then, only in v iscosity
grades SAE SW-40, SA E SW-30, o r SAE
OW- 40. However, dur ing the entire time be
tween o il cha nge inte rva ls, never top
off with
more than a tota l of 0. 5 q t/liter engine o il
that does not con form to A udi oil specification
vw 502 00.
Fo r more information abo ut eng ine oi l tha t
has been approved for your veh icle, ple ase
contac t eit h er yo ur autho rized Aud i dea le r or
Audi C ustomer Re lations at 1 (800) 822 -2834
or visit our web site at www .a u diusa.com or
www.aud icanada.ca. Here you w ill also find a
current list of oils (manufacturers, brand
names etc.) that conform to Audi oil standard
vw 502 00.
Changing the engine oil
T he eng ine oi l and o il f ilter m ust be changed
according to the mileage (kilometers) and
time intervals specified i n your ve hicle's War
ranty
& Maintenance booklet. Do not exceed
these interva ls - harmful deposits from old
engine oil can reduce engine performance and
can lead to expensive engine repairs.
Changi ng the oil at the recommended inter
vals is so very important beca use the lubricat
ing propert ies of oil decrease gradually during
norma l veh icle use. If you a re not sure when
yo u have your o il cha nged, ask your author
ized Audi Se rv ice Adv isor.
Under some circumstances the engine oil
shou ld eve n be changed more frequent ly.
Change oil more often if you dr ive most ly
sho rt distances, operate the ve hicle in dusty
areas o r most ly under stop-and -go traff ic con-
di tions, o r when you use your vehi cle where .,..
•
•
210 Check ing and filling
temperatures stay below freezing point for
long periods.
Detergent addit ives in the o il w il l make fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run
ning for a short time . This is norma l and is not
a reason to change the oi l more often than
recommended.
D am age or m alfunc tions du e to lack of
m ainten ance
It is essential that you change your oil at the
recommended in tervals using only engine o il
that complies with Audi oi l standard
VW 502 00. Your Limited New Vehicle War
ranty does not cover damage or malfunctions
due to fail ure to fo llow recommended mainte
nance and use requ irements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manual and Warranty
&
Maintenance book let . Your dealer will have to
deny warranty coverage unless you present to
the dea ler proof in the form of Service or Re
pa ir Orders that all scheduled ma intenance
was performed in a t imely manner.
Eng ine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all
of its moving parts.
In order to provide effective lubrication and
cool ing of internal engine components, a ll in
ternal combustion eng ines consume a certa in
amount of oil. O il consumption varies from
engine to engine and may change significantly
over the life of the engine. Typica lly, engines
with a specif ied break-in period (see
¢
page 187) consume more oil during the
break-in period than they consume after oil
consumption has stabilized.
Under norma l conditions, the rate of oil con
sumption depends on the quality and viscosity
of the oil, the RPM (revolutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient
temperature and road condit ions . Further fac
tors are the amount of oil d ilution from water
condensat ion or fuel residue and the ox ida
tion level of the oi l. As any engine is subject to wear as mi
leage builds up, the oil consump
tion may increase over time until replacement
of worn components may become necessary.
With a ll these variab les coming into play, no
standard rate of oil consumption can be es
tablished or specified. There is no alternative
to regu lar and frequent check ing of the o il lev
el, see
Note .
If the yellow engine oil leve l warning symbo l
Ill in the instrument cl uster lights up, you
shou ld check the oil leve l as soon as possib le
¢
page 211. Top off the oil at your earliest
convenience ¢
page 211.
A WARNING '"---
Before you check anythi ng in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS¢
A in Working in the engine
compartment on page 206.
(D Note
Driving w ith an insufficient o il level is like
ly to cause severe damage to the engine .
(D Tips
-The oil pressu re warn ing display. is
not an indic ator of the oil l evel. Do not
r e ly on it . Instea d, check the oil level in
y our engin e at r egular in ter val s, pref
erably ea ch time y ou r efu el, and alwa ys
befor e go ing on a long trip.
- If you have the impression you r engine
cons umes excessive amoun ts of o il, we
recommend that you consu lt an author
ized Aud i dea le r to have the cause of
your concern properly diagnosed. Keep in m ind that the accurate measu rement of
oil consumption requ ires great care and
may take some time. An authorized Aud i
dea ler has instructions about how to
measu re oil consumption accurately.
-
Checking the engine oil level
Fig . 176 MMI Disp lay: Oil l eve l ind icator
Re ad oil le vel
.,. Park your vehicle so that it is horizonta lly
level.
.,. Shut the engine off when it is at operating
temperature .
.,. Switch only the ignition back on .
.,. Wait approx . two minutes .
.,. Select: Function button
ICARI > Oil l evel. Or
.,. Se lect: Funct ion button
ICARI > C ar sys-
tem s*
cont rol button > S ervicing & ch e ck s >
Oil level.
.,. Read the oil leve l in the MMI* Display
c::> fig . 176 . Add engine oi l if the bar o f the
oi l level ind icator is near "min"
c::> page 211
Depending on the way the veh icle is driven
and the operating conditions, oil consumption
can be up to a 1/2 quart per 600 miles (0 .5
li
ter per 1,000 km) . Consumption may be high
er within the first 3,000 m iles (S,000 km).
@ Tips
The oil level indicator in the MMI* Disp lay
is only an information display.
If the oi l
level is too low, a min imum oil warning ap
pears in the instrument cluster. Add oil
c::> page 211 . If the hood has been opened,
the current oil level is shown in the instru
ment cluster the next time the ign ition is
sw itched on.
Checkin g and fillin g 211
~ Adding engine oil
Fig. 177 Eng in e compart men t: Cove r on the oil filler
n eck
.,. Before yo u check anything in the engine
compa rtment,
alwa ys rea d and h eed all
WARNING S c::> .&. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 206 .
.,. Shut the engine off.
.,. Unscrew the cap~ to the engine oi l filling
hole
c::> fig. 177, c::> page 208, fig. 175 .
.,. Carefully top off with 0.5 quarts (0.5 liters)
of the appropriate oil
c::> page 208.
"' Check the oil level again after two minutes
c::> page 211, Checking the engine oil level .
"'Top off the o il aga in, if necessary .
"' Screw the cap back on the filling hole .
_&. WARNING
- While topping off, the oil must not come
in contact with hot e ngine parts -fir e
hazard!
- The oil filler cap must be properly se
cured to prevent oil from being sprayed
on the hot engine and exhaust system
when the engine is runn ing -fire hazard!
- If your skin has come in contact with the
engine o il, you must subsequently
cleanse it thoroughly.
(D Note
- Check the oil level using the radio or
M MI*. If the message
Plea se redu ce oil
le vel
appears, contact yo ur authorized
Audi dealer or qua lified workshop to
have excess oil extracted if necessary .
-Audi does not recommend the u se of o il
additiv es. They m ay damage the engine .,.
212 Check ing and filling
and ad versely a ffect yo ur New Vehicl e
W arr ant y.
@) For the sake of the environment
- Under no circumstances can the oil come
in contact with the sewage network o r
the soil.
- Observe and follow lega l regu lations
when disposing of empty oil containers .
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that have your oil changed by
an authorized Audi dealer or a qualified serv
ice station.
Before you check anything in the engine com
partment,
a lw ays rea d an d h eed all WARN
INGS c::> .& in Working in the engine compart
ment on page 206.
The engine oil must be changed accord ing to
the intervals specified in your Warranty
&
Maintenance book let. This is very important
because the lubricating properties of oil di
minish gradua lly during normal vehicle use .
Under some ci rcumstances the engine oi l
should be changed more frequently. Change
oil more often if you drive most ly short dis
tances, operate the vehicle in dusty areas or under predominantly stop-and-go traffic con
ditions, or have your vehicle where tempera
tures remain below freezing for extended pe
riods .
Detergent addit ives in the oil w ill make fresh
oil look dark after the engine has been run n ing for a short time. This is normal and is not
a reason to change the oil more often than recommended.
Because of the problem of proper disposal,
along w ith the special tools and necessary ex
pertise required , we strongly recommend that
you have your o il changed by an authorized
Audi de ale r or a qual ified servi ce station.
If y ou choo se to c hang e y our oi l y our self,
please note the followi ng important informa
tion :
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of personal injury if you
must change the eng ine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protect ion.
- To reduce the risk of burns from hot en- gine oil, let the engine cool down to the
touch.
- When removing the o il dra in plug with
your fingers, stay as far away as possible.
Always keep your forearm parallel to the
ground to help prevent hot oil from runn ing down you r arm.
- Dra in the oil into a container designed
for this purpose, one large enough to
hold at least the total amount of oil in
your engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous. Keep it we ll out
of the rea ch of childre n.
- Continuous contact with used eng ine o il
is harmfu l to your sk in. Always protect
your skin by washing oil off tho roughly
with soap and wate r.
@ Note
Never mix oil additives with your engine
oi l. These additives can damage your en
g ine and adversely affect you r A ud i Limit
ed New Veh icle War ranty.
@ For the sake of the environment
- Before changing your oil, first make su re
you know where you can prope rly dispose
o f the used oil.
- Always dispose of used eng ine oi l proper
ly. Do not dump it on garden soil, wood
ed areas, into open streams or down
sewage drains.
- Recycle used engi ne oil by taking it to a
used engine oil collection facility in you r
area, or contact a service station.
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 specially conditioned water and the
manufacturer's glycol-based coolant addi-
tive G13 antifreeze with anticorrosion addi tives (50% for USA models; 60% for Canadian models). This mixture both assures the neces
sary frost protection and protects metal com
ponents in the engine's cooling system from
corrosion and scaling.
It also raises the boil
ing point of the coolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the cool
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 antifreeze protection and cooling efficien
cy. If the coolant frost protection is too low,
the coolant could freeze and damage the vehi cle heating and engine cooling system.
For year-round driving, antifreeze is added at
the factory for temperatures down to:
- -31°F(-35°C)USA
- -40 °F ( - 40 °C) Canada.
If you must add coolant, use a mixture of wa
ter and coolant additive. Mixing the coolant
additive with distilled water is recommended.
& WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS¢ .&.
in Working in the engine
compartment on page 206.
(D Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
Checking and filling 213
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli
mate conditions. This is especially impor
tant if you live in a region where the win
ter is extremely 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 G12++ or G13 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 cause 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.
Adding 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. 178 Eng ine compartment: Cover on the coolant
expansion tank
"' Before you check anything in the engine
compartment,
always read and heed all
WARNINGS ¢ .&, in Working in the engine
compartment on page 206.
"'Park your vehicle on a level surface .
.,. Turn off the ignition.
.,. Read the engine coolant level from the cool
ant expansion tank ¢
fig. 178, ¢ page 208,
fig. 175.
With a cold engine, the coolant Iii>