2014 AUDI A5 CABRIOLET tire pressure

-Carrying more weight than your vehicle
was designed to carry will prevent the
vehicle from handling properly and in­
crease the risk of the loss of vehicle con­
trol.
- The brakes on a vehicle that has been
overloaded may not be able to stop the
vehicle within a safe distance.
- Tires on a vehicle that has been overload­
ed can fail suddenly, including a blowout
and sudden deflation, causing loss of
control and a crash.
- Always make sure that the total load be­
ing transported -including the weight of
a trailer hitch and the tongue weight of a
loaded trailer - does not make the vehi­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle Weight Rating.
Determining correct load limit
Use the example below to cal­
culate the total weight of the
passengers and luggage or oth­
er things that you plan to trans­
port so that you can make sure
that your vehicle will not be
overloaded.
Steps for Determining Correct Load Limit
1. Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF OC­
CUPANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NEVER EXCEED XXX KG OR XXX LBS"on your vehi­
cle's placard (tire inflation
pressure label)
c::> page 226,
fig. 182.
Tires and wheels 231
2. Determine the combined weight of the driver and pas­sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined weight of the driver and pas­sengers from
"XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds
shown on the sticker
c::>page 226, fig. 182.
4. The resulting figure equals the available amount of car­
go and luggage load capaci­
ty. For example, if the
"XXX"
amount equals 1400 lbs.
and there will be five 150
lbs. passengers in your vehi­
cle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load ca­ pacity is 650 lbs. (1400-7 50
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs.)
5. Determine the combined weight of luggage and cargo being loaded on the vehicle.
That weight may not safely
exceed the available cargo
and luggage load capacity
calculated in Step 4.
6. If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer, load from your trail­
er will be transferred to your
vehicle. Consult this manual ..,.
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'

232 Tires and wheels
to determine how this re­duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle.
.,.Check the tire sidewall
(¢ page 233, fig. 186) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balancing, correct tire pressure and driv·
ing style.
Fig. 184 Tire tread: tread wear indicators (TWI)
_____ ___,.J)
Fig. 185 Rotating tires for more even wear
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The original tires on your vehicle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm) high "wear indicators"
c:> fig. 184 running across the tread. Depend·
ing on the make , there will be six to eight of
them evenly placed around the tire. M ar ks on
the tire sidewall (for example "TWI" or other
symbols) indicate the positions of the tread
wear indicators. Worn tires must be replaced. Different
figures may apply in other countries
c:>& .
Tire pressure
Incorrect tire pressure causes premature wear
and can cause sudden tire blow-out. For this
reason, tire pressure must be checked at least
once a month
c:> page 228.
Driving style
Driving fast around curves, heavy acceleration
and hard braking increase tire wear .
Rotating tires for more even wear
For all four tires on your vehicle to have the
same service life, we recommend that the
front and rear tires are rotated according to
the tire manufacturer's suggested tire rota­
tion intervals. Please remember the follow­
ing :
- Tire rotation intervals may differ from the
vehicle service intervals outlined in your
Maintenance and Warranty Booklet .
- The longer one tire is used in one location
on the vehicle, the more it wears at certain
points; therefore, we recommend that you
follow the tire manufacturer's suggested
tire rotation intervals.
- Vehicles with front-wheel drive experience
more tread wear on the front wheels com­
pa red to all wheel drive (quattro).
- Please rotate tires as shown
c:>fig. 185.
- Extra care must be taken when rotating di-
rection-specific tires
c:> page 249 .
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new vehicles are balanced .
However, various situations during everyday
driving can cause them to become unbal­
anced, resulting in vibrations you can usually
feel through the steering wheel.
Unbalanced wheels must be rebalanced to
avoid excessive wear on steering, suspension
and tires. A wheel must also be rebalanced
when a new tire is installed. .,.

234 Tire s and wheel s
contribution to good road ho lding and safe
handling when in good condition and properly
inflated
¢ ,& .
We recommend that all work on tires and
wheels be perfo rmed by an authorized Audi
dea ler. They are familiar with recommended
proced ures and have the necessary spec ial
too ls and spare parts as well as the proper fa­
cilities for disposing of the old tires.
Authorized Audi dealers have the necessary information about techn ica l requ irements for
installing or changing tires and r ims.
Re placing t ires and whe els
Tires sho uld be rep laced at least in pairs and
not individua lly (for examp le both front tires
or both rear tires together).
Be sure to read and heed the information to
the tire pressure monitoring system*
¢page 240.
A lways buy rep lacement radial tires that have
the same specifications as the tires approved
for your vehicle by Audi. Replacement t ires
must always have the same load rating speci­
fication as the original equipment or approved
optional tires listed in the table
c:> page 226.
Aud i-approved specification ti res are specially
matched to your vehicle and its load limits,
and can contribute to the important road ho ld­
ing, driving characteristics, and safety of the
vehicle. The table (c:>page 226) lists spec ifica­
tions of the tires approved for the Audi mod­
els covered by your Owner's Literature .
The tire pressure labe l located on driver's side
B-pillar (c:>page 226, fig. 183) lists the speci­
f ications of the orig inal equipment tires in­
stalled on your veh icle at the time it was man­
ufactured.
Federal law requires t ire manufacturers to
p lace standard ized information on the s ide­
wall of all tires c:>fig. 186. This information
i dent ifies and describes the fundamental
characterist ics, the quality grade of the tire
and a lso provides a tire ident ificat ion number f
or sa fety standard ce rtification and in case of
a reca ll.
Tire specifications
Knowledge of ti re specificat ions makes it eas­
ier to choose the correct tires. Radial ti res
have the tire specifications marked on the
sidewa ll, for examp le:
P255 / 35 R1 9 96Y XL
This co nta ins the following information:
P Indicates the t ire is for passenger cars
(where app licab le)
2 55 Nominal tire width in mm of the tire
from sidewall edge to sidewa ll edge. In
general, the larger the number, the wider
the tire
35 Height/w idth ratio in percent (aspect ra-
t io)
R Tire construction: Radial
1 9 Rim diameter code (in inches)
9 6 Load rating code
Y Speed rat ing letter code
X L (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or "RF" Indicates
t h at the t ire is a"Re inforced" or an " Extra
Load " tir e
M+S (or "M/S") Indicates that the tire has
some mud and snow capabi lity
The tires could also have the information of
direction of rotat io n
c:> page 222 .
Tire manufacturing date
The manufact uring date is also indicated on
the tire sidewall (possibly on ly on the inner
s ide of the wheel) :
"DOT ... 2213 ... "means, for example, that
the tire was produced in the 22nd week of 2013.
Speed rating (letter c ode)
The speed rating letter code on the whee ls in­
dicates the maximum permissible road speeds
c:> & in Winter tires on page 238 .
P up to 93 mph (150 km/h)
Q u p to 99 mp h (158 km/h)
R up to 106 mph ( 170 km/h)

S up to 110 mph (180 km/h)
T up to 118 mph (190 km/ h)
U up to 124 mph (200 km/ h)
H up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
V up to 149 mph (240 km/h)
1
)
Z over 149 mph (240 km/h)1
)
W up to 168 mph (270 km/h)1
)
Y up to 186 mph (298 km/h)1>
Your vehicle is no rma lly facto ry equipped with
tires , which possess excellent driving cha rac­
ter istics and give yo ur Audi opt imum driving
comfort . An e lectronic speed limiter
¢ page 29 wi ll normally prevent your vehicle
from going faster than the tire speed rating
¢ A .
U.S. DOT Tir e Identification Numbe r (TIN )
a nd tir e m anufactur e date
T his is the t ire's "serial number". It begins
with the letters "DOT" and indicates that the
t ire meets all federal s tandards. The next two
numbers or letters indicate the plant where it
was manufactured, and the last four numbers
represent the week and year of manufacture .
F or example, the numbers 2213 mean that
the t ire was produced in the 22nd wee k of
20 13. The othe r numbe rs a re mar ke ting co­
des that may or may not be used by the tire
manufacturer . This informat ion is used to con­
tact consumers if a tire defect requi res a re ­
call.
Audi Original tir e
Tires with the identi fication "AO" or "RO" have
been specia lly matched w ith your Audi . We
recommend using only t hese tires because
they meet the highest standards rega rd ing
safety and driving character istics when used
correctly . You r authorized Audi dealer will
g lad ly provide you with more information .
Tire ply composition and materi als used
The number of plies indicates the n umber of
l ayers of rubber-coated fabric in the t ire. In
ll Fo r tires wit h a m ax im um s pee d ca pabil ity over
1 4 9 mp h (24 0 k m/h) , tire man ufactur ers somet ime s
use th e let ters "Z R."
Tire s an d wheel s 235
genera l, the greater the number of plies, the
more weight a tire can support . Tire manufac­
turers also must indicate the materials in the
tire, which include steel, nylon, po lye ster, and
others.
Maximum Load Rating
This number indicates the maximum load in
ki lograms and pounds that can be carr ied by
the tire.
Tir e quality grading for treadwear ,
tract ion, and temp eratu re resis tance
T read wear, t raction and temperat ure grades
¢ page 236.
Maximum Permissible Inflation Pressure
This number is the g reatest amount of a ir
pressure that should ever be put in the tire
u nder normal driving conditions.
A WARNING ~
- Using incorrect or unmatched tires and/
or wheels or improper tire and wheel
comb inat ions can lead to loss of control,
col lis ion and serious personal injury.
-Always use t ires, rims and whee l bolts
that meet the specif ications of original
factory- installed tires or other combina­
tions that have been specifically ap­
proved by the vehicle manufacture r.
- T ires age even if they are not being used
and can fai l sudden ly, especially at high
speeds . Tir es that are more than 6 yea rs
old can only be used in an emergency
an d then w ith speci al care and at lower
speeds.
- Never mo unt used tires on your veh icle if
you are not sure of the ir "previous histo­
ry." O ld used tires may have been dam ­
aged even thoug h the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire fai lure
and loss of vehicle control.
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236 Tire s and whee ls
- All four wheels must be fitted with radia l
t ires of th e same ty pe, size (r olling c ir­
cumfe rence) and the same tread pattern.
Dr iv in g with different tires reduces veh i­
cle handling and can lead to a loss of
c o ntrol.
- If the spare tire is not the same as the
t ires that are mounted on the veh icle -
for example with winter tires - on ly use
the spare tire for a short period of time
and dr ive with extra care. Refit the no r­
ma l road whee l as soon as safely possi ­
ble.
- Never drive faster than the maxim um
speed for which the tires on your vehicle
are rated because tires that are driven
faster than their rated speed can fail
sudden ly.
- Overloading ti res cause heat build-up,
sudden tire failure, including a blowout
and sudden deflation and loss of control.
- Temperature grades app ly to tires that
are properly inflated and not over or un­
derinflated.
- For technical reasons it is not a lways
poss ible to use wheels from other
vehicles -in some cases not even wheels
from the same vehicle model.
- If you install wheel tr im discs on the ve­
hicle whee ls, make sure that the air flow
to the brakes is not blocked . Reduced air­
flow to the brakes can them to overheat,
increasing stopping d istances and caus­
ing a collision.
- Run flat t ires may on ly be used on
vehicles that we re eq uipped w ith them
at the factory. The vehicle must have a
chassis des igned for r un flat t ires and a
factory-installed tire press ure monito r­
ing system * that indicates a loss of tire
pressure. Incorrect use of run flat tires
can lead to vehicle damage or accidents.
Check with an authorized Audi dea ler or
t ire spec ialist to see if you r vehicle can be
equipped with run flat tires .
If run flat
t ires a re used, they must be insta lled on
all four wheels. M ixing tire types is not
permitted.
(D Note
- For technical reasons, it is not generally
poss ible to use the wheel rims from oth­
er veh icles. T his can hold tr ue for wheels
of the same vehicle type.
- If the spare tire is different from the tires that you have mounted on your ve­
hicle (for example winter tires or wide
profi le tires), then use the spare tire for a
short period of time only and drive w ith
extra care. Replace the flat tire w it h the
ti re mat ching the othe rs on your vehicle
as soon as possi ble.
- Never d rive without the valve stem cap.
The v alves co uld get damaged.
@ For the sake of the environment
Dispose of o ld tires in accordance w ith the
l ocal requirements.
Uniform tire quality grading
- Tread wear
- Tra ction AA A B (
- Temperature ABC
Quality grades can be found where applicable
on the t ire s ide wall between tread shoulder
and maximum section width
c> page 233,
fig . 186.
For e xample: Tread wear 200 , Traction AA ,
Temperature A .
All passenger car ti res must conform to Feder­
al Safety Requirements in add ition to these
grades .
Tread w ear
The tread wear g rade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
u nder contro lled conditions on a specified
government test course.
F o r example, a tire graded 1S0 wo uld wear
one and one ha lf (11/2) times as well on the
government course as a ti re graded 100. ..,_

driving a few yards and correct if neces­
sary . Follow the instructions from the
snow cha in manufacturer when doing so.
(D Tips
Where snow chains are mandatory oncer ­
tain roads, this norma lly also applies to
veh icles with all wheel drive .
Wheel bolts
Wheel bolts must always be tightened to the
correct torque.
The design o f whee l bolts is matched to the
factory insta lled r ims . If different rims are fit ­
ted, the correct wheel bo lts wit h the right
l ength and correctly shaped bolt heads must
be used. This ensures that wheels are f itted
securely and that the brake system functions
correctly .
In certain circumstances, you may not use
wheel bo lts from a different vehicle -even if it
is the same model<=>
page 266.
A WARNING
Improperly tightened or maintained wheel
bolts can become loose caus ing loss of
cont ro l, a co llision and serious persona l in­
Jury .
- Always keep the w heel bolts and the
threads in the wheel hubs clea n so the
w hee l bolts can t urn easily and be p rop­
erly t igh tened.
- Never grease or oil the wheel bolts and
the threads in the wheel h ubs. They can
become loose wh ile d riving if greased or
oiled, even if tightened to the specified
torq ue.
- Only use whee l bo lts that belong to the
rim being installed .
- Never use different whee ls bolts on your
vehicle.
- Alw ays m ain ta in the co rrec t tig hten ing
torq ue fo r the wheel bo lts to reduce the
risk of a wheel loss . If the tightening tor­
que of the wheel bo lts is too low, they
can loosen and come out when the vehi-
Tire s an d wheel s 239
cle is mov ing. If the tightening torq ue is
too high, the wheel bolts and threads
can be damaged and the whee l can be­
come loose.
@ Note
The specified torque for the whee l bolts is
90 ft lbs . (120 Nm) w ith a tolerance of
± 7,4 ft lbs. (± 10 Nm). Torque whee l bolts
diagonally . After changi ng a wheel, the
torque m ust be checked as soon as poss i­
ble with a to rque wrench -preferably by an
a uthorized Aud i dea le r or qualified wor k­
shop .
Low aspect ratio tires
Your A udi is fac tory -eq uipped w ith low aspect
ratio tires . These tires have been tho ro ughly
tested and been se lected specifically for your
model for their superb performance, road fee l
and handling under a variety of driving condi­
tions . Ask your authorized Aud i dealer for
more details .
The low aspect ratio of these t ires is ind icated
by a numeral of
55 or less in the tire's size
designation. The numera l represents the ratio
of the tire's sidewa ll height in relation to its
tread width exp ressed in percentage. Conven­
tiona l tires have a he ight/w idth ratio of 60 or
more.
The performance of low-a spect-r atio tire s is
particularly sensit ive to improper inflation
pre ssure. It is therefor e important that low
a spect ratio tire s are inflated to the specified
pres sure and that th e inflation pr essure i s
regularly checked and maintained. Tire pre s­
sure s should be chec ked at lea st once a
month and always before a long trip
<=> page 228 , Checking tire pressure.
What you can do to avo id tire and rim
damage
Low aspect ratio tires can be damaged mo re
easily by impact w ith potholes, curbs, gull ies
or ridges on the road, particularly if the tire is
under inflated . ..,.
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24 0 T ire s and wheel s
In o rder to minimize the occurrence o f impact
damage to the tires of your vehicle, we recom­ mend that you observe the following precau­
tions :
- Always maintain recommended inflation
pressures. Check your tire pressure every
2,000 miles (3,000 km) and add a ir if neces­
sary.
- Drive carefu lly on roads with potholes, deep
gullies or ridges. The impact from driving
through or over such obstacles can damage
your tires. Impact with a curb may also cause damage to your tires.
- After any impact, immediately inspect your
tires or have them inspected by the nearest
authorized Aud i dealer . Replace a damaged
t ire as soon as possible .
- Inspect your t ires every 2,000 miles (3,000
km) for damage and wear . Damage is not al­
ways easy to see. Damage can lead to loss of
air and underinflation, wh ic h could event u­
ally cause t ire fail ure.
If you be lieve that a
ti re may have been damaged, replace the
tire as soon as possible.
- These tires may wea r more qui ck ly than oth­
ers.
- Please a lso remembe r that, whi le these t ires
deliver responsive handling, they may ride
less comfortably and make more noise than
other choices.
R educed p erf ormance in winter /cold
s ea son condit ions
A ll tires are designed for certain purposes .
The low aspect ratio, ultra high performance
tires originally installed on your vehicle are in­
tended for max imum dry and wet road per­
f ormance and handling . They are not suitable
for cold, snowy or icy weather cond it ions.
If
you dr ive under those circumstances, you
should equip your vehicle with all-season or
winter tires, which offe r better traction under
those cond it ions . We suggest you use the rec­
ommended snow or a ll-season tires specified
for your vehicle, or their equiva lent .
Refe r to ~
page 237 for mo re deta iled infor­
mat ion regarding w inter tires.
Tire pressure
monitoring system
ill General notes
Applies to veh icles: w ith tire pressure monito ring system
Each tire, incl uding the spare (if provided),
sho uld be checked monthly when co ld and in­
flated to the inf lation pressure recommended
by the veh icle manufacturer on the veh icle
placard or tire inflation pressure label. (If your
vehicle has tires of a different size than the
s ize indicated on the vehicle placard or tire in­
flat io n pressu re label, you shou ld dete rmine
the p roper t ire infla tion p ressure fo r those
t ir es) .
As an added safety feature, your veh icle has
been equipped with a tire pressure mon itoring
system ( TPM S) that illum inates a low ti re
pressure te lltale whe n one or more o f you r
tires is significant ly under -inflated . Acco rding­
ly, when the low tire pressure te lltale i llumi­
nates, you shou ld stop and check your tires as
soon as possib le, and inflate them to the
proper pressure. Driving on a sign ificantly u n­
der- inflated t ire causes the tire to overheat
and can lead to tire fa ilure . Under -inflation al ­
so reduces fuel eff ic iency and tire tread life,
and may affect the vehicle 's hand ling and
stopp ing ability.
Please note that the TPMS is not a substitute
for proper tire ma intenance, and it is the driv­
er's respo nsibility to maintain co rrect tire
pressure, even if under -inflation has not
reached the leve l to tr igger illuminat ion of the
T PMS low tire p ressu re tellta le .
You r vehicle has also been equipped with a
T PMS ma lf u nction indicator to ind icate when
the sys tem is not operating properly . T he
T PMS ma lfunction indicator is combined with
the low tire pressure te lltale. Whe n the sys­
tem detects a malfunction, the telltale will
flash for approximately one min ute and then
rema in con tinuously illum inated . T hi s se­
quence will continue upon subsequent vehicle
start-ups as long as t he malfunct ion exists . .,.

When the malfunction indicator is illuminat­
ed, the system may not be able to detect or
signal low tire pressure as intended. TPMS
malfunctions may occur for a variety of rea­
sons, including the installation of replace­
ment or alternate tires or whee ls on the veh i­
cle that prevent the TPMS from funct io ni ng
p roperly . Always check the T PMS malfunct ion
tellta le afte r replacing one o r more t ires or
wheels on your veh icle to ensure that the re­
p lacemen t or a lternate tires and wheels allow
the TPMS to continue to function properly .
Tire pressure indicator appears
Applies to vehicles: with tire pressure monitoring system
The tire pressure indicator in the instrument
cluster informs you if the tire pressure is too
low or if there is a system malfunction.
Fig. 187 Display: underinflatio n warning
Using the ABS sensors, the tire pressure moni­
toring system compares the t ire tread circum­
ference and vibration characteristics of the in­
d iv idual tires . If the pressure decreases in one
or mo re tires, th is is indica ted in the instru­
ment clus ter with a
RE wa rning symbol and a
message¢
fig. 187 . The driver message in the
disp lay goes out after 5 seconds . The driver
message can be displayed again by pressing
the
! SET ! button. If only one tire is affected,
the display will indicate its pos ition.
The ti re pressu re monitoring system must be
reset via radio or MMI* each time the pres ­
sures are adjusted (e.g . when switching be ­
tween partia l and full load pressure) or after
changing or replacing a t ire on your vehicle
¢
page 242 . The TPMS indicator only moni­
tors the tire pressure that you have prev iously
Tire s an d wheel s 241
stored . You can find the recommended t ire
pressures for yo ur vehicle on the label on driv ­
er's side 8-pillar ¢
page 226.
T ire tread circum ference and vibration charac­
teristics can change and cause a tire pressure
warning if:
- t he t ire p ress ure in one or more tires is too
low,
- t he t ire has s tructural damage,
- the t ire pressure was changed, wheels rotat-
ed or replaced but the TPMS was not reset
¢ page 242.
Warning symbo ls
RE Loss of pressure in at least one tire c> & .
Check the tire or tires and replace or repa ir if
necessary. The
RE ind icator light in the instru­
ment cluster a lso illuminates
c::!;> page 13.
Check/correct the press ures of all fou r tires
and reset TPMS via radio or MMI*.
Ill (T ir e Pre ssure Monitor ing System) Tire
press ure: Syst em malfun ction!.
If II! appears after switching the ignition on
o r while dr iv ing and the
RE i ndicator light in
the instr ume nt cluster blinks for app rox i­
mately o ne minute and t hen stays o n, there is
a system malf unct ion.
Attempt to store the co rrect tire pressure
¢ page 242 . If the ind icator light does not
tu rn off o r if it turns on sho rtly the reafter, im­
med iate ly dr ive your vehicle to a n author ized
Audi dealer or au thorized repair faci lity to
have the malfunc tion corrected .
A WARNING
-=
-If the tire pressure indicator appears in
the instrument cluster display, one or
more of your t ires is significant ly under­
inflated. Reduce your speed immediately
and avoid any hard steer ing or b raking
maneuvers. Stop as soon as possib le and
check the tires and their pressures. In­
flate the tire p ressure to the prope r pres­
sure as indica ted on the vehicle's tire
pressu re labe l
¢page 226. Driving on a
significantly under-inflated tire causes
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