2014 AUDI A6 check oil

-Always disconnect the battery.
- Never smoke or work near heaters or open flames. Fluids in the engine com­
partment could start a fire.
- Keep an approved fire extinguisher im­
mediately available.
- To avoid electrical shock and personal in­
jury while the engine is running or being
started, never touch :
- Ignition cables
- Other components of the high voltage
electronic ignition system.
- If you must perform a check or repair
with the engine running:
- First, fully apply the parking brake,
move selector lever to P (Park).
- Always use extreme caution to prevent
clothing, jewelry, or long hair from get­
ting caught in the radiator fan, V-belts
or other moving parts, or from contact­ ing hot parts. Tie back hair before
starting, and do not wear clothing that
will hang or droop into the engine.
- Minimize exposure to emission and
chemical ha zards c:::> & .
A WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Engine exhaust, some of its constituents,
and certain vehicle components contain
or emit chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and birth de­
fects and reproductive harm. In addition ,
certain fluids contained in vehicles and
certain products of component wear con­
tain or emit chemicals known to the
State of California to cause cancer and
birth defects or other reproductive harm .
Checking and filling 225
-Battery posts, terminals and related ac­
cessories contain lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc­
tive harms. Wash hands after handling.
(D Note
When adding fluids, always make sure that
they are poured into the proper container
or filler opening, otherwise serious dam­
age to vehicle systems will occur.
(® For the sake of the environment
To detect leaks in time, inspect the vehicle
floor pan from underneath regularly . If
you see spots from oil or other vehicle flu­ ids, have your vehicle inspected by an au­
thorized Audi dealer.
Closing the engine hood
.,. Pull the hood down until the pressure from
the struts is reduced.
"'Let the hood
drop down and latch in place.
Do not try to push it shut; it may fail to en­
gage
c:::> ,A .
A WARNING
-
A hood that is not completely latched
could fly up and block your view while driv ­
ing .
- When you close the engine hood, check it
to make sure the safety catch has proper­ ly engaged. The hood should be flush
with the surrounding vehicle body parts.
- If you notice while driving that the hood
is not secured properly , stop at once and
close it. •
•

226 Checking and filling
Engine compartment
Engine compartment overview
These are the most important items that you can check .
Fig. 188 Typi cal layout for conta iner s and en gine o il filler cap
(D Jump start point(-) with hex
head screw .................
237,274
@ Jump start point(+) under a cov-
er .. .. .. .. ........ .. ..... .
237,274
®
©
®
®
Brake fluid reservoir ((0)) . . . . . 234
Engine oi l fille r cap ( Coolant expansion tank (- L) ...
Windshield/headlight washer
232
t . (.'R ) con ainer ,,.., ...... ....... . 238
The engine oil filler neck (item @) may be lo­
cated in a different area depending on the ver­
sion of the engine.
~ WARNING
Before yo u check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
¢ &. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 224.
-
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine in your Audi needs the righ t kind
of oil.
The engin e in your Audi is a sophisticated
powerpl ant that was bu ilt to exacting spe cifi­
cations . Thi s engine needs the righ t kind of
engine oil that meets specification s regarding
quality and v iscosity so that it can run
smoothly and reliably . Choosing the right oil
and changing oil within the tim e and mileage
intervals printed in you r vehicle's Warra nty
&
Maintenance booklet matters a lot more to­
day than it did years ago . Audi has developed
a special quality standard for engine oil that
will h elp assur e that your vehicle's engine wi ll
get the lubr ication it need s for proper opera -
tion. ..,.

Modern eng ine lubrication has taken a quan ­
tum leap in the last few years . Many synthetic
oils available today provide better engine lu­
brication that can outlast traditional petrole­
um-based oils, 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 (vehicles with gasoline engine) or
VW 507 00 (veh icles with diesel engine) to
he lp keep your vehicle's eng ine running
smoothly and help prevent the fo rmation of
harmf ul depos its, sometimes ca lled "sludge,"
that over time can lead to expensive repairs.
At the time of pr inting, engine o ils availab le in
the U.S. and Canada tha t meet the exacting
specifications of A udi oil standard VW 502 00
(vehicles with gaso line engine) or VW 50 7 00
(vehicles with diesel engine) are synthetic en­
gine oils . This does not mean, however, that
every synthetic engine oil will meet Aud i oil
standard VW 502 00 (vehicles with gasoline
engine) or VW 507 00 (vehicles w ith diese l
engine). So always be sure that you use an ap­
proved oil.
To help prevent the formation of harmful de­
posits use only oil with the follow ing spec ifi­
cations printed on t he oil container:
- Aud i oil standard VW 502 00 (gasoline en ­
gine )
- Aud i oil standard VW 50 7 00 (d iesel en -
gine )
Oil conta iner labe ls may carry the specif ica ­
tion singly or in comb ination with other desig­
nations and oil qua lity standards.
Vi scosi ty
Eng ine oils are graded acco rding to their v is­
cosity. The prope r viscosity grade oil for your
engine depends on cl imac tic or seasonal con­
d itions where you dr ive. You can use oi l with a
viscosity grade of SAE SW40 across all tem ­
pe rat ure ranges for normal d riving conditions .
H oweve r, if eng ine oi l viscosity grade
SAE SW40 is not ava ilable, you can a lso use
Checkin g and fillin g 22 7
viscosity grade SAE 5W -30 or SAE OW-40 as
long as it meets Audi oil q uality standard
VW 502 00 (vehicles with gasoline engine) or
VW 507 00 (vehicles w ith diese l eng ine) spec­
ifications.
Because engine oil that meets the Audi oi l
standard may not be available everywhere
when you need it, we strongly recommend
that you always carry with you an extra quart
( li ter) of oil that express ly conforms to the
VW 502 00 (veh icles with gasoline engine) or
VW 507 00 (vehicles w ith d iese l eng ine) spec­
ification, in case you have to top off the oil
wh ile on the road.
App lie s to vehicle s with gasoline engin e on­
l y:
Only if the level of the o il is at or below the
minimum ma rk on the o il dipstick -and no oi l
that expressly conforms to Audi o il st andard
VW 502 00 spec ificat ions is available - may
you top off with a high quality engine o il, pre f­
erably synthetic -based, that meets ACEA A3
or API SM specificat ions, but even then, only
in v iscosity grades SAE SW-40, SAE SW-30, or
SAE OW-40. However, during the entire time
between oil change intervals, never top off
with more than a total of 0 .5 qt/liter engine
o il that does not conform to Audi o il specifica­
tion VW 502 00.
App lie s to vehicles with die sel engin e only:
Only if the level of the o il is at or below the
min imum ma rk on the o il dipstick - and no oi l
t h at exp ressly conforms to Audi o il standard
VW 507 00 spec ificat ions is available - may
you top off with a high quali ty engine o il, that
meets ACEA C3 or API CF specifications, but
even t hen, only in viscosity grades SAE
SW-40, SAE 5W-30, or SAE OW-40. However,
during the entire time between oil change in­
terva ls, never top off with more than a total
of 0. 5 qt/liter engine oil that does not con-
for m to Aud i oil spec ification VW 50 7 00.
For more information about engine oi l that
has been approved for your vehicle, please
contact e ither you r autho rized Aud i deale r or
Audi Custome r Re lations at 1 (800) 822-2834
o r vis it our web site at www.audiusa.com or
www.aud ic a nada. ca. He re you w ill also fi nd a ..,.
•
•

228 Check ing and filling
current list of oils (manufacturers , brand
names etc.) that conform to Aud i oi l standard
VW 502 00 (vehicles with gasoline engine) or
VW 507 00 (vehicles with diesel engine).
C hang in g th e en gin e oil
The engine oil and o il filter must be changed
according to the m ileage (ki lomete rs) and
time inte rva ls spec ified in your vehicle's War­
ranty
& Maintenance booklet . Do not exceed
these intervals - harmful deposits from old
engine o il can reduce engine performance and
can lead to expensive engine repairs .
Changing the oil at the recommended inte r­
va ls is so very important because the lubricat­
ing properties of oi l decrease grad ually during
norma l vehicle use. If you are not sure when
you have your oil changed, ask your author­
ized Audi Service Advisor .
Under some circumstances the engine o il
should even be changed more frequently .
Change oil more often if you drive mostly
short d istances, operate the vehicle in dusty
areas or mostly under stop-and-go traffic con­
d itions, or when you use your vehicle where
temperatures stay below freezing point fo r
l ong periods.
Detergent add it ives in the o il w ill make fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run­
n ing fo r a short time. This is no rma l and is not
a reason to change the o il more often than
recommended.
Dama ge or ma lfun cti ons du e to la ck of
maint enan ce
It is essential that you change your oil at the
recommended intervals using only engine oil
that complies with Audi oil standard
VW 502 00 (vehicles wi th gaso lin e engine) or
VW 507 00 (veh icles with diese l engine) . Yo ur
Limited New Vehicle Warranty does not cover
damage or ma lf u nctions due to failure to fol­
low recommended maintenance and use re­
qu irements as set forth in the A udi Owner's
Manual and War ranty
& Maintenance book let.
Your dea ler will have to deny warranty cover­
age unless you present to the dealer proof in the form o
f Service or Repair Orders that all
scheduled maintenance was performed in a
t imely manner.
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on on ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool oil
of its moving ports.
In order to provide effective lubrication and
cooling of interna l engine components, all in­
ternal combust ion engines consume a certain
amount of oil. Oil consumpt ion varies from
engine to engine and may change sign ificantly
over the life of the engine. Typically , engines
with a spec ified break- in period (see
¢ page 201) consume more oil during the
break -in pe riod t han they consume afte r o il
consumption has stabilized.
Under normal cond it ions, the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on the q ua lity and viscos ity
of the oil , the RPM (revol utio ns per minute) at
which the engine is opera ted, the ambient
temperature and road conditions . Furt her fac­
tors are the amount of oil dilution from water
condensation or fue l residue and the oxida ­
tion level of the oil. As any engine is subject to
wear as m ileage builds up, the oil consump­
t ion may increase over time until replacement
of worn components may become necessary .
With a ll these variab les coming into p lay, no
standard rate of oil consumpt ion can be es­
tablished or spec ified . There is no alternative
to regular and frequent checking of the o il lev­
el, see
Not e.
If the yellow engine oil level warning symbol
in the instrument clus ter
II lights up, you
shou ld check the oil leve l as soon as possib le
¢
page 229 . Top off the oil at your earl iest
convenience
9 poge 229.
,&. WARNING
Before you che ck anything in the engine
compartmen t, a lways rea d and heed al l
WAR NIN GS ¢.&
in Working in the engine
comportment on page 224 .
-

(D Note
Driving with an insufficient oil level is like­
ly to cause severe damage to the engine.
@ Tips
- The oil pre ssure w arning di spl ay . is
n ot an indi cato r of the oil le vel. D o not
rely on it. Inste ad , c heck th e oil le vel in
y ou r engine at regula r inter vals, pref ­
er ably each t ime you refu el, and al way s
befor e going on a long tr ip .
- If you have the impression your engine
consumes excessive amounts of oil, we
recommend that you consult your Audi
dealer to have the cause of yo ur conce rn
properly diagnosed. Keep in mind that
the accurate measurement of oil con­
sump tion requires great care and may
take some time. Your Audi dealer has in­
str uctions about how to measure oil con­
sumption accurately.
Checking the engine oil level
Fig. 18 9 Display: oil leve l indicato r
"'Park your vehicle on a level surface .
"' Shu t the engine off when it is warm.
"' Switch only the ignition back on.
"' Wait approximately two minutes.
"' Se lect :
I CARI funct ion button > ( Car )* sys -
tems
control button > Se rvicing & che ck s >
O il lev el.
"'Check the oil level in the display ¢fig. 189.
Add engine oil if the bar of the oil level indi­
cator is near "min"
c::;,page 229 .
Depending on the way the veh icle is driven
and the operating conditions, oil consumption
Checkin g and fillin g 229
can be up to 1/2 quart pe r 600 miles (0.5 liter
per 1,000 km). Consumption may be higher
within the first 3,000 miles (5,000 km) .
(D Tips
The oil level indicator in the MMI Display is
on ly an information display. If the oil level
is low, a minimum oil warning appears in
the instrument cluster. Add oil
c::;, page 229. If the hood has been opened,
the current oil level is shown in the instru­
ment cluster the next t ime the ignition is
switched on.
Adding engine oil~
Fig. 190 Eng in e compa rtm ent : cove r on the engine oi l
filler neck
Before you check anyth ing in the eng ine com ­
partment,
alw ays rea d and he ed all WARN ­
ING S
c::;, &. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 224.
"' Shut the eng ine off .
"' Unscrew the cap
't".:::?: to the engine o il filling
hole
c::;, fig. 190, c::;, page 226, fig . 188.
"' Carefully top off with 0.5 quarts (0.5 liters)
of the appropriate oil
c::;, page 226.
"' Check the oil level again after two minutes
c::;, page 229, Checking the engine oil level.
"'Top off the oil again, if necessary.
"' Screw the cap back on the filling hole.
A WARNING
--Wh ile topping off, the o il must not come
in conta ct with hot engine parts -fi re
ha zard!

230 Check ing and filling
- 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 running -fire hazard!
- If your skin has come in contact w ith the
engine oil, you must subsequently
cleanse it thoroughly.
(D Note
- Check the oil level using the MMI. If the
message
P lea se red uce oil l evel appears,
contact your author ized Audi dealer or
other qualified workshop to have excess
oil extracted if necessary.
- Aud i do es not recommend the use of o il
addit ive s. They ma y damag e the engin e
and ad versely affect yo ur New Vehicle
Warrant y.
@, For the sake of the environment
- Under no circumstances can the oil come
in contact w it h the sewage network or
the soil.
- Observe and follow lega l regulations
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,
al ways read and h eed all WARN ­
INGS c::> &. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 224.
The engine oil must be changed according to
the intervals spec ified in your Warranty
&
Maintenance book let . This is very important
because the lubricating prope rties of oil di­
minish gradua lly dur ing normal veh icle use.
Under some c ircumstances the eng ine o il
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 -tu res remain below freezing for extended pe­
riods.
Detergent additives in the oil will make fresh
o il look dar k after the engine has been run­
ning for a sho rt 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 with the specia l tools and necessary ex­
pertise required, we strongly recommend that
you have your oil changed by an authorized
Aud i deale r or a qualified service station.
If you choo se to chan ge your o il yours elf ,
please note the fo llowing important informa ­
t ion:
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 oil dra in p lug with
your fingers, stay as far away as possible.
Always keep your forearm parallel to the ground to help prevent hot oil from run­
n ing down you r arm.
- Dra in the oil into a container designed
for this purpose, one large enough to hold at least the tota l amount of o il in
your engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous . Keep it well out
of the rea ch of children.
- Continuous contact with used eng ine o il
is harmful to your sk in . Always protect
your skin by washing oil off tho roughly
wit h soap and wate r.
(D Note
Neve r mix oil additives with you r engine
oi l. These additives can damage your en­
gine and adversely affect your Audi Limit­
ed New Veh icle War ranty.

@ For the sake of the environment
-Before changing your oil, first make sure
you know where you can properly dispose
of the used o il.
- Always dispose of used engine oil proper­
l y. Do not dump it on garden soi l, wood­
ed areas, into open streams or down
sewage dra ins.
- Recycle used engine oil by taking it to a
used engine oil collection facility in your
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 sea led and generally re­
q uir es lit tle atten tion .
The cooling system has been filled at the fac ­
tory with a pe rmanent coo lant which does not
need to be c hanged. The coolant consists of a
mixture o f spec ial ly conditioned water and the
manuf acturer 's glyco l-based cool ant ad di-
tiv e G13 antifreeze with ant icorros ion addi ­
tives (50% for USA models ; 60% for Canadian
mod els) . This mixture both assures the neces­
sary frost protection and p rotect s metal com ­
ponents in the engine's coo ling system from
corrosion and scaling . It a lso raises the boil­
i ng point of the coolant .
Do not reduce the concentration o f the coo l­
ant in the summer by adding plain water.
The
proportion of coolant add it ive must be at
l e a st 50 % but not mor e than 60 %
to main­
tain antifreeze protection and coo ling efficien­
cy .
If the coolant frost protect io n is too low,
the coolant cou ld free ze and dam age the veh i­
cle heating and eng ine cooling system.
For yea r-round driving, antifreeze is added at
the fac to ry for tempera tures down to:
-- 31°F( -35°C)USA
- -40 °F ( -40 °C) Canada.
Checkin g and fillin g 231
If you must add coo lant, use a mixture of wa ­
ter and coolant additive . Mix ing the coo lant
additive with distilled water is recommended.
_& WARNING
Before you c heck anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed a ll
WARNINGS
c> .& in Working in the engine
comportment on page 224.
Q) Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coo lant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli­ mate condi tions. This is especi ally impor­
tan t if you live i n a region wher e th e win­
ter is ex treme ly co ld. If necessary, i n­
crease t he p ropo rtion of coo lant add itive
to 60% .
- Whe n ad ding coolant additive t o yo ur
c ooling sys tem, reme mbe r:
- We recommend using on ly coolant ad­
d itive G12++ or G13 (check the labe l)
fo r your vehicle . This coolant additive is
ava ilable at autho rized Aud i dea le rs .
Ot he r ty pes of antifree ze can sign ifi­
cantly reduce corros io n protection. The
r es ult ing co rrosion can ca use a loss of
coolan t and serious e ng ine damage.
- Do not add any ty pe of rad iator leak seal­
a nt to yo ur vehicle 's engine c oolant .
A dd ing radia tor repair fl uid may adverse ­
ly affect the f unction and pe rformance of
your cooling system and co uld resu lt in
damage not covered by your New Ve hicle
L imited Warranty.
-
•
•

232 Check ing and filling
Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with
a quick glance .
Fig . 191 Eng ine compartment: cover on the coolant
expa nsion tank
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
a lwa ys re ad and h eed a ll WA RN­
INGS o .A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 224 .
., Park your vehicle on a level surface.
., Switch
off the ignit io n.
., Read the eng ine coolant level from the cool ­
ant expans ion tank
o fig . 191, o page 226,
fig. 188. With a cold eng ine, the coolant
level should be between the "min" and
"max" markings. When the engine is warm,
the leve l may be slightly above the "max"
marking.
The location of the coolant exp ans ion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus­
tration
o page 226.
To obtain an accurate read ing, the engine
must be switched
off.
The expans ion tank in your vehicle is equipped
with an e lectric coolant level sensor .
When the coolant level is too low, the warning
light in the Auto-Check System
o page 17 will
illum inate unt il you add coolant and the level
has been restored to normal. Even though
there is an electric coolant level senso r, we
still recommend you check the coolant leve l
from time to time.
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cool ing
system. In the event of coolant loss, the cool- ing system shou
ld be inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dea ler . It is not
enough mere ly to add coolant .
In a
sea le d system, losses can occur on ly if
the boiling point of the coo lant is exceeded as
a resu lt of overheating.
A WARNING
-The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot . Red uce the risk of scald­
i ng from hot coolant by fo llow ing these
steps.
- Turn
off the engine and allow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escaping flu id and steam by covering the
cap with a large, th ick rag .
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in
a counter-clockwise d irect ion while ap­
plying light, downward pressure on the
top of the cap .
- To avo id being burned, do not sp ill anti­
freeze or coolant on the exhaust system
or hot engine parts . Under certa in cond i­
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine cool­
ant can catch fire.
0 Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak seal­
ant to your veh icle's engine coolant . Add­
i ng radiator repa ir fluid may adverse ly af­
fe ct the funct io n 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 .
Befo re you check anyth ing in the eng ine com­
partment ,
alway s re ad and h eed all WARN­
IN GS o .A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 224.
., Tu rn
off the engi ne.
., Let the eng ine cool down.