2014 AUDI A6 Owners Manual

the time it was manufactured. For the
l ocation of the labe l¢
page 244, fig . 195.
Most ti res lose a ir naturally over time. They
can also lose some a ir if you drive over a pot­
hole or hit a curb while parking. It is usua lly
not possib le to see whether the radia l tires
used today are underinflated just by looking
at them.
Therefore, be sure to check tire pressures at
l east once a month and always before going
on a long trip. Make sure to take the number
of people and the amount of luggage into ac­
count when adjusting tire pressure for a trip -
even one that you would not consider to be
"long ." See ¢
page 248 , Tires and vehicle
load limits
for more important information .
Always use an accurate tire pressure gauge
when check ing and adjusting inflation pres­
sures . Check all of the t ires and be sure not to
forget the spare t ire . If the pressure in any tire
i s too high when the tire is "cold," le t air out
of the tire slowly with t he edge of the t ire
gauge and keep checking the pressure until
you reach the press ure that is correct for the
l oad (passengers and luggage) and kind of
driving you plan to do .
I f the p ressure in any tire is too low, note the
difference between the pressure in the cold
tire and the pressure yo u need and add the a ir
that you need to reach the correct pressure for
the vehicle load (passengers and luggage) for
the t ires on your vehicle as listed on the on
your veh icle and in this manua l and the kind
of dr iv ing yo u plan to do .
Never e xceed the ma ximum inflation pres ­
sur e listed on the t ire s idewall for any rea ­
son.
Remember that the vehicle manufacturer, not
the t ire manufacturer, determ ines the correct
tire pressure for the t ires on your vehicle .
It is important to check the tire pressure when
the tires are cold .
- Read the requi red ti re press ure from the tire
pressure label. The tire pressure labe l is lo­
cated on the driver's side B-pi llar .
Tire s an d wheel s 24 7
- Turn the va lve stem cap counter -clockw ise
to remove it from the tire va lve .
- Place the air pressure gauge on the va lve.
- The tire pressures should o nly be checked
a nd ad justed when the tires are co ld. The
slightly raised pressures of warm tires must
not be reduced.
- Adjust the tire pressure to the load you are
carrying.
- Reins tall the valve stem cap on t he va lve.
When should I check the tire pressure?
The correct tire pressure is especially impor­
tant at high speeds . The pressure should
the refore be checked at least once a month
and always before sta rting a jo urney. Do not
f o rge t to chec k the ti re p ressu re fo r the sp are
whee l
q page 26 2.
When should I adjust the tire pressures ?
Adjust the tire pressure to the load you a re
ca rrying. After chang ing a whee l
or replacing
whee ls you have to adjust the ti re p ressu res
on all whee ls. In addition, yo u m ust then
store the new tire pressures in the tire pres ­
s u re monito ring system*
q page 258.
A WARNING
Incorrect tire pressures and/or underinfla­
tion can lead sudden tire fa ilure, loss of
control, collision, serious personal injury
or even death.
- When the warning symbol
RI] appears in
the instrument cluster, stop and inspect
the t ires.
- Incorrect tire pressure and/or underinfla­
tion can cause increased tire wear and
can affect the handli ng of the vehicle and
stopping ability.
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­
f lation can a lso lead to sudden t ire fail­
ure, including a blowout a nd sudden de­
f lation, ca using loss of veh icle cont ro l.
- The drive r is responsib le for the co rrect
tire pressures for all tires on the ve hicle.
The appli cable pressure values are locat­
ed on a sticker on the driver's s ide B-pil-
la~
~
•
•

248 Tire s and whee ls
- Only when all tires on the vehicle are fi l­
led to the correct pressure, the tire pres­
sure monitoring* system can work cor­ rectly.
- The use of incorrect tire pressure values
can lead to accidents or other damage.
Therefore it is essential that the driver observe the specified tire pressure values
for the tires and the correct pressures for
the funct ion of the tire pressure mon itor­
ing system*.
- Always inflate t ires to the recommended
and correct tire pressure before driving
off.
- Driv ing with under inflated ti res bend
more, letting them get too hot resu lting
in tread separation, sudden ti re fail ure
and loss of control.
- Excess ive speed and/overloading can
cause heat bui ld -up, sudden ti re fail ure
and loss of control.
- If the tire press ure is too low or too high,
the tires wi ll wear prematurely and the
vehicle will not hand le we ll.
- If the tire is not flat and you do not have
to change a wheel immediate ly, drive at
reduced speed to the nearest service sta­
t ion to check the tire pressure and add
air as required.
Driving without va lve stem caps can cause
damage to the tire va lves. To prevent this,
always make sure that factory installed
valve stem caps on all wheels are securely mounted on the valve.
@) For the sake of the environment
Underinf lated tires will a lso increase the
fuel consumption.
Tires and vehicle load limits
There are limits to the amount of load or weight that any veh icle and any t ire ca n carry.
A veh icle that is overloaded w ill not handle
well and is more difficult to stop. Over load ing
can not on ly lead to loss of veh icle contro l, but can also damage important parts of the
vehicle and can lead to sudden tire fai lure, in­
clud ing a b lowout and sudden deflation that
can cause the vehicle to crash.
Your safety and that of your passengers also depends on making sure that load limits are
not exceeded. Vehicle load includes everybody
and everything in and on the veh icle. These
load lim its are technically referred to as the
vehicle's
G ro ss Vehicl e We ight R ating
("GVWR").
The "GVWR" includes the weight of the basic
vehicle, all factory installed accessories, a full
tank of fuel, o il, coolant and other fluids plus
maximum load. The max imum load includes
the number of passengers that the vehicle is
intended to car ry ("seat ing capac ity") with an
ass umed we ight of 150 lbs (68 kg) for each
passenge r at a designated seating position
and the total weight of any luggage in the ve ­
hicle . If you tow a trai ler, the weight of the
trailer hitch and the tongue weight of the
loaded tra iler must be included as part of the
vehicle load.
The
G ro ss Axle We ight R ating ("GAWR") is
the maximum load that can be applied at each of the vehicle's two axles.
The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and the Gross Axle Weight Rating are listed on the
safety comp liance sticker label located on the
driver's side B-pillar . Your Audi has 5 seat ing
pos itions, 2 in the front and 3 in the rear for
total seating capacity of 5 . Each seating posi­
t ion has a safety belt
Q page 138, Safety
belts.
The fact that there is an upper limit to your
vehicle's Gross Vehicle Weight Rating means
that the total weight of whatever is being car­
ried in the vehicle ( includ ing the weight of a
t ra ile r hi tch and the tongue weigh t of the
loaded tra iler) is lim ited. The more passen­
gers in the vehicle or passengers who are
heavier than the standard weights assumed
mean that less weight can be carried as lug-
gage.
~

The tire pressure label on your Audi also lists
the maximum combined weight of all of the
occupants and luggage or other cargo that
the vehicle can carry. For the location of the
label
c:::>page 244, fig. 195.
A WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
hicle control, a crash or other accident, se­
rious personal injury, and even death.
- 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 QC-
Tires and wheels 249
CUPANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NEVER EXCEED XXX KG OR XXX LBS" on your ve­
hicle's placard (tire inflation
pressure label)
¢ page 244,
fig. 195.
2. Determine the combined weight of the driver and pas­
sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined weight of the driver and pas­
sengers from
"XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds
shown on the sticker
¢page 244, fig. 195.
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
•
•

250 Tires and wheels
and luggag e loa d cap acit y
c alcul ated in St ep 4.
6 . If your v ehi cle will b e towing
a trail er, load fro m your trail ­
er will b e tr ansferr ed to your
vehi cle. Con sult thi s manual
to determin e how thi s re­
d uces the available cargo
and luggage lo ad capacity of
y our vehicle.
..,.Che ck the tire sidewall
(q page 251, fi g . 199) to de­
termine the d esignated lo ad
rating f or a specific tire.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balan cing, correct tire pressure and driv­
ing style.
Fig. 1 97 Tire tread: trea d wea r in di cators (TWI)
Fig. 1 98 Rotat ing t ires for more even wear
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The or ig inal tires on you r vehicle have
1/ 16 inch ( 1.6 mm) hig h "wear indica tors"
¢ fig. 197 ru nning across the tread . Depend­
ing on the ma ke, there will be six to eight of
them even ly placed aro und the tire. Marks on
the tire sidewall (for example "TWI" or other
symbols) ind icate the positions of the tread
wear indica to rs. Wor n tires must be replaced .
Different figures may apply in other countr ies
¢ .&_ .
Tire pressure
Incorrect t ire pressure causes premature wea r
and can cause sudde n tire blow-out . For this
reason, tire pressu re must be checked at least
o nce a month
¢ page 246 .
Driving style
Driving fast around c urves , heavy accelerat ion
and hard braking increase tire wear .
Rotating tires for more even wear
F or all four tires on your ve hicle to have the
same service life, we recomme nd that the
front and rear tires are rotated accord ing to
the tire manufact urer's suggested tire rota­
tion intervals. Please remembe r th e follow­
i ng:
- T ire rotation intervals may differ from the
veh icle service intervals o utli ned in your
Warranty
& M ain tena nce booklet.
- The longer one tire is used in one location
on t he vehicle, the more it wears at certain
points; the refore , we recommend that you
follow the tire man ufac turer's suggested
tir e rotat ion intervals.
- Ve hicles w ith front -wheel dr ive experience
more trea d wear on the fro nt wheels com­
pa red to all-wheel d rive (q uattro).
- Please rotate tires as shown ¢
fig. 198 .
-Extra care must be taken when rotating di-
rection -spec ific tires ¢
page 268 .
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new ve hicles are balanced .
However, various s ituations during everyday
driv ing can cause them to become
...

unbalanced, resulting in vib rations you can
usually feel through the steering wheel.
Unba lanced wheels mus t be rebalanced to
avoid excessive wea r on s teer ing, suspens ion
and tires. A wheel must a lso be rebalanced
when a new tire is installed.
Incorrect wheel alignment
Inco rrect whee l alignment can cause exces­
sive tire wea r, impair ing t he safety of the veh i­
cle. If t ires show excess ive wear, have the
wheel alignment checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
All-wheel d rive
Ve hicles w it h quattro must always have tires
of the s ame s ize, construction and tread type.
F or detai ls see
¢ page 198 .
A WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead to loss of con­
trol, a crash and serious persona l injury!
- Never drive a veh icle when the tread on
any t ire is worn down to the wear indica­
tors.
- Worn tires are a safety hazard , they do
not grip well on wet roads and increase
your risk of"hydrop lan ing" and loss of
co ntrol.
- Always keep chemicals that can cause
tire damage, such as grease, oil, gasoline
and brake fluid away from tires.
- Tires age even if they are not being used
and can fail suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
and then with special care and at lower
sp eeds.
- Never mount used tires on yo ur vehicle if
yo u are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used ti res may have been dam­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to s udden tire failure
and loss o f vehicle control.
Tires and wheels 251
New tires and replacing tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to be broken in.
Fig. 199 Tire spec ification codes on the s idewall of a
tire
No . Description
@ Passenger car tire (where applicable)
@ Nominal w idth of t ire in millimeters
@ Ratio of height to width (aspect ratio)
© Rad ial
® Rim diameter code
® Load index and speed rati ng
0 U.S. DOT tire identification number
® Audi Original tire
® Sever snow conditions
@ Tire ply composition and ma terials
used
@ Maximum load rating
@ Treadwear, traction and tempe rat ure
grades
@ Maximum permissible inflation pres-
sure
T he tires and rims are essential parts of the
vehicle's design . The ti res and rims approved
by Audi a re spec ia lly matched to the charac­
teris tics of the ve hicl e and can m ake a major .,.

252 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 258.
Always 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 244.
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 244) 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 244, fig. 196) 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. 199. 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:
255 /40 R 19 100 H 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
40 Height/w idth ratio in percent (aspect ra-
t io)
R Tire construction: Radial
1 9 Rim diameter code (in inches)
100 Load rating code
H Speed rat ing letter code
X L (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD" or "RF") Indicates
t h at the t ire is a "Reinforced" or an "E xt ra
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 240 .
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, the tire
was produced in the 22nd week of 2013.
Speed rating (letter cod e)
The speed rating letter code on the whee ls in­
dicates the maximum permissible road speeds
¢ .&. in Winter tires on poge 256.
P up to 93 mp h (150 km/h)
Q up to 99 mph (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)l)
W up to 168 mph (270 km/h)l)
Y up to 186 mph (298 km/h)l)
Your veh icle is no rma lly factory equipped with
tires , which possess excellent driving charac ­
teristics and give yo ur Audi opt imum driving
comfort . An e lectronic speed limiter
c::> page 31 w ill normally prevent you r vehicle
from go ing faster t han the tire speed ra ting
c:::> .& .
U.S . DOT T ire Id entification Numbe r (TIN )
and tire manufacture date
This is the t ire's "serial number". It begins
with the letters "DOT" and indicates that the
tire meets all federal standards . The next two
numbers or lette rs indicate the plant whe re it
was manufactured, and the last four numbers r ep resent the week and year of manufacture.
F or
examp le, the numbers 22 13 mean the ti re
was pro duced in the 2 2nd week of 2013. The
other numbers are marketing codes that may
or may not be used by the ti re manufacturer .
T his in format ion is used to contact consumers
if a t ire defect requires a reca ll.
Aud i Original tir e
Tires with t he ident ificat ion "AO" or "RO" have
been specia lly matched with your Audi . We
recommend using only these tires because
they meet the highest standards regard ing
safety and driving character istics when used
correctly . Your authorized Audi dealer will
g ladly provide you with more information .
Tire ply composit ion and materials u sed
T he number of plies ind icates the n umber of
layers of rubber-coated fabric in the t ire. In
general, the greater the number o f plies, the
more weig ht a tire can support. Tire manufac -
llFt· "h · or ires wit a m ax im um spee d ca pabil ity over
1 4 9 mp h (24 0 k m/h) , tire ma nufa ctur ers somet ime s
use th e let ters "Z R."
Tire s an d wheel s 253
ture rs also must indicate the mate rials in the
ti re, which incl ude stee l, nylon, po lyester, and
others .
Maximum Load Rating
This number ind icates the maximum load in
k ilograms and po unds that can be ca rr ied by
the tire.
Tire quality grading for treadwear,
traction, and temperature resistance
T re ad wear, t raction and tempera ture grades
c::> page 2 54 .
Maximum Permissible Inflation Pressure
This number is the greatest amount of a ir
pressure tha t should ever be pu t in the t ire
u nder norma l dr iv ing cond itions .
_&. WARNING ,-=
-Using incorrect o r unmatched tires and/
or wheels or improper tire and wheel
comb inatio ns can lead to loss of control
'
coll is ion and serious personal inj ury.
- Always use ti res, rims and whee l bolts
that meet the specifications of original
factory- insta lled tires or other combina ­
tions that have been specifically ap­ proved by the vehicle manufacturer.
- Tires age even if they are not being used
a nd can fai l sudden ly , especially at hig h
speeds . Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
a nd then w ith specia l 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 though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire fai lure
and loss of vehicle control.
- All fou r whee ls must be fitte d wit h radial
tires of the same type, size (rolling cir­
cumference) an d the same tread pattern .
~
•
•

254 Tires and wheels
Driving with different tires reduces vehi­
cle handling and can lead to a loss of
control.
- I f the spare tire is not the same as the
tires that are mounted on the vehicle -
for example with winter tires - only use
the spare tire for a short period of time
and drive with extra care . Refit the nor­
mal road wheel as soon as safely possi­
ble.
- Never drive faster than the maximum
speed for which the tires on your vehicle
are rated because tires that are driven
faster than their rated speed can fail
suddenly.
- Overloading tires cause heat build-up,
sudden tire failure, including a blowout
and sudden deflation and loss of control.
- Temperature grades apply to tires that
are properly inflated and not over or un­
derinflated .
- For technical reasons it is not always
possible to use wheels from other
vehicles -in some cases not even wheels
from the same vehicle model.
- If you install wheel trim discs on the ve­
hicle wheels, make sure that the air flow
to the brakes is not blocked. Reduced air­
flow to the brakes can them to overheat, increasing stopping distances and caus­
ing a collision .
- Run flat tires may only be used on
vehicles that were equipped with them
at the factory . The vehicle must have a
chassis designed for run flat tires . Incor­
rect use of run flat tires can lead to vehi­
cle damage or accidents. Check with an
authorized Audi dealer or tire specialist
to see if your vehicle can be equipped
with run flat tires. If run flat tires are
used, they must be installed on all four
wheels . Mixing tire types is not permit­
ted .
(D Note
-For technical reasons, it is not generally
possible to use the wheel rims from oth- er vehicles.
This can hold true 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
profile tires), then use the spare tire for a
short period of time only and drive with
extra care. Replace the flat tire with the
tire matching the others on your vehicle
as soon as possible .
- Never drive without the valve stem cap .
The valves could get damaged .
® For the sake of the environment
Dispose of old tires in accordance with the
local requirements.
Uniform tire quality grading
-Tread wear
- Traction AA A B C
- Tempe ra ture ABC
Quality grades can be found where applicable
on the tire side wall between tread should er
and maximum section width
c;, page 251,
fig. 199.
For example:
Tread wear 200, Traction AA,
Temperature A.
All passenger car tires must conform to Feder­
al Safety Requirements in addition to these
grades.
Tread wear
The tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specified
government test course.
For example, a tire graded 1S0 would wear
one and one half (11/2) times as well on the
government course as a tire graded 100.
The relative performance of tires depends upon the actual conditions of their use, how­
ever, and may depart significantly from the
norm due to variations in driving habits, serv­
ice practices and differences in road character-
istics and climate.
ll-