2014 AUDI A6 Battery disconnect

Instrument s and warning /indicator lights 29
Resetting the service interval display
Your authorized A udi dealer w ill rese t the cor­
respo nding service sche dule after per forming
the approp riate service on yo ur vehicle. Yo u
also have the possibility to reset the oil
change schedu le after having performed an
oil change according to Audi specifications.
Select the
I CAR ! function button > ( Car) * sy s­
tems
control bu tton > Servicing & checks >
Service Int ervals > Re set oil change interval.
(D Note
If you disconnect the battery termina ls, no
calc ulations can be made for the serv ice
interval display d uring this time and no
s ervice re min der w ill appea r. Remembe r
t ha t obse rv in g the pr ope r se rv ice in tervals
is v itally impo rtant to ex ten ding the life o f
your vehicle, part icu larly the eng ine , and
maintaining its va lue . Even if t he mileage
driven is low, the maxim um period o f one
year from one se rvice to the next must not
be exceeded.
{!) Tips
- Do not reset the display between o il
c hanges, otherw ise the display will be i n­
cor rect.
- The information in the Service Reminder
r ema ins stored even when the veh icle
battery is discon nected .
Head-up Display
Applies to vehicles: with Head -up Display
F ig. 14 Examp le: indicators in the Hea d-up Disp la y
Fig . 15 In strumen t pa nel: k nob fo r th e Head -up D is ­
p lay
The Head -up D is p lay projec ts cer tain warnings
or se lected information from the ass istance
systems* o r navigation * on the windshie ld.
The display appears within the driver 's fie ld of
vision.
Switching on/off
.,. Press the knob~ to switch t he Head -up
Display on/off ¢
fig. 15 .
Adjusting the height
The heig ht of t he di s p lay can be adju sted to
the individua l driver .
.,. Ma ke sur e you are seated correc tly
¢ page 129 .
.,. Tur n t he kn ob~ to adjus t th e disp lay.
Settings in the MMI
.,. Select: !CAR !function button> ( Car) * sys ­
tems
control button > Driver Assist > Head­
up Display
> Head-up Display content or
Display brightness .
Display content
In the MMI, you can spec ify w hich information
sho uld be disp layed:
- Cr uise control system*
- Navigation information *
- Aud i adapt ive cr uise con trol *
- Aud i act ive lane ass ist*
- Night vision assistant* (pe destrian warning)
The speed d isp lay and some of the red indica-
tor lig hts cannot be hidden in the MMI. .,..

-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. •
•

@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the pr oblem of proper d isposa l
of brake flu id as we ll as the special tools
requ ired and the necessary expert ise, we
recommend that you have the brake fluid
changed by your author ized Audi dealer .
Battery
General information
Under normal operating conditions, the bat­
tery in your Audi does not need any mainte ­
nance. With
high outside temperatures or
long daily dr ives we recommend that you have
the electro lyte level checked by a service fa­
cility . The electrolyte level shou ld also be
checked each time the battery is charged
¢ page 237.
Have the battery checked when you take your
ve hicle in for service . Yo u are well adv ised to
replace a battery that is older than 5 yea rs .
W ith certa in types of a irbag deployment, t he
b attery is d isconnected from the vehicle elec­
tr ica l system for safety reasons¢.&.
in Re ­
pair, core and disposal of the airbags on
page 163.
Disconnecting the battery terminals
Some vehicle functions (power w indow regu­
lators , for example) are lost if the battery ter­
m inals a re d isconnected. These func tions have
to be re lea rned after the batte ry term inals a re
connected agai n. T o prevent this , the bat tery
should only be d isconnec ted from the vehicle
e lec tric al system when absolu tely necessa ry
for repairs .
Vehicles not driven for long periods
If you do not drive you r vehicle over a period
of severa l days or weeks, ele ctrical compo­
nen ts are gr adually cut b ack o r swi tched off .
This redu ces energy cons umption and main­
tains starting capab ility over a longer per io d
¢
page 199. Some of the co nvenience func­
tions may not operate, s uch as the inte rior
lights or power seat adjustme nt. The conven-
Checkin g and fillin g 235
ience funct ions w ill be available again when
yo u sw itch on the ign ition an d start the en­
gine.
Winter operation
D ur ing the w inte r mon ths, bat tery ca pa city
tends to decrease as tempera tures drop . This
is beca use more power is a lso consumed wh ile
starting, and the headlights, rear window de­
fogger, etc., are used mo re often.
Avoid unnecess ary powe r consumpt ion, pa r­
ticu lar ly in city traffic o r when traveling only
sho rt distances. Let yo ur authorized A udi
dealer check the capacity of the vehicle bat ­
tery before w inter sets in¢
page 23 7. A well
charged battery will no t on ly prevent star tin g
problems w hen the weather is cold, but w ill
also last longer .
@ Tips
If your vehicle is left standing for seve ral
weeks at extremely low temperatures, the
vehicle battery s hou ld be removed and
stored where it will not freez e. This will
p reve nt it from be ing dam aged and having
to be repl aced .
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the bat tery.
The battery is located in the luggage compar t­
ment under the floor . B efo re you che ck any­
thi ng in the luggage compartment,
read and
heed all WARNINGS
¢ .&, .
Always heed the safety warnings , when work­
i ng on the veh icle batte ry or t he vehicle e lec­
t rical sys tem to p reven t inju ry.
The following WARNINGS are very
important when working on the battery:
Always heed the following WARNING SYM· BO LS and safety precautions when working
on the battery .
®
Always wear eye protection.
•
•

236 Check ing and filling
&
Batt ery aci d c ont ain s s ulfuric acid .
A lw ays wear gloves and eye protec-
ti on.
@
No
- spark s
- fl ame s
· sm okin g.
~
When a b atte ry is ch ar ged , it p rodu -
c es hydr oge n gas wh ich i s ex plosi ve
and co uld cause pe rso nal injur y.
®
Alway s keep the b att ery well out of
re ach of children.
A WARNING
Whenever working on the battery or on
the electrical system, there is the r isk of
injury, acc ident and even fire. Read and
heed the following WARNINGS:
- Always wear eye protection. Do not let
battery acid or any lead part icles get on
your sk in or cloth ing . Sh ield your eyes .
Explosive gases can cause blindness or
other injury.
- Battery acid contai ns sulfur ic acid. Sulfu­
ric acid can cause blindness and severe
burns.
- Always wear gloves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because ac id
could leak out of the vent ilation open­
ings.
- If you get battery acid in your eyes or
on your sk in, immediately rinse with
cold water for severa l m inutes and get
medical attention .
- If you should ingest any battery acid,
seek medical attention immediately .
- Do not expose the battery to an open
flame, electric sparks or an open light.
- Do not smoke.
- Do not interchange the positive and neg-
ative cab les.
- When working on the battery, be sure
not to short-circuit the terminals with
tools or other metal objects. This would
cause the battery to heat up very quickly,
wh ich could lead to damage or explosion
and personal injury. -
When a battery is charged, it produces
hydrogen gas which is explosive and
could cause personal injury.
- Always keep the battery well out of the
reach of children.
- Before work is done on the electrical sys­
tem, disconnect the negat ive ground ca­
ble.
- Before performing any work on the e lec­
trica l system, switch off the engine and
ignit ion as well as any electrical equip­
ment. The negative cable on the battery
must be disconnected .
If you are just go­
ing to replace a light bulb, then it is
enough to swi tc h off the lights.
- Before disconnecting the battery, switch
off the anti-theft alarm system! Other­
wise you wi ll set off the alarm.
- When disconnecting the battery, f irst
d isconnect the negat ive cab le and then
the posit ive c ab le.
- Before reconnecting the batte ry, ma ke
sure all e lectr ica l consumers are sw itch­
ed off. Re connect the pos it ive cable first
and then the negative cable. Never inter ­
change the cables - this could start a fire!
- Never charge a frozen or a thawed-out
battery. It could exp lode! If a battery has
frozen, then it must be replaced . A dis­
charged battery can freeze over at 32
°F
(0 oc).
- Make sure the vent hose is always attach­
ed to the opening on the s ide of the bat­
tery.
- Never use batteries which are damaged.
There is the danger of an explosion! Al­
ways rep lace a damaged battery.
A WARNING
Ca lifornia Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac­
cessories conta in lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc­
tive problems . Wash hands after han-
dling.
~

(D Note
-Do not disconnect the ve hicle battery
when the ignition is on or when the en­
gine is running, otherwise, you will dam­
age electronic components in the electri­
cal system .
- If your vehicle is going to stand for a
long period of time without being driven,
protect the battery from "freezing", oth­
erwise it will be damaged and w ill then
have to be replaced.
Battery charging
Starting the engine requires a well charged
battery.
Fig. 193 Engine compartment: connectors for a charg­
er and jump sta rt cables
Always read and heed all WARNINGS below
c::, &. and c::, &. in Working on the battery on
page 236 .
.,. Switch off the ignit ion and all electrical con­
s umer s.
.,. Make sure the area is well vent ilated when
you charge the battery .
.,. Open the engine hood
c::, page 224.
.,. Open the red cover on the posit ive pole
¢fig. 193 .
.,. Connect the charger connectors according to
the instructions to the
jump start bolts.
(Bolts under the red cover= "positive", Bolts
with hex head= "negative").
.,. Only now plug the mains lead for the charg­
ing equipment into the wall outlet and turn
it on
c::, &_ .
.,. Make sure the charging rate is not over
30 amp s/14 .8 Volt.
Checkin g and fillin g 237
.,. When the battery is fully charged: Turn the
charging equipment off and
remove the
mains lead from the wall out let.
.,. Now remove the clamps for the charging
equ ipment.
.,. Close the red cover on the positive pole .
.,. Close the hood
c::, page 225.
A discharged battery can
freeze at tempera­
tures of only
32 F0 (0 °C) . Allow a frozen bat­
tery to thaw completely before attempting to cha rge it
c::, ,&. . However, we recommend not
using a thawed batte ry again because the bat­
tery casing can be cracked due to ice fo rma­
tion and can leak battery ac id.
Battery charging (Maximum charging rate
of 30 amps/14.8 Volt )
When charging at low vo ltages (e.g. with a
trickle charger) , the battery cables do not
have to be disconnected first . The battery
caps should
not be opened when charging a
battery .
It is not necessary to
remove the battery from
the luggage compartment, and it is a lso not
necessary to disconnect the cab les .
Fast charging the battery (charging rate
above 14 .8 Volts)
For technical reasons do not use a battery
charger that uses voltage greater than 14.8
Volts to charge your vehicle's battery .
_& WARNING
-
Charging a battery can be dangerous.
- Always follow the operating instructions
provided by the battery charger manu­
facturer when charg ing your battery.
- Never charge a frozen battery. It may ex­
plode because of gas trapped in the ice.
Allow a frozen battery to thaw out first.
- Do not reuse batteries which were fro­
zen. The battery housing may have
cracked and weakened when the battery
froze.

238 Check ing and filling
- Char ge the bat tery i n a we ll ven tilated
area. Kee p away from open flame or elec­
trical spa rk. Do n ot smoke. Hydrogen gas
generated b y the battery is explosive.
- To reduce the danger of explosion, never
connect or disconnect charger cables
wh ile the charger is operating.
- Fast charg ing a battery is dangerous and
should only be attempted by a compe­
tent technicia n w ith the proper equ ip­
ment.
- Battery acid that may spill during charg­ ing should be washed off wit h a solution
of warm water and baking soda to neu­
t rali ze the acid.
(D Note
Never use a fast charger as a booster to
start the engine. This will se riously dam­
age sensitive elect ronic components, such
as control units, relays, rad io, etc., as we ll
as t he battery charger.
Battery replacement
The new battery must have the same specifi­
c ations and dimensions as the original equip­
ment battery.
Intell igent energy management in your veh i­
cle is respons ible for d istributing the e lectr i­
cal energy throughou t your vehicle
qpage 199. The intel ligen t energy manage­
ment system w ill keep the engine battery
charged better than vehicles without th is sys­
tem. To make sure the additional electrical en­
ergy is available once again after you have
changed the battery, we recommend that you
install batteries of the same type and ma nu­
facture only (the same as those installed at
the time your vehicle was delivered). Specifi­
cations a re listed on the battery ho using. Yo ur
author ized de aler must code the b attery in
the energy management system to enable you
to use the energy management fu nctions cor­
rectly after replacing the battery. T
he new battery must have the same capacity,
vo ltage ( 12-volts), amperage, construction
and plug sea ling.
When ins tall ing t he battery, make su re the ig­
nition and a ll elect rical consume rs are switch ­
ed off.
(D Note
M ake sure the ven tilat ion hose on the side
of the ba ttery is connecte d, otherwise
fumes or batte ry acid can lea k out .
- Veh icles with the Start-S top-System * are
equip ped with a spec ial cycle-proof AGM
battery . Install ing a d iffe rent type of
battery can cause problems in the vehi­
cle e lectr ica l system. Whe n replac ing the
vehicle battery, always install one w ith
the same specifications as the origi na l
battery.
@) For the sake of the environment
Because of the prob lem of proper disposal
of a battery, we recomme nd your author­
i zed Audi dealer change the battery fo r
you. Batteri es contain sulfur ic acid and
l ead and must a lways be di spo sed o f prop­
erly in comp liance wi th all envi ronmental
regulations. Disposing of vehi cle batter ies
imprope rly is very dange rous to the envi­
r onment.
Windshield/headlight
washer container
F ig . 1 94 Engine compartment: cover on the windshield
a n d headlight * was her fl ui d reservo ir
Ill>