2014 AUDI A6 Page 199

now be used as an ordinary safety belt with ­
out the convertible locking retractor for child
restra ints.
I f the convertible locking retractor shou ld be
activated inadvertently, the safety belt must
be unfastened and guided completely back in­
to its stowed position to deactivate this fea ­
ture.
If the convertib le locking retractor is not
deactivated, the safety belt will gradually be­
come tighter and uncomfortable to wear .
A WARNING
Improperly installed child safety seats in­
crease the risk of ser ious personal injury
and death in a collision.
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deacti­
vate the convert ible lock ing ret ractor for
c hild restraints while the veh icle is mov­
ing. You would not be restrained and
cou ld be ser iously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS
whenever using a child rest rained in ave­
hicle is being used
¢page 173. Special
precautions apply when installing a chi ld
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 149, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
LATCH Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a s imp le r and more pract icable way
to attach the ch ild res traint on the veh icle
seat, Federa l regu lations require specia l lower
anchorages in vehicles and devices on new
chi ld restraints to attach to the vehicle ancho­
rages.
The combination of the tether anchorages and
the lower anchorages is now generally called
the
LA TCH system for "Lower Anchorages and
T ethers for Children."
F orward- facing child restraints manufactured
after September 1, 1999, are required by U.S.
Child Sa fet y 187
federa l reg ulations to comply with new child
head movement performance requirements.
These new performance requirements make a
tether necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a ch ild restra int that requires a top
tethe r without one can seriously impair the
performance of the c hild restra int and its abil ­
ity to protect the child in a collis ion. Insta lling
a child restraint that requires a top tether
without the top tether may be a violat ion of
state law.
Child restraint manufacturers offer LATCH
lower anchorages on their child seats with
hook-on or push-on connectors attached to
adjustable straps.
In add ition to the LATCH lower anchorages,
these child restraint systems usually require
the use of tether straps to help keep the ch ild
restraint firmly in place.
A WARNING
Imp roper installat ion of child restra ints
will increase the r isk of injury a nd death in
a cr ash.
- Always follow the instr uctions provided
by the manufa cture r of the child re­
s traint yo u intend to install in your vehi­
cle.
- Never inst all a child restraint withou t a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instruc ­
tions require the top tether strap to be
used.
- Improper use of child rest raint LATCH
lowe r ancho rage points can lead to injury
in a collision. The LATCH lower anchorage
points are designed to withstand on ly
those loads imposed by correctly fitted
child restraints.
- Never mount two child restra int systems
on one LATCH lower anchorage point.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or
other item to the LATCH lower anchorag-
-
es. Ill-
•
•

therefore best to avoid rough tracks and un ­
even terrain as much as possible . Also refer to
<=:> page 203.
A WARNING
Always adjust your driving to road and traf­
fic conditions. Do not let the extra safety
afforded by all-wheel dr ive tempt you into
taking extra risks.
- Although the all-wheel dr ive is very ef­
fective, a lways remember that braking
capacity is limited by t ire traction . Yo u
should therefore not dr ive at excessive
speeds on icy or slippery road su rfaces.
- On wet road su rfaces, be careful not to
dr ive too fast because t he fro nt wheels
c ou ld beg in to s lide on top of the wa ter
(aq uaplaning). If this sho uld occ ur, you
will have no warning from a sudden in ­
crease in engine speed as with a front ­
wheel drive vehicle. A lways drive at
speeds wh ich are suited to the road con­
ditions -risk of crash.
Energy management
Starting ability is optimized
Energy management controls the distribution
of electrical energy and thus optimi zes the
availability of electrical energy for starting the engine .
If a veh icle wit h a conventional energy system
i s not d riven for a lo ng pe riod o f time, the bat­
tery is discha rged by idling cu rrent co nsu mers
(e .g. immobilizer) . In ce rtain c ircumstances it
can result in there being insufficient ene rgy
avai lab le to start the engine .
I n tell igen t energy m anagemen t in your veh i­
cle hand les the d istribu tion of electrical ener­
gy . Starting ab ility is marked ly imp roved and
the life of the battery is extended.
B asically , energy management consists o f
battery diagnos is , idling current manage­
ment
and dynamic ene rgy man agement.
Int ellig ent technolog y 199
Battery diagnosis
Battery diagnosis continuously de termines
the state of the battery . Sensors de termine
batte ry voltage, battery current and battery
temperature . This determines the current
state of charge and the power of the battery.
Idling current management
Idling curren t management reduces energy
consumption while the vehi cle is standing.
With the ignition switched off, it controls the
energy supply to the various electrica l compo­
nents. Data from battery diagnos is is cons id­
ered .
Depending on the battery's state of charge,
i ndivid ua l cons umers are g radually turned off
to prevent excessive discharge of the battery
and thus maintain starting capability .
Dynamic energy management
While the vehicle is being driven, dynamic en ­
ergy ma nagement distrib utes the energy ge n­
erated accord ing to the needs of the individ u­
al components . It regulates consum ption, so
that more electrical energy is not being used
than is being generated and ensures an opti­
mal state of cha rge for the battery .
(D Tips
-But even ene rgy management cannot
negate the limits of physics. Consider
t hat the powe r and life of a battery are
limited .
- If start ing ability is threatened , the indi­
cator light (•) appears
c::> page 17 .
What you should know
The highest priority is given to maintaining
starting capability.
The battery is severely taxed in short-distance
driv ing, in city traff ic and during the cold time
of year . Abundant electrical energy is re -
quired, but on ly a little is generated . It is also ..,. •
•

@ 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.
•
•

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>

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)

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-