2014 AUDI A6 engine overheat

12 Instrum ent s and w arn ing /indic ato r light s
-Never open the engine hood if you see or
hear steam, or if you see engine coolant
dripping from the engine compartment.
You could burn yourself . Let the engine
cool off first until you can no longer see
o r hear steam or coo lant escaping.
@ Note
- Mounting additional lights or accessories
i n front of the a ir inlets reduces the cool­
i ng effect of the rad iator . At h igh outside
temperatures or high eng ine load, the
engine could overheat.
- The front spo iler has been designed to
proper ly distribute the cooling air when
t h e ve hicle is moving.
If the spoiler is
dam aged, th is co uld red uce the cooling
effect and the engine co uld then over­
heat . Ask your authorized Audi dea ler for
assistance .
Tachometer (engine rev counter)
The tachometer indicates the engine RPM
(revolutions per minutes).
If engine RP M drops be low 1,500, yo u should
downshift to the next lower gear. The red a rea
at the end of the sca le indicates maximum
perm iss ib le engine RPM after the break-in pe­
riod. Before reaching this area, move these­
lector lever to position D/S (Drive) or ease
your foot off the accelerator pedal.
(D Note
The tachometer needle should on ly br iefly
be in the red zone: you could damage your
engine! The beginn ing of the red zone var­
ies depending on the engine .
@ For the sake of the environment
Upshifting early saves fuel and reduces en­
gine noise.
Fuel gauge
The fuel gauge only works when the ignition is
on .
If the fuel level d rops below 2 . 6 ga llons (10 liters), the bottom LED turns red and the
indicator light
Em turns on
¢ page 22. The
bottom LED blinks red when the fuel level is
very low.
T he possible range based on the current fuel
level is shown in tab@<=>
page 24, fig . 4 .
(D Note
Never run the tank completely dry. An ir ­
r egular supply of f uel can cause engine
misfiring and fuel could enter the ex ha ust
system . The catalytic converter could then
overheat and be damaged.
Warning/indicator Lights
Description
The ind icator lights in the instrument cluster
blink or turn on. They indicate funct ions or
malfunctions <=>,& .
Messages may appear with some indicato r
lights. A warning signal will sound at the
same t ime. The indicator lights and messages
in the center of the displays may be rep laced
by other d isplays . To show them again, select
the tab for ind icator lights and messages us­
i ng the multifunction steering wheel
Q page 24. If t here are several malfunc­
t ions, you can display them one at a time us­
ing the thumbwheel.
Some indicato rs lights in the d isplay can turn
on in severa l co lors.
A WARNING
- F ailure to heed w arning l igh ts and other
important vehicle in forma tion may res ult
in ser io us personal inj ury or vehicle dam­
age .
- Whenever stalled or stopped for repair, move the vehicle a safe d istance off the
road, stop the engine, and turn on the
emergency flasher<=>
page 44.
-The engine compartment of any motor
veh icle is a potentially hazardous area.
Before you chec k anything in the engine

110 Automatic Tran sm iss ion
multitronic transmission : Your vehicle is
equipped with
hill hold assist allowing you to
start while on an incline. The system is acti­
vated when the brake pedal is pressed down
and held
f o r a few s econds . The brake pres­
sure will hold for
a moment after the brake
pedal loosens to prevent the veh icle from roll­
ing backwards whi le starting up .
A WARNING
- The veh icle can also roll when the engine
is stopped.
- Unintended veh icle movement can cause
serious injury .
- Never leave your vehicle with the eng ine
running wh ile in gea r. If you must leave
yo ur vehicle when the engine is running,
act ivate the park ing brake and move the
selector lever to P .
- Power is st ill transmitted to the whee ls
when the engine is running at idle . To
prevent the vehicle from "creeping", you
must keep your foot on the brake when
the engine is running and the selector
lever is in D/S or R or "tiptronic" mode is
selected.
- Do not press the accelerator pedal when
changing the selector lever pos ition
wh ile the vehicle is stat io nary and the
engine is running .
- Never shift into R or P wh ile driving .
- Before driv ing down a steep slope, re-
duce your speed and shift into a lower
gear with "tiptronic" .
- Do not ride the brakes or press the brake
pedal too often or too long when dr iving
down a hill. Constant braking causes the
brakes to overheat and substant ially re­
duces b raking performance, inc reases
braking distance or causes comp lete fail­
ure of the brake system.
- T o prevent the veh icle from rolling back
when stoppi ng on incl ines, always hold it
in place with the brake peda l or parking
brake.
- Never hold the veh icle on an incl ine with
a slipping clutch. The clutch opens auto ­
matically when it becomes too hot from the overload. An indicato
r lamp
[O] illu­
minates and a driver message appears
¢ page 112 when the clutch is overload­
ed.
- If the engine must remain running, never
have any driving posit io n engaged when
checking under the hood . Make sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and is locked in P with the park ing brake set
¢ page 224. O therwise, any increase in
engine speed m ay se t the vehicle in mo­
tion, even with the parking brake ap­ plied .
(D Note
-S tronic- and tiptronic transmission :
When stopping on an incl ine , do not try
to hold the vehicle in place by pressing
the acce lerator pedal while a driving gear
is se lected. This can cause the transmis­
sion to overheat and can damage it. Acti­
vate the parking brake or press the brake
peda l to prevent the vehicle from roll ing.
- S tronic- and tiptronic transmission : A l­
lowing the vehicle to ro ll when the en­
gine is stopped and the selector lever is
in N will damage the transmission be­
cause it is not l ubricated unde r those cir­
cumstances.
{!) Tips
For safety reasons, the parking brake is re­
l eased automatically only when the d riv­
er's safety belt is engaged in the buckle.
Hill descent control
Applies to vehicles: with multitro nic/5 tronic/t iptronic
The hill descent control system assists the
driver when driving down declines .
Hill descent control is activated when these­
lector lever is in D/S and you press the brake
pedal. The transmission automatically selects
a gear that is sui table fo r the incline. H ill de­
scent contro l tries to ma inta in the speed ach-
ieved at the time of b raking, with in physica l .,.

112 Automatic Tran sm iss ion
Kick-down
Applies to vehicles: with multitron ic/S tronic/t iptronic
Kick-down enables maximum acceleration .
Applies to ve hicle s w ith a multit ro nic
t ransmi ssion
When you depress the accelerator pedal be­
yond the resistance po int, the transmission
downshifts into a lower gear ratio depend ing
on the vehicle speed and engine speed. As
l ong as the accelerator peda l is depressed, the
engine speed is automat ica lly regulated for
maximum accelera tion.
Appli es to veh icl es with a S tronic -/,
tiptronic tran smi ssion
When you depress the accelerato r pedal be­
yond the resistance po int, the a utomat ic
transmission downshifts into a lower gear, de­
pending on vehicle speed and engine speed.
T he upshift into the next higher gear takes
p lace once the maximum specified engine
speed is reached.
A WARNING
,-
Please note that the drive wheels can spin
if kick-down is used on a smooth slippery
road - there is a risk of skidding .
Launch Control Program
Applies to vehicles: with S tronic
The Launch Control Program provides the
best acceleration possible when starting from
a stop .
Requirement : The engine must be at operat­
ing temperature and the steering wheel must
not be turned .
.. Press the
I~ O FFI button c> page 196 while
the engine is running. The
1B indica tor light
illuminates in the instrument cluster and
Sta bilization contr ol (ESC ): Off Warn ing!
R educed stabi lit y
appears in the dr iver in­
fo rmat io n system disp lay .
.. Move the selecto r lever to position D/S to
select sport mode (5) or select
D ynam ic
mode in Audi dr ive select <=> page 101 . ..
Press the brake pedal strongly with your left
foot and hold it down for at least 1 second .
.. At the same time, press the acce lerator ped ­
al down completely with your right foot un­
til the eng ine reaches and maintains a high
RPM .
.. Remove your foot from the brake pedal
w ith in 5 seconds <=>,&. .
_&. WARNING
-Always adapt your dr iving to the traff ic
f low.
- On ly use the Launch Contro l Program
when road and t raff ic condi tions a llow it
and other d rivers w ill not be endangered
or annoyed by your driving and the vehi ­
cle's acceleration.
- Please note that the driving wheels can spin and the vehicle can b reak away
when sport mode is switched on, espe­
cially when the road is slippery.
- Once you have accelerated, you shou ld
sw itch sport mode off by pressing the
I~ OFF I button.
(D Tips
- The transmission temperature may in ­
crease signif icantly after using the
Launch Control Program. If that hap­
pens, the program may not be availab le
for a few minutes. It will be ava ilable
again after a cool-down period.
- When accelerating using the Launch
Contro l Program, all vehicle parts are
subject to heavy loads . Th is can result in
increased wear .
Transmission malfunction
Applies to vehicles: with multitronic/S tronic/tiptronic
[O] Tran smi ssio n: Pr ess brake pedal and se­
lect ge ar again
Press the brake peda l and select the desired
selector lever position again. You can the n
continue d riving .
[O] Tran smi ssion overheating: Plea se drive
con servatively

126 Homelink
Homelink
Universal remote
control
General information
Applies to vehicles: with Homelink u nive rsal remote con­
tro l
The HomeLink universal remote control can
be programmed with hand-held transmitters
from existing equipment.
With Homelink, you can control devices such
as the garage door, security systems, house
lights, etc. comfortably from the inside of you
vehicle.
Homelink makes it possible for you to replace
three different remote controls from devices in your home with one universal remote . Th is
feature works for most garage door and exte­
rior door motor signals. Programming the in­
d iv idual remo te control fo r your remote con ­
trol takes p lace near the center of the radiator
grille. There is a control module attached at
this location .
A one-t ime programm ing of the sensor mus t
be performed before you are able to use sys­
tems w ith Homelink.
A WARNING
- Never use the Homelink transmitter
with any garage door opener that does
have not the safety stop and reverse fea­
ture as requ ired by federal safety stand­
ards. Th is includes any garage door open­
er model manufactured before April 1, 1982.
- A garage door opener which cannot de­
tect an object, signaling the door to stop
and reverse does not meet current feder­
al safety standards . Us ing a garage doo r
opener witho ut these fea tures increases
risk of serious injury or death.
- For safety reasons never release the
parking brake or start the engine while
anyone is standing in front of the vehicle .
- A garage door or an estate gate may
sometimes be set in motion when the Homelink remote control is being pro­
grammed. If the device is repeatedly ac­
tivated, this can overstrain motor and
damage its electrical components -an
overheated motor is a fire hazard!
- To avo id possible injuries or property
damage, please always make absolutely
certa in that no persons or objects are lo­
cated in the range of motion of any
equ ipment being operated.
(0 Tips
- If you would like additional information
on the Homelink Un iversal Transceiver,
Homelink compatible products, or to
purchase other accessories su ch as the
Homelink Lighting Package, please con­
tact Homelink at 1 -800-355-3515 or on
the Internet at www.homelink.com.
- For Declara tion of Comp liance to United
States FCC and Ind ustry Canada reg ula ­
tions¢
page 286 .
-For security reasons, we recommend that
you clear the programmed b uttons be­
fore selling the ve hicle .
Operation
Appl ies to vehicles: wit h Ho melink
Fig . 14 2 Headliner: controls
M 0
9 (!)
~
Requirement: The buttons must be program­
med
¢page 127.
"'To open the garage door , press the program­
med b utton . The LED @ will light up o r
flash.
"' To close the garage door, press the button
again .
Ill>

ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock brake system (ABS) , brake assist sys ­
tem, anti -slip regulation (ASR) , e lectronic dif­
ferential lock ( EDL) and e lectronic interax le
d ifferential lock* . ESC is swi tched on all the
time. In certain situat ions when you need less
traction , you can switch off ASR by pressing
the button
[ru <::;> page 196, fig . 178 . Be sure
to switch ASR on again when you no longer
n eed less t raction.
Anti-lock br aking s ystem (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up
when braking . The veh icle can still be steered
even during hard braking . Apply steady pres­
sure to the brake pedal. Do not pump the ped ­
a l. A puls ing in the bra ke peda l indicates that
the system is he lping you to brake the vehicle.
Brake assist system
The brake assist system can decrease brak ing
d istance.
It increases braking power when the
driver p resses the brake pedal quic kly in emer­
gency situations. You must press and ho ld the
b rake peda l until the situation is over . In
vehicles with adaptive cruise control* , the
brake assist system is more sensitive if the
d istance detected to the vehicle ahead is too
small.
Anti -slip regulation (ASR )
ASR reduces engine power when the d rive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the force to
the road condit ions. This makes it eas ie r to
s tart, accelerate and drive up hills.
El ectronic diffe rential lock (EDL )
The ED L brakes wheels that are spinn ing and
transfers the drive powe r to the other drive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all-whee l drive*. This function is available up
t o about 75 mph (120 km/h).
I n extreme cases , ED L automatica lly switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked whee l
from overheating.
E DL wi ll switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to normal.
Int ellig ent technolog y 195
Electronic intera xle differential l ock */
se le ctive wheel torque cont rol *
The electronic interaxle differential lock (front
whee l drive) or the se lective whee l torque
cont rol (all-wheel dr ive) operates when dr iv­
ing through curves . The front wheel on the in­
s ide of the curve or both wheels on the inside
of the curve are braked selectively as needed .
T his min imizes sliding in the front wheels and
allows for more p recise d riving through
curves . T he applicable system may no t acti­
vate when driv ing in wet or snowy conditions.
A WARNING
-- ESC, ABS, ASR, EDL and the electronic in­
teraxle diffe rential lock function* cannot
overcome the laws of physics. This is es­
pecially important on slippery or wet
roads . If the systems begin acting to sta­
bilize your veh icle, you should immedi­
ately change yo ur speed to match the
road and traffic cond itions. Do not let
the increased safety provided by these
systems tempt you to take risks. Do ing
so will increase the r isk o f a loss of vehi ­
cle control, collision and serious personal inju ries.
-Always adapt your speed to road, traffic and weather conditions . The risk of los­
ing control of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast, espec ially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when dr iv ing too close to vehicles up
ahead . ESC, ABS, the brake assist sys­
tem, EDL, ASR and the e lectronic inte r­
axle d iffe ren tial lock function* cannot
preven t coll is ions.
- Always accelerate with spec ial care on
even, smooth surfaces su ch as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow.
The drive wheels can spin even with
these assistance systems that cannot al­
ways he lp to red uce the risk of loss of ve-
hicle control. .,.
•
•

to have your brake pads inspected can result
in reduced brake performance.
On steep slopes, you should use the brak ing
effect of the engine. This way, yo u prevent un­
necessary wea r on the brake system . If you
must use your brakes, do not hold the brakes
down continuously. Pump the brakes at inter ­
vals.
Moi stu re or r oad salt
Under certain conditions, for examp le, when
driving through water or very heavy rain, or
even after washing your vehicle , the braking
effect can be reduced due to moisture (or in
free zing conditions ice) on the brake pads. A
f ew care ful brake applications should dry off
the brake pads or remove any ice coatings.
When you a re d riving at higher speeds with
the w indshield wipers on, the brake pads will
briefly touch the brake d iscs in regular inter­
vals so as to improve reaction t ime when brak­
ing on wet surfaces . You the driver will not no­
tice anything .
The effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced
when the vehicle is dr iven on a salt -covered
road and the brakes are not used . Here too ,
you should clean off accumu lated salt coat ing
from brake discs and pads with a few carefu l
appl ications o f the brake ¢,&. .
Cor ro sion
There may be a tendency for dirt to build up
on the brake pads and corrosion to form on
the discs if the car is not dr iven regularly or
on ly for short trips with l ittle use of the
brakes .
If the brakes are not used frequently , or if cor­
rosion has fo rmed on the discs, it is advisable
to clean off the pads and discs by brak ing
firm ly a few times from a moderately h igh
speed ¢.&. .
F a ults in the brake system
If you should notice a
sudden increase in
b rake pedal travel, then one of the two bra ke
circu its may have failed¢,&. .
Int ellig ent technolog y 197
Low br ake fluid lev el
Malfunctions can occu r in the brake system if
the b rake fluid level is too low. The brake fluid
level is monitored electronica lly.
Brake booster
T he brake booster wo rks with vacuum pres­
s ur e which is created only when the engine is
runn ing ¢.&. .
Brake lining we ar statu s
Brake lining wear may be checked by visual in­
spect ion of the condition of the brake pads
th rough the open ings in the wheel. If neces­
sary, the wheel may be removed for th is in­
spection ¢
page 263, Changing a wheel.
A WARNING
-=
-You should perform braking maneuvers
for the purpose of cleaning the brake
system only if road conditions permit.
Other road users must not be put at risk -
you may cause an accident!
- Before descend ing a steep grade, reduce
speed and sh ift transmission into a lower
gear or lower dr iving range. Do not ride
the brakes or hold the pedal down too
long or too often . Th is could cause the
brakes to get hot and diminish braking
efficiency.
- Do not "ride the brakes" by rest ing your
foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to b rake. This may cause the brakes to
overheat, premature wear and increased
stopping distance.
- Unde r ce rtain cl imatic and operat ing
conditions such as passing thro ugh wa ­
ter, driving in heavy rain or after washing
the vehicle, the effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced . In winter, ice can
accumulate on the brake pads, lin ings,
discs and drums . Carefully app ly brakes
for a test . Brakes will dry and ice coat­
ings w ill be cleaned off after a few care­
fu l brake applicat ions.
- Driving for an extended period of time on
salt-covered roads without using your brakes can a lso affect bra king efficiency. ..,.
•
•

198 Intelligent technology
Clean off accumulated salt coating from
brake discs and pads with a few caref ul
brake applications.
- If you damage the front spoiler, or if you
install a different spoiler, be sure the air
flow to the front brakes is not obstruct­ ed . Otherwise the brake system could
overheat reducing the effectiveness of
the ent ire brake system.
- Failure of one brake c ircuit will impair
the braking capability resulting in an in­ creased stopp ing distan ce. Avoid driv ing
the vehicle a nd have it towed to t he near­
est Aud i dea ler o r qualified workshop.
- Never let the vehicle rol l to a stop w ith
the engine shu t off.
- If the brake booster is not working, the
brake pedal must be pressed conside ra­
bly harder to make up for the lac k of
booster assistance.
Electro-mechanical
power assist
The electro-mechanical power assist helps
the driver when steering.
Power steering adapts electronically based on
the vehicle speed.
Ind icator light s and m essages
• Steerin g defecti ve! Stop the vehicle
If th is indicator light turns on and stays on
and this message appears, t he power steering
may have fa iled.
Do
not cont inue driving . See you r autho rized
Aud i dealer or other qualified repa ir facility
fo r assistance.
l~ ij Ste ering: Sy stem malfunction ! You m ay
cont inue dri ving
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, the steer ing may be more diffi­
cult to move or more sens itive than usual.
Drive s low ly to your authorized Audi dealer or
qua lified workshop to have the malfunction
corrected.
(D Tips
If the . or
£'I' ij indicator light on ly stays
on for a short t ime, yo u may continue dr iv­
i ng.
Driving with your
quattro
App lies to vehicles: wit h all-w hee l drive
With a/I-wheel drive, all four wheels ore driv­
en.
General information
With all Wheel Drive, power is distributed to all four wheels. This happens automatically
depend ing on your driving style and the road
condit ions at the time. See also ¢
page 194.
With the sport diffe rent ia l*, power distribu­
t ion to the rear wheels is variable and can be
adjusted with Audi drive select*¢
page 100.
Always read and follow safety precautions
¢ &.
Winter tires
When dr iving in the win ter, yo ur vehicle wi th
all-wheel drive has an advantage, eve n with
regular tires. In winter road conditions it may
be advisable to mount winter tires (or all-sea­
son tires) for improved driveability and brak­
ing : these tires must be mounted on
all fou r
w heel s.
See also¢ page 255, Winter tires .
Tire chain s
Where tire chains are mandatory on certain roads, this norma lly also app lies to ve hicles
with all-wheel drive¢
page 256, Snow
chains .
Replacing wheel s/tire s
Vehicles with a ll-wheel drive must always
have tires of the same size. A lso avoid tires
with different tread depths . For detai ls see
page ¢
page 251, New tires and replacing
tires and wheels.
Off -Road dr iving?
Your Audi does not have enough gro und clea r-
ance to be used as an off-road vehicle .
It is jll,,

202 Driving and en vir onm ent
Catalytic converter
Appl ies to vehicles: with gasoline e ngin e
It is very important that your emission con­
trol system (catalytic converter) is function­
ing properly to ensure that your vehicle is run­
ning in an environmentally sound manner .
.. Always use lead-free gasoline¢ page 215,
Fuel supply .
.. Never run the tank down all the way to emp-
ty .
.. Never put too much motor oil in your engine
¢ page 229, Adding engine oil .. Never try to push- or tow-start your veh icle.
The catalytic converter is an eff ic ient "clean­
up" device built into the exhaust system of
the vehicle. The catalyti c converter burns
many of the pollutants in the exhaust gas be­
fore they are released into the atmosphere.
The exclus ive use of unleaded fuel is cr itically
important for the l ife of the cata lytic convert­
e r and proper functioning of the engine.
A WARNING
T he temperature of the exhaust system is
high, both when driving and after stopping
the engine .
- Never touch the exhaust tail pipes once
they have become hot. This could result
in burns.
- Do not park or operate the vehicle in
areas where the hot exhaust system may
come in contact with dry grass, brush,
fuel spill or other material which can
cause a fire.
- Do not apply additional undercoating or
rustproofing on or near the exhaust
man ifold, exhaust p ipes, catalytic con­
verter or heat shields . During driving, the
substance used for undercoating cou ld
overheat and cause a fire.
@) Note
- Be aware that just one tank f illing with
leaded fuel will al ready seriously de­
grade the perfo rmance of the cata lytic
conve rter. -
Do not exceed the correct engine oil level
¢page 229.
-Do not drive until the fue l tank becomes
completely empty . The engine co uld m is­
fire . Unburned fuel could also get into
the exhaust system and this cou ld cause
the catalytic converter to overheat.
- Do not switch off the ignition while the
vehicle is mov ing .
- Do not continue to ope rate your vehicle
under these conditions, as otherwise fuel
can reach the catalyt ic converter. Th is
cou ld result in overheating of the con­
verter, requir ing its replacement .
- To assure efficient operation of the Emis­
sion Control System:
- Have you r vehicle maintained p roperly
and in accordance w ith the service rec­
ommendations in your Warranty & Maintenance book let.
- Lack of prope r maintenance as we ll as
improper use of the vehicle wi ll impair
the function of the em ission contro l
system and could lead to damage.
@) For the sa ke of the en vironment
Even when the Emission Control System is
ope rat ing properly, the exhaust gas can
have a sulfur-like exhaust gas smell under
some operat ing states. This depends on
the sulfur content of the fuel being used .
Usi ng a different brand of fuel may help,
or f illing the tank with lead-free super
grade gasoline.
Diesel particulate filter
Applies to vehicles: with diese l eng ine
The diesel part icu late filter filters nearly all of
the soot pa rticles out of the exhaust . T he fil­
te r cleans itself automat ica lly unde r no rma l
dr iv ing cond itions . If the filte r cannot clean it­
self (for example, because you are on ly driving
short distances), the filter becomes clogged
with soot and the
II symbol for the diesel
particulate filter ill uminates ¢
page 22. ..,.