2014 AUDI A6 radiator cap

Instruments and warning/indicator lights 17
-L Engine cooling system malfunction
A malfunction in the engine cooling system
must be repaired as soon as possible.
• Switch off engine and check coolant level
If the indicator light turns on and the mes ­
sage appears, the coo lant temperature is too
high or the coo lant level is too low.
.. Pull
off the road.
.. Stop the vehicle .
.. Turn
off the engine.
.. Check coolant level¢
page 232.
.,. Add coolant if necessary¢ page 232 .
.. Continue driving only after the eng ine cool­
ant warn ing/ indicator light goes out .
.. Contact your authorized Audi dealer for as-
sistance if necessary .
If the engine coolant level is correct, then the
radiator fan may be the cause of the malfunc­
tion .
• Coolant temperature too high! Please let
engine run with vehicle stationary
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears in trailer mode*, let the engine
run at idle for a few m inutes to cool down.
A WARNING
- If your veh icle should break down for
mechanical or other reasons, park at a
safe distance from moving traffic, turn
off the engine and turn on the hazard
warning lights¢
page 44, Emergency
flasher.
- Never open the hood if you see or hear
steam or coolant escaping from the en­
gine compartment -you risk being scald­
ed. Wait until you can no longer see or
hear steam or coo lant escaping .
- The engine compartment of any vehicle
is a dangerous area. Before you perform
any work in the engine compartment,
turn of the eng ine and allow it to cool.
Follow the warning stickers¢
page 224.
@ Note
Do not continue driving if the . symbol
ill uminates . There is a malfunction in the
engine cooling system -you could damage
your engine.
D Battery
This warning/indicator light detects a mal­
function in the generator or in the vehicle 's
electrical system .
The .warn ing/ indicator light illuminates
when you switch on the ignition and must go
out after the eng ine has started .
• Alternato r fault : Battery is not being
charged
If t he indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, there is a malfunction in the
generator or vehicle electrical system .
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer or quali­
fied workshop immed iate ly. Because the vehi­
cle battery is discharging, turn off all unnec ­
essary e lectrical equipment such as the radio.
Seek professiona l assistance if the battery
charge level is too low.
(•) Low battery: battery will be charged
while driving
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, there may be limited starting
ability .
If this message turns off after a little while,
the battery charged enough while driving.
If the message does not turn
off, have your
authorized Aud i dea ler or qualified workshop
correct the malfunction.
4t Safety belts
This warning/indicator light reminds you to
put on your safety belt.
The . warn ing/ indicator light illum inates
when the ignition is switched on to remind
the driver and any front passenge r to put on ..,.

224 Checking and filling
Checking and filling Engine hood
Releasing the engine hood
The engine hood is released from inside the
vehicle .
Fig. 186 Driver foo twell: release lever
Fig. 187 Rocker switch un der the hood
Make sure the wiper arms are not raised up
from the windshield. Otherwise the paint
could be damaged .
.,. Pull the lever under the instrument panel in
the direction of the arrow
¢ fig. 186.
.,. Raise the hood slightly¢,&. .
... Press the rocker switch under the hood up­
ward
~ fig. 187. This releases the catch.
• Open the hood.
&_ WARNING
Hot engine coolant can burn you.
- To reduce the risk of being burned,
never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine compartment . Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood .
'Working in the engine compartment
Be especially careful whenever you work in
the engine compartment.
Whenever you must perform any work in the
engine compartment, for example checking
and filling different fluids, there is a risk of injury, burns and accidents. To prevent per­
sonal injury always observe the following
WARNINGS. The engine compartment of any
vehicle is a hazardous area
¢ ,&. .
A WARNING
To help avoid injury, before you check any­
thing under the hood:
- Turn off the engine.
- Switch off the ignition .
- Apply the parking brake.
- Move selector lever to P (Park).
- Always let the engine cool down. Hot
components will burn skin on contact.
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine
compartment. Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood.
- Keep children away from the engine com­
partment.
- Never spill fluids on hot engine compo­
nents . They can cause a fire .
- Never touch the radiator fan. The auxili­
ary electric fan is temperature controlled
and can switch on suddenly .
- Never open the coolant reservoir cap
when the engine is still warm . The cool­
ant system is pressurized and hot cool­
ant could spray out.
- Protect your face, hands and arm from
steam or hot engine coolant by placing a
thick rag over the cap when you open the
coolant reservoir.
- Do not
remove the engine cover under
any circumstances. This increases the
risk of burns.
- If work on the fuel system or the electri­
cal system is necessary:

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.

~ Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank ¢
page 232, fig . 191 and ca refull y
twist the cap counter-clockwise ¢ ,A.
~ Add coolant mixed in the correct ratio
¢page 231, Coolant.
~ Twist the cap on again tightly .
Replacement engine coolant must conform to
exact specifications ¢
page 231, Coolant .
We recommend using on ly coolant addi-
tive
Gl2++, Gl3 or in an emergency G l2+ . Do
not use a different add itive. In an emergency
use plain water unti l you can get the correct
addit ive and ca n restore the correct ratio. This
should be done as soon as possible .
If you have lost a considerable amount of
coolant, then you should add co ld a ntifree ze
and cold water only when the eng ine is co ld.
A lways use
new engine coolant when ref illing.
D o no t fill coolan t above the "M AX " mar k. Ex­
cess coolan t will be forced ou t th rough the
p ress ure re li ef va lve i n the cap when the en ­
gin e becomes hot .
&_ WARNING
- The coo ling system is under press ure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of
sca ld ing from hot coolant by f ollowing
these steps .
-Tu rn off the engine and allow i tto cool
down.
- P rote ct your f ace, han ds an d ar ms from
escaping f lu id and ste am by cover ing
the cap with a large, thick rag.
- Tu rn the ca p slowly and very ca re fully
in a counte r-clockwise direct ion wh ile
ap plying light, downwa rd p ress ure on
the top of the cap.
- To avo id being burned, do not sp ill an­
tifreeze or coolant on the exhaust sys ­
tem or hot engine parts . Under certa in
conditions, the ethylene glyco l in en­
g ine coolant can catc h fire.
- Antifreeze is poisonous. Always store an­
t ifreeze in its or iginal conta iner and well
o ut of the reac h of c hildren .
Checkin g and fillin g 233
-If you dra in the coo lant, it m ust be
caught and safely stored in a pr oper con ­
tainer clearly marked "poison".
([) Note
-Coo lant poll utes the environment a nd
co uld cause an engine fi re . Excess cool -
ant will be forced out th ro ugh the pres­
sure relief valve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot .
- If, in an eme rgency, on ly wate r can be
added, the co rrect ratio between water
and antifreeze ¢
page 231 must be re­
s tored as soon as poss ible.
@) For the sake of the environment
Drained coola nt sho uld not be reused. A l­
ways d ispose of used coolant while observ­
i ng all env iro nmental regula tions .
Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by
itself .
An auxiliary electric radiator fan switches on
and off depending on coolant temperature
and othe r vehicle ope rat ing cond it io ns.
After you switch the engine off, the aux iliary
fan can continue running for up to 10 m inutes
- even w ith the ignition off . It can even switch
o n aga in later by itself¢.& , if
- the temperature of the engine coo lant r ises
due to the heat build- up from the engine in
the engi ne compa rtment, or
- the engine compa rtment heats up because
the vehicle is parked in intense sunlig ht.
&_ WARNING
- To reduce the risk of perso nal in jury nev­
er touch the rad iator fan .
- The a uxiliary electric fan is temperat ure
controlled a nd can switch on suddenly
e ven when the engine is not ru nning.
- The a uxiliary radiator fa n sw itches on a u­
tomatically wh en the engine coo lant
reaches a certa in tem pera tu re and w ill ..,
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