2014 AUDI A8 battery

24 4 Ch eck ing and filling
Th e following WARNINGS are v ery
impo rtant when w ork ing on the b att ery :
Alway s heed t he fo llowin g WARNING SYM ·
BOLS and s afety pr ecaution s wh en w orking
on the batter y.
®
Always wear ey e prot ection .
~
Batte ry a cid contains sulfuric acid .
Al way s w ea r glo ves and e ye prote c-
tion .
@
No
· spa rks
- fl ame s
- sm oking.
~
Wh en a batt ery is c harge d, it p rodu-
c e s hy drog en g as whi ch i s e xplo siv e
a nd c ould c ause persona l injury.
®
Alway s keep the b attery well o ut of
reach of childr en .
.8, WARNING
Whenever working on the battery or on
the electrical system, there is the r is k of
inju ry, acc ident and even fire. Read and
heed the following WARNINGS:
- Always wea r eye protection. Do not let
battery acid or any lead part icles get on
yo ur skin or clothing. Shield your eyes.
Explosive gases can cause blindness or
other injury.
- Battery acid contains sulfuric acid. Sulfu­
ric acid can cause blindness and severe
burns.
- Always wear gloves and eye p rotection .
Do not tilt the battery because ac id
could lea k out of the vent ilation open ­
ings.
- I f 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 cables.
- When working on the battery, be s ure
not to short-circu it the terminals with
too ls or other metal objects. This would
cause the battery to heat up very quickly,
which could lead to damage or explosion and pe rsonal injury.
- When a battery is charged, it produces
hydrogen gas which is explosive and
could cause personal in jury.
-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
b le.
- Before performing any work on the elec­ trical system, switch off the engine and
ignit ion as well as any electrical equip­
ment. The negative cable on the battery
m ust be disconnected.
If yo u are just go­
ing to replace a light bulb, then it is
enough to switch off the lights .
- Before disconnec ting the bat tery, switch
off the anti -theft alarm system! Other ­
wise you wi ll set off the alarm.
- When disconnecting the battery, f irst
disconnect the negative cab le and then
the positive cab le .
- Before reconnecting the battery, ma ke
sure all e lectr ica l consumers are sw itch­
ed off . Reconnect the positive 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 batte ry can freeze over at 32 °F
(0 °() .
-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 .

_& WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac­ cessories contain lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
Californ ia to cause cancer and reproduc ­
t ive p roblems. Wa sh hands afte r han­
dling.
(D Note
- Do not d isconnect the ve hicle battery
when the ignition is on or when the en ­
gine is running, otherwise, you will dam­
age electron ic components in the elect ri­
cal system .
- If yo ur vehicl e is going to stand for a
l ong pe riod of time wi thout bei ng d riven,
protect the battery from "free zing", oth­
e rwise it wil l be damaged and w ill then
have to be replaced.
Battery charging
Starting the engine requires a well charged
battery.
F ig. 206 Eng ine co mpartment : c o nnecto rs fo r a charg ­
er and ju mp sta rt cab les
Alway s read and heed all WARNINGS be low
¢ &. and
¢&. in Working on the ba ttery on
page 24 4.
• Switch off th e ignit ion and a ll electrica l con­
s u mers.
• M ake sure the are a is well vent ilated when
yo u charge the bat tery.
• Open the engi ne hood
¢ page 231.
• Remove the cover@ by press ing o n the ar­
row
¢ fig . 206.
Checkin g and fillin g 245
• Open the cover @on the pos itive termina l.
• Connect the charge r co nnectors accord ing to
the instruct ions to the
jump sta rt bolts.
(Bo lts under the red cover = "posit ive", Bo lts
w ith hex head= "negative") .
• On ly now plug the mains lead for the charg ­
ing equ ipment into the wall outlet and tu rn
iton ¢_& .
• Make sure the charging rate is not over
30 amps /14.8 Volt .
• W hen the bat tery is fully c harged: T urn the
charg ing equipment off and remove the
mains lead from the wa ll out let.
• Now remove the clamps for the charging
equ ipment .
• Close the red cover on the positive pole.
• Close the hood ¢
page 232.
A discharged battery can freeze at tempera­
tures of only 32 F
0 (0 °C). Allow a frozen bat­
tery to thaw completely before attempting to
charge it ¢ ,&. . However, we recommend not
u s ing a thawed batte ry aga in because th e ba t­
te ry casing can be c racked due to i ce fo rma­
t ion an d can leak ba ttery a cid.
Battery charging (Maximum charging rate
of 30 amps/14.8 Volt )
When charg ing at low vo ltages (e.g. wi th a
trickl e charger ), the ba tte ry cables do no t
have to be dis conne cte d firs t. T he bat tery
caps should
not be opened when charg ing a
batte ry .
I t i s no t ne cessa ry to remove the battery from
t he luggage compartmen t, a nd it is a lso not
necessary to d iscon nect the cab les.
Fast charging the battery (charging rate
above 14 .8 Volts)
Fo r tec hni ca l re asons do not use a battery
c h arger that uses voltage g reater than 14.8
Volts to charge yo ur vehicle's battery.
A WARNING
Charging a battery can be dangero us.
-Always follow the operating instructions
provided by the battery charger manu­
facturer when charging your battery.

246 Checking and filling
-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 .
- Charge the battery in a well ventilated
area . Keep away from open flame or elec­
trical spark. Do not smoke. Hydrogen gas
generated by the battery is explosive .
- To reduce the danger of explosion, never connect or disconnect charger cables
while the charger is operating.
- Fast charging a battery is dangerous and
should only be attempted by a compe­
tent technician with the proper equip­ ment.
- Battery acid that may spill during charg­
ing should be washed
off with a solution
of warm water and baking soda to neu­
tralize the acid.
(D Note
Never use a fast charger as a booster to
start the engine. This will seriously dam­
age sensitive electronic components, such
as control units, relays, radio, etc., as well
as the battery charger.
Battery replacement
The new battery must have the same specifi­
cations and dimensions as the original equip­
ment battery.
Intelligent energy management in your vehi­
cle is responsible for distributing the electri­
cal energy throughout your vehicle
¢ page 204. The intelligent energy manage­
ment system will keep the engine battery
charged better than vehicles without this sys­
tem. To make sure the additional elec trical en­
ergy is available once again after you have
changed the battery, we recommend that you install batteries of the same type and manu­
facture only (the same as those installed at
the time your vehicle was delivered). Specifi- cations are listed on the battery housing. Your
authorized dealer must code the battery in
the energy management system to enable you
to use the energy management functions cor­
rectly after replacing the battery.
The new battery must have the same capacity,
voltage (12 volts), amperage, construction and plug sealing .
When installing the battery, make sure the ig­ nition and all electrical consumers are switch­
ed
off.
(D Note
- Make sure the ventilation hose on the
side of the battery is connected, other­
wise fumes or battery acid can leak out.
- Vehicles with the Start-Stop-System* are
equipped with a special cycle-proof AGM
battery. Installing a different type of
battery can cause problems in the vehi­
cle electrical system . When replacing the
vehicle battery, always install one with the same specifications as the original
battery.
- Battery mounts and clamps must always
be secured correctly.
- Read and follow the warnings under
¢ page 243, Working on the battery be­
fore performing any work on the battery .
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the problem of proper disposal
of a battery, we recommend your author­
ized Audi dealer change the battery for
you. Batteries contain sulfuric acid and lead and must always be disposed of prop­
erly in compliance with all environmental
regulations. Disposing of vehicle batteries
improperly is very dangerous to the envi­
ronment .

250 Tires and wheels
Groove
means the space between two adjacent tread
ribs .
Load rating (code)
means the maximum load that a tire is rated
to carry for a given inflation pressure. You
may not find this informat ion on all tires be­
cause it is not req uired by law.
Maximum load rating
means the load rating for a t ire at the max i­
mum permissible inflation pressure for that
tire.
Maximum loaded vehicle weight
means the sum of:
(a) Curb weight
(b) Accessory weight
(c) Vehicle capacity we ight, and
(d) Production options weight
Maximum (permissible) inflation pressure
means the maximum cold inflation pressure
to which a tire may be inflated. Also called
"maximum inflation pressure ."
Normal occupant weight
means 150 lbs. (68 kilograms) times the
number of occupants seated in the vehicle up
to the total seating capacity of your vehicle .
Occupant distribution
means distribution of occupants in a vehicle.
Outer diameter
means the overa ll diameter of an inflated new
tire.
Overall width
means the linear distance between the exteri­
ors of the sidewalls of an inflated tire, includ­
ing elevations due to labeling, decorations, or
protective bands o r ribs .
Ply
means a layer of rubber-coated parallel cords.
Production options weight
means the combined weight of those insta lled
regular production options weighing over 5
lbs. (2.3 kg) in excess of those standard items
which they replace, not previously considered
in curb weight or accessory we ight, including
heavy duty brakes, ride levelers, roof rack,
heavy duty battery, and special tr im .
Radial ply tire
means a pneumat ic tire in which the ply cords
that extend to the beads are laid at substan­
t ia lly 90 degrees to the center line of the
tread .
Recommended inflation pressure
see<=> page 249, Cold tire inflation pressure.
Reinforced tire
means a t ire design to operate at higher loads
and at h igher inflation pressures than the cor­
responding standa rd tire. Reinforced tires
may be identified as "XL" "xl" "EXTRA LOAD"
' ' '
or "RF" on the sidewa ll.
Rim
means a metal support for a tire or a tire and
tube assembly upon which the tire beads are
seated.
Rim diameter
means nom inal diameter of the bead seat. If
you change your wheel s ize, you will have to
purchase new tires to match the new rim di­
ameter.
Rim size designation
means r im diameter and width .
Rim width
means nominal distance between rim flanges.
Sidewall
means that portion of a tire between the
t read and bead.

Emergency situations
General
This chapter i s intended for trained emer­
gency crews and working personnel who have the necessary tools and equipment to
perform these operations.
Starting by pushing or
towing
(D Note
Ve hicles w ith an au tomatic tra nsmission
cannot be started by pus hing o r tow ing.
Starting with jumper
cables
If necessary, the engine can be started by
connecting it to the battery of another vehi­
cle.
If the engine shou ld fail to start because of a
discha rged o r wea k battery, the battery can be
connected to the battery o f
another vehicle,
using a
pair of jumper cables to start the en­
g ine.
Jumper cables
Use only jumper cables of sufficiently la rge
c ross section to carry the starter c urrent safe­
l y. Refer to the man ufacturer's specifications.
Use only jumper cables with
insulated te rm i­
na l clamps wh ic h are d istinctly marked:
plus(+) cable i n mos t cases co lore d red
minu s(-) cable
in most cases colored black .
A WARNING
Batterie s contain e lec tricity, ac id, an d gas.
A ny of these can cause ve ry ser io us or fatal
inju ry. Follow the instructions below f or
safe han dling of your veh icle's b attery .
- Alway s shield you r eyes and avoid lean­
ing over the bat te ry whenever possib le.
- A dis ch arged battery c an free ze at tem­
peratures ju st be low 32 °F ( 0 °C ). Befo re
Emergency situations 283
connecting a jumpe r cab le, you must
thaw the frozen battery c omp lete ly, ot h­
erwise it could explode.
- Do not allow battery acid to contact eyes
or skin. Fl ush any contacted area with
wate r immediately.
- Improper use of a booster battery to start a vehicle may cause an explosion.
- Vehicle batter ies genera te exp losive gas­
es. Keep spar ks, flame and lighted c iga ­
rettes away from batte ries.
- Do not try to jump start any ve hicle w ith
a low ac id leve l in the battery.
- The vo ltage of the booste r batte ry m ust
a lso have a 12-Vol t rating. T he capacity
(Ah) of the booster battery sho uld not be
lowe r tha n that of the discharged bat­
tery . Use of batte rie s of d iffe ren t voltage
or substantially diffe rent "Ah" rat ing
may c au se an exp losion and persona l in­
JU ry.
- N ever cha rge a fro zen battery. Gas trap­
pe d in the ice may cause a n ex plosion.
- Never cha rge or use a batte ry tha t h as
been fr ozen. T he battery case may have
be weakened.
- Us e of b atter ies of differe nt voltage or
sub stant ia lly diffe ren t ca pa city (Ah) ra t­
i ng may c ause an ex plosion an d injury .
Th e capac ity (Ah) of the booster bat tery
should not be lower than that of the dis ­
charged batte ry .
- Before you chec k any thing in the engine
compa rtment, always read and hee d all
WARNINGS
¢page 231.
(D Note
-App lyin g a higher vo ltage booster ba t­
t ery w ill cause expens ive damage to se n­
sit ive e lectronic com ponents, such as
cont ro l units, relays, rad io, etc.
- The re must be no electrical contact be­
tween the vehicles as ot herwise c urrent
co uld a lready start to f low as soon as the
p o sit ive(+) term inals a re connected. ..,. •
•

284 Emergency situations
@ Tips
-The discharged battery must be properly
connected to the vehicle's electrical sys­
tem. When jump starting or charging the
battery, never connect the negative
ground cable to the battery negative
post because the battery manager sys­
tem must be able to detect the battery's
state of charge . Always connect the neg­
ative ground cable to the negative
ground post of the battery manager con­
trol unit.
Use of jumper cables
Make sure to connect the jumper coble
clomps in exactly the order described below!
Fig . 233 Engine co mpartment: connecto rs fo r jump
star t cab les and c harg er
Fig. 234 Ju m p sta rt in g w it h the ba ttery of anot her ve ­
h icle :@ - booster battery, @-discharge d ve hicle bat­
tery
The procedure described below for connecting
jumper cables is intended to provide a jump
start for your vehicle.
Vehicle with discharged battery:
•Turnoff lights and accessories, move lever
of automatic transmission to N (Neutral) or
P (Park) and set parking brake.
Connect POSITIVE(+) to POSITIVE(+)
(red)
• Open the red cover on the pos itive terminal
¢ fig. 233 .
1. Connect one end of the red positive cable
on the
jump start bolt c::;, fig. 234 @ (bolt
under the red cover = "positive ") of the ve ­
hicle to be started @.
2. Connect the other end to the positive ter-
mina l@ of the booster battery@.
Connect NEGATIVE (-) to NEGATIVE (-)
(black)
3. Connect one end of the black negative ca­
ble to the negat ive terminal @ of the
booster battery @.
4. Connect the other end to the
jump start
pin © (bolts with hex head bolt= "nega­
tive") of the vehicle to be started @.
Starting the engine
• Start the engine of the veh icle w ith the
booster battery@. Run the engine at a
moderate speed.
• Start engine with discharged vehicle battery
@ in the usual manner.
• If the engine fails to start, do not keep the
starter cranking for longer than 10 seconds.
Wait for about 30 second s and then try
aga in.
• With engine running, remove jumper cables
from both vehicles in the exact
reverse o r­
de r.
• Close the red cover on the positive term inal.
T he battery is vented to the outside to prevent
gases from entering the veh icle inter ior. Make
sure that the jumper clamps are well connect­
ed with their metal parts in full contact with
the battery terminals.
_& WARNING
To avoid serious personal injury and dam­
age to the vehicle, heed all warnings and
instructions of the jumper cable manufac­
turer. If in doubt, call for road service.
- Jumper cables must be long enough so
that the veh icles do not touch.
-

-When connecting jumper cables, make
sure that they cannot get caught in any
moving parts in the eng ine compart­
ment .
- Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
¢ page 231.
(D Note
Improper hook-up of jumper cables can r u­
in the generator.
- Always connect POSITIVE( +) to POSI­
TIVE(+), and NEGATIVE(-) to NEGATIVE
( - ) gro und post of the battery manager
control unit .
- Check that all screw plugs on the battery
cells a re screwed in firmly . If not, tighten
pl ugs p rior to connecting clamp on nega ­
tive battery term inal.
- Please note that the procedure f or con­
nect ing a jump er cable as desc ribed
above appl ies spec ifically to the case of
you r vehi cle be ing jump started. When
you are giv ing a jump star t to an othe r ve­
hi cle, do
not connec t the negat ive (-) ca­
ble to the negat ive (-) terminal on the
discharged battery @¢
fig. 234. In ­
stead, securely connect the negative( -)
cable to e ithe r a solid metal component
that is firmly bolted to the engine block
or to the e ng ine block itse lf. If the bat­
te ry tha t is being charged does not vent
to the outside, escaping batte ry gas
could igni te and exp lode!
Emergency towing
with commercial tow truck
General hints
Your Audi requires special handling for tow ­
tng.
The follow ing information is to be used by
commercia l tow tr uck operators who know
h ow to ope rate thei r equipme nt safe ly.
Emergenc y situ ation s 285
-Ne ver tow your Audi. Towing will cause
damage to the engine and tran smission.
- Never wrap the safety chain s or w inch ca­
ble s around the brake lines.
- To prevent unnece ssary damage , your Audi
must be transported with a flat bed tru ck.
- To load the vehicle on to the fl at bed , use
the towing loop found in the vehicle tools
a nd attach to the front or rear anchora ge
¢ page 285 and ¢ page 286 .
_& WARNING
A vehicle being towed is not safe for pas ­
sengers. Never allow anyo ne to ride in a
vehicle be ing towed, for any reason.
Front towing loop
Only install the front towing loop when it is
needed.
Fig. 23 5 Front bu mpe r: cove r
Fig. 236 Fr ont bu mpe r: sc rew ing in t he tow ing loop
-
The towing loop f its into the threaded hole lo ­
cated on the right s ide of the front bumpe r
and cove red by a sma ll cove r when not in use .
.. Remove the tow ing loop from the vehicle
too l kit .

298 Index
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Setup ..... ................ ..... .. 82
Automatic climate control system
synchron izing .......... .. .. .. .. .. .. 81
Automatic transmission . .. .. .. .. .. .. . 116
Automatic transmission (tiptronic) Emergency mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Kick -down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Manual shifting .......... .. .. .. .. . 119
Parking lock emergency release . .. .. . 121
Selector lever positions . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Automatic wipers .................. .. S3
Auto Safety Hotline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Average consumption ........... .. .. .. 25
Average speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Avoid damaging the vehicle ...... .. .. . 209
B
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
Charging . .. ................ ... .. . 245
I mportant warnings .......... .. .. . 243
L ocat ion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243
low ... .. .. .. . .......... .. .. .. .. . 204
Replacing the battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
State of charge ............ ... .... . 204
Winter operation .......... ... .... . 243
Working on the battery .... .. .. .. .. . 243
Before driving ........... .. .. .. .. .. . 135
Blended gasoline . ...... ... .... .. .. . 222
Blower (automatic climate control) . ... .. 81
Booster seats .............. ... .. ... 185
Brake fluid Changing the brake fluid ... .. .. .. .. . 242
Check ing the brake fluid level ... .. .. . 242
What is the correct brake fluid level? .. 242
What should I do if the brake fluid warn-
ing light comes on? ..... .. .. .. .. .. . 242
Brake system Anti-lock braking system ... .. .. .. .. . . 19
Brake assist system ......... .. .. ... 199
Brake booster . .. ...... .... ... .. .. . 203
Brake fluid .............. .... ..... 242
Brake fluid spec ificat ions for refill and re­
p la cement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
Brake light defective ....... ... .... . . 22
Brake pads ............... ... .... . 207
Electromechanica l parking brake .. .. . . 86 Fluid
reservoir ... ................ . 242
How does moisture or road salt affect the
brakes? .......................... 201
Warning/indicator lights ........ .... . 14
Worn brake pads symbol . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
braking guard Messages ..... .. ............. .... 101
Braking guard . .. .. ... .......... .. .. . 94
Settings .. .... ............... .... 101
Break-in period .. .. ... .......... .. .. 207
Brake pads .. .. .. .......... ... .. .. 207
Tires ...... ... .. .. ........ ... .. .. 207
Bul bs .. .... .... ................... 282
C
California Proposition 65 Warning ..... 232
Battery specific . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24S
Capacities .. .. .. . .............. .. .. 290
Engine oil ..... .. ... .......... .. .. 234
Carbon parts Cleaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218,219
Car carrier Transporting your vehicle ....... .... 287
Care ... .... .... ............... .... 216
Cargo area
refer to Luggage compartment . .. .. .. 141
Catalytic converter . ................. 208
Center armrest
Cockpit ........................... 61
Rear ............................. 68
Central locking .. .. ... ........... ... . 33
Emergency locking .. ........... .... . 37
Certification .. .. .. ............. .. .. 29S
Changing a wheel .. ............. .... 272
Chang ing engine oil ....... ...... .. .. 238
Checking Engine coolant level . ........... .. .. 240
Tire pressure .................... .. 254
Child restraints Danger of using child restraints in the
front seat . ................... .... 15S
Where can I get additional information
about child restraints and their use? .. 196
Child restraint system anchors ..... ... 190