258 Tires and wheels
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment can cause exces
sive tire wear, impairing the safety of the vehi
cle . If tires show excessive wear, have the
wheel alignment checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
All-wheel drive
Vehicles with quattro must always have tires
of the same size, construction and tread type.
For details see Qpage 202 .
.&_ WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead to loss of con
trol, a crash and serious personal injury!
- Never drive a vehicle when the tread on
any tire 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"hydroplaning" and loss of
control.
- 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
speeds.
- Never mount used tires on your vehicle if
you a re not sure of their "previous histo
ry." Old used tires may have been dam
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
New tires and replacing tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to be broken in .
Fig. 209 Tir e specificat ion codes on t he s idewall o f a
t ire
No. Description
® Ratio of height to width (aspect ratio)
© Radial
® Rim diameter code
® Load index and speed rating
(J) U.S. DOT tire identification number
® Audi Original tire
® Sever snow conditions
@ Tire ply composition and materials
used
@ Maximum load rating
@ Treadwear, traction and temperature
grades
@ Maximum permissible inflation pres-
sure
The tires and rims are essential parts of the
vehicle's design . The tires and rims approved
by Audi are specially matched to the charac
teristics of the vehicle and can make a major .,..
268 What do I do now?
What do I do now?
Jack, tools and
inflatable spare tire
Onboard tool kit and vehicle jack
The vehicle tools and vehicle jack* are stored
in the luggage compartment under the floor
cover.
Fig . 211 Luggage compartment: on board tool kit and
vehicle jack
The vehicle jack* is stored under the on board
tool kit¢
fig. 211.
Hybrid drive*: the storage location of the on
board tool kit varies
¢ page 104.
The onboard tool kit includes:
- Hook for removing wheel covers*
- Plastic hook to remove whee l bolt covers*
- Alignment p in for changing wheels
- Wheel bolt wrench
- Folding chocks
- Screwdriver with reversible blade
- Socket (removable Torx socket)*
- 10 x 13 open ended wrench (for disconnect-
ing the battery cables)
-Towing eye
Before storing the jack*, make sure it is
wound back down as far as it will go.
& WARNING
Improper use of the vehicle jack* can
cause serious personal injuries.
- Never use the jack* supplied with your
Audi on another vehicle, particularly on a
heavier one . The jack* is only suitab le for
use on the vehicle it came with . -
Using a bumper jack to raise the vehicle
will damage the bumper system. The
jack may slip, causing injury.
- Never support your vehicle on cinder
blocks, bricks or other objects. These
may not be able to support the load and
could cause injury when they fa il.
- Never start or run the engine while the
veh icle is supported by the jack*.
- If you must work under the vehicle, al
ways use safety stands specifically de
signed for this purpose.
- Never use the hexagonal socket in the
handle of the screwdriver to loosen or
tighten the wheel bolts.
- Always make sure the inflatable spare
tire* and even a flat t ire are secured in
place and not loose, otherw ise they
could fly forward, causing personal injury
to passengers in the vehicle in an acci
dent or sudden maneuver.
@ Tips
Some of the on board items listed above
are provided on certain models only or are
optiona l extras.
Folding chocks
The folding chocks are part of the on board
tool kit.
Fi g. 2 12 Open ing folding choc ks
To use the chocks, you first have to raise the
support plate¢
fig . 212 (D and then insert
the locking plate with the two "tabs" into the
elongated holes in the base plate @¢& .
Ill>
276 What do I do n ow ?
exact ly one location for each whee l. The jack*
must not be positioned at any other location
c::> &. c::> CD .
An un sta bl e s urfa ce under the jac k* can cause
the vehicle to slip off the jack* . Always provide
a firm base for the jack* on the ground. If nec
essary place a sturdy board or similar support
under the jack*. On
h ard , s lippe ry surfa ces
(such as tiles) use a rubber mat or sim ilar to
prevent the jack* from slipping
c::> &. .
_&. WARNING
-You or your passengers could be injured
wh ile chang ing a wheel if you do not fol
low these safety precautions:
- Position the jack * only at the designat
ed lifting points and align the jack *.
Otherwise, the jack* could slip and
cause an injury if it does not have suff i
cient hold on the vehicle.
- A soft or unstab le surface under the
jack* may cause the vehicle to slip off the jack*. Always provide a firm base
fo r the jack* on the ground . If necessa
r y, use a st urdy board under the jack*.
- On hard, slippery surface (such as tiles)
use a rubbe r mat o r similar to prevent
the jack* from slipping.
- To help p revent injury to yourself and
yo ur passenge rs:
- Do not raise the vehicle u ntil you are
sure the jack* is securely engaqed.
- Passengers must not remain in the ve
h icle when it is jac ked up .
- Make sure that passengers wait in a
safe p lace away from the vehicle and
well away from the road and traffic.
- Make sure jack position is correct, ad
just as necessary and then continue to
ra ise the jack *.
(D Note
Do not lift the vehi cle by the s ill. Position
the jack* only at the des ignated lifting
points o n the sill. Otherwise, your veh icle
wi ll be damaged.
Taking the wheel off /installing the
inflatable spare tire
Follow these instructions step-by-step for
changing the wheel
F ig . 2 23 Chang ing a w hee l: using th e screwdr ive r han
dle (w ith the blade removed) to turn th e bolts
Fig . 22 4 Cha ng in g a w hee l: alig nment p in ins ide the
top ho le
After yo u have loosened all wheel bo lts and
raised the vehicle off the ground, remove and
replace the wheel as follows:
Removing the wheel
.,. Use the hexagonal so cket in th e screwdriv
er handle
to complete ly remove the top
most whee l bolt and se t it aside on a
clean
surface c::> fig . 223 .
.,. Screw the threaded end of the alignment
pin
from the tool kit hand-t ight into the
empty bolt hole
c::> fig. 224.
.,. Then remove the other wheel bolts as de
scribed above.
.,. Take off the whee l leaving the a lignment pin
in the bo lt ho le
c::> (D .
Putting on the inflatable spare tire*
.,. Inflate the inflatab le spare tire* c::> page 2 70
and push the wheel over the alignment p in . "'