2014 AUDI Q7 wheel bolts

286 Tires and wheels
S up to 110 mph (180 km/h)
T up to 118 mph (190 km/h)
U up to 124 mph (200 km/h)
H up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
V up to 149 mph (240 km/h)1l
Z over 149 mph (240 km/h)ll
W up to 168 mph (270 km/h)ll
Y up to 186 mph (298 km/h)
1
l
Your veh icle is normally factory equipped with
tires, which possess excellent driving charac­
teristics and give yo ur Audi opt imum d riving
comfort . An electronic speed limiter
c::> page 28 will normally prevent your vehicle
from going faster than the tire speed rating
¢ &. .
U.S. DOT Tire Identification Number (TIN)
and tire manufacture date
This is the tire's "serial number". It begins
with the letters "DOT" and indicates that the
tire meets all federal standards. The next two
numbers or letters indicate the plant where it
was manufactured, and the last four numbers
represent the week and year of manufacture.
For example, the numbers 2213 mean that
the tire was produced in the 22nd wee k of
2013. The other numbers are mar keting co­
des that may or may not be used by the tire
manufacturer . This information is used to con­
tact consumers if a tire defect requires a re­
call.
Audi Original tire
Tires with the identification "AO" or "RO" have
been specia lly matched with your Audi . We
recommend using only these tires because
they meet the highest standards regard ing
safety and driving character istics when used
correctly. Your authorized Audi dealer will
gladly provide you with more information.
Tire ply composit ion and materials used
The number of plies indicates the number of
l ayers of rubber-coated fabric in the tire. In
ll For tir es w it h a m ax im um spee d ca pabil ity ove r 149
mph (2 40 km/ h), ti re manufact urers somet imes use
the lett ers " ZR."
genera l, the greater the number of plies, the
more weight a tire can support. Tire manufac­
turers also must indicate the materials in the
t ir e, which include steel, nylon, po lyester, and
others.
Maximum Load Rating
This number ind icates the maximum load in
kilograms and pounds that can be carried by
the tire.
Tire quality grading for treadwear,
traction , and temperature resistance
Tread wear, traction and temperature grades
c::> page
287.
Maximum Permissible Inflation Pressure
Th is number is the greatest amount of air
pressure that should ever be put in the tire
u nder normal driving conditions.
.&, WARNING ~ -
-Using incorrect or unmatched tires and/
or wheels or improper tire and wheel
comb inat ions can lead to loss of control,
coll is ion and serious personal injury.
-Always use t ires, rims and whee l bolts
that meet the specifications of original
factory- installed tires or other combina­
tions that have been specifically ap­
proved by the vehicle manufacturer.
- 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 emergen cy
and then with special care and at lower
speeds.
- Never mount used tires on your vehicle if
you are 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 fa ilure
and loss of vehicle control.

was manufactured. Please see ¢ page 285,
Speed rating (letter code)
for a listing of the
speed rat ing letter codes and the maximum
speed at wh ich the t ires can be driven .
The speed rating letter code (¢
page 2 76) is
on the side wall of the tire
c::> page 284.
A WARNING
Winter tires have maximum speed limits
that may be lower than your vehicle's max­
imum speed. Always know the maximum
speed before driving off . Never drive faster
than the speed permitted for your specific
w inte r tires . This will cause damage to the
tires leading to an acc ident and serious
pe rsonal inj ury to you and yo ur passen­
gers .
A WARNING
Driving faster than the maximum speed
for which the winter tires on your vehicle
were designed can ca use tire fai lure in­
cluding a blowout and sudden deflation,
loss of control, crashes and serious per­
sonal injuries . Have worn or damaged tires
replaced immed iately.
- Winter tires have maximum speed rat ing
that may be lower than your veh icle's
maximum speed .
- Never drive faster than the speed for
wh ich the winter or other tires installed
on your vehicle are rated .
A WARNING
Always adjust your driving to the road and
traffic conditions. Never let the good ac­
celeration of the winte r tires and all-whee l
drive tempt you into taking extra r is k s . A l­
ways remember:
- When bra king, an a ll-wheel drive vehicle
hand les in the same way as a front drive
vehicle.
- Drive carefu lly and reduce your speed on
icy and slippery roads, even winter tires
cannot he lp under black ice conditions.
Tire s an d wheel s 289
'
@) For the sake of the env ironment
Use summer tires when weather condi­
tions permit. They are qu ieter, do not wear
as quickly and reduce fuel consumpt ion.
Snow chains
Snow cha ins may be fitted only to the rear
wheels, and only to certain tire sizes . Ask your
authorized Aud i dealer on which tire sizes
snow chains can be used.
The snow chains must have low-prof ile links
and must not be th icker than 0.53 inch
(13.5 mm) , includ ing the lock .
Remove wheel center covers and trim discs
before putt ing snow cha ins on your vehicle
c::> Q) . For safety reasons cover caps must then
be fitted over the wheel bolts. These are ava il­
able from autho rized Aud i dealers.
A WARNING
Using the wrong snow chains for your vehi­
cle or insta lling them incorrect ly can in­
crease the risk of loss of cont ro l leading to
serious personal injury.
- Snow chains are available in different
sizes. Always make sure to follow the in­
structions provided by the snow chain
manufacturer.
- When driving with snow chains never
drive faster than the speed permitted for
your specif ic snow chains.
- Always observe local regulations .
(D Note
-Remove snow chains before dr iv ing o n
roads not covered with snow to avoid
damaging tires and wearing the snow
chains down unnecessarily.
- Snow chains, which come into direct con ­
tact with the wheel rim , can scratch or
damage it . Therefore, make sure that the
snow chains are suitably covered. Check
the pos ition of the snow chains after
•
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29 0 T ire s and wheel s
driving a few yards and correct if neces­
sary. Follow the instructions from the
snow cha in manufacturer when doing so .
- If the Adaptive Air Suspension* should
malfunction, do not mount or use snow
chains because the vehicle will be ex­
tremely low. If you do dr ive with snow
chains on while the vehicle is at this lev­
el, the snow chains might severely dam­
age the wheelhouse and other parts of
the veh icle.
(!) Tips
Where snow cha ins are mandatory oncer­
tain roads, this normally also applies to
veh icles with all-whee l dr ive.
Wheel bolts
Wheel bolts must always be tightened to the
correct torque .
The design of wheel bolts is matched to the
factory installed r ims. If different rims are fit ­
ted, the correct wheel bolts with the r ight
l ength and correctly shaped bolt heads must
be used. This ensures t hat wheels a re fitted
secure ly and that the brake system f unctions
correctly .
I n ce rtain circumstances, you may not use
wheel bolts from a different vehicle -even if it
is the same mode l
<=?page 318.
.&_ WARNING
Improperly tightened o r maintained wheel
bolts can become loose ca using loss of
contro l, a co llision and serious persona l in­
jury.
- Always keep the wheel bolts and the
threads in the wheel hubs clean so the
wheel bolts can turn easily and be prop­
erly t ightened.
- Never grease or oil the wheel bo lts and
the threads in the wheel hubs. They can
become loose w hile driving if greased or
oiled, even if tightened to the specified
torque. -
On ly use wheel bolts that be long to the
rim being installed .
- Never use different wheels bolts on yo ur
veh icle.
- Always maintain the correct tightening
torque for the whee l bolts to reduce the
risk of a whee l loss. If the tightening tor ­
que of the wheel bolts is too low, they
can loosen and come out when the vehi­
cle is mov ing. If the tightening torque is
too high, the wheel bolts a nd threads
can be damaged and the whee l can be­
come loose.
(D Note
The specified torque for the wheel bolts is 120 ft lb ( 160 Nm) with a to le rance of
± 7,4 ft lb( ± 10 Nm) . T orque wheel bolts
diagonally. After changi ng a wheel, the
torque m ust be che cked as soon as possi­
ble with a to rque wrenc h - preferab ly by an
a uthorized Audi dea le r or q ualified work­
shop.
Low aspect ratio tires
Your Audi is factory-equipped w ith low aspect
ratio tires. These tires have been tho roughly
tested and been se lected specifically for your
model for their superb performance, road fee l
and hand ling under a variety of d riving condi­
tions . As k your au thor ized A udi dealer for
more de tails .
T he low aspect ratio of these t ires is ind icated
by a numera l of
55 or l ess in the tire's s ize
designation. The n umeral rep resen ts the ratio
of the tire's s idewa ll height in relation to its
tread width exp ressed in percentage . Conven ­
t iona l tires have a he ight/width ratio of 60 or
more.
The performan ce of l ow-a spect-r atio tire s is
particularl y sen sitive to imp roper inflation
pre ssure. It is therefo re important that low
a spect ratio tires are inflated to the specified
pressure and th at the inflation pressure is
regularly checked and mainta ined. Tire pres -
s u res should be checked at least onc e a ..,.

Changing a wheel
Before changing a wheel
Observe the following precautions for your
own and your passenger's safety when chang­
ing a wheel .
.,. After you experience a tire fa ilure, pull the
car well away from moving traffic and try to
reach
level gro und before you stop¢.&_ .
.. All passengers should
leav e the car and
move to a safe location (fo r instan ce, be hind
the guardra il) ¢.&_ .
.,. Engage the
parkin g brake to prevent your
vehicle from ro lling unintentionally ¢.&_ .
.. Move
selecto r le ver to p osition P ¢ .&_ .
1> Ifyou are towing a trai ler: unhitch the trail­
er from your veh icle.
.,. Block the diagonally opposite wheel with
the folding chocks or other objects .
.. Take the
jack and the inflatab le spare tire
out of the luggage compartment
¢ page 294.
& WARNING
You or your passengers cou ld be injured
while changing a whee l if yo u do not fol­
low these safety precautions:
- If you have a flat t ire, move a safe dis ­
tance off the road . Turn off the eng ine,
t ur n the emergency flashers o n and use
other warning devices to alert other mo­
torists .
- Make sure that passengers wait in a safe
place away from the vehicle and well
away from the road and traffic.
- To he lp prevent the veh icle from mov ing
sudden ly and possibly slipping off the
jack, always fully set the parking b rake
and block the whee l diagonally opposite
the wheel being cha nged with the fo ld­
ing chocks or othe r objects. When one
front whee l is lifted off the g ro und, plac­
ing the A utomat ic Transm iss ion in P
(Park) wi ll
not prevent the vehicle from
moving .
-
What do I do now? 297
-Before you change a whee l, be sure the
ground is level and firm. If necessary,
use a sturdy board under the jack.
- Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack
and the replaced tire in the luggage com­
partment
<=:>page 170 .
Changing a wheel
When you change a wheel , follow these­
quence described below step-by-step and in
exactly that order.
1. Activate the vehicle jack mode (only
vehicles with Adaptive Air S uspension)
¢ page 159 .
2. Remove the decorati ve wheel co ver* . For
more details see also <=:>
page 298, Deco­
rative wheel covers
or <=:> page 298,
Wheels with wheel bolt caps .
3. Loosen the wheel bolt s¢ page 298 .
4. Loca te the p roper mounting point for the
jack and align the jack be low that point
¢ page 299.
5. Lift the car with the jack Q page 299 .
6. Remove the wheel with the flat ti re and
then install the
inflatable spare tire
¢ page 300.
7. Tig hte n all wheel bolts lightly.
8 .
Lowe r the vehicle with the jack .
9. Use the wheel bolt w rench and
firmly
t ighten all wheel bolts¢ page 298 .
10. Replace the decora tive whe el co ver* .
11. Deactivate the vehicle jack mode (on ly
vehicles with Adaptive Air S uspension)
¢ page 159 .
A WARNING
Always read and follow all WARNINGS and
informat ion<=:>
& in Raising the vehicle on
page 300
and <=:> page 301.
•
•

2 98 What do I do now ?
After changing a wheel
A wheel change is no t complete without do­
ing the following .
"'Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack
and the replaced ti re i n the luggage com­
partment
¢ page 170.
"'As soon as possible, have the tightening
torques
on a ll wheel bo lts ch ecked with a
tor que wrench. The correct tigh ten ing tor­
que is 120
ft lb (160 N m).
"' Have the flat tire
replaced as soon as poss i­
b le.
@ Tips
- I f yo u notice t hat the wheel bolts are
corroded and difficult to turn w hile
changing a t ire, they should be re p laced
b ef ore yo u check the tighten ing torque.
- Drive at red uced s peed unti l y o u have the
t ig htening torq ues chec ked.
Decorative wheel covers
App lies to vehicles: with decorative wheel covers
The decorative wheel covers must be removed
first to access the wheel bolts.
Fig . 260 C han ging a w hee l: R em ovin g the whee l cove r
Removing
"'Insert the hook provided with the ve hicle
tool kit in the hole in t he hub.
"' Pull off the
decorat ive wheel cover
c:> fig . 260 .
' Wheels with wheel bolt caps
Applies to vehicles: with wheel bolts with caps
The caps must be removed first from the
wheel bolts before the bolts can be un­
s crewed .
Fig. 261 Chang ing a w heel: re m ov ing th e w hee l b o lt
caps
Removing
"' Push t he plastic clip provided with the ve hi­
cle tool kit over the w heel bo lt cap until it
engages .
"' Pull on th e
plastic clip to remove t he cap
c:> fig. 261 .
Refitting
"' Place t he caps over the whee l b olts and
push them back o n.
The caps are to protect and keep the wh eel
bolts clean.
Loosening and tightening the wheel
bolts
The wheel bolts mus t be loosened before rais­
ing the v ehicle .
Fig. 26 2 Cha ng ing a w hee l: loosening th e w hee l bo lts II--

Loosening
• Install the wheel bolt wrench over the
whee l bolt and push it down as far as it wi ll
go.
• Take tight hold of th e
end of the wrench
handle and turn the whee l bolts
counter­
clockwise
abou t one single turn in the di rec·
tion of arrow
c::> fig. 262 .
Tightening
• Install the wheel bolt wrench over the
wheel bolt and push it down as far as it will
go .
• Take tight hold of the
end of the wrench
handle and turn each wheel bolt
clockwise
until it is seated .
& WARNING
-Do not use force or hurry when changi ng
a whee l· you can cause the vehicle to slip
off the jac k and cause serious personal
injuries .
-Do not loosen the wheel bolts more than
one turn
before you raise the veh icle with
the jack. -You risk an injury.
(j) Tips
If a wheel bolt is very tight, you may find it
easie r to loosen by carefully pushing down
on the end of the wheel bolt wrench with
one foot only. As you do so, hold on to the
car to keep yo ur balance and take care not
to slip.
Raising the vehicle
The vehicle must be lifted with th e jack first
before the wheel can be removed .
Fig. 263 Sill pane ls: m arkin gs
What do I do now? 299
Fig. 264 Sill: p ositioning the jack
• Activate the vehicle jack mode* (only
veh icles with Adaptive Air Suspension)
c::> page 159 .
• Engage the parking brake to prevent your
vehicle from rolling unintentionally
• Move the
selector lever to position P .
• Find the marking (imprint) on the sill that is
nea rest the whee l that will be changed
c::>fig. 263. Behind the marking, there is a
lifting point on the sill for the jack.
• Turn the
jack located under the lifting point
on the sill to raise the jack until its arm@
c::> fig. 264 is located under the designated
plastic mount
c::> .&. c::> Q) .
• Align the jack so that its arm@ c::> fig. 264
engages in the designated lifting point in
the door s ill and the movable base® lies
flat on the ground. The base@ must be
ver­
tical
under the lifting point@.
• Wind the jack up further until the flat tire
comes off the ground
c::> .,& .
Position the jack only under the designated
lifting points on the sill
c::> fig. 263. There is
exactly
one locat ion for each whe el. The jack
must not be positioned at any other location
c::> .&. c::> Q).
An unstable surface under the jack ca n 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
hard, slippery surfaces
(such as tiles) use a rubber mat or similar to
prevent the jack from slipping
c::> ,&.. .,,.

300 What do I do now?
& WARNING
-You or your passengers could be injured
while changing a wheel if you do not
follow these safety precautions:
- Position the jack only at the designated
lifting points and align the jack. Other­
wise, the jack could slip and cause an injury if it does not have sufficient hold
on the vehicle.
- A soft or unstable surface under the
jack may cause the vehicle to slip off the jack. Always provide a firm base for
the jack on the ground . If necessary,
use a sturdy board under the jack.
- On hard, slippery surface (such as tiles)
use a rubber mat or similar to prevent
the jack from slipping.
- To help prevent injury to yourself and
your passengers:
- Do not raise the vehicle until you are
sure the jack is securely engaged.
- Passengers must not remain in the ve­
hicle when it is jacked up.
- Make sure that passengers wait in a
safe place 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
raise the jack.
(D Note
Do not lift the vehicle by the sill. Position
the jack only at the designated lifting
points on the sill. Otherwise , your vehicle
will be damaged.
Taking the wheel off /installing the
inflatable spare tire
Follow these instructions step-by-step for
changing the wheel
Fig. 265 Changing a wheel: alignment pin inside the
top hole
After you have loosened all wheel bolts and raised the vehicle off the ground, remove and
replace the wheel as follows:
Removing the wheel
.,. Remove the topmost wheel bolt completely
and set it aside on a
clean surface.
.,. Screw the threaded end of the
alignment
pin
from the tool kit hand-tight into the
empty bolt hole
¢ fig . 265.
.,. Then remove the other wheel bolts as de­
scribed above.
.,. Take off the wheel leaving the alignment pin
in the bolt hole ¢(D.
Putting on the inflatable spare tire
.,. Inflate the inflatable spare tire ¢ page 296
and push the wheel over the alignment pin.
"Screw in and tighten all wheel bolts
slightly.
.,. Remove the alignment pin and insert and
tighten the remaining wheel bolt slightly
like the rest .
.,. Turn the jack handle counter-clockwise to
lower the vehicle until the jack is fully re­
leased .
" Use the wheel bolt wrench to tighten all
wheel bolts firmly ¢
page 298 . Tighten
them
crosswise, from one bolt to the (ap­
proximately) opposite one, to keep the
wheel centered.

(D Note
When removing or installing the wheel,
the rim could hit the bra ke rotor and dam­
age the rotor . Wor k carefully and have a
second person help you.
- W hen mounting tires with
unidirectional
tread design
ma ke s ure the tread pat­
tern is pointed the r ight way
<=> page 301.
-The wheel bolts should be clea n and easy
to tu rn . Check for d irt and corrosio n on
t h e mat ing su rfaces of both the whee l
and the hub. Remove a ll dirt from these
su rfaces before remo untin g t he wheel.
Tires with unidirectional tread design
Tires with unidirectional tread design must be
mounted with their tr ead pattern point ed in
the right dire ction.
Using a spare tire with a tread pattern
intended for use in a specific direction
W hen using a spa re tire w ith a t read patte rn
in te nded fo r use in a specific direction, p lease
n ot e t he followi ng:
- The direction of rotation is marked by an ar­
row on the side of the tire .
- If the spare t ire has to be installed in the in ­
correct di rection, use the spa re tire only
tem porarily si nce th e tir e will not be able to
a ch ieve i ts op timum pe rfo rm ance chara cter­
is tics with reg ard to aq uaplani ng, noise and
wea r.
- W e recommend that you p ay pa rticular at­
tent io n t o this fact du ring wet weathe r and
t h at you adjus t your spee d to matc h roa d
con dit ions .
- Re place the fla t tire w ith a new one and
have it installed on your vehicle as soon as
poss ible to restore the hand ling advantages
of a unid irect iona l tire.
What do I do now?
Notes on wheel changing
P lease read t he i nfo rmat ion c:> page 284, New
t ires and replacing tires and wheels
if y ou a r e
go ing to use a sp are tire w hich is different
from the ti res on yo ur vehicle.
After yo u cha nge a tire:
- Check the tire pressure on the spare imme­
diately after installation .
- Have the wheel bolt tightening torque
che cked with a torque wrench as soon as
possible by your authorized Audi dealer or
a qualified workshop.
- With steel and alloy wheel rims, the wheel
bolts are correctly tightened at a torque of 120 ft lb (160 Nm) .
- If you notice that the wheel bolts are cor­
roded and difficult to turn while changing
a tire, they should be replaced before you
check the tightening torque.
- Repla ce the flat tire with a new one and
have it installed on your vehicle as s oon as
possible. Remount the wheel cover.
Until then, drive with extra care and at re­
duced speeds .
&_ WARNING
-
- If yo u are goi ng to e quip yo u r ve hicl e
wit h tires o r rims whi ch di ffer from those
which were fac to ry installed, t hen be
sure to rea d the information
c:> page 284,
New tires and replacing tires and
wheels.
- Always make s ure the damaged wheel o r
even a flat tire and the jack and t ool kit
are prope rly secured in the luggage com ­
pa rtme nt and are not loose in the pas ­
senge r compartment .
- In an accident or sudden maneuver they
could fly forwa rd, inj uri ng a nyo ne in the
veh icle.
- Always sto re damaged wheel , jack a nd
too ls sec urely in the luggage compa rt ­
men t. Othe rwise, in a n accide nt o r sud­
de n m aneuver they could fly forwa rd,
c a u sing i nju ry to passenger s in th e ve hi­
cle.
301
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