200 Tires and wheels
handling when in good condition and properly
inflated
¢ .&. .
We recommend that all work on tires and
wheels be perfo rmed by an authorized A udi
dealer. They are familiar with recommended
procedures and have the necessary special
tools and spare parts as well as the proper fa
cilities for disposing of the old tires .
Authorized Audi dealers have the necessary information about technica l requirements for
installing or changing tires and r ims.
Replacing tires and wheels
Tires should be rep laced at least in pairs and
not individually (for example both front tires
or both rear tires together).
Be sure to read and heed the information to
the tire pressure monitoring system
¢ page 201.
A lways buy rep lacement radial tires that have
the same specifications as the tires approved
fo r your vehicle by Audi. Replacement tires
must always have the same load rating speci
fication as the original equipment or approved
optional tires listed in the table ¢page 193.
Aud i-approved specification tires are specially
matched to your vehicle and its load limits,
and can contribute to the important road hold
ing, driving characteristics, and safety of the
vehicle. The table (q page 193) lists specifica
tions of the tires approved for the Audi mod
els covered by your Owner's Literature .
The tire pressure labe l located on driver's side
B-pillar (¢ page 193, fig. 150) lists the speci
f ications of the orig inal equipment tires in
stalled on your veh icle at the time it was man
ufactured .
Federal law requires tire manufacturers to
place standardized information on the s ide
wall of all tires q fig. 152. This information
identifies and describes the fundamental
characterist ics, the quality grade of the tire
and also provides a tire ident ificat ion number
fo r safety standard certificat ion and in case of
a recall.
Tire specifications
Knowledge of tire specifications makes it eas
ier to choose the correct tires. Radial tires
have the tire specifications marked on the
sidewa ll, for examp le:
P235 / 35 R 19 91 Y
This conta ins the following information :
P Indicates the tire is for passenger cars
235 Nominal tire width in mm of the tire
from sidewall edge to sidewall edge. In
general, the larger the number, the wider
the tire
35 Height/w idt h ratio in percent (aspect ra-
t io)
R Tire construct ion: Radial
19 Rim diameter code (in inches)
91 Load rating code
Y Speed rating letter code
XL (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or "RF") indicates
t h at the t ire is a"Reinforced" or an "Extra
Load " tire
M+S (or "M/5") Indicates that the ti re has
some mud and snow capability
The tires could also have the information of
direction of rotat ion q page 189.
Tire manufacturing date
The manufact uring date is also indicated on
the tire sidewall (possibly only on the inner
s ide of the wheel):
"DOT ... 2213 ... "means, for examp le, that
the tire was produced in the 22nd week of
2013.
Speed rating (letter code)
The speed rating letter code on the whee ls in
dicates the maximum permissible road speeds
q
.&. in Winter tires on page 204 .
p up to 93 mph (150 km/h)
Q up to 99 mph (158 km/h)
R up to 106 mph ( 170 km/h)
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)
206 Tires and wheels
and handling under a variety of driving condi
tions. Ask your authorized Audi dea ler for
more details.
The low aspect ratio of these tires is indicated
by a numeral of
55 or less in the tire's size
designation. The numeral represents the ratio
of the tire's sidewall height in relation to its
tread width expressed in percentage . Conven
tional tires have a height/width ratio o f 60 or
more .
The performance of low-aspect-ratio tires is
particularly sensitive to improper inflation
pressure. It is therefore important that low
aspect ratio tires are inflated to the specified
pressure and that the inflation pressure is regularly checked and maintained . Tire pres·
sures should be checked at least once a
month and always before a long trip
~ page 195, Checking tire pressure.
What you can do to avoid tire and rim
damage
L ow aspect ratio t ires can be damaged more
ea5i ly by impact with potho le5, curb5, gullie5
or ridges on the road, particularly if the tire is
underinflated .
In order to minimize the occur rence of impact
damage to the tires of your vehicle, we recom
mend that you observe the following precau
tions :
- Always maintain recommended inflation
pressures. Chec k your tire pressure every
2.000 miles (3.000
km) and add air if neces
sary .
- Drive carefu lly on roads with potholes, deep
gullies or ridges. The impact from driving
t h ro ugh or over such obstacles can damage
yo ur tir es. Impact with a curb may also
cause damage to your tires.
- After any impact, immediately inspect your
tir es or have them inspected by the nearest
authorized Aud i dealer. Replace a damaged
t ir e as soon as possible.
- Inspect your t ires every 2.000 miles (3.000
km) for damage and wear. Damage is not al
ways easy to see . Damage can lead to loss of
air and underinflation, wh ich could eventu- ally cause
tire failure. If you believe that a
tire may have been damaged, replace the
tire as soon as possible.
- These tires may wear more quickly than oth
ers.
- Please also remember that, while these tires
deliver responsive handling, they may ride
less comfortably and make more noise than
other choices.
Reduced performance in winter/cold
season conditions
All tires are designed for certain purposes.
The low aspect ratio, ultra h igh performance
t ir es or iginally installed on your vehicle are in
tended for maximum dry and wet road per
fo rmance and handling . They are not suitable
for cold, snowy or icy weather conditions. If
you drive under those circumstances, you
sho uld equ ip your vehicle with all-season or
winter tires, which offer better traction unde r
those conditions. We suggest you use the rec
ommended snow or all-season t ires specified
for your vehicle, or their equivalent .
Refer to~
page 203 for more de tailed infor
mation regarding winter tires.
Tire pressure
monitoring system
General notes
Each tire, including the spare (if provided),
sho uld be checked monthly when co ld and in
flated to the inflation pressure recommended
by the veh icle manufact urer on the vehicle
placard or tire inflation pressure label (If your
vehicle has tires of a different size than the
s ize indicated on the vehicle placard or tire in
flat io n pressure label, you should dete rmine
the proper t ire inflation pressure for those
t i r es.).
As an added safety feature, your veh icle has
been equipped with a tire pressure monitoring
system ( TPMS) that illum inates a low tire
pressure telltale when one or more of you r
t ir es is significantly under-inflated. According -
ly, when the low tire pressure telltale ..,.
216 What do I do now?
Removing the wheel
.. Use the hexagonal socket in the screwdriv
er handle
to comp letely turn out the top
most wheel bolt and set it aside on a
clean
sur face .
.. Screw the threaded end of the
alignment
pin
from the tool kit hand-tight into the
now vacant bolt hole
o fig. 162.
.. Then completely unscrew the other wheel
bolts as described above .
.. Take off the wheel leav ing the alignment pin
in the bolt hole
o(D .
Putting on the wheel
.. Lift the spare wheel and carefully slide it
over the alignment pin to guide it in place
o@.
.. Use the hexagonal socket in the screwdr iver
handle to screw in and tighten all wheel
bolts
slightly .
.. Unscrew the alignment pin and insert and
tighten the remaining whee l bolt slig htly
like the rest.
.. Turn the jack handle counter-clockw ise to
lower the vehicle until the jack is fully re
leased .
The wheel bolts must be clean and turn easily.
Check the contact surfaces of wheel and hub. Remove contaminants on these surfaces be
fore installing the wheel.
The hexagonal socket in the screwdriver han
dle makes it easier to handle the wheel bolts.
The reversible blade should be removed.
When mounting
unidirectional tires, observe
the direction of rotation
o page 214.
«I) Note
When removing or installing the wheel,
the rim could hit the brake rotor/ceramic
brake rotor* and damage the rotor. Work
carefully an have a second perso n he lp
you .
1l You need the appropriate adapte r to tigh ten the anti
theft whee l bo lts
c:> page 214.
(D Tips
Never use the hexagonal socket in the han
dle of the screwdriver to loosen or tighten
the wheel bo lts.
Tightening wheel bolts
.. Fit the wheel bolt wrench over the wheel
bolt and push it down as far as it will go
ll.
.. Close your grip around the end of the
w rench handle for maximum torque and
turn each wheel bolt
clockwise until it sits
tight .
Have the
tightening torque of the wheel bolts
checked as soon as possible with a to rque
wrench. It should be 120 Nm .
Check the
tire pressure as soon as possible.
Return the veh icle tool k it to its proper place.
A WARNING ..,___
Loosening the wheel bolts is prohibited;
danger of an acc ident!
(D Tips
- Never try and use the hexagonal socket
in the handle of the screwdriver to loos
en or t ighten the wheel bo lts.
- If you have determined that wheel bolts are corroded and difficult to turn, the
bolts must be replaced before check ing
the torque .
- Until the t ightening torque is checked,
dr ive at reduced speeds as a precaution.
Notes on wheel change
-
Please read the information o page 199, New
tires and replacing tires and wheels,
if you are
go ing to use a spa re tire wh ich is different
from the tires on your vehicle.
After you change a tire:
-Che ck the tire p re ss ure on the spare imme
diatel y afte r mounting.
- Hav e the wheel b olt tightening torque
checked with a torque wrench a s soon a s
possib le by you r auth orized Audi dealer or
a qu alified ser vice sta tio n.
- With steel and allo y w heel rim s, the wheel
bolts are correctl y tight ened at a to rq ue of
90 ft lb (1 20 Nm ).
- If yo u notice while changin g a ti re th at the
wheel bolts are co rrod ed and diff icult to
turn , then they should be repl aced before
y ou check the t ighten ing to rqu e.
- Replace the flat t ire with a new one and
ha ve it installed on your vehicle as soon as
possib le . R emount th e wh eel co ver .
Until then, driv e with extra care and at re
d uced speeds.
A WARNING
- If you are going to equip your vehicle
with t ires or rims wh ich differ from those
w hich were factory installed, then be
sure to read the informat ion
~page 199,
New tires and replacing tires and
wheels.
- Always store the tools securely in lug
gage compa rtment. Otherw ise, in an ac
c ident o r sudden mane uver they could fly
f orward, causing inju ry to passengers in
the vehicle .
(D Note
Do not use commerc ia lly available t ire
sealants. Othe rwise, the elec trical compo
nents of the tire pressure monitoring sys
tem* will no longer work properly and the
sensor for the tire pressure monitoring
system wi ll have to be replaced by a qua li
fied workshop.
What do I do now? 217
Jump-starting
General
If necessary, the engine can be started by
connecting it to the battery of another vehi
cle.
If the engine should fail to start because of a
discharged or weak battery, the battery can be
connected to the battery of
another vehicle,
us ing a
pair of jump er cabl es to start the en
gine.
Both batteries must be rated at 12 volts . The
capacity (Ah) of the booster battery must not
be substantia lly less than the capac ity of the
discharged battery .
Jumper cables
Use only jumper cables of suff ic ient ly large
cro ss se ction to safely car ry the starter cur
rent . Refer to the manufacturer's specifica
tions .
Use only jumper cab les which have
insulated
term inal clamps and are properly marked for
dist inction:
plu s(+) cable : in most cases colored r ed
m inu s(-) cable :
in most cases colored black
A WARNING ~
Batteries contain e lectric ity, acid, and gas .
Any of these can cause very serious or fata l
injury. Follow the instructions below for
safe handling of your vehicle's battery.
-Always shield your eyes and avo id lean-
ing over the battery whenever poss ible.
- A discharged battery can a lready freeze
at temperatures just below 32 °F (0 °(). Before connect ing a jumper cable , the
frozen battery must be thawed com
pletely, othe rwise it could explode .
- Do not allow battery acid to contact eyes
or skin . Flush any contacted area with
wate r immediately .
- Improper use of a booster battery to
start a vehicle may cause an explosion. •
•