Vehicle care and clean ing
General information
Regular, proper care helps to maintain yo ur
ve hicle 's value. It can also be a requirement
when subm itting wa rranty claims for corro
sion damage and paint defects on the body .
The required cleaning and care prod ucts can
be obtained from your authorized Audi dea ler
or a qualified workshop . Read and follow the
i nstructions for use o n the packaging.
A WARNING
-Us ing clea ning and care p rodu cts incor
rect ly can be dange rous to y our hea lth.
- Always store cleaning and care products
o ut of r each of childre n to redu ce the r is k
of po isoni ng.
@) For the sake of the environment
- Preferably use environmentally-friendly
produ cts when b uying cleaning agents .
- Do not dis p ose of leftover cleaning and
ca re p rod ucts with household trash .
Car washes
-
The longer that deposits such as insects, bird
d rop pings , tree sap o r road sa lt rema in on the
ve hicl e, the more t he surface can be dam
aged. High tempe rat ures such as those
caused by s unlight in cr ease t he corrosive ef
fect.
B efore washing, wet heavy deposits w ith ple n
t y of wate r.
A lso, was h the underside of your ve hicle once
road salt sto ps be ing used fo r the season.
Pressure wa shers
When washing your ve hicles w ith a pressure
washer, always follow the operating instruc
tions provided w ith the pressure washe r. Th is
i s especially important in rega rd to t he pres
sure and sprayi ng di sta nce. Do not aim the
sp ray d irectly at seals on side w indows, doors,
Vehicle care and cleaning 203
t h e hood, the rear lid o r the sunroof * or at
ti res , rubber hoses, insulating material, sen
sors * or camera lenses *. Keep a d istance o f at
l east 16 inches (40 cm).
Do no t remove snow and ice wi th a pressu re
washe r.
Neve r use ro tary no zzles or high pressure no z
z les.
T he wate r temperature must not be above
1 4 0 ° F (60 °C) .
Automatic car washes
Spray off the ve hicle before washing.
Make sure that the w indows and roof * are
closed and the winds hield wipers are
off . Fol
low instructions from the car wash operator,
especially if there are accessories attached to
you r vehicle.
If possible, use car washes that do not have
brushes .
Only use car washes where the vehicle re
mai ns stat io na ry an d the was hing equipmen t
moves around the ve hicle when washing and
drying. Car washes that m ove t he vehicle
thro ugh the car wash using a chain are not
recommended.
Wa shing by hand
Clean t he ve hic le starting from the top and
wor king down us ing a soft sponge or cleaning
brush. Use solvent-free clean ing products .
Washing vehicles with matte finish paint
by hand
To avoid damaging the paint when washing,
first remove dust and large particles from
you r vehicle. Insects, grease spots and fi nger
pri nts are best removed w ith a spec ial cleane r
fo r matte finish paint .
Apply the prod uct using a microfiber cloth. To
avo id damag ing the pa int surface, do not use
too much pressure.
Rinse the vehicle thoro ughly with water. Then
clean using a neutra l shampoo and a soft mi-
crofiber cloth. ..,.
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204 Vehicle care and cleaning
Rinse the vehicle thoroughly again and let it
air dry. Remove any water residue using a
shammy .
Stubborn deposits such as bird droppings or
tree sap are best removed with plenty of wa
ter and a microfiber cloth.
A WARNING
-Only wash the vehicle when the ignition
is off and follow the instructions from
the car wash operator to reduce the risk
of accidents .
- To reduce the risk of cuts, protect your
self from sharp metal components when
washing the underbody or the inside of
the wheel housings.
- After washing the vehicle, the braking ef
fect may be delayed due to moisture on
the brake rotors or ice in the winter. The
brakes must be dried first with a few
careful brake applications .
(D Note
-If you wash the vehicle in an automatic
car wash, you must fold the exterior mir rors in to reduce the risk of damage to
the mirrors. Power folding exterior mir- rors* must only
be folded in and out us
ing the power folding function.
- To prevent paint damage, do not wash
the vehicle in direct sunlight.
- To reduce the risk of damage to the sur
face, do not use insect removing spong
es, kitchen sponges or similar items.
- Matte finish painted vehicle compo
nents :
- To reduce the risk of damage to the
surface, do not use polishing agents or
hard wax.
- Never use car wash cycles that apply
protective wax.
It can destroy the
matte finish effect.
- Do not place any stickers or magnetic signs on vehicle parts painted with matte finish paint. The paint could be
damaged when the stickers or magnets
are removed.
@) For the sake of the environment
Only wash the vehicle in facilities specially
designed for that purpose. This will reduce
the risk of dirty water contaminated with
oil from entering the sewer system.
Cleaning and care information
When cleaning and caring for individual vehi
cle components, refer to the following table.
The information contained there is simply rec
ommendations. For questions or for compo- nents that are not listed,
refer to an author
ized Audi dealer or a qualified workshop. Also
follow the information found in~& .
Cleaning exterior
Component Situation Solution
Wiper blades
D irty ~ page 49, Cleaning windshield wiper blades
Headlights/
Dirty Soft sponge with a mild soap solutiona>
tail lights
Sensors/
Dirty Sensors: soft cloth with a solvent-free cleaning product
camera lenses Camera lenses: soft cloth with an alcohol-free cleaning
solution
Snow/ice Hand brush/solvent-free de-icing spray
Wheels Road salt
Water
Brake dust Acid-free special
cleaning solution
206 Vehicl e c are and cle aning
Component Situation Solution
Tex tile s,
Stains adhering to Vacuum cleaner
Vin yl, the surface
A lcan ta ra Water -based stains Absorbent cloth and mild soap solutiona>
such as coffee, tea,
blood, etc.
O il-based stains Apply a mild soap solutiona >, blot away the d issolved oil
such as oil, make- or dye, treat afterward w ith water, if necessary
up, etc.
Special stains such Special stain remover, blot with absorbent material,
as ballpoint pen, treat afterward with mild soap solutiona >, if necessary
na il polish, latex
pa int, shoe polish,
etc.
N atu ral l eathe r Fresh stains Cotton cloth with a mild soap solution a>
Water-based stains Fresh stains: absorbent cloth
such as coffee, tea, Dr ied stains: sta in remover suitable for leather
blood, etc.
Oil-based stains Fresh stains: absorbent cloth and stain remover suitable
such as oil, make- for leather
up, etc. dried stains: Oil cleaning spray
Special stains such Stain remover suitable for leather
as ballpo int pen,
na il polish, latex
paint, shoe polish,
etc.
Care Regular
ly apply conditioning cream that protects from
light a nd penetrates into the material. Use specially-col-
ored conditioning cream, if necessary.
Carbon part s Dirty Clean tlhe same way as plastic parts
a) Mil d soap so lution : m ax im um two ta b les poons neu tral soa p in a lite r of wate r
& WARNING
The windshie ld may not be treated with
water-repe lling windshield coating agents.
Unfavorab le conditions such as wetness,
darkness, or low sun can result in in
creased glare. W iper blade chatter is also
possible .
(V Note
-Headlights /tail li ghts
- Never clean headlights or tail lights
w ith a dry cloth or sponge. - Do not use any cleaning product that
contains alcohol, because they could
cause cracks to form.
-W hee ls
- Never use any paint polish or other
abrasive mater ials.
- Damage to the protective layer on the
rims such as stone chips or scratches
must be repa ired immediately.
- Sen sor s/c ame ra len ses
-Never use warm or hot water to re-
move snow or ice from the camera
le ns. This could cause the lens to crack . ""
-Never use abrasive cleaning materials
or alcohol to clean the camera lens.
Th is could cause scratches and cracks .
-Window s
-Remove snow and ice on w indows and
exterior mirrors with a plastic scraper.
To avoid scratches, move the scraper only in one direction and not back and
forth.
- Never remove snow or ice from w in
dows and m irrors using wa rm or hot
wate r because this cou ld cause crac ks
to form.
- To avoid damage to the rear window
defogger, do not apply any stickers on
the heating wires on the inside of the
w indow .
-Dec or ati ve p arts /trim
-Never use chrome care or cleaning
products.
-Paint
-To reduce the risk of scratches, the ve-
hicle must be free of dirt and dust be
fore polishing or waxing.
- To prevent paint damage, do not polish
or wax the veh icle in direct sunlight.
- To reduce the risk of paint damage, do
no t polish away rust film .
-Di splay s
-To avoid scratches, do not use dry
cleaning methods on displays .
-Controls
- Make sure that no flu ids enter the con-
trols, because this cou ld cause dam
age .
-Safet y belts
- Do not remove the safety belts to clean
t hem.
- Never clean safety belts or their com
ponents chemically or with cor ros ive
fluids or solvents and never a llow
sharp objects to come into contact
with the safety belts . This cou ld cause
damage to the belt webbing.
- If the re is damage to the webb ing, the
connections, the retractors or the buck
les, have them rep laced by an author-
V ehicl e ca re a nd cl eanin g 207
ized A udi dealer or a qualified work
shop.
- Te xtile s/Vin yl/ Alcant ara
- Never treat Vinyl/Alcantara w ith leath-
er care products, solvents, floor polish,
shoe polish, stain remover or s imilar
p rod ucts.
- To avoid damage, have stubborn stains
removed by an authorized Aud i deale r
or a qualif ied workshop.
- Never use steam cleaners, brushes,
hard sponges, etc. when cleaning.
- Objects w ith sharp edges such as zip
pers, rivets on clothing or be lts can
cause damage to the surface.
- Open hook and loop fastene rs, for ex
ample on cloth ing, can damage seat
covers. Make sure hook and loop fas
tene rs a re closed.
- Natural leather
- Neve r treat leather w ith solvents, floor
polish, shoe polish, stain remover or
similar products.
- Objects with sharp edges such as zip·
pers, rivets on clothing or be lts can
cause damage to the surface.
- Never use steam cleaners, brushes,
hard sponges, etc. when cleaning.
- To help prevent the leather from fad
ing, do not leave the vehicle in d irect
sunlight for long per iods of t ime. If
leaving the vehicle parked for long pe
riods of time, you should cover the
leather to protect it from d irect sun
light.
(D Tips
- Insects are easier to remove from paint
that has been freshly waxed.
- Regular waxing can prevent rust film
from forming.
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208 Fuel supply and filling your fuel tank
Fuel supply and filling
your fuel tank
Gasoline
Fuel supply
Appl ies to vehicles: with gasoline engine
Using the right fuel helps keep the environ
ment clean and prevents engine damage .
Fuel recommendation
The fuel recommended for yo ur vehicle is un
l e aded premium
grade gasoline . Audi recom
mends using TO P TI ER D ete rgent Gaso line
wi th a m inimum octane ra ting o f 91 A KI ( 95
RO N). Fo r more informa tio n o n TOP TIER De
tergent Gasoline, p lease go to the o fficia l
websi te (www. topt iergas .com) .
The re commended gasoline octane rati ng for
your engine can a lso be fo und o n a label loc at
ed on the ins ide of the fuel filler flap . This ra t
ing may be specif ied as AK I or RO N.
Your veh icle may also be operated using un
l eaded regular gasoline with a minimum oc
tane rating of 87 AKI/91 RO N. However, using
87 A KI/91 RON octa ne fue l wi ll slightly re
d uce eng ine perfo rmance .
Use unleaded ga soline only. U nleaded g aso
l ine is available th rougho ut the USA, Canada,
a nd i n most E uropean countries . We recom
mend that you do not ta ke yo ur vehicle to
areas or co untries where unleaded gasoline
may not be ava ilable.
F or mo re informat io n on refue ling your ve hi
cle, see
~ page 209.
Octane rating
Octane rating ind icates a gaso line's abili ty to
res ist eng ine dam ag ing "knoc k" ca use d by
premature ign ition and detona tion. Therefore,
buy ing the correct grade of gaso line is very
important to he lp prevent possible engine
damage and a loss of engine performance.
Gasoline mos t commonly used in the Unite d
States and Canada has the following octane r
atings t hat can usu a lly be found on the fi ller
pump:
- Premium Gra de: 91 -96 A KI
- Regular Grade : 87 -90 AKI
Explanation of the abbreviations:
AKI = Anti K nock In d ex = (R+M )/2 = (RON
+ MON)/2
R ON= Resear ch Octane Numb er
MON = Motor Octane Num ber .
(D Note
-Do not use a ny fue l w it h o ctane rat ings
lower tha n 87 A KI or 91 RO N othe rwise
expensive engi ne damage w ill occur.
- Do
not use leaded gasoli ne. The use of
leaded gasoline w ill severely damage
yo ur v ehicle's cata lytic co nve rter and its
ability to co ntrol exha ust em issions .
Blended gasoline
Applies to vehicles: with gasoline engine
Use of gasoline containing alcohol or
MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether )
You may use unleaded g asoline blende d wi th
alcohol o r MTBE (commonly referred to as
oxygenates) if the blende d mixture meets t he
f o llow ing criteria:
Blend of gasoline methanol (wood alcohol or
methyl alcohol)
- Anti -kno ck index must be 87 A KI or higher.
- Blend must contain no more t han 3% meth-
anol.
- Blend must contain more than 2% co -sol -
vents.
Blend of gasoline and ethanol (grain alcohol
or ethyl alcohol)
- Anti -knock index must be 87 AKI or higher .
- Blend must not conta in mo re tha n 10%
ethanol.
Blend of ga soline and MTBE
- Anti-knock index must be 87 AKI or higher. IJll,
Checking and filling Engine hood
Releasing the engine hood
The engine hood is released from inside the
vehicle .
Fig. 186 Dr iver footwell: release lever
Fig. 187 Rocker switch under the hood
Make sure the wiper arms are not raised up
from the w indshield. Otherw ise the paint
could be damaged.
.. Pull the lever under the instrument panel in
the d irect ion of the arrow~
fig. 186.
.. Raise the hood slightly~ &-
.. Press the rocker switch under the hood up
ward
~ fig. 187. This re leases the catch .
.. Open the hood .
A WARNING
Hot engine coo lant can burn you.
- To reduce the r isk 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.
Checkin g and fillin g 213
Working in the engine compartment
Be especially careful whenever you work in
the engine compartment.
W hen ev er y ou must p erform an y wor k in the
en gine com pa rtm ent , for e xample checking
a nd filling diff ere nt fluid s, th ere is a risk of
inju ry, burn s and accid ents. To pr eve nt p er
so nal inju ry always observ e the foll owing
W ARNING S. The engin e compartm ent of any
v e hicle i s a haza rdou s area
~ ,& .
h WARNING
To help avoid injury, before yo u check any
thing under the hood:
- Turn off the engine.
- Sw itch off the ignition.
- Apply the parking brake.
- Move selector leve r to P (Park).
- Always let the engine cool down. Hot
components w ill burn skin on contact .
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coo lant escaping from the engine
compa rtment. Wait unt il no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care
fu lly opening the hood.
- Keep ch ildren away from the engine com
pa rtment.
- Never sp ill fluids on hot engine compo
nents . They can cause a fire .
- Never touch the rad iator fan. The auxili
ary electric fan is temperat ure controlled
and can switch on suddenly .
- Never open the coolant reservoir cap
when the engine is still warm. The cool
ant system is p ressu rized and hot cool
a nt cou ld spray o ut.
- Protect your face, hands and arm from
steam or hot engine coolant by plac ing a
thick rag ove r the cap when you open the
coo lant rese rvoir.
- Do not remove the engine cover under
any circumstances. This inc reases the
ris k of burns.
- If work on the fue l system o r the elec tri
cal system is necessary:
Checking and fillin g 215
Engine compartment
Engine compartment overview
These are the most important items that you can check.
Fig. 188 Typical l ayout for conta iners and engine o il filler cap
@ Jump start poin t(-) with hex
head screw .. .. ..... ... .. .. . 226, 264
@ Jump start point(+) under a cov-
er .. .. ... ..... ...... ...... 226, 264
@ Brake fl uid reservo ir ((0)) . . . . . 22 2
© Engine oil filler cap ("1:::r.) . . . . . 218
® Coolant expansion tank (-L) . . . 220
© W indshield/headlight washer
container
(0) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
_& WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
Q .&. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 213.
-
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine in your Audi needs the right kind
of oil.
T he eng ine in your Audi is a sophisticated
powerplant that was built to exacting specifi
cations. This eng ine needs the right k ind of
engine oil that meets specifications regarding
quality and viscosity so that it can r un
smooth ly and reliably. Choosing the right o il
and changi ng oil within the t ime and mileage
in tervals p rin ted in you r vehicle's Wa rranty
&
Maintenance booklet matters a lot more to
day than it did years ago . Audi has deve lope d
a specia l quality sta ndard for engine oil t hat
will help assure that your vehicle's engine w ill
get the lubrication it needs for proper opera
tion.
fig. 188. With a cold engine, the coolant
lev el should be between the "min" and
"max" markings. When the engine is warm,
the level may be slightly above the "max"
marking .
The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus
t ration
<=> page 215.
To obtain an accurate reading , the engine
must be switched
off.
The expansion tank in your vehicle is equipped
with an electric coolant level sensor.
When the coolant level is too low, the warning
light in the Auto-Check System<=>
page 15 will
illuminate until you add coolant and the level
has been restored to normal. Even though
there is an electric coolant level sensor, we
still recommend you check the coolant level
from time to time .
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling
system. In the event of coolant loss, the cool
ing system should be inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer. It is not
enough merely to add coolant .
In a
sealed system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheating.
&_ WARNING
-
The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of scald
ing from hot coolant by following these
steps.
- Turn
off the engine and allow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by covering the
cap with a large, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in
a counter-clockwise direction while ap
plying light, downward pressure on the
top of the cap.
Checking and filling 221
-To avoid being burned, do not spill anti
freeze or coolant on the exhaust system
or hot engine parts. Under certain condi
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine cool
ant can catch fire .
(D Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak seal
ant to your vehicle 's engine coolant. Add-
ing radiator repair fluid may adversely af
fect the function 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.
Before you check anything in the engine com
partment,
always read and heed all WARN
INGS <=>.&. in Working in the engine compart
ment on page 213.
"'Turn off the engine.
"'Let the engine cool down .
"' Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank
<=> page 220, fig. 191 and carefully
twist the cap counter-clockwise <=>_& .
"'Add coolant mixed in the correct ratio
<=> page 220, Coolant.
"'Twist the cap on again tightly.
Replacement engine coolant must conform to
exact specifications <=>
page 220, Coolant.
We recommend using only coolant addi-
tive G12++, G13 or in an emergency G12+. Do
not use a different additive. In an emergency
use plain water until you can get the correct
additive and can 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 cold antifreeze
and cold water only when the engine is cold.
Always use
new engine coolant when refilling.
Do not fill coolant above the "MAX" mark. Ex -
cess coolant will be forced out through the ..,.
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