Engine cooling system
Coolant
The engine coolant performs two functions: it
keeps the engine from overheating and it pro
tects the engine from freezing in the winter .
The cooling system is sealed and generally re
qu ires little attention .
The cooling system has been filled at the fac
tory with a permanent coolant which does not need to be changed. The coolant consists of a
mixture of specially conditioned water and the
manufacturer's glycol-based coolant addi-
tive G13 antifreeze with anticorros ion addi
tives (50% for USA models; 60% for Canadian
models) . This mixture both assures the neces
sary frost protection and protects metal com
ponents in the engine's cooling system from
corrosion and scaling.
It also raises the boil
ing point of the coolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the coo l
ant in the summer by adding plain water .
The
proportion of coolant additive must be at
least 50% but not more than 60%
to main
tain antifree ze protection and cooling efficien
cy. If the coolant frost protection is too low,
the coolant could freeze and damage the vehi
cle heating and eng ine cooling system .
For year-round driving, antifree ze is added at
the factory for temperatures down to:
- -31°F(-35°C)USA
- -40 ° F ( - 40 °C) Canada.
I f you must add coo lant, use a mixture of wa
ter and coolant addit ive. Mixing the coolant
additive with distilled water is recommended.
& WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
c::;, .&. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 214.
(D Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
Checkin g and fillin g 221
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli
mate conditions. This is especia lly impor
tant if you live in a region where the win
ter is extremely co ld. If necessary, in
crease the proportion of coolant additive
to 60% .
- When adding coolant additive to your
cooling system, remember :
- We recommend using only coolant ad
ditive G12++ or G13 for your vehicle .
This coolant additive is available at au
thorized Audi dealers. Other types of
antifreeze can significantly reduce cor
rosion protection. The resulting corro
sion can cause a loss of coolant and se rious engine damage.
- Do not add any type of radiator leak seal
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant.
Adding radiator repair fluid may adverse
ly affect the function and performance of
your cooling system and could result in
damage not covered by your New Veh icle
Limited Warranty.
Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with
a quick glance.
Fig. 185 En gin e compar tment: Cover on the coo la n t
expansio n tan k
"' Before you check anything in the engine
compa rtme nt,
always read and heed all
WARNINGS c::;, .&, in Working in the engine
compartment on page 214.
"'Park your vehicle on a level su rface .
.,. Turn off the ignition .
.,. Read the engine coolant level from the cool
ant expansion tank
i=> fig . 185, c::;, page 216,
fig . 182. With a cold engine, the coolant Iii>
222 Check ing and filling
level should be between the "MIN" and
"MAX" markings. When the engine is warm,
the leve l may be slightly above the "MAX"
marking .
The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus
tration
c:> page 216.
To obtain an accurate reading, the engine must be switched
off.
The expansion tank in you r vehicle is equipped
with an e lectric coolant level sensor.
When the coolant level is too low, the warning light in the Auto-Check System
c:> page 17will
b link until you add coo lant and the level has
been restored to no rma l. Even though there is
an electric coolant level sensor, we still rec
ommend you check the coolant leve l from
time to time.
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cool ing
system. In the event of coolant loss, the cool
ing system should be inspected immediately
by your authorized A udi dealer.
It is not
enough merely to add coolant.
I n a sealed system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheat ing.
A WARNING
The cooling system is unde r 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
dow n.
- Protect yo ur 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 wh ile ap
plying light, downward pressure on the
top of the cap .
- To avoid be ing burned, do not spill ant i
freeze or coolant on the exhaust system
'
or hot engine parts. Under certa in cond i
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine coo l
ant can catch fire.
(D Note
Do not a dd any type of radiator leak sea l
ant to your veh icle's engine coolant. Add
i ng radiator repa ir fl uid may adverse ly af
fect the funct ion and performance of your
cooling system and could result in damage
not covered by your New Veh icle L imited
War ranty .
Adding coolant
Be very careful when adding engine coolant.
Before you check anyth ing in the eng ine com
partment, always read and heed all WARN
INGS
c:> A in Working in the engine compart
ment on page 214 .
Requirement: There m ust be a res idual
amount of coo lant in the expans ion tank
c:> (]) .
.,.. Turn off the eng ine .
.,.. Let the engin e cool down.
.,.. Place a thick rag over the coo lant expansion
tank
c:> page 221 , fig. 185 and carefully turn
the cap counter-clockwise
c:> .&_ .
.,.. Add coo lant m ixed in the correct rat io
c:> page 221, Coolant up to the MAX ma rk
ing.
.,.. Mak e s ure t hat the fl uid leve l remains sta-
b le. Add more coo lant if necessary.
.,.. Twist the cap on again
tightly .
Replacement engine coo lant must confo rm to
ex act spec ific at ions
c:> page 221, Coolant.
We recommend using only coolant add it ive
G12 ++, G13 or i n an emergency G 12+. Do
not
use a different add it ive. In an emergen cy use
plain wa ter until yo u can ge t the correct addi
tive and can restore t he correct ratio. This
sho uld be done as soon as possib le .
If you have los t a cons iderab le amount o f
coolant, the n you sho uld add cold ant ifree ze
and co ld wate r on ly when the engine is cold.
Always use
n ew engine coo la nt w hen refilling . .,.
Do not fill coolant above the "MAX" mark. Ex
cess coolant will be forced out through the pressure relief valve in the cap when the en
gine becomes hot .
_& WARNING
-The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of
scalding from hot coolant by following
these steps .
- Turn
off the engine and allow itto 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
applying light, downward pressure on
the top of the cap .
- To avoid being burned, do not spill an
tifreeze or coolant on the exhaust sys
tem or hot engine parts . Under certain
conditions, the ethylene glycol in en
gine coolant can catch fire.
- Antifreeze is poisonous. Always store an
tifreeze in its original container and well
out of the reach of children.
- If you drain the coolant, it must be
caught and safely stored in a proper con
tainer clearly marked "poison".
(D Note
- Do not add coolant if the expansion tank
is empty. Air could enter the cooling sys
tem and damage the engine. If this is
the case, do not continue driving . Seek
professional assistance.
- Coolant pollutes the environment and
could cause an engine fire . Excess cool
ant will be forced out through the pres
sure relief valve in the cap when the en
gine becomes hot.
- If, in an emergency, only water can be
added, the correct ratio between water
and antifreeze ¢
page 221 must be re
stored as soon as possible.
Checking and filling 223
'
@) For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant should not be reused. Al
ways dispose of used coolant while observ
ing all environmental regulations.
Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by
itself .
The radiator fan is driven by the engine via the
V-belt. The viscous clutch regulates the speed
of the fan according to the temperature of the coolant.
An auxiliary electric radiator fan* switches on
and
off depending on coolant temperature
and other vehicle operating conditions.
After you switch the engine
off, the auxiliary
fan can continue running for up to 10 minutes
- even with the ignition
off. It can even switch
on again later by itself ¢.&. , if
- the temperature of the engine coolant rises
du e to the h eat build-up from th e engin e in
the engine compartment, or
- the engine compartment heats up because
the vehicle is parked in intense sunlight.
_& WARNING ~
-To reduce the risk of personal injury nev-
er touch the radiator fan .
- The auxiliary electric fan is temperature
controlled and can switch on suddenly
even when the engine is not running.
- The auxiliary radiator fan switches on au
tomatically when the engine coolant reaches a certain temperature and will
continue to run until the coolant temper
ature drops. •
•
282 Index
Child restraints
Dang er of using child restraints in th e
front seat . .... .... ......... ..... . 147
Where can I get addit ional information
about child restra ints and their use? . . 185
Child restraint system anchors ..... .. . 181
Ch ild safety .. ................ ... ... 167
Conve rtible locking retracto r .. .. .....
177
Important safety instructions fo r using
ch ild safety seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 0
I mportant things to know when driving
with chi ldren ........... ... .. .... .
167
Installing a child restraint using the
LATCH system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Lower anchorages .......... .. .... . 182
Mounting and releasing the anchorage
hook .. .... .......... ...... ... .. . 182
Tether anchors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Tether straps .......... .. .. .. .. .. . 183
Child safety locks Power windows . ..... .... .. .. .. .. .. 43
Rear doors . .............. ... .. .. .. 42
Child safety seats .................. .
173
Booster seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 5
Convertible child seats .... .. .. .... .
17 4
Convertible locking retracto r .. .. .....
177
Danger of using child restraints in the
front seat .. .......... ...... ... .. . 147
H ow do I properly install a child safety
seat in my vehicle? ...... .. .. .. .. .. .
170
Infant seats ............. .. .. .. .. . 173
I nstalling . .. .... ........ .. .. .... .
177
LATCH system .. .. ...... .. .. .. .... . 182
Safety instructions ................ . 170
Unused safety belts on the rear seat . .
172
C ig are tte lighte r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Cleaning .. .. ................ ... .. .
204
Climate controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
C limate control system
Automatic recirculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
79
Supp lementary heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
synchronizing .. ........ .. .. .. .... .. 79
C lock ....... .......... ...... ... .. .. 12
C losing
Power windows .......... .. .. .... .. 43
Sliding/tilting sunroof ...... ..... .. .. 44
Sunshade .. ................ ... ... . 44 Closing/opening
at the lock cylinder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
by remote control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
with the centra l locking switch ... .... . 36
wi th the conven ience key . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Cold tire inflation pressure ........ .. .. 234
Coming home ..... ................ .. 48
Compact spare ti re .............. .... 252
also refer to Spare tire .......... .. .. 252
Compartments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Compass in the mirror ..... ... ..... .. . 56
Compliance ..... .. .. ... ........ .. .. 278
Consumer Information . . . . . . . . . . 136, 275
Contac ting NHTSA . ... .......... .. .. 136
Controls Cleaning . ..... .. .. ... ........ .. .. 206
Convenience key Indi cator lights .. ... .......... .. .. . 84
Starting engine (S TART ENGINE STOP
button) ... .... .. ... .. ........ .. .. . 83
Stopping the engine (START ENGINE
STOP button) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Switching on ignition ........... .... . 83
unlocking/locking ............. .... . 36
Convenience opening/closing ..... .. .. . 43
Convertib le child safety seats ......... 17 4
Convertib le locking retractor
Activating ... .. .. ............. .. ..
179
Deact ivat ing ... .. ... .... ....... ... 180
Using to secure a child safety seat
1.77, 179
Coolant system .... .. ........... .. .. 221
Cooling mode (automatic climate control) 77
Cooling System Expansion tank . .. .......... ...... . 221
Cornering light .... .. ........... .. .. . 47
Cruise control Changing speed .. ............. .. .. . 89
Presetting your speed .......... .... .
90
Switching off .... ... .......... .. .. . 90
Switching on ... .. ... .......... .. .. . 89
Cruising range ... .. ............. .... . 25
(upholder .. .... .. ............. .... . 65
D
Data recorder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Date display .... .. ............. .... . 12