2014 AUDI S4 tow

Trailer towing tips
Important to know
Your vehicle hand les different ly when tow ing
a trailer because o f the addit ional weight and
d iffe ren t weight distribution . Safety, perform ­
ance and economy w ill greatly depend on how
caref ully you load your trailer and operate
your rig.
B efore you actua lly tow your trailer, pr actice
turning, stopp ing and bac king up in an area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you have become comp lete ly fam iliar with the way
your veh icle-trailer comb ination behaves and
responds.
Backing up is d ifficu lt a nd requires practice .
Backing up with a tra iler genera lly requires
steer ing action opposite to that when backing
up your vehicle without a trailer.
M aintain a g reater distance betwee n your ve­
h icle and the one in front o f you . You will need
mo re room to stop. To compensate for the
trailer, you will need a larger than normal
turning radius .
W hen pass ing, remember that yo u cannot ac ­
celerate as fast as yo u normally wo uld be­
cause of the added load. Make sure you have
e nough room to pass . After passing , allow
p lenty o f room fo r your tra iler before chang­
in g la nes aga in .
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rap id lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a tra iler during the break-in
period of you r vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your A udi may re­
quire more frequent maintenance due to
the extra load
o page 275.
Trailer towin g 203
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer . If it can­
not be avoided, do so only after doing the fol­ lowing:
When parking:
.. App ly the foot brake.
.. Have someone p lace chocks under both the
veh icle and the tra iler wheels .
.,. With chocks in place, slowly release t he
bra kes unt il t he whee l chocks absorb the
load .
.. Tu rn the whee ls towards the curb.
.,. App ly the par king b rake .
.. Place an a utomatic transm ission* in P, re ­
spectively a manual transmission in first or
reverse gear.
When restarting after parking:
.,. App ly th e foot br ake .
.. Start the en gine.
.. Move the selector lever to D/S, respect ively
a man ual transmiss ion in first gea r.
.. Release the parking bra ke and s low ly pull
out and away from the wheel chocks .
.. Stop and have someone retr ieve the wheel
chocks.
@ Tips
If you move the selector leve r of the auto­
matic transmissio n* to P before applying
the pa rking brake and before blocking the
whee ls, you may hav e to use mor e forc e
l ater to move the le ver out of the P posi­
tion.
•
•

not exceeded . Vehicle load includes everybody
and everything in and on the vehicle. These
l oad limits are techn ica lly referred to as the
ve hicle's
Gross Veh icle We ight Rat ing
("GVWR").
The "GVWR" includes the weight of the basic
veh icle, all factory insta lled accessories, a full
tank of fu el, oil, coolant and other fluids plus
maximum load. The maximum load includes
the number of passengers that the vehicle is
i n tended to carry ("seating capacity") with a n
assumed weight of 150 lbs . (68 kg) for each
passenger at a des igna ted sea ting pos ition
and the tota l we ight of any l uggage in the ve­
h icle. If you tow a trailer, the weight o f the
trailer hitch and the tong ue weight of the
l oaded trailer must be included as part of the
veh icle load.
The
Gro ss A xle Weight Rating ("GAWR") is
the maximum load that can be applied at each
of the vehicle's two ax les.
The G ross Vehicle We ight Rating and the
Gross Axle Weight Rating are listed on the
safety compliance sticker labe l located on the
driver's side B -pi llar . Your Audi has 5 seating
positions, 2 in the front and 3 in the rear for
tota l seating capacity of 5. Each seating posi­
tion has a seat belt¢
page 138, Safety belts.
The fact that there is an upper limit to your
veh icle's Gross Vehicle Weight Rating means
that the tota l weight of whatever is being car­
ried in the vehicle (including the weight of a
trailer hitch and the tongue weight of the
loaded trailer) is limited. The more passen­
ge rs in the veh icle or passengers who are
h eav ier than the standa rd weights assumed
mean that less weight can be ca rr ied as l ug­
gage.
The tire pressure labe l on you r Audi also lists
the maximum combined we ight of all of the
oc cu pants and luggage o r othe r ca rgo that
the vehicle can carry . For the location o f the
l abe l
¢page 234, fig. 189.
Tires an d wheel s 239
A WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
h icle contro l, a crash or other accident, se­
rious pe rsonal injury, and even death.
- Carrying more we ight than your veh icle
was des igned to carry will prevent the
veh icle from handling properly and in­
crease the risk of the loss of vehicle con­
trol.
- The brakes on a vehicle that has been
overloaded may not be able to stop the
veh icle w ith in a safe distance.
- Tires on a vehicle that has been overload­
ed can fail suddenly, incl uding a blowout
and sudden defla tion, causing loss of
contro l and a crash.
- Always ma ke sure that the total load be­
ing transpor ted - incl uding the weight of
a trailer hitch and the tongue weight of a loaded trailer -does not ma ke the vehi­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle We ight Rating.
Determining correct load limit
U se th e example below to ca l­
culate the total weight of the
pa ssengers and lu ggage or oth­
e r thing s that you pl an t o tran s­
po rt so that you can make sur e
that your vehicle will not be
o verloaded.
Steps for Determining
Correct Load Limit
1 . Lo cate th e statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF O C­
CUPANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NE VER E XCE ED XXX
KG OR XXX LBS"on your vehi-
c le 's pla card (tire inflation ..,
•
•

240 Tires and wheels
pressure label) ¢ page 234,
fig. 189.
2. Determine the combined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers from
"XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds
shown on the sticker
¢ page 234, fig. 189.
4. The resulting figure equals
the available amount of car­
go and luggage load capaci­
ty. For example, if the
"XXX"
amount equals 1400 lbs.
and there will be five 150
lbs. passengers in your vehi­
cle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load ca­
pacity is 650 lbs. (1400-750
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs.)
5. Determine the combined weight of luggage and cargo
being loaded on the vehicle .
That weight may not safely exceed the available cargo
and luggage load capacity
calculated in Step 4.
6. If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer, load from your trail­
er will be transferred to your vehicle
. Consult this manual
to determine how this re­ duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle .
... check the tire sidewall
(¢ page 242, fig. 193) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balancing, correct tire pressure and driv­
ing style.
Fig. 191 T ire tread: tread wear ind icato rs (TWI)
____ Jj
Fig. 192 Rotating tires for more even wear
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The original tires on you r vehicle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm) high "wear indicators"
cf> fig. 191 running across the tread. Depend-
ing on the make, there will be six to eight of
them evenly placed around the tire. Marks on
the tire sidewall (for example "TWI" or other ..,.

252 What do I do now?
What do I do now?
Vehicle tool kit
The tools ore stored underneath the floor
panel in the luggage comportment.
Fig. 195 Sedan Luggage compartment: tool kit
Fig. 196 allroad Luggage compartment: too l kit
When you need access to the vehicle tool kit
or jack*, you will need to take out the spare
tire and cover
Q page 2 52.
Depending on your vehicle's equipment, the
tool kit may also be located under the cargo
floor cover @
Q fig. 196 behind the seat back­
rest .
The vehicle tool kit includes:
- Hook for removing wheel covers*
- Alignment pin for changing the wheel
- Screwdriver with reversible blade
- Tool for changing light bulbs
- Reversible bit (reversible Torx bit for chang- ing light bulbs)
- Rod for jack
- Jack*
- Lug wrench
- Towing eye Some of the vehicle
items listed above are
provided on certain mode ls only or are option­
al extras.
Before returning the jack* to its p lace, retrac t
the jack arm fully.
A WARNING
-
- Never use the screw driver hex head to
tighten wheel bolts, since the bolts can­
not attain the necessary tightening tor­
que if you use the hex head, potentially
causing an acc ident.
- The factory-supplied jack is intended on­
ly for your vehicle model. Under no cir­
cumstances should it be used to lift
heavy vehicles or othe r loads; you risk in­
juring yourself.
- Never start the engine when the vehicle
is raised, wh ich could cause an accident.
- Support the vehicle securely with appro­ priate stands if work is to be performed
underneath the vehicle; otherwise, there
is a potential risk for injury.
Space-saving spare tire
(compact spare tire)
Appl ies to veh icles : w ith space -sav ing spare tire
The spore tire/wheel is located in the luggage
comportment under the cargo floor cover . It
is intended for short-term use only.
Fig . 197 Spare tire
Removing the spare tire
., lift the cargo floor by the plastic handle
Qfig. 197.
., Hook the handle into the luggage compart­
ment weather strip.

2 54 Wh at do I d o now ?
• Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack *
and the replaced tire in the luggage com­
partment ¢
page 134.
Stowing the infl ata ble spare tir e
• Release the air by unscrew ing the va lve
stem.
• Screw the valve stem back in afterwards.
• Wait a few hours before p lacing the wheel in
the spare wheel well¢.&_ .
• Secure the wheel with the large screw.
• Fold the cargo floor back down.
Aft er usi ng th e inflat able sp are wh eel
The inflatable spare tire can be re-used as
long as it is not damaged and is not worn
down to the tread wear indicators¢&. .
When you let the air out of the inflatable
spare tire, it does not assume its folded shape
again for several hours . Until then, it cannot
be p laced back in the spare wheel well and
stowed securely .
A WARNING
-Never use the spare tire if it is damaged
or if it is worn down to the tread wear in­
dicators.
- If the inflatable spare tire is more than 6
years old, use it only in an emergency and w ith extreme caut ion and carefu l
dr iv ing .
- The inflatable spare tire is intended only
for temporary and short-term use.
It
should be replaced as soon as possible
with the norma l wheel and tire.
- T he tire pressure value for the inflatable
spare t ire is located on the drive r's side
8-pilla r
¢page 234, fig. 190.
-Maximum perm iss ible speed is SO mph
(80 km/h).
- Avoid full-throttle acce le rat ion, heavy
braking, and fast corner ing.
- When the air is let out of the inflatable
spare wheel, it does not assume its fold­
ed shape for severa l hours. Until then, it
cannot be placed back in the spare wheel
we ll and stowed securely . -
Never drive with more than one inflata­
ble spare tire.
- For technical reasons, the use of tire
chains on the inflatable spare tire is not
perm itted. If it is necessary to drive with
tire chains, the inflatable spare wheel
must be mounted on the rear axle in the
event of a flat in a front tire . The newly
availab le rear whee l must then be instal­
led in place of the front whee l with the
f lat t ire. Instal ling the tire chain before
mount ing the wheel and tire is recom­
mended .
- L oose items in the passenger compart­
ment can cause serious personal injury
during hard braking or in an accident.
Never store the inflatable spare tire or
jack* and too ls in the passenger com­
partment.
(D Note
- The inflatable spa re tire has been deve l­
oped specifically for this vehicle model.
It must not be exchanged or used for
other vehicle models. Sim ilarly, inflata­
ble t ires from other vehicle models must
not be used.
- Normal summer or w inter tires must not
be installed on the inflatable t ire rim.
Inflating inflatable
spare tire
Applies to veh icles: w ith inflatable spare t ire
F ig. 199 Lu gg age compart ment: co mpressor
• Remove the cover for the veh icle tools and
remove the compressor. For some vehicle
models, the compressor is located in a hold-
er under the spare tire. .,.

~ Unscrew the va lve stem from the s pare tire .
~ Screw the tire filler hose from the compres­
sor firm ly onto the valv e of the spare tire.
~ In se rt the p lug from the compress or into a
socket of the vehicle¢
page 64.
~ Switc h the compressor on .
~ Let the compressor run until the valu e speci­
fied on the tire pressure label is reached ¢
page 234, fig . 190. Switch the compres­
so r off afte r runn ing for 12 minutes at the
most -danger of overhea ting!
A WARNING
The compressor and the tire filler hose can
become extremely hot while they are run­
ning -danger of burns!
(D Note
Switch the compressor off after running
for 12 minutes at the most -danger of
overheating! Allow the compressor to cool
down for a few minutes before you use it
again.
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, pu ll the
ca r well away from moving traffic and try to
r e ach
level gro und before yo u stop ¢ LI)..
~ All p assengers sho uld leave the car and
move to a safe loca tion (for instance, beh ind
the guardrai l) ¢
A .
~ Engage the parking brake to prevent your
vehicle from ro lling un intentionally ¢
A.
~ Shift into 1st gear on vehicles with manua l
transmission, o r move the
selector lever to
the P po sition
on veh icles with au toma tic
t ransmission .
~ If you are tow ing a tra ile r: u nhi tch the trail­
er from your veh icle.
~ T ake the jack ¢ page 252 and the spare tire
¢ page 253 out of the luggage compart ­
ment.
What do I do now? 255
A WARNING
You or your passengers could be injured
while c hanging a wheel if you do not fo l­
low these safety precaut ions:
- If you have a flat tire, move a safe d is­
tance off the road . T urn off the engine,
tur n the eme rg ency flashers on and use
other wa rn in g devices to a le rt othe r mo­
torists.
- Ma ke sur e that passengers wait in a safe
p lace away from the vehicle and well
away from the ro ad and traffic.
- T o help prevent the vehicle from moving
suddenly and possib ly sli pping off the
j a ck, alw ay s full y se t the par king br ake
an d block the wheel d iagonally opposi te
the whee l be ing changed w ith the fol d­
ing chocks or other objects. When one
front wheel is lifted off the ground, plac­ ing the Automatic Transmission in "P"
(Park) will
not prevent the vehicle from
moving .
- Before you change a wheel, be sure the
grou nd is level and firm. I f necessary,
use a sturdy board unde r the jack .
- Always sto re the vehicle tool kit, the
jack* and the replaced tire in the luggage compa rtment
¢page 134.
(D Note
If you are changing the whee l on a steep
i ncline, use a rock or s imilar object to
block the opposite whee l to prevent the
vehicle from moving.
(D Tips
Obey all laws.
Changing a wheel
When you change a wheel , follow these­
quence described below step-by-step and in
exactly that order .
l. Remove the decorative wheel cover* or
-
the wheel bolt caps* . For more details see..,.
•
•

266 Emergency situations
Emergency situations
General
This chapter is intended for trained emer­
gency crews and working per sonnel who
have the necessary tools and equ ipment to
perform these ope rations.
Starting by pushing or
towing
Q;) Note
Vehicle s with an automati c transmission
cannot be started by pushing or towing .
Starting with jumper
cables
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
discha rged or wea k batte ry, the battery can be
connected to the battery o f
another vehicle,
using a
pair of jumper cables to start the en­
g ine .
Jumper cables
Use only jumper cab les of sufficiently
large cross section to carry the starter cur rent
safely. Refer to the manufact urer's spec ifica­
ti ons.
Use on ly jumper cables with
insulated te rmi­
na l clamps wh ic h are d istinctly mar ked :
plus (+) cable in most c ases co lore d red
minu s (-) cable
in most cases colored black .
A WARNING
Batterie s cont ain e lec tricity, a cid, a nd gas.
A ny o f these c an ca use ve ry ser io us or f atal
in ju ry . F ollow the i nstruc tio ns below for
safe ha ndling of your ve hicle's bat tery.
- Alw ay s sh ield yo ur eye s and a vo id le an­
ing over the batte ry w henever p ossib le . -
A discharged battery can freeze at tem­
pe rat ures just below 32 °F (0 °C). Before
connecting a jumper cable, you must
thaw the fr ozen battery complete ly , ot h­
e rwise it cou ld explode.
- Do not allow batte ry acid to contact eyes
or skin . Fl ush any contacted a rea wi th
wate r im media tely.
- Imp roper use of a booster battery to
s tart a vehicle may cause an explosion.
- Vehicle batter ies generate explosive gas­
es . Keep sparks, flame and lighted ciga­
rettes away from ba tte ries .
- Do not try to jump start a ny ve hicle w ith
a low ac id leve l in the battery .
- The vo ltage of the booster batte ry m ust
a lso have a 12-Vo lt rat ing . The capacity
(A h) of the booster batte ry should not b e
lowe r than that of the discharged bat­
tery . U se o f batt erie s of d iffe ren t voltage
or subs tanti ally diffe ren t "Ah" rat ing
may c ause an exp losion and person al in­
ju ry .
- N ever ch arge a fr ozen bat te ry. Gas t rap ­
ped in the ice may ca use an ex plosion .
- N ever ch arge o r use a batt ery th at has
been fro zen. T he battery case may have
be weakened.
- Us e of batt erie s of di ffere nt vo ltag e or
substan tially differen t ca pa city (Ah) rat ­
i ng may cause an exp losion and injury.
T he capac ity (Ah) of the booster battery
should not be lower than that of the dis­
charged batte ry.
- Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed a ll
W ARNI NGS¢
page 214.
(D Note
- App lyi ng a hig her voltage booste r bat­
tery wi ll cause expens ive damage to sen­
sitive e lectronic components, such as
cont ro l units, relays, rad io, etc.
- There must be no electrical contact be­ twee n the vehicles as otherwise current
co uld already start to f low as soon as t he
posi tive(+) terminals a re con nected . ..,.

268 Emergency sit uat ions
-Jumper cables mus t be long enough so
that the vehicles do not touch.
- W hen connecting jumper ca bles, ma ke
sure t hat they cannot get caught in any
moving parts in the eng ine compart­
ment.
- Do not bend over the batteries - danger of chemical burns!
- The battery ce ll locking screws must be
tightened securely .
- Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
9 page 214.
Improper hook-up of jumper cables can r u­
in the generator.
- Always connect POSITIVE( +) to POS I­
TIVE(+), and NEGATIVE( -) to NEGATIVE
( - ) ground post of the battery manager
control unit.
- Check that a ll screw plugs on the battery
cells are screwed in firmly. If not, tighten
plugs p rior to connecting clamp on nega­
tive battery terminal.
- Please note that the procedure for con­ nect ing a jumper cable as described
above applies spec ifically to the case of
you r vehicle being jump started. When
you are giving a jump start to another ve­ hicle, do
not connect the negat ive( -) ca­
ble to the negat ive (-) term inal on the
discharged battery@)
9fig. 212. In­
stead, securely connect the negative(- )
cable to e ither a solid metal component
that is firm ly bolted to the engine block
or to the engine block itse lf. If the bat­
tery that is being charged does not vent
to the outside, escaping battery gas
could ignite and explode!
Emergency towing
with commercial tow
truck
General hints
Your Audi requires special handling for tow­
ing.
T he following information is to be used by
commercial tow truck operators who know
how to operate their equipment safely.
- Ne ver tow your Audi , towing will cau se
damage to the engine and tr an smi ssion .
- Ne ver wrap th e safet y chain s or winch ca­
ble s around the brak e lines.
- To prevent unne ces sary damage, your Audi
must be tr an sp o rt ed with a flat bed tru ck.
- To load th e vehi cle on to th e flat b ed, use
the towing l oop found in the ve hicle to ols
an d att ach to th e front or rea r anchorage
~page 269 and ~page 269 .
& WARNING
= -
A vehicle being towed is not safe for pas-
sengers. Never allow anyone to ride in a
vehicle being towed, for any reason.