Avoid damaging the
vehicle
When you are driving on poor roads, or over
curbs, steep ramps, etc., make certain that
low-lying parts such as spoilers and exhaust
system parts do not bottom out and get dam
aged.
T his is especially true for vehicles with low
slung chassis (sports chassis) and fully loaded
vehicles .
Driving through water
on roads
Note the following to avoid vehicle damage
when driving through water, for example on
flooded roads:
- T he water must not be any higher than the
bottom of the veh icle body.
- Do not d rive faster than wa lking speed.
..&, WARNING
After driving through wate r, m ud, slush,
etc., the brakes may be slow to take effect
because of wet brake rotors and pads . Dry
the brakes first by braking carefully to re
store the full braking effect.
(D Note
Vehicle components such as the engine,
transmiss ion, suspension or electrical sys
tem can be severely damaged by driving
through water.
- Check the depth of the water before driv
ing through it.
- Do not s top the veh icle, drive in reverse
or switch the engine off when driving
through water.
- Keep in mind that oncoming vehicles may create waves that raise the water
level and make it too deep for your vehi
cle to drive through safely.
- Avoid driving thro ugh sa lt water because
it can cause corrosion.
-
Dri vin g and en vironm ent 151
Catalytic converter
It is very important that your emission con
trol system (catalytic converter) is function
ing properly to ensure that your vehicle is run
ning in an environmentally sound manner .
.,. Always use lead-free gasoline¢ page 161 ,
Fuel supply.
.,. Never run the tank down all the way to emp
ty.
.,. Never put too much motor o il in your engine
c:::> page 170, Adding engine oil 9::71 .
.,. Never try to push- or tow-sta rt you r vehicle.
The catalytic converter is an efficient "clean
up" dev ice built into the exhaust system of
the vehicle. The cata lytic conve rter bu rns
many of the pollutants in the exha ust gas be
f ore they are re leased into the atmosphere .
T he exclusive use of unleaded fuel is critically
important for the life of the catalyt ic convert
er and prope r fu nct ion ing of the engine .
A WARNING
-
- Do not park or operate the vehicle in
areas where the hot exha ust system may
come in contact with dry grass, brush,
fue l spill or other materia l wh ich can
cause a fire .
- Do not apply additional undercoating or
rustproof ing on or near the exhaust
manifold, exhaust pipes, catalytic con
verter or heat shields. Dur ing driving, the
substance used for undercoating could
overheat and cause a fire .
(I) Note
-Be aware that just one tank filling with
leaded fuel w ill already ser iously de
grade the performance of the catalytic
converte r.
- Do not exceed the correct eng ine oil level
c:::> page 170.
- Do not drive until the fue l tank becomes
completely empty . The engine could m is-
fire. Unburned fuel could also get into
IJ,,
•
•
156 Vehicle care and cleaning
_& 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 .
@ 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, do not
wash the power top with a pressure
washer. -
To reduce the risk of damage, do not
wash decorative decals* with a pressure
washer.
- To reduc e 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 Dirty
~ page 56, Cleaning windshield wiper blades
Headlights/ Dirty Soft sponge with a mild soap solutional
tail lights
Sensors Dirty Sensors: soft cloth with a solvent-free cleaning product
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
212 What do I do now?
When removing or installing the wheel,
the rim could hit the brake rotor and dam
age the rotor. Work carefully and have a
second person help you.
Never use the hexagonal socket in the han
dle of the screwdriver to loosen or t ighten
the wheel bolts.
- Pull the reversible b lade from the screw
driver before yo u use the hexagonal
socket in the handle to turn the whee l
bo lts.
- When mounting tires with
unid irectional
tread design
make sure the tread pat
tern is pointed the r ight way
~page 212.
- The wheel bolts should be clea n and easy
to tu rn . Check for d irt and corrosion on
the mat ing su rfaces of both th e whee l
and the h ub. Remove a ll dirt from these
su rfaces before remo unti ng the wheel.
Notes on wheel change
Pl ease read the informa tion ~ page 192, New
tires and replacing tires and wheels,
if you are
going to use a spare t ire which is different
from the tires on your vehicle.
After you change a tire :
-Check the tire pressure on the spare imme
diately after mounting .
- Have the wheel bolt tightening torque
che ck e d with a torqu e wrench a s soon as
possible b y your auth orized Audi dealer or
a qualified ser vice station .
- With steel and alloy wheel rims , the wheel
bolts are correctly tightened at a torque of
90 ft lb (1 20 Nm ).
- If y ou notice while changing a tire that the
wheel bolts are co rroded and difficult to
turn , then the y should be repl aced befo re
you check the t ightening torque . -
Repla ce the flat ti re with a new one and
have it installed on your veh icle a s soon as
possible. Remount the wheel cove r.
Until then , dr ive with extra care and at re
duced speed s.
_& WARNING
-
- If you are going to eq uip your vehicle
wit h tires or rims which differ from those
which were factory installed, then be
sure to read the information
9 page 192,
New tires and replacing tires and
wheels.
- Always store the tools secu rely i n lug
gage compartment. Othe rwise, in a n ac
cident or s udden maneuver they cou ld fly
forwa rd, causi ng injury to passengers in
the vehicle.
Tires with unidirectional tread design
Tires with unidirectional tread design must be
mounted with their tread pattern pointed the
right direction.
A un idirectional tire can be identified by ar
rows on the sid ewall ,
which point in the direc
tion of the rota tion. Yo u m ust follow the
specified direction of rota tion. This is ne ces sa
r y in order fo r these tires to develop t heir op
timum character istics regard ing grip, road
noise, wear, and hydrop laning.