2015 AUDI A3 CABRIOLET tires

242 Tires and wheels
forget to check the tire pres-ure, including a blowout
sure for the spare wheel and sudden deflation, caus-
¢page 262 .
ing loss of vehicle control.
When should I adjust the -The driver is responsible for
tire pressures? the correct tire pressures for
Adjust the tire pressure to the all tires on the vehicle
. The
applicable pressure values
load you are carry ing. After
are located on a sticker on
changing a wheel
or replacing
the driver's side B-pillar .
wheels you have to adjust the
-Only when all tires on the
tire pressures on all wheels. In
vehicle are filled to the car-
addition , you must then store
rect pressure, the tire pres-
the new tire pressures in the
sure monitoring system can
tire pressure monitoring sys-
work correctly.
tern ¢
page 258.
-The use of incorrect tire
A WARNING
-pressure values can lead to
Incorrect tire pressures and/
accidents or other damage.
or underinflation can lead Therefore it is essential that
sudden tire failure, loss of the driver observe the speci-
control, collision, serious per -
fied tire pressure values for
sonal injury or even death. the tires and the correct
-When the warning symbol pressures for the function of
[IJ appears in the instru-
the tire pressure monitoring
ment cluster, stop and in-
system.
spect the tires. -Always inflate tires to the
-Incorrect tire pressure and/ recommended and correct
or underinflation can cause tire pressure before driving
increased tire wear and can off.
affect the handling of the -Driving with underinflated
vehicle and stopping ability. tires bend more, letting
-Incorrect tire pressures them get too hot resulting
and/or underinflation can in tread separation, sudden
..
also lead to sudden tire fail-

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tire failure and loss of
control.
-Excessive speed and/over­ loading can cause heat
build -up, sudden tire failure
and loss of control.
-If the tire pressure is too low or too high, the tires
will wear prematurely and
the vehicle will not handle
well.
-If the tire is not flat and you do not have to change a
wheel immediately, drive at
reduced speed to the near­
est service station to check
the tire pressure and add air as required.
(D Note
Driving without valve stem
caps can cause damage to
the tire valves. To prevent
this, always make sure that
factory installed valve stem caps on all wheels are secure­
ly mounted on the valve.
@ For the sake of the environment
Underinflated tires will also
increase the fuel consump­
tion.
Tires and wheels 243
Tires and vehicle load limits
'
There are limits to the amount of load or weight that any vehi­
cle and any tire can carry. Ave­
hicle that is overloaded will not
handle well and is more diffi­
cult to stop. Overloading can
not only lead to loss of vehicle
control, but can also damage important parts of the vehicle
and can lead to sudden tire fail­
ure, including a blowout and
sudden deflation that can cause
the vehicle to crash.
Your safety and that of your passengers also depends on
making sure that load limits are
not exceeded. Vehicle load in­
cludes everybody and every­
thing in and on the vehicle .
These load limits are technical­ ly referred to as the vehicle's
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
("GVWR").
The "GVWR" includes the
weight of the basic vehicle, all
factory installed accessories, a
full tank of fuel, oil, coolant and other fluids plus maximum ""
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244 Tires and wheels
load. The maximum load in­
cludes the number of passen­
gers that the vehicle is intend­
ed to carry ("seating capacity")
with an assumed weight of
150 lbs (68 kg) for each pas­
senger at a designated seating
position and the total weight of
any luggage in the vehicle. If
you tow a trailer, the weight of
the trailer hitch and the tongue
weight of the loaded trailer
must be included as part of the
vehicle load .
The
Gross Axle Weight Rating
("GAWR") is the maximum load
that can be applied at each of
the vehicle's two axles.
The Gross Vehicle Weight Rat­ ing and the Gross Axle Weight Rating are listed on the safety
compliance sticker label locat­
ed on the driver's side 8-pillar.
Your Audi has 5 seating posi­
tions, 2 in the front and 3 in the rear for total seating capacity
of 5. Each seating position has
a safety belt
¢ page 138, Safe­
ty belts.
The fact that there is an upper
limit to your vehicle's Gross Ve­
hicle Weight Rating means that the total weight of whatever is
being carried in the vehicle (in­
cluding the weight of a trailer hitch and the tongue weight of
the loaded trailer) is limited.
The more passengers in the ve­
hicle or passengers who are
heavier than the standard
weights assumed mean that less weight can be carried as
luggage.
The tire pressure label on your
Audi also lists the maximum
combined weight of all of the
occupants and luggage or other
cargo that the vehicle can carry.
For the location of the label
¢page 235, fig. 172.
A WARNING -
Overloading a vehicle can
cause loss of vehicle control,
a crash or other accident, se­
rious personal injury, and
even death.
-Carrying more weight than your vehicle was designed to carry will prevent the ve­
hicle from handling properly
and increase the risk of the
loss of vehicle control.

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-The brakes on a vehicle that
has been overloaded may
not be able to stop the vehi­
cle within a safe distance.
-Tires on a vehicle that has been overloaded can fail
suddenly, including a blow­
out and sudden deflation,
causing loss of control and a
crash.
-Always make sure that the total load being transported
- including the weight of a
trailer hitch and the tongue
weight of a loaded trailer -
does not make the vehicle
heavier than the vehicles
Gross Vehicle Weight Rat­
ing.
Determining correct load
limit
Use the example below to cal­
culate the total weight of the
passengers and luggage or oth­
er things that you plan to trans­
port so that you can make sure
that your vehicle will not be overloaded.
Tires and wheels 245
Steps for Determining
Correct Load Limit
1. Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF OC­
CUPANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NEVER EXCEED XXX KG OR XXX LBS" on your ve­
hicle's placard (tire inflation
pressure label)
¢ page 235,
fig. 172.
2. Determine the combined
weight of the driver and pas­sengers 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
r:::> page 235, fig. 172.
4. The resulting figure equals the available amount of car­go 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. (1400-7 50
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs.)
5. Determine the combined
weight of luggage and cargo ""
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246 Tires and wheels
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 248, fig. 176) 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 in­
cluding proper installation and
balancing, correct tire pressure
and driving style.
Fig. 174 Tire tread: tread wear indi­
cators (TWI)
Fig. 175 Rotating tires for more even
wear
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The original tires on your vehi­
cle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm)
high "wear indicators"
¢ fig. 174 running across the
tread. Depending 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
symbols) indicate the positions
of the tread wear indicators.
Worn tires must be replaced. Different figures may apply in
other countries
¢ .&. .
Tire pressure
Incorrect tire pressure causes
premature wear and can cause
sudden tire blow-out. For this
reason, tire press ure must be
checked at least once a month
¢page 240.

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Driving style
Driving fast around curves,
heavy acceleration and hard
braking increase tire wear.
Rotating tires for more even
wear
For all four tires on your vehicle
to have the same service life,
we recommend that the front
and rear tires are rotated ac­
cording to the tire manufactur­
er's suggested tire rotation in­
tervals. Please remember the
following:
-Tire rotation intervals may dif­ fer from the vehicle service in­tervals outlined in your War­ranty
& Maintenance booklet .
-The longer one tire is used in one location on the vehicle ,
the more it wears at certain points; therefore, we recom­
mend that you follow the tire
manufacturer's suggested tire
rotation intervals.
-Vehicles with front-wheel drive experience more tread
wear on the front wheels com­
pared to all-wheel drive (quat­
tro).
-Please rotate ti res as shown
¢ fig. 175.
Tires and wheels 24 7
-Extra care must be taken when rotating direction-specific
tires ¢
page 268.
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new vehicles are
balanced. However, various sit­
uations during everyday driving
can cause them to become un­ balanced, resulting in vibra­
tions you can usually feel
through the steering wheel.
Unbalanced wheels must be re­
balanced to avoid excessive
wear on steering, suspension
and tires. A wheel must also be rebalanced when a new tire is
installed.
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment can
cause excessive tire wear, im­pairing the safety of the vehi­
cle. If tires show excessive
wear, have the wheel alignment checked by an authorized Audi
dealer or qualified workshop.
All-wheel drive
Vehicles with quattro must al­
ways have tires of the same size, construction and tread
type . For details see
¢ page 192 .
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248 Tires and wheels
A WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead
to loss of control, a crash and serious personal injury!
-Never drive a vehicle when the tread on any tire is worn down to the wear indica­
tors.
-Worn tires are a safety haz­
ard, they do not grip well on
wet roads and increase your risk of "hydroplaning" and
loss of control.
-Always keep chemicals that
can cause tire damage, such
as grease, oil, gasoline and brake fluid away from tires.
-Tires age even if they are
not being used and can fail
suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more
than 6 years old can only be used in an emergency and
then with special care and at lower speeds.
-Never mount used tires on your vehicle if you are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have
been damaged even though
the damage cannot be seen
that can lead to sudden tire
-failure and loss of vehicle control.
New tires and replacing
tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to
be broken in.
Fig. 176 Tire specification codes on
the sidewall of a tire
No. Description
CD Passenger car tire (where
applicable)
@ Nominal width of tire in
millimeters
® Ratio of height to width
(aspect ratio)
@ Radial
® Rim diameter code

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No. Description
® Load index and speed rat-
1ng
0 U.S. DOT tire identifica-
tion number
® Audi Original tire
® Sever snow conditions
@ Tire ply composition and materials used
@ Maximum load rating
@ Treadwear, traction and
temperature grades
@ Maximum permissible in-
flation pressure
The tires and rims are essential parts of the vehicle's design.
The tires and rims approved by
Audi are specially matched to
the characteristics of the vehi­ cle and can make a major con­
tribution to good road holding and safe handling when in good
condition and properly inflated
¢ &.
We recommend that all work
on tires and wheels be per­
formed by an authorized Audi dealer. They are familiar with
recommended procedures and
have the necessary special tools
and spare parts as well as the
Tires and wheels 249
proper facilities for disposing of
the old tires.
Authorized Audi dealers have
the necessary information about technical requirements
for installing or changing tires and rims.
Replacing tires and wheels
Tires should be replaced at least in pairs and not individu-
ally (for example both front
tires or both rear tires togeth- er).
Be sure to read and heed the in-
formation to the tire pressure
monitoring system
¢ page 258.
Always buy replacement radial
tires that have the same specifi-
cations as the tires approved
for your vehicle by Audi. Re- placement tires must always
have the same load rating spec-
ification as the original equip-
mentor approved optional tires
listed in the table¢
page 235.
Audi-approved specification
tires are specially matched to
your vehicle and its load limits, and can contribute to the im-portant roadholding , driving
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