2015 AUDI A3 CABRIOLET wheel bolts

252 Tires a nd whee ls
tires beca use they meet the
h ighest standards regarding
safety and driving characteris ­
t ics when used correctly. Your
autho rized Audi dealer w ill
g lad ly provide you with more
information.
Tire ply composition and materials used
T he number of plies indicates
the number of layers of rubber­
coated fabric in the tire. In gen­
eral, the greater the number of
plies , the more weight a tire
can support . Tire manufactur­
ers also must indicate the ma­
ter ia ls in the tire, wh ich include
steel, nylon, polyester, and oth­
ers .
Ma ximum Load Rating
This number indicates the max­
imum load in kilograms and
pounds that can be carried by
the tire.
Tire quality grading for
treadwear, traction , and
temperature resistance
Tread wear, traction and tem­
perature grades¢
page 254.
Maximum Permissible
Inflation Pressure
This number is the greatest
amount of air pressure that
should ever be put in the tire
under normal driving condi­
tions.
A WARN ING
-Using incorrect or unmatch­
ed tires and/or wheels or improper tire and wheel
combinations can lead to loss of control, collis ion and
serious personal injury.
-Always use tires, rims and
wheel bolts that meet the
specifications of original
factory-installed tires or
other combinations that
have been specifically ap ­
proved by the vehicle manu­
facturer.
- 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

256 Tires and wheels
loss of control, crashes and serious per­
sona l injuries . Have worn or damaged tires
replaced immediate ly.
- Winter tires have maximum speed rating
that may be lower than your vehicle's
maximum speed .
- Never drive faster than the speed for
which the winter or other tires installed
on your vehicle are rated.
A WARNING
Always adjust your driving to the road and
traffic conditions. Never let the good ac­
celeration of the winter tires and all-wheel
drive tempt you into taking extra risks. Al­
ways remember:
- When braking, an all-wheel drive vehicle
handles in the same way as a front drive
vehicle .
- Drive carefully and reduce your speed on
icy and slippery roads, even winter tires
cannot help under black ice conditions.
@) For the sake of the environment
Use summer tires when weather condi­
tions permit. They are quieter, do not wear
as quickly and reduce fuel consumption.
Snow chains
Snow chains may be fitted only to the front
wheels, and only to certain tire sizes. Ask your
authorized Audi dealer on which tire sizes
snow chains can be used.
If you are going to use snow chains, then you
must install them on the front wheels at
l east.
The snow chains must have low-profile links
and must not be thicker than 0.53 inch
(13.5 mm), including the lock.
Remove wheel center covers and trim discs
before putting snow chains on your vehicle
q 0 . For safety reasons cover caps must then
be fitted over the wheel bolts. These are avail­
able from authorized Audi dealers.
A WARNING
Using the wrong snow chains for your vehi­
cle or installing them incorrectly can in­
crease the risk of loss of control leading to
serious personal injury.
- Snow chains are available in different
sizes . Always make sure to follow the in­
structions provided by the snow chain
manufacturer.
- When driving with snow chains never
drive faster than the speed permitted for
your specific snow chains.
- Always observe local regulations.
@ Note
-Remove snow chains before driving on
roads not covered with snow to avoid
damaging tires and wearing the snow
chains down unnecessarily .
- Snow chains, which come into direct con­
tact with the wheel rim, can scratch or
damage it. Therefore, make sure that the
snow chains are suitably covered. Check
the position of the snow chains after
driving a few yards and correct if neces­
sary. Follow the instructions from the
snow chain manufacturer when doing so.
@ Tips
Where snow chains are mandatory on cer­
tain roads, this normally also applies to
vehicles with all-wheel drive .
Wheel bolts
Wheel bolts must always be tightened to the
correct torque.
The design of wheel bolts is matched to the
factory installed rims. If different rims are fit­
ted, the correct wheel bolts with the right
length and correct ly shaped bolt heads must
be used. This ensures that wheels are fitted
securely and that the brake system functions
correctly . .,..

M N ,....
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In certain circumstances, you may not use
wheel bo lts from a different vehicle -
even if it
i s the same mode l
Qpage 284.
A WARNING
Improperly tightened or maintained wheel
bolts can become loose caus ing loss of
control, a collision and ser ious personal in­
jury .
- Always keep the wheel bolts and the
threads in the wheel hubs clean so the
wheel bolts can turn easily and be prop­
erly t ightened.
- Never grease or oil the wheel bolts and
the threads in the wheel hubs. They can
become loose w hile d riving if greased or
o iled,
even if tightened to the spec ified
torq ue.
- Only use wheel bo lts that belong to the
rim being ins talled.
- Never use different whee ls bolts on your
vehicle .
- Always maintain the correct tightening
torque fo r the wheel bolts to reduce the
risk of a wheel loss. If the tigh teni ng tor­
que of the wheel bolts is too low, they
can loosen and come out when the vehi­
cle is moving . If the tightening torque is
too high, the whee l bolts and threads
can be damaged and the wheel ca n be­
come loose .
(D Note
The specified torque for the wheel bo lts is
90 ft lb (120 Nm) w ith a tolerance of
± 7,4 ft lb(± 10 Nm). Torque whee l bolts
diagonally. After changing a wheel, the
torque must be checked as soon as possi­
b le with a torque wrench -prefe rably by an
author ized Audi dealer or qualified wo rk­
shop.
Low aspect ratio tires
Your Audi is factory-equipped with low aspect
ratio tires . These tires have been thorough ly
tested and been selected spec ifically for your
model for the ir superb performance, road feel
Tire s an d wheel s 257
and handling under a variety o f driving condi ­
tions. Ask your authorized A udi dealer for
more details .
T he low aspec t ratio of these tires is ind icate d
by a numera l of
55 or le ss in the tire's size
designation. The numera l represents the ratio
of the t ire's sidewa ll height in relation to its
tread width expressed in percentage.
Conven­
tiona l tires have a he ight/w idth rat io of 60 or
more .
The performance of low-a spect-ratio tire s is
particularl y sens it iv e to improper inflation
pressure. It is therefore important that low
a spect ratio tir es are inflated to the specified
pre ssure and that the inflation pr essure i s
regularly checked and ma intain ed . Tire pr es­
s ure s should be checked at lea st on ce a
month and alway s bef ore a long trip
~ page 240 , Checking tire pressure .
A Word about Low Aspect Ratio and High
Performance Ti res
Hig h pe rformance tires are des igned for bet­
ter performance and handling in warm cli­
mates. When driving in cold, snowy or icy
weather, you sho uld equ ip your vehicle w it h
four all-season or winter tires, which
offer
better traction under those condit ions. We
suggest you use the Audi recommended win­
te r or a ll-season tires specified for you r Audi.
High performance tires a lso have a lower as ­
pect ratio that aids performance and han­
dling . Driving over rough or damaged road
surfaces, as well as debr is, cu rbs and other
obstacles can cause serious damage to
whee ls, tires, vehicle body, and suspens ion
parts . B e carefu l to avo id road hazards and re­
du ce your speed , espec ia lly if your vehicle is
equipped wi th low prof ile tires .
Please a lso remember when making your se­
lection that, wh ile these tires deliver respon­
s ive handling, t hey m ay ride less comfo rtably
and make more noise than o thers . Finally,
these tires may wear more quickly than other
c h oices.
IJJ>
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What do I do now? Luggage compartment
lid emergency release
In case of an emergency, the rear lid can be
opened from the inside using the trunk es­
cape handle .
Fig. 178 Rear lid: emergency release lock cylinder
.,. Insert the key into the lock cylinder near the
hand le .
.,. Turn the key counterclockwise .
General information
.,. Park the vehicle as far as possib le from mov­
ing traff ic in the event of a flat tire. In the
event of a flat tire, park the vehicle on a lev­
el surface. It you are on a steep incline, be
especially careful.
.,. Set the parking brake .
.,. Switch the emergency flashers on .
.,. Put on a reflective vest, if avai lable .
.,. Set up the warn ing t riang le, if available .
.,. Have the passengers exit the vehicle. They
shou ld move to a safe place, for example
behind a guard rail.
.&_ WARNING
Pay attention to the steps above . They are
for your protection and the for the safety
of other drivers.
.&_ WARNING
Improper use of the vehicle jack can cause
ser ious personal inju ries .
- Never use the screw driver hex head to
tighten wheel bolts, since the bolts can-
What do I d o now ? 261
not attain the necessary tightening tor­
que if you use the hex head, potentially
causing an accident.
- The factory-supplied jack is intended on­
ly for your vehicle model. Under no c ir­
cumstances should it be used to lift
heavy veh icles o r other loads; you risk i n­
juring yourself .
- Never start the engine when the vehicle
is raised, wh ich could cause an acc ident.
- Support the vehicle securely with appro­
priate stands if work is to be performed
underneath the vehicle; otherwise , there
is a pote ntia l risk for injury .
- Never use the jack supplied with your Aud i on another vehicle , part icularly on a
heav ier one. The jack is only su itable for
use on the veh icle it came with .
a) Tips
- Some of the onboard items listed above
are provided on certai n models only or
are opt ional ext ras.
- Before stor ing the jack*, ma ke sure it is
wound back down as far as it w ill go.
Equipment
Vehicle tool kit
Applies to vehicles: with vehicle tool kit
Fig. 179 Luggag e compar tment: cargo floor cover
folde d upward
The vehicle tool kit is located in the luggage
compartment under the cargo floor cover
¢fig . 179 .
Hook the plast ic hook CD into the luggage
compartment seal.

264 What do I do now?
-Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack
and the replaced tir e in the luggage com­
partment ¢
page 132.
Changing a wheel
When you change o wheel, follow these­
quence described below step-by-step and in
exactly that order .
1. Remove the decorative wheel cover*. For
more details see also¢
page 264, Deco­
rative wheel covers
or ¢ page 265,
Wheels with wheel bolt caps.
2 . Loosen the wheel bolts¢ page 265 .
3. Locate the proper mount ing point for the
jack and align the jack below that point
¢page 266.
4. Raise the car with the jack ¢ page 266.
5. Remove the
wheel with the flat tire and
then install
the spare ¢ page 267.
6. Tighten all wheel bolts lightly.
7 .
Lowe r the vehicle with the jack.
8 . Use the wheel bolt wrench and
firmly
tighten all whee l bolts c::> page 265.
9. Replace the decorative wheel cover*.
A WARNING
Always read and follow all WARNINGS and
information
c::> .&. in Raising the vehicle on
page
266 and c::> page 268.
After changing a wheel
A wheel change is not complete without the
doing the following .
• Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack*
and the replaced tir e in the luggage com­
partment ~
page 132 .
• Check the tire pressure on the spare wheel
i mmediately after mount ing it.
• As soon as possible, have the
tightening
torques
on a ll wheel bo lts checked with a
torque wrench. The correct tightening tor­
que is 90 ft lb (120 Nm).
• Have the flat tire
replaced as soon as poss i­
ble.
(D Tips
- If you notice that the wheel bolts a re
corroded and difficult to turn while
chang ing a tire, they should be rep laced
before you check the tightening torque.
- Drive at reduced speed until you have the
tightening torques checked.
- After changing a whee l, the tire pressure
in all four tires must be checked/correct­
ed and the tire pressure monitoring indi­
cator must be stored in the MMI
c::>page260.
Decorative wheel covers
Applies to vehicles: wit h decorative whee l covers
The decorative wheel covers must be removed
first to access the wheel bolts .
Fig. 183 Chang ing a wheel : Remov ing th e w heel cover
Removing
.,. Insert the hook (provided with the vehicle
tool kit) in the hole in the whee l hub cover .
.,. Pull
off the decorative wheel cover
c::>fig.183.

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Wheels with wheel bolt caps
Applies to vehicles: with whee l bolts with caps
The caps must be removed first from the
wheel bolts before the bolts can be un­
screwed.
Fig . 184 Changing a wheel: removing the wheel bolt
caps
Rem oving
• Push the pla stic clip (provided w ith the vehi­
cle tool kit) over the whee l bolt cap unt il the
inner reta iners on the clip align with the
edge of the cover.
• Remove the cap w ith the
pl as tic clip (vehicle
tool kit)
¢ fig. 184 .
Refitting
• Place the caps ove r the wheel bo lts and
push them back on .
The caps are to protect and keep the wheel bol ts clean.
Loosening and tightening the wheel
bolts
The wheel bolts must be loosened before rais­
ing the vehicle .
Fig . 185 Changing a wheel: loosening the whee l bo lts
What do I d o now ? 265
Loosen ing
• Slide the wheel wr en ch onto the wheel bo lt
as far as it wi ll go .
• Take tight hold of the
end of the wrench
handle and turn the wheel bo lts
c ounter ·
cloc kwi se
about one single turn in the direc­
tion of arrow¢
fig. 185.
T ightening
• Slide the wheel wrench onto the wheel bolt
as far as it w ill go.
• Take tight hold of the
end of the wrench
handle and turn each wheel bolt
clo ck wis e
until it is seated.
A WARNING
- Do not use force or hurry whe n chang ing
a wheel - you can cause the vehicle to slip
off the jack and cause ser ious personal
injuries.
- Do not loosen the wheel bo lts more than
one turn
befo re you raise the vehicle with
the jack. - Yo u risk an injury.
(D Tips
- Never use the hexagona l socket in the
hand le of the screwdr iver to loosen or
t ighten the wheel bolts.
- If a wheel bolt is very tight, you may find
it eas ier to loose n by carefully pushing
down on the end of the wheel bol t
wrench wi th
one foot only. As you do so,
hold on to the car to keep you r balance
and take care not to slip .

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-To help prevent injury to yourself and
your passengers:
- Do not raise the vehicle until you are
sure the jack is secu rely engaged.
- Passengers must not remain in the ve­
h icle when it is jacked up.
- Make sure that passengers wait in a
safe place away from the vehicle and
well away from the road and t raffic.
- M ake sure jack position is correct, ad­
just as necessary and then conti nue to
ra ise the jack .
- Changes i n temperature or load can af­
fect the height of the ve hicl e.
CD Note
Do not lift the vehicle by the sill. Pos ition
the vehicle jack only at the des ignated lift­
ing points o n the sill. Othe rwise, your vehi­
cle will be damaged.
Taking the wheel off/installing the spare
Follow these instructions step-by-step for
changing the wheel.
Fi g. 188 Changing a wheel: using the screwdriver han ­
dle (with th e blade re moved} to turn the bolts
F ig . 189 Changing a wheel: alignment pin inside th e
top hole
What do I d o now ? 267
After you have loosened all wheel bo lts and
raised the vehicle off the grou nd, remove and
replace the wheel as follows:
Removing the wheel
.,. Use the hexag onal socket in the scr ewdriv ­
er handle
to completely remove the top ­
most wheel bolt and set it aside on a
clean
surface c:> fig. 188.
.,. Screw the threaded end of the alignment
pin
from the tool kit hand-tight into the
empty bolt hole
c:> fig. 189.
.,. Then remove the other wheel bolts as de­
scribed above.
.,. Tak e off the whee l leaving the a lignment pin
in the bo lt ho le
c:> (D .
Putting on the compact spare wheel
.,. Lift the spare wheel and carefully s lide it
over the alignment pin to guide it in place
c:>(D .
.,. Use the hexagona l socket in the screwdriver
handle to screw in and tig hten all whee l
bolts
slightly.
.,. Remove the a lignment pin and inse rt and
tighten the rema ining whee l bolt slightly
Like the rest .
.,. Turn the jack hand le counter-clockwise to
lower the vehicle until the jack is fully re­
leased .
.,. Use the wheel bo lt wrench to tighten all
wheel bo lts f irmly
c:> page 265 . Tighten
them
crosswise, from o ne bolt to the (ap­
proxima tely) oppo site one, to keep the
wheel cente red.
CD Note
When remov ing or i nsta lling the whee l,
the r im cou ld hit the b rake roto r and dam­
age the ro tor. Wor k carefu lly and have a
second pe rson help you.
(D Tips
Neve r use the hexagonal socket in the han­
d le of the screwdriver to loosen or tighten
the wheel bo lts .
llll-

268 What do I do no w?
-Pull the reversible blade from the screw ­
driver before you use the hexagonal
socket in the handle to t urn the whee l
bo lts.
- When mounting tires with
unid ire ctional
t re ad design
make s ure the tread pat­
tern is pointed the right way
¢ page 268.
-The wheel bolts should be clean and easy
to turn. Check for d irt and corrosion on
the mat ing su rfaces of both the whee l
and the hub. Remove all dirt from these
surfaces before remount ing the wheel.
Tires with unidirectional tread design
Tires with unidirectional tread design must be
mounted with their tread pattern pointed in the right direction.
Using a spare tire with a tread pattern
int ended fo r use in a specific dir ection
When us ing a spare tire w ith a tread pattern
i ntended for use in a specific direction, please
note t he following:
- The direction of rotation is marked by an ar ­
row on the side of the tire .
-If the spare t ire has to be installed in the in­
correct direction, use the spare tire only
temporarily since the t ire will not be able to
achieve its optimum perfo rma nce character­
ist ics with rega rd to aquaplaning, noise and
wea r.
- We recommend that you pay particular at­
tent ion to this fact du ring wet weat her and
that you adjust your speed to match road
condit ions .
- Replace the fla t tire w ith a new one and
have it ins talled on your veh icle as soon as
possible to restore the handling advantages
of a unidirectiona l tire .
Notes on wheel changing
Please read the information ¢ page 248, New
tires and replacing tires and wheels
i f you are
go ing to use a spare t ire which is d ifferent
from the tires on your veh icle . After you change a tire:
-
Ch eck the tire pr essure on th e spar e imm e­
diatel y after in stallation .
- Hav e th e whe el bolt tight ening torque
c h ec ked with a torque wr ench as soon as
po ssible by your author ized Audi de aler or
a qu alified servic e sta tion.
- With ste el and alloy wheel r im s, the wheel
bolt s ar e c orre ctl y tightened at a torque of
9 0 ft lb (120 Nm ).
- If you notice th at the wheel b olt s ar e co r­
rod ed and diffi cult to turn w hile changing
a tire , the y should be repl aced before you
check the t ightening to rque.
- Repl ace the flat tire with a new o ne and
ha ve it in stalled on your vehicle as soon a s
possible. Remount the wheel cov er.
Until then , dri ve with extra care and at re­
duc ed sp eed s.
A WARNING
-
- If you are going to equip your vehicle
with tires or rims which differ from those
which were factory installed, then be sure to read the information
¢ page 248,
New tires and replacing tires and
wheels.
- Always make sure the damaged wheel or
even a flat tire and the jack and tool kit
are properly secured in the luggage com­
pa rtment and are not loose in the pas­
senger compartment.
- In an accident or sudden maneuver they
could fly forwa rd, injuring anyone in the
veh icle.
- Always sto re damaged wheel , jack and
too ls se curely in the luggage compart­
men t. Otherwise, in an accident or s ud­
den maneuve r they could f ly forwa rd,
causing injury to passengers in the vehi­
cle.