2015 AUDI A5 ESP

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specially conditio ned water an d the manu fa ctu r­
er's glycol-basedcoolant additive Gl3 antifreeze
with anticorrosion additives (50% for USA mod­
els; 60% for Canadian models). This m ixture both
assures the necessary frost protection and pro­
tects meta l components in the engine's cooling
system from corrosion and scal ing . It also raises
the boiling point of the coolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the coolant in
the summer by adding plain water .
The p ropor­
tion of coolant addit ive must be at l east 50 %
but n ot mor e th an 60 %
to maintain antifreeze
protection and cooling efficiency. If the coolant
frost protection is too low, the coolant cou ld
freeze and damage the vehicle heating and en­
gine cooling system.
F or yea r-round driving, antifreeze is added at the
factory fo r temperatures dow n to:
- -31°F(-35°C)USA
- -40 °F ( - 40 °C) Canada.
If you must add coo lant, use a mixture of water
and coolant addit ive. Mixing the coolant additive
with distilled water is recommended.
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARN­
INGS
¢ &. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 191.
(D Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coolant addit ive in your
vehicle is suffic ient to meet the cli mate con­
dit ions. This is especially important if you
li ve in a region where the win ter is extreme­
l y co ld. If ne cessary, i ncrease the proport ion
of coo lant add itive to 60%.
- When adding coolant a ddit ive to you r cool ­
i ng system, remember:
- We recommend using only coolant addi­
tive Gl2++ or Gl3 for your ve hicle. This
coolant additive is ava ilable at authorized
Audi dea lers. Other types of ant ifreeze can
significant ly reduce co rrosion protection.
Checking and Fillin g
The resulting corrosion can ca use a loss o f
coolant and serious engine damage.
- Do not add any type of rad iator le ak sealan t
to your vehicle's engine coolant. Adding ra­
diator repai r fluid may adverse ly affect the
function and performance of your cooling
system and could result in damage not cov­
ered by your New Vehicle Lim ited Warranty.
Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with a
quick glance.
Fi g. 164 Engine compartment: Cover on the coolant ex­
pa nsion tank
.. Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
alwa ys re ad and heed all WARN­
INGS ¢ A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 191.
.. Park your vehicle on a level su rface.
.. Tu rn off the ignition .
.. Read the engine coolant level from the coolant
expansion tank
¢fig . 164, ¢page 193,
fig . 161 .
With a cold engine, the coolant leve l
should be between the "M IN" and "MAX" mark­
ings. When the eng ine is warm, the level may
be slightly above the "MAX" marking.
The location of the coo lant expansion tank can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
¢page 193.
To obtain an a ccur ate reading, the engine m ust
be switched off.
T he expansion tank in yo ur veh icle is eq uipped
with an electric coo lant level senso r.
When the coolant leve l is too low, the wa rn ing
light in the Auto-Check System¢
page 17 will
197

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Disconnecting the battery terminals
Some vehicle functions (power window regula­
tors , for example) are lost if the battery termi­
nals are disconnected. These functions have to be
re learned after th e battery terminals are con­
nected again. To prevent this, the batte ry should
only be disconnected from the ve hicle electrical
system when absolutely necessary for repairs.
Vehicles not driven for long periods
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period of
several days or weeks, e lectrica l components are
gradually cut back or switched off. This reduces
energy consumption and maintains starting ca­ pability over a longer period
c:> page 175 .
Some of the conven ience functions may not oper­
ate, such as the interior lights or the power seat
adjustment. The convenience functions will be
available aga in when you turn on the ignition and
start the engine.
Winter operation
During the winter months, battery capacity tends
to decrease as temperatures drop. This is because
more power is also consumed while s tart ing, and
the headlights, rear window defogger, etc ., are
used more often .
Avoid unnecessary power consumption, part icu­
larly in city traffic or when traveling only short
d istances . Let your authorized Aud i dealer check
the capacity of the vehicle battery before w inter
sets in ¢
page 202 . A well charged battery will
not only prevent starting problems when the
weather is cold, but will also last longer.
(D Tips
If your vehicle is left standing for severa l
weeks at extremely low temperatures, the ve­
hicle battery should be removed and stored
where it will not freeze. This will prevent it
from being damaged and having to be re­ placed.
Checking and Filling
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the battery.
The battery is located in the luggage compart­
men t under the floor. Before you check anything
in the luggage compartment ,
read and heed all
WARNINGS
c:> .&_ .
Always heed the safety warnings, when working
on the vehicle battery or the vehicle electr ical
system to prevent injury .
The following WARNINGS are very important
when working on the battery :
Always heed the following WARNING SYM-
BOLS and safety precautions when working on
the battery.
®
Always wear eye protection.
A
Battery acid contains sulfuric acid. Al-
ways wear gloves and eye protection.
@
No
- sparks
- flames
- smoking.
~
When a battery is charged, it produces
hydrogen gas which is explosive and
could cause personal injury.
®
Always keep the battery well out of reach
of children.
A WARNING
= -
Whenever working on the battery or on the
e lectr ical system, there is the risk of injury,
accident and even f ire. Read and heed the fol ­
lowing WARNINGS:
- Always wear eye protection . Do not let bat­
tery ac id or any lead particles get on your
skin or clothing. Shield your eyes. Exp losive
gases can cause blindness or other in jury.
- Battery acid conta ins sulfuric acid . Sulfuric
acid can cause blindness and severe burns.
- Always wear g loves and eye protection. Do
not tilt the battery because acid could leak
out of the ventilation openings. ...,
201

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~ Open the engine hood¢ page 191 .
~ Open the cover on the positive pole ~ fig. 166.
~ Connect the charger connectors accord ing to
the instructions to the
jump sta rt bolts . (Bolts
under the cover= "posit ive", Bo lt s with hex
head = "negat ive") .
~ Only now plug the ma ins lead for the charg ing
equipment into the wall outlet and turn it o n
~& -
~ Mak e sure the charging rate i s not o ver
30 amp s/14 .8 Volt .
~ When the battery is fully charged: Turn the
charging equipment
off and remov e the mains
l ead from the wall outlet.
~ Now remove the clamps for the charging equip-
ment.
~ Close the cover on the posit ive pole .
~ Close the hood 9 page 191.
A discharged battery can freeze at temperatures
of only 32 °F (0 °C). Allow a frozen battery to
thaw comp letely before attempting to charge it
9 & . However, we recommend not using a
thawed batte ry agai n because the batte ry casing
can be cracked due to ice forma tion a nd ca n leak
battery a cid.
Battery charging (Maximum charging rate of
30 amps /14.8 Volt )
When charging at low voltages (e.g. w ith a trickle
c harger ),
the battery cab les do not have to be
d isconnected first. The batte ry caps sho uld
not
be opened when charging a battery.
It is not necess ary to remove the ba tte ry from
t he luggage compa rtment.
Fast charging the battery (charging rate
above 14.8 Volts)
F or technica l reasons do no t use a ba ttery charg­
e r that uses voltage grea ter than 14.8 Vol ts to
charge your vehicle's battery .
A WARNING
Charging a battery can be dangerous.
- Always fo llow the operating instructions
provide d by the batte ry charge r manufactur ­
er when c harging your battery.
Checking and Fillin g
-Never charge a frozen battery. It may ex­
plode because of gas trapped in the ice . Al­
low a frozen battery to thaw out first.
- Do not reuse batteries wh ich were frozen.
The battery housing may have cracked and
weakened whe n the battery froze.
- Charge the battery in a well ventilated area.
K eep away from open flame or electrical
spark. Do not smoke. Hydrogen gas gene rat­
ed by the ba tte ry is explosiv e.
- To reduce the danger of explosion, never
connect or d iscon nect charger cab les wh ile
the charge r is operating.
- Fast cha rging a batte ry is dange rous and
should only be at tempted by a compe tent
technicia n w it h the proper eq uipment.
- Battery acid that may sp ill dur ing cha rging
should be washed
off with a solut io n of
warm water and baking soda to neutralize the a cid .
@ Note
Neve r use a fast charger as a booster to start
the e ng ine . T his w ill ser iously damage sensi­
tive elec tronic components, s uch as co ntrol
units , relays, radio, etc. , as we ll as the battery
cha rger.
Battery replacement
The new battery must have the same specifica­
tions and dimensions as the original equipmen t
battery.
Intelligent energy management in your vehicle is
r esponsible for distributi ng the elect rical energy
t hr ough out your veh icle
9 page 175. T he intelli ­
gen t energy management sys tem w ill keep the
engi ne battery cha rged better then vehicles with ­
out this system . To make s ure t he addit iona l elec­
trical energy is avai lab le once again after yo u
have changed the battery, we recommend that
you install bat teries of the same type and manu­
facture on ly (the same as those installed at the
t ime you r vehicle was del ivered) . Specificat ions
are listed on the battery hous ing . You r autho r­
i z ed Audi dea ler m ust code t he battery in the en-
ergy ma nagement system to en able you to use .,,.
203

® Mud and snow capability
"M/S" or "M+S" indicates the tire
has characte ris tics that make it
suitable for driving on mud and snow .
& indica tes a winter tire.
@ Composition of the tire cord
and materials
T he number of plies indicates the
number of rubber ized fabric lay­
ers in the tire . In general: the
more layers, the more weight a
tire can carry. Tire manufacturers
must also specify the mater ials
used in the ti re. These include
stee l, nylon, polyester and other
materials.
@ Maximum permitted load
This number indicates the maxi­
mum load in kilograms and
pounds that the tire can carry .
@ Uniform tire quality grade
standards for treadwear,
traction and temperature resistance
Treadwear , traction and tempera­
ture ranges¢
page 221.
@Running direction
The arrows ind icate the running
direction of unidirect ional tires.
You must always follow the speci- fied running direction
¢
page 231.
€3) Ma ximum permitted
inflation pressure
Whe els
This number indicates the maxi­
mum pressure to which a tire can
be inflated unde r normal operat­
ing conditions .
Glossary of tire and loading
terminology
Accessory weight
means the combined weight (in
excess of those standard items
which may be replaced) of auto­ matic transmission, power steer­
ing, power brakes, power win­
dows, power seats, radio, and
heater, to the extent that these
items are available as factory-in ­
stalled equipment (whether in­
stalled or not).
Aspect ratio
means the ratio of the height to
the width of the tire in percent. Numbers of 55 or lower indicate a
low s idewall for improved steer­
ing response and better overall
handling on dry pavement . .,.
207

Wheels
Treadwear indicator
Original equipment tires contain
treadwear indicators in the tread
pattern, which are bars that are 1/ 16 inch (1 .6 mm) high and are
spaced evenly around the tire per­ pendicular to the running direc ­
tion ¢
fig. 169. The letters "TWI"
or triangles on the tire sidewall
indicate the location of the tread­
wear indicators .
The tires have reached the mini­ mum tread depth
l) when they
have worn down to the treadwear
indicators. Replace the tires with
new ones ¢.&.
Wheel rotation
Rotating the wheels regularly is
recommended to ensure the tires
wear evenly. To rotate wheels, in ­
stall the wheels from the rear
axle on the front axle and vice ver ­
sa. This will allow the tires to have approximately the same
length of service life.
For unidirectional tires, make sure
the tires are installed according to
the running direction indicated on
the tire sidewall¢ page
231.
1> Obey any applicable regulations in your
country.
2 14
H idden damage
Damage to tires and rims can of ­
ten occur in locations that are hid­
den. Unusual vibrations in the ve­
hicle or pulling to one side may
indicate that there is tire damage.
Reduce your speed immediately .
Check the tires for damage. If no
damage is visible from the out­
side, drive slowly and carefully to
the nearest authorized Aud i deal­
er or authorized repair facility to have the vehicle inspected.
! WARNING
Tread that has worn too low or
different tread depths on the
tires can reduce driving safety.
This can especially have a nega­
tive effect on handling, on the risk aquaplaning when driving
through water, when driving
through curves and when brak ­
ing, which increases the risk of
an accident.

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damage the t ires, and the c hains will quickly be
destroye d.
A WARNING
Using inco rrect snow cha ins or installing snow
chains incorrectly can resu lt i n loss of vehicle
cont ro l, whic h increases the r isk of an acci ­
de nt.
(D Note
Snow chains can dama ge the r ims/whee l cov­
ers * if th e cha ins come into d irect contact
w it h them. Remove the whee l cov ers* f irst .
Use coat ed snow c hains.
Low aspect ratio tires
Your Au di is factory -equip ped wi th low as pect ra ­
tio ti res. T hese ti res have bee n thoroughly teste d
a nd been se le cted specific ally fo r your model fo r
t he ir su perb pe rformance, road feel and handling
u nd er a variety o f driving conditions . Ask yo ur au­
thor ized A udi dealer for mo re deta ils.
The low aspe ct r atio of these ti res i s indic ated by
a numer al of
55 or les s in th e tire's si ze des igna ­
tion. The nu mera l represen ts the ra ti o of the
tire's sidewall he ight in relation to its trea d width
e x pressed in percentage. Convent io na l tires have
a he ight/w idth ratio of 60 or mo re.
The performance of low-aspect-ratio tires is par­
ticularly sensitive to improper inflation pres­
sure . It is therefore important that low aspect
ratio tires are inflated to the specified pressure
and that the inflation pressure is regularly
checked and maintained . Tire pressures should
be checked at least once a month and always
before a long trip
¢ pag e 215.
What you can do to avoid tire and rim
damage
L ow aspec t rat io t ires ca n be damaged more easi­
l y by impact wi th pot ho les, curbs, gulli es or
r idges on the road, par ticularly if the tire is un­
de rin fla ted.
In o rder to m inim ize the occu rrence o f impact
damage to the t ires of your v ehicl e, we recom-
Wheels
me nd that yo u observe the follow ing p recau ­
t ions:
- Alw ays m aintain r eco m me nded infl ation pre s­
sures. C heck your tire pressure every 2,000
m iles (3,00 0 km) an d ad d air if necessary .
- Dr ive c arefully on road s wi th pot holes, deep
gu llies o r ridges. The impac t from dr iv ing
through or over s uch obstacles can damage
your tires . Impact with a curb may a lso ca use
damage to your tires .
- After a ny impact, imme diate ly inspect yo ur
tires o r have them inspected by the nearest au­
thorized A udi dealer. Rep lace a damaged t ire as
soon as possible.
- Inspect your tires every 2,000 m iles (3,000 km)
for damage and wear . Damage is not always
easy to see. Damage can lead to loss of air and
unde rinflation, w hich could even tually cause
t ire failure .
If you beli eve that a t ire may have
been damaged, re place the t ire as soon as pos­
s ible.
- These ti res may wear more quickly tha n oth ers .
- Please also remember that, wh ile these tires
delive r responsiv e han dling, they may r ide less
comfortably and make mo re no ise than other
c h o ic e s.
Reduced performance in winter/cold season
conditions
All t ir e s ar e designed for certa in purpos es. T he
l ow asp ect ra tio, ultr a hig h perfor man ce tire s
o rigi nall y insta lled on y our veh icle are in tende d
f or m aximum dry an d we t road pe rformance and
handli ng. They are not suitab le for co ld , snowy or
icy weather conditions . If you dr ive under those
c ircumstances , you sho uld eq uip your vehicle
with all-season or winter tires, which offer better
t raction unde r those co ndit io ns. We suggest you
u se the recommended snow or all-seaso n tires
spec ified for your veh icle, o r the ir equiva le nt.
Refer to¢
page 220 for more detailed informa ­
t ion regarding w inte r tir es.
Uniform tire quality grading
- Tread wea r
- Traction AA AB C
- Temperature AB C
221

Wheels
Quality grades can be found where applicable on
the tire side wall between t read sho ulder and
maximum sect ion w idth
c::> page 205, fig . 168.
For example: Tr ead wear 200 , Tract ion AA, Tem­
peratu re
A .
All passenger ca r tires must confo rm to Federal
Safety Req uiremen ts in add it ion to these grades.
Tread wear
The tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
unde r controlled conditions on a spec ified gov­
ernment test course.
For examp le, a t ire graded 150 would wear one
and one half ( 1 1/2) t imes as well on the govern­
ment course as a tire graded 100 .
The relat ive performance of t ires depends upon
the actua l conditions of their use, however, and
may depart significantly from the norm due to
variations i n driving hab its, service practices and
d iffe rences in road character istics and clima te.
Traction
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are
AA, A , Band
C. Those grades represent the tire's
ab ility to stop on wet pavement as measu red u n­
de r controlled cond it ions on spec ified govern­
ment test su rfaces of asphalt and concrete. A tire
marked C may have poor traction performance
c::> &_ .
Temperature
The temperature grades are A (the highest), B,
a nd C, rep resent ing t he tire's res istance to the
genera tion of heat and its a bility to dis sipate
heat w hen tested unde r controlled cond itions on
a specified indoo r laboratory test whee l.
Sustained high temperature can cause the mate­ rial of the tire to degenerate and red uce tire life,
a nd excessive tempera ture can lead to sudden
tire failure
c::> &. .
The grade C co rresponds to a level of perform­
ance wh ich a ll passenge r ca r tires m ust meet un­
de r th e Federal Motor Vehicle Safety S tandard
No. 109. G rades Band A represent higher levels
222
of pe rformance on the laboratory test whee l than
the minimum required by law .
A WARNING -
The traction grade assigned to th is tire is
based on straight-ahead braking tract ion
tests, and does not include acce lerat ion, cor­
nering, hyd roplaning or peak traction charac­
teristics.
A WARNING
The temperature g rade for th is tire is estab­
lished for a tire that is properly inf lated and
n ot ove rloaded. Excess ive speed, underi nfla­
tion, o r ex cess ive lo adi ng, eithe r separately or
i n comb inat io n, can ca use heat bu ild up and
possible tire failure.
A WARNING
Tempe ratu re grades apply to ti res that are
properly inflated and not over or underinflat­
ed.
Tire pressure monitoring system
(l) General notes
App lies to vehicl es: wi th tire p ress ure mo nito rin g system
-
Each tire, incl uding the spare (if provided),
sho uld be checked monthly when co ld and inflat­
ed to the inflat ion pressure recommended by the
vehicle manufacturer on the vehicle placard or
tire inflat ion pressure label. (If your vehicle has
tires of a different s ize than the size indicated on
the ve hicle placard or t ire inflation pressu re la­
bel, you should dete rm ine the p roper t ire infla­
tion pressu re for those t ires).
As a n added safety feature, your ve hicle has been
equipped with a tire pressure mon itor ing system
( TP MS) that illum inates a low t ire pressure te ll-
ta le w hen o ne or mo re of yo ur ti res is sign ificant -
l y unde r-i nflated. According ly, w hen t he low t ire
pressure te lltale illuminates, you shou ld stop and
check yo ur tires as soon as possible, and inflate
them to the proper pressure . Dr iving on a signifi­
cant ly under-inf lated tire causes the t ire to over­
heat and can lead to tire failure. Under-inflation .,,.

Wheels
Check/correct the pressures of all four tires and
store the pressure again in the Infotainment sys­
tem
c!) page 224.
mm (Tire Pressure Monitoring System) Tire pres­
sure: System malfunction!.
If m appears after
switching the ignition on or while driving and the
[I] i ndicator light in the instrument cluster
blinks for approximately one minute and then
stays on, there is system malfunction. Try to
store the correct tire pressures
c:> page 224 . If
the indicator light does turn off or turns on again
after a short period of time, drive to your author­
ized Audi dealer or qualified repair facility imme­
diately to have the malfunction corrected.
A WARNING
-If the tire pressure indicator appears in the
display, reduce your speed immediately and
avoid any hard steering or braking maneu­
vers. Stop as soon as possible and check the
tires and their pressure.
- The driver is responsible for maintaining the
correct tire pressure. You must check the
tire pressure regularly.
-Under certain conditions (such as a sporty
driving style, winter conditions or unpaved
roads), the tire pressure monitoring system
indicator may be delayed.
- Do not use run-flat tires on your vehicle. Us­
ing them when not permitted can lead to
vehicle damage or accidents.
(D Tips
- The tire pressure monitoring system can al­
so stop working when there is an ESC mal­
function.
- Using snow chains may result in a system
malfunction.
- The tires with the identification "AO" or
"RO"
c:> page 212 have been matched with
your Audi tire pressure monitoring system.
We recommend that you use these tires.
224
· Storing tire pressures
App lies to vehicles: wit h tire press ure mo nitor ing system
If the tire pressure changes or a tire is replaced,
it must be confirmed in the Infotainment sys­
tem .
.,. Make sure before storing that the tire pressures
of all four tires meet the spec ified values and
are adapted to the load
c!) page 215.
.,. Switch the ignition on.
.,. Select: the
I CARI function button > Tire pres­
sure monitoring
control button. Or
.,. Select: the
I CARI function button > Car Sys­
tems*
control button > Servicing & checks >
Tire pressure monitoring.
(D Tips
Do not store the tire pressures if snow chains
a re i nsta lied.