Page 185 of 264

Trailer mode notes
Important to know
Your vehicle hand les differently when tow ing a
trailer because of the additional weight and dif
ferent weight distribution. Safety, performance
and economy will greatly depend on how careful
ly you load your trailer and operate your rig.
Before you actually tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area away
from traffic. Keep practicing until you have be
come completely familiar with the way your vehi
cle-trailer combination behaves and responds.
Backing up is difficult and requires practice. Back
ing up with a trailer generally requires steering
action opposite to that when backing up your ve hicle without a trailer .
Maintain a greater distance between your vehicle
and the one in front of you. You wi ll need more
room to stop. To compensate for the trailer, you
will need a larger than normal turning radius.
When passing, remember that you cannot acce l
erate as fast as you normally would because of
the added load. Make sure you have enough room
to pass. After passing, allow plenty of room for
your trailer before changing lanes again.
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a trailer during the break-in peri
od of your vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your A udi may require
more frequent maintenance due to the ex
tra load
¢ page 244 .
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If it cannot
be avoided, do so only after doing the following:
When parking:
~ .. Apply the foot brake.
~ .. Have someone place chocks under both the ve-
~ hide and the trailer wheels . ..,.,
N ..,., ,....,
Trailer mode
.. With chocks in place, slowly release the brakes
until the wheel chocks absorb the load.
.. Turn the whee ls towards the curb .
.. App ly the parking brake.
.. Place an automatic transmission* in P, respec
tively a manual transmission in first or reverse
gear .
When restarting after parking:
.. App ly the foot brake.
.. Start the engine.
.. Move the selector lever to D/S, respectively a
manual transmission in first gear .
.. Release the parking brake and slowly pull out
and away from the wheel chocks.
.. Stop and have someone retr ieve the wheel
chocks .
(D Tips
If you move the selector lever of the automat
ic transmission* to P before applying the
parking brak e and before blocking the wheels,
you may have to use more force later to move
the lever out of the P position.
183
Page 186 of 264

Care and cleaning
Care and cleaning
General information
Regular, proper care he lps to maintain your vehi
cle's value.
It can also be a requirement when
submitting warranty claims for corrosion damage
and paint defects on the body.
The necessary care products can be obtained
from your authorized Audi dealer . Read and fol
low the instructions for use on the packaging.
A WARNING
-Using cleaning and care products incorrectly
can be dangerous to your health.
- Always store cleaning and care products out of reach of children to reduce the risk of poi
soning .
@ For the sake of the environment
-Preferably use environmentally-friendly
products when buying cleaning agents.
- Do not dispose of leftover cleaning and care
products with household trash .
Car washes
The longer that deposits remain on the vehicle,
the more the surface may be damaged. High
temperatures such as those caused by sunlight
increase the damaging effect.
Before washing, rinse
off heavy deposits with
p lenty of water.
Stubborn deposits such as bird dropp ings or tree
sap are best removed with plenty of water and a
microfiber cloth .
A ls o, wash the underside of your veh icle once
road salt stops be ing used for the season .
Pressure washers
When washing your veh icles with a pressure
washer, always follow the operating instructions
provided with the pressure washer. This is espe
cially important in regard to the p ressure and
spray ing distance. Do not aim the spray directly
at seals on side windows, doors, the hood, the
rear lid or the sunroof* or at tires, rubber hoses,
184 insulating
material, sensors* or camera lenses*.
Keep a distance of at least 16 inches (40 cm).
Do not remove snow and ice with a pressure
washe r.
Never use rotary nozzles or high pressure noz
zles.
The water temperature must not be above 140 °F
(60 °() .
Automatic car washes
Spray off the vehicle before washing.
Make sure that the w indows and roof* are closed
and the windshie ld wipers are off. Follow instruc
tions from the car wash operator, especially if
there are accessories attached to your vehicle.
If possible, use car washes that do not have
brushes.
Washing by hand
Clean the veh icle starting from the top and work
i ng down using a soft sponge or cleaning b rush .
Use solvent-free cleaning p roducts.
Washing vehicles with matte finish paint by
hand
To avoid damaging the paint when washing, first
remove dust and large particles from your vehi
cle. Insects, grease spots and fingerprints are
best removed with a special cleaner for matte
finish paint.
Apply the p roduct using a microfiber cloth. To
avoid damaging the paint surface, do not use too
much pressure.
Rinse the ve hicle thoroughly with water. Then
clean using a neutra l shampoo and a soft micro
fiber cloth .
Rinse the veh icle thoroughly again and let it air
dry. Remove any water residue using a shammy.
A WARNING
-On ly wash the vehicle when the ignition is
off and follow the instructions from the car
wash operator to reduce the risk of acc i
dents.
-
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-To reduce the risk of cuts, protect yourself
from sharp metal components when wash
ing the underbody or the inside of the wheel
housings.
- After washing the vehicle, the braking effect
may be delayed due to moisture on the
brake rotors or ice in the w inter . The brakes
must be dried first w ith a few careful brake
applications.
(I) Note
- If you wash the vehicle in an automatic car
wash, you must fold the exterior m irrors in
to reduce the risk of damage to the mirrors. Power folding exterior mirrors* must only
be fo lded in and out us ing the power folding
f u nct ion.
- To prevent pa int damage, do not wash the
vehicle i n direct sunlight .
- To reduce the risk of damage to the surface,
do not use insect removing sponges, k itche n
sponges or similar items.
- Matte finish painted vehicle components:
- To reduce the risk of damage to the sur-
face, do not use polishing agents or hard
wax.
- Never use protective wax.
It can destroy
the matte finish effect.
- Do not place any stickers or magnetic
signs on vehicle parts painted with matte
finish pa int. The paint could be damaged
when the stickers or magnets are re
moved.
@ For the sake of the environment
On ly wash the vehicle in facilit ies specially de
signed for that purpose. This will reduce the
risk of dirty water contam inated with o il from
entering the sewer system .
Placing your vehicle out
of service
If you wou ld like to take your vehicle out of serv
ice for a longer time, contact you r authorized
Audi dealer or qualified repair facility. They will
adv ise you of important measur es, such as corro-
Care and cleaning
sion p rotection , maintenance and storage proce
dures . Also follow the information about the bat
tery
C) pag e 200.
185
Page 188 of 264

Fuel and Refueling
Fuel and Refueling
Fuel
Fuel supply
Using the right fuel helps keep the environment
clean and prevents engine damage.
Fuel recommendation
The fuel recommended for your vehicle is unlead
ed premium
grade gasoline. Audi recommends
using TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline with a mini mum octane rating of 91 AKI (95 RON). For more
information on TOP TIER Detergent Gasoline,
please go to the official website
(www.toptiergas.com).
The recommended gasoline octane rating for
your eng ine can also be found on a label located
on the ins ide of the fuel filler flap. This rating
may be specified as AKI or RON.
Your vehicle may also be operated using unlead
ed regular gasoline with a minimum octane rat ing of 87 AKl/91 RON . However, using 87 AKl/91
RON octane fue l will s lightly reduce eng ine per
formance.
Use unleaded gasoline only. Unleaded gasoline
is available throughout the USA, Canada, and in
most European countries. We recommend that
you do not take your vehicle to areas or countries
where unleaded gasoline may not be available.
For more informat ion on refueling your vehicle,
see
~page 188.
Octane rating
Octane rating ind icates a gasoline's ability to re
sist engine damaging "knock" caused by prema
ture ignition and detonation. Therefore, buying
the correct grade of gasoline is very important to
he lp prevent possible eng ine damage and a loss
of engine performance.
Gasoline most commonly used in the United
States and Canada has the following octane rat
i n gs that can usually be found on the filler pump:
- Premium Grade : 91 - 96 AKI
- Regular Grade: 87 -90 AKI
186
Explanation of the abbreviations:
AKI= Anti Knock Index= (R+M)/2 = (RON+MON)/
2
RON = Re search Octane Number
MON= Motor Octane Number.
CJ) Note
- Do not use any fuel with octane ratings low
er than 87 AKI or 91 RON otherwise expen
sive engine damage will occur.
- Do
not use leaded gasoline. The use of lead
ed gasoline will severely damage your vehi
cle's catalytic converter and its ability to
control exhaust emissions.
Blended gasoline
Use of gasoline containing alcohol or MTBE
( methyl tertiary butyl ether)
You may use unleaded gasoline blended with a l
cohol or MTBE (commonly referred to as oxygen
ates) if the blended mixture mee ts the following
criteria:
Blend of gasoline methanol (wood alcohol or
methyl alcohol)
- Anti-knock index must be 87 AKI or h igher .
- Blend must contain no more than 3% metha-
nol.
- Blend must contain more than 2% co-solvents.
Blend of gasoline and ethanol (grain alcohol or
ethyl alcohol)
-Anti-knock index must be 87 AKI or h igher.
- Blend must not contain more than 1S% etha-
nol.
- Veh icles with flex ible fuel engine: blend must
not contain more than 85% ethanol.
Blend of gasoline and MTBE
-Anti-knock index must be 87 AKI or higher.
- Blend must contain not more than 15% MTBE.
Seasonally adjusted gasoline
Many gasoline grades are blended to perform es
pecially well for winter or summer dr iv ing . Dur-
i ng seasonal change-over, we suggest that you ""
Page 189 of 264

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fill up at busy gas stations where the seasonal
adjustment is more likely to be made in time.
(D Note
- Fuels containing a high pe rcentage of etha
no l such as ESQ and E85 may only be used in
vehicles with f lexible fuel engines. Using
high ethanol fuel in veh icles not equ ipped
with flexible fuel engines can cause severe
engine damage.
- Methanol fuels which do not meet these re quirements may cause corrosion and dam
age to plastic and rubber components in the
fuel system.
- Do not use fuels that fail to meet the spec i
fied criter ia in this chapter .
- If you are unable to determine whether or
not a particular fuel blend meets the speci
fications, ask your service station or its fuel
supplier .
- Do not use fuel for wh ich the contents can
not be identified.
- Fuel system damage and performance prob
lems resulting from the use of fuels differ
ent from those spec ified are not the respon
s ibility of Audi and are not covered under
the New Vehicle o r the Emission Cont ro l
System Warranties.
- If you experience a loss of fue l economy o r
driveability and pe rformance problems due
to the use of one of these f uel b lends, we
r ecommend that yo u switch to unb lended
fuel.
Ethanol fuel (Bio-ethanol)
Applies to vehicles: with flexible fuel engine
You can recognize vehicles with a flexible fuel
engine by looking at the label on the inside of the fuel filler flap.
Vehicles w ith f lexible fuel engines may be operat
ed with bio-ethanol fuels such as E85 (85% e tha
nol and 15% gasoline) or with unleaded gasoline
(91 AKI/ROZ 95) . The vehicle may also be operat
ed with a m ixt ure of these fuels.
Fu el and R efu elin g
Your f uel consumption wi ll increase when using
bio-ethano l fue ls due to the lower amount of en
ergy contained per unit vo lume in ethano l.
Warming up the fle xible fuel engine in low
t e mperatu res
Due to the chemical composition of b io-ethanol,
a certain amount of fue l ends up in the engine oil
when driving short distances in
very low temper
atures. This fuel evaporates again when the en
gine is warmed up .
II Please w arm up eng ine .
If the driver message appears in the instrument
cluster disp lay, drive with a warm engine to re
duce the oil leve l.
(D Note
-Never fill with methano l or with a h igher
percentage of b io-ethanol than 85% (E85).
A highe r percentage of bio-ethanol in the
fue l can cause damage to the engine or to
the fuel system.
- If you use on ly E85, it is recommended to
fill the fue l tank complete ly w ith unleaded
premium grade gasoline every 5,000 miles.
- If you experience starting, rough id le or hes
itat ion driveab ility problems, fill the fuel
tank complete ly w ith unleaded premium
grade gasoline and drive it normally unt il
the gaso line is used. See your author ized
Audi dea ler if the problem pe rsists.
- Inform your author ized Audi dealer that you
are operating or have operated the vehicle
w ith E85.
- Read and follow the information and t ips
about gasoli ne
c::> page 186 .
(D Tips
It may take longer to start the engine when
the outs ide temperature is
very cold. If possi
ble, use winte rized fue l if tempe ratu res are
below free zin g.
187
Page 190 of 264

Fuel and R efue lin g
Gasoline additives
A major concern among many auto manufactur
ers is carbon deposit build- up ca used by the type
of gasoline you use.
Although gasoline grades differ from one manu
facturer to another, they have certa in things in
common. All gaso line grades contain substances
that can cause deposits to collect on v ita l engine
parts, such as fue l injectors and intake valves. Al
though most gasoline brands include additives to
keep engine and fuel systems clean, they are not
equally effective.
Audi recommends using TOP T IER Detergent Gas
oline. For more information on TOP TIER Deter
gent Gasoline, please go to the officia l website
(www.toptiergas.com).
After an extended period of using inadequate
fue ls, built-up carbon deposits can rob your en
g ine of peak performance .
CD Note
-Damage or ma lf u nction due to poor fuel
quality is not covered by the Aud i New Vehi
cle Limited Warranty .
- Do not add aftermarket f uel addit ive prod
ucts to your fuel tank.
Refueling
Fuel filler neck
The fuel f iller neck is located on the r ight rear
side panel behind the fuel f iller flap .
If the power Locking system should fail, you can
still open the flap manually -for deta iled instruc
tions seer:>
page 190 .
You can find the fue l tank capacity of your vehicle
in
c:>page242 .
The label on the inside of the fuel filler flap tells
you the correct fuel for your vehicle. For more in
formation about fue l specifications, see
c:> page 186 .
Your vehicle fuel tank has an on -board refuelling
vapor recovery system . This feature helps to pre
vent fuel vapors from escaping from the tank and
188
po lluting the environment while you refuel your
vehicle. In order to fi ll the tank properly while
protecting the environment, please follow this
refueling procedure carefu lly.
A WARNING
Under normal operating conditions, never car
ry additional fuel containers in your car. Gas
can isters and other containers used to trans
port fuel can be dangerous. Such containers,
fu ll or empty, may leak and could ca use a fire
in a co llision.
If you must tra nsport f uel to
use for your lawn mower, snow blower, etc.,
be very careful and always observe local and
state laws regarding the use, transportation
and storage of such fue l containers . Make cer
tain the container meets industry standards (ANSI/ASTM F852 -86).
CD Note
Never drive your vehicle until the fue l tank is
complete ly empty. The irregular supply of
f u el can cause misfiring. Gasoline could enter
the exhaust system and damage the catalytic
converter.
Refuelling
Fig. 155 R ig ht rea r ve hicle side : Open ing t he fue l filler flap
Fig. 156 Fuel fi ller flap w ith attac hed fue l cap
Page 191 of 264

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When activating the central locking, the fuel fi ll
er flap is automatically un locked or locked . Re
fue l the vehicle with the ignit ion turned
off.
Tak ing th e fu el cap off
.,. Turn off the ignit ion.
.,. Press the left side o f the fue l filler flap to open
it
r=;, fig . 155 -arrow -.
.,. Unscrew fuel cap counter-clockwise and hang it
on the fue l filler flap
c> fig. 156.
R efuellin g proc edu re
.,. Inse rt the fue l nozz le from the gasol ine p ump
into the fuel filler neck as far as it will go .
.,. Se lect a medium refuelling rate so that the
nozzle switches off automatica lly when the
tank is full.
P utting the fuel cap back on
.,. After fi lling your tank, tw ist the fuel cap clock-
wise as far as it wi ll go.
.,. Close the fuel filler flap .
To avo id f uel spi lling or evaporating from the fue l
tank always close fuel cap properly and com
p letely.
A WARNING
Improper refueling or handling of fue l can
cause fire, exp losion and severe burns.
-
- Fuel is highly flammable and can cause se
vere burns and other injuries.
- Failure to shut the engine off whi le refuel
ing and/or to insert the pump nozzle fu lly
into the fuel filler neck could cause fue l to
spray out of f iller neck or to overflow. Fuel
spray and overflow ing fuel can cause a fire.
- Never use a cellular telephone wh ile refuel
ing. The electromagnetic radiation can
cause sparks that can ignite fuel vapors and
cause a fire.
- Never get back into your vehicle while refu
eling. If in exceptional c ircumstances you
must get back in your vehicle while refuel
ing, make certain that you close the door
and touch meta l to discharge static e lectric
ity before touching the filler nozzle again.
Fu el and R efu elin g
Static electricity can cause sparks that can
ignite fuel vapors released during refue ling.
- Never smoke or have an open f lame any
where in or near your vehicle when refueling or filling a portable fuel conta iner .
- For your safety, we strongly recommend
that you do not travel with a portable f uel
container in your veh icle. The container, full
or empty may leak and cou ld cause a fire,
especially in a crash .
- If, under exceptional c ircumstances, you
must transport a portab le fuel container,
please observe the following:
- Never fill a portable fuel container while it
is anywhere in or on the vehicle (for exam
ple, in the l uggage compartment, or on
the trunk). Static e lectric ity can build up
while filling and can ignite fuel vapors
caus ing a fire .
-Always place a portab le fue l conta iner on
the ground before fill ing .
- Always keep the filler nozzle completely
inside the portable container before and
during f il li ng.
- If filling a portab le container made of
metal, the f iller nozzle must always be in
contact with the container. This will help prevent static electricity from d ischarging
and cause a fi re.
- Never spill fuel inside the vehicle or lug
gage compartment. Fuel vapors are highly
flammable.
- Always observe local and state/provincial
laws regarding the use, storage and trans
po rtation of fue l conta iners.
- Make certain the fuel conta iner meets in
dustry standards (ANSI/ AS TM F852 -86).
(D Note
If any fuel has sp illed onto the car, it should
be removed immediately to prevent damage
to the pa int.
@) For the sake of the environment
As soon as the correct ly operated nozzle
switches off automat ically for the first time,
189
Page 192 of 264

Fuel and Refueling
the tank is full. Do not try to add more fuel
because fuel may spill out. In addition, the
expansion space in the fuel tank will be filled -
causing the fuel to overflow when it becomes
warm and pollute the environment.
(D Tips
- Running your engine while refuelling may
cause vapors to escape or even cause fuel to
spill out of the tank. This would then shut
off the fuel nozzle before the tank is full.
- Do not refuel your vehicle with the ignition
turned on. The fuel gauge may otherwise
not indicate the correct fuel level after refu
elling.
- The fuel filler flap of your vehicle is not
locked when you lock the vehicle from the
inside .
Unlocking the fuel filler flap by hand
You can open the fuel filler flap by hand if the
power locking system should fail.
F ig. 157 Luggag e compartment: open ing the sid e trim
Fig. 158 Luggag e compart ment: Emergency open ing of
fuel filler flap
The emergency opening mechanism is located
behind the right side trim panel in the luggage
compartment.
190
"' a, st
-
" co
"'
Opening the side trim
.. Insert a tool such as a screwdrive r c:> page 225
or the emergency key into the right side of the
upper gap
¢fig. 157.
.. Pry upward to release the trim .
Fuel filler door emergency release
.. Loosen the strap from its bracket and pu ll on it
¢ fig. 158. You can now open the fu el filler flap
as usual
¢page 188.