2015 AUDI A7 warning lights

210 Trailer towing
A lways apply brakes early. When driving
downhill, shift into a lower gear to use the en­
g ine braking effect to slow the vehicle . Use of
the brakes alone can cause them to overheat
and fail.
Air su spen sion *
When driving with a trai ler, activate the trailer
mode of the air suspension. Switch the air
suspension trailer mode on when you are tow­
ing a trailer. This will limit the regulation by
the air suspens ion while driving. Select in the
MMI:
! CARI function button> (C ar)* sys te m s
control button > Vehicl e se tting s> Air s usp .:
t o wing > On .
Coolant t emperatur e
The coolant temperature gauge¢ page 11
must be observed carefully. The coolant tem­
perature can increase if you drive on long in­
clines in a low gear at high engine speeds. Re­
duce your speed immed iate ly if the LEDs in
the top pa rt of the display turn on.
For more information about indicator lights,
refer to. ¢ page 16 .
A WARNING
Anyone not properly restrained in a mov­
ing veh icle is at a much greater risk in an
accident. Never let anyone r ide in your car
who is not prope rly wearing the restraints
provided by Audi .
Trailer towing tips
Important to know
Your vehicle handles differently when tow ing
-
a trailer because of the addit ional weight and
d ifferent weight dist ribution. Safety, perform­
ance and economy w ill greatly depend on how
carefu lly you load your trailer and operate
your rig.
Before you actually tow your trailer, practice
turn ing, stopp ing and back ing up in an area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you
have become comp letely familiar with the way your vehicle
-trailer combination behaves and
responds .
Backi ng up is diffic ult and requi res p ractice.
Backing up w ith a trailer generally req uires
steering action opposite to that when backing
up your vehicle without a trailer.
Maintai n a greater d ista nce between yo ur ve­
hicle and the one in fron t of yo u. You w ill 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 ac­ ce le rate as fast as you norma lly would be­
ca use of the added load. Make sure you have
enough room to pass . After passing, allow
plenty of room for your trailer before chang­
ing lanes again.
Avoid jerky starts, sharp tu rns o r rapid lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a trailer during the break-in
period of your vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your Audi may re­
quire more frequent maintenance due to
the extra load ¢
page 294.
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If it can­
not be avoided, do so only after doing the fol­
lowing:
When parking:
.,. App ly the foot brake .
.,. Have someone place choc ks unde r both the
vehicle and the trailer wheels.
.,. With chocks in place, slowly release the
brakes unt il the whee l chocks absorb the
load .
.,. Turn the whee ls towards the curb.
.,. Apply the parking brake.
.,. Select the P selector lever posit ion.
When re sta rting after p ark in g :
.,. App ly the foot brake .
.,. Start the engine.

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Vehicl e ca re a nd cl eanin g 213
A 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 r isk of cuts, protect your­
self from sharp metal components when
wash ing the underbody or the inside of
t he wheel housings.
- After washing the vehicle, the braking ef­
fec t may be delayed due to mo isture on
the brake rotors or ice in the winter. The
brakes must be dried first with a few
careful brake applications.
Q) Note
- If you wash t he vehicle in an automatic
car wash, yo u must retrac t the rear spoil­
er if necessary, and fo ld the exter ior mir­
rors in to reduce the risk of damage.
Power folding exterior mirrors* must on­
l y be folded in and out using the power
fo ld ing funct ion.
- To prevent paint damage, do not wash
the veh icle in direct sunlight. -
To reduce 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 fi nish effect.
- Do not place any stickers or magnet ic
signs on vehicle parts painted w ith
matte fi nish paint. The paint cou ld be
damaged when the stickers o r magnets
are removed.
@ For the sake of the environment
Only wash the vehi cle in facilities spec ial ly
designed for that purpose . This will red uce
the risk of dirty water contam inated with
oil from entering the sewer system.
Cleaning and care information
When cleaning and caring for individua l vehi ­
cle components, refer to the follow ing tab le.
The information contained there is s imply rec­
ommendations. For quest ions or for compo- nents
that are not listed, refer to an author­
ized Audi dealer or a qualified workshop. Also
follow the information found inc>,& .
Cle aning e xte rior
Component Situation Solution
W ip er bl ade s
Dirty c> page 49, Cleaning windshield wiper blades
Headlights/ Dirty Soft
sponge with a mild soap solution al
tail lights
S ensor s/
Dirty Sensors: soft cloth with a solvent-free cleaning product
cam era l enses Camera lenses: soft cloth with an alcohol-free cleaning
so lution
Snow/ice Hand brush/solvent-free de-icing spray
Whe els Road sa lt Water
Brake dust Acid-free special cleaning solution
Ex haust t ail Road sa lt Water, cleaning solut
ion suitable for sta inless steel, if
pipe s necessary
•
•

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Vehicl e ca re a nd cl eanin g 215
Component Situ ation Solution
T ex tiles,
Stains adhering to Vacuum cleaner
Vin yl, the surface
A lcan ta ra Water-based stains Absorbent
cloth and mild soap solutional
such as coffee, tea,
blood, etc.
Oil-based stains Apply a mild soap solutiona l, blot away the dissolved oil
such as oil, make- or dye, treat afterward with water, if necessary
up, etc.
Special stains such Special stain remover, blot with absorbent material,
as ballpoint pen, treat afterward with mild soap solutional, if necessary
na il polish, latex
pa int, shoe polish,
etc.
N atu ral le athe r Fresh stains Cotton cloth with a mild soap solutional
Water-based stains Fresh stains: absorbent cloth
such as coffee, tea, Dried stains: stain remover suitable for leather
blood , etc.
Oil-based stains Fresh stains: absorbent cloth and stain remover suitable
such as oil, make- for leather
up, etc. dried stains: Oil cleaning spray
Special stains such Sta in remover suitable for leather
as ballpo int pen,
nai l polish, latex
paint, shoe polish,
etc.
Care Regularly
apply conditioning cream that protects from
light and penetrates into the material. Use specially-col-
ored conditioning cream, if necessary.
Carbon part s Dirty Clean the same way as plastic parts
al Mild soap solution: maxi mum two tablespoons neutral soap in 1 qua rt (I lite r) of water
& WARNING
The windshie ld may not be treated with
water-repelling windshie ld coating agents.
Unfavorab le conditions such as wetness,
darkness, or low sun can result in in­
creased glare. W iper blade chatter is also
possible.
- Headlights /ta il li ghts
-Never clean headlights or tail lights
w ith a dry cloth or sponge. -
Do not use any cleaning product that
contains alcohol, because they could
cause cracks to form .
-Wheels
- Never use any paint polish or other
abrasive mater ials.
- Damage to the protective layer on the
rims such as stone chips or scratches
must be repaired immediately .
-Se nsor s/came ra len ses
- Never use warm or hot water to re-
move snow or ice from the camera
l ens . This could cause the lens to crack .
IJII>
•
•

228 Check ing and filling
Using the proper engine o il is important for
the functionality and service life of the en­
g ine. Your engine was factory-filled with a
h igh-quality oil which can usua lly be used
throughout the entire year.
0 Note
Your L imited New Vehicle Warranty does
not cover damage or ma lfunctions due to
fai lure to follow recommended mainte­
nance and use requ irements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manual and Warranty
&
Ma intenance booklet.
- Use only a high quality eng ine oil that ex­
pressly complies w ith the Audi o il quality
standard spec ified for your veh icle's en­
gine. Using any other oil can cause seri­
ous eng ine damage.
- Do not mix any lubricants o r othe r addi­
tives into the eng ine o il. Doing so can
ca use engine damage.
If you need to add oi l and there is no ne
availab le tha t mee ts the Audi oil qua lity
s tandard your engine requires, yo u may
add a tota l of no more than 0 .5 quart/liter
of a high-quality "synthetic"oil that meets
the following specifications.
- Vehicles with gaso line engine: ACEA A3
or API SM with a viscosity grade of
SAE 0W-30, SAE SW-30 or SAE SW-40.
- Vehicles with diesel engine: ACEA C3 or
API CF with a v iscosity grade of
SAE 0W-30 or SAE SW-30.
- For more information abo ut eng ine oil
that has been approved for your vehicle, please contact either your a uthorized
Audi dealer or Audi Customer Relations
at 1 (800) 822-2834 or visit our web site
at www.audiusa .com or
www.aud icanada.ca.
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on on ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all
of its moving ports .
In order to provide effective lubricat ion and
cooling of interna l eng ine components, all in­
ternal combust ion e ngines consume a certain
amount of oil. Oil consumpt ion va ries from
engi ne to engine and may change sig nifican tly
over the life of the engine. Typically, engines
with a spec ified break -in period (see
c> page 203) consume more oil during the
break-in period than they cons ume after oi l
consumption has stabilized.
U nder normal cond itions, the rate o f oi l con ­
s u mption depends on the q uality and viscos ity
of the oil, the RPM (revolutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient
temperature and road conditions. Further fac­
tors are the amount of oil dilut ion from water
condensation or fue l residue a nd the oxida­
t ion level of the oil. As any eng ine is subject to
wea r as m ileage builds up, t he oil co nsump ­
t ion may increase over time until replacemen t
of worn components may be come necessary.
With a ll these variab les coming into play, no
standard rate of oil consumpt io n can be es­
tabl ished o r spe cified . There i s no alte rnative
to regu lar and frequent che ck ing of the o il lev ­
el , see
Note.
If the yellow engine oil leve l wa rning symbo l
i n t he i nstr ument cluster
Ill lights up, you
sho uld check the oil leve l as soon as possib le
i=> page 229 . Top off the oil at your earliest
convenience
i=> page 229.
A WARNING
--
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed a ll
WARNINGS
c> & in Working in the engine
comportment on page 225.
(D Note
Driving with an insufficient o il level is like-
l y to cause severe damage to the engine. .,.

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@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the pr oblem of proper d isposa l
of brake flu id as we ll as the special tools
requ ired and the necessary expert ise, we
recommend that you have the brake fluid
changed by your author ized Audi dealer .
Battery
General information
Under normal operating conditions, the bat­
tery in your Audi does not need any mainte ­
nance. With
high outside temperatures or
long daily dr ives we recommend that you have
the electro lyte level checked by a service fa­
cility . The electrolyte level shou ld also be
checked each time the battery is charged
¢ page 237.
Have the battery checked when you take your
ve hicle in for service . You are well adv ised to
replace a battery that is older than 5 yea rs .
W ith certa in types of a irbag deployment, t he
b attery is d isconnected from the vehicle elec­
tr ica l system for safety reasons¢.&.
in Re ­
pair, core and disposal of the airbags on
page 163.
Disconnecting the battery terminals
Some vehicle functions (power w indow regu­
lators , for example) are lost if the battery ter­
m inals a re d isconnected. These func tions have
to be re lea rned after the batte ry term inals a re
connected agai n. T o prevent this , the bat tery
should only be d isconnec ted from the vehicle
e lec tric al system when absolu tely necessa ry
for repairs .
Vehicles not driven for long periods
If you do not drive you r vehicle over a period
of severa l days or weeks, elec trical compo­
nen ts are gr adually cut b ack o r swi tched off .
This redu ces energy cons umption and main­
tains starting capab ility over a longer per io d
¢ page 201. Some of the co nvenience func­
tions may not operate, s uch as the inte rior
lights or power seat adjustme nt. The conven-
Checkin g and fillin g 235
ience funct ions w ill be available again when
yo u sw itch on the ign ition and start the en­
gine.
Winter operation
D ur ing the w inte r mon ths, bat tery ca pa city
tends to decrease as tempera tures drop . This
is beca use more power is a lso consumed wh ile
starting, and the headlights, rear window de­
fogger, etc., are used mo re often.
Avoid unnecess ary powe r consumpt ion, pa r­
ticu lar ly in city traffic o r when traveling only
sho rt distances. Let yo ur authorized A udi
dealer check the capacity of the vehicle bat ­
tery before w inter sets in¢
page 23 7. A well
charged battery will no t on ly prevent star tin g
problems w hen the weather is cold, but w ill
also last longer .
@ Tips
If your vehicle is left standing for seve ral
weeks at extremely low temperatures, the
vehicle battery s hou ld be removed and
stored where it will not freez e. This will
p reve nt it from be ing dam aged and having
to be repl aced .
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the bat tery.
The battery is located in the luggage compar t­
ment under the floor . B efo re you che ck any­
thi ng in the luggage compartment,
read and
heed all WARNINGS
¢ .&, .
Always heed the safety warnings , when work­
i ng on the veh icle batte ry or t he vehicle e lec­
t rical sys tem to p reven t inju ry.
The following WARNINGS are very
important when working on the battery:
Always heed the following WARNING SYM· BO LS and safety precautions when working
on the battery .
®
Always wear eye protection.
•
•

236 Check ing and filling
&
Batt ery aci d c ont ain s s ulfuric acid .
A lw ay s w ear gloves a nd eye protec-
ti on.
@
No
- spark s
- flame s
· sm okin g.
A
When a b atte ry is ch arged , it p rodu -
ce s hydr oge n ga s wh ich i s ex plosi ve
.
and co uld cause pe rso nal injur y.
®
Alway s keep the batt ery well out of
re ach of children.
A WARNING
Whenever working on the battery or on
the electrical system, there is the r isk of
injury, acc ident and even fire. Read and
heed the following WARNINGS:
- Always wear eye protection. Do not let
battery acid or any lead part icles get on
your sk in or cloth ing . Sh ield your eyes .
Explosive gases can cause blindness or
other injury.
- Battery acid contai ns sulfur ic acid. Sulfu­
ric acid can cause blindness and severe
burns.
- Always wear gloves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because ac id
could leak out of the vent ilation open­
ings.
- If you get battery acid in your eyes or
on your sk in, immediately rinse with
cold water for severa l m inutes and get
medical attention .
- If you should ingest any battery acid,
seek medical attention immediately .
- Do not expose the battery to an open
flame, electric sparks or an open light.
- Do not smoke.
- Do not interchange the positive and neg-
ative cab les.
- When working on the battery, be sure
not to short-circuit the terminals with
tools or other metal objects. This would
cause the battery to heat up very quickly,
wh ich could lead to damage or explosion
and personal injury. -
When a battery is charged, it produces
hydrogen gas which is explosive and
could cause personal injury.
- Always keep the battery well out of the
reach of children.
- Before work is done on the electrical sys­
tem, disconnect the negat ive ground ca­
ble.
- Before performing any work on the e lec­
trica l system, switch off the engine and
ignit ion as well as any electrical equip­
ment. The negative cable on the battery
must be disconnected .
If you are just go­
ing to replace a light bulb, then it is
enough to swi tc h off the lights.
- Before disconnecting the battery, switch
off the anti-theft alarm system! Other­
wise you wi ll set off the alarm.
- When disconnecting the battery, f irst
d isconnect the negat ive cab le and then
the posit ive c ab le.
- Before reconnecting the batte ry, ma ke
sure all e lectr ica l consumers are sw itch­
ed off. Re connect the pos it ive cable first
and then the negative cable. Never inter ­
change the cables - this could start a fire!
- Never charge a frozen or a thawed-out
battery. It could exp lode! If a battery has
frozen, then it must be replaced . A dis­
charged battery can freeze over at 32
°F
(0 oc).
- Make sure the vent hose is always attach­
ed to the opening on the s ide of the bat­
tery.
- Never use batteries which are damaged.
There is the danger of an explosion! Al­
ways rep lace a damaged battery.
A WARNING
Ca lifornia Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac­
cessories conta in lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc­
tive problems . Wash hands after han-
dling.
~

284 Fuses and bulb s
No. Equipment Amps
s Parking system s
6 Rear Seat Entertainment s
7 Start-Stop-System s
8 side ass ist s
9
Gateway, Vehicle electrical sys-
s tern control module 1
10 Sport d ifferential s
Fuse panel © (black)
No. Equipment Amps
1 Rear seats 20
Fuse panel ® (black)
No. Equipment Amps
1 Movement-activated luggage 1
compartment lid opening
Bulbs
Replacing light bulbs
For your safety, we recommend that you have
your authorized Audi dealer replace burned
out bulbs for you .
It is becoming increasingly more and more
difficult to replace vehicle light bulbs since in
many cases, other parts of the car must first
be removed before you are able to get to the
bulb . Thi s appl ies especial ly to the light bu lbs
in the front of your car which you can only
reach through the engine compartment .
Sheet metal and bulb ho lders can have sharp
edges that can cause ser ious cuts, and parts
must be co rrectly taken apart and then prop­
erly put back together to help prevent break­
age of parts and long term damage from wa­
ter that can enter housings that have not been
properly resealed.
F or your safety, we recommend that you have
your author ized Audi dealer rep lace any bulbs
for you, since your dealer has the proper tools,
the correct bu lbs and the expertise.
Gas di scharge lamps (Xenon lights):
Due to the high e lectr ica l voltage, have the
bulbs replaced by a qualified technician.
Head lights w ith Xenon light can be identified
by the high voltage sticker .
LED headlights* require no maintenance .
P lease contact your authorized Audi dealer if a
bulb needs to be replaced.
A WARNING
Contact with high-voltage components of
the electrical system and improper re­ placement of gas discharge (Xenon) head­
light bulbs can cause ser ious personal in­
jury and death.
- Xenon bulbs are pressur ized and can ex­
p lode when being changed.
- Changing Xenon lamps requ ires the spe­
cial tra ining, instructions and equip­
ment.
- Only an authorized Audi dealer or other
qualified workshop should change the
bu lbs in gas discharge lamps .
_& WARNING
There are parts with sharp edges on the
openings and on the bulb holders that can
cause ser ious cuts.
- If you are uncertain about what to do,
have the work performed by an author­
ized Audi dealer or other qualified wo rk­
shop . Serious personal injury may result
from improperly performed work .
(D Tips
-If you still prefer to replace the light
bulbs yoursel f, be aware that the engine
compartment is a hazardous area to
work in
r=)poge 22Sr=) .&.
-It is best to ask your authorized Audi
dealer whenever you need to change a
bulb .

286 Emergency situations
@ Tips
The discharged battery must be properly
connected to the vehicle's electrical sys­
tem. When jump starting or charging the
battery, never connect the negative
ground cable to the battery negative post
because the batte ry manager system must
be able to detect the battery 's state of
charge. Always connect the negative
ground cab le to the negative ground post
of the battery manager control unit.
Use of jumper cables
Make sure to connect the jumper cable
clamps in exactly the order described below!
Fig. 222 Engine compartment: connecto rs for jump
start cables and charger
Fig. 223 Jump start ing with the battery of another ve·
hide: @-booster battery, @-discharged ve hicle bat­
tery
The procedure described below fo r connecting
jumper cables is intended to provide a jump
start for your vehicle.
Vehicle with discharged battery:
.,. Turn off lights and accessories, move lever
of automatic transmission to N (Neutral) or
P (Park) and set parking brake.
Connect POSITIVE(+) to POSITIVE(+)
(red)
.,. Open the red cover on the positive terminal
¢fig. 222.
1. Connect one end of the red positive cable
on the
jump start bolt c::;, fig. 223 @ (bolt
under the red cover = "positive") of the ve­
hicle to be started @.
2. Connect the other end to the positive ter-
mina l@ of the booster battery@.
Connect NEGATIVE (-) to NEGATIVE (-)
(black)
3. Connect one end of the black negative ca­
ble to the negat ive terminal @ of the
booster battery @.
4. Connect the other end to the
jump start
pin © (bolts with hex head bolt= "nega­
tive") of the vehicle to be started @.
Starting the engine
.,. Start the engine of the veh icle w ith the
booster battery@. Run the engine at a
moderate speed .
.,. Start engine with discharged vehicle battery
@ in the usual manner.
.,. If the engine fails to start, do not keep the
starter cranking for longer than 10 seconds.
Wait for about 30 seconds and then try aga in .
.,. With engine running, remove jumper cables
from both vehicles in the exact
reverse o r­
de r .
.,. Close the red cover on the positive term inal.
T he battery is vented to the outside to prevent
gases from entering the veh icle inter ior. Make
sure that the jumper clamps are well connect­
ed with their metal parts in full contact with
the battery terminals.
_& WARNING
To avoid serious personal injury and dam­
age to the vehicle, heed all warnings and
instructions of the jumper cable manufac­
turer. If in doubt, call for road service .
- Jumper cables must be long enough so
that the veh icles do not touch.
-