2015 AUDI Q5 brake

Trailer mode
Weight distribution
Towing a loaded trai ler with an empty car res ults
in a high ly unstable distribution of weight. If this
cannot be avoided , drive at very low speeds only
to avoid the risk of losing steering contro l.
A "balanced" rig is easier to operate and control.
This means that the tow vehicle should be loaded
to the extent possible and permissible, while
keeping the trailer as light as possible under the
circumstances. Whenever possible, transfer
some cargo to the luggage compartment of the
tow vehicle while observing tongue load require­
ments and vehicle loading considerations .
Speed
The higher the speed, the more difficult it be­
comes for the driver to control the rig . Do not
drive at the maximum permiss ible speed. Reduce
your speed even more if load, weathe r or wind
conditions are unfavorable - particularly when
going downhill.
Reduce vehicle speed
immediately if the trailer
shows the s lightest sign of swaying .
Do not try
to stop the swaying by accelerating.
Observe speed limits. In some areas, speeds for
veh icles towing trailers are lower than for regular
ve hicles .
A lways app ly brakes ear ly. When driving down­
hill, shift into a lower gear to use the engine
brak ing effect to slow the vehicle. Use of the
brakes alone can cause them to overheat and fa il.
Coolant temperature
The coolant temperature gauge c::> page 10 must
be observed carefully.
If the need le moves close
to the upper end of the scale, reduce speed im­
mediately and/or turn off the a ir condit ioner.
If the coo lant temperature warning light in the
instr ument cluster starts flashing •• pu ll off
the road, stop and let the engine
idle for about
two minutes to prevent heat build-up.
A WARNING
Anyone not properly restrained in a moving
vehicle is at a much greater r isk in an acc i-
206
-
dent. Never let anyone ride in your car who is
not properly wearing the restraints provided
by Audi.
Trailer mode notes
Important to know
Your vehicle handles differently when towing a
trai ler because of the additiona l weight and dif­
ferent we ight distribution . Safety, performance
and economy will greatly depend on how careful ­
l y you load your trailer and operate your rig.
Before you actua lly tow your trai ler, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area away
from traffic . Keep practicing until you have be ­
come comp lete ly familiar with the way your vehi­
cle-trailer comb inat ion behaves and responds.
Backing up is difficult and requires practice. Back­
ing up with a trai ler generally requires steering
action opposite to that when backing up your ve­
hicle without a tra iler.
Maintain a greater distance between your vehicle
and the one in front of you. Yo u will need more
room to stop. To compensate for the trailer, you
will need a larger than normal turn ing radius.
When passing, remember that you cannot accel­
erate as fast as you norma lly wou ld because of
the added load. Make sure you have enough room
to pass. After passing, allow plenty of room for
your tra iler before changing lanes again.
Avoid jerky starts , sharp t urns or rapid lane
changes.
@ Tips
- Do not tow a trailer during the break-in peri­
od of your vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your Audi may requi re
more frequent maintenance due to the ex­
tra load
c::> page 281.

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Parking on a slope
Do not pork on a slope with a trailer. If it cannot
be avoided, do so only ofter doing the following:
When parking:
.. Apply the foot brake .
.. Have someone place chocks under both the ve­
hicle and the trailer wheels .
.. With chocks in p lace, slowly re lease the brakes
unt il the w heel chocks absorb the load .
.. Turn the wheels towa rds the curb .
.. Apply the pa rking bra ke .
.. Move the selec tor lever to P .
When restarting after parking:
.. Apply the foot brake .
.. Start the eng ine .
.. Move the se lecto r lever to 0/5 .
.,. Re lease the par king b rake a nd slow ly pull ou t
and away from the whee l cho cks .
.. Stop and have someone re trieve the w heel
chocks .
(D Tips
If you move the selector lever of the a utomat­
ic transmission to P before applying the par k­
ing brake and before blocking the wheels, you
may have to use more force later to move the
lever out of the P position .
Trailer mode
207

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wash operator to reduce the risk of acci­
dents.
- 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.
- 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
funct ion.
- To reduce the risk of damage to the rims
and tires, compare the width between the
whee ls on your vehicle w ith the distance be­
tween the g uide rails in the car wash .
- To red uce the risk of damage, compare the
height and width of yo ur vehicle with the
Care and cleaning
height and w idth of the inside of the car
was h.
- T o prevent paint damage, do not wash the
vehicle in direct sunlight.
- To reduce the ris k of damage to the sur face,
do not use insect remov ing sponges, kitchen
sponges o r similar items.
- Matte finish painted veh icle 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 w ith matte
finish paint. The paint could be damaged
when the stickers or magnets are re­ moved.
@ For the sake of the environment
Only wash the vehicle in facilities spec ially de­
s igned for that purpose. Th is w ill reduce the
r isk of dirty water contaminated w ith oil from
entering the sewe r system.
Cleaning and care information
When clea ning and caring for individual vehicle
components, refer to the following tables. The
information conta ined there is simply recommen -dations. For questions or for components that
are not listed, refer to an authorized A
udi dealer.
Also follow the information found in
¢ A.
Ext erior cl eaning
Component Situation Solution
Wind shi eld wiper
Deposits ¢ page 58, Cleaning windshield wiper blades
blades
H eadlight s/
Deposits Soft sponge with a mild soap solutional
tail light s
S ensors /
Deposits Sensors: soft cloth with solvent-free cleaning solution
camera le nses Camera lenses: soft cloth with alcohol-free clean ing solu-
tion
Snow/ice Hand brush/solvent-free de -ic ing spray
Whe els Road salt Water
Brake dust Acid-free special cleaning
solution
Exhau st tail p ipe s Road salt Water, cleaning solution suitable for stainless steel, if nee-
essary
209

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Checking and Filling Hood
Releasing the engine hood
The engine hood is released from inside the vehi­
cle .
Fig . 195 Drive r's side footwe ll: e ng ine hood re lease lever
"' Wi th the driver's door open, pu ll the leve r un­
der the instrument panel in the direction of the
arrow
c::> fig . 195.
The hood pops up s light ly under spri ng press ure.
Opening the engine hood
Fig. 196 Relea se leve r un der the eng ine hood
Before opening the engine hood, make su re that
the w indshield wipers are flat aga inst the wind­
shield. Otherwise, they could damage the paint
on the hood .
"' Pull up on the release under the hood
c:> fig . 196. This releases the catch.
"' Open the hood all the way
c::> A.
~ _&. WARNING
rl
:5: Hot engine coo lant can burn you.
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Ch eck in g and Fillin g
-To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam or
coolant escaping from the eng ine compart­
ment. Wait until no steam or coolant can be
seen or heard before carefully opening the hood.
Closing the engine hood
"' Pull the hood down until the pressu re from the
struts is reduced.
"' Le t the hood
drop down and latch in p lace. Do
not try to push it shut;
it may fa il to engage
c::> A .
A WARNING
-
A hood that is not completely latched cou ld
fly up and block your view while driv ing.
-
- When you close the engine hood, check it to
make sure the safety catch has properly en­
gaged . The hood should be flush with the
surrounding vehicle body parts .
- If you notice while driv ing that the hood is
not secured properly, stop at once and close
it .
Working in the engine compartment
Be especially careful whenever you work in the
engine compartment.
Wheneve r you must pe rfo rm an y wo rk in the
eng ine comp artment , for e xample chec king and
fi lling differen t fluids , ther e is a ri sk of i nju ry,
bu rn s and acci den ts. To p re ve nt pe rsonal injur y
al way s ob serve the follo wing WARN INGS . The
e ngi ne compartm ent of an y ve hicle is a haza rd­
ou s area
~ ,&..
A WARNING
To help avoid injury, before you check any­
thing under the hood:
- Turn off the eng ine.
- Remove the ignition key.
- Apply the parking brake.
-
- Move selector lever of automatic transmis-
sion to P (Park).
221

Checking and Filling
-Always let the engine cool down. Hot com­
ponents will burn skin on contact .
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam or
coolant escaping from the engine compart­
ment . Wait until no steam or coolant can be
seen or heard before carefully opening the
hood.
- Keep children away from the engine com­
partment .
- Never spill fluids on hot engine compo­
nents . They can cause a fire .
- Never touch the radiator fan. The auxiliary
electric fan is temperature controlled and
can switch on suddenly.
- Never open the coolant reservoir cap when
the engine is still warm. The coolant system
is pressurized and hot coolant could spray
out .
- Protect your face, hands and arm from steam or hot engine coolant by placing a
thick rag over the cap when you open the coolant reservoir .
- Do not remove the engine cover under any
circumstances. This increases the risk of
burns.
- If work on the fuel system or the electrical
system is necessary :
- Always disconnect the battery.
- Never smoke or work near heaters or open
flames . Fluids in the engine compartment
could start a fire.
- Keep an approved fire extinguisher imme­
diately available.
- To avoid electrical shock and personal injury
while the engine is running or being started, never touch:
- Ignition cables
- Other components of the high voltage
electronic ignition system.
- If you must perform a check or repair with
the engine running:
- First, fully apply the parking brake , move
selector lever of automatic transmission
to P (Park).
222
- Always use extreme caution to prevent
clothing, jewelry, or long hair from getting
caught in the radiator fan, V-belts or other
moving parts, or from contacting hot
parts . Tie back hair before starting, and do
not wear clothing that will hang or droop
into the engine.
- Minimize exposure to emission and chemi­
cal hazards
~ ,&. .
&, WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Engine exhaust , some of its constituents,
and certain vehicle components contain or
emit chemicals known to the State of Cali­
fornia to cause cancer and birth defects and
reproductive harm. In addition, certain flu­
ids contained in vehicles and certain prod­
ucts of component wear contain or emit
chemicals known to the State of California
to cause cancer and birth defects or other
reproductive harm.
- Battery posts, terminals and related acces­ sories contain lead and lead compounds,
chemicals known to the State of California
to cause cancer and reproductive harms .
Wash hands after handling .
('.!) Note
When adding fluids, always make sure that
they are poured into the proper container or
filler opening, otherwise serious damage to
vehicle systems will occur.
@ For the sake of the environment
To detect leaks in time, inspect the vehicle
floor pan from underneath regularly. If you
see spots from oil or other vehicle fluids, have
your vehicle inspected by an authorized Audi dealer.

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Checking and Filling
Engine compartment
Engine compartment
These are the mos t important item s that you can check .
Fig. 197 Typical layou t fo r container s and e ngine oil filler ca p
(D Jump start point(+) under a cover 23 2, 272
@ Brake fluid reservoir (0) . . . . . . . . 229
@ Engine oil filler cap(~) . . . . . . . . 225
@ Coolant expansion tank (- L) . . . . . 227
® Jump start point(-) w ith hex head
s crew . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232, 272
@ Windshield/headlight washer con -
tainer
(Q) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234
T he po sit ion of the engine oil filling hole
c:> fig. 197 (item @) can differ depending on the
engine design .
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARN­
INGS
c:> &. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 221.
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine oil used must conform to exact sp eci­
f ications.
T he service interval disp lay in the instrument
cluster of your vehicle will inform you when it is
time for an oi l chang e. We recommend that you
hav e your oil chang ed by an authori zed A udi Serv ­
ic e Advi sor .
If you have to top off the oil between oil changes,
use the Audi oil qua lity standa rd specified in the
tab~ .
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-To avoid being burned, do not spi ll anti­
freeze or coolant on the exhaust system or hot engine parts. Under certain condi­
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine cool­ ant can catch fire.
- Antifreeze is poisonous. Always store anti­
freeze in its original conta iner and well out
of the reach of ch ildren .
-If you drain the coolant, it must be caught
and safely stored in a proper container
clearly marked "poison" .
(D Note
-Do not add coolant if the expansion tank is
empty . Air could enter the cooling system
and damage the eng ine .
If this is the case,
do not continue driving. Seek profess ional
ass istance.
- Coolant pollutes the env ironment and could
cause an eng ine fire . Excess coolant will be
fo rced out through the pressure relief valve
i n the cap when the eng ine becomes hot.
- If, i n an emergency , only water can be add­
ed, the correct ratio between wa ter and an­
tifreeze
~ page 22 7 must be restored as
soon as possib le .
@) For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant should not be reused. Always
dispose o f used coolant while observ ing all
environmental regulations .
Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by it­
self.
The radiator fan is driven by the engine via the V­
be lt . The viscous clu tch regulates the speed of
the fan ac cording to the temperature of the cool ­
ant.
An auxiliary e lectr ic rad iator fan* switches on and
off depend ing on coolant temperat ure and othe r
veh icle operating conditions.
Afte r you switch the engine off, the auxiliary fan
can continue runn ing for up to 10 minutes -even
Ch eck in g and Fillin g
with the ignition off . It can even switch on again
later by itself¢& , if
- the temperatu re of the engine coo lant rises due
to the heat build- up from the engine in the en­
gine compartment, or
- the engine compartment heats up because the
veh icle is parked in intense sun light .
A WARNING
-To reduce the risk of persona l injury never
touch the radiator fan .
- The auxiliary electric fan is temperature con­ trolled and can switch on suddenly even
when the engine is not running.
- The a uxiliary radiator fan sw itches on auto­
matica lly when the engine coolant reaches a
certain temperature and will continue to run
until the coolant temperature drops.
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
The brake fluid level can be checked with a quick
glance .
Fig. 201 Engine compar tment : cov er on th e bra ke fluid
r e servoir
Before you check anyth ing in the engine compart ­
ment,
al way s read and h eed all WARNIN GS
¢ _.& in Working in the engine compartment on
page 221 .
.,. Read the brake fluid level from the b rake fluid
reservoir ¢
fig. 201, ¢ page 223, fig . 197 . The
brake fluid level must be between the
"MIN "
and "MAX " markings.
229

Checking and F ill in g
The brake fluid reservoir is located at the rear
partition of the engine compartment on t he left
side ¢
page 223.
The fl uid level may drop slightly after some time
due to the automatic adjustment of the brake
pads. This is not cause for alarm.
If the b ra ke fluid level fal ls considerably below
the "MIN" mark, the brake warn ing/indicator
light (U.S. models:
1111 , Canadian models: . )
will come on¢
page 18 and ¢ page 28 . Do not
continue to operate the vehicle . The complete
brake system shou ld be thoroughly checked by an
author ized Audi dealer or qualif ied workshop and
the cause corrected. If the brake fluid level is too low, the brake warning/indicator light will illum i­
nate. Contact an authorized Aud i dealer
immedi ­
a tel y.
Changing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experienced technician.
Brake flu id abso rbs moisture from the a ir . If the
water content in the brake fluid is too high, cor­ rosion in the b rake system may result after a pe ri­
od of time. The boiling point of the bra ke fluid
will also decrease conside rably and decrease
b ra ki ng per fo rmance .
Therefore, th e brake flu id must be changed
ev ery
tw o years .
Always use new b rake fluid w hich con­
forms to Fede ra l Motor Vehicle Standa rd " FMVSS
1 16 DOT 4".
The brake fluid rese rvoir can be difficult to reach,
therefo re, we recommend that yo u have the
b rake fluid changed by your authori zed
Audi
dealer .
Your dealer has the cor rect too ls, the
right brake f luid and the know -how to do t his for
you.
A WARNING
- Brake fluid is po isonous. It must be stored
only in the closed orig inal container out of
the reach of children!
- Brake fai lure can result from old or inappro­
pr iate brake fluid . Observe these precau­
t ions:
230
- Use only brake fluid that meets SAE spec i­
ficat io n
J 1703 and conforms to Federal
Motor Vehicle Sta ndard 116 . Always check
with your aut horized Aud i dea ler to make
su re you are using the correct brake fl uid .
The co rrect type of brake f lu id is also ind i­
cated on t he b rake fluid reservoir.
- The brake fl uid must be new. Heavy use of
the b rakes can cause a vapor lock if the
brake fluid is left in t he system too long.
This can se riou sly affec t the efficiency of
the b rakes as well as yo ur sa fety. This
could result in an acc ident .
(D Note
Bra ke fluid will damage the pai nt of you r vehi­
cle.
@ For the sake of the environment
B ecause of the prob lem of prope r disposal of
b rake fluid as well as the spe cial tools re­
q ui red and the necessary ex pert ise, we rec ­
ommend that you have the brake f lu id
cha nged by yo ur autho rize d Aud i dea le r.
Battery
General information
U nder normal operat ing conditions , the battery
i n you r Aud i does not need any maintenance.
With
high outside tem pera tures or long d aily
drives we recommend that you have the e lectro­
l yte level checked by an a utho rized Audi dea le r or
qualified workshop. The electrolyte leve l should
a lso be checked each time the battery is charged
¢ page 232.
Have the battery checked when yo u take your ve ­
hicle in for service. You a re well advised to re­
place a battery that is older than 5 years.
With cer tain types of airbag deployment, t he bat­
tery is disconnected from the vehicle elect rical
system for safety reasons
Q &. in Repair, care
and disposal of the airbags on page 165.
Hybrid drive *: yo u can find important information
abo ut the high voltage battery under ¢
page 98 . ..,.