2015 AUDI Q7 ABS

238 Trailer towing
Trailer towing
Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passen­
ger transportation .
If you plan to tow a trailer, p lease remember
that the additional load will affect durability,
economy and performance .
Trailer towing not on ly places more stress on
the vehicle, it also calls for more concentra­
tion from the driver.
For this reason, always follow the operating
and driving instructions provided and use
common sense.
@ Note
If you are going to tow a trai ler, you must
activate the trailer operation mode
c:::> page 161, Towing a trailer.
Technical requirements
Trailer hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross trailer weight. The hitch must be suita­ ble for your vehicle and trailer and must be
mounted securely on the vehicle's chassis at a
technically sound location . Use only a trailer
hitch with a removable ball mount. Always
check with the trailer hitch manufacturer to
make sure that you are using the cor rect
hitch.
Do not use a bumper hitch.
The hitch must be installed in such a way that
it does not interfere with the impact-absorb­
ing bumper system. No modifications should
be made to the vehicle exhaust and brake sys­
tems. From time to time, check that all hitch
mounting bolts remain securely fastened.
When you are not towing a trailer, remove the
trai ler hitch ball mount. This prevents the
hitch from causing damage should your vehi­
cle be struck from behind
c:::> A.
Trailer brakes
If your trailer is equipped with a brakin g sys­
tem, check to be sure that it conforms to all
regulations.
T he trailer hydraulic brake system must not be
directly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
brake system
c:::> A .
Safety chains
Always use safety chains between your veh icle
and the tra iler.
Trailer lights
Trailer lights must meet all regulations. Be
sure to check with your authorized Audi dealer
for correct wiring, sw itches, and relays.
Mirrors
If you are unable to see the traffic behind you
using the regular outside mirrors, then you
must install extended mirrors.
It is important
that you always have clear v is ion to the rear .
A WARNING ,-
- If a trailer has electrical brakes please
note that these brakes are not activated
by the factory-fitted control unit -risk of
accident!
- Afte r removing the trailer hitch, do not
store it in yo ur vehicle. In case of sudden
braking, the hitch could fly forward and
injure you or your passengers.
- Never install a "weight distributing" or
"load equalizing" trailer hitch on your ve­
hicle. The vehicle was not designed for
these kinds of trailer hitches. The hitch
attachment can fail, causing the trailer
to tear loose from the vehicle.
- The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating for your
vehicle, found on the safety compliance
label on the driver's side B-pillar, must
never be exceeded under any circumstan­
ces. Exceeding the Gross Vehicle Weight
Rating of your vehicle is likely to damage
your vehicle, and such damage will not
be covered by your Limited New Vehicle
-
Warranty. Exceeding the Gross Vehicle ~

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have become completely familiar with the way
your vehicle-trailer combination behaves and responds.
Backing up is difficu lt and requires practice.
Backing up with a trai ler genera lly requires
steering action opposite to that when backing up your vehicle without a trailer .
Maintain a greater distance between your ve­
hicle and the one in front of you. You will need
more room to stop . To compensate for the
trai ler, you will need a larger than norma l
turning radius.
When passing, remember that you cannot ac ­
celerate as fast as you normally would be ­
cause of the added load . Make sure you have
enough room to pass. After passing, allow plenty of room for your tra iler before chang­
ing lanes again .
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane
changes.
@ Tips
- Do not tow a traile r during the break-in
period of your vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your A udi may re­
quire more frequent maintenance due to
the extra load
¢ page 326.
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:
.. Apply the foot brake .
.. Have someone place chocks under both the
vehicle and the trai ler wheels .
.. With chocks in place, slowly re lease the
brakes until the wheel chocks absorb the
load .
.. Turn the wheels towards the curb .
.. Apply the parking brake.
.. Move the selector lever to P.
When restarting after parking:
.. Apply the foot brake.
Trailer towing 241
.. Start the engine.
.. Move the selector lever to D.
.. Release the parking brake and s low ly 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 auto­
matic transmission to P before applying
the parking brake and before blocking the
whee ls, you may have to use more force
l ater to move the lever out of the
P posi­
tion.
•
•

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Vehicl e ca re a nd cl eanin g 245
Component Situ ation Solution
Dis plays
Dirty Soft cloth with LCD cleaner
Co nt rols Dirty Soft
brus.h, then a soft cloth with a mild soap solut iona)
Sa fety belts Dirty Mild soap solutional, allow to dry before letting them re-
tract
Te xtiles, Stains adher ing to Vacuum cleaner
V in yl, the surface
Alcant ara Water -based stains Absorbent cloth and mild soap solutiona>
such as coffee, tea,
blood, etc.
Oil-based stains Apply a mild soap solutiona), 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 solution a>, if necessary
nai l polish , latex
pa int, shoe polish,
etc.
N at ur al lea ther Fresh stains Cotton cloth
with a mild soap solutiona)
Water-based stains Fresh stains: absorbent cloth
such as coffee, tea, Dried stains: sta in remover suitable for leather
blood, etc.
Oi l-based stains Fresh stains: absorbent cloth and stain remover suitable
such as oil, make- for leather
up, etc. dried stains: Oil cleaning spray
Special sta ins such Sta in remover suitable for leather
as ballpoint pen,
nai l polish , latex
paint, shoe polish,
etc.
Care Regularly apply condit ion ing cream that protects from
light and penetrates into the mater ial. Use specially-col-
ored condit ion ing c ream, if necessary.
Carb on pa rt s Dirty Clean the same way as plastic parts
al Mild soap solution: maximum two tablespoons neutral soap in 1 quart (1 liter) of water
_&. WARNING
The windshield may not be treated with
wate r-repelling windsh ie ld coating agents.
Unfavorab le conditions such as wetness,
darkness, or low sun can result in in­
creased glare . Wiper blade chatter is also
possible.
-
@ Note
- Headl ight s/ta il ligh ts
- Neve r clean headlights or tail lights
with a dry cloth or sponge .
- Do not use any cleaning product that
contains alcohol, because they could
cause cracks to form .
-Wheels
•
•

26 6 Ch eck ing and filling
If the brake fluid level falls considerably be­
low the "MIN" mark, the brake warning/indi­
cator light (U .S . mode ls:
11111 , Canadian
models: .) will come on
<=> page 19 and
<=> page 32. Do not continue to operate the ve­
h icle . The complete brake system should be
thoroughly checked by an authorized Aud i
dea ler or qualified 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
im­
m ediatel y.
@ Tips
The brake fluid rese rvoir is located unde r­
neath the cove r.
Changing brake fluid
Hove the broke fluid changed by on experi­
enced technician.
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the a ir . If
the water content in the brake fluid is too
h igh , corrosion in the brake system may result
after a per iod of t ime. The bo iling po int of the
brake fluid wi ll also decrease considerably and
decrease braking performance.
Therefore, the brake flu id must be changed
e ver y tw o year s. Always use new b rake fluid
which conforms to Federal Motor Vehicle
Standard "FMVSS 1 16 DO T 4".
The brake flu id reservo ir can be difficult to
reach, therefore, we recommend that you
have the brake f luid changed by you r author­
ized
Audi dea ler. Your dea ler has the correct
too ls, the right brake fluid and the know -how
to do this for you.
A WARNING
- Brake fluid is poisonous . It must be stor­
ed only i n the closed orig inal container
o ut of the reach of children!
- Brake fa ilure can result from old or inap­
propriate b rake fluid. Observe these pre­
caut ions: -
Use only brake fluid that meets SAE
specification
J 1703 and conforms to
Federa l Motor Vehicle Standard 116.
Always check with your authorized Audi
dealer to make sure you are using the
correct brake fluid . The correct type of
brake f lu id is also ind icated on the
brake flu id reservoir.
- T he brake fluid must be new. Heavy use
of the bra kes ca n cause a vapo r lock if
the b rake fluid is left in the system too
l ong . This can seriously affect the effi ­
c iency of the brakes as well as your
safety. This co uld resu lt in an accident.
(D Note
Bra ke fluid will damage the paint of you r
vehicle .
(® For the sake of the environment
Because of the p rob lem of p roper disposal
of b ra ke fluid as well as the spec ial too ls
r equired and the necessary expertise, we
re commend that yo u have the brake fluid
changed by yo ur authorized Aud i dea ler.
Battery
General information
U nder normal ope rat ing cond itions , the bat­
tery in yo ur Audi does not need any ma inte­
nance. With
high o utside tempe ra tur es or
l ong dai ly drives we recommend that you have
the e lectrolyte level checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualif ied workshop. The elec­
trolyte level should also be checked each time
the battery is charged
<=> page 268.
Have the battery checked when yo u take your
vehicle in for service. You are well advised to replace a battery that is o lder than 5 years .
With certain types of airbag deployment, the battery is disconnected from the veh icle elec­
trical system for safety reasons<=>.&
in Re ­
pair , core and disposal of the airbags on
page 196.
~

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Disconne cting the batt ery t erminals
Some vehicle functions (power w indow regu ­
l ators, for example) are lost if the battery ter­
minals are disconnected . These functions have
to be re learned after the battery terminals are
connected again. To prevent this, the battery
should only be disconnected from the vehicle
electrical system when absolutely necessary
for repairs .
Vehicle s not driven fo r lo ng period s
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period
of several days or weeks, electrical compo­
nents are gradually cut back or switched off .
This reduces energy consumption and main­
tains starting capab ility over a longer per iod
¢ page 228 .
Take into consideration that when you unlock
your vehicle, some convenience functions,
such as the inter ior lights or the power seat
adjustment, may not be available . The con­
ve nience funct ions w ill be available again
when yo u turn on the ignition and start the
engine.
Winter op eration
During the winter months, battery capacity
tends to decrease as tempe ratures d rop . This
i s because more powe r is also consumed while
start ing, and the headl ights, rea r window de ­
fogger, etc., are used more often.
Avo id unnecessary power consumption, par­
ticularly in c ity t raffic or when t rave ling on ly
short d istances. Let you r autho rized Aud i
dealer check the capacity of the vehicle bat­
tery before winter sets in ¢
page 268. A well
charged battery wi ll not only prevent starting
prob lems when the weather is cold, but will
also last longer .
If your vehicle is left standing for severa l
weeks at extremely low temperat ures, the
veh icle battery should be removed and
stored where it will not freeze. This will
prevent it from bei ng damaged and hav ing
to be replaced.
Checkin g and fillin g 267
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the battery.
The battery is located under the driver 's seat.
Before you check anyth ing under the dr iver's
seat,
read and h eed all WARNINGS G &_ .
Always heed the safety warnings , when work­
ing on the vehicle battery or the vehicle e lec­
trical system to prevent injury .
The following WARNINGS are ver y
important when working on the batter y:
Alway s heed the following WARN IN G SY M-
BOLS a nd safety p re caution s when working
on the battery .
®
Alway s wear e ye prote ction.
~
Batt ery acid contain s sulfuric acid. Al -
w ay s we ar gloves and eye prot ection.
@
No
-spa rk s
- flam es
- smoking .
~
When a b atter y is ch arged , it produces
h y drogen g as w hic h is e xplosi ve and
could cause pe rsonal injur y.
®
Alw ays keep the batt ery well out of
r e a ch of childr en.
A WARNING
Whenever working on the battery or on
the electrical system, there is the risk of
injury, accident and even fire. Read and
heed the following WARNINGS:
- Always wear eye protection. Do not let
battery ac id or any lead particles get on
your skin or clothing. Shield your eyes.
Exp losive gases can cause blindness or
other inju ry.
- Battery acid conta ins sulfuric acid. Sulfu­
ric acid can cause blindness and severe
bu rns.
- Always wear g loves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because acid
~
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302 Tire s and whee ls
Tire pressure indicator appears
The tire pressure indicator in the instrument
cluster informs you if the tire pressure is too
low or if there is a system malfunction.
F ig . 255 D isp lay: underinflation warn ing
Using the ABS sensors, the tire pressure moni­
toring system compares the tire tread circum­
ference and vibration characteristics of the in­
d iv idual tires. If the pressure decreases in one
or more tires, this is indicated in the instru­ ment cluster with a
RE warning symbol and a
message ¢
fig. 255 . The dr iver message in the
d isplay goes out after 5 seconds . The dr iver
message can be displayed again by pressing
the
! CHECK I button. If only one tire is affect­
ed, the display will indica te its pos ition.
The tire pressure monitoring must be reset via MMI each time the pressures are adjusted (e.
g. when switch ing between partial and full
l oad pressure) or after changing or replac ing a
tire on your vehicle¢
page 303. The TPMS in­
dicator only monitors the tire pressure that
you have previously stored. You can find the
recommended tire pressures for your vehicle
on the label on dr iver's side 8-pillar
¢page 278.
Tire tread circumference and vibration charac­
teristics can change and cause a tire pressure
warn ing if:
- the tire pressure in one or more tires is too
l ow,
- the tire has st ructural damage,
- the tire pressure was changed, whee ls rotat-
ed o r replaced but the TPMS was not reset
¢ page 303,
-the sp are tire* is mounted.
Warn ing symbo ls
RE Loss of pressure in at least one tire¢,&..
Check the tire or tires and rep lace or repa ir if
necessary . The
RE indicator light in the instru ­
ment cluster also illuminates
¢ page 14.
Check/correct the pressures of all four tires
and reset TPMS via MMI.
[m'El (T ire Pressure Monitoring System) Tire
pre ssure: System m alfunction!. If [m'El ap­
pears after switching the ignition on or while
driving and the
RE i ndicator light in the in­
strument cluster bli nks for approx imately one
minute and then stays on, there is a system
malfunction . Attempt to store the correct tire
pressure
¢ page 303. If the indicator light
does not tu rn off or if it t urn s on sho rtly
thereafte r, immediately d rive yo ur vehicle to
an a uthorized Audi dea ler or a uthorized repair
facility to have the malfunction corrected.
A WARNING ......_
- If the tire pressure ind icator appears in
the instrument cluster display, one or
more of your t ires is sign ificant ly under­
inflated . Reduce your speed immediately
and avoid any hard steer ing or b raking
maneuvers. Stop as soon as possib le and
check the tires and their pressu res. In ­
flate the ti re p ressu re to the proper pres ­
sure as indicated on the vehicle's tire
pressure labe l
r=:>page 278. Driving on a
sign ificantly under-inflated tire causes
the t ire to overheat and can lead to tire
fa ilure. Under-inflation also is likely to
impair the vehicle's handl ing and stop­
p ing ability .
- The driver is responsible for maintaining
the correct tire pressures. You must
check the tire pressures regu larly.
- Under certain conditions (such as a spor­
ty driv ing style, winter conditions or un­
paved roads), the pressure monitor indi­
cator may be delayed .
-Ask you r aut horized Aud i dea ler if run­
flat t ires may be used on you r vehicle.

304 What do I do now?
What do I do now?
Jack, tools and
inflatable spare tire
Tools
The tool kit is located in the luggage com­
partment under the cargo floor cover.
Fig . 256 Luggage compartmen t: vehicle too l kit
The onboard tool kit includes:
- Hook for removing wheel covers*
- Plastic hook to remove wheel bolt covers*
- Wheel bolt wrench
- Alignment p in for changing wheels
- Screwdriver with reversible blade
- 10 x 13 open ended wrench
-Towing eye
(D Tips
Some of the onboard items listed above
are provided on certa in models only or are
optional extras .
Jack and folding chocks
The jack and the folding chocks are located in
the luggage compartment under the cargo
floor cover.
Fig. 257 Luggage compartment veh icle jack and fo ld­
ing chocks
-----........ -
Fig. 258 Opening fold ing chocks
Vehicle jack
The jack is located under the tool kit
<=>fig . 257. Before storing the jack, make sure
it is wound back down as far as it will go.
Folding chocks
Two unassembled fo lding chocks are attached
to the foam section at the front with the jack
<=> fig. 257.
Release the two hook-and-loop fasteners, and
remove the two chocks. To use the chocks, you
first have to raise the support plate
<=> fig. 258 (!) and then insert the locking plate
with the two "tabs" into the elongated holes
in the base plate@<=>&. .
A WARNING
-- The chock cannot fulfill its function and
may lose its stability if the "tabs" on the
support plate are not inserted correctly
into the elongated holes in the base

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"' rl
plate. If this hap pens , the vehicle may
start to m ove whi le a whee l is being
changed.
- Never use the folding chocks if they are
damaged or i f they have not been assem­
bled correct ly.
A WARNING
Improper use of the vehicle jack can cause
ser ious personal injuries.
- Never use the jack supplied with your
Audi on another vehicle, particularly on a heavier one. The jack is only suitable for
use on the vehicle it came w ith .
- Us ing a bumper jack to raise the vehicle
will damage the bumper system. The
jack may slip, causing i njury.
- Never support your vehicle on cinder bloc ks, b ricks or other objects. Th ese
may not be able to support the load and
cou ld cause injury when they fail.
- Never start or run t he engine while the
vehicle is suppor ted by the jack.
- If you must wo rk under the vehicle, al­
ways use safety stand s spe cifically de­
signed for this purpose.
- Always make sure the inflatable spare
tir e a nd even a f lat t ire are se cured in
place and not loose, ot herwise they
cou ld fly forward, causing personal inj ury
to passengers in the veh icle in an acc i­
dent or sudden mane uver.
Removing bass box
Applies to vehicles: with bass box
Before the inflatable spare tire can be taken
out, the bass box must be removed .
Fig . 259 Spare wheel well: Bass box
What do I do now ? 305
Removing bass box
.,. Squee ze the locking tabs ~ fig . 259 (D of
the conne ctor .
.,. Disconnect the connector @and place the
lead to one side.
.,. Turn the large screw counter-clockwise .
.,. Carefully remove the bass box.
Installing bass bo x
.,. Carefully p lace the bass box in the wheel.
The inscription "F RO NT" on the bass box
must face forward .
.,. Reconnect the connector that was removed.
.,. Secure the bass box with the large screw .
Inflatable spare tire
The inflatable spare tire expands to its full di­
ameter when it is inflated.
Fig. 2 60 In flatable spare tir e w ith compressor
Removing inflatable spare tire
.,. Lift up the cargo floo r us ing the handle .
"' Turn the large screw
9 fig . 260 counte r-
clockw ise.
"' Remove the bass box as required
¢ page 305 .
.,. Take out the in flatable spare tire .
.,. Always store the vehicle tool kit, the jack
and the replaced tire in the luggage com­
partment
9 page 169.
Stowing the inflatable spare t ire
"' Release the ai r by u nscrewing the valve
stem .
.,. Screw the valve stem back in afterwards .
.,. Wait a few hours before p lac ing the wheel in
the spare wheel we ll¢ ,& .
"' Install the bass box as required ¢
page 305 . ..,_