2015 AUDI Q7 Owner´s Manual

Tires and wheels 287
you tow a trailer, the weight of the total weight of whatever is •
the trailer hitch and the tongue being carried in the vehicle (in-• '
weight of the loaded trailer eluding the weight of a trailer must be included as part of the hitch and the tongue weight of
vehicle load. the loaded trailer) is limited.
The
Gross Axle Weight Rating The more passengers in the ve- hicle or passengers who are
("GAWR") is the maximum load
that can be applied at each of heavier than the standard
weights assumed mean that
the vehicle's two axles.
The Gross Vehicle Weight Rat- less weight can be carried as
luggage
.
ing and the Gross Axle Weight
The tire pressure label on your
Rating are listed on the safety
Audi also lists the maximum
compliance sticker label locat-
ed on the driver's side B-pillar. combined weight of all of the
Your Audi has 5 seating posi- occupants and luggage or other
cargo that the vehicle can carry.
tions, 2 in the front and 3 in the
rear for total seating capacity For the location of the label
¢
page 278, fig. 250. of 5. On vehicles with six
seats* , your vehicle has two
A WARNING
-~
front seats, two seats in the
Overloading a vehicle can
second row seating and two cause loss of vehicle control,
seats in the third row seating. a crash or other accident, se-
On vehicles with seven seats*, rious personal injury, and
your vehicle has two front even death.
seats, three seats in the second -Carrying more weight than
row seating and two seats in your vehicle was designed
the third row seating . Each
to carry will prevent the ve-
seating position has a seat belt hicle from handling properly
¢ page 173, Safety belts . and increase the risk of the
The fact that there is an upper loss of vehicle control.
M N limit to your vehicle's Gross Ve-0 ...J
'SI:
hicle Weight Rating means that ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,

288 Tires and whee ls
- The brakes on a vehicle that
has been overloaded may
not be able to stop the vehi­
cle within a safe distance.
-Tires on a vehicle that has been overloaded can fail
suddenly, including a blow­
out and sudden deflation,
causing loss of control and a
crash.
-Always make sure that the total load being transported
- including the weight of a
trailer hitch and the tongue
weight of a loaded trailer -
does not make the vehicle
heavier than the vehicle's
Gross Vehicle Weight Rat­
ing.
Determining correct load
limit
Use the example below to cal­
culate the total weight of the
passengers and luggage or oth­
er things that you plan to trans­
port so that you can make sure
that your vehicle will not be
overloaded.
Steps for Determining Correct Load Limit
1 . Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGH T OF OC­
CUPANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NEVER EXCEED XXX KG OR XXX LBS"on your vehi­
cle's placard (tire inflation
pressure label)
~ page 2 78,
fig . 250 .
2. Determine the combined
weight of the driver and pas­
sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle .
3 . Subtract the combined
weight of the driver and pas­
sengers from
"XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds
shown on the sticker
~ page 278, fig. 250.
4. The resulting figure equals
the available amount of car­go and luggage load capaci­
ty. For example, if the
"XXX"
amount equals 1400 lbs .
and there will be five 150 lbs. passengers in your vehi­
cle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load ca­ pacity is 650 lbs. (1400 -750
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs.)
5. Determine the combined weight of luggage and cargo .,..

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being loaded on the vehicle.
That weight may not safely
exceed the available cargo and luggage load capacity
calculated in Step 4.
6. If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer, load from your trail­
er will be transferred to your
vehicle. Consult this manual
to determine how this re­
duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle.
.,.Check the tire sidewall
(¢ page 291, fig. 254) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends
on a lot of different things in ­
cluding proper installation and
balancing, correct tire pressure and driving style .
Fig. 252 Tire tread: tread wear indi­
cators (TWI)
Tires and wheels 289
.... N M ::;;
;g
Fig. 253 Rotating tires for more even
wear
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The original tires on your vehi­
cle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm)
high "wear indicators"
¢ fig. 252 running across the
tread. Depending on the make,
there will be six to eight of
them evenly placed around the
tire. Marks on the tire sidewall (for example "TWI" or other
symbols) indicate the positions
of the tread wear indicators.
Worn tires must be replaced.
Different figures may apply in
other countries
¢ & .
Tire pressure
Incorrect tire pressure causes
premature wear and can cause
sudden tire blow-out. For this
reason, tire pressure must be
checked at least once a month
¢ page 282.

290 Tires and whee ls
Driving style - Extra care must be taken when
Driving fast around curves, rotating direction-specific
heavy acceleration and hard tires
¢
page 311.
braking increase tire wear. Wheel balancing
Rotating tires for more even
The wheels on new vehicles are
wear ba lanced. However, various sit-
For all four tires on your vehicle uations during everyday driving
to have the same service life, can cause them to become un-
we recommend that the front balanced, resulting in vibra-
and rear tires are rotated ac -tions you can usually feel
cording to the tire manufactur- through the steering wheel.
er's s uggested tire rotation in-
Unbalanced wheels must be re-
tervals . Please remember the
balanced to avoid excessive
following: wear on steering, suspension
-T ire rotation intervals may dif -and tires. A wheel must also be
fer from the vehicle service in· rebalanced when a new tire is
tervals outlined in your War -insta
lled .
ranty
& Maintenance booklet . Incorrect wheel alignment
-The longer one tire is used in
Incorrect wheel alignment can
one location on the vehic le,
cause excessive ti re wear, im-
the more it wears at certain
pairi ng the safety of the vehi-
points; t herefore, we recom-
cle . If t ires show excessive
mend that you fo llow the tire
wear, have the wheel alignment
manufacturer's suggested tire
checked by an authorized Audi
rotation interva ls.
dealer or qualified wo rkshop.
-Vehicles with front-wheel
dr ive experience more t read
All-wheel drive
wear on the front wheels com-
Vehicles with quattro must al -
pared to all-wheel drive (quat- ways have tires of the same
tro) .
size, construction and tread
-Please rotate tires as shown type. For details see
¢ fig. 253.
¢page 227. ...

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,&_ WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead
to loss of control, a crash and
serious personal injury!
-Never drive a vehicle when the tread on any tire is worn down to the wear indica­
tors.
-
-Worn tires are a safety haz­
ard, they do not grip well on
wet roads and increase your
risk of "hydroplaning" and
loss of control.
-Always keep chemicals that
can cause tire damage, such
as grease, oil, gasoline and
brake fluid away from tires.
-Tires age even if they are
not being used and can fail
suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more
than 6 years old can only be
used in an emergency and
then with special care and
at lower speeds.
-Never mount used tires on
your vehicle if you are not
sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have
been damaged even though
the damage cannot be seen
that can lead to sudden tire
Tires and wheels 291
failure and loss of vehicle
control.
New tires and replacing
tires and wheels
New tires and wheels hove to
be broken in.
Fig. 254 Tire specification codes on
the sidewall of a tire
No. Description
CD Passenger car tire (where
applicable)
0 Nominal width of tire in
millimeters
® Ratio of height to width
(aspect ratio)
© Radial
® Rim diameter code

292 Tires and whee ls
No . Description
® Load index and speed rat-
ing
(J) U .S. DOT tire identifica-
tion number
® Audi Original tire
® Sever snow conditions
@ Tire ply composition and
materials used
@ Maximum load rating
@ Treadwear, traction and
temperature grades
@ Maximum permissible in-
flation pressure
The tires and rims are essential
parts of the vehicle's design .
The tires and rims approved by
Audi are specially matched to
the characteristics of the vehi­
cle and can make a major con­
tribution to good road holding and safe handling when in good
condition and properly inflated
¢ ,&..
We recommend that all work
on tires and wheels be per­
formed by an authorized Audi
dealer. They are familiar with
recommended p rocedures and
have the necessary special too ls
and spare parts as well as the proper facilities for disposing of
the old ti res.
Autho rized Audi dealers have
the necessary information
about technical requirements
for installing or changing tires
and rims .
Replacing tires and wheels
Tires sho uld be replaced at
least in pairs and not individu­
ally (for example both front
tires or both rear tires togeth­
er).
B e sure to read and heed the in ­
formation to the tire pressure
monitoring system
c::> page 301.
Always buy replacement radial
tires that have the same specifi­cations as the tires approved
for your vehicle by Audi. Re­
placeme nt tires m ust always
have the same load rating spec­
ification as the orig inal equip­
ment or approved optional tires
listed in the table c::>page
278.
Audi-approved spec ificat io n
tires are specially matched to
your vehicle and its load limits ,
and can contribute to the im- portant roadholding, driving .,.

Tires and wheels 293
characteristics, and safety of This contains the following in-•
the vehicle. The table formation: • '
(¢ page 2 78) lists specifica-p Indicates the tire is for pas-
tions of the tires approved for senger cars (where applica-
the Audi models covered by ble)
your Owner's Literature.
255 Nominal tire width in mm
The tire pressure label located of the tire from sidewall
on the driver's side B-pillar edge to sidewall edge. In
¢page 278~ fig. 251 lists the general, the larger the num-
specifications of the original ber, the wider the tire
equipment tires installed on
55 Height/width ratio in per-
your vehicle at the time it was cent (aspect ratio)
manufactured.
R Tire construction: Radial
Federal law requires tire manu-
18 Rim diameter code (in in-
facturers to place standardized ches)
information on the sidewall of
109 Load rating code
all tires ¢
fig. 254. This infor-H Speed rating letter code
mation identifies and describes
XL (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD" , or
the fundamental characteris- "RF" Indicates that the tire is
tics, the quality grade of the a"Reinforced" or an "Extra
tire and also provides a tire Load" tire
identification number for safety
M+S (or "M/5") Indicates that
standard certification and in the tire has some mud and
case of a recall. snow capability
Tire specifications The tires could also have the in-
Knowledge of tire specifications formation of direction of rota-
tion
¢
page 2 72.
makes it easier to choose the
correct tires . Radial tires have
Tire manufacturing date
the tire specifications marked
The manufacturing date is also
M on the sidewall, for example: indicated on the tire sidewall N
0 ...J
P255 / 55 R 18 109 H XL (possibly only on the inner side 'SI: ,...., \!)
of the wheel): 1.1'1 .... ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,

294 Tires and wheels
"DOT ... 2214 ... " means, for
example, that the tire was pro-
duced in the 22nd week of
2014.
Speed rating (letter code)
The speed rating letter code on
the wheels indicates the maxi -
mum permissible road speeds
c> & in Winter tires on
page 298.
P up to 93 mph (150 km/h)
Q up to 99 mph (158 km/h)
R up to
106 mph (170 km/h)
s up to 110 mph (180 km/h)
T up to
118 mph (190 km/h)
u up to 124 mph (200 km/h)
H up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
V up to 149 mph (240 km/h)1
)
z over 149 mph (240 km/h)1
)
W up to 168 mph (270 km/h)1
)
Y up to 186 mph (298 km/h)1
)
Your vehicle is normally factory
equ ipped with tires, which pas-
sess excellent driving character- istics and give your Audi opti-
mum driv ing comfort. An elec-
tron ic speed limiter
c> page 28
l) For t ires with a maximum speed ca­
pability ov er 149 mph (240 km/h) ,
tire manufacturers sometimes use
the letters "ZR."
will normally prevent your vehi-
cle from going faster than the
tire speed rating
c> & .
U.S. DOT Tire Identification
Number (TIN) and tire
manufacture date
This is the tire's "serial num-
ber". It begins with the Letters
"DOT" and indicates that the
tire meets all federal stand- ards. The next two numbers or letters indicate the plant where
it was manufactured, and the
last four numbers represent the
week and year of manufacture. For example, the numbers
2214 mean that the tire was
produced in the 22nd week of
2014. The other numbers are marketing codes that may or
may not be used by the tire
manufacturer. This information
is used to contact consumers if
a tire defect requires a recall.
Audi Original tire
Tires with the identification
"AO" or "RO" have been special-
ly matched with your Audi. We
...