2015 AUDI R8 SPYDER Owners Manual

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negative cable. Never interchange the ca­
bles -this could start a fire!
- Never charge a frozen or a thawed-out bat­
tery. It could explode! If a battery has fro­
zen, then it must be replaced. A discharged
battery can freeze over at 32 °F (0 °C).
- Make sure the vent hose is always attached
to the opening on the side of the battery.
- Never use batteries which are damaged.
Danger of explosion! Always replace a dam­
aged battery.
A WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, terminals and related acces­
sories contain lead and lead compounds, chemicals known to the State of California
to cause cancer and reproductive problems.
Wash hands after handling .
(D Note
- Do not disconnect the vehicle battery when
the ignition is switched on or when the en­
gine is running, otherwise, you will damage
electronic components in the electrical sys­
tem.
- If your vehicle is going to stand for a long
period of time without being driven, protect
the battery from "freezing", otherwise it
will be damaged and will then have to be re­
placed.
Charging the battery
Connections for charging the battery are located
in the luggage compartment.
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• •
Fig. 144 Luggage compartment : ba tter y cover
Checking and filling
Fig. 145 Lug gage compar tment: connectors for a charg er
and jump start cables
Do not connect the negative cable directly to the
negative terminal on the battery. Connect it to a
jump start pin instead¢ fig. 145 .
• Always read and heed all WARNINGS ¢ A in
Working on the battery on page 166
and ¢&_ .
• Switch off the ignition and all electrical con-
sumers.
• Open the luggage compartment lid¢
page 32.
• Remove the battery cover¢ fig. 144.
.,. Connect the terminal clamps from the charger
to the battery terminal (red= "positive") and
the jump start pin ¢
fig. 145 (black or brown =
"neg ative") as specified.
• Only now plug the mains lead for the charging
equipment into the wall outlet and turn it on.
• When the battery is fully charged: Turn the
charg ing equipment off and remove the mains
lead from the wall outlet.
.,. Now remove the clamps for the charging equip-
ment .
.,. Install the battery cover .
.,. Close the luggage compartment lid ¢
page 32.
When charging at low voltages (e.g . with a trickle
charger),
the battery cables do not have to be
disconnected first. Before charging at
high vol­
tages, i .e.
"fast charging", you must disconnect
both cables. In either case , follow the instruc­
tions from the manufacturer of the charger.
Fastcharging a battery is
dangerous¢.&. in
Working on the battery on page 166.
It requires
special charging equipment and the knowledge
to go with it. We recommend having your battery
fast charged only by a qualified workshop.
A discharged battery can
freeze at temperatures
of only 32
°F (0 °C). Allow a frozen battery to ..,.
167

Checking and filling
thaw completely before attempting to charge it
c> &. . However, we recommend not us ing a
thawed battery again because the battery casing
can be cracked due to ice format ion and can leak
battery acid.
Do no t open the battery caps when charging the
battery .
A WARNING
Charging a battery can be dangerous.
- Never charge a frozen battery. It may ex­
plode because of gas trapped in the ice. Al­
low a frozen battery to thaw out first.
- Do not reuse batteries which were frozen.
The battery housing may have cracked and
weakened when the battery froze.
- Charge the battery in a we ll ventilated area.
Keep away from open flame or electrical
spark. Do not smoke . Hydrogen gas generat­
ed by the battery is explosive .
- To reduce the danger of explosion, never
connect or disconnect charger cables while
the charger is operating .
- Fast charg ing a battery is dangerous and
should only be attempted by a competent
technician with the proper equipment .
- Battery acid that may spill during charg ing
sho uld be washed off w ith a solution of
warm water and baking soda to neutralize
the acid.
CD Note
Never use a fast charger as a booster to start
the engine. This will seriously damage sensi­
tive electronic components, such as control
units, re lays, radio, etc., as well as the batte ry
charger.
@ Tips
- The vehicle battery must not be charged
with a standard small charger that plugs in­
to the cigarette lighter or outl et.
- Only charge the battery through the connec­
tions in the luggage compartment.
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Windshield washer
container
Fig. 146 Lu ggage compar tment: Wind shi eld wash er fl uid
reservoir
The washer fluid container is marked with the
symbol
Q on its cap c>page 157, fig . 134.
.. Lift the filler cap tongue to add washer fluid.
You can fill the container to the top .
.. Press the cap back onto the filler neck after fill -
ing the container .
You can find the reservoir capacity in the table in
¢page 213
Clean water should be used when filling up. If
possible, use soft water to prevent scaling on the
washer jets. Always add a glass cleaner solution
(with frost protection in the winter).
CD Note
- Do not mix engine coolant antifreeze or any
other additives to fill up the windshield
washer reservoir .
- Do not use glass cleaners containing paint
solvent; you risk damaging the paint.

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Tires and wheels
Tires
General notes
Tires may be the least appreciat­
ed and most abused parts of a
motor vehicle.
Tires may be the least appreciated
and most abused parts of a motor
veh ic le . Tires are, however, one of
the most important parts of ave ­
hicle, particularly considering the
comparatively small patch of rub­
ber on each tire that assu res that
all-important contact between
you, your vehicle and the road .
Maintain ing the correct t ire pres­
sure, making sure that your vehi­
c le and its tires do not have to
carry more weight than they can
safe ly handle, avoiding damage
from road hazards and regularly inspecting tires for damage in­
c luding cuts, slashes i rregular
wear and overall condition are the most important th ings that you
can do to help avo id sudden tire
failure including tread separation
and blowouts.
Avoiding damage
~ If you have to dr ive over a curb or ":
~ similar obstacle, drive very s lowly
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Tir es a nd whe els
and as close as possible at a right
ang le to the curb.
Always keep chemicals including
grease, oil, gasoline and brake
fluid off the tires. Inspect the tires regularly fo r
damage (cuts, cracks or blisters ,
etc.) . Remove any foreign bodies
embedded in the treads.
Storing tires
Mark tires when you remove them
to indicate the direction of rota­
tion. This ensures you to be able
to mount them correctly when
you reinstall them.
When removed, the w heels or
tires sho uld be stored in a coo l,
dry and preferably dark place.
Store tires in a vertical position if
they are not mounted on rims, in
a horizon tal position if they are
mounted on rims .
New tires
New tires have to be broken in
¢,&.
The tread depth of new tires may
vary, according to the type and make of tire and the tread pa t­
tern.
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Tires and wheels
Hidden damage
Damage to tires and rims is often
not readily visible. If you notice
unusual vibration or the vehicle
pulls to one side, this may indi­
cate that one of the tires has been
damaged. The tires must be
checked immediately by an au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified
workshop.
Unidirectional tires
A unidirectional tire can be identi­
fied by arrows on the sidewall,
that point in the direction the tire
is designed to rotate. You must
follow the specified direction of
rotation . This is necessary so that
these tires can develop their opti­
mum characteristics regarding
grip, road noise, wear and hydro­
planing resistance. For more in­
formation
¢ page 203 .
A WARNING ~ -
New tires or tires that are old,
worn or damaged cannot pro­
vide maximum control and
braking ability.
-New tires tend to be slippery
and must be broken in. To re­
duce the risk of losing control,
a collision and serious person­
al injuries, drive with special
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care for the first 350 miles (560 km).
-Driving with worn or damaged tires can lead to loss of con­
trol, sudden tire failure, in­
cluding a blowout and sudden
deflation, crashes and serious
personal injuries. Have worn
or damaged tires replaced im­
mediately.
-Tires age even if they are not being used and can fail sud­
denly, 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
low speed.
-Never mount used tires on your vehicle if you are not sure
of their "previous history." Old
used tires may have been
damaged even though the
damage cannot be seen that
can lead to sudden tire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
-If you notice unusual vibration
or if the vehicle pulls to one
side when driving, always stop
as soon as it is safe to do so
and check the wheels and tires
for damage.
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(D Note
- Please note that summer and
winter t ires are designed for
the conditions that are typical in those seasons . Audi recom­
mends using winter tires dur ­
ing the winter months . Low
temperatures significantly de­
crease the elasticity of summ­
er tires, which affects traction
and braking ability. If summer
tires are used in very cold tem­ peratures, cracks can form on
the tread bars, resulting in
Tires and wheels
permanent tire damage that
can cause loud driving noise
and unbalanced tires . Audi is
not responsible for this type
of damage.
- Burnished, polished or
chromed rims must not be
used in winter road condi­
tions . The surface of the rims
does not have sufficient corro ­
sion protection for this and
could be permanently dam­ aged by road salt or similar
substances .
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means the combined weight (in
excess of those standard items
which may be replaced) of auto­
matic transmission, power steer­
ing, power brakes, power win ­
dows , powe r seats , radio , and
heater , to the extent that these
items a re available as factory-in­
stalled equipment (whether in­
stalled or not).
Aspect ratio
means the ratio of the height to
;:;: the width of the tire in percent .
" ~ Numbers of 55 or lower indicate a ...
~ low sidewall for improved steer -
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ing response and better overall
handling on dry pavement.
Bead
means the part of the tire that is
made of steel wires, wrapped or
reinforced by ply cords and that is
shaped to f it the rim .
Bead separation
means a breakdown of the bond
between components in the bead .
Cord
means the strands forming the
plies in the tire.
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Tires and wheels
Cold tire infl ation pre ssure
means the tire pressure recom ­
mended by the vehicle man ufac­
turer for a tire of a designated
size that has not been driven fo r
more than a couple of miles (kilo­
meters) at low speeds in the three
hour period before the tire pres­
sure is measured or adjusted .
Curb weight
means the weight of a motor ve­
hicle with standard equipment in­
cluding the maximum capacity of
fuel, oil, and coolant, air condi­
tioning and additiona l weight of
optional equipment.
E x tra load tire
means a tire designed to operate
at higher loads and at higher in­
flation pressures than the corre­ sponding standard tire. Extra load
tires my be identified as "XL",
"xl ", "EXTRA LOAD", or "RF" on
the sidewall.
Gross Axle Weight Rating ("GAWR" )
means the load-carrying capacity
of a single axle system, measured
at the tire -ground interfaces.
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Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
("GVWR")
means the maximum total loaded
weight of the vehicle.
Groove
means the space between two ad­
jacent tread ribs.
Load rating (code )
means the maximum load that a
tire is rated to carry for a given in­
flation pressure . You may not find
this information on all tires be­
cause it is not required by law .
Maximum load rating
means the load rating for a tire at
the maximum permissible infla­
tion pressure for that tire .
Maximum loaded vehicle
weight
means the sum of :
(a) Curb weight
(b) Accessory weight
(c) Vehicle capacity weight, and
(d) Production options weight
Ma ximum (permissible )
inflation pressure
means the maximum cold infla­
tion pressure to which a tire may be inflated. A lso called "maxi-
mum inflation pressure ." .,.

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Normal occupant weight
means 150 lbs. (68 kilograms)
times the number of occupants
seated in the vehicle up to the to­
tal seating capacity of yo ur vehi­
c le .
Occupant distribution
means distribution of occupants
in a vehicle.
Outer diameter
means the overall diameter of an
inflated new tire .
Overall width
means the linear distance be­
tween the exteriors of the side­
walls of an inflated tire, including elevations due to labeling, deco­
rations, or protective bands or
ribs .
Ply
means a layer of rubber-coated
parallel cords .
Production options weight
means the combined weight of
those installed regular product ion
options weighing over 5 lbs. (2 .3
kg) in excess of those standard
items which they replace, not pre ­
viously considered in curb weight
or accessory weight, including
Tir es a nd whe els
heavy duty brakes, ride levelers,
heavy duty battery, and special
trim.
Radial ply tire
means a pneumatic tire in which
the ply cords that extend to the beads are laid at substantially
90
degrees to the centerline of the
tread.
Recommended inflation
pre ssure
see c::> page 172, Cold tire infla­
tion pressure.
R einforced tire
means a tire designed to operate
at higher loads and at higher in­
flation pressures than the corre­
sponding standard tire. Rein­
forced tires my be identified as
"X L", "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or "RF"
on the sidewall.
Rim
means a metal support for a tire
or a tire and tube assembly upon
which the tire beads are seated.
Rim di ameter
means nominal diameter of the
bead seat. If you change your
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Tires and wheels
wheel size, you will have to pur­
chase new tires to match the new rim diameter .
Rim size designat ion
means rim diameter and width .
Rim width
means nominal distance between
rim flanges.
Sidewall
means that portion of a tire be­
tween the tread and bead .
Speed rating (letter code )
means the speed at which a tire is
designed to be driven for extend­
ed periods of time. The ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h)
to 186 mph (298 km/h)
c::;, page 189. You may not find
this information on all tires be­
cause it is not required by law.
T he speed rat ing letter code,
where applicable, is mo lded on
the tire sidewall and indicates the
maximum permissible road
speeds
c::;, .& in Winter tires on
page 194 .
Tire pressure monitoring
system
means a system that detects
when one or more of a vehicle's
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tires are underinflated and ill umi­
nates a low tire p ressure warning
telltale.
Tread
means that portion of a tire that
comes into contact with the road .
Tread separation
means pulling away of the tread
from the tire carcass .
Treadwear indicators (TWI)
means the projections within the
principal grooves designed to give
a visual indication of the degrees
of wear of the t read. See
c::;, page 185 , Tread Wear Indica­
tor (TWI) for more information
on measuring tire wear.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
is a tire information system devel­
oped by the United States Nation­
a l Highway Traffic Safety Adminis­
tration (NHTSA) that is designed
to help buye rs make relative com­
parisons among tires . The UTQG is
not a safety rating an d not a guar­
antee tha t a tire will last for a
prescr ibed number of mi les or
perform in a certain way. It sim­
ply gives tire buyers addit ional in­
formation to combine w ith other
considerat ions, such as pr ice,
...