2015 AUDI R8 SPYDER wheel

Tires and wheels
sudden deflation, causing loss
of control and a crash .
Determining correct load
limit
Use the example below to calcu ­
late the total weight of the pas­
sengers and luggage or other
things that you plan to transport so that you can make sure that
your vehicle will not be overload­ ed .
Steps for Determining Correct
Load Limit
1 . Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF OCCU­
PANTS AND CARGO SHOULD
NEV ER EXCEED XXX KG OR XXX
LBS"on your vehicle's placard
(tire inflation pressure label)
c:::> page 176, fig. 147.
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 passengers
from "XXX" kilograms or "XXX"
pounds shown on the sticker
c:::> page 176, fig. 147.
4 . The resulting figure equa ls the
available amount of ca rgo and
1 8 4
luggage load capacity. For ex­
ample, if the "XXX" amount
equals 1400 lbs. and there will
be five 150 lbs. passengers in
your vehicle, the amount of
available cargo and luggage
load capac ity is 650 lbs .
(1400-7 SQ (5 X 150) = 650
lbs.)
5. Determine the combined
weight of luggage and cargo
being loaded on the vehic le.
That weight may not safely ex­
ceed the available cargo and luggage load capacity calculat­
ed in Step 4 .
6. If your vehic le w ill be towing a
trailer, load from your t railer
will be transferred to yo ur vehi­
cle . Consult this manual to de­
termine how this reduces the ava ilable cargo and luggage
load capacity of your vehicle.
~ check the tire sidewall
(c:::> page 186, fig. 150) to deter­
mine the designa ted load rating
for a specific tire .

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Tire service life
The service life of tires depends
on a lot of different things includ­
ing proper installation and bal ­
ancing, correct tire pressure and
driving style.
Fig. 149 Tire tread: tread wear indica ­
tors (TWI)
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The original tires on your vehicle
have 1/16 inch (1 .6 mm) high
"wear indicators"c::>
fig. 149 run­
ning across the tread. Depending
on the make, there will be s ix to
eight of them evenly placed
around the tire. Marks on the tire
sidewall (for example "TWI" or
other symbols) indicate the posi­
tions of the tread wear indicators.
Worn tires must be replaced. Dif­
ferent figures may apply in other
countries c::>
.&..
Tire pressure
Incorrect tire pressure causes pre­
mature wear and can cause sud-
Tires and wheels
den tire blow-out. For this reason,
tire pressure must be checked at least once a month c::>
page 179.
Driving style
Driving fast around curves, heavy
acceleration and hard braking in­
crease tire wear.
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new vehicles are
balanced. However, various situa­
tions during everyday driving can
cause them to become unbal­
anced, resulting in vibrations you
can usually feel through the
steering wheel.
Unbalanced wheels must be reba­
lanced to avoid excessive wear on
steering, suspension and tires . A
wheel must also be rebalanced
when a new tire is installed .
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment can
cause excessive tire wear, impair­
ing the safety of the vehicle. If
tires show excessive wear, have
the whee l alignment checked by
an authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop.
185

Tires and wheels
All-wheel drive
Only the wheel/tire sizes specified
by the manufacturer may be used
on vehicles with all-wheel drive. For details see¢
page 139.
A WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead to
loss of control, a crash and seri­
ous personal injury!
-Never drive a vehicle when the tread on any tire is worn down
to the wear indicators.
-Worn tires are a safety hazard,
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 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 lower speeds.
-Never mount used tires on
your vehicle if you are not sure
of their "previous history." Old
186
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.
New tires and replacing tires
. and wheels
New tires and wheels have to be
broken in.
Fig. 150 Tire specification codes on the
sidewall of a tire
No Description
•
@ Passenger car tire (where ap-
plicable)
@ Nominal width of tire in mil-
limeters

.... N
" N ": ... IO "? N
"' ....
No Descript ion
•
® Ratio of height to width (as -
pect ratio)
© Radial
® Rim diameter code
® Load index and speed rating
(j) U.S. DOT tire identification
number
® Audi Original tire
® Sever snow conditions
@ Tire ply composition and ma-
terials used
@ Maximum load rating
@ Treadwear, traction and tern-
perature grades
@ Maximum permissible infla-
tion 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 char­
acteristics of the vehicle and can
make a major contribution to
good road holding and safe han­
dling when in good condition and
properly inflated ¢
&.
We recommend that all work on
tires and wheels be performed by
an authorized Audi dealer. They
are familiar with recommended
Tires and wheels
procedures and have the necessa­
ry special too ls and spare parts as
well as the proper facilities for
disposing of the old ti res.
Authorized Audi dealers have the necessary information about
technical requirements for insta l­
ling or changing tires and rims.
Replacing tire s and wheel s
Tires should be replaced at least
in pairs and not individually (for
example both front tires or both rear tires together).
Be sure to read and heed the in ­
formation to the tire pressure
monitoring system¢
page 190.
Always buy replacement radial
tires that have the same specifica­
tions as the tires approved for
your vehicle by Audi . Replacement
tires must always have the same
load rating specification as the
original equipment or approved
optional tires listed in the table
i=> page 176 .
Audi-approved specification tires
are specially matched to your ve­
hicle and its load limits, and can
contribute to the important road­ holding, driving characteristics,
and safety of the vehicle. The .,.
187

Tires and wheels
table( ¢ page 176) lists specifica­
tions of the tires approved for the
Audi models covered by your
Owner's Literature.
The tire pressure label located on driver's s ide 8-pillar
(¢page 176,
fig. 148) lists the specifications of
the original equipment tires in­
stalled on your vehicle at the time
it was manufactured.
Federal law requires tire manufac­
turers to place standardized infor­
mation on the sidewall of all tires
¢ fig .
150 . This information iden­
tifies and describes the funda­
mental characteristics, the quality
grade of the tire and also provides
a tire identification number for
safety standard certification and in case of a recall.
Tire specifications
Knowledge of tire spec ifications
makes it easier to choose the cor­
rect tires. Radial tires have the
tire specifications marked on the
sidewall, for example:
P235 / 35 R 19 91 Y
This contains the following infor ­
mation:
P I ndicates the tire is for passen­
ger cars
1 88
235 Nominal tire width in mm of
the tire from sidewall edge to
sidewall edge . In general, the
larger the numbe r, the wide r
the tire
35 Height/width ratio in percent
(aspect ratio)
R Tire construction: Radial
19 Rim diameter code (in inches)
91 Load rating code
Y Speed rating letter code
XL (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or
"RF") indicates that the tire is
a"Reinforced" or an "Ext ra
Load" ti re
M+S (o r "M/S") Indicates that the
tire has some mud and sn ow
capability
The tires could also have the in ­
formation of direction of rotation
¢page 170.
Tire manufacturing date
The manufactur ing date is a lso in­
dicated on the tire sidewa ll (pos ­
sibly only on the
inner side of the
wheel) :
"DOT .. . 2213 ... "means, for ex ­
ample, that the tire was produced in the 22nd week of 2013. .,.

.... N
" N ~ .... \D U'
N U' .....
Speed rating (letter code)
The speed rating letter code on
the wheels indicates the maxi­ mum permissible road speeds
¢ .&. in Winter tires on page 194.
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
equipped with tires, which pos­
sess excellent driving characteris­
tics and give your Audi optimum driving comfort
c:::> &..
U.S. DOT Tire Identification
Number (TIN) and tire
manufacture date
This is the tire's "serial number".
It begins with the letters "DOT"
and indicates that the tire meets
all federal standards. The next
l) For tires with a maximum speed capa­
bility over 149 mph (240 km/h), tire
manufacturers sometimes use the let­
ters "ZR."
Tires and wheels
two numbers or letters indicate
the plant where it was manufac­
tured, and the last four numbers
represent the week and year of
manufacture. For example, the
numbers 2213 mean that the tire
was produced in the 22nd week of
2013. The other numbers are
marketing codes that may or may
not be used by the tire manufac­
turer. 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 specially
matched with your Audi. We rec­
ommend using only these tires
because they meet the highest
standards regarding safety and
driving characteristics when used
correctly. Your authorized Audi
dea ler will gladly provide you with
more information. ..,.
189

Tires a nd wh eels
Tire ply composition and
materials used
The number of plies indicates the
number of layers of rubber-coat­
ed fabric in the tire. In general,
the greater the number of plies,
the more weight a tire can sup­
port . Tire manufacturers also
must indicate the materials in the
tire, which include steel, nylon, polyester, and others .
Maximum Load Rating
This number indicates the maxi­
mum load in kilograms and
pounds that can be carried by the
tire .
Tire quality grading for
treadwear , traction , and
temperature resistance
Tread wear, traction and tempera­
ture grades ~
page 192.
Maximum Permissible
Inflation Pressure
This number is the greatest
amount of air pressure that
should ever be put in the tire un­
der normal driving conditions .
190
Replacing tires or rims on
vehicles equipped with tire pressure monitoring sy stem
The wheels on your vehicle are
equipped with a sensor which
constantly monitors the air pres ­
sure inside the tire, and then
transmits this information to the
tire pressure monitoring system.
If you are go ing to replace the
wheel rims on your vehic le, make
sure the new rims also have these
sensors. The sensors must be
compatible with the tire pressure monitoring system on your vehi­
cle.
If you install rims, which do not have the sensors, or have sensors
which are not compatible, then
the tire pressure monitoring sys­
tem will not work properly . In this
case, the tire pressure monitoring
system would not be able to mon­ itor the tire pressure or warn you
if it is necessary .
-The battery inside of the tire pressure sensor has a limited
service life.
-Always drive with the valve stem caps securely mounted . We rec­
ommend using factory installed ""

Tires and wheels
valve stem caps. Ask your au--Tires age even if they are not
thorized Audi dealer to replace being used and can fail sud-
lost valve stem caps .
denly, especially at high
The installation of replacement speeds
. Tires that are more
tires with steel cord body plies in than 6 years old can only be
the tire sidewall may cause mal- used
in an emergency and
function of the tire pressure man- then with special care and at
itoring system, and is not recom- lower speeds.
mended (cord material informa- -Never mount used tires on
tion in molded on the tire side- your vehicle if you are not sure
wall). of their "previous history." Old
Always check your tire pressure used tires may have been
damaged even though the
monitoring system indicator after
damage cannot be seen that
replacing one or more tires on
can lead to sudden tire failure
your vehicle. If the tire pressure
and loss of vehicle control.
monitoring system indicator
-Only the wheel/tire sizes
flashes, or is on, your system is
specified by the manufacturer
not working properly.
may be used on vehicles with
A_ WARNING all-wheel drive.
-Using incorrect or unmatched -Never drive faster than the
tires and/ or wheels or im- maximum speed for which the
proper tire and wheel com bi -
tires on your vehicle are rated
nations can lead to loss of because tires that are driven
control, collision and serious faster than their rated speed
personal injury. can fail suddenly.
-Always use tires, rims and
-Overloading tires cause heat
wheel bolts that meet the build-up, sudden tire failure,
specifications of original fac- including a blowout and sud-
tory-installed tires or other den deflation and loss of con-
combinations that have been trol.
... .... N
" specifically approved by the N ": ...
vehicle manufacturer. IO "? N
"' ....
191