2015 AUDI R8 SPYDER coolant level

Instruments and warning /indicator lights
Instruments and warning/indicator lights
Instruments
Instrument cluster and controls
The instrument cluster is your central source of information.
Fig. 3 Overview of the inst rument cluster
(D Engine oi l temperature . . . . . . . . . 8
@ Tachome ter with time and date dis-
p lay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 9
® Coolant temperature gauge . . . . . 9
@ Fue l gauge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
® Speedome ter w ith odomete r . . . . 10
@ Voltmeter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
0 Set/Check button . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
@ Driver information display . . . . . . 20
® I RESE T! button for trip odometer . 10
The ill umination for the instr ument cluster lights
up whenever you switch on the ignition with the
vehicle headlights off . The gauges are also i llu­
minated when the lights a re turned on .
Engine oil temperature display
The engine oil temperature disp lay Q page 8,
fig . 3
only operates w it h t he igni tion o n. To pre­
ve nt eng ine dam age, ple ase observe the fo llow­
i n g important poin ts concerning the temper ature
ranges .
8
Cold range
If the need le is at the bottom of the gauge, the
engine oil has not reached operating temperature
yet. Avoid h igh engine speeds, full throttle app li­
cations and heavy eng ine loads .
Normal range
The engine has reac hed operating temperature
when the need le moves into the center of t he
gauge under no rma l dr iving co ndit ions. The nee­
dle may move higher on t he gauge with heavier
engine load at high outside tempe ratures . This is
not a ca use for concern as long as the. indica­
tor lig ht in t he di splay does not flash.
Warning light.
If the symbol . in the d isplay flashes, either th e
engine oil temperature is too high o r the e ngine
o il level is too low
Q page 159.
If the need le is well in the upper a rea of the
gauge, the engine oil temperature is too high.
Stop the vehicle, switch the engine off and al­
low it to cool.
If the wa rning light comes on
again afte r d riv ing a short distance, contact an
aut ho rized Aud i de aler.

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Instruments and warn ing /indicator lights
Tachometer (engine rev counter )
The tachometer indicates the engine RPM (revo­
lutions per minutes).
If engine RPM drops below 1,500, you should
downshift to the next lower gear. The red area at
the end of the scale indicates max imum permis­
sible eng ine RPM after the break-in period . Be­
fore reach ing th is area, move the selector lever to
position "A (Automatic ope rat ion)" or ease your
foot off the accelerator pedal.
(D Note
The tachometer needle should only br iefly be
in the red zone: you could damage your en­
gine! The beginning of the red zone varies de­
pending on the engine.
@) For the sake of the environment
Upshift ing early saves fuel and reduces eng ine
noise.
Digital clock with date display
Your vehicle is equipped with a quartz controlled
digital clock.
Fig. 4 In str um ent cluster w ith the digital clock
To set the hour
.. Pull the knob (hour display flashes) and turn it
to the left or right.
To set the minutes
.. Pull the knob as many times as necessary until
the minute display flashes .
.. Turn the knob to the left or right.
To set the date
.. Pull the knob as many times as necessary until
the day, month or year display flashes.
.. Turn the knob to the left or right.
To hide or display the date
"' Pull the knob as many times as necessary until
the date dis play flashes.
"' Tur n the knob to the left or right.
When the date d isplay stops blinking, this means
the time and date have been successfully stored .
With the ignition off, pushing or pu lling the Set/
Check button
¢ page 8, fig . 3 Q) can turn on the
display field lighting for a few seconds.
Engine coolant temperature gauge
The engine coolant gauge¢ page 8, fig. 3@ only
works when the ignition is on. To prevent damage
to yo ur engi ne, please note the following impor­
tant points .
Engine cold
As long as the needle remains at the bottom of
the ga uge, the engine still has not reached its op­
erating temperature. Avoid high engine speeds,
heavy engine loads and heavy throttle.
Normal temperature
When the engine has reached its operating tem­
perature, the needle will move into the midd le of
the gauge and remain there.
If the engine is
working hard at high outside temperatures, the
need le may t urn further to the right. This is no
cause for concern as long as the. warning light
in the instrument cluster does not illuminate.
When the. warning light starts to flash, this
can mean one of two things: either the coolant
temperature is too high, or the coolant level is
too low¢
page 14.
A WARNING
-
-Always observe the warn ing in¢ page 155,
Working in the engine compartment
before
open ing the engine compartment lid and
checking the engine coolant level. ""
9

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Instrument s and warning /indicator ligh ts
high, or the coolant level is too low. In addition
to the symbo l, the following message also ap­
pears in the disp lay:
S w itc h off en gin e and ch ec k coo lant l ev e l
.. Pull off the road and stop the vehicle .
.. Turn off the engine .
.. Check coolant level~
page 162.
.. Add coolant if ne cessary ~ page 163 .
.. Continue d riving only after the engine coolant
warning/indicator light goes out .
.. Contact your authorized Audi dea ler for ass is-
tance if necessary.
I f the engine coolant level is correct, then the ra­
diator fan may be the cause of the malfunction.
If the generator wa rning/ind icator light shou ld
a lso i lluminate
~ page 14, then the fan belt may
be damaged .
A WARNING
-If your vehicle should break down for me­
chanical or other reasons, park at a safe dis ­
tance from moving traffic, turn off the en­
gine and turn on the hazard warning lights
~ page 48, Emergency flasher.
- Never open the engine compartment lid if
you see or hear steam or coo lant escaping
from the engine compartment - you risk be­
ing scalded . Wa it until you can no longer
see or hear steam or coolant escaping .
- The engine compartment of any veh icle is a
dange rous area. Before you perform any
wor k in the engine compa rtment, t urn off
the engine and allow it to coo l. Follow the
warning stic kers
~ page 155, Working in
the engine compartment .
(D Note
Do not co nti nu e d riving if the. symbo l ill u­
m inates. There is a mal function in the engine
cooling system -you could damage your en ­
gine .
dS Convertible top operation
The ind icator light tu rns on II!
- When the convertib le top opens or closes or -
If the convert ible top did not open or close
comp letely .
T he ind icator light blinks if the convertib le top
cannot open or close
~ page 39.
;;./ !'r, Electronic Stabilization Control (ESC)
Ifthc DJ indicator lamp blinks while driving, the
ESC or ASR (Anti-Slip Regulation) is actively regu­
lating.
If the
DJ indicator lamp illum inates, the system
has switched the ESC off. In this case, you can
switch the ignition off and then on to switch the
ESC on aga in. The system is functioning com ­
ple tely when the indicator lamp switches off.
If the
II indicator lamp illuminates, the ESC was
switched off with the
[ru button .
Stabilizati on progr am and ABS fault! S ee ow n­
e r's manual
If the Bl ind icator lamp and the [i] ABS indica­
tor lamp illum inate and the d river message ap­
pears, the ABS or e lectronic differentia l lock is
malfunctioning . This also interrupts the ESC. The
brakes still function with their normal power, but
ABS is not active .
Drive to your authorized A udi dealer immed iate ly
to have the mal func tion corrected .
Fo r more information about the ESC
~ page 134.
ABS/ (0 ) Anti-lock brake system
This warning/indicator light monitors the ABS
and the electronic differential lock (EDL).
The warning/indicator light Ill (USA models)/
¢ ~) o n ds when the ignition is sw itched on . The light
will go out after an automa tic check sequence is
completed.
There is a malfunction in the ABS when:
- The warning/indicator light does not illum inate
when you sw itch the ignition on .
- The warning/indicator light does not go out af -
ter a few seconds . ..,
15

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Warm and cold Climate controls
Controls
Warm and cold
The climate controls automatically maintain the selected temperature in the vehicle interior through­
out each season .
Fig . 74 Cl imate co ntrols
We recommend the following sett ing :
.. Rotate the knob
Q fig. 74 @ to the right to
switch on the air conditioning .
.,. Set the temperature to 72
°F (22 °() .
.. Press the !AU TO ! Q fig . 74 button .
Using the previously recommended setting is the
qu ickest way to ach ieve a comfortable climate in
the vehicle . This setting should therefore on ly be
changed when personal comfort levels or certain
circumstances req uire it .
The climate controls are a combination of a uto­
mat ic heating and vent ilation systems and a cool­
ing system which dehum idifies and cools the air
ins ide the veh icle .
The climate controls automatically maintain a
temperature once it has been set. The tempera­ ture of the air from the ve nts, fan speed (air vol ­
ume) and air d istr ibut ion are also a utomat ically
adj usted. The system also takes into account
strong sunshine so that manua l adjustment is
n o t necessary. So in almost all ca ses,
automatic
mode
offers the best conditions for the comfo rt of the occupants at a
ll times of the year
Q page 64 .
Please note :
In cooling mode , relative humidity in the interior
is reduced. This prevents the windows from fog­
ging up .
When relative hum idity a nd temperatures o ut­
s ide are high,
condensation can drip from the air
condit ioning evaporator and form a pool of water
under the vehicle . This is normal and not an indi ­
cation of a leak!
When outs ide temperatures are low, the fan does
not switch to a higher speed unti l the coolant has
reached an adequate temperat ure, with the ex ­
cept ion of the defrost setting .
When accelerating a t wide-open throttle, the ai r
condit ioning compressor is temporari ly switched
off to ma intain full eng ine power .
In order to ensure engine coo ling under ext reme
engine loads, the compressor is switched off if
coolant temperatures climb too high .
IJl>
61

Checking and filling
(D Tips
The coolant expansion tank is located under the convertible top storage bay lid
¢page 163.
Engine oil
Engine oil specificat ions
The engine oil used must conform to exact speci­
fications .
The service interval display in the instrument
cluster of your vehicle will inform you when it is
time for an oil change . We recommend that you
have your oil changed by an authorized Audi Serv­
ice Advisor.
If you have to top off the oil between oil changes,
use the Audi oil quality standard specified in the
table.
Audi oil quality standard
Gasoline
VW 502 00 or
engine vw 504 00
Using the proper engine oil is important for the
functionality and service life of the engine. Your
engine was factory-filled with a high-quality oil
which can usually be used throughout the entire
year.
(D Note
Your Limited New Vehicle Warranty does not
cover damage or malfunctions due to failure
to follow recommended maintenance and use
requirements as set forth in the Audi Owner's
Manual and Warranty
& Maintenance booklet.
- Use only a high quality engine oil that ex-
pressly complies with the Audi oil quality
standard specified for your vehicle's engine .
Using any other oil can cause serious engine
damage.
- Do not mix any lubricants or other additives
into the engine oil. Doing so can cause en­
gine damage.
158
(D Tips
If you need to add oil and there is none availa­
ble that meets the Audi oil quality standard
your engine requires, you may add a total of
no more than 0.5 quart/liter of a high-quality
"synthetic"oil that meets the following speci­
fications.
- ACEA A3 or API SM with a viscosity grade of
SAE OW-30, SAE 5W-30 or SAE 5W-40.
- For more information about engine oil that
has been approved for your vehicle, please
contact either your authorized Audi dealer
or Audi Customer Relations at
1 (800) 822-2834 or visit our web site at
www.audiusa.com or www.audicanada.ca.
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on on ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all of
its moving ports.
In order to provide effective lubrication and cool­
ing of internal engine components, all internal
combustion engines consume a certain amount
of oil. Oil consumption varies from engine to en­
gine and may change significantly over the life of
the engine. Typically, engines with a specified break-in period (see
¢ page 142) consume more
oil during the break-in period than they consume
after oil consumption has stabili zed.
Under normal conditions , the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on the quality and viscosity of
the oil, the RPM (revolutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient tem­ perature and road conditions . Further factors are
the amount of oil dilution from water condensa­
tion or fuel residue and the oxidation level of the
oil. As any engine is subject to wear as mileage
builds up, the oil consumption may increase over
time until replacement of worn components may
become necessary.
With all these variables coming into play, no
standard rate of oil consumption can be estab­
lished or specified. There is no alternative to reg­
ular and frequent checking of the oil level, see
Note.

-If your skin has come in contact with the en­
gine oil, you must subsequently cleanse it
thoroughly.
0 Note
- The oil level must not be above range
¢ page 159, fig. 137 0-danger of convert­
er or engine damage! Contact an authorized
Audi dealer to draw off oil, if necessary.
- Audi does not recommend the use of oil ad­
ditives. They may damage the engine and
adversely affect your New Vehicle Warranty.
@ For the sake of the environment
- Under no circumstances can the oil come in
contact with the sewage network or the soil.
- Observe and follow legal regu lations when
disposing of empty oil containers.
Adding engine oil~
Applies to vehicles: with S tron ic
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F ig . 141 Engin e co mp artm en t: cove r on t he engin e oil fi ll­
er neck
Before you check anything in the engine compart ­
ment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS
¢.&. in Working in the engine compartment on
page 155.
.,. Shut the engine off .
.. Remove the design cover, if necessary .
.,. Unscrew the cap
'l=?1 to the engine oil fill ing
hole ¢
fig. 141 .
.. Carefully top off with the appropriate o il
¢page 158.
.. Check the oil level again ¢ page 160.
.. Top off the oil again, if necessary .
.. Slide the oil dipstick in and screw the cap back
on the filling hole.
Chec king and filling
A WARNING
- While topping off, the oil must not come in
contact with hot engine parts -fire hazard!
- The oil filler cap must be properly secured to
prevent oil from being sprayed on the hot
engine and exhaust system when the engine
is running -fire hazard!
- If your skin has come in contact with the en­
g ine oil, you must subsequently cleanse it
thoroughly .
(D Note
-The oil level must not be above range
¢ page 160, fig . 139 0 -danger of convert­
er or eng ine damage! Contact an author ized
Audi dea ler to draw off oil, if necessary.
- Audi does not recommend the use of oil ad­
ditives . They may damage the engine and
adversely affect you r New Vehicle Warranty.
@ For the sake of the environment
- Under no circumstances can the oil come in
contact with the sewage network or the soil.
- Observe and follow legal regulations when
disposing of empty o il containers .
Engine cooling system
Coolant
The engine coolant performs two functions: it
keeps the engine from overheating and it pro­
tects the engine from freezing in the winter.
T he coo ling system is sealed and genera lly re­
quires little attention.
The cooling system has been filled at the factory
with a permanent coolant which does not need to
be changed. The coolant consists of a mixtu re of
specially conditioned wate r and the manufactur­
er's glycol-basedcoolant additive Gl3 antifreeze
with anticorrosion additives (50% for USA mod­ els; 60% for Canadian models). This mixture both
assures the necessary frost protection and pro­
tects metal components in the engine's cooling
system from corrosio n and scaling. It also ra ises
the boiling point of the coolant .
1111-
161

Checking and filling
Do not reduce the concentration of the coo lant in
the summer by adding p lain water.
The propor·
tion of coolant additive must be at least 50%
but not more than 60%
to maintain antifreeze
protection and cooling efficiency .
If the coolant
frost protection is too low, the coolant could
freeze and damage the ve hicle heating and en­
g ine cooling system .
For year-round driving, antifreeze is added at the
factory for temperatures down to:
- - 31 ° F ( -3 5 °C) USA
- - 40 °F ( - 40 °C) Canada .
If you must add coolant, use a mixture of water
and coolant additive. Mixing the coolant additive
with distilled water is recommended .
& WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARN­
INGS
<=> .&. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 155.
(D Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coolant additive in your
vehicle is sufficient to meet the climate con­
dit ions . This is especially important if you
live in a region where the winter is extreme­
l y cold. If necessary, increase the proportion
of coolant add itive to 60%.
- When adding coolant addit ive to your cool­
in g system, remember:
- We recommend using only coolant addi­
tive G12++ or G13 for your vehicle. This
coolant additive is available at authorized
Audi dealers. Other types of antifreeze can
signif icant ly reduce corrosion protection.
The resulting corrosion can cause a loss of
coolant and serious engine damage.
- Do not add any type of radiator leak sealant
to your vehicle's engine coolant. Add ing ra­
diator repair fluid may adversely affect the
funct ion and pe rformance of your cooling
system and could result in damage not cov­
ered by you r New Vehicle Lim ited Warranty.
162
Checking the engine coolant level
Proceed carefully when checking the coolant .
Fig. 142 Conve rtible top : serv ice pos it ion
Fig. 143 Co nve rtible top storage bay : coolant expa nsion
tank
Before you check anything in the eng ine compart­
ment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS
c:> .&. in Working in the engine compartment on
page 155
and park your vehicle on a leve l su r­
face.
The coolant expansion tank is loca ted in the right
s ide of the convertib le top storage bay under the
round metal cover
cf;, fig. 143. The convertible top
must be in the service position to check the cool­
ant level
i=;, fig . 142.
Bringing the closed convertible top into the
service position
.,. Switch the ignition on.
.,. Pull and ho ld the convertib le top switch.
.,. Press and hold the rear window switch too until
the convertible top moves into the service posi­
tion <=>
fig. 142.
Bringing the open convertible to into the
service position
.,. Switch the ignition on .
.,. Press and hold the convert ible top switch .

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"' Press and ho ld the rear window switch too unti l
the convertible top moves into the service posi­
t ion
r::!) fig. 142.
Opening th e cool ant e xp ansi on tank cov er
"' Stop the engine and allow it to coo l.
"' Switch the ignition off.
"' Carefu lly remove the bolts in the cover(!) using
a screwdriver and remove the cover. The cool­
ant reservoir is located be low
c:> fig. 143 .
Check ing th e engine coolant l eve l
"' Place a rag or cloth on the cap of the coo lant
expansion tank and turn the cap
ca re full y to
the left (counter-clockwise)
c:> A .
"'Read the coo lant level inside the coolant expan­
s ion tank
c:> fig . 143. With a co ld engine, it
must be above the "min" mark. W ith a hot en­
gine, it can be a little above the ind icated
range .
To obtain an accurate read ing, the eng ine must
be switched off.
The expansion tank in your vehicle is equipped
with an electric coolant level sensor
r::!) page 14.
We still recommend you check the coolant level
from time to time .
Coolant lo ss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling
system . In the event of coolant loss, the cooling
system should be inspected immediately by your
author iz ed Audi dealer. It is not enough merely
to add coolant.
In a
s e a led system, losses can occur only if the
boiling point of the coo lant is exceeded as a re­
sult of overheat ing.
A WARNING
- The cooling system is under pressure. Do
not open the cap of the coolant expans ion
tank when the engine is hot. You risk being
sca lded.
-
- The coolant add itive, and therefore the cool­
ant itself, is hazardous to health. Keep the
c oolant additive in the or igina l co ntainer out
of the re ach of children.
It is a poison haz­
ard.
Ch eck ing and fillin g
(D Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak sea lant
to your vehicle's engine coolant . Add ing radia­
tor repair fluid may adversely affect the func­
tion and performance of your cooling system
and could result in damage not covered by
your New Veh icle Limited Warranty.
Adding coolant
Befo re you check a nyth ing in the eng ine compart­
ment,
alwa ys read and he ed all WARNING S
r::!) A in Working in the engine compartment on
page 155.
"' Add coolant m ixed in the correct rat io
c:> page 161, Coolant.
"' Twist the cap on again tightly.
"'Tighten the cap(!) <::!)page 162, fig. 143 again .
Replacement engine coo lant must conform to ex­
act specifications
c:> page 161, Coolant .
We recommend using only coolant add it ive Gl2+
+, G l3
or in an emergency Gl2 +. Do not use a
different additive. In an emergency use pla in wa­
ter unt il you ca n get the correct add itive and can
restore the co rrect ratio . This should be done as
soon as possib le .
If you have los t a considerab le amount of cool­
ant, then you shou ld add cold antifreeze and cold
water only when the engine is co ld .
Always use
new engine coo lant when refilling .
Do not fill coolant above the "max" mark. Excess
coolant will be forced out through the pressure
relief valve in the cap when the eng ine becomes
hot.
A WARNING
- The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of scalding
from hot coolant by following these steps .
- Turn off the engine and allow it to cool
down .
- Protect your face, hands and arms from escaping fluid and steam by covering the
cap with a large, thick rag.
163