Wheels
with them . Remove the whee l cove rs * firs t.
Use coated snow c hains .
Low aspect ratio tires
Your Audi is factory-equipped with low aspect ra
tio tires. These tires have been thoro ughly tested
a nd been se lected specifically fo r yo ur model for
their superb per formance, road feel a nd handling
un der a va riety of d riving conditions. Ask you r au
thor ized Audi dealer for more deta ils.
The low aspect ratio of these tires is indicated by
a numeral of
55 or less i n the tire's size des igna
tion . Th e nu mera l re p resen ts th e r atio of t he
tire's sidewall he igh t in relation to i ts trea d w idt h
e xpres sed in per centage. Convent io na l ti res h ave
a heig ht/w idth ra tio of 6 0 or mo re.
The performance of low-aspect-ratio tires is par
ticularly sensitive to improper inflation pres
sure. It is therefore important that low aspect
ratio tires are inflated to the specified pressure
and that the inflation pre ssure is regularly
checked and maintained. Tire pressu res should
be checked at least once a month and always
before a long trip<=> page 206.
What you can do to avoid tire and rim
damage
Low aspect ratio t ires can be damaged more easi
ly by impact with potholes, curbs, gullies or
r idges on the road, part icu larly if the t ire is un
de rinflated .
In order to m inimize the occu rrence o f impact
damage to the t ires of your vehicle, we recom
mend that y ou obse rve the following precau
tions:
- Always maintain recommende d inflation pres
s u res. Check your tire press ure eve ry 2,000
miles (3,000 km) and add air if necessary.
- Drive carefully on roads w ith po tholes, deep
gull ies or r idg es. The impact from d rivin g
t hr ough or over such obstacles can damage
yo ur tires. Impact w ith a curb may also cause
damage to you r ti res .
- After any impact, im mediately inspect your
t ir es or have th em inspected by the neares t au-
212
thori zed A udi d ealer. Re place a damaged t ire as
soo n as possible .
- Inspe ct your tires every 2, 000 m iles (3,0 00 km)
for damage and wear. Damage is not always easy to see. Damage can lead to loss of air and
unde rinflation, wh ic h co uld event ua lly cause
tire failure. If you believe t hat a t ire may have
been damaged, rep lace the t ire as soon as p os
sible .
- These tires may wea r more quickly than others.
- Please also remember t hat, while these t ires
delive r responsive handling, they may r ide less
comfortably a nd make mo re noise than othe r
choices.
Reduced performance in winter/cold season
conditions
A ll tires are designed for certain purposes. The
l ow aspect ratio, ultra hig h pe rformance t ires
o rigina lly ins talled on your veh icle are intende d
fo r max imum dry an d wet road p erformanc e and
h and ling . They are n ot suitab le for co ld , sn owy or
i cy we ather condi tio ns . If you dr ive und er those
c ircu mstances, you sho uld equi p your vehi cle
with a ll-season o r winter tires, which offe r bette r
traction under those co ndit ions. We suggest you
u se the recommended snow or all-season tires
spec ified for your vehicle, or t he ir equiva le nt.
Refe r to
<=> page 211 fo r more detai led informa
tion rega rding w inte r ti res .
Uniform tire quality grading
-T read wear
- Traction AA A B C
- Temperature A BC
Quality g rades c an be fou nd where applicab le on
th e tire side w all b etwee n tre ad shoulder and
ma ximum sec tion wid th
<=>p age 201, fig . 16 9.
For example: Tr ead w ea r 200 , Traction AA , Tem
pera ture
A .
All passenger ca r tir es must conform to Federa l
Safety Requirem ents in addi tion to these grades .
Tread wear
The tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wea r rate of the t ire when tested
M N
0:: loo ,...., \!) ..,.,
N ..,., ,....,
under controlled conditions on a specified gov
ernment test course.
For example, a tire graded 150 would wear one
and one ha lf (11/2) times as well on the govern
ment course as a tire graded 100.
The relative performance of tires depends upon
the actual conditions of their use, however, and
may depart significantly from the norm due to
variations in driving habits, service practices and
differences in road characteristics and climate.
Traction
The traction grades, from highest to lowest, are
AA, A, Band
C. Those grades represent the tire's
ability to stop on wet pavement as measured un
der controlled conditions on specified govern ment test surfaces of asphalt and concrete . A tire
marked C may have poor traction performance
¢ .&. .
Temperature
The temperature grades are A (the highest), B,
and C, representing the tire's resistance to the
generation of heat and its ability to dissipate heat when tested under controlled conditions on
a specified indoor laboratory test wheel.
Sustained high temperature can cause the mate rial of the tire to degenerate and reduce tire life,
and excessive temperature can lead to sudden
tire failure
¢ .&. .
The grade C corresponds to a level of perform
ance which all passenger car tires must meet un
der the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 109. Grades Band A represent higher levels
of performance on the laboratory test wheel than
the minimum required by law .
A WARNING
-
The traction grade assigned to this tire is
based on stra ight-ahead braking traction
tests, and does not include acceleration, cor
nering, hydroplan ing or peak traction charac
teristics.
Wheels
A WARNING
The temperature grade for this tire is estab lished for a tire that is properly inflated and
not overloaded. Excessive speed, underinfla
tion, or excessive loading, either separately or
in comb ination , can cause heat buildup and
possible tire failure.
A WARNING
-
-
Temperature grades apply to tir es that are
properly inflated and not over or underinflat
ed.
Tire pressure monitoring system
ill General notes
Applies to vehicles: with tire pressure monitoring system
Each tire, including the spare (if provided),
should be checked monthly when cold and inflat
ed to the inflation pressure recommended by the
vehicle manufacturer on the vehicle placard or
tire inflation pressure label. (If your vehicle has
tires of a different size than the size indicated on
the vehicle placard or tire inflation pressure la
bel, you should determine the proper tire infla
tion pressure for those tires) .
As an added safety feature, your vehicle has been equipped with a tire pressure monitoring system
(TPMS) that illuminates a low tire pressure tell
tale when one or more of your tires is significant
ly under-inflated. Accordingly, when the low tire
pressure telltale illuminates, you shou ld stop and
check your tires as soon as possible, and inflate
them to the proper pressure . Driving on a signifi
cant ly under-inflated tire causes the tire to over
heat and can lead to tire failure. Under-inflation
also reduces fuel efficiency and tire tread life,
and may affect the vehicle's handling and stop
ping ability .
Please note that the TPMS is not a substitute for
proper tire maintenance, and it is the driver's re
sponsibility to maintain correct tire pressure, even if under-inflation has not reached the level
to trigger illumination of the TPMS low tire pres-
sure telltale. .,.
213