2015 AUDI RS7 SPORTBACK check engine

214 Check ing and filling
Using the proper engine o il is important for
the functionality and service life of the en­
g ine . Your engine was factory-filled with a
hi gh-quality oil which can usua lly be used
throughout the enti re year.
0 Note
Y our Limited New Vehicle Warranty does
not cover damage or ma lf u nctions due to
fa ilure to follow recommended mainte­
nance and use requ irements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manual and Warranty
&
Ma intenance boo klet.
- Use only a high quality eng ine oi l that ex­
pressly complies w ith the Audi o il quality
sta ndard spec ified for your veh icle's en ­
gine . U sing any other oil can cause seri­
ous eng ine damage.
- Do not mix any l ubr ica nts o r othe r addi­
tives into the eng ine o il. Doing so c an
ca use eng ine dam age.
I f you need to add oi l and there is no ne
availab le tha t mee ts the Audi o il qua lity
s tandar d your engine requires, yo u may
ad d a tota l of no more than 0 .5 quart/liter
of a high-quality "synthetic"oil that meets
the following specifications.
- ACEA A3 or API S M with a viscosity grade
of SAE 0W-30, SAE SW-30 or
SAE SW -40.
- Fo r more information abo ut engine oi l
that has been app roved for your vehicle,
please contact either your a uthori zed
Audi dealer or Audi Customer Relations
at 1 (800) 822 -2834 or visit our web site
at www.audiusa .com or
www .aud icanada .ca .
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade ­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all
of its moving parts.
In order to provide effective lubrication and
cooling of i nternal engine components, a ll in­
ternal comb ustion eng ines consume a certa in amount of oil. Oil consumpt
ion varies from
engine to engine and may change significant ly
over the life of the engine . Typically, engines
with a spec ified break-in period (see
<=> page 196) consume more oil during the
break -in pe riod than they consume after o il
co nsump tion has stabilized.
Under normal cond itions, the rate of oil con ­
sumption depends on the q ua lity and viscos ity
of the oil, the RPM (revolut ions per minute) at
wh ich the engine is operated, t he ambie nt
temperature and road conditions . Fur ther fac­
tors a re the amount of oil dilut ion from wa ter
condensation or f ue l resid ue and the oxid a­
t ion level of the o il. As any engine is subjec t to
wear as m ileage builds up, t he oil consump­
tion may increase over time until replacement of wo rn components may become necessary.
W it h a ll these variab les coming into play, no
standard rate of oil consumption can be es­
tablished or specified. There is no alte rnative
to regu lar and frequent check ing of the o il lev­
el, see
Note .
If
the yellow engine oil level warning symbo l
in the instrument cluster
I!!! lights up, you
shou ld check the oil leve l as soon as possib le
<=> page 215. Top off the oil at your earliest
convenience
<=> page 215.
A WARNING
-Before you chec k anythi ng in the engine
com partment, always read a nd heed all
WAR NIN GS¢
& in Working in th e engine
compar tment on page 211.
{(D Note
Driving w it h an insufficient o il level is like­
ly to cause severe damage to the engine .
(D Tips
- The oil pressure warn ing display. is
not an indicator of the oil level. Do not
rely on it . Instead, check the oil lev el in
your engine at regular intervals , pref­
erably each time you refuel, and alway s
before going on a long trip. .,.

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-If you have the impression your engine
consumes excessive amounts of oi l, we
recommend that yo u consult your Audi
dealer to have the cause of your concern
properly diagnosed. Keep in mind that
the accurate measurement of oil con­
sumption requires great care and may
take some time . Your Audi dealer has in­
str uctions abou t how to measure oil con­
sump tion accurately.
Checking the engine oil level
F ig. 189 Di splay : oil lev el indicato r
.,. Park your vehicle on a level surface .
.,. Shut the engine off when it is warm.
.,. Switch only the ignition back on .
.,. Wa it approximately two minutes .
.,. Se lect :
I C ARI funct ion button > ( Car )* sys ­
tems
con trol button > Ser vici ng & ch ecks >
Oil level.
.,. Check the oil leve l in the display ¢ fig. 189.
Add engine oil if the bar of the oil level indi ­
cator is near "min"
r:!;> page 215.
Depending on t he way the veh icle is driven
and the operating conditions, oil consumption
can be up to 1 qua rt per 600 mi les (0 .8 liter
per 1,000 km) . Consumption may be higher
within the firs t 3,000 miles (5,000 km) .
@ Tips
The oil level indicator in the MMI Display is
only an in formation disp lay.
If the oil leve l
is low, a minimum o il warning appears in
the instrument cluster. Add oi l
¢page 215. If the hood has been opened,
the c urre nt oil level is shown in the instru- Checkin
g and fillin g 215
ment cluster the next t ime the igni tion is
switched on .
Adding engine oil~
Fig. 19 0 En gin e co mpa rtm ent: cov er on th e engi ne oi l
filler neck
Before you check anyth ing in the engine com­
partmen t,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS¢ A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 211 .
.,. Shut the eng ine off .
.,. Unscrew the cap
hole
¢ fig . 190, ¢page 213, fig.188 .
.,. Carefully top off with 0.5 quarts (0.5 liters)
of the appropr iate oil¢
page 213 .
.,. Check the oi l level again after two mi nutes
¢ page 215, Che cking the engine oil level .
.,. Top off the o il aga in, if necess ary .
.,. Screw the cap back on the fi lling hole.
A WARNING
- Wh ile topping off, the o il m ust not come
in contact with hot engine parts - f ire
hazard!
- The oi l filler cap must be properly se­
cured to prevent oil from being sprayed
o n the hot engine and exhaust system
when the engine is runni ng -fire hazard!
- If your s kin has come in contact with the
e ngine o il, you must subsequently
cleanse it thoroughly .
(D Note
-Check the oil level using the MMI. If the
message
Please reduce oil level appears,
contact you r aut hori zed Aud i dea ler or
Ill>-

216 Check ing and filling
other qualified workshop to have excess
oi l extracted if necessary.
-Audi do es not re commend th e us e of oil
additi ve s. The y ma y damage the e ngine
and ad ve rs ely a ffect yo ur New Vehicle
Wa rrant y.
@ For the sake of the environment
- Under no circumstances can the oil come
in contact wit h the sewage network or
the soil.
- Observe and follow lega l regu lations
when disposing of empty oil containers .
Changing the engine oil
We recommend that hove your oil changed by
on authorized Audi dealer or a qualified serv­
ice station.
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
a lw ays r ead and heed all WARN­
ING S
~.&. in Working in the engine comport­
ment on page 211.
The engine oil must be changed according to
the intervals specified in your Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet. This is very important
because the lubricating properties of oil di­
minish gradually dur ing normal vehicle use .
Under some circumstances the engine oil
should be changed more frequently. Change
oil more often if you drive mostly short dis­
tances, operate the vehicle in dusty areas or
under predominantly stop-and-go traffic con­
d itions, or have your veh icle where tempera­
tures remain below freezing for extended pe­ riods.
Detergent additives in the oil w ill make fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run­
n ing for a short time . This is norma l and is not
a reason to change the oil mo re often tha n
recommended.
Because of the problem of proper disposal,
a long w ith the special tools and necessary ex­
pe rtise required, we strong ly recommend that
you have yo ur o il changed by an authori zed
Audi de ale r or a qualified service station.
If yo u choo se to chan ge your oil yours elf ,
please note the fo llowing important informa­
t ion:
A WARNING "--
To reduce the risk of personal injury if you
must change the engine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wear eye protect ion.
- To reduce the risk of burns from hot en-
g ine oil, let the engine cool down to the
touch.
- When removing the oil dra in p lug with
your fingers, stay as far away as possible.
Always keep your forearm parallel to the
ground to help prevent hot oil from run­ n ing down your arm.
- Dra in the oil into a container designed
for this purpose, one large enough to hold at least the tota l amount of o il in
your engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous . Keep it wel l out
of the reach of children.
- Continuous contact with used eng ine o il
is harmful to your sk in . Always protect
your skin by washing oil off tho roughly
wit h soap and wate r.
(D Note
Neve r mix oil additives with you r engine
oi l. These additives can damage your en­
gine and adversely affect your Audi Limit­
ed New Veh icle War ranty.
@ For the sake of the environment
- Before changi ng your oil, first make sure
you know where you can prope rly dispose
o f the used oil.
- Always dispose of used eng ine oi l proper­
ly. Do not dump it on garden soil, wood­
ed areas, into open st reams o r down
sewage drains.
- Re cycle used engine oil by taking it to a
used eng ine oil collect io n fac ility in you r
area, or contact a service station.

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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 .
The cooling system is sealed and generally re­
qu ires little attention .
The cooling system has been filled at the fac­
tory with a permanent coolant which does not need to be changed. The coolant consists of a
mixture of specially conditioned water and the
manufacturer's glycol-based coolant addi-
tive G13 antifreeze with anticorros ion addi­
tives (50% for USA models; 60% for Canadian models) . This mixture both assures the neces­
sary frost protection and protects metal com­
ponents in the engine's cooling system from
corrosion and scaling.
It also raises the boil ­
ing point of the coolant.
Do not reduce the concentration of the coo l­
ant in the summer by adding plain water .
The
proportion of coolant additive must be at
least 50% but not more than 60%
to main­
tain antifree ze protection and cooling efficien­
cy. If the coolant frost protection is too low,
the coolant could freeze and damage the vehi ­
cle heating and eng ine cooling system .
For year-round driving, antifree ze is added at
the factory for temperatures down to:
- -31°F(-35°C)USA
- -40 ° F ( - 40 °C) Canada.
I f you must add coo lant, use a mixture of wa­
ter and coolant addit ive. Mixing the coolant
additive with distilled water is recommended.
& WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS ~.&.
in Working in the engine
compartment on page 211.
(D Note
- Before winter sets in, have the coolant
checked to see if the coolant additive in
Checkin g and fillin g 217
your vehicle is sufficient to meet the cli ­
mate conditions. This is especia lly impor­
tant if you live in a region where the win­
ter is extremely co ld. If necessary, in­
crease the proportion of coolant additive
to 60% .
- When adding coolant additive to your
cooling system, remember :
- We recommend using only coolant ad­
ditive G12++ or G13 (check the label)
for your vehicle . This coolant additive is
avai lable at authorized Audi dealers .
Other types of antifreeze can signifi­
cantly reduce corrosion protection. The resulting corrosion can cause a loss of
coolant and serious engine damage.
- Do not add any type of radiator leak seal­
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant.
Adding radiator repair fluid may adverse­
ly affect the function and performance of
your cooling system and could result in
damage not covered by your New Veh icle
Limited Warranty.
Checking the engine coolant level
The engine coolant level can be checked with
a quick glance.
Fig. 191 En gin e compar tment: cover on the coo lant
expansio n tan k
Before you check anyth ing in the eng ine com­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS¢.&, in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 211 .
"'Park your vehicle on a level surface .
"' Sw itch off the ignition.
"' Read the engine coolant level from the cool­
ant expansion tank ¢
fig. 191, ¢ page 213, Ill>-

218 Check ing and filling
fig . 188. With a cold engine, the coo lant
l evel should be between the "min" and
"max" markings . When the engine is warm ,
the leve l may be slightly above the "max"
mark ing .
The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus­
tration
9 page 213.
To obtain an accurate reading, the engine
must be switched off .
The expans ion tank in you r vehicle is equipped
with an e lectric coolant level sensor.
When the coolant level is too low, the warning l ight in the Auto-Check System
9 page 15 w ill
illum inate unti l you add coolant and the level
has been restored to normal. Even though
there is an electric coolant level senso r, we
still recommend you check the coolant leve l
from time to time .
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a le ak in the cooling
system . In the event of coolant loss, the cool ­
ing system should be inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer. It is not
enough merely to add coolant.
I n a
s ealed system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheating.
A WARNING
The cooling system is under pressure and can get very hot. Reduce the risk of scald­
ing from hot coolant by followi ng these
steps .
- Turn off the engine and allow it to coo l
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by covering the
cap with a large, thick rag .
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefu lly in
a counter-clockwise direction w hile ap­
plying light, downward pressure on the
top of the cap . -
To avoid being burned, do not spi ll anti­
freeze or coolant on the exha ust system
or hot engine parts. Under certain cond i­
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine coo l­
a nt can catch fire.
(D Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak sea l­
ant to your veh icle's engine coolant. Add­
i ng radiator repair fluid may adverse ly af­
fect the funct ion and pe rformance of you r
cooling system and could result in damage
not cove red by your New Veh icle Limited
War ran ty.
Adding coolant
Be very careful when adding engine coolant.
Befo re you check anyth ing in the eng ine com­
partment,
always read and he ed all WARN­
INGS ¢ ..&. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page
211.
" Requirement: There must be a residua l
amo unt of coolant in the expansion ta nk
¢ (D .
"Tu rn off the engi ne.
" Le t the eng ine cool down.
" Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
t ank
9 page 217, fig. 191 and ca refully
twist the cap counter-clockwise ¢&,, .
" Add coolant m ixed in the correct rat io
¢
page 217, Coolant up to the MAX mark­
ing.
" Make sure that the flu id leve l remains sta -
ble . Add more coo la nt if necessary .
" Twist the cap o n again
tightly .
Replacement engine coo lant must conform to
exact spec ificat ions ¢
page 217, Coolant.
We recommend using only coolant add i-
tive
Gl2++, Gl3 or in an emergency Gl2 +. Do
not use a d ifferent addit ive . In an emergency
use p la in water until you can get the correct
additive and can resto re the co rrect rat io . This
shou ld be done as soon as possib le. .,..

M N
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If you have lost a consi derable amount of
coolant, then you should add co ld antifreeze
and cold water only when the engine is co ld .
Always use
new engine coolant when refi lling.
D o not fi ll coolant above the "MAX " mark . Ex­
cess coolant will be forced out th rough the
p ress ure rel ief valve in the cap when the en­
g ine becomes hot .
A WARNING ,_________
-The cooling system is under press ure and
can get very hot . Reduce the risk of
sca ld ing from hot coo lant by following
these steps.
- Tur n
off the eng ine and a llow itto cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escap ing f lu id a nd steam by cover ing
the cap wi th a la rge, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slow ly and very ca refully
in a cou nte r-clockw ise d irect ion while
a pply ing ligh t, downw ard p ress ure on
the to p of the cap.
- To avo id being burned, do no t sp ill an­
tifreeze or coolan t on t he exhaust sys­
tem or ho t engine parts . U nder certa in
conditions, the ethylene glyco l in en­
gine coolant can catc h fire .
- Antifreeze is poisonous . Always store an ­
tifreeze in its original container and we ll
o ut o f the reach of children.
- If you drain the coolant , it must be
caught and safely stored in a proper con­
tainer clearly marked "poison".
@ Note
- Do not add coolant if the expansion tank
i s empty . Ai r could enter the cooling sys­
tem and damage the engine. If this is
the case, do not continue driving. Seek professional assistance.
- Coolant po llutes the env ironment and
could cause a n engine fire. Excess coo l­
ant wi ll be forced out through the pres­
sure re lief valve in the cap when the en ­
gine becomes hot.
Checkin g and fillin g 219
-If, in an emergency, on ly wate r can be
added, the correct ratio between water
and antifreeze ¢
page 217 must be re­
stored as soon as possible.
@) For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant sho uld not be reused. A l­
ways d ispose of used coolant while observ­
i ng a ll environmental regulations.
, Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automatically by
itself .
An auxiliary electric radiato r fan switches on
and
off depending on coolant temperature
and othe r vehicle ope rat ing cond it ions.
After yo u switch the eng ine o ff, the aux iliary
f an can continue running for up to 10 m inutes
- even with the ignition off. It can even switch
on aga in later by itself¢ .&. , if
- the temperatu re of the engine coo lant rises
du e to the h eat build -up from th e engin e in
the engine compa rtment, or
- the engine compa rtment heats up because
the vehicle is parked in intense sunlig ht.
A WARNING ~
- To reduce the risk of persona l inju ry nev-
er touch the radiator fan .
- The a uxiliary electric fan is tempe rat ure
contro lled and can switch on suddenly
even when the engine is not running.
- The a uxiliary radiator fan sw itches on a u­
tomatically when the engine coo lant
reaches a certai n temperature and will
continue to ru n until the coo lant temper­
ature drops. •
•

220 Checking and filling
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
Fig . 192 Engine compar tment: cove r on the brake fl uid
reservo ir
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 211.
,.. Read the brake fluid level from the brake
fluid reservoir¢
fig . 192, ¢ page 213,
fig. 188 .
The brake fluid level must be be­
tween the "MIN" and "MAX" markings.
The location of the brake flu id reservoir can be
seen in the engine compartment illust rat ion
¢ page 213.
The fluid level may drop slightly after some
time due to the automatic adjustment of the
brake pads. This is not cause for alarm.
If the brake fluid level falls
considerably be­
low the "MIN" mark, the brake warning/indi­
cator light . (U.S. models)/ . (Canadian
models) will come on ¢
page 14. Do not con­
tinue to operate the vehicle. The comp lete
brake system shou ld be thoroughly checked
by an authorized A udi dealer or other quali­
fied facility and the cause corrected.
If the
brake fluid level is too low, the brake warning/
indic ator light will illuminate. Contact an au­
thorized Audi dealer
immediately .
Changing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experi­
enced technician .
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. If
t he water content in the brake fluid is too
high, corrosion in the brake system may result
after a period of time . The boiling point of the
brake flu id will also decrease conside rably and
decrease braking pe rformance.
Therefore, the brake fluid must be changed
every two years . Always use new brake flu id
which conforms to Federal Motor Vehicle
Standard "FMVSS 116 DOT 4".
The brake fluid reservoir can be difficult to
reach, therefore, we recommend that you
have the brake fluid changed by your author­
ized
Audi dealer. Your dealer has the correct
tools, the right brake fluid and the know-how
to do this for you.
A WARNING
- Brake fluid is poisonous . It must be stor­
ed only in the closed original container
out of the reach of children!
- Brake failure can resu lt from o ld or inap­
propriate brake fluid. Observe these pre­
cautions:
- Use only brake fluid that meets SA E
specification
J 1703 and conforms to
Federal Motor Vehicle Standard 116.
Always check with your authorized Audi
dealer to make sure you are using the
correct brake fluid. The correct type of
brake f luid is also indicated on the
brake fluid reservoir.
- The brake fluid must be new. Heavy use
of the brakes can cause a vapor lock if
the brake fluid is left in the system too
long . This can seriously affect the effi­
c ie ncy of the brakes as well as your
safety. This could resu lt in an accident.
(D Note
Brake fluid will damage the paint of your
vehicle .

222 Check ing and filling
&
Batt ery aci d c ont ain s s ulfuric acid .
A lw ay s w ear gloves and eye protec-
ti on.
@
No
- spark s
- flame s
· sm okin g.
A
When a b atte ry is ch arged , it p rodu -
ce s hydr oge n ga s wh ich i s ex plosi ve
.
and co uld cause pe rsonal injur y.
®
Alway s keep the batt ery well out of
re ach of children.
A WARNING
Whenever working on the battery or on
the electrical system, there is the r isk of
injury, acc ident and even fire. Read and
heed the following WARNINGS:
- Always wear eye protection. Do not let
battery acid or any lead part icles get on
your sk in or cloth ing . Sh ield your eyes .
Explosive gases can cause blindness or
other injury.
- Battery acid contai ns sulfur ic acid. Sulfu­
ric acid can cause blindness and severe
burns.
- Always wear gloves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because ac id
could leak out of the vent ilation open­
ings.
- If you get battery acid in your eyes or
on your sk in, immediately rinse with
cold water for severa l m inutes and get
medical attention .
- If you should ingest any battery acid,
seek medical attention immediately .
- Do not expose the battery to an open
flame, electric sparks or an open light.
- Do not smoke.
- Do not interchange the positive and neg-
ative cab les.
- When working on the battery, be sure
not to short-circuit the terminals with
tools or other metal objects. This would
cause the battery to heat up very quickly,
wh ich could lead to damage or explosion
and personal injury. -
When a battery is charged, it produces
hydrogen gas which is explosive and
could cause personal injury.
- Always keep the battery well out of the
reach of children.
- Before work is done on the electrical sys­
tem, disconnect the negat ive ground ca­
ble.
- Before performing any work on the e lec­
trica l system, switch off the engine and
ignit ion as well as any electrical equip­
ment. The negative cable on the battery
must be disconnected .
If you are just go­
ing to replace a light bulb, then it is
e nough to swi tc h off the lights.
- Before disconnecting the battery, switch
off the anti-theft alarm system! Other­
wise you wi ll set off the alarm.
- When disconnecting the battery, f irst
d isconnect the negat ive cab le and then
the posit ive c ab le.
- Before reconnecting the batte ry, ma ke
sure all e lectr ica l consumers are sw itch­
ed off . Re connect the pos it ive cable first
and then the negative cable. Never inter ­
change the cables - this could start a fire!
- Never charge a frozen or a thawed-out
battery. It could exp lode! If a battery has
frozen, then it must be replaced . A dis­
charged battery can freeze over at 32
°F
(0 oc).
- Make sure the vent hose is always attach­
ed to the opening on the s ide of the bat­
tery.
- Never use batteries which are damaged.
There is the danger of an explosion! Al­
ways rep lace a damaged battery.
A WARNING
Ca lifornia Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, terminals and related ac­
cessories conta in lead and lead com­
pounds, chemicals known to the State of
California to cause cancer and reproduc­
tive problems . Wash hands after han-
dling.
~