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Trailer mode Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passenger
transportation .
If you plan to tow a trailer, p lease remember that
the additional load will affect durability, econo
my and performance.
Trailer towing not only places more stress on the
vehicle, it also calls for more concentration from
the driver.
For this reason, always follow the operating and
driving instructions provided and use common
sense.
(D Note
If you are going to tow a trai ler, you must ac
tivate the trailer operat ion mode
c::> page 201, Operating instructions.
Technical requirements
Trailer hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross trailer weight. The hitch must be suitable
for your vehicle and trailer and must be mounted
securely on the vehicle's chassis at a
technically
sound
location. Use only a trailer hitch with a re
movable ball mount. Always check with the trail
e r hitch manufacturer to make sure that you are
using the correct hitch.
Do not use a bumper hitch.
The hitch must be installed in such a way that it
does not interfere with the impact-absorbing
bumper system. No modifications should be
made to the vehicle exhaust and brake systems.
From time to time, check that all hitch mounting
bolts remain securely fastened .
When you are not towing a trailer,
remove the
trailer hitch ball mount. This prevents the hitch
from causing damage should your vehicle be
struck from behind
c::> &, .
Trailer mode
Trailer brakes
If your trailer is equipped with a brak ing system,
check to be sure that it conforms to all regula
tions.
T he trailer hydraulic brake system must not be di
rect ly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic b rake
system.
Safety chains
Always use safety chains between your veh icle
and the tra iler.
Trailer lights
Trailer lights must meet all regulations. Be sure
to check with your Aud i dealer for correct wiring,
switches and relays.
Mirrors
If you are unable to see the traffic behind you us
ing the regular outside mirrors, then you
must in
stall extended mirrors. It is important that you
always have clear vision to the rear .
A WARNING
--
After removing the trailer hitch, do not store
i t in your vehicle. In case of sudden braking,
the hitch could fly forward and injure you or
your passengers.
Operating instructions
Maximum trailer weight
A trailer for your vehicle is limited to a typical
class 1 or class 2 trailer.
Trailer load distribution
Be sure the load in the trailer is held securely in
place to prevent it from sh ifting forward, back
ward or sideways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer c::> &.
in Driving instructions on page 203 .
Engine cooling system
Towing a trailer makes the engine work harder. It
is important that the cooling system's perform
ance is up to the additional load. Make sure that
the cooling system has enough fluid . .,..
201
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braking effect to slow the vehicle. Use of the
brakes alone can cause them to overheat and fail.
Air suspension*
When driving with a trailer, activate the trailer
mode of the air suspension. Switch the air sus
pension trailer mode on when you are towing a
trailer. This will limit the regulation by the air
suspension while driving. Select in the MMI:
ICARI function button > (Car)* systems control
button>
Vehicle settings> Air susp.: towing>
On.
Coolant temperature
The coolant temperature gauge c::> page 10 must
be observed carefully. The coolant temperature
can increase if you drive on long inclines in a low
gear at high engine speeds . Reduce your speed
immediately if the LEDs in the top part of the dis
play turn on .
For more information about indicator lights, re
fer to.
c::> page 15.
A WARNING
Anyone not properly restrained in a moving
vehicle is at a much greater risk in an acci
dent . Never let anyone ride in your car who is
not properly wearing the restraints provided
by Audi.
Trailer mode notes
Important to know
-
Your vehicle handles differently when towing a trailer because of the additional weight and dif
ferent weight distribution . Safety, performance
and economy will greatly depend on how careful
ly you load your trailer and operate your rig.
Before you actually tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in an area away
from traffic . Keep practicing until you have be
come completely familiar with the way your vehi
cle-trailer combination behaves and responds.
Backing up is difficult and requires practice. Back
ing up with a trailer generally requires steering
Trailer mode
action opposite to that when backing up your ve
hicle without a trailer.
Maintain a greater distance between your vehicle
and the one in front of you . You will need more
room to stop. To compensate for the trailer, you
will need a larger than normal turning radius.
When passing, remember that you cannot accel
erate as fast as you normally would because of
the added load. Make sure you have enough room
to pass. After passing, allow plenty of room for
your trailer before changing lanes again.
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane
changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a trailer during the break-in peri
od of your vehicle.
- If you tow a trailer, your Audi may require
more frequent maintenance due to the ex
tra load
c::> page 2 7 4.
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If it cannot
be avoided, do so only after doing the following:
When parking:
" Apply the foot brake.
" Have someone place chocks under both the ve
hicle and the trailer wheels.
"With chocks in place, slowly release the brakes
until the wheel chocks absorb the load.
"Turn the wheels towards the curb.
... Apply the parking brake.
"Select the P selector lever position.
When restarting after parking:
"Apply the foot brake.
"Start the engine.
"Select the D/S selector lever position.
"Release the parking brake and slowly pull out
and away from the wheel chocks.
"Stop and have someone retrieve the wheel
chocks .
203
Care and cleaning
Component S ituation Solution
Te xtiles
Deposits adhering to Vacuum cleaner
arti ficial leath er, the surface
Alca ntara Wate r-based depos its Absorben
t cloth and mild soap solutional
such as coffee, tea,
blood, etc.
Oil-based deposits Apply am ild soap solutional, blot away the disso lved oil or
such as oil, make-up, dye, treat afterwa rd with water, if necessary
etc.
Special deposits such Special stain remover, blot w ith absorbent materia l, treat
as ink, na il polish, la- afterward with mild soap so lution, if necessaryal
tex paint, shoe pol-
ish, etc.
Natural leather Fres h stains Wool cloth with a mild soap solut ional
Wate r-based depos its fresh stains: absorbent clot h
such as coffee, tea, d ried stains: stain remover suitable for leathe r
blood, etc.
Oil-based deposits Fresh stains: absorbent cloth and stain remover suitab le
such as oil, make- up, for leather
etc. dried stains: Oil cleaning spray
Special deposits such Spot remover sui table for leather
as ink, nai l polish, la -
tex paint, shoe pol-
ish, etc.
Care Regularly app ly condi tioning cream that protects from
lig ht and penet rates in to the mate rial. Use specially -col -
ored conditioning cream, if necessary.
Carbon part s Deposits clean the same way as plastic parts
al Mild soap sol ution: maxim um two tablespoons of neutral soap in 1 quar t (1 liter ) of water
_& WARNING
The windshie ld may not be tre ate d wit h wa
t er- repelling win dsh ield co ating agents. Un
favorab le conditions such as wetness, dark
ness, or low s un can resu lt in increased glare.
Wiper blade chatter is also possible.
(D Note
- Headlights/tail light s
-Never clean headlights or ta il lights with a
dry cloth or sponge.
- Do not use any cleaning prod uct that con
tains alcohol, because they could cause cracks to form.
- Wheels
208
-
- Never use any paint polish or other abra
sive mate rials.
- Damage to the protective layer on the
rims such as sto ne chips or sc ratches must
be repaired immediately.
- Sensors /camera lenses
- N eve r use warm or ho t w at er to remove
snow or ice from the camera lens . This
could ca use the lens to crack.
- N eve r use abras ive cle an ing m ateria ls or
a lcohol to clea n the camera lens. This
could ca use scratches and cracks .
-Doo r windows
- Remove snow and ice on windows and ex-
terio r mirro rs with a p lastic scraper. To
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Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
Fig. 192 Engine compa rtment : cove r on the brake f luid
reservoir
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Before you check anything in the engine compart
ment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS
¢ A in Working in the engine comportment on
page 218.
.,. Read the brake fluid level from the brake fluid
reservoir
¢ fig. 192, ¢page 220, fig. 188. The
brake fluid leve l must be between the "MIN"
and "MAX" markings .
The location of the brake f luid reservo ir can be
seen in the engine compartment illustration
¢page 220.
The fl uid level may drop slightly after some time
due to the automatic adjustment of the brake
pads. This is not cause for alarm.
I f the brake fluid level falls
considerably below
the "MIN" mark, the brake warning/indicator
light
1111 (U .S. models)/ . (Canadian models)
will come on ¢
page 14. Do not cont inue to oper
ate the vehicle . The complete brake system
should be thoroughly checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or other qualified facility and the cause corrected. If the brake fluid level is too low,
the brake warning/indicator light will illuminate.
Contact an authorized Audi dealer
immediately .
Changing brake fluid
Hove the broke fluid changed by on experienced
technician .
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. If the
water content in the brake fluid is too high, cor-
Checking and Filling
rosion in the brake system may result after a peri
od of time. The boiling point of the brake fluid
will also decrease considerably and decrease braking performance .
T herefore, the brake fluid must be changed
every
two years.
Always use new brake fluid which con
forms 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 flu id changed by your authorized
Audi
dealer .
Your dea ler has the correct tools, the
right brake fluid and the know-how to do this for
you .
_&. WARNING
-.
- Brake fluid is poisonous . It must be stored
only in the closed original conta iner out of
the reach of children!
- Brake failure can resu lt from o ld or inappro
p riate brake fluid. Observe these precau
tions:
- Use only brake fluid that meets SAE speci
fication
J 1703 and conforms to Federa l
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 flu id is also ind i
cated 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.
T his can seriously affect the efficiency of
the brakes as well as your safety. This
could result in an accident.
(D Note
Brake fluid will damage the paint of your vehi
cle.
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the problem of prope r disposal of
brake fluid as well as the special tools re
quired and the necessary expertise, we rec
ommend that you have the brake flu id
changed by your authorized Audi dealer.
227
Checking and F ill in g
Battery
General information
Under no rmal operating conditions, the battery
in your Audi does not need any ma intenance.
W ith
high outside temperatu res or long daily
d rives we recommend that you have the electro
lyte level checked by a service facility . The elec
trolyte level should a lso be checked each time
the battery is charged ¢
page 230.
Have the bat tery checked when you take yo ur ve
hicle in for service . You are we ll advised to re
p lace a battery that is o lder than 5 years .
W ith certa in types of airbag deploymen t, the bat
tery is disconnected from the vehicle electrica l
system for safety reasons ¢
.&. in Repair, core
and disposal of the airbags on page 158.
Disconn ecting the battery t erminal s
Some veh icle funct ions (power window regula
tors, for examp le) are lost if the battery termi
na ls are disconnected. These functions have to be
re learned after the battery terminals are con
nected aga in. To prevent this, the battery shou ld
only be disconnected from the vehicle electrical
system when absolutely necessary for repairs.
Vehicl es not driven fo r long period s
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period of
several days or weeks, e lectrica l components are
gradually cut back or switched off. This reduces
energy consumption and maintains starting ca pability over a longer period¢
page 194. Some
of the convenience funct ions may not operate,
such as the inter ior lights or power seat adjust
ment. The convenience functions will be ava ilab le
again whe n you swit ch on the igni tion and sta rt
the engine.
Winte r operation
During the winter months, battery capacity tends
to decrease as temperatures drop . This is because
mo re power is also consumed w hile starting, and
the head lights, rear w indow defogger, etc ., are
used more often.
Avoid unnecessary power consumption, part icu
larly in city traffic or when traveling only short
228
distances. Let your authorized Audi dealer check
the capacity of the vehicle battery before winter
sets in
¢ page 230 . A well charged battery will
not only prevent starting problems when the
weather is cold, but will also last longer.
(D Tips
If your vehicle is left standing for several
weeks at extremely low temperatures, the ve
hicle battery should be removed and stored
where it will not freeze . This will prevent it
from being damaged and having to be re
placed.
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the battery.
The battery is located in the luggage compart
ment under the floor . Before you check anything
i n the luggage compartment,
re ad and he ed all
WARNINGS ¢&, .
Always heed the safety warning s, when working
o n the vehicle battery or the vehicle e lectr ical
system to prevent injury .
The following WARNING S are very important
when working on the battery :
Alw ay s heed the following WARNING SYM ·
BOL S and safety p recaut ions when wo rking on
the batter y.
®
Alw ay s w ear e ye protection .
~
Battery acid contains sulfuric acid . Al -
way s wear gloves and ey e protection .
@
No
· spark s
· flames
· sm oking.
~
When a battery is charged , it p roduce s
h yd rogen gas which is e xplosi ve and
'
could cause per sonal injury .
®
Always keep the battery well out of
r ea ch of ch ild ren.
...
different tire speeds. For this rea
son, in case of emergency, only
use a spare tire* that is the same
circumference as the regular tires.
A WARNING -
-Only use tire/rim combina
tions and suitable wheel bolts
that have been approved by
Audi. Otherwise, damage to
the vehicle and an accident
could result.
-For technical reasons, it is not possible to use tires from oth
er vehicles - in some cases,
you cannot even use tires from
the same vehicle model.
-Make sure that the tires you select have enough clearance
to the vehicle . Replacement
tires should not be chosen
simply based on the nominal
size, because tires with a dif
ferent construction can differ greatly even if they are the
same size. If there is not
enough clearance, the tires or
the vehicle can be damaged
and this can reduce driving
safety and increase the risk of
an accident.
-Only use tires that are more
than 6 years old when abso-
Wheels
lutely necessary and drive
carefully when doing so.
-Do not use run-flat tires on your vehicle . Using them when
not permitted can lead to ve
hicle damage or accidents.
-If you install wheel covers on
the vehicle, make sure they al low enough air circulation to
cool the brake system. If they
do not, this could increase the
risk of an accident.
Tire wear/damage
Fig. 196 T ir e profi le : Treadwear indica
tor
Tire wear
Check the tires regularly for wear.
-Inflation pressure that is too low
or high can increase tire wear
considerably .
-Driving quickly through curves,
rapid acceleration and heavy
braking increase tire wear.
-Have an authorized Audi dealer or authorized repair facility
241
...
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_& WARNING
Temperature grades apply to tires that are properly inflated and not over or underinflat
ed .
Tire pressure monitoring
system
CD General notes
Each tire, includ ing 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 veh icle has
tires of a different size than the size indicated on
the vehicle placard or tire inflation pressure la
be l, you shou ld 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 should stop and
check your tires as soon as poss ible, and inflate
them to the proper pressure. Driving on a signifi cantly under-inflated tire causes the tire to over
heat and can lead to t ire 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
sponsib ility to ma inta in correct tire pressure,
even if under-inflation has not reached the level
to trigger illuminat ion of the TPMS low t ire pres
sure telltale.
Your vehicle has also been equ ipped with a TPMS
malfunction indicator to indicate when the sys
tem is not operating properly. The TPMS mal
function indicator is combined with the low tire
pressure telltale. When the system detects a
malfunction, the telltale will flash for approxi
mately one minute and then remain continuously
illuminated . This sequence will cont inue upon
Wheels
subsequent vehicle start -ups as long as the mal
function exists.
When the malfunction indicator is illuminated ,
the system may not be able to detect or signal
low tire pressure as intended . TPMS malfunctions
may occur for a variety of reasons, including the
i nsta llation of replacement or alternate tires or
wheels on the vehicle that prevent the TPMS
from functioning properly. Always check the
TPMS malfunction telltale after replacing one or
more t ires or wheels on your veh icle to ensure
that the replacement or alternate t ires and
whee ls allow the TPMS to continue to function
properly.
If the Tire Pressure Monitoring System
indicator appears
The tire pressure indicator in the instrument
cluster informs you if the tire pressure is too low
or if there is a system mo/function .
Fig. 199 Instrument cluster: indicator light with message
Using the ABS sensors, the tire pressure monitor
ing system compares the tire tread circumference
and vibration characteristics of the individual
tires . If the pressure changes in one or more
t ir es, this is indicated in the instrument cluster
display with an indicator light
HE and a message.
If only one tire is affected, the location of that
tire will be indicated.
T he tire pressures must be stored in the Infotain
ment system again each time the pressures
change (switching between partial and full load
pressure) or after changing or rep lacing a tire on
your vehicle
¢ page 252. The ti re pressure moni
toring system only monitors the tire pressure you have stored. Refer to the tire pressure label for ..,.
251