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.
...
M N <( (.J
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N \!) ,....,
(D Note
Never use a fast charger as a booster to start
the engine . This w ill seriously damage sensi
tive electron ic components, such as control
units, relays, radio, etc., as well as the battery
charger.
Battery replacement
The new battery must have the same specifica
tions and dimensions as the original equipment
battery .
Intelligent energy management in your vehicle is
responsible for distributing the electrica l energy
throughout your vehicle
c:> page 194. The intell i
gent energy management system will keep the
engine battery charged better than vehicles w ith
out this system . To make sure the additional elec
tr ical energy is available once again after you
have changed the battery, we recommend that
you install batteries of the same type and manu facture only (the same as those installed at the
time your veh icle was delivered). Specif ications
are listed on the battery housing. Your author
ized dealer must code the battery in the energy
management system to enable you to use the en
e rgy management functions correctly after re
p lacing the battery.
The new battery must have the same capacity ,
voltage (12-volts), amperage, construction and plug sealing .
When installing the battery, make sure the igni
tion and all electrical consumers are switched off.
Make sure the ventilation hose on the s ide of
the battery is connected, otherwise fumes or
battery acid can leak out.
- Vehicles with the Start-Stop-System* are equipped with a special cycle-proof AGM battery. Installing a different type of bat
tery can cause problems in the vehicle elec
trical system. When replacing the vehicle
battery, always install one with the same
specifications as the original battery.
Checking and Filling
{® For the sake of the environment
Because of the prob lem of proper disposal of
a battery, we recommend your authorized
Audi dealer change the battery for you. Bat
teries contain sulfur ic acid and lead and must
always be disposed of properly in compliance
with all environmental regulations. Disposing
of vehicle batteries improperly is very danger
ous to the environment.
Windshield/headlight
washer container
Fig. 194 Engine compa rtment: cover on the winds hie ld
and head lig ht* washer fluid reservoir
The washer fluid container is marked with the
symbol
ip on its cap c:>fig. 194, c:>page 220,
fig. 188.
.. Before you check anything in the engine com
partment,
always read and heed all WARN
INGS c:> .&. in Working in the engine compart
ment on page 218.
.. Lift the filler cap tongue to add washer fluid.
You can fill the container to the top .
.. Press the cap back onto the filler neck after fill-
ing the container .
You can find the reservoir
capacity in the table in
c:>page272.
Clean water should be used when filling up. If
possible, use soft water to prevent scaling on
washer jets. Always add a g lass cleaner solution
(with frost protection in the winter) . ..,.
231
M N <( (.J
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N \!) ,....,
Emergency situations
General
This chapter is intended for trained emergency
crews and working personnel who have the nec
essary tools and equipment to perform the se
operations.
Starting by pushing or
towing
(D Note
Vehicles w ith an automatic transmission can
not be started by push ing o r tow ing.
Starting with jumper
cables
If necessary, the engine can be started by con
necting it to the battery of another vehicle .
If the engine should fail to start because o f a dis
charged or weak battery, the battery can be con
nected to the battery of
another vehicle, us ing a
pair of jumper cables to start the engine .
Jumper cables
Use only jumper cables of sufficiently large cros s
section
to carry the starter current safe ly. Refer
to the manufacturer's specifications.
Use only jumper cables with
insulated term inal
clamps which are distinctly marked:
plus(+) cable in most cases co lored red
minus (-) cable
in most cases colored black .
A WARNING
Batteries contain electricity, acid, and gas .
Any of these can cause very ser ious or fatal in
jury . Fo llow the instructions be low for safe
handling of your vehicle's battery.
- Always shield your eyes and avoid leaning
over the battery whenever possible.
- A discharged battery can freeze at tempera
tures just below 32 °F (0 °C) . Before con
necting a jumper cable, you must thaw the
Emergency situations
frozen battery completely, otherwise it
could explode .
- Do not allow battery acid to contact eyes or
skin. Flush any contacted area with water immediately.
- Improper use of a booster battery to start a
veh icle may cause an explosion.
- Vehicle batteries generate explosive gases .
Keep sparks, flame and lighted cigarettes
away from batteries.
- Do not try to jump start any vehicle with a
low acid level in the battery.
- The voltage of the booster battery must al
so have a 12-volt rating. The capacity (Ah) of
the booster battery should not be lower
than that of the discharged battery. Use of batteries of different voltage or substantial
ly different" Ah" rating may cause an explo
sion and personal injury.
- Never charge a frozen battery . Gas trapped
in the ice may cause an explosion .
- Never charge or use a battery that has been
frozen . The battery case may have be weak
ened ,
- Use of batter ies of different voltage or sub
stantially different capacity (Ah) rating may
cause an exp losion and injury. Th e capacity
(Ah) of the booste r battery should not be
lower than that of the discharged battery.
- Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed a ll
WARNINGS
q page 218 .
(D Note
-Applying a h igher voltage booster battery
w ill cause expensive damage to sensitive
electronic components, such as control
units, relays, radio, etc.
- Th ere must be no ele ct rical contact between
the vehicles as otherwise current could al
ready start to flow as soon as the positive
(+) termina ls are connected.
(D Tips
The discharged battery must be properly con-
nected to the vehicle's e lectrical system. .,..
265