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General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety belts are neces
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them correctly. "' Read all the information that follows and heed
all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Safety belts are the single most effective
means available to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents.
For your protection and that of your passen
gers, always correctly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving.
- Pregnant women, injured, o r physically im
paired persons must also use safety belts.
Like all vehicle occupants, they are more
likely to be seriously injured if they do not
wear safety belts. The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mother -throughout
the entire pregnancy.
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of five seating positions:
two in the front and three in the rear. Each seat ing position has a safety belt.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Never strap more than one person, includ
ing small children, into any belt.
It is espe
cially dangerous to place a safety belt over a
child sitting on your lap.
- Never let mo re people ride in the vehicle
than there are safety belts available .
Safety belts
-Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained with a separate safety
belt or child restraint.
Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle has a warning system for the driver
and (on USA models only) front seat passenger
to remind you about the importance of buckling
up .
Fig. 154 Safety belt warning light in the instrument clus
te r -enlarged
Before driving off, always:
.. Fasten your safety belt and make sure you are
wearing it properly.
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"' Make sure that your passengers also buckle up
and properly wear their safety belts.
"' Protect your children with a ch ild restraint sys
tem appropr iate for the size and age of the chil
dren .
The warning light . in the instrument cluster
lights up when the ignit ion is switched on as a re
minder to fasten the safety be lts. In addition,
you w ill hear a warn ing tone for a certain period
of time.
Fasten your safety belt now and make sure that
your passengers also properly put on their safe
ty belts.
A WARNING
-
-Safety belts are the single most effective
means available to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents .
For your protection and that of your passen
gers, a lways correctly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving.
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(if applicable)
P indicates a tire for a passenger
vehicle. T indicates a tire desig
nated for temporary use.
@ Nominal width
Nominal width of the tire be
tween the sidewalls in millime
ters. In general: the larger the
number, the wider the tire.
@ Aspect ratio
Height/width ratio expressed as a
percentage.
@ Tire construction
R indicates a radial tire.
® Rim diameter
Size of the rim diameter in inches.
@ Load index and speed rating
The load index indicates the tire's
load-carrying capacity.
The speed rating indicates the
maximum permitted speed¢.&
in
Winter tires on page 249.
"EXTRA LOAD", "xl" or "RF" indi
cates that the tire is reinforced or
is an Extra Load tire.
Speed rat-
Maximum permitted speed
ing
p
up to 93 mph (150 km/h)
Q up to 99 mph (160 km/h)
Wheels
Speed rat- Maximum permitted speed
ing
R up to 106 mph (170 km/h)
s up to 110 mph (180 km/h)
T up to 118 mph (190 km/h)
u up to 124 mph (200 km/h)
H up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
V up to 149 mph (240 km/h) al
z above 149 mph (240 km/h)al
w up to 168 mph (270 km/h)al
y up to 186 mph (300 km/h)al
a) For tires above 149 mph (240 km/h),
tire manufacturers sometimes use the
code "ZR".
(j) US DOT number (TIN) and
manufacture date
The manufacture date is listed on
the tire sidewall (it may only ap
pear on the inner side of the tire):
DOT ... 2215 ...
means, for example, that the tire
was produced in the 22nd week of
the year 2015.
@ Audi Original equipment
tires
Audi Original equipment tires
with the designation "AO" or "RO" have been specially matched to
your Audi. When used correctly,
these tires meet the highest
standards of safety and handling.
An authorized Audi dealer or au
thorized Audi Service Facility will ""
235
Bead
means the part of the tire that is
made of steel wires, wrapped or
reinforced by ply cords and that is
shaped to fit the rim.
Bead separation
means a breakdown of the bond
between components in the bead.
Cord
means the strands forming the
plies in the tire.
Cold tire inflation pressure
means the tir e pressure recom
mended by the vehic le manufac
turer for a tire of a designated
size that has not been driven for
more than a couple of miles (kilo
meters) at low speeds in the
three hour period before the tire pressure is measured or adjusted .
Curb weight
means the weight of a motor ve
hicle with standard equipment in
c luding the maximum capacity of
fuel, oi l, and coolant, a ir condi
tioning and add itional weight of
optional equipment.
E xtra load ti re
means a tire designed to operate
at higher loads and at h igher in -
Wheels
flation pressures than the corre
sponding standard tire . Extra load
tires may be identified as "XL",
" xl", "EXTRA LOAD", o r "RF" on
the sidewal l.
Gross Axle Weight Rating
( " GAWR")
means the load -carrying capacity
of a single axle system, measured
at the tire-ground interfaces .
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
("GVWR ")
means the max imum total loaded
weight of the vehic le.
Groove
means the space between two ad
jacent tr ead ribs .
Load rating (code)
means the max im um load tha t a
tire is rated to carry fo r a g iven in
flat ion pressure . You may not find
this informat ion on all tires be
cause it is not requ ired by law.
Maximum load rating
means the load rating for a tire at
the maximum pe rmissible infla
tion pressure for that tire.
Maximum loaded vehicle
weight
means the sum o f:
23 7
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"XL" "xl" "EXTRA LOAD" or "RF" ' ' '
on the sidewall.
Rim
means a metal support for a tire
or a tire and tube assembly upon
which the tire beads are seated .
Rim diameter
means nominal diameter of the
bead seat. If you change your
wheel size, you will have to pur
chase new tires to match the new
rim d iameter.
Rim size designation
means rim diameter and width.
Rim width
means nominal distance between
r im flanges.
Sidewall
means that portion of a tire be
tween the tread and bead .
Speed rating (letter code )
means the speed at wh ich a tire is
designed to be driven for exten d
ed periods of t ime . The ratings
range from 93 mph (150 km/h)
to 186 mph (298 km/h)
¢ table
on page 235.
Yo u may not find
this information on all tires be
cause it is not required by law.
Wheels
T he speed rating letter code,
where applicable, is molded on
the tire sidewall and indicates the
maximum pe rmissible road
speeds
¢ & in Winter tires on
page 249 .
Tire pressure monitoring
system*
means a system that detects
when one or more of a vehicle's
tires are underin flated and illum i
na tes a low tire pressure wa rning
telltale.
Tread
means that port ion of a tire that
comes into contact with the road.
Tread separation
means pulling away of the tread
from the tire carcass .
Treadwear indicators (TWI)
means the projections within the
principal grooves designed to give
a visua l indication of t he degrees
of wear of the tread . See
¢ page 243, Treadwear indicator
for mo re info rma tion on measu r-
ing tire wear. .,.
239
Occupant loading and distri
but ion for vehicle normal load
for various design ated se ating
c a pa cit ies
Refer to the tire inflation pres
sure label ¢
page 244, fig. 207
for the number of seating posi
tions. Refer to the table ¢
table
on page 246
for the number of
people that correspond to the ve
hicle normal load.
New tires or wheels
Audi recommends having all work
on tires or wheels performed by
an authorized Audi dealer or au
thorized Audi Service Facility .
These facilities have the proper
knowledge and are equ ipped with
the required tools and replace
ment parts .
.,,. New tires do not yet have the
opt imum adhesion properties.
Drive carefully and at moderate
speeds for the first 350 m iles
(500 km) with new tires .
... use tires of the same construc
tion, size (rolling circumference)
and as close to the same tread pattern as possible on all four
wheels.
Wheels
.,,. Do not replace tires individually.
At least replace both tires on the same axle at the same time .
.,,. Audi recommends that you use
Audi Original equipment tires. If
you would like to use different
tires, please note that the tires may perform differently even if
they are the same size¢,&..
.,,. If you would like to equip your
vehicle w ith a tire/r im combina
tion that is different from what
was installed at the factory, con
sult w ith an authorized Audi
dealer or authorized Audi Service
Facility before making a pur
chase ¢
..1,..
The spare t ire* is diffe rent from
the regular tires installed on the
vehicle - for example, if winter
tires or wide tires are installed -
then only use the spare tire* tem
porarily in case of emergency and
drive carefully while it is in use . It
should be replaced with a regular
tire as soon as possible.
On
all wheel d rive vehicles, all
four wheels must be equipped
with tires that are the same brand
and have the same construction
and tread pa ttern so that the
drive system is not damaged by
24 1
Wheels
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.
,&. 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 t ires 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.
242
-Only use tires that are more
than 6 years old when abso
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. 205 Tire profile: tread wear ind ica
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. ..
Wheels
tires according to the load and
the size of the tires installed.
Model/ Tire designation
Engine Tire pressure
Normal load Maximum load
(up to 3 people)al
front rear front rear
PSI
235/60 Rl8 103H
29 Q5:
All Season
2 .0L
235/55 R19 101H
4 cylinders All Season
30
and
Q5: 235/55 R19101W 29 High Performance
3.0L
6 cylinders 255/45
R20 101W
29 High Performance
255/45 R20 101W
39 SQ5: High Performance
3.0L
6 cylinders 255/40
R21102Y XL
41 High Performance
a) 2 people in the front, 1 person in the rear
A WARNING
Please note the important safe
ty precautions regarding tire pressure ¢
page 244 and load
limits ¢
page 246.
Tires and vehicle load limits
There are limits to the amount of
load or weight that any vehicle
and any tire can carry. A vehicle
that is overloaded will not handle
well and is more difficult to stop.
Overloading can not only lead to
loss of vehicle control, but can al
so damage important parts of the
vehicle and can lead to sudden
246
kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA
200 29 200 32 220 32 220
210
30 210 33 230 33 230
2 00 29 2 00 33 2 30 33 230
200 29 200 33 230 33 230
27 0
39 27
0 41 2 80 41 2 80
280 36 250 4 1 280 42 290
tire failure, including a blowout
and sudden deflation that can
cause the vehicle to crash.
Your safety and that of your pas
sengers also depends on making
sure that load limits are not ex
ceeded. Vehicle load includes ev
erybody and everything in and on
the vehicle. These load limits are
technically referred to as the vehi
cle's
Gross Vehicle Weight Rat
ing
("GVWR").
The "GVWR" includes the weight
of the basic vehicle, all factory in
stalled accessories, a full tank of
fuel, oil, coolant and other fluids ..,.
Wheels
damage the ti res, and the chains w ill quickly be
destroyed .
A WARNING
Using incorrect snow chains or insta lling snow
chains incorrectly can result in loss of vehicle
control, which increases the risk of an acc i
dent .
(D Note
Snow chains can damage the rims/wheel cov
ers * if the chains come into d irect contact
w ith them. Remove the wheel covers* first .
Use coated snow chains.
(D Tips
When using snow cha ins, it may be useful to
sw itch the off road mode on
<=> page 191.
Low aspect ratio tires
Your Aud i is factory -equipped with low aspect ra
tio tires. These t ires have been tho roughly tested
a nd been se lected specifically fo r yo ur model fo r
thei r supe rb per fo rman ce , road feel and handling
un der a va riety of d riving conditions . As k yo ur au
thor ized Audi dealer for mo re details .
T he low aspect ratio of these t ires is in dicated by
a nume ral of
55 or less in the tire's size desig na
tion . The numera l rep resents the rat io o f th e
tire's sidewall he ight in relat ion to its tread width
expressed in pe rcentage. Conventional tires have
a height/w idt h rat io o f 60 o r more .
The performance of low-aspect -ra tio tires i s 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 pressure is regularly
checked and maintained . Tire pressures should
be checked at least once a month and always
before a long trip <=>
page 244.
What you can do to avoid tire and rim
damage
Low aspect rat io tires can be damaged more easi
ly by impact with potholes, cu rbs, gullies or
250
ridges on the road, particularly if the tire is un
derinflated.
I n orde r to mi nimize the occur rence o f imp act
dam age to the tires o f yo ur vehicle, we recom
mend that you observe the following preca u
tions:
- Always m aintain reco mmende d in fla tion pres
sures. Check yo ur tir e pressure eve ry 2,0 00
m iles (3,00 0 km) and add air if necessary .
- Dr ive c arefully on ro ads w ith potholes, deep
gu llies o r ridges . The impact from dr iving
through or over such obstacles can damage
your tires. Impact with a curb may a lso ca use
damage to your t ires.
- After any impact, immediate ly inspect you r
tires or have them inspected by the nearest au
thorized Aud i dealer. Replace a damaged tire as
soon as possible.
- Inspect your tires every 2,000 m iles (3,000 km)
for damage and wear . Damage is not always
easy to see . Damage can lead to loss of a ir and
unde rinflation, w hich could event ua lly cause
tire fa ilure . If you believe that a tire may have
be en damaged, replace the tire as soon as pos
sible .
- These tires may wear mo re quickly than o thers .
- Please also remember that, while these tires delive r responsive hand ling, they may ride less
comfortab ly and make mo re noise than o ther
choi ces.
Reduced performance in winter/cold season
conditions
A ll tires are des igned for certain purposes. The
l ow aspect ratio, ultra h igh performance tires
o rigin ally ins talle d on your veh icle are inten ded
for m aximum dry and wet road per forma nce and
handling . They a re not suitable for co ld, snowy or
i cy weather conditions . If you drive under those
c ir cumstances, you should equip yo ur vehicle
with all-season o r winter tires, which offer better
tract ion under t hose conditions. We suggest you
u se the recommended s now or all-season tires
spec ified for your vehicle, o r the ir equiva lent .
Refer to<=>
page 249 for more detailed informa
tion regard ing winter tires.