Drivin g saf ety
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items can
fly through the vehicle causing serious per sonal injury in the event of hard braking or an
accident. To help reduce the risk of serious
personal injury:
- Always put objects, for example, luggage or other heavy items in the luggage compart
ment.
- Always secure objects in the luggage com
partment using the tie-down hooks and
suitable straps .
A WARNING
Heavy loads will influence the way your vehi
cle handles. To help reduce the r isk of a loss
of control leading to serious pe rsonal injury:
- Always keep in mind when transporting heavy objects, that a change in the center of
grav ity can also cause changes in vehicle
hand ling:
- Always distribute the load as even ly as
possible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in the
luggage compartment as poss ible.
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating
o r the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating specified
on the safety compliance sticker on the left
doo r jamb. Exceed ing permissible weight
standards can cause the vehicle to slide and
hand le differently .
- Please observe information on safe driving
c> page 208.
A WARNING
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas from
being d rawn into the vehicle, always keep the
rear lid closed whi le driving.
- Never transport objec ts larger than those
fi tt ing complete ly into the luggage a rea be
ca use the rear l id cannot be fully closed.
- If you absolutely mus t drive w ith the rea r lid
open, obse rve the follow ing notes to reduce
t h e risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the power roof,
214
-
- Open all a ir outlets in the instrument pan
el,
- Switch off the air reci rculat ion
'
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest speed .
A WARNING -
Always make su re that the doo rs, all win
dows, the powe r roof and the rear lid are se
curely closed and locked to re duce the risk of
in jury when the veh icle is not being used.
- After closing the rear lid, always ma ke sure
that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your veh icle unattended espe
cially with the rear lid left open . A child
could crawl into the vehicle through the lug
gage compartment and close the rea r lid be
coming trapped and unab le to get o ut. Be
ing trapped in a vehicle can lead to ser ious
pe rsonal injury.
- Never let ch ildren play in o r around the vehi
cle.
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compa rtment . Vehicle occupants mus t al
ways be properly restrained in one of the ve hicle's seat ing pos itions.
(D Tips
- Air circulation helps to reduce w indow fog
ging . Stale ai r esca pes to the outs ide
through vents in the trim panel, on the left
side of the luggage compartment. Be sure
to keep t hese s lo ts free and open.
- T he tire p ressure must correspond to the
load. The t ire pressure is shown on t he tire
press ure label. The ti re pre ssure label is lo
c ated on the drive r's side B- pilla r. The tire
pressu re label lists the recommen ded cold
t ire inflation pressures fo r the veh icle at its
maximum capac ity we ight and the tires that
we re on your veh icle at the time it was man
ufactured . For recommended t ire pressures
for normal load conditions, p lease see chap
ter
c> page 294.
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® Mud and snow capability
"M/S" or "M+S" indicates the tire
has properties making it suitable
to drive in mud or
snow .~ indi
cates a winter tire .
@ Composition of the tire cord
and m aterials
The number of plies indicates the
number of rubberized fabric lay
ers in the tire. In general : the
more layers, the more weight a
tire can carry . Tire manufacturers
must also specify the materials
used in the tire . These include
steel, nylon, polyester and other
materials .
@Maximum permitted load
This number indicates the maxi
mum load in kilograms and
pounds that the tire can carry .
@Uniform ti re quality grade
standards for treadwear,
traction and temperature resistance
Treadwear , traction and tempera
ture
ranges¢ page 299 .
@ Running direction
The arrows indicate the running
direction of unidirectional tires .
You must always follow the speci- fied running direction
¢
page 319.
@ Maximum permitted
inflation p ressure
Wh eel s
This number indicates the maxi
mum pressure to which a tire can
be inflated under normal operat
ing conditions.
Glossary of tire and loading
terminology
Accessory weight
means the combined weight (in
excess of those standard items
which may be replaced) of auto matic transmission, power steer
ing, power brakes, power win
dows, power seats, radio, and
heater, to the extent that these
items are available as factory-in
stalled equipment (whether in
stalled or not) .
Aspect ratio
means the ratio of the height to
the width of the tire in percent .
Numbers of 55 or lower indicate a
low sidewall for improved steer
ing response and better overall
handling on dry pavement .
285
Wheels
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 tire pressure recom
mended by the vehicle 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 standa rd equipment in
cluding the maximum ca pacity of
fuel, oil, and coolant, air condi
tioning and addit ional weigh t of
optional equipment.
E x tra load tire
means a tire designed to operate
at higher loads and at higher
in -
28 6
flation pressures than t he corre
spond ing standard tire. Extra load
tires may be identified as "X L",
"xl" , "EXTRA LOAD" , or "RF" on
the sidewall.
Gross Axle Weight Rating ("GAWR")
means the load-car rying capacity
of a single axle system , measu red
at the ti re-ground interfaces .
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
("GVWR")
means the maximum total loaded
weight of the vehicle .
Groove
means the space between two ad
jacent tread ribs .
Load rating (code)
means the maximum load tha t a
tire is rated to carry for a given i n
flation pressure. You may no t find
this informat ion on all ti res be
cause it is not required by law .
Maximum load rating
means the load rating for a tire at
the maximum permissible infla
tion pressure for that tire .
Maximum loaded vehicle
weight
means t he sum of:
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(a) Curb weight
(b) Accessory weight
(c) Vehicle capacity weight, and
(d) Production options weight
Ma ximum (permissible }
inflation pres sure
means the maximum cold infla
tion pressure to which a t ire may
be inflated . Also called "maxi
mum inflation pressure."
Normal occupant weight
means 150 l bs. (68 kilograms)
times the number of occupants
seated in the veh icle up to the to
tal seating capacity of your vehi
c le.
Occupant distribution
means distribution of occupants
in a vehicle.
Outer diameter
means the overall diameter of an
inflated new tire .
Overall width
means the linear distance be
tween the exteriors of the side
walls of an inflated tire, including
elevations due to labeling, deco
rations, or protective bands or
ribs .
Wheels
Ply
means a layer of rubber-coated
parallel cords .
Production options weight
means the combined weight of
those installed regular production
options weighing over 5 lbs. (2.3 kg) in excess of those standard
items which they replace, not pre
viously considered in curb weight
or accessory weight, including heavy duty brakes , ride levelers ,
roof rack, heavy duty battery, and
special trim .
Radial ply tire
means a pneumatic tire in which
the ply cords that extend to the beads are laid at substantially 90
degrees to the centerline of the
tread .
Recommended inflation
pressure
see ~ page 286, Cold tire infla
tion pressure .
Reinforced tire
means a tire designed to operate
at higher loads and at higher in
flat ion pressures than the corre
sponding standard tire. Rein
forced tires may be iden tified as
.,.
28 7
LL
"' .... N ,-.. N .... g :r st
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 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 six 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. 265 T ir e profile: 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.
291
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-Tires on a vehicle that has
been overloaded can fail sud
denly, including a blowout and
sudden deflation, causing loss
of control and a crash.
-Always make sure that the to
tal load being transported -
including the weight of a trail
er hitch and the tongue
weight of a loaded trailer -
does not make the vehicle
heavier than the vehicle's
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating.
Determining correct load
limit
Use the example below to calcu
late the total weight of the pas
sengers and luggage or other
things that you plan to transport so that you can make sure that
your vehicle will not be overload ed.
Steps for Determining Correct Load Limit
1. Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF OCCU
PANTS AND CARGO SHOULD
NEVER EXCEED XXX KG OR XXX
LBS " on your vehic le 's placard
(tire inflation pressure label)
¢ page 293, fig. 266 .
Wheels
2. Determine the combined
weight of the driver and passengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined weight of the driver and passengers
from "XXX" kilograms or "XXX"
pounds shown on the sticker
¢ page 293, fig . 266 .
4. The resulting figure equals the
available amount of cargo and luggage load capacity. For ex
ample, if the
"XXX" amount
equals
1400 lbs. and there wil l
be five
150 lbs . passengers in
your vehicle, the amount of
available cargo and luggage
load capacity is 650 lbs.
(1400-750 (5 X 150) = 650
lbs .)
5. Determine the combined
weight of luggage and cargo
being loaded on the vehicle.
That weight may not safely ex
ceed the available cargo and
luggage load capacity calculat
ed in Step 4.
6. If your vehicle will be towing a trailer, load from your trailer
will be transferred to your ve
hicle. Consult this manual to
determine how this reduces
.,.
297
Wheels
under controlled conditions on a specified
government 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, howeve r, and
may depart significant ly 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 contro lled conditions on specified govern
ment test surfaces of aspha lt and concrete. A tire
marked C may have poor traction performance
¢ & .
Temperature
The temperatu re grades are A (t he 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
fa ilure¢ fr:. .
The grade C corresponds to a leve l of perform
ance which a ll passenger car tires must meet un
der the Federa l Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
No. 109. Grades B and A represent higher leve ls
of performance on the laboratory test wheel than
the mi nimum required by law.
A WARNING
-
The traction grade assigned to this tire is
based on straight-ahead braking traction
t ests, and does not include acceleration, cor
nering, hydroplaning or peak traction charac
teristics.
300
A WARNING
The temperature grade for t his 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 tires that are
properly inflated and not over or under inflat
ed .
Tire Pressure Monitoring
System
(AS, S8)
ill General notes
Applies to: AS, 58
Each tire, including the spare (if prov ided),
shou ld 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 labe l.
(If your veh icle has
tires of a different size than the size ind icated on
the ve hicle placard or tire inflat ion pressure la
bel , you should determ ine the proper tire infla
tion pressure for those tires).
As an added safety feature, your vehicle has been
equipped with a tire pressure mon itor ing system
(TPMS) that illum inates a low tire pressure tell
tale when o ne or more of your tires is significant
l y unde r-inflated. According ly, when the low tire
pressure telltale illum inates, you sho uld 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 fai lure. Under-inflation
also reduces fue l eff iciency 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 dr iver's re
spons ibility to maintain correct t ire pressure,
even if under-inflation has not reached the level
to trigger illumination of the TPMS low tire pres-
sure te lltale .
.,.
Wheels
-The driver is responsible for maintaining the
correct tire pressure. You must check the
tire pressure regularly.
- Under certain conditions (such as a sporty
driving style, winter conditions or unpaved
roads), the tire pressure monitoring system
indicator may be delayed .
- Do not use run-flat tires on your vehicle. Us
ing them when not permitted can lead to
vehicle damage or accidents .
(D Tips
- The tire pressure monitoring system can al
so stop working when there is an ESC mal
function .
- Using snow chains may result in a system
malfunction.
- The tires with the identification
"AO" or
"RO" ¢ page 290 have been matched with
your Audi tire pressure monitoring system.
Using these tires is recommended.
Storing tire pressures
Applies to: AB, S8
If the tire pressure changes or a tire is replaced,
it must be confirmed in the Infotainment sys
tem .
.,. Make sure before storing that the tire pressures
of all four tir es meet the specified values and
are adapted to the
load ¢ page 291 .
.,. Switch the ignition on .
.,. Select : the ICARI function button > Car Systems
control button > Service & control > Tire pres
sure monitor> Store tire pressure > Yes, store
now.
(D Tips
Do not store the tire pressures if snow chains
are installed. Otherwise the system could
malfunction.
302
Tire Pressure Monitoring System (SB plus)
ill General notes
Applies to: S8 plus
Each tire, including the spare (if provided),
shou ld 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 ind icated on
the veh icle placard or tire inflat ion 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 mon itor ing system
(TPMS) t hat illuminates a low tire pressure tell
ta le when o ne or more of your tires is significant
l y under-inflated. According ly, when the low tire
pressure telltale illuminates, you should 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
spons ibility to maintain correct t ire pressure,
even if under-inflation has not reached the level
to trigge r illumination of the TPM S low t ire pres
su re te lltale.
Your vehicle has also been equipped with a TPMS
malfunction indicator to ind icate when the sys
tem is not operating prope rly . The TPM S mal
function indicator is combined with the low t ire
pressure telltale. When the system detects a
malfunction, the telltale will flash for approxi
mately one minute and then remain continuously
illuminated. This sequence wi ll continue upon
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 ..,_