Wheel s
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 .
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.
328
Cord
means the strands forming the
plies in the tire.
Cold tire inflation pressure
means the t ire 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 w ith standard equipment in
cluding the maximum capacity of
fuel, oil, and coolant, ai r condi
tioning and additional weight of
optional equipment.
E x tra load ti re
means a tire designed to operate
at higher loads and at higher in
flation pressures than the corre
sponding standard tire. Extra load
tires may be identified as "X L",
"
l" "EXTRA LOAD" or "RF" on X I I
the sidewall. .,.
u a, .... N r-N ....
~ a,
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 maximum total loaded
weight of the vehic le.
Groove
means the space between two ad
jacent tread ribs.
Load rating (code )
means the maximum load that a
tire is rated to carry for a given in
flation pressure . You may not find
this information on all tires 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 the sum of:
(a) Curb weight
(b) Accessory weight
(c) Vehicle capacity weight, and
(d) Production options weight
Ma ximum (permissible )
inflation pressure
Wh eel s
means the maximum cold infla
tion pressure to which a tire may be inflated . Also called "maxi
mum inflation pressure ."
Normal occup ant weight
means 150 lbs . (68 kilograms)
times the number of occupants
seated in the vehicle up to the to
ta l seating capacity of your vehi
cle .
Occupant distribut ion
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.
Ply
means a layer of rubber-coated
parallel cords.
329
Wheels
Production options we igh t
means the combined weight of
those installed regular production
options weighing over 5 lbs.
(2.3 kg) in excess of those stand
ard items which they replace, not previously considered in curb
weight or accessory weight, in
cluding heavy duty brakes, ride levelers, roof rack, heavy duty
battery, and special trim.
Radial pl y tir e
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.
R ecomm ended in flation
pressure
see¢ page 328 , Cold tire infla
tion pressure.
R einforced tire
means a tire designed to operate
at higher loads and at higher in
flation pressures than the corre
sponding standard tire . Rein
forced tires may be identified as
"XL" "xl" "EXTRA LOAD" or "RF" , , ,
on the sidewall.
330
Rim
means a metal support for a tire
or a tire and tube assembly upon
which the tire beads are seated.
Rim diam eter
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 diameter .
Rim size designation
means rim diameter and width.
Rim width
means nomina l 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 which a tire is
designed to be driven for extend
ed periods of time. The ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h)
to
186 mph (298 km/h) ¢ table
on page 326 .
You may not find
this information on all tires be
cause it is not required by law .
The speed rating letter code,
where applicable, is molded on
the tire sidewall and indicates the
...
u a, .... N r-N ....
~ a,
maximum permissible road
speeds. See
also ¢.& in General
information on page 325.
Tire pre ssure mon itoring
system
means a system that detects
when one or more of a vehicle's
tires are underinflated and illumi
nates a low tire pressure warning
telltale.
Tread
means that portion of a tire that
comes into contact with the road .
Tread separation
means pulling away of the tread
from the tire carcass.
Treadwea r indicators (TWI )
means the projections within the
principal grooves designed to give
a visual indication of the degrees
of wear of the tread. See
¢ page 334, Treadwear indicator
for more information on measur
ing tire wear .
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
is a tire information system devel
oped by the United States Nation
al Highway Traffic Safety Admin
istration (NHTSA) that is designed
to help buyers make relat ive com-
Wheels
parisons among tires . The U TQG
is not a safety rating and not a
guarantee that a tire will last for
a prescribed number of miles
(kilometers) or perform in acer
tain way . It simply gives tire buy
ers additional information to
combine with other considera
tions, such as price, brand loyalty and dealer recommendatio ns. Un
der UTQG, tires are graded by the
tire manufacturers in three areas :
treadwear, tract ion, and tempera
ture resistance. The UTQG infor
mation on the tires, molded into
the sidewalls.
U.S. DOT Tire Identification
Number (TIN)
T his is the tire's "se ria l number" .
It begins with the letters "DO T"
and indicates that the tire meets all federal standards. The next
two numbers or letters indicate
the plant whe re it was manufac
tured, and the last four numbers
represent the week and year of
manufactu re . For example,
DOT .. . 2217 ...
means that the tire was produced
in the 22nd week of 2017 . The
other numbers are marketing co des that may or may not be used
.,.
33 1
Wheels
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. 267 Tire 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.
-Have an authorized Audi dealer
or authorized Audi Service Facili-
l) Obey any applicable regulations in your
country.
334
ty check the wheel alignment if
there is unusual wear.
-Have the wheels rebalanced if an imbalance is causing noticeable
vibration in the steering wheel.
If you do not, the tires and other
vehicle components could wear more quickly .
Treadwear indicator
Original equipment tires contain
treadwear indicators in the tread pattern, which are bars that are 1/16 in (1.6 mm) high and are
spaced evenly around the tire per pendicular to the running direc
tion
¢ fig. 267. The letters "TWI"
or tr iangles on the tire sidewall
indicate the location of the tread
wear indicators.
The t ires have reached the mini
mum tread depth
l ) when they
have worn down to the treadwear
indicators. Replace the tires with
new ones
¢ .&. -
Tire rotation
Rotating the tires regularly is rec
ommended to ensure the tires
wear evenly. To rotate the tires,
install the tires from the rear axle
.,.
u
"' ... N
" N ....
~ 0 (X)
on the front axle and vice versa.
This will allow the tires to have approximately the same length of
service life.
For unidirectional tires, make
sure the tires are installed accord ing to the running direction indi
cated on the tire sidewall
¢ page 355.
Hidden damage
Damage to tires and rims can of
ten occur in locations that are
hidden. Unusual vibrations in the
vehicle or pulling to one side may indicate that there is tire damage.
Reduce your speed immediately.
Check the tires for damage. If no
damage is visible from the out
side, drive slowly and carefully to
the nearest authorized Audi deal er or authorized Audi Service Fa
cility to have the vehicle inspect
ed.
A WARNING
Tread that has worn too low or
different tread depths on the
tires can reduce driving safety.
This can increase the risk of an
accident because it has a nega
tive effect on handling, driving
through curves, and braking, and because it increases the
Wheels
risk of hydroplaning when driv
ing through deep puddles.
Ti re pressure
Fig. 268 Driver's side 8-pillar : tire pres
sure label
I i .. a,
-"' -
r ~. --c =-- TINQ- ~-- ~-- - .-::""'- - - .- =--- •>-~-=:- ~ l ~
. ...... __..___. .... _.,. ...... _.._. . ... _ ... ............ __. ... ___.._ ... ~ ..... __,. .... ....
-.... P'ICU CIII I I >NI
-AVAHT -KPA. • PSI
-
Fig. 269 Tire pressure label
The correct tire pressure for tires
installed at the factory is listed on
a label. The label is located on the
B-pillar
¢ fig. 268, ¢ fig. 269. The
location may vary depending on
the model.
Use the tire pressure specified for
a normal vehicle load when the
vehicle is partially
loaded ¢ table
on page 337.
If driving the vehi-
cle when fully loaded, you must
""
335
Wheels
increase the tire pressure to the
maximum specified
pressure ¢.&. -
Checking/correcting tire
pressure
~check the tire pressure at least
once per month and also check it
before every long drive .
~Always check the tire pressure
when the tires are
cold. Do not
reduce the pressure if it increas
es when the tires are warm.
~check the label¢ fig . 269 for
the correct tire pressure based
on vehicle load.
~correct the tire pressure if nec
essary .
~store the new tire pressure in
the Infotainment system
¢ page 343.
_&. WARNING
Always adapt the tire pressure
to your driving style and vehicle
load .
-Overloading can lead to loss of
vehicle control and increase
Tire pressure table
Please note that the information
contained in the following table
was correct at the time of print ing, and the information is sub
ject to change . If there are differ-
336
the risk of an accident. Read
and follow the important safe
ty precautions in
¢ page 337,
Tires and vehicle load limits.
-The tire must flex more if the tire pressure is too low or if
the vehicle speed or load are
too high. This heats the tire up
too much. This increases the risk of an accident because it
can cause the tire to burst and
result in loss of vehicle con
trol.
- Incorrect tire pressure in
creases tire wear and has a
negative effect on driving and
braking behavior, which in
creases the risk of an accident.
@ Note
Replace lost valve caps to re
duce the risk of damage to the
tire valves.
@ For the sake of the environment
Tire pressure that is too low in
creases fuel consumption.
ences between this information
and the tire pressures specified
u co .... N r--N .... 0 <( 0 00
on the label on the driver's side B
pillar, always follow the specifica
tion on the B-pillar label
c:::> page 335, fig. 268.
Make sure that the tire designa
tion on your tire matches the des-
Model/ Tire designation
Wheels
ignation on the tire pressure label
and the tire pressure table.
The following table lists recom mended tire pressures in cold
tires according to the load and
the size of the tires installed.
Tire pressure
Engine Normal load Maximum load
(up to 3
people)a)
front
PSI kPA
Q5: 235/60 R18 103H 29 200
2.0L
235/55 R19 101H 29 200
4-cylinder
255/45 R20 101H 29 200
gasoline en-
255/45 R20 101W
29 200 gine
255/40 R21102Y
32 220
SQ5: 255/45 R20 101H 33 230
3.0L
255/45 R20 101W 36 250
6-cylinder
gasoline en- 255/40 R21102Y 33 230
gine
a
) 2 people in the front, 1 person in the rear
A WARNING
Please note the important safe
ty precautions regarding tire
pressure
c:::> page 335 and load
limits
c:::> page 337.
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
rear front rear
PSI kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA
29 200 35 240 38 260
29 200 33 230 36 250
29 200 33 230 36 250
29 200 32 220 35 240
32 220 32 220 35 240
30 210 36 250 36 2 50
33 230 4
1
280 44
300
33 230 36 250 39 270
loss of vehicle control, but can al
so damage important parts of the
vehicle and can lead to sudden
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
..,
337