AUDI Q5 2017 Owners Manual

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Checking and Filling
Engine compartment
Engine compartment
These are the most important items that you can check.
Fig. 196 Typical layout for containers and e ngin e oil fille r cap
(D Jump start po int(+) under a cover 227,267
@ Brake fluid reservoir (CO)) . . . . . . . 224
@ Engine oil filler cap(~) . . . . . . . 221
@ Coolant expansion tank (- L) . . . . . 223
® Jump start point( -) with hex head
screw . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227, 267
@ Windshield/headlight washer con -
tainer
(W) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
The position of the engine oil filling hole
c:> fig. 196 (item@) can differ depending on the
engine design .
A WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed a ll WARN­
INGS
c:> &. in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 217.
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine oil used must conform to exact speci­
fications.
T he serv ice interval display in the instrument
cluster of your vehicle will inform you when it is
time for an oi l change . We recommend that you
have your oi l changed by an authorized Audi Serv­
ice Advisor.
If you have to top off the oil between oil changes,
use the Audi oil quality standard specified in the
tab~ .
~
219

Check ing and F illing
Audi oil quality standard
Gas olin e
VW 502 00 or
engi ne vw 50400
Di esel vw 50 7 00
eng in e
Au di r ecomm ends
~ castroL //gJB,'flt@t Frti:rr.:;-...1"JDl'1Al.
Au di r ecommend s Longlif e high perf ormance
engi ne oil from A udi Genuine Part s
Using the proper engine oil is important for the
functionality and service life of the eng ine. Your
engine was factory-filled with a high-quality oil
which can usually be used throughout the entire
year.
{tD Note
Your Limited New Vehicle Warranty does not
cover damage or malfunctions due to failure
to follow recommended maintenance and use
requirements as set forth in the Audi Owner's
Manual and Warranty
& Maintenance booklet.
- Use only a high quality eng ine oil that ex-
pressly complies wi th the Audi oil quality
standard specified for your vehicle's engine.
Using any other oil can cause serious engine
damage.
- Do not mix any lub ricants or other additives
i nto the engine oil. Doing so can cause en­
g ine damage.
@ Tips
If you need to add oil and there is none availa­
ble tha t meets the Audi o il quality standard
your eng ine requi res, you may add a tota l of
no more than 0 .5 quart/li ter of a h igh-quality
"synthetic"oil that meets the fo llowing speci­
fications.
- Vehicles with gasoline eng ine: ACEA A3 or
API SM with a viscosity grade of SAE OW-30,
SAE 5W-30 or SAE 5W-40.
- Vehicles w it h diese l engine: ACEA C3 o r
API CF with a viscosity grade of SAE OW-30
or SAE 5W-30.
- For more information about engine oi l that
has been approved for your ve hicle, please
contact either your authorized Audi dea ler
220
or Audi Customer Relations at
1 (800) 822-2834 or visit our web site at
www.aud iusa .com or www .a udicanada .ca.
Engine oil consumption
The engine in your vehicle depends on an ade­
quate amount of oil to lubricate and cool all of
its moving parts.
In order to provide effective lub rication and cool ­
ing of internal engine components, all internal
combust ion engines consume a certa in amount
of oil. Oil consumption var ies from engine to en­
gine and may change significantly over the life of
the engine . Typically, engines w ith a specified
break-in period (see
c::;,page 194) consume more
o il dur ing the break-in per iod than they consume
after o il consumption has stabi lized .
Under normal cond itions, the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on t he quality and viscos ity of
the oil, the RPM (revolutions per m inute) at
wh ich the engine is operated, the ambient tem­
perature and road condit ions. Furthe r facto rs a re
t h e amount of o il d ilution from water condensa­
tion or fue l residue and the oxidation level of the
oi l. As any engine is subject to wear as mileage
builds up, the oil consumption may increase over
time unt il replacement of worn components may
become necessary.
With a ll these variab les coming into p lay, no
standard rate of oi l consumption can be estab­
li shed or spec ified . There is no alternative to reg­
ular and frequent checking of the oi l level, see
Note .
If the yellow engine oil level warning symbo l in
the instrument cluster
Ill lights up, you should
check the o il level as soon as possible
<=:> page 221 . Top off the o il at your earliest con­
venience
c::;, page 221 .
&. WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment, always read and heed all WARN­
I NGS
<=:> .&. in Wor king in the engine compart-
ment on page 217. ..,

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(D Note
Driving with an insufficient oil leve l is likely to
cause severe damage to the engine .
@ Tips
-The oil pressure warning display. is not
an indicator of the oil level. Do not rely on
it. Instead , check the oil level in your en­
gine at regular intervals, preferably each
time you refuel, and always before going
on a long trip.
- If yo u have the impression your engine con ­
sumes excessive amounts of oil, we recom ­
men d that you cons ult an autho riz ed Au di
dealer to hav e the ca use of your conce rn
properly diagnosed. Keep in mind that the
a ccu ra te measurement of oil consump tion
r equi re s gre at care and m ay ta ke some
time. An a uthorized Audi de aler has instr uc­
tions about how to measure oil consump­
tion acc urately.
Checking the engine oil level
Read oil level
"' Park your vehicle so that it is hor izonta lly level.
"' Shu t the engine off when it is at operat ing tem-
perature.
"' Switch only the ignition back on .
"' Wai t approx. two mi nutes .
"' Se lect:
I CARI funct ion button > Oil lev el. Or
"' Se le ct:
ICARI f u n ct ion butto n> Car sy stem s*
contro l button > Servicing & checks > Oil level.
"' Read the oil level in the r adio or M MI* Disp lay.
Add engine oil if the ba r of the o il level indica ­
tor is near "Min"
¢ page 221.
The o il level needs to be c heck ed at reg ular i nter­
va ls. The bes t times to do this are w henever you
refuel and pr io r to long trips .
D epending on t he way t he ve hicle is dr iven and
the operat ing cond itions, o il cons umption can be
up to a 1 /2 q uart per 600 m iles ( O.S li ter per
1,000 km) . Cons umption may be hig he r within
the first 3,000 miles (5,000 km).
Checking and Filling
{!) Tips
The oil leve l indicator in t he radio o r MMI*
D isp lay is only an i nfo rmation disp lay. If the
oi l level is too low, a minimum o il wa rning ap­
pears in the instrument cl uster. Add oil
¢ page 221. If the hood has been o pened ,
t he cur rent oi l level is show n in the inst ru­
ment clust er the n ext time t he igni tion is
swi tched o n.
Adding engine oil~
Fig. 197 En gin e co mpa rt m ent: cove r o n th e eng ine o il fill ­
e r neck
Befo re yo u check any thing in the engine compa rt ­
ment,
always read and heed all WARNINGS
¢ A in Working in the engine compartment on
page 217.
"' Shu t the eng ine off .
"' Unscrew the cap
9=;1: to the engine oil f illing
hole
¢ fig.197, ¢page 219, fig.196 .
"'Carefully top off with 0.5 quarts (0. 5 liters) of
the appropriate oil¢
page 219.
"' Check the oil level again after two minutes
~ page 221, Checking the engine oil level .
"'Top off th e oil, if nec essary.
"' Scr ew the cap ba ck on the fi lling hole.
_&. WARNING
- Whi le toppin g off , the o il mus t no t come in
con tact w ith ho t en gine parts -fir e hazard !
- Th e oi l filler c ap must b e pr oper ly sec ure d
t o p reve nt o il from being spraye d on t he ho t
e ngine an d exha ust system whe n the engi ne
-
is run ning -fi re hazard ! Ill>-
221

Check ing and F illing
- If your skin has come in contact with the en­
gine oil, you must subsequently cleanse it
thoroughly .
@ Note
-Check the oil level using the radio or the
M MI *. If the message
Please reduce oil le v­
el
appears, contact your authorized Aud i
dealer or other qualified workshop to have
excess oil extracted if necessary.
- Audi does not recommend the use of o il
add it iv es. They may damage the eng ine
and ad ve rs ely affect your N ew V ehicl e
Warranty .
@ For the sake of the environment
-Under no circumstances can the oil come in
contact with the sewage network o r the soil.
- Observe and follow legal regulations when
dispos ing of empty oil conta ine rs .
Changing the engine oil
We recommend tha t have your oil changed by an
authorized Audi dealer or a qualified service s ta­
tion .
Befo re you check anyth ing in the eng ine compart­
ment,
alwa ys read an d heed all WARNINGS ¢.&
in Working in the engine compartment on
page 217 .
The engine oil must be changed accord ing to the
intervals specif ied in your Warranty
& Mainte­
nance booklet. This is very important because the
lubricat ing propert ies of o il d iminish gradually
during normal vehicle use .
Under some circumstances the eng ine o il should
be changed more frequently . Change oil more of­
ten if you d rive mostly short distances, operate
the vehicle in dusty areas or under predominant ly
stop-and-go traffic cond it ions , or have yo ur vehi­
cle where temperat ures remain below freezing
for extended periods.
Detergent addi tives in the oil will make fresh o il
loo k da rk afte r th e eng ine has been ru nning fo r a
short t ime. This is no rma l and is not a re ason to
change the oil more o ften than re commended.
222
Because of the p roblem of prope r disposa l, along
with the specia l tools and necessary expertise re­
quired, we strongly recommend that yo u have
your oi l changed by an authori zed
Audi deale r or
a qual ified service station.
If you choo se to change you r oil yourself , please
note the fo llow ing important information:
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of persona l injury if you
must change the eng ine oil in your vehicle
yourself:
- Wea r eye protect ion.
- To reduce the r is k of burns from hot engine
oil, let the engine cool down to the touch.
-
- W hen removing the oil drain plug with your
fingers, stay as far away as possible. Always
keep your forearm pa rallel to the gro und to
he lp prevent hot oil from run ning down your
arm .
- Drain the oil into a container designed for
this purpose, one la rge enough to hold at
least the tota l amount of oi l in you r engine.
- Engine oil is poisonous. Keep it well out of
the reach of childre n.
- Continuous contact with used eng ine o il is
harmf ul to your skin . Always protect your
skin by washing oil off thoroughly with soap
a nd water .
@ Note
Never mix oil additives with your engine oil.
These additives can damage your engine and
adverse ly affect you r Audi Limi ted New Vehi­
cle Warranty .
@ For the sake of the environment
-Before chang ing your oi l, first make sure
you know where you can properly dispose o f
the used oil.
- Always dispose of used e ngine o il pro perly .
Do not dump i t on garden soil, wooded
areas, into open streams o r down sewage
dr ains.
- Recycle used e ngine o il by tak ing it to a used
eng ine oil collect ion fac ility in yo ur area, o r
c ontact a servi ce st ation.

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Cooling system
Coolant
The engine cooling system is filled with a mixture
of purified water and coolant additive at the fac­
tory. This coo lant must not be not changed.
The coolant level is monitored through the. in­
dicator light
¢page 26. However , we do recom­
mend occasionally check ing the coo lant level
manually.
If you must add coolant, use a mixture of water
and coolant addit ive. Mixing the coolant additive
with distilled water is recommended.
Coolant additive
The coolant additive is made of anti-freez ing and
corros ion protection agents. Only use the follow­
ing coolant addit ives . These additives may be
mixed with each other.
Coolant additive Specification
G13
TL 774 J
G12++ TL 774 G
The amount of coo lant add itive that needs to be
mixed with water depends on the climate where
the vehicle will be operated.
If the coolant addi­
tive percentage is too low, the coolant can freeze
and damage the engine.
Coolant Freeze protec-
additive tion
Warm min. 40% m in. -13 °F
regions max. 45% (-25 °C)
Cold min. 50% max
. -40 °F
regions max. 55% (-40 °C)
(D Note
-Before the start of winter, have your author­
ized Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service
Facility check if the coolant additive in your
vehicle matches the percentage appropriate
for the climate . Th is is especially important
when driving in colder climates.
- If the appropriate coolant additive is not
available in an emergency, do not add any
other additive . You could damage the en-
Checking and Filling
gine. If this happens, only use water and re­
store the correct mixture ratio with the
specified coolant add it ive as soon as possi­
ble.
- Only refill with new coolant .
- Radiator sealant must not be mixed with
the coolant.
Adding coolant
Fig. 198 Engine compartment: coolant expansio n ta nk
cover
Checking the engine coolant level
.,. Park your vehicle on a level surface.
.,. Switch the ignit ion off.
-N
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.,. Read the coolant level on the coolant expansion
tank
¢ page 219, fig . 196. The coolant level
must be between the MIN and MAX mark ings
when the engine in cold. When the engine is
warm it can be slightly above the MAX marking.
Adding coolant
Requirement: there must be a residual amount of
coolant in the expansion tank
¢(D .
.,. Let the engine cool down.
.,. Place a cloth over the coolant expansion tank
cap and unscrew the cap counterclockw ise
¢ _& .
.,. Add coo lant mixed in the correct rat io
¢ page 223 up to the MAX marking .
.,. Make sure that the fluid level remains stable.
Add more coolant if necessary .
.,. Close the cap securely.
Coolant loss usually indicates there is a lea k. Im­
mediately drive your vehicle to an authorized
Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service Facility
and have the cooling system inspected.
If the
223

Checking and Filling
cooling system is not leakin g, a loss can come
from t he coolant boiling through overheat ing
an d be ing pushed out o f the coo ling system .
A WARNING
-
-The cooling system is under pressure. Do
not open t he coolant expansion tank ca p
when the eng ine is hot. This inc reases the
risk of bu rns .
- The coolant add itive and the coolant can be
dangerous to your health. For this reason,
keep the coolant in the o rigina l container
and away from children. There is a risk of
po isoning .
- When working in the eng ine compartmen t,
r emembe r that the rad iator fan ca n switch
on even if the ign ition is swi tc h ed off, which
in creases the risk of in jury.
(D Note
Do not add coolant if the expansion tank is
empty. Air could enter the cooling system and
damage the engine. If this is the case , do no t
cont inue driv ing. See an authorized Audi deal­
er or author ized Audi Se rvice Facility for assis­
tance .
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
The brake fluid level can be checked with a quick
glance.
F ig. 19 9 En gi ne co mpa rtme nt: cove r on the brak e fluid
r ese rvoi r
N N
-N
" "' IX)
Before you check anyth ing in the eng ine compart­
ment,
a lways read and h eed all WARNING S
224
¢.&. in Working in the engine compartment on
page 217.
.,. Read the bra ke fluid level from the brake f lu id
reservoir ¢
fig. 199, ~ page 219, fig. 196. The
brake fluid leve l must be between the "M IN"
and "MAX" markings.
The brake flu id reservoir is located a t the rear
partition of the engine compartment on the left
side
¢ page 219.
The fluid level may drop slightly afte r some t ime
due to t he automatic adjustme nt of the brake
pads. This is not ca use for a larm.
If the brake fluid level falls considerably below
the
" M IN " mark, the bra ke warn ing/ indica tor
li gh t (U.S. models:
11111 . Canadian models: .
will come on ¢
page 15 and¢ page 25. Do not
continue to ope rate the veh icle. The comp lete
brake system shou ld be thoroughly checked by an
a uthor ized Audi dealer or qualified workshop and
the cause corrected. If the brake fluid level is too l ow, the brake warn ing/ indicator light w ill illumi­
nate. Contact a n author ized Audi dealer
immedi­
ately .
Chang ing brake fluid
Have the brake fluid changed by an experienced
technician .
Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. If the
water content in the brake fluid is too high, cor­
rosion in the brake system may result after ape ­
riod of time . The boiling po int of the brake fluid
will a lso decrease considerably and decrease
bra king pe rformance.
Therefore, the brake fluid must be changed
every
two years .
Always use new brake f lu id which con­
fo rms to Federa l Moto r Vehicle S tandard " FMVSS
116 DO T 4".
The brake fluid reservoir can be diff icult to reach,
therefore, we recommend that you have the
brake fluid changed by your author ized
Audi
dealer .
Your dealer has the correct tools, the
right brake fluid a nd the know -how to do t his for
you . ..,.

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& WARNING
-Brake fluid is poisonous. It must be stored
only in the closed original container out of
the reach of children!
- Brake failure can resu lt from old or inappro­
priate brake fluid. Observe these precau­
t ions:
- Use only brake flu id that meets SAE speci­
fication
J 1 703 and confo rms to Fede ral
Motor Vehicle Standard 116. Always check
with your author ized Audi dealer to make
sure you are using the correct brake fluid.
The correct type of brake fluid is a lso indi­
cated on the brake flu id reservoir.
- The brake fluid must be new. Heavy use o f
the brakes can cause a vapor lock if the
brake fl uid is left in the system too long.
This can serious ly affect the efficiency of
the brakes as well as your safety. This
could result in an acc ident.
Brake fluid w ill damage the pa int of yo ur vehi­
cle.
@) For the sake of the environment
Because of the prob lem of proper disposal of
brake flu id as we ll as the special tools re­
qui red and the necessary expertise, we rec­
ommend that you have the brake fluid
changed by your author ized Audi dealer.
Battery
General information
Under normal operating conditions, the battery
in your Audi does not need any maintenance.
W ith
high outside temperatures or long da ily
drives we recommend that you have the electro­ lyte level checked by an authorized Audi dea ler or
qua lified workshop. The e lectrolyte level should
a lso be checked each t ime the batte ry is charged
¢ page 22 7.
H ave the battery checked when you take your ve­
hi cle in for serv ice. You a re well advised to re­
p lace a batte ry that is o lde r than 5 years .
Check ing and Filling
Hybrid dr ive *: you can find important in format ion
about the high voltage battery under
¢ page 100.
Disconnecting the battery te rminals
Some vehi cle functions (power window regula ­
tors, for examp le) are lost if the batte ry te rm i­
nals a re disconnected . These functions have to be
re learned after the battery terminals a re con­
nected again. To prevent this, the battery should
only be disconnected from the vehicle electrical
system when absolutely necessary for repa irs.
Vehicles not dr iven for long p eriod s
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period of
severa l days or weeks, electrical compone nts are
gradually cut back or switched off. This reduces
energy consumpt ion and maintains starting ca­
pability over a longer per iod
¢ page 192.
T ake into consideratio n that when you unlock
your vehicle, some convenience functions, suc h
as the inter ior lights or the power seat adjust­
ment, may not be ava ilab le. The conve nience
funct ions will be available again when you turn
on the ignition and sta rt the eng ine.
Winter operation
D uring the winter months, battery capacity tends
to decrease as temperatures drop. This is be­
cause more power is also consumed while start­
i ng, and the headlights, rear w indow defogger,
etc., are used more ofte n.
Avo id unnecessary power consumption, pa rtic u­
larly in city traff ic or when traveling only short
distances . Let your author ized Audi dealer check
the capacity of the veh icle batte ry before winter
sets in
¢ page 22 7. A we ll charged batte ry will
not only p reve nt start ing prob lems when the
wea the r is co ld, but will also last longer.
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the battery.
T he battery is loca ted in t he luggage compart­
ment unde r the floo r. B efo re yo u check any thing .,..
225

Check ing and F illing
in the luggage compartment, re ad and heed all
W ARNING S~
A .
Hybr id d rive*: you can find important information
about the h igh vo ltage bat tery unde r
c;>poge 100.
Always heed the s afet y warning s, when working
on the vehicle battery or the vehicle electrical
system to prevent injury .
The following WARNINGS are very important
when working on the battery:
A lway s heed the following WARNING SYM-
BOLS and saf ety pr ecautions when working on
the battery.
®
A lway s wear ey e protection .
A
Batter y acid conta ins sulfu ric acid. Al -
w ays wear glo ves and eye p rotection .
.
@
No
- spa rks
- flame s
- smoking.
~
When a battery is charg ed, it produc es
hydrogen gas whi ch is ex pl osi ve and
c o uld cause p ers ona l injury.
®
Alwa ys keep the ba ttery we ll out of rea ch
of child ren.
A WARNING
Whenever work ing on the battery or on the
elect rical system, there is the risk of inju ry,
accident and even fire. Read and heed the fol­
lowing WARN INGS:
- Always we ar eye pro tection. Do not let bat­
tery acid or any lead particles get on your
skin or clothing. Shield your eyes . Explosive
gases can cause blindness or other injury .
- Battery acid con tains su lfu ric acid . Sulfur ic
acid can cause blindness and severe b urns.
- Always wear gloves and eye protection. Do
not tilt the battery because acid could leak
out of the ventilat ion open ings.
- If you get battery ac id in your eyes or on
your skin, immediately rinse with cold wa­
ter for several minutes and get medical at­
tention .
226
-If you should ingest any batte ry acid, seek
medical attention immediate ly.
- Do not expose the battery to an open flame,
electric sparks or an open light.
- Do not smoke.
- Do not interchange t he positive and nega -
tive cables .
- When working on t he ba ttery, be sure not to
short -circuit the termina ls with tools or o th­
er metal objects. This would cause the bat­
tery to heat up very quickly, which could lead to damage or exp losion and personal
injury .
- When a battery is charged, it produces hy­
drogen gas which is explosive and could
cause persona l injury.
- Always keep the battery well out of the
reach of children.
- Before wo rk is done on the electrical sys­
tem, disconnect the negative ground cable.
- Before performing any work on the e lectri­
cal system, sw itch off the engine and ign i­
tion as well as any electrical equ ipment. The
negat ive cab le on the battery must be dis­
connected . If you a re just going to replace a
light bulb, then it is enough to switch off
the l ights.
- Before d isconnecting the battery, switch off
the anti-theft alarm system ! Otherwise you
will set off the alarm.
- When disconnecting the battery, first dis­
connect the negative cable and then the
positive cable.
- Before reconnect ing the battery, make sure
all electr ica l cons umers a re switched off.
Reconnect the positive cable firs t and then
the negative cable . Never in terchange the
cables -this could start a fire !
- Never cha rge a fro zen or a t hawe d-ou t bat­
tery . It co uld explode! If a ba tte ry has fro­
ze n, then it must be replaced. A discharged
battery can freeze over at 32°F (0°() .
- Ma ke sure the vent hose is always attached
to the opening on the side of the battery .
- Never use bat teries which a re damaged.
There is the danger of an exp losion! Always
replace a damaged battery .

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,&_ WARNING
California P roposition 65 Warn ing :
- B attery posts, termi na ls and re lated acces­
sories contain lead and lead compounds,
chemicals known to the State of California
to cause cancer and reproductive problems.
Wash hands after handling.
(D Note
- Do no t disconnect the ve hicle bat tery when
t h e ignit ion is switched on or when the en ­
gine is runni ng, otherwise, you w ill damage
electron ic components in the e lectr ica l sys­
tem.
- If your vehicle is going to stan d for a long
period of time without be ing driven, protect
the battery from "freez ing", otherwise it
will be damaged a nd will then have to be re­
placed .
Battery charging
Starting the engine requires a well charged bat­
tery .
Fig. 200 Engin e co mpartme nt: Co nnectors for charger and
j um per ca bles
Always read and heed all WARNINGS below
c> & and <=> & in Working on the battery on
page 226 .
.. Hybrid dr ive*: read the important i nformation
co ncerning a dead high voltage battery under
<=> page 107.
.. Turn off the ignition and all e lectr ica l consum­
ers.
.. Make s ure the a rea is well vent ilated w hen you
c harge the b attery.
.. Open the engine hood
c> page 217 .
Checking and Filling
.. Remove the cover@ by pressing on the arrow
<=>fig . 200.
.. Open the cover @on the pos itive terminal.
.. Connect the charger connecto rs according to
the instructions to the
jump start bolts . (Bolts
under the cover = "positive" , Bolts w ith hex
head = "n egative ").
.,. Onl y now plug the mains lead for the cha rgi ng
equ ipme nt in to the wa ll ou tlet and turn it on
<=> & .
.. Make sure the charging rate i s not over
30 amps/14.8 Volt.
.. When the battery is fully charged: Turn the
charging equ ipment off and remove the ma ins
lead from the wall out let .
.,. Now remove the clamps for the charg ing equip­
ment .
.,. Close the cover @on the pos it ive termina l and
re- insta ll the cover
(D .
.,. Close the hood c> page 217.
A d ischarged battery can freeze at temperat ures
of on ly 32 °F (0 °C). Allow a frozen batte ry to
t h aw comple tely before attempting to charge it
c> .&, . However, we recommend not using a
t h awe d batt ery ag ain be ca use the bat tery ca sing
can be cracked due to ice formation and ca n leak
batte ry ac id.
Battery charging (Maximum charging rate of
30 amps/14.8 Volt)
W hen charging a t low voltages (e.g . w ith a trick­
le charger ),
th e battery cables do not have to be
disconnected first. The battery caps should
not
be opened when cha rging a battery.
It is no t necessary to remove the bat tery from
the luggage compartment .
Fast charging the battery (charging rate
above 14 .8 Volts)
F or technical rea sons do not use a batte ry charg­
er that uses vo ltage greater than 14.8 Vo lts to
c h arge your veh icle's battery .
A WARNING
-Charging a battery can be dangerous.
227

Checking and Filling
-Always follow the operating instructions
provided by the battery charger manufactur­
er when charging your battery.
- Never charge a frozen battery . It may ex­
plode because of gas trapped in the ice. Al­
low a frozen battery to thaw out first.
- Do not reuse batteries which were frozen .
The battery housing may have cracked and
weakened when the battery froze .
- Charge the battery in a well ventilated area.
Keep away from open flame or electrical
spark . Do not smoke. Hydrogen gas generat ­
ed by the battery is explosive .
- To reduce the danger of explosion, never
connect or disconnect charger cables while
the charger is operating .
- Fast charging a battery is dangerous and should only be attempted by a competent
technician with the proper equipment .
- Battery acid that may spill during charging should be washed off with a solution of
warm water and baking soda to neutralize
the acid.
(D Note
Never use a fast charger as a booster to start
the engine. This will seriously damage sensi­
tive electronic 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 electrical energy
throughout your vehicle
~ page 192. The intelli­
gent energy management system will keep the
engine battery charged better then vehicles with­
out this system. To mak e sure the additional
electrical 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 vehicle was delivered) . Specifications
228
are listed on the battery housing. Your author­
ized dealer must cod e the battery in the energy
management system to enable you to use the en­
ergy management functions correctly after re­
placing the battery.
If it is not possible to use a battery of this type,
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 turned off.
([) Note
- Make sure the ventilation hose on the side
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.
@ For the sake of the environment
Because of the problem of proper disposal of
a battery, we recommend your authorized
Audi dealer change the battery for you. Bat­
teries contain sulfuric 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.