check engine light AUDI A7 2013 User Guide

@ Passenger's door
© Left rear door
@ Right rea r doo r
_& WARNING
-When you leave your veh icle -even if on­
ly briefly -always take the ignition key
with you . This applies partic ularly when
children remain in the vehicle . Otherwise
the ch ildren could start the engine or op­
erate electrical equ ipment (e.g. power
windows). The power windows are func­
t ional until the driver's door or passeng ­
er's door has been opened .
- Be careful when closing the wi ndows .
Check to see that no one is in the way, or
serious injury could result!
- When locking the veh icle from outs ide,
the vehicle must be unoccu pied s ince the
windows ca n no longer be opened i n an
eme rgency .
(0 Tips
- When you ope n the doors, the w indows
a utomat ica lly low er about 10 mm .
- When the window in the dr iver's or pas­
senger's door is completely open, it will
r aise approximate ly 25 mm when the
door is opened. The w indow will lower
again w hen you close the doo r.
- After the ignition has been switched off,
t h e windows can still be opened o r
closed for abou t 10 minu tes. The powe r
windows are not swi tched off un til the
drive r's door or passenge r's door has
been opened .
What to do after a malfunction
The one-touch open and close function must
be reactivated if the battery hos been discon ­
nected.
.. Pull and hold the power w indow switch un ­
t il the window is fully closed .
.. Re lease the switch and then p ull it again for
at least one second .
Opening and clo sin g 41
Valet parking
The valet parking feature protects the lug­
gage compor tment from unauthori zed access
from the outside.
Fig . 3 1 Luggage compa rt m en t: va let pa rk in g b utto n
With "valet parking " act ivated, the rear lid
cannot be opened from the ou tside.
.. Remove the mechan ical key ¢
page 33 .
.,. Open the glove compartment and activate
¢
fig. 31 the "valet parking " feature by
press ing the
lVALE TI button . The indi cat o r
light in the sw itch ill umi nates .
.. Close the glove compartment and lock it
with the mechanica l key.
.. Leave the master key with the se rvice per­
sonne l for park ing and keep the mechanica l
key with you.
When the "va let parking" feature is activated:
- t he unlocki ng but ton fo r th e rear lid
~ in
t he driver's door is inact ive
- t he button
~ on the mas ter key is inac tive
- the opening handle in the rear lid is inact ive .
The vehicle can be driven and locked and un­ l ocked with t he master key . Access to the lug ­
gage compar tment is b locked from the out­
s ide .
When the valet park ing function is switched
o n, the message
Valet parking activated ap­
pears in the inst rument cluste r display wh en
you sw itch the ignition on .

82 On the road
@ Tips
When you stop and the start-stop-system
turns the engine off, the ignition remains
on. Make sure that the ignition is switched
off before exiting the vehicle.
General information
Applies to vehicles: with S tart-Stop -System
The standard Start-Stop-mode can be cancel­
led for different system-related reasons .
Fig. 82 Instrument cluster: eng ine-Stop tempo rar ily
unavai lable
Engine will not switch off
Before each stop phase, the system checks if
certain conditions have been met. For exam ­
p le, the engine will
not be switched off in the
following situations:
- The engine has not reached the minimum
r equired temperature for Start-Stop -mode .
- T he interior temperature selected by the A/C
system has not been reached .
- T he outs ide temperature is extremely h igh/
low .
- T he w indshield is being defrosted
9page 70, 9page 72.
- The pa rking system* is switched on.
- The battery charge level is too low .
- The steering wheel is sharply turned or there is a steering movement.
- After engaging the reverse gear.
- On sharp inclines .
The
r,J indicator light appears in the informa­
tion line in the instrument cluster disp lay
9 fig. 82.
Engine automatically restarts
The stop phase is interrupted in the following
situations, for example. The engine restarts
without any action by the driver.
- The inte rior temperature varies from the
temperature selected in the A/C system.
- The windsh ield is being defrosted
9 page 70, 9page 72.
-The brake pedal is pressed severa l times in a
row.
- The battery charge level becomes too low .
- High power consumption .
@ Tips
If you shift into the D, Nor S posit ions af­
ter shifting into reverse, the vehicle must
be driven faster than 6 mph (10 km/h) in
o rd er for the engine to switch off aga in.
Switching the Start-Stop-System on/off
manually
Appl ies to vehicles : wi th Start-S top-Sys te m
If you do not wish to use the system, you can
switch it off manually.
Fig. 83 Center console: Start-Stop-System button
.,. To switch the Start-Stop -System off/on
manually, press the
! iiil ~·I button. The LED in
the button turns on when the system is
switched off.
(D Tips
If you switch the system off during a stop
phase, the engine will start again auto­
matically.

Manual mod e
-Manua l dep loyment: Tapping b riefly on the
switch
¢ fig. 182 dep loys the rear spoiler.
- Manua l retraction: A t speeds up to abo ut
10 mph (20 km/h) , ret ract the rear spoiler
by pressing and holding the switch
¢ fig. 182 . At speeds between 10 mph (20
km/h) and 80 mph (130 km/h), retract the
rear spoiler by tapping on the switch
¢ fig . 182.
In dicat or light s
rJ /. R ea r spoiler: system m alfun ct io n!
The rear spoiler may not have extended due to
a ma lf u nction. This could change the vehicle 's
driving characteristics at high speeds . Do not
exceed 85 mph (140 km/h). Drive to your au­
thorized Audi dealer immed iate ly to have the
malfunction corrected. The co lor of the indica­
tor light depends on the vehicle speed.
A WARNING
Dr iv ing at higher speeds w ithout the rear
spoiler dep loyed can impair handling char ­
acteristics, making the veh icle harde r to
cont ro l.
- Always make sure that the spoiler is de­
ployed when driving at speeds over
85 mph (140 km/h). If the rear spoiler
warning/ind icator light in the i nstr u­
ment cluster comes on, the rear spoiler
may not have dep loyed .
- Never drive at speeds higher than
85 mph (140 km/h) if the spoiler is not
deployed. Have the spoiler inspected as
soon as possible by an authorized A udi
dealer or qualif ied workshop.
- Always obey speed limits and other traf­
fic laws.
A WARNING
Improper operation of the rear spoiler can
cause crushing injuries.
- Always make sure that nobody, especially
children, is in the way when the rear
spoiler is deployed or retracted.
Int ellig ent technolog y 199
@ Note
-Never push the vehicle or apply force to
the rear spoiler -it could be damaged.
- Only operate the rear spoiler manua lly
when the rear lid is closed . Otherwise,
damage cou ld occur.
(D Tips
C lean the spoiler compa rtment every 2 to
3 months. The spoiler compartment must
a lways be free of ice, snow, leaves or other
debris .
Braking
General information
What affects braking efficiency?
Operating condition s and dri ving h abit s
The brakes on today's automobiles are still
subject to wear, depending largely on operat­
ing condit ions and driving habits ¢.&, . On
vehicles that are either driven mostly in stop­
and-go c ity traff ic or are dr iven hard, the
brake pads should be checked by your author­
ized Audi dea ler more often th an specified in
the
Warran ty & Maintenan ce boo kle t. Failure
to have you r brake pads inspected can result
in reduced brake performance .
On steep slopes, you sho uld use the braking
effect o f the engine . This way, you prevent un ­
necessary wear on the b rake system. If you
must use your brakes, do not hold the brakes
down cont inuous ly. Pump the brakes at inter­
vals.
Mo istur e or road salt
U nder certain conditions , for example, when
driving through water or very heavy rain , or
even after washing your vehicle, the braking
effect can be reduced due to moisture (or in
free zing cond itions ice) on the brake pads. A
few carefu l brake applications should dry off
the brake pads or remove any ice coatings .
When you are driving at higher speeds with
the windshield w ipers on, the brake pads will
Ill-
•
•

206 Driving and en vir onm ent
Driving through water
on roads
Note the following to avoid vehicle damage
when driving thro ugh water, for example on
flooded roads:
- The wate r must not be any higher than the
bottom of t he vehicle body.
- Do not drive faster than wa lking speed.
A WARNING
After driving through wate r, mud, slush,
etc., the brakes may be slow to take effect
because of wet brake rotors and pads. Dry
the brakes first by braking carefully to re­
sto re the full braking effect.
@) Note
- Vehicle components such as the eng ine,
transmission, suspension or electr ical
system can be severely damaged by driv­ i ng th rough water.
- Always switc h off the Start-Stop-System
when driving through water~
page 80 .
(1) Tips
-Check the depth of the water before dr iv­
i ng th rough it.
- Do not stop the ve hicle, dr ive in reverse
or switch the engine off whe n driving
t hr ough water .
- Keep in mind that oncoming vehicles
may create waves that raise the water
level and make it too deep fo r you r vehi­
cl e to drive th rough safely.
- Avoid dr iving through salt water because
i t can cause corrosion.
Operate your vehicle
economically and
minimize pollution
General
Your personal style of driving will determine
the economy of your vehicle, as well as ex­
haust and noise levels.
Fuel economy, environmenta l impact, and
wear on your engine, brakes and tires largely
depend on three factors:
- your personal driving style
- oper ating conditions
- technical limitat ions
If you ant ic ipate what you need to do next and
drive economica lly, you can easily cut your
fuel consumpt ion by 10-15 percent . This sec­
t ion w ill give you some tips on how you can
help the env ironment and your pocketbook.
@ Tips
The consumption estimates as published
by ENVIRON MEN TAL PROTEC TION AG ENCY
( EP A) and Transpo rt Canada may no t corre­
spond to your actual consump tion on the
r oad, which will va ry depending upon vehi ­
cle load and speed, road and weather con ­
ditions, trip length, etc.
Drive smoothly and keep a lookout
ahead
Vehicles use the most fuel when they are ac­
celerating.
.,. Avoid unnecessary accelerating and braking.
Vehicles use the mos t fu el when they are ac­
ce le rat ing. If yo u ant icipate what is going to
happen next, you will need to brake less and,
t hu s, acce le rate less . Let the vehicle coast
whenever possible -for examp le when you see
t h at the next traff ic light is red.

Trailer towing Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passen­
ger transportation .
If you plan to tow a tra iler, p lease remember
that the addit ional load will affect durab ility,
economy and performance .
Trailer towing not on ly places more stress on
the vehicle, it also calls for more concentra­
tion from the driver.
F or this reason, a lways fo llow the operating
and driving instructions provided and use
common sense.
(D Note
If you are going to tow a trai ler, you must
ac tivate the trailer operation mode
c::> page 209, Operating instructions.
Technical requirements
Traile r hitch
Use a weig ht-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross trailer we ight. The hitch must be suita­
b le for your veh icle and trailer and must be
mounted securely on t he ve hicle's chassis at a
technically sound location . Use only a trail er
hi tch w ith a removab le ball moun t. A lways
check wi th t he tra ile r hi tch man ufa ctur er to
make sure that you are using the cor rect
h itch.
Do not us e a bumper hitch .
The hitch m ust be installed in such a way that
i t does not interfe re with the impac t-absorb­
i ng bumper syst em. No mod ificat ions should
b e made to the vehi cle e xhaus t and br ake sys­
tems . From t ime to time, check th at a ll hitc h
mo unt ing bo lts rem ain securely fas tened.
When you are not towing a trail er, remove the
tra ile r hi tch ball moun t. T h is prevents the
hi tch from causing damage sho uld your ve hi­
cle be str uck from behind~ .&.
Trailer towin g 209
Trailer brakes
If your trailer is equippe d wi th a bra king sys­
tem, check to be s ure that i t conforms to all
regulations .
T he trailer hyd ra u lic bra ke sys tem mus t not be
d irec tly connec ted to the vehicle's hydraulic
brake system .
Safety chains
Always use safety chains be tween your ve hicle
and t he tra ile r.
Trailer lights
Trai ler lights must meet all reg ulations. Be
su re to c heck with your Audi dea ler for correct
wir ing, switches and relays .
Mirrors
If you a re unable to see the traffic behind you
u sing the regula r outside mirrors, then you
must insta ll extended mir rors. It is important
t h at you
always have clea r vis io n to the rear.
_&. WARNING
-
Afte r removi ng the trailer hitch , do no t
s tor e i t in yo ur v ehicl e. In case of sudden
b raki ng, the hi tch co uld fly forwar d and in­
j ur e you o r yo ur pass enge rs.
Operating instructions
Maximum trailer weight
A tra ile r fo r you r vehi cle is l imited to a typi cal
cla ss 1 o r class 2 tr ailer.
Trailer load distribution
Be sure the load in the tra ile r is held secure ly
in place to p revent it from shift ing fo rward,
ba ckward or sideways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer
c::> .& in Driving instructions on page 211 .
Engine cooling sy stem
Towing a t railer ma kes the engine wor k hard­
er . It is impo rtant that the cooling system's
performance is up to the additional load.
•
•

230 Checking and filling
Checking and filling Engine hood
Releasing the engine hood
The engine hood is released from inside the
vehicle .
Fig. 187 Driver foo twell: release lever
Fig. 188 Rocker switch un der the hood
Make sure the wiper arms are not raised up
from the windshield. Otherwise the paint
could be damaged .
.,. Pull the lever under the instrument panel in
the direction of the arrow
~ fig. 187.
.,. Raise the hood slightly~,&. .
... Press the rocker switch under the hood up­
ward
~ fig. 188. This releases th e catch.
... Open the hood.
&_ WARNING
Hot engine coolant can burn you.
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine compartment . Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood .
'Working in the engine compartment
Be especially careful whenever you work in
the engine compartment.
Whenever you must perform any work in the
engine compartment, for example checking
and filling different fluids, there is a risk of injury, burns and accidents. To prevent per­
sonal injury always observe the following
WARNINGS. The engine compartment of any
vehicle is a hazardous area
~ ,&. .
A WARNING
To help avoid injury, before you check any­
thing under the hood:
- Turn off the engine.
- Switch off the ignition .
- Apply the parking brake.
- Move selector lever to P (Park).
- Always let the engine cool down. Hot
components will burn skin on contact.
- To reduce the risk of being burned, never
open the hood if you see or hear steam
or coolant escaping from the engine
compartment. Wait until no steam or
coolant can be seen or heard before care­
fully opening the hood.
- Keep children away from the engine com­
partment.
- Never spill fluids on hot engine compo­
nents . They can cause a fire .
- Never touch the radiator fan. The auxili­
ary electric fan is temperature controlled
and can switch on suddenly .
- Never open the coolant reservoir cap
when the engine is still warm . The cool­
ant system is pressurized and hot cool­
ant could spray out.
- Protect your face, hands and arm from
steam or hot engine coolant by placing a
thick rag over the cap when you open the
coolant reservoir.
- Do not remove the engine cover under
any circumstances. This increases the
risk of burns.
- If work on the fuel system or the electri­
cal system is necessary:

232 Checking and filling
Engine compartment
Engine compartment overview
These are the most important items that you can check.
Fig. 189 Typ ical layout for contai ners and eng ine o il filler cap
(D Jump start point(-) with hex
head screw .... .............
243, 279
@ Jump start point(+) under a cov-
er .. .. ............... .... .
243,279
®
©
®
®
Brake fluid reservoir ((0)) . . . . . 239
Engine oil filler cap ( Coolant expansion tank
(-L) ...
Windshield/headlight washer
237
t . (.'R) con ainer ,,.., ............ . . 244
The engine oil filler neck (item @) may be lo­
cated in a different area depending on the ver­
sion of the engine.
~ WARNING
Before you check anything in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
¢ &. in Working in the engine
compartment on page 230.
-
Engine oil
Engine oil specifications
The engine oil used in your Audi needs the
right kind of oil.
The engine in your Audi is a sophisticated
powerplant that was built to exacting specifi­
cations . This engine needs the right kind of
engine oil that meets specifications regarding
quality and viscosity so that it can run
smoothly and reliably . Choosing the right oil
and changing oil within the time and mileage
intervals printed in you r vehicle's Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet matters a lot more to­
day than it did years ago . Audi has developed
a special quality standard for engine oil that
will help assure that your vehicle's engine wi ll
get the lubrication it needs for proper opera-
tion. ..,.

234 Checking and filling
temperatures stay below freezing point for long periods.
Detergent additives in the oil w il l make fresh
oil look dark after the eng ine has been run­
ning for a short time . This is norma l and is not
a reason to change the oi l more often than
recommended.
Damage or malfun ctions due to lack of
maintenance
It is essential that you change your oil at the
recommended intervals using only engine o il
that complies with Audi oi l standard
VW 502 00. Your Limited New Vehicle War­
ranty does not cover damage or malfunctions
due to fail ure to fo llow recommended mainte­
nance and use requ irements as set forth in
the Audi Owner's Manual and Warranty &
Maintenance booklet . Your dealer will have to
deny warranty coverage unless you present to
the dea ler proof in the form of Service or Re­
pa ir Orders that all scheduled ma intenance
was performed in a timely manner.
Eng ine 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 lubrication and
cool ing of internal engine components, all in­
ternal combustion eng ines consume a certain
amount of oil. Oil consumption varies from
engine to engine and may change significantly
over the life of the engine. Typically, engines
with a specif ied break-in period (see
¢ page 204) consume more oil during the
break-in period than they consume after oil
consumption has stabilized.
Under norma l conditions, the rate of oil con­
sumption depends on the quality and viscosity
of the oil, the RPM (revolutions per minute) at
which the engine is operated, the ambient
temperature and road condit ions . Further fac­
tors are the amount of oil d ilution from water
condensat ion or fuel residue and the oxida­
tion level of the oil. As any engine is subject to wear as mi
leage builds up, the oil consump­
tion may increase over time until replacement
of worn components may become necessary.
With all these variables coming into play, no
standard rate of oil consumption can be es­
tablished or specified. There is no alternative
to regu lar and frequent checking of the o il lev ­
el, see Note.
If the yellow engine oil leve l warning symbo l
in the instrument cluster
II lights up, you
sho uld check the oil leve l as soon as possible
c:> page 235. Top off the oil at your earliest
convenience
c:> page 235.
A WARNING '"---
Before you check anythi ng in the engine
compartment, always read and heed all
WARNINGS
c:> A in Working in the engine
compartment on page 230.
(D Note
Driving with an insufficient o il level is like­
ly to cause severe damage to the engine.
(D 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 engine at regular intervals, pref­
erably each time you refuel, and always
before going on a long trip.
- If you have th e impression your engine
consumes excessive amounts of oil, we
recommend that you consult your Audi
dealer to have the cause of your concern
properly diagnosed. Keep in mind that
the accurate meas urement of oil con­
sumption requ ires great care and may
take some t ime. Your Audi dealer has in­
structions about how to measure oil con­
sumption accurately.
-

238 Checking and filling
the level may be slightly above the "max"
marking.
The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus­
tration
¢ page 232.
To obtain an accurate reading, the engine
must be switched off.
The expansion tank in your vehicle is equipped
with an electric coolant level sensor.
When the coolant level is too low, the warning light in the Auto-Check System¢
page 16 will
illuminate until you add coolant and the level
has been restored to normal. Even though
there is an electric coolant level sensor , we
still recommend you check the coolant level
from time to time.
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling
system. In the event of coolant loss, the cool­
ing system should be inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer.
It is not
enough merely to add coolant.
In a
sealed system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheating.
_& WARNING
The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of scald­
ing from hot coolant by following these
steps. -
- Turn off the engine and allow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by covering the
cap with a large, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in
a counter-clockwise direction while ap­
plying light, downward pressure on the
top of the cap .
- To avoid being burned, do not spill anti­ freeze or coolant on the exhaust system
or hot engine parts. Under certain condi­
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine cool­
ant can catch fire .
(D Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak seal­
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant. Add­
ing radiator repair fluid may adversely af­
fect the function and performance of your
cooling system and could result in damage not covered by your New Vehicle Limited
Warranty .
Adding coolant
Be very careful when adding engine coolant.
Before you check anything in the engine com­
partment,
always read and heed all WARN­
INGS ¢&. in Working in the engine compart ­
ment on page 230.
.. Turn off the engine .
.. Let the engine cool down.
.. Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank ¢
fig. 192 and carefully twist the cap
counter-clockwise ¢,&. .
.,. Add coolant.
.. Twist the cap on again
tightly.
Replacement engine coolant must conform to
exact specifications ¢
page 23 7, Coolant. We
recommend using only coolant additive G12+
+, G13 or in an emergency G12+. Do
not use a
different additive. In an emergency use plain
water until you can get the correct additive
and can restore the correct ratio. This should
be done as soon as possible .
If you have lost a considerable amount of
coolant , then you should add cold antifreeze
and cold water only when the engine is cold.
Always use
new engine coolant when refilling.
Do not fill coolant above the "MAX" mark. Ex­
cess coolant will be forced out through the
pressure relief valve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot.
_& WARNING
-= -- The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of ..,_

scalding from hot coo lant by following
these steps.
- Turn
off the engi ne and a llow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escapi ng fl uid and steam by cover ing
the cap with a large, thick rag .
- Turn the cap slowly and very ca refully
i n a cou nte r-clockw ise dir ect ion while
a pply ing lig ht, downwa rd p ress ure on
the top of the cap.
- To avo id being burned, do no t sp ill an­
tifree ze o r coolan t on t he exh aust sys­
tem or ho t engine parts . Un der certain
conditions, the ethylene glyco l in en­
gine coolant can catch fire .
- Antifree ze is poisono us. Always store an­
tifreeze in its or iginal co ntainer and we ll
o ut o f the reac h of children.
- If you drain the coolant , it must be
caught and safely stored in a p roper con ­
tainer clear ly marked "poison".
(D Note
- Coolant po llutes the env ironment and
could ca use a n engine fire . Excess coo l­
ant wi ll be forced out through the pres ­
sure re lief va lve in the cap when the en­
gine becomes hot.
- If, in an emergency, only water can be
added , the correct ratio between water
and antifreeze¢
page 237 must be re­
stored as soon as possib le .
@ For the sake of the environment
Drained coolant should not be re used . Al­
ways dispose of used c oolant while observ­
ing all envir onmental regulations .
Radiator fan
The radiator fan switches on automa tically by
itself
An auxiliary e lectric radiator fa n switches on
and
off depending on coolant temperature
and other ve hicle operating conditions.
Checkin g and fillin g 239
After you switch the engine off, the auxi liary
fan can continue running for up to 10 minutes
- even w ith the ign ition off. It can even switch
o n again later by itself¢.& , if
- the temperature of the engine coo lant rises
due to the heat build- up from the engine in
the engi ne compartment, or
- the engine compa rtment heats up because
the vehicle is parked in intense sunlight.
&_ WARNING
--To reduce the risk of persona l in ju ry nev-
er touch the radiator fan .
- The a uxiliary electric fan is tempe rat ure
contro lled and can switch on suddenly
even when the engine is not ru nning.
- The a uxiliary radiator fan sw itches on a u­
tomatically when the engine coo lant
reaches a certai n temperature and will
cont inue to ru n until the coo lant temper­
atur e drops.
Brake fluid
Checking brake fluid level
N
N
N
.,; 0:, a,
Fig. 193 Engin e co mpa rt m ent: cove r on t he bra ke fluid
reservo ir
Before you check anything in the eng ine com­
partment,
alw ays r ead and heed all WARN­
INGS c:> A in Working in the engine compart­
ment on page 230 .
.. Read t he brake fluid level from the brake
fluid reservoir
c:> fig. 193, c:> fig. 189. The
brake fluid level must be between the "MIN"
and "MAX" markings. .,..