4 years AUDI A7 2015 User Guide

Tires and wheels 241
and make of tire and the tread -New tires tend to be slip-•
pattern.
pery and must be broken in. • '
Hidden damage To reduce the risk of losing
Damage to tires and rims is of -control, a collision and seri-
ous personal injuries, drive
ten not readily visible. If you with special care for the
notice unusual vibration or the first 350 miles (560 km).
vehicle pulls to one side, this
-Driving with worn or dam-
may indicate that one of the
aged tires can lead to loss of
tires has been damaged . The
control, sudden tire failure,
tires must be checked immedi-
ately by an authorized Audi including a blowout and
sudden deflation, crashes
dealer or qualified workshop.
and serious personal inju-
Unidirectional tires ries. Have worn or damaged
A unidirectional tire can be tires replaced immediately.
identified by arrows on the -Tires age even if they are
sidewall, that point in the di rec- not being used and can fail
tion the tire is designed to ro- suddenly, especially at high
tate. You must follow the speci- speeds. Tires that are more
fied direction of rotation. This is than 6 years old can only be
necessary so that these tires used in an emergency and
can develop their optimum then with special care and
characteristics regarding grip, at low speed.
road noise, wear and hydro- -Never mount used tires on
planing resistance. For more in- your vehicle if you are not
formation
¢ page 280. sure of their "previous histo-
ry." Old used tires may have
A WARNING
been damaged even though -
New tires or tires that are the damage cannot be seen
old, worn or damaged cannot that can lead to sudden tire
provide maximum control failure and loss of vehicle
M N and braking ability. <(
control. (.J
'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,

260 Tires and wheels
A WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead
to loss of control, a crash and serious personal injury!
-Never drive a vehicle when the tread on any tire is worn down to the wear indica­
tors.
-Worn tires are a safety haz­
ard, they do not grip well on
wet roads and increase your risk of "hydroplaning" and
loss of control.
-Always keep chemicals that
can cause tire damage, such
as grease, oil, gasoline and brake fluid away from tires.
-Tires age even if they are
not being used and can fail
suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more
than 6 years old can only be used in an emergency and
then with special care and at lower speeds.
-Never mount used tires on your vehicle if you are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have
been damaged even though
the damage cannot be seen
that can lead to sudden tire
-failure and loss of vehicle control.
New tires and replacing
tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to
be broken in.
Fig. 204 Tire specification codes on
the sidewall of a tire
No. Description
CD Passenger car tire (where
applicable)
@ Nominal width of tire in
millimeters
® Ratio of height to width
(aspect ratio)
@ Radial
® Rim diameter code

264 Tires and whee ls
tires because they meet the
h ighest standards regarding
safety and driving characteris ­
tics when used correctly. Your
authorized Audi dealer w ill
g ladly provide you with more
information.
Tire ply composition and materials used
T he number of plies indicates
the number of layers of rubber­
coated fabric in the tire. In gen­
eral, the greater the number of
plies , the more weight a tire
can support . Tire manufactur­
ers also must indicate the ma­
ter ia ls in the tire, wh ich include
steel, nylon, polyester, and oth­
ers .
Maximum Load Rating
This number indicates the max­
imum load in kilograms and
pounds that can be carried by
the tire.
Tire quality grading for
treadwear, traction, and
temperature resistance
Tread wear, trac tion and tem­
perature grades
¢ page 266.
Ma ximum Permissible
Inflation Pressure
T his number is the greatest
amount of air pressure that should ever be put in the tire
under normal driv ing condi­
tions.
A WA RNING
-Using incorrect or unmatch­
ed tires and/ or wheels or improper tire and wheel
combinations can lead to loss of control , collision and
ser ious personal injury.
-Always use tires, rims and
wheel bolts that meet the
specifications of original
factory-installed tires or
other combinations that
have been specifically ap ­
proved by the vehicle manu­
facturer.
- Tires age even if they are
not being used and can fail
sudden ly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that a re more
than 6 years old can on ly be
used in an eme rgency and
then with special care and
at lower speeds.
-Never mount used tires on
your vehicle if you are no t

274 What do I do no w?
-Never use the jack s upplied with your
Audi on another vehicle, particularly on a heavier one. The jack is only suitable for
use on the vehicle it came w ith.
- Some of the on board items listed above
are provided on certain mode ls only or
are optiona l extras.
- Before you can raise your vehicle using
the jack, you must activate the jack ing
mode
Qpage 277.
Space-saving spare tire (compact spare
tire)
The spare tire/wheel is located in the luggage
compartment under the cargo floor cover. It
is intended for short-term use only.
Taking out the sp are tire
,. Fold the floor to the seatback with the help
of the handle.
,. Turn the large screw
Q page 2 73, fig. 208
counter-clockw ise .
,. Take out the spare tire .
,. Always store the vehicle tool ki t, the jack*
and the replaced t ire in the l uggage com­
partment
Q page 134.
Using the spare tire (compact spare tire )
The compact spare tire is only intended for
emergenc ies until you can reach a repair shop.
Replace it as quickly as poss ible with a s tand­
a rd wheel and tire.
There are some restrictions on the use of the
compact spare t ire. Th e compact spare t ire
has been des igned specifically fo r your type of
ve hicle . It must not be swapped with a com­
pact spare ti re from another type of vehicle .
Snow chains
For technica l reasons, the use of snow chains
on the compact spare tire is
not p ermitt ed .
If you do have to dr ive with snow cha ins and a
front tire fails, mo unt the spare wheel w ith
tire instead of a rear t ire. I nstall the snow chains on the rear tire and use it to rep
lace
the defective front tire.
A WARNING
-- Never use the spare t ire if it is damaged
or if it is worn down to the tread wear in­
d icators.
- If the spare tire is more than 6 years old, use it only in an emergency and with ex­
treme caution and careful driv ing.
- The spare tire is intended only for tem­ porary and short-term use. It s hou ld be
replaced as soo n as poss ible with the
normal wheel and tire.
- After mounting t he compact spare tire,
the t ire pressure must be checked as
soon as possible . The tire pressure of the
compact spare t ire must be 4. 2 ba r; oth­
erwise, you risk having an a cc iden t.
- Do not dr ive faste r th an
50 mph (80 km/
h). Yo u ris k having a n accident.
- Avoid full-throttle acceleration, heavy
b rak ing, and fast corne ring. You risk hav­
ing
('I n accident.
- N ever d rive using more than one spa re
wheel and ti re. You r is k having an ac ci­
dent.
- Normal summer or winter t ires must not
be mounted on t he compa ct spare w heel
r im.
- For technica l reasons, the use of tire
ch ain s on the sp are tire is not permitted.
If i t is necessary to drive with tir e c hains,
the spare wheel must be mounted on the
f ront ax le in the event of a flat in a rear
tire. The new ly available front whee l
m ust then be insta lled in place of the
rear whee l w ith the flat tire. Installing
the t ire chain before mounting the whee l
a nd tire is recommended .
- Loose items in the passenger compart­
ment can cause se rious personal injury
du ring hard b rak ing or in a n accident.
Never store the i nflatable spa re tire or
jack and tool s in the passenge r compart­
men t.