AUDI Q3 2015 Owners Manual

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Tires and wheels 199
Occupant loading and distribution for vehicle normal load for various designated seating
capacities
Designated seating capacity, Vehicle normal load, number Occupant distribution in a nor-
number of occupants of occupants mally loaded vehicle
5 3 2 in front, 1 in back seat
Cold tire inflation pressure
Tire pressure affects the overall handling, performance and safety of a vehicle.
Fig. 152 Tire press ure label: located on driver 's s ide B·
p ill ar
Tire pressure generally refers to the amount
of air in a tire that it needs it to do its job and
safely carry the combined load of the entire
vehicle and its contents . Tire pressure is
measured in kilopasca ls (kPa), the interna­
tional measuring unit and in pounds pe r
square inch (PSI). Tire pressure is based in
part on the vehicle 's design and load limit -
the greatest amount of weight that the vehi­
cle can carry safe ly and the t ire size . The prop­
er tire pressure is frequent ly referred to as the
"recommended cold tire inflation pressure."
Air in the tires expands when the tire heats up
because of internal friction when it flexes in
use . The tire pressu re is higher when the tire
has warmed up than when it is "cold ."
It is the
in flat ion pressure i n a "cold " tire that counts.
Therefo re, you shou ld neve r let air out of a
warm tire to ma tch "cold tire inflat ion pres­
sure" recommendations. The tires would then
be underinflated and could fail suddenly .
Maintaining proper tir e pressure is one of the
most impor tant things you can do to help
avoid sudden tire failure. Underinflated tires
are a ma jor cause of s udden tire failure . Keep·
ing tires at the right pressure is also impor­
tant for safe and responsive vehicle handling,
-tD
-
---------------------.. ,;
•(==.: I :::; I :,,. I)@ gi n. ............ .,_____, .... -.ito._.. ____ .... _ ...
&..p0idit,101111-~--.,...,....-- ..... ~ .... ..
-··-­.....
-
-Dlst<:OURS
- KPA.. a PSI
- KPA..
a PS I
- KPA.. a PSI
Fig. 153 Tire pressu re labe l
traction, braking and load carrying. Tire pres­
sures are particularly important when the
vehicle is being driven at higher speeds, and
then especially when heavily loaded even
within the permissible load-carrying capaci­
ties approved for your vehicle.
The recommended tire pressures for your Audi
depend on the kind of tires on your ve hicle
and the number of passengers and/o r amount
of luggage you w ill be transporti ng.
The tire pressure label is located on the driv­
er's side B -pillar . The tire pressure labe l lists
the recommended cold tire inflat io n pressures
for the vehicle at its maximum capacity
weight and tires that were on your veh icle at
t he time it was manufactured.
If you wish to improve comfort when operat­
ing the vehicle at normal load (up to 3 occu­
pants), you can adjust tire pressures to those
specified for normal vehicle load. Before op­
erating the vehicle at maximum load, you
must increase the tire pressures to those
specified for maximum vehicle load
¢ &.
Bear in mind that the tire pressure monitoring
system * can only monitor the tire pressures
II>

200 Tires and wheels
you have stored. The system does not recog­
nize the load condition of your vehicle.
The effectiveness of the tire pressure monito r­
ing system* will be impaired if you store nor­
mal load pressures but then operate the vehi ­
cle at its maximum load¢.&. .
See the illustration¢
fig. 152 for the location
of the label on driver's side 8-pillar (color of
the actua l label and exact location on the ve­
hicle wi ll vary slightly).
Note that the following table is accurate at
the time of going to press and is subject to
Model Tire designation
Engine
Q3: 235/50
Rl8 97H
2.0 liter All Season
4 -cylinder
235/50 Rl8 97V
All Season
255/40 Rl9 96Y
High Performan ce
255/35 R20 97Y xl
High performance
change. In the event of discrepancies, the tir e
pressure label is located on the driver's side 8-
pillar always takes precedence.
T he table below lists the recommended cold
ti re inflation pressures for the Audi mode l
covered by your Owner's Literature at the vehi­
cle's capacity weight and the t ire sizes instal­
l ed on the respective models as original
equipment, or as a factory option.
Tire pressure
normal load condition full load condition (up to 3 occupants)
front rear front rear
PSI kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA PSI kPA
33 220 33 220 34 230 36 250
33 220 33 220 34 230 36 250
34 230 34
230 44
300 47
320
34 230 34 230 44 300 47 320
xl= reinforced or extra load tire. It may also appear as XL, EXTRA LOAD, or RF on the tire side-
wall.
The correct tire pressure for the spare wheel is
located on a label on the driver's side 8 -pillar.
Because technical changes may be made to
vehi cle equipment dur ing the model year, al­
ways compare the tire size designation on the
tire pressure labe l on your vehicle with the
tires on your vehicle . Make sure that the tire
size information on the veh icle label is the
same as the size of the t ires on the vehicle.
This is especially important if the vehicle be­
longs to someone else or you bought the vehi­
cle with different rims/tires or you bought the
vehicle as a previously owned vehicle.
Remember, your safety and that of your pas­
sengers also depends on mak ing sure that
load limits are not exceeded . Vehicle load in- eludes
everybody and everything in and on the
vehicle. These load limits are technically refer­
red to as the vehicle's Gross Vehicle Weight
Rat ing ("GVWR"). The Gross Axle We ight Rat­
ing ("GAWR") is the maximum load that can
be applied at each of the vehicle's two axles.
The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and the
Gross Axle Weight Rating are listed on the
safety compliance sticker label located on the
dr ive r's side 8-pillar. The tire pressure labe l on
you r Audi lists the max imum combined
weight of all of the occupants and luggage or
other cargo that the ve hicle can carry. For the
location of the tire pressure label
~fig . 152. .,..

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A WARNING ,~
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
hicle control, a crash or other accident, se­
rious personal injury, and even death.
- Carrying more weight than your vehicle
was designed to carry will prevent the
vehicle from handling properly and in­ crease the risk of a loss of vehicle con­
trol.
- The brakes on a vehicle that has been
overloaded may not be able to stop the
vehicle within a safe distance.
- Tires on a vehicle that has been overload­
ed can fail suddenly causing loss of con­
trol and a crash.
- Always make sure that the total load be­
ing transported -including the weight of
a trailer hitch and the tongue weight of a
loaded trailer -does not make the vehi­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle Weight Rating.
A WARNING
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can lead to a serious or fatal acci­
dent .
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­ flation cause increased tire wear and can
affect the handling of the vehicle.
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can also lead to sudden tire fail­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
flation, causing loss of vehicle control.
Checking tire pressure
-
The correct tire pressure for the tires original­
ly installed on your vehicle is listed on the tire
pressure label located on driver's side 8-pil­ lar .
The recommended tire pressures are on the
tire pressure label and in the table
c::;, page 199, Cold tire inflation pressure . This
means that the pressure must be checked and
adjusted when the tire has not been driven for more than a couple of miles (kilometers) at
low speeds during the previous three hours.
Tires and wheels 201
Air in the tires expands when the tire heats up
as a result of internal friction as it flexes in
use. The tire pressure is higher when the tire
has warmed up than when it is "cold."
It is the inflation pressure in a "cold" tire that
counts. Therefore, you should never let air out
of a warm tire to match "Cold tire inflation
pressure" recommendations
c::;, page 199 . The
tires would then be underinflated and could
fail suddenly .
The tire pressure label on your Audi lists the recommended cold tire inflation pressures at
maximum capacity for the new, original
equipment tires that were on your vehicle at
the time it was manufactured . For the loca­
tion of the label
¢page 199, fig . 152 .
Most tires lose air naturally over time . They
can also lose some air if you drive over a pot ­
hole or hit a curb while parking.
It is usually
not possible to see whether the radial tires
used today are underinflated just by looking
at them.
Therefore, be sure to check tire pressures at
least once a month and always before going
on a long trip. Make sure to take the number
of people and the amount of luggage into ac­
count when adjusting tire pressure for a trip -
even one that you would not consider to be "long." See
c::;, page 203, Tires and vehicle
load limits
for more important information .
Always use an accurate tire pressure gauge
when checking and adjusting inflation pres­
sures. Check all of the tires and be sure not to
forget the spare tire. If the pressure in any tire is too high when the tire is "cold", let air out
of the tire slowly with the edge of the tire gauge and keep checking the pressure until
you reach the pressure that is correct for the load (passengers and luggage) and kind of
driving you plan to do.
If the pressure in any tire is too low, note the
difference between the pressure in the cold
tire and the pressure you need and add the air
that you need to reach the correct pressure for
the vehicle load (passengers and luggage) for
the tires on your vehicle as listed on the on .,.. •
•

202 Tire s and whee ls
your veh icle and in this manua l and the kind
of driving you p lan to do .
Neve r e xcee d the m ax imum inflati on pres­
s u re list e d on th e tir e s ide wall f or a ny r ea­
s on.
Remember that the vehicle manufacturer, not
the tire manufacturer , determ ines the co rrect
tire pressure for the t ires on your veh icle .
It is important to check the tire pressure when
the tires a re cold .
- Read the required t ire pres sure from the tire
pressure label. The ti re pressure label is lo­
cated on the driver's side 8-p illar . The t ire
pressure label lists the recommended cold
t ire inflat ion p ressu res for the veh icle at its
maximum capacity we ight and the tires that
were on you r vehicle at the time it was man­
ufactured . For recommended tire pressures
for normal load condit ions, please see chap­
ter
9 page 199.
-Turn the valve stem cap counter-clockwise
to remove it from the tire valve.
- Place the a ir pressure gauge on the valve.
- T he tire pressures should on ly be checked
and adjusted when the tires are cold. The
s li ghtly raised pressures of warm tires must
not be reduced.
- Adjust the tire pressure to the load you are
carrying .
- Reinsta ll the va lve stem cap on the valve.
When should I check the tire pressur e?
The correct tire pressure is especially impor­
tant at high speeds. The pressure should
therefore be checked at least once a month
and always befo re starting a journey. Do not
forget to check the tire pressure for the spare wheel.
When should I ad ju st th e tire p re ss ures?
Adj ust the tire p ressure to the load you are
carry ing . After chang ing a wheel
or replacing
wheels you have to adjust the tire pressures
on all wheels . In addition, you must then in iti­
alize the new tire pressures in th e tire pres­
sure monito ring system*
c> page 213.
A WARNING
Incorrect tire pressures and/or underinfla­
tion can lead sudden tire fa ilure, loss of
control, collision, serious personal injury
or even death.
- When the
Rt] warning symbol appears in
the instrument cluster, stop and inspect
the t ires.
- Incorrect tire pressure and/or underinfla­
tion can cause increased tire wear and
can affect the hand ling of the vehicle and
stopping abi lity.
- I nco rrect tire pressures and/or underin­
f lation can also lead to sudden t ire fail­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
flation, ca using loss of vehicle contro l.
- The driver is responsible for the co rrect
tire pressures for all tires on the veh icle.
The applicable pressure values are locat ­
ed on a sticker on the driver's side B -pil­
lar.
- Only when all tires on the vehicle are fil­
led to the correct pressure, the tire pres­
sure monitoring system * can work cor­
rectly.
- The use of incorrect tire pressure va lues
can lead to acc idents or other damage.
Therefore it is essential that the driver
observe the spec ified t ire pressure values
for the tires and the correct pressures for
the function of the t i re pressure monitor­
ing system*.
- Always inflate t ires to the recommended
and correct t ire p ressure before dr iving
off.
- Driving with underinf lated tires bend
mo re, letting them get too hot resulting
in tread sepa ration, s udden tire failure
and loss of cont ro l.
- E xcessive speed and/overloadi ng can
cause heat b uild- up, sudden tire failure
and loss of cont ro l.
- I f the tire pressure is too low or too high,
the t ires will wear prema turely and the
vehicle wi ll not handle well. ..,

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-If the ti re is not flat and y ou do not have
to change a wheel immed iate ly, drive at
reduced speed to the nearest service sta­
t ion to check the tire pressure and add
air as required.
(D Note
Dr iving without va lve stem caps can cause
damage to the t ire va lves . To prevent this,
always make sure that factory installed
valve stem caps on all wheels are secu re ly
mounted on the va lve .
@) For the sake of the environment
Underinflated tires will a lso increase the
fue l consumption.
Tires and vehicle load limits
There are limits to the amount of load or
weight t hat any veh icle and any t ire ca n car ry.
A vehicle that is overloaded w ill not handle
well and is more difficult to stop. Overload ing
can not on ly lead to loss of vehicle contro l,
but can a lso damage important parts of the
vehicle and can lead to sudden tire failure, in ­
cluding a blowout and sudden deflation that
can cause the ve hicle to crash.
Your safety and that of yo ur passenge rs a lso
depends on making sure th at load limits are
no t exceeded. Vehicle load includes everybody
and everyth ing in and on the vehicle. These
load limits a re tech nica lly referred to as the
ve hicle's
Gross Veh icle Weight Rating
("GVWR").
The "GVWR" includes the we ight of the basic
ve hicle, all factory installed accessories, a full
tank of f uel, oil, coo lant and othe r fluids plus
max imum load. The maximum load includes
the number o f passenger s that the ve hicl e is
intended to carry ("se ating capacity") w it h an
assumed weig ht o f 150 lbs. (68 kg) for each
passenger at a designated seating position
and the tota l weight of any luggage in the ve­
h icle. If you tow a trailer, the weight of the
trailer hitch and the tong ue weight of the
Tire s an d wheel s 203
loaded tra ile r must be included as part of the
vehicle load .
T he
Gro ss Ax le Weight Rating (" GAWR") is
the max imum load th at can be applied at each
of the vehicle's two axles .
T he Gross Vehicle Weight Rat ing and t he
G ross Ax le Weig ht Ra ting are l iste d on the
s af ety comp liance s tic ke r la bel lo cated on the
driver's side 8 -pillar . Yo ur Audi has 5 seating
positions, 2 in the front and 3 in the rear fo r
total seating capacity of 5. Eac h seating posi ­
tion has a seat be lt
c::> page 104, Safety bel ts.
T he fac t that there is an upper limit to yo ur
vehicle's G ross Vehicle Weight Rating means
that the total weight of whatever is being car ­
ried in the vehicle ( includ ing the weight of a
trai ler hitch and the tongue weight of the
l oaded tra ile r) is lim ited . The more passen ­
gers in the vehicle or passe ngers w ho are
heavi er than the standard we ights assumed
mea n that less we ight can be ca rried as lug­
gage.
T he t ire pressure label o n your Aud i also lis ts
the max imum combined weight of a ll of the
occupants and l uggage or o ther cargo t hat
the ve hicl e can carry . Fo r th e lo cat ion of the
l abel
c::> page 199, fig . 152.
A WARNING
-=
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve -
h icle cont ro l, a c rash or other accide nt, se ­
rious pe rsonal injury, and even death.
- Ca rrying more we ight than your vehicle
was des igned to carry wi ll prevent the
veh icle from handling pr oper ly and in­
crease the risk of the loss of vehicle con­
trol.
- The brakes on a vehicle that has been
overloaded may not be able to stop the
ve hicle w it hi n a safe distance.
- Tires o n a vehicle that has been over load­
ed can fail s uddenly, incl uding a blowout
a nd sudden defla tion, causing loss of
con trol an d a crash . ..,.
•
•

204 Tires and wheels
-Always make sure that the total load be­
ing transported -including the weight of
a trailer hitch and the tongue weight of a
loaded trailer -does not make the vehi­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle Weight Rating.
Determining correct load limit
Use the example below to cal­
culate the total weight of the
passengers and luggage or oth­
er things that you plan to trans­
port so that you can make sure
that your vehicle will not be
overloaded.
Steps for Determining
Correct Load Limit
1. Locate the statement "THE
COMBINED WEIGHT OF OC­
CUPANTS AND CARGO
SHOULD NEVER EXCEED XXX
KG OR XXX LBS"on your vehi­
cle's placard (tire inflation pressure label)
¢ page 199,
fig. 152.
2. Determine the combined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers that will be riding in
your vehicle.
3. Subtract the combined
weight of the driver and pas­ sengers from
"XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds shown on the sticker
r:=> page 199, fig. 152.
4. The resulting figure equals
the available amount of car­
go and luggage load capaci­
ty. For example, if the
"XXX"
amount equals 1400 lbs.
and there will be five
150
lbs. passengers in your vehi­
cle, the amount of available
cargo and luggage load ca­
pacity is
650 lbs. (1400-7 50
(5
X 150) = 650 lbs.)
5. Determine the combined
weight of luggage and cargo being loaded on the vehicle.
That weight may not safely
exceed the available cargo
and luggage load capacity
calculated in Step
4.
6.
If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer, load from your trail­
er will be transferred to your
vehicle. Consult this manual
to determine how this re­ duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle.
... Check the tire sidewall
(¢ page 206, fig. 156) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.

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Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balancing, correct tire pressure and driv­
ing style.
Fig. 154 Tire tread: tread wea r in dica tors (TWI)
Fig. 155 Rotating t ires for more even wea r
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The original tires on your veh icle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm) high "wear indicators"
r::!;> fig. 154 run ning across the tread. Depend­
ing on the make, there will be six to eight of
them evenly p laced around the tire . Marks on
the t ire s idewall (for example "TWI" or other
symbols) indicate the positions of the tread
wear ind icators . Worn t ires must be replaced.
Different figures may apply in other countries
r::!) &.
Tire pressure
Incorrect tire pressure causes premature wear
and can cause sudden tir e blow-out . For this
reason, tire pressure must be checked at least
once a month
r::!;> page 201.
Driving style
Driving fast around curves , heavy acceleration
and hard braking increase tire wear.
Tires and wheels 205
Rotating tires for more even wear
For all four tires on your vehicle to have the
same service life, we recommend that the
front and rear tires are rotated according to
the tire manufacturer 's suggested tire rota­
tion inte rvals. Please remember the follow ­
ing :
- Tire rotation intervals may differ from the
vehicle service interva ls o utlined in your
Ma intenance and Warranty Booklet.
- The longer one tire is used in one location
on the vehicle, the more it wears at certain
points ; therefore, we recommend that you
follow the tire manufactu rer 's suggested
tire rotation intervals .
- Vehicles w ith front-wheel dr ive exper ience
more tread wear on the front wheels com­
pared to all w heel drive (quattro) .
- Please rotate tires as shown
r::!;> fig. 155.
-Extra care must be taken when rotating di-
rection-specific tires
r::!;> page 223 .
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new veh icles are balanced .
However, various situations during everyday
driving can cause them to become unba l­
anced, resulting in vibrations you can usually
feel through the steer ing wheel.
Unbalanced wheels must be rebalanced to
avoid excessive wear on steering, s uspension
and t ires. A whee l must also be reba lanced
when a new tire is insta lled.
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment can cause exces­
sive tire wear, impairing the safety of the vehi­
cle . If tires show excessive wear, have the
whee l alignment checked by an authori zed
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
All wheel drive
Vehicles wi th quattro must always have tires
of the same size, construction and tread type.
For details
see r::!) page 158. 111>

206 Tires and whe els
& WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead to loss of con­
trol, a crash and serious persona l injury!
- Never drive a vehicle when the tread on
any tire is worn down to the wear indica­
tors .
- Worn tires are a safety hazard, they do
not grip well on wet roads and increase
yo ur risk of "hydroplan ing" and loss of
control.
- Always keep chemicals that can cause tire damage, such as grease, oil, gasoline and brake fluid away from t ires.
- Tires age even if they are not be ing used
and can fail suddenly , especially at high
speeds . T ir es that are more t han 6 years
o ld can only be used in an emergency
and then with special care and at lower
speeds.
- Never mount used ti res on yo ur vehicle if
yo u are not sure of their "previous histo ­
ry." Old used tires may have been dam­
aged 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. 156 Tir e specificat ion codes on t he s idew all o f a
t ire
No. De scription
@ Nom inal width of tire in millimeters
® Ra tio of height to width (aspect ratio)
© Radial
® Rim diameter code
® L oad index and sp eed rating
(J) U.S. DOT tire identifi cation number
® Audi Original tire
® Sever snow cond itions
@ Tire ply compos ition and materials
used
@ Maximum load r ating
@ Treadwear, traction and temperature
grades
@ Maximum permissible inflation pres-
sure
T he t ires and rims are essential parts of the
vehicle 's design . The tires and rims approved
by Audi are spec ially matched to the charac­
te ris tics of the vehicle and can ma ke a major .,..

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contribution to good road holding and safe
handling when in good condition and properly
inflated
¢ .&. .
We recommend that all work on t ires and
wheels be performed by an authorized A udi
dealer. They are familiar with recommended
procedures and have the necessary spec ial
too ls and spare parts as we ll as the proper fa ­
cilities for dispos ing of the old tires .
Authorized Audi dealers have the necessary information about techn ica l requ irements for
installing or changing tires and r ims.
R eplacing t ires and wheel s
Tires shou ld be rep laced at least in pairs and
not individua lly (for example both front tires
or both rear tires together).
Be s ure to read and heed the information to
the tire pressure monitoring system*
¢ page 213.
Always buy rep lacement radial tires that have
the same specifications as the t ires approved
for your ve hicle by Audi. Replacement tires
must always have the same load rating speci ­
fication as the original equipment or approved
optional tires listed in the table
¢ page 199.
Audi-approved specification tires are specially
matched to your vehicle and its load limits ,
and can contribute to the important road hold­
ing, driving character istics, and safety of the
veh icle. The table
( ¢ page 199) lists spec ifica­
tions of the t ires approved for the Audi mod­
e ls covered by your Owner 's Literature .
T he tire pressure labe l located on dr iver 's side
B-pillar (¢
page 199, fig. 153) lists the speci­
fications o f the orig inal equipment tires in­
stalled on your veh icle at the time it was man­
ufactured .
Federal law requires t ire manufacturers to
p lace s tanda rd ized information on the s ide­
wall of all tires¢
fig. 156 . This information
i dent ifies and desc ribes the fundamental
characterist ics , the quality grade of the tire
and a lso provides a tire ide ntificat io n number
Tire s an d wheel s 207
for sa fety standard certification and in case of
a reca ll.
Tire specifications
Knowledge of tire specifications makes it eas­
ier to choose the co rrec t tires . Radial ti res
have the tire specifications marked on the
sidewa ll, for examp le:
P255 / 35 R20 97Y XL
This co nta ins the following information :
P Indicates the tire is for passenger cars
(where app licab le)
255 Nom inal tire width i n mm of the tire
from sidewall edge to sidewall edge. In
general, the larger the number, the wider
the ti re
35 Height/w idth ratio in percent (aspect ra -
t io)
R Tire construct ion: Radial
1 9 Rim diameter code (i n inches)
96 Load rating code
Y Speed ra ting letter code
XL (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or "RF" Indicates
t h at the t ire is a"Re info rced" or an " Extra
Load " tir e
M+S (or "M/S") Indicates that the ti re has
some mud and snow capab ility
The tires could also have the informat ion of
direction of rotation ¢
page 195 .
Tire manufacturing d ate
The manufact uring date is also indicated on
the tire sidewall (possibly only on the
inner
s ide of the wheel):
"DOT ... 2214 ... "means, for example, that
the tire was produced in the 22nd week of 2014.
Speed rating (letter cod e)
The speed rating letter code on the whee ls in­
dicates the maximum permissible road speeds
¢ .&. in Winter tires on page 211.
P up to 93 mp h (150 km/h)
Q up to 99 mp h (1 58 km/h)
R up to 106 mph ( 170 km/h)
•
•

208 Tires and wheels
S up to 110 mph (180 km/h)
T up to 118 mph (190 km/h)
U up to 124 mph (200 km/h)
H up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
V up to 149 mph (240 km/h)1l
Z over 149 mph (240 km/h)ll
W up to 168 mph (270 km/h)ll
Y up to 186 mph (298 km/h)
1
l
Your veh icle is normally factory equipped with
tires, which possess excellent driving charac­
teristics and give yo ur Audi opt imum d riving
comfort . An electronic speed limiter
c::> page 27 will normally prevent your vehicle
from going faster than the tire speed rating
¢ &. .
U.S. DOT Tire Identification Number (TIN)
and tire manufacture date
This is the tire's "serial number". It begins
with the letters "DOT" and indicates that the
tire meets all federal standards. The next two
numbers or letters indicate the plant where it
was manufactured, and the last four numbers
represent the week and year of manufacture.
For example, the numbers 2214 mean that
the tire was produced in the 22nd wee k of
2014. The other numbers are mar keting co­
des that may or may not be used by the tire
manufacturer . This information is used to con­
tact consumers if a tire defect requires a re­
call.
Audi Original tire
Tires with the identification "AO" or "RO" have
been specia lly matched with your Audi . We
recommend using only these tires because
they meet the highest standards regard ing
safety and driving character istics when used
correctly. Your authorized Audi dealer will
gladly provide you with more information.
Tire ply composit ion and materials used
The number of plies indicates the number of
l ayers of rubber-coated fabric in the tire. In
ll For tir es w it h a m ax im um spee d ca pabil ity ove r
1 4 9 mp h (2 40 k m/h) , tire man ufact urers somet imes
u se the lette rs "ZR. "
genera l, the greater the number of plies, the
more weight a tire can support. Tire manufac­
turers also must indicate the materials in the
t ir e, which include steel, nylon, po lyester, and
others.
Maximum Load Rating
This number ind icates the maximum load in
kilograms and pounds that can be carried by
the tire.
Tire quality grading for treadwear,
traction , and temperature resistance
Tread wear, traction and temperature grades
c::> page 209.
Maximum Permissible Inflation Pressure
Th is number is the greatest amount of air
pressure that should ever be put in the tire
u nder normal driving conditions.
.&, WARNING ~ -
-Using incorrect or unmatched tires and/
or wheels or improper tire and wheel
comb inat ions can lead to loss of control,
coll is ion and serious personal injury.
-Always use t ires, rims and whee l bolts
that meet the specifications of original
factory- installed tires or other combina­
tions that have been specifically ap­
proved by the vehicle manufacturer.
- 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 emergen cy
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 dam­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire fa ilure
and loss of vehicle control.