wheel size AUDI R8 SPYDER 2011 Owners Manual

122 Airbag sys te m
conditio ns is impossible in a ll co nceiva­
ble situati ons t hat may happen during
t h e usef ul lif e of your vehicle.
- The Adva nced Airbag System can deploy
in accor dance with the "low risk" opt ion
under the U.S. Federal Sta ndard if a child
that is heavier than the typical one-year old child is on the front passenger seat
and the othe r cond itions for airbag de­
ployment are met.
- For their own safety, all children, espe­
cially 1 2 yea rs and younger, sho uld a l­
ways ride p roperly rest rained for their
age and size.
Advanced front airbag system
Your veh icle is eq uipped wit h a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208 as applicab le at the time your vehicle was
manufactured.
The front Advanced Airbag System supp le­
ments the safety belts to provide addit iona l
protection for the driver's and front passeng ­
er's heads and upper bodies in frontal crashes.
The airbags inflate only in frontal impacts
when the vehicle dece lerat io n is high enough .
The front Advanced Airbag System for the
front seat occupants is not a substitute for
your safety belts. Rather, it is part of t he over­
all occupa nt restraint system in your ve hicle.
A lways remember that the airbag system can
on ly help to protect you, if you are s itting up­
r ight, wearing yo ur safety belt and wea ring it
p roperly. This is w hy you and yo ur passenge rs
must always be properly restrained , not just
beca use the law requires you to be.
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle
h as been cer tified to meet the " low r is k " re­
qu irements for 3 and 6 year -o ld children on
the passenger side and very small adu lts on
the driver side. The low risk deployment crite ­
ria are intended to he lp red uce the risk of in­
jury through interaction with the front airbag that can occur, fo r example, by be ing too cl
ose to the steering wheel and instrument
pane l when the airbag inflates .
In add ition, the system has been certified to
comply wi th the "s uppression" re qu iremen ts
of the Sa fe ty Standard, to turn off the front
airbag for infants 12 months o ld and younger
who are rest rained on the front passenger
seat in child restraints that are listed in the Standard
¢ page 140, Child restraints and
Advanced Airbags .
"Suppression" requires the front a irbag on the
passenger side to be turned off if:
- a child up to abo ut one year o f age is re ­
strained on the front passenger seat i n one
of the rear-fac ing or forward -facing infant
restraints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard
208 with which the Ad­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle was
cert ified . For a listing o f the ch ild res traints
that were used to certify your vehicle 's com­
plia nce w it h t he US Safety Standa rd
¢ page 140,
-we ight less than a threshold level stored in
the co ntrol uni t is de te cted on the fron t pas­
senger seat.
When a person is detected on the front pas­
senger seat, weighing more than t he total
we ight of a ch ild tha t is abou t 1 year old re ­
stra ined in one of the rear-fac ing or forward­
f acing infant res traints ( listed in Fede ral Mo­
tor Vehicle Safety Standar d
208 with which
the A dvanced Airbag System in your vehicle
was certif ied), the front airbag on the passen­
ger side may or may not deploy.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
whe n the electronic contro l unit detects a to­
ta l we ight on the front passenger seat that re ­
quires t he front airbag to be t urned off. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on, the front a irbag on the passenger
s ide has not been t urned off by the cont ro l
u ni t and ca n dep loy if the control un it senses
an imp act that meets the cond itions store d in
i ts memory.
If the total weight on the fro nt passenge r
seat is more than that of a typ ical 1 yea r-old , .,.

A WARNING ,~
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
-Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be
adjusted to an upright position.
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re­
quirements for 3- and 6- year-old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the
driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates. In addition, the system has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn
off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front
passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard.
Child Safety 139
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, a child should al­
ways ride in the seat properly restrained for
its age and si ze. The airbag on the passenger
side makes the front seat a potentially dan­
gerous place for a child to ride . The front seat
is not the safest place for a child in a forward­
facing child safety seat . It can be a very dan­
gerous place for an infant or a larger child in a
rearward-facing seat.
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight -sensing mat in the seat cush­
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight -sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger
seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the
seat. The weight of a child restraint and its
"footprint" vary for different kinds of child re­
straints and for the different models of the
same kind of child restraint offered by child
restraint manufacturers .
The weight ranges for the individual types,
makes and models of child restraints that the
NHTSA has specified in the Safety Standard
together with the weight ranges of typical in­
fants and typical 1 year-old child have been
stored in the control unit of the Advanced Air­
bag System. When a child restraint is being
used on the front passenger seat with a typi­
cal 1 year-old child, the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem compares the weight measured by the
weight sensing mat with the information stor­
ed in the electronic control unit.
The electronic control unit also registers the
tension on the front passenger safety belt. ..,. •
•

Driving with your
quattro ®
With all-wheel drive, all four wheels are driv­
en .
General information
With all-wheel drive, power is distributed to
all four wheels . This happens automatically
depending on your driving style and the road
conditions at the time. See also
t::;> page 150.
Winter tires
When driving in the winter, your vehicle with
all-wheel drive has an advantage, even with regular tires. In winter road conditions it may
be advisable to mount winter tires (or all -sea­
son t ires) for improved driveability and brak­
ing: these tires must be mounted on
all four
wheels.
Snow chains
Where snow chains are mandatory on certain
roads, th is normally also applies to vehicles
with all-wheel drive
Q page 204 , Snow
chains.
Replacing wheels/tires
Only the wheel/tire sizes specified by the
manufacturer may be used on vehicles with
all-wheel drive
<=> page 199.
A WARNING
-Always adjust your driving to road and
traffic conditions. Do not let the extra
safety afforded by all-wheel drive tempt
you into taking extra risks.
- Although a ll-wheel drive is very effect ive,
always remember that braking capacity
is limited by tire traction. You should
therefore not drive at excessive speeds
on icy or slippery road surfaces.
- On wet road surfaces, be careful not to
drive too fast because the front wheels
cou ld beg in to slide on top of the water
(aquaplaning). If this should occur, you
will have no warning from a sudden in­
crease in engine speed as with a front-
-
Intelligent technology 155
wheel drive vehicle. Always drive at
speeds which are su ited to the road con­
ditions. -risk of crash.
Energy management
Starting ability is optimized
Energy management controls the distribution
of electrical energy and thus optimizes the
availability of electrical energy for starting the engine.
If a vehicle with a conventional energy system
is not driven for a long per iod of time, the bat­
tery is discharged by idling current consumers
(e .g. immobi lizer). In certain circumstances it
can resu lt in the re being insufficient energy
available to start the engine.
Intelligent energy management in your vehi­
cle handles the distribution of e lectr ical ener­
gy. Starting ability is markedly improved and
the life of the battery is extended .
Basically, energy management consists of
battery diagnosis , idling current manage­
ment
and dynamic energy management .
Battery diagnosis
Battery diagnosis continuously determines
the state of the battery. Sensors determine
battery voltage, battery current and battery
temperature . This determines the current
state of charge and the power of the battery.
Idling current management
Idling current management reduces energy
consumption while the vehicle is standing.
With the ign ition switched off, it controls the
energy supply to the various electrical compo­
nents. Data from battery diagnosis is consid­
ered.
Depending on the battery's state of charge,
individual cons umers are gradually turned off
to prevent excessive discharge of the battery
and thus maintain starting capability. .,..
•
•

Maximum loaded vehicle weight
means the sum of:
(a) Curb weight
(b) Accessory weight
(c) Vehicle capacity weight, and
(d) Production options weight
Maximum (permissible) inflation pressure
means the maximum cold inflation pressure
to which a tire may be inflated. Also called
"maximum inflation pressu re."
Normal occupant weight
means 150 lbs. (68 k ilograms) times the
nu mber of occupants seated in the vehicle up
to the total seating capacity of your vehicle.
Occupant distribution
means distribution of occupants in a vehicle .
Outer diameter
means the overa ll diameter of an inflated new
tire.
Overall width
means the linear distance between the exteri­
ors of the sidewalls of an inflated tire, includ­
ing e levations due to labeling, decorations, or
protective bands or ribs.
Ply
means a layer of rubber-coated para llel cords.
Production options weight
means the comb ined weight of those installed
regular production options weighing over 5
lbs . (2 .3 kg) in excess of those standard items
which they replace, not previously considered
in curb weight or accessory weight, including
heavy duty brakes, r ide leve lers, roof rack,
heavy duty battery, and specia l trim .
Radial ply tire
means a pneumatic t ire in which the p ly cords
that extend to the beads are laid at substan­
tially 90 degrees to the centerline of the
tread.
Tires and wheels 191
Recommended inflation pressure
see ~ page 190, Cold tire inflation pressure.
Reinforced tire
means a t ire designed to operate at higher
loads and at higher inflat ion pressures than
the corresponding standard tire. Re inforced
ti res my be ident ified as "XL" , "xl", "E XTRA
LOAD", or "RF" on the sidewall.
Rim
means a metal support for a tire or a tire and
tube assembly upon which the tire beads are
seated.
Rim diameter
means nom inal d iameter of the bead seat. If
you change your wheel s ize, you w ill have to
purchase new tires to match the new r im di­
ameter.
Rim size designation
means r im diameter and width.
Rim width
means nom inal distance between rim fla nges.
Sidewall
means that portion of a tire between the
tread and bead.
Speed rating (letter code)
means the speed at which a tire is designed to
be driven for extended periods of time. The
ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h) to
186 mph (298 km/h)
~ page 200 . You may
not find this information on all tires because
it is not requ ired by law.
T he speed rating letter code, where applica­
ble, is molded on the tire sidewall and indi­
cates the maximum pe rm issib le road speeds
~ .&. in Winter tires on page 204.
Tire pressure monitoring system
means a system that detects when one or
more of a veh icle's tires are underinflated and
illuminates a low tire pressure warning tell­
tale.
•
•

Tires and wheels 193
Cold tire inflation pressure
Tire pressure affects the overall handling, performance and safety of a vehicle.
Fig. 150 Tire pressure label: located on driver's side B·
pillar
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 kilopascals (kPa), the interna­
tional measuring unit and in pounds per
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 safely and the tire size. The prop­
er tire pressure is frequently 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 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 pres­
sure" recommendations. The tires would then be underinflated and could fail suddenly.
Maintaining proper tire pressure is one of the
most important things you can do to help
avoid sudden tire failure. Underinflated tires
are a major cause of sudden tire failure. Keep­
ing tires at the right pressure is also impor­
tant for safe and responsive vehicle handling,
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.
"' ..,
-~ --------------- ~ a ;l!; TIRE AND LOADING INFORMATION
• (SfATING CAPAOTY JOTAI. I }ROHT I :CUITTR I :R£AR I)
l'hl!o combned~c:loo:upain.sanoatg0,sbo&AdnM'fexeeC1 •"'.gcw -b.
COI.O TIRE PRESSURE
- KPa.- PSI
- KPa,- PSI
_ KPa,. PSI
Fig. 151 Tire pressure label
SEE OWNER'S
MANUA L FOR
ADDITTONAL
INFOl n
u
The recommended tire pressures for your Audi
depend on the kind of tires on your vehicle
and the number of passe ngers and/or amount
of luggage you will be transporting.
The tire pressure label located on driver's side
B-pillar on your Audi lists the recommended
cold tire inflation pressures for the vehicle at
its maximum capacity weight and tires that
were on your vehicle at the time it was manu­
factured.
If you wish to improve comfort when operat­
ing the vehicle at normal load (up to 2 occu­
pants), you can adjust tire pressures to those
specified for normal vehicle load. Before oper­
ating the vehicle at maximum load, you must
increase the tire pressures to those specified
for maximum vehicle load
9 .&.
Bear in mind that the tire pressure monitoring
system can only monitor the tire pressures
that are stored. The system does not recog­
nize the load condition of your vehicle.
See the illustration,:;,
fig. 150 for the location
of the label on driver's side B-pillar (color of
the actual label and exact location on the ve­
hicle will vary slightly).
Note that the following table is accurate at
the time of going to press and is subject to
change. In the event of discrepancies, the tire
pressure label on driver's side B-pillar always
ta kes precedence. ..,.

194 Tire s and wheel s
The table be low lists the recommended cold
tire inflation pressures for the Audi model
covered by your Owner's Literature at the vehi- cle's capacity weight and the tire sizes instal­
led on the respective models as original
equipment, or as a factory option.
Engine
(dis­
place­
ment in Tire designation
Tire pressure front Tire pressure rear
normal load full load normal load full load condition condition condition condition
liter )
a -cylin­
der
4 .2
inder
5.2 235
/3 5 R1 9 9 1 V
XL
295 /30 R19 100V X L
305 /30 R1 9 10 2V X L
235 /35 R19 91 V X L
295 /30 R1 9 100V XL
305 /30 R19 102V X L
XL= reinf orc ed
PSI
45
Because tec hnical changes may be made to
vehicle equ ipment dur ing the model yea r, a l­
ways compare the tire size designation on the
tire pressure labe l on you r vehi cle w it h the
tires on your vehicle. Make s ure that the ti re
size information on the veh icle label is the
same as the size of the tires 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
cludes everybody and everything in and on the
veh icle . These load lim its are technically refer­
red to as the vehicle's G ross Vehicle We ight
Rati ng ("GVWR"). The G ross Ax le Weight Rat­
i ng ("GAWR") is the max imum load that can
be app lied at each o f the veh icle's two axles.
The G ross Vehicle Weight Rating and the
Gross Axle Weight Rating are listed on the
safety compliance stic ker labe l located either
on the driver's side B-pillar. The tire pressure
labe l on your Audi lists the maximum com­
b ined weight of all of the occupants and lug­
gage or other cargo that the veh icle can carry.
For the location of the tire pressure label
¢ fig. 15 0 .
kPA PSI kPA PSI
310 45 310
41
41
kPA PSI
280 41
280 41
kPA
280
280
280
280
.&_ WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
h icle cont ro l, a crash o r other accident, se ­
r ious pe rsonal injury, and even death.
- Ca rrying more we igh t than your veh icle
was designed to carry wi ll 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
veh icle w ith in a safe distance.
- Tires on a vehicle that has been over load­
ed can fail s uddenly ca us ing loss of con­
trol and a crash.
.&_ WARNING
- Incorrect tire pressures and/or underin­
flation can lead to a serious or fatal acci­
dent.
- Inco rrect tire pressures and/or underin­
f lation cause increased tire wear and can
affect the handling of the vehicle.
- Inco rrect tire pressures and/or underin­
f lation can a lso lead to s udden t ire fail­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
flation, ca using loss of veh icle cont ro l.

198 Tires and wheels
cargo and lugg age load ca­
pacity is 650 lb s. (1400-750
(5
X 150) = 650 lb s.)
5. Determin e the combined
weight of luggage and cargo
being loaded on the vehicle .
That weight may not safely exceed the a vailable cargo
and luggage load capacity
c alculated in Step
4.
6. If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer , load from your trail­
er w ill be tran sferred to your
vehi cle . Consult this manual
to determine how thi s re­
duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle.
.,.Che ck the tire sidewall
( ¢ page 199 , fig. 153) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
diff erent things i ncluding prop er installation
and balancing, correct tire pressure and driv ·
ing s tyle.
Fig. 152 T ire tread: trea d wea r ind icators (TWI)
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The orig in al tires on yo ur vehi cle ha ve
1/ 16 inch ( 1.6 mm) hig h "wear indica tors"
¢ fig . 152 ru nning acro ss the tread . Depend·
ing on the ma ke , t here will be six to e ight of
them even ly placed aro und the tire. Marks on
t he tire sidewall (for example "TWI" or ot her
symbols) ind icate the pos itions of the tread
wea r indica to rs. Wor n tir es must be rep laced .
Differ ent figures may apply in othe r countries
¢ .&_ .
Tire pressure
Incor rect t ire pressure causes premature wea r
and can cause sudde n tire blow-out . For this
reason, tire pressu re must be checked at least
o nce a month
¢ page 195.
Driving style
Driving fast around c urves, heavy accele rat ion
and hard braking increase tire wear .
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new ve hicles are balance d.
However, va rious s ituations dur ing everyday
driv ing can cause them to become unbal·
anced, resulting in vib rations you can usually
feel t hrough the steer ing whee l.
Unb alanced w hee ls m ust be rebalance d to
avo id excessive wear on steering, suspension
and ti res. A whee l m ust also be reba lanced
whe n a new tire is insta lled.
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incor rect wheel alig nment can cause exces ­
s ive tire wear , impa iring the safety of the vehi ­
cle.
If tires show excessive wear , have the
w hee l alignment chec ked by an authoriz ed
Audi deal er or qualified wo rksh op.
All-wheel drive
Only the wheel/ti re sizes specif ied by the
manufacture r may be used on veh icles with
all-wheel drive. For detai ls see ¢
page 155.

204 Tir es and whe els
eq uip all four wheels on your vehicle with cor ­
rectly fitted winter tires or all-season tires,
when winter road conditions are expected. This a lso improves the vehicle's braking per­
formance and reduces stopping distances.
Summer tires provide less grip on ice and
snow.
W inter t ires (snow t ires) must always be fitted
on all four wheels.
Compat ible tire pressure mon itor ing sensors
must be installed on all fou r winter tires for
the tire pressure monitoring system to func­
tion proper ly ~
page 201 .
Ask your authorized Aud i dea ler or qualified
wo rkshop for permitted
winter tir e sizes. Use
only radia l winter tires .
W inter t ires lose the ir effectiveness when the
tread is worn down to a depth of 0.157 inch
(4 mm) .
Only drive with winter tires under winter con­
d itions . Summer tires handle better when
there is no snow or ice on the roads and the
temperature is above 45 °F (7 °C).
Please always remember that w inte r tires may
have a lower speed rating than the t ires origi­
na lly installed on your veh icle at the t ime i t
was manufactured. Please see
r:!> page 200 ,
Speed roting (letter code) for a list ing of the
speed rating letter codes and the maximum
speed at which the tires can be driven.
The speed ra ting letter code
(~ page 191) is
on the s ide wall of the tire
r::!> poge 199.
A WARNING
Winter tires have maximum speed limits
that may be lower than your vehicle's max­
im um speed . Always know the maxim um
speed before driving off. Never drive faster
than the speed permitted for your specific
w inte r tires . This will cause damage to the
tires leading to an accident and serious
personal in ju ry to you and your passen­
gers.
A WARNING
Driving faster than the maximum speed
for which the winter tires on your veh icle
were designed can cause t ire failure in­
cluding a blowout and sudden deflation,
l oss of cont ro l, crashes and ser ious per­
sonal injuries. Have wo rn o r damaged ti res
r eplaced immediately.
- W inte r ti res have maxim um speed rating
that may be lower than your vehicle 's
maximum speed.
- Never drive fas ter than the speed for
which the win ter or othe r ti res installed
on yo ur vehicle are rated.
A WARNING ~
A lways ad just your driving to the road and
traffic condit ions. Never let the good ac­
celeration of the winter tires and all-wheel
drive tempt you into taking extra risks. Al­
ways remember:
- When braking, an all-wheel drive veh icle
handles in the same way as a front drive
veh icle.
- Drive carefully and reduce your speed on
icy and slippery roads, even w inter t ires
cannot help under black ice conditions .
~ For the sake of the environment
Use summer tires when weather condi­
tions permit. They are qu ieter, do not wear
as quickly and reduce fuel consumpt ion.
Snow chains
-
S now cha ins may be fitted only to the rea r
whee ls, and o nly to certa in tire sizes . Ask your
autho rized Aud i dea le r o n whi ch tire sizes
snow c hains ca n be used.
T he snow chains must have low-profile links
and must not be t hicker than 0 .53 inch
(13 .5 mm), in cl ud ing the lock.
Remove wheel center covers before putt ing
snow c ha ins on your vehicle~@ . For safety
reasons cover caps must then be f itted over

the wheel bolts. These are available from au­
thorized Audi dealers.
A WARNING
Using the wrong snow chains for your vehi­
cle or installing them incorrectly can in­
crease the risk of loss of control leading to
serious personal injury.
- Snow chains are available in different
sizes. Always make sure to follow the in­
structions provided by the snow chain
manufacturer .
- When driving with snow chains, never
drive faster than the speed permitted for
your specific snow chains.
- Always observe local regulations.
- Remove snow chains before driving on
roads not covered with snow to avoid
damaging tires and wearing the snow
chains down unnecessarily.
- Snow chains, which come into direct con­
tact with the wheel rim, can scratch or
damage it. Therefore, make sure that the
snow chains are suitably covered . Check
the position of the snow chains after
driving a few yards and correct if neces­
sary. Follow the instructions from the
snow chain manufacturer when doing so.
(D Tips
Where snow chains are mandatory oncer­
tain roads, this normally also applies to ve­
hicles with all-wheel drive.
Wheel bolts
Wheel bolts must always be tightened to the
correct torque.
The design of wheel bolts is matched to the
factory installed rims. If different rims are fit­
ted, the correct wheel bolts with the right
length and correctly shaped bolt heads must
be used. This ensures that wheels are fitted
securely and that the brake system functions
correctly .
Tires and wheels 205
In certain circumstances, you may not use
wheel bolts from a different vehicle -even if it
is the same model
r:!> page 211.
A WARNING
Improperly tightened or maintained wheel
bolts can become loose causing loss of
control, a collision and serious personal in­
jury.
- Always keep the wheel bolts and the
threads in the wheel hubs clean so the
wheel bolts can turn easily and be prop­ erly tightened.
- Never grease or oil the wheel bolts and
the threads in the wheel hubs. They can
become loose while driving if greased or
oiled, even if tightened to the specified
torque.
- Only use wheel bolts that belong to the
rim being installed.
- Never use different wheels bolts on your
vehicle.
-Always maintain the correct tightening
torque for the wheel bolts to reduce the
risk of a wheel loss. If the tightening tor­
que of the wheel bolts is too low, they
can loosen and come out when the vehi­
cle is moving.
If the tightening torque is
too high, the wheel bolts and threads
can be damaged and the wheel can be­
come loose.
(D Note
The specified torque for the wheel bolts is
90 ft lb (120 Nm) with a tolerance of ± 7 .4
ft lb( ± 10 Nm). Torque wheel bolts diago­
nally. After changing a wheel, the torque
must be checked as soon as possible with a
torque wrench -preferably by an author­
ized Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
Low aspect ratio tires
Your Audi is factory-equipped with low aspect
ratio tires. These tires have been thoroughly
tested and been selected specifically for your model for their superb performance, road feel
and handling under a variety of driving
IJ>,
•
•

206 Tires and wheels
conditions. Ask your authorized Audi dea ler
for more details.
The low aspect ratio of these tires is indicated
by a numeral of
55 or less in the tire's size
designation. The numeral represents the ratio
of the tire's sidewall height in relation to its
tread width expressed in percentage. Conven­
tional tires have a height/width ratio of 60 or
more.
The performance of low-aspect -ratio tires is
particularly sensitive to improper inflation
pressure. It is therefore important that low
aspect ratio tires are inflated to the specified pressure and that the inflation pressure is reg ­
ularly checked and mainta ined. Tire pressures
should be checked at least once a month and
a lways before a long t rip
~ page 195, Check­
ing tire pressure.
What you can do to avoid tire and rim
damage
L ow aspect ratio tires can be damaged more
eas ily by impact with potholes, curbs, gullies
or ridge5 on the road, particu larly if the tire i5
underinflated.
I n order to minimize the occurrence of impact
damage to the tires of your vehicle, we recom­
mend that you observe the following precau­
tions:
- Always maintain recommended inflation
pressures. Check your tire pressure every
2.000 miles (3.000 km) and add air if neces­
sary.
- Drive carefully on roads with potholes, deep
gullies or ridges. The impact from driving
through or over such obstacles can damage
your tires. Impact with a curb may also cause damage to your tires.
- After any impact, immediately inspect your
tires or have them inspected by the nearest
authori zed Audi dealer. Rep lace a damaged
tire as soon as possible.
- Inspect your tires every 2.000 miles (3.000 km) for damage and wear . Damage is not al­
ways easy to see. Damage can lead to loss of
air and underinflation, wh ich could eventu ­
ally cause t ire failure . If you believe that a tire
may have been damaged, replace the
tire as soon as possib le.
- These tires may wear more quickly than oth­
ers.
- Please also remember that, while these tires
deliver responsive handling, they may ride
less comfortably and make more noise than
other choices .
Reduced performance in winter/cold
season conditions
All tires are designed for certain purposes.
The low aspect ratio, ultra high performance
t ir es originally installed on your vehicle are in­
tended for maximum dry and wet road per­
formance and handling . They are not suitable
for cold, snowy or icy weather conditions . If
you drive under those c ircumstances, you
should equ ip your vehicle w ith winter t ires,
which offer better traction under those condi­
tions . We suggest yo u use the recommended
snow tires specified for your vehicle, or their
equivalent.
Refer to~
poge 203 for more detailed infor­
mation regarding winter tires.
Ti re pressure
monitoring system
General notes
E ach tire, including the spare (if provided),
shou ld be checked monthly when cold and in­
flated to the inflat ion pressure recommended
by the vehic le manufacturer on the vehicle
placard or tire inflation pressure label (If your
vehicle has tires of a different si ze than the
size indicated on the vehicle placard or tire in­
flat ion pressure label, you should determine
the proper t ire in flation pressure for those
t ir es .) .
As an added safety feature, your vehicle has been equipped with a tire pressure monitoring
system (TPMS) that illum inates a low tire
pressure telltale when one or more of your
tires is significantly under-inflated. According­
ly, when the low tire pressure telltale illumi­
nates, you shou ld stop and check you r tires as
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