flat tire AUDI RS5 CABRIOLET 2013 User Guide

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 226,
f ig. 185.
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 pas­sengers from
"XXX" kilo­
grams or
"XXX" pounds
shown on the sticker
¢ page 226, fig. 185 .
4. The resulting figure equals
the available amount of car­go 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
Tires and wheels 231
cargo and luggage load ca­
pacity is 650 lbs. (1400-7
so
(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 233 , fig. 189) to de­
termine the designated load
rating for a specific tire.
•
•
'

A WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead to loss of con­
trol, 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 hazard, 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 t ires.
- Tires age even if they are not be ing used
and can fail suddenly, especially at high
speeds . Tir es 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 dam­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
Tires and wheels 233
New tires and replacing tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to be broken in .
Fig. 189 Tir e specificat ion codes on t he s idewall o f 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
® Load index and speed rat ing
(f) U.S. DOT tire identification number
® Audi Original tire
® Sever snow conditions
@ Tire ply composition and materials
used
@ Maximum load rating
@ Treadwear, traction and temperature
grades
@ Maximum permissible inflation pres-
sure
The tires and rims are essential parts of the
vehicle's design . The ti res and rims approved
by Audi are spec ially matched to the charac­
teristics of the vehicle and can make a major .,.
•

234 Tire s and wheel s
contribution to good road ho lding and safe
handling when in good condition and properly
inflated
¢ ,& .
We recommend that all work on tires and
wheels be perfo rmed by an authorized Audi
dea ler. They are familiar with recommended
proced ures and have the necessary spec ial
too ls and spare parts as well as the proper fa­
cilities for disposing 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.
Re placing t ires and whe els
Tires sho uld be rep laced at least in pairs and
not individua lly (for examp le both front tires
or both rear tires together).
Be sure to read and heed the information to
the tire pressure monitoring system*
¢page 240.
A lways buy rep lacement radial tires that have
the same specifications as the tires approved
for your vehicle by Audi. Replacement t ires
must always have the same load rating speci­
fication as the original equipment or approved
optional tires listed in the table
c:> page 226.
Aud i-approved specification ti res are specially
matched to your vehicle and its load limits,
and can contribute to the important road ho ld­
ing, driving characteristics, and safety of the
vehicle. The table (c:>page 226) lists spec ifica­
tions of the tires approved for the Audi mod­
els covered by your Owner's Literature .
The tire pressure labe l located on driver's side
B-pillar (c:>page 226, fig. 186) lists the speci­
f ications of 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 standard ized information on the s ide­
wall of all tires c:>fig. 189. This information
i dent ifies and describes the fundamental
characterist ics, the quality grade of the tire
and a lso provides a tire ident ificat ion number f
or sa fety standard ce rtification and in case of
a reca ll.
Tire specifications
Knowledge of ti re specificat ions makes it eas­
ier to choose the correct tires. Radial ti res
have the tire specifications marked on the
sidewa ll, for examp le:
P2 65 / 35 R1 9 98Y XL
This co nta ins the following information:
P Indicates the t ire is for passenger cars
(where app licab le)
2 65 Nominal tire width in mm of the tire
from sidewall edge to sidewa ll edge. In
general, the larger the number, the wider
the tire
35 Height/w idth ratio in percent (aspect ra-
t io)
R Tire construction: Radial
1 9 Rim diameter code (in inches)
98 Load rating code
Y Speed rat ing letter code
X L (or "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or "RF" Indicates
t h at the t ire is a"Re inforced" or an " Extra
Load " tir e
M+S (or "M/S") Indicates that the tire has
some mud and snow capabi lity
The tires could also have the information of
direction of rotat io n
c:> page 222 .
Tire manufacturing date
The manufact uring date is also indicated on
the tire sidewall (possibly on ly on the inner
s ide of the wheel) :
"DOT ... 2212 ... "means, for examp le, that
the tire was produced in the 22nd week of 2012.
Speed rating (letter c ode)
The speed rating letter code on the whee ls in­
dicates the maximum permissible road speeds
c:> & in Winter tires on page 238 .
P up to 93 mph (150 km/h)
Q u p to 99 mp h (158 km/h)
R up to 106 mph ( 170 km/h)

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)
1
)
Z over 149 mph (240 km/h)1
)
W up to 168 mph (270 km/h)1
)
Y up to 186 mph (298 km/h)1>
Your vehicle is no rma lly facto ry equipped with
tires , which possess excellent driving cha rac­
ter istics and give yo ur Audi opt imum driving
comfort .
U.S. DOT Tire Identification Numbe r (TIN)
and tire manufactur e date
This is the t ire's "serial n umber". It beg ins
with the le tte rs "DO T" and indicates that the
tire meets all federal standards . The next two
numbers o r letters indicat e the p lant wher e it
was manufactured, and the l ast four numbers
represen t the week and year of manufacture.
For example, the numbers 2212 mean that
the t ire was produced in the 22nd week of
20 12. Th e other numbe rs a re marketing co ­
des that may or may not be used by the t ire
manufacturer. This informa tion is used to con­
tact consume rs if a t ire defect requires a re­
call.
Audi Original tire
T ires with the ident ificat ion "ROl" have been
specia lly matched w ith your Audi. We re com­
mend using only these t ires be ca u se they
meet the highest standards rega rding safety
and dr iving characteristics when used correct ­
l y. Your authorized A udi dealer wi ll gladly pro ­
vide you with more information .
Tire ply composition and materials used
The number of p lies ind icates the n umbe r of
l ayers of rubber-coated fabri c in the t ire. In
general, the greater the number of plies, the more weight a tire can s upport . Tire manufac ­
turers a lso must indic ate the mate rials in the
ll Fo r tires wit h a m ax im um s pee d ca pabil ity over
1 4 9 mp h (24 0 k m/h) , tire m an ufa ctur ers somet ime s
use th e let ters "ZR."
Tire s an d wheel s 235
tire, which incl ude stee l, nylon, po lyester, and
others .
Maximum Load Rating
This number ind icates the max imum load in
kil ograms and po unds that can be ca rr ied by
the tire .
Tire quality grading for treadwear ,
tract ion , and temperature resistance
T read wear, t raction and tempe ra tur e grades
<:!vpage 236 .
Maximum Permissible Inflation Pressure
This number is the greatest amount of a ir
pressure that should ever be put in the tire
u nder norma l dr iv ing cond itions .
.&_ WARNING
-Using incorrect o r unm atc hed tires and/
or wheels or improper tire and wheel
comb inat ions can lead to loss of control ,
collision and serio us personal in jury.
- A lways use t ires, rims and whee l bolts
that meet the specifications of original
factory- insta lled 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 fai l sudden ly, especially at hig h
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
and then w ith special care and at lower
speeds .
- Never mo unt used tir es on your veh icle if
you are not sur e of the ir "previo us histo­
ry ." O ld used tires may have been dam­
a ged even thoug h the damage cannot be
seen tha t can lead to sudden tire f ail u re
and loss of vehicle control.
- All f our whee ls must be fitte d wit h ra dial
tires of the same type, size (rolling cir­
cumference) an d the same tread pattern .
.
Driving with different tires reduces ~
•
•

236 Tire s and whee ls
vehicle handling and can lead to a loss of
control.
- If the replacement tire is not the same as
the tires that are mounted on the vehicle
- for example with winter tires - only use
the replacement t ire for a short period of
t ime and dr ive with extra care . Refit the
normal road wheel as soon as safely pos­
sible.
- Never drive faste r than the maximum
speed for which the tires on your veh icle
are rated because ti res that are driven
faster than their rated speed can fail
sudden ly.
- Overloading t ires cause heat build-up,
sudden tire failure, including a blowo ut
and sudden deflation and loss of control.
- T emperature grades app ly to tires that
are properly inflated and not over or un­
derinflated.
- For technical reasons it is not a lways
possible to use wheels from othe r
vehicles -in some cases not even wheels
from the same vehicle model.
- If you install wheel trim discs on the ve­ hicle whee ls, make sure that the air f low
to the brakes is not blocked . Reduced air­
flow to the brakes can them to overheat, increasing stopping distances and caus­
ing a collision .
- Run flat tires may only be used on
vehicles that were equipped w ith them
at the factory . The vehicle must have a
chassis des igned for run flat t ires and a
factory-installed t ire pressure monitor­
ing system* that indicates a loss of ti re
pressure. Incorrec t use of run flat tires
can lead to vehicle damage or accidents .
Check with an authorized Audi dea ler or
tire spec ialist to see if your vehicle can be
equipped with run flat tires . If run flat
tires are used, they must be installed on
all four wheels. M ixing tire types is not
permitted .
(D Note
-For technica l reasons, it is not genera lly
possible to use the wheel r ims from oth- er vehicles.
This can hold true for wheels
of the same vehicle type.
- If a rep lacement tire is different from
the tires that you have mounted on your
vehicle (for example winter tires or wide profile tires), then use the rep lacement
tire for a short period of time only and dr ive with extra care. Replace the flat tire
w ith the tire match ing the others on your
vehicle as soon as possible.
- Never drive without the valve stem cap .
The valves could get damaged .
® For the sake of the environment
D ispose of o ld tires in accordance with the
local requirements .
Uniform tire quality grading
-Tread wear
- Traction AA A B C
- Tempe rature ABC
Quality grades can be found where applicab le
on the t ire s ide wall between tread shou ld er
and maximum section width c> page 233,
fig. 189 .
For exampl e: Tread wear 200 , Traction AA,
Temperature A.
All passenger car t ires must conform to Feder­
al Safety Requirements in addition to these
grades.
Tread wear
T he tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the t ire when tested
u nder controlled conditions on a specified
government test course .
For example, a tire graded 1S0 would wear
one and one ha lf (11/2) times as well on the
gover nment course as a t ire graded 100 .
The relative performance of tires depends upon the actual conditions of their use, how­
ever, and may depa rt s ignificantly from the
norm due to va ria tions in d riving hab its, serv­
ice practices and differences in road character-
istics and climate.
ll-

Traction
The traction grades, from highest to lowest,
a re AA, A, Band
C. Those grades represent the
tire's ability to stop on wet pavement as
measured under controlled conditions on
specified government test surfaces of asphalt
and concrete . A tire marked C may have poor
traction performance¢ .&..
Temp eratu re
The temperature grades are A (the highest),
B, and
C, representing the tire 's resistance to
the generat ion of heat and its ability to dissi­
pate heat when tested under controlled condi­
tions on a specified indoor laboratory test
wheel.
Sustained high temperature can cause the
material of the tire to degenerate and reduce
tire life, and excessive temperature can lead
to sudden tire failu re ¢ .&. .
The grade C corresponds to a level of perform­
ance which all passenger car tires m ust meet
u nder the Federa l Motor Ve hicle Safety Stand­
ard No. 109. Grades Band A represent higher
l eve ls of pe rformance on the laboratory test
wheel than the m inimum required by law.
_& WARNING
Th e traction grade assigned to this tire is
based on stra ight-ahead b raking t raction
tests, and does not include acceleration,
cornering , hydrop laning or peak traction
character istics.
A WARNING
The temperature grade for this t ire is es ­
tablished for a t ire that is properly inflated
and not overloaded. Excessive speed, un­
derinflation, or excessive loading, either
separate ly or in combination, can cause
heat buildup and possibl e tire fa ilu re.
-
Tire s an d wheel s 237
Winter tires
Winter tires can improve vehicle handling on
snow and ice . At temperatures below 45 °F
(7 °C) we recommend changing to winter
tires.
In some heavy snow areas, local governments
may require true w inter o r "snow" tir es, those
with very deeply cut t read. These tires should
o nl y be used in pairs and be installed o n all
f o ur wheels . Make sure you p urchase snow
ti res that are the same size and cons truc tion
type as the other tires on yo ur vehicle .
You r vehi cle is equipped wi th a ll w heel d rive,
th is w ill imp rove trac tion duri ng win ter driv­
ing, even with the standa rd tires. However, we
strong ly recommend that you always equip all
fo ur wheels on your vehicle with correctly fit­
ted winter tires or a ll-season tires, when win ­
ter road cond itions are expected. This also im­
proves the veh icle's brak ing performance and
reduces stopping d ista nces .
Summer tires provide less grip on ice and
snow.
Winter tires (snow tires) must always be fitted
o n all fo ur whee ls .
As k your au thori zed A udi d ealer or qualified
workshop for permit ted
winter tire size s. Use
o nl y radial winter ti res .
Win ter tires lose their effec tiveness whe n the
tread is worn down to a dep th o f 0.15 7 inch
(4 mm) .
Only d rive w it h w inte r tir es under w inte r con­
di tions. S umme r tir es handle bette r whe n
t h e re is no s now o r ice on the ro ad s an d the
temperature is above 45 ° F (7 °C) .
I f you have a flat t ire, see notes on rep lace­
ment wheel¢
page 233 .
Please always remember that winter tires may
have a lowe r sp eed rating than the tires o rig i­
nally i nstalled on your veh icle at t he time it
was ma nufactu red. Please see ¢
page 234,
Speed ra ting (letter code)
for a lis ting o f th e
speed ra ting lette r codes and the max imum
speed at which the tires can be driven .
111>-
•
•

238 Tire s and whee ls
The speed rating letter code( ¢ page 225) is
on the side wall of the tire¢ page
233.
A WARNING
Winter tires have maximum speed limits
that may be lower than your vehicle's max­
imum speed . Always know the maximum
speed before driving off . Never drive faster
than the speed permitted for your specific
w inter t ires. This will cause damage to the
tires leading to an accident and serious
personal inj ury to you and your passen­
gers.
A WARNING
t"'----
Driving faster than the maximum speed
for which the winter tires on your vehicle
were designed can cause tire fai lure in­
cluding a blowout and sudden deflation,
loss of control, crashes and serious per­
sonal injuries. Have worn or damaged tires
replaced immed iately .
- Winter tires have maximum speed rat ing
that may be lower than your veh icle's
maximum speed .
- Never drive faster than the speed for
w hich the winter or other tires installed
on your vehicle are rated.
A WARNING
Always adjust your d riving to the road and
traffic conditions. Neve r let the good ac­
celeration of the wi nte r t ir es and all whee l
drive temp t you in to taking extr a ris ks. A l­
ways remember :
- Whe n bra king, an a ll whee l drive vehicle
hand les in the same way as a front drive
vehicle.
- Drive caref ully and reduce your speed on
icy and slippery roads, even winter tires
cannot he lp under black ice conditions.
@) For the sake of the environment
Use summe r ti res when weathe r cond i­
tions perm it. They are quieter, do not wea r
as quickly and red uce fue l consumption.
Snow chains
S now cha ins may be fitted only to the front
whee ls, and o nly to certain ti re sizes . Ask your
authorized Aud i dea ler on which tire sizes
snow chains can be used.
T he snow chains must have low-p rofile links
and mus t not be th icker than 0.41 inch
(10.5 mm), in cl ud ing the lock .
Remove whee l center covers and t rim discs
before putt ing snow chains on your veh icle
¢ Q) . For safety reasons cove r caps must then
be fitted over the wheel bo lts. These are avail ­
able from authorized Audi dealers .
_& WARNING
Using the wrong snow chains for your vehi­
cle or insta lling them incorrect ly 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 prov ided by the snow chain
manufacturer .
- When driving with snow cha ins never
drive faster than the speed permitted for
your specific snow chains .
- Always observe local regulations.
(D Note
- Remove snow chains before driving on
roads not covered with snow to avoid
damaging tires and wearing the snow
chains down unnecessa rily.
- Snow chains, which come into direct con­
tact with the whee l rim, can scratch or
damage it . Therefore, make sure that the
snow chains are suitably covered. Check
the pos ition of the snow chains afte r
dr iving a few yards and co rrect if neces­
sary. Follow the instruct ions from the
snow chain man ufactu rer when doing so .
(D Tips
Where snow chains are ma nda tory on cer­
tain roads, th is normally also applies to
vehicles with a ll whee l drive .

Wheel bolts
Wheel bolts must always be tightened to the
correct torque .
The design of wheel bolts is matched to the
factory installed r ims. If differen t rims are fit­
ted, the correct wheel bolts with the right l ength and correctly shaped bolt heads must
be used. This ensures that wheels are fitted
securely and that the brake system functions
correctly .
In certain circumstances, you may not use
wheel bo lts from a different vehicle -eve n if it
i s the same model
¢ page 266.
_&. WARNING
Improperly tig htened or maintained whee l
bolts can become loose ca using loss of
contro l, a co llision and serious persona l in­
jury.
- Always keep the wheel bolts and the threads in the wheel hubs clean so the
whee l bolts can turn easily and be prop­
erly t ightened.
- Never grease or oil the wheel bo lts and
the threads in the wheel hubs. They can become loose wh ile driving if greased or
o iled, even if tightened to the specif ied
torque .
- Only use wheel bolts that belong to the
rim being installed.
- Never use different whee ls bolts on your
vehicle .
-Always maintain the correct tighten ing
torque for the wheel bo lts 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
cl e is moving.
If the tightening torque is
too high, the whee l bolts and threads
can be damaged and the wheel can be­
come loose.
Q;) Note
The spec ified torque fo r the wheel bo lts is
90 ft lbs. (120 Nm) with a tolerance of
± 7,4 ft lbs.(± 10 Nm). Torque wheel bo lts
Tire s an d wheel s 239
diagonally. After changing a wheel, the
torque m ust be checked as soon as possi­
ble with a torque wrench -preferably by an
a uthori zed Audi dea ler or qualified work­
shop.
Low aspect ratio tires
Your Aud i is factory -equ ipped w ith low aspect
ratio tires . These tires have been tho roughly
tested and been se lected specifically fo r your
model for their superb perfo rmance, road fee l
and hand ling under a var iety o f driving cond i­
tions. Ask your authorized Audi dealer for
more details .
T he low aspect ratio of these t ires is ind icated
by a numeral of
55 or l ess in the tire's s ize
designation. The numera l rep resents the ra tio
of the tire's sidewa ll height in relation to its
tread width expressed in percentage . Conven­
tiona l tires have a he ight/w idth ratio of 60 or
more.
T he performance of low-a spe ct- ra tio tire s is
p ar tic ul ar ly se nsi tiv e to i mprop er i nfl ation
pre ssure. It is the refo re important that low
a spect ratio t ires are inflated to the specified
pr ess ure and that th e inflation pr essur e is
r e gula rly ch ecked and maintain ed. Tir e pre s­
s ure s should b e check ed at l east once a
m onth and alwa ys befo re a long trip
¢ page 228, Checking tire pressure.
What you c an do to avo id tire and rim
damage
Low aspect ratio tires can be damaged mo re
easily by impact w ith potholes, curbs, g ull ies
o r ridges on the road, pa rticularly if the tire is
u nderinflated.
In orde r to minimize the occurrence of impact
damage to the tires of your vehicle, we recom ­
mend that you observe the following p reca u­
tions:
- Always ma inta in recommended inflation
pressu res. Check your tire pressure eve ry
2,000 miles (3,000 km) and add air if neces-
sary . .., •
•

24 0 T ire s and wheel s
- Drive carefu lly 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 neares t
authorized Aud i dealer. Replace a damaged
t ire as soon as possible .
- Inspect your t ires 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 failu re. If you be lieve that a
t ire may have been damaged, replace the
t ire as soon as poss ible.
- T hese tires may wea r more quick ly than oth­
ers.
- Please also remember that, whi le these t ires
deliver respons ive handling, they may ride
less comfortably and make mo re no ise than
othe r choices.
Reduced perf ormance in winter /cold
sea son condit ion s
All ti res are des igned for certa in pu rposes.
The low aspect ratio, u ltra high performance
tires originally installed on your vehicle are in­
tended for max imum dry and wet road per­
formance and handling . They are not suitable
for cold, snowy or icy weather condit ions. If
you dr ive under those circumstances, you
should equip your vehicle with all-season or
winter tires, which offer better traction under
those cond it ions . We suggest you use the rec­
ommended snow or all-season tires specified
for your vehicle, or their equ ivalent .
Refe r to
<=> page 23 7 for more deta iled infor­
ma tion regarding w inter tires.
Tire pressure
monitoring system
(l) General notes
App lies to vehicles: with tire pressure monitoring system
Each tire shou ld be checked monthly when
cold and inflated to the inflat ion p ressu re rec- ommended by the vehicle manufacturer on
the ve hicle p lacard or tire inflation press ure
label. (If yo ur vehicle has tires of a d ifferent
s iz e than the si ze indicated on the veh icle
placard or tire inflation pressure label, you
should determine the proper tire inflation pressure for those tires) .
As an added safety feature, your veh icle has
been equipped with a tire pressure monitoring
system (TPMS) that illum inates a low tire
pressure telltale when one or more of you r
tires is significantly under-inflated . Acco rding­
ly, when the low tire pressure telltale illumi­
nates, yo u shou ld stop and check you r tires as
soon as possib le, and inflate them to the
proper pressure . Driving on a signi ficantly un ­
der-inflated tire causes the tire to overheat
and can lead to tire fa ilure. Under-inflation al­
so reduces fuel effic iency and tire tread life,
and may affect the vehicle's handling and
stopp ing ability.
P lease note that the TPMS is not a substitute
for proper tire ma intenance, and it is the driv­
er's responsibility to maintain correct tire
pressure, even if under-inflation has not
r eached the level to tr igger illuminat ion of the
T PMS low tire pressu re tellta le.
Your vehicle has also been equipped with a
TPMS ma lfunction indicator to ind icate when
the system is not operating prope rly. The
T PMS ma lfunction ind icator is comb ined w ith
the low t ire pressure telltale . Whe n the sys­
tem detects a malfunc tion , the telltale will
flash fo r approxima tely one min ute and then
remain continuously i lluminated. This se­
quence wi ll continue upon subsequent vehicle
start-ups as long as the malfunct ion exists .
When the malfunction indicato r is illum inat­
ed , the system may not be ab le to detect or
signal low tire pressure as intended . TPMS
malfunctions may occur for a var iety of rea ­
sons, including the installation of replace­
ment or alternate tires or wheels on the vehi­
cle that prevent the TPMS from functioning
properly . Always check the TPMS malfunction
te lltale after rep lacing one or more tires o r
whee ls on your vehicle to ens ure that the

replacement or alternate tires and wheels a l­
l ow the TPMS to continue to function proper­
l y.
Tire pressure indicator appears
Applies to vehicles: with tire pressure monitoring system
The tire pressure indicator in the instrument
cluster informs you if the tire pressure is too
low or if there is a system malfunction.
F ig. 190 Display: underinflatio n warn ing
Using the ABS sensors , the t ire pressure mon i­
toring system compa res the t ire tread circum­
fe rence and v ibration characteristics of the in­
d iv idual tires. If the pressure decreases in one
or mo re tires, th is is indicated in the instru ­
ment cluster with a
ti] warn ing symbol and a
message ¢
fig. 190. The driver message in the
disp lay goes out after S seconds. The driver
message can be d isplayed again by pressing
the
! S ET ! button. If only one tire is affected,
the display will indicate its pos ition .
T he t ire pressure monitoring system must be
reset via radio or MMI* each t ime the pres­
sures are adjusted (e.g . when sw itching be­
tween partia l and full load pressure) or after
changing o r replacing a t ire on your vehicle
¢
page 242. The TPMS indicator only moni­
tors the tire p ressure that you have prev iously
stored . Yo u ca n find the recommended tire
p ress ures for you r vehi cle on the labe l on dr iv­
er's side B -pi llar ¢
page 226 .
T ire tread c ircumfe rence and vibration c harac­
ter ist ics can ch ange and ca use a ti re pressure
warn ing if:
- the tire pressure in one o r more t ires is too
low,
Tire s an d wheel s 241
- the t ire has struc tural damage,
- t he t ire press ure w as c hanged, wheels ro ta t-
ed or rep laced but the TPMS was not reset
¢ page 242.
Warning symbols
ti] Loss of pressure in at least one tire¢& .
Check the t ire o r tires and rep lace or repa ir if
necessary. The
ti] indi ca to r li ght in the inst ru­
ment cluster a lso illuminates
¢ page 13.
Check/cor rect the press ures of all fo ur tires
and reset TPMS via radio or MMI*.
11il~1 (T ir e Pressure Monitoring System) Tire
pre ssure: Sy stem m alfunction!.
IfllilB appears after switching the ignition
o n or while d rivi ng and the
ti] ind icator l ight
i n the instr ument cluster blinks for app roxi ­
mately one minute and then stays on, there is
a system malfunct ion .
Attempt to sto re the co rrect tire pressu re
¢
page 242. If the ind ic a tor lig ht does not
turn off or i f it turns on sho rtly the rea fter, im ­
med iate ly dr iv e your vehicle to an authorized
A udi dealer or authorized repair faci lity to
have the malfunct ion corrected.
A WARNING
- If the tire pressure ind icator appears in
the instrument cluster display, one or more of your t ires is sign ificant ly unde r­
inflated . Reduce you r speed immediately
a nd avoid any hard steer ing or b rak ing
maneuvers. Stop as soon as possib le and
check the tires and their pressu res . In­
f late the tire pressure to the prope r pres ­
sure as indicated o n the vehicle's tire
pressure labe l
¢page 226. D riving on a
sign ificantly under-inflated tire causes
the t ire to overheat and can lead to tire
fa ilure. Under-inflation also is likely to
impair the vehicle's ha ndling and stop­
ping ab ility .
- The drive r is responsib le for maintaini ng
the co rrect tire pressures . You must
check the tire pressures regu larly. .,..
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