trailer AUDI S6 2012 User Guide

different weight distribution. Safety, perform ­
ance and economy w ill greatly depend on how
carefu lly you load yo ur trailer and operate
your rig.
B efore you actua lly tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopping and backing up in a n area
away from traffic. Keep practicing until you
have become comp letely fam iliar with the way
your veh icle- trailer comb inat ion behaves and
responds .
Backing up is d ifficu lt and requires practice .
Backing up with a tra iler genera lly requires
steer ing action opposite to that when backing
up your vehicle without a trailer .
M aintain a g reater distance between your ve­
hi cle and the one in front of you. You will need
more room to stop. To compensate for the
trailer, you will need a larger than norma l
turn ing radius.
When passing, remember that yo u cannot ac ­
celerate as fast as you normally would be­
cause of the added load . Make s ure you have
e nough roo m to pass . After passing, allow
p lenty of room fo r your tra ile r befor e chang­
in g la nes aga in.
Avoid jerky sta rts, sharp turns or rapid lane
cha nges.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a tra iler during the break- in
period of you r vehicle.
- If you t ow a trailer, your A udi may re­
quire more frequent maintenance due to
the ext ra load
¢ page 2 78 .
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If i t can­
not be avoided, do so only after doing the fol ­
lowing:
When parking:
.. Apply the foot b rake .
.. Have someone place chocks under both the
vehicle and the trailer wheels.
Trailer towin g 203
.. W ith chocks in place, slowly release t he
brakes unt il the whee l choc ks absorb the
load .
.. Turn the whee ls towards t he curb .
.. App ly the parking brake.
.. Select the
P selector lever position .
When restarting after parking:
.. App ly the foot brake.
.. Sta rt the engine .
.. Select the
D/S selector lever position.
.. Release the park ing brake and s low ly pull
out a nd away from the wheel c hocks .
.. Stop and have someone retr ieve the wheel
chocks .
(D Tips
If you move the selector leve r of the auto­
matic transmission to
P before applying
the p arking bra ke a nd before blo cking the
whee ls, y o u m ay h ave t o use more fo rce
lat er to move the lever out of the
P p osi­
tion .
•
•

your Audi lists the maximum combined weight of all of the occupants and luggage or
other cargo that the vehicle can carry. For the locat ion of the tire pressure label¢
fig. 178.
& WARNING
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve­
hicle control, a crash or other accident, se­
rious personal injury, and even death.
- Carry ing 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 veh icle con­
t rol.
- The bra kes on a veh icle that has been
overloaded may no t be able to stop the
vehicle within a sa fe distance.
- T ires on a vehicle that has been ove rload­
ed can fail suddenly causing loss of con­
tro l and a c rash.
- Always make sure that the tota l load be­
ing t ransported -including the we igh t of
a tra iler hitch and the tongue weight o f a
loaded trailer -does not make the vehi ­
cle heavier than the vehicle's Gross Vehi­
cle Weight Rating.
& 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 fa il­
ure, including a blowout and sudden de­
fla tion, 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 t ire pressures are on the
tire pressure label and in the tab le
Tire s an d wheel s 241
¢ page 239, Cold tire inflation pressure .This
means that the pressure m ust be checked and
adjusted when the t ire has not been dr iven fo r
more than a couple of miles (kilometers) at
low speeds during the previous three hours.
Air in the tires expands when the t ire heats up
as a result of internal frict io n as it flexes in
u se . T he tire pressure is higher when the tire
has warmed up t han whe n it is " cold. "
It is the inflation pressure in a "cold" tire that
counts. Therefore, you should never le t air out
of a wa rm tire to match "Cold t ire inflat io n
pressure" recomme ndat io ns ¢
page 239. Th e
t ir es wo uld then be unde rinflated and co uld
fail suddenly.
T he tir e pressure label on your Audi lists the
recommended co ld tire inflation pressures at
maximum cap acity for the new, or ig inal
equipmen t tires tha t were on your ve hicl e at
the time it was ma nufactured. For the loca ­
tion of the labe l
¢page 239, fig. 178.
Most tires lose air naturally over t ime . They
can a lso lose some air if yo u drive over a pot­
ho le or hit a curb while park ing. 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 press ures at
l east once a month and a lways befo re going
on a long trip. Make s ure to take the number
of peop le 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
¢ page 243, Tires and vehicle
load limits
for more important information .
Always use an accurate tire pressure gauge
when checking and ad justing inflation pres ­
sures . Check all of the tires and be sure not to
forget the spare tire. If the pressure in any t ire
is too h igh when the ti re is "cold," let a ir out
of the t ire s low ly w ith the edge o f 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
driv ing you plan to do. •
•

-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 243
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 sea ting
positions,
2 in the front and 3 in the rear fo r
total seating capacity of
5. Eac h seating posi ­
tion has a safety be lt
c> page 133 , Safety
belts.
The fact that there is an upper limit to yo ur
vehicle's Gross Vehicle We ight Rating means
that the total weig ht of whatever is being car ­
ried in the vehicle (includ ing the weight of a
tra ile r hitch a nd the tongue weight of the
loaded tra ile r) is lim ited . The more passen­
gers in the vehicle or passengers w ho are
heavier than the sta ndard we ights assumed
me an t hat less we igh t ca n be ca rried as lug ­
gage.
T he tire pr essure label on your Audi also lis ts
t h e maximum combined weight of a ll of the
occupants and l uggage or other cargo that
t h e ve hicl e can carry. For the locat ion of the
label
c> page 239, fig . 178.
.&_ WARNING
-=
Overloading a vehicle can cause loss of ve-
h icle cont ro l, a c rash or other accident, se­
rious pe rsonal injury, and even death.
- Ca rrying more we ight tha n your veh icle
was des igned to carry wi ll prevent the
veh icle from handling properly 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 suddenly, including a blowout
a nd sud den defla tion , causing loss of
cont rol and a crash .
li1'-
•
•

244 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 ve­
hicle's placard (tire inflation
pressure label)
¢ page 239,
fig. 178.
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
¢ page 239, fig. 178.
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 246, fig. 182) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.

• Move select or lever to p osition P q ,& .
• If you are towing a trailer, unhitch the trail­
er from your veh icle.
• Take the
jack and the spare t ir e out of the
luggage compartment
q page 257,
q page 257.
A WARNING
You or your passengers cou ld be injured
while changing a whee l if you do not fol­
low these safety precautions:
- If you have a f lat t ire, move a safe dis­
tance off the road. Turn off the eng ine,
turn the emergency f lashers on and use
other warning devices to alert o ther mo­
torists.
- Make su re that passengers wait in a safe
pla ce away from the ve hicle and well
away from the road and traffic.
- T o help preven t the veh icle from mov ing
sudden ly and possibly slipping off the
jack, always fully set the parking brake
and block the whee l diagonally opposite
the wheel being changed . When one
front wheel is lifted off the ground, plac­
ing the Automat ic Transm iss ion in "P"
(Park) will
not prevent the vehicle from
moving.
- Before you change a wheel, be sure the ground is level and fi rm. If necessa ry,
use a sturdy board under the jack.
- After installing the spa re wheel, make
sure that you replace the flat tire/whee l
in its sto rage area properly and tighten
the kn u rled re taining screw securely.
Changing a wheel
When you change a wheel, follow the se­
quence described below step-by-step and in
exa ctly that order .
-
1. Remove the decorati ve wheel cov er* . For
mo re deta ils see also
Q page 260, Deco­
rative wheel covers
o r q page 260,
Wheels with wheel bolt caps.
2 . Loosen the wheel b olts q page 260.
What do I do now? 259
3. Locate the proper mounting point for the
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9 .
jack and align the jack below that point
q page 261.
Raise the car with the jack q page 261.
Remove the wheel with the flat tire and
then insta ll
th e spare c> page 262.
Tighte n all wheel bolts lightly.
Lower the vehicle wi th the jack.
U se the wheel bolt w rench and
firmly
t ighten a ll wheel bolts q page 260 .
Replace the decora tive wheel co ver*.
A WARNING
A lways read and fo llow all WARNINGS and
informat ion¢
& in Raising the vehicle on
page 261
and r::> page 263.
After changing a wheel
A wheel change is not complete without the
doing the following .
• Replace the too ls and the jac k in their prop­
er locat ion .
• The fault whee l wi ll not fit inside the spare
wheel well. Store it in the luggage compart­
ment and secure it so that it does not slide
r::>page 59.
• Check the tire pressure on the spare wheel
immed iate ly after mounting it.
• As soon as possib le, have the
tightening
torqu es
on all wheel bolts c hec ked with a
t o rque wrenc h. The co rrec t tighte ning tor­
que is
90 ft lb (120 Nm).
• Have the flat tire
replaced as soon as possi ­
b le.
(D Tips
- I f you not ice that the wheel bo lts a re
corroded and difficult to turn while
changing a tire, they should be rep laced
before you check the tightening torque.
- Drive at reduced speed until you have the
tightening torques checked. ..,_
•
•

2 78 Consumer Information
Consumer Information
Warranty coverages
You r Audi is covered by the following war­
ranties:
- New Vehicle Limited Warranty
- Limited Warranty Against Corrosion Perfo-
ration
- Emissions Control System Warranty
- Emissions Performance Warranty
- California Emissions Control Warranty (USA
vehicles only)
- California Emissions Performance Warranty
(USA vehicles only)
Detailed information regarding your warran­
ties can be found in your
Warranty & Mainte­
nance booklet .
Operating your vehicle
outside the U.S.A. or
Canada
Government regu lations in the United States
and Canada require that automobiles meet
specific emission regulations and safety
standards. Therefore, veh icles built for the
U.S.A . and Canada differ from vehicles sold in
other countries .
If you p lan to take your vehicle outside the
continental limits of the United States or Can­
ada, there is the possibility that
- unleaded fuels for vehicles with cata lytic
converter may not be available;
- fuel may have a considerably lowe r octane
rating. Improper fuel may cause engine
damage ;
- service may be inadequate due to lack of
proper service facilities, tools or testing
equipment ;
- replacement pa rts may not be readily availa­
ble.
- Navigation systems for vehicles built for the
U.S.A. and Canada will not necessar ily work
in Europe, and may not work in other coun­
tries outside North America .
(D Note
Audi cannot be responsible for mechanical
damage that could result from inadequate
fuel, service or parts availability.
Audi Service Repair Manuals and Literature
Audi Official Factory Service Manuals and Lit­
erature are published as soon as possible after
model introduction. Service manuals and lit­
erature are available to order from the Audi
T echnical Literature Ordering Center at:
www.audi.techliterature.com
Maintenance
General
Your vehicle has been designed to help keep
maintenance requirements to a minimum.
However, a certain amount of regular mainte­
nance is still necessary to assure your vehicle's
s afety, economy and rel iability. For detailed
vehicle maintenance consult your Warranty &
Maintenance booklet.
Under difficult operating conditions, for ex­
ample at extremely low outside temperatures,
i n very dusty regions , when towing a trailer
very frequently, etc., some service work
should be performed between the intervals
specified. This applies particularly to:
- oil changes, and
- cleaning or replacing the air filter .
(® For the sake of the environment
By regularly maintaining your vehicle, you
help make sure that emission standards
are maintained, thus minimizing adverse
effects on the environment.
Important considerations for you and
your vehicle
The increasing use of electronics, sophisticat­
ed fuel injection and emission contro l sys-
tems, and the genera lly increasing technical
liJJ,

286 Index
Homelink ® un iversal remote control .. 281
Remote control key ......... .. .... . 281
DEF
What does this mean when it appea rs in
the trip odometer display? ... .. .... ..
26
Defective light bulb warning ...... ..... 21
Defrosting (windows)
autom atic cl imate control .. .. .. .... ..
6 7
climate control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Determining correct load limit ....... . 244
Dimensions .. ... ... ... .... .. .. .. .. .
275
Dimming the rearview mirror . ... .. .. .. 48
Distance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Door/re ar lid warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
23
Doors
Pow er child safety lock ..... ... .. ... . 37
Driver information system
CD/radio display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
23
Door/rear lid warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Efficiency program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Exterior temperature display ..... .. .. 23
On-board computer ... .... .. .. .... .. 24
Driver seating position .... .. .. .. .. .. .
124
drive select .. .......... ...... ... .. .. 95
Adaptive dampers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Cornering light ............... .. ... . 95
Safety belt tensione r ...... .. .. .. .. . . 95
Driving safely . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
Driving through water ........ .. .... . 198
D .
. t· 24
riving 1me .... ... .... ..... .. .. .. . .
Duplicate key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Dust filter
refer to Pollutant filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
E
Easy entry featu re .......... .. .. .. .. .. 70
Efficiency program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Fuel economy messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Other equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Electrical accessories (sockets) . . . . . . . . . 55
Electro-mechanical power assist .. .. ... 193
Elec tromechanical parking brake
Emergency braking ........... .. .. ..
75
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Parking .. .. .... ......... .. .. .. .. ..
74
Releasing and closing ..... .... .... .. 73 Starting
assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 4
Starting from rest ..................
74
Starting off w ith a trailer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 4
Warning/ind icator lights ........ .... . 16
Electronic differential lock (EDL) ....... 189
Warning/ind icator lights ............. 19
Electronic immob ilizer . . . . . . . . . . . . 26, 31
Electronic power control ( EPC)
warning/indicator ligh t ......... .. .. .
20
Electronic speed limiter .......... ..... 29
Electronic stabilizat ion program (ESP) .. 189
Warning/indicator lights ........... .. 19
Emergency actuation
Doors .... .. .. . .................. .
36
Power sunroof ... .......... ...... .. 40
Emergency braking ................... 75
Emergency flashe r .... ... ... .... .. .. . 42
Warning/indicator lights .......... .. .
22
Emergency release
Selector lever . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
106, 112
Emergency starting .......... ..... .. 268
Emergency towing .............. .... 270
Emergency unlock ing
Rear lid .... ... .. .. ... ........... .. 37
Emergency warn ing triangle ..........
256
Energy management . .. ...... ... .. .. 194
Engine
Compar tment .. .. ............. ....
222
Coolant ...... ... .. .............. . 227
Data .... ... .. .. .. ...... ..... .. .. 276
starting . .. .. .. .. .... ... . .. ... .. .. . 70
Starting with jumper cables ....... .. 268
Stopping .... .. .. .. ... .. .. .... .... . 72
Engine compartment ............... . 222
Closing the hood .... ... .... ..... .. 221
Opening the hood ................ . 220
Safety instructions ................. 220
Working in the engine compartment .. 220
Engine coolant .. .. ..... ........... . 22 7
Adding coolant ... ..... ........... .
228
Checking the engine coo lant level ..... 227
Expansion tank ... ... .......... .. .. 227
Malfunction symbol ............ .. .. . 16
Radiator fan ..... .. ........... .. .. 229
Temperature gauge ............. ... . 11

Tire pressure monitoring system .... .. . 253
Loss of air pressure .......... ... .. . 254
Malfunct ion ..... ....... .... ... .. . 254
Resetting tire pressures .... .. .. .. .. . 255
Tires .. .... .. .. ............. .. .. ... 235
Service life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245
Speed rating letter code ............ 247
T ire manufacturing date ............ 247
Tire specifications ........ .. .. .. .. . 247
Tread depth ............. .... .. ... 245
Uniform tire quality grading .. .. ... .. 249
W inter t ires ..... .. ...... .. .. .. .. . 250
T ires and vehicle load limits ... ... .. .. . 243
Tires and wheels Checking tire pressure ..... .. .. .. .. . 241
Cold tire inflation pressure ....... .. . 239
Dimensions ................. ... ... 246
General notes .................. ... 23S
Glossary of tire and loading terminolo-
gy .. .. ... . .... ............. .. .. . 236
Low aspect ratio tires ...... .. .. .. .. . 252
New tires and wheels ......... .... .. 246
Replacing ............ ...... .... .. 247
Snow chains ............. .... .. ... 251
Tires and vehicle load lim its .. .. .. .. . 243
Wheel bolts ............. .. .. .. .. . 252
Winter tires ................ ... ... 250
Tire serv ice life ............. ... ... .. 245
T ools . .... .. .. ............. .. .. ... 257
Torn or frayed safety belts ..... .. .. .. . 136
T ouch-up paint ............. ... ... .. 208
Towing Tow truck procedures ......... ..... . 270
TPMS Tire pressure monitoring system .. .. . 254
Trailer towing ................ ... ... 201
Operating instructions ..... .. .. .. .. . 201
Technical requirements . . . . . . . . 201, 202
Trailer towing tips ........ .. .. .. .. . 202
Transmission multitronic ........... ...... .... .. 101
tiptronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
T ransmission ma lfunction (indicator
light) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106, 111
Transport Canada .................. . 131
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI) ...... . ... . 245
Inde x 293
Trip odometer ..... .................. 26
What does it mean when DEF appears in
the tr ip odometer display? ........ .. . 26
T runk
refer to Luggage compartment ... .. .. . 59
Trunk escape handle ..... ....... .... . 256
Trunk lid
refer to Rear lid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
T urn signals . .. .. .. .... ........... .. . 43
Warning/indicator lights ............. 22
u
Undercoating ... .. ................. 209
Unfastening safety belts ............. 138
Unidirectional tires ... ............... 235
Uniform tire quality grading .......... 249
Unlocking Power locking switch ........... .... . 35
Remote control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Using the key .. ... ...... ........... 35
V
Valet parking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Vanity mirrors ..... .................. 45
Vehicle-care products .. .. .... ........ 204
Vehicle electrical system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Vehicle identification label .......... .. 274
Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) .. .. 274
Vehicle jack .......... ......... 257,261
Vehicle literature ...... ......... .. .. .. 5
Ventilation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
w
Warning/indicator lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Airbag system . .. .. ............... . 18
Anti-lock braking system (ABS) ... .. .. . 19
Brake system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Cruise control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Electromechanical parking brake ... .. . 16
Electronic power control . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Electronic stabilization program (ESP) . . 19
Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Instrument cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Malfunction Indicator Lamp (MIL) ... .. 20
•
•