Willgatlin25

I would absolutely pull it out and make sure it inflates fully. There should be a max PSI sticker right on there, so keep a tire gauge handy. I could be wrong but I think the mass PSI is only like 50 or something like that, its not much. When you give it a fill let it sit undisturbed for a couple days and make sure the pressure stays the sane, so you don't have any leaks. If its holding good pressure I'd give it a heavy scrub down with some degreaser, even just regular old dawn dishsoap and a scrub brush, just get any dust or grime off of it. Mine was really dusty so I gave it a good clean before I even tried to fill it.
After its totally try I would give it a really good coat of some wipe on tire shine, the thick stuff, not just the cheap spray. ArmorAll makes a really good tire shine gel that you apply with a foam block. Its a lot thicker and has heavier conditioners that get deep into the rubber, vs a lot of the shine in a can spray stuff.
You can spray that on the rim too but it doesn't do anything to prevent rust and corrosion on the metal. For that I would use some good type of wax spray coating for the metal rim, inside and out, just to keep that metal rim in good shape. Once you have everything shined up all clean and good, keep it fully inflated and let the spare sit outside in the sun for the good majority of the day. After baking in the sun wipe down any excess tire shine and wax that's on the rim. Should leave everything nice and clean and the rubber properly conditioned.
When you are ready to put it back in the car I would take the opportunity to clean out your spare tire storage space like I did first. Seems to get pretty dusty under there and its a good time to check for any signs of moisture leaks in that spare tire bay. Wipe the whole thing out with some dishsoap water mixture and let it dry. Spray the whole spare tire bay area with some regular spray and shine car wax and let it dry.
You'll have a nice clean spare tire bay clean of any dirt or contaminates and if you ever need to actually use that spare you'll be certain that your spare is in good working order and you're not dealing with a dusty dirty mess trying to pull the spare out of there
I've gotten a lot of feedback on this spare tire issue, since I'm dealing with a dud right now that wont even hold pressure. As long as you don't have any issues getting the spare back into the storage spot I would try to leave as much air pressure in that tire that you can, keeping in mind that you will have to deflate it enough so it will fit back in there. But I imagine if there is some amount of air left in the tire that it will not only keep the rubber stretched just enough to keep it from sliding sideways on the rim (like mine did) but it will also keep the rubber stretched with just enough pressure to prevent it from cracking at the collapsible points.
Make sure you don't loose the little metal screw cap that goes back on the collapsible tire fill valve, that little screw on tip as a special little point in there that when screwed onto the valve stem lets the tire deflate so you don't have to try and press on the little pin inside the valve stem by hand.
If you want to go the extra mile I was also going to put just a touch of grease or even regular old Vaseline on the plastic threads that you screw the big plastic nut back onto that holds the spare tire bose sub in place. Will definitely help so the threads don't bind up or crack over time and make it a hell of a lot easier to unscrew that big plastic hand tightening nut should you ever need to get that tire out of there for emergency use.
As I'm sure every VW/AUDI owner knows there is far too much cheap plastic used in the manufacturing of these vehicles, over time it seems like every plastic screw, clip, tubes, lines, and other expensive components end up cracking and failing. Absolute best thing you can do is just routinely condition as many of these plastic parts as you can. The fact is that plastic and rubber both harden and fail, but you can prolong the life of a lot of these components by using various plastic and rubber conditioners to buy yourself some time!

As far as the tire pump that's missing from your spare tire bay. It should be in a little gray plastic box that's recessed into the left side of the spare tire bay, there should be a plastic removable trim piece that covers the pump storage box. When you remove that plastic trim piece the little gray box should be inside with the air pump. Its about a 6x6 inch square gray box. If you don't have the factory pump, don't worry about it, just get on amazon and look for a portable emergency tire pump that plugs into your 12volt cigarette port. In my Q7 I have a 12v cigarette lighter style port right inside the rear hatch. Open the hatch and look to the right near the metal tie down anchor bracket, should be right there. You definitely don't need the Audi specific tire pump... It would probably cost you an arm and a leg to order the OEM Audi tire pump where you could probably get the same pump on amazon for $20-$50 bucks.
One thing to note- If you ever do need to use that spare, make sure you inflate it BEFORE you install it on your car. It wont inflate properly if its collapsed and already installed on your vehicle. Also with most of those portable emergency pumps you should never let them run for more than about 5 to 8 minutes at a time or they can overheat and burn out. Whichever one you decide to buy just make sure you give it a break and let it cool down between intervals of filling.
I cant tell you how many people I've had to go out and help because they had one of those emergency pumps and tried to fill a flat tire and they immediately get upset calling their tire pump a piece of junk because it started smoking and burned out, only to find out they turned it on and let it run for half an hour trying to fill the whole tire without giving it a cool down break. What most people don't understand is that those emergency pumps have no tanks like a standard air compressor youd find in a mechanics shop, they have nothing to pump into and store the air. So while those electric pumps are running they are running hard, and at full force they have no way of shutting off and cooling down. Running those things too long you'll just barbecue your emergency pump and then youre SOL!

Audi4Man

Thanks for all the info. I went ahead and ordered a portable emergency tire pump through amazon as you suggested and will run through some of these tests as well. Don't want to be potentially SOL on my way down to Disneyland with a 3 year old and a 4 month old

Willgatlin25

Good idea lol. There’s lots of room in the spare tire bay, you should be able to throw your emergency pump in there somewhere and just leave it if you ever need it. I have my emergency pump and I also have a little emergency battery jump start pack thrown in the spare tire bay too. I think I paid maybe 40 or 50 bucks for my jump start kit, also on amazon. Never needed to use it but it could save my A&& if I do something dumb and kill my own battery lol. I also keep an extra quart of oil back there just because my engine has a few little leaks and the 4.2 engines seem to consume oil more than the others.

Just remember with the emergency pumps to let them cool down. Don’t let them run constantly for more than a few minutes between filling intervals or you will burn the pump out. Easier said than done if you are on the side of the road in pouring rain and you just want to change your tire and get home, but if you fry your only air pump you’re gonna be sitting there a lot longer lol.

For a long road trip especially with the little ones I’d just prepare as best you can. Remember things like phone chargers, basic first aid kit, bottles of water (your glovebox actually doubles as a refrigerator/cooler on the Q7 Premium line if you didn’t know that), and in your case- plenty of diapers and wipes LOL ! The water is of course good for drinking but can be used as an emergency source of engine coolant if for some reason you ran low or sprung a leak.

I always keep a couple folded up plastic trash bags in the back too just because they can be used for more than just holding trash. They work great for bagging up wet clothing (due to kids accidents or if you’re playing in water), they are great as seat covers to protect your upholstery from kids spilling snacks & drinks, and they also work great for making a protected spot to use as a baby changing area.

Best of luck on your trip and enjoy Disneyland!

James Gmail

I cant find it under spare wheel/tyre or tool kit or tyre. Where would it be? I cant find compressor in my A6 and am concerned, as it was second hand that it wasn't there when I bought it.