2008 AUDI S8 lights

Adaptive Air Suspension c.::i
The c.::i symbol illuminates for a few seconds after you have
switched on the ignition to indicate
redu ced ground clea ranc e when
the dynamic mode is activated and when the ignition is switched on
with a vehicle which was parked in dynamic
mode ~ page 186,
"Chassis Controls" . On vehicles which are equipped with the s port
s u spen sio n
Adapt ive Air Suspension -Spor t*, the check light does
not come on in this instance since ground clearance is general ly
reduced.
This warning/indicator light has the following functions:
• It illuminates for a few seconds after the ignition is turned on as
function check and then goes out .
• If the warning/indicator light flashes in conjunction with the
<::'.p
warning/ indicator l ight, you should not drive the veh icle immedi­
ate ly in order to prevent damage to the underbody . The two
warning/indicator lights flash ing toget her po ints to an extreme Low
level. A very
pronounced lowering of the vehicle (extreme Low level)
can resu lt, for example, from a heavy load. As soon as t he level has
returned to normal, the warning/ind icator lights stop flashing, and
you can drive away .
0 Note
If the warning/indicator light flashes in conjunction with the~
warning/ indicator l ight, you should not drive the veh icle because
low -lying vehicle parts can bottom out as you drive over uneven
ground and be damaged as a resu lt .•
Cruise control
CRUISE (USA models) / pJ' (Canada models)
The warning/indicator light i lluminates when the cruise control is
activated. •
Controls and equip­
ment
Instrum ents and w arnin g/indi cator li ght s
Anti-lock brake system (ABS)
ABS (USA models)
/0 (Canada models)
T his warning/indicator light monit ors the ABS and the
electronic differential lock (EDL).
The warning/indicator light wi ll come on for a few seconds when the
ignition is switched on. The light will go out after an automatic
check sequence is comp leted .
The re is a malf un cti on in the ABS wh en:
• The warn ing/ indicator l ight does not i lluminate w hen you switch
on the ignition .
• The warn ing/indicator light does not go out after a few seco nds.
• The warning/indicator light illuminates while driving.
The ESP indicator light also illuminates if there is a ma lfunction in
the ABS. The message
E S P / AB S fau lt ! See ow ner 's manu al also
appears in the inst rument c luster display and a wa rn ing tone
sounds.
The br ake system will still r espond even without the assis ta nce of
the ABS s ystem. See your authori zed Audi dealer a s soon a s
pos sib le t o re stor e full br aking perf orm an ce.
For more information
regard ing the
ABS ~ page 272 .
The ABS warning l ight and the br ake w arning light come on
to geth er. The AB S will not work and you will notic e a ch ange in
br ak ing re spon se and p erf orm ance .
Mal function in the brak e system
If the brake warning light~ page 22 and the ABS warning i lluminate
together t h ere may be a malfunct ion in t he ABS, and t here may a lso
be a malfunction in the brake system
itself~ .&..
In the event of a malfun ctio n i n th e bra ke syst em the warning/indi ­
cator light
BRAKE (USA mode ls)/ (Ci)) (Canada models) in the instru ment
c luster flashes. By pressing the
I CHECK] button, you can bring up a
driver message wh ich expla ins the ma lfunc tion in more detail.
Please note
~ page 30 . .,_

Instruments and warning/indicator lights
M alfun cti on in the ele ctronic differential lo ck (EDL )
The ED L wor ks t oget her wi th the ABS. T he ABS wa rn ing light w ill
come on if there is a ma lfunction in the ED L
system=> page 269. See
you r au thor ized A ud i dea ler as soon as possible.
& WARNING
• If the ABS (USA models )/0 (Canada models) warning light
doe s not go out , or if it comes on while driving , the ABS system is
not working properly. The vehicle can then be stopped only with
the standard brake s (w ithout ABS ). You will not have the protec ­
tion ABS provides . Contact your Audi dealer as soon as po ssible .
• USA model s: If the BRAKE warning light , the~ warning light and
the ABS warning light come on together , the rear wheels could
lock up first under hard braking . Rear wheel lock -up can cause loss
of vehicle control and an accident . Have your vehicle repaired
immediately by your authorized Audi dealer or a qualified work ­
shop . Drive slowly and avoid sudden , hard brake applications .
• Canada models : If the brake warning light (CD), the f;. warning
light and the ABS warning light
080 come on together, the rear
wheels could lock up first under hard braking. Rear wheel lock -up
can cause loss of vehicle control and an accident . Have your
vehicle repaired immediately by your authorized Audi dealer or a qualified workshop . Drive slowly and avoid sudden, hard brake
appli cations .
•
Electromechanical parking brake
tffiE (USA models) /{®) (Canada models)
T he war nin g/in dic ator l ight mon it ors the ele ctro mech an­
ical park ing brake .
With the parking brake applied and the ignition turned on, the
wa rning/ ind icator lig ht illu min a te s. Afte r the ig nition has been
turned off, the warning/indicator light continues to i llum inate for
abo ut 30 seconds. If the parking bra ke is a pplied with the ignition turned off, the warning/indicator light i
lluminates for about 30
seco nds.
T he warnin g/ind icator lig ht wi ll go out w hen the parking brake is
r elea sed .
I f t he war ning/indic ator l ig ht fl ashes con tinuously
after applying the
par king brake, bra king force is not sufficient to p revent the vehicle
fr om rol ling u nint en tional ly . This ca n happen if the br ak es b eco me
too hot . Please note the fol lowing :
• I f the slope of the g rou nd is too steep to pa rk t he ve hicle, the
addi tiona l dr ive message a ppears
Caution: Vehicle parked too
steep.
• I n the event of a parking brake ma lfunction , the yel low ·~ symbol
appea rs in the inst rument c luster display and the driver message
Parking brake malfunction ! is d isplayed . Have t he m alfu ncti on
r epaired as soon as possib le by a q ualified Audi dealership .•
Brake system BRAKE (USA models) /(©) (Canada
models)
T he warn ing/ind icator I i ght flash es if br ake fluid level is
low, if th ere is an A BS sys tem m alfunc tion or a p arki ng
br ake malf u n ct ion.
Th e li ght illu mi nates w hen t he ignit io n i s tur ned o n. It goes out afte r
the e ngine has been started . T his indicates that the bra ke warning
li ght is fu nct ioni ng prope rly.
If the brake warning light does not light up when the engine is
cranking , there may be a malfunction in the electrical system . In this
case , contact your Audi dealer.
If the brake system warning/indicator light flashes, there is a brake
syste m malfu nct ion . B y press ing th e
I CHECK ] butto n, you ca n brin g
up a driver message which exp lains the ma lfunction in more detail
::::> p~e~ ~

If the ABS, ESP and brake force distribution fail, the ABS indicator
l ig ht ABS (USA
mod els)/ 0 (Cana da mod els) and t he ESP i nd ica tor
light
f;. come on along with the brake system ma lfunction light
BRAKE (USA m ode ls)/ (@ (C an ada model s). The mes sage Brake fault !
Drive carefully to nearest workshop appears in the instrument
cluster d isp lay and three consec utive wa rning tones
sound =>& .
& WARNING
• USA models: If the BRAKE warning light , the $';. warning light and
the ABS warning light come on together , the rear wheels could
lock up first under hard braking . Rear wheel lock-up can cause loss
of vehicle control and an accident . Ha ve your vehicle repaired
immediately by your authorized Audi dealer or a qualified work­
shop. Drive slowly and avoid sudden , hard brake applications.
• Canada model s: If the brake warning light
(CD) , the ~ warning
light and the ABS warning light
8 c ome on together , the rear
wheels could lock up first under hard braking. Rear wheel lock-up
can cau se los s of vehicle control and an accident. Have your
vehicle repaired immediately by your authorized Audi dealer or a qualified workshop. Drive slowly and avoid sudden , hard brake
applications.
• If the brake warning /indicator light does not go out after a few
seconds and the parking brake released , or lights up while you are
driving , the fluid level in the brake fluid reservoir is too low. If you
believe that it is safe to do so , pro ceed immediately at low speed
to the nearest authorized Audi dealer or qualified repair facility and have the brake system inspected .
• Always keep in mind that after several brake applications, you
will need greater pressure on the brake pedal to stop your vehicle.
Do not rely on strained brakes to respond with maximum stopping
power in critical situations . You must allow for increased braking
distances . The extra distance used up by fading brakes could lead
to an a ccident . •
Controls and equip­ ment
Instruments and warning /indicator lights

Driver information display
-Pull off the road.
-Stop the vehicle.
-Turn off the engine .
-Check coolant level ~ page 315.
-Add coolant if necessary~ page 316.
-Continue dr iv ing only after the eng ine coolant
warning/indicator light goes out.
-Contact your authorized Audi dealer for assistance if
necessary .
If the engine coolant le ve l is correct, then the radiato r fan may be
the cause of the malfunction.
I f the generator warning/indicator light should also illuminate
~ page 18, then the fan belt may be damaged.
& WARNING
• If your vehicle should break down for mechanical or other
reasons, park at a safe distance from moving traffic, turn off the
engine and turn on the hazard warning lights
~ page 73, "Emer­
gency flasher
A".
• Never open the hood if you see or hear steam or coolant
escaping from the engine compartment
-you risk being scalded.
Wait until you can no longer see or hear steam or coolant
escaping.
• The engine compartment of any vehicle is a dangerous area.
Before you perform any work in the engine compartment, turn of
the engine and allow it to cool. Follow the warning stickers
~ page 299, "Engine compartment".
0 Note
Do not continue driving if the-~-symbol illuminates. There is a
malfunction in the engine cooling sys tem -you could damage your
engine. •
Engine oil pressure malfunction ~
The red engine oil pressure warning symbol requires
immediate service or repair. Driving with a low -oil -pres ­
sure indication is likely to inflict severe damage to the engine.
If the ~ symbol appears in the display and blinks, the oil
pressure is too low. An additional driver message can also
be displayed by pressing the !CHECK] button:
Switch off engine and check oil level
Immediate actions
-Pull off the road.
-Stop the vehicle.
-Turn off the engine.
-Check the engine oil level with the dipstick ~ page 311.
Dipstick readings checks too low
-Top off oil to the proper level~ page 312.
-Make sure that the oil pressure warning symbol ~
appears no longer in the display before you start driving
again. ~

If the symbol illuminates, contact your authorized Audi dea ler to
have the front brake pads inspected (on that occas ion have the rear
brakes inspected as wel l to be
safe!. •
Checking the engine oil level ~
~-Please c hec k oil le vel
When the symbo l illuminates, check the engine oi l leve l as soon as
possible=> page 311 . Add oil if necessary=> page 312 . •
Engine oil sensor defective ~ ....
~ ... Oil le vel ! sen sor defe cti ve
If the symbo l illuminates, contact your authorized Audi dea ler and
have the oi l sensor inspected . Unt il you have this done, check the o il
level each time you refuel just to be on the safe
side => page 311. •
Fuel supply too low Bil
Bu Please refuel
When the symbol i lluminates, th is means there are abou t 2.4
gallons (9 l itres) of fue l left in the fue l tank . Time to refuel.
=> page 302 .
If the symbo l lights up, even when there is ample fuel in the tank,
and the text
Tan k sys tem m alfunct ion ! Conta ct w ork shop appears
in the disp lay, there is a fault in the system. Contact a qual ified work ­
shop to have the fau lt rectified .•
Windshield washer fluid level too low ~
~ Ple ase top up washer fluid
Controls and equip­ ment
Driver information di splay
If the symbo l illuminates, add windshie ld washer fluid to the washer
system and a lso to the headlig ht washer
sys tem => page 323. •
Battery voltage 0
If the battery 's state o f charge is not in the optimal range, the 0
symbo l is shown in the display and the driver message L ow batter y
charge: b attery will be charged while driving
appears .
Whi le this driver not ification is displayed, you have to be prepared
for limited starting capability .
Drive r m essa ge a ppear s a nd go es out ag ain
If th is d rive r message appears after the ign ition is turned on or
wh ile dr iving and it goes out again after a wh ile, the battery has
been adequately recharged.
Dri ver messa ge ap pears a nd does not g o out ag ain
If t his drive r notif ication appea rs after the ignition is t urned o n or
wh ile driving and does not go out again, the battery's state of
charge is not in the opti mal range. Start ing capab ility is restricted.
Have the battery c hecked at a dea lership as soon as possible. •
Applies to vehi cles : with Advanced Key
Key not in vehicle ..?c
.,J. Key not in vehi cle
This message appears toget her with the ..J. symbol when the
remote control key is removed from the vehicle whi le the engine is
run ning. This is to remind you that you s hould not continue your trip
without your key.
I f the remote control key is no longer i n the vehicle, you w ill not be
able to start the engine aga in after you have switched off the igni ­
tion. In addition to this, you will not be able to lock the vehic le from
the outside. •

Driver inf ormation displ ay
Ap plies to vehi cles : wi th Ad aptive Li ght
Adaptive Light defective ~O
g(J Adaptiv e lig ht def ecti ve
When this symbol go illuminates, it means that Adaptive Light is
defective. Go to an authorized dealership to have the head lights or
the control unit for the Adaptive Light repaired. •
Headlight range control defective {G>
(0 Headli ght range co ntr ol d efe ct ive !
If the symbol illuminates, the dynamic headlight range contro l is no
longer working properly . Have the system checked and repaired at
your Audi dealer.
•
Defective light /rain sensor @)
~o Autom atic he adlight s/aut om ati c wi pers defe ctive
If the symbol il luminates, the light/rain sensor has fai led. For sa fety
reasons the low beams are turned on permanently with the switch
in
AUTO. H owever, you can continue to tur n the lights on and off
using the light switch . If the rain sensor fails, the functions of the
windshield wiper lever wil l stil l work . Contact your authorized Audi
dea ler as soon as possible to have the problem corrected .•
Speed warning system
Overview
The speed warning syste m hel ps you to keep your driving
speed below a set speed limit.
T he speed warning system warns the driver if he exceeds a previ ­
ous ly stored maximum speed . A warn ing tone will sound as soon as
the vehicle speed exceeds the set speed by about 3 mph (3 km/hl. At
the same time, a warning symbol appears in the disp lay.
The speed warn ing system has
two w arning thre shold s that func ­
tion independent ly of each other and that have somewhat d ifferent
purposes :
Speed warning 1 8 {USA mod els l/8 {Canad a m odels)
You can use speed warning 1 to set the maximum speed whi le you
are driving . This setting will remain in effect until you turn off the
ign it ion,
assu ming that you have not changed or reset the setting .
T he speed warning symbol
8 (USA modelsl/ 8 (Canada models) in
t he warn ing 1 disp lay appears when you exceed the maximum
speed . It goes out when the speed falls below the stored maximum
speed.
T he speed warn ing symbol wi ll also go out if the speed
exceeds th e
stored maximum speed by more than about 25 mph ( 40 km/h) for at
l east 10 seconds. However, t his does not reset the stored maximum
speed .
Setting speed warning 1
~ page 37 .
S pe ed wa rning 2
6 {USA m odels l/ 8 {Ca na d a models )
Storing warning 2 is recom mended if you always want to be
reminded of a certain speed, for example when you are traveling in
a co untry that has a general maximum speed l imit, or if you do n ot
want to exceed a specified speed for winter tires.
~

Openin g and clos ing
All the doors and the rear lid are locked by the central locking
system when you lock the vehicle. You can se t whether generally
only the driver's door or all doors and the rear lid should be
unlocked when you open the vehicle in the MM I menu
C entral
l ock ing
to suit your individual desires=> page 52.
Unlocking the veh icle
You can un lock the vehicle from outside ei ther by using the remote
control
or by turning the key inside the driver's door lock. When you
unlo ck your vehic le:
• The anti -theft alarm system is deactivated briefly .
• The vehicle interior l ights illuminate for approximate ly 30
seconds .
• All turn signal lights will flash twice when the car is unlocked.
• Afte r unlocking the vehic le, you have
60 seconds to open a door
or the rear lid . After
60 seconds, th e vehicle automatically locks and
t he anti -theft a lar m system activates agai n.
The rear lid can be locked or unlocked e ither by using the remote
control
or by turning the key inside the driver 's door lock. Unlocking
the vehic le wit h the remote contro l will on ly
unlock the rear lid, to
open it , the lid handle needs to be pressed.
Lo ckin g the vehicle
Yo u can lock the vehicle from outside either by using the remote
control
or by turning the key inside the dr ivers's door lock . When
you
lo ck the veh ic le:
• All doors and the rear lid are locked.
• All turn signal lights will flash once when the car is locked .
• The anti-theft alarm system is activated. The horn of the anti ­
theft alarm system will sound and the anti -theft a larm system readi ­
ness l ight, located in the upper part o f the driver's door panel, w ill
start to blink .
• The vehicle interior l ights turn off.
Unlo cking and l ocking th e vehicle using the Ad vanced
Key *
The Ad van ced Key * feature is a keyless system which allows you to
unlock the vehicle via sensors in the door hand le . Locking is likewise
keyless using a lock button . Each door is equ ipped w ith a sensor and
lock button.
Power side door closer*
The veh icle is equipped with a power side doo r c lose r. When closing
a door, you s imp ly need to gently push on the door . The door w ill
t hen automa tically c lose by
itse lf => page 53 .
Autom atic l ockin g
The automatic lock ing fea ture locks all the vehicle doors and the
rear lid when you drive faster than
9 mph ( 1 5 km/hl. This funct ion
can be turned on and off in the MMI
Central locking Menu
=> page 52 .
You can unlock the vehicle from the inside by :
• r emovi ng the key from the ignition switc h (the vehicle wi ll auto ­
matically un lock itse lf) or
• pressing the unlock part of the power lock swi tch
m or
pulling the door handle (once to open the door) .
& WARNING
• When you lock your veh icle from out sid e, nobody -espe cially
children - should remain in side the vehicle. Remember , when you
l oc k the vehicle from the out side the windo ws ca nnot be opened
from the inside .
• When you leave the vehi cle , alwa ys remove the ignition key and
take it with you. Thi s will prevent passengers (children , for
e x ample) from ac cidentally being l ocked in the vehi cle should they
ac cidentally pre ss the power locking switch in the doors .
~

fl::. WARNING (c o ntinue d)
• Do not le av e children in side th e vehicle un supervis ed. In an
emergen cy it would be i mpo ssi ble to op en the do ors fr om th e
out side without the ke y.
[ i J Tips
• In the event of a crash with airbag deployment all locked doors
will be automat ically unlocked to give access to the vehicle occu ­
pants from the outside.
• If the power locking system should malfunction , you can lock
each door individually using the vehicle
key => page 54.
• If the power locking system shou ld fail, you can still open the
fue l tank flap in an
emergency => page 305.
• You are we ll advised not to keep valuables inside an unattended
vehic le, visible or not. Even a properly locked vehic le cannot provide
the security of a safe .•
Unlocking and locking the vehicle with the
remote control
How the remote control works.
Contro ls a nd eq uip­
ment
Fig . 33 Remote
co ntr ol: fu nction
bu tto ns
Op ening and clo sing
Whether only the driver's door or the entire vehicle is
unlocked when the ope ning button © is pressed once,
depends on the settings in the MMI
Central locking menu
~ page 52.
To unlo ck the vehi cle 0
-Press button @ .
-Press button © two times within two seconds to unlock
all doors and the rear lid.
To lock th e vehi cle 6
-Press button @ ~ & i n "Gene ral descrip tion" on
page 49.
-Wa tch that all turn signal lights flash once.
To unlo ck rear lid only ,;;::::J
-Press button @ for approx imate ly one second.
PANIC Button
-P ush the red butto n@ to ac tivate the panic f unction. The
horn sounds and the t urn signals flash .
-Push the button @ aga in to deactivate the panic func ­
t ion.
On vehicles equipped with the Advanced Key * features, the selector
lever must be in the P position, otherwise the vehicle will not lock .
& WARNING
Read and follo w all WARNINGS => & in "General de scription " on
page 49 . .,,_
Vehicle care I I irechnical data