2009 AUDI S8 Owners Manual

_______________________________________________ A_ u_t _o _ m_ a_ t _i_ c_ t_r _a _n _ s_ m __ is_s_ i _o _ n __ !II
T he selector lever must be in Nor P. If one of the driving positions
is engaged a safety switch w ill preven t the eng ine from being
started. See also=>
page 130.
Before you move the selector lever from the P position, you must
a lways apply the brake pedal before and while depressing the
button in the hand le of the se lector lever .
_& WARNING
• Unintended v ehicle movement c an cause serious injury .
- When the selector lever i s in a driving po sition , the vehicle
may creep, even at idle speed . Therefore do not release the
parking brake or foot brake until you are ready to move ,
be cau se power is tran smitted to the wheel s as soon as a
driving po sition i s engaged.
- Do not accelerate while selecting a driving pos ition . At this
time the engine must be at idle speed so that undue stress is
not placed on the clut che s in the t ransmission .
-Remember : - even when stopped briefly with the automatic
transmi ssion in "D" or "R ", engine po wer is being tr ansmitted
to the wheels. Your vehicle could "creep " forward or ba ckward .
When stopped , keep the brake pedal fully depres sed and u se
the parking brake if ne ces sary to keep the vehicle from rolling.
• If the selecto r leve r is unintentionally mo ved into N whi le you
are dr iving, take your foot off the accelerator pedal and wait for
the eng ine to return to idle speed before sele cting a dr iving posi ­
tion .
• Never shift into "R " or "P " when the ve hicle is in motion .
• Never get out of the driver 's seat when the eng ine i s running .
• If you must get out of the vehicle , move the selector lever
s ecurely into the P po sition and apply the park ing brake firmly.
• If the engine must remain running , never have any driving po si­
tion engaged when che cking under the hood . Make sure the
selector lever has securely engaged and is locked in "P" with the
p ark ing br ake firmly set =>
page 301 , "E n gine compart ment ".
Controls and equip ­
ment
& W ARNING (continued )
Otherwise , any in crease in engine speed may set the vehi cle in
motion , even with the parking brake applied. •
Selector lever positions
This section describes the selector lever positi ons and
drivi ng ra nges .
Fig . 18 6 D ispl ay in the
in strument cluste r:
s elec tor lev er in po si­
tion D
The selector leve r posi tion engaged appears next to the selec tor
lever as wel l as in the instrument c luster display . A lso, the current
gear engaged is sh own in positi ons D and S .
P -Park
In this selector leve r pos it ion the transmission is mechanica lly
locked . Engage
P on ly when the vehicle is completely stopped=> &
in "Driving the automatic transm ission" on page 166 .
To shift in or out of position P, you must first press and hold the
brake peda l
and then press the re lease bu tton in t he se lecto r leve r
handle while moving the selector lever to or from
P . You can shift
out of this position only with the ignit ion on.
R -Re ver se
The transmission wi ll au tomatically select the lowest gear ratio
when you shift into reverse .
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Select R only when the vehicle is at a full stop and the engine is
running at idle speed=>
& in "Driving the automatic transmission"
on
page 166.
Before you move the selector lever to R, press both the button in the
handle of the selector lever
and the brake pedal at the same time.
When the ignition is on, the backup lights illuminate when the
selector lever is moved into
R.
N -Neutral
The transmission is in neutral in this position. Shift to this position
for standing with the brakes applied =>
page 168 .
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds below 3 mph (5 km/h),
you must always apply the footbrake before and while moving the
lever out of
N.
D -Normal position for driving forward
Position Dis for normal city and highway driving. It ranges from zero
to top speed and all six gears shift automatically, depending on
engine load, driving speed and automatically selected shift
programs.
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds below 3 mph (5 km/h),
you must always apply the foot brake before and while moving the
lever to
D out of N.
In certain circumstances it may be advantageous to temporarily
switch to the manual shift program to manually select gear ratios to
match specific driving conditions=>
page 170.
S -Sport position
Select this position for sportier performance. In this position, the
transmission will not upshift as soon, allowing the vehicle to use the increased power available at higher engine speeds to achieve live ­
lier acceleration.
When the vehicle is stationary or at speeds below 3 mph (5 km/h),
you must always apply the foot brake before and while moving the lever to
S out of N.
& WARNING
Read and follow all WARNINGS => & in "Driving the automatic
transmission" on
page 166.
0 Note
Coasting downhill with the transmission in N and the engine not
running will result in damage to the automatic transmission and
possibly the catalytic converter. •
Automatic Shift Lock (ASL)
Automatic shift lock prevents you from accidentally
shifting into a forward gear or into reverse, thus causing the vehicle to move unintentionally.
Fig. 187 Shift gate
selector lever lock
positions and interlock
button highl ighted
The selector lever lock is released as follows:
- Turn the ignition on.
Step on the brake pedal.
At the same time press and hold
the lock button on the side of the gear selector knob
=> fig. 187 with your thumb until you have moved the
selector lever to the desired position.
~

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Autom ati c selec to r l eve r lock
The se lector lever is locked in the P and N positions when the igni ­
tion is turned on. To move the lever from these positions the driver
must depress the brake pedal. As a reminder to the driver, the
follow ing warning appears in the instrument cluster disp lay when
the selector is in
P and N:
When stationary app ly foot brake while s electing gear
A time delay e lement prevents the selector lever from locking when
it is moved through the
N position (going from R to Dl. The locking
e lement will lock the selector lever if the lever is left in N (Neutral)
for more than approximately 1 second, without the brake peda l
being pressed.
At speeds above about 3 mph (5 km/h) the Automatic Shift Lock is
automatically deactivated in the
N posi tion .
Interl ock button
The lock button on the selector lever prevents the lever from being
accidentally shifted into certain positions. Pressing this button
deactivates the selector leve r lock. Dependi ng on the direction of
the shift, the selector lever locks at different positions. The positions
are highligh ted in the illus trati on =>
page 168, fig . 187.
Igniti on k ey saf ety in te rlo ck
The key canno t be removed from the ignition un less the selector
lever is in the
P park position. When the ignition key is removed, the
selector lever wil l be l ocked in the
P posi tion .•
Kick -down
T he kick-down feature allows the vehicle to genera te
maximum accelera tion.
When you press the acce lerator pedal beyond the resistance point
that is reached at ful l throttle, the transmission wi ll select a lower
gear ratio based on vehic le speed and engine RPM . The engine RPM
wil l be control led to produce maximum vehic le acceleration as long
Controls and equip ­
ment
as you continue to press the acce lerator pedal beyond this resis ­
t ance poin t.
& WARNING
Be careful when u sing the ki ck -down feature on slippery road s.
Rapid acceleration ma y cause the vehicle to skid . •
Dynamic shift program (DSP)
T he aut omatic tr ans mission is electro nically c ontrolle d.
The transmission is se lf adapting and will automaticall y select the
b est shi ft program su ited to the driving conditio ns and driving style.
The transmission will select one of the
e conomy programs when
you drive at a s teady speed or a g radually changing speed without
heavy acceleration. This achieves optimum fuel efficiency, with ear ly
upshifting and delayed downshifting .
The trans mission will au tomatically select the
sporty shift progra ms
when you drive at higher speeds, or with heavy acce leration and
frequent ly cha nging speeds . Upshifts ar e delayed t o make f ull use
of engine power . Downshifting takes place at higher engine speeds
than in t he ec onomy p rograms .
The selection of the most su itable shift program is a continuous,
automatic process . The driver can a lso make the transmission
sw itch to a sporty progra m by
quickly pressing down the gas peda l.
This causes the transmission to shift down to a lower gear to
achiev e rapid acc elerati on, e.g . fo r q uickly pass ing another vehicle .
You do not need to press the gas pedal into the kick-down range.
After the transm ission has upshifted, the original progra m is
selected according to your driving sty le.
An additiona l shift program allows the automatic transmission to
select the proper gear fo r uph ill and downhi ll gradients.
This prevents the transmission from upshifting and downshifting unnecessa rily o n hills . The transm ission wi ll shift down to a lower _,.
I • •

• ..__A_ u_ t _o_ m_ a_ t_ i_ c _ t_r _a _n_ s_ m_ is_ s_i o _ n ________________________________________________ _
gear when the driver presses the brake pedal on a downhill
gradient. This makes use of the braking effect of the engine without
the need to shift down manually.•
Manual shift program
Using the manual shift program you can manually select
gears.
Fi g. 18 8 Ce nte r
co nso le: s hiftin g the
t ip tr on ic® ma nually
F ig . 18 9 Disp lay:
ma nua l shi ft prog ra m ,
selecte d gear high­
l ig hte d
Swit ching to manual shift program
With the selecto r lever in D, push the lever to the rig ht.
T he d isplay will s how
6 5 4 3 2 1 as soon as the selector
lever is moved. The gear you se lect will also be high­
lighted => fig . 189.
To upshift
Push the selector lever forward to the plus position 0
=> fig. 188.
To downshift
- Push the lever to the minus position Q.
When accelerating, the transmission will automatically shift into
gears 1 , 2, 3, 4 or 5 before the engine reaches its maximum RPM .
If you apply a light throttle when accelerating, tiptronic® will auto ­
matically shift from 1st to 2nd gear to save fuel. If you apply a heavy
throttle, the transmission will stay in 1st gear until near maximum
RPM is reached, or unti l the driver shifts into 2nd gear .
If you take your foot off the accelerator peda l when driving down a
steep incline, tiptronic® will downshift from the selected gear into
the next lower gear until it reaches 1st gear, based on road speed
and engine RPM. Automatic downshifting is interrupted as soon as
you apply the thrott le again .
[ i ] Tips
• When you shi ft into the next lower gear, the transmission will
downshift only when there is no possibi lity of over -revving the
engine.
• When the kickdown comes on, the transmission wil l shift down
to a lower gear, depending on vehicle and eng ine speeds.
• Tiptronic® is inoperative when the transmission is in the fai l-safe
mode. •

Automatic transmi ssio n -
------------------'
Applies to vehi cles : wi th tip troni c-st eerin g wh eel
Steering wheel with tiptronic ®
The shift buttons on the steering wheel allow the driver to
shift gears manually.
F ig . 190 Steering
whee l: S hift butt ons
- To downshift, touch the button on the left Q .
- To upshift , touch the button on t he right G) .
The shift buttons are activated when the selector lever is in D, Sor
in the manual shift program (tip tronic) .
Of course, you can continue to use the manual shift program with
the selector lever on the center console .•
Fail-safe mode
If tiptronic® suffers a malfunction, the fail-safe mode
maintains minimum driveability.
In the event of particular system malfunctions, the automatic trans­
mission switches to the fail -safe mode. This is s ignalled by all the
segments in the display illuminating or going out .
You can continue to move the selector lever to all positions. The manual shift program (tiptronic) is switched off in the fail-safe
mode .
Contro ls and eq uip­
ment
In selector lever positions D and Sand in the manual shift program ,
the transmission remains in 3rd gear if 1st, 2nd or 3rd gear was engaged previous ly. The transmission remains in 5th gear, if 4th, 5th
or 6th gear was engaged previously .
The next time you drive off or start the engine, 3rd gear is engaged .
You can continue to use reverse gear . But the electronic lockout for
reverse gear is turned off .
0 Note
If the transmission switches to fail -safe mode, you should take the
vehicle to an au thori zed Audi dea lership as soon as possib le to have
t he condition corrected .•
Emergency release for selector lever
If the vehicle's power supply fails, the selector lever can
be released in an emergency.
Fig . 19 1 Rem ove th e
as htray i nser t
~
Vehicle care I I Technical data

-Autom
atic tran smi ssi on
..__ ______________ _
Fig. 192 E merge ncy
re lease for sel ecto r
l ever
T he emergency release is located under the insert for the
ashtray.
- Press t he button next to the cigarette lighter=>
page 171,
fig. 191 . The insert rises from its holder and you can
remove it .
Press the white switch down with a pen and hold it down
=> fig . 192.
- Now press the interlock and move the selector lever to
the N position.
The selector lever can only be moved from the P position if the igni­
tion key is in the lock and the ignition is turned on. If the vehicle has
to be pushed or towed if the power supply fails (e.g . battery is
discharged), the selector lever must be moved to the N position
using the emergency locking device. •

Advanced Parking System -
-----------------=----C..----J
Advanced Parking System
Advanced Parking System with rear
view camera
Applies to veh icles : with Advanced Pa rking System with rear view camera
General information
Fig. 193 Trunk lid:
Location of the rear­
view camera
In the case of Advanced Parking System with rear view camera, the
visual display is installed in combination with the front and back acoustic parking assist and the rear-view camera.
The rear -view camera is located in the rear lid~ fig. 193 and assists
the driver when parking in reverse . The picture from the rear-view
camera on the MMI display shows a mirror view of a section of the
area behind the vehicle~
page 177, fig. 199.
[ i J Tips
The visual image or rear-view camera picture is available as soon as
the MMI display or the MMI is switched on or the start -up phase is
completed. •
Contro ls and eq uip­
ment
App lies to vehicles: with Advanced Parking System w ith re ar view came ra
Front and rear acoustic parking assist with
visual display and rear-view camera
The acoustic parking assist gives an acoustic and visual
signal when obstacles are detected, and the rear-view
camera provides further aid when parking .
•
Activation
Fig. 194 Section from
center console: switch
for acoustic parking
assist
Fig . 195 MMI display:
visual display of
distance to a detected
obstacle
When you engage reverse gear, the Audi parking system
is activated automatically, or .,.
Vehicle care I I irechnical data

• .___A_ d_v_ a_ n_c_ e_ d_ P _a_r_k _i_ n -=g,_ S-=y"- s_ t_ e_ m __________________________________________ _
-Press the sw itch PJJJ! in the cente r console ~ page 173,
fig . 194 t o activate the A udi pa rking system m anually .
Activation of the acoustic parking system is confirmed by
a brief acknowledgement sound . The indicator lig ht in
the switch lights up.
D ea ctivation
If you drive forwards faster tha n approx. 6 mph (10 km/h),
or
- if you switch the ign ition off, the entire acoustic parking
assist is automatically deactivated, or
- you can press the sw itch
P111! i n the center console
=> page 173, fig. 194 to deact ivate the Audi parking
system. The indicator light in the switch goes out.
You have to turn on the acoustic parking assist m anuall y if you wish
to park the vehicle forwards or if you w ish to approach an obstacle
forwards and want a distance warning .
The range at which the sensors start to measu re is
about:
Front
Rear
W arning ton es side
cen
te r
side
cen ter 3 ft (0
.90 ml
4ft
(1.20 ml
2 ft (0.60 ml
5 .2 ft (1.60 ml
Distance warning is given by chimes which are generated by a
signal generator . The volume and the pitch of the chimes can be
adjusted in the MMI => page
183.
Mute
In the case of vehic les with automa tic transmission, an acoustic
distance warning is discontinued when the transmission selector l
ever is moved to the P position. However, the system remains
active . As soo n as the selector lever is moved from the
P posi tion
and the vehicle approaches an obstacle, the acoustic distance
warning resumes .
Dri ving fo rward/ba ckvv ard
Distance warning when driving forward/backward is based o n
detection of an obstacle in the range of the parking assist . As the
distance dec reases, the time interval between the audible tones
becomes shorter.
When the distance is less than approx . 1 ft (0.30 m), the tone
becomes continuous. At this point you shou ld s top backing up or
driving forward .
If the distance to an obstac le remains the same, the vo lume of the
distance warning is gradually reduced after about
4 seconds (does
not app ly to the zone for the cont inuous tone). If you sta rt to
approach the detected obstacle again, the distance warning will
sound at the normal volume again .
P a rk ing
When you selec t ano ther gear when parki ng (e .g . reverse/forward),
the warning tones are temporarily suppressed, but the visual display remains on the MMI display . If you start approaching a
detected obstacle again, the distance warning wi ll sound at the
normal vo lume again .
Visual disp lay
T he segments on the MMI display indicate a change in the distance
between the vehicle and an obstacle . The number of segments
displayed depends on the obstacles in front of or behind the
vehic le. The c loser the vehic le comes to the obstacle, the closer the
segments approach the vehic le => page
173 , fig. 195. When the
segment before last is disp layed, the veh icle has reached the colli­
sion zone. At this point you should stop backing up or driving
forward =>
&,. ..,.