2011 AUDI R8 SPYDER weight

124 Airbag sys te m
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the a irbag as poss ible, before insta lling
the forward-facing child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upr ight
posit io n.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime w henever the ignition is switched
on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The fron t passenger sea t in your vehicle h as a
lot of very important par ts of the Advanced
Airbag System in it. These parts include t he
weight -sensing mat, sensors, wiring, brack­
ets, and more. The function of the system in
the front passenger seat is checked by the
e lectronic control u nit when the ignit ion is on.
The control unit mon itors the Advanced Air­
bag System and turns the airbag indicator
l ight on when a ma lfunction in t he system
components is detected. The func tion of the
a ir bag ind icator light is described in greater
detai l be low . Because the fro nt passenger
seat contains important parts of the Ad­
vanced A irbag System, you m ust take care to
prevent it from be ing damaged. Damage to
the seat may prevent the Advanced Airbag for
the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a crash .
The front Advanced Airb ag System
consists of the following:
- Crash sensors in the front of the veh icle that
measure veh icle acceleration/decele ration
to provide information to the Advanced Air­
bag System abou t the seve rity of the crash.
- An e lectron ic co ntrol unit, with integ rated
c rash sensors for front and side impacts .
T he cont rol unit "dec ides " w het her to fire
the front airbags based on the information
received from the crash senso rs . The contro l
unit a lso "decides" whethe r the safety be lt
pretensioners should be activated . -
An Advanced Ai rbag w ith gas generator for
the driver inside the steering w heel hub.
- An Advanced A irbag w ith gas gene rato r in­
side the inst rument panel for the front pas­
senger.
- A we ight -sensing mat unde r th e upho lstery
pa dding of the front passenger seat cushion
that measures the total weight on the seat .
The informat ion registered is sent continu­
ously to the electronic control unit to regu­ late deployment of the front Advanced Air­
bag on the passenger side .
- An airbag monitoring sys tem and indicator
light in t he instrument cluster
c:> page 128 .
-The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on in the center of the instru­
ment panel
c::> page 128, fig. 125 and tells
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the passe nger side has been tu rned off.
- A sensor below the safety be lt latch fo r the
front seat passenger to measure the t ension
on t he safety be lt. T he tension o n the safety
be lt a nd the weight regis tered by the
weigh t-sensing mat he lp the cont rol uni t
"decide" whether the front airbag for the
front passenger seat should be turned off or
not
c:> page 119, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
-A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driv­ er and for the front seat passenger that
senses whether t hat safety belt is latched or
not and transmits this information to the
electronic control un it .
_&. WARNING
D amage to the fron t passenger seat can
p revent t he fro nt airbag from wor king
proper ly.
- I mp roper repai r or d isassembly of the
front passenge r and dr ive r sea t w ill pre­
vent the Advanced Air bag System from
functioning p roperly.
- Repairs to the front passenge r seat m ust
be pe rformed by qualifie d and p roperly
trained workshop person nel.
- Never remove the front passenger o r
d river seat from t he vehicle .
-

-Never remove the upholstery from the
front passenger seat.
- Never disassemble or remove parts from
the seat or disconnect wires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or place them on the seat. If the weight­
sensing mat in the passenger seat is
punctured it cannot work properly.
- Never carry things on your lap or carry
objects on the passenger seat. Such
items can increase the weight registered
by the weight-sensing mat and send the
wrong information to the airbag control
unit.
- Never store items under the front pas­
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Air­
bag System under the passenger seat
could be damaged, preventing them and
the airbag system from working proper­ ly.
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholstery that have not been specifical­
ly approved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from recognizing child re­
straints or occupants on the front pas­
senger seat and prevent the side airbag in the seat backrest from deploying prop­
erly.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger
seat. The additional padding will prevent
the weight-sensing mat in the seat from
accurately registering the child restraint
or person on the seat and prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from function­ ing properly.
- If you must use a child restraint on the
front passenger seat and the child re­
straint manufacturer 's instructions re­
quire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something else to properly position the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the child re­
straint is installed on the front passen­
ger seat .
Airbag system 125
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, the inflat­
ing airbag will hit the child safety seat or
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child safety seat and child
against the backrest, door or roof. Have
the airbag system inspected immediately by your authorized Audi dealer .
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the
side airbags supplement the protection of­
fered by the front three-point safety belts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head restraints to help reduce the
risk of injury in a wide range of accident and
crash situations. Be sure to read the impor­
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adv a need Airbag System
and the activation of the safety belt preten­
sioners depend on the deceleration measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
electronic control unit. Crash severity depends
on speed and deceleration as well as the mass
and stiffness of the vehicle or object involved in the crash.
When the electronic control unit registers a
low severity crash and the safety belt is being
used, the airbag will not deploy. If the safety
belt is not being used, the first stage deploys,
followed by the second stage after a much lat­ er time in the crash sequence.
If the electronic control unit registers a crash
of medium severity, the first stage of the air­
bag deploys followed by the second stage at a
much later time in the crash sequence - re­
gardless of whether the safety belt is being
used or not . In higher severity crashes as reg­
istered by the electronic control unit, both the
first and second stages deploy almost at the
same time .
On the passenger side, regardless of safety
belt use, the airbag will be turned off if the
weight on the passenger seat is less than the
IJII,-
•
•

126 Airbag system
amount programmed in the electronic control
unit. The front airbag on the passenger side
will also be turned off if one of the child safe­
ty seats that has been certified under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been
recognized on the seat . The
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on to tell
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the
passenger side has been turned off
q page 119, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know .
8_ WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You will also receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against
the airbag or too close to it when it in­
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag
qpage 117.
More important things to know about
front airbags
Fig. 124 Inflated front airbags
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated position
so that airbags can deploy properly and pro­
vide supplemental protection in a frontal col ­
lision .
The front airbags are designed to provide ad­ ditional protection for the chest and face of
the driver and the front seat passenger when :
- safety belts are worn properly, -
the seats have been positioned so that the
occupant is properly seated as far as possi­
ble from the airbag,
- and the head restraints have been properly
adjusted.
Because airbags inflate in the blink of an eye
with great force, things you have on your lap
or have placed on the seat could become dan­
gerous projectiles, and be pushed into you if
the airbag inflates.
When an airbag deploys, fine dust is re leased.
This is norma l and is not caused by a fire in
the vehicle . This dust is made up mostly of a
powder used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy. It could irritate skin.
It is important to remember that while the
supplemental airbag system is designed to re­
duce the likelihood of serious injuries, other
injuries, for example swelling, bruising and
minor abrasions, can also happen when air­
bags inflate . Airbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body. Front airbags
supplement the three point safety belts only
i n some frontal collisions in which the vehicle
deceleration is high enough to deploy the air­
bags.
Front airbags will not deploy:
-if the ignition is switched off when a crash
occurs,
- in side collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollovers,
- when the crash deceleration measured by
the airbag system is less than the minimum
threshold needed for airbag deployment as
registered by the electronic control unit .
The front passenger airbag also will not
deploy:
- when the front passenger seat is not occu­
pied,
- when the weight on the front passenger
seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem indicates that the front airbag on the passenger side has to be turned off by the ..,.

128 Airbag system
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag
System
I Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advanced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indicator light and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG
OFF light.
The Advanced Airbag System (includ ing the
electronic control unit, sensor circuits and sys­
tem wiring) is monitored continuously to
make sure that it is functioning properly
whenever the ignit ion is on. Each time you
turn on the ignition, the airbag monitoring in­
dicator light
I will come on for a few seconds
(self diagnostics) .
The system must be inspected when the
indicator light
I :
- does not come on when the ignit ion is
switched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have switched on the ignition, or
- comes on while driving.
If an airbag system malfunction is detected,
the indicator light will first start flashing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to serve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately.
If a malfunction occurs that turns the front
a ir bag on the passenger side off, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG
OFF light will come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on.
_& WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash.
-If the airbag indicator light comes on, it
means that there may be something
wrong with the Advanced Airbag System.
It is possible that the airbag will inflate
when it is not supposed to, or will not in­
flate when it should.
-
- Have the airbag system inspected imme­
diately by your authorized Audi dea ler.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fig. 125 Sect ion from the instrument panel: PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG O FF light
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located
in the center of the instrument panel
<=> fig . 125.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come
on and stay on to tell you when the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenger s ide has been
turned off by the electron ic control unit. Each
t ime you turn on the ignition, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG
OFF light will flash for a few
seconds and:
- w ill stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small child or child
restraint on the front passenger seat,
- will go out if the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing mat.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the front
seat, or
- a rearward-facing child restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward-facing chi ld restraint has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
- the weight reg istered on the front passen­
ger seat is equal to or less than the com­
bined weight of a typical 1 year-o ld restrain­
ed in one of the rear-facing or forward-fac-
ing infant restraints listed in Federal Motor ..,.

Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which the
Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was
certified.
I f the front passenger seat is not occ upied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PA S­
SENGER A IR BAG OF F
light will stay on. Nev­
er insta ll a rearward-fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat
c:> page 119, Child
restraints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and c:> page 138, Child Safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light c om es
on
when one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PA SS ENG ER AIR BAG
OFF
light stays on cont inuously whenever the
ign it ion is on. If the
PA SSENGER AIR BA G
OFF
l ight does not appear on and stay on a ll
the t ime, stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off and then tu rning it on again;
- remove and reinstall the chi ld restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
insta lled and that the safety be lt fo r the
front passenger seat has been correct ly
ro uted through the child restraint as descri­
bed in the chi ld restraint man ufacturer's in ­
structions;
- make su re that the convertible locking fea­
ture on the safety be lt for the front passen ­
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight. The belt must not be loose or have loops of slack so
t h at the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the seat can do its job
c:> page 146;
- make sure that th ings that may increase the
weight of the ch ild and child safety seat are
not being transported on the front passen­
ger seat;
- make sure that the safety belt tension sen­
sor is not b locked. Shake the safety belt
latch on the front passenge r seatbac k and
forth;
- If a st rap or tether is being used to tie the
c hild safety seat to t he fro nt passenger
seat, make s ure t hat i t is no t so tight that it
A irbag system 129
causes the weight -sensing mat to measure
more weight than is act ually on the seat.
If th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF li ght s till
d oes not come on
and does not stay on con ­
tin uous ly (when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child rest ra int off the front passen-
ge r seat and have the a irb ag sys tem inspect ­
ed by yo ur authorized Aud i dealer. Do not
transport children witho ut a c hil d safety
seat.
T he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht sho uld
NOT come on when the ignit ion is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat . If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or
flashes for about 5 seconds wh ile driving, un­
der these c ircumstances, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is
properly seated on the center of the seat
cushion with his or her back up aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is not recl ined
c:> page 100, Proper occupant seating posi­
tions,
- the adult is not tak ing weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or support­
ing their weight on the armrest,
- the safety belt is be ing properly worn and
that there is not a lot of s lack in the safety
be lt webbing,
- accesso ry seat covers or cushions or other
things that may cause an inco rrect reading
or impression on the weight-sensing mat
under t he upho ls tery of the sea t have been
removed from the front passenger sea t,
- a safety belt extender has not been left in
the sa fe ty belt latch for the fron t passenger
seat.
In add ition to the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
l igh t in the center of the instrument panel,
the message
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF or
PASSENGER AIR BAG ON w ill briefly appear
i n the instrument cluster disp lay. This is to in­
form the dr iver of the current front passenger
airbag status.
•
•

130 Airbag sys te m
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning
properly ca nnot provide supp lemental pro ­
tect ion in a frontal crash .
- If the airbag indicator light comes on, it
means that there may be someth ing
wrong with the Advanced A irbag System .
It is possible that the airbag will inflate
when it is not s upposed to, or w ill not in­
flate when i t should.
- Have the airbag system i nspected imme ­
diately by your author ized Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a ch ild witho ut
a child restra int, or in a rearwa rd-fac ing
child sa fety seat, or in a forward- facing
child restraint that has not been prope rly
installed will be serious ly injured and can
be killed.
- Even though your ve hicle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that a ll children, especially 12
years and younger, a lways ride proper ly
restrained for their age and s ize .
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenge r seat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on. If the PAS ·
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not
come on and stay, on the inflating airbag
wi ll hit the child safety seat or infant car­
rier with great fo rce and will smash the
child safety seat and child against the
backrest, door or roof. Have the airbag
system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer .
-A tight tether or other st rap on a rear­
ward-facing child restra int attached to
the front passenger seat can put too much pressure on t he weight-sens ing
mat in the seat and register mo re weight
than is actually on the seat. The heavier
we ight registe red can make the system
-
wo rk as though an adult we re on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
must be suppressed, causing serious or
even fata l injury to the ch ild .
- If, i n exceptiona l circumstances, you
must install a forward-fac ing c hild re·
straint on the front passenger seat, al ­
ways move the seat i nto its rearmost po­
sition in the seat's fore and aft adjust­
ment range, as fa r away from the a irbag
a s poss ible. The b ackrest mus t be ad just­
e d t o an upright pos ition . Make s ure that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when ­
ever the ignit ion is switched on.
A WARNING
=
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out when an adult is sitt ing
on the front passenger seat after taking
the steps described above, have the ai r­
bag system inspected by yo ur autho rized
Aud i deale r before t ransporti ng anyone
on the front passenger sea t.
(D Tips
If the weight -sensing mat in t he front pas ­
senger seat de tects an empty seat, the
front ai rbag on the passe nger side wi ll be
t urned off, and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
w ill stay on.
-
Care, service and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system are installed at
many different places o n your Audi . Insta lling,
removing, se rv icing or repa ir ing a pa rt in an
area of the veh icle can damage a part of an
airbag sys tem a nd prevent that sys tem from
working properly in a coll is ion .
T here are some important things you have to
know to make sure that t he effec tiveness of
the system w ill not be impaired and tha t dis­
carded components do not cause injury or pol -
l u te the environment . ..,.

138 Child Safety
Child Safety
Important things to know
Introduction
The physical princip les of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash app ly also to children
¢ page 112. But unlike adu lts and teenagers,
their muscles and bones are not fully devel­
oped. In many respects children are at greater risk of serious injury in crashes than adults.
Because children 's bod ies are not fully deve l­
oped, they require restraint systems especial­ ly designed for their s ize, weight, and body
structure . Many countries and all states of the
United States and provinces of Canada have
l aws requ iring the use of approved ch ild re­
straint systems fo r infants and small child ren.
In a frontal crash at a speed of 20-35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infant w ill be more than 20 times the
weight of the child. Thi s means the weight of
the child would s uddenly be more than
260 pounds (120 kg) . Under these conditions,
only an appropriate chi ld restraint properly
used can reduce the risk of serious injury.
Child restraints, like adult safety belts, must
be used properly to be effective. Used improp­
erly, they can increase the risk of ser ious in­
jury in an accident.
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's instructions in order to be sure the seat is
right for your ch ild's s ize
c> page 141 , Impor­
tant safety instructions for using child safety
seats .
Please be sure to read and heed all of
the impo rtant informat io n and WARNINGS
about child safety, Advanced A irbags, and the
installation of child restraints in this chapter.
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced A irbags in your vehicle and how they
wo rk when infants and children in chi ld re­
straints are on the front passenger seat. Be­
cause o f the large amount of important info r­
mation, we cannot repeat it all here. We urge
you to read the detailed information in this owner's manual about airbags and the Ad
­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the
very important information about transport ­
ing children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS - they
are extremely important for your safety and
the safety of your passengers, especially in­
fants and small children.
.&, WARNING
-
A ll vehicle occupants and especially chi l­
dren must be restrained properly whenev­
er riding in a vehicle. An unrestrained or
improperly restrained child could be in­
jur ed by str ik ing the interior or by being
ejected from the vehicle dur ing a sudden
maneuver or impact. An unrestra ined or
i mproperly restra ined child is also at great­
er risk of injury or death through contact
with an inflat ing airbag.
.&, WARNING
--Children on the front seat of any car even
with Advanced Airbags can be seriously in­
jured or even killed when an airbag in­
flates. A child in a rearward-fac ing child
safety seat installed on the front passen­
ger seat will be seriously injured and can
be killed if the front airbag inflates .
- The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child aga inst the backrest, door or
roof.
- Never install a rearward facing child safety seat on the front passenger seat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on . If the PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
l ight does not
come on and stay on, the inflating airbag
will hit the child safety seat or infant car­
rier w ith great force and will smash the
child safety seat and child against the backrest, door or roof. Have the airbag
system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer.

A WARNING ,~
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
-Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be
adjusted to an upright position.
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re­
quirements for 3- and 6- year-old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the
driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates. In addition, the system has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn
off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front
passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard.
Child Safety 139
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, a child should al­
ways ride in the seat properly restrained for
its age and si ze. The airbag on the passenger
side makes the front seat a potentially dan­
gerous place for a child to ride . The front seat
is not the safest place for a child in a forward­
facing child safety seat . It can be a very dan­
gerous place for an infant or a larger child in a
rearward-facing seat.
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight -sensing mat in the seat cush­
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight -sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger
seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the
seat. The weight of a child restraint and its
"footprint" vary for different kinds of child re­
straints and for the different models of the
same kind of child restraint offered by child
restraint manufacturers .
The weight ranges for the individual types,
makes and models of child restraints that the
NHTSA has specified in the Safety Standard
together with the weight ranges of typical in­
fants and typical 1 year-old child have been
stored in the control unit of the Advanced Air­
bag System. When a child restraint is being
used on the front passenger seat with a typi­
cal 1 year-old child, the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem compares the weight measured by the
weight sensing mat with the information stor­
ed in the electronic control unit.
The electronic control unit also registers the
tension on the front passenger safety belt. ..,. •
•