2011 AUDI R8 SPYDER warning light

120 Airbag sys te m
cr ashes that take place a t lower decelerations
as defined in the electronic control u nit
c:::> page 12 8, PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light.
A lways remember, a chi ld safety seat or infant
carrier insta lled on the front seat may be
struck and knocked o ut of position by the rap­
id ly inf lating passenger's a irbag in a frontal
coll is ion. The airbag cou ld greatly reduce the
effectiveness of the child restraint and even
seriously injure the child during inflat ion .
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety
seat insta lled on the front passenger seat
w ill be seriously injured and can be k illed if
t he front a irbag infla tes -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- T he inflating a irbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant car rier wit h great
f orce and w ill smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against 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
light does not
come o n and stay on the inflating airbag
wi ll hit the child safe ty seat or infant car­
rie r with great fo rce and will smash the
c hild safety seat and child against the
backres t, door or roo f. Have the airbag
system inspe cted immedia tely by your
authorized Audi dealer.
- F orward-fac ing ch ild safety sea ts instal­
led on the front passenger 's seat may in ­
terfere with the deployment of the air­
bag and cause serious personal injury to
the ch ild.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional c ircumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restra int on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-fac ing
seat has been des igned and certified by its manufacturer fo
r use on a front seat
wit h a passenger front and s ide a irbag.
- Never put t he fo rward-facing child re­
straint up against or very near the instru­
ment panel.
- Always move the passenge r seat into its
rearmost pos ition in the seat's fore and
aft ad justment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the forward-fac ing ch ild restra int. The
backrest must be ad justed to an up right
position .
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the
time wheneve r the ig nit ion is switched
on.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serio us inju ry, ma ke
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light wi ll be displayed whenever a child re­
straint is insta lled on the front passenger
seat and the ignition is sw itched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not stay on, per form the checks de­
scribed
c:::> page 128 , Monitoring the Ad ­
vanced Airbag System.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
un less t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
lig ht comes on and stays on. If the PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not
come on and stay on, the inf lating ai rbag
will hit the child safety seat or in fant car­
rier w ith great force and w ill sm ash the
child safety seat and child against the
backrest, door or roof. Have the a irbag
system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer.
- Always carefu lly follow instr uctions from
child restraint manufacturers when in­
stalling ch ild restra ints .
A WARNING
-If, in except iona l circumstances, you m ust
in stall a forward or rearward-facing child
restra int on the front passenger 's seat : "'

but less than the weight of a small adult, the
front airbag on the passenger side may deploy (the
PASSENG ER AIR BAG OF F light does not
come on).
For example, the a irb ag may depl oy if:
- a small child that is heavier than a typical 1
year-o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regardless of whether the child is in one of
the chi ld safety seats listed
¢ page 140),
-a ch ild who has outgrown child rest raints is
on the front passenger seat.
I f the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the center
of the inst rument panel w il l come on and stay
on.
The front a irbag on the passenger side may
not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not illuminate and stay lit) if:
- a small adult or teenager is on the front pas­
senger seat
- a passenger who is not sitt ing upr ight w ith
their back against a non-reclined backrest
with their feet on the veh icle floo r in front
of the sea t is on the front passenge r seat.
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the
Federal Standard requires the airbag to meet
the " low risk " deployment criteria to help re­
duce the risk of inj ury through interaction
with the airbag . "Low risk" deployment occurs
in those crashes that take place at lower de­
celerations as defined in the electronic control un it
¢ page 128.
Please be sure to read the important informa­
tion in the sections that fo llow and be sure to
heed a ll of the WARNINGS.
_& WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inf lates, a lways 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 w ill also receive serio us injuries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in-
A irbag system 123
flates - even with an Advanced Ai rbag
¢page 117.
_& WARNING
A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild safety
seat installed on the front passenger seat
will be ser ious ly injured and can be killed if
the front airbag inflates - even with an Ad­
vanced A irbag System .
-Although the Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle is designed to turn
off the
front airbag when a rearward-facing child restraint has been instal led on the
front passenger seat, nobody can abso­ lutely guarantee that dep loymen t is im ­
possible in all conceivable situations that
may happen during the usefu l life of your
veh icle.
- The inflating 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.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
un less the
PA SSENGER 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 a irbag
will hit the child safety seat or infant car­ rier w ith great force and w ill smash the
child safety seat and child against the
backrest, door or roof. Have the a irbag
system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer.
_& WARNING
If, in except iona l 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 fo r use on a front seat
with a passenger front and s ide a irbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child re­
straint up against or ve ry near the instru-
ment panel.
~
•
•

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 ..,.

electronic control unit (the PA SS ENGE R AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on).
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase
the risk of serious injury in crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the air­
bags inflate, the driver and passengers
must always sit in an upright posit ion,
must not lean against or place any part
of the ir body too close to the area where
the a irbags are located .
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posi ­
t ion or too close to the airbag can be se­
riously injured by an airbag as it unfolds
with great force in the blin k of an eye
¢ page 119.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety
seat insta lled on the front passenger seat
wi ll be seriously injured and can be k illed if
the front ai rbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
-
-The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier w ith great
force and w ill smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
armrest , door or roof.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
unless the
PASSENGER A IR 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
will hit the child safety seat o r infant car­
rier wi th 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 .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the a irbag will
increase the risk of in ju ry in a c rash by in­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds
A irbag system 127
or by be ing p ushed into you as the airbag
inflates.
- Never hold things in you r hands o r on
your lap when the veh icle is in use.
- Never transport items on or in the area
of the front passenger seat . Objects
could move into the area of the front air­
bags during braking or other sudden ma­
neuvers and become dangerous projec­
tiles that can cause ser ious personal in ­
jury if the a irbags inflate .
- Never p lace or attach accessories or oth ­
er objects (such as cup holders, te le­
phone b rac kets, large, heavy or bulky ob­
jects) on the doors, ove r o r near the area
marked "AIRBAG " on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat bac krests or be­
tween those areas and yo urself. These
objects could cause injury in a crash, es­
pecially when the airbags inflate .
- Never recline the front passenger's seat
to transport objects . Items can a lso
move into the area of the s ide a irbag or
the front a irbag during braking or in a
sudden maneuver. Objects near the air­ bags can become projec tiles and cause
in ju ry, partic ula rly when the seat is re­
clined.
A WARNING
T he fine dust created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing prob lems fo r people
with a history of as thma or other breath­
ing cond itions.
- T o reduce t he risk of bre ath ing problems,
those wi th asthma o r other respiratory
conditions shou ld get fresh air right
away by getting o ut of the vehicle or
open ing windows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy, wash your hands and face with
mild soap and water before eating .
- Be ca reful not to get the dust into your
eyes, or into any c uts or scratches.
- If the resi due should get into your eyes,
f lush them w ith wate r.
•
•

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 ..,.

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 . ..,.