2011 AUDI R8 SPYDER suspension

82 On the road
You can also increase your speed by pressing
the accelerator pedal. After you release the
accelerator pedal, the system automat ically
adjusts back down to the speed you previously
set .
However, if you exceed this speed by 5 mph
(10 km/h) for longer than 5 m inutes, the stor ­
ed speed will be deleted. You will have to re­
save it.
Briefly pressing lever
The desired speed is increased by about 2 mph
(2 km/h) by briefly pressing the lever upwards
towards
c:> page 81 , fig . 87 0 -
The desired speed is decreased by about 2
mph (2 km/h) by briefly pressing the lever
downwards towards
c:> poge 81, fig. 87G).
Switching control mode off temporarily
.. Step on the brake pedal, or
.. Depress the clutch pedal all the way, or
.. Press the lever towards @(not latched)
c> page 81, fig. 87 .
When the system is turned off temporarily,
the speed stored at the time is retained.
To resume the stored speed, release the brake
or clutch pedal and pu ll the lever to position
(D .
If no desired speed was stored when the sys­
tem was temporarily switched
off, you can
store a new desired speed as follows: Drive at
the desired speed and briefly press button
c> page 81, fig. 87 @ (SET) .
A WARNING
You should only return to the saved speed
if it is not too fast for the current traffic
conditions - risk of an accident!
Deactivating
.. Press leve r into position @(latc hed)
¢ page 81, fig. 87.
The saved speed value is deleted when the ig­
nition is switched
off.
(D Tips
Switch the cruise control system off com­
pletely at the end of each trip. When you
start the next trip, the desired speed can
be set simp ly from the basic setting
c>poge 81.
Audi magnetic ride
Damping con be adjusted to the driver's pref­
erence and it adapts automatically to the cur­
rent driving situation .
Fig. 88 Center console: Sw itch for Audi magnet ic ride
.. Press the switch c:> fig. 88 to turn sport set-
ting on or
off.
Audi magnet ic rid e is an elec tronically con­
trolled damping system . This chassis system
assists the driver by adapting to the particular
situation through imperceptible control proc­
esses. The
damping provides individual modu­
lation of damp ing forces. For examp le, w ith
damp ing characteristics set to provide greater
comfort, damping is set somewhat harder for
a brief period only as required, when rounding
a curve and when braking.
Standard setting
Select the standard setting if you prefer a sus­
pension setting emphasiz ing comfort.
Sport setting
Select the sport setting i f you prefer a spo rty
suspension setting . The LED in the switch
g
comes on to indicate sport setting .

132 Airbag system
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag Sys ­
tem performs in a crash. For example, using
tire-r im combinations not approved by Aud i,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the sp rings, suspen­
sion struts, shock absorbe rs etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the a irbag
sensors a nd sent to the electron ic control
un it. Some suspension changes ca n, for exam­
p le, increase the force levels measured by the
sensors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in which it would not dep loy if the
changes had not been made . Other kinds of
changes may reduce the force levels meas­ ured by the sensors and prevent the airbag
from deploying when it should .
The sensors in the safety belt buckle for the driver and front passenger seat tell the elec­
tronic con trol module if the safety bel t is
latched or not .
If the safety belt is being used,
the front a irbag will deploy at a slightly high­
e r rate of vehicle deceleration than if the safe­
ty belt i s not being used. Therefo re, i n a par­
ticular co llision, it is poss ible that an a irbag
will not deploy at a seati ng position where the
safety be lt is being used but will inflate at the
position where the safety belt is not being
used. It is important that nothing interfere
with the safety belt buckles so that the sen­
sors can send the correct information about
safety belt use to the electron ic control unit .
A WARNING
Changing the vehicle 's s uspension includ­
ing use of unapproved tire-rim combina­
t ions can change Advan ced Airbag per­
formance and increase the risk of ser io us
personal in jury in a crash.
- Never install suspens io n components
that do not have the same performance
characteristics as the components origi ­
nally installed on your vehicle .
- Never use tire -rim combinat ions that
have not been approved by Audi.
A WARNING
-Items stored between the safety be lt
buckle and the center console can cause
the sensors in the buckle to send the
wrong information to the e lectronic con­
trol module and prevent the Advanced Air­
bag System from wo rking properly.
- Always ma ke sure that nothing can inter­
fere wi th the safety belt buckles a nd that
they are not obstruc ted .
@ For the sake of the env ironment
Undeployed airbag modules and preten­
s ione rs might be classified as Perchlorate
Ma teria l - specia l hand ling may apply, see
www .d tsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/per­
ch lorate. W hen the vehicle or parts of t he
restraint system including airbag modu les
and safety belts with pretensioners are
scrapped, all applicab le laws and regu la­
tions must be observed. Your authorized
Audi dealer is familia r with these require­
ments and we recommend that you have
your dealer perform this service fo r you.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occupants .
Fig. 1 26 D river 's ai rb ag
The airbag for the driver is Located in the in­
strument panel underneath the steering
whee l
c::> fig. 126, the airbag for the passenger
is at about the same height in the inst rument
panel underneath the g love compartment . ..,_

158 Driving and en vi ro nm ent
Driving and
environment
Break-in period
A new vehicle must be broken in, and the break-in per iod should be 1,500 miles (2,500
km) . Do not use full acceleration for the first
600 miles (1,000 km) and do not exceed the
maximum eng ine speed of 6,000 rpm You
must also not use fu ll acce lerat ion between
600 and 1,200 mi les (1,000 to 2,000 km).
F rom 1,200 to 1,500 mi les (2,000 to 2,500
km), you can gradua lly increase maxim um en­
gine speed to 8,250 rpm for brief periods.
During the first ho urs of operation, there is
g reater friction in the engine and the trans­
mission than later when a ll the moving parts
have broken in.
The way yo u drive duri ng the first 1,500 miles
(2,500 km) affects engine quality. If you drive
at moderate engine speeds thereafter, partic ­
u lar ly when the engine is cold, yo u reduce en ­
g ine wear and increase the potential mileage
of the engine.
Do not drive at RPMs that are too low. Shift
down when the engine is no longer running
"smoothly". Extreme ly high RPMs are gov­
erned automatically.
Driving through water
on roads
Note the following to avoid vehicle damage
when dr iving through water, for example on
flooded roads:
- The water must not be any higher than the
bottom of the vehicle body .
- Do not drive faster than wa lking speed.
.&_ WARNING
After driving through water, mud, slush,
etc., the brakes may be slow to take effect
because of wet b rake roto rs and pads. Dry
t he brakes fi rst by bra king carefully to re­
sto re the full braking effect.
-
(D Note
Vehicle components such as the eng ine,
transmission, suspension or e lectrical sys­
tem can be severe ly damaged by dr iv ing
through water.
@ Tips
- Check the depth of the water before d riv­
ing through it.
- Do not stop the vehicle, drive in reverse
or switch the engine off when driving
through water.
- Keep in mind that oncoming vehicles
may create waves that raise the water
level and make it too deep for your vehi­
cle to drive through safely .
- Avo id driving through salt water because
it can cause corros ion.
Catalytic converter
You must use lead-free gasoline in your veh i­
cle, otherwise you will destroy the catalyt ic
converter.
Never run the fuel tank completely dry; their­
regular fuel supply could cause misfires . This
allows unburned fuel into the exhaust system,
poss ibly resulting in overheating and damage
to the catalytic converter .
.&_ WARNING ,-
-Do not park or operate the vehicle in
areas where the hot exha ust system may
come in co nta ct with dry g rass, brush,
fue l spills or o ther material which can
cause a fire.
- Do not app ly addition al under coating or
r u stproofing on or nea r the exhaust
manifold, exhaust pipes, catalytic con­
verter or heat shields . Dur ing driving, the
substance used for undercoating could
overheat and cause a fire.
(D Note
To ensure efficient o peration of the Emis­
s ion Control System:

198 Tires and wheels
cargo and lugg age load ca­
pacity is 650 lb s. (1400-750
(5
X 150) = 650 lb s.)
5. Determin e the combined
weight of luggage and cargo
being loaded on the vehicle .
That weight may not safely exceed the a vailable cargo
and luggage load capacity
c alculated in Step
4.
6. If your vehicle will be towing
a trailer , load from your trail­
er w ill be tran sferred to your
vehi cle . Consult this manual
to determine how thi s re­
duces the available cargo
and luggage load capacity of
your vehicle.
.,.Che ck the tire sidewall
( ¢ page 199 , fig. 153) to de­
termine the designated load rating for a specific tire.
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
diff erent things i ncluding prop er installation
and balancing, correct tire pressure and driv ·
ing s tyle.
Fig. 152 T ire tread: trea d wea r ind icators (TWI)
Tread Wear Indicator (TWI)
The orig in al tires on yo ur vehi cle ha ve
1/ 16 inch ( 1.6 mm) hig h "wear indica tors"
¢ fig . 152 ru nning acro ss the tread . Depend·
ing on the ma ke , t here will be six to e ight of
them even ly placed aro und the tire. Marks on
t he tire sidewall (for example "TWI" or ot her
symbols) ind icate the pos itions of the tread
wea r indica to rs. Wor n tir es must be rep laced .
Differ ent figures may apply in othe r countries
¢ .&_ .
Tire pressure
Incor rect t ire pressure causes premature wea r
and can cause sudde n tire blow-out . For this
reason, tire pressu re must be checked at least
o nce a month
¢ page 195.
Driving style
Driving fast around c urves, heavy accele rat ion
and hard braking increase tire wear .
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new ve hicles are balance d.
However, va rious s ituations dur ing everyday
driv ing can cause them to become unbal·
anced, resulting in vib rations you can usually
feel t hrough the steer ing whee l.
Unb alanced w hee ls m ust be rebalance d to
avo id excessive wear on steering, suspension
and ti res. A whee l m ust also be reba lanced
whe n a new tire is insta lled.
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incor rect wheel alig nment can cause exces ­
s ive tire wear , impa iring the safety of the vehi ­
cle.
If tires show excessive wear , have the
w hee l alignment chec ked by an authoriz ed
Audi deal er or qualified wo rksh op.
All-wheel drive
Only the wheel/ti re sizes specif ied by the
manufacture r may be used on veh icles with
all-wheel drive. For detai ls see ¢
page 155.