2011 AUDI S8 instrument panel

146 Airbag sys te m
Since the cir cumstances will vary considerab ly
between one collision and anot her, it is not
possib le to def ine a range of vehicle speeds
that will cover every possible k ind and angle
of impact that will always trigger the airbags.
Important factors include, for example, the
nature (hard or soft) of the object which the
car h its, the ang le of impact, vehicle speed,
etc. The front airbags will also not inflate in
side or rea r collisions, or in ro ll-overs .
Always remember : Airbags will deploy only
once, and only in certa in kinds of co llisions.
Your safety belts are always there to offer pro­
tection in those s ituations in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy, or when they have
a lready deployed; for example, when your ve­
hicle strikes or is struck by another vehic le af­
ter the first co llision.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is
a supplementary restraint and is not a substi­
tute for a safety belt . The airbag system
works most effect ively when used with the
safety belts. Therefore, always properly wear
your safety belts
c::;, page 137.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steer ing wheel or
instrument panel will dec rease the effec­
t iveness of the airbags and will increase
the risk of personal injury in a collision .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (2S cm)
to the stee ring wheel or instrument pan­
el.
- If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
( 2 5 cm) from the s teer ing whee l, investi­
gate whethe r adaptive equipmen t may
be available to help you reach the pedals
and increase your seating distance from
the steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing fo rward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of in jury is much higher.
- You will also receive serio us injuries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the airbag or too close to it when it in­
flates - even with an Advanced Airbag. -
To reduce the risk of injury when an a ir­
bag inflates, always wear safety be lts
properly
c::;, page 140, Safety belts.
- Always make certain that ch ildren age 12
or younger always ride in the rear seat. If
children are not properly restrained, they
may be severely injured or killed when an
airbag inflates.
- Never let children ride unrestrained or
improperly restrained in the vehicle. Ad­
just the front seats prope rly .
- Never ride with the backrest reclined.
- Always sit as far as possible from the
steer ing whee l or the instrument pane l
c::;, page 128.
-Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat .
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the floor in front of the seat to
help prevent serio us in ju ries to the legs
and h ips if the airbag inflates.
- Never recline the front passenger 's seat
to transpor t objects , Items can a lso
move into the a rea of the s ide airbag or
the front a irbag du ring bra king or in a
sudden maneuve r. Objects nea r the air ­
bags can become projectiles and cause
in jur y when an airbag inflates.
A WARNING ~
Airbags that have deployed in a crash must
be replaced.
- Use on ly orig inal equipment airbags ap­
proved by Aud i and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary too ls
and d iagnost ic equipment to properly re­
p lace any airbag in your vehicle and as­
sure system effectiveness in a crash .
- Never permit salvaged or recycled air­
bags to be installed in your vehicle.

-An improperly installed child restraint
can interfere with the airbag as it de­
ploys and seriously injure or even kill the
child -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- Always carefully follow the manufactur­
er's instructions provided with the child
seat or carrier .
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis­
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can cause injury in a crash.
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occupants.
Fig. 148 Location of driver air bag: in steer ing wheel
Fig. 149 Location of front passenger's airbag: in the in ­
st rum ent panel
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
ve hicl e was manufactured. The system senses
the position of the front seats and controls
front airbag inflation with a valve, depending
Airbag system 149
on the distance between the respective seat
and the steering wheel or instrument panel.
The safety belts for the seats have "preten­
s ioner s" that help to take s lack out of the belt
system. The pretensioners are also activated
by the electronic control unit for the airbag
system.
The front safety belts also have load limiters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
in a crash.
The airbag for the driver is in the steering
wheel hub¢
fig. 148 and the airbag for the
front passenger is in the instrument panel
¢
fig . 149. The general location of the airbags
is marked "AIRBAG ".
There is a lot you need to know about the air­
bags in your vehicle. We urge you to read the
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
chapters that make up the owner's literature.
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.
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide
only supplementa l protect ion .
- Airbag work most effective ly when used
with properly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, always wear your safety belts
and make sure that eve rybody in your ve ­
hicle is properly restrained .
&_ WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, es­
pec ially infants and sma ll children, will re­
ceive serious injuries and can even be kil­
led by being too close to the airbag when
it inflates .
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the
front passenger airbag if an infant or a small child is on the front passenger
seat, nobody can absolutely guarantee
11-

150 Airbag sys te m
that deployment under these special
condit ions is impossible in all conceiva­
ble situations that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicle .
- The Advanced Airbag System can deploy
in accordance with the "low risk" opt ion
under the U.S . Federal Standard if a child
that is heavier than the typical one-year old child is on the front passenger seat
and the othe r cond itions for airbag de­
ployme nt are met .
- Ac cident statist ics have shown that chi l­
dren are generally safer in the rea r seat
are a than in the front sea ting posi tion.
- For their own safety, all chi ld ren, espe­
cially 1 2 ye ars and younger, sho uld a l­
ways ride in the back properly rest rained
for their age and size .
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with Un ited
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208 as applicable at the time your vehicle was manufactured .
The front Advanced Airbag System supple­ ments the safety belts to provide addit iona l
protection for the driver's and front passeng­
er's heads and upper bodies in frontal crashes .
The airbags inflate only in frontal impacts
when the vehicle dece le rat ion is high enough .
The front Advanced Airbag System for the
front seat occupants is not a substitute for
your safety bel ts . Rather , it is part of the over­
a ll occupant restraint system i n your veh icle .
A lways remember tha t the airbag system ca n
on ly help to pro te ct yo u, if you are s itting up­
right , wearing yo ur safe ty belt and wearing it
properly. This is w hy you and yo ur passenge rs
m ust always be proper ly restrained, not just
because the law requires you to be.
The Advanced Airbag System i n your veh icle
has been certified to meet the " low ris k" re ­
qu irements for 3 and 6 year-o ld children on
the passenger side and very small adu lts on
the dr iver side. The low risk deployment crite- r
ia are intended to help reduce the r is k of i n­
jury through interaction with the front 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 "s uppression" requirements
of the Safety Standard, to turn off the front
airbag for infants 12 months o ld and younger
who are restrained on t he front passenge r
seat in child restraints that are listed in the
Standa rd ¢
page 171, Child restraints and
Advanced Airbags .
"Suppression" requires the front a irbag on the
passenger s ide to be turned off if :
- a child up to about one year of age is re­ strained on the front passenger seat in one
of the rear -fac ing or fo rward-facing infant
restrai nts listed i n Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard 208 with which the Ad­
vanced Airbag System in your vehi cle was
cert ified . F or a listing of the ch ild res traints
t ha t were used to certify your vehi cle's com ­
pliance w it h t he US Sa fety Standard
¢ page 171,
-weight less than a thresho ld level stored in
the control unit is detected on the front pas­
senger seat .
When a person is detected on the front p as­
senger seat, weighing more than the tota l
weight of a chi ld that is about 1 year old re­
strained in one of the rear -facing or forward ­
facing infant restraints ( listed in Federal Mo­
tor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 w it h which
the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
was certified), the front airbag on the passen­
ger side may or may not deploy .
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
whe n the electronic contro l unit detects a to­
ta l we ight on the fron t passe nger seat that re­
quires the front airbag to be t urned off . If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on, the fron t air bag on the passenger
s ide has not been turned off by the cont ro l
u nit and can dep loy if the control unit senses ..,_

152 Airbag sys te m
- Always make su re the forward-facing
seat has been des igned and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front a nd side airbag .
- Never put the forward- facing child re­
straint up against or very near the instru­ ment panel.
- 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 lli ng
the fo rward-facing chi ld restraint. The
b ackres t must be adjusted to an upr igh t
posit ion.
- Make su re that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light co m es on and s tays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched
on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a lot of very important parts of the Advanced
Airbag System in it. These parts include the
weight-sens ing 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 mo nitors the Advanced Air­
bag Sys tem and turns the airbag indicator
light on when a ma lfunction in the system
components is detected . The function of the
ai rbag ind icator light is described in greater
detai l below. Because the front passenger
seat contains important parts of the Ad­
vanced A irbag System, you must take care to
prevent it from be ing damaged . Damage to
the seat may prevent the Advanced A irbag for
the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a cra sh .
The front Advanced Airbag System
consists of the following:
- Crash senso rs in the front of the veh icle that
measu re ve hicle ac celera tion/de ce le ra ti on
to provide information to the Advanced Air­ bag System abo ut the severity of the crash . -
An elect ronic contro l unit, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts .
The control un it "decides" whether to fi re
the front a irbags based on the informat ion
received from the crash sensors. The contro l
unit also "decides" whether the safety belt prete nsioners shou ld be act ivated .
- An Advanced A irbag w ith gas generator and
contro l valve for the driver ins ide the steer ­
ing wheel hub .
- An Advanced A irbag w ith gas generator and
contro l valve inside the instrument panel for
th e front passenger .
- A we ight-sensing mat under the upho lstery
padding of the fro nt passenge r seat cushion
that measures the total weight o n the seat.
The info rma tion reg iste red is sent continu­
ously to the elec troni c con trol un it to regu­
la te deployment o f the front Advanced Air ­
bag on the passenger side .
- An airbag monitor ing sys tem and indic ator
light in t he instr ument cluster ¢
page 15 6.
- A sensor in each front se at regis ters the dis ­
t ance between the respec tive seat and the
steering whee l o r instrument panel. The in­
formation registered is sent continuo usly to
the electron ic contro l unit to regulate de­
ployment of the front Adv a need A irbags .
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on in the center of the instr u­
ment panel¢
page 156, fig. 151 and tells
you whe n the front Advanced Airbag on the
passenger side has been turned off .
- A sensor below the safety be lt latch for the
front seat passe nger to measure the tension
on the safety be lt . The tension o n the safety
be lt and the we ight registered by t he
weigh t-sens ing ma t he lp the cont rol unit
" de cide " whe ther the fro nt airbag fo r the
front passenge r seat should be turned off or
not ~
page 147, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- A sensor in the safety belt latch fo r the d riv­
er and for the front seat passenger that
senses whether that safety belt is latched or not and transmits this information to the
electronic control un it .

& WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can
prevent the front airbag from working
properly.
- Improper repair or disassembly of the
front passenger and driver seat will pre­
vent the Advanced Airbag System from
functioning properly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must
be performed by qualified and properly
trained workshop personnel.
- Never remove the front passenger or
driver seat from the 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
-
Airbag system 153
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.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install child restraint in a rear seat­
ing position and have the airbag system
inspected by your 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. The amount of infla­
tion of the front airbags can also be adapted
to the front seat position, depending on the
distance between the respective front seat
and the steering wheel or instrument panel as registered by sensors in the seats. Crash se­
verity depends on speed and deceleration as
well as the mass and stiffness of the vehicle
or object involved in the crash.
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
Iii>'
•
•

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 147.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat in­
stalled on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
-The inflating airbag will hit the child seat
or infant carrier w ith great force and wi ll
smash the ch ild seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child seats on
the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing
child seat on the front passenger seat
because of exceptiona l circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install the rea r-facing chi ld seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Aud i dealer.
A WARNING
Objects be tween you and the a irbag will
increase the risk of inj ury in a crash by in ­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds
or by being pushed into you as the a irbag
inflates.
-
A irbag system 15 5
-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 place or attach accessories o r 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 backrests or be ­
tween those areas and yo urself. These
objects could cause in ju ry 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 airbag or
the fron t airbag during braking or in a
sudden maneuver. Objects near the air­ bags can become projectiles and cause
in ju ry, partic ula rly when the seat is re­
clined.
A WARNING
T he fine dus t created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing prob lems fo r people
with a history of asthma or other breat h­
ing conditions.
- T o reduce the ri sk of breath ing problems,
those with asthma or other respiratory
conditions shou ld get fresh air right
away by getting o ut o f the veh icle 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 careful 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 with water.
•
•

restrained in one of the rear-facing or for­
ward-facing infant restraints listed in Feder­ al Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with
which the Advanced Airbag System in your
vehicle was certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS ·
S ENGER AIR BA G OFF
light will stay on. Nev­
er install a rearward-fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any k ind of child restraint is at one
of the seating positions on the rear seat
¢ page 147, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 169, Child Safety.
If th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light c ome s
on
when one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PASSENGER AIR BA G
OF F
light stays on continuous ly whenever the
ignition is on . If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OF F
light does not appear on and does not
stay on all the time, stop as soon as it is safe
to do so and
- reactivate the system by switc hing the igni­
t ion off and then sw itch ing it on again;
- remove and reinstall the child restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
insta lled and that the safety be lt for the
front passenger seat has been correctly
routed through the child restraint as descri­
bed in the chi ld restraint manufacturer's in ­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea­
ture on the safety belt fo r the front passen­
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety be lt has been pulled tight. The belt
mus t not be loose or have loops of slack so
that the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the seat can do its job
¢ page 178 .
-make su re that th ings that may increase the
weight of the chi ld and child seat a re not be­
ing transported on the front passenger seat;
- make su re that the safety bel t tension sen ­
sor is not b locked . Shake t he safety belt
l atch on the front passenger seatback and
forth;
A irbag system 157
-If a strap or tether is be ing used to tie the
child seat to the front passenger seat, make
sure that it is not so t ight that it causes the
weight-sensing mat to measure more
weight than is actua lly on the seat .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on
and does not stay on con ­
tin uously (when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passen -
ger seat and install it proper ly at o ne of the
rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by yo ur Audi dealer immed iate ly.
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure that the child is properly restra in­
ed in a ch ild restraint that is appropriate for
its size and age.
The
PA SS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light should
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 fo r about 5 seconds wh ile driving, un­
der these cir cumstances, make sure that;
-the adult on the front passenger seat is
properly seated on the center of the seat
cushion with his or he r back up aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is not recl ined
¢ page 128, Proper o ccupant seating posi ­
tions,
- t he adult is not tak ing weight off the sea t by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the fron t passenger door or s upport ­
ing their weight on the armrest,
- t he safe ty be lt is be ing proper ly wo rn and
tha t the re is not a lot o f slack in the safety
be lt webbing,
- accesso ry sea t covers or cushions or o ther
things tha t may cause an incorrec t reading
or impression on the weight-sensing mat
under the upho lstery of the seat have been
removed from the front passenger seat,
- a safety belt extender has not been left in
the safety be lt latch for the front passenger
seat.
In addition to the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght in the center of the instrument panel, ll-
•
•

airbag system and prevent that system from
working properly in a collision.
There are some important things you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of
the system will not be impaired and that dis­
carded components do not cause injury or pol­
lute the environment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal in­
jury and death by preventing an airbag
from deploying when needed or deploying an airbag unexpectedly:
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steering wheel horn pad or airbag cover or the instrument panel or modify them
many way .
- Never attach any objects such as cup
holders or telephone mountings to the
surfaces covering the airbag units.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft , dry cloth or one
moistened with plain water. Solvents or
cleaners could damage the airbag cover
or change the stiffness or strength of the
material so that the airbag cannot de­
ploy and protect properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, front seats or electrical sys­
tem (including the installation of audio
equipment, cellular telephones and CB
radios, etc .) must be performed by a
qualified technician who has the training
and special equipment necessary .
- For any work on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that you see your authorized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop.
- Never modify the front bumper or parts
of the vehicle body .
- Always make sure that the side airbag
can inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replace­
ment upholstery over the front seat-
Airbag system 159
backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags
inflate.
- Damage to the original seat covers or
to the seam in the area of the side air­
bag module must always be repaired
immediately by an authorized Audi
dealer.
- The airbag system can be activated only
once . After an airbag has inflated, it
must be replaced by an authorized Audi
dealer or qualified technician who has
the technical information, training and
special equipment necessary.
- The airbag system can be deployed only
once . After an airbag has been deployed,
it must be replaced with new replace­
ment parts designed and approved espe­
cially for your Audi model version . Re­
placement of complete airbag systems
or airbag components must be per­
formed by qualified workshops only.
Make sure that any airbag service action
is entered in your Audi Warranty
& Main­
tenance booklet under
AIRBAG REPLACE­
MENT RECORD.
- For safety reasons in severe accidents,
the alternator and starter are separated
from the vehicle battery with a pyrotech­ nic circuit interrupter.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit inter­ rupter must only be performed by a
qualified dealer - risk of an accident!
- If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter
is scrapped, all applicable safety pre­
cautions must be followed.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and preten­
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate Material - special handling may apply, see
www .dtsc .ca.gov/hazardouswaste/per-
ch lo rate . When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
and safety belts with pretensioners are
scrapped, all applicable laws and ..,.
•
•