2011 AUDI S8 sensor

Off -when the parking system is switched off,
only audible signals are given.
Warning tones
Front volume -front sensor vo lume
Rear volume -rear sensor volume
Front frequency -front sensor frequency
Rear frequency -rear sensor frequency
Music volume while parking -when the park­
ing system is switched on, the volume of the
active audio source is lowered.
The newly adjusted value is briefly heard from
the signal generator.
(D Tips
- The warning tones can also be adjusted
directly by the v isual display or the pic­
ture from the rear v iew camera. Simp ly
press the
Settings control button.
- Changed settings are activated when
parking system is switched on aga in.
- The settings are automatically stored
and ass igned to the remote control key.
Error messages
App lies to vehicles: with parking system advanced
There is an error in the system if the LED on
the
P' #A switch is blinking and you hear a con­
tinuous alarm for a few seconds afte r switch­
ing on the parking system or when the park­
ing system is a lready act ivated. Have your au­
thorized Audi dealer correct the error.
(D Tips
If the error is not corrected before you
sw itch off the ignition, when you switch on
the parking system again, the LED in the
P,#A switch will blink.
Advanced Parking System 123

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>'
•
•

156 Airbag system
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag
System
I (USA models)/!f (Canada models )
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
e lectronic control u nit, sensor circuits and sys ­
tem w iring) is mon itor ed cont inuo usly to
make sure that it is functioni ng p roperly
wheneve r the igni tion is on. Each time yo u
sw itch on t he ign it io n, the air bag moni to ring
indicator light
mJ ( U SA mode ls)/ m (C anada
models) will come on for a few seconds (se lf
d iagnost ics).
The system must be inspected when the
indicato r light
fl (USA models)/EJ
(Canada models ):
- does not come on when the ignit ion is
switched on,
- does not go out a few seconds afte r yo u
have switched on the ignition, or
- comes on while driving.
If an airbag sys tem malf unct ion is de te cte d,
the ind icator light will firs t start flash ing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to se rve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately .
If a mal function occurs that turns the fron t
a ir bag on t he passenger side
off, the PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght will come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning
prope rly ca nnot provide supplemental pro­
t ect ion in a fron tal crash.
- If the airbag indicato r light comes on, it
means that t he re may be somet hing
wrong with the Advanc ed Ai rbag System .
It is possib le t hat the airbag will inflate
-
when it is not supposed to, or will not in­
f late when it sho uld.
- Have the airbag system inspected imme­
diate ly by yo ur Audi dealer.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fi g. 151 Sect io n fr om the instru men t pa nel: PASS EN ·
GER AIR BAG OFF lig ht
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located
in the center of the instrument pane l
<=> fig. 151.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light wi ll come
on and stay on to tell you w hen the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenger s ide has been
turned
off by the electron ic contro l unit . Each
t ime you sw itch on the ig nition, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light will flas h for a few
se conds a nd:
- will stay on if the fro nt passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small c hild or child
restrai nt on the front passenge r seat,
- will go out if the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing ma t.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on
if the ignition is on and
- a ca r bed has been installed on the front
seat, or
- a rearwa rd -facing child rest raint has been
installed o n the front passenger seat, o r
- a forwar d-fac ing ch ild restra int has been in ­
stalled on the front passenger seat , or
- t he weigh t reg iste red on the fron t passen­
ge r seat is equal to or less t han the com-
bined weig ht of a typical 1 year -o ld .,..

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-
•
•

160 Airbag sys te m
regulations must be obse rved . Your au ­
thorized A udi dealer is familiar with these
req uirements and we recommend that you
have your dea ler perform this service for
you.
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-rim combinations not approved by Audi,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the springs, suspen­
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the a irbag
sensors and sent to the electronic control un it . Some suspension changes can, for exam­
p le, increase the force levels measured by the
sensors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in w hich it would not dep loy i f 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 fo r the
driver and front passenger seat tell the elec­
tronic control module if the safety belt is
latched or not. If the safety belt is being used,
the front airbag will deploy at a slightly high­
er rate of vehicle deceleration than if the safe­
ty belt is not being used. Therefore, in a par­
ticular co llision, it is poss ible that an a irbag
will not deploy at a seating position whe re the
safety be lt is being used but will inflate at the
position whe re the safety belt is not being
used . It is importan t that nothing interfe re
with the safety belt buckles so that the sen ­
sors can send the correct information abo ut
safety be lt use to the electron ic contro l unit.
A WARNING
Changing the vehicle 's suspension includ­
ing use of unapproved tire-r im combina­
tions can change Advanced Airbag pe r­
formance and increase the risk of ser ious
personal in jury in a crash. -
Never install suspension components
that do not have the same performance
characteristics as the components origi­
nally installed on your vehicle .
- Never use tire-rim combinations that
have not been approved by Audi.
A WARNING .....__ -
Items stored between the safety be lt
b uckle and the ce nter 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
b ag System from working prope rly.
- Always ma ke sure that nothing can inter­
fe re with the safety belt buckles and that
they are not obs truc ted.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and p reten­
s ione rs might be classified as Per chlorate
Materia l - specia l hand ling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/ha zardouswaste/per­
ch lorate. When the vehicle or parts of the
rest raint 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 familiar with these require­ ments and we recommend that you have
your dealer perform this service for you.

-Always mak e sure that the knee airbag
can inflate without interference. Objects
between you and the airbag can increase
the risk of injury in an accident by inter­
fering with the way the airbag deploys or by being pushed into you as the airbag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, especially children
or animals ride in the footwell in front
of the passenger seat.
If the airbag de­
ploys, this can result in serious or fatal
injuries .
- Never carry objects of any kind in the
footwell area in front of the driver's or
passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shop ­
ping bags, for example) can interfere
with or prevent proper deployment of
the airbag. Small objects can be
thrown through the vehicle if the air­
bag deploys and injure you or your pas­
sengers.
- Make sure there are no cracks, deep
scratches or other damage in the area of
the instrument panel where the knee air­
bags are located.
- If children are incorrectly seated, their
risk of injury increases in a collision
Q page 169, Child Safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
T he airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants .
Fig. 154 Side airbag location in t he d river 's seat
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests
Q fig. 154 and the rear
Airbag system 163
backrest facing the doors. They are identified
by the word "AIRBAG".
The side airbag system basically consists of:
- the electron ic control module and external
side impact sensors
- the two side airbags located in the sides of the front backrests
- two rear side airbags
- the airbag warning light in the instrument
cluster.
The airbag system is monitored electronically
to make certain that it is functioning properly
at all times. Each time you switch on the igni­
tion, the airbag system indicator light will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics) .
T he side airbag system supplements the safe­
ty belts and can help to reduce the risk of in­
jury to the driver's, front and rear passenger's
upper torso on the side of the vehicle that is
struck in a s ide collision . The airbag deploys
only in side impacts and only when the vehicle
accelerat ion reg iste red by the control unit is
high enough.
If this rate is be low the refer­
ence value programmed into the control unit,
the side airbags will not be triggered, even
though the car may be badly damaged as a re­
sult of the co llision . It is not possib le to de­
fine an airbag triggering range that will cover
every possible angle of impact, since the cir­
cumstances will vary considerably between
one collis ion and another . Important factors
include, for example , the nature (hard or soft)
of the impacting object, the angle of impact,
vehicle speed , etc.
¢ page 165, Important
safety instructions on the side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety function, safe­
ty belts work to help keep the driver or front
passenger in position in the event of a side
collision so that the side airbags can provide
protection.
The airbag system is
not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your vehicle. A l-
ways remember that the side airbag system
can only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wearing it properly. This
Ill>

164 Airbag system
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re­ quires you to do so~
page 137, General
notes.
It is important to remember that while the
supplemental side airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of serious injuries,
other injuries, for example, swelling, bruising,
and minor abrasions can also be associated
with deployed side airbags . Remember too,
side airbags will deploy only once and only in
certain kinds of accidents -your safety belts
are always there to offer protection.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage are not necessar ily an indi­
cation of over-sensitive or failed airbag activa­
tion. In some collisions, both front and side
airbags may inflate . Remember too, that air­
bags will deploy only once and only in certain
kinds of collisions -your safety belts are al­
ways there to offer protection in those acci­
dents in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have already deployed.
The side airbag system will not deploy:
- when the ignition is switched off
- in side collisions when the acceleration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end collisions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers .
In some types of accidents the front airbags,
side curtain airbags and side airbags may be
tr iggered together.
A WARNING ,.
- Safety belts and the airbag system will
only prov ide protection when occupants
are in the proper seating position
~page 165.
-If the airbag indicator light comes on
when the vehicle is being used, have the
system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer. The airbag may
not work properly when the vehicle ac­
celeration in a side collision is high
enough to activate the airbag.
-
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re­
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu­
pants who are properly restrained.
Fig. 155 Inflated side airbags on left side of veh icle,
rear side a irbag
When the system is triggered, the airbag is
filled with propellant gas and breaks through a seam in the seat surface area marked "AIR­
BAG ".
It expands between the side trim panel
and the passenger. In order to help provide
this addit ional protection, the side airbag
must inflate within a fraction of a second at
very high speed and with great force. The sup­
plemental side airbag could injure you if your
seating position is not proper or upright or if
items are located in the area where the sup­
plemental side airbag expands. This applies
especially to children
q page 169, Child Safe­
ty . Supplemental side airbags inflate between
the occupant and the door panel on the side of the vehicle that is struck in certain side col­
lision
q fig. 155.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can "cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper
part of the body.
A fine dust may deve lop when the airbag de­
ploys. This is normal and does not mean there
is a fire in the vehicle.