2012 AUDI A8 warning

52 Clear vision
& WARNING
Electrolyte fluid can leak from automatic
dimming mirrors if the glass is broken.
Electrolyte fluid can irritate skin, eyes and
respiratory system .
- Repeated or prolonged exposure to elec­
trolyte can cause irritation to the respira­
tory system, especially among people
with asthma or other respiratory condi­ tions. Get fresh air immediately by leav­
ing the vehicle or, if that is not possible,
open windows and doors all the way.
- If electrolyte gets into the eyes, flush
them thoroughly with large amounts of
clean water for at least 15 minutes;
medical attention is recommended.
- If electrolyte contacts skin, flush affect­
ed area with clean water for at least 15
minutes and then wash affected area
with soap and water; medical attention
is recommended . Thoroughly wash af­
fected clothing and shoes before reuse.
- If swallowed and person is conscious,
rinse mouth with water for at least 15
minutes . Do not induce vomiting unless
instructed to do so by medical professio­
nal. Get medical attention immediately.
(D Note
Liquid electrolyte leaking from broken mir­
ror glass will damage any plastic surfaces
it comes in contact with. Clean up spilled
electrolyte immediately with clean water
and a sponge.
@ Tips
-Switching off the dimming function of
the inside rear view mirror also deacti­
vates the automatic dimming function of
the exterior mirrors.
- Automatic dimming for the mirror only
operates properly if the sun shade* for
the rear window is not in use or the light
striking the inside mirror is not hindered
by other objects. -
The automatic dimming mirrors do not
dim when the interior lighting is turned
on or the reverse gear is selected.
Digital compass
Switching the compass on and off
Applies to vehicles: with digita l compass
The compass direction is shown in the rear­
view mirror .
J
Fig. 48 Rearview mirr or: Digi tal compass activated
.,. To switch the compass on or off, press and
hold the button @until the compass dis­
play in the mirror
c::> fig. 48 appears or disap­
pears.
The digital compass only works when the igni­
tion is on. The directions are indicated with
abbrev iations:
N (north), NE (northeast), E
(east), SE (southeast), S (south), SW (south­
west),
W (west), NW (northwest).
A WARNING -
The digital compass is to be used as a di­
rectional aid only . Even though you may
want to look at it while you are driving, you
must still pay attention to traffic, road and
weather conditions as well as other possi­
ble hazards.
(D Tips
To prevent inaccurate compass readings,
do not bring any remote controls, electri­
cal devices or metallic objects near the
mirror.

Adjusting the magnetic zone
Applies to vehicles: with digital compass
The magnetic zone must be adjusted correctly
for the compass to read accurately .
Fig. 49 Magnet ic zo ne map
.,.. Press and ho ld the button @ ¢page 52,
fig. 48
until the number of the magnetic
zone appears in the rearview mirror .
.,.. Press the but to n @ repeated ly to select the
correc t magnetic zone. The selectio n mode
turns off after a few seconds .
Calibrating the compass
Applies to vehicles: with digital compass
You must recalibrate the compass if i t does
not display the correct direction .
.,.. Press and ho ld the button @unti l a C ap·
pears in the rearview mi rror .
.,.. Drive in a circle at abou t 6 mph (1 0 km/h)
u ntil a direction is disp layed in the rearview
mir ror.
A WARNING
To avoid endangering yourself and other
drivers, calibrate the compass in an area
w here there is no traff ic.
Clear vi sion 5 3

54 Seat s a nd s tor ag e
Seats and storage
General recommen­
dations
Why is your seat adjustment so
important?
The safety belts and the airbag system can
only provide maximum protection if the front
seats are correctly adjusted.
There are various ways of adjust ing the front
seats to provide safe and comfortable support
for the driver and the front passenger . Adjust
you r seat prope rly so that :
- you can easily and quick ly reach all the
switches and controls in the instrument
panel
-your body is prope rly supported thus reduc­
ing physical stress and fatigue
- the safety be lts and airbag system can offer
maximum protection
¢ page 142 .
In the following sec tions, you will see exactly
how you can best adjust you r seats .
There are special regulations and instructions
for insta lling a child seat on the front pas­
senger's seat. Always fo llow the information
regarding child safety provided in
q page 166, Child Safety.
A WARNING
Incorrect seating position of the driver and
all other passengers can result in serious
personal in jury.
- Always keep your feet on the floor when
the vehicle is in motion -never p ut your
feet on top of the instrument panel, out
of the w indow or on top of the seat cush­
ion . Th is app lies especially to the passen­
gers .
If your seating position is incorrect,
yo u increase the r isk of injury in the case
of sudden braking or an acc ident.
If the
airbag infla tes and the seating position
is incorrect, this could result in personal
injury or even death.
- It is import ant for bo th the driver and
front passenger to keep a distance of at least 10 inches (25 cm) between them­
selves and the steering wheel and/or in­
strument panel. If you're s itting any
closer than th is, the a irbag system can­
not protect you properly . In addition, the
front seats and head restraints must be
adjusted to your body height so that they
can give you max imum protect ion.
- Always try to keep as much distance as
possible between yourself and the steer­
ing wheel o r inst rument panel.
- Do not adjust the driver's o r front pas­
senger's seat whi le the vehicle is moving.
Your sea t may move unexpected ly, caus­
ing sudden loss of vehicle control and
personal injury . If you adjust yo ur seat
while the veh icle is moving, yo u are out
of posit ion.
Driver's seat '
The correct seat position is important for safe
and relaxed driving.
We recommend tha t you adjus t the dr iver's
seat in the fo llowing manner :
.,. Adjust t he seat in fo re and aft direction so
t ha t you can eas ily push the peda ls to the
floor wh ile keeping your knees sl igh tly bent
q A in Why is your seat adjustment so im­
portant? on page 54.
.. Adjust the back rest so that when you sit
w ith your back agains t th e backrest, you can
still g rasp the top of the steering wheel.
.. Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge
is as even as poss ible with the top of your
head . If that is not poss ible , try to adjust
the head restraint so that it is as close to
t his pos it ion as possib le
q page 61.
A WARNING
Neve r place any objects in the dr iver's foot ­
well. An object could get into the pedal
a rea and interfere with pedal function . In
case of sudden braking or an acc ident, you
would not be able to brake or accelerate .

Front passenger's seat
Always move the front passenger seat into the rearmost position .
To avoid contact with the airbag while it is de­
ploying, do not sit any closer to the instru­
ment panel than necessary and always wear
the three-point safety belt provided adjusted correctly . We recommend that you adjust the
passenger's seat in the following manner:
.. Bring the backrest up to an (almost) upright
pos it ion .
Do not ride with the seat reclined .
.. Adjust the head restra int so the upper edge
i s as even as possib le wit h the top of you r
head .
If that is not possib le, try to adjust
the head restraint so that it is as close to
this position as possible ¢
page 61.
.. Place your feet on the floor in front of the
passenger's seat.
Front seats
Controls
Moving the seat forward or back and adjust­
ing the height , backrest angle and seat an­
gle.
F ig . 50 Fron t seat: adju sting th e seat
@ -Mov ing the seat forward/back: press the
button forward/back ¢ .&, .
@ -Mov ing the sea t up/down : p ress the but­
ton up/down ¢& . To ad just the front sect ion
of the seat, press the front button up/down
¢ .&, .To adjust the rear sect ion of the seat,
press the rea r button up/down
c> ,& .
@ -Turn the massage function on/off. You
can select the type of massage using the mu l­
tifunct ion button
c> pag e 56.
Sea ts a nd s to rage 55
© -Backrest forward/back: press the button
forward/back ¢ .&, .
©-Comfort head restraints¢ page 61,
¢,& .
(D -Multifunction button¢& , ¢ page 56 .
A WARNING
-Never adjust the driver's or front pas­
senger's seat whi le the vehicle is moving.
If you do th is while the veh icle is moving,
you will be out of position. A lways adj ust
the dr iver's or front passenger's seat
when the vehicle is not moving.
- Be ca reful when adj usting the seat
height. Check to see that no one is in the
way, or serious injury cou ld resu lt!
- Because the seats can be electrically ad­
justed with the ignition off, never leave children unattended in the vehicle . Unsu­
pervised use of the electric seat adjust­
ments may cause serious injury.
- To reduce the risk of injury in the case of
sudden braking or accident, front pas­
sengers must never ride in a moving ve­
hicle with the back rest reclined . Safety
be lts and the airbag system on ly offer
maximum protection w hen the backrest
is upr ight and the safety belts are prop­
erly positioned on the body . The more
the backrest is reclined, the greater the risk of persona l injury from an incorrect
seating position and improperly posi­
tioned safety belts.

56 Seats and storage
Multifunction button
App lies to vehicles: wit h memory fu nctio n
You can adjust the massage function, upper
section of the backrest, lumbar support, side
bolsters, seating surface and safety belt
height using the multifunction button.
F ig. 51 MMI display : seat settings
Operating
• The M MI displays the possible seat settings
@ when yo u turn the mu ltifunction button
page 55, fig. 50 to the left or right
c:> fig. 51, c:> .&_.
• To select a seat setting, turn the multifunc­
tion button
is h ighlighted with a red border.
• The arrows @ indicate the possible adjust­
ments . For example, to move the lumbar
support down, press the multifunct ion but­
ton
l ights up .
The following seat settings @are possible:
Mas sage funct ion * -Massage type Wave,
K nock in g, Stretch, Lumbar , Sho ulder or Off .
You can set the massage strength level from 1
to 5 . You can turn the selected massage on/
off us ing the button @
c:> page 55, fig. 50 .
Safety belt h eight adju stment * -Moving the
safety belt up/down
c:> page 139, c:> .&..
Upper backre st -Moving the ang le of the up­
per section of the backrest forward/back
c:> &.
Lu mb ar support -Moving the lumbar support
up/down and making it firme r/softer
c:> .&. .
Side bol ster s* -Increasing/reducing the side
support in the seat using the side bolsters on
the seating surface and backrest
c:> &.
Seat ing surfa ce -Making the seat ing s urface
longer/shorter
c:> A .
A WARNING
-
-Never ad just the driver's or front pas­
senger's seat whi le the vehicle is moving.
If you do this while the vehicle is moving,
you will be out of position. A lways adjust
the dr iver's or front passenge r's seat
when the vehicle is not mov ing.
- Be careful when adjusting the seat
he ight . Check to see that no one is in the
way, or serious injury cou ld result!
- Because the seats can be electrically ad­
justed with the ignition off, never leave
children unattended in the veh icle. Unsu­
perv ised use of the e lectr ic sea t adj ust­
men ts may cause serious injury.
- To reduce the risk of injury in the case of
sudden b raking or acc iden t, front pas­
sengers mus t
never ride in a movi ng ve­
hicle with the backrest reclined . Safety
be lts and the airbag system only offer
maximum protection when the backrest
is upright and the safety belts are prop­
erly positioned on the body . The more
the backrest is reclined, the greater the risk of personal injury from an incorrect
seating position and improperly pos i­
tioned safety belts .
@ Tips
-The massage function switches off auto­
matically after approximately 10 mi­
nutes.
- In vehicles w ith the reclining rear seat,
only the safety belt he ight and the seat­
ing surface can be adjusted on the front
passenge r sea t using the mul tifunc tion
butto n.

Armrest
There is a storage compartment under the
armrest .
Fig. 52 Cockp it: ce nter armrest
Opening the storage compartment
.. Press the button -arrow- and
move the arm­
rest up¢
fig. 52.
Adjusting the armrest
.. To
move the armrest forward and up, press
the button -arrow- while pulling the armrest
into the desired position .
.. To bring the armrest back into its or igina l
position, press the button -arrow- while
pressing the armrest down.
Please note that the driver's arm movements
may be restricted w ith the armrest folded
down. Fo r this reason, the armrest should not
be folded down when driving in city traffic.
Rear seats
General information
Safe transportation of passengers on the rear
seats requires proper safety precautions.
All passengers on the rear seats must be seat­
ed in compliance with the safety guidelines
explained in
¢page 134 and qpage 142.
The correct seating position is critical for the
safety of front
and rear seat passengers alike
¢page 127.
A WARNING
- Occupants in the front
and rear seats
must always be properly restrained.
-
Seats and storage 57
- Do not let anyone ride in the vehicle
without the head restraints provided.
Head restraints help to reduce injuries .
- Loose items inside the passenger com­
partment can fly forward in a crash or
sudden maneuver and injure occupants.
Always store articles in the luggage com­
partment and use the tie-down eyelets.
- Read and heed all WARNINGS
¢ page 127, Proper seating positions
for passengers in rear seats.
Adjusting the rear seats
App lies to vehicles: wit h co mfort seats
Fig. 53 Right re ar seat: seat adjustment buttons
@ -Adjust ing the lumbar support: press the
button to the left/right to adjust the lumbar
support curvature¢ &.. Press the button up/
down to adjust the height of the lumbar sup ­
port ¢&,. .
@ -Moving the upper section of the backrest
forward/back. Press the button forward/back
Q &_ .
©-Massage function* : to select the "pu lsat­
ing" massage function, press the button for­
ward. To select the "wave" massage function,
press the button back. If three lights in the
button turn on, the massage is at the stron­
gest level. To reduce the massage level, press
the button again. To turn the massage func­
tion
off, press the button again until all of the
lights turn
off .
@ -Moving the seat forward/back: press the
button forward/back ¢ &,. .
@ -Moving the seat up/down: press the but-
ton up/down ¢ &,. . ..,_

58 Seats and storage
© -Switching front passenger seat adjust ­
ment on/off: this function must be activated
in the MMI ¢
page 60, ¢& .To switch front
passenger seat adjustment on, press the but­
ton. You can now adjust the front passenger
seats us ing the buttons @ and @. If you do
not press the buttons @ or@ , front passen­
ger seat adjustment switches
off automatica l­
ly after approximate ly ten seconds.
& WARNING
- T he power adjustment for the individ ual
seats also works with the ignition . For
this reason, children should never be left
unattended in the vehicle -th ey could be
injured!
- Exercise caution when adjusting the
seats. Uns upervised or careless seat ad­
justment can p inch fingers or hands
causing injur ies.
- Vehicles with a pass through in the cen­
ter console have seat ing for four. The
long center console between the two
Reclining rear seat overv iew
Applies to vehicles: with reclining rear seat
----------------- T ® ------ -
Fi g. 54 Rear doo r: ad justi ng the recli ning posit ion
(D -Adj usting the reclining posi tion
@ -Adjusting the standard position rear seats is
n
ot a seat ing position.
Therefore, a safety belt is not provided.
(D Note
If a child seat is attached to one of the rea r
seats, this seat must not be adj usted using
the power controls under any circumstan­
ces. The easy entry funct ion for this seat
must also be deactivated in the MMI
¢
page 60 . The child seat as well as the
r ear seat can be damaged by the adjust­
ment process.
© Tips
The massage function switches off auto­
matically after approximately 10 minutes.
- If you cannot
move the front passenger
seat, it may be because
- the front passenge r's seat memory
f u nction is swi tched off ¢
page 63 or
- the child safety lock is switched on (the
@ b utton ¢ page 38 or t he righ t t
button ¢ page 38 lights up in the d riv ­
er's door), or
- the front passenger seat adjustment is
switched
off in the MMI ¢ page 60.
@ -Fold ing the leg support up/down
@ -Leg support steeper/flatter
i :c ., a,

©-Leg support forward/back
@ -Adjusting the display
Operating the reclining rear seat
Ap plies to vehicles : wit h recl in ing rea r seat
Fig. 55 Rear ce nter console : seat adjustment buttons
R eclining po sition on /off
@ -Adjusting the reclining position: press
and hold the button@c:>
page 58, fig . 54 un­
til your seat and the front passenger's seat
reach their end pos itions ¢
page 58, fig. 54.
Depending on the last setting, the leg support
may fold out at the same time. The front pas­
senger seat 's can no longer be used in the re­
clining position
¢ & .
@ -Adjusting the standard position: press
and hold the button @ unt il the front pas­
senger's seat reaches its end position and its
head restra int is upr ight . The leg s upport
folds in at the same time
¢ .&, .
You can adjust the leg support or fold the dis­
p lay forward in the reclining position:
Adju sting th e leg support
@ -Folding the leg support out/in: press and
hold the left/right button@¢
fig. 55 unt il
the leg support reaches the des ired posit ion .
@ -Leg support steeper/flatter: Activate
front passenger's seat adjustment with the
button
(Z) . To adjust the front passenger's
seat backrest and the leg support, press the button ®forwa rd/back.
© -Leg support forward/back: Activate front
passenger's seat adjustment w ith the button
. To adjust the front passenger's seat and
Sea ts a nd s to rage 59
leg support fo rward/back, p ress the button @
forward/back.
Adju sting the d ispl ay
@ -Tilting the display forward/back: press
and hold the left/right b utton @ unti l the d is­
play reaches the desired position.
You can fold the display forward so that you have a clear view of the roadway. With the
seat in the recl ining posit ion, press and hold
the right button @ unti l the display is folded
forward . Make sure the driver has a clear view
of the exterior mirrors. If so, confirm the
question in the MMI with Yes. If you answer
No or do not respond to the question, the dis­
play will return to the upright position.
.&_ WARNING
Do not use the front passenger 's seat for
seating when it is in the reclin ing pos ition .
This increases the risk of serious injury or
death.
- Never adjust the recl ining posit ion when
the front passenger's seat is occupied.
This inc reases the r isk of injury.
- Do not t ilt the display if the driver's view
of the right exter io r mirro r will be ob­
s truc ted .
- Ma ke sure the a rea between the leg sup­
port and the front passenger's seat back­
rest is clear before fo lding the leg sup­
port in so that you are not pinched.
(D Tips
If you cannot move the seat into the re­
clin ing position, it may be because
- the front passenger's seat memory func­
tion is switched off c:>
page 63 or
- the ch ild safety lock is switched on (the
~ button c:> page 38 or the right t but­
t on¢
page 38 lights up in the dr iver's
door), o r
- t he front passe nger seat adjustment is
switched off in the MM I c:>
page 60.