2012 AUDI R8 SPYDER wheel

Step 7: Lock the convertible top

Fig. 55 Inner s ide of the conve rtible top: remov ing the
cap
Fig. 56 Inner s ide of the convertible top : pos it ion ing
the Allen wrench
.. Remove the cap in the center of the conver­
tib le top using the screwdriver from the ve ­
hicle tool kit¢
fig. 55. The emergency lock­
ing mechanism is located behind it.
.. Insert the Allen wrench
(D and turn the bolt
to the left@ until it is tight and the conver­
t ibl e top is locked securely ¢
fig. 56.
.,. Remove the Allen wrench from the ope ning
and cover the opening with the cap.
.,. Remove the wheel wrench from the conver­
tible top storage bay .
.. Close the convertible top storage bay lid.
A WARNING
Make sure the convert ible top is locked
correctly. Otherwise the wind from driving
could cause the convertible top to open.
This can result in injuries and damage to
the vehicle .
-
Convertible top 4 7
Step 8: Secure the fins on the body
Fig . 57 Co nvert ible top: pressing t he fins downward
Fig. 58 Interior: t ighten ing the bolt
The following steps must be performed on
both sides of the veh icle .
.. Press the fin downward firmly
~fig . 57 .
.. Hold the fin in th is position and tighten the
bolt above the seat belt -arrow- using the
Allen wrench from the veh icle tool k it at the
same time¢
fig. 58.
A second person should assist when securing
the fins to the body. Tightening the bolts is
much easier if a second person presses the
fins down.
A WARNING
-Make sure the fins lie on the body. Other -
wise the convert ible top will not lock se­
cure ly and it could open while driving. This
can resul t in in juries and damage to the
vehicle.
-

When the emergency flasher is on, all four
turn signal blink at the same time . The turn
signal ind icator lights
R II in the instrument
cluster, as well as the light in the emergency
flasher switch~ blink likewise . The emergen­
cy flasher also works when the ignition is
switched off.
The emergency flasher wi ll automatically
sw itch on if you are in an acc ident where the
a irbag has deployed .
(D Tips
You should switch on the emergency flash­
er when:
-you are the last vehicle standing in a traf ­
fic jam so that any other vehicles coming
can see you, or when
-your vehicle has broken down or yo u are
in an emergency situation , or when
- your vehicle is being towed by a tow
truck or if yo u are towing another vehicle
behind you.
Turn signals and high beam lever
The lever is used to operate the turn signals
and the high beam as well as the headlight
flasher .
t
t
F ig . 6 2 Turn signa l an d h igh beam lever
The turn s ignal and high beam leve r has the
followi ng functions:
Turn sign als ¢ 9
N
"' 8
"' ... a,
~ Lift the lever up all the way c:> fig . 62 to use
the right turn s ignals
(D , or push the lever
down all the way to use the left turn signals
@ .
Clear vi sion 51
~ Move the lever (up or down) just to the
point of resistance to use the turn signals
for as long as you need them, for example
when changing lanes .
~ Briefly move the lever up or down just to
the point of resistance and t hen release it to
flash the turn s ignals three times in succes­
sion . This
C o nveni ence turn signal funct ion
must be activated in the menu disp lay
c:> page25 .
High beam ~D
~ Push the lever forward @to switch on the
high beam .
~ Pull the lever back towards you to sw itch off
the high beam.
Headlight flasher ~D
~ Pull the lever toward the steering wheel ©
to use the headlight flasher .
Notes on the se feature s
-The turn signals only work with the ignition
switched on . T he indicator lights
IJ or Bi n
the instrument cluster c:> page 11 also blink.
- After you have turned a corner, the turn s ig-
nal switches off automatically.
- The high beam works only when the head ­
lights are on. The indicator light
II i n the
instrument cluster illuminates when the
high beams are on .
- The headlight flasher works only as long as
you ho ld the lever - even if there are no
lights switched o n. The ind icator light
II i n
the instrument cluste r illuminates whe n you
use the headlight flasher .
.&, WARNING
Do not use t he h igh beam or hea dligh t
fl ashe r if yo u know th at these could be
b lin ding oncoming t raffic .

52 Clear vis ion
Interior lights
Interior lights
The interior lights include the reading lights
for the driver and the front passenger .
-
,-i.-,-,n--;)
"' "' "' 0
•
Fi g. 63 Section from headliner: I nterior l ights
Acti vating door contact circuit
• Press the button @. The LED in the button
i lluminates.
Deactivating door c ontact circu it
• Press the button @. The LED in the button
goes out .
Front re ad ing lights ~
• Press one of the switches @ to turn the
right or left reading light on/off.
With the door contact circuit, the interior lights turn on as soon as you unlock the vehi­
cle or open the doors. The interior lights are
also turned on when the ignition key is re­ moved. The lights turn off about 30 seconds
after the doors are closed . When the vehicle is
locked or when the ignit io n is tu rned on, the
inte rior lights a re turned off.
When a door is open, the interior lights are
turned off after about 10 m inutes to prevent
battery drain ing.
The brightness of the lights is controlled au­
tomatically by a dimmer when they are
switched on/off .
Instrument panel illumination
The illumination of the instruments, displays
and the center console can be adjusted .
Fig . 6 4 Instrument pa nel illuminat ion
You reg ulate the brightness of t he instr u­
ments with the left thumbwheel
c;~-~ fig . 64 .
A phototransisto r integrated into the instru­
ment cluster controls the illumina tion of the
need les in it. When the lights are switched on,
the lighting for the center conso le and the in­
struments (needles and dials) is automatically
adjusted to ambient conditions . The driver can
also adjust the brightness of the lighting.
Ignition ON, light switch at @
With the ign ition sw itched O N, the g low of in­
strument needles
can be adjusted to appear
brighter or dimmer.
Ignition ON, light switch at ;oo : or ~D.
With the lights switched o n, the br ightness of
instrumen t cluster ( i.e . need les, ga uges and
displays) and cen ter conso le illum inat ion can
be adjusted.
(D Note
The instrumen t cluster and cen ter conso le
ill umin ation (gauges and nee dles) comes
o n when yo u sw itch on the ignit io n and the
veh icle headlights are off . Be aware of the
fo llowing difference between models bui lt
to US or Canadian specifications:
- USA models: illumination of the instru­
ment cl uster (gauges and need les), dash
and center conso le around the gearshift .,.

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 adjusting the front
seats to provide safe and comfortable support
for the driver and the front passenger. Adjust
your seat properly so that :
- you can easily and quick ly reach all the
switches and controls in the instrument
panel
- your body is properly supported thus reduc­ ing physical stress and fatigue
- the safety belts and airbag system can offe r
maximum protection
¢ page 109.
In the following sections, you will see exactly
how you can best adjust your seats .
There are special regulations and instructions
for installing a child safety seat on the front passenger's seat. Always heed the informa­
tion regard ing child safety provided in
¢ page 130, Child Safety.
A WARNING
Incorrect seating position of the driver and
all other passengers can result in serious
personal injury.
- Always keep your feet on the f loor 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! This applies espec ially to the passen­
gers . If your seating position is incorrect
you increase the r isk of injury in the case
of sudden braking or an acc ident. If the
airbag inflates and the seating position
is incorrect this could result in personal
injury or even death.
- It is important for bo th the driver and
front passenger to keep a distance of a t
Seat s an d sto rage 59
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 airbag system can­
not protect you properly. In addition to
this, the front seats and head restra ints
must be adjusted to yo ur body height so
that they can give you max imum prote c­
tion.
- Always try to keep as much distance as
possible be tween yourself and the s teer­
ing wheel o r instrument pane l.
- Do not adjust the driver's or front pas­
senger's seat whi le the vehicle is moving.
Your seat may move unexpected ly, caus ­
ing sudden loss of vehicle control and
personal injury . If you ad just yo ur seat
while the veh icle is moving, you are out
of posit ion.
Driver's seat
The correct seat position is important for safe
and relaxed driving.
We recommend that you adjust the driver's
seat in the fo llowing manner:
.,. Adjust the seat in fo re and aft direction so
t ha t you can easily push the peda ls to the
floor whi le keeping your knee sligh tly bent
c::> A in Why is your seat adjustment so im­
portant? on page
59 .
.,. Adjust the seatback so that when you sit
w ith your back against the seatback, you can
still grasp the top of the steering wheel.
.,. Pos it ion the head restraint accord ing to the
occupant 's height
c::> page 61 . For maxi­
mum protection, the top of the head re­
straint shou ld be at least at eye level, pref­
erably higher and idea lly level with the top
of the head
¢ page 94, fig. 105 .
A WARNING
Never place any objects in the dr iver's foot­
well. An object could get into the pedal
area and interfere with pedal funct ion. In
case of sudden braking or an acc ident, you
would not be able to brake or accelerate!

70 On the road
On the road
Steering
Adjusting the steering wheel column
The steering wheel position can be continu­
ously adjusted in height and distance .
Fig. 81 Lever under the steering column
~ Push the lever¢ fig. 81 down ¢ .&_.
~ Move the s teer ing whee l to the desired po­
sition.
~ Push the lever against the steering column
until it locks.
There must be at least 10 inches (25 cm) be­
tween your chest and the center of the steer­
ing wheel. If you cannot sit more than 10 in­
ches (25 cm) from the steering wheel, see if
adaptive equipment is available to help you
reach the pedals and increase the distance
from the steer ing wheel.
A WARNING
Improper use of steering wheel adjust­
ment and improper seating position can
cause serious personal injury.
- Adjust the steer ing whee l co lumn only
when the vehicle is not moving to pre­
vent loss of veh icle control.
-
- Adjust the dr iver's seat or steering wheel
so that there is a minimum of 10 inches
(25 cm) between your chest and the
steering wheel ¢
page 92, fig. 104. If
you cannot maintain this minimum dis­
tance, the airbag system cannot protect
you properly .
- If physical limitations prevent you from
sitting 10 inches (25 cm) or more from the steering wheel, check with your au­
thorized Audi dealer to see if adaptive
equipment is
available.
- If the steer ing whee l is aligned with your
face, the supplemental dr iver's a irbag
cannot provide as much protection in an
accident . Always make sure that the
steer ing whee l is al igned with your
chest.
- Always hold the steering wheel w ith your
hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock posi­
tions to reduce the risk of personal injury if the dr iver's airbag dep loys.
- Never hold the steering wheel at the 12
o'clock position or with you r hands inside
the steering wheel rim or on the steering
wheel hub . Ho lding the steering wheel
the wrong way can cause serious injuries
to the hands, arms and head if the driv­
er's airbag deploys.
Ignition lock/Ignition
switch
Ignition lock
The ignition key starts or stops the engine.
Fig . 82 Ignit ion lock positions
Ig niti on off ©
In position ¢ fig. 82 (D both the ignition and
engine are
off, and the steering is locked .
T o
loc k t he steerin g after you have removed
the ignition key, turn the steering wheel in ei­
ther direction unt il you hear it lock into place.
You should a lways lock the steering whenever
you leave your vehicle. This makes vehicle
theft even more difficult¢&. .

Ignition on @
Afte r switch ing the ignition on, the needles
move all the way up and then down .
I f it is difficult to turn the key afte r you have
i nse rted it into the ignit ion lo ck, tur n the
steer ing whee l back and forth. This will take
the load off the steering lock mechanism and
you will be able to turn the key freely and start the engine .
Starting the engin e@
In th is position the engine starts. While the
engine is start ing, the power s upply to the
headlights and other e lectrica l consumers is
temporari ly interrupted to conserve battery
pow er. Aft er the engine has started, release
the key and it will return to posit ion @.
Before the starter can be operated again the
key must be turned back to position@. The
non -repe at lock prevents you from damaging
the starter when the engine is runn ing .
A WARNING
-Never remove the key from the ign ition
lock whi le the vehicle is moving. The
steering wheel will lock causing loss of control.
- If you have to leave your veh icle -even
for just a m in ute - always remove the ig­
nition key and take it with you. This is es­
pecially important if you a re going to
leave c hildren behind in the vehicle. The
children co uld start the engine or use
other vehicle controls . Unsupervised use
of vehicle controls (for example, power
windows) can cause serious personal in­
jur ies .
If the vehicle battery has been disconnect­
ed and then reconnected, then you m ust
leave the key in pos ition @for abo ut 5
seconds before you can start the engine.
On th e ro ad 71
Starting the engine
The engine can only be started with your orig­
inal Audi key.
On vehicles with R tronic *, the engine can be
start ed in the ne utra l position N and in each
gea r (1 - 6 and R).
.. Set the park ing brake ¢,&. .
.. On vehicles with man ua l transmission *,
fu lly depress the clutch pedal.
.. Press and hold the brake pedal.
.. Turn the ignition key to pos it ion ®
¢ page 70, fig. 82 - do not depress the gas
pedal when starting the engine .
.. Let go of the key as soon as the engine
starts - the sta rter must not cont inue to
r u n. On ve hicles w ith R t ro ni c, selec t gea r
posi tion N .
A cold engine may at first be loud afte r it has
been sta rted. This is due to the hydraulic
valves bu ild ing up the oil press ure . Thi s is nor­
mal and no need for concern.
If the engine does not start immediately, stop
tryi ng after 10 seconds and then try to restart
the engine abou t 30 seconds later.
A WARNING
- Never start or let the eng ine run in a con­
fined or enclosed area . Exha ust fumes
from the engine contain carbon monox­
ide, a co lor less and odorless gas. Carbon
mo nox ide ca n be fatal if inhaled.
- Never leave the engine idling unattend­
ed. An unattended veh icle with a runn ing
engine poses a danger of personal injury
or theft .
- With the engine r unning and a gear en­
gaged, you have to hold the veh icle w ith
the foot brake .
(D Note
- Avoid h igh engine speeds, fast accelera­
tion or heavy engine loads while the en­
gine is still cold. This could damage the
eng ine .

The parking brake warning light_
(USA)/ . (CON) ill uminates when the parking
brake is set and you switch on the ignition .
A WARNING
-
Always release the parking brake com­
pletely. A partially engaged brake will
overheat the rear brakes, reduce the ir ef­
fectiveness and cause excess ive wear. This
cou ld lead to brake failure and an accident .
(D Note
Only after the ve hicle has come to com­
plete stop, should you f irm ly set the park­
ing brake and move the gearsh ift lever into
a gear .
Parking
To prevent a parked vehicle from rolling
away, there are a few things you should do.
.,. Stop the vehicle using the brake pedal.
.,. Set the parking brake firmly .
.,. Switc h off the engine .
" Engage a gear
~ &.-
What else you should do when parking
your v ehicle on an incline or decline
T u rn the steering wheel so that if the vehicle
should sta rt to ro ll, it will roll into the curb .
A WARNING
This is how yo u can reduce the risk of in­
jury when le aving your veh icle.
- Never par k the vehicle whe re it ca n come
in contac t wi th dry grass, s pilled f uel or
any other flammable mater ials .
- Neve r allow anyone - especially small
ch ildren - to rem ain in the vehicle whe n
it is locked. Locked doors ma ke it mo re
difficult for rescuers to access the pas ­
senger compartment in the event of an
emergency. Danger to life!
- Never leave c hildren unsupervised in the
vehicle. Children co uld re lease the park­
ing brake or move the gea rshift lever out
-
On th e ro ad 73
of gear . The vehicle cou ld sta rt to ro ll
away and cause an acc ident.
- No matte r what the season is, the tem­
peratu re in a parked veh icle can reach
dangerous leve ls .
Starting on hills
App lies to vehicles : wit h hill ho ld assist
Hill ho ld assist makes it eas ier to start on
hills .
The system is activated when the brake peda l
is depressed
for a few seconds .
After releasing the brake pedal, the brake
power is held for a
brief moment to prevent
the ve hicle from rolling back when starting .
D uring this t ime, you can easily begin to move
your vehicle.
A WARNING
- If you did not begin moving immed iate ly
after rel easing the brake pedal, the vehi­
cle could b eg in to roll bac kward unde r
cer ta in c ircu mstances . Dep ress the brake
pe dal imme diate ly or eng age the p arking
bra ke.
- If the engine sta lls, de pre ss the bra ke
pe dal imme diate ly or engage the pa rking
brake .
- T o prevent the vehicle from ro lling b ack
un intent iona lly when st arting in stop ­
an d-go tra ffic, keep the brake pedal de ­
pressed for a few seconds before d riving
off.
(D Tips
You can find o ut if yo ur vehicle is eq uipped
wi th "hi ll hol d assist" at an a uthorized Au ­
di dealer.

Transmission Manual transmission
Gearshift lever
App lies to vehicles: with manual transmission
The clutch pedal must be depressed all the
way before you can start the engine.
T he manual transmission in your Audi is
equipped with an
interlock-feature.
• Depress the clutch pedal all the way.
• Start the engine with the gearshift lever in
Neutral and the clutch pedal depressed.
(D Note
Always depress the clutch pedal fully when
changing gears . Do not hold the vehicle on
a hill with the clutch pedal partially de­
pressed. This may cause premature clutch
wear or damage .
@ Tips
- Resting your hand on the gearshift lever
knob while driving will cause premature
wear in the transmission.
- The back-up lights go on when you sh ift
into Reverse w ith the ignition on.
Gearshift pattern (6-speed manual
transmission)
Applies to vehicles: with 6-speed manual transmission
Fig. 86 Gearshift pattern : 6 -speed manual tran smi s­
sio n
Drive in 6th gear for optim um fuel economy
when cruising . However, if more acceleration
is required (when passing, for example), shift
down.
Transmission 77
Engaging reverse gear (R)
• Move the shift lever all the way to the left,
press it down, then push it backward.
Especially after driving forward, stop the vehi­
cle completely, sh ift into
Neutral and rest the
shift lever br iefly in Neutra l before shift ing in­
to
Reverse .
Launch Control Program
Applies to vehicles: with VlO eng ine and manual t ra ns·
miss ion
The Launch Control Program enables maxi­
mum acceleration .
Requirement: The engine must be at operat­
ing temperature and the steering wheel must
not be turned .
• With the engine running, press the button
Im one time. The ESC indicator light 1B in the
Driver Informat ion System display illumi­
nates and the message
ESP sport - Warn­
ing! Restricted stability
appears.
• Press the clutch and hold it down.
• Engage the first gear.
• Press the accelerator pedal all the way
down until the engine speed remains steady
at 6500 RPM .
• Release the clutch carefu lly <=> .& ..
A WARNING
- Always adapt your dr iving to the traffic
flow.
- Only use Launch Control when road and
traffic conditions allow it and other dr iv­
ers will not be endangered or annoyed by
your driving and the vehicle's accelera­
tion.
- Please note that the driving wheels can
spin and the vehicle can break away
when ESC is switched off, especially
when the road is slippery.
- Once you have accelerated, you sho uld
sw itch the ESC back on by pressing the
button
[fil .