2012 AUDI R8 SPYDER ESP

60 Seats and stor age
Front passenger's seat
Always mov e th e front passeng er seat into
the rearmost position .
To avoid contact w ith the airbag wh ile it is de­
p loying, do not sit any close r to the instru­
ment panel tha n necessary and always wear
the three-point safety belt provided ad justed
correctly . We recommend that you adjust the
passenger's seat i n the follow ing ma nner:
• Bring the backrest up to an (almost) upright
pos it ion.
Do not r ide w it h the seat reclined .
• The idea l position for the head restra int is
with the upper edge of the rest ra in t l eve l
with the top o f your head
¢ page 61. You
sho uld
not lower the top o f the restra int be ­
l ow the level of your eyes .
• Place your feet on the floor in front of the
passenger's seat .
Power seats
Adjustment switches
The operating logic for the switches corre­
sponds to th e construction and function of
the seat.
Fig. 7 3 Adjust men t sw it c h es : locat io ns on dr iver seat
The o perating logic for the switches corre­
sponds to the constr uction, the design and
the function of the seat. Push or pull e ithe r
switch in exactly the same d irect ion you want
the correspond ing part of the seat to move.
Adjustment switch es
CD Adj usting the lumbar s upport
@ Adjusting seat height and fore-and-aft po­
sition @
Adjus ting the angle of the sea tback
@ Re leas ing the seatback
Power seat adjustment
The switches can be moved in various direc­
tions to allow precise adjus tment.
Read and heed all wa rni ngs befo re you adjust
yo ur seat. ¢.&, .
Adjusting the curvature of the lumbar
support
• Push the fo rward or rear dep ression on the
sw itch shell
CD ¢ page 60, fig. 73 to in ­
crease or decrease the backrest curvat ure.
Adjusting the height of the lumbar
support
• Push the top o r bottom depress ion on the
sw itch shell
CD to raise or lower the s upport
in the backrest.
Moving the front seat s forward or
backward
• Press the switch @forward or backward
hor izontally.
Adjusting the seat height
• Pull or push the swi tch @ even ly a t both
en ds to raise or lower the seat.
Angling the seat cushion up and down
(front )
• Pull or p ush the switch @at the front only
to ra ise or lower the seat.
Angling the seat cushion up and down
(rear)
• Pull or p ush the swi tch @ at the rea r o nl y
to ra ise or lower the seat.
Adjusting the seatback
• Push o r pull the swit ch @ in the same direc ­
t ion you w ant the sea tba ck t o tilt.
A WARNING
- Never a djust the drive r's or front passen -
ge r seat w hile the vehicle is moving. If ..,.

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.

7 4 On the road
Cruise control
Introduction
The cruise control system keeps the speed
constant.
The cruise control system makes it possible to
drive at a constant speed over 20 mph (US
model) or 30 km/h (Canadian model) . This is
true only to the extent that engine power or
engine braking effect allow . Using the system
takes the strain off the "gas pedal foot" - es­
pecially on long trips.
In the control mode, the indicator light in the
instrument cluster is lit
aijj(1)~1~ (US model);II
(Canadian model).
The cruise control system automatically
switches itself off immediately under the fol­
lowing conditions:
- Pressing the brake pedal.
- Pressing the clutch pedal.
A WARNING
-Always pay attention to traffic even when
the cruise control system is switched on.
You are always responsible for your speed and the distance between your ve­
hicle and other vehicles.
- For safety reasons, the cruise control sys­
tem should not be used in the city, in
stop-and-go traffic, on twisting roads
and when road conditions are poor (such
as ice, fog, gravel, heavy rain and hydro­
planing) -risk of accident.
- Turn off the cruise control system tem­
porarily when entering turn lanes, high­
way exit lanes or in construction zones.
- Please note that inadvertently "resting"
your foot on the accelerator pedal causes
the cruise control system not to brake.
This is because the cruise control system
is overridden by the driver's acceleration.
(D Note
On manual transmission vehicles: If you
shift into neutral with the cruise control system switched on, always depress the
clutch
pedal! Otherwise the engine will
race and could be damaged as a result.
(D Tips
When driving on steep downward grades,
the cruise control system cannot keep the
speed constant. The vehicle's own weight increases the speed. Shift into a lower gear
in plenty of time or brake the vehicle with
the foot brake.
Saving the speed
The desired speed must be saved.
®-
Fig. 84 Cruise control system cont rols
.,. Drive at the speed you wish to set.
.,. Pull the lever to position@¢
fig. 84 to
switch the system on.
.,. Briefly press button @.
After the button @is released, the current ve­
hicle speed is stored and maintained,
i. e. you
are driving in control mode .
Changing speed
The desired speed can be changed.
Faster
.,. Press lever up towards the 0 ¢ page 7 4,
fig . 84 .
.,. Release the lever to store the current speed .
Slower
.. Press lever down towards the O ¢ page 74,
fig . 84.
.,. Release the lever to store the current speed. IJ,,,

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 .

80 Transmi ssion
(0 Note
If you must stop on an incline, always hold
the vehicle in place w ith the foot brake to
prevent it from roll ing back. Never hold
the vehicle on an incline w ith a slipping
clutch. The clutch was overloaded if
Clutch
overheat ing! If possib le pl ea se st op ve hi­
cle appears in the Driver Information Sys­
t em disp lay.
Automatic operation
Ap plies to ve hicles : wit h R tro nic
The forward gears are shifted up or down au­
tomatically.
Startin g from a stop
11-Press and ho ld the brake pedal.
11-Tap the se lector lever towards A .
... Re lease the brake pedal and acce lerate
¢ ,& in Manual operation on page 79 .
Under certain circumstances (driving in the
mounta ins for example), it can be beneficia l
to switch tempo rarily to the manual shift pro­
g ram ¢
page 79in order to adjust th e gear ra­
tios to driv ing cond itions
manually.
Kick-down
A ppl ies to vehicles : wit h R tro nic
When you depress the accelera to r pedal be­
yond the resistance po int, R tron ic downsh ifts
into a lower gear, depending on vehicle speed
and engine rpm. The ups hift into the next
h igher gear takes place once the max imum
specified engine speed is reached. Exception:
You have activated the sport funct ion .
A WARNING
Please note that the drive wheels can spin
if kick-down is used on a smooth slippery
road -there is a risk of skidding.
Launch Control Program
App lies to veh icles : w it h R tro nic
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
I!! but ­
ton one time. The ESC ind icator light
I in
the Driver Information System d isplay illu­
m inates and the message
ESP sport - Warn ­
ing! R estr icted stability
appears .
... Press the b rake pedal w it h your l eft foot
and hold i t down.
11-Eng age a gear.
11-Press the I SPORT I button on the selector
lever cover .
... Press the accelerator peda l wit h your right
foot sim ultaneously until the engine has
reached a constant speed .
... Remove your left foot from the brake¢,& .
A WARNING ,-
-Always adapt your dr iving to the traffic
f low.
- Onl y use Launch Control when road and
traffic cond itions allow it and ot her dr iv­
ers will not be endange red o r annoyed by
your driving and the vehicle's ac celera­
t ion .
- Please note that t he d riving wheels ca n
sp in and the vehicle can br eak away
when ESC is swi tched off, especially
when the roa d is s lippery.
- Once the s tarting procedure is comple te,
you sho uld sw itch ESC on again by press ­
i n g the
I!] switch.
(D Tips
When a ccele rat ing using the Lau nch Con­
t rol program, all vehicle parts are s ubje ct
to heavy loads . This can result in increase d
wear .
-

Rear vi ew camer a coverage area
The rearview camera shows you the a rea be­
hind your vehicle in the navigation system dis­
p lay. This area roughly corresponds to the
area in¢
fig . 92 and (!) ¢fig. 93 . Orientation
lines and colored surfaces are projected in the
area shown, which can help you with parking
and maneuvering. Objects that are located in
an area that is not captured by the camera @
¢
fig. 93 and that are closer to the bumper
will not appear on the nav igation system dis ­
p lay.
We recommend that you practice park ing with
the rearview camera in a traffic-free location
or pa rking lot to become familiar w ith the sys­
tem, the o rientation l ines, and their function.
There should be sufficient light and good
weather conditions when doing so.
I n the nav igat io n system disp lay, objects or
veh icles appear closer or fu rther away if:
Objects or vehicles appear closer or farther
away in the navigation system if:
- you are driving in reverse gear from a level
surface onto an incline, or a downward
slope,
- you are driving in reverse gear toward pro-
truding objects.
The accuracy of the orientation lines and blue
surfaces dimin ishes if:
- the rearview camera does not provide a reli­ able image, for examp le, in poor visibility
cond itions or if the lens is dirty,
- the image on the screen is not visible due to
sun g lare and reflect ion .
Caring f or the re arvi ew cam era len s
The rearview camera is located i n the center
of the vehicle above the rear license plate bra cket. In o rder for the rearview camera to
f u nction properly, the came ra lens must be
kept clean and free of snow and ice .
- Dampen the lens with a househo ld alcoho l­
based glass cleane r, and clean the lens with
a dry cloth.
Par king system 83
- Remove snow with a hand br ush and ice
preferably with a de-icing spray ¢(D .
A WARNING
-The parking system cannot replace the
driver's attention. The driver alone is re­
sponsib le for parking and similar driving
maneuvers.
- Sensors have blind spots in wh ich objects
can not be detected. Pay spec ia l attent ion
to small children and an imals because
the sensors cannot always detect them.
- Always keep your eyes on the vehicle's
sur ro undings, us ing the rearv iew mirro r
as well.
- Do not allow yourself to be distracted from traffic by the rearv iew camera pic­
tures in the navigat ion system display.
- If the position and the installation angle
of the camera has changed, for example,
after a rear end collision, do not conti nue
to use the system for safety reasons.
Have it checked by an au thori zed A ud i
dea ler or other q ualified workshop .
(D Note
-Low obstacles a lready s ignaled by a
wa rni ng can disappear from the system's
detect ion range as they are app roached
and wi ll not continue to be signaled. Ob­
jects such as barrier chains, trailer d raw
bars, narrow painted vertica l poles or
fences may not be detected by the sys­ tem, posing risk of damage.
- Never use warm or hot water to remove snow or ice from the rearv iew camera
lens because the lens could crack.
- Never use products that are abrasive when clean ing the lens.
-

Reverse parking
Applies to vehicles: with parking system advanced
Parking mode 1 can be used when parking in
a garage or into a parking space.
Fig. 96 Navigation system display: Aiming at a parking
spot
Fig. 97 Navigation system display: Al ign ing the veh icle
~ Switc h the navigation system and the dis­
play of the navigation system on.
~ Select the reverse gear.
~ Turn the steering wheel until the orange
orientation lines(!) appear in the parking
spot
9 fig. 96. Use the markings @to help
you estimate the distance from an obstacle.
Each marking represents 3
ft. (1 m). The
blue area represents an extension of the ve­
hicle's outline by approximately 16
ft. (5 m)
to the rear.
~ While driving in reverse gear, adjust the
steering wheel angle to fit the parking spot
with the a id of the orange orientation lines
9(D. @ marks the rear bumper. Stop the
vehicle once the red orientation line©
touches an object
9 ,&. .
A WARNING
-The rearview camera does not show the
entire area behind the vehicle~
page 82,
fig. 93. Watch out especially for small
Parking system 85
children and animals. The rear view cam­
era cannot always detect them, posing
risk of an accident!
- Please note that objects not touching the
ground can appear to be farther away
than they really are (for example, the
bumper of a vehicle or the rear of a
truck). In this case, you should not use
the orientation lines to help with park­
ing, which poses danger of an accident!
(D Note
In the navigation system display, the direc­
tion of travel of the vehicle rear is repre­
sented depending on the steering wheel
angle. The vehicle front swings out more
than the vehicle rear. Maintain plenty of
distance so that your outside mirror or a
corner of your vehicle does not collide with
any obstacles. This can damage to your ve­ hicle.
Parallel parking
Applies to vehicles: with parking system advanced
Use parking mode 2 to help you parallel park
along the side of a street.
Fig. 98 Navigat ion system display: Blue surface
a ligne d with parking spot
Fig. 99 Navigat ion system display: The blue curved line
contacting the curb
IJi,,-

86 Parking system
The following steps app ly only when there is
no obstacle such as a wall near the parking
spot. Otherwise, please read the informat ion
prov ided in the "Parking Next to Obstacles"
section.
.. Activate the turn signal.
.. Position your vehicle parallel to the edge of
the street, approximately 3 ft. (1 m) from a parked vehicle .
.. Switch the navigation system and the nav i­
gat ion system d isplay on.
.. Se lect rev erse gear . T he parking aid turns
on and pa rking mode 1 appea rs on the dis­
play.
.. Press the cont ro l button 1 on the nav iga­
tion system ¢
fig. 98. Parking mode 2 ap­
pears .
.. Back up and align your vehicle so the b lue
area @ borders on the rear end of the vehi­
cle or on the parking spot line. The blue area
represents an extension of the ve hicle's out ­
line by approximately 16 ft (5 meters) to the
r ear. The long side of the blue area shou ld
be o n the curb. The entire blue area must fit
i n to the par king spot .
.. Wi th the veh icle stopped, turn the steer ing
wheel to the right as far as it wi ll go .
.. Back into the parking spot unti l the blue
curve to uches the curb¢
fig. 99. Stop the
vehicle .
.. With the veh icle stopped, turn the steer ing
whee l to the left as fa r as it wi ll go .
.. Co nti nu e to back into the pa rk ing spot until
the vehicle is par ked para llel to the curb. @
ma rks the rear bumper. Stop the vehicle
when the red orientation line@ borders an
obje ct ¢ .&,. . Keep an eye on the fron t of
yo ur vehicle while doing this
c> (D.
Parking next to obstacles
When the re is an obsta cle (suc h as a wall)
next to the pa rking spot, choose a spot w ith
mo re space on the sides. Pos ition the long
side of the blue area so t hat there is sufficient
space from the c urb. The area must not be on
the c urb. Yo u wi ll also need to start turning
the steering wheel much ear lier. There should
be a suffic ient amount of space between the c
ur b and the blue curve, and the b lue curve
c> fig. 99 must not touch the curb.
A WARNING
--The rearview came ra does not show the
entire area behind the vehicle¢
page 82,
fig. 93. Watch out especially for small
children and anima ls . The rear view cam ­
era can not always detect them, posing
ris k of an accident!
- Please note that objects not touching the ground can appear to be farther away
than they really a re (fo r example, the
bumper of a vehicle or the rear of a
t ruck). In th is case, you should not use
the orientation lines to help wi th par k­
ing, which poses dan ger of an accident!
(D Note
In the navigation system disp lay, the direc­
tion o f tra ve l o f th e veh icle re ar is rep re­
sented depend ing on the steering wheel
angle. The vehicle front swings out mo re
than the vehicle rear . Ma inta in p lenty of
distance so that your o utside mirror or a
corner of you r vehicle does not coll ide with
any obstacles . This can damage to your ve­
hicle .
@ Tips
The left o r right orientation lines and su r­
faces will be disp layed, depending on t he
turn s ignal being used .
Adjusting the warning tones
Applies to vehicles: with parking system advanced
Fi g. 100 N av igation syste m dis pl ay: a djustin g t he
park ing syst em