2012 AUDI R8 SPYDER wheel

110 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 t hat 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.
Al ways rememb er: Airbags will deploy only
once, and only in certa in k inds of co llisions.
Your safety belts are always there to offer pro­
tection in those s ituations in which airbags
a re not supposed to deploy, or when they have
a lready deployed; for example, when your ve­
hicle strikes or is struck by another vehicle 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 wear your safe­
ty belts properly¢
page 101.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steer ing wheel or
instrument panel will dec rease the effec­
tiveness of the airbags and will increase
t he risk of personal injury in a co llision.
- 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 steer ing whee l, investi­
ga te 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 inj uries 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¢
page 104, How are safety
belts worn correctly? .
-Never let children ride unrestrained or
improperly restrained in the vehicle. Ad­
just the front seats properly . If children
are not p roperly restrained, they may be
seve rely in ju red or killed when an a irbag
infla tes.
- Never ride with the back rest reclined.
-Always sit as far as possible from the steer ing whee l or the instrument pane l
¢ page 92, Proper occupant seating po­
sitions.
- Always sit up right with your back against
the backres t of your seat.
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the f loor in front of the sea t to
he lp preven t serio us in juries to the legs
and h ips if the airbag infla tes .
- Never re cline the front passenger 's sea t
to tra nspor t ob jec ts. Items c an al so
move into the a rea of the s ide airbag or
the front airbag during braking or in a
sudden maneuver . Objects near the air­
bags can become projectiles and cause
in ju ry 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 tools and d iagnost ic equipment to properly re­
p lace any airbag in your vehicle and as­
sure sy stem effe ctive ness in a crash.
- Never permit salvaged or recycled air­
bags to be installed in you r vehicle.

- Improper installation of child restraints can reduce the ir effectiveness or even
prevent them from prov iding any protec­
t ion.
- An improperly installed child restraint can interfere with the airbag as it de­
ploys a nd serio usly injure or even kill the
child -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
-Always follow the manufacturer's in­
struct ions provided with the child saf ety
seat or car rier carefully.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the to tal weight regis­
tered by the weight-sens ing mat a nd can
c a use i nju ry in a c rash.
Front airbags
Descript ion of front airbags
The airbag system con provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occupants.
Fig. 120 Locatio n of drive r air bag: in steer ing wheel
F ig. 121 Location of fro nt passe nger 's a irbag: in th e in­
strument panel
Your veh icle is equipped w ith an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
A irba g sy stem 113
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time you r
vehicle was manufactured . The safety belts
for the front seats have "pretensioners" that help to take slack out of the be lt system. The
pretensioners are also activated by the e lec­
tron ic contro l unit for the airbag system .
The front safety belts a lso have load lim iters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
in a crash.
The airbag for the driver is in the steering
whee l hub
c> fig. 120 and the airbag for the
front passenger is in the instr ument panel
c> fig . 121. The general locat ion of the a irbags
is marked "AIRBAG" .
There is a lot you need to know about the a ir­
bags in your vehicle. We urge you to read the
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
c hapters that make up t he owner's literature.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS - they
a re extremely important for your safety and
the safety of yo ur passengers, especially in ­
fants and small children .
& WARNING
=
Neve r rely on airbags alone for protection.
- Even w hen they deploy, airbags provide
only s upp lementa l protect ion .
- Airbag work most effe ctive ly w hen used
with p roperly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, alw ays wea r yo ur safety belts
an d make sure that eve ry bo dy in y our
ve ­
hicle is p roperly restrained .
A WARNING
A person on the fron t passenger seat, es­
pec ia lly infants and sma ll children, will re­
ceive serio us injuries and can even be kil­
led by being too close to the airbag when
it inflates.
- Altho ugh the Advanced Airbag System in
your veh icle is designed to tur n off the
front passenger airbag if an infant or a small child is on the front passenger
seat, nobody can absolutely gua ran tee
-
-
that deployment under these specia l 11-

114 Airbag sys te m
conditio ns is impossible in a ll conceiva­
ble situations t hat may happen during
t h e usef ul lif e of your vehicle.
- The Adva nced Airbag System can deploy
in accor dance with the "low risk" opt ion
under the U.S. Federal Sta ndard 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
ployment are met.
- For their own safety, all children, espe­
cially 1 2 yea rs and younger, should a l­
ways ride p roperly rest rained for their
age and size.
Advanced front airbag system
Your veh icle is equipped wit h a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208 as applicab le at the time your vehicle was
manufactured.
The front Advanced Airbag System supp le­
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 decelerat io n is high enough .
The front Advanced Airbag System for the
front seat occupants is not a substitute for
your safety belts. Rather, it is part of t he over­
all occupant restraint system in your ve hicle.
A lways remember that the airbag system can
on ly help to protect you, if you are s itting up­
r ight, wearing yo ur safety belt and wea ring it
p roperly. This is w hy you and yo ur passenge rs
must always be properly restrained , not just
beca use the law requires you to be.
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle
has been cer tified to meet the " low r is k " re­
qu irements for 3 and 6 year -o ld children on
the passenger side and very small adu lts on
the driver side. The low risk deployment crite ­
ria are intended to he lp red uce the risk of in­
jury through interaction with the front airbag that can occur, fo r example, by be ing too close to the steering wheel and instrument
pane
l when the airbag inflates .
In add ition, the system has been certified to
comply wi th the "s uppression" re qu iremen ts
of the Sa fe ty Standard, to turn off the front
airbag for infants 12 months o ld and younger
who are restrained on the front passenger
seat in child restraints that are listed in the
Standard
¢ page 132, Child restraints and
Advanced Airbags .
"Suppression" requires the front a irbag on the
passenger side to be turned off if:
- a child up to abo ut one year o f age is re ­
strained on the front passenger seat i n one
of the rear-fac ing or forward -facing infant
restraints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard
208 with which the Ad­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle was
cert ified . For a listing of the ch ild res traints
that were used to certify your vehicle 's com­
plia nce w it h t he US Safety Standa rd
¢ page 132,
-we ight less than a threshold level stored in
the co ntrol uni t is de te cted on the fron t pas­
senger seat.
When a person is detected on the front pas­ senger seat, weighing more than t he total
we ight of a ch ild that is about 1 year old re ­
stra ined in one of the rear-fac ing o r forward­
f acing infant res traints ( listed in Fede ral Mo­
tor Vehicle Safety Standar d
208 with which
the Advanced Airbag System in yo ur vehicle
was certif ied), the front airbag on the passen­
ger side may or may not deploy.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when the electronic contro l unit detects a to­
ta l we ight on the front passenger seat that re ­
quires t he front airbag to be t urned off. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on, the front a irbag on the passenger
s ide has not been t urned off by the cont ro l
u ni t and ca n dep loy if the control un it senses
an impact that meets the cond itions store d in
i ts memory.
If the total weight on the fro nt passenge r
seat is more than that of a typ ical 1 yea r-old , .,.

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 111.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child sa fety
sea t insta lled on the front passenger seat
wi ll be seriously injured and can be k illed if
the front ai rbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
-
-The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier w ith great
force and w ill smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
armrest , door or roof.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
unless the
PASSENGER A IR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on . If the PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not
c ome o n and stay on, the inflating airbag
will hit the child safety seat o r infant car­
rier wi th great force and will smash the
child safety seat and child against the
backrest, door or roof . Have the airbag
system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the a irbag will
increase the risk of in jury in a c rash by in­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds
A irbag system 119
or by be ing p ushed into you as the airbag
inflates.
- 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 a rea 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 t he a irbags inflate .
- Never p lace or attach accessories or 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 s teering wheel,
instrument panel, seat bac krests or be­
tween those areas and yo urself. These
objects could cause inju ry in a c rash, 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 a irbag or
the front a irbag during braking or in a
sudden maneuver. Objects near the air­ bags can become projec tiles a nd 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
wi th a history of as thma or other breath­
ing cond itions.
- T o reduce t he risk of bre ath ing problems,
those wi th asthma o r other respiratory
conditions s hou ld get fresh air r ight
away by getting o ut of 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 ca reful 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 w ith wate r.
•
•

A WARNING
1
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
in any 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
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
Airbag system 123
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 authori zed 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
t enance booklet under
AIRBAG REPLACE­
MENT RECORD .
-For safety reasons in severe accidents,
the alternator and s tarter are separa ted
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/hazard o u swaste/ per-
ch [orate . When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
and safety belts with pretensioners are
scrapped, all applicable laws and regula­
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.
•
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•

124 Airbag system
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-r im combinations not approved by Audi,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the springs, suspen­
sion strut s, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the electronic control
unit. Some suspension changes can, for exam­ple, increase the force levels measured by the
sensors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in which it would not deploy if 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 for 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 collision, it is possible that an airbag
will not deploy at a seating position where the
safety belt is being used but will inflate at the
position where the safety belt is not being
used.
It is important that nothing interfere
with the safety belt buckles so that the sen­
sors can send the correct information about
safety belt use to the electronic control unit .
A WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension includ­
ing use of unapproved tire-rim combina­
tions can change Advanced Airbag per­
formance and increase the risk of serious
personal injury 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 belt
buckle and the center console can cause
the sensors in the buckle to send the
wrong information to the electronic con­
trol module and prevent the Advanced Air­
bag System from working properly.
- Always make sure that nothing can inter­
fere with the safety belt buckles and that
they are not obstructed.
Knee airbags
· Description of knee airbags
The knee airbag system con provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained
front seat occupants.
Fig. 124 Drive r's airbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument
panel underneath the steering wheel
~ fig . 124, the airbag for the passenger is at
about the same height in the instrument pan­
el underneath the glove compartment.
The knee airbag offers additional protection
to the driver's and passenger's knees lower
thigh areas as a supplement to the protection
by the safety belts.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
also deploy in frontal collisions when the de­
ployment threshold stored in the control unit
is met
~ page 118, More important things to
know about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function,
safety belts help keeping the driver or front
passenger in position in a frontal collision so ..,.

126 Airbag sys te m
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
a lso deploy in frontal co llisions when the de ­
p loyment threshold stored in the control unit
is met.
When the system dep loys fill the airbags with
a prope llant gas, and inflate between the low­
er part of the instrument panel and the driver
and the lower part of the instrument panel
and the front passenger
<=> page 118, fig. 122.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cush ion" the impact and in this way they can
he lp to reduce the r isk of injury to the lower
extremities.
A ll of this takes place i n the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the airbags have deployed. The a irbags also
inflate with a great deal of force and it is im­
portant for occupant safety that noth ing
should be in the ir way when they deploy.
Fu lly inflated airbags in combination with
properly worn safety belts slow down and lim­
it the occupant's forward movement and help
to reduce the r isk of injury.
Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al­
ways wear safety belts correctly and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers must know and do to help the safety belts and
a ir bags to provide supp lemental protection .
,&. WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause ser ious
injury. Wear ing sa fety belts inco rrectly and
improper seating positions increase the
r isk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a veh icle is being used.
- The knee airbag system cannot protect
you properly if you are seated too close
to any of the airbag locations. When ad­
just ing their seat positions, it is impor­
tant that both the driver and the front passenge r keep their upper bodies and knees at the following m
inimum safe
distances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the stee ring wheel/inst ru­
ment panel.
- at leas t 4 inches (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- The risk of personal injury increases if
you lean fo rward or to the s ide, or if the
seat is improperly posi tioned and you are
not wearing yo ur safety belt. The risk in ­
creases even more should the a irbag de­
ploy.
- Always ma ke sure that the knee airbag
can inf late without interference. Objects
between yo u and the airbag can increase
the risk of in jury in an accident by inter­
fering w ith the way the a irbag deploys or
by being pushed into you as the airbag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, espec ia lly children
or anima ls in the footwe ll in front of
the passenger seat. If the a irbag de·
ploys, th is can result in serious or fatal
injur ies.
- No objects of any k ind shou ld be car­
ried in the footwell area in front of the
driver's or passenger's seat. Bulky ob­
jects (shopping bags, for example) can hamper o r prevent proper deployment
of the airbag . Small objects can be
th rown thro ugh the veh icle if the air­
bag deploys and injure yo u or your p as­
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 child ren are incorrectly seated, their
risk of injury increases in a collision
<=> page 130, Child Safety.

A WARNING
-=
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
-Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be
adjusted to an upright position.
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were
installed in a vehicle during a crash. Dam­
age to a child restraint that is not visible
could cause it to fail in another collision
situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
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
vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk " re­
quirements for 3- and 6- year-old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the
driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the 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
Child Safety 131
has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard .
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, a child should al­
ways ride in the seat properly restrained for
its age and size . The airbag on the passenger
side makes the front seat a potentially dan­
gerous place for a child to ride. The front seat
is not the safest place for a child in a forward­
facing child safety seat .
It can be a very dan­
gerous place for an infant or a larger child in a
rearward-facing seat.
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight-sensing mat in the seat cush­
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight-sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger
seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the
seat. The weight of a child restraint and its
"footprint" vary for different kinds of child re­
straints and for the different models of the
same kind of child restraint offered by child restraint manufacturers.
The weight ranges for the individual types,
makes and models of child restraints that the
NHTSA has specified in the Safety Standard
together with the weight ranges of typical in­
fants and typical 1 year-old child have been
stored in the control unit of the Advanced Air­
bag System. When a child restraint is being
used on the front passenger seat with a
ll-
•
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