2012 AUDI R8 SPYDER warning light

128 Airbag system
-in front -end collisions
- in rear-end co llisions
- in ro llovers.
In some types of accidents the front airbags
and side a irbags may be triggered together .
A WARNING
-Safety belts and the a irbag system wi ll
only p rov ide protection when occupants
are in the proper sea ting posit ion
¢page 128.
- If the airbag indicato r 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 co llision 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. 127 Inflated side air bags on left side of vehicle
When the system is triggered , the airbag is
fi lled with propellant gas and breaks through
a seam in the seat surface area marked "AIR­
B AG".
It expands between the side t rim panel
and the passenger. In order to help provide
this additiona l protection, the side airbag
must inflate with in 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 ­
p lemental side a irbag expands . This appl ies
especia lly to childre n ¢ page 130, 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
li sion
¢ fig. 12 7.
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.
Important safety instructions on the
side airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al­
ways properly wear safety belts and ride in a
proper seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and act accord ingly to help the
safety belts and airbags do their job to pro­
vide supplemental protection .
A WARNING
-
An inflat ing s ide a irbag can cause se rious
or fata l injury. Improperly wearing safety
bel ts and imp roper sea ting positions in­
crease the r isk of se rious personal injury
and dea th whenever a vehicle is being
used .
- In order to reduce the risk of in jury w hen
the supplemental side airbag inflates:
- Always sit in an upright position and
never lean aga inst the area whe re the
supplementa l side airbag is located .
- Never let a child or anyone e lse rest
their head aga inst the s ide trim pane l
i n the area where the s upplementa l
s ide airbag inflates .
- Always make sure that safety be lts are
worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone s itting in the front
seat put their hand or any other parts
of the ir body out of the window.
- Always make sure that the s ide airbag
can inf late without inte rfe rence.

130 Child Saf ety
Child Safety
Important things to
know
Introduction
The physical princip les of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash app ly also to children
¢ page 104. But unlike adu lts and teenagers,
their muscles and bones are not fully devel­
oped. In many respects children are at greater risk of serious injury in crashes than adults .
Because children's bodies are not fully deve l­
oped, they require restraint systems especial­ ly designed for their size, weight, and body
structure. Many countries and all states of the United States and provinces of Canada have
l aws requiring the use of approved ch ild re­
straint systems fo r infants and small child ren.
In a frontal crash at a speed of 20-35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infant w ill be more than 20 times the
weight of the child. T his means the weight of
the child would s uddenly be more than
260 pounds (120 kg) . Under these conditions,
only an appropriate chi ld restraint properly
used can reduce the risk of serious injury.
Child restraints, like adult safety belts, must
be used properly to be effective. Used improp­
erly, they can increase the risk of serious in­
jury in an acc ident.
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's instructions in order to be sure the seat is
right for your child's size¢
page 133, Impor­
tant safety instructions for using child safety
seats .
Please be sure to read and heed all of
the important informat ion and WARN INGS
about child safety, Advanced A irbags, and the
installation of child restraints in this chapter.
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced A irbags in your vehicle and how they
work when infants and children in chi ld re­
straints are on the front passenger seat. Be­
cause o f the large amount of important info r­
mation, we cannot repeat it all here. We urge
you to read the detailed information in this owner
's manual about airbags and the Ad ­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the
very important information about transport ­
ing children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS - they
are extremely important for your safety and
the safety of your passengers, especially in­
fants and small children.
.&, WARNING
-
All vehicle occupants and especially chi l­
dren must be restra ined properly whenev­
er riding in a vehicle. An unrestrained or
improperly restrained child could be in­
jured by strik ing the interior or by being
ejected from the vehicle during a sudden maneuver or impact. An unrestra ined or
i mproperly restra ined child is also at great­
er risk of injury or death through contact
with an inflat ing airbag.
.&, WARNING
--Children on the front seat of any car even
with Advanced Airbags can be ser iously in­
jured or even killed when an airbag in­
flates. A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild
safety seat installed on the front passen­
ger seat will be seriously injured and can
be killed if the front airbag inflates.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child against the backrest, door or roof.
- Never install a rearward facing child safety seat on the front passenger seat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on . If the PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
l ight does not
come on and stay on, the inflating airbag
will hit the child safety seat or infant car­
rier w ith 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
-=
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-
•
•

Model Manufactured on or
after
Cosco Summit Deluxe September 25, 2007
H igh Back Bo oste r
22-262
Co sco High Bac k Boos -September 2S, 2007
ter 22- 209
Evenfl o Tribut e V
379xxxx September 25, 2007
December 1, 1999
E
venflo Genera tions September 25, 2007
35 2xxxx
Grace ComfortSport September 2S, 2007
Grace Toddler Sa fety September 25, 200 7
Seat Step 2
Graco Platinum Cargo September 25, 2007
A WARNING
T o reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
child rest raint is installed on the front pas ­
senger seat and the ignition is switched
on.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on. If the PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not
come on a nd stay on the inflating airbag
will hit the child safety seat o r infant ca r­
rie r wi th great fo rce and will smash the
c hild s afety seat and child agains t the
backrest, door or roof . Have the airbag
system inspected immedia tely by your
authorized Audi dealer.
(D Tips
The ch ild seats listed in catego ries A to C
have been sta tica lly tested by Au di only for
the Advanced Airbag function.
.
Child Sa fet y 133
Important safety instructions for us ing
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially
reduces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the dr iver, you are respons ible for the safe­
ty of everybody in the veh icle , especially ch il­
dren:
"' Always use the r ight ch ild safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
r=;, page 135.
"' Always carefully fo llow the child safe ty seat
manufac turer's inst ruct io ns on how to ro ute
the sa fe ty be lt properly through the c hild
safety seat .
.. When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you m ust first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from mov ing
¢ page 138 .
"' Push the ch ild safety seat down with you r
full weight to get the safety be lt really tight
so that the seat cannot
move fo rwa rd o r
sideways more th an one inch
(2.5 cm).
"' If a st rap or tethe r is be ing used to tie the
child safety seat to the front passenger
seat, make sure that it is not so tight that it
causes the weight-sensing mat to measure
more weight than is act ually on the seat.
A lways remember : Even tho ugh yo ur vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, a
c hi ld should always ride in the seat properly
restrained for its age and s ize.
A WARNING
N ot using a child safety seat, using the
wrong ch ild safety seat o r imprope rly in­
stalling a ch ild restraint increases the risk
of ser ious persona l inju ry and death.
- All vehicle occupants and especially chil­
dren must always be restrained p rope rly
wheneve r riding in a vehicle.
-
- An unrest rained or improper ly restrain­
ed ch ild can be injured or killed by be­
i ng t hrown against the ins ide of the
ve­
hicle or by being e jected from it dur ing
a sudden maneuve r o r i mpact .
•
•

134 Child Safety
-An unrestrained or improperly restrain­
ed child is at much greater risk of injury
or death by being struck by an inflating
airbag .
- Commercially available child safety seats
are required to comply with U.S. Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
213 (in Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restraint, select
one that fits your child and the vehicle.
- Only use child restraint systems that
fully contact the flat portion of the
seat cushion. The child restraint must
not tip or lean to either side. Audi does
not recommend using child safety
seats that rest on legs or tube-like
frames . They do not provide adequate
contact with the seat .
- Always heed all legal requirements per­
taining to the installation and use of
child safety seats and carefully follow
the instructions provided by the manu­
facturer of the seat you are using.
- Never let more than one child occupy a
child safety seat.
- Never let babies or older children ride in
a vehicle while sitting on the lap of an­
other passenger.
- Holding a child in your arms is never a
substitute for a child restraint system.
- The strongest person could not hold
the child with the forces that exist in
an accident. The child will strike the in­
terior of the vehicle and can also be
struck by the passenger .
- The child and the passenger can also
injure each another in an accident.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on. If the PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not
come on and stay on the inflating airbag
will hit the child safety seat or infant car­
rier with 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.
- Forward-facing child safety seats instal­
led on the front passenger's seat can in­
terfere with the airbag when it inflates
and cause serious injury to the child.
- If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's
safety and well -being require that the
following special precautions be taken :
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
- Always carefully follow the manufac­
turer's instructions provided with the
child safety seat or carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat
into the rearmost position of the pas­
senger seat 's fore and aft adjustment
range, and as far away from the airbag
as possible before installing the child
restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing pre ­
vents the front passenger's seat from
being moved to the rearmost position
in its fore and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure that the backrest is
in the upright position.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a child is not sitting in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly around
during a sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used¢
page 101, Safety
belts,
¢ page 109, Airbag system and
~ page 130, Child Safety .
A WARNING ~
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat and the ignition is switched
on.

-Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
unless the
PAS SENGER AIR BA G OFF
light comes on and stays on . If the PA S­
SEN GER AI R BAG OFF
light does not
come on and stay on the inflating airbag
will hit the child safety seat o r infant car­
r ie r with great fo rce 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 .
Child safety seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to abou t one year old
and 20 lbs . or 9 kg need special rearward -fac ­
ing child restraints that support the back,
neck and head in a crash.
Fig . 128 Re arwar d-fa cing in fan t sea t, pr operly instal ­
l e d on t he p asseng er se at
"' When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a ch ild safety seat , you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the ch ild safety seat
from moving
r::!v page 138 .
"' Push the child safety seat down wit h your
full weight to get the safety bel t rea lly tight
so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2 .5 cm) .
I nfants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg)
are best prot ected in special infant carriers
and chi ld safety seats design ed for their age
group . Many experts believe that infants and
sm all ch ildren should ride only in spec ia l re­
straints in which the ch ild faces the back of
Child S afety 13 5
the vehicle. These infant seats support the ba­
by 's back, neck and head in a crash
~ fig. 128.
A WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child safety seat or improperly in­
stalling a child restraint increases the risk
of ser ious personal injury and death in a
crash.
- Never install a rear-fac ing ch ild restraint
in the forward -facing d irect ion . Such re ­
straints are designed for the special needs of infants and very small chi ld ren
and cannot protect them properly if the
seat is forward-facing.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety sea t on the fron t passenger seat
un less t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on. If the PAS·
SENGER A IR BAG OFF
light does not
come on and stay on the inf lating a irbag
will hit the child safety seat or infant car­
rier w ith great f orce and w ill smash the
child safety seat and child against the backrest, door or roof . Have the a irbag
system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer.
- Always read and heed al l WARNINGS
whenever us ing a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
r::!v page 101, Safety
belts, r::!vpage 109, Airbag system
and
r::!v page 130, Important things to know .

136 Child Safet y
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety s eats
can h elp protect toddlers and children over
age one who weigh between
20 and 40 lbs. (9
and 18 kg) in a crash.
Fig . 129 Schematic overv iew: installat ion of the seat
usin g the vehicle's safety belt system
~ When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a ch ild safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the safety belt to prevent the c hild safety seat
from movi ng
Q page 138.
~ Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt rea lly tight
so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
Qpage 138.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in­
fant restraint if it is more than one year old
and weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
Toddlers and ch ildren who are o lder than one
year up to about 4 years o ld and weigh more
than 20 lbs . (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must
always be properly restrained in a child safety
seat certi fied for the ir size and weight
Q fig. 129.
&_ WARNING
Not using a ch ild safety seat, us ing the
w rong ch ild safety seat or improperly in­
stal ling a child restraint increases the risk
o f se rious persona l injury and death in a
co llision or othe r eme rgency s ituation.
- Children on t he front seat of a ny car,
even w ith Advanced A irbags, can be seri­
ous ly injured or even killed when an air -bag inflates. A chi
ld in a rearward-facing
child safety seat installed on the front
passenger seat will be seriously injured
and can be killed if the front airbag in­
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrie r with great
for ce and will smash the child saf ety seat
and child aga inst the ba ckrest, door o r
roof .
- Neve r install a rearward facing child
safety sea t on the fron t passenger seat
un less t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on. If the PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OF F
light does not
come on and stay on have the airbag sys­
tem inspected immediately by your au­
thorized Audi dealer.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever us ing a child restrained in ave­
h icle is being used
¢ page 101, Safety
belts,
Q page 109, Airbag system and
Q page 130, Important things to know .
&_ WARNING
--
If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a fo rward-facing child restraint on
the front pa ssenger 's sea t, the child's safe­
ty and we ll-bei ng req uire t hat the fo llow­
i ng spec ial precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward- facing seat has
been designed and cert ified by its man u­
facturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer 's in ­
structions p rovided with the chi ld safety
seat or carrie r.
- A lways move the front passenger seat in­
to the rearmost position of the passen­ ger seat's fore and aft adjustment range,
and as far away from the airbag as possi­b le before installing the ch ild restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger 's seat from being
moved to the rearmost position in its
fore and aft adjustment range .

138 Child Saf ety
will receive serious or possibly even fata l
injury .
I n o rder for the airbag to offe r protection, it is
important that all vehicle occ upants, especia l­
l y any children, who must be in the front seat
because of exceptional circ umstances, be
properly restrained and as far away from the
a irbag as poss ible. By keep ing room between
the child's body and the front of the passen­
ger compartment, the airbag can inflate com ­
p letely and provide supplemental protection
in certain frontal col lisions.
_& WARNING
Not using a booster seat, using the boos­
t er sea t imprope rly, incorre ct ly ins talling a
booste r seat or using the vehicle safety
belt improperly increases the risk of se ri­
ous personal injury and death in a collision
or other eme rgency s ituation. To help re­
duce the risk of ser ious persona l injury
and/or death:
- The shoulder be lt must lie as close to the
center of the child 's collar bone as poss i­
ble and must lie and snug on the upper
body. It mus t never lie across the throat
o r neck . The lap belt must lie across the
pelvis and never across the stomach o r
abdomen. Make sure the belt lies flat
and snug. Pull on the be lt to t igh ten if
necessary.
- F ailure to properly route sa fety belts
over a ch ild' s body will cause severe inju­
ries in an acc ident or other emergency
situation
<:!;,page 101.
- Children on the front seat of any car,
even w ith Advanced A irbags, can be seri­
o usly injured or even killed when an a ir­
bag inflates.
- Never let a child stand or knee l on the
seat.
- Never let a child ride in the ca rgo a rea of
yo ur vehicle.
- Always remember that a chi ld leaning
forward, sitt ing s ideways or out of posi­
t ion in any way during an acc ident can be
-
struck by a dep loying a irbag . This will re­
sult in ser ious personal injury or death .
- If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because o f excep­
tional circ umstances the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
li ght must come on and
stay on , whenever the ignition is switch­
ed on .
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, pe rform
the ch ecks descr ibed ¢
page 120, Moni­
toring the Advanced Airbag System .
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on whenever
the ig nit ion is switched on the infla ting
ai rb ag w ill hi t the child sa fe ty seat or in­
fant car rier with g reat force an d will
smash the child sa fety seat and child
aga inst the backrest, door or roof . Have
the airbag system inspected immed iately
by your Audi dea ler.
- Always read and heed all WAR NIN GS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
h icle is being used
¢ page 101, Safety
belts,
¢ page 109 , Airbag system and
r:!;, page 130, Important things to know.
Installing a child safety
seat
Securing a child safety seat using a
safety belt
Safety belts for the front passenger con be
locked with the convertible locking retractor
to properly secure child safety seats .
The safety belts emergency locking retracto rs
for the front passenger's seat safety belt have
a convertible locking retracto r for child re ­
stra ints . The safety be lt must be loc ked so
that be lt webb ing cannot unree l. The r etrac­
tor can be a ctivated to lock the safety belt and
prevent the s afety be lt webb ing from loosen­
ing up d uring norma l dr iv ing. A child safety
seat can only be properly insta lled when t he
safety belt is locked so that the chi ld and child
safety seat will stay in place. ..,.