2012 AUDI R8 SPYDER center console

50 Clear vision
shown as active in the driver information
system.
The
coming home function illuminates the
area around the vehicle when the ignition is
switched off and the driver 's door is opened.
The length of time the lights rema in on can be
set in the menu display
(Lights> Exterior
lights > coming home) .
The leaving home function illuminates the
area around the vehicle when unlocking it.
.&_ WARNING
-Never use daytime running lights to see
where you are going. They are not bright enough and will not let you see far
enough ahead for safety, especially at dusk or when it is dark . Be aware of
changes in outside light conditions when
you are driving and respond by switching on your low beams.
- Automatic head- and taillight control is
only intended to assist the driver. This
feature does not relieve the driver of his
responsibility to check the headlights
and to turn them on manually according
to the current light and visibility condi­
tions. For example, fog and rain cannot
be detected by the light sensors. Conse­
quently, always switch the headlights on
under these weather conditions and
when driving in the dark .
- Crashes can happen when you cannot see
the road ahead and when you cannot be
seen by other motorists .
-Always turn on the headlights so that you can see ahead and so that others can see your car from the back.
- Please observe legal regulations when
using the lighting systems described .
@ Tips
-Always observe the specific local regula­
tions for your area when to use your lights .
- Turn on low beams as evening ap­
proaches or in conditions of poor visibili­
ty. -
Do not attach stickers to the windshield
in front of the sensors as this can disable
the automatic head- and taillight control
and the automatic glare-dimming of the
rearview mirror(s)*.
- If you remove the ignition from the igni­
tion lock while the headlights are still
on, a buzzer will sound as long as the
driver's door is open to remind you to
turn off the lights .
- In the AUTO mode, the low beams are
turned off when the ignition is turned
off . The remaining lights are turned off
when the key is taken out of the ignition.
- In cool or damp weather conditions the
headlights may fog over temporarily on
the inside .
- The critical factor is the temperature
difference between the interior and the
exterior of the headlight lens.
- With the main beams switched on, the
light-emitting area will be free of con­
densation after a short time , however
the edges of the glass may still be fog ­
ged .
- This physical phenomenon has no ef­
fect on the life of your vehicle's l ight­
ing system .
Emergency flasher
Fig. 61 Center console: em erge ncy flasher sw itc h
The emergency flasher makes other motorists
aware that you or your vehicle are in an emer­
gency situa tion.
... Press the switch ~
Q fig. 61 to switch the
emergency flasher on or off .
ll>

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 .,.

62 Seats and storage
- Never use the cupho lder or adapter as an
ashtray- risk of f ire.
CD Note
On ly drink containe rs with lids should be
carried in the cupho lder. Liquid could spill
out and damage your vehicle's e lectronic
equ ipment or sta in the upholstery, etc.
Ashtray
Fig . 76 Center console: ashtray
The asht ray is inserted in the cupholder.
Opening the ashtray
.,. Fold the cover upward .
Emptying the ashtray
.,. Lift the closed ashtray up o ut o f the cu­
pholder.
A WARNING
Never put waste paper in the ashtray. Hot
ashes or other hot objects in the ashtray
could set waste paper on fire.
Cigarette Lighter/
socket
N
-"' 0 ..:. ... m
The c igarette lig hte r or socket only wo rk with
the ign ition on.
Using the cigarette lighter
.,. Slide the cover open to reach th e cigarette
lighter
qpage 62.
.,. Push the knob in.
.,. Wait un til the c igarette lighte r knob pops
out. .,.
Remove the cigarette lighter immediately
and use it.
.,. Reinsert cigarette lighter into the socket af ­
ter use.
Connecting an appliance
.,. Slide the cover open to reach the c igarette
lighter .
.,. Remove cigarette lighter .
.,. Plug in appliance to be used.
T he socket of the c igarette lighter may be
u sed for 12-volt appliances with maximum
consumption of up to 100 watts, such as a
flash light, small vacuum cleaner, etc.
A WARNING
--Improper use of the c igarette lig hter can
cause serious injury or start a fire .
- Be careful when using the c igarette light­
er. If you do not pay attention to what
you are doing when you are us ing t he cig­
arette lighter you can burn yo urself.
CD Note
-To avoid damaging the socket, only use
plugs that fit properly.
- Only use the cigarette lighter socket as a
powe r source for e lectr ica l accessories
for short durations . Use t he sockets in
the vehicle when a power source is need­ ed for longer du rat ions .
(0 Tips
-When the eng ine is off and accessories
are st ill plugged in and are on, t he vehi­
cle battery can still be d ra in ed.
- The ve hicle battery must not be charged
w ith a standard small charger that pl ugs
into the cigarette lighter or outlet .
Storage
, General
A WARNING
- Always remove objects from the instr u­
men t pa nel. A ny items not put away
-

7 2 On the road
-The eng ine cann ot be started by pushing
or towing the vehicle.
@ For the sake of the env ironment
To avo id unnecessary engine wea r and to
red uce exhaust emissions, do not let your
vehicle stand and warm up . Be ready to
drive off immediately after starting your
veh icle.
Stopping the engine
On vehicles with R tronic*, the engine can be
turned off in the neutral position N and in
each gear (1 -6 and R).
.,. Turn the ign ition key to position ©
¢ page 70, fig. 82.
A WARNING
-Never turn off the eng ine unti l the vehi­
cle has come to a complete stop.
- The brake booster and servotronic on ly
work when the engine is running. With
the ignition turned off, you have to apply
more force when stee ring or braking.
S ince you cannot steer and stop no rma l­
ly, this can lead t o acciden ts and ser io us
injuries.
- If the engine has bee n under heavy load
fo r an ext ended period of time, heat
builds up i n the engi ne compa rtme nt af­
ter the eng ine is sw itched off -there is a
risk of damaging the engine . Allow the
engine to continue to run at idle for a
sho rt time or drive until it has cooled
down before you turn it off¢
page 151.
- If the engine has been under heavy load
for an extended pe riod of time, it can be­
come extreme ly hot. You should not park
your vehicle over easily combustible ob­
j ects o r areas (e.g. g rass or leaves). There
i s a r isk of start ing a f ire.
(D Tips
After the engine has been switched off, the
radiator fan can continue to run for up to
10 minutes -even with the ignition switch­
ed off. It can also sw itch on again after
some time if the coolant tempe rature rises
as the result of heat b uild up or if the en­
g ine compartment is heated by the sun 's
r ays and the eng ine is hot.
Parking brake
Parking brake
When the parking brake is set, it prevents the
vehicle from rolling away unintentionally .
Fig. 83 Center console: Pa rk in g brake set
Setting the parking brake
.,. Pull the parking brake lever a ll the way up.
Releasing the park ing brake
.,. Pull the pa rking brake lever up slight ly and
press the release button at the same time
¢ fig . 83 -arrow- .
.,. Keep the release button pressed and lower
the parking brake¢&_.
If you s hou ld drive off with the parking b rake
st ill set, a warning tone will sound and the
following message wi ll appear in the instru­
ment cluster to remind you to release the
parking brake:
Parking brake is applied
T he p arking brake war ning comes on only af­
ter yo u have dr iven for longer than 3 seconds
and faster than 3 mph (5 km/h) . .,.

You can also increase your speed by pressing
the accelerator pedal. After you release the
accelerator peda l, the system automat ically
adjusts back down to the speed you previously
set .
However, if you exceed this speed by 5 mph
(10 km/h) for longer than 5 m inutes, the stor­
ed speed will be deleted. You will have to re­
save it.
Briefly p ressing lever
The desired speed is increased by about 2 mph
(2 km/h) by briefly pressing the lever upwards
towards
c:::> page 74, fig. 84 0 -
The desired speed is decreased by about 2
mph (2 km/h) by briefly pressing the lever
downwards towards
c:::> page 7 4, fig. 84 0-
Switching control mode off temporarily
.. Step on the brake pedal, or
.. Depress the clutch pedal all the way, or
.. Press the lever towards @ (not latched)
c::>page 74, fig . 84 .
When the system is turned off temporarily,
the speed stored at the time is retained.
To resume the stored speed, release the brake
or clutch pedal and pull the lever to pos ition
(D .
If no desired speed was stored when the sys­
tem was temporari ly switched off, you can
store a new desired speed as follows: Drive at
the desired speed and briefly press button
c::> page 74, fig. 84@ (SET) .
A WARNING
You should only return to the saved speed
if it is not too fast for the current traffic
conditions -risk of an accident!
Deactivating
.. Press lever into position @(latched)
c::>page 74, fig. 84.
On the road 75
The saved speed value is de leted when the ig­
nition is switched off.
a) Tips
Sw itch the cruise control system off com­
pletely at the end of each trip. When you
start the next trip, the desired speed can
be set simply from the basic setting
c::>page 74.
Audi magnetic ride
Damping can be adjusted to the driver's pref­
erence and it adapts automatically to the cur­
rent driving situation .
Fig. 85 Center console: Switch for Aud i magnetic ride
.. To turn sport setting on/off, press the
switch
c:::> fig. 85.
Audi magnet ic r ide is an elect ronically con­
trolled damping system. This chassis system
ass ists the driver by adapting to the particular
situation through imperceptible control proc­
esses. The damping provides individual modu­
lation of damp ing forces . For examp le, with
damping characteristics set to provide greater
comfort, damping is set somewhat harder for
a brief period on ly as required, when rounding
a curve and when braking.
Standard setting
Select the standard setting if you prefer a sus­
pension setting emphasizing comfort .
Sport setting
Select the sport sett ing if you prefer a spo rty
suspension setting. The LED in the button[!]
comes on to indicate sport setting .

Steering wheel with shift paddles
Applies to vehicles: with R tro nic
The shift paddles allow you to select gears
manually at the steering wheel.
Fi g. 89 Spo rt steering wheel: Sh ift paddles
.,. To shift down, press the p ad d le on t he le ft
0 .
.,. To shift up, press the paddle on the right
0 .
Of course, yo u ca n con tinue to use the manual
shift p rog ram w it h the selector lever in the
center console .
Transmission 81

84 Parking sy stem
Switching on /off
Appl ies to vehicles: with park ing system advanced
Fig. 9 4 Section of the center console: Pa rk assist
switch
F ig. 95 Nav igatio n system disp lay: visual distance dis ­
play
Switching on
• Switch the navigation system and the navi­
gation system display on.
• Engage the reverse gear, or
• Press the
l"" I switch in the cente r console
¢ fig. 94. A short confirmation tone sounds
and the indica tor light in the swi tch lights
u p.
Switching betwe en the rear v iew camera
and vi sual display
• Press the Graphic con trol button
¢ page 85, fig. 96 to see the visua l dis­
play.
• Press the
Rear view contro l button to see
the rear view camera image
¢ fig. 95.
Switching off
• Drive faster than 6 mph (10 km/h), or
• Press the
l"" I switch, or
• Switch off the ignition .
Segments in the vi sual display
T he red segmen ts in front o f and behind the
vehicle ¢
fig. 95 help you to determine the
distance between you and an obstacle. As
your vehicle comes closer to the obstacle, the
segments move closer to the vehicle. The col­
lis ion area has been reached when the next to
last segment is displayed. Do not continue
driv ing farther ¢
Ii::.. in General Information
on page 83!
A WARNING
- The navigation system d isp lay cannot
show, or c an not adequately show, cer­
tain objec ts (s uch a s sma ll posts o r gra ­
ting), recesses in the ground and p ro ­
trud ing parts on another car.
- Only use t he rearv iew came ra to assist
you if it shows a good, clear picture. For examp le, the image may be affected by
the sun shining into the lens, d irt on the
lens or if there is a defect.
(D Tips
- The sensors m ust be kept clean and free
of snow and ice for the park assist to op­
erate.
- Yo u can change the volume and pitch of
the s ignals ¢
page 86 .
-What appea rs in the disp lay is time -de­
layed.
-

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 ..,.