2013 AUDI S8 engine overheat

Instrument s and warnin g/indic ator ligh ts 11
gauge turn on under normal d riving condi ­
tions . The LEDs higher up may turn on when
the eng ine is under heavy load or the exter ior
temperature is high . This is no need to worry
as long as the. warning light in the instru­
ment cluster does not illuminate . If the LEDs
in the upper area of the display and the ind ica­
tor light . in the instrument cluster d isplay
turn on, the coolant temperature is too high
¢page 16.
A WARNING
-Always observe the warning in
~ page 226, Engine compartment, be­
fore opening the hood and checking the
engine coolant level.
- Never open the engine hood if you see or
hear steam, or if you see engine coolant
dr ipping from the engine compartment.
You could burn yourself. Let the engine
cool off first so that you cannot hear or
see any steam or engine coolant .
(D Note
- Mounting additional lights or accessories
in front of the a ir inlets reduces the cool­
i ng effect of the rad iator . At h igh outside
temperatures or high eng ine load, the
engine co uld overheat.
- The front spo ile r has been designed to
properly distrib ute the cooling air when
the veh icle is moving. If the spoiler is
damaged, this cou ld red uce the cooling
effect and t he engine co uld then over­
heat . Ask your aut ho rized Audi dea le r for
ass istance.
Tachometer (engine rev counter)
The tachometer indicates the engine RPM
(revolutions per minutes).
If engine R PM drops be low 1,500, you should
downshift to the next lower gear. The red a rea
at the end of the sca le ind icates maxim um
perm iss ible engine RPM after the break-in pe­
riod. Before reaching this area, move these­
lector lever to position "D (Drive)" or ease
your foot off the accelerator pedal.
@ Note
The tachometer need le should only briefly
be in the red zone: yo u could damage your
engine! The beg inning of the red zone var ­
i es depending on the engine.
@ For the sake of the environment
Upsh ifting early saves fuel and reduces en ­
gine noise.
Fuel gauge
The fuel gauge only works when the ignition is
o n.
If the fue l level drops below 4 gallons (15
l ite rs), the bottom LE D tu rns red and the indi­
cator light~ turns on
c::> page 21. The bot­
tom LED b link s red when the fue l level is very
l ow .
The possible range based on the current fuel
level is shown in tab@~
page 23, fig. 4.
(D Note
Never run the ta nk complet ely dry. An ir­
r egular supply of f uel can cause engine
misfiring and fuel cou ld enter the exha ust
system. The cata lytic converter could t hen
overheat and be damaged.
Warning/indicator lights
Description
T he ind icator lights in the ins trument clus ter
blink or turn on. They indica te f unct ions or
malfunctions
c;;> ,& .
Messages may appea r with some indicato r
li ghts. A warning signal will sound at the
same t ime. The indica tor lights and messages
in the center of the displays may be rep laced
by other disp lays. To show them again, select
the tab for ind icator lights and messages us­
ing the multifunction steering whee l
c;;> page 23. If there are several malfunc­
tions, you can display them one at a time us- ing the thumbwheel. ..,.

Instruments and warning/indicator lights 15
(USA models): If the warning light 1111 and
the warning light
EiJ appear together, imme­
diately contact your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop to have all brake pads in­
spected
¢ page 20 .
When t he light comes on, an audible warning
signal is also given.
A WARNING
-Always observe the warnings in
¢ page 226, Engine compartment, be­
fore opening the hood and checking the
brake fluid .
- Driving with low brake fluid is a safety
hazard. Stop the car and get professional
assistance.
- USA models: Ifthe llll warning light,
the
G1 warning light and the firlilJ warn­
ing light come on together, the rear
wheels could lock up first under hard braking. Rear wheel lock-up can cause
loss of vehicle control and an accident.
Have your vehicle repaired immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer or a quali­
fied workshop. Drive slowly and avoid sudden, hard brake applications.
- Canada models: If the brake warning
light ., the
DJ warning light and the
ABS warning light
BJ come on together,
the rear wheels could lock up first under
hard braking. Rear wheel lock -up can
cause loss of vehicle control and an acci­
dent . Have your vehicle repaired immedi­
ately by your authorized Audi dealer or a
qualified workshop. Drive slowly and
avoid sudden, hard brake applications.
- If the brake warning/indicator light does
not go out after a few seconds and the
parking brake is released, or lights up
while you are driving, the fluid Level in
the brake fluid reservoir is too low. If you
believe that it is safe to do so, proceed
immediately at low speed to the nearest
authorized Audi dealer or qualified repair
facility and have the brake system in­ spected. -
Always keep in mind that after several
brake applications, you will need greater
pressure on the brake pedal to stop your
vehicle. Do not rely on strained brakes to
respond with maximum stopping power
in critical situations. You must allow for
increased braking distances. The extra
distance used up by fading brakes could
lead to an accident.
PARK/( ®) Electromechanical parking
brake
The warning/indicator light monitors the
electromechanical parking brake.
If the indicator light - (USA models)/ .
(Canada models) turns on, the parking brake
was set. If the parking brake is set when the
ignition is off, the indicator light turns off af­
ter about 20 seconds.
Th e warning/indicator light will go out when
the parking brake is released.
- (USA models) ,. (Canada models)
Caution: Vehicle parked too steep
If the indicator light blinks and the message
appears, there is not enough braking power to
ke ep the vehicle from rolling . The brakes have
overheated. The vehicle could roll away even
on a small incline .
Press brake pedal to release parking brake
To release the parking brake, press the brake
pedal and press the button
@ii or start driving
with starting assist at the same time
¢page 86 .
Please release parking brake
To release the parking brake manually , press
the brake pedal and press the button~ at the
same time. The parking brake only releases
automat ica lly if the driver's safety belt is fas­
tened .
ES Parking brake!
If the ES indicator light turns on and this
message appears, there is a parking brake
malfunction. Drive to your authorized Audi

22 Instruments and warning/indicator lights
@.D Light/rain sensor
II Automatic headlights/automatic wipers:
system fault
If the indicator light turns on and this mes­
sage appears, the light/rain sensor is not
functioning correctly.
For safety reasons the low beams are turned
on permanently with the switch in AUTO .
However, you can continue to turn the lights
on and off using the light switch. You can still
control all functions that are independent of
the rain sensor through the windshield wiper
lever.
Contact your authorized Audi dealer as soon
as possible to have the problem corrected.
@! Dynamic steering
'T-ij Steering: system fault. you can continue
driving
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, the steering may be more diffi­
cult to move or more sensitive than usual. The
steering wheel may also be at an angle when
driving straight.
Drive slowly to your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop to have the malfunction
corrected.
(;y.ij Dynamic steering: initializing
If this driver message appears and the indica ­
tor light is flashing on the instrument panel,
dynamic steering is being reinitialized . Once
you start the engine after this is finished, the
steering wheel will be easy to move . Re-initi­
alization might be necessary if the steering
wheel was moved hard to the left and right
while the vehicle was not moving. The display
goes out as soon as initialization is complete.
A WARNING
-
Have the dynamic steering system mal­
function repaired as soon as possible by an
authorized Audi dealer or any qualified
workshop -risk of accident!
(D Tips
- The dynamic steering stability systems
are not available in the event of a system
malfunction.
- For additional information on dynamic
steering, refer to¢
page 109.
~= Sport differential
I'll Sport differential: system fault
There is a malfunction with the sport differen­
tial.
Drive to your authorized Audi dealer immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
I'll Sport differential: overheating
The transmission temperature has increased
significantly due to the sporty driving manner. Drive in a less sporty manner until the tem­
perature returns to the normal range and the
indicator light switches of.
.&_ WARNING
Contact your authorized Audi dealer or a
qualified workshop if the sport differential
is faulty or malfunctioning. The repair
must be performed by trained personnel
using the correct oil in order to ensure
safety.
¢i ¢ Turn signals
-
The indicator light blinks when you use either
turn signal.
Whenever you use the left Hor the right II
turn signal, the indicator light blinks. When
you use the emergency flashers, both indica­
tor lights flash .
If one of the turn signal light bulbs burn out,
the turn signal will blink twice as fast as nor­ mal. Carefully drive to your authori zed Audi
dealer immediately to have the malfunction
corrected. The indicator light does not indi­
cate a malfunction if a turn signal on the trail ­
er or on the vehicle fails in trailer towing
mode. ..,

Full-length center
console
Overview
Applies to vehicles: with full-le ngth center console
Fig. 65 Rear: full -lengt h center console
@ · 115 volt socket c::> page 67
@ · cupholder c::> page 74
© -12 volt socket c::> page 73
@· Folding table c::> page 68
© ·center armrest and storage compart ­
ments : to open the deep compartment, press
the r ight button and fold the center armrest
upward. To open the compartment for the
massage function remote control*
c::> page 63
and for the telephone*, press the left button
and fold the center armrest upward.
115-volt socket
Applies to vehicles: with 115-volt socket
The 115-vo lt socket can on ly be used when
the engine is running
c::> .&. . When you push
the connector all the way into the socket, the
child safety mechanism releases and current
flows through the socket.
Equipment that can be connected
Electrical devices can be connected to the 115
volt socket in the vehicle. Power consumption
at the 115-volt socket must not exceed 150
watts (300 watts peak) . Check the power con­
sumpt ion of the equipment on the model
plate .
Seats and storage 67
LED on the socket
-The socket is ready for use when the LED is
green.
- If the LED blinks red, there is a malfunction.
The socket wi ll switch off automatically due
to overcurrent o r overheating . The socket
will switch on again automatica lly after a
cool-down period . Any devices that are con­
nected and switched on will activate again
automatically
c::> .&. .
A WARNING
-- The sockets and the-electrical accessories
connected to them operate only when
the ignition is switched on. Incorrect us­
age can lead to ser ious injuries or burns.
To reduce the risk of injuries, never leave
children unattended in the veh icle with
the vehicle key.
- Heavy equipment or plugs with integrat­
ed power supply units can damage the
socket and lead to injuries.
- Store all connected equipment securely
while the vehicle is moving so that they
cannot be thrown through the vehicle in
the event of a braking maneuver or an
accident.
- Never spill any liquids on the socket . If
any moisture gets into the socket, make
certain that all the moisture has dried up before using the socket again .
- Equipment that is connected to the vehi·
cle socket can heat up more than it does
when connected to the public gr id.
- When using adapters and extension
cords, the child safety for the 115-volt
socket is disabled and the socket is live .
- Never insert anything other than the
plug of an appropriate electrical accesso­
ry into the socket, especially things that
conduct e lectricity, e.g. meta l pens, knit­
ting need les, etc. into the contacts of the
115-volt socket.
- Turn the electrical equ ipment off if the
socket has switched off because of over­
heating.

The stored speed and the indicator light
A;(l)~i4 (US mode ls) 8 (Canad ian mode ls) ap­
pear in the instrument cluster d isp lay
¢ fig. 92. The display may vary, depending on
t he type of d isplay in your vehicle.
The speed is k ept constant via an engine out­
put adjustment or act ive brake intervention .
A WARNING
-Always pay attention to traffic even when
the cruise control is switched on . You are
always responsible for your speed and
the distance between your vehicle and other vehicles.
- For safety reasons, the cruise control
should not be used in the city, in stop­
and-go traff ic, on twisting roads and
when road conditions are poor (such as
ice, fog, grave l, heavy rain and hydro ­
planing) -risk of accident .
- Turn off the cruise control temporari ly
when entering turn lanes, highway exit lanes or in construction zones.
- Please note that inadvertently "rest ing "
yo ur foot on the accelerator peda l causes
the cruise control not to brake. This is
because the cruise control is overridden
by the driver's acce leration.
- If a brake system malfunction such as
overheating occurs when the cruise con­
trol system is sw itched on, the braking
function in the system may be switched
off. The other cruise control functions re­
main active as long as the indicator light
[~jlQ~i4 (US models) I ii (Canad ian mod­
els) is on.
The brake lights illuminate as soon as the brakes decelerate automat ically .
Changing speed
" To increase/dec rease the speed in incre­
ments , tap the lever in the
0 10 d irection
¢ page 90, fig. 91 .
On the ro ad 91
" To increase/decrease the speed quick ly,
hold the lever in the
0 10 direction until
the desired speed is displayed.
You can also press the accelerator pedal down
to increase your speed, e.g . if you want to
pass someone . The speed you saved earlier
will resume as soon as you release the accele r­
ator pedal.
If, however, you exceed your saved speed by
6 mph (10 km/h) for longer than S minutes,
the cruise contro l wi ll turn off temporari ly.
The green symbol
A;(l )~i4 (US models) 8 i n
the d isplay is replaced with a white symbol.
The saved speed remains the same .
Presetting your speed
You can preset your desired speed while the
vehicle is not moving .
" Switch on the ignition.
" Pull lever into posit ion
(D ¢ page 90,
fig . 91 .
" Press the lever in the 0 or 0 direction to
increase or decrease your speed .
" Release the lever to save that speed.
This function makes it possible, for example,
to save the speed you want before dr iving on
the h ighway. Once on the highway, act ivate
the cru ise con trol by pulling the lever toward
(D .
Switching the system off
T e mpor ary dea ctivat ion
" Press the brake pedal , or
" Press the lever into position @(not clicked
into place)
¢ page 90, fig. 91 , or
" Drive for longer than 5 minutes at more
than 5 mph (10 km/h) above the stored
speed.
S w itching off complet ely
" Press lever into position @(clicked into
place), or
" Switch the ignition off .

ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock braking system (ABS), brake assist
system, anti-s lip regulat ion (ASR), electronic
d ifferential lock (EDL), dynamic steering* and
electronic interaxle differential lock*. ESC is
sw itched on all the time . In certain s ituations
when you need less tract ion, you can sw itch
off ASR by pressing the button above
~ page 200, fig. 188 the se lector lever. Be
sure to sw itch ASR o n aga in when yo u no lon­
ger need less traction.
Anti -lock braking system (ABS)
ABS prevents the wheels from locking up
when braking. The veh icle can still be steered
even du ring ha rd b raking . Apply steady p res­
sure to the brake pedal. Do not p ump the ped­
a l. A pulsing in the brake peda l indicates that
the system is he lping you to brake the vehicle .
Brake as sist system
The brake assist system can decrease bra king
d istance.
It increases braking power when the
driver presses the brake pedal qu ick ly in eme r­
gency situations . You must p ress and ho ld the
brake peda l until the situation is over. In
vehicles with adaptive cruise control*, the
brake assist system is more sensit ive if the
d istance detected to the vehicle ahead is too
small.
Anti- slip regulati on (A SR )
ASR reduces engine power when the drive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the force to the road condit ions. This makes it eas ier to
start, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic diff erential lo ck (EDL )
The ED L brakes wheels that are spinning and
transfers the drive power to the other drive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all whee l drive*. This funct ion is available up
to about 75 mph (120 km/h).
In extreme cases, EDL automatica lly switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked whee l
from overheating. EDL w ill switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to normal.
Int ellig ent technolog y 199
Dynamic ste ering *
On vehicles with dynam ic steering, ESC helps
stabilize the steering in certain situations.
Electronic intera xle differential l ock
function*
T he electron ic i nteraxle differential lock f unc ­
tion activa tes when dr iving th ro ugh curves.
Braking is targeted toward the wheels on the
inside of the curve as needed. This he lps to
minimize front whee l skid, improves traction
and allows for more precise driving through curves .
A WARNING
- ESC, ABS, ASR, EDL, dynamic steering*
and the elect ronic interaxle differential
loc k function* cannot ove rcome the laws
of physics. This is espec ially important
on slippery or we t roads.
If the systems
begin acting to stabilize your veh icle, you
should immediately change yo ur speed
to match the road and traffic conditions .
Do not let the increased safety provided
by these systems tempt you to take risks.
Doing so will increase the risk of a loss of
veh icle contro l, collision and ser ious per­
sonal injur ies.
- Always adapt your speed to road, traffic and weather conditions. The risk of los­ing con trol of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast, espe cially through
curves a nd on slippe ry or wet roads, and
when dr iving too close to vehicles up
ahead. ESC, ABS, the brake assist sys­
tem, EDL, ASR, dynam ic steering* and
the electron ic interaxle d ifferential lock
function" cannot prevent co llisions.
- Always accelerate with spec ial care on
even, smooth surfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with ice and snow.
The drive wheels can spin even w ith
these assistance systems that cannot al­
ways he lp to red uce the risk of loss of ve­
hicle control.
-
•
•

202 Intellig ent technol ogy
- If you damage the fro nt spoiler, or if you
install a different spoiler, be sure the air
flow to the front brakes is not obstruct­ ed . Otherwise the brake system could
overheat reducing the effectiveness of
the ent ire brake system .
- Failure of one brake c ircuit will impair
the braking capability resulting in an in­ creased stopp ing distance. Avoid driv ing
the vehicle and have it towed to the near­ est Aud i dea ler or qualified workshop .
Brake booster
The brake booster adds extra braking power .
The brake booster works with vacuum pres­
sure which is created only when the engine is
running ¢& .
& WARNING
-Never let the vehicle ro ll to a stop w ith
the engine shut off.
- If the brake booster is not work ing, for
example when towing your vehicle, or
because the b rake booste r has somehow
been damaged, the brake pedal must be
pressed considerab ly harder to make up
for the lack of booster assistance .
Servotronic® -
advanced power
steering system
The power steering systems use the power of
the running engine to allow precise steering
with little effort.
The advanced Servotronic ® power steering
system senses the road speed and e lectroni­
cally adjusts powe r ass istance to p rov ide com ­
fortable and sa fe stee ring response exactly
matc hed to the ve hicle speed .
Power steering w il l not work if the eng ine is
off . As a result, the steering whee l w ill be hard
to turn.
The power steering fluid level is chec ked dur­
ing the scheduled ma intenance serv ices.
(D Note
If there is an e lectronic malfunction, ser­
votronic
will still function like a conven­
tiona l power steering system, providing a
constant steering support force that is no
l onger proportionate to the vehicle speed.
This is most not iceable when t urning the
steering wheel at low speeds (for example
when pa rking), - more effort w ill be re­
q uired than us ual.
- Be aware of the diffe rent than usual
steering response and adjust your steer­
ing force acco rding ly.
- Have the problem checked and set right
by an A udi dealer as soon as poss ible.
(D Tips
- When the eng ine is running, never ho ld
the stee ring wheel turned all the way to
the rig ht or to the left fo r longer than 15
seconds. The powe r stee ring pump will
overheat the hydraulic fluid i f yo u keep
holding the stee ring wheel turned all the
way. This is likely to damage the power steering system.
- If the powe r steering system sho uld fai l
entire ly, or if the engine is not runn ing
(for example, wh ile be ing towed), you
w ill still be able to stee r the veh icle.
However,
considerably more effort will
be requi red to do so.
- If the power steering system should
have a leak, or is not functioning proper­
ly, contact your author ized Audi dealer
immed iately.
- The power steer ing system req uires a
specially fo rmu lated hyd raulic fluid. The
powe r stee ring fluid reservoir is located
in the engine comp art ment¢
page 234.
T he cor rect fluid level in the reservoir is
impo rtant fo r proper functioning of the
powe r stee ring .

Catalytic converter
It is very important that your emission con­trol system (catalytic converter) is function­
ing properly to ensure that your vehicle is run­
ning in an environmentally sound manner .
.. Always use lead-free gasoline¢ page 228,
Fuel supply.
.,. Never run the tank down all the way to
empty.
.,. Never put too much motor oil in your en-
gine ¢
page 238, Adding engine oil~-
.,. Never try to push- or tow-start your veh icle.
The catalytic converter is an eff icient "clean­
up" device built into the exhaust system of
the vehicle . The catalytic converter burns
many of the pollutants in the exhaust gas be ­
fore they are released into the atmosphere.
The exclusive use of unleaded fuel is critically
importa nt for the life of the cata lytic convert­
e r and proper functioning of the engine.
A WARNING
-
- Do not park or operate the vehicle in
areas where the hot exhaust system may
come in contact with dry grass, brush,
fuel spill or other material which can cause a fire.
- Do not apply additional undercoating or
rustproofing on or near the exhaust
man ifold, exhaust pipes, catalytic con­
verter or heat shields. During driving, the
substance used for undercoating cou ld
overheat and cause a fire.
0 Note
- Be aware that just one tank filling with
leaded fuel will already seriously de­
grade the performance of the catalytic
converter.
- Do not exceed the correct engine oil level
¢ page 238.
-Do not drive until the fuel tank becomes
completely empty. The eng ine could mis­
fire . U nburned fuel could a lso get i nto
Dri vin g and en vironm ent 207
the exhaust system and this cou ld cause
the catalytic converter to overheat .
- Do not swi tch off the ignit ion while the
vehicle is mov ing.
- Do not continue to ope rate your veh icle
unde r these conditions, as othe rwise fuel
can reach the catalytic converter. This
co uld result in overheating o f the con­
verter, requir ing its replacement .
- To assure efficient operation of the Emis ­
sion Control System:
- H ave your vehicle maintained prope rly
and in accordance w ith the se rv ice rec­
ommendat ions in you r Warranty &
M aintenance boo klet.
- L ack of prope r maintenance as we ll as
improper use of the vehi cle w il l impair
the function of the em ission contro l
system and could lead to damage .
@ For the sake of the environment
Even when the Emiss ion Control System is
operat ing properly, the exha ust gas can
have a sul fur -li ke exhaust gas smell under
some operating states . This depends on
the sulfur content of the fuel being used .
Using a different brand of fue l may help,
or filling the tank with lead-free super
grade gasoline .
Avoid damaging the
vehicle
When you are drivi ng on poo r roads, or over
c ur bs, s teep ramps, etc., ma ke certai n that
low -lying parts s uch as spoilers and exhaust
system pa rts do not bottom o ut and get dam­
aged.
T h is is espec ially true for veh icles w ith low­
s lung chassis (spor ts chassis)* and fully load­
ed vehicles. •
•