2014 AUDI R8 SPYDER steering

94 Driving Safel y
• Fasten your safety be lt and wear it properly .
Also instruct your passengers to fasten their
safety belts proper ly
¢ pag e 103.
What impairs driving safety?
Safe driving is directly related to the condi­
tion of the vehicle, the driver as well as the
driver 's ability to concentrate on the rood
without being distracted.
The driver is responsible for the safety of the
vehicle and all of its occupants. If your ability
to drive is impaired, safety risks for everybody
in the vehicle increase and you also become a
hazard to everyone else on the road
¢ .&, .
Therefore:
• Do not let yourself be distracted by passen­
gers or by using a cellular telephone.
• NEVER dr ive when your dr iving ability is im­
paired (by medicat ions, alcohol, drugs, etc.) .
• Observe all traffic laws, rules of the road
and speed limits and plain common sense.
• ALWAYS adjust your speed to road, traff ic
and weathe r conditions.
• Take frequent breaks on long trips . Do not
drive for more than two hours at a stretch .
• Do NOT drive when you are tired , under
pressure or when you are stressed.
A WARNING , .
Impaired driving safety increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death when­
ever a vehicle is being used.
Proper occupant
seating positions
Proper seating position for the driver
The proper driver seating position is impor­
tant for safe, relaxed driving.
Fig. 102 Correc t seat ing posit ion
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of
injury in the event of an accident, we recom­
mend that you adjust the driver's seat to the
following position:
• Adjust the steering wheel so that there is a
distance of at least 10 inches (25 cm) be­
tween the steering wheel and your breast
bone
¢ fig . 102 .
• Adjust the driver's seat so that you can easi­
ly push the pedals all the way to the floor
while keeping your knee(s) slightly bent
¢.&_ .
• Grasp the top o f the steer ing whee l w ith
your elbow(s) slightly bent.
• Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge
is as even as possible with the top of your
head. If that is not possible, try to adjust
the head restraint so that it is as close to
this position as possible .
• Adjust the steering wheel so that the steer­
ing wheel and airbag cover points at your
chest and not at your face.
• Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is
in an upright position so that your back
comes in full contact with it when yo u drive.
• Fasten and wear safety be lts correctly
¢ page 103.
• Always keep both feet in the footwell so
that you are in control of the vehicle a t all
times .

For detailed information on how to adjust the
driver's seat, see ¢
page 5 7, General recom­
mendations.
A WARNING
Drivers who are unbelted, out of position
or too close to the airbag can be seriously
injured by an airbag as it deploys. To help
reduce the risk of serious personal injury:
- Always adjust the driver's seat and the
steering wheel so that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between your breast­
bone and the steering wheel.
- Always adjust the driver's seat and the
steering wheel so that there are at least
4 inches (10 cm) between the knees and
the lower part of the instrument panel.
- Always hold the steering wheel on the
outside of the steering wheel rim with
your hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock
positions to help reduce the risk of per­
sonal injury if the driver's airbag inflates.
- Never hold the steering wheel at the
12 o'clock position or with your hands at
other positions inside the steering wheel
rim or on the steering wheel hub. Hold­
ing the steering wheel the wrong way
can cause serious injuries to the hands,
arms and head if the driver's airbag in­
flates
- Pointing the steering wheel toward your
face decreases the ability of the supple­ mental driver's airbag to protect you in a
collision.
-Always sit in an upright position and nev­
er lean against or place any part of your
body too close to the area where the air­
bags are located.
- Before driving, always adjust the front
seats and head restraints properly and
make sure that all passengers are prop­
erly restrained.
- Never adjust the seats while the vehicle
is moving. Your seat may move unexpect­
edly and you could lose control of the ve­
hicle.
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests
Driving Safely 95
are tilted back, the greater the risk of in­
jury due to incorrect positioning of the
safety belt and improper seating posi­
tion .
- Children must always ride in child seats
¢
page 132 . Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front
passenger seat¢
page 111.
Proper seating position for the front
passenger
The proper front passenger seating position
is important for safe, relaxed driving.
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of
injury in the event of an accident, we recom­
mend that you adjust the seat for the front
passenger to the following position:
"'Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is
in an upright position and your back comes
in full contact with it whenever the vehicle is
moving.
"'Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge
is as even as possible with the top of your
head. If that is not possible, try to adjust
the head restraint
so that it is as close to
this position as possible ¢
page 96.
"' Keep both feet flat on the floor in front of
the front passenger seat.
"' Fasten and wear safety belts correctly .
For detailed information on how to adjust the
front passenger's seat, see ¢
page 5 7, Gener­
al recommendations .
A WARNING
Front seat passengers who are unbelted,
out of position or too close to the airbag
can be seriously injured or killed by the air­
bag as it deploys. To help reduce the risk of
serious personal injury:
- Passengers must always sit in an upright
position and never lean against or place
any part of their body too close to the
area where the airbags are located.
-
•
•

104 Safet y belt s
-Failure to pay attention to the warning
light that comes on could lead to person­
al injury.
Why safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for
people riding in vehicles.
F ig. 10 9 Unbelted occupants in a ve hicle h eading for a
wall
Fig. 110 T he vehicle c rash es into the wa ll.
The physical principles are simple. Both the
vehicle and the passengers possess energy
which varies w ith veh icle speed and body
weight . Engineers call this energy "kinetic en­
e rgy ."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the
g reater the vehicle 's we ight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash .
Vehicle speed is the most sign ificant factor.
If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to
50 km/h), the ene rgy inc reases 4 t imes!
Because the occupants in this vehicle are not
using safety belts¢
fig. 109, they will keep
mov ing at the same speed the vehicle was
mov ing just before the c rash, unt il something
stops them - here, the wall ¢
fig. 110 .
The same principles apply to people sitting in
a vehicle that is involved in a frontal collision .
Even at c ity speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50
km/h), the forces acting on the body can
reach one ton (2,000 lbs , or 1,000 kg) or
more . At higher speeds, these forces are even
greater .
Peop le who do not use safety belts are also
not attached to their vehicle. In a frontal coll i­
s io n they wi ll also keep moving forward at the
speed their veh icle was t ravell ing just before
the crash . Of co urse, the laws of physics don't
just app ly to frontal collisions, they determine
wh at h appens i n all kinds of a ccidents and col­
lisions .
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in­
jured or killed. Always wear your safety belts!
F ig . 111 A d river not wea ring a safety b elt is viol en tly
thrown fo rwa rd
Unbelted occupants are not able to resist the
t reme ndous forces of impact by holding tight
or b racing themse lves . Withou t the benefit of
safety restr aint sys tems, the unrestra ined oc­
cu pan t will slam violen tly into the steering
whee l, instr ument panel, w indshield, or what­
ever else is i n the way
.!> fig. 111 . This impact
with the vehicle i nterior has a ll the energy
they had just before the crash .
Never rely on a irbags alone fo r protection .
Even when they deploy , a irbags provide on ly
additional protection . Airbags are not sup ­
posed to deploy in all k inds of accidents. Al ­
t h ough your Audi is equipped with airbags, all ..,

Airbag system Important things to know
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For
airbags to do their job, occupants must al­
ways properly wear their safety belts and be
in a proper seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers, before driving off, always:
"" Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly¢
page 94,
"" Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
¢page 95,
""Wear safety be lts properly ¢ page 105,
""Always properly use the proper child re-
straint to protect children
r::::> page 132.
In a collision airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force.
The supplemental airbags can cause injuries if
the driver or the front seat passenger are not
seated properly . Therefore in order to help the
airbag to do its job, it is important, both as a
driver and as a passenger to s it properly at all
times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steer ing whee l and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
comp lete ly and provide supplemental protec­
tion in certain frontal collisions
r::::> page 94,
Proper occupant seating positions.
F or details
on the operation of the seat adjustment con­
trols ¢
page 58.
It's especially important that children a re
properly restrained
r::::> page 132.
There is a lot that the driver and the passen­
ger can and must do to help the individua l
safety features installed in your Audi work to­
gether as a system.
Proper seating pos ition is important so that
the front airbag on the driver side can do its
job. If you have a physical impairment or con-
Airbag system 111
dition that prevents you from sitting properly
on the driver seat with the safety belt properly
fastened and reaching the pedals, or if you
have concerns with regard to the function or
operation of the Advanced Airbag System,
please contact your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop, or call Audi Customer Re­
lations at 1-800-822-2834 for poss ible modi­
fications to your vehicle.
When the airbag system dep loys, a gas gener ­
ator will fill the a irbags, break open the pad­
ded covers, and inflate between the steer ing
whee l and the driver and between the instru­
ment panel and the front passenger. The air­
bags will deflate immediately after deploy­
ment so that the front occupants can see
through the windshield again without inter­
ruption.
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the airbags have deployed. The airbags a lso
inflate with a great dea l of force and nothing
should be in their way when they deploy.
Front airbags in combination with properly
worn safety belts slow down and lim it the oc­
cupant's forward movement. Together they
help to prevent the driver and passenger from
hitt ing parts of the inside the vehicle while re­
ducing the forces acting on the occupant dur­
ing the crash . In this way they help to reduce
the risk of injury to the head and upper body
in the crash. Airbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all fronta l
collisions . The triggering of the airbag system
depends on the vehicle dece leration rate
caused by the co llision and registered by the
electronic control unit. If th is rate is below
the reference value programmed into the con­
trol unit, the airbags will not be triggered,
even though the car may be badly damaged as
a result of the collision . Ve hicl e damage, re­
pair costs or even the lack of veh icle damage
is not necessarily an indication of whether an
airbag shou ld inf late o r not.
It is not possib le to define a range of vehicle
speeds that w ill cover every possible kind and ..,. •
•

112 Airbag system
angle of impact that will always trigger the
airbags, since the circumstances will vary con­
siderably between one collision and another.
Important factors include, for example, the
nature (hard or soft) of the object which the
car hits, the angle of impact, vehicle speed,
etc. The front airbags will also not inflate in
side or rear collisions, or in roll-overs.
Always remember: Airbags will deploy only
once, and only in certain kinds of collisions .
Your safety belts are always there to offer pro­
tection in those situations in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy , or when they have
already deployed; for example , when your ve­
hicle strikes or is struck by another after the
first collision.
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 effectively when used with the
safety belts. Therefore, always properly wear
you r safety belts¢
page 103 .
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel or
instrument panel will decrease the effec­
tiveness of the airbags and will increase
the risk of personal injury in a collision .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm)
to the steering wheel or instrument pan­ el.
- If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
(25 cm) from the steering wheel, investi­
gate whether adaptive equipment may
be available to help you reach the pedals
and increase your seating distance from
the steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You will also receive serious injuries and
could 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 air­
bag inflates, always wear safety belts
properly
c::> page 106, Safety belts.
- Never let children ride unrestrained or
improperly restrained in the vehicle. Ad­
just the front seats properly . If children
are not properly restrained, they may be
severely injured or killed when an airbag
inflates .
- Never ride with the backrest reclined.
- Always sit as far as possible from the
steering wheel or the instrument panel
¢ page 94, Proper occupant seating po­
sitions .
-Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat.
- Never place your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the floor in front of the seat to
help prevent serious injuries to the legs
and hips if the airbag inflates.
- Never recline the front passenger's seat
to transport objects. Items can also
move into the area of the side airbag or
the front airbag during braking or in a
sudden maneuver. Objects near the air­
bags can become projectiles and cause
injury when an airbag inflates.
A WARNING
-Airbags that have deployed in a crash must be replaced.
- Use only original equipment airbags ap­
proved by Audi and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary tools
and diagnostic equipment to properly re­
place any airbag in your vehicle and as­
sure system effectiveness in a crash .
- Never permit salvaged or recycled air ­
bags to be installed in your vehicle .
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.,. Be sure to read the important information
and head the WARNINGS for important de­
tails about children and Advanced Airbags
c::> page 132.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentially dangerous place for a ..,_

Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants .
Fig. 117 Loca tion of driver airbag: in steering whee l
Fig. 118 Locatio n of front passe nger 's ai rb ag : in th e in­
st rument panel
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance w ith United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as app licable at the time your
veh icle was manufactured . The safety be lts
fo r the front seats have "pretensioners" that
h e lp to take s lack out of the belt system. The
pretensioners are also activated by the elec ­
tronic control unit for the airbag system.
The fron t safety belts a lso have load limiters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
in a crash.
The airbag for the driver is in the steer ing
wheel hub¢
fig. 117 and the airbag for the
fro nt passenger is in the instrumen t panel
¢ fig . 118. The genera l location of the airbags
is marked "AIRBAG".
There is a lot you need to know about the air­
b ags in your veh icle. We urge you to read the
A irba g sy stem 115
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
chapters t hat make up t he owner's literature .
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 child ren.
A WARNING ,.;;
Neve r rely on airbags alone for protection .
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide
only s upplementa l protect ion.
- Airbag work most effective ly when used
with properly wor n safety belts.
- Therefore, always wear your safety belts
and make sure that everybody in your ve­
hicle is p roperly restrained.
A WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, es­
pec ia lly infants and sma ll children, will re­
ceive serious i njuries and can even be kil ­
l ed by being too close to the ai rbag when
it inflates .
- Al tho ugh the A dvanced Airbag Sys tem in
your veh icle is designed to tur n off the
front passenger airbag if an infant or a
sma ll child is on t he front passenger
seat, nobody can absolutely guarantee
that deployment under these special
conditions is imposs ible in all conceiva­
ble situat ions that may happen during
the useful life of your veh icle .
- The Advanced Airbag System can dep loy
in acco rdance with the "low risk" option
unde r the U .S. Fede ral Standa rd if a child
that is heav ie r than the typical one-year
old c hild is on the front pas senge r seat
and the other condi tions for airbag de­
p loyment are met .
- For its own safe ty, a c hild sho uld always
ride proper ly restrained for its age and
size .
Advanced front airbag system
-
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United
Ill>

118 Airbag system
components is detected. The function of the
airbag indicator light is described in greater
detail below. Because the front passenger
seat contains important parts of the Ad­
vanced Airbag System, you must take care to prevent it from being damaged . Damage to
the seat may prevent the Advanced Airbag for
the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a crash .
The front Advanced Airbag System
consists of the following:
-Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measure vehicle acceleration/deceleration
to provide information to the Advanced Air­ bag System about the severity of the crash.
- An electronic control unit, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts .
The control unit "decides " whether to fire
the front airbags based on the information received from the crash sensors. The control
unit also "decides" whether the safety belt
pre tensioners should be activated.
- An Advanced Ai rbag with gas generator for
the driver inside the steering wheel hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator in­
side the inst rument panel for the front pas­
senger.
- A weight-sensing mat under the upholstery
padding of the front passenger seat cushion
that measures the total weight on the seat.
The information registered is sent continu ­
ously to the electronic control unit to regu­
late deployment of the front Advanced Air­
bag on the passenger side.
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
light in the instrument cluster
¢page 121.
- The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on in the center of the instru­
ment panel ¢
page 122, fig. 120 and tells
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off.
- A sensor below the safety belt latch for the
front seat passenger to measure the tension
on the safety belt. The tension on the safety
belt and the weight registered by the
weight-sensing mat help the control unit "decide" whether the front airbag for the front passenger seat should be turned off or
not
¢ page 112, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driv­
er and for the front seat passenger that
senses whether that safety belt is latched or not and transmits this informa tion to the
electronic control unit .
.&_ WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can
prevent the front airbag from working
properly.
- Improper repair or disassembly of the
front passenger and driver seat will pre­
vent the Advanced Airbag System from
functioning properly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must
be performed by qualified and properly
trained workshop personnel.
- Never remove the front passenger or
driver seat from the vehicle.
-Never remove the upholstery from the
front passenger seat.
- Never disassemble or remove parts from
the seat or disconnect wires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or place them on the seat. If the weight­
sensing mat in the passenger seat is
punctured it cannot work properly.
- Never carry things on your lap or carry
objects on the passenger seat. Such
items can increase the weight registered
by the weight-sensing mat and send the
wrong information to the airbag control
unit.
- Never store items under the front pas­
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Air­
bag System under the passenger seat
could be damaged, preventing them and
the airbag system from working proper­ ly.
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholstery that have not been specifical­ ly approved by Audi on the front seats .
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced
-
Airbag System from recognizing child .,..

-The inflating airba g will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier wit h great
f o rce and w ill smash t he ch ild safety seat
and child aga inst the backrest, cente r
arm rest, d oor or roof.
- Never install a r earward facing child
sa fety seat on the front pass eng er s eat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light c omes on and stays on. If the PAS­
S ENGER AIR BAG OFF
ligh t does no t
c o m e 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 .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the a irbag will
increase the risk of injury in a crash by in­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds
or by being pushed into you as the a irbag
inflates.
- Never hold th ings in your hands or on
your lap when the vehicle is in use .
- Never transport items on or in the area
of the front passenge r seat. Objects
cou ld move into the area of the front air­
bags dur ing braking or other s udden ma­
neuver and become dangerous projec ­
ti les that can cause serious personal in­
jury if the airbags inflate.
- Never place o r attach accessories or oth­
er objects (such as cup ho lders, tele­
phone brackets, large, heavy or b ulky ob­
jects) on the doors, over or near the area
marked "AIRBAG" on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat backrests or be­
tween those a reas and yourself. These
objects could cause injury in a crash, es­
pecially when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger's seat
to transport objects. Items can also
move in to the area of the side airbag or
the front airbag dur ing braking or in a
sudden maneuver . Objects near the air -
-
Airbag system 12 1
bags can become projectiles and cause
inju ry, partic ularly when the seat is re­
clined.
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing prob lems for people
with a history of asthma or other breath­
ing cond itions.
- To reduce the risk of breath ing problems,
those with asthma o r other respiratory
conditions shou 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, was h your hands and fa ce with
mild soap and wate r before ea ting.
- Be ca reful not to get the dust into your
eyes, o r into any cuts or sc ratches .
- If the resid ue should get into your eyes,
f lush them w ith wate r.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
t!~ Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advan ced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indi cator light and the
PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light.
T he Advanced A irbag System (including the
electron ic co ntro l unit, sensor circu its and sys­
tem wir ing) is monitored con tinuously to
make sure that it is functioning properly
whenever the ignition is on. Each time you
turn on the ignition, the a irbag mon itoring in­
dicator light
I will come on for a few seconds
(self diagnostics).
The sy stem mu st be in spected when th e
indicator light
I :
- does not come on when the ignition is
sw itched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have switched on t he ignition, or
•
•