2014 AUDI S8 warning light

162 Airbag system
amount prog rammed in the e lectronic control
unit. The front airbag on the passenger side
will also be turned off if one of the child seats
that has been certified under Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been recog­ n ized on the seat . The
PASS ENG ER AIR BAG
OFF light comes on and stays on to tell you
when the front Advanced Airbag on the pas­
senger side has been turned
off ¢page 155,
Child restraints on the front seat -some im­
portant things to know.
8_ WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inf lates, a lways wear safety belts prope rly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You wi ll also receive serio us injuries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in­
flates - even with an Advanced Airbag
¢page 153.
More important things to know about
front airbags
Fig . 167 Inflated front a irbags
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated pos ition
so that airbags can unfo ld prope rly and pro­
vide supplemental protection in a frontal co l­
lision .
The front airbags are designed to provide ad­ d itional protect ion for the chest and face of
the dr iver and the front seat passenger when :
- safety belts are worn properly, -
the seats have been positioned so that the
occupant is properly seated as far as possi­
b le from the airbag,
- and the head restraints have been properly
adjusted .
Bec ause airb ags infla te in the blin k of an eye
with great force, th ings you have on your lap
or have p laced on the seat co uld become dan ­
gerous pro jecti les, and be p ushed into you if
the a irbag inf lates .
When an airbag deploys, fine dust is re leased .
This is no rma l and is not caused by a fire i n
the vehicle . This dust is made up mostly of a
powder used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy. It could irr itate skin.
It is important to remembe r that wh ile the
supplementa l airbag system is designed to re­
duce the like lihood of serious injur ies, other
injur ies, for example swelling, bruising and
minor abrasions, can also happen when air­
bags inflate . A irbags do not protect the arms
o r the lower parts of the body . Front a irbags
supplement the three-point safety bel ts only
i n some fronta l co llisions in which the vehicle
de celeration is h igh enough to deploy the air­
bags .
Front airbags will not deploy:
-if the ignition is sw itched off when a c rash
o ccu rs,
- in side co llisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollovers,
- when the crash deceleration measu red by
the airbag system is less than the min imum
threshold needed for a irbag deployment as
reg istered by the electronic contro l unit .
The front pa ssenge r airbag also will not
deploy:
- when the front passenger seat is not occu­
pied,
- when the weight on the front passenger
seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem ind icates that the front a irbag on the
passenger side has to be turned off by the ..,.

electronic control unit (the PA SS ENGE R AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on).
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase
the risk of serious injury in crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the air­
bags inflate, the driver and passengers
must always sit in an upright posit ion,
must not lean against or place any part
of the ir body too close to the area where
the a irbags are located .
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posi ­
t ion or too close to the airbag can be se­
riously injured by an airbag as it unfolds
with great force in the blin k of an eye
¢page 155.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child sea t in­
stalled on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child seat
o r infant carrier with great force and w ill
smash the ch ild seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child seats on
the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing
child seat on the front passenger seat
because of exceptiona l circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install the rea r-facing chi ld seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Aud i deale r.
A WARNING
Objects be tween you and the a irbag will
increase the risk of in jury in a crash by in ­
terfering with the way the air bag unfolds
or by being pushed into you as the a irbag
inflates.
-
A irbag system 163
-Never hold things in you r hands o r on
your lap when the veh icle is in use.
- Never transport items on or in the area
of the front passenger seat. Objects
could move into the area of the front air­
bags during braking or other sudden ma­
neuvers and become dangerous projec­
tiles that can cause ser ious personal in­
jury if the a irbags inf late.
- Never place or attach accesso ries o r oth ­
er objects (such as cup holders, te le­
phone b rac kets, large, heavy or bulky ob ­
jects) on the doors, ove r o r near the are a
marked "AIRBAG" on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat backrests or be­
tween those areas and yo urself. These
objects could cause in ju ry in a c rash, es­
pecially when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger 's seat
to transport objects. Items can a lso
move into the area of the s ide a irbag or
the front a irbag during braking or in a
sudden maneuver. Objects near the air­ bags can become projectiles and cause
i nj ury, partic ula rly when the seat is re­
clined.
A WARNING
T he fine dus t create d when airbag s deploy
can cause breathing prob lems fo r people
with a history of as thma or ot her breat h­
ing cond itions.
- T o reduce the ri sk of breath ing problems,
those with asthma or other respiratory
conditions s hou ld get fresh air r ight
away by getting o ut o f the veh icle or
open ing windows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy, wash your hands and face with mild soap and water before eating.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your
eyes, or into any c uts or scratches .
-If the resi due should get into your eyes,
f lush them with water.
•
•

164 Airbag system
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
Cl! (USA models)/!f (Canada models)
Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advanced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indicator light and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light.
The Advanced Airbag System (including the
electronic control unit, sensor circuits and sys­
tem wiring) is monitored continuously to
make sure that it is functioning properly
whenever the ignition is on. Each time you
switch on the ignition, the airbag monitoring
indicator light
I (USA mode ls)/ fll (Canada
models) will come on for a few seconds (self
d iagnost ics).
The system must be inspected when the
indicator light
I (USA models)/E,I
(Canada models):
-does not come on when the ignition is
switched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you have switched on the ignition, or
- comes on while driving.
If an airbag system malfunct ion is dete cted,
the indicator light will first start flashing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to serve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately.
If a malfunction occurs that turns the front
airbag on the passenger side
off, the PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light
c::> page 18
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
have the system inspected immediate ly
by your authorized Audi dealer. It is pos- sible
that the airbag will inflate when it
is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fig. 168 Sect io n from the instrument pane l: PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG O FF lig ht
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located
in the center of the instrument panel
c::>fig . 168 .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come
on and stay on to tell you when the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenger s ide has been
turned
off by the electron ic control unit. Each
t ime you switch on the ign it ion, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light will flash for a few
seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small ch ild or child
restraint on the front passenger seat,
- w ill go out if the front passenger seat is oc ­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing mat.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the front seat, or
- a rearward-facing child restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward-facing child restraint has been in-
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
liJI,

166 Airbag sys te m
- a safety be lt extender has not been left in
the safety be lt latch for the front passenger
seat .
I n addi tion to the
P A SS ENGER AIR BA G OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel ,
the message
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF or
PASSENGER AIR BAG ON will briefly appear
in the instrument cluster display . Th is is to in­
form the driver of the current front passenger
a irbag status .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tect ion in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light
c:> page 18
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
have t he system inspected immediate ly
by you r authorized Aud i dea le r.
It is pos­
s ible that the a irbag will inflate when it
is not s upposed to, or w ill not inflate
w hen it sho uld.
A WARNING
If the front air bag infla tes, a c hild wi tho ut
a chil d restra int, or in a rearward-fac ing
child safety seat, or in a forward-facing
child rest raint that has not been prope rly
installed will be serious ly injured and can
be killed.
- Even though your ve hicle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that all children, especially 12
years and younger, a lways ride on the
back seat properly restra ined fo r the ir
age and size .
- Always insta ll forward or rea r-facing
child seats on the rea r seat -even w ith
an Advanced Airbag System.
- If you must install a rearward-fac ing
child seat on the front passenge r seat
because of except io na l circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t
does not appe ar and stay on, imme diate- ly insta
ll the rear-facing child seat in a
rear seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
system inspected by your Audi dealer.
- A t ight tether or other strap on a rear­
ward-facing child restraint attached to
the front passenger seat can put too
much p ressu re on the weight-sensing
mat in the seat and reg iste r mor e we ight
than is actually on the seat. The heavie r
weight regis tered can make the sys tem
wo rk as though an adult we re on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
m ust be suppressed causing serious or
even fata l injury to t he chi ld .
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you
m ust install a forward-facing c hild re­
straint on the front passenger seat, al ­
ways move the seat into its rearmost po­ sition in the seat's fore and aft ad just­
ment range, as far away from the a irbag
as poss ible. The backrest mus t be ad just­
ed to an upright pos ition. Make su re that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and st ays o n all the time when ­
eve r the ignit ion is swit ched on .
A WARNING
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go o ut when an a dult is sitting
on the front passenger seat after taking
the steps described above, make sure the
adu lt is properly seated and restra ined at
one of the rear seat ing pos itions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dealer before transporting
a nyo ne on the front passenger seat .
(D Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front pas­
senger seat detects an empty seat, the
front airbag on the passenger side will be
turned off, and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light will stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Pa rts of the airbag system are installed at
many different places on your Aud i. Insta lling, ..,.

168 Airbag system
and safety belts with pretensioners are
scrapped, al l applicable laws and regula·
tions must be observed. Your authorized
Audi dea ler is familiar with these require·
ments and we recommend that you have
your dealer perform this service for you .
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-rim combinations not approved by Audi, lowering the vehicle, chang ing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the spring s, suspen­
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the a irbag
sensors and sent to the electronic control
unit . Some suspension changes can, for exam­
ple, 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 e lectronic 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. 169 Driver 's knee airbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument
panel underneath the steering wheel
¢ fig . 169, 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 and up­
per and lowe r th igh areas and supplements
the protection provided by the safety belts. ..,.

If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
also deploy in fronta l collisions when the de ­
p loyment threshold stored in the control unit
is met
c:> page 162, More important things to
know about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function,
safety be lts he lp keep the driver or front pas ­
senger in position in a frontal collision so that
the airbags can provide supplemental protec­
tion .
The airbag system is not a subst itute for yo ur
safety be lt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your veh icle. Al­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wear ing it properly. Th is
i s why you shou ld always wear you r safety
be lt, not just because the law requires you to
do so¢
page 145, General notes.
The safety be lt buck le for the dr iver and front
seat passenger have switches that tell the a ir­
bag con trol mod ule if the safety belt is be ing
used or not . If the safety belt is being used,
the knee airbag will deploy at a slightly higher rate of deceleration than if the belt is not be­
ing used. Therefore, in a particu lar collision, it
is poss ible 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 be ing used.
Remember too, airbags will deploy only once
and only in certain kinds of accidents -your
safety belts are always there to offer protec ­
tion in those acc idents in which a irbags a re
not supposed to deploy or when they have a l­
ready deployed, fo r example when your veh i­
cle strikes or is str uck by another after the
first collision .
This is just one of the reasons why an a irbag is
not a substitute for the safety belt. The airbag
system wo rks most effective ly when used with
the safety belts. Therefore, always wear your
safety be lts correctly.
It is impo rtan t to remember that while the
supp lemental knee a irbag sys tem is designed
to reduce the like lihood of serious injur ies,
A irbag system 169
other injur ies, for example, swelling, bru ising
and minor abrasions and friction b urns can al­
so occur when an airbag inflates .
The knee airbag system basic ally consist s
of:
-The e lectronic control module
- Two inflatable a irbags (airbag and gas gen-
erator), one for the driver and one for the
front passenger
- The airbag indicator light in the instrument pane l
The knee airbag s ystem will not depl oy:
- when the ignit ion is switched off
- in frontal collisions when the deceleration
measured by the control unit is too low
- in side collisions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers
- in the event of a system malfunction (warn -
ing/indicator light is on) ¢
page 18.
A WARNING
--Safety belts and the airbag system can
only provide protection when occupants
are in the proper seating position
¢page 162.
-If the airbag ind icator light ¢ page 18
comes when the ve hicle is being used,
have the system inspected immediately
by your authori zed Audi dealer.
It is pos­
sible tha t the airbag will infla te when it
is not supposed to, or will not infla te
when it should.
-
•
•

of the passenger seat. If the airbag de­
ploys, this can result in serious or fatal
injuries.
- Never carry objects of any kind in the
footwell area in front of the driver's or passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shop­
ping bags, for example) can interfere
with or prevent proper deployment of
the airbag. Small objects can be
thrown through the vehicle if the air­ bag deploys and injure you or your pas­
sengers.
- Make sure there are no cracks, deep
scratches or other damage in the area of
the instrument panel where the knee air­
bags are located.
- If children are incorrectly seated, their
risk of injury increases in a collision
¢ page 177, Child Safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
---
Fig. 171 Side airbag location in the driver's seat
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests
¢fig. 171 and the rear
backrest facing the doors. They are identified
bytheword "AIRBAG".
The side airbag system basically consists of:
-the electronic control module and external
side impact sensors
- the two side airbags located in the sides of
the front backrests
- two rear side airbags
Airbag system 1 71
- the airbag warning light in the instrument
cluster.
The airbag system is monitored electronically
to make certain that it is functioning properly
at all times. Each time you switch on the igni­
tion, the airbag system indicator light will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics).
The side airbag system supplements the safe­
ty belts and can help to reduce the risk of in­
jury to the driver's, front and rear passenger's
upper torso on the side of the vehicle that is
struck in a side collision. The airbag deploys
only in side impacts and only when the vehicle
acceleration registered by the control unit is
high enough.
If this rate is below the refer­
ence value programmed into the control unit,
the side airbags will not be triggered, even
though the car may be badly damaged as a re­
sult of the collision.
It is not possible to de­
fine an airbag triggering range that will cover every possible angle of impact, since the cir­
cumstances will vary considerably between
one collision and another. Important factors include, for example, the nature (hard or soft)
of the impacting object, the angle of impact,
vehicle speed, etc. ¢
page 173, Important
safety instructions on the side airbag system.
Aside from their normal safety function, safe­
ty belts work to help keep the driver or front
passenger in position in the event of a side
collision so that the side airbags can provide
protection.
The airbag system is
not a substitute for your
safety belt . Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your vehicle. Al­
ways remember that the side airbag system
can only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wearing it properly. This
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re­
quires you to do so¢
page 145, General
notes.
It is important to remember that while the
supplemental side airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of serious injuries,
other injuries, for example, swelling, bruising,
IIJ>,

17 2 Airbag system
and minor abrasions can also be associated
with deployed side airbags . Remember too,
side airbags will deploy on ly once and on ly in
certain k inds of accidents -your safety belts
are always there to offer protect ion.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage are not necessar ily an indi­
cation of over-sensitive or failed airbag activa­
tion . In some co llisions, both front and side
a irbags may inflate . Remember too, that air ­
bags will deploy only once and only in certa in
kinds of co llisions -your safety belts are al­
ways there to offer protec tion in those acci­
dents in wh ich airbags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have already deployed.
The side airbag s yst em will not depl oy :
- when the ign ition is switched off
- in s ide collisions when the accelerat ion
measured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end collisions
- in rear-end collisions
- in ro llovers.
I n some types of acc idents the front airbags,
side curta in a irbags and side airbags may be
triggered together.
A WARNING
- Safety belts and t he airbag system will
only provide protection when occ upants
are in the proper seating posit ion
¢ page 173.
- If the airbag indicator light ¢ page 18
comes when the vehicle is being used,
have the system inspected immediate ly
by your aut ho rized Aud i dealer.
It is pos­
sible that the airbag will inflate when it
is not s upposed to, or w ill not inflate
when it sho uld. -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.
F ig . 1 72 Inflated s ide a irbags on left s ide of veh icle,
r ea r side a irbag
When the system is triggered, the a irbag is
filled with propellant gas and breaks through a seam in the seat surface area marked "AIR­
BAG".
It expands between the side tr im panel
and the passenger. In orde r to help provide
t hi s addit io nal pro tect ion, the s ide airbag
must inflate within a fraction of a second at
very h igh speed and with great force. The sup ­
plementa l side airbag could injure you if your
seat ing pos ition is not proper or upright or if
items are located in the area where the sup­
plemental side airbag expands. This applies
especially to ch ildren
q page 177, Child Safe­
ty .
Supplemental side airbags inflate betwee n
t h e occ upant and the door panel on the side
of the vehicle that is str uck in certa in side col ­
li sion ¢
fig. 172 .
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion " the impact and in this way t hey can
help to reduce the risk of inju ry to the upper
part of the body.
A fine dust may deve lop when the airbag de­
ploys. This is normal a nd does not mean there
is a fire in the vehicle.