2015 AUDI A8 warning

192 Child Safe ty
be suppressed causing ser ious or even
fatal injury to the child .
- If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan­
ces and the
P ASS ENGER AIR BA G OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
med iately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the a irbag system inspected by your
Audi dealer.
Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
Fig. 187 Tet her st rap : proper ro uting a nd mountin g
Inst all ing th e teth er strap
.. Release or deploy the tether strap on the
child restra int according to the child re­
stra int manufac turer's instructions .
.. Gu ide the upper tether strap
un de r the rea r
head restraint ~
fig. 187 (raise the head re­
straint if necessary).
.. Center s eating posi tion* : Guid e the upper
tether strap over the rear head restraint.
.. Tilt the recess flap up to expo se the anchor
br acke t.
.. Attach the tether strap anchorage hook into
the opening of the tether anchorage .
.. Pull on the tether strap hook so that the
spring catch of the hoo k engages.
.. Tighten the tether strap firmly fo llowi ng the
child restra int manufacturer's instructions.
Re leasing the tethe r strap
.. Loosen the tension following the child re­
stra int manufacturer 's instructions.
.. Depress the spring catc h on the hook and re­
lease it from the anchorage.
(D Note
If you leave the child restraint with the
tether strap firm ly installed for several
days, this could leave a mark on the up ­
holstery on the seat cushion and backrest
in the area where the tether strap was in ­
stalled . The upholstery would also be per­
manently stretched around the tether
strap . This applies espec ia lly to leather
seats.
Using tether straps on rearward-facing
child restraints
Cur rently, few rear-facing chi ld restraint sy s­
tems come with a tether . Plea se read and
heed the ch ild restraint sys tem m anuf act ur­
er's instructions carefully to determine how to
properly install the tether.
.&_ WARNING
= -
A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild safety
seat installed on the front passenger sea t
will be serio usly injured and ca n be killed if
the front airbag in flates -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the c hild
safety seat or infant carrie r with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child aga inst the backrest, center
armrest, or door.
- A tight tether or other strap on a rear­
ward-facing child restraint attached to
the front passenger seat can put too
much pressure on the weight-mat in the
seat and register a heavier weight in the
Advanced Airbag System . The heavier
weight registered can make the system
work as tho ugh an adult we re on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
m ust be suppressed causing ser ious or
even fata l injury to the chi ld .
- If you must insta ll a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan­
ces and the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OF F

194 Audi pre sense
Audi pre sense
Preventative passenger
protection
A pp lies to veh icles: with Audi pre se nse
Audi pre sense can initiate steps to help pro­
tect vehicle occupants in certain situations.
The functions described depend on equ ipment
installed in your vehicle:
Audi pre sense basic
The following functions can be triggered in
certain driving situations:
- Tightening of the safety belts (for example,
during heavy braking) : the front safety belts
have reversible belt pretensioners. If a colli­
sion does not occur, the safety belts loosen
slightly and are ready to be tightened again.
- Closing the windows and the sunroof*: the
windows and the sunroof* close leaving a
small open gap.
Audi pre sense basic functions can be trig­
gered at speeds above 20 mph (30 km/h). The
deployment time is adapted in the drive select
mode dynamic.
Audi pre sense front (vehicles with
adaptive cruise control*)
Audi pre sense front includes the functions in
Audi pre sense basic. In addition, within the
limits of the system, the likelihood of a colli­
sion with the vehicle immediately ahead is al­
so calculated .
If the system senses an immi­
nent collis io n the following functions can be
triggered:
- Braking guard
~page 98
-Tightening the safety belts
- Closing the windows and the sunroof* (leav-
ing a small open gap)
Audi pre sense rear (vehicles with Audi
side assist*)
Audi pre sense rear includes the functions in
Audi pre sense basic. In addition, the likeli­
hood of a rear-end coll ision with the veh icle
coming from behind is also calculated. If the risk
of a co llision is detected, the following
functions can be triggered:
- Tig htening the safety belts
- Closing the windows and the sunroof* (leav-
ing a small open gap)
- Adjusting the seats: the settings for the
power head restrains, the upper sections of
the backrests and the pneumatic side bol­
sters* are optimized for the front seats and
the outboa rd rear seats*. If a collision does
not occur, the previous seat settings are re­
stored.
Audi pre sense plus
Audi pre sense plus includes the funct ions in
Audi pre sense front and Audi pre sense rea r.
Error message
Audi pre sense: not available
Preventative passenger protection is not avail­
able. See your authorized Audi dealer immedi­
ately to have the malfunction corrected .
A WARNING
-Audi pre sense cannot overcome the laws
of physics.
It cannot prevent a collision. Do
not let the increased safety provided
tempt you to take risks. This will increase
the risk of a collision and serious personal
injuries.
- The sensors cannot always detect all ob­
jects . This increases the risk of a colli­
sion.
- Audi pre sense does not detect people or
animals or objects that are crossing the
vehicle's path~
page 92.
-The radar sensor's vision can be reduced
by heavy rain, ice, snow, heavy road spray
and reflections from guard rails, tunnel
entrances, etc. These and similar condi­
tions can prevent vehicles from being ac­
curately detected and in some cases they
may not be detected at all.
Ill>

198 Intelligent technology
vehicles with adaptive cruise control*, the brake assist system is more sensitive if the
d istance detected to the vehicle ahead is too
smal l.
Anti-slip regulati on (ASR )
ASR reduces engine power when the d rive
wheels begin to spin and adapts the force to
the road conditions. This makes it easier to
start, accelerate and drive up hills.
Electronic diffe rential lock (EDL )
The EDL brakes wheels that are spinn ing and
transfers the drive power to the other d rive
wheel or whee ls if the vehicle is equipped with
all whee l drive*. This function is available up
to about 75 mph (120 km/h).
I n extreme cases, ED L automatica lly switches
off to help keep the brake on the braked whee l
from overheating . EDL wi ll switch on again au­
tomatically when conditions have returned to normal.
Dynamic steer ing*
On vehicles with dynamic steering, ESC he lps
stabilize the steering in certain situations .
Selective wheel torque control
The se lective wheel torque cont ro l operates
when dr iving thro ugh cu rves. The front wheel
on the ins ide of the curve or both w heels on
the inside of the curve are braked selective ly
as needed. This minimizes sliding in the front
wheels and a llows for more precise driving
through curves. The applicab le system may
not activate when driving in wet or snowy con­
d itions .
Post- coll isio n br ake assis t
"Post-collision brake assist" can assist the
driver during a collision by reducing the dan­
ger of slipp ing and further collision and by au­
tomatic braking.
"Post-collision brake assist" functions d uring
collisions when the a irbag contro l modu le de­
tects a trigger level and the collision takes place at a certa in driving speed. The brak ing
of the vehicle happens automatically via the ESC as
long as the ESC, the brake system, and
the vehicle electrical system are not damaged
from the collision.
T he following ac tivit ies override the au toma t­
ic braking during a co llision:
- I f the driver p resses the acce le rator pedal.
There is no automa tic brak ing .
- When the force on the press brake peda l is
st ronger tha n the braking force initiated by
t he system. The veh icle is manua lly braked.
- When the ESC is damaged, the "Post-colli­
sion brake assist" is not available.
,&. WARNING
- ESC, ABS, ASR, ED L, dynamic steeri ng *
and the select ive wheel torque control
cannot overcome the laws of physics .
This is especially important on s lippery
or wet roads. If the systems beg in acting
to stabilize your veh icle, you should im­
mediately change your speed to match
the road and traffic conditions. Do not let the increased safety provided by
these systems tempt you to take r is ks.
D oing so will increase the risk of a loss of
veh icle contro l, col lision and ser ious per ­
sonal injuries.
- Always ad apt your speed to road, traffi c
and weather conditions . The risk of los ­
ing contro l of the vehicle increases when
driving too fast, espec ially through
curves and on slippery or wet roads, and
when dr iv ing too close to vehicles up
ahead. ESC, ABS, the brake ass ist sys­
tem, EDL, ASR, dynam ic steering* and
the selective wheel torque cont ro l can­
not prevent collisions.
- Always accelerate with special care on
even, smooth s urfaces such as those that
are wet or covered with i ce and snow.
The drive wheels can spin even w ith
these assistance systems tha t cannot al­
ways he lp to red uce the risk of loss of ve -
-
hicle control. IJJ,,

rl N
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"' rl
"' ......
@ Tips
-ABS and AS R on ly wor k co rrectly when
a ll fo ur wheels are eq uipped w ith identi­
ca l tires . Different tire s izes can lead to a
r educt io n in eng ine power.
- You may hear noises when the sys tems
desc ribed are working.
Switching on and off
Intelligent technology 199
- If
the ind ica tor li ght &J or m] (US A
mode ls)/ ri] (Ca nada models) ap pears,
t h ere may be a malfunction
c::> page 19,
¢ page 18.
ESC turns on automatically when you start the engine.
Fig . 188 Center co nsole with ESC O FF bu tton
ESC levels
Sport mode on
The following si tua tions are exceptions whe re
it may be usefu l to switch o n sport mo de to
allow the w heels to spi n:
- Rockin g the vehicle to free it when i t is st uck
- Dr iv ing in deep s now o r on loose g ro un d
- Dr iving with snow chains
Sport mode off
Behavior
T he E SC and AS R sta bilization f unct io ns The fu ll sta biliz ati on f uncti on o f the ES C
are limited ¢,& .
Operation Press the [ru button .
Indicator • tur ns on.
lights
Driver mes· Stabilization control (ESC): Sport
sages Warning! Reduced stability
A WARNING
Yo u should o nly sw itch sport mo de on i f
your dr iv ing abili ties and road cond itions
permit.
- The stabilization function is limited
when sport mode is sw itched on. The
dr iv ing whee ls co uld spin and the vehicle
cou ld swe rve , especially on slick or slip ­
pery road surfaces .
(D Tips
Sport mode cannot be switched o n when
adapt ive cr uise c ontrol* is sw itched on.
-
and AS R is availab le again .
Press the
[ru button again .
II turns off .
Stabilization control (ESC): On
Braking
General information
What affects braking efficiency?
Operating conditions and driving habits
The bra ke s on today's au to m obiles a re s till
sub ject t o wear, depe nding la rgely o n ope rat ­
i ng con dit ions and d riving habits ¢
A. On
vehicles that are either driven most ly in stop­
and-go city traff ic or are driven hard , the
brake pads should be checked by your author­
ized Audi dealer more often than specif ied in
t h e
Warranty & Maintenance booklet . Failure .,._

200 Intellig ent technol ogy
to have your brake pads inspected can result
in reduced brake performance.
On steep slopes, yo u shou ld use the b rak ing
effect of the engine. Th is way, you prevent un­
necessary wear on the brake system. If you
must use your brakes, do not hold the brakes
down continuously. P ump the brakes at inter ­
vals.
Operating nois e
Noises may occur when braking depending on
the speed, braking force and outside condi­
tions such as temperature and humidity.
E ff ect of water and road salt
In certain situat ions, for example after driving
through water , in heavy ra in , after overn ight
condensation or after washing your car, the braking effect can be reduced by moisture or
ice on the brake rotors and brake pads. The
brakes must be dried first with a few careful
brake applications.
At higher speeds and with the windshield wip­
ers turned on, the brake pads press against
the brake rotors for a short amount of time.
This occurs at regular intervals without the
driver noticing and provides for bet ter brake
response time under wet condit ions .
The effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced
when the vehicle is dr iven on a salt-covered
road and the brakes are not used . Likew ise,
you clean off accumulated salt coating from
brake discs and pads with a few caut ious ap­
plications of the brake
c:::> .&, .
Cor ro sion
There may be a tendency for dirt to build up
on the brake pads and corrosion to form on
the discs if the car is not dr iven regularly or
only for short t rips with little use of the
b rakes .
If the brakes are not used frequently , or if cor­
rosion has formed on the discs, it is advisable
to clean off the pads and discs by braking
firm ly a few times from a mode rately high
speed
c:::> .&, .
Faults in the brake syste m
If you shou ld notice a sudden increase in
brake pedal trave l, then one of the two brake
circuits may have fai led
c:::> & .
Low bra ke fluid lev el
Malfunctions can occu r in the bra ke system if
the b rake fluid level is too low. The brake flu id
level is monitored electro nica lly.
Brake booster
The brake booster works with vacuum pres­
sure which is created only when the eng ine is
runn ing
c:::> .&, .
Brake lining we ar statu s
Brake lining wear may be checked by visual in­
spect ion of the condition of the brake pads
through the open ings in the wheel. If neces­
sary, the wheel may be removed for th is in­
spect ion
c:::> page 269, Changing a wheel .
_& WARNING
-You shou ld perform braking maneuvers
for the purpose of cleaning the brake
system only if road conditions permit .
Other road users must not be put at risk -
you may ca use an accident!
- Before descending a steep grade, reduce
speed and sh ift transmission into a lower
gear or lower dr iving range. Do not ride
the brakes or hold the pedal down too
long or too often . This could cause the
brakes to get hot and diminish braking
efficiency.
- Do not "ride the brakes" by rest ing your
foot on the pedal when you do not intend
to b rake . This may cause the brakes to
overheat, p remature wear and increased
s topping distance .
- Unde r ce rtain cl imatic and ope rat ing
conditions such as passing thro ugh wa­
ter, dr iving in heavy rain o r after washing
the vehicle, the effectiveness of the brakes can be reduced. In winter, ice can
accumu late on the brake pads, lin ings,
d iscs and drums. Carefully app ly brakes
for a test. Brakes will dry and ice

,....,
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'SI: .... \!) ..,.,
.... ..,., ....
coatings will be cleaned off after a few
careful brake applicat ions.
- Driving for an extended period of time on
salt-covered roads without us ing your
brakes can also affect braking efficiency.
Clean off accumulated salt coating from
brake discs and pads w ith a few careful
brake applicat ions.
- If you damage the front 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 bra ke c ircui t will impair
t he braking capabi lity res ulting in an in­
creased stopp ing distance . Avoid driv ing
the vehicle and have it towed to the near ­
est Aud i dea le r or q ualified workshop .
- Never let the vehicle ro ll to a stop w ith
the engine shut off.
- If the bra ke booster is not work ing, the
brake pedal must be pressed considera ­
bly harder to make up for the lack of
booster assistance.
Electromechanical
power assist, dynamic
steering
The electrome chanical power assist helps the
driver when steering.
Powe r stee ring adapts electronically based on
the veh icle speed.
Indicator lights and mess ages
• Stee ring defecti ve! Stop th e vehicle
If th is ind icator light turns on and stays on
and this message appears, the power steering
may have fa iled.
Do
not co ntinu e driving . See yo ur authorized
Aud i dea ler or other qualified repa ir facility
for assistance .
'Tj Steering: System fault You can contin ue
driving
Int ellig ent technolog y 201
If the indicator light turns on and the mes­
sage appears, the steering may be more diffi­
cu lt to move or more sensitive than usual. The
steering wheel may also be at an ang le when
driv ing straight.
Drive slowly to your a uthorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop to have the ma lf u nction
corrected.
'T-ij Dynamic stee ring: Init ializing
If this d rive r message appears and the i ndica­
tor lig ht is flas hing on the instrumen t panel,
dynam ic s teer ing* is being rein it ia liz ed. After
starting the engine, the stee ring wheel will
move s light ly . Re-initialization might be nec­
essary if the steering wheel was moved hard
to the left and right whi le the vehicle was not
moving. The display goes out as soon as initi­
alization is complete .
Drive slowly to your authorized Audi dea ler or
qualified workshop to have the malf u nction
corrected.
A WARNING
H ave the dy namic steering* system mal­
f u nction repa ired as soon as possible by an
authorized Audi dea ler or qua lified wor k­
shop -risk of acc ident!
(D Tips
If the . or 'Tj indicator light only stays
on for a short t ime, you may continue dr iv­
i ng .
- The dynamic steering* stab il ity systems
are not ava ilab le in the event of a system
ma lfunction .
- For add itiona l information o n dynamic
steering*, refer to
~page 108.
•
•

202 Intelligent technology
Driving with your
quattro
With All Wheel Drive, all four wheels are driv­
en .
General inform ation
With All Wheel Drive, power is distributed to
all four wheels . This happens automatically
depending on your driving style and the road
conditions at the time . See also
c:;; page 197.
With the sport differential*, power d istribu­
tion to the rear wheels is variable and can be
adjusted with Audi d rive select*
c:;; page 108.
Always read and follow safety precautions
¢ .&,.
Winter tires
When driving in the winter , your vehicle with
A ll Wheel Drive has an advantage, even with
regular tir es. In winter road conditions it may
be advisable to mount winter tires (or all-sea­
son tires) for improved driveability and brak­ ing: these tires must be mounted on
all four
wheels.
See also ¢ page 260, Winter tires.
Snow chains
Where snow chains are mandatory on certa in
roads, this normally a lso applies to vehicles
with A ll Wheel Drive
c:;, page 261, Snow
chains .
Replacing wheels/tires
Vehicles with All Wheel Dr ive must always
have tires of the same size. Also avoid ti res
with different tread depths. For details see
page
c:;, page 256, New tires and replacing
tires and wheels .
Off-Road driving?
Your Audi does not have enough ground clear­
ance to be used as an off-road vehicle. It is
therefore best to avoid rough tracks and un ­
even terrain as much as possible. Also refer to
c:;; page207.
A WARNING
Always adjust your driving to road and traf­
f ic conditions. Do not let the extra safety
afforded by All Wheel Drive tempt you into
taking extra risks.
- Although the All Wheel Drive is very ef­
fective, always remember that braking
capacity is lim ited by tire traction. You
should therefore not drive at excessive
speeds on icy or slippery road surfaces.
- On wet road surfaces, be careful not to
drive too fast because the front wheels
could begin to slide on top of the water
(aquaplaning) . If this should occur, you
will have no warning from a sudden in­
crease in eng ine speed as with a front­
wheel drive vehicle. Always drive at speeds which are suited to the road con­
ditions - risk of crash .
Energy management
Starting ability is optimized
Energy management controls the distribution
of electrical energy and thus optimizes the
availability of electrical energy for starting
the engine .
If a vehicle with a conventiona l ene rgy system
is not driven for a long period of time, the bat­
tery is discharged by idling current consumers
(e .g. immobilizer). In certain circumstances it
can resu lt in there being insufficient energy
available to start the engine .
Intelligent energy management in your vehi­
cle handles the distribution of e lectrica l ener­
gy. Starting ability is markedly improved and
the life of the battery is extended.
Basically, energy management consists of
battery diagnosis , idling current manage­
ment
and dynamic energy management.
Battery diagnosis
Battery diagnosis continuously determines
the state of the battery. Sensors determine
battery voltage, battery current and battery ..,.

.... N .... N
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.... 1.1'1 ....
temperature. This determines the current
state of charge and the power of the battery.
Idling current management
Idling current management reduces energy
consumpt ion while the vehicle is stand ing.
With the ignition switched off, it contro ls the
energy supply to the various e lectrica l compo ­
nents . Data from battery diagnosis is consid­
ered.
D epending on the battery's state of charge,
individua l consumers are gradua lly turned off
to prevent excessive discharge of the battery
and thus maintain starting capability.
Dynamic energy management
While the veh icle is being driven, dynamic en­
ergy management dist ributes the energy gen­
erated according to the needs of the individu­
a l components . It reg ulates consumption, so
that more electrical energy is not being used
than is being generated and ensures an opti­
mal state of charge for the battery.
- But even energy management cannot
negate the limits of physics. Consider
that the power and life of a battery are
limited.
- If starting ab ility is threatened, the indi­
cator light (•) appears
c> page 16, Cl
Battery .
What you should know
The highest priority is given to maintaining
starting capability .
The battery is severely taxed in short-distance
driving, in city traffic and during the cold time
of year. Abundant electrical energy is re­
qu ired, but only a little is generated. It is also
cr itica l if the engine is not running and electri­
cal components are turned on. In th is in­
stance energy is being consumed but none is
be ing generated .
Intelligent technology 203
It is in precisely these situations that you will
notice energy management active ly regu lat­
ing the distribution of energy.
Vehicle stands for an extended period
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period
of several days or weeks, e lectrica l compo­
nents are gradually cut back or switched off.
This reduces energy consumption and main­
tains starting capability over a longer period.
Some of the convenience functions may not
operate, such as the interior lights or the
power seat adjustment. The convenience
functions will be available again when you
switch on the ignition and start the eng ine.
With the engine turned off
If you listen to the radio, for example, with
the engine turned off or use other MMI func­
tions, the battery is being discharged.
If starting capability is jeopardi zed due to en­
ergy consumption , the following warning ap­
pears in the MM I display:
Please start the engine soon or the system
will be turned off.
The warning indicates that the system will be
turned off automatically after 3 minutes. If
you w ish to continue using the functions, you
have to start the engine.
With the engine running
Although electrical energy is generated when
the vehicle is being driven, the battery can be­
come discharged . This happens mostly when
li ttle energy is being generated and a great
deal consumed and the battery's state of
charge is not optimal.
T o b ring the energy ba lance back into equili­
brium , consumers wh ich requ ire espe cially
large amounts of energy are temporarily cut
back or switched off . Heating systems in par­
ticular require a great deal of energy. If you
notice, for examp le, that the heated seats* or
the heated rear window are not heating, they
have been temporarily cut back or switched .,.
•
•