2015 AUDI R8 SPYDER seats

Driving Sa fel y
Driving Safely
General notes
Safe driving habits
Please remember -safety first!
This chapter contains important information,
tips, instructions and warnings that you need to
read and observe for your own safety, the safety
of your passengers and others. We have summar­
ized here what you need to know about safety
be lts, airbags, chi ld restraints as well as child
safety. Your safety is for us
priority number 1 . Al­
ways observe the informat ion and warn ings in
t his section - for your own safety as well as for
that of your passengers.
The information i n this section applies to all
model ve rsions of your vehicle . Some of the fea­
t ures des cribed in this sect ion may be standard
equipment on some models, or may be optional
eq uipment on others . If you are not sure, ask
your author ized Audi dealer.
A WARNING
-Make certain that you fo llow the instruc­
t ions and heed the WARNINGS in this Man­
ual. It is in your interest and in the interest
of your passengers .
- Always keep the complete owner's literature
in your Audi when you lend or se ll you r vehi­
cle so that this important information will
always be ava ilable to the driver and passen­
gers.
- Always keep the owner's literature handy so
that you can find it easily if you have ques ­
ti ons.
Safety equipment
The safety features are part of the occupant re­
straint system and work together to help reduce
the risk of injury in a wide variety of occident si t­
uations.
Your safety and the safety of yo ur passengers
should not be left to chance. Advances in tec h­
nology have made a var iety of f eatures av ailable
to help re duce the r isk of inj ury in an accident.
86
The following is a listing o f just a few o f the safe ­
ty features in yo ur Audi:
- sophis tica ted s afety be lts for drive r and a ll pas-
senger sea ting pos itions,
- safety belt p rete nsio ners,
- front airbags,
- knee airbags,
- side airbags in the seats
- adjustab le head restraints,
- adjustab le steering column .
These ind iv idual safety featu res can wor k togeth­
er as a sys tem to he lp pro tect you a nd your pas­
sengers in a wide range of accidents . These fea­
tures cannot work as a system if th ey are not al­
ways proper ly adjusted and prope rly used!
Safety i s everyb ody' s re sponsibilit y!
Important things to do before driving
Safety is everybody's job! Vehicle and occupant
safety always depends on the informed and care­
ful driver.
Fo r you r safety and the safety of your passen­
gers,
before driving always:
.,. Make sure that all lights and signals are operat­
ing correctly .
.,. Make sure that the tire pressu re is co rrect.
.,. Ma ke s ure that all w indows are clean and affo rd
good visibility to the outs ide.
.,. Secure a ll luggage and o ther items caref ully
r=;,page 59 .
.,. Make s ure that nothing can interfere with the
pedals.
.,. Adjust front seat, head restraint and mirrors
correctly for your height.
.,. Instruct passengers to adjust the head re­
straints according to the ir height .
.,. Make su re to use the r ight child restraint cor­
rec tly to p rotect ch ild ren
r=;, page 122, Child
Safety.
.,. Sit p roperly in your seat and ma ke su re that
your passengers do the same
c::> page 56, Gen­
eral recommendations.
.,. Fasten your safety belt and wear it properly. A l­
so instruct your passengers to fasten their safe­
ty belts proper ly
c::> page 95 .

Driving Safely
positions to help reduce the risk of personal
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. Holding
the steering wheel the wrong way can cause
serious injuries to the hands, arms and head
if the driver's airbag inflates
- Pointing the steering wheel toward your
face decreases the ability of the supplemen­
tal driver's airbag to protect you in a colli­
sion.
-Always sit in an upright position and never
lean against or place any part of your body
too close to the area where the airbags are
located.
- Before driving, always adjust the front seats
and head restraints properly and make sure
that all passengers are properly restrained.
- Never adjust the seats while the vehicle is
moving. Your seat may move unexpectedly
and you could lose control of the vehicle.
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests are
tilted back, the greater the risk of injury due
to incorrect positioning of the safety belt and improper seating position.
- Children must always ride in child seats
¢page 122. Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front pas­
senger seat
¢page 102.
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 in­
jury in the event of an accident, we recommend
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 upr ight 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
88
that is not possible, try to adjust the head re­
straint so that it is as close to this position as
possible
¢ page 89.
.. 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 56, General
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 airbag as it
deploys. To help reduce the risk of serious per­
sonal injury:
- Passengers must always sit in an upright po­
sition and never lean against or place any
part of their body too close to the area
where the airbags are located.
- Passengers who are unbelted, out of posi­
tion or too close to the airbag can be seri­
ously injured by an airbag as it deploys with
great force in the blink of an eye.
-Always make sure that there are at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the front pas­
senger's breastbone and the instrument panel.
- Always make sure that there are at least
4 inches (10 cm) between the front passen­
ger's knees and the lower part of the instru­ ment panel.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of
their own and properly fasten and wear the
safety belt belonging to that seat.
- Before driving, always adjust the front pas­
senger seat and head restraint properly.
- Always keep your feet on the floor in front
of the seat. Never rest them on the seat, in­
strument panel, out of the window, etc. The
airbag system and safety belt will not be
able to protect you properly and can even in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash .
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests are
tilted back, the greater the risk of injury due
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to incorrect position ing of the sa fety belt
and improper seating posit ion.
- Children must always ride in child seats
<=> page 122. Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front pas­
senger seat
<=> page 102.
Proper adjustment of head restraints
Fig . 101 H ea d re str ain t: v ie w ed fro m the front
The head restraints must be correctly adjusted to
achieve the best protection .
.. Fo r adjustable head restraints: adj ust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi ­
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos ­
sible, t ry to adjust the head restraint so that it
is as close to this pos ition as possib le
<=> fig . 101.
Adj usting head restraints<=> page 58.
&_ WARNING
All seats are equipped with head restraints.
Dr iv ing without head restraints or w ith head
restraints that are not properly adjusted in­
creases the risk of serious or fatal neck injuriy
dramatically . To help reduce the risk of inju ry:
- Always drive with the head restraints in place and properly adjusted .
- Every person in the veh icle must have a
properly ad justed head restra int.
- Always make sure each person in the vehicle
properly adjusts their head restraint. Adjust
the head rest raints so the upper edge is as
even as possib le w ith the top of you r head .
If that is not possib le, try to ad just the head
res traint so that it is as close to this position
as possib le,
Dr iving Sa fel y
-Never attempt to adjust head restraint
while driving. If you have driven off and
must adjust the driver headrest for any rea­
son, first stop the vehicle safe ly before at­
tempt ing to adjust the head restraint .
- Ch ildren must a lways be properly restrained
in a child restraint that is appropriate for
their age and size <=>
page 122 .
Examples of improper seating positions
The occupan t res traint sys tem can only reduce
the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are properly
seated .
Improper seating positions can cause serious in­
jury or death. Safety belts can on ly work when
they are properly pos it ioned on the body . Im ­
proper seating positions reduce the effectiveness
of safety be lts and will eve n increase the r isk of
i njury and dea th by mov ing the safety be lt to c rit ­
ical areas of the body. Imp roper seat ing pos itions
also increase the risk of serio us injury and death
when an airbag dep loys and strikes an occupant
who is not in the prope r seat ing pos ition. A driver
is respons ible for the safety of a ll vehicle occu­
pan ts and espec ially for children. Therefore :
.. Never allow anyone to assume an incorrect
seating position when the vehicle is being used
Q &. -
The following bullets lis t on ly some samp le posi ­
tions that will increase the risk of serious inj ury
and death . Our hope is that these examples will
make you more aware of seating positions that
are dangerous .
Therefore, whene ver the vehicle is movi ng:
-never stand up i n the vehicle
- never stand on the seats
- neve r kneel on the seats
- neve r ride w ith the seatback reclined
- never lean up against the instrument panel
- never s it on the edge of the seat
- never sit sideways
- never lean out the window
- never put your feet o ut the window
- neve r put your feet on the instrument pane l
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Safety belts
General notes
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives !
This chapte r exp lains why safety be lts are neces­
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them correctly .
.. Read a ll the informat ion that fo llows and heed
all of the instructions and WARNINGS .
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
prope rly i ncreases the r isk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Safety belts are the sing le most effective
means availab le to red uce the r isk of serious
injury and death in automobile accide nts .
For yo ur protection and tha t of your passen­
gers, always corre ct ly wear safety belts
w hen the veh icle is moving.
- P re g nant women, injured, or physically im­
paired pe rso ns mu st also use safety belts .
Lik e all ve hicle occupants, t hey are more
likely to be seriously injured if they do no t
wea r safety be lts . The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mother -th rougho ut
the enti re pregnancy.
Number of seats
Your Audi R8 has two seating posit ions in the
front. Each seating position has a safety belt.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im ­
prope rly i ncreases the risk of se rious personal
injury and death.
- Never st rap more than one person, includ­
ing small ch ildren, into any belt .
It is espe­
c ially da ngerous to place a safety belt over a
c hild sitting on you r lap.
- Never let mo re people ride in the ve hicle
t h an t he re are safety be lts ava ilable.
Sa fety bel ts
- Be s ure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained w ith a separate sa fety
be lt or chi ld restraint.
4 Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle hos o warning system for the driver
and front seat passenger to remind you about the impor tance of buckling up.
Fig . 1 06 Safety bel t wa rning lig ht in the instr ument clus ­
te r - en lar ged
Before dr iving off, alway s:
"' 0 N
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.. Fasten yo ur safety belt and make s ure you wea r
it properly .
.,. Make sure that your passengers also buck le up
and wear their safety belts properly .
.,. Protect childre n with a child restraint system
app ropriate for the s ize and age .
The warning lig ht . in the instrument cluster
li ghts up when the ign it ion is switched on as a re­
minder to fasten the safety be lts . In addi tion ,
you w ill hear a warn ing tone for a certai n pe riod
of time.
Fasten your safety belt and make sure that your
passengers al so put on their safety belts prop­
erly .
A WARNING
-Safety belts are the s ingle most effective
mean s ava ilable to reduce t he r is k o f seriou s
in jur y and de ath in au tom obile acc iden ts.
F or your protec tion and that of your passen ­
ge rs, always wear safety belts correct ly
when the vehicle is moving .
- Fai lure to pay attent io n to the warni ng lig ht
that comes on cou ld lead to personal in jury.
-
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Remember too, that airbags will deploy only once
and that your safety belts are always there to of­
fer protection in those accidents in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy or when they have al­ ready deployed . Unbelted occupants can also be
thrown out of the vehicle where even more severe
or fatal injuries can occur .
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision . It 's simply
not true!
Fig. 110 Dr ive r is properly restrained in a sudden b raking
maneuver.
Safety belts used properly can make a big differ­
ence. Safety belts help to keep passengers in
the ir seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap­
plied to the body in an accident, and help prevent
the uncontro lled movement that can cause seri­
ous injuries. In addition, safety belts reduce the
danger of being thrown out of the vehicle.
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and give
them the benefit of being slowed down more
gently or "softly '' through the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety features engi ­
neered into today's vehicles . By "absorbing" the
kinetic energy over a longer period of time, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more
"tolerable" and less likely to cause injury.
Although these examples are based on a frontal collision, safety belts can also substantially re­
duce the risk of injury in other kinds of crashes .
So, whether you're on a long trip or just going to
the corner store, always buckle up and make sure others do, too. Accident stat istics show that vehi­
cle occupants properly wearing safety be lts have
Safety belts
a lower risk of being injured and a much better
chance of surviving an accident. Properly using
safety belts also greatly increases the ability of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col­
lision. For this reason., wearing a safety belt is le­
gally required in most countries including much
of the United States and Canada.
Although your Audi is equipped with airbags, you
still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front airbags, for example, are activated only in some
frontal coll isions. The front airbags are not acti­
vated in all frontal collisions, in side and rear col­
lisions, in roll overs or in cases where there is not
enough deceleration through impact to the front
of the vehicle. The same goes for the other airbag
systems in your Audi . So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained!
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be properly positioned
across the strongest bones of your body.
• Always wear safety belts as illustrated and de­
scribed in this chapter.
• Make sure that your safety belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
A WARNING
-Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im-
properly increases the risk of ser ious personal
in jury and death. Safety belts can work only
when used correctly.
- Always fasten your safety belts correctly be­
fore driving off and make sure all passen­
gers are properly restrained .
- For maximum protection, safety belts must
always be positioned correctly on the body.
- Never strap more than one person, includ­
i ng smal l children, into any single safety
be lt.
- Never plac e a safety belt over a child sitting
on your lap .
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front of
the seat while the vehicle is being driven .
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Convertible locking retractor
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac­
tor that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
c::;,page 130.
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious injury in an accident
c::;, page 99,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle
for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong buckle will reduce safety belt effec­
tiveness and can cause serious personal in­
jury .
- A passenger who is not properly restrained
can be seriously injured by the safety belt it­
self when it moves from the stronger parts
of the body into critical areas like the abdo­
men .
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child seat in the ve­
hicle
c::;, page 131.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi­
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 112 S afety be lt pos it io n
Standard features on your vehicle help you adjust
the position of the safety belt to match your body
size .
Safety belts
-height -adjustable front seats.
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious personal injury in an accident .
- The shou lder belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possible and
should fit well on the body. Hold the belt
above the latch tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest so that it sits as low as pos­
sible on the pelvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should always fit
snugly
<> fig. 112. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- The lap belt portion of the safety belt must
be positioned as low as poss ible across pel­
vis and never over the abdomen. Make sure
the belt lies flat and snug
c::;, fig. 112 . Pull on
the belt to tighten if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
injuries by shifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious injury.
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
c::;, page 97 .
Pregnant women must also be properly
restrained
Th e best way to protect th e fetus is to make sure
that expectant mothers always wear safety belts
correc tly- throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 113 Safety be lt po sition during preg nan cy
To prov ide max imum protect ion, safety belts
must a lways be positioned correctly on the wear-
er's body
r::!;>page 99. .,.
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also not inflate in side or rear co llisions, or in roll­
overs .
Alwa ys rememb er: Airbag s wi ll deploy on ly once,
and on ly in cer tain kinds of collisions. Your safety
b e lts a re a lways there to offer protection in those
situations in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy, or when they have already deployed; for
examp le, when your vehicle str ikes or is struck by
another after the first collision .
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is a
supp lementary restraint and is not a substitute
for a safety belt. The airbag system works most
effectively when used w ith the safety belts.
Therefore, always properly wear your safety belts
c::>page 95.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steer ing whee l or in­
st rument panel will decrease the effect ive­
ness of the airbags and will in cr ease the risk
o f persona l injury in a coll is ion .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches ( 25 cm) to
the steering wheel or instrument panel.
- If you cannot sit mo re than 10 in ches
( 2 5 cm) from the steer ing whee l, investi­
gate whethe r adaptive equipmen t may be
available to help yo u reach the peda ls and
increase your seating distance from the
steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward, sit­
ting s ideways or out of position in any way,
your risk of in jury is much higher.
- Yo u will also receive serio us injuries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against the
airbag or too close to it when it inf lates -
even with an Advanced Airbag.
- To reduce the r isk of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly
i=> page 98, Safety belts.
- Never let children ride unrestrained or im­
properly restrained in the veh icle. Adjust the
front seats properly. If ch ildren are not
properly restrained, they may be severely in­
jured or killed when an airbag inflates .
- Never r ide with the backrest recl ined .
- Always s it as far as possib le from the steer-
ing wheel or the instrument panel
-
Airbag syste m
c::> page 87, Proper occupant seating posi­
tions.
- Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat.
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both feet
on the floor in front of the seat to help pre­
vent ser ious 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 air­ bag du ring bra king or in a sudden maneu­
ver. Objects near the airbags can become p rojectiles and cause in ju ry when an airbag
inflates.
A WARNING
A irb ags th at have deployed i n a crash mus t be
r eplaced.
- Use on ly orig inal equipment airbags ap­
p roved by Aud i and installed by a tr ained
technician who has the necessary too ls and
diagnostic equipment to properly rep lace
any airbag in yo ur vehicle and assu re system
effectiveness in a crash.
- Never permit salvaged or recycled airbags 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 details
about c hildren and Advanced Airbags
c::>page 122.
The airbag on the passenger s ide makes the front
seat a potent ially dangerous p lace for a child to
r ide. The front seat is not the safest p lace for a
c hi ld in a forwa rd-fac ing c hild safety seat.
It can
be a ve ry dangero us p lace for an infant or a c hild
in a rearward-facing seat.
T he Adva nced A irbag Sys tem in you r vehicle has
been certified to comply wi th the Requiremen ts
of United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 as applicable at the time your ve hi-
cle was manufactured. ..,.
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Airbag system
The Standard requires the front airbag on the
passenger side to be turned off ("suppressed") if
a child up to about one year of age restrained in
one of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant re­
straints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 with which the Advanced Airbag
System in your vehicle was certified has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat. For a listing
of the child restraints that were used to certify
comp liance with the US Safety Standard
¢page 124.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the instru­
men t panel tells you when the front Advanced
A irbag on the passenger side has been turned off
by the electronic control unit.
Each time you turn on the ignition, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light w ill come on for a few
seconds and:
- will stay o n if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small child or ch ild re­
stra int on the front passenger seat,
- will go off if the front passenger seat is occu­
pied by an adult as registered by the weight­
sensing mat¢
page 112, Monitoring the Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when the control un it detects a total weight on
the front passenger seat that requires the front
a ir bag to be turned off.
If the total weight on the front passenger seat is
more than that of a typical 1 year-old child but
less than the we ight of a small adult, the front
a ir bag on the passenger side can deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come
on) . If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on, the front airbag on the passenger
side has not been turned off by the e lectronic
contro l unit and can deploy if the control unit
senses an impact that meets the conditions stor­
ed in its memory.
For example, the airbag may deploy if:
-a small child that is heavier than a typical 1
year-old child is on the front passenger seat (re-
104
gardless of whether the child is in one o f the
child safety seats listed¢
page 124), or
- a child who has outgrown child restraints is on
the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger ai rbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in the
instrument panel and stays on.
The front airbag on the passenger side may
not
deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not illuminate and stay lit) even if a smal l adult
o r teenager, or a passenger who is not sitting up­
right with their back against a non-reclined back­
rest with their feet on the vehicle floor in front of
the seat is on the front passenger seat
¢ page 87, Proper seating position for the driver.
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the Federal
Standard requires the airbag to meet the "low
risk" deployment criteria to reduce the risk of in­
ju ry through interaction with the a irbag. "Low
risk" deployment occurs in those crashes that
take place at lower decelerations as defined in
the electronic control un it
¢page 112, PASSEN­
G£R AIR BAG OFF light.
Always remember, a child safety seat or infant
carr ier installed on the front seat may be struck
and knocked out of position by the rapidly inflat­
in g passenge r's airbag in a frontal collision . The
a irbag could greatly reduce the effec tiveness of
the child res traint and even seriously injure the
child during inflation.
_&. WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing chi ld safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the front
a ir bag inflates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the ch ild safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child
aga inst the backrest, door or roof.
- Never install a rearward facing child safety
seat on the front passenger seat unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG