2015 AUDI R8 SPYDER tow

Table of contents
Vehicle liter ature ..... ... .. .. .. .. .
4
About this Owner's Manual . . . . . . 5
Controls and equipment . . . . . . . . . 6
Cockpit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Gene ral illus trat ion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Instruments and warning/
indicator lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
8
Instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Warning/ indicato r lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
11
Driver information system . . . . . . 20
I ntroduct ion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 0
Trip computer ... .. . ..... ... .. .. .. ...
2 1
Menu display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Service interval disp lay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Lap t imer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
On -Board Diagnostic system (OBD) . . . . . . 26
Opening and closing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Powe r locking system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Fr ont lid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Anti- theft alarm system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
P ower windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Garage door opener (Homelink) . . . . . . . . 3 5
Convertible top . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Conver tible top . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Wind deflector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 0
Rear window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Convertible top emergency operation . . . .
41
Clear vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 6
Interior lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
V1s1on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
W iper and washer system . . . . . . . . . . . . .
51
Dig ital compass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Seats and storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Gene ral recommendat ions . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
P owe r seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
H ead restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Cup holder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Ashtray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
2
Cigaret te lighter/soc ket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Warm and cold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Climate controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
On the road . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Ignition loc k/Ignition switch . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Starting and stopp ing the engine . . . . . . . 67
Parking brake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Speed warning system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Cruise contro l . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
71
Audi magnet ic r ide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Sporty d rivi ng . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Transm1ss1on . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Manua l transm ission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
S tronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Parking system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Pa rking system advanced
Safety first .. .. ................. . .
Driving Safely ... .............. .. .
General no tes .. .. .. ............. ... .
P roper o cc u pan t seating positions .. .. . .
Driver and passenger side foo twell . ... . .
Pedal area ... .... .. .. .. .. .. .... ... . .
Stowing luggage ... ... .. ..... ... .. . .
Reporting Sa fety Defects .......... .. . .
Active rollover protection system 80
86
86
86
8
7
90
90
91
92
93
Safety belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 5
General notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Why safety belts? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Safety be lts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Safety belt pre tensioners . . . . . . . . . . . . .
100
Airbag system ...... ........... ... 10 2
Important t hings to know . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Front ai rbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Moni to rin g the Advanced Ai rbag System . 112

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Kneeairbags .. ........... .. .. .. .. ... 116
Side airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Ch ild Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
Important things to know . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
C hild safety seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Instal ling a chi ld safety seat . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Additional Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Vehicle operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Intelligent technology . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Notice about data recorded by vehicle
control modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Electronic Stabilization Control (ESC) . . . . 134
Braking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Rear spoiler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Power steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
D ry s ump lubr ication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Driving with your quattro . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Energy management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Driving and environment . . . . . . . . 142
Break-in period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Avoid damaging the vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Driving through water on roads . . . . . . . . 142
Catalytic converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142
Shutting down vehicle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Operation and maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Trailer towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Vehicle care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Vehicle c are and cleaning . . . . . . . . 145
General information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Car washes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Cleaning and care information . . . . . . . . . 146
Fuel supply and filling your fuel
tank ... .. .. .... ............. .. .. .. .
151
Gasoline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Fu el tank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Checking and filling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Engine compartment lid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Engine oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Eng ine cooling system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Brake fl uid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Table of contents
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Windshield washer container . . . . . . . . . . 168
Tires and wheel s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Tire pressure monitoring system . . . . . . . 196
Do-it-yourself service . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
What do I do now? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Trunk escape handle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Vehicle tool kit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Tire repair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
What should I be aware of when changing
a tire? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Jump-starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
Emergency towing with commercial tow
truck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
Fu ses and bulb s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
El ectr ical fuses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Bulbs......... .. .. ........... .. .. .. 211
Technical data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Technical Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Vehicle identification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 12
Weights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Dimensions......................... 213
Capacities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Gasoline engines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Consumer Information . . . . . . . . . . 215
Warranty coverages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21S
Operating your vehicle outside the U.S.A .
o r Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21S
Audi Servi ce Repair Manuals and
Literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215
Maintenance. .. .. ... .......... .. .. .. 215
Additional accessor ies, modifications and
parts replacement 217
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
3

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lid as well as the vehicle doors closed when
not in use.
(D Note
Make sure no objects are p rotruding above
the edge of the luggage compartment. Other­
w ise, the front lid could be damaged .
@ Tips
If the front lid is open or not properly locked
when the ignit ion is t urned on, the door and
front lid warning appears in the instrument duster display.
Emergency release for front lid
If the front lid cannot be opened , on emergency
release is provided.
Fi g. 29 Section: Emergency release
.. Reach under the closed glove compartment.
T he re is a red plast ic co rd u nder the glove com­
partment .
.. Pull the red plast ic co rd towa rds you.
Open ing and clo sing
Anti-theft alarm system
The anti-theft alarm triggers an alarm if anyone
attempts to break into the vehicle.
Fig. 30 Diode position in the i nst ru m ent pa nel
T he anti-theft alarm system tr iggers an audib le
alarm a nd turns on the emergency flasher if an
u nau thori zed interfe ren ce wi th t he veh icle is
sensed by the system.
0) 0 u, 0 ,:. .. m
How i s the anti -theft alarm system switched
on?
T he anti-theft alarm system is switched on when
yo u lock the driver's door manually using the
fold-out key, or when you use the remote cont ro l.
The system is activated approximately 30 sec ­
onds after the vehicle is locked. The indicator
li ght¢
fig. 30 starts flashing rap idly for 2 sec­
onds and then blinks slowly.
How i s the anti-theft alarm sy stem swit ched
off?
The anti-theft alarm system is switched off only
whe n you unlock your vehicle. If you do not open
a door within 30 seconds after you have un locked
with the remo te control, the veh icle wi ll lock it­
self again automat ica lly.
When will the anti theft alarm system be
triggered?
When the vehicle is locked, the a la rm system
monito rs and prote cts the fo llowing pa rts of the
vehicle:
- eng ine compartment
- luggage compartment
- doors
- ign ition
33

Convertible top
Convertible top
Convertible top
General information
The fabr ic conv ert ible top opens and closes auto­
matica lly. W hen it is open, it is sto red in t he con­
ver tible top storage bay. The convert ible top may
be opened or closed at speeds up to 31 mph
(SO km/h).
T he conve rtible top is wind- and wate rproof un­
de r n orma l conditions. Some mois ture may co l­
lec t in the vehicle interior, but on ly unde r ex ­
tremely adverse weathe r co ndit ions such as tor­
rentia l rain . That is normal and no cause for con­
cern.
F ollow t he clean ing and maintenance instr uc­
tions ~
page 145 to ensu re the convertib le to p
remains wind- an d waterproof. A lso note the fol ­
lowing points:
- Only stow the convertib le top when i t is clean
and dry. Gra ins of sand or coa rse dirt particles
can cause abrasions on the convertible top
when stowed that can lead to damage to the
fabric over time. Stowing the convertible top
whe n it is damp can cause marks or pe rmanent
mildew spots to form .
- Do not leave the convertible top open for sever­
al weeks or the c reases in it may become discol ­
ored . Th i s is especially tr ue if the top was stow­
ed when damp .
- Remove ice and snow befo re ope ning the con­
vertib le top . Do not use any sharp edged ob­
jects to remove ice and snow or t he conve rtible
t op co ul d be scra tch ed o r dam aged . T he rear
window may be cleare d wi th a stand ard i ce
scra per.
- T he fab ric in the co nver tib le top lose s elasticity
in su b-zero tem pera tures . We recommend not
opening or closi ng the convertib le top when the
temperature is below 32 °F (0 QC). T he conver­
tible top will not open when the temperature is
S °F (-15 QC) or below.
38
Opening /closing the convertible top
Fi g. 35 Cente r console : co nve rtible top sw itc h
Req uirement: the front lid must be closed and
t h e ign it io n m ust be switched on.
Opening the convertible top
.,. Pull and ho ld the co nvertib le top switch until
the top is stowed in the bay and the cover on
the bay has closed complete ly.
Opening the convertible top using the one­
touch function
.,. Pull the sw itch br iefly to open the convertib le
top comp lete ly. It is not necessary to ho ld the
sw itch . The one-touch funct ion is only avai lab le
at speeds between 4 and 31 mph (6 and
SO km/h) .
Closing the convertible top
.,. Press and hold the sw itch until the convertib le
top is closed a nd the latch is locked.
The ind icator lighr
fi in the instrument cl uster
goes out when the top is comp lete ly open or
closed .
The side windows a utomatica lly lower slightly
during the opening/closing process.
A WARNING
- Never drive when the convert ible top is not
locked correctly. The w ind generated by driv­
ing could cause it to open, which could in­
jure v ehicle occupants or damage t he ve hi-
c~ . ~

Convertible top
@ Tips
Have a second person assist when closing the
convert ible top . Opening the storage bay lid
and positioning the convertible top is easier
when a second perso n is assist ing.
Step 1: Retract the rear window
F ig . 40 Upper sto rage compar tmen t: re movin g the cover
Fig . 4 1 Upper sto rage compartment : using t he Alle n
wr ench as a cra nk to lowe r the rea r w indow
The rear w indow must be retracted in order to
close the convertible top .
If the rear window
sw itch is not func tioning
¢ page 40, the rear w in­
dow can be cranked.
" Open the upper storage compartment between
the seat back res ts ¢
page 60.
" Remove the cover using the screwdriver from
the vehicle too l kit ¢
fig. 40.
"Press the Allen wrench from the vehicle tool kit
firmly into the opening until it clicks into place
¢ fig . 41.
"Turn the bolt clockw ise until the rear window is
lowered.
42
Step 2: Open the convertible top storage
bay lid
F ig . 4 2 Eng ine compa rtm ent: in st. ail ing t he e merge ncy op ·
era tion bo lt s
F ig . 4 3 Rais in g t he sto rag e bay lid an d pulling it ba ck
The engin e compartment lid must be released
using the emergency p rocedu re in order to re­
lease the storage bay lid
¢page 155 .
Relea sing the convertibl e top storage bay lid
"T urn the emergency operation bolts on the left
and r ight sides of the engine compartment
¢ fig. 42 clockwise using the open end wrench
from the vehicle tool kit unti l the bolts are in­
stalled comp lete ly. The convertible top storage
bay lid will ra ise approximately 0 .4 in (1 cm)
from the vehicle when the bolts are installed
comp letely .
" Close the eng ine compartment lid ¢
page 156.
Opening the con vertible top storage b ay lid
" From the rear of the vehicle, reach into the cen­
ter ventilation slot in the storage bay lid with
both hands and raise the lid app roximately
12 in (30 cm) .
" Ho ld the storage bay lid in th is position and
pull it toward you unti l it stops
¢ fig. 43.

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_& WARNING
When working in the engine compartment:
- Turn the engine off .
- Activate the parking brake.
- In vehicles with a manual transmission,
move the shifter lever into idle. In vehicles
with the R tronic transmission, move these­
lector lever into the N position.
- Remove the ignition key.
- Let the engine cool down.
- Keep children away from the engine com-
partment .
0 Note
To prevent damage to the vehicle, only open
the convertible top storage bay lid when the
engine compartment lid is closed.
Step 3: Remove the covers
Fig. 44 Convertible top: covers marked
. '
®Ir
! N .., a,
Fig. 45 Convertible top sto rage bay l id : removing the cover
The following steps must be performed on both
sides of the vehicle.
.,. Remove the bolt in the cover on the bottom
side of the storage bay lid using the open end
wrench from the vehicle tool kit@ c::>
fig. 45 .
Convertible top
.,. Move the cover up and down carefully until it
can be pulled downward from the teeth @.
Step 4: Lift the convertible top out
Fig. 46 Convertible top s torage bay: lifting the conver tible
top out
Fig. 47 W inds hield fra me: pressing the co nve rtible top for­
ward
.,. Hold the convertible top at the @ point (arrow)
c::>
fig. 46 and raise it carefully c::> &, .
.,. Pull the convertible top all the way out in the
direction indicated @. Position the fins upward
at the same time .
.,. Press the convertible top as far forward toward
the windshield frame as possible c::>
fig. 47.
Have a second person assist when positioning the
convertible top. That person should stand on the
opposite side of the vehicle and perform the
same steps.
_& WARNING
-- When positioning the convertible top, avoid
contact with the supports or other moving
parts. Otherwise you could pinch your
hands.
- When pressing the convertible top down on­
to the windshield frame, make sure that you
do not pinch yourself or anyone else.
43

Convertible top
Step S: Secure the convertible top
Fig. 48 Convertible top storage bay : install ing the driver
Fig. 49 Securing the co nvertible top
The convertible top must be under tension to se­
cure it to the windshield frame. The wheel
wrench, driver and bolts from the vehicle tool kit
are required for this .
Have a second person assist with this step. That
person should stand on the opposite side of the
vehicle and perform the same steps.
• Position the driver @on the bolt @ in the front
section of the convertible top storage bay and
rotate clockwise to install in the threads
9fig. 48.
• Position the wheel wrench © with the long end
on the driver
(D .
• Press the convertible top as far forward as pos­
sible toward the windshield frame @with one
hand
9 fig . 49 . At the same time, pull the fins
upward @ for support with the other hand.
• Now, grasp the fins with the hand that you used
to move the convertible top forward and hold
the fins in this position. With the other hand,
turn the wheel wrench upward until it stops @.
44
@ Tips
-When pressing the convertible top forward,
make sure the locking pins are seated in the
latch on the windshield frame and not on
the frame itself.
- When pressing the convertible top forward, make sure the locking pins are seated exact­
ly in the latch on the windshield frame and
not on the frame itself . This is the only way
that the convertible top can be latched cor­
rectly.
Step 6 : Lock the convertible top
Fig. 50 Inner side of the convertible top: remov ing the cap
Fig. 51 Inner side of the convertible top: pos it ioning the
All en w rench
• Remove the cap in the center of the convertible
top using the screwdriver from the vehicle tool
kit
9 fig. 50. The emergency locking mecha­
nism is located behind it.
• Insert the Allen wrench
(D and turn the bolt to
the left @until it is tight and the convertible
top is locked securely
9 fig . 51.
• Remove the Allen wrench from the opening and
cover the opening with the cap.
• Remove the wheel wrench from the convertible
top storage bay.
• Close the convertible top storage bay lid. .,..

Clear vision
Clear vision Lights
Switching the headlights on/off
F ig. 55 Inst rument pane l: ligh t switch (automatic head ­
and taill ig ht control)
Switching on the side marker lights
"'T urn the light switch to :oo:.
Switching on the headlights and high beam
"'Turn the light switch to io.
"'Push the high beam lever forward towards the
instrument panel~
page 47.
Switching off the lights
"'Turn the light switch to 0.
Switching on automatic head- and taillight
control
"'Turn the light switch to AUTO ~ fig. 55.
The headlights and taillights will come on auto­
matica lly when the ignition is switched on and
the light switch is in the position AUTO (on ly in
nighttime conditions). When switching
off the ig­
nition, the headlights will go
off and only the
side marker lights will remain lit.
Daytime running lights
USA models: The daytime running lights will
come on automatica lly when the ign ition is
sw itched on and the light switch is in the position
AUTO (only in daylight conditions).
Canada models: The daytime running lights will
come on automatica lly when the ign ition is
sw itched on and the light switch is in the position
0, AUTO (only in daylight condit ions) or :oo;.
46
Automatic head- and taillight control
In the switch position AUTO the automatic head­
and taillight contro l is activated . Light sensors
are located in the ins ide mirror housing and con­
stantly check the light conditions surrounding
the vehicle. If ambient brightness falls below a
factory set value (e.g. when driving into a tun­
nel), the head- and taill ights including the li­
cense plate illumination are automatically turned
on . When ambient brightness increases again,
the externa l lights are turned
off again~,& . In
the switch position
AUTO , the low beams are
turned
off when the ignition is switched off. The
remaining lights are turned
off when the key is
taken o ut of the ignition lock .
With automatic head-and taillight control, the
high-beam function is also available, but with
one restriction: If you have not switched the high
beams back to low beams during automatic
headlight operation (for example, after driving
through a tunne l), only the low beams come on
the next time automatic headlights are switched
on . To use the high beams, you first have to pull
the h igh beam lever back and then push the lever
forward again.
The side marker lights and headlights can be
switched on manually by turn ing the light sw itch
to the des ired pos it ion .
Light sensor malfunction
If there is a light sensor ma lfunction, the symbol
El comes on in the display. For safety reasons,
the low beams are turned on permanently with
the sw itch in
AUTO. H owever, you can continue to
turn the lights on and
off using the light sw itch.
Have the light sensor checked as soon as possible
at an authorized Audi dealer .
Coming home/leaving home function
The function is sw itched on when the sw itch is in
the
AUTO pos ition and the function is shown as
active in the driver information system.
The
coming home function illuminates the area
around t he vehicle when the igni tion is switched
off and the driver's door is opened. The length of
time the lights rema in on can be set in the menu
display
( Lights > Exterior lights > coming home ). IJJ,,