2015 AUDI S8 four wheel drive

80 Warm and cold
airflow and air distribution a re controlled au­
tomatically.
Adjusting the temperature
Temperatures between 60 °F (+16 °() and
84
°F (+28 °C) can be set. Outside of this
r ange,
lo or hi wi ll appear in the climate con­
trol system disp lay. At both of these settings,
the climate control system runs continuously
at maximum cooling or heating power. There
is no temperature regulation.
~ Adjusting the airflow
You can adjust the airflow manually to suit
your needs . To have the airf low regulated au­
tomatically, press the
! AUTO ! button.
~ Adjusting the air distribution
You can manually se lect the vents where the
air will flow. To have the air distribution regu­
lated automa tically, press the
IAUTOI button .
~ I lil* Adjusting Seat heating/
ventilation*
Pressing the button switches the seat heat­
ing/ventilation on at the highest setting ( level
3). The L EDs indicate the temperature leve l.
To reduce the temperature, press the button
again. To switch the seat heating/ventilation
off, press the button repeatedly until the LED
turns off.
After 10 minutes, the seat heating/venti lation
automatically switches from level 3 to level 2.
I n vehicles without the four zone automatic
climate contro l*, buttons in the rear center
console control the seat heating for both out­
er rear seats*.
~ Switch the defroster on/off
The winds hield and s ide windows are defrost ­
ed or cleared o f condensation as quickly as
possible. The maximum amo unt of air flows
mainly from the vents below the windshield.
Recirculation mode switches off. The tempera­
ture should be set to 72
°F (22 °C) or higher.
The temperature is controlled automatically.
The
IAUTOI button switches the defroster off.
~ Switching rear window heater on/off
T he rear window heater only operates when
the engine is running. It switches off auto­
matically after 10 to 20 minutes, depending
on the outside temperature.
T o prevent the rear window heater from
switching off automatically , press and hold
the~ button for more than 2 seconds. This
r ema ins stored until the ignition is switched
off.
I SYNC I Synchronization*
When synchronization is switched on, the set­
tings for the driver's side are applied to the
front passenger's side (except for seat heat ­
ing/ventilation*). The rear seat is a lso
synchronized in vehicles with the 4-zone de­
luxe automatic cl imate control system*. Syn­
chronization switches off if the sett ings are
adjusted on the front passenger's side or in
the rear*.
You can synchronize the settings in a row by
pressing and holding a knob. For example, to
apply the settings for the front passenger's s ide to the driver's side, press and hold the
knob on the front passenger's side.
Air vents
You can open or close the center and rear
vents in the cockpit and the vents in the rear
center console and door pillars using the
ridged thumbwheels. The levers adjust the di­
rection of the airflow from the vents.
,&. WARNING
- Do not use the recirc ulation mode for ex­
tended periods of time . The windows
could fog up since no fresh air can enter
the vehicle. If the windows fog up, press
the air recircu lation button again imme­
diately to sw itch off the air recirculation
function or select defrost.
- Individuals w ith reduced sensitivity to
pain or temperature could deve lop burns
when using the seat heating function. To reduce the risk of injury, these indiv idu-
als shou ld not use seat heating . .,..

,....,
N ,....,
N
0 J:
'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
Starting off with a trailer
To prevent rolling back unintentionally on an
incline, do the following:
11-Keep the switch© pulled and depress the
accelerator. The parking brake stays applied
and prevents the vehicle from rolling back­
ward .
11-You can release the switch<®> once you are
su re that you a re develop ing enough for­
ward momentum at the wheels as you de­
press the accelerator.
D epending on the weight of the r ig (vehicle
and tra ile r) and the severi ty of the incl ine, you
may roll backwards as you start. Yo u can pre­
vent rolling backwards by holding the parking brake switch<®) p ulled out and acce lerating -
just as you would when starting on a hill with
a conventional hand brake.
Emergency braking
In the event that the conventional brake sys­
tem fails or locks.
11-In an emergency, pull the switch(®) and
contin ue to p ull it to slow your vehicle down
with the parking brake.
11-As soon as you release the switch (®) or ac-
ce lerate, the braking process stops.
If you pull the switch<®> and hold it above a
speed of about 5 mph (8 km/h), the emergen­
cy braking function is initiated. The vehicle is
braked at all four wheels by activating the hy­
draulic brake system. Th e brake performance
i s similar to making an emergency stop
~ &..
In order not to activate the emergency brak­
ing by m istake, an audible warning tone (buz­
ze r) sou nds when the switch C®> is pulled. As
soon as the switch(®) is released, or the accel­
e rator pedal is dep ressed, emergency b ra ki ng
stops.
_& WARNING
Emergency braking should only be used i n
an emergency, when the normal foot brake
has failed or the brake pedal is obstructed .
On the ro ad 87
Using the parking b rake to pe rform emer­
gency brak ing will slow your vehicle down
as if you had made a full brake application.
The laws of physics cannot be suspended
even with ESC and i ts associated compo­
nents (ABS, ASR, EDL). In corners and
when road o r weathe r cond itions are bad,
a full brake appl ication can ca use the vehi­
cle to sk id or the re ar end to break away -
risking an acciden t.
Start-Stop-System
' Description
Applies to vehicles: wit h Start -Stop-System
The Start-Stop-System can help increase fuel
economy and reduce CO2 emissions .
In the Start-Stop-mode, the engine shuts off
automat ica lly w hen the vehicle is stopped,
such as at a traffic light. The ignition remains
switched on du ring this stop phase. The en­
gine wi ll be automat ica lly restarted when
needed.
The last Start-Stop-System sett ing (on/off us­
ing the button
I O\l ~I) will be restored when the
i gnition is turned on. The L ED in the
1(7() .. 1 but­
ton turns on when the Star t-Stop-System is
swi tched off man ually.
Basic requirements for the Start -Stop
mode
- The d rive r's doo r is closed.
- The d river ' seat belt is latched .
- The hood is closed .
- The vehicle must have been driven faster
than
2.5 mph (4 km/h) since the last stop.
- A trailer is not hitched to the vehicle.
_& WARNING
-Never let the vehicle roll with the eng ine
sw itched off. You cou ld lose control over
the vehicle. Th is can lead to a collision
and serio us in ju ries.
- The brake booster and the steering sup­ port do not work while the engine is

122 Parking systems
If the distance to an obstacle remains con­
stant, the volume of the distance warning
gradually drops after about four seconds (this
does not apply in the continuous tone range).
Rear view camera
The rear view camera is located above the rear
license plate bracket. Make sure that the lens
for the parking system
c:> fig. 132 is not cov­
ered by deposits or any other obstructions be­
cause this can affect the function of the park­
ing system. For information on clean ing, refer
to
c:> page 214.
The rear view camera coverage area includes
(D ¢fig . 131. Only this area is shown in the
Infotainment display. Objects that are outside
of this area @are not displayed.
The accuracy of the orientation lines and the
blue surfaces is reduced if the adaptive air
suspens ion* is faulty, if the vehicle is lifted or
if the
dynamic mode is activated c;, page 108.
A WARNING
-Always read and follow the applicable
warnings
c:> &. in General information on
page 120.
- If the position and the installation angle
of the rear view camera was changed, for
example, after a collision, do not contin­
ue to use the system for safety reasons.
Have it checked by your authorized Audi
dealership or authorized repair facility.
- Only use the rear view camera to assist
you if it shows a good, clear picture. For example, the image may be affected by
the sun shining into the lens, dirt on the
lens or if there is a system fault.
- Use the rear view camera only if the lug­
gage compartment lid is completely
closed. Make sure any objects you may
have mounted on the luggage compart­
ment lid do not block the rear view cam­
era.
- The camera lens enlarges and distorts
the field of vision . The object appears
both altered and inaccurate on the
screen. -
In certain situations, people or objects in
the display appear closer or further
away:
- objects that do not touch the ground,
such as the bumper of a parked vehicle,
a trailer hitch or the rear of a truck. Do
not use the help lines in this case.
- If driven from a level surface onto an
incline , or a downward slope.
- If driven toward protruding objects.
-If the vehicle is carrying too much load
in the rear.
(D Note
-Always read and follow the applicable
warnings
c:> 0 in General information on
page 120.
- The orange colored orientation lines in
the Infotainment display show the vehi­ cle path depending on the steering
wheel angle. The front of the vehicle
front swings out more than the rear of
the vehicle. Maintain plenty of distance
so that your outside mirror or a corner of
your vehicle does not collide with any ob­
stacles.
Switching on/off
Applies to vehicles : with parking system pl us with rear
v iew camera
Fig . 133 Center console: Parking system sw itch
Switching on
.,. Shift into reverse or
.,. press the
PwA button in the center console
c:> fig. 133 . A short confirmation tone
sounds and the LED in the button turns on. .,..

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 ..,.

248 Tires and wheels
Speed rating (letter code)
means the speed at wh ic h a tir e is des igned to
be d riven for extended per io d s of t ime. The
ratings range from 93 mph (150 km/h) to
186 mph (298 km/h)
¢ page 257. You may
not find this in format ion on all tires because
it is not required by law.
The speed rating letter code, w here a pplica­
b le, is molded on the tire s idewa ll and indi­
cates the maxim um permissible road speeds
¢ &. in Winter tires on page 261.
Tire pressure monitoring sy stem*
means a system tha t d etects when one or
mo re of a vehicle's t ires are under inflated and
i llum inates a low t ire p ress ure warn ing te ll­
tale.
Tread
means t hat port ion of a tire tha t comes into
con tact w it h t he road.
Tread separation
means pull ing away of the t read from the t ire
car cass .
Treadwear indicators (TWI)
means t he projections withi n the pr inc ipal
g rooves designed to give a v isua l ind ication of
the deg rees of wea r of the tre ad . See
¢
pag e 255, Tread W ear Indicator (TWI) for
mo re inf ormat io n on measu ring tire we ar.
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
is a tire i nfo rmation system developed by the
United States Nat io nal Highway Traffic Safety
Admin istration (N HTSA) that is designed to
h e lp buye rs make re lative compa risons among
tires. The UT QG i s no t a safety r ating and no t a
g uar antee t hat a t ire will las t fo r a presc ribed
n umber of m iles (kilome ters) or pe rform in a
certain way. It s imply gives ti re bu ye rs addi­
tional information to combine with other con -s
iderations, such as p rice , brand loya lty and
dealer recommendations. Un der UTQ G, tires
are grade d by the t ire manufacturers in three
areas : treadwea r, traction, and temperature
resistance. The UTQG informat ion on the tires,
molded into the sidewalls .
U.S. DOT Tire Identification Number (TIN )
This is the tire's "se ria l numbe r" It begins
with the letters "DOT" and ind icates that the
t ire meets all federa l standards . The next two
numbers or letters ind icate the plant where it
was ma nufactu red, and the last four numbe rs
r eprese nt the week and year of ma nufact ure.
Fo r exampl e,
DOT ... 2214 ...
means that the tire was produced in t he 22nd
wee k of 2014. The ot her numbers are market­
ing codes that may or may not be used by the
t ire manufacturer. This information is used to
contact consumers i f a tire defect requires a
r ecall .
Vehicle capacity weight
means the rated cargo and luggage load plus
150 lbs. (68 k ilograms) times the vehicle's to­
ta l seating capacity as listed on the label lo­
cated on the driver's side B-pilla r.
Vehicle maximum lo ad on the tire
means that load on an individua l tire that is
determined by distributing to eac h axle its
share of the maxim um loaded vehicle weight
and divid ing by two .
Vehicle normal load on the tire
means that load on an individua l t ir e that is
determined by distributing to eac h ax le its
share of the curb weight, accessory weight,
and normal occ upant weig ht (d istr ibuted in
accorda nce wit h tab le below ¢
page 249)
and divid ing by two .

.... N .... N
0 J:
"". .... I.O
"' ....
"' ....
vehicle. Con sult thi s manu al
t o de ter min e how th is re ­
d uce s the avail abl e c argo
a nd lug gage loa d ca pacity of
yo ur vehicle.
,.. Chec k th e tir e s idewa ll
( q page 256 , fig . 212 ) to de­
t e rmine the d esignat ed lo ad
ra ting f or a spec ific ti re .
Tire service life
The service life of tires depends on a lot of
different things including proper installation
and balan cing, correct tire pressure and driv­
ing style.
F ig . 2 10 T ire tread: tread wea r ind ic a tors (TWil
( r------
F ig. 211 Rotating tires for more ev en wea r
Tread W ear Indicator (TWI)
The origina l tires on your vehicle have
1/16 inch (1.6 mm) high "wear indicators"
c::> fig . 210 runn ing across the tread. Depend ­
ing on the make, there will be six to eight of
them evenly placed around the t ire. Marks on
the t ire s idewall (for example " TWI" or other
Tires and wheels 255
symbols) indicate the positions of the t read
wear indicato rs . Worn tires must be replaced .
D ifferent f igures may apply in other countr ies
<=> ,&. .
Tire pressure
Incor rect t ire pressure ca uses p remature wea r
and can cause sudden tire blow -out . For this
reason, tire pressure must be checked at least
once a month
c:> page 251.
Driving style
Drivi ng fast around curves, heavy acce lerat ion
and hard brak ing increase tire wear .
Rotating tires for more even w ear
Fo r all four tires on your vehicle to have the
same service life, we recommend that the
front and rear tires a re rotated ac cord ing to
the tire man ufact urer's suggested tire ro ta­
tion intervals . Please remembe r the follow­
ing:
- Tire rotation in tervals may differ from the
veh icle servi ce interv als outlined in your
Warra nty & Maintena nce booklet.
- The longe r one tire is used in one lo cation
on the vehi cle, the more it wears at certain
points ; there fore, we recommend that you
follow the tire manufact urer's suggested
tire rotation intervals.
- Ve hi cles with front-wheel drive exper ience
more tread wear on the front w heels com­
pared to a ll-wheel dr ive (quattro) .
- Please rotate tires as shown
c::> fig . 211.
- Extra care must be taken when rotating di-
rection-specific tires
c::> page 2 75.
Wheel balancing
The wheels on new ve hicles are balanced.
However, various s ituations dur ing everyday
driv ing ca n cause them to become unba l­
anced, resulting in vib rat ions you can usually
feel t hrough the steer ing whee l.
U nbalanced wheels must be rebalanced to
avo id excessive wear on steering, s uspension
and tires . A whee l must also be reba lanced
when a new tire is insta lled .
Ill-

,....,
N ,....,
N
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'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1"1 ,...., 1.1"1 ,....,
Driving with different tires reduces vehi­
cle handling and can lead to a loss of
control.
- If the spare tire is not the same as the
tires that are mounted on the vehicle -
for example with winter tires -only use
the spare tire for a short period of time and drive with extra care. Refit the nor­
mal road wheel as soon as safely possi­
ble.
- Never drive faster than the maximum
speed for which the tires on your vehicle
are rated because tires that are driven
faster than their rated speed can fail
suddenly.
- Overloading tires cause heat build-up,
sudden tire failure, including a blowout
and sudden deflation and loss of control.
- Temperature grades apply to tires that
are properly inflated and not over or un­
deri nflated.
- For technical reasons it is not always
possible to use wheels from other
vehicles -in some cases not even wheels
from the same vehicle model.
- If you install wheel trim discs on the ve­
hicle wheels, make sure that the air flow
to the brakes is not blocked. Reduced air­
flow to the brakes can them to overheat, increasing stopping distances and caus­
ing a collision.
- Run flat tires may only be used on
vehicles that were equipped with them at the factory . The vehicle must have a
chassis designed for run flat tires. Incor­
rect use of run flat tires can lead to vehi­
cle damage or accidents. Check with an
authorized Audi dealer or tire specialist
to see if your vehicle can be equipped
with run flat tires. If run flat tires are used, they must be installed on all four
wheels. Mixing tire types is not permit­
ted.
(D Note
- For technical reasons, it is not generally
possible to use the wheel rims from oth-
Tires and wheels 259
er vehicles. This can hold true for wheels
of the same vehicle type.
- If the spare tire is different from the
tires that you have mounted on your ve­
hicle (for example winter tires or wide
profile tires), then use the spare tire for a
short period of time only and drive with
extra care. Replace the flat tire with the
tire matching the others on your vehicle
as soon as possible.
- Never drive without the valve stem cap .
The valves could get damaged .
(® For the sake of the environment
Dispose of old tires in accordance with the
local requirements.
Uniform tire quality grading
-Tread wear
- Tract ion AA A B C
- Temperature AB C
Quality grades can be found where applicable
on the tire side wall between tread shoulder
and maximum section width
c;, page 256,
fig. 212.
For example: Tread wear 200, Traction AA,
Temperature A.
All passenger car tires must conform to Feder­
al Safety Requirements in addition to these
grades.
Tread wear
The tread wear grade is a comparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditions on a specified
government test course.
For example, a tire graded ISO would wear
one and one half (11/2) times as well on the
government course as a tire graded 100.
The relative performance of tires depends upon the actual conditions of their use, how­
ever, and may depart significantly from the
norm due to variations in driving habits, serv­
ice practices and differences in road character-
istics and climate.
ll-
•
•

260 Tire s and wheel s
Traction
The traction grades, from highest to lowest,
are AA, A, Band
C. T hose grades represent the
tire's ability to stop on wet pavement as
measured under controlled conditions on
specified government test surfaces of asphalt
and concrete. A tire marked C may have poor
traction performance
c:> .&. .
Te mp eratu re
The temperature grades are A (the highest),
B, and
C, representing the t ire's resistance to
the generat ion of heat and its ability to dissi­
pate heat when tested under con trolled cond i­
tions on a specified i ndoor laboratory test
wheel.
Sustained high temperature can cause the material of the tire to degenerate and reduce
tire life, and excessive temperature can lead
to sudden tire failure
c:> ,& .
The grade C corresponds to a level of perform­
ance which all passenger car tires must meet under the Federa l Motor Veh icle Safety Stand­
ard No . 1 09 . Grades Band A represent h igher
l eve ls of pe rformance on the laboratory test
wheel than the m inimum required by law.
.&_ WARNING
T he traction grade assigned to this t ire is
based on stra ight-ahead braking traction
tests, and does not include acceleration,
cornering, hydrop laning o r peak traction
character istics.
A WARNING
The temperature grade for this t ire is es ­
tablished for a t ire that is properly inflated
and not ove rloaded. Excessive speed, un­
derinflation, or excessive loading, either
separately or in combination, can cause
heat buildup and possible ti re fa ilu re.
-
Winter tires
Winter tires can improve vehicle handling on
snow and ice . At temperatures below 45 °F
(7 °C) we recommend changing to winter
tires.
In some heavy snow areas, local governments
may require true w inter o r "snow" t ires , those
with very deeply cut tread . Th ese tires should
o n ly be used in pairs and be installed on a ll
f o ur wheels . Make sure you p urch ase snow
t ir es that are the same size and cons truction
type as the othe r tires on yo ur vehicle.
If your vehicle i s equ ipped w ith all-whee l
drive, this will improve tra ction during w inte r
driv ing, even with the standard tires . Howev ­
er, we strongly recommend that you always
equip all four wheels on your vehicle w ith cor­
rect ly fitted winter tires or all-season t ires,
when winter road condit ions are expected.
This also improves the veh icle 's brak ing per­
formance and reduces stopping d istances .
Summer tires provide less grip on ice and
snow.
Winter tires (snow tires) must always be fitted on all fo ur whee ls .
As k your au thori zed A udi dealer or qualified
workshop for permit ted
winter tire size s. Use
only radial winter tires .
Winter tires lose their effec tivenes s whe n the
tread is wo rn down to a depth o f 0 .1 57 inch
(4 mm) .
Only d rive w ith w inter t ires under w inte r co n­
di tions. S umme r tir es handle be tte r whe n
the re is no snow o r ice on the roa ds an d the
temperatu re is above 45 °F (7 °C) .
If you have a flat ti re, see notes on spare
whee l
c:> page 256.
Please a lways remember that winter tires may
have a lowe r speed rating than the tires o rigi­
nally i nstalled on your vehi cle at the time it
was manuf actu red. P lease see
c:> page 257,
Speed ra ting (Letter code) fo r a lis ting o f the
speed rating lette r codes and the max imum
speed at which the tires can be driven . ..,.