2015 AUDI S8 warning light

186 Child Safety
though an adult were on the seat and de­ploy the Advanced Airbag when it must
be suppressed causing serious or even
fatal injury to the child .
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install the rear-facing child safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi dealer.
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se­
cure a child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufactur­
er's instructions when installing a child re­
straint in your vehicle. To activate the conver­
tible locking retractor:
"" Place the child restraint on a seat, prefera­
bly on the rear seat.
""Slowly pull the belt
all the way out.
""Route it around or through the child re­
straint belt path¢&_ .
"" Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really tight.
"" Insert the belt tongue into the buckle for
that seating position.
""Guide the safety belt back into the retractor
until the belt lies flat and snug on the child
safety seat.
""You should hear a "clicking" noise as the
belt winds back into the inertia reel. Test the
convertible locking retractor by pulling on
the belt. You should no longer be able to
pull the belt out of the retractor. The con­
vertible locking retractor is now activated.
"" Make sure that the red release button is fac ­
ing away from the child restraint so that it
can be unbuckled quickly .
""Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt
is properly tight and fastened so that the seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2.5 cm).
A WARNING ....__ -
Using the wrong child restraint or an im­
properly installed child restraint can cause
serious personal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re- tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re­
tractor cannot hold the child safety seat
in place during normal driving or in a
crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a child is not sitting in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly around
during a sudden stop or in a crash.
- Always make sure the seat backrest to
which the child restraint is installed is in
an upright position and securely latched
into place and cannot fold forward. Oth­
erwise, the seatback with the child safety
seat attached to it could fly forward in
the event of an accident or other emer­
gency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
¢ page 174. Special
precautions apply when installing a child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 153, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The convertible locking retractor for child re­
straints will be deactivated automatically when the belt is wound all the way back into
the retractor.
"" Press the red button on the safety belt buck­
le. The belt tongue will pop out of the buck­
le.
""Guide the safety belt all the way back into
its stowed position .
Always let the safety belt retract completely
into its stowed position. The safety belt can
1J1-

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>

rl N
rl N
0 J:
"". rl I.O
"' 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 .,._

,....,
N .... N
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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.
•
•

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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 .,.
•
•

210 Trailer towing
Trailer towing
Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passen­
ger transportation .
If you plan to tow a trai ler, please remember
that the additional load will affect durability,
economy and performance .
Trailer towing not only places more stress on the vehicle, it also calls for more concentra­
tion from the driver.
For this reason, always follow the operating
and driving instructions provided and use
common sense.
(D Note
If you are going to tow a trai ler, you must
activate the trailer operation mode
i::> page 210, Operating instructions .
Technical requirements
Trailer hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross trailer weight. The hitch must be suita­ ble for your vehicle and trailer and must be
mounted securely on the veh icle 's chassis at a
technically sound location . Use only a trailer
hitch with a removable ball mount. A lways
check with the trai le r hitch manufacturer to
make sure that you are using the cor rect
hitch.
Do not use a bumper hitch.
The hitch must be installed in such a way that
it does not interfere with the impact-absorb­
ing bumper system. No modifications should
be made to the vehicle exhaust and brake sys­
tems. From time to time, check that all hitch
mounting bo lts remain securely fastened.
When you are not towing a trailer, remove the
trailer hitch ball mount. This prevents the
h itch from causing damage should your veh i­
cle be struck from behind~ &.
Trailer brakes
If your trailer is equipped with a brak ing sys­
tem, check to be sure that it conforms to all
regulations.
T he trailer hydraulic brake system must not be
direc tly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
brake system .
Safety chains
Always use safety chains between your veh icle
and the tra iler.
Trailer lights
Trailer lights must meet all regulations. Be
sure to check with your Audi dealer for correct
wiring, switches and relays.
Mirrors
If you are unable to see the traffic behind you
using the regular outside mirrors, then you
must install extended mirrors. It is important
that you
always have clear v is ion to the rear .
A WARNING ,~ -
After removing the trailer hitch, do not
store it in your vehicl e. In case of sudden
braking, the hitch could fly forward and in­
jure you or your passengers.
Operating instructions
Fig. 189 MMI display : tow ing mode on
Maximum traile r weight
A trai ler for your vehicle is limited to a typical
class 1 or class 2 trailer. .,.

212 Trailertowing
drive at the maximum permissible speed. Re­
duce your speed even more if load, weather or
wind condit ions are unfavorable -part icu larly
when going downhill.
Reduce vehicle speed
immedi atel y if the trail ­
er shows the slightest sign of swaying .
Do not
tr y to stop th e sway ing by acceler ating .
Observe speed limi ts. In some areas, speeds
for vehicles towing trailers are lower than for
regular vehicles .
A lways apply brakes early. When driv ing
downhill, shift into a lower gear to use the en­
gine braking effect to slow the vehicle . Use of
the brakes a lone can cause them to overheat
and fail.
Coolant t emperature
The coolant temperature gauge¢ page 10
must be observed carefully. The coolant tem­
perat ure can increase if you drive on long in ­
clines in a low gear at high engine speeds. Re­
duce your speed immediate ly if the L EDs in
the top part of the display turn on.
F or more in formation about indicator lights,
referto .¢page
15 .
A WARNING
Anyone not properly restrained in a mov­
ing veh icle is at a much greater risk in an
accident . Never let anyone ride in your car
who is not properly wear ing the restra ints
provided by Aud i.
Trailer towing tips
Important to know
Your vehicle hand les different ly when towing
-
a trailer because of the addit ional weight and
d ifferent weight distribution . Safety, perform­
ance and economy w ill greatly depend on how
carefully you load your trailer and operate
your ng.
Before you actually tow your trailer, practice
turning, stopp ing and back ing up in an area
away from traffic . Keep practicing until you have become completely familiar with the way
your vehicle-trailer combination behaves and responds .
Backing up is diffi cult and requ ires practice .
Backing up with a trailer gene rally req uires
steering action opposite to that when backing
up your vehicle without a tra iler.
Maintain a greater d ista nce between you r ve­
hicle and the one in front of you . You wi ll need
more room to stop. To compensate for the
trailer, you w ill need a larger than normal
turning rad ius.
When passing, remember that you cannot ac ­
ce lerate as fast as you norma lly would be­
ca use of the added load. Make sure yo u have
enough room to pass. After passing, allow
plenty of room for your trailer be fore chang­
ing lanes again .
Avoid jerky starts, sharp turns or rapid lane changes.
(D Tips
- Do not tow a trailer during the break-in
period of your vehicle .
- If you tow a trailer, your Audi may re ­
quire more frequent maintenance due to
the extra load¢
page 290.
Parking on a slope
Do not park on a slope with a trailer. If it can­
not b e avoided, do so only after doing th e fol­
lowing:
When par king:
.,. App ly the foot brake.
.,. Have someone p lace chocks under both the
vehicle and the tra iler wheels .
.,. With chocks in place, slowly release the
brakes unt il the wheel chocks absorb the
load .
.,. Turn the whee ls towards the curb .
.,. Apply the parking brake .
.,. Select the P se lector lever posit ion.
When re starting after parking:
.,. App ly the foot brake.