2015 AUDI S8 steering wheel

166 Airbag system
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem performs in a crash. For example, using
tire-r im combinations not approved by Aud i,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the sp rings, suspen­
sion struts, shock absorbe rs etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the a irbag
sensors a nd sent to the electron ic control
un it. Some suspension changes ca n, for exam­
p le, increase the force levels measured by the
sensors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in which it would not dep loy if the
changes had not been made. Other kinds of
changes may reduce the force levels meas­
ured by the sensors and prevent the airbag
from deploying when it should .
A WARNING
Changing the vehicle 's s uspension includ­
ing use of unapproved tire-rim combina­
tions can change Advan ced Airbag per­
formance and increase the risk of serio us
personal injury in a crash.
- Never install suspens io n components
t hat do not have the same performance
characteristics as the components origi­
nally installed on your vehicle .
- Never use tire-rim combinat ions that
have not been approved by A udi.
A WARNING
-
Items stored between the safety belt
buckle and the center console can cause
the sensors in the buckle to send the
wrong informat ion to the electronic con­
trol modu le and prevent the Advanced A ir­
bag System from work ing properly.
- Always make sure that nothing can inter-
fere w ith the safety belt buckles and that
they are not obstructed .
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained
front seat occupants.
Fig . 169 Dr iver's knee airbag
T he driver knee airbag is in the ins trument
pane l underneath the steering wheel
¢fig. 169, the airbag for the passenger is at
about the same height in the instrument pan­
el underneath the glove compartment.
T he knee airbag offers addi tional protection
to the driver 's and passenger's knees and up­
per and lower thigh areas and supplements
the protection provided by the safety belts.
If the front airbags dep loy, the knee a irbags
also dep loy in frontal collisions w hen the de­
ployment threshold stored in the control unit
is met
¢ page 160, More important things to
know about front airbags .
In addition to their normal safety f unction,
safety belts help keep the driver or front pas­
senger in position in a fronta l collision so that
the a irbags can provide supplemental protec­
t ion .
The airbag system is not a substitute for your safety belt . Rather, it is part of the overa ll oc­
cupant restra int system in your vehicle. A l­
ways remember that the a irbag system can
only he lp to protect you if you are wearing
you r safety belt and wearing it properly. This
is why you should always wear your safety
belt, no t jus t because the law requires you to
do so
¢page 143, General notes. .,.

168 Airbag system
Fully inflated airbags in combination with
properly worn safety belts slow down and lim­
it the occupant's forward movement and help
to reduce the risk of injury.
Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al­
ways wear safety belts correctly and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and do to help the safety belts and
airbags to provide supplemental protection .
A WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause serious
injury. Wearing safety belts incorrectly and
improper seating positions increase the
r isk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used .
- The knee airbag system cannot protect
you properly if you are seated too close
to any of the airbag locations. When ad­
justing their seat positions, it is impor­
tant that both the driver and the front passenger keep their upper bodies and
knees at the following minimum safe
distances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instru­
ment panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- T he risk of personal injury increases if
you lean forward or to the side, or if the seat is improperly positioned and you are
not wearing your safety belt. The risk in­
creases even more should the airbag de­
ploy.
- Always make sure that the knee airbag
can inflate without interference. Objects
between you and the airbag can increase
the risk of injury in an accident by inter­
fering with the way the airbag dep loys or by being
pushed into you as the airbag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, especially children
o r anima ls ride in the footwell in front
of the passenger seat. If the airbag de­
ploys, this can result in serious or fatal
injuries.
- Never carry objects of any kind in the
footwell area in front of the driver's or
passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shop­
ping bags, for example) can interfere
with or prevent proper deployment of
the airbag. Small objects can be
thrown through the vehicle if the air­ bag deploys and injure you or your pas­
sengers.
- Make sure there are no cracks, deep scratches or other damage in the area of
the instrument panel where the knee air­
bags are located.
- If children are incorrectly seated, their
risk of injury increases in a collision
~page 174, Child Safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
Fig. 171 S id e airbag location in the driver's seat
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests
¢ fig . 171 and the rear
backrest facing the doors. They are identified
by the word "AIRBAG".
The side airbag system basically consists of:
-the electronic control module and external
side impact sensors

.... N .... N
0 J:
-st: .... \!) 1.1"1
.... 1.1"1 ,-0
-Always install rear-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat in exceptional circumstances and
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately
install the rear-facing child safety seat in
a rear seating position and have the air­
bag system inspected immediately by
your Audi dealer.
_& WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were
installed in a vehicle during a crash. Dam­
age to a child restraint that is not visible
could cause it to fail in another collision
situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with a front "Ad­
vanced Airbag System" in compliance with United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Child Safety 175
Standard (FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the
time your vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re­
quirements for 3- and 6-year old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates . In addition, the system
has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front
passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, all children, espe­ cially those 12 years and younger, should al­
ways ride in the back seat properly restrained
for their age and si ze. The airbag on the pas­
senger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to ride . The front
seat is not the safest place for a child in a for­
ward-facing child safety seat. It can be a very
dangerous place for an infant or a larger child
in a rearward-facing seat .
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight -sensing mat in the seat cush­
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight -sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the ..,.
•
•

,....,
N ,....,
N
0 J:
'SI: ,...., \!) ..,.,
,...., ..,., ,....,
@ Tips
Your vehicle may be equipped with Audi
connect. Your use of certain Aud i connect
features req uires wireless serv ices that are
provided by a third party wireless telecom­
municat ions provider. For details regard­
ing how information obtained through
Aud i connect is collected, processed,
transmitted, used, and shared, please see
your contra ct w ith the wire less telecom ­
municat ions provider and the "About A udi
connect" tab in your vehicle's MMI:
!MENU !
button > Audi connect > About Audi con·
nect .
Electronic Stabilization
Control (ESC)
Description
ESC helps to improve road holding and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of
skidd ing and loss of veh icle control. It works
only when the eng ine is running. ESC detects
certain difficult driv ing s ituations, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw)
out of cont ro l and helps you to get the vehicle
back under control by select ively brak ing the
wheels, and/or red ucing engine powe r and
p roviding steering assistance to help hold the
ve hicle on the driver's intended course . The in­
dicator light
m in the instrument cluster
blinks when ESC is taking action to help you
control the vehicle.
ESC has limitations.
It is important to remem­
ber that ESC cannot overcome the laws of
phys ics. It will not a lways be able to help out
under all conditions you may come up against.
For example, ESC may not always be able to
h elp you master situat ions where there is a
sudden change in the coefficient of fr iction of
the road surface. When there is a sect io n of
d ry road that is s udden ly cove red with water,
slush o r snow, ESC canno t perform the same
way it would on the dry su rface.
If the vehicle
hydroplanes (rides on a c ush ion of wate r in­
stead of the road surface), ESC wi ll not be
ab le to he lp you steer the veh icle because con-
Int ellig ent technolog y 197
tact with the pavement has been interrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered .
D uring fast corner ing, particular ly on wind ing
roads, ESC cannot always deal as effectively
with difficult dr iv ing s ituations than at lower
speeds. When towing a trailer, ESC is not able
to help you regain control as it would if you
were not tow ing a trailer.
Always adjust your speed and driving style to road, traffic and weather conditions . ESC can­
not override the vehicle's physical lim its, in­
crease the availab le tract ion, or keep a veh icle
o n the road if road departu re is a result of
driver ina ttent io n. Instead , ESC imp roves the
poss ibility of keep ing t he vehicle under con­
trol and on the road during extreme maneu­
vers by using the driver's steering i nputs to
help keep the vehicle go ing in the intended di­
rect ion. If you are traveling at a speed that
causes you to run off the road before ESC can
provide any assistance, you may not experi­
ence the benefits of ESC.
ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti-lock braking system
(ABS), brake assist
system, anti -slip regulation (ASR), electronic
differential lock (EDL), dynam ic steer ing* and
selective wheel torque contro l. ESC is switch­
ed on all the time. In cer tain situations when
yo u need less traction, yo u can switch off ASR
by press ing the b utton above ~
page 199,
fig. 188 the se lector lever. Be sure to switch
ASR on again when you no longer need less
traction.
Anti -lock braking system (ABS )
ABS prevents the whee ls from loc king up
when b rak ing. The vehicle can st ill be stee red
even during hard braking . App ly steady pres­
su re to the brake peda l. Do not pump the ped­
al. A pulsing in the brake pedal indicates that
the system is helping you to brake the vehicle.
Brake assi st sy stem
T he brake ass ist system can dec rease braking
distance . It increases braking power when the
driver presses the brake peda l quickly in emer­
gency s ituations. You must press and hold the
brake pedal unti l the situation is over. In
I),
•
•

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

,....,
N .... N
0 J:
'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.
•
•

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.

24 6 T ire s and whee ls
- Never mount used tires on yo ur vehicle if
you are not sure of their "previous histo­
ry." Old used tires may have been dam­
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
- If you notice unusual vibration or if the
vehicle pulls to one side when driving, al­
ways stop as soon as it is safe to do so and check the wheels and tires for dam­
age.
(D Note
- Please note that summer and winter
tires are designed for the cond itions that
a re typ ica l in those seasons. Aud i recom­
mends using w inter t ires d uring the win-
Glossary of tire and loading terminology
Accessory weight
means t he comb ined weight (in excess of
those standard items which may be rep laced)
of automatic transmission, power steering,
power brakes, power windows, power seats,
radio, and heater, to the extent that these
items are available as factory-installed equip­
ment (whether installed or not).
Aspect ratio
means t he ratio of the height to the width of
the tire in percent. Numbers of 55 or lower in­
d icate a low sidewall for improved steer ing re­
sponse and better overall handling on dry pavement .
Bead
means the pa rt of the tire t hat is made of
steel wires, wrapped or reinforced by ply cords
and that is shaped to fit the r im.
Bead separation
means a breakdown of the bond between
components in the bead.
Cord
means t he strands forming the plies in the
tire. ter months.
Low tempe ratu res signifi­
cantly decrease the elasticity of summer
tires, which affects traction and braking ability. If summer tires are used in very
co ld temperatures, cracks can form on
the tread bars, resu lting in permanent
tire damage that can cause loud driving noise and unbalanced tires. Aud i is not
responsib le for this type of damage.
- Burn ished, polished or chromed rims
must not be used in winter weather. The
surface of the rims does not have suff i­
c ien t corrosion protect io n for this and
cou ld be pe rmanently damaged by road
salt or simi lar substances. This damage
is not covered by war ranty.
Cold tire inflat ion pre ssure
means the t ire press ure recommended by the
vehicle manufacturer for a tire o f a des ignated
size that has not been driven for more than a
coup le of miles (ki lometers) at low speeds in
the three hour period before the tire press ure
is measured or adjusted.
Curb weight
means the weight of a motor vehicle w ith
standard equipment including the maximum
capacity of fuel, o il, and coolant, air cond i­
tion ing and additional weight of optiona l
equipment.
E x tra load tire
means a tire design to operate at higher loads
and at higher inflation pressures than the cor­
responding standard tire. Extra load tires may
be identified as "XL", "xl", "EXTRA LOAD", or
"RF" on the sidewall.
Gross A xle Weight Rating ("GAWR ")
means the load-carrying capacity of a single
axle system, measured at the tire-ground in -
terfaces.
IJ>,