instrument panel AUDI R8 COUPE 2020 User Guide

4S1012721BA
Airbag system

Front airbags will not deploy:
— if the ignition is switched off when a crash oc-
curs,
—in side collisions,
—in rear-end collisions,
—in rollovers,
— when the crash deceleration measured by the
airbag system is less than the minimum thresh-
old needed for airbag deployment as registered
by the electronic control unit.
The front passenger airbag will also not
deploy:
— when the front passenger seat is not occupied,
— when the electrical capacitance measured by
the capacitive passenger detection system for
the front passenger seat indicates that the pas-
senger side frontal airbag must be switched off
by the electronic control unit (the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF %; light > page 199 and how they
work comes on and stays on).

— Never install a rearward facing child safety
seat on the front passenger seat unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF 3; light comes
on and stays on. If the PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF ¥; light does not come on and stay
on, the inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great force
and will smash the child safety seat and
child against the backrest, door or roof.
Have the airbag system inspected immedi-
ately by your authorized Audi dealer.


ZA WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase the
risk of serious injury in crashes.
—To reduce the risk of injury when the airbags
inflate, the driver and passengers must al-
ways sit in an upright position, must not
lean against or place any part of their body
too close to the area where the airbags are
located.
— Occupants who are unbelted, out of position
or too close to the airbag can be seriously in-
jured by an airbag as it unfolds with great
force in the blink of an eye > page 188.


ZA WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal-
led on the front passenger seat will be seri-
ously injured and can be killed if the front air-
bag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
— The inflating airbag will hit the child seat or
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the
backrest, center armrest, door or roof.



ZA\ WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in-
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer-
ing with the way the airbag unfolds or by be-
ing pushed into you as the airbag inflates.
— Never hold things in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use.
— Never transport items on or in the area of
the front passenger seat. Objects could
move into the area of the front airbags dur-
ing braking or other sudden maneuver and
become dangerous projectiles that can
cause serious personal injury if the airbags
inflate.
— Never place or attach accessories or other
objects (such as cup holders, telephone
brackets, large, heavy or bulky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked
“AIRBAG” on the steering wheel, instrument
panel, seat backrests or between those
areas and yourself. These objects could
cause injury in a crash, especially when the
airbags inflate.
— Never recline the front passenger's seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the area of the side airbag or the front air-
bag during braking or in a sudden maneuver.
Objects near the airbags can become projec-
tiles and cause injury, particularly when the
seat is reclined.
— Never place or transport objects on the front
passenger seat. Objects on the front passen-
ger seat could cause the capacitive sensor in
the seat to signal to airbag system that the
seat is occupied by a person when it in fact is
not, or that the person on the seat is heavier

197

4S1012721BA
Airbag system


authorized Audi dealer. It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup-
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.

ZA WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child without a
child restraint, or in a rearward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-facing child re-
straint that has not been properly installed
will be seriously injured and can be killed.
— If you must install a rearward-facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
exceptional circumstances and the PASSEN-
GER AIR BAG OFF #%; light does not appear
and stay on, have the airbag system inspect-
ed by your Audi dealer.
— If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, always move the
seat into its rearmost position in the seat's
fore and aft adjustment range, as far away
from the airbag as possible. The backrest
must be adjusted to an upright position.
Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF %; light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched on.

Z\ WARNING
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF %; light does
not go out when an adult is sitting on the
front passenger seat after taking the steps
described above, have the airbag system in-
spected by your Audi dealer before transport-
ing anyone on the front passenger seat.
@) Tips
If the capacitive passenger detection system
determines that the front passenger seat is
empty, the frontal airbag on the passenger
side will be turned off, and the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF 3%; light will stay on.
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system are installed at many
different places on your Audi. Installing, remov-
ing, servicing or repairing a part in an area of the

vehicle can damage a part of an airbag system
and prevent that system from working properly
in acollision.
There are some important things you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of the
system will not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environment.

Z\ WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce-
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de-
ploying when needed or deploying an airbag
unexpectedly:
— Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer-
ing wheel horn pad or airbag cover or the in-
strument panel or modify them in any way.
— Never attach any objects such as cup holders
or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov-
ering the airbag units.
— For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one mois-
tened with plain water. Solvents or cleaners
could damage the airbag cover or change
the stiffness or strength of the material so
that the airbag cannot deploy and protect
properly.
— Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the airbag system.
— All work on the steering wheel, instrument
panel, front seats or electrical system (in-
cluding the installation of audio equipment,
cellular telephones and CB radios, etc.)
must be performed by a qualified technician
who has the training and special equipment
necessary.
— For any work on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that you see your au-
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
— Never modify the front bumper or parts of
the vehicle body.
— Always make sure that the side airbag can
inflate without interference:
— Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that

201

Airbag system


have not been specifically approved by Au-
di.
— Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags in-
flate.
— Damage to the original seat covers or to
the seam in the area of the side airbag
module must always be repaired immedi-
ately by an authorized Audi dealer.
— The airbag system can deploy only once. Af-
ter
an airbag has been deployed, it must be
replaced with new replacement parts de-
signed and approved especially for your Audi
model version. Replacement of complete
airbag systems or airbag components must
be performed by qualified workshops only.
Make sure that any airbag service action is
entered in your Audi Warranty & Mainte-
nance booklet under AIRBAG REPLACEMENT
RECORD.
— For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starter are separated from
the vehicle battery with a pyrotechnic circuit
interrupter.
— Work on the pyrotechnic circuit interrupter
must only be performed by a qualified
technicians who have the experience, in-
formation and special tools necessary to
perform the work safely.
— If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter is
scrapped, all applicable safety precautions
must be followed.

Orme Mar eel e ce)
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag System
performs in a crash. For example, using tire-rim
combinations not approved by Audi, lowering the
vehicle, changing the stiffness of the suspension,
including the springs, suspension struts, shock
absorbers etc. can change the forces that are
measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the
electronic control unit. Some suspension changes
can, for example, increase the force levels meas-
ured by the sensors and make the airbag system
deploy in crashes in which it would not deploy if
202
the changes had not been made. Other kinds of
changes may reduce the force levels measured by
the sensors and prevent the airbag from deploy-
ing when it should.

Z\ WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension including
use of unapproved tire-rim combinations can
change Advanced Airbag performance and in-
crease the risk of serious personal injury in a
crash.
— Never install suspension components that
do not have the same performance charac-
teristics as the components originally instal-
led on your vehicle.
— Never use tire-rim combinations that have
not been approved by Audi.

Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supplemen-
tal protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants.

Fig. 161 Driver's knee airbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument panel
underneath the steering wheel > fig. 161, the
airbag for the passenger is at about the same
height in the instrument panel underneath the
glove compartment.
The knee airbag offers additional protection to
the driver's and passenger's knees and upper and
lower thigh areas and supplements the protec-
tion provided by the safety belts.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags also
deploy in frontal collisions when the deployment >

4S1012721BA
Airbag system

threshold stored in the control unit is met
=> page 196, More important things to know
about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function, safe-
ty belts help keep the driver or front passenger in
position in a frontal collision so that the airbags
can provide supplemental protection.
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall occu-
pant restraint system in your vehicle. Always re-
member that the airbag system can only help to
protect you if you are wearing your safety belt
and wearing it properly. This is why you should al-
ways wear your safety belt, not just because the
law requires you to do so > page 180, General
notes.
Remember too, airbags will deploy only once and
only in certain kinds of accidents - your safety
belts are always there to offer protection in those
accidents in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have already deployed, for
example when your vehicle strikes or is struck by
another after the first collision.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is
not a substitute for the safety belt. The airbag
system works most effectively when used with
the safety belts. Therefore, always wear your
safety belts correctly.
It is important to remember that while the sup-
plemental knee airbag system is designed to re-
duce the likelihood of serious injuries, other inju-
ries, for example, swelling, bruising and minor
abrasions and friction burns can also occur when
an airbag inflates.
The knee airbag system basically consists of:
— The electronic control module
— Two inflatable airbags (airbag and gas genera-
tor), one for the driver and one for the front
passenger
— The airbag warning light in the instrument clus-
ter
The knee airbag system will not deploy:
— when the ignition is switched off

— in frontal collisions when the deceleration
measured by the control unit is too low
—in side collisions
—in rear-end collisions
—in rollovers
— inthe event of a system malfunction (warning/
indicator light is on) > page 17.

ZA\ WARNING
— Safety belts and the airbag system can only
provide protection when occupants are in
the proper seating position > page 196.
— If the airbag indicator light > page 17
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer. It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup-
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.
WAU old
The risk of injury to the leg area can be reduced
by fully inflated knee airbags.

”
S 3
3 a

Fig. 162 Inflated airbags protecting in a frontal collision
The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the airbags for the driver and front passen-
ger deploy in certain but not all frontal collisions.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags also
deploy in frontal collisions when the deployment
threshold stored in the control unit is met.
When the system deploys, the airbags fill with a
propellant gas, and inflate between the lower
part of the instrument panel and the driver and
the lower part of the instrument panel and the
front
passenger > page 196, fig. 159.
203

Airbag system


Although they are not a soft pillow, they can ing your safety belt. The risk increases even
“cushion” the impact and in this way they can more should the airbag deploy.
help to reduce the risk of injury to the lower ex- — Always make sure that the knee airbag can
tremities. inflate without interference. Objects be-
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so tween you and the airbag can increase the
fast that many people don't even realize that the risk of injury in an accident by interfering
airbags have deployed. The airbags also inflate with the way the airbag deploys or by being
with a great deal of force and it is important for pushed into you as the airbag deploys.
occupant safety that nothing should be in their — Never let anybody, especially children or
way when they deploy. animals ride in the footwell in front of the
passenger seat. If the airbag deploys, this
can result in serious or fatal injuries.
— Never carry objects of any kind in the foot-
well area in front of the driver's or pas-
senger's seat. Bulky objects (shopping
bags, for example) can interfere with or
ALS Made ad tle eel mW a1) prevent proper deployment of the airbag.
lL Ty Small objects can be thrown through the
Fully inflated airbags in combination with proper-
ly worn safety belts slow down and limit the oc-
cupant's forward movement and help to reduce
the risk of injury.
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always vehicle if the airbag deploys and injure you
wear safety belts correctly and ride in a proper or your passenger.
seating position. — Make sure there are
no cracks, deep scratch-
es or other damage in the area of the instru-
ment panel where the knee airbags are lo-
cated.
There is a lot that you and your passenger must
know and do to help the safety belts and airbags
to provide supplemental protection. —If children are incorrectly seated, their risk
of injury increases in a collision > page 211,
Child safety.

Z\ WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause serious in-
jury. Wearing safety belts incorrectly and im- Side ai rbags
proper seating positions increase the risk of
serious personal injury and death whenever a Description of side airbags
vehicle is being used.


The airbag system can provide supplemental
— The knee airbag system cannot protect you ; 2
protection to properly restrained occupants.
properly if you are seated too close to any of
the airbag locations. When adjusting their
seat positions, it is important that both the
driver and the front passenger keep their
upper bodies and knees at the following
minimum safe distances:
—at least 10 in (25 cm) between the chest
and
the steering wheel/instrument panel.
—at least 4 in (10 cm) between the knees
and the lower part of the instrument pan-
© 8 3
iT o + aS


el Fig. 163 Side airbag location in the driver's seat
— The risk of personal injury increases if you
lean forward or to the side, or if the seat is The side airbags are located in the sides of the
improperly positioned and you are not wear- front seat backrests > fig. 163 facing the doors.

They are identified by the word “AIRBAG”.
204

Airbag system

“AIRBAG” on the windshield frame and the cen-
ter roof pillar.
The side curtain airbags contain features that
provide ejection mitigation to help prevent vehi-
cle occupants or parts of their bodies from being
completely or partially ejected from the vehicle
interior in certain side impacts and vehicle roll-
overs.
The side curtain airbag system supplements the
safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of in-
jury for occupants’ heads and upper torso. The
side curtain airbag inflates in side impacts and
only when the vehicle acceleration registered by
the control unit is high enough. If this rate is be-
low the reference value programmed into the
control unit, the side curtain airbag will not be
triggered, even though the car may be badly
damaged as a result of the collision. It is not pos-
sible to define an airbag triggering range that
will cover every possible angle of impact, since
the circumstances will vary considerably between
one collision and another. Important factors in-
clude, for example, the nature (hard or soft) of
the impacting object, the angle of impact, vehicle
speed, etc. > page 209, How side curtain airbags
work.
Aside from their normal safety function, safety
belts work to help keep the driver or front pas-
senger in position in the event of a collision so
that the side curtain airbags can provide protec-
tion.
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall occu-
pant restraint system in your vehicle. Always re-
member that the airbag system can only help to
protect you if you are wearing your safety belt
and wearing it properly. This is another reason
why you should always wear your safety belts,
not just because the law requires you to do so
=> page 180, General notes.
It is important to remember that while the side
curtain airbag system is designed to help reduce
the likelihood of serious injuries, other injuries,
for example, swelling, bruising, friction burns
and minor abrasions can also be associated with
these airbags upon deployment. Remember too,
208
these airbags will deploy only once and only in
certain kinds of accidents - your safety belts are
always there to offer protection.
The side curtain airbag system basically
consists of:
— The electronic control module and external side
impact sensors
— The side curtain airbags above the front and
rear side windows with ejection mitigation fea-
tures
— The airbag indicator light in the instrument
panel
The airbag system is monitored electronically to
make certain it is functioning properly at all
times. Each time you switch on the ignition, the
airbag system indicator light will come on for a
few seconds (self diagnostics).
The side curtain airbag is not activated:
— if the ignition is switched off,
— in side collisions when the acceleration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low,
—in rear-end collisions.

Z\ WARNING
— Safety belts and the airbag system will only
provide protection when occupants are in
the proper seating position > page 50,
Front seats.
— If the airbag indicator light > page 17
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer. It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup-
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.

4S1012721BA
Child safety

NeW icelai eel ias-le meee Maal Cele)
Your vehicle is equipped with a front “Advanced
Airbag System” in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (CMVSS) 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” require-
ments for 3- and 6-year old children on the pas-
senger 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
“suppression” requirements of the Safety Stand-
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up to
12 months who are restrained on the front pas-
senger seat in child restraints that are listed in
the Standard.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an Ad-
vanced Airbag system, a child should always ride
in the seat properly restrained for its age and
size. The airbag on the passenger 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 forward-facing child safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for an infant or a
larger child in a rearward-facing seat.
The vehicle's Advanced Airbag System has a ca-
pacitive passenger detection system in the front
passenger seat cushion that can detect the pres-
ence of a baby or a child ina child restraint sys-
tem on this seat.
The capacitive passenger detection system regis-
ters the changes that result in an electrical field
when a child, a child restraint, and a baby blanket
are on the front passenger seat. The change in
the measured capacitance due to the presence of
a child, a child restraint, and a baby blanket on
the front passenger seat is related to the child re-
straint system resting on the seat. The measured
capacitance of a child restraint system varies de-
pending on the type of system and specific make
and model.
The electrical capacitance of the various types,
makes, and models of child restraints specified
by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Ad-
ministration (NHTSA) in the relevant safety
standard are stored in the Advanced Airbag Sys-
tem control unit together with the capacitances
typical of infants and a 1-year old child. When a
child restraint is used on the front passenger seat
with a typical 1 year-old infant, the Advanced Air-
bag System compares the capacitance measured
by the capacitive passenger detection system
with the data stored in the electronic control
unit.
Ce CMe ee aha acl a Tig ey- le)
system
Regardless of the child restraint that you use,
make sure that it has been certified to meet Safe-
ty Standards and has been certified by its manu-
facturer for use with an airbag. If in exceptional
circumstances you must use it on the front pas-
senger seat, carefully read all of the information
on child safety and Advanced Airbags and heed
all of the applicable WARNINGS. Make certain
that the child and child restraint are correctly rec-
ognized by the capacitive passenger detection
system in the front passenger seat, that the front
passenger airbag is turned off, and that the air-
bag status is always correctly signaled by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF #; light.
Many types and models of child restraints have
been available over the years, new models are in-
troduced regularly incorporating new and im-
proved designs and older models are taken out of
production. Child restraints are not standardized.
Child restraints of the same type typically have
different
weights and sizes and different “foot-
prints”, the size and shape of the bottom of the
child restraint that sits on the seat, when they
are installed on a vehicle seat. These differences
make it virtually impossible to certify compliance
with the requirements for advanced airbags with
each and every child restraint that has ever been
sold in the past or will be sold over the course of
the useful life of your vehicle.
213

Fuses and bulbs



































Fuse panel @) (black) Fuse panel © (red)
No. | Equipment 4 |Terminal 15
1 |Steering column switch module 5 |Selector lever (automatic transmission)
2 Headliner interior light, Haldex clutch, air- 7 |Interior lights
bag, switch panel, steering 8 | Windshield wiper (driver's side)
3. | Electronic Stabilization Control (ESC) 9 | Windshield wiper (front passenger's side)
4 |Dynamic steering 10 |Horn
5_| Garage door opener 11 | Steering column switch module
6 Diagnostic port, light control panel, front 12 | Light switch
central electric system control module —
Gateway Fuse panel () (brown)
ESC control module No. | Equipment
Airbag 1 |ESC control module
10 | Climate control system, pressure sensor 2_|ESC control module
11 | Left LED headlight 3 | Climate control system
13 |Right LED headlight 4 |Vehicle positioning
14 | automatic dimming rearview mirror 5_ Left door control module
15 |Engine start 6 |Right door control module
16 | Rear fuse panel 7 Front central electric system control mod-
ule
Fuse panel (@) (black) 8 Front central electric system control mod-
No. | Equipment ule
3 | Climate control system blower fan 9 Front central electric system control mod-
4 Front central electric system control mod- ule
ule 10 | Anti-theft alarm system
6 |Rearview camera 1 Front central electric system control mod-
- ule
nue pene) sBisch 12 |Rain/light sensor
No. | Equipment
1 | Diagnostic connector Fuse panel () (black)
2 | Electronic parking brake switch No. | Equipment
3 | Gateway 7 \Infotainment unit
4 |Brake booster 8 |Infotainment system control module
6 | Cigarette lighter, sockets 9 Infotainment system Bluetooth, safety
7 |Instrument cluster belt microphone
Rear central electric system control mod- £0 | Infotainment:system:sound amplifier
8 ule 12 | Infotainment system Audi music interface
9 Rear central electric system control mod-
ule Bulbs
Fs panel © ed ot
No. | Equipment Your vehicle is equipped with maintenance-free
3 | Electronic Stabilization Control (ESC) headlights and tail lights. However, if a light bulb >

282