information an d h eed the on page
The safety belts in the ve hicl e are part of th e 86 and have the lowin g important features:
Automatic safety
th e safe ty belt is pull ed out slowly , the s h o ulder b elt will extend to l et yo u m ove freely under normal
driv in g condition s. The auto m atic safe ty belt tra cto r locks th e belt when the belt is pull ed ou t fast, d uring hard brakin g and in collision. T he
b elt may also lock when you dri ve up or down steep hill o r th rou gh a sharp cu rve.
informatio n and heed the on page
The prete nsione rs are part o f th e safe ty belt s stalled at th e fro n t in your ve hicle . I nstallin g.
r e mov in g, serv ic ing, or rep airin g of sa fe ty belt ten sio ne rs c an damag e th e s afety belt sys te m
tion properly.
Th ere are some import ant things yo u have to kn ow
to m ake sure that th e effective ness o f th e system w ill not be impair ed and that discar ded nents do n ot ca use inj ury or pollut e the men t. Undeployed safet y belt pre te nsio n ers and air b ag mod ules co ntain explos ive mate ria ls can cause seri o us injuries to the ge neral public
and t o people
in are sc rapp ed. Und ep lo ye d safet y belt pre tensio ne rs
a n d airba g m odules can also pollut e th e en vir on -
B efore driving
s ion ers.
Th e pr eten sio ne rs
are activated by the e le ctronic
c ontrol unit for the airbag system in front, s id e, and rea r collisions. tight ening the s afet y belt , the prete nsio ner reduces th e occupan t's fonvard
m ove ment or movement towards th e point of pact. T he belt pr ete nsioner wo rks toge ther with
th e airbag syste m ; its fun ction is monito red by a
wa rning ligh t. Th e belt prete n sione r will not
va te d .
A
dus t b e re leased upon a ct iva tion. This
i s no rmal and is no t caused by a in th e vehicle .
load l imiter
The front and rear safe ty belt s also have load iters to help reduce the fo rces applie d to the b o d y
in
m ent. Neve r abandon vehicles or vehicl e pa rt s. If
your veh icle mu st be scrapp ed, please make sure
that it i s done safe ly , re sp o nsibly, and in
swage n Fac ility familiar with these
'
Impro per handli ng, care, servici ng, and re pa ir
p rocedures can increase th e risk of p erson al ju ry and death by prev ent in g a bel t p re te nsioner from act iv ating w he n n eeded or by ca usi ng it to
a c ti vate unex pec tedly.
Neve r repair, adjust, or c hange pretensioners or any o ther part of th e s afety belt syste m strongly recom mend that you have any work on th e safety belt sy ste m perform ed by a n
a uth o riz ed
page
The prct en sion cr ca n be activated only once .
If a prctcnsioner has be en activa te d , the safety
b elt must b e re plac ed .
belt systems including prctcnsioners
and retractor s cannot be re paired; they must be replaced . procedures arc requ ired to
remov e, install, and ofthis
Undeploycd safety belt prc tc nsion crs and air
b ag module s contain explosive material s that can cause seriou s person al injuries if th ey arc not properly handled whe n they or the vehicl es they arc installed in are sc rapp ed.
Neve r abandon vehicles or vehicl e parts.
Always scrap vehicles and ve hicle parts, p ecially those containing unde plo yed ai rb ag
m od ule s and undeplo yed sa fety belt prc te nsio
n e rs, at a licensed facility that h as the know
l e d ge and ex pe rience to prop erl y dis p ose of the vehicle and it s safety belt syste m.
Sitti ng properly ond
Und ep lo yed airba g m odu les and prete nsio ners are cla ssified as P e rc hl orat e M ateria l
- sp ecial handling may apply, sec
all applica ble legal re qui re ments wh en
sc rappi ng th e vehicle or pa rt s of its res traint
s y ste m, includin g air bag modul es and safety
facilities are familiar w ith the re qu irements, we recommend th at you hav e th em p erform this serv ice for you.
78 79
Airbag system
find information on th e fol
low ing :
Advanced Airbog
. 82
. . . . . .
Advanced Airbog Sys tem compon e nt s . . . . . . . . . . 93
H ow to if the passenger fron t oirbog is on or off 9 5
. . . . . . 98
Your vehicle is e quipped a front air bag for the
d ri ve r an d fro nt pa sse nger. The front airbag s can pro vide additional p ro tec tion fo r th e ch est and h ead of th e driver and the fro nt sea t p assenge r seats, sa fe ty belts, h ead re stra int s and, for
the driver, th e s teerin g whee l, are prop erly use d and have bee n properly adjusted. Airb ags are on ly
s u pplemental restraints. Th ey are not a su bstitut e for sa fe ty belt s th at must be wo rn eve n though front seatin g pos itions are equipp ed wit h front air
bag s.
More information:
Driv ing instru ction s=> page
seating position=> pag e 56
Safe ty belts=> page 67
sa fe ty and child pa ge
care and pag e
accessories, re pa ir s and modifica tion s pag e303
informati on=> page 311
Never rely on a irbags alone for protect io n.
Eve n when th ey deploy, airbags provide only
s uppl em ental protec tion.
Be fore driving
Airbag s work most effec tive ly w hen used
with properl y worn safe ty belt s=> page 67,
Every perso n in the ve hicl e must b e prop erl y seated on a seat of hi s or he r own, must properl y faste n th e safet y belt belongi ng to th at seat b e
for e the vehicle sta rt s to move, and must ke ep the belt properly faste n ed whil e riding in the ve
hicle. Th is a pplie s to the driv er and all
Obj ects between you an d the airbag will crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfe rin g
witl1the way the airbag unfolds or by being push ed into you as the a irbag inflates.
Never h old th ings in your hand s or on your lap when the vehicl e is in use.
Never items on or in th e area of th e
front passe nger seat. Ob jects could move into
th e a rea of the front airbag s during braking or other sudden maneu ve rs and fly dan gero usly
through the passe nge r compartment when an airbag infl ates.
The airbag deploym ent zones must be kept
clear at all tim es. Make sure there are no objects ,
pets, or ot her persons in the space be tween any ve hicl e occupant and any airb ag at an y time. Thi s also applie s to c hildr en and o ther pa sse n
gers .
WARNING-
An airb ag works o nl y once. Airbag s th a t h ave de
plo yed in a cras h must be re placed.
Deployed airbag s and the re lated sys tem
p art s must b e repla ced immediately with new parts approved for the ve hicl e by Volkswagen.
Use o nly orig inal equipment airb ags ap
prov ed by Volkswag en and by a trained
techni cian who has the necessary too ls and di
agnostic eq uipmen t to properl y replace an y airbag in your ve hi cle and assure sys te m effec-
ti veness in a c rash.
light does not
come
on ...
the ligh t
vice Facili ty.
The light should
BAG light shou ld come on w he n the ign ition is on and an adult is
the lig ht
co mes on and sta ys on unde r these circ um stances,
mak e sure that :
th e adult on the front passenger seat is
the adult is not we igh t off the seat by holding o n to t he passe nge r assis t handle abov e the front passe nger doo r or supporting their weight on th e armres t o r hold in g onto the ass ist ha ndle on the in strument panel;
t h e safet y belt is be in g properly wo rn and that th ere is no t a lo t o f s la c k in the s afet y be lt webbing;
Access ory seat covers or cu sh ions or other
thi ngs that m ay cause an incorrect reading or pression on the weight-se nsin g mat under the
fir st read and note the introd uc tory inform ation an d heed the on page 80.
Front airbags and how they work
Airbags are only supplem ental restra ints. They are not a substit ute for safety belt s that must be w orn even though th e front seatin g po sitions are equip ped wi th front airb ags. The fron t a ir bags can provid e additional prote ct ion for the chest and head of the drive r and the fr ont seat passe nger when seat s, safety belt s, h ead restraints and, for
th e dri ver, th e s teering wheel, are properly used and have been properly adju sted.
Before driving
the statu s of the Adva nced Air bag has changed whi le the vehicle is moving, the BAG ligh t blinks for about 5 seconds to catch the driver's attention . If this pens, a lways stop as soon as it is safe to do so and check the steps described above.
light does not go ofT when an adult who is not very sm all is sitting on the front passen ge r seat after taking the steps described above, make sure the adult is properly seat e d and restrained a t one of the rear seating
position s.
Have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Volkswagen dealer or authorized Volkswag en
sen ge r seat d ete cts an empty seat, th e front airba g on the passenger sid e will be tu rned off, and the light stay on.
sen ge r safety belt itself is buckled and the front passe nge r seat is no t occupied, the
the air bag sys te m deploys in a collis io n , a
ga s ge nerator fills th e a ir bags that break open the padded cove rs on the steering w heel and th e strume n t panel. The front airbags inflate between
th e s teerin g w heel and th e driver and between th e
in strumen t panel a nd th e front passenger.
Fron t air bag s in combination wit h properly wo rn
sa fety be lt s s low down and limit the occupant's forward movement. Toge ther they help to prevent th e driv er
do not provide protectio n for the arms and lower body parts. is important to remember that th e
supple m ental airbag system is designed to reduce the likelihood of serious in juries. However, it is poss ibl e that d ep lo ye d airbag may cause other injurie s such as swelling, bruising, friction burns, and abrasio ns.
A irba gs inflat e in
the blink of an eye, so fast that many people don't eve n realize th a t the airbags
h ave dep loyed. The a irbags will deflate ate ly after deployment s o that th e front occupants can see th roug h the windshield again without terruption.
A ir
bags inflat e with a grea t deal of fo rce. Airbags can cause serious in juries when they infl ate and hit those who are sittin g too close, are out of
mental protection durin g certain kinds of frontal
collisio ns page 67, Safety belts.
Make s
ure that nothing is in the way of the airbags when th ey deploy. For example, items on your lap or o n th e seat could be pushed into yo ur body or fly dangero usly through the passenger ment w he n the ai rbag inflates and cause serio us personal injury.
T he areas outlined in red (dolled lines) and fig. 59 and fig. ind icate the airbag deployment zone. Never place o r aLtach
accessories or other o bjects (such as cup hold ers, telephone bracke ts, note pads, large, heavy or bulky objects) on the doors, on the w indshie ld, over or near the area marked in red (dotted lin es) .
Physical impairm ents and airbags
If yo u have a physica l impairment o r condition that prevents yo u f rom sitting properly o n the driver seat with the safety belt properly fastened
a n d reach ing the pe dal s, special modifications to
your ve hicle may be necess ary. The safety belt and airbagcan only provide optimum p rotection if you
are seated correct ly and can reach the p ed als.
thorized Volkswagen Service Facility or call the
te red by the electron ic control unit. seve rity
depends on speed and decele rati on as well as the mass and stiffn ess of the ve hicle or object in vo lved
in the cras h.
The front airbag s will not inflat e in sid e or rear lisio ns, in roll overs or if the ig niti on is swi tc h ed off .
T he front airbags will not inflate in all frontal sions. The trigger ing of th e a irbag system depends on th e ve hicle dece le rat ion rat e caused by the lisio n and registered by the electr onic control unit. If th is rat e is below the refer ence va lue grammed the control unit, th e a irba gs will not be trigge red, even though the vehicle may be badly damaged as a resu lt of the collision. Vehicl e
damage, repair costs or even the lack of ve hicl e damage is not necessarily an ind ication of whether
a n airbagshould inflat e or not. It is not possib le to
defi ne a range of vehicl e speeds w ill cove r
every possibl e kind and angle of impact that will
a lways trigger the airbag s, s ince th e c ircumstances
will vary con sid erably between one collis ion and a not her. Important facto rs include, for example , the nature (hard or soft) o f the objec t that the hicl e hit s, the angle of impact, ve hicle speed , etc.
When a n airbag deploys, fine dust i s released. This
i s normal and is not caused by fire in the ve hicle.
T hi s d ust is made up mostly of a powder used to
lub ricate the airbags as
s ions when the veh icle deceleration is high enough to depl oy the airbags. Airbags onl y deploy
once, and o nl y i n certain kinds of collisions. safet y belts are always there to offer protectio n in
th ose situ ation s in which airbags are no t s upposed to dep loy, or when they have already deployed; fo r example, when your vehicl e strikes or is st ru ck by
anothe r ve hicle after an initial coll is ion.
is just one o f the reasons w hy a n air bag is supplementary restraint and is not a substitute for a safe ty belt . The airbag syste m wo rks most
The air bags are pan of the overall passive vehicl e safe ty sys tem. The airbag system works most cie ntly when used with properly safety be lts and a proper seatin g posit ion
84 85
Safety equipment
safet y and the s afe ty of your p assenge rs shouldn 't be l eft to c han ce. Advances in tech
nolo gy have made a numb er of featur es available help reduce the ris k of injury in a collisio n. The follo wi ng are just a few o f th e sa fe ty features for your Volkswag en :
Soph is ticated safety belts for all seating posi
tions.
Safety belt pretensio ne rs for the outboard seatin g positi ons on the rea r seat o n ve hicl es equipped with optional side a irbags for the o ut
board rear seating positi ons?.
belt load limit ers fo r all outb oa rd seating
positions.
b elt h e ig ht adju ste rs for the front
belt warning light.
A dvanced front airba g sys tem for driver and fro nt passe nger.
airbag s.
Driver knee airbag .
Airbag indicator light
BAG light.
Ele ctronic cont rol unit and asso ciat ed senso rs.
Head res traint s w ith heig ht adju stment opt imized for rear -end collisio ns.
Adju stabl e stee rin g column.
lo w er univer sa l and top te th er an chor
age s for child restraint s.
These individual safety wo rk tog eth er as sys te m t o help pro tect yo u and your passenger s in w id e rang e of collisio ns. Th ese features can't
work as a syste m if they are no t a lwa ys correctly
adju ste d and prope rly used!
How the Advanced Airbag System components
work together ...
in
fan t of about one yea r o f ag e in one of th e c hild
seats u sed to certif y th e Adva nced Airb ag under Federa l Motor dard h as been regis te re d on th e seat. Th e AI sta ys on
Before driv ing
o n th e passenge r side has been turned off
Neve r rely on airbags alone for protec tion.
Even wh en they depl oy, airbags provide only
supplemental protection.
Airbag s work most effec tive ly when used with properly worn safe ty page 67, Safety
belt
s.
Every person in ve hicle must be prope rl y
se ated on a seal of his or he r own, must prope rl y
fasten the s afety belt belonging to that seat be
fore th e ve hicle start s to move, and must keep the belt properly fas tened w hil e riding in the ve
hicle. This applies to the dri ver and all passen-
too close to the steering wheel or instru
m ent panel will dec rease the effectiveness of th e
airbags and will increase the risk of personal in
jury in a coUision .
Never sit closer than inche s (25 em ) from the s teering whee l or instrument panel.
If yo u cannot sit upright more th an inch es (25 em) from the steering wheel, investigat e
whether adaptive equipment may be ava ilable
to help you reach the pedal s and increase your seating di stance from the steering wheel.
If you are unres trained , leaning fonvard, sit
tingsideway s, or out of position in anyway, your ris k of injury is m uch higher.
To reduce the risk of injury w hen an airbag always wear safety belt s properl y.
A n infant in a reanvard-facing child seat in
s talled in the front passe nge r seat w ill be seri
ously injured an d ca n b e killed if the front airbag
inflates-even with an Advanced Airbag
Always make certai n that children age 12 or younger alway s ride in the re ar seat. If childre n
are not properl y re stra in ed, they may be se
ve rel y injured or killed when th e infl ates.
Never le t children ride unres trained or im properly re strain ed in th e ve hicl e.
Adjust the front seats properly.
According to US federal stand ards , an vanced Alrbag System can deploy with the
For their own safety, all children, especially 12 years and younger, must always ride on
When installing a child restraint, always
carefully follow the manufacturer's instruc
tion s.
An infant in a reanvard-facing child restraint on the front passenger seat can be seve rely injured or killed if the airbags deploy.
Never use a reanvard-facing child seat or
The deploying airbagwill impact the ch ild
seat or infant carrier with great force and fling it,
along with child, against the seat backrest,
center armrest, door or roof.
Always properly reanvard-facingchild
sea ts or infant carriers, as well as fonvard-facing
child seats, on
ond
If special circumstances require the use of a
senger seat,
A forward-facing child restraint installed on
ploym ent and severely injure child.
Always make sure the fonvard-facing
child restraint has been designed and certified
for use on a front passenger seat with a front
airbag and a side airbag.
Never install a child safety seat without a
properly installed upper tether strap when the
manufacturer 's instructions require use of an upper
Never install a fonvard-facing chil d restraint
right up
Always set the upper anchorage point of the
safety belt to the highest position.
Always move passenger seat to
rearmost position in seat's fore and aft adjus tment range, as far
away from
stalling
Always make sure that no object prevents tJ1e
front passenger seat from being moved as far
back as possible.
Always make sure that the backrest is in its
mo st upright position.
Always make sure that the chil d sea t is curely installed, even when no child occupies it.
A poorly secured child seat can be thro wn
through the vehicle during sudden braking
88 89
Front airbags
Fig . 59 location ond deploy ment zone of the driver front oirbog.
Fig .
60 location and deployment zone of the passenger front oirbog .
read and no te the introductory
on page 80 .
The ve hicle is equippe d w ith
208 applicable at the tim e your vehicl e was manufactured. The a irbag for the driver is in the steerin g fig. 59 and the for the fron t passeng er is in the instrument panel 60 . The gene ra l locatio n of the air bags is
m arked
The activa tes the belt te n sione rs page 84.
Th e a r
eas marke d in re d (do tted page fig . 59 page fig . indi cate the airb ag plo ym ent zone. Never place or
naviga tion systems,
Before driving
heavy or bulky objects ) on the doors, on the s hi eld , o ve r or near the area marked in re d (dotted lin es) .
Front oirbogs not deploy:
if th e ig n itio n is switched off when cra sh
in sid e collision s,
in rear-end collis ions,
in roll overs.
when the cra sh d ecele rat io n measured by the airbag syste m is less than the minimum threshol d nee d ed f or airbag deployment as regis te red by the
e lectroni c control unit.
The passenger front oirbog
when the front passenger seat i s not occupied,
w hen the weight on the fron t passenger seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag in dica tes that t he front airbag on the passe nge r sid e should