2008 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA warning

Fig . 24 In fl ated front airbags
Th e area s ou tli ned in re d 23 indi cate the
a ir bag deploy ment zone. Neve r pla ce or attach
accesso ries or other obj ects (such as cu p
h o ld ers . te lep hone bracket s, la rge. heavy o r
obje cts) on the door s, ove r or nea r area
mark ed in
Sa fe ty ar e importanl to help kee p front seat
occ upant s in th e pro per sea te d p osition so th at
airb ags ca n un fold prop erl y and provi de s uppl e­
m enta l p ro tect ion in a fro ntal co llision.
Th e fron t a ir bags are desig ned to prov ide add i­
t io nal prot ection for th e chest an d
of the
dr iver and the fro nt sea t passe nger
• saf ety belt s are w orn pr operl y.
•
se ats have bee n pos ition ed so th at the
occ upant i s properl y seated as far as poss ible
from the airb ag,
• and th e hea d re straint s have bee n prop erly
adjusted.
B eca use a irbags inflate in
blink of an eye grea t fo rce, things yo u have on your lap or
ha ve pla ced on the seat could become dan ­
gerous pro jec tiles, a nd be pus hed into you if
a irb ag inflat es.
W hen an airb ag deplo ys, fine du st is rel ea sed .
Th is is norm al a nd i s not cause d by a fire i n th e
v ehicl e. Thi s du st is m ade up m ostly of a pow der
u sed
10 lub ricate the airba gs as they deplo y. I t
co uld irritate skin.
It is imp orta nt to remem ber
w hil e sup ­
pl em ental airbag syste m is desig ned to re duce
t h e lik elih ood of serio us inju ries, oth er injurie s,
for exampl e swe lling, brui sin g a nd minor ab ra­
s io n s, can also happe n when ai rbags inflate. Ai r-
Booklet 2.1 Safety first
ba gs do not protect th e ar ms or th e lo we r part s
of th e bod y. Front airbags on ly sup ple m ent th e
thr ee poin t sa fety be lts in some front al co llision s
in whic h th e ve hicle dece lerati on is high enough
t o de plo y th e airbags.
Front airbags will not deploy:
• if ig nition is sw itch ed off when a cras h oc­
c ur s,
• in sid e co llision s,
• in rea r-end co lli sion s.
• in rollo ve rs,
• when th e cra sh d ece lera tion m eas ured by
ai rba g sys te m is les s th an the minimum
thr eshold nee ded for air bag d epl oy ment as reg­
i s te re d b y th e e lec troni c con trol unit.
Th e front passenger airbag wi ll also not deploy :
• when th e front passe nge r sea t is not occ u­
p ied .
• when th e we ig ht on the front passe nger se at
as sensed by the Adva nce d Airba g Sys te m indi ­
c a tes
fron t a irb ag o n th e pas se n ge r side
h as to be turn ed off by th e electro nic co ntro l unit
( th e PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF ligh t comes o n
a nd sta ys on) .
WARNING
Sittin g in the wrong posit ion can in crease the
ri sk of serio us inju ry in cra she s.
• To reduce the risk of injur y when the air­
ba gs inflate, the driver and passengers must
a lwa ys sit in an upright po sition , mu st n ot
l e an again st or pla ce any part of their bod y too
clo se to th e area where the airb ags are located.
• Occupa nts who are unb elt ed , out of posi­
tion or too clo se to the a irbag can be seriou sly
injured by an a irbag as it unfold s wit h grea t
force in the blink of an eye
27.
WARNING
A child in a rea rward -facin g child scat in­
s talled on the front pa ssen ger seat w ill be se ri­
o usly injur ed and can be kill ed if th e front
airba g inflat es -even with an Advanc ed A irbag
Sys te m.
• Th e infl ating airba g
hit th e child seat
or infant carrier w ith great for ce and w ill
s mas h the child scat and child again st th e
ba ckre st, ce nter arm rest, door or roof.
Airbag system 37

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
WARNING (con tinued)
• Al ways insta ll r ear -faci ng child seats o n th e
rea r seat.
• If yo u mu st in sta ll a reanva rd faci ng c hild
se at on th e fr ont p asse nger seat beca use of ex­
c epti onal cir cum stance s an d th e PAS SEN GER
AIR BAG OFF light do es not co me o n an d stay
on, immedi ate ly in sta ll th e rear -fa cin g child
sea t in
re ar se a ti ng po siti on and hav e th e
a irba g syste m inspe cte d b y yo ur Volk swagen
d ea le r.
WARNING
O bj ec ts be twee n yo u and th e airbag w ill in ­
c rease the r is k of injury in a c rash by int er­
fe rin g w ith th e way the a ir ba g unfold s or by
b ein g pu sh ed into yo u as the a ir ba g infl ates.
• Never hold thin gs in your hand s or on your
l a p when the v ehicl e is in u se.
• Neve r tran sport item s on or in th e area of
the f ront p asse nger sea t. Obj ec ts co uld move
int o th e a rea of the front airb ags durin g
br ak ing o r oth er su dden man euv er and be­
co me dange ro us pro jec tiles that ca n ca use se­
ri ou s
injur y airba gs infl ate.
• Neve r place or att ac h acce ssori es or oth er
o bj ec ts (s uch as c up h old ers, tele phon e
bra ckets, la rge , h eav y or bul ky obj ects) on the
d oor s, ove r or n ear th e area mark ed "AIRB AG"
o n th e steer ing wh eel, in strum ent pan el, sca t
b ac krests or b etw een those a reas
36,
fi g. 23 and yourself. T hese ob jec ts coul d ca use
in ju ry in a cras h, es pecia lly w hen th e airbags
infl ate .
• Nev er re clin e th e fro nt p asse nge r's sca t to
t ra nsp o rt obj ec ts. Item s can also move into
th e are a of the sid e airba g or the front air b ag
durin g bra kin g or in a s udd en m an eu ve r. Ob­
j ec ts nea r th e a irb ags can beco me pro jec tiles
a nd cause inj ury , p articu lar ly w hen th e sea t is
r ecl ined .
• Always make s ure that no thin g is on th e
fr ont pass enger s eat that will cause the
we ig ht -se nsing mat in th e scat to sense that
t h e sea t is occupi ed or is occ upie d b y a perso n
th at i s hea vier th an th e occ upa nt actually on
38 Airbag system
WA RN IN G (con tinued)
th e s eat. Th e w eight oflhe obj ect could cause
the pas senge r sid e airbag t o be turn ed on
wh en it shoul d be off o r could cau se the a irbag
to fun ctio n in a w ay th at is diff ere nt fro m the
way it wo uld h ave w orked with o ut th e added
we ig ht .
• Always make s ure th at nothin g on th e front
pa sse nge r sca t w hen the bac krest is fold ed for­
w ard. Eve n light obj ect s c ould b e pu sh ed int o
th e seat c ushi on and cause the weig ht-se nsin g
m at i n th e scat to reg is te r enou gh we ig ht to
turn th e airb ag on.
• Al ways make sur e that the s ta tu s s ignal ed
b y th e PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light is c or­
r ec t for the w ay that the front p assenger sea t is
b ein g use d.
WARNING
The fin e dust c rea ted wh en airb ags depl oy ca n
ca use brea thin g pr oblem s for p eople w ith a
hi sto ry of asthm a or o th er bre athin g condi ­
tion s.
• T o reduce the risk of brea thing problem s,
with asthm a or oth er res pir ato ry c ondi ­
ti o ns s hould get fr esh ai r right away by ge tting
o ut of the ve hicle o r openin g windows o r
d oor s.
• If y ou ar c in a co llisio n in w hi ch airb ags de­
pl oy, wash yo ur hand s and fa ce with mild soap
a nd wa te r b efo re e atin g.
• B e caref ul not to get th e du st int o yo ur
eyes , o r int o any c uts o r sc ratc hes.
• If th e re sid u e s hou ld ge t int o your eyes ,
flu sh th em with wate r.
Tips
If yo u or a pa sse nge r w ho yo u w ill be using your
ve hicl e has a d isab ility tha t ma y affect the way
t h e Advan ced Airb ag Sys te m in yo ur vehicle
wo rks, you can contact Volkswagen Custo m er
C ARE at 180 0 822-8987 for informa tion about
p oss ib le m od ifi ca tion s or o th er ste p s th at h elp
address th e sit uat io n .
-

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
Two separate indicators monitor the function the Advanced Airbag System: the
airbag monitoring indicator light and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
senso r circu its and
sys tem wirin g) is moni to red conti nuous ly to
make sur e that it i s fun ctio ning pro perl y when­
ever th e ig niti on iso n. Eac h tim e you turn on the
i gn ition . t he airbag mon it or ing ind icator lig ht
w ill co me on for a
seconds (se lf diagn ostic s)
and the text AIRBAG /BELT TENSIONER appears
in the in strum ent cluster.
The system must b e inspected wh en the indi­
cator light
• does no t co me on when the ig nition i s
s wit ch ed on ,
• does not go out a few secon ds after you ha ve
sw itch ed on th e ig niti on. o r
• comes on whil e dri ving.
I f an airbag syste m malfun ctio n is detec te d, th e
ind icator li gh t w ill come on and sta y on
ca tc h
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t
Fig. 25 Section from the ins trument panel: PAS ­
SENG ER AIR BAG OFF light
T he PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light is
in
the cent er of t he in strum ent pan el 25 . th
e driver's artentio n and serve as a constant re­
mind er to ha ve the syste m inspected immedi ­
ate ly. If a m alfunction occurs that turn s th e fro nt
airbag on th e pa sse nger side off, the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light
co me on and stay on
w heneve r the ig niti on is on.
WARNING
An airbag system that i s not functionin g prop­
erly cannot pro vide supplemental protection
in a frontal crash.
• If the airbag indicator light comes on, it
mean s that there ma y be somethin g wrong
with the Advanced Airbag System.
It is po s­
s ible that the airbag will inflate when it is not
s uppo sed to, or not inflat e when it
• H ave the airbag system inspec te d immedi ­
ately by your Volkswagen
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht will co me
on and sta ys on to te ll you when the front Ad­
va nce d Airbag on the passe nge r side ha s been
turn ed off by the e lectro nic co ntro l unit.
I f th e bulb for the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght burn s out , the airbag monitoring ind ica to r
li ght
39 will co me on a nd sig nal mal ­
fun cti on in th e Advanced Airbag system. Al­
th ough th e burn ed o ut bulb will not ch ange the
way the
air b ag on t he pa sse nger s ide
w ork s, it wi ll n o longer be possible to use the
BAG OFF light to verify that t he
a irb ag on/off s ta tu s is co rrect for the occ upant
on the front passe nge r seat. Have the airb ag
sys tem in spec ted imm ed iate ly by your Volk­
sw agen deal er.
Th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht will blink for
up to as long as 9 seco nds w hen
• th e ig nit ion is s witch ed on and
Airbag system 39

• mo ve th e c hild to a re ar sca t po siti on and
m ake sur e that th e ch ild is p ro perl y res train ed in
a child res traint that is appropriat e for it s size
and age.
T he PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF li ght sh ould NOT
co me on when th e ignition i s on and an adult is
s ittin g in a prop er se ating p osition on th e front
pa sse nger sea t. If th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
l ight com es on and stays on und er th ese circum­
s tan ces, make sur e that :
• the adult on th e fron t pa sse nger seat i s prop­
e rl y se ate d on th e ce nter of the se at cu shion with
his or her ba ck up again st th e ba ckr es t and the
ba ckr es t is not r eclin ed
4 , " Prop er occu ­
p ant sea ting posit ion s."
Booklet 2.1 Safety first
• the a dult i s not takin g we ig ht off the se at b y
hold ing on to the pa sse nger a ssist h andl e above
th e fro nt passe nger door or supportin g their
wei ght on th e armre st or ho ld in g on to th e ass is t
handl e on the instrum ent p anel,
• th e safety belt is bei ng prop erl y
an d
tha t th ere is no t lot of sla ck in th e safet y belt
we bbin g,
• access ory seat cove rs o r cu shi ons or oth er
thin gs th at may cause an inco rre ct reading o r
impr ession on th e we ight -sensing m at under
th e up ho ls tery of the seat have be en rem ove d
fr om the front p asse nger sea t,
• the optio nal
b elt ex te nd er h as not
b een le ft in th e b elt lat ch for th e fron t pa s­
se ng er sea t.
Important safety instructions on monitoring the Advanced Airbag
System
WARNING
A n airbag syste m that is not functioning prop­
er ly cannot provide supplementa l protection
in a frontal crash.
• If the
indi cator light comes on, it
mean s that there may be s omething wron g
with the Adva nced Airbag Sy stem. It is pos­
sib le th at the airbag will inflate when it is not
suppo sed to, or will not inflate when it sh ou ld.
• Hav e the airb ag system inspected immedi­
at ely by you r Vo lkswage n dealer.
WARNING
If th e front airbag inflates, a child without a
child restraint, in a rearwa rd-facing child scat
or in a forward-faci ng child restraint that has
not been properly insta lled
b e s eriousl y
injured and can be killed.
• Eve n though your vehicle is equipped with
a n Advanced Airbag System, make certain
that all childr en , e specially 12 year s and
yo ung er, always rid e on the back scat properly
restrained for their age and size.
• Alwa ys install forward or rear-facing child
seat s on the
sea t-eve n with an Advanced
Airbag System.
• If yo u must in stall a rcanvard- faci ng c hild
sea t on the front passenger scat because or ex-
WARNING (co ntinued )
ceptional circumstance s and the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light doe s not come on and stay
immedi ately install the rea r-facing chi ld
seat In a rear seating pos ition and have the
airba g syste m inspected by your Volkswagen
d ea ler.
• A tight tether or other strap on a
facing child r estraint attached to the front pas­
se nger sea t can pu t too mu ch pr essure on th e
weight-sens ing mat in the seat and register
more
weight than is actua lly on the sea t. The
h ea vier w eight registered can the
sys te m work as though an adult were on the
sea t and deploy th e A dvanced A irbag w hen
it mu st be suppre ssed caus ing seriou s or even
fat al injury to the c hild .
WARNING
An in sta ll ed c hild restraint can in­
t e rfe re with the airb ag as it deploy s and ser i­
ously injure or eve n kill the ch ild -even with
an Adva nced Airbag Sys tem. If, in excep tional
cir cumstan ces, you must install a fonvard­
facing chil d re straint on the front passenger 's
seat:
• child seats inst alled on the
front p assenger's seat m ay int erfere with the
Airbag system 41

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
WARNING (continu ed)
depl oyment of the ai rba g and ca use se rious
per sonal injury to the child.
• Alway s mak e sur e th e fo rward-facin g seat
h as been des ign ed an d ce rtified b y its
fac turer for use on a front seat with a se nge r front and sid e airb ag.
• Alway s ca ref ull y follow the manufa cturer' s
in stru ctio ns pro vided with the c hild seat or
c arrier.
• Neve r put the
child s trai nt u p aga inst or very near th e in strum ent
panel.
• Al ways move the passe nge r seat into its
armost pos itio n in the seat's fore and aft ju stm ent range , a s fa r away from the a irbag as
po ssibl e befo re in sta llin g th e fonvard-faci ng
c hild res traint. The backre st mu st b e adjust ed
to a n up rig ht p osition.
• Alway s m ake sur e th at nothin g preve nts
th e front passenge r's s eat from bei ng moved
to the re armost positi on in it s fore and aft
justm ent r ange.
• Neve r place additional it em s on the sca t
th at ca n in crease the total weight reg is te re d b y
th e we ig ht -se nsi ng m at and can ca use inju ry
in a cras h.
• Mak e sure th at th e PASSENGER AIR BAG
O FF li ght comes on and stay s on a ll th e time
w hene ver th e ig nition i s switch ed on.
WARN ING (cont inued)
• If th e PASSENGE R BAG OFF light does
not come on and sta y on , imm ediatel y in sta ll
the forward -facing child seat in a rear seating
po siti on and h ave the airbag system insp ec ted
b y yo ur Vo lkswagen dealer.
WARNING
• If the PASSE NGER BAG ligh t do cs
not go ofTwhen an adult i s sitting on the front
pas senger scat after taking the ste p s d esc ribed
above, make s ure the adu lt is prop erl y sea ted
a nd restrain ed at one of th e rear seating
ti ons.
• I lave the airbag syste m inspected by you r
Vo lkswage n dea ler befor e tran sportin g
a n yo ne on the front passen ger sea t.
T ips
• If th e we ig ht-s ensin g m at in th e f ront
seng er se at detec ts a n empt y sea t, th e front
airb ag on th e passe nge r sid e w ill be turn ed off .
a nd th e PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF lig ht will sta y
on.
• If th e opti onal safe ty belt ex te nd er i s le ft in
t h e bu ckle fo r th e
sa fe ty belt , o r th e fron t
pa ssen ger saf ety belt itse lf is bu ck led an d t he
fron t p asse nge r s eat is not occ u pie d , th e
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light will come
Repair , care and d isposa l of the a irbags
Part s of t he ai rbag sys te m are in sta lled at m an y
d iffe re nt plac es on yo u r V olksw age n. In sta lli ng.
re mo vin g, se rv ic in g or rep air in g a part in an a re a
of th e ve hicl e c an dam age a part of an airb ag
sys te m and pr eve nt that syste m fr om wo rk in g
prop erl y in
co llision .
Th ere ar e so me imp ort ant thin gs yo u have to
kn ow to m ake s ure th at t he eff ec tive ness o f th e
sys te m will not b e impa ire d and t hat d isca rded
c om pon en ts do not c ause injur y or pollu te th e
e n vir onm en t.
WARNING
I mp roper care , se rv ic in g and repair dure s can incr ease ri sk of personal in jur y
42 Airbag sys tem
WA RNING ( conti nue d)
a nd d eath by preve ntin g airba g from ploy ing w hen needed or d eplo yin g an airb ag
un ex pec te dl y:
• Nev er c over, obstru ct, or c han ge the
s te erin g w heel horn pad or airb ag cover or the
in strument panel o r modif y th em in any wa y.
• Neve r att ac h an y obj ects su ch as cup
h old ers or tele phone mountin gs to th e
fac es c overin g th e a irbag units.
• For clean ing th e horn pad or in strum ent
panel, use on ly a so ft, dr y cloth or one moi st·
ened w ith pla in water. Solven ts or cl ea ner s
co uld dam age the a irbag cov er or ch ange the

&, WARNING (contin ue d)
or strength or material so that the
airbag cannot deploy and protect properl y.
• Neve r rep air, ad just, or change any parts or
the airbag system .
• All work on the stee ring whe el, instrument
panel , front seats o r ele ctri ca l system (in ­
cluding th e in sta llat ion or a udio equipment,
ce llul ar te lep hon es and CB ra dios, etc.) must
b e performed by a
tec hnician who
has th e trainin g and specia l equipment ne ces­
sary.
•
an y work on the air bag system , stron gly rec omm end that you sec yo ur autho ­
rized Vo lkswagen dealer or qualified work­
s hop.
• Neve r modif y the front bumper or part s or
th e ve hicl e body.
• Alwa ys make sur e that the side a irbag can
without intcrrcrence:
Booklet 2.1 Safety first
&, WARNING (continu ed)
Neve r install seat covers or replacemen t
uphol stery over the front scatback s th at
h ave not been specifica lly approved by
Vo lkswagen .
Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas w here the sid e air bags in­
nat e.
Damage to the or ig in al scat covers or to
th e sca m in the area or the s ide a irbag
modul e mu st a lway s be repaired immedi ­
at ely by an auth oriz ed Volk swagen dealer.
• The airbag system can be activated o nly
once.
a n airbag has it mu st be
re place d
• Us e on ly original equipment airbag s ap-
1>roved by Volkswagen and in stall ed by a
tra ined techn ician who has the nece ssary
too ls a nd dia gno sti c eq uipment to properl y
r e pla ce a ny airba g in yo ur ve hicle and assure
s ystem effectiveness in a cra sh.
• Neve r permit sa lvage d or recy cled airb ags
to be in sta lled in your vehicl e.
Other things that can affect Advanced Airbag performance
Chan ging th e su sp en sio n sys te m can
c h an ge th at the Adva nce d Airba g
Sys te m p erfo rm s in For e xampl e, usin g
tir e-rim combinati ons no t appro ved by V OLK­
S W AG EN. lowe ring th e v ehi cle, c hangin g th e
the
c han ges had not b een m ad e. Oth er kind s of
c h ang es ma y re du ce th e fo rce le vel s mea sur ed
the se nsor s and preve nt th e a irbag from de­
p lo yin g w hen it sh o uld .
Th e Adv anced Airb ag Sys te m in th e fro nt pas­
s en ger sea t w ill not wo rk lhe way it sh o uld i f th e
opti onal saf ety be lt ex te nd er i s not r em oved
fr om the
belt lat ch w hen th e se at is oc cu­
p ied and the s afe ty belt is no t b eing use d.
L eav ing th e ex tend er a u ac hed to the safe ty belt bu
ck le w hen the f ront sea t is occ upie d and th e
belt is no t b eing u sed w ill sign al th e airba g
c ontro l unit that the front passe nger scat i s oc ­
c upi ed and th at th e sa fe ty belt is bein g use d. T he
e lec troni c contr ol unit fo r th e ai rba g sys te m will
t h en re c eiv e in co rrec t in form ation that will
c au se th e s afet y belt pret en sio ncr and front pas­
se ng er airb ag to depl oy la te r in collision s th at
wo uld n orm ally tr igge r th ese syste m s e arli er in
th e co llision to help prote ct an unre strained
sea t occupant. In addit io n , th e belt
ex te nd er mu st n eve r b e use d to sec ure child re ­
s traint s to the fro nt p asse nger
Fo r th at
r e as on , a lw ays re mo ve th e sarety belt exte n der
w hen it is not needed and stow it sa fel y
22.
Th e se nsor s in th e s arety belt bu ckle for th e
drive r and front pa ssenger se at te ll th e ele c­
t ro nic co ntrol m odul e if th e s afe ty belt is la tc h ed
o r n ot. I f th e s afet y belt is being u sed, th e f ront
airbag will dep lo y at
slightly high er rat e or ve ­
hi cle decele ration than if th e saf ety b elt i s no t
b ein g use d. Therefo re , in a parti cul ar colli sio n, it
Airbag system 43

Booklet 2.1 Safety first
i s poss ible an airba g not d epl oy a
se ating p osition where th e s afely belt is being
u se d
will inflat e at the pos ition where b elt is noc be ing use d. It i s thal
nothin g im erfer e belt bu ck les so
th al th e se nsors can se nd corr ect in forma ­ab oul safe ty be lt use th e e lec troni c co n­
t ro l
WARN ING
Chan gin g th e ve hicle's suspension including
use of unapproved tire-rim combinations can
c hange Advan ced Airbag performanc e and in­
creas e th e risk of serious persona l inju ry in a
c ra sh.
• Never install sus pens ion co mpon ents that
do not have the same performance characte r­
i st ics as the components originally installed
on yo ur vehicle.
• Never u se tire -rim combination s that h ave
not been approved by VOLKSWAGEN.
Side airbags
Applies to vehicles: with side airbags
Description of side airbags
WARNING
Leaving the optiona l safety belt extender at ­
t ached to the safety belt latch on the front pas­
senger seat when the safety belt is not bein g
u sed w ill prevent the Advanced Airbag System
fr om funct ion ing proper ly and can increa se
th e r isk of se rious perso nal injur y in a co lli­
sio n.
• Alway s remove the sa fety belt exte nder
when it is 1101 n ee ded a11d stu w i I safe ly it is not bein g used with the safet y belt.
• Nev er use th e safe ty belt extender to sec ure
a chi ld restraint at any seating positi on.
WARN ING
Item s stored between the safe ty be lt buckle
and the center co nso le can ca use th e sensor s
in the buckle to send the wro ng information to
elec troni c control module and preven t the
Advanced A irbag system from working prop­
er ly.
• Always make s ure that nothing can inter ­
fere with th e safety belt buckl es a nd that they
a re not obstructed.
Th e sid e airba g system ca n provide supplem ental prot ection to prop erl y re­
s train ed fron t seat o ccupan ts.
Fi g. 26 Side airbag in driver seot
44 Airbag system
The sid e airba gs are in paddin g in fro nt seats 26 . Yo ur vehicl e m ay a lso be
eq uipped with optional sid e airb ags for th e re ar
p os itions. Th e gen eral l ocatio n is
id entifi ed b y th e wo rd in th e uppe r re­
g io n of the b ackres ts
The side airb ag sys tem basica lly co nsis ts of:
• The elec troni c control m odul e and ext ernal
s id e imp act se nso rs
• The two sid e airba gs loc ated in the sid es o f
ch e fro nt b ackre sts
• Th e airba g warning
in cluste r

The airbag system is monitored electronically 10 make cenain i t is functio ning properly all
t ime s. Each time you turn o n th e ig ni tion,
airbag system indica to r lig ht w ill co me on for a
few seco nds (self diagnost ics).
T he side airbag syste m sup pleme nts rhe safety
be lts and can help to reduce the risk of inj ur y
the dr iv er's a nd front passe nger's upper torso on sid e of th e vehicle that is stru ck in a sid e co l­
li sion. The airbag inflate s on ly in sid e impa cts
and onl y when the veh icle acce leration reg is­
t e red b y the control unit is high en ough. If
rate is below reference value programm ed
i n to co ntr ol u ni t, t he side airbag s not be
trigg ere d , eve n though the ca r ma y be badly
damag ed as a r esult of the co llision. It is
pos ­
s ible d efin e an airbag trigger ing rang e th at
w ill cover eve ry possible ang le of impact, sin ce
t h e ci rc u ms ta n ces will vary co nsiderably be­
twee n one collision and anot her. lrnpona nl fac­
include, for example, the na tu re (har d or
s oft ) of th e impacting objec t, a ngle of im­
pact, vehicle speed, etc. 46, "Impo rta nt
s afet y in structio ns for the side a irbag system ".
As ide from th eir normal safety function, saf ety
belts
to h elp k eep the dri ver or front pas­
senger in posit io n in a side colli sio n so th e
s id e airb ags can prov ide prot ection whe n
inflate. Safe ty belt s also help to keep rear seat
pas seng ers in po sition so that optional rear seat
s id e airbag s can prov ide protection in a sid e co l­
li sio n i n w hic h th e side air b ag inflates.
T he a irbag syste m is not a subst itute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of t he overa ll occu­
pant re straint syste m in your vehicle. A lways re­
memb er
the airbag syste m can only help to
pro tec t yo u if you are wearing your safe ty b elt
and wearing
properly. This is an other rea son
why you sho uld alwa ys wear your safe ty belt s,
n o t ju st b ecau se th e
re quir es you do so 13 , bel ts" .
It is im portant 10 re mem be r that wh ile th e su p­
p lemen tal side airbag system is designed to help
Booklet 2.1 Safety first
reduce the likelih ood of seriou s injuri es, other
injuries, for example, swelling, bruising, and
mi nor abra sions can a lso be associated w it h
th ese airbags. Remember t oo , side airbags w ill
dep loy o nly once an d on ly in certai n kinds of ac­
ciden ts - your safety belt s are always th ere to
offer protec tion.
Ve hicle dam age, repa ir cost s or even
lack of
ve hicle da mag e is no t necessa rily a n indicatio n
of prope r airbag operation. In some collis ions,
both front and side airbag s may inflate. Re­
mem ber too, tha t airbag s w ill dep loy only once
a n d only in certain kind s of collis io ns - your
safety belt s ar e always there to offer protection in
t h ose acciden ts in whic h ai rb ags a re not sup­
po sed to deploy or whe n
have al ready de­
p loye d.
Th e side airbag sy stem
will not b e trigg ere d
• if th e igni tion is sw itc hed off,
• in side collisions when
accelerat ion mea­
s ured by th e sensor is too low ,
• in front-en d co llisio ns,
• in rear -end collisions,
• in rollove rs.
In some types of accidents
Sid e Cur­
tain Pro tection and sid e airbag s may be tr ig­
gered together.
WARNING
• Safety belt s a nd lh e a irb ag sys te m will onl y
p rov ide prot ectio n when occ upant s a re in the
co rrec t se atin g po sition
13, "Safety
b elt s" .
• If the air b ag in dicator light comes o n when
the vehicl e is bein g use d, h ave the sys te m in­
spec te d imm edi ate ly by yo ur Vol kswage n
d eal er. Th e side a irb ag sys te m m ay not wor k
prop erl y eve n wh en th e vehicle acce le ratio n
in a side colli sion i s high en ough
10 ac tiva te
th e a irbag
Airbag system 45