2009 AUDI Q7 warning

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examples will make you more aware of seating positions that are
dangerous.
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is moving:
• never stand up in the vehicle
• never stand on the seats
• never kneel on the seats
• never ride with the seatback reclined
• never lie down on the rear seat
• never lean up against the instrument panel
• never sit on the edge of the seat
• never sit sideways
• never lean out the window
• never put your feet out the window
• never put your feet on the instrument panel
• never rest your feet on the seat cushion or back of the seat
• never ride in the footwell
• never ride in the cargo area
& WARNING
Improper seating positions increase the risk of serious personal
injury and death whenever a vehicle is being used.
• Always make sure that all vehicle occupants stay in a proper
seating position and are properly restrained whenever the vehicle
is being used. •
Pedal area
Pedals
The pedals must always be free to move and must never
be interfered with by a floor mat or any other object.
Make sure that all pedals move freely without interference and that
nothing prevents them from returning to their original positions.
Only use floor mats that leave the pedal area free and can be
secured with floor mat fasteners.
If a brake circuit fails, increased brake pedal travel is required to
bring the vehicle to a full stop.
& WARNING
Pedals that cannot move freely can cause loss of vehicle control
and increase the risk of serious injury.
• Never place any objects in the driver's footwell. An object could
get into the pedal area and interfere with pedal function. In case
of sudden braking or an accident, you would not be able to brake
or accelerate!
• Always make sure that nothing can fall or move into the
driver's footwell. •
Floor mats on the dr iver side
Always use floor mats that can be securely attached to
the floor mat fasteners and do not interfere with the free
movement of the pedals.
-Make sure that the floor mats are properly secured and
cannot move and interfere with the pedals~
&- .,

Use only floor mats that leave the pedal a rea unobstructed and that
are firmly secured so that they cannot slip out of position. You can
ob tain sui table floor mats from your au thorized Audi dealer.
Floor mat fasteners are installed in your Audi.
Floor mats used in your vehicle must be attached to these fasteners .
Properly securing the floor mats will prevent them from sliding into
positions that could interfere with the pedals or impair safe opera­
tion of your vehicle in other ways .
& WARNING
Pedals that cannot move freely can result in a loss of vehicle
control and increase the risk of serious personal injury.
• Always make sure that floor mats are properly secured.
• Never place or install floor mats or other floor coverings in the
vehicle that cannot be properly secured in place to prevent them
from slipping and interfering with the pedals or the ability to
control the vehicle .
• Never place or install floor mats or other floor coverings on top
of already installed floor mats. Additional floor mats and other
coverings will reduce the size of the pedal area and interfere with
the pedals.
• Always properly reinstall and secure floor mats that have been
taken out for cleaning.
• Always make sure that objects cannot fall into the driver foot·
well while the vehicle is moving. Objects can become trapped
under the brake pedal and accelerator pedal causing a loss of
vehicle control. •
Safety first
Driving Safely
Stowing luggage
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be properly stowed
and secured in the luggage compartment.
Fig. 238 Safe load
positioning: place
heavy objects as low
and as far forward as
possible .
Loose items in the luggage compartment can shift
suddenly, changing vehicle handling characteristics. Loose
items can also increase the risk of serious personal injury in
a sudden vehicle maneuver or in a collision.
- Distribute the load evenly in the luggage compartment.
- Always place and properly secure heavy items in the
luggage compartment as low and as far forward as
possible :::::> fig. 238.
- Secure luggage using the tie -downs provided
:::::>
page 105 .
-Make sure that the rear seat back is securely latched in
place.
ti,
Vehicle care I I irechnical data

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& WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items can fly through the
vehicle causing serious personal injury in the event of hard braking or an accident. To help reduce the risk of serious personal injury:
• Always put objects, for example, luggage or other heavy items
in the luggage compartment.
• Always secure objects in the luggage compartment using the
tie-down eyelets and suitable straps.
& WARNING
Heavy loads will influence the way your vehicle handles. To help
reduce the risk of a loss of control leading to serious personal
injury :
• Always keep in mind when transporting heavy objects, that a
change in the center of gravity can also cause changes in vehicle
handling:
-Always distribute the load as evenly as possible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in the luggage compart-
ment as possible.
• Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating or the Gross
Vehicle Weight Rating specified on the safety compliance sticker on the left door jamb. Exceeding permissible weight standards
can cause the vehicle to slide and handle differently.
• Please observe information on safe driving
~ page 220.
& WARNING
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas from being drawn into the
vehicle, always keep the rear lid closed while driving.
• Never transport objects larger than those fitting completely
into the luggage area because the rear lid cannot be fully closed.
& WARNING (continued)
• If you absolutely must drive with the rear lid open, observe the
following notes to reduce the risk of poisoning :
- Close all windows,
- Close the Panoramic sliding sunroof*,
- Open all air outlets in the instrument panel,
- Switch off the air recirculation,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest speed.
& WARNING
Always make sure that the doors, all windows, the Panoramic
sliding sunroof* and the rear lid are securely closed and locked to
reduce the risk of injury when the vehicle is not being used.
• After closing the rear lid, always make sure that it is properly
closed and locked .
• Never leave your vehicle unattended especially with the rear lid
left open. A child could crawl into the vehicle through the luggage
compartment and close the rear lid becoming trapped and unable
to get out . Being trapped in a vehicle can lead to serious personal
injury.
• Never let children play in or around the vehicle.
• Never let passengers ride in the luggage compartment . Vehicle
occupants must always be properly restrained in one of the
vehicle's seating positions.
[ i] Tips
• Air circulation helps to reduce window fogging. Stale air escapes
to the outside through vents in the trim panel. Be sure to keep these
slots free and open.
• The tire pressure must correspond to the load. The tire pressure
is shown on the tire pressure label. On USA vehicles, the tire pres- .,_

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sur e lab el is located on the driv er's side 8-pillar. On Canada vehicles,
t he tire press ure l abel is loc ated e ither on the driver 's side 8 -pill ar
or ins ide the fu el filler flap. The tire p ressu re labe l lists the recom ­
mended c old tire infla tion pr ess ur es for the vehicle a t it s m aximu m
capacity weight and the tires that were on your vehicle at t he time
it was manufactured. For recommended ti re p re ssu res fo r no rmal
l oad cond itions, p lease see ch apter=>
page 351 . •
Tie -downs
Th e luggag e comp artme nt is equipped with fo ur tie ­
downs to se cure luggag e and other it ems.
Use the tie -downs to secure your car go prop erly=> page 227,
"Lo adi ng the luggage compartme nt".
I n a col lision , the laws o f phys ics mea n tha t eve n small er items tha t
are loose in the vehic le will become heavy missiles that can cause
se rious injury . Ite ms in th e veh icl e possess energy w hich vary w it h
veh ic le speed and the weight of the item. Veh ic le speed is the most
s ign ific ant factor .
F or example, in a frontal co llision at a sp eed of 30 mph (48 km/ h),
th e fo rc e s acti ng on a 10 -lb (4. 5 kg) objec t are about 20 times the
n orma l we igh t of th e ite m. Thi s m eans that the we ig ht o f th e it em
would su dde nly be a bout 2 00 lb s. (90 kg). Yo u can imagine the in ju ­
r ies t hat a 20 0 lb s. (90 kg) item fly in g fre ely thr ou gh th e passe nge r
com partment could cause in a co llision li ke this .
& WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used to secure items to tie­
downs can fail during hard braking or in a collision and cause
serious personal injury .
• Always use suitable mounting straps and properly se cure
items to the tie-downs in the luggage compartment to help
prevent items from shifting or flying forward as dangerous
missiles .
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first Vehicle operation
& WARNING (continued
)
• When the rear seat backrest is folded down, always use suit­
able mounting straps and properly secure items to the tie -downs
in the luggage compartment to help prevent items from flying
forward as dangerou s missiles into the passenger compartment.
• Never attach a child safety seat tether strap to a tie-down. •
Reporting Safety Defects
Applicable to U.S.A. If you believe that your vehicle has a defect
which could cause a crash or could cause injury or death, you should immediately inform
the National Highway Traffic Safety Adminis ­
tration (NHTSA) in addition to notifying Audi of
America, Inc.
If NHTSA receives similar complaints, it may
open an investigation , and if it finds that a
safety defect s exists in a group of vehicles , it
may order a recall and remedy campaign.
However, NHTSA cannot become involved in
individual problems between you, your dealer,
or Audi of America , Inc.
To contact NHTSA , you may call the Vehicle
Safety Hotline toll-free at:
Tel.: 1 -888 -327 -4236 (TTY: 1 -800-424 -9153) _,.
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

Safety belts -----------------=------
Safety belts
General notes
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety belts are necessary, how
they work and how to adjust and wear them correctly.
- Read all the information that follows and heed all of the
instruct ions and WARNINGS.
& WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them improperly increases
the risk of serious personal injury and death.
• Safety belts are the single most effective means available to
reduce the risk of serious injury and death in automobile acci­
dents . For your protection and that of your passengers, always
correctly wear safety belts when the vehicle is moving.
• Pregnant women, injured, or physically impaired persons must
also use safety belts . Like all vehicle occupants, they are more
likely to be seriously injured if they do not wear safety belts . The
best way to protect a fetus is to protect the mother -throughout
the entire pregnancy. •
Number of seats
Vehicles with five seats: Your vehicle has two front seats and three
rear seats. Each seating position has a safety belt.
Vehicles with six seats:* Your vehicle has two front seats, two seats
in the second row and two seats in the third row. Each seating posi­
tion has a safety belt.
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first
Vehicle operation Vehicles
with seven seats:* Your vehicles has two front seats, three
seats in the second row and two seats in the third row. Each seating
position has a safety belt.
& WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them improperly increases
the risk of serious personal injury and death.
• Never strap more than one person, including small children,
into any belt. It is especially dangerous to place a safety belt over
a child sitting on your lap.
• Never let more people ride in the vehicle than there are safety
belts available.
• Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is properly restrained
with a separate safety belt or child restraint. •
Safety belt warning light 4,.
Your vehicle has a warning system for the driver and front
seat passenger (on USA models only) to remind you about
the importance of buckling-up.
Vehicle care
Fig . 239 Safety belt
warning light in the
instrument cluster -
enlarged ...
Do-it-yourself service Technical data

-Safety belts ----=-----------------
Before driving off
, always:
Fasten your safety belt and make sure you are wearing it
properly.
Make sure that your passengers also buckle up and prop­
erly wear their safety belts.
- Protect children with a child restraint sys tem appropriate
for the size and age.
The warning light .ft in the instrument cluster lights up when the
ignition is switched on as a reminder to fasten the safety belts. In
addition, you will hear a warning tone.
After the ignition is switched on, the warning light in the instrument
cluster will a lways come on for about 6 seconds and if the driver has
not fastened the safety belt, a warning tone will also sound for
about 6 seconds. As soon as the driver has fastened the safety belt,
the warning tone will stop and the warning light will go out.
If the driver or front seat passenger have not buckled-up within
about 10 seconds after the warning tone has stopped and the
vehicle is moving faster than about 15 mph, the warning tone will
sound again for about 6 seconds and then stop for 24 seconds and
then repeat this reminder sequence for a maximum of 2 minutes. At
speeds be low 5 mph, the warning tone will not sound .
Fasten your safety belt and make sure that your passengers also
properly put on their safety belts.
& WARNING
• Safety belts are the single most effective means available to
reduce the risk of serious injury and death in automobile acci ­
dents . For your protection and that of your passengers , always
correctly wear safety belts when the vehicle is moving.
• Failure to pay attention to the warning light that come on,
could lead to personal injury.
a
Why safety belts?
Frontal co11isions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for people riding
in vehicles.
Fig. 240 Unbelted
occupants in a vehicle
heading for a wall
Fig. 241 The vehicle
crashes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the vehicle and the passen­
gers possess energy which varies with vehicle speed and body
we ight . Engineers call this energy "kinetic energy."
T he higher the speed of the vehicle and the greater the vehic le's
we ight, the more energy that has to be "absorbed" in the crash .
Vehicle speed is the most significan t factor . If the speed doubles
from 15 to 30 mph (25 to 50 km /h), the energy increases 4 times! .,

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Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to brace the
body in a minor collision. It's simply not true!
Fig . 244 Driv er is
cor rec tly r estrai ned in
a su dden b raking
m an euver
Safety belts used properly can make a big difference. Sa fety belts
help to keep passengers in their seats, gradually reduce energy
levels app lied to the body in an accident, and help prevent the
uncontrolled movement that can cause serious injuries. In addition,
safety be lts reduce the danger of being thrown out of the vehic le .
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and give them the benefit
of being s lowed down more gently or "softly" through the "give" in
the safety belts, crush zones and other safety features engineered
into today's vehicles. By "absorbing" the kinetic energy over a longer period of time, the safety belts make the forces on the body
more "tolerable" and less likely to cause injury .
Altho ugh these examples are based on a frontal co llision, safety
belts can a lso substantially reduce the risk of injury in other kinds
of crashes . So, whether you're on a long trip or just going to the
corner store, a lways buckle up and make sure others do, too. Acci­
dent statistics show that vehicle occupants properly wearing safety
belts have a lower ris k of being injured and a much better chance of
surviving an accident. Properly using safety belts also greatly
increases the abi lity o f the supplementa l airbags to do their job in a
collision . For th is reason , wearing a safety belt is legally required in
most countries including much of the United States and Canada. Although your Audi is equipped with airbags, you sti
ll have to wear
the safety belts provided . Fron t airbags, for example, are activated
only in some frontal collisions . T he front airbags are not activated in
a ll frontal col lisions, in side and rear collisions, in roll ove rs or in
cases where there is not enough dece leration through impact to the
front of the vehicle . The same goes for the other airbag systems in
your Audi . So, always wear your safety belt and make sure every ­
body in your vehic le is properly restrained! •
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be co rrectly positioned across
t he strongest bones of your body.
Always wear safety belts as illustrated and described in
th is chapter.
Make s ure tha t your safe ty belts ar e always ready for use
and are not damaged .
& WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or w earing them improperl y increase s
the risk of seriou s per sonal injury and death . S afe ty belt s can work
onl y when used corre ctl y.
• Alway s fa sten your s afety belt s correctl y before dri ving off and
make sure all p assenger s ar e correctly restrain ed.
• For m aximum protect ion , safet y belts must always be po si­
ti oned properly on the body .
• Never strap more th an one person , includi ng sm all children ,
into any belt.
• Never pla ce a s afety belt ove r a child sitting on your lap .
• Alway s keep feet in t he foot well
in front of the seat while the
vehicle is being driven .
~

& WARNING !continued)
• Never let any person ride with their feet on the instrument
panel or sticking out the window or on the seat.
• Never remove a safety belt while the vehicle is moving. Doing
so will increase your risk of being injured or killed.
• Never wear belts twisted.
• Never wear belts over rigid or breakable objects in or on your
clothing, such as eye glasses, pens, keys, etc. , as these may cause
injury .
• Never allow safety belts to become damaged by being caught
in door or seat hardware.
• Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt under your arm or
otherwise out of position.
• Several layers of heavy clothing may interfere with correct posi­
tioning of belts and reduce the overall effectiveness of the system.
• Always keep belt buckles free of anything that may prevent the
buckle from latching securely.
• Never use comfort clips or devices that create slack in the
shoulder belt. However, special clips may be required for the
proper use of some child restraint systems.
• Torn or frayed safety belts can tear , and damaged belt hard­
ware can break in an accident . Inspect belts regularly . If webbing,
bindings, buckles, or retractors are damaged, have belts replaced
by an authorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
• Safety belts that have been worn and loaded in an accident
must be replaced with the correct replacement safety belt by an
authorized Audi dealer. Replacement may be necessary even if
damage cannot be clearly seen. Anchorages that were loaded
must also be inspected.
• Never remove, modify, disassemble, or try to repair the safety
belts yourself.
Safety first
Safety belts
& WARNING !continued)
• Always keep the belts clean. Dirty belts may not work properly
and can impair the function of the inertia reel
~ page 323, "Safety
belts" .•
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Seat first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 245 Belt buckle
and tongue on the
driver's seat
To provide maximum protection, safety belts must always
be positioned correctly on the wearer's body.
Adjust the front seat and head restraint properly
=> page 92, "General recommendations" .
Make sure the seat back of the rear seat bench is in an
upright position and securely latched in place before
using the belt
=> & .
Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly across the
chest and pelvis
=> &. _,.
Vehicle care I I irechnical data