2009 AUDI S3 technical data

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• With the front seats, the height adjustment of the seat can also
be used to adjust the position of the safety belts. •
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause severe inju­
ries.
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause serious injury or
death. Safety belts can only work when they are correctly positioned on the body. Improper seating posit ions reduce
the effectiveness of safety belts and w ill even increase the
risk of injury and death by moving the safety belt to critical
areas of the body . Improper seating positions also increase
the r isk of serious injury and death when an airbag deploys
and strikes an occupant who is not in the correct seating position. A driver is responsible for the safety of all vehicle
occupants and especially for children. Therefore:
-Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect sitting posi -
tion in the vehicle while traveling~& .
The following lists only some examples of improperly worn safety
bel ts that will increase the risk of serious injury and death. Our hope
is that these examples will make you more aware of seating posi­
tions that are dangerous.
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is moving:
• never wear the shoulder belt under your arm
• never let the shoulder belt pass over your neck
• never wear the safety belt loosely
• never place the lap belt portion of the safety belt across your
abdomen ~& -
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
& WARNING
Improperly worn
safety belts increase the risk of serious personal
injury and death whenever a vehicle is being used.
• Always make sure that all vehicle occupants are correctly
restrained and stay in a correct seating position whenever the
vehicle is being used.
• Always read and heed all WARNINGS and other important infor­
mation ~
page 140. •
Safety belt pretensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear end collisions above a particular
severity, safety belts are tensioned automatically.
The safety belts are equipped with safety belt pretensioners . The
system is activated by sensors in front, side and rear -end collisions
of great severity . This tightens the belt and takes up belt slack~ &
in "Service and disposal of safety belt pretensioner " on
page 146.
Taking up the slack helps to reduce forward occupant movement
during a collision.
0 Note
Never let the belt remain over a rear seat back that has been folded
forward.
[ i] Tips
The safety belt pretensioners can only be activated once.
• In minor frontal and side collisions, in rear -end collisions, in a
rollover and in accidents involving very little impact force , the safety
belt pretensioner are not activated . .,_
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

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Airbag system
Important things to know
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For airbags to
do their job, occupants must always properly wear their
safety belts and be in a proper seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passengers, before
driving off, always:
- Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel properly
=>
page 128,
-Adjust the front passenger's seat properly=> page 75,
-Wear safety belts properly=> page 140,
- Always properly use the proper child restraint to protect
children=>
page 169.
In a collision, airbags must inflate within the blink of an eye and with
considerable force . The supplemental airbags can cause injuries if
the driver or the front seat passenger is not seated properly. There ­
fore in order to help the airbag to do its job, it is important, both as
a driver and as a passenger to sit properly at all times.
By keeping room between your body and the steering wheel and the
front of the passenger compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
completely and provide supplemental protection in certain frontal
collisions =>
page 128. For details on the operation of the seat
adjustment controls =>
page 76.
It's especially important that children are properly restrained
=>
page 169.
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first Vehicle operation
There is a lot that the driver and the passengers can and must do to
help the individual safety features installed in your Audi work
together as a system .
Proper seating position is important so that the front airbag on the
driver side can do its job. If you have a physical impairment or
condition that prevents you from sitting properly on the driver seat
with the safety belt properly fastened and reaching the pedals, or if
you have concerns with regard to the function or operation of the
Advanced Airbag System, please contact your authorized Audi dealer or other qualified workshop, or call Audi Customer CARE at 1-
800 -822 -2834 for possible modifications to your vehicle.
When the airbag system deploys, a gas generator will fill the
airbags, break open the padded covers, and inflate between the
steering wheel and the driver and between the instrument panel
and the front passenger. The airbags will deflate immediately after
deployment so that the front occupants can see through the wind ­
shield again without interruption .
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so fast that many people don't even realize that the airbags have deployed. The airbags also
inflate with a great deal of force and nothing should be in their way
when they deploy. Front airbags in combination with properly worn
safety belts slow down and limit the occupant's forward movement .
Together they help to prevent the driver and front seat passenger
from hitting parts of the inside of the vehicle while reducing the
forces acting on the occupant during the crash. In this way they help
to reduce the risk of injury to the head and upper body in the crash.
Airbags do not protect the arms or the lower parts of the body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all frontal collisions. The trig­
gering of the airbag system depends on the vehicle deceleration
rate caused by the collision and registered by the electronic control
unit. If this rate is below the reference value programmed into the
control unit, the airbags will not be triggered, even though the car
may be badly damaged as a result of the collision. Vehicle damage,
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Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

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Child restraints on the front seat -some
important things to know
- Be sure to read the important information and head the
WARNINGS for important details about children and
Advanced Airbags :=>
page 169.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an Advanced Airbag
System, make certain that all children, especially those 12 years and
younger, always ride in the back seat properly restrained for their 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 child in a rearward ­
facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle has been certified to
comply with the requirements of United States Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 as applicable at the time your vehicle
was manufactured.
The Standard requires the front airbag on the passenger side to be
turned off ("suppressed") if a child up to about one year of age
restrained in one of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant
restraints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with
which the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was certified has been installed on the front passenger seat. For a listing of the child
restraints that were used to certify compliance with the US Safety
Standard =>
page 171.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the instrument panel tells you
when the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the electronic control unit.
Each time you turn on the ignition, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on for a few seconds and:
• will stay on if the front passenger seat is not occupied,
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
•
will stay on if there is a small child or child restraint on the front
passenger seat,
• will go off if the front passenger seat is occupied by an adult as
registered by the weight-sensing mat=>
page 158, "Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System" .
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on when the control unit
detects a total weight on the front passenger seat that requires the
front airbag to be turned off.
If the total weight on the front passenger seat is more than that of
a typical 1 year-old child but less than the weight of a small adult,
the front airbag on the passenger side can deploy (the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on). If the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light does not come on, the front airbag on the passenger side
has not been turned off by the electronic control unit and can
deploy if the control unit senses an impact that meets the condi­
tions stored in its memory.
For example, the airbag may deploy if:
• a small child that is heavier than a typical 1 year -old child is on
the front passenger seat (regardless of whether the child is in one
of the child safety seats listed=>
page 171), or
• a child who has outgrown child restraints is on the front
passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on in the instrument cluster and stays on.
The front airbag on the passenger side may
not deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not illuminate and stay lit) even
if a small adult or teenager, or a passenger who is not sitting upright
with their back against a non-reclined backrest with their feet on the
vehicle floor in front of the seat is on the front passenger seat
=>
page 128, "Proper seating position for the driver".
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the Federal Standard requires
the airbag to meet the "low risk" deployment criteria to reduce the risk of injury through interaction with the airbag . "Low risk" deploy­
ment occurs in those crashes that take place at lower decelerations
I),
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

Airbag syst em -----------------=~-
restrained in one of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant
restraints (listed in Federa l Motor Vehicle Safety S tandard 208 with
which the Advanced Airbag System in your vehic le was certified),
the front airbag on the passenger side may or may not deploy .
The
PA SS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on when the e lect ronic
control unit detects a total weight on the front passenger seat that
requires the front a irbag to be tu rned off . If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OF F
ligh t do es no t come on, the fron t airbag on th e passenger side
has not been turned of f by the contro l unit and can dep loy i f the
control unit senses an impact that meets the conditions stored in its
memo ry .
I f the total weight on the front passenger seat is more than that of
a typical
1 year-old, but less than the weight of a small adult, the
front airbag on the passenger side may dep loy (the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not come on) .
For example, the airbag may deploy if:
• a small child that is heavier than a typ ical 1 year-old child is on
the front passenger sea t (regardless of whether the child is in one
of the child sa fety seats l isted :::::,
page 177) ,
• a child who has outgrown child res tra ints is on the front
passenger seat.
I f the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel wi ll come on and stay
on .
The front a irbag on the passenge r side may
not deploy (the
PAS SENG ER AIR BAG OFF light does not illuminate and stay lit) if:
• a small adult or teenager is on the front passenger seat
• a passenger who is not sitting upright with their back against a
non-reclined backrest with their feet on the vehicle floor in front of
the seat is on the front passenger seat.
I f the fron t pass enger airbag dep loys, the Federal Standard requires
t he air bag t o mee t the "low risk" deployment criteria to help reduce
the risk of injury through interaction with the airbag . "Low risk "
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
dep
loyment occurs in those crashes that take place at lower decel ­
erations as defi ned in the electronic con trol unit :::::,
page 158 .
Al wa ys remember :
Even though your vehicle is equipped with
Advanced Ai rbags, the safest place for chi ldren is properly
restra ine d on the back seat . Please be sure to read t he important
information in the sections that follow and be sure to heed a ll of the
WARNI NGS .
& WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an ai rbag inf lates , alway s wear
safety belts properly.
• If you a re unre strained , lean ing forward , sitt ing sideways or out
of position in any way , your risk of in jury is mu ch higher .
• You will also recei ve se riou s injur ies and cou ld even be killed if
you are up again st the airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
e ven with an Advan ced A irbag :::::,
page 14 7.
& WARNING
A child i n a re arward-fa cing child safety seat installed on the front
pa ssenger seat will be seriously injured and can be killed if the
fro nt airb ag infl ate s -ev en with an Ad vanced Airbag Sy stem .
• Although the Advan ced Airbag Sy stem in your vehicle is
designed to turn off the front a irb ag when a rearward-fa cing child
restraint ha s been in stalled on the front pa ssenger seat , nobody
ca n ab solutely guarantee that deployment is impo ssib le in all
c onceivable situations that may happen during the u seful life of
yo ur vehicle .
• The inflating airbag will hit the child safety seat or infant
c a rr ier with great for ce and will smash the child safety seat and
c hild again st the backre st, center arm rest , door, or roof .
• Always inst all rearward-fa cing child re strai nts in the back seat .
• If you mu st in stall a rearw ard facing child safety seat on the
front passenger seat be cause of e xceptional cir cumstances and
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Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

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• A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driver and for the front
seat passe nger that s enses whe ther that sa fety belt i s latch ed or n ot
and transmits this informatio n to the e lectronic cont rol unit.
& WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can prevent the front airbag
from working properly.
• Improper repair or disassembly of the front passenger and
driver seat will prevent the Advanced Airbag Sy stem from func ­
tioning properly .
• Repairs to the front passenger seat must be performed by qual ­
ified and properly trained workshop personnel .
• Never remove the front passenger or driver seat from the
vehicle.
• Never remove the upholstery from the front passenger seat .
• Never disassemble or remove parts from the seat or disconnect
wires from it.
• Never carry sharp objects in your pockets or place them on the
seat . If the weight-sensing mat in the passenger seat is punctured
it cannot work properly.
• Never carry things on your lap or carry objects on the
passenger seat . Such items can increase the weight registered by
the weight-sensing mat and send the wrong information to the
airbag control unit .
• Never store items under the front passenger seat. Parts of the
Advanced Airbag System under the passenger seat could be damaged , preventing them and the airbag system from working
properly.
• Never place seat covers or replacement upholstery that have
not been specifically approved by Audi on the front seats.
• Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Airbag System from
recognizing child restraints or occupants on the front passenger
seat and prevent the side airbag in the seat backrest from
deploying properly.
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first
Vehicle operation
& WARNING (continued )
• Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or similar items on the
front passenger seat . The additional padd ing will prevent the
weight-sensing mat in the seat from a ccurately registering the
child re straint or person on the seat and prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from functioning properly .
• If you must use a child restraint on the front passenger seat
and the child restraint manufacturer's instru ctions requ ire the use
of a towel , foam cu shion or something else to properly position
the child restraint, make certa in that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever the child restraint is
installed on the front passenger seat .
• If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on and stay
on , immediately install child restraint in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer .•
How the Advanced Airbag System
components
work together
The front Advanced Air bag System and the side airbags s upplement
the protection offered by th e front three -point safety belts with
pretensioners and load limiters and the adjustable head restraints
to help re duce the r is k of in jury in a w ide ra nge o f accide nt a nd
crash situations. Be su re to read the important information about
safety and heed the WARNI NGS in t his c hap te r.
Dep loyment of the Advanced Airbag System and the activation of
t he sa fe ty be lt pretensione rs depe nd on the decele ration mea su red
by the crash sensors and registered by the electronic control unit .
C rash severity depends on s peed and deceleration a s well a s the
mass and st iffness o f the veh ic le or object involved in th e c ras h.
When the e lectronic control unit registers a low severity crash and
t he sa fe ty belt is being use d, the a irbag w ill not deploy . If the sa fe ty
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Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

Airbag system ""' -------------------------------------------- -=---='------
or the lower parts of the body. Front airbags suppl em ent the three ­
poi nt s afet y be lts o nly in s ome fro ntal c oll isi ons i n whi ch the v ehicl e
deceleration is hi gh enough to d eploy the airbags .
Front airbags will not deploy:
• if the ignition is switched off when a crash occurs,
• i n sid e collisi ons,
• in r ear- e nd collisions ,
• in ro llovers,
• when the cras h de celer ation me asured b y th e a ir bag sy stem i s
l ess than the minimum threshold nee ded for airbag dep loyment as
r egi stere d by t he ele ctronic control un it.
The front passenger airbag also will not deploy :
• when the front pa ssen ger s eat i s not o cc up ied,
• wh en the weig ht on th e front pass enger seat as se nsed by t he
Advan ced A irb ag System indi cate s that the fr ont air b ag on the
p as se n ge r sid e h as to be turned off b y the e lectronic cont rol unit
(the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF l ig ht co me s on and sta y s on ).
& 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 always 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 injured by an airbag as it unfolds with
great force in the blink of an eye~ page
149 .
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first
Vehicle operation
& WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat installed on the front
passenger seat will be seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag System .
• 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 , center arm rest , door or roof.
• Always install rear-facing child safety seats on the rear seat .
• If you must install a rearward facing child safety seat on the
front passenger seat because of exceptional circumstances and
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on and stay on, immediately install the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer .
& WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in crease the risk of injury
in a crash by interfering with the way the airbag unfolds or by
being 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 during
braking or other sudden maneuvers 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 , espe-
cially when the airbags inflate . ...
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

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PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
I, Q
--
&I Ii u ,, , u
I I J' J
Fig. 1 46 Sectio n from
t h e ce nte r co nso le :
PA SS ENGER AIR B AG
OFF light
The PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located in the center console
=>fig.146 .
The
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light wil l come on and stay on to te ll
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off by the electron ic control unit. Each time you turn on
the ign it ion, the
PA SS ENGER AIR BA G OFF light will flash for a few
seconds and:
• will stay on if the front passenger seat is not occupied,
• will stay on if there is a small child or chi ld restraint on the front
passenge r seat,
• will go out if the front passenger seat is occupied by an adult as
registered by the we ight-sensing mat .
T he
PA SS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light mu st co me on and sta y on if the
ign ition is on and
• a car bed has been insta lled on the front seat, or
• a rearward -facing chi ld restraint has been installed on the front
passenger seat, or
• a forwa rd -facing child restra int has been installed on the front
passenger seat, or
• t he we ight registered on the front passenger seat is equa l to or
less than the combined weight of a typica l 1 year -old restrained in
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first
Vehicle operation
one of the rear-facing or forward -facing infant restraints listed in
Federa l Motor Veh icle Safe ty S tandard 208 with which the Advanced
Airbag System in your vehicle was certified.
I f the front passenger seat is not occupied, the front airbag will not
deploy, and the
PA SS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light will stay on . Never
insta ll a rearward -facing child restraint on the front passenger seat,
the sa fest place for a child in any kind of child restraint is at one of
the seating posi tions on the r ear seat =>
page 149, "Child restraints
on the front seat -so me important things to know" and=>
page 169,
"Chi ld Safety ".
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light com es on when one of the
conditions listed above is met, be sure to check the light regu lar ly
to make certa in that the
PA SS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light stays on
continuously whenever the ignition is on . If the
PA SSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not appear on and does not stay on all the tim e,
stop as soon as it is safe to do so and
• reactivate the system by turning the ignition off and then turning
it on aga in;
• remove and reinstall the child restraint. Make sure that the child
restrain t is proper ly installed and t hat the safety be lt for the front
passenger seat has been correctly routed through the child restraint
as described in the chi ld restraint manufacturer's instructions;
• make sure that the convertible locking feature on the safety belt
for the front passenger sea t has been activated a nd that the safety
belt has been pulled tight . The belt must not be loose or have loops
of slack so that the sensor be low the safety belt latch on the sea t can
do its job =>
page 179.
• make sure that things that may inc rease the we ight of the child
and child safety seat are not being transported on the front
passenger seat;
• make sure that the safety belt tension sensor is not blocked.
Shake the safety belt latch on the front passenger seat back and
forth;
• I f a strap or te ther is being used to tie the child sa fety seat to the
front passenger seat , make sure that it is not so tight that it causes .,
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

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& W ARNING (continued )
seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer.
• A tight tether or other str ap on a rearward-fac ing child restr aint
attached to the front pas senger seat can put too much pressure
on the weight-sensing mat in the seat and reg ister more weight
than i s actually on the seat. The heavier weight registered can
make the system work as though an adult were on the seat and
deploy the Advanced Airbag when it must be suppressed causing
s erious or even fatal injury to the child .
• If, in exceptional circumstances , you mu st in stall a forward ­
fac ing child restra int on the front passenger seat , always move the
seat into its rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft ad just ­
ment 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 stay s on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on .
& 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, make sure the adult is properly seated and
restrained at one of the rear seating positions .
• Have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer before transporting anyone on the front passenger seat .
[ i ] Tips
If the weight -sensing mat in the front passenger seat detects an
e mp ty seat, the fro nt air b ag on the pa ssenge r sid e will be t urned
off, and the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF l ight will stay on .
a
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first
Vehicle operation
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system are insta lled at many different places on
your Au di. In stal lin g, re moving, ser vic in g or re pair in g a part in an
area of the vehicle can damage a part of an a irbag system and
pre ven t that system from wo rki ng p rope rly in a co llision .
There are some important things you have to know to make sure
that the effectiveness of the system will not be impai red an d that
d iscarded co mponents do not cause inju ry or po llute t he e nv iron ­
ment .
& WARNING
Improper care , servicing and repair procedures can increase the
risk of personal injury and death by preventing an airbag from
deploying when needed or deploying an airbag unexpectedly:
• Never cover , obstruct , or change the steering wheel horn pad
or airbag cover or the instrument panel or modify them in any way .
• Never attach any obje cts su ch as cup holders or telephone
mountings to the surfaces covering the airbag units.
• For cleaning the horn pad or instrument panel, use only a soft ,
dry cloth or one moi stened with plain water . Solvents or cleaners
c ould damage the airbag cover or change the stiffness or strength
of the material so that the airbag cannot deploy and protect prop ­
erly .
• Never repair , adjust , or change any parts of the airbag system.
• All work on the steering wheel , instrument panel , front seats or
electrical system (including the installation of audio equipment ,
c ellular telephones and CB radios , etc .I 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 authorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
• Never modify the front bumper or parts of the vehicle body .
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data