___ D_ r_ i_v _in -= g;... S _ a_f _e _ly...._ ______________________________________________ _
Proper occupant seating positi·ons
Proper seating position for the driver
The proper driver seating position is important for safe,
relaxed driving.
"' N
;
Fig . 96 The correct
distance between
driver and steering
wheel
Fig. 97 Correct head
restraint position for
driver
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of injury in the
event of an accident, we recommend that you adjust the
driver's seat to the following position:
- Adjust the driver's seat so that you can easily push the
pedals all the way to the floor while keeping your knee(s)
slightly bent=:>& . - Adjust the angle
of the seatback so that it is in an upright
position so that your back comes in full contact with it
when you drive.
- Adjust the steering wheel so that there is a distance of at
least 10 inches (25 cm) between the steering wheel and
your breast bone=:> fig. 96. If not possible, see your
authorized Audi dealership about adaptive equipment.
- Adjust the steering wheel so that the steering wheel and
airbag cover points at your chest and not at your face.
- Grasp the top of the steering wheel with your elbow(s)
slightly bent.
- Adjust the head restraint so that the upper edge is as
even with the top of your head as possible but no lower
than eye level and so that it is as close to the back of your
head as possible =:> fig. 97.
- Fasten and wear safety belts correctly=:>
page 129.
- Always keep both feet in the footwell so that you are in
control of the vehicle at all times.
For detailed information on how to adjust the driver's seat, see
=> page 71.
& WARNING
Drivers who are unbelted, out of position or too close to the airbag
can be seriously injured by an airbag as it deploys. To help reduce
the risk of serious personal injury:
• Always adjust the driver's seat and the steering wheel so that
there are at least 10 inches
125 cm) between your breastbone and
the steering wheel. ..
___ S_a_ f_ e_ t-= y_ b_e_ l_ t _s _______________________________________________ _
Safety belt warning light 4
Your vehicle has a warn ing system for the driver and front
seat passenger to remind you about the importance of buckling-up.
Before driving off , alw ays:
Fig . 100 Saf ety belt
w arn ing li ght in t he
in strum ent cluster -
e n la rge d
- Fasten your safety belt and make sure you wear it prop
erly.
Make sure that your passengers also buckle up and prop
erly wea r th eir safety be lts.
- Protect children wit h a c hild restraint sys tem appropria te
for the s ize and age.
The warning light tin the instrument cluster lights up when the
ignition is swi tched 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 ins trumen t
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 b elt,
the warning tone wil l 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 vehi
cle 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 repea t this reminder sequence for a maximum of 2 minu tes . At
speeds below 5 mph, the warning ton e will not sound .
Fas ten your safety belt and m ake sur e that your p as senger s al so
properly p ut o n the ir safety belt s.
& WARNING
• Saf ety belt s a re the single mo st effe ctive m ean s available to
r e d uc e the ri sk of ser iou s inj ury a nd death i n aut omobi le a cci
den ts. For your protection and that of your p assengers, always
corre ctly we ar sa fe ty belt s when the veh icle i s m oving.
• Failure to pay att ent ion t o th e w arning light that come on,
c ould l ead t o per sona l in jur y. •
Why safety be lts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for people riding
in vehicles.
--
Fig. 101 Unbe lt ed
o cc up ant s in a vehi cle
h ead ing fo r a w all
~
___ S_a_ f_ e_ t-= y_ b_e_ l_ t _s _______________________________________________ _
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 69, "General recommendations ".
Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly across the
chest and pelvis=>&.
- Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of your seat
until you hear it latch securely => page
129, fig. 106.
Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely latched in
the buckle.
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped with an automatic belt retractor on the
shoulder belt. This feature locks the belt when the belt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and in an accident . The belt may also lock
when you drive up or down a steep hill or through a sharp curve.
During normal driving the belt lets you move freely.
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts on the front seats are equipped with a belt preten
sion er that helps to tighten the safety belt and remove slack when
the pretensioner is activated. The function of the pretensioner is
monitored by a warning light:::::,
page 78, "Airbag system
t!A (USA models) /!.ir (Canada models)".
Switchable locking feature
Every safety belt except the one on the driver seat is equipped with
a switchable locking feature that
must be used when the safety belt
is used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the important informa
tion about this feature:::::,
page 168.
& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause serious injury in an
accident :::::,
page 130, "Safety belt position".
• Safety belts offer optimum protection only when the seat back
is upright and belts are properly positioned on the body.
• Never attach the safety belt to the buckle for another seat.
Attaching the belt to the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt
effectiveness and can cause serious personal injury.
• A passenger who is not properly restrained can be seriously
injured by the safety belt itself when it moves from the stronger
parts of the body into critical areas like the abdomen.
• Always lock the convertible locking retractor when you are
securing a child seat in the vehicle:::::,
page 170. •
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maximum
protection f ram safety belts.
Fig. 107 Head restraint
and safety belt posi
tion as seen from the
side
Use the height adjustment to change the position of the shoulder
straps of the front seat safety belts.
~
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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 157.
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 159.
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 146, "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 159), 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 116, "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
___ A_ ir_ b_ a-g _ s_y _s_ t_ e_ m _________________________________________________ _
as defin ed i n th e el ectron ic contro l u n it=> page 147 , "PASSE NGER
AI R BAG OFF lig ht".
A lwa ys rem em ber, a c hild safet y se at or infant carr ier installe d on
the front seat may be str uck and k nocked o ut of po sition by t he
rap id ly in fla ting passe nger's air bag in a fron tal colli sion . The airb ag
cou ld great ly re duce the effectivene ss of the ch ild restrain t and
e ve n seri ous ly injure the chi ld dur ing in flatio n.
For th is reason, and beca use the bac k seat is the safest plac e for
chi ldren -wh en prop erly rest rained acc ording to th eir age and size
- we strong ly recommend that ch ildren a lways sit in the bac k se at
=> p age 157, "Ch ild Safe ty ".
& WARNING
A child in a rearward -facing child safety seat installed on the front
passenger seat will be ser iously 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 , 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
Audi dealer .
• Forward-facing child safety seats installed on the front
passenger's seat may interfere with the deployment of the airbag
and cause serious personal injury to the child .
& WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must install a forward-facing
child restraint on the front passenger's seat:
& WARNING (continued)
• Always make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed
and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag .
• Never put the forward-facing child restraint up against or very
near the instrument panel.
• Always move the passenger seat into its rearmost position in
the seat's fore and aft adjustment range, as far away from the
airbag as possible before installing the forward-facing child
restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position .
• Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on all the time whenever the ignition is switched on.
& WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury , make sure that the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light will be displayed whenever a child restraint is
installed on the front passenger seat and the ignition is switched
on.
• If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not stay on , perform
the checks described=>
page 146, "Monitoring the Advanced
Airbag System" .
• Take the child restraint off the front passenger seat and install
it properly at one of the rear seat positions if the PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF light does not stay on.
• Have the airbag system inspected by your Audi dealer immedi
ately .
• Always carefully follow instructions from child restraint manu
facturers when installing child restraints .
& WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must install a forward or
rearward-facing child restraint on the front passenger's seat :
__________________________________________________ A_ i_ r _b _a...; g::- s_ y=--- s_t _e _m __ lllll
Whe n a person is detected on the front passenger seat, weighing
more than the to tal weight of a child t hat is about 1 year old
restrained in one of the rear-facing or forward -facing infant
restraints (listed in Federa l Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with
which the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was certified), the front airbag on the passenger side may or may not deploy .
The
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on when the e lectronic
control unit detects a total weight on the front passenger seat that
requires the front a irbag to be turned off . If the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG
O FF
light does not come on, the front airbag on the passenger side
has not been tu rned off by the contro l u nit and can dep loy if the
control unit senses an impact that meets the conditions stored in its
memory .
I f the total weight on the front passenger seat is more than that o f
a typical
1 year -old, but less than the we ight of a small adult, the
front airbag on the passenger side may dep loy (the
PA SS ENGER AIR
BAG OFF
l ight does not come on).
For example , the airbag may deploy if :
• a small ch ild that is heavier than a typ ical 1 year-o ld child is on
the front passenger seat (regardless of whether the child is in one
of the child sa fety seats listed ~ page
159),
• a child who has outgrown child res traints is on the front
passenger seat.
I f the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
O FF
light in the cen ter of the instrument panel wi ll co me on and stay
on .
T he front airbag on the passenge r side may
not deploy (the
PASS ENGER 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 front passenger airbag dep loys, the Federal Standard requires
the airbag t o meet the "low risk" deployment criteria to help reduce
Controls and equip ment Safety first Vehicle operation the risk of injury through interaction with the airbag
. "Low risk"
dep loyment occurs in those crashes that ta ke place at l ower decel
erations as defined in the electronic control unit~ page
146.
Alway s remembe r: Even though your vehicle is equipped with
Advanced Airbags, the safes t place for chi ldren is properly
restrained on the back seat. Please be sure to read the important
informat ion in t he sections tha t follow a nd be sure to heed a ll of the
WARNINGS.
& WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag inflates , always wear
s afety belts prope rly.
• If you are unrestrained , leaning forward , sitt ing s ideways or out
of position in any w ay, your risk of injury i s mu ch higher .
• You will al so receive se riou s injurie s and could even be killed if
you are up against the airbag or too clo se t o it when it inflate s -
even with an Advanced Airbag => page 135 .
& WARNING
A child in a rearward -facing child safety seat in stalled on the front
pa ssenge r seat will be ser iou sly injured and can be killed if the
front airb ag inflate s -even with an Advanced Airbag System .
• Although the Advan ced Airbag S ystem in your vehicle is
de signed to turn off the front airbag when a rearward -fa cing child
restraint h as been in stalled on the front pa ssenger seat , nobod y
c an ab solutely guarantee that deployment i s impo ssible in all
c onceivable situations that may happen during the useful life of
your vehicle .
• The inflating airbag will hit the ch ild s afety seat or inf ant
c arrier with great force and will smash the chi ld safety seat and
c hild ag ains t the ba ckre st, door , or roof .
• Always in stall rearward -facing child re straint s in the back seat ....
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data
___ A_ ir_ b_ a-g _ s_y _s_ t_ e_ m _________________________________________________ _
& WARNING (continued)
• 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
Audi dealer.
& WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must install a forward-facing
child restraint on the front passenger's seat:
• Always make sure the forward -facing seat has been designed
and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
• Never put the forward-facing child restraint up against or very
near the instrument panel.
• Always move the passenger seat into its rearmost position in
the seat's fore and aft adjustment range, as far away from the
airbag as possible, before installing the forward-facing child
restraint . The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position.
• Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on all the time whenever the ignition is switched on. •
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a lot of very important
parts of the Advanced Airbag System in it. These parts include the
weight-sensing mat, sensors, wiring, brackets, and more. The func
tion of the system in the front passenger seat is checked by the elec
tronic control unit when the ignition is on. The control unit monitors
the Advanced Airbag System and turns the airbag indicator light on
when a malfunction in the system components is detected. The
function of the airbag indicator light is described in greater detail below
. Because the front passenger seat contains important parts
of the Advanced Airbag System, you must take care to prevent it
from being damaged. Damage to the seat may prevent the
Advanced Airbag for the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a crash .
The front Advanced Airbag System consists of the
following:
• Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that measure vehicle
acceleration/deceleration to provide information to the Advanced
Airbag System about the severity of the crash.
• An electronic control unit, with integrated crash sensors for front
and side impacts. The control unit "decides" whether to fire the
front airbags based on the information received from the crash
sensors. The control unit also "decides" whether the safety belt
pretensioners should be activated.
• An Advanced Airbag with gas generator for the driver inside the
steering wheel hub .
• An Advanced Airbag with gas generator inside the instrument
panel for the front passenger.
• A weight-sensing mat under the upholstery padding of the front
passenger seat cushion that measures the total weight on the seat.
The information registered is sent continuously to the electronic
control unit to regulate deployment of the front Advanced Airbag on
the passenger side.
• An airbag monitoring system and indicator light in the instru
ment cluster ~
page 146.
• The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays on in the
center of the instrument panel~
page 147, fig. 113 and tells you
when the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been
turned off.
• A sensor below the safety belt latch for the front seat passenger
to measure the tension on the safety belt. The tension on the safety
belt and the weight registered by the weight -sensing mat help the
control unit "decide" whether the front airbag for the front ..
__________________________________________________ A_ i _r_b _a...; g::-- s_ y =--- s_t _e _m __ ftllll
passeng er seat shou ld be turn ed off or not~ page 137, "Ch ild
restr aint s o n the fro nt seat - some impor tant thin gs to know".
• A sensor in the safety belt latch fo r the d rive r and for the front
s e at pass enger th at s enses wh ether th at safe ty belt i s la tch ed o r not
and transmits this information to the e lectronic contro l 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 System 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.
Controls and equip ment Safety first
Vehicle operation
& WARNING (continued)
• 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.
• Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or similar items on the
front passenger seat. The additional padding will prevent the
weight-sensing mat in the seat from accurately registering the
child restraint 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 manufa cturer's instructions require the use
of a towel , foam cushion or something else to properly position
the child restraint, make certain 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 Audi dealer. •
How the Advanced Airbag System
components
work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the side airbags suppl ement
the protection offe red by t he front t hree -point safety bel ts with
pretens ioners and load limiters and the ad justable head restraints
to help reduce the risk of in jury in a wide range of accident and
c ras h situati ons. Be sure to read t he impo rtant inf ormatio n abou t
safety and heed the WARNI NGS in th is chapter.
D ep loym ent of the A dva nce d Ai rbag Sy stem and the activati on of
th e safety be lt pretension ers depend on the decel eration measur ed
b y the c ra s h sens ors and regis te re d by th e electr onic control unit.
C rash severity depends on speed and decel eration as we ll as t he
mass and s tiff ness of the veh ic le or object in vo lved in the crash.
9J.
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data