Seats and storage
General recommendations
Why is your seat adjustment so important?
The safety belts and the airbag system can only provide
maximum protection if the front seats are correctly
adju sted.
Th ere a re various ways of adjusting t he front seats to provide safe and
comfortable support for the driver and the front passenger . Ad just
your seat properly so that :
• you can easily and quickly reach a ll the switc hes and contro ls in the
ins trumen t pa nel
• your body is properly supported thus reducing phys ica l stress and
fatigue
• the safety be lts and airbag system can offer maximum protection
=>
page 209 .
In the following sections, you w ill see exact ly how you can best ad just
your sea ts .
Th ere are special regulations a nd instr uctions for install ing a child
safety seat on the front passenger's sea t. Always follow the informa
tion regarding child safety p rovided in=>
page 231, "Child Safety ".
& WARNING
Incorrect seating posit ion of the dri ver and all other passengers
can result in seriou s personal injury.
• Always keep your feet on the floor when the vehicle is in
motion -never put your feet on top of the instrument panel, out
of the window o r on top of the seat cush ion. This applies especially
to the passengers.
If your seating po sition is incorrect, you
increase the ri sk of injury in the case of sudden braking or an acci-
Controls and equip
ment Safety first
Seats and storage
& WARNING
(con tinu ed)
dent . If the airbag inflates and the seating position is incorrect ,
this could result in per sonal injury or even death .
• It is important for both the dri ver and front passenger to keep
a distan ce of at least 10 inche s (25 cm) between themselves and
the steering wheel and /or instrument panel. If you 're sitting any
closer than this , the airbag system cannot protect you properly. In
addition, the front seats and head restraints must be adjusted to
your body height so that they can give you maximum protection .
• Always try to keep as much distance as possible between your
self and the steering wheel or instrument panel.
• Do not adjust the driver's or front passenger 's seat while the
vehicle is moving. You r seat may move unexpectedly , causing
sudden loss of vehicle control and personal injury . If you adjust
your seat while the vehicle is moving , you are out of position. •
Driver's seat
The correct seat position is important for saf e and
re lax ed driving.
W e recomme nd that you a djust the drive r's sea t in the
f ollowing man ner :
- Ad just the seat in fore and aft direction so that you can
easily pus h the pedals to the floor w hile keeping your
knees slightly bent=>
& in "Why is yo ur seat a djus tme nt
so importa nt?" .
- Adjust the seatback so that when yo u sit with yo ur back
agai nst t he seatback , you can st ill grasp t he top of the
steering w heel. ..,
Vehicle care Technical data
-On the road .Ml..___ ______________ _
On the road
Steering
Applies to vehicles: w ith man uall y ad justable steering whee l
Manually adjustable steering wheel
The heig ht and r ea ch of t he steering wheel c an be
adjusted.
Firs t, adjust t he driv er's s eat corre ctly.
Fig. 119 Le ver un der
the stee ring colu mn
-Pull t he le ve r~ fig . 1 19 -Arrow-~ & -
- Move the stee ring w hee l to t he des ired pos ition.
- Push t he leve r agai nst t he steeri ng col umn until i t loc ks.
T he re m ust be at le ast 1 0 inc hes (25 cm) be tween you r che st and the
center of the steering whee l. If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
( 2 5 cm) from the s teering wheel, see if ada ptive equipmen t is avai l
able to help you reach the pedals and increase the d istance from the
steeri ng wheel.
For detailed info rmation on how to adju st the dr ive r's seat, see
=> page 84 .
& WARNING
Improper use of steering wheel adjustment and improper seating
position can cause serious personal injury.
• Adjust the steering wheel column only when the vehicle is not
moving to prevent loss of vehicle control.
• Adjust the driver's seat or steering wheel so that there is a
minimum of 10 inches (25 cm ) between your chest and the
s teering wheel=>
page 190, fig. 183. If you cannot maintain this
minimum distance , the airbag system cannot protect you prop
erly .
• If physical limitations prevent you from sitting 10 inches (25
cm ) or more from the steering wheel, check with your authorized
Audi dealer to see if adaptive equipment is available.
• If the steering wheel is aligned with your face , the supple
mental driver's airbag cannot provide as much protection in an
accident. Always make sure that the steering wheel i s al igned with
your chest.
• Always hold the ste ering wheel with your hands at the 9 o'clock
and 3 o'clock positions to reduce the risk of personal injury if the
driver' s airbag deploys .
• Never hold the steering wheel at the 12 o 'clock position or with
your hands inside the steering wheel rim or on the steering whe el
hub. Holding the steering wheel the wrong way can cause serious
injuries to the hands, arms and head if the driver's airbag
deploys .•
On the road Ill _______________ __.
Applies to veh icles : w ith electrically adju stab le steer ing wheel
Electrically adjustable steering wheel
The height and reach of the stee ring wheel ca n be ele ctri
c ally adj usted to sui t th e d river.
Firs t, a djust t he dr iver's se at correct ly.
Height adjustment
Fig . 120 Sw itch for
s teering whee l ad ju st
ment
- Push t he s witch © up or down=> fig. 12 0. The st ee ring
w he el heig ht chang es f or as long as you press t he swi tch .
Reach adjustment
- Push t he switc h© forward or backward=> fig . 120 . T he
ste ering w hee l reac h changes for as long as yo u press the
swi tch .
The re m ust be at least 10 inches (25 cm) between you r chest and the
cen ter of the steering whee l. If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
(25 cm) from the steer ing wheel, see if adapt ive equ ipment is ava il
able to h elp you reach the pedals and increase the distance from the
steeri ng wheel.
For detailed information on how to adjust the dr iver 's seat , see
~ page 84.
Con tro ls a nd e quip
m en t Vehicle
OP-eration
The steering wheel ca n be adjusted even when the ign ition is turned
O ff. For veh icles with sea t memory, the individu al pos it io ns for the
steer ing wheel can be sto red along with t he seat pos it ion.
& WARNING
Improper use of steering wheel adjustment and imprope r seating
position can cau se seriou s per sonal injury.
• Adjust the steering wheel column only when the vehicle i s not
moving to prevent loss of vehicle control.
• Adjust the driver 's seat or steering wheel so that there is a
minimum of 10 in ches (25 cm) between your chest and the
steering wheel~
page 190, fig. 183. If you cannot maintain this
minimum distance , the airbag system cannot prote ct you prop
erly.
• If phy sical limitations prevent you from sitting 10 inches (25
cm ) or more from the steering wheel, check with you r authorized
Audi dealer to see if adaptive equipment is available .
• If the steering wheel is aligned with your face , the supple·
mental driver 's airbag cannot provide as much protection in an
accident. Always make sure that the steering wheel is aligned with
your che st.
• Always hold the steering wheel with your hands at the 9 o'clock
and 3 o'clock po sition s to reduce the risk of personal injury if the
drive r's airbag deploys.
• Never hold the steering wheel at the 12 o'clock po sition or with
your hands inside the steering wheel rim or on the steering wheel
hub. Holding the steering wheel the wrong way can cause serious
injuries to the hands, arms and head if the driver's airbag
deploy s.•
Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data
_______________________________________________ A_ ir_ b_ a_,,,g '--- s.:.y _s _t_ e _ m ___ _
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 190,
-Adjust the front passenger's seat properly=> page 84,
-Wear safety belts properly=> page 202,
-Always properly use the proper child restraint to protect
children=>
page 231.
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. Therefore 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 190, "Proper occupant seating positions" . For
details on the operation of the seat adjustment controls=>
page 84.
It's especially important that children are properly restrained
=:,
page 231.
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 condi
tion 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 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 windshield 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, repair
9J),
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data
_________________________________________ I_ n_ t_ e_ ll_,igent technology ,__E~-
If an individual wheel begins to rotate too slowly in relation to vehicle
speed and tends to lock, the ABS automatically reduces brake pres
sure to prevent that wheel from locking .
Thi s automatic adjustment process wi ll cause a
slight vibration of
the brake pedal and some noises to alert you that vehicle speed must
be adapted to existing road and traffic conditions.
_& WARNING
Although the ABS is very effective, always remember that braking
capability is limited by tire traction. Always adjust your driving
speed according to the road and traffic conditions. Do not let the
extra safety afforded by the ABS tempt you into taking extra risks.
The ABS cannot overcome the laws of physics .
(I) Tips
• If ABS is not funct ioning properly, a warning light will come on .
See ~
page 19.
• If a fault occurs in the ABS, the EDL is also not functioning. This is
ind icat ed by the ABS warning light. •
Brake assistant
The brake assistant is designed to achieve the optimum
braking effect.
The brake assistant helps to increase the effective braking power and
thus to achieve a shorter stopping distance.
If the driver presses the
brake peda l very qu ickly , the brake assistant automatically boosts the
braking force to the maximum level, up to the point where the anti
lock brake function (ABS) intervenes to stop the whee ls from locking.
You should then keep the brake pedal pressed until the vehicle has
braked to the required speed. The brake assistant switches itself off
as soon as you release the brake pedal.
Controls and equip ment Safety first Vehicle operation
Automatic full braking
assist
This function allows full braking in spite of high brake pedal forces
(e .g . when the brakes are severely stressed because the veh icle is fully
loaded). The driver notices this function through a reduction of pedal
force and increased pedal travel. When the brake pedal is released,
full braking assist switches off again automatically.
If there is an ABS failure, the brak e assistant and automatic full
braking assist are not available.
Th e brake assistant will not be operative if there is a ma lfunction in
the ABS .
_& WARNING
Please remember that the accident risk always increases if you
drive too fast, especially in corners or on a slippery road, or if you
follow the vehicle ahead of you too closely. Increased risk of an
accident cannot be compensated for even by the brake assistant ,
so always maintain a safe speed.•
Servotronic® -advanced power
steering system
The power steering systems uses the power of the
running engine to allow precise steering with little effort.
The advanced Servotronic ® power steering system senses the road
speed and electronically adjusts power assistance to provide
comfortable and safe steering response exactly matched to the
vehicle speed .
Power steering will not work if the engine is off. As a result , the
steering wheel will be hard to turn .
Th e power steering fluid level is checked during the scheduled main
tenance services.
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data