2011 AUDI A5 CABRIOLET technical data

Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maximum
protection from safety belts.
Fig. 193 Head
restraint and safety
belt pos ition as seen
from the side
Standard features on your vehicle help you adjust the position of the
safety belt to match your body size.
• height-adjustable front seats.
& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause serious personal
injury in an accident.
• The shoulder belt portion of the safety belt must be positioned
over the middle of the occupant's shoulder and never across the
neck or throat.
• The safety belt must lie flat and snug on the occupant's upper
body =>
page 195, fig. 193. Pull on the belt to tighten if neces­
sary.
• The lap belt portion of the safety belt must be positioned as
low as possible across pelvis and never over the abdomen. Make
sure the belt lies flat and snug=>
page 195, fig. 193. Pull on the
belt to tighten if necessary.
Safety first Vehicle OP-eration
Safety belts
& WARNING (continued)
• A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious injuries by shifting
its position on your body from the strong bones to more vulner­
able, soft tissue and cause serious injury.
• Always read and heed all WARNINGS and other important
information =>
page 192. •
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure that
expectant mothers always wear safety belts correctly -
throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 194 Safety belt
position during preg·
nancy
To provide maximum protection, safety belts must always be positioned correctly on the wearer's body ===>
page 195.
- Adjust the front seat and head restraint correctly
===> page 77, "General recommendations".
- Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench is in an
upright position and securely latched in place before using
the belt. •
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Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data

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& WARNING (co ntinued )
• Always make sure that all vehicle occupants are correctly
restrained and stay in a correct seating position whenever the
vehicle is being used.
• Alway s read and heed all WARNINGS and other important
information =>
page 192. •
Safety belt pretensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and r ear -en d co llisions abov e a p artic ula r
se verity , safe ty belts a re ten sio ned auto mat ically .
The safety belts are equipped w ith safety belt p retensioners . T he
sys tem is activ at ed by sen so rs in fro nt, side and rea r-end co llisi ons of
great severity . T h is tightens t he belt and takes up belt slack=>
& in
" S e rvi ce and dispo sal of sa fe ty be lt pr eten sioner" . Tak ing up t he sl ack
helps to reduce forward occupant movement during a coll is io n.
0 Note
N ever let the belt rema in over a rear seatback that has been folded
forward .
[ i ] Tips
T he safety bel t pretensioner can only be activa ted once .
• In m inor frontal and side co llisions, in rear-end collisions, in a roll­
over and in acc iden ts invo lving very li ttle im pact force, the sa fe ty belt
pretensioner are not activated.
• Wh en t he safety belt pre ten sio ner s are activ at ed, a fin e dust is
re leased . T hi s is no rma l and is not caused by a fire in the vehicle.
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first Vehicle operation •
The relevant safety requ irements must be observed when the
veh icle o r com ponen ts of the system a re scrapped. An aut horiz ed
Audi dealer or qualified workshop is familiar w it h these regu lations
and wi ll be p lease d to pass on t he informat ion to you.
• Be sure to observe all safety, e nvironmental and other regu lations
if the ve hicl e or ind iv idual parts o f the sys tem, p articula rly t he s afety
bel t or a irbag, are to be disposed . We recommend you have your
author ized Au di dea le r p erfo rm this service fo r yo u.•
Service and disposal of safety belt
pretensioner
Th e safety bel t pre ten sio ners are p arts o f the safe ty belt s on y our
Audi. Installing, remov ing, serv ic ing or repair ing of belt preten­
sion ers can da mage the s afety belt sys te m and pr event it fr om
wor king cor rectly in a collision .
T he re are some important things you have to know to ma ke sure t hat
t he e ffective ness of t he sys te m will not be impa ired and t hat
discarde d compo nents do not cause injury or poll ute t he env iron­
m ent .
_& WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair procedures can increase the
risk of personal injury and death by preventing a safety belt
pretensioner from activating when needed or activating it unex­
pectedly:
• The belt pretensioner system can be activated only once. If belt
pretensioners have been activated , the system must be replaced .
• Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of the safety belt
system.
• Safety belt systems including safety belt pretensioners cannot
be repaired . Special procedure s are required for removal, installa -
tion and d isposal of this system. .,_
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 178,
- Adjust the front passenger's seat properly=> page 78,
-Wear safety belts properly=> page 192,
-Always properly use the proper child restraint to protect
children=>
page 221.
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 178, "Proper occupant seating positions" . For
details on the operation of the seat adjustment controls=>
page 78.
It's especially important that children are properly restrained
=:,
page 221.
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, special
modifications to your vehicle may be necessary .
Contact your authorized Audi dealer, or call Audi Customer Relations
at 1-800-822-2834.
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 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 .._
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

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Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
- Be su re to re ad t he i mpo rt a nt i nfo rmation a nd head the
WA RNINGS fo r i mporta nt details about chil dre n and
Advanced Airbags ~
page 221.
Even t hough your ve hicle is eq uipped with an Advanced Airbag
System, ma ke ce rtain that a ll chi ld ren, especia lly those 12 years an d
younger, always r ide in the back seat prope rly rest rained fo r th eir age
and si ze. The airbag on the passenger side makes the front seat a
po tentially da ngerous place fo r a child to r ide. The fro nt seat is not
the safest place for a ch ild in a forward-facing child safety seat. It can
be a very dange rous place fo r an i nfan t or a child in a rearward-fac ing
seat.
Th e Advanced Ai rbag System in your vehicle has been cer tified to
comply with the Req uirements of Uni ted States Federa l Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 as applicable at the time your veh icle
was ma nufact ured .
The Standard requires the front airbag on the passenger side to be tu rne d off ("s uppressed") if a c hild up to abou t one ye ar of age
restra ined in o ne of the rear -facing or forward -fac ing infant
restra ints listed in Fed era l Moto r Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with
whic h the Advanced Airbag System in yo ur vehicle was cert ified has
been installed on the front passenger seat. For a listing of the ch ild
restra in ts that were used to certify compliance with the US Saf ety
Standard =>
page 223.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t in th e in st rume nt p anel t ells you
when the front Advanced A irbag on the passenger side has been
tur ned off by the ele ct ronic con trol uni t.
Each time you t urn on the ignition, t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on for a few seconds and:
• will stay on if th e front passenger se at is no t oc cupie d,
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first
Vehicle operation
• will stay on if there is a small ch ild or child restra int on the front
p assenge r se at,
• will go off if the front passenger seat is occup ied by an adult as
reg iste red by t he weight -sens ing mat =>
page 210, "M oni tor ing t he
Advanced Airbag System" .
T he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes o n when t he control unit
de tects a total weight on t he front passenger seat that req uires the
front airbag to be t urned off .
If th e total weight o n the front passenger seat is more than th at of a
typical 1 year-o ld child but less than the weight of a small adult, the
fr on t a ir bag on the passenge r si de c an deploy (t he
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 co ntrol unit and can deploy if
the control unit senses an impact t hat meets the conditions 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 (rega rd less of whether the chi ld is in one of the
child safety seats listed =>
page 223), or
• a child who has outgrown child restraints is on the front passenger
sea t.
If the fro nt passenger a irbag is tur ned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
lig ht comes on in the instr ument cluster an d stays on.
Th e fron t airbag on t he pa sse nger side may
not de ploy ( the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF li ght does not illum inate and stay lit) even
if a small a dult or teenager, o r a passenger who is no t sitti ng upright
with their back against a non-reclined backrest w ith the ir feet on the
vehicle floor in front of the seat is on the front passenger seat
=>
page 178, " P roper seat ing pos itio n for the dr iver".
If the front passenger ai rbag dep loys, the Federal Standard requires
t he a irbag to mee t the "low risk" deployme nt cr iter ia to reduce the
risk of inj ury through interaction with the a irbag. "Low r isk" deploy­
me nt o ccurs in those cras hes t hat tak e pla ce a t lower decelerat io ns as
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Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

& WARNIN G (con tinued )
• Imprope r in stall ation of child re straints can redu ce their effec·
tiveness or even prevent them from providing any protection.
• An improperl y installed child re straint c an interfere with the
airbag a s it deploy s and seriously injure or even kill the child - even
with an Advanced Airbag Sy stem.
• Always carefully follow the manufacturer 's instruct ions
provided with the child safety seat or carrier.
• Ne ver place additional items on the seat that can increase the
total weight regi stered by the weight-sen sing mat and can cause
injury in a crash .•
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
T he airbag system can p rovide supplemental protection
to properly r estrained front se at oc cupants .
Safety first
Fig . 19 6 Locatio n of
drive r airb ag : in
s tee ring whee l
Vehicle OP-eration
Airbag system
Fig. 19 7 Locati on of
fr on t pass enge r's
a ir bag: in the instru ­
me nt pa nel
Yo ur vehicle is equi pped with an "Advanced A irbag Syst em" in compli ·
ance with United States Fe dera l Moto r Vehicle Safety Sta ndard
(FMVSS) 2 08 as a pplicable at t he time your vehi cle was manufac­
t u red . The system senses the position of the front seats and controls
front a irbag infl ation w ith a va lv e , dep ending on th e distanc e
between the respective seat and the stee ring wheel or instrument
pane l. The safe ty belts fo r the seats have "prete ns ione rs" t hat he lp to
take slack out of the belt system. The p retensioners are also activated
by the elec tron ic control u nit for the air bag sys tem.
T he front s afe ty belts also have load limiters to help red uce the forces
applied to the body in a cras h.
Th e airbag for the driver is in the stee ring whee l hub::::> fig. 196 and
the ai rbag for the front passenger is in the inst rument panel
::::> fig. 19 7. T he ge neral lo cat io n of the air bags is m ark e d "A IRBAG".
Th ere is a lot you need to know about the a irbags in your vehicle. We
urge yo u to read the det ailed in forma tion abou t air bags, sa fety be lts
and child safety in this and the other chap ters tha t make u p the
owner's literature. Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they are
e xtremely importa nt f or your safety and the saf ety of your pas se n­
gers, especially infants and sma ll ch ildren.
& WARNING
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data

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listing of the child restraints that were used to certify your vehicle's
compliance with the US Safety Standard ~
page 22 3,
• weight less than a threshold level sto red in the contro l unit is
de tected o n the front p assenge r seat.
When a person is detected on t he front passenger seat, weigh ing
more tha n the tota l we ight of a child that is about 1 year old
restra ined in one of the rear-facing or forward-fac ing infant
restraints (listed in Federal Motor Ve hicle Safety Standard
208 with
w hich t he Advan ced Ai rbag System in your veh icle was cert ified), the
front airbag on the passenger s ide may or may not dep loy.
T he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t comes on when the elect ronic
control u nit detects a tota l weig ht on the front passenger seat that
req uires the front airbag to be turned off . If the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OF F
light does not come on, the front airbag on the passenger
side has not been turned off by the control unit and can deploy if the
cont rol un it senses an impact that meets the conditions stored in its
memory.
If the tota l we ight on the fro nt passenger sea t is more than th at of a
typical
1 year-o ld, 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 airb ag may deploy if:
• a small child that is heav ie r than a typical 1 year-old child is on the
front passenger seat (regard less of whether the ch ild is in one of the
child safety seats listed ~
page 223),
• a child who has outgrown child restra ints is on the front passenger
sea t.
If the front passenger a irbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light in the center of the instr ument panel will come on and stay
on .
The front airbag on the passenger side may
not dep loy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF li ght does not i llumi nate and s tay lit) if:
• a small adult or teenager is on the front passenger seat
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
•
a passenger w ho is not sitt ing uprig ht with their back against a
non-recline d backrest wi th t he ir feet on the veh icle floor in fro nt o f
the seat is o n the fro nt passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag dep loys, the Federa l Standard requires
t he a irbag to mee t the " low ris k" deployment c riter ia to help reduce
the risk of injury through interaction with the a irbag. "Low risk"
dep loyment oc curs in those c rashes that ta ke p lace at lowe r de cele r­
ations as defined in the electronic contro l unit.~
page 210
Alw ays remember: Even tho ugh your vehicle is eq uipped with
Advanced A irbags, the safest place for children is properly restrained
on the back seat. Please be sure to read the important information in
the sections t hat follow and be su re to heed all of the WAR NINGS.
& WARNING
To reduc e the ri sk of injury w hen an airbag inflate s, alwa ys w ear
safet y belt s properly .
• If you are unrestrained, leaning forward , sitting sidewa ys or
out of po sition in any way , your ri sk of injury i s much high er.
• You will also recei ve serious injurie s and could even be killed if
you are up again st the airbag or too close to it wh en it inflates -
e ven with an Ad vanced Airbag ~
page 199.
& WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat installed on the front
pa ssenger seat will be seriou sly injured and can be killed if the
front a irbag inflates · even with an Advanced Airbag System .
• Although the Ad vanced Airb ag System in your v ehicle is
designed to turn off the front airbag when a rearward-facing child
re straint has been installed on the front pas senger seat , nobody
c an absolut ely guarantee th at deployment is impo ssible in all
c onceivable situation s that may happen during the u seful life of
your vehicle. _,.
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

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• The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays on in the
c en ter o f the inst ru me nt pane l=>
page 211, fig. 199 a nd t ells you
when the front Advanced A irbag on t he passe nger side has been
t u rne d off.
• A sensor below the safety belt latch for the front seat passenger
t o meas ure t he tension on t he s afety be lt. T he tension on the s afety
belt and the we ight registe red by the weight-sensing mat help t he
cont rol unit " deci de" whether the front a irbag for the front
passenge r seat should be tur ned off o r not=>
page 201, "C hild
restraints on the front seat -some important things to know".
• A se nso r in the safety bel t latch for the driver a nd fo r the front
seat passenge r that senses whether that safety belt is latched or not
and transmits this information to t he e lec tron ic control un it .
& WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can prevent the front airbag
from working properl y.
• 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 pa ssenger 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 th ings on your lap or carry objects on the passenger
seat. Such items can in crease the weight registered by the weight­
sensing mat and send the wrong information to the airbag control
unit.
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first Vehicle operation
& WARNING
(co ntinued )
• Never store item s under the front passenger seat . Parts of the
Advanced Airbag Sy stem under the passenger seat could be
damaged , preventing them and the airb ag system from working
properly .
• Never place seat covers or replacement upholstery that have
not been specifically approved by Audi on the front seats .
• Seat cover s can prevent the Advanced Airbag System from
recognizing child re straints or occupants on the front passenger
seat and prevent the side airbag in the seat backrest from
deploying properly .
• Never u se cushions, pillow s, blankets or similar items on the
front passenger seat. The additional padding will prevent the
weight-sensing mat in the seat from ac curately registering the
child restraint or person on the seat and prevent the Advanced
Ai rbag System from functioning properly .
• If you must use a child restraint on the front passenger seat
and the child restraint manufacturer'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 ch ild 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 posi­
tion and have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Audi dealer. •
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
Th e fron t Adva nced A irbag System and t he side air bags supp lemen t
t he p ro tec tion offered by the front three- po int safety belts with
pretens ioners and load limiters and t he adjusta ble head restra ints to
help reduce the risk of injury in a w ide rang e of acc iden t and crash ..,.
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

Airbag system --------------------------------------------- -=---=----
lowe r pa rts of the body . Front a irbags only supp lemen t th e t hree
po int saf ety b elt s in som e frontal col lisions in which t he vehicl e decel­
erat io n is high en ough to d ep loy the a irbags.
Front airbags will not deploy:
• if the ignition is switched off w hen a cras h occ urs ,
• in side co llisions,
• in re ar- end collisions,
• in rollove rs,
• when t he cra sh d ecelera tion m easur ed by the airbag sys te m is le ss
than the min imum threshold needed fo r airbag deployme nt as reg is­
t ere d by t he e lectr onic c ontrol u nit.
The front passenger airbag will also not deploy:
• when t he fro nt p ass eng er s eat i s not o ccupi ed,
• when the weight on the front passenge r seat as sense d by the
A dvanc ed Airba g Sy stem indicat es that t he front a irbag o n the
passenge r s id e has to be turned off by the e lectro nic con trol unit (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht c om es on an d sta ys 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 201.
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 armrest, 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 increase the risk of injury
in a cra sh 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 maneuver and become dangerous projec­
tiles that can cause serious personal injury if the airbags inflate .
• Never place or attach accessories or other objects (such as
cupholders, 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, especially
when the airbags inflate .
• Never recline the front passenger's seat to transport objects .
Items can also move into the area of the side airbag or the front
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Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data