
136 Child Safety
Child Safety
Important things to
know
Introduction
The physical princip les of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash app ly also to children
c:> page 108, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not
fully developed . In many respects children are
at greater risk of serious injury in crashes than
adults.
Because children's bodies are not fully devel
oped, they require restraint systems especial
ly designed for the ir s ize, weight, and body
structure . Many countries and all states of the
United States and provinces of Canada have
l aws requ iring the use of approved ch ild re
straint systems for infants and small children.
In a frontal crash at a speed of 20-35 mph
(30-56 km/ h) the fo rces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infant w ill be more than 20 times the
weight of the child. This means the weight of
the child would suddenly be more than 260 pounds (120 kg) . Under these conditions,
only an appropriate ch ild restraint properly
used can reduce the risk of serious injury.
Child restra ints, like adult safety belts, must
be used properly to be effective. Used improp
erly, they can increase the risk of ser ious in
ju ry in an accident.
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's instructions in order to be sure the seat is
right for your ch ild's s ize
c:> page 139, Impor
tant safety instructions for using child safety
seats.
Please be sure to read and heed all of
the important information and WARN INGS
about child safety, Advanced Airbags, and the installation of child restraints in this chapter.
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad
vanced Airbags in your vehicle and how they
work when infants and children in chi ld re
straints are on the front passenger seat. Be
cause of the large amount of important infor- mation, we cannot repeat it all here
. We urge
you to read the detailed information in this owner's manua l about airbags and the Ad
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the
very important information about transport
ing children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS - they
are extremely importa nt for your safety and
the safety of you r passengers, especially in
fants and small chi ldren.
A WARNING
-
A ll vehicle occupants and especially chi l
dren must be restrained properly whenev
e r riding in a vehicle. An unrestrained or
improperly restrained child could be in
jured by str ik ing the interior or by being
ejected from the veh icle dur ing a sudden
maneuver or impact. An unrestra ined or
i mproperly restra ined child is also at great
er risk of injury or death through contact
with an inflat ing airbag.
_& WARNING
Children on the front seat of any car even
with Advanced Airbags c an be ser ious ly in
ju red or even ki lled when an airbag in
f lates. A child in a rearward-fac ing child
safety seat insta lled on the front passen
ger seat will be ser iously injured and can
be killed if the front airbag inflates.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child aga inst the backrest, door or
roof.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
un less the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on. If the PAS
SENGER AIR BAG OF F
light does not
come on and stay on, have the airbag
system inspected immediately by you r
Audi deale r.
.

A 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.
-Always follow the manufacturer's in
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- 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 child restraint. The backrest must be
adjusted to an upright position.
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re
quirements for 3- and 6-year old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the
driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates. In addition, the system has been certified to comply with the "sup
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand
ard, to turn
off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front
passenger seat in child restraints that are list
ed in the Standard.
Child Safety 137
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, a child should al
ways ride in theseat properly restrained for its
age and si ze . 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 larger child in a rear
ward-facing seat.
Advanced Airbags and the weight
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us
ing the weight -sensing mat in the seat cush
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight -sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger
seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the
seat. The weight of a child restraint and its
"footprint" vary for different kinds of child re
straints and for the different models of the
same kind of child restraint offered by child
restraint manufacturers .
The weight ranges for the individual types,
makes and models of child restraints that the
NHTSA has specified in the Safety Standard
together with the weight ranges of typical in
fants and typical 1 year-old child have been
stored in the control unit of the Advanced Air
bag System. When a child restraint is being
used on the front passenger seat with a typi
cal 1 year-old child, the Advanced Airbag Sys
tem compares the weight measured by the
weight sensing mat with the information stor
ed in the electronic control unit.
The electronic control unit also registers the
tension on the front passenger safety belt. ..,. •
•

138 Child Safety
The tension on the safety be lt for the front
passenger seat will be different for an ad ult
who is properly using the safety belt as com
pared to the tension on the be lt when it is
used to attach a child restraint to the seat.
The sensor below the latch for the safety belt
for the front seat passenger measu res the
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regard less of the ch ild restraint t hat you use,
make sure tha t it has been ce rtified to mee t
United States Fede ral Motor Vehicle S afety
Standar ds and has been certified by i ts manu
facture r fo r u se with an ai rbag . If in excep
tional c ircu mstances you m ust use it on the
fro nt passenge r seat, caref ully read all of the
information on c hild safety and Advanced A ir
bags a nd heed a ll of the applicable WARN
INGS . Make certa in that t he child restraint is
correctly recognized by the w eig ht-sens ing
mat i nside the front passenge r seat, that the
fro nt passenger air bag is tur ned off and tha t
the airbag st atus is al ways correc tly signaled
by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG O FF light.
M any types and mo dels of ch ild rest ra ints
have been availab le over the years, new mo d
e ls are in trodu ced regularly incorporat ing new
and improved designs an d older models a re
taken out of p ro du ction. Child restraints a re
Subpart A -Car bed child restraints
Model
Ange l Guard Ange l Ride AA2 403 FO F
Subpart B -Rear-facing child restraints
Model
C en tury SmartFit 4543
Cosco Arriva 22-013PAW and base 22-999W HO
Evenflo D iscovery Adjus t Right 2 12
Evenflo First Cho ice 204
Graco Infant 8457
Graco Snugrid e
Peg Perego Primo V iaggio SIP IMUN00 US tens
ion on the belt. The input from th is sen
sor is then used with t he weight to "decide",
whethe r the re is a child restra int with a typical
1 year-old chi ld on the front passenger seat
and whether or not the airbag must be turned
off .
not standard ized . Child rest rain ts of the same
ty pe typ ically have diffe rent weights and sizes
and differe nt 'foo tpr ints,' the si ze and shape
of the bo ttom of the ch ild restra int tha t sits
on the seat, when they are insta lled on a vehi
cle seat. These diffe rences make it virtually
impossible to certify compliance with the re
quirements for advanced airbags with eac h
and every ch ild restra int that has eve r been
sold in the past or wi ll be so ld over the course
of the useful l ife of your veh icle .
Fo r thi s reason, the United States National
Hig hway T raffic Safety Adm inistrat ion has
published a list of spec ific type, makes and
models of chi ld restraints that must be used
to ce rtify comp lian ce of the Advanced Airbag
System i n your veh icle w ith the su ppression
r equirements of Fe d eral Motor Vehicle Safe ty
Stan dard 208. These chi ld res traints are:
Manufactured on or after
September 2 5, 2 007
Manufactured on or after
December 1, 19 99
September 25, 2 007
D ecember 1, 1999
D ecembe r 1, 1999
D ecember 1, 1999
September 25, 2 007
September 25, 2007

Child Safet y 139
Subp art C -Forward-f acing and conv ert ibl e child r estraints
Model
BritaxRoundaboutE9L02xx
Cosco Touriva 02519
Cosco Summit Deluxe High Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back Booster 22-209
M anufactured on or after
September 25, 2007
December 1, 1999
September 25, 2007
September 25, 2007
September 25, 2007
Evenflo Tribute V 379xxxx
E venflo Medallion 254
-------·-
Evenflo Generations 352xxxx
Grace ComfortSport
----~-,
December 1, 1999
September 25, 2007
September 25, 2007
September 25, 2007
Grace Toddler Safety Seat Step 2
Grace Platinum Cargo
--------
& WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG O FF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
child restraint is installed on the front pas
senger seat and the ignition is switched
on .
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenge r seat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on. If the PA S
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not
come on and stay on the infla ting airbag
will hit the child safety seat or in fant car
rie r with great force and will smash the
child safety seat and child against the
backrest, door or roof. Have the airbag
system inspected immediately by your
Audi dealer .
@ Tips
The child seats listed in categories A to C
have been tested by A udi on ly for the Ad
vanced Airbag function. September 25, 2007
Important safety
instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially
reduces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the dr iver, you are responsible for the safe
ty of everybody in the vehicle, especially chi l
dren:
"' Always use the right ch ild safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
c:::;, page 141 .
"'Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufac turer's inst ruct ions on how to ro ute
t he sa fe ty belt proper ly through the c hild
safety seat .
"' When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you m ust first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from mov ing
c:::;, page 144.
"' Push the ch ild safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety be lt really tight
so that the seat cannot move fo rwa rd o r
sideways mo re tha n one inch ( 2.5 cm).
Always remember : Even tho ugh you r vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, a
c h ild should always ride in the seat properly
rest rained for its age and s ize.
•
•

142 Child Safet y
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats
can help protect toddlers and children over
age one who weigh between
20 and 40 lbs . (9
and 18 kg) in a crash.
Fig. 128 Sche mati c ove rview : in stallat ion o f the seat
u sing t he ve hicle's safety be lt system
~ When using the vehicle safety be lt to install
a ch ild safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retracto r on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from movi ng
Q page 144.
~ Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt rea lly tight
so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
Q page 144.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in
fant restraint if it is more than one year o ld
and weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
Toddle rs and c hildren who are o lder than one
year up to about 4 years o ld and weigh more
than 20 lbs . (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must
a lways be properly restrained in a ch ild safety
seat certi fied for the ir size and weight
Q fig . 128 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to r ide. The front seat is not the safes t
p lace for a child in a forward -facing child safe
ty seat.
It is a very dangero us p lace for an in
fant or a larger child in a rearward-facing seat .
A WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, usi ng the
w ro ng ch ild s afety sea t or improperly in-
-
stalling a ch ild restra int increases the risk
of ser ious personal in jury and death in a
collis ion or other emergency situat ion.
- Ch ildren on the front seat of any car,
even with Advanced Airbags, can be seri
ously i njured or even k illed when an air
bag inflates . A chi ld in a rearwa rd-facing
child safety seat installed on the front passenger s eat will be s erio usly injured
an d can be killed if the front a irbag in
f lates -even with an Advanced Airbag
Sys tem.
- T he infla ting airbag will h it the c hild
safety sea t or i nfan t carrier wi th grea t
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child aga inst the back rest, door or
roof.
- Never i nsta ll a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
un less the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on. If the PAS
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not
come on and stay on have the airbag sys
tem inspected immediate ly by yo ur Audi
deale r.
- Always read and heed all WAR NINGS
wh eneve r using a child restrained in ave
h icle is being used
9 page 107, Safety
belts,
Q page 115, Airbag system and
Q page 136, Importan t thing s to know .
.8_ WARNING
If excep tional circ ums tan ces require the
use of a fo rward -f a cing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's safe
ty and we ll-being requ ire that the fo llow
in g spec ial precautions be taken:
- Make sure t he forward -facing seat has
been designed and cert ified by its man u
facturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag .
- Always follow the manufacturer's in
structions prov ided with the c hild safety
seat o r infant ca rr ie r.
- Always move the front passenger seat in
to the rearmost position of the passen- ge r seat's fo re and aft adjustment range, ,..

child should always ride in the seat properly
restrained for its age and size .
A WARNING
Improperly installed child safety seats in
crease the risk of ser ious personal injury
and death in a collision.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re tractor is locked when installing a ch ild
safety seat . An unlocked safety belt re
tractor cannot hold the child safety seat
in place during normal driving or in a
crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a child is not s itting in it .
A loose ch ild safety seat can fly around
dur ing a sudden stop o r in a coll ision
- T he inflating a irbag w ill hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier w ith great
f orce and w ill smash t he ch ild safety sea t
and child against the backrest, door or
roof .
- F orward-fac ing ch ild safe ty sea ts or in
f ant ca rriers installed on the front pas
senger's seat may inte rfe re with the de
ployment of the airbag and cause serious
injury to the ch ild.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in
ave
hicle is being used¢ page 136 . Special
precautions apply when installing a ch ild
safety seat on the front passenge r seat
¢ page 116, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
A WARNING
-
Always take special precautions if you
m ust in stal l a forw ard or rearward-f acing
child restrain t on the front passenger's
sea t in except iona l situat ions:
- Whenever a fo rw ard or rearward- facing
child restraint is installed on the fron t
passenge r seat, the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light must come on and stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, perform
Child Sa fet y 145
the checks described ¢ page 125, Moni
toring the Advanced Airbag System.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on the inflating
airbag w ill hit the child safety seat or in
fant carrier with great force and will
smash the child safety seat and child
aga inst the backrest, door or roof. Have
the airbag system i nspe cte d immed iate ly
by your Audi de aler.
- I mp roper installation of ch ild restraints
can reduce t heir effec tiveness o r even
preven t them from providing any pro tec
tion.
- An improperly installed ch ild restr aint
can interfere with the airbag as i t de
ploys and seriously injure o r even kil l the
child.
- Always carefu lly follow the manu fact ur
er 's instructions p rovi ded with t he chi ld
safety seat or car rier .
- Never p lace additiona l items on the seat
that ca n increase the total weight reg is
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can
cause injury in a crash.
A WARNING
Forward-facing child rest raints:
- Always make s ure the forward- facing
seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and s ide a irbag .
- Never put the forward-facing child re
straint up , against or
very near the in
strument panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost pos ition in the seat 's fore and
aft ad justment range, as fa r away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the forward-fa cing ch ild restra int. The
b ackrest mus t be ad ju ste d to a n up right
posi tion.
- Ma ke sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and st ays o n all the
time whenever the ignit ion is switched
on. •
•

146 Child Safety
_& WARNING
Rearward -fac ing ch ild restraints:
- A ch ild in a rearward-facing child safety
seat installed on the front passenge r
seat will be seriously injured and can be
ki lled 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 w ill smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against the backrest, door or
roof.
- Always be especially careful if you must
install a rearward facing child safety seat
on the front passenger seat in exception
al circumstances .
- Make sure that the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched
on.
- Never install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
unless the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
ligh t comes on and stays on. H the PAS
SEN GER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on have the airbag sys
tem inspected immediately by your Audi
dealer.
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se
cure a child restraint.
A lways heed the child safety seat man ufactur
er's instructions when installing a child re
straint in your vehicle. To activate the conver
tible locking retractor:
• Place the child restraint on a seat .
• Slow ly pull the be lt
all the way out .
• Route it around or through the child re
stra int be lt path
c::> &_ .
• Push the child safety seat dow n with your
full weight to get the safety belt really t ight .
• Insert the be lt tongue into t he buckle for
t h at seating position. •
Guide the safety belt back into the retractor
until the be lt lies flat and snug on the child
safety seat .
• You shou ld hear a "clicking" noise as the
be lt winds back into the inertia reel. Test the
convert ible lock ing retractor by pu lling on
the belt. You should no longer be able to
pull the be lt out of the retractor . The con
ve rtible locking re trac to r i s now activated .
• Ma ke s ure t hat the red release b utton is fac
ing away from the child rest raint so that it
can be unbuckled quic kly.
• Pull on the belt to make sure the safety be lt
is properly tight and fastened so that the
seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2 .5 cm).
_& WARNING
Using the wrong child restraint or an im
p roperly installed chi ld restrai nt can cause
se rious pe rsonal injury or deat h in a cr ash.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re-
tracto r is loc ked when insta lling a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re
tracto r ca nnot hold the child safety sea t
in place dur ing no rma l dr iving o r in a
crash.
- Always buckle the child sa fe ty seat firmly
in p lace even if a ch ild is not si tt ing in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly around
during a s udden stop or in a crash .
- Always ma ke sure the seat backrest to
which the child restraint is installed is in
an upright pos ition. Otherw ise, the seat
back with the ch ild safety seat attached
to it could fly forward in the event of an
accident o r other emergency situation .
- Always read and heed a ll WARNINGS
whenever us ing a child restrained in ave
h icle is being used
c::> page 136. Special
p reca utions apply when insta lling a child
safety sea t on the front passenger seat
c::> page 116, Child re straints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
-

194 Tire s and wheel s
Tires and wheels
Tires
General notes
Tires may be the least appreciated and most
abused parts of a motor vehicle .
Tires may be the least appreciated and most
abused parts of a motor vehicle . Tires are,
however, one of the most important parts of a
vehicle, particularly considering the compara
tive ly small patch of rubber on each tire that
assures that a ll-important contact between
you, you r vehicle and the road.
Maintaining the correct tire pressure, mak ing
sure that your veh icle and its t ires do not have
to carry mo re weight than they can safe ly han
d le, avoiding damage from roa d haza rds and
r eg ularly inspecting t ires for damage includ
ing cuts, slashes irregu la r wear and ove rall
condition are the most important things that
you can do to he lp avoid s udden tire failure in
cluding tread separat ion and blowouts.
Avoiding damage
If you have to drive over a curb or similar ob
stacle, drive very s low ly and as close as possi
b le at a right angle to the curb.
A lways keep chem ica ls incl ud ing gre ase, o il,
gasoline and b rake fluid off the t ires .
Inspect the t ir e s regularly for damage (cuts,
cracks or b listers, etc.). Remove any fo reign
bod ies embedded in the treads.
Storing tires
Mark ti res when you remove them to indicate
the direction of rotation . T his ensures you to
be ab le to mount them correctly when you re
install t hem.
When removed, the whee ls or t ires should be
stored in a cool, d ry and preferably dark place .
Store tires in a vertical pos ition if they are not
mounted on rims, in a horizontal pos it ion if
they are mounted on rims.
New tires
New t ires have to be broken in¢&,. .
T he tread depth of new t ires may vary, accord
ing to the type a nd make of t ire and the tread
pa tte rn .
Hidden damage
Damage to tires and r ims is ofte n not readily
vis ible . If you notice unusual v ibrat ion or the
vehicle p ulls to one side, th is may ind icate
t h at one of the t ires has been damaged . Th e
t ir es m ust be checked immed iate ly by an au
tho rized Aud i dea le r or q uali fied wor ks hop.
Unidirectional t ires
A un idirectional tire can be identified by ar
rows on the sid ewa ll, that po int in the direc
t ion the t ire is desig ned to rotate. You must
f ol low the specified d irec tion of rot ation . This
is necessa ry so tha t these tires can develop
their optimum characterist ics regarding grip,
road no ise, wear and hyd rop laning resistance.
For more information ¢
page 226.
A WARNING
-New tires or t ires that are o ld, worn or
damaged cannot provide maximum con
trol and braking ability .
-
-New tires tend to be slippery and must
be broken in . To reduce the risk of losing
control, a co llision and ser ious personal
in jur ies, d rive w ith special ca re fo r the
fi rst 3 50 m iles (560 km).
- Driving with worn or damaged tires can
le ad to loss of control, sudden tire fail
ure, including a blowou t and sudden de
fla tion, crashes and seriou s personal in
juries . Have wo rn or damaged t ires re
p laced immediate ly .
- Ti res age even if they are not being used
an d can fai l sudden ly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
and then w ith specia l care and at low
speed.