Page 153 of 294

-The PA SS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on if the ignition is on
and . ..
- a car bed has been insta lled on the front
passenger seat, or
- a rearward -facing chi ld restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a fo rward-facing child restraint has been in
stalled on the front passenger seat,
- and if the e lectr ica l capaci tance registered
on the front passenger seat is equal to or
l ess than the combined capacitance of a typ
ical 1 year-old infant and one of the rear
ward-facing or forward -facing child re
stra ints listed in Federal Motor Veh icle Safe
ty Standard 208 w ith which the Advanced
Airbag System in your vehicle was certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
P A S·
SE NG ER AIR BAG OFF
light w ill stay on . Nev
er install a rearward-fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place fo r
a child in any ki nd of child restraint is at o ne
of the seati ng positions on the rear seat
¢ page 139, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 163, Child Safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light com es
on ...
If the PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on w hen one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regular ly to
make certa in that the
PA SSENGER AIR BA G
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignit ion is on.
If the PA SS ENGER A IR BA G
OFF
l ight does not appear on and does not
stay on all the time, stop as soon as it is safe
to do so and
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off for more than 4 seconds and then turn
i ng it on agai n;
- remove and reinstall the child restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed a nd that the safety be lt fo r the
front passenger seat has been correct ly
ro uted through the child rest raint as descr i-
A irbag system 15 1
bed in the child restraint manufacturer's in
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea
t u re on the safety belt for the front passen
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight.
- make sure t hat no electrical device (s uch as
a laptop, CD p layer, e lectronic games device
or power inverter) is p laced or used on the
front passenger seat if the device is connect
ed to the 12-volt socket or the cigarette
lighter socket;
- make sure that no seat heater has been ret
rofitted or otherwise added to the front pas
senger seat;
- make sure that nothing can interfere with
the safety belt buckles and that they are not
obstructed;
- make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cushion .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still
does not come on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on and does not stay on con
ti nuously (whe n the ignition is sw itched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passen-
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions . Have the airbag system
inspected by yo ur Audi dealer immed iate ly.
- move the ch ild to a rear seat position and
ma ke sure that the c hild is properly restra in
ed in a c hild restra int that is app rop riate fo r
its size an d age.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should
NOT come on .. .
The PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht sho uld
NOT come on when t he ignit io n i s on and an
adult is sitting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat . If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG O FF
light comes on and stays on or
flashes for about 5 seconds wh ile driving, un
der these c ircumstances, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is
properly seated on the center of the seat •
•
Page 154 of 294

152 Airbag sys te m
cushion wit h his or her back up against the
backrest and the backrest is n ot reclined,
- the adu lt is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or support
ing their weight on the armrest,
- the safety be lt is being properly worn and
that there is not a lot of slack in the safety
belt webbing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or
cushions or other things (such as b lankets)
on the front passenger seat that might
cause the capacitive passenger detection
system to miscalculate electrical capac i
tance .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
-If the status of the Advanced A irbag Sys
tem has changed wh ile the vehicle is
moving, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light blinks for about 5 seconds to catch
the drive r's attent ion.
If this happens, al
ways s top as soon as it is safe to do so
and check the steps described above.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go off when an adu lt who is no t
very small is sitting on the front passen
ger seat after taking the steps described
above, make sure the adult is properly
seated and restrained at one of the rear
seating pos itions. Have the a irbag sys
tem inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer before transpo rting anyone on the
front passenger seat.
A WARNING , _ -
An airbag system that is not funct io ning
prope rly cannot provide supplemental p ro
tect ion in a fron tal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light comes on, it
means that the re may be someth ing
wrong with the Advance d Airbag System .
It is possible that the airbag will inflate when it is not supposed to, or will not
in
f late when it sho uld.
- Have the airbag system inspected imme
diate ly by yo ur Audi dealer.
A WARNING ~
If the front airbag inflates, a child without
a child restraint, or in a rearward-facing
chi ld safety seat, or in a forward-facing
chi ld restrai nt that has not been proper ly
i nstalled w ill be seriously injured and can
be killed.
- Even though you r vehicle is equipped
with an Adva nced A irbag System, make
certain that all childre n, espec ially 12
ye ars and younger, always ride on the
b ack seat properly rest rained for their
age and size .
- Always inst all f orward o r rear-facing
child sea ts on the rear sea t - even with
an Advanced Airbag System.
- If you m ust ins tall a rearw ard-facing
child seat on the front passenger seat
because of exceptional circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not appear and stay on, immediate ly install the rear-facing child seat in a
rea r seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
system inspected by you r Audi dealer .
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you
must install a forward-fac ing c hild re
straint on the front passenger seat , al
ways move the seat into its rearmost po
sition in the seat's fore and aft adjust
men t range, as far away from t he a irb ag
a s poss ible . The backrest mus t be ad just
ed to an upright pos ition . Make su re that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when
ever the ignit ion is switched on.
A 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 su re the ..,.
Page 155 of 294

adult is properly seated and restrained at
one of the rear seating positions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
yo ur Audi dealer before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
(D Tips
If the capacitive passenger detection sys
tem determines that the front passenger
seat is empty, the frontal airbag on the
passenger side will be turned off, and the
P ASS ENGER AIR B AG OFF light will stay
on.
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at
many different places on your Audi. Installing,
removing, servic ing or repairing a part in an
area of the vehicle can damage a part o f an
airbag system and prevent that system from
working properly in a co llision.
There are some important things you have to know to make sure that the effect iveness of
the system will not be impaired and tha t dis
carded components do not cause injury or po l
l ute the env ironment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce
dures can increase the risk of personal in
jury and death by preventing an airbag
from deploy ing when needed o r deploying
an airbag unexpected ly:
- Never cover, obstruct, o r change the
steering wheel ho rn pad or airbag cover
o r th e instrument pane l or modify them
in any way.
- Never attach any objects such as cup
holders or telephone mountings to the
surfaces covering the airbag units.
- For cleaning the ho rn pad or instrumen t
pane l, use only a soft, d ry cloth or one
mois tened w ith plain wate r. Solven ts or
cleaners co uld damage the airbag cover
or change the stiffness o r strength of the
A irbag sys tem 153
material so that the airbag cannot de
ploy and protect properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the a irbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instru
ment panel, front seats or e lectr ica l sys
tem (including the installation of audio
equ ipment, cellu lar telephones and CB
radios, etc.) must be performed by a
qualified technic ian who has the training
and specia l equipment necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we strongly recommend that yo u see your
author ized Audi dealer or qualif ied work
shop.
- Never modify the front bumper or pa rts
of the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the s ide a irbag
can inflate without inte rfe rence:
- Never in.stall seat covers or rep lace
ment upholstery over the front seat
backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat c ushions that
cover the areas where the side a irbags
i nflate.
- Damage to the orig inal seat cove rs or
to the seam in the area of the side a ir
bag module must a lways be repaired
i mmediately by an author ized Audi
dealer.
- The airbag system can deploy on ly once.
After an a irbag has been deployed, it
m ust be replaced with new replacement
pa rts des igned and app roved espec ially
for your Aud i mo del ve rsion. Replace
men t of comple te airbag systems or air
bag components must be performed by
qualified workshops only . Make sure that
any airbag service action is entered in
your Audi Warranty
& Maintenance book
let under
AIRBAG REPLACEMENT RE
CORD.
- For safety reasons in severe accidents,
the alternator and starter are separated from the veh icle battery with a pyrotech-
nic circuit inte rrupte r. .,.. •
•
Page 156 of 294

154 Airbag system
-Work on the pyrotechnic circu it inter
rupter must on ly be performed by a
qua lified technicians who have the ex
perience, information and special tools necessary to perform the work safely .
- If the vehicle or the c ircuit interrupter
is scrapped, all applicable safety pre
cautions must be followed.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and preten
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate Material -special handling may apply, see
www .dtsc.ca .gov/hazardouswaste/per
chlora te. When th e vehicle o r parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
a nd safety bel ts w ith p retens ioners are
scrapped, all applicable laws and regula
tions must be observed. Your authorized
Audi dea ler is familiar wit h these requ ire
ments and we recommend that you have
your dealer perform this serv ice for you .
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
C hanging the vehicle's suspension system can
ch ange the way th at the Advanced A irbag Sys
tem pe rforms in a crash. For example, using
tire -rim combinations not app roved by Audi,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, incl uding the springs, s uspen
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the a irbag
sensors and se nt to the electron ic control
u ni t. Some suspension changes ca n, for exam
p le, increase th e forc e levels meas ure d by t he
se nsors a nd make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in w hich it would not dep loy if the
cha nges had not been ma de. Ot her kinds of
cha nges may reduce the force levels meas
ured by the sensors and prevent the airbag
from deploy ing when it sho uld.
The sen so rs in the safety belt buckle fo r th e
driver an d front passenger seat tell the elec
tronic control module if the safety belt is
latched or not. If the safety belt is being used,
the front airbag will deploy at a slightly high- er rate of ve
hicle deceleration than i f the safe
ty belt is not being used. Therefore, in a par
t icu lar coll is ion, it is possible that an airbag
will not deploy at a seat ing pos ition w here the
safety belt is be ing used but will inflate at the
pos ition where t he safety belt is not be ing
u sed. It is important that noth ing interfere
with the safety be lt buckles so that the s en
sors can send the correct info rmation abou t
sa fe ty belt use to the elec troni c con trol un it .
A WARNING
-Changi ng the vehicle's suspension includ
ing use of unapp roved tire -rim combina
tions can change Advanced Airbag per
formance and increase the r isk o f serious
personal injury in a crash.
- Never install suspension components
that do not have the same performance
characterist ics as the components orig i
na lly installed on your vehicle .
- Never use tire-rim combinations that
have not been approved by Audi.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
Applies to vehicles : wi th knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supple
mental prot ection to properly restrained
front seat occupants.
Fi g. 14 5 Driver"s air bag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument
panel underneath t he steering wheel
Q fig . 145, the airbag for the passenger is at
about the same height in the instrument pan-
el underneat h the glove compartment . ...,
Page 157 of 294

The knee airbag offers additional protect ion
to the driver's and passenger's knees and up
per and lower thigh areas and supp lements
the protect ion provided by the safety belts.
I f the front airbags deploy , the knee airbags
also deploy in fronta l collisions when the de
p loyment threshold stored in the control unit
is met c>
page 147, More important things to
know about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function,
safety be lts he lp keep the driver or front pas
senger in posit ion in a frontal coll is ion so that
the airbags can prov ide supplemental protec
tion .
The airbag system is not a subst itute for yo ur
safety be lt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc
cupant restraint system in your veh icle. Al
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wea ring
your safety belt and wear ing it prope rly . T hi s
i s why you shou ld always wear you r safety
be lt, not just because the law requires yo u to
do soc>
page 128, General notes.
The safety belt buck le for the dr iver and front
seat passenge r have switc hes that tell the a ir
bag con trol mod ule if the safety belt is be ing
used or not . If the safety belt is being used,
the knee airbag will deploy at a slightly higher rate of deceleration than if the belt is not be
ing used. Therefore, in a particu lar collision, it
is poss ible that an airbag will not deploy at a
seating position where the safety belt is being
used but will inflate at the position whe re the
safety belt is not be ing used.
Remember too, airbags will deploy only once
and only in certain kinds of accidents -your
safety belts are always there to offer protec
tion in those acc idents in which a irbags a re
not supposed to deploy or when they have a l
r eady deployed, fo r example whe n your veh i
cle strikes or is s truck by another afte r the
fi rst coll is ion .
This is just one of the reasons why an a irbag is
n ot a substi tute fo r the safety belt. The airbag
sys tem works most effective ly when used with
A irbag system 15 5
the safety belts. Therefore, always wear yo ur
safety belts correct ly .
I t i s important to remembe r that w hile the
s u pplementa l knee airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of ser ious injuries,
other injuries, for example, swelling, bruising,
minor abrasions and friction b urns can a lso
occur when an airbag inflates.
The knee airbag system basically consists
of:
- The e lectronic control module
- Two inflatable ai rbags (airbag and gas gen -
erator), one for the driver and one for the
front passenger
- The ai rbag indicator lig ht in the i nstrument
pane l
The knee airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ignit io n is switched off
- in frontal collisions when the deceleration
measu red by t he con trol un it is too low
- in side co llisions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers
- in the event of a system malfunction (warn-
ing/ind icator light is on)
c> page 17.
A WARNING
- Safety belts and the airbag system can
only provide protection when occupants
are in the proper seating position
i=>page 147.
- If the airbag ind icator light comes when
the vehicle is be ing used, have the sys
tem inspected immediate ly by you r au
thori zed A udi dealer. The airbag may not
wo rk properly when the vehicle acce le ra
tion in a side co llision is high enough to
deploy the airbag . See also
i=>page 17.
-
•
•
Page 158 of 294

156 Airbag system
How knee airbags work
Applies to vehicles: with knee airbags
The risk of injury to the leg area can be re
duced by fully inflated knee airbags.
Fig. 146 Inflated airbags protecting in a frontal colli·
s io n
The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the a irbags for the driver and front pas
senger deploy in certain but not all frontal
collisions.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
a lso deploy in frontal collisions when the de
ployment threshold stored in the control unit
is met .
When the system deploys, the airbags fill
with a propellant gas, and inflate between the
lower part of the instrument panel and the
driver and the lower part of the instrument
panel and the front passenger
Q page 147,
fig . 143.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cush ion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the lower
extremities.
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 it is im
portant for occupant safety that nothing
should be in their way when they deploy.
Fully inflated airbags in combination with
properly worn safety belts slow down and lim
it the occupant's forward movement and help
to reduce the risk of injury. Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
Applies
to vehicles: with knee airbags
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al
ways wear safety belts correctly and ride in a
proper seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and do to help the safety belts and
airbags to provide supplemental protection.
A WARNING
-An inflating knee airbag can cause serious
injury. Wearing safety belts incorrectly and
improper seating positions increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- The knee airbag system cannot protect
you properly if you are seated too close
to any of the airbag locations. When ad
justing their seat positions, it is impor
tant that both the driver and the front passenger keep their upper bodies and
knees at the following minimum safe
distances :
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instru
ment panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the knees and the lower part of the instru
ment panel.
- The risk of personal injury increases if
you lean forward or to the side, or if the
seat is improperly positioned and you are
not wearing your safety belt . The risk in
creases even more should the airbag de
ploy .
- Always make sure that the knee airbag
can inflate without interference. Objects
between you and the airbag can increase
the risk of injury in an accident by inter
fering with the way the airbag deploys or
by being pushed into you as the airbag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, especially children
or animals ride in the footwell in front
Page 159 of 294

of the passenger seat. If the airbag de
p loys, this can resu lt in serious or fata l
injuries.
- Never carry objects of any kind in the
footwell area in front of the driver's or passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shop
p ing bags, for e xample) ca n interfere
with or prevent proper dep loyment of
the airbag . Small objects can be
thrown throug h the vehicle if the ai r
b ag deploys and injure you o r yo ur pas
sengers.
- Make su re there are no crac ks, deep
scratches or other damage in the area of
the instrument pane l where the knee air
bags are located.
- If children are incorrect ly sea ted, their
risk of i njury increases in a collision
¢ page 163, Child Safety .
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants .
Fig . 1 47 Side a irbag loca tion in t he d river 's s eat
The side a irbags a re located i n the sides of the
front seat ba ckrests
¢ fig . 147 a nd the rear
backrest facing the doors . They are identified
bytheword "AIRBAG" .
The s ide a irbags installed for the front seating
positions have been designed and cer tified to
he lp red uce the risk of i nju ry that can be
caused by airbags when they inflate, particu
l arly when the occupant sitting next to it is
not seated proper ly . The side airbag for the
front passenger seat can be used with proper-
A irba g sy stem 15 7
ly installed child restra ints . Please be sure to
read the important informat ion and warnings
whenever using a child restra int in a vehicle:
Safety belts ¢
page 128, Airbag system
c>page 137, Chi ld safety c> page 163.
The side airbag sy stem basically consi st s of:
- t he electro nic cont ro l modu le and external
side impact sensors
- t he two a irbags located in the s ides of the
front backrests and the two a irbags* loc ated
in the rear backrest
- t he airbag warning light in the ins trumen t
cl uste r.
T he airbag system is mon itored e lec tronically
to make ce rtain that it is f unction ing p roperly
at all times. Each time you sw itch o n the igni
tion, the airbag system ind icator light will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics) .
T he side airbag system supplements the safe
t y bel ts a nd can help to red uce the risk of in
j u ry to the dr iver's, fron t and re ar passenger's
u pper torso on the side of the veh icle t hat is
str uck in a side collision . The airbag dep loys
only in side impacts and only when the vehicle
acce lerat ion reg istered by the control unit is
high enough. If this rate is below the refer
ence value programmed into the co ntrol unit,
the side airbags w ill not be triggered, even
though the car may be bad ly damaged as a re
su lt of the co llision .
It is not possib le to de
fine an airbag triggering range that will cover every possib le ang le of impact, s ince the cir
cumstances will vary considerably be tween
one collisio n and another . Important factors
include, for example , the nature (hard or soft)
of the impacting objec t, the angle of impact,
vehicle speed, etc .
¢ page 159, Impor tan t
safety instructions on the side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety function, safe
ty belts work to help keep the driver or front passenger in position in the event of a side
collision so that the side airbags can provide protection .
The airbag system is
no t a substitute for your
safety belt. Ra ther, it is part of the overall oc-
cupant restra int system in your vehicle .
IIJJ,
Page 160 of 294

158 Airbag system
A lways remember that the side airbag system
can only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wear ing it properly. This
is another reason w hy you should always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re
qu ires you to do so
Q page 128, General
notes.
It is important to remember that while the
supplemental side a irbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of serious injur ies,
other inju ries, fo r example, swell ing, b ruising,
frictio n burns and mi nor abrasions can also be
associa ted with deployed side airbags. Re
member too, side air bags will deploy only
once and only in certain k inds of accidents -
your safety be lts are always there to offer pro
tection .
Vehicle damage, repa ir costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage are not necessar ily an indi
cation of over-sensitive or failed airbag activa
tion. In some co llisions, both front and side
a irbags may inflate. Remember too, that air
bags will dep loy only once and only in certain
kinds of collisions -your safety belts are al
ways there to offer protection in those acci
dents in wh ic h air bags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have already deployed.
The side airbag syst em will not deploy:
- when the ign ition is switched off
- in s ide collisions when the acceleration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end col lisions
- in rear -end collisions
- in ro llovers.
In some types of acc idents the front airbags,
side curta in a irbags and side airbags may be
tr iggered together.
.&_ WARNING
- Sa fety belts and t he ai rbag sys tem w ill
only prov ide p rotec tion when occ upants
are in t he proper seating posit ion
Qpage 159.
- If the airbag indicator light comes on
when the vehicle is being used, have the
-
system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer. The airbag may
not work proper ly when the vehicle ac
celeration in a side coll is ion is high
enough to activate the a irbag.
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu
pants who are properly restrained .
Fig. 148 In flated side airbags on left s ide of vehicle,
r ear side a irbag
When the system is triggered, the airbag is
filled with propellant gas and breaks through
a seam in the seat su rface area marked "AIR
BAG". It expands between the side trim panel
and the passenger. In order to help provide
t hi s addit ional protect ion, the side airbag
mus t inflate with in a fra ction of a second a t
very h igh speed and with great force. The sup
pleme nta l side airbag could injure you if your
seat ing position is not proper or up right or if
items are located in the area where the sup
plementa l side airbag expands. This applies
especially to children
Q page 163, Child Safe
ty .
Supplemental side airbags inflate between
the occupant and the door panel on the s ide
of the veh icle that is str uck in certa in side col
li sion
9 fig. 148 .
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduc e the risk of inju ry to the upp er
part of the body.
A fine dust may deve lop when the airbag de
ploys . This is normal and does not mean there
is a fi re in th e vehicle.