2012 AUDI A7 ESP

118 Driving Safel y
Driving Safely
General notes
Safe driving habits
Please remember -safety first!
This chapter contains important information,
tips, instructions and warnings that you need
to read and observe for your own safety, the
safety of your passengers and others . We have
summarized here what you need to know
about safety belts, a irbags, ch ild restra ints as
well as child safety. Your safety is for us
priori­
ty number 1.
Always observe the info rmat ion
and warn ings in th is sect ion -fo r yo ur own
safety as well as that of your passengers .
The information in this se ction app lies to all
model ve rsions of your veh icle . Some of the
feat ures desc ribed in this sec tions may be
standard equipment on some models, or may
be optional equipment on others . If you are
not sure, ask your authorized Aud i dealer.
A WARNING
- Always make sure that you follow the in­
struct ions and heed the WARNINGS in
this Manual. It is in your interest and in
the inte rest of you r passengers.
- Always keep the complete Owner's Liter­
ature in your Audi when you lend or sell
yo ur vehicle so that this important info r­
mation will always be ava ilable to the
dr iver and passengers.
- Always keep the Owner's literature handy
so that you can find i t eas ily if you have
ques tions.
Safety equipment
The safety features are part of the occupant
restraint system and work together to help
redu ce the risk of injury in a wide variety of
accident situations.
Your safety and the safety of your passenge rs
should not be left to chance. Advances in
technology have made a varie ty o f fea tures
avai la bl e to he lp re duce the risk of inj ury in an accident
. The following is a list of just a few of
the safety features in your Audi:
- sophis tic ated s afety be lts for d rive r and a ll
passenger sea ting pos it ions,
- s afety belt prete nsio ners ,
- safety belt force lim ite rs fo r the front seats,
- safety belt he ight ad justment systems for
the front seats ,
- front airbags,
- knee airbags for the front seats *
- side airbags in the front seats a nd outer rear
seats*,
- side c urtai n airbags ,
- specia l LATCH anchorages for child re-
straints,
- he ad restr aints for each sea ting pos ition,
- ad justab le s teer ing colum n.
These ind iv idual safety features, can work to­
ge ther as a system to help protect you and
you r passengers in a wide range of accidents .
T hese features canno t wo rk as a system if
they are not always cor re ct ly adjusted and co r­
rect ly used.
Safety is ev erybody' s responsibility!
Important things to do before driving
Safety is everybody 's job! Vehicle and occu ­
pant safety always depends on the informed and careful driver .
For your safety and the safety of your passen ­
gers,
befor e driv ing always:
.. Make s ure that all lig hts and signa ls are op­
erating correctly.
.. Make sure that the tire pressure is correct .
.. Mak e sur e that all windows are clean and
afford good v is ibility to the outside .
.. Se cu re a ll luggage a nd o ther items carefu lly
q page 59, ¢ page 56 .
.. Ma ke s ure that noth ing can interfere wi th
the peda ls .
.. Adjust front seat, head restraint and mir ­
rors correctly for your height.
.. Instruct passengers to adjust the head re-
straints according to the ir height . .,..

.. Make sure to use the right child restraint
correct ly to protect children
Q page 163,
Child Safety.
.. Sit properly in your seat and make sure that
your passengers do the same¢
page SO,
General recommendations .
.. Faste n your safety belt and wear it properly.
Also instruct your passengers to fasten their
safety belts properly ¢
page 128.
What impairs driving safety?
Safe driving is directly related to the condi­
tion of the vehicle, the driver as well as the
driver 's ability to concentrate on the road
without being distracted.
The driver is respons ible for the safety of the
veh icle and all of its occupants.
If your ability
to drive is impai red, safety r isks for everybody
in the vehicle increase and you also become a
hazard to everyone else on the road ¢ _&. .
Therefore:
.. Do not let yourself be dist racted by passen­
gers or by using a cellular telephone.
.. NEVER drive when your driving ability is im ­
paired (by medications, alcohol, drugs, etc.).
.. Observe all traffic laws, rules of the road
and speed limits and plain common sense .
.. ALWAYS adjust your speed to road, traffic
and weather conditions .
.,. Take frequent breaks on long trips . Do not
drive for more than two hours at a stretch.
.. Do NOT drive when you are tired, under
pressure or when you are stressed.
A WARNING
Impaired driving safety increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death when­
ever a vehicle is being used.
Driving Safely 119
Proper occupant
seating positions
Proper seating position for the driver
The proper driver seating position is impor­
tant for safe, relaxed driving .
Fig. 128 Correct seat ing pos it ion
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of
injury in the event of an accident, we recom­
mend that you adjust the driver's seat to the
follow ing pos ition:
.. Adjust the driver's seat so that you can easi­
ly push the pedals all the way to the floor
wh ile keeping your knee(s) slightly bent
¢ _&. .
.. Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is
in an upr ight position so that your back
comes in full contact w ith it when you drive.
.. Adjust the steering wheel so that there is a
distance of at least 10 inches (25 cm) be­
tween the steering wheel and yo ur breast
bone
Q fig. 128. If not possible, see your au ­
thorized Audi dealership about adaptive
equipment .
.. Adjust the steer ing wheel so that the steer­
ing wheel and airbag cover points at your
chest and not at your face.
.,. Grasp the top of the steering whee l with
your elbow(s) slightly bent.
.. Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge
is as even as possible with the top of your
head. If that is not poss ible, try to adjust
the head restraint so that it is as close to
this position as possible .
.. Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
¢page 131.

122 Driving Safel y
Proper adjustment of head restraints
Correctly adjusted head restraints are an im­
portant part of your vehicle's occupant re­
straint system and can help to reduce the risk
of injuries in accident situations.
Fig . 129 H ead restr ain t: vi ewed fro m the front
The head restraints must be correctly adjust­
ed to achieve the best protection.
11> For adjustable head restraints: adjust the
head restraint so the upper edge is as even
as possible with the top of your head. If that
is not possible, try to adjust the head re­
stra int so that it is as close to th is position
as possible¢
fig. 129.
Adjusting head restraints ¢ page 52.
A WARNING
-
Driving without head restraints or with
head restra ints that are not properly ad­
justed increases the risk of serious or fatal
neck injury dramatically . To help reduce
the risk of inju ry:
- Always drive with the head restraints in
place and properly adjusted .
- Every person in the vehicle must have a
properly adjusted head restra int .
- Always make sure each person in the ve­
hicle properly adjusts the ir head re­
straint. Adjust the head restraint so the
upper edge is as even as possible with
the top of your head .
If that is not possi­
ble, try to adjust the head restra int so
that it is as close to this position as pos­
sible.
- Never attempt to adjust head restraint
whi le driving . If you have driven off and m
ust adjust the driver headrest for any
reason, first stop the vehicle safely be­
fore attempting to adjust the head re­ straint .
- Ch ildren must always be properly re­
strained in a child restraint that is appro­
priate for their age and size ¢
page 163.
Examples of improper seating positions
The occupant restraint system can only re ­
duce the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are
properly seated .
Improper seating positions can cause serious
injury or death. Safety bel ts can only work
when they are properly posi tioned on the
body. Improper seating positions reduce the
effectiveness of safety belts and wi ll even in­
crease the r isk of injury and death by moving
the safety be lt to cr it ica l areas o f the body.
Improper seating positions also in cr ea se the
risk of serio us inju ry and death when an a ir ­
bag deploys and stri kes an occupant who is
not in the proper seating position . A dr iver is
responsible for the safety of all veh icle occu­
pan ts and espec ially for children. Therefore :
i,.. Never allow anyone to assume an incorrect
seating position when the vehicle is being
used ¢,& .
T he following bulletins list on ly some samp le
positions that will increase the risk of serious
injury and death. Our hope is that these exam­
ples will make you more aware of seat ing po­
s itions that are dangerous.
Th erefore, whenever the vehicle is
mo ving:
- never stand up in the vehicle
- neve r stand on the seats
- neve r kneel on the seats
- never ride with the sea tback re clined
- neve r lie down on the rear seat
- never lean up against the instrument panel
- never s it on the edge of the seat
- never s it sideways
- never lean out the window

A WARNING ,~
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas
from being drawn into the vehicle, always
keep the rear lid closed while driving .
- Never transport objects larger than
those fitting completely into the luggage
area because the rear lid cannot be fully
closed.
- If you absolutely must drive with the rear
lid open, observe the following notes to
reduce the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the power roof*,
- Open all air outlets in the instrument
panel,
- Switch off the air recirculation,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest
speed.
A WARNING
Always make sure that the doors, all win­ dows, the power roof* and the rear lid are
securely closed and locked to reduce the
risk of injury when the vehicle is not being
used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make
sure that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your vehicle unattended es­
pecially with the rear lid left open. A
child could crawl into the vehicle through
the luggage compartment and close the
rear lid becoming trapped and unable to
get out. Being trapped in a vehicle can
lead to serious personal injury.
- Never let children play in or around the
vehicle .
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compartment. Vehicle occupants must
always be properly restrained in one of
the vehicle's seating positions.
Gj) Tips
-Air circulation helps to reduce window fogging. Stale air escapes to the outside
through vents in the trim panel. Be sure
to keep these slots free and open .
-
Driving Safely 125
-The tire pressure must correspond to the
load. The tire pressure is shown on the
tire pressure label. The tire pressure la­
bel is located on the driver's side B-pillar.
The tire pressure label lists the recom­
mended cold tire inflation pressures for
the vehicle at its maximum capacity
weight and the tires that were on your
vehicle at the time it was manufactured. For recommended tire pressures for nor­
mal load conditions, please see chapter
r:!)page235.
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with
four tie-downs to secure luggage and other
items.
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo prop­
erly<>
page 124, Loading the luggage com­
partment.
In a collision, the laws of physics mean that
even smaller items that are loose in the vehi­
cle will become heavy missiles that can cause
serious injury. Items in the vehicle possess en­
ergy which vary with vehicle speed and the
weight of the item. Vehicle speed is the most
significant factor.
For example , in a frontal collision at a speed
of 30 mph (48 km/h), the forces acting on a 10-lb (4.5 kg) object are about 20 times the
normal weight of the item. This means that
the weight of the item would suddenly be about 200 lbs. (90 kg) . You can imagine the
injuries that a 200 lbs . (90 kg) item flying
freely through the passenger compartment
could cause in a collision like this.
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used
to secure items to tie-downs can fail dur­
ing hard braking or in a collision and cause
serious personal injury.
-Always use suitable mounting straps and properly secure items to the tie-downs in
'
•
•

13 2 Safet y belt s
To provide maximum protection, sa fety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer 's body .
.,. Adjust the front seat and head restra int
properly ¢
page 50, General recommenda­
t ions .
.,. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in an upright pos ition and securely
latched in place before using the belt¢,&.
.,. Hold the be lt by the tongue and pull it
evenly across the chest and pelvis ¢ ,& .
.,. Inse rt the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hea r it latc h securely
¢ fig. 136.
.,. Pu ll on the be lt to make sure that it is se-
curely latched in the buckle.
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped w ith an automat­
i c belt retractor on the shoulder be lt. This fea­
ture locks the be lt whe n the belt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and i n an accident.
The belt may also lock when you drive up or
down a steep hill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv ing the belt lets you move
freely.
Safety belt preten sione rs
The safety belts are equipped with a be lt pre­
tensioner that helps to tighten the safety belt
and remove s lack when the pretensioner is ac ­
tivated
¢ page 135. The function of the pre­
tensioner is moni tored by a warning light
¢ page 17.
Sw itchabl e locking fe atur e
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is eq uipped w ith a switchable locking fea ­
ture that
m ust be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the important information about this feature
¢ page 174 .
.,& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious injury in an accident
¢ page 132, Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection
only when the seatback is upright and
belts are properly posit ioned on the
body .
- Always make sure that the rear seat
backrest to which the center rear safety
belt* is attached is securely latched
wheneve r the rea r center safety belt is
being used.
If the backrest is not secu re­
ly latched, the passenger will move for­
ward with the back rest dur ing sudden
brak ing, in a sudden maneuver and espe­
cially in a crash.
- Never at tach the safety bel t to the buck­
le for another seat. Attaching the belt to
the wrong buckle will reduce safety be lt
effectiveness and can cause serious per­
sonal injury .
- A passenger who is not proper ly restrain­
ed can be seriously injured by the safety belt itself when it moves from the stron­
ger parts of the body into cr itical areas
like the abdomen .
- Always lock the convertible locking re­
tractor when you are securing a child seat in the veh icle ¢
page 176.
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretension­
ers, refer to¢
page 135.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting
maximum protection from safety belts.
F ig. 137 Head restra int an d safety be lt pos it io n as
see n from the s id e

134 Safety belts
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehi­
cle is moving. Doing so will increase your
risk of being injured or killed.
Adjusting safety belt height
-
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust­
ment, the three point safety belt strap rout­
ing can be fitted to the shoulder area, accord­
ing to body size.
Fig. 140 Safety belt height adjustment for the front
seats - loop -around fittings
.. Push the loop-around fittings up ¢ fig. 140
@ , or
.. squeeze together the(!) button, and push
the loop-around fittings down @.
.. Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at­
tachment is properly engaged.
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
¢page 131.
(D Tips
-The shoulder belt part should route ap­
proximately over the middle of your
shoulder -
under no circumstances
should it route over your neck and
throat area
¢ .&. in Safety belt position
on page 133.
- With the front seats, the height adjust­
ment of the seat can also be used to ad­
just the position of the safety belts.
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause
severe injuries .
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause se­
rious injury or death. Safety belts can only
work when they are correctly positioned on
the body . Improper seating positions reduce
the effectiveness of safety belts and will even
increase the risk of injury and death by mov­
ing the safety belt to critical areas of the
body. Improper seating positions also in­
crease the risk of serious injury and death
when an airbag deploys and strikes an occu­
pant who is not in the correct seating posi­
t ion . A driver is respons ible for the safety of
all vehicle occupants and especially for chil­
dren . Therefore:
.. Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect
sitting position in the vehicle while traveling
¢&_ .
A WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- Always make sure that all vehicle occu­
pants are correctly restrained and stay in
a correct seating position whenever the
vehicle is being used .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
¢page 131.

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 al­
ways properly wear their safety belts and be
in a proper seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers, before driving off, always:
"" Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly ¢
page 119,
"" Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
¢page 51,
"" Wear safety be lts properly ¢ page 131,
"" Always properly use the proper child re-
straint to protect chi ldren ¢
page 163.
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 . Th erefore in order to help the
a ir bag to do its job, it is important, both as a
driver and as a passenger to s it properly at all
times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steer ing wheel and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
comp letely and provide supplemental protec­
tion in certain frontal collisions ¢
page 119,
Proper occupant seating positions.
F or details
on the operation of the seat adjustment con­
trols
¢ page 51.
It's especially important that children a re
properly restrained ¢
page 163.
There is a lot that the driver and the passen­
gers can and must do to help the individual
safety features installed in your Aud i work to­
gether as a system.
Proper seating pos ition is important so that
the front airbag on the driver side can do its
job. If yo u have a physical impa irment or con-
Airbag system 137
dition that prevents you from sitting properly
on the driver seat with the safety belt properly
fastened and reach ing the peda ls, or if you
have concerns with regard to the function or
operation of the Advanced Airbag System,
please contact your author ized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop, or call Audi Customer
CARE at 1-800-822-2834 for possible modifi­
cations to your vehicle .
When the airbag system dep loys, a gas gener ­
ator will fill the a irbags, break open the pad­
ded covers, and inflate between the steer ing
whee l and the driver and between the instru­
ment pane l and the front passenger. The air­
bags will deflate immediately after deploy­
ment so that the front occupants can see
through the windshield again without inter­ ruption .
All of th is takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the airbags have deployed. The airbags a lso
inflate with a great dea l of force and nothing
should be in their way when they deploy.
Front airbags in combination with properly
worn safety belts slow down and lim it the oc­
cupant's forward movement . T ogether they
help to prevent the driver and front seat pas­
senger 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 fronta l
collisions . The triggering of the airbag system
depends on the vehicle dece leration rate
caused by the collision and registered by the
electron ic control unit. If th is rate is below
the reference value programmed into the con ­
trol unit, the airbags will not be trigge red,
even though the car may be bad ly damaged as
a result of the collision . Ve hicl e damage, re­
pair costs or even the lack of veh icle damage
is not necessarily an indication of whether an
airbag should inflate or not . .,. •
•

Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.. Be sure to read the important information
and heed the WARNINGS for important de­
tails about chi ldren and Advanced Airbags
c> page 163.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag System, make certain that
a ll chi ldren, especially those 12 years and
younger, always ride in the back seat properly restrained for their age and size. The airbag
on the passenger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to r ide .
The front seat is not the safest place fo r a
chi ld in a fo rward-facing chi ld seat. It can be a
very dange ro us p lace for an infant or a ch ild in
a rearward -facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System i n your veh icle
has been cert ified to comp ly with the require­
men ts of United States Federa l Mo to r Veh icle
Safety Standard 208 as applicable at the time
your vehicle was manufactured.
The Standard requires the front a irbag on the
passenger side to be t urned off ("sup­
p ressed") if a chi ld up to about one year of
age restrained in one of the rear -facing or for­
ward -facing infant restraints listed i n Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with wh ich
the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
was certified has been installed o n the front
passenger seat. For a listing of the child re­
straints that were used to certify compliance
with the US Safety Sta ndard
c> page 165.
The PASS ENG ER AIR BAG OFF light in the in­
strument panel te lls you when the front Ad­
vanced A irbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the e lectronic control u nit.
Each t ime you sw itch on the ignit ion, the
PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light w ill come on for a
few seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if the electrical capacitance
measured by the capacitive passenger de­
tection system for the front passenge r seat
A irbag sys tem 139
equa ls the combined capacitance of an in­
fant up to about one year of age and one of the rearwa rd-facing or forward-facing ch ild
restraints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard 208 with which the Ad­
vanced Airbag System in your ve hicle was
cert ified. For a listing of the child restraints
that were used to certify your vehicle's com­ p lia nce w ith the U.S. Safety Standard
i=>page 165.
-w ill stay on if t he re is a small ch ild or child
restrai nt on the front passenge r seat,
- w ill go off if the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the ca­
pacitive passenger det ection sys tem
c> page 149, Monitoring the Advanced Air­
bag System.
T he PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht comes on
when e lec trica l capacitan ce registe red on the
front passenger seat is eq ua l to or less than
the combined capacitance of a typical 1 year ­
o ld infant and one of the rearward-facing or
forward -facing chi ld restraints listed in Feder­
al Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with
which the Advanced Airbag System in your ve­
hicle was certified.
If the total e lectr ica l capacitance registered
on the front passenger seat is more than that
of a typical 1 year-o ld child but less than the
weight of a small adu lt, the front airbag on
the passenger side can deploy (the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on).
If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on, the front airbag on the passen­
ger side has not been turned off by the e lec­
tron ic contro l unit and ca n deploy if the con­
t rol unit senses an impact that mee ts the co n­
di tions s to red in its memo ry.
For example, th e airbag may deploy if:
-a small ch ild that is heav ier than a typical 1
year-old chi ld is on the front passenger seat
(regard less of whether the child is i n one of
the ch ild seats listed
c> page 165), o r
- a child who has outgrown child restraints is
on the front passenge r seat. .,,. •
•