2012 AUDI Q7 rear door

166 Driving Safel y
Stowing luggage
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be prop­ erly stowed and secured in the luggage com ­
partment.
Fig . 184 Safe load pos ition ing: place heavy objects as
low and as far forward as possible.
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift suddenly, changing vehicle handling
characterist ics . Loose items can also increase
the r isk of serious personal injury in a sudden
vehicle maneuver or in a collision .
,. Distribute the load evenly in the luggage
compartment .
,. Always place and properly secure heavy
items in the luggage compartment as low
and as far forward as poss ible
¢fig. 184.
,. Secure luggage using the tie-downs provid­
ed
¢ page 80.
,. Make sure that the rear seatback is securely
latched in place .
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items
can fly through the vehicle caus ing serious
personal inj ury in the event of hard brak­
ing or an acc ident. To help reduce the r isk
of serious persona l injury:
- Always put objects, for example, luggage
or other heavy items in the luggage com­
partment.
- Always secu re objects in the luggage
compartment us ing the tie-down eye lets
and suitable straps.
A WARNING
-Heavy loads wi ll influence the way your ve-
h icle ha ndles. To help reduce the risk of a
loss of control leading to serious personal
i njury:
-Always keep in mind when transporting
heavy objects, that a change in the cen­
ter of gravity can also cause changes in
veh icle handling:
- Always distribute the load as evenly as
poss ible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in
the luggage compartment as possible.
- Never exceed the Gross Axle We ight Rat­
ing or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
specif ied on the safety compliance stick­
er on the left door jamb. Exceed ing per­
miss ible weight standards can cause the
veh icle to slide and handle differen tly.
- Please observe information on safe dr iv­
ing
¢page 160.
A WARNING
-
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas
from being drawn into the vehicle, a lways
keep the rear lid closed while driving.
- Never transport objects larger than those fitting comp letely into the luggage
area because the rear lid cannot be ful ly
closed.
- If you absolutely m ust dr ive wi th the rear
lid open, observe the following notes to
red uce the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the Panoramic sliding sunroof *,
- Open all air outlets in the instrument pane l,
- Switc h off the air recirculat ion,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest
speed.
A WARNING
Always make sure that the doors, all win­
dows, the Panoramic sliding sunroof * and
the rear lid are securely closed and locked
-

forces on the body more "tolerable" and less likely to cause injury.
Although these examples are based on a fron­
tal collision , safety belts can also substantial­
ly reduce the risk of injury in other kinds of
crashes. So, whether you're on a long trip or
just going to the corner store, always buckle
up and make sure others do, too. Accident sta­
tistics show that vehicle occupants properly
wearing safety belts have a lower risk of being
injured and a much better chance of surviving
an accident . Properly using safety belts also
greatly increases the ability of the supplemen­
tal airbags to do their job in a collision. For
this reason, wearing a safety belt is legally re­
quired in most countries including much of
the United States and Canada.
Although your Audi is equipped with airbags ,
you still have to wear the safety belts provid­
ed. Front airbags, for example, are activated
only in some frontal collisions. The front air­
bags are not activated in all frontal collisions,
in side and rear collisions, in roll overs or in
cases where there is not enough deceleration
through impact to the front of the vehicle .
The same goes for the other airbag systems in
your Audi. So, always wear your safety belt
and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained!
Important safety instructions about
safety belts
Safety belts must always be correctly posi­
tioned across the strongest bones of your
body.
.,. Always wear safety belts as illustrated and
described in this chapter.
.,. Make sure that your safety belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them
improperly increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death. Safety belts can
work only when used correctly .
Safety belts 173
-Always fasten your safety belts correctly
before driving off and make sure all pas­
sengers are correctly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned properly on
the body .
- Never strap more than one person, in­ cluding small children, into any belt .
- Never place a safety belt over a child sit­
ting on your lap.
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front
of the seat while the vehicle is being driv­
en.
- Never let any person ride with their feet
on the instrument panel or sticking out
the window or on the seat.
- Never remove a safety belt while the ve­ hicle is moving. Doing so will increase
your risk of being injured or killed .
- Never wear belts twisted.
- Never wear belts over rigid or breakable
objects in or on your clothing, such as
eye glasses, pens, keys, etc., as these
may cause injury.
- Never allow safety belts to become dam­ aged by being caught in door or seat
hardware .
- Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt
under your arm or otherwise out of posi­
tion .
- Several layers of heavy clothing may in­
terfere with correct positioning of belts
and reduce the overall effectiveness of
the system .
- Always keep belt buckles free of anything
that may prevent the buckle from latch­
ing securely .
- Never use comfort clips or devices that
create slack in the shoulder belt. Howev­
er, special clips may be required for the
proper use of some child restraint sys­
tems .
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt hardware can break in an
accident. Inspect belts regularly. If web-
bing, bindings, buckles, or retractors are .,..
L,_ _______________ _J
•
•

182 Airbag sys tem
as def ined in the electronic control unit
Q page 190, PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light.
A lways remember, a ch ild safety seat or infant
carrier insta lled on the front sea t may be
struck and knocked o ut o f position by the rap ­
id ly inflating passeng er's airbag in a frontal
coll is ion . T he airbag cou ld greatly reduce the
effec tiveness of the child restraint and even
serious ly injure the child during inflat ion.
F or this reason, and because the back seat is
the safest p lace for children - when properly
restra ined acco rd ing to their age and si ze - we
s trongly recommend that children always sit
in the back seat
Q page 200, Child Safety .
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety
s e at insta lled on the front passenger seat
w ill be seriously injured and can be k illed if
t he fr ont a irbag inflates - even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- T he i nflating a irbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier wit h great
f orce and w ill smash the ch ild safety sea t
and child against the backrest , center
armrest, door or roof.
- Always insta ll rear -facing child sa fety
seats on the rear seat.
- If you mus t install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circ umstan­
ces and the
PASSENG ER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on , im­
med iately install the rea r-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
hav e the a irbag system inspected by you r
authori zed Aud i dealer.
- Forward-fac ing ch ild safety seats instal­
led on the front passenger's seat may i n­
terfere wi th the deployment of the air­
b ag and cau se serious person al injury to
the ch ild .
A WARNING
If, in exceptional c ircumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restra int 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 s ide a irbag .
- Never put the forward-facing child re­
straint up against or very near the instru­ ment panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost pos ition in the seat's fore a nd
aft ad justment range, as fa r away from
the airbag as possible b efore installing
the forwa rd-fa cing ch ild restra int. The
b ackrest mus t be a djusted to a n up right
position.
- Make s ure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays o n all the
t ime wheneve r the ignition is switched
on.
A WARNING -ra----
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will be displayed whenever a child re­
straint is installed on the front passenger
seat and the ignition is sw itched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not stay on, perform the checks de­
scribed
Q page 190, Monitoring the Ad­
vanced Airbag System .
-Take t he chi ld restraint off the front pas­
senger seat and install it prope rly at one
of the rear seat positions if t he
PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi deal er immed iate­
ly .
- Always carefu lly follow instr uctions from
chi ld restraint manufacture rs when in­
st all ing c hild restra ints .
A WARNING
If, in exce ptiona l circumstances, you m ust
i nsta ll a forward or rearw ard-fa cing child
r estra int on the front passenger's seat :
- Imp roper ins tallation o f child restra ints
can reduce their effec tiveness or even

-when the weight on the front passenger
seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem indicates that the front airbag on the
passenger side has to be turned off by the
electronic control unit (the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on)
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase
the risk of serious injury in crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the air­
bags 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 posi­
tion or too close to the airbag can be se­
riously injured by an airbag as it unfolds
with great force in the blink of an eye
c> page 181.
A 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 Ad­
vanced 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 circumstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
mediately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer .
Airbag system 189
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will
increase the risk of injury in a crash by in­
terfering 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 air­
bags during braking or other sudden ma­
neuvers and become dangerous projec­
tiles that can cause serious personal in­
jury if the airbags inflate.
- Never place or attach accessories or oth­
er objects (such as cupholders, tele­
phone brackets, large, heavy or bulky ob­
jects) on the doors, over or near the area marked "AIRBAG" on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat backrests or be­
tween those areas and yourself . These
objects could cause injury in a crash, es­
pecially 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 airbag during braking or in a sudden maneuver. Objects near the air­
bags can become projectiles and cause
injury, particularly when the seat is re­
clined.
- Never tilt the front passenger seat back­
rest forward when the vehicle is moving.
An inflating airbag will force the back­
rest backward and can injure rear seat oc­
cupants.
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing problems for people
with a history of asthma or other breath­ ing conditions.
-
- To reduce the risk of breathing problems,
those with asthma or other respiratory
.___ c_ o_ n_ d_ it_ i_o _ ns_ sh_o_ u_ l_ d _:g:_ e_ t _f_re _s_ h_ a_ i_r _ri ..:::g :....h _t __
_J ~
•
•

-a car bed has been insta lled on the front
seat, or
- a rearward-facing chi ld restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward -facing child restraint has been in­
sta lled on the front passenge r seat, or
- the weight registered on the front passen­
ger seat is equa l to or less than the com­
bined weight of a typical 1 year -old restrain­
ed in one of the rear-fac ing or forward-fac­
ing infant restraints listed in Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 w ith which the
Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle was
certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
P A S­
S ENGER AIR BA G OF F
light w ill stay on. Nev­
er install a rearward -fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any ki nd of child restraint is at one
of the seating positions on the rear seat
~ page 181, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
~ page 200, Child Safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light c om es
o n
when one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OF F
light stays on continuous ly whenever the
ignition is on. If the
PA SSE NGER AIR BAG
OFF
light 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 and then turning it on again;
- remove and reinstall the chi ld restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety belt for the
front passenger seat has been correctly routed throug h the child restraint as descri­
bed in the chi ld restraint manufactu rer's in­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea­
tu re on the safety be lt fo r the front passen­
ger seat has been activated and that the sa fety belt has been pulled tight. The bel t
mus t not be loose o r have loops of slack so
A irbag system 19 1
that the sensor below the sa fety be lt latch
on the seat can do its job
~ page 209.
- make sure that things that may increase the
weight of the child and chi ld safety seat are
not being transported on the front passen­
ger seat;
- make sure t hat the safety belt tension sen­
sor is not blocked. Shake the safety belt
latch on the front passenger seatback and
forth;
- If a strap or tether is be ing used to tie the
child safety seat to the front passenger
seat, make sure that it is not so tight that it
causes the weight -se nsing mat to measure
more weight than is actually on the seat .
If the P ASS ENGER AIR B AG OFF light still
do es not come on
and does not stay on con­
tinuously (whe n the ignition is switched 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 your authorized Aud i dealer
immed iate ly.
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure t hat the ch ild is properly restra in­
ed in a ch ild restra int that is appropriate for
its size and age.
The
PAS SENG ER A IR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when the ignit ion is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
t h e front passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on o r
flashes fo r about 5 seconds wh ile d riving, un ­
der these c ircumstances, make sure that :
- the adult on t he front passenge r seat is
prope rly seated on the cente r of the seat
cushion with his o r he r back up ag ainst the
backrest and the backrest is not reclined
~ page 161, Proper occupant seating posi­
tions,
- the adult 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 side airbags are located in the sides of the
fro nt seat backrests
~ fig. 200 and the rear
backrest* facing the doors. They are ident ified
by the word "AIRBAG".
Th e si de airbag syste m basicall y consis ts o f:
- the e lectronic control module and external
s ide impact senso rs
- the two side airbags located in the sides of
the front backrests
- two rear side airbags (as an ordered
option)
-the a irbag warning light in the instrument
cluster .
The airbag system is monitored electron ically
t o make certain that it is functioning properly
at all times . Each time you turn on the igni­
tion, the airbag system indicator l ight will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics) .
The s ide a irbag system supplements the safe­
ty belts and can help to reduce the risk of in­
jury to the dr iver's, front and rear* passeng­
er's uppe r torso on the side of the veh icle that
i s st ruck in a side collision . T he a irbag dep loys
only in s ide impac ts and on ly when the veh icle
acceleration registered by the control un it is
h igh eno ugh. If this rate is below the refer ­
ence value programmed into the control unit,
the side airbags will not be triggered, even
though the car may be badly damaged as a re­
sult of the collision. It is not possible to de­
fine an a irbag trigger ing range that will cover
every possible angle of impact, since the cir­
cumstances will vary conside rably between
one co llision and another. Important fac tors
include, for examp le, the nat ure (hard o r soft)
of the impac ting objec t, the ang le o f impact ,
vehicle speed, etc . ¢
page 196, Important
safety instructions on th e side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety function , safe­
ty belts work to he lp keep the driver or front
passenger in position i n the event of a side
coll is ion so that the side airbags can provide
protection.
The airbag system is
not a substitute for your
safety belt . Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your vehicle . Al­
ways remember that the side airbag system
A irbag system 195
can on ly help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety be lt and wearing it properly. This
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety be lts, not just because the law re­
quires you to do so¢
page 170, General
notes.
It i s important to remember that wh ile the
supplementa l side airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of ser ious injuries,
other injur ies, for example, swelling, bru is ing,
and mi nor ab rasions ca n also be assoc iated
with deployed side airbags . Remember too,
s ide a irbags w ill dep loy only once and only in
certain kinds of accidents - your safety belts are always there to offer protection.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack
of ve hicle damage are no t necessa rily a n in di­
cat ion o f ove r-sensitive or failed airbag a ctiva­
t ion . In some coll is ions, both front and side
airbags may inflate . Remember too, that air ­
bags will deploy only once and only in certain
k inds of co llisions -yo ur safety be lts are a l­
ways there to offer protection in those acc i­
den ts in which airbags are no t supposed to
deploy or when they have a lready deployed .
The side airbag system w ill n ot deploy:
- when the ignition is tu rned off
- in side co llisions when the acceleration
meas ured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end collisions
- in rea r-end col lisions
- in rollove rs .
In some types o f accidents the front airbags,
s ide curtain airbags and s ide a irbags may be
triggered together.
_A WARNING
- Safety belts and the airbag system wi ll
only provide protection w hen occupants
a re in the proper se ating posi tion
¢page 196.
- If the ai rbag ind icator light comes on
when t he vehicle is being used, have the
system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer . The airbag may
•
•

-Objects between you and the airbag can
increase the risk of injury in an accident
by interfering with the way the airbag
unfolds or by being pushed into you as
the airbag inflates .
- Never place or attach accessories or
other objects (such as cupholders, tele­
phone brackets, or even large, bulky
objects) on the doors, over or near the
area marked "AIRBAG" on the seat
backrests.
- Such objects and accessories can be­
come dangerous projectiles and cause
injury when the supplemental side air­
bag deploys .
- Never carry any objects or pets in the
deployment space between them and
the airbags or allow children or other
passengers to travel in this position .
- Always use the built -in coat hooks only
for lightweight clothing . Never leave any
heavy or sharp-edged objects in the
pockets that may interfere with side air­
bag dep loyment and can cause personal
injury in an accident.
- Always prevent the side airbags from be­
ing damaged by heavy objects knocking
against or hitting the sides of the seat­
backs.
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once.
If the airbag has been triggered,
the system must be replaced by an au­
thorized Audi dealership .
- Damage (cracks, deep scratches etc .) to
the original seat covers or to the seam in
the area of the side airbag module must
always be repaired immediately by an au­
thorized Audi dealer .
- If children are seated improperly, their
risk of injury increases in the case of an
accident ~ page 200, Child Safety .
- Never attempt to modify any compo­
nents of the airbag system in any way .
- In a side collision, side airbags will not
function properly if sensors cannot cor­ rectly measure increasing air pressure in ­
side the doors when air escapes through
Airbag system 197
larger, unclosed openings in the door
panel.
- Never drive with interior door trim pan­
els removed .
- Never drive when parts have been re­
moved from the inside door panel and
the open ings they leave have not been
properly closed.
- Never drive when loudspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been properly
closed.
- Always make certain that openings are
covered or filled if additional speakers
or other equipment is installed in the inside door panels.
- Always have work on the doors done by
an authorized Audi dealer or qualified
workshop.
Side curtain airbags
Description of side curtain airbags
The side curtain airbags can provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained oc ­
cupants .
Fig. 202 Side curta in a irbags, driver's s ide: locatio n
The side c urtain airbags are located on both
sides of the interior above the front and rear
side windows ~ fig. 202 . They ar e identified
by the word "AIRBAG" on the windshield
frame and the center roof pillar .
The side curtain airbag system supplements
the safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of injury for occupants' heads and upper
torso on the side of the vehicle that is struck
in a side collision. The side cur tain airbag ..,.

200 Child Saf ety
Child Safety
Important things to
know
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision.
The physical principles of what happens when
your ve hicle is in a crash app ly also to chi ldren
~ page 172, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts?.
But unlike adu lts and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not
fu lly deve loped . In many respects chi ldren are
at greater risk of serious injury in crashes than
ad ults.
Because children's bod ies are not fully deve l­
oped, they require restraint systems especial­
l y designed for their size, weight, and body
structure. Many co untries and all states of the
United States and provinces of Canada have
laws requ iring the use of approved ch ild re­
straint systems for infants and small ch ildren.
In a fronta l crash at a speed of 20 -35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-po und
(6 kg) infant w ill be more than 20 t imes the
weight of the child. This means the weight of
the child would suddenly be more t han
260 pounds ( 120 kg). Unde r these conditions,
only an appropria te ch ild restrai nt properly
used c an reduce the risk of ser ious inju ry.
Chi ld restra ints, like adult safety belts, mus t
be used properly to be effective . Used improp­
e rly, they can increase the risk of serious in ­
jury in an acc ident.
Consul t the child safety seat manufactu re r's
instr uctions in order to be sure the seat is
right fo r you r ch ild's size ~
page 203, Impor­
tant safety instructions for using child safety
seats.
Please be sure to read and heed all of
the important informat ion and WARNINGS
about ch ild safety, Advanced A irbags, and the
i nstallation of child r estraints in this chapter .
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced A irbags in your vehicle and how they
wo rk whe n infants and children i n child re- stra
ints are on the front passenger seat . Be­
ca use of the large amount of impo rtant infor­
mation, we cannot repeat it a ll here . We urge
you to read the detai led information in t his
owner 's ma nual about airbags and the Ad­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the
very importa nt information about transport­
ing ch ildr en on the fro nt passenge r seat.
Please be su re to heed the WAR NINGS -they
are extremely import ant for yo ur safe ty and
the safety o f your passenge rs, especially in­
f ants and small children .
A WARNING
-Accident statistics have shown that chil­
dren are generally sa fer in the rear seat
area than in the front seating position.
Always restrain any child age 12 and un­
de r in the rear.
- All vehicle occupants and especially chil­
d ren must be restrai ned properly when­
eve r riding in a vehicle. An unrest rained
or improp erly restrained chi ld co uld be
in jur ed by str iking the i nterior o r by be­
i n g ejected from the vehicle dur ing a
sud den maneuve r o r i mpac t. An un re­
s traine d or improperly restrained ch ild is
also at greater risk of injury o r death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- A suitable c hild restrai nt properly instal ­
led and used at one of the rear seat ing
positions prov ides the highest degree of
protection for infants and small children
in most accident situations.
A WARNING ,_
Children on the front seat of any car even
wi th Advanced Airbags can be ser iously in­
j u red or even kil led when an airbag in­
flates. A chi ld in a rearwa rd-fac ing c hild
safety seat in sta lled on t he fro nt passen­
ger sea t will be ser iously injure d and ca n
b e killed if t he front airbag inflates .
- T he infla ting air bag will h it the chi ld
safety sea t or infan t carrie r wi th great
force and wi ll smash the child safe ty seat
an d chi ld aga inst the bac krest, center
armrest, or door.
II>-