same kind of child restrain t offered by child
restraint manufacturers.
T he weight ranges for the ind iv idual types,
makes and models o f ch ild restra ints tha t the
NHTSA has specified in the Safety Standard
together with the weight ranges of typical in
fants and typical 1 year-o ld child have been
stored in the control unit of the Advanced A ir
bag System. When a child restraint is being
used on the front passenger seat with a typi
cal 1 year-old ch ild, the Advanced Airbag Sys
tem compares the we ight measured by the
weight sens ing mat with the info rmat ion s to r
ed i n the electron ic cont rol unit.
The electron ic control unit a lso registers the
tension on the front passenger safety be lt.
The te nsio n on the safety be lt fo r the front
p assenger seat will be d iffe ren t fo r 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 be lt
for the front seat passenger measures the
tension on the be lt. The input from this sen
sor is then used with the we ight to "decide",
whether there is a ch ild restrai nt with a typ ical
1 year-o ld child on the front passenge r seat
and whether or no t the airbag must be turned
off.
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regard less o f the child res traint that you use,
make sure that it has been ce rtified to meet
United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standards and has been certified by its manu-
facturer for use with an airbag. Always be sure
that the child restraint is properly insta lled at
one of the rea r seat ing pos itions .
If in excep-
tional c ircumstances you must use it on the
fr ont passenge r seat, caref ully read all of the
i n formation on c hild safety and Adv ance d Air-
b ags an d heed a ll of the app licable WAR N-
I NGS . Ma ke certai n that the child restraint is
correctly recognized by the weig ht-sensing
mat inside the front passenger seat, that the
fro nt passenger airbag is turned off and that
Child Sa fet y 163
the a irbag s tat us is always cor rect ly signaled
by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light .
Many types and models of child res traints
have been available over t he years, new mod
els are introduced regu larly incorporating new
and improved designs and o lde r models are
ta ken o ut of product ion . Ch ild restraints are
not standard ized. Child restraints of the same
type typically have d ifferent weights and sizes
and different 'footpr ints,' the size and shape
of the bottom of the ch ild restra int that sits
on the seat, when they a re insta lled on a vehi
cl e sea t. T hese d iffe rences make i t vir tually
i mpossible to certify compl iance wi th t he re
quiremen ts for advanced airbags with each
and every ch ild restraint that has eve r been
sold in the past or wi ll be sold over the course
of the useful life of your veh icle.
For t his reason, the United S tates Na tional
Hig hway T raffic Safety Administration has
published a list of specific type, makes and
models of child restraints that must be used
to certify comp liance of the Advanced Airbag
System in your veh icle with the suppression
requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208. These child res traints are:
Subpart A - Car bed child restraints
Model
Angel Guard A ngel
Ride AA2403FOF
Manufactured on or
after
September 25, 2007
Subpart B -Rear-facing child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Ce ntury SmartF it December 1, 1 999
4 54 3
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-013PAW and base
22-999W HO
Evenflo Discove ry Ad -December 1, 1999
just Right 212
Evenflo First Choice December
1, 1999
20 4
Graco Infant 8457 December 1, 1999
I
•
•
164 Child Saf ety
-Model Manufactured on or
a fter
Graco Snugride September 25, 2007
Peg Perego Primo V i- September 25, 2007
aggio SIP IMUN00US
Subpart C -Forward -facing and
con vertibl e child r estra in ts
Model Manufactured on or
after
Britax Roundabout September 25, 2007
E9L02xx
Cosco Touriva 02519 December 1, 1999
Cosco Summit Deluxe September 25, 2007
High Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back September 25, 2007
Booster 22-209
Evenflo Tribute V September 25, 2007
379xxxx
Evenflo Medallion December 1, 1999
254
Evenflo Generations September 25, 200 7
352xxxx
Graco ComfortSport September 25, 2007
Graco Toddler Safety September 25, 2007
Seat Step 2
Graco Platinum Cargo September 25, 2007
_&. WARNING
T o reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
child restraint is installed on the front pas
senger seat and the ignition is switched
on.
- Take the child restraint off the front pas senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN
G ER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Aud i dealer immediate
ly.
(!) Tips
The child seats listed in categories A to C have been statically tested by Audi on ly for
the Advanced A irbag function.
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 driver, you are responsib le for the safe
ty of everybody in the veh icle, especially ch il
dren:
... Always use the right chi ld safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
c::;,page 167 .
... Always carefully fo llow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instruct ions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child
safety seat.
... When using the veh icle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you m ust first activate
the convertib le locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
¢ page 171.
... 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 forwa rd or
sideways mo re than one inch (2.5 cm) .
... If a strap o r tether is be ing used to tie the
child safety seat to the front passenger
seat, make sure tha t it i s n ot so tight th at i t
causes the weight -sensing mat to measure
more weight than is act ually on the seat.
... Secure unused safety be lts on the rear seat
c::;, page 166 .
Always remember : Even tho ugh yo ur vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
chi ldren, especially those 12 years and young
er, shou ld always r ide in the back seat proper-
ly restrained for their age and size. .,.
Child safety seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old
and 20 lbs. or 9 kg need special rearward -fac
ing child restraints that support the back,
neck and head in a crash.
Fig . 159 Sche matic overv iew: rearward-fac ing infant
seat, properly installed o n the rear seat
~ When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a ch ild safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retracto r on the
safety be lt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
¢ page 171 or install the seat
using the LA T CH attachments.
~ 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).
~ Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 166.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs . or 9 kg)
are best protected in special infan t carriers
and child safety seats designed for their age
group . Many experts believe that infants and
small children should ride only in spec ial re
straints in which the ch ild faces the back of
the vehicle. These infant seats support the ba
by's back, neck and head in a crash
¢fig . 159.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a po tentially dangerous place for a
child to r ide . The front seat is not the safest
p lace for a child in a forward -facing child seat.
It is a very dangerous p lace for an infant or a
l arger ch ild in a rearward-facing seat.
Child Safety 16 7
A WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using t he
wrong child safety seat or improperly in
stall ing a ch ild restraint increases the risk
of ser ious personal injury and death in a
crash.
- Never install rearwa rd-facing child safety
seats or infant ca rr ie rs on the front pas
senger seat -even with an Advanced Air
bag Sys tem. A ch ild will be ser iously in
jured and ca n be killed when the inflat
ing airbag hits the child safety seat or in
fant carrier with great force and smashes the child safety seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or
roof ¢
page 141, Child restraints on the
front seat- some important things to
know .
-Always install rea rward -facing chi ld safe
ty seats or infant carriers on the rea r
seat .
- Never install a rea rward -facing ch ild re
straint in the forward-facing direction .
Such rest ra in ts are designed for the spe
cial needs of infants a nd ve ry sma ll chil
d ren and cannot pro te ct them p roperly if
the seat is forward -facing.
- If you must insta ll a rearwa rd fac ing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im
mediately insta ll t he rearward-facing
child safety seat in a rear seating posi
tion and have the airbag system inspect ed by your autho riz ed Audi dealer .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
wheneve r us ing a child restrained in ave
h icle is being used ¢
page 132, Safety
belts,
Q page 140, Airbag system and
¢ page 161, Impor tan t thi ngs to know .
168 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 . 160 Sche matic overv iew : ins tallat ion of t he at
t a chments appl icable to a LATCH seat
Fig. 161 Sche matic overview: in sta llat ion of t he sea t
us ing t he veh icle's safety be lt system
.. When using the vehicle safety be lt to install
a chi ld safety seat, you must f irst activate
the convertible locking feature on the safety
belt to prevent the child safety seat from
moving
c::> page 171 or insta ll the seat using
the LATCH attachments .
.. Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really t ight
so that the seat cannot move forward or s ideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
c::> page 171.
.. Secure unused safety bel ts on the rear sea t
~page 166.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in
fant restraint if i t is more than one year old
and weighs more than 20 lbs . (9 kg).
Toddle rs and ch ildren who are o lder than one
yea r up to about 4 years o ld and weigh more
than 20 lbs. (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must always be proper
ly restrained in a child safety
seat certified for the ir size and weight
~ fig. 160 and r:!) fig . 161 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentia lly dangerous place for a
c h ild to ride. The front seat is not the safest
place for a child in a forward-facing child safe
ty seat. It is a very dangerous place for an in
fant or a larger ch ild in a rearward-facing seat.
A WARNING c=
Not using a child safety seat, us ing the
wrong child safety seat or imprope rly in
stalling a ch ild restra int increases the risk
of ser ious personal in jury and death in a
collis ion or o ther emerge ncy sit uat ion.
- Ch ild ren on the front seat of any ca r,
even with Advan ced Airbags, can be seri
ously injured 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 seat will be serio usly injured
and can be killed if the front airbag in
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
-
-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 back rest, center
armrest, doo r or roof .
-Always install rearward-facing ch ild safe
ty seats on the rea r seat .
- If you must install a rearward fac ing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan
ces and the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come o n and stay on, im
mediately insta ll the rearward-facing
child safety seat in a rear seating posi
tion and have the airbag system inspect
ed by your authorized A udi dealer.
- The rear side of the child safety seat
should be pos itioned as close as possib le
to the backrest on the vehicle seat.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave-
h icle is being used
c::> page 132, Safety ll>-
belts,<:!) page 140, Airbag system and
i=> page 161, Important things to know.
A WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's safe
ty and well-being require that the follow ing special precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its manu
facturer 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 infant carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat in
to the rearmost position of the passen
ger seat's fore and aft adjustment range,
and as far away from the airbag as possi
ble before installing the child restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being
moved to the rearmost position in its
fore and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an
upright position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
- If the light does not stay on, perform the
checks
q page 151, Monitoring the Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- Take the child restraint off the front pas
senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
-
Child Safety 169
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs . and
80 lbs . (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall.
Fig. 162 Rear seat: c hild p roperly restrained in a boos
ter seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit
most children until they are at least 4 ft. 9 in .
(57 inches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about
80 lbs.
(36 kg). Booster seats raise these chil
dren up so that the safety belt will pass prop
erly over the stronger parts of their bodies and the safety belt can help protect them in a
crash.
.,. Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to re
strain a child on a booster seat.
.. The shoulder belt must lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as possible
and must lie flat and snug on the upper
body .
It must never lie across the throat or
neck . The lap belt must lie across the pelvis
and never across the stomach or abdomen .
Make sure the belt lies flat and snug. Pull on
the belt to tighten if necessary .
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
r:1;>page 166 .
Children up to about 40 lbs. (18 kg) are best
protected in child safety seats designed for
their age and weight. Experts say that the
skeletal structure, particularly the pelvis, of
these children is not fully developed, and they
must not use the vehicle safety belts without
a suitable child restraint.
172 Child Safety
child restraint on the front passenger's
seat in exceptional situations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-facing
child restraint is installed on the front
passenger 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
the checks described
<::) page 151, Moni
toring the Advanced Airbag System .
- Take the child restraint off the front pas
senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASS EN·
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- Improper installation of child restraints
can reduce their effectiveness or even
prevent them from providing any protec
tion.
- An improperly installed child restraint
can interfere with the airbag as it de
ploys and seriously injure or even kill the
child.
- Always carefully follow the manufactur
er's instructions provided with the child
safety seat or carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can
cause injury in a crash .
.&_ WARNING
Forward-facing child restraints:
- 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.
- 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 position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the forward-facing child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright
position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
.&_ WARNING ~
Rearward-facing child restraints:
- A child in a rearward-facing child safety
seat installed on the front passenger
seat will be seriously injured and can be killed if the front airbag inflates - even
with an Advanced Airbag System .
- The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
armrest, door or roof.
-Always be especially careful if you must
install a rearward facing child safety seat
on the front passenger seat in exception
al circumstances.
-A tight tether strap on a rearward-facing
child restraint attached to the front pas
senger seat can put too much pressure
on the weight-mat in the seat and regis
ter a heavier weight in the Advanced Air bag System. The heavier weight regis
tered can make the system work as
though an adult were on the seat and de
ploy the Advanced Airbag when it must
be suppressed causing serious or even
fatal injury to the child.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi
ately install the rearward-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer.
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se
cure a child restraint .
Always heed the child safety seat manufactur
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, prefera
bly on the rear seat.
.. Slowly pull the belt
all the way out.
.. Route it around or through the child re
straint belt path¢.&_ .
.. Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really tight.
.. Insert the belt tongue into the buckle for
that seating position .
.. Guide the sa fety belt back into the retractor
until the belt lies flat and snug on the child
safety seat .
.. You should hear a "clicking " noise as the
belt winds back into the inertia reel. Test the
convertible locking retractor by pulling on
the belt. You should no longer be able to
pull the belt out of the retractor. The con
v ertible locking retractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is fac
ing away from the child restraint so that it
can be unbuckled quickly .
"" Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt
is properly tight and fastened so that the
seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2.5 cm).
A WARNING
Using the wrong child restraint or an im
properly installed child restraint can cause
serious personal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re-
tractor is locked when installing a child 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 sitting in it.
-
Child Safety 173
A loose child safety seat can fly around
during a sudden stop or in a crash.
- Always make sure the seat backrest to
which the child restraint is installed is in
an upright position and securely latched
into place and cannot fold forward . Oth
erwise, the seatback with the child safety
seat attached to it could fly forward in
the event of an accident or other emer
gency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave
hicle is being used¢
page 161. Special
precautions apply when installing a child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 141, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know .
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
T he convertible locking retractor for child re
straints will be deactivated automatically
when the bel t is wound oil the way bock in to
the retractor .
.. Press the red button on the safety belt
buckle. The belt tongue will pop out of the
buckle .
.,. Guide the safety belt all the way back into
its stowed position .
Always let the sa fety belt retract completely
into its stowed position . The safety belt can
now be used as an ordinary safety belt with
out the convertible locking retractor for child
restraints.
If the convertible locking retractor should be
activated inadvertently, the safety belt must be unfastened and guided completely back in
to its stowed position to deactivate this fea
ture.
If the convertible locking retractor is not
deactivated , the safety belt will gradually be-
come tighter and uncomfortable to wear.
11>
•
•
178 Child Saf ety
and child against the backrest, center
armrest, or door .
- A tight tether or other strap on a rear
ward -facing child restra int attached to
the front passenger seat can put too much pressure on the weight-mat in the
seat and register a heavier weight in the
Advanced Airbag System. The heav ier
we ight registered can make the system
wor k as though an adu lt were on the seat
and dep loy the Advan ced Airbag when i t
must be suppressed ca using serious or
even fatal injury to the child.
- If you must 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 rearward-facing
child safety seat in a rear seat ing pos i
t io n and have the airbag system inspect
ed by your authorized Audi dea le r.
Additional Information
Sources of information about child
restraints and their use
There are a number of sources of additional
information about ch ild restraint select ion, in
stallat io n and use:
NHTSA advises that the best child safety seat
is the one that fits your child and fits in your
vehicle, and that you w ill use correctly and
consistently.
Try before you buy!
U.S N ation al H ighw ay Traffic S afety Admin
i s tr ation
Te l.: 1-888-327-4236 (TTY : 1-800-424-9153)
www .nhtsa.gov
N ation al SA FE KIDS Campaign
Te l.: (202) 662-0600
www .safekids.org
Safet y Belt Safe U.S.A
Tel.: (800) 74S-SAFE (English)
Tel.: (800) 747 -SANO (Span ish)
www.carseat .org
T ransport Can ada Information Centre
Tel.: 1-800-333-0371 or ca ll
1-6 13-998-86 16 if yo u are in the Ottawa area
http://www .tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/
menu. htm
Audi Cu stome r Rel ation s
Tel.: (800) 822-2834