2013 AUDI A5 COUPE page 76

128 Driving Safely
The head restraints must be correctly adjust­
ed to achieve the best protection. ... Adjust the head restraints so the upper
edge is as even as possible with the top of
your head.
If that is not possible, try to ad­
just the head restraint so that it is as close to this position as possibler::!)
fig. 128.
Adjusting head restraints r::!)page 56.
_&. WARNING
All seats are equipped with head re­
straints. Driving without head restraints or
with head restraints that are not properly
adjusted increases the risk of serious or fa­
tal neck injury dramatically . To help reduce
the risk of injury:
- Always drive with the head restraints in
place and properly adjusted .
- Every person in the vehicle must have a
properly adjusted head restraint.
- Always make sure each person in the ve­
hicle properly adjusts their head re­
straint. Adjust the head restraints 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 restraint so
that it is as close to this position as pos­
sible.
- Never attempt to adjust head restraint
while driving. If you have driven off and
must adjust the driver headrest for any
reason, first stop the vehicle safely be­
fore attempting to adjust the head re­
straint.
- Children must always be properly re­
strained in a child restraint that is appro­
priate for their age and size¢
page 166.
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 belts can only work
when they are properly positioned on the body. Improper seating positions reduce
the
effectiveness of safety belts and will even in­
crease the risk of injury and death by moving
the safety belt to critical areas of the body. Improper seating positions also increase the
risk of serious injury and death when an air ­
bag deploys and strikes an occupant who is
not in the proper seating position . A driver is
responsible for the safety of all vehicle occu­
pants and especially for children. Therefore:
... Never allow anyone to assume an incorrect
seating position when the vehicle is being
used ¢& .
The following bulletins list only some sample
positions that will increase the risk of serious
injury and death . Our hope is that these exam­
ples will make you more aware of seating po­
sitions that are dangerous.
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is
moving:
- never stand up in the vehicle
- never stand on the seats
- never kneel on the seats
- never ride with the seatback reclined
- never lie down on the rear seat
- never lean up against the instrument panel
- never sit on the edge of the seat
- never sit sideways
- never lean out the window
- never put your feet out the window
- never put your feet on the instrument panel
- never rest your feet on the seat cushion or
back of the seat
- never ride in the footwell
- never ride in the cargo area
_&. WARNING
Improper seating positions increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- Always make sure that all vehicle occu-
pants stay in a proper seating position
and are properly restrained whenever the
vehicle is being used.

130 Driving Safel y
the pedals or the ability to control the
vehicle.
- Never place or insta ll floor mats or other
floor coverings on top of already insta l­
led floor mats. Additional floor mats and
other coverings will reduce the size of
the pedal area and interfere with the
peda ls.
- Always proper ly reinstall and secure floor
mats that have been taken out fo r clean ­
ing.
- Always make sure that objects cannot
fall into the driver footwell while the ve­hicle is moving. Objects can become
trapped unde r the b rake pedal and accel­
erator peda l causing a loss of veh icle
contro l.
Stowing luggage
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be prop­
erly stowed and secured in the luggage com­
partment.
Fig. 12 9 Safe load pos it io nin g: place heavy objects as
low a nd as fa r forward as possible .
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift suddenly, changing vehicle hand ling
characteristics . Loose items can also increase
the risk o f 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
Q fig . 129 .
.,. Secure the load with the cargo net* or with
non-elastic straps secured to the tie-downs
¢ page 64.
.,. Make sure that the rear seatback is securely
latched in place.
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items
ca n fly through the vehicle causing ser ious
personal injury in the event of hard brak­
i ng or an accident. To help reduce t he risk
of ser ious personal inj ury:
- Always put objects, for example, luggage or other heavy items in the luggage com­
pa rtment.
- Always secure objects in the luggage
compa rtment using the t ie-down eyelets
and suitab le straps .
A WARNING
-
Heavy loads wi ll influence the way yo ur ve-
hicle handles. To help reduce the risk of a
l oss of contro l 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 We igh t Rating
specified on the safe ty compl iance stick ­
er on the left door jamb . Exceeding per ­
missible weight standards can cause the
vehicle to slide and hand le differently .
- Please observe information on safe driv­ ing¢
page 124.
A WARNING
-To he lp prevent poisonous exhaust gas
from being drawn into the vehicle, a lways
keep the rear lid closed w hile 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 sunroof,
- 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 sunroof and the rear lid are se­
curely 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.
@ 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.
- 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-
-
Driving Safely 131
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 compartmen t is equipped with
four tie -downs to secure luggage and other
items .
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo prop­
erly
r::> page 130, 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
the luggage compartment to help pre­
vent items from shifting or flying for­
ward as dangerous missiles.
- When the rear seat backrest is folded
down , always use suitable mounting
straps and properly secure items to the
tie-downs in the luggage compartment
•
•

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 .
- Always fasten your safety be lts correctly
before driving off and make sure all pas­
sengers are correc tly 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 d riv­
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 be ing 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 . Safety belts
13 7
- 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
tha t 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 requ ired 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
damaged, have belts replaced by an au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified work­ shop.
- Safety belts that have been worn and
loaded in an accident must be replaced
with the correct replacement safety belt
by an authorized Audi dealer . Replace­
ment may be necessary even if damage
cannot be clearly seen . Anchorages that
were loaded must also be inspected.
- Never remove, modify, disassemble, or
try to repair the safety belts yourself.
- Always keep the bel ts clean. Dirty belts
may not work properly and can impair
the function of the inertia reel
c::> page 209, Safety belts .
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 136 Bel t b uckle and to ngue on the driver's seat

138 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 53, Seats and storage .
.,. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in an upright pos ition and securely
latched in place befo re using the belt¢.&, .
.,. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it
evenly across the chest and pelvis
c:> .&, .
.,. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
you r seat until you hea r it latch securely
¢ fig . 136.
.,. Pull on the be lt to make sure that it is se-
curely latched in the b uckle .
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped w ith an automat­
ic belt retractor on the shoulder be lt . T his fea­
ture locks the be lt when the belt is pulled out
fast, dur ing hard bra king and in an ac cident.
The belt may also lock when yo u drive up or
down a steep hill or through a sharp curve. During normal driving the belt lets you move
freely .
Safety belt pret ensioners
The sa fe ty belts are equippe d wi th a be lt pre­
tensioner that helps to tighten the safety belt
and remove s lack when the pretensioner is ac ­
tivated. The function of the pretensioner is
monitored by a warning light¢
page 20 .
Switchable locking feature
Every sa fe ty belt ex cep t the one on the dr iver
seat is eq uipped w ith a switchable locking fea ­
ture that
mu st be used w hen the safety belt is
used to attach a child safety seat . Be sure to
read the important information about this
feature
¢ page 176.
A WARNING
Imprope rly positioned safety belts can
cause serious injury in an accident
¢ page 138, Safety belt position .
- Safety belts offer optimum protection
only when the seatback is up right and
-
be lts are properly posit ioned on the
body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat
backrest to wh ich the center rear safety
be lt is attached is securely latched when­
ever the rea r center safety belt is being
used. If the backrest is not secure ly
latched, t he passenger w ill move for­
ward with the ba ckr est dur ing sudd en
bra king, in a sudden maneuver and espe­
ci ally in a crash .
- Neve r attach the safety be lt to t he buck­
le for ano ther sea t. At taching the belt to
the wrong buckle will redu ce s afe ty be lt
effec tiveness and can cause serio us per ­
sonal injury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrain­
ed can be seriously injured by the safety
be lt itself w hen it moves from the stro n­
ger parts of the body into cr itical areas
like the abdomen .
- Always loc k the convertible locking re­
tractor when you are secu ring a child
safety seat in the vehicle
c:> page 178.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to gett ing
maximum protection from safety belts.
Fig . 1 3 7 Safe ty bel t pos it ion
Standard features on your veh icle help you ad ­
j u st the pos ition of the safety be lt to match
you r body si ze.
- he ight-adjustable front seats.

_& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious personal injury in an acci­
dent .
- The shoulder belt shou ld lie as close to
the center of the collar bone as poss ible
and should fit we ll on the body . Ho ld the
belt above the latch tongue and pull it
evenly across the chest so that it sits as
low as possible on the pe lvis and there is
no press ure on the abdomen. The be lt
should a lways f it snugly ¢
fig. 137 . Pull
on the be lt to tighten if necessary.
- The lap belt portion of the safety be lt
must be positioned as low as possible
across pelvis and never over the abdo ­
me n. Make sure the be lt lies flat and
snug ¢
fig. 137. Pull on the belt to tight­
en if necessary .
- A loose-fitt ing safety be lt can cause seri­
ous in juries by sh ifting its position on
your body from the strong bones to more
vulnerab le, soft tissue and cause se rious
injury .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
¢ page 137.
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make
sure tha t expectant mothers always wear
saf ety b elts corr ectly -throughout th e pr eg­
nancy.
F ig. 138 S afety be lt pos it io n du ring p regnancy
Safety belts 139
To p rovide maximum protect ion, safety belts
must a lways be positioned correctly on the
wearer's body
¢ pag e 138.
.. Adjust the front seat and head rest rain t cor­
rectly ¢
page 53 , Seats and storage.
.. Make s ure the seatback of the rea r seat
bench is in an upright position and secure ly
latched in place before using the belt.
.. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it
even ly across the chest and pelvis
¢ fig. 138, ¢ ,& .
.. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat unt il you hear it latch secu re ly
¢ page 137, fig. 136 .
.. Pull on the belt to make s ure that it is se­
curely latched in the buck le .
A WARNING
-Improperly posit ioned safety be lts can
cause ser ious persona l injury in an acc i­
dent.
-
- E xpectant mothers must always wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as
possible across the pelvis and below the
round ing of the abdomen .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other impo rtant information
¢ .&. in Fas­
tening safety belts on page
138 .
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle t he safety bel t wi th the red release
bu tton only after the vehicle has stopped .
Fig. 139 Rele asing t he tong ue fro m the buc kle
.. Push the red release b utton on the buckle
¢ fig. 139 . The belt tongue w ill spr ing out
of the buckle
¢ .&_ . ..,..

140 Safety belts
• Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehi­
cle is moving. Doing so will increase your
r isk of being injured or killed .
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause
severe injurie s.
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause se­
rious inj ury or death. Safety belts can only
work when they are correct ly positioned on
the body. Improper seating positions reduce
the effect iveness of safety belts and will even
increase the r isk of injury and death by mov ­
ing the safety belt to critical areas of the
body. Imprope r seat ing pos itions also in­
crease the risk of serious inj ury and death
when an airbag deploys and str ikes an occu­
pant who is not in the correct seating posi­
t ion . A dr iver is respons ib le for the safety of
a ll vehicle occupants and especially for chi l­
dren. Therefore:
• Never permit anyone to assume an inco rrect
sitting position in the vehicle whi le traveling
¢ ir). .
A WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a veh icle is being used .
- Always make sure that all vehicle occu-
pants are correctly restrained and stay in
a correct seating posit ion wheneve r the
vehicle is be ing used.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat ion
¢page 137.
Safety belt preten­
sioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear -end collisions above a
particular severity, safety belts are tensioned
automatically.
T he safety belts are equipped with safety belt
pretensioners. The system is activated by sen­
sors in front, side and rear-end collisions of
great severity. This tightens the belt and takes
up belt slack ¢
& in Service and disposal of
safety belt pretensioner on page 141.
Taking
up the slack helps to reduce forward occupant
movement during a collision.
([) Note
Never let the belt remain over a rear seat­
back that has been fo lded forward.
(D Tips
The safety belt pretensioner can only be
activated once.
-In minor frontal and side collisions, in
rear-end co llisions, in a rollover and in
accidents involving very little impact
force, the safety belt pretensioner are not activated .
- In the case of a side crash, the safety belt pretensioners will activate on the
dr iver's or front passenger's sides only,
depending on which side of the veh icle
the crash occurs.
- When the safety belt pretensioners are
act ivated, a fine dust is re leased. This is
normal and is not caused by a fire in the
vehicle .
- The relevant safety requ irements must
be observed when the vehicle o r compo­
nents of the system are scrapped. An au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop is familiar with these regulations
and wi ll be pleased to pass on the infor­
mation to you.

142 Airbag sys te m
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.
F or your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers, before driving off, always:
• Adjust the dr iver's seat and steering wheel
properly ¢
page 125,
• Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
¢page 54,
• Wear safety be lts properly ¢ page 137,
• Always properly use the proper child re-
stra int to protect children¢
page 166.
In a collision airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force .
The supplementa l airbags can cause injuries if
the dr iver or the front seat passenger is not
seated properly . Therefore in order to he lp the
a irbag to do its job, it is important, both as a
d river and as a passenge r to sit properly at all
times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steering wheel and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag ca n inflate fully and
comp letely and provide supp lemental p rotec­
tion in ce rtain frontal collisions¢
page 125,
Proper occupant seating positions .
For detai ls
on the operat ion of the seat adjustment con­
trols ¢
page 54.
It's especially important that children a re
properly restrained ¢
page 166.
There is a lot that the driver and the passen­
gers can and must do to help the individua l
safety features ins talled in your A udi work to­
gether as a system.
Prope r seat ing pos ition is important so that
the front airbag on the driver s ide can do i ts
job. If yo u have a physical impa irment or con- dition that prevents you from sitting properly
on the driver seat with the safety belt properly
fastened and reaching the peda ls , spec ial
modifications to your vehicle may be necessa­
ry.
Contact your a uthorized Audi dea ler, or call
Audi C ustomer Re lations at 1-800-822-2834 .
When the airbag system dep loys, a gas gener­
ator will f ill the airbags, break open the pad­
ded covers, and inf late between the steering
whee l and the dr iver and between the instru ­
ment pane l and the front passenger. The air­
bags will deflate immediately after dep loy­
ment so that the front occupants can see
th rough the w indshield aga in without inter­
ruption .
All of th is take s place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the a irbags have dep loyed . The airbags also
inflate with a great dea l of force and nothing
shou ld be in their way when they deploy.
F ront a irbags in combination with properly
worn safety belts slow down and lim it the oc ­
cupant's forward movement. Together they
help to prevent the drive r and front seat pas­
senger from hitting parts of the inside the ve­
hicle while reducing the forces acting on the
occupant dur ing the crash. In this way they
help to reduce the risk of injury to the head
and uppe r body i n the c rash . A irbags do not
protect the a rms or the lower parts of the
body.
Both front a irbags w ill not i nflate in all fronta l
collisions . The t rigge ring of the a irbag system
depends on the vehicle dece lerat ion rate
c aused by the co llision and registered by the
elect ron ic cont ro l u nit. If t his rate is below
the re ference 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 resu lt of the collision . Veh icle damage, re­
pair costs or even the lack of veh icle damage
is no t necessarily an indication of whether an
airbag should inflate or not .
It is not possib le to define a range of vehicle
speeds that w ill cover every possib le kind and .,.