Seats and storage
General recommen
dations
Why is your seat adjustment so important?
The safety belts and the airbag system can
only provide maximum protection if the front
seats are correctly adjusted.
There are various ways of adjusting the front
seats to provide safe and comfortable support
for the driver and the front passenger. Adjust
your seat properly so that :
- you can easily and quick ly reach all the
switches and controls in the instrument
panel
- your body is properly supported thus reduc ing physical stress and fatigue
- the safety belts and airbag system can offe r
maximum protection
¢ page 142.
In the following sections, you will see exactly
how you can best adjust your seats .
There are special regulations and instructions
for installing a child safety seat on the front passenger's seat. Always follow the informa
tion regard ing child safety provided in
¢ page 166, Child Safety.
.&_ WARNING
-
Refer to ¢ page 124, Driving Safely for
important information, tips, suggestions
and warnings that you should read and fol
low for your own safety and the safety of
your passengers.
.&_ WARNING
Incorrect seating position of the driver and
all other passengers can result in serious
personal injury.
- Always keep your feet on the floor when
the vehicle is in motion -never put your
feet on top of the instrument panel, out of the w indow or on top of the seat cush
ion. This app lies especially to the passen-
S eat s an d sto rage 53
gers . If your seating position is incorrect,
you increase the risk of injury in the case
of sudden braking or an accident . If the
airbag inflates and the seating position
is incorrect, this cou ld result in pe rsonal
in jury or even death.
- It is important for both the driver and front passenger to keep a distance of at least 10 inches (25 cm) between them
selves and the steering wheel and/or in
strumen t panel. If you're s itting any
closer than th is, the airbag system can
not protect you properly. In addition, the
front seats and head restraints m ust be
adj usted to your body height so that they
can give you max imum protect ion.
- Always try to keep as much distance as
possible between yourself and the steer
ing wheel or instrument panel.
- Do not adjust the driver's or front pas senger's seat whi le the vehicle is moving.
Your seat may move unexpectedly, caus
ing sudden loss of veh icle control and
pe rsonal injury. If you adjust you r seat
while the veh icle is moving, you are ou t
of posit ion.
Driver's seat
The correct seat position is important for safe
and relaxed driving .
We recommend that you adjust the dr iver's
seat in the follow ing manner:
.., Adjust the seat in fore and aft direction so
that you can easily push the pedals to the
floor wh ile keeping your knees slightly bent
¢ .&, in Why is your seat adjustment so im
portant? on page 53.
"" Adjust the seatback so that when you sit
w ith your back against the seatback , you can
s ti ll grasp the top of t he steering wheel.
... App lies to vehicles with adjustable head re
straints: Adjust the head restraint so the up
per edge is as even as possible wit h the top
of your head. If that is not possib le, try to
adjust the head restraint so that it is as .,.
126 Driving Safely
• Always keep both feet in the footwell so
that you are in control of the vehicle at all
times.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
driver's seat, see
¢ page 54 .
A WARNING
Drivers who are unbelted, out of position
or too close to the airbag can be seriously
injured by an airbag as it unfolds. To help
reduce the risk of serious personal injury:
- Always adjust the driver's seat and the
steering wheel so that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between your breast
bone and the steering wheel.
- Always hold the steering wheel on the
outside of the steering wheel rim with
your hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock positions to help reduce the risk of per
sonal injury if the driver's airbag inflates.
- Never hold the steering wheel at the
12 o'clock position or with your hands at
other positions inside the steering wheel
rim or on the steering wheel hub. Hold
ing the steering wheel the wrong way
can cause serious injuries to the hands,
arms and head if the driver's airbag de
ploys.
- Pointing the steering wheel toward your
face decreases the ability of the supple
mental driver 's airbag to protect you in a
collision .
- Always sit in an upright position and nev
er lean against or place any part of your
body too close to the area where the air
bags are located.
- Before driving, always adjust the front
seats and head restraints properly and
make sure that all passengers are prop
erly restrained.
- Never adjust the seats while the vehicle
is moving . Your seat may move unexpect
edly and you could lose control of the ve
hicle.
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests
are tilted back, the greater the risk of in- jury due to incorrect positioning of the
safety belt and improper seating posi
tion.
- Children must always ride in child safety
seats ¢
page 166. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat
on the front passenger seat¢
page 142 .
Proper seating position for the front
passenger
The proper front passenger seating position
is important for safe, relaxed driving .
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of
injury in the event of an accident, we recom
mend that you adjust the seat for the front
passenger to the following position :
• Move the front passenger seat back as far
as possible . There must be a minimum of
10 inches (25 cm) between the breastbone
and the instrument panel¢,&. .
• Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is
in an upright position and your back comes
in full contact with it whenever the vehicle is
moving.
• Applies to vehicles with adjustable head re
straints: Adjust the head restraint so the up
per edge is as even as possible with the top
of your head. If tha t is not possible, try to
adjust the head restraint so that it is as
close to this position as possible.
• Keep both feet flat on the floor in front of
the front passenger seat.
• Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
¢page 137.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
front passenger's seat, see
¢ page 53.
A WARNING
-
Front seat passengers who are unbelted,
out of position or too close to the airbag
can be seriously injured or killed by the air
bag as it unfolds. To help reduce the risk of
serious personal injury:
-Passengers must always sit in an upright
posit ion and never lean against or place
any part of their body too close to the
area where the airbags are located .
- Passengers who are unbelted, out of po
sition or too close to the airbag can be
seriously injured by an airbag as it un
folds with great force in the blink of an
eye .
- Always make sure that there are at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the front
passenge r's breastbone and the instru
ment pane l.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat
of the ir own and properly fasten and
wear the safety bel t belong ing to that
seat .
- Before driv ing, a lways adj ust the front
passenger seat and head restra int prop
er ly .
- Always keep your feet on the f loor in
front of the seat . Never rest them on the
seat, instrument panel, out of the win
dow, etc . The airbag system and safety
belt w ill not be ab le to protect you prop
erly and can even increase the risk of in
jury in a crash .
- Never drive with the backrest reclined or tilted far back! The farther the backrests
are tilted back, the greater the risk of in
jury due to incorrect positioning of the
safety belt and improper seating posi
t ion.
- Children must always ride in child safety
seats
c::> page 166. Spec ial precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat
on the front passenge r seat
c::> page 142.
Proper seating positions for passengers
in rear seats
Rear seat passengers must sit upright with
both feet on the floor consistent with their
physical size and be properly restrained whenever the vehicle is in use.
To reduce the risk of injury caused by an incor
rect seat ing pos ition in the event of a sudden
braking maneuver or an accident, your pas-
Dr ivin g Sa fely 12 7
sengers on the rear bench seat must always
observe the following:
1-Make s ure th at the seatback is secure ly
la tched in the upright position
c::> page 63 .
.,. Keep both feet flat in the footwell in front
of the rear seat.
.,. Fasten and wear safety be lts properly
c::> page 13 7 .
.,. Make sure that children are always properly
restrai ned in a child restraint that is appro
p riate for the ir s ize and age
c::> page 166.
.&, WARNING
P assengers who are imp roperly seated on
the rea r seat can be seriously i njured in a
crash.
- Each passenger must always si t on a seat
of their own and pr operly fasten and
wear the safety belt belonging to that
seat.
- Safety belts only offer maximum protec
tion when the sea tback is sec urely latch
ed in the upright position and the safety
be lts are properly positioned on the
body. By not s itting upright, a rear seat
passenger increases the risk of personal
inju ry from improperly positioned safety
belts!
- Always adjust the head restraint properly
so that it can give maximum protection .
Proper adjustment of head restraints
Applies to vehicles: wit h adjustab le hea d r est ra in ts
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. 1 28 Head restra int: v iewed fro m th e front
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.
-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
angle of impact that will always trigger the
airbags, since the circumstances will vary con
siderably between one collision and another.
Important factors include, for example, the nature (hard or soft) of the object which the
car hits, the angle of impact, vehicle speed,
etc. The front airbags will also not inflate in
side or rear collisions, or in ro ll-overs .
Alwa ys rem ember : Airbags will deploy only
once, and only in certa in kinds of collisions .
Your safety belts are always there to offer pro
tection in those s ituations in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy , or when they have
a lready deployed ; fo r example , when yo ur ve
h icle strikes or is struck by another after the
first collision .
This is just one of the reasons why an a irbag is
a supplementary restra int and is not a s ubst i
tute for a safety belt . The airbag system
works most effectively when used with the
safety belts. Therefore, always properly wear
your safety belts
¢ page 134.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steer ing wheel or
instrument panel will decrease the effec
tiveness of the airbags and will increase
the risk of pe rsonal injury in a co llision .
- Never sit closer than
10 inches (25 cm)
to the stee ring wheel or instrument pan
el.
- If you cannot sit more than
10 i nches
(25 cm) from the steer ing whee l, investi
gate whether adaptive equipment may
be available to help you reach the pedals
and increase your seating dis tance from
the steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing fo rward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, yo ur risk of inj ury is much highe r.
- You w il l also receive serio us inju ries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the airbag or too close to it when it in
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag.
- To reduce the r isk o f injury when an air
bag inflates, a lways wear safety belts
proper ly ¢
page 137, Safety belts .
Airbag system 143
-Always make certain that chi ld ren age 12
or younger a lways ride in the rear seat. If
children are not properly restrained, they may be severe ly inju red or killed when an
airbag inf lates .
- Never let ch ildren ride unrestra ined or
improperly restrained in the vehicle . Ad
just the front seats prope rly.
- Never ride with the backrest reclined.
- Always sit as far as possible from the
steer ing whee l or the instrument pane l
¢page 125.
-Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat.
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the f loor in front of the seat to
he lp prevent serio us in juries to the legs
a nd h ips if the airbag inflates.
- Never recline the front passenger 's seat
to tra nsport objects. Items can a lso
move i nto the area of the s ide a irbag or
the front a irbag du ring bra king or in a
sud den maneuve r. Obje cts ne ar the air
bags can become projectiles and cause
injury when an airbag inflates.
_&. WARNING ~
A irbags that have de ployed in a crash must
be replaced.
- Use on ly original equipment airbags ap
proved by Audi and installed by a trai ned
technician who has the necessary too ls
and d iagnost ic equipment to properly re
place any airbag in your vehicle and as
sure system effectiveness in a crash .
- Never perm it salvaged or recycled air
bags to be installed in your vehicle .
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.,. Be su re to read t he important information
and head the WARNINGS fo r important de
tails about children and Advanced Airbags
¢ page 166. ..,.
•
•
146 Airbag system
-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 .
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants.
Fig. 140 Location of dr iver airbag: in stee ring wh eel
Fig. 141 Location of front pass enger's a irbag: in the in
strument panel
Your veh icle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured . The system senses
the position of the front seats and controls
front airbag inflation with a valve, depend ing
on the distance between the respective seat
and the steering wheel or instrument panel.
The safety belts for the seats have "preten
sioners" that help to take slack out of the belt
system. The pretensioners are also activated by the electronic control unit for the airbag
system. The
front safety belts also have load limiters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
in a crash.
The airbag for the driver is in the steering
wheel hub ¢
fig. 140 and the airbag for the
front passenger is in the instrument panel
~ fig. 141 . The general location of the airbags
i s marked "AIRBAG".
There is a lot you need to know about the air
bags in your vehicle . We urge you to read the
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
ch apters that make up the owner 's literature.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they
are extremely important for your safety and
the safety of your passengers, especially in
fants and small children.
_&. WARNING
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide
only supplemental protection.
-Airbag work most effectively when used
with properly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, always wear your safety belts
and make sure that everybody in your ve
hicle is properly restrained.
_&. WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, es
pecially infants and small children, will re
ceive serious injuries and can even be kil
led by being too close to the airbag when
it inflates .
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the
front passenger airbag if an infant or a
small child is on the front passenger
seat, nobody can absolutely guarantee
that deployment under these special
conditions is impossible in all conceiva
b le situations that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicle .
- The Advanced Airbag System can deploy
in accordance with the "low risk" option
under the U.S. Federal Standard if a child
that is heavier than the typical one-year
-
.