
140 Safety belts
To provide maximum protection, safety belts must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer 's body .
.,. Adjust the front seat and head restraint
properly ¢
page 50, General recommenda
t ions .
.,. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in an upright position and securely
latched in place before using the belt¢,&.
.,. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it
evenly across the chest and pelvis ¢ ,& .
.,. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
¢fig. 151.
.,. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is se-
curely latched in the buckle.
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped with an automat
ic belt retractor on the shoulder belt. This fea
ture locks the belt when the belt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and in an accident.
The belt may also lock when you drive up or
down a steep hill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv ing the belt lets you move
freely.
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped with a belt pre
tensioner that helps to tighten the safety belt
and remove slack when the pretensioner is ac
tivated ¢
page 143. The function of the pre
tensioner is moni tored by a warning light
¢ page 19.
Switchable locking feature
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a switchable locking fea
ture that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the important information about this feature
¢ page 182 .
.,& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious injury in an accident
¢ page 140, Safety belt position.
-Safety belts offer optimum protection
only when the seatback is upright and
belts are properly positioned on the
body .
- Always make sure that the rear seat
backrest to which the center rear safety
belt* is attached is securely latched
whenever the rear center safety belt is
being used.
If the backrest is not secure
ly latched, the passenger will move for
ward with the backrest during sudden
braking, in a sudden maneuver and espe
cially in a crash.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buck
le for another seat. Attaching the belt to
the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt
effectiveness and can cause serious per
sonal injury .
- A passenger who is not properly restrain
ed can be seriously injured by the safety
belt itself when it moves from the stron
ger parts of the body into critical areas like the abdomen .
- Always lock the convertible locking re
tractor when you are securing a child seat in the vehicle¢
page 184 .
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretension
ers, refer to ¢
page 143.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting
maximum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 152 Safety bel t position
"' .... 0
~ CD

Use the height adjustment to change the posi
tion of the shoulder belt of the front safety
belts .
.&_ WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious personal injury in an acci
dent.
-
- The shoulder belt should lie as close to
the center of the collar bone as possible
and should fit well on the body. Hold the
belt above the latch tongue and pull it
even ly ac ross the chest so that it sits as
low as possible on the pelvis and there is
no pressure on the abdomen. The be lt
sho uld a lways f it snugly ¢
fig. 152. Pull
on the belt to tighten if necessary.
- A loose-fitt ing safety be lt can cause seri
o us injuries by shifting its position on
yo ur body from the strong bones to more
vulnerab le, soft tissue and cause serious
injury.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
¢ page 139.
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make
sure that expectant mothers always wear
safety belts correctly -throughout the preg
nancy.
Fi g. 153 Safety belt pos itio n during pr egnancy
To provide maxim um protection, safety belts
must always be posit ioned correctly on the
wearer's body¢
page 140 .
Safety belts 141
.. Adjust the front seat and head restraint cor
rectly ¢
page 50, General recommenda
tions .
.. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it
evenly across the chest and pelv is
¢ fig. 153, ¢ if:!. .
.. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
r=:;, fig. 151 .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that i t is se
curely latched in the buck le .
A WARNING
-
Improperly positioned safety be lts can
cause ser ious persona l injury in an acci
dent.
- Expectant mothers m ust 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 important information
i=:;, &. in Fas
tening safety belts on page 140.
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only ofter the vehicle has stopped.
,,,,,
Fig . 154 Re leas ing the tong ue from the buck le
.,. Push the red release button on the buckle
r=:;, fig. 154 . The be lt tongue will spr ing out
of the buckle
¢ if:!. .
0 ...
"' 0 ±
~
.,. Let the belt w ind up on the retractor as you
guide the be lt tongue to its stowed position.
Ill>

144 Safety belts
,8. WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce
dures can increase the risk of personal in
jury and death by preventing a safety belt
pretens ioner from act ivat ing when needed
or act ivat ing it unexpectedly:
- The belt pretensioner system can be acti
vated only once. If belt pretens ioners
have been act ivated, the system must be
replaced.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the safety belt system.
- Safety belt systems includ ing safety be lt
pretensione rs cannot be repaired. Spe
ci al procedures are required for removal,
installation and disposal of this system.
- For any work on the safety belt system,
we strongly recommend that you see
your authorized Audi dealer or qualified
technician who has an Audi approved re
pair manual, training and specia l equip
ment necessary.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undep loyed airbag modu les and preten
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate
Material -specia l hand ling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/haza rdou swaste/per
chlorate. When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
safety belts w ith pretens ioners are scrap
ped, all applicable laws and regulations
must be observed. Your authorized Aud i
deale r is familiar with these requ irements
and we recommend that you have your
dea ler perform this service for you.

148 Airbag sys tem
If the front passenger airbag is turned off , the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in
the instrument cluster and stays on .
I f the front passenger airbag deploys, the
F ederal Standard requires the airbag to meet
the " low risk" deployment criteria to reduce
the r isk of in jury through interaction with the
a irbag. "Low ris k" deployment oc curs in tho se
c rashe s that take pl ace a t lower decele ra tions
as defined in the electronic control un it
c::> page 158, PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light.
A lw ays r emember, a chi ld seat or infant carri
er installed on the front seat may be s truck
and knocked out of position by the rap idly in
flati ng passenger's a irbag i n a frontal colli
sion . The airbag could greatly reduce the ef
fectiveness of t he ch ild restrai nt and even se
r io usly in ju re the child during infla tion.
For this reason, and because the back seat is
the safest place for chi ldren - when p roperly
r estra ined a ccord ing to the ir age and size - we
strongly recommend t hat childre n always si t
in the back seat
c::> page 171, Child Safety .
& WARNING
-
A child in a rearward -facing child seat in
stalled on the front passenger seat will be
ser iously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating a irbag will hit the child seat
or infant carrier w ith great force and w ill
smash the ch ild seat and child against
the bac krest , cen ter armres t, door or
roof.
- Always install rear-facing child seats on
the rear seat.
- If you must i nstall a rearward facing
child seat on the front passenge r seat
because of except iona l circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t
does not come on an d stay on, immedi
a tely install the re ar-facin g chi ld seat in a
rear seating position and have the ai rbag
system inspected by your Aud i dealer. -
Forwa rd- facing child seats installed on
the front passenger 's seat may interfere
wit h the dep loyment of the a irbag and
cause serious persona l injury to the
child .
& WARNING
-If, in except ional circumstances, you m ust
i nstall a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenge r's seat:
- Always make sur e the forward-facing
seat has been designe d and certified by
its m anufacture r for u se on a fron t se at
wit h a passenger fron t and s ide airba g.
- Never p ut t he fo rward -facing child re
s tra int up agains t or ve ry near the instru
men t pa nel.
- Always move the passenge r seat into it s
rearmost pos ition in the seat' s fore and
aft a djustmen t range, as fa r away from
the air bag as possible before installing
the forwar d-facing ch ild restra int . The
backrest must be ad justed to an upright
position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignit ion is switched
on .
& WARNING
-To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light w ill be display ed whe nev er a child re
straint is insta lled on the front pa ssenger
se at and the ignition is sw itche d on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does no t stay on, per form the che cks de
scribed
c::> page 15 7, Monitoring the Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- Ta ke t he chi ld restraint off the fron t pas
senger sea t and inst all it prope rly at one
of the rear seat positions i f the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea le r i mmediately.

162 Airbag system
experience, informat ion and specia l
too ls necessary to perform the work
safely.
- If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter
is scrapped, all applicable safety pre
cautions must be followed.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modu les and preten
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate Material - special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/haza rdouswaste/per
chlorate. When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
and safety belts w it h pretens ioners are
s crapped, a ll applicable laws and regula
tions mus t be observed. Your au thori zed
Audi dea le r is familiar with these requi re
ments and we recommend that you have
your dea ler perfo rm this serv ice for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced A irbag Sys
tem pe rforms in a crash. For example, us ing
tire-r im combinations not app roved by Aud i,
lowering the vehicle, ch anging the stiffness o f
the suspension, including the springs, suspen
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the a irbag
sensors and sent to the electronic control
un it. Some suspension changes can, for exam
p le, increase the force levels measured by the
sensors a nd make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in w hich it would not dep loy if the
changes had not been made . Other kinds of
ch an ges may reduce the force levels meas
u red by the sensors and prevent the airbag
from deploying when it sho uld .
The senso rs in the safety belt buckle fo r th e
d river a nd front passe nger sea t tell the elec
tronic control module if the safety belt is
l atched or not .
If the safety belt is being used,
the front airbag will dep loy at a slightly high
er rate of vehicle deceleration than if the safe
ty belt is not being used. Therefore, in a par- t
icu lar collision, it is possible that an airbag
will not dep loy at a seat ing position where the
safety belt is be ing used b ut w ill inflate at the
pos ition where the safety belt is not be ing
used. It is important that nothing interfere
with t he safety be lt buckles so that the sen
sors can send the correct info rmation about
safety belt use to the electronic control un it .
_&. WARNING
Changi ng the vehicle's suspension includ
i ng use of unapp roved tire-rim combina
tions can change Advanced Airbag per
formance and increase the risk of serious pe rsonal injury in a crash .
- Never install suspension components that do not have the same pe rformance
characteristics as the components o rigi
na lly installed on your vehicle.
- Never use tire-rim combinations that
have not been approved by Audi.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
App lies to vehicles : wi th knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supple
mental protection to properly restrained
front seat occupants .
Fig . 1 60 Driver 's knee a irbag
T he dr iver knee airbag is in the ins trument
pane l underneath the steering wheel
~ fig. 160, the airbag for the passenger is at
about the same height in the instrument pan-
el underneat h the glove compartment. .,.

-The side curtain airbags above the front and
rear side windows
- The airbag ind icator light in the instrument
pane l
The a irbag system is monitored elect ro nic ally
to make certain it is f unct io ni ng proper ly a t all
times. Eac h time you switch on the ignition,
the airbag system indicator light wi ll come on
for a few seconds (se lf diagnost ics) .
The side curtain airbag is not activated:
-if the ign ition is swit ched off,
- i n s ide coll isions when the accelerat ion
measured by the sensor is too low,
- in rear-end collisions .
_& WARNING
-Sa fety belts and t he a irbag system w ill
only p rov ide p rotection whe n occu pan ts
are in the proper sea ting posit ion
¢ page SO, General recommendations.
- If the airbag indicator light ¢ page 19
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
have the system inspected immediate ly
by you r aut ho rized Audi dea ler . It is pos
sible that the airbag will inflate when it
is not s upposed to, or w ill not inflate
when it sho uld.
How side curtain airbags work
Side curtain airbags can work together with
side airbags to help reduce the risk of head
and upper torso injuries for occupants who
are properly restrained .
Fig . 1 65 Ill ustra tion of princip le: In flated side cur ta in
airbags on t he left s ide
.
A irba g sy stem 169
The side c urtain airbags infla te between the
occupant and the windows on the side of the
vehicle that is struck in a side coll is ion
¢ fig . 165.
When the system is trigge red, t he side curta in
airbag is filled with propellant gas and breaks
th ro ugh a seam above the front and rear side
windows identified by the AIRBAG labe l. In or
der to he lp provide this additional protection,
the side curta in a irbag must inflate withi n the
blink of an eye at ve ry hig h speed and with
great fo rce . T he side curta in a irbag could in
j u re yo u if your sea ting posit io n is not proper
o r u pright or if items are loca ted in t he a rea
where the supplemental side curta in a irbag
in flates . This applies especially to chi ld ren
~ page 171 .
Although they are no t a soft pillow, side cur
ta in a irbags can "cushion" the impact and in
this way they can help to reduce the risk of in
j u ry to the head and the uppe r part of the
body .
A fine dust may deve lop when the airbag de
ploys . This is qui te no rma l and does not mean
there is a fire in the vehicle .
Important safety instructions on the
side curtain airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . Al
ways properly wear safe ty belts and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and do to help the safety belts and
airbags do t heir job to provide supplemental
protection .
_& WARNING ...__
Improperly wea ring safety belts and im
p roper seating posit ions increase the risk
of ser ious perso nal inj ury and death when
ever a vehicle is being used.
- Never let occupa nts pla ce any pa rts of
thei r bo dies in t he area fro m whi ch the
side curt ain air bag inf late.
-

@ Tips
The child seats listed in categories A to C
have been statically tested by Audi only for
the Advanced Airbag 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 responsible for the safe
ty of everybody in the vehicle, especially chil
dren:
~ Always use the right child safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
q page 177.
~ Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child
safety seat.
~ When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
r::!) page 182.
~ Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really 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
9 page 177.
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
children , especially those 12 years and young
er, should always ride in the back seat proper
ly restrained for their age and size.
.&, WARNING ,~
Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child safety seat or improperly in
stalling a child restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death .
- All vehicle occupants and especially chil
dren must always be restrained properly
whenever riding in a vehicle.
Child Safety 175
- An unrestrained or improperly restrain
ed child can be injured or killed by be
ing thrown against the inside of the ve
hicle or by being ejected from it during
a sudden maneuver or impact.
- An unrestrained or improperly restrain
ed child is at much greater risk of injury
or death by being struck by an inflating
airbag.
- Commercially available child safety seats are required to comply with U.S . Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
213 (in Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restraint, select
one that fits your child and the vehicle.
- Only use child restraint systems that
fully contact the flat portion of the
seat cushion . The child restraint must
not tip or lean to either side . Audi does
not recommend using child safety
seats that rest on legs or tube-like
frames. They do not provide adequate
contact with the seat.
-Always heed all legal requirements per
taining to the installation and use of
child safety seats and carefully follow
the instructions provided by the manu
facturer of the seat you are using.
- Never allow children under 57 inches
(1.45 meters) to wear a normal safety
belt. They must always be restrained by a
proper child restraint system. Otherwise,
they could sustain injuries to the abdo
men and neck areas during sudden brak
ing maneuvers or accidents.
- Never let more than one child occupy a
child safety seat.
- Never let babies or older children ride in
a vehicle while sitting on the lap of an
other passenger .
- Holding a child in your arms is never a
substitute for a child restraint system.
- The strongest person could not hold
the child with the forces that exist in
an accident. The child will strike the in
terior of the vehicle and can also be
struck by the passenger. •
•

the level may be slightly above the "max"
marking .
The location of the coolant expansion tank
can be seen in the engine compartment illus
tration ¢ page 22 7.
To obtain an accurate reading, the engine must be switched
off.
The expansion tank in your vehicle is equipped
with an electric coolant level sensor.
When the coolant level is too low, the warning
light in the Auto-Check System ¢page 16will
illuminate until you add coolant and the level
has been restored to normal. Even though
there is an electric coolant level sensor , we
still recommend you check the coolant level
from time to time.
Coolant loss
Coolant loss may indicate a leak in the cooling
system. In the event of coolant loss, the cool
ing system should be inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer.
It is not
enough merely to add coolant.
In a
sealed system, losses can occur only if
the boiling point of the coolant is exceeded as
a result of overheating.
& WARNING
The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of scald
ing from hot coolant by following these
steps.
- Turn
off the engine and allow it to cool
down.
- Protect your face, hands and arms from
escaping fluid and steam by covering the
cap with a large, thick rag.
- Turn the cap slowly and very carefully in
a counter-clockwise direction while ap
plying light, downward pressure on the
top of the cap.
- To avoid being burned, do not spill anti freeze or coolant on the exhaust system or hot engine parts . Under certain condi
tions, the ethylene glycol in engine cool
ant can catch fire .
Checking and filling 233
@ Note
Do not add any type of radiator leak seal
ant to your vehicle's engine coolant. Add
ing radiator repair fluid may adversely af
fect the function and performance of your
cooling system and could result in damage not covered by your New Vehicle limited
Warranty .
Adding coolant
Be very careful when adding engine coolant.
Before you check anything in the engine com
partment,
always read and heed all WARN
INGS ¢ & in Working in the engine compart
ment on page 225 .
.,. Turn
off the engine .
.,. let the engine cool down.
.,. Place a thick rag over the coolant expansion
tank ¢ fig .
187 and carefully twist the cap
counter-clockwise ¢&_ .
.,. Add coolant.
.,. Twist the cap on again tightly.
Replacement engine coolant must conform to
exact specifications ¢ page
2 32, Coolant. We
recommend using only coolant additive G12+
+, G13 or in an emergency G12+. Do
not use a
different additive. In an emergency use plain
water until you can get the correct additive
and can restore the correct ratio. This should
be done as soon as possible.
If you have lost a considerable amount of
coolant, then you should add cold antifreeze
and cold water only when the engine is cold.
Always use new engine coolant when refilling.
Do not fill coolant above the "MAX" mark. Ex
cess coolant will be forced out through the pressure relief valve in the cap when the en
gine becomes hot.
A WARNING
- The cooling system is under pressure and
can get very hot. Reduce the risk of
II-
•
•