Page 145 of 262

Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The convertible locking retractor for child re
straints will be deactivated automatically when the belt is wound all the way back into the retractor.
" Press the red button on the safety be lt
buck le. The belt tongue will pop out of the
buck le .
" Guide the safety belt all the way back into
its stowed pos ition .
A lways let the safety belt retract complete ly
into its stowed pos ition . The sa fety belt can
now be used as an ordinary safety belt with
out the convertib le locking retractor for child
rest raints .
If the convertible locking retractor shou ld be
activated inadvertently , the safety belt must
be unfastened and guided completely back in
to its stowed position to deactivate this fea
t ure. If the conver tible locking retractor is not
deactivated, the safety belt will gradually be
come tighter and uncomfortable to wear .
A WARNING
Improperly insta lled child safety seats in
crease the risk of ser ious personal injury
and death in a collision.
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deacti
vate the convert ible lock ing ret ractor for
child restraints while the vehicle is mov
ing. You would not be rest rained and
cou ld be seriously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave
hicle is being used
¢page 130. Special
precautions apply when installing a chi ld
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 110, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know .
Child Safet y 143
LATCH Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To prov ide a simpler and more practicable way
to attach the child restraint on the vehicle
seat, Federal regulat ions requ ire spec ial lower
anchorages in vehicles and devices on new
child restraints to attach to the vehicle ancho
rages.
T he combination of the tether anchorages and
the lower anchorages is now generally ca lled
the
LATCH system for " Lower Anchorages and
T ethers for Chil dren." In Canada, the terms
"top tether" with "lower universal anchorag
es" (or "lower universal anchorage bars") are
used to describe the system.
Forward-facing chi ld restraints manufactured
after September 1, 1999, are required by U.S.
federal regulations to comply with new child
head movement performance requirements .
These new performance requirements make a
tether necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a child restraint that requires a top
tether wi thout one can seriously impair the
performance of the child restraint and its abil
ity to protect the child in a coll is ion. Installing
a child restraint that requires a top tether
without the top tether may be a violat ion of
state law.
Child restraint manufacturers offer LATCH
lower anchorages on their child seats w ith
hook-on or push-on connectors attached to
adjustable straps.
In add ition to the LATCH lower anchorages,
these child restraint systems usua lly require
the use of tether straps to help keep the chi ld
restraint firmly in place.
A WARNING
Improper installation of child restraints
will increase the risk of injury and death in
a crash.
-
•
•
Page 146 of 262

144 Child Safet y
-Always follow the ins tructions provided
by the manufacturer of the ch ild re
straint you intend to install in your veh i
cle.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instruc
t ions requ ire the top tether strap to be
used .
- Improper use of child restra int LA TCH
lower anchorage po ints can lead to injury
in a coll ision. The LA TCH lower anc horage
poin ts ar e des igned to w it h stand only
those loads imposed by correct ly fit ted
child rest raints .
- Never mou nt two ch ild restr aint systems
on one LA TCH lower anchorage point .
- Never secure or attach any l ugg age or
other item to the LA TC H l ower anchorag
es .
(j) Tips
-In Canada, the terms "top tether" with
"lowe r univers al anchorages" (or " lower
u niversa l anchorage ba rs") are used to
describe the system.
- In ot her co untries, the te rm "IS0 FIX" is
u sed to describe the lower anchorages.
Location
F ig . 1 17 Schemat ic overview : LATCH a nch orage poi nt
loca tions
The i llustration shows the seating locations in
you r ve hicle which are equipped w ith the low
er universa l anchorages system.
Description
The lower anchorage positions are marked
for quick locating .
Fig . 1 18 Rea r seatbacks : locato r but to ns for lowe r an
c h orages
Fig. 11 9 Rear seats: lower anc horage bracke t locat ions
Atta chment lo cator mar kers for lowe r
anchor ages
Circular locator buttons on the rear seatback
indicate the lower anchorage locations on the
rear seating positions
~ fig . 118 .
Lo wer anchorages
The lower anchorage attachment points are
located between the rear seatback and rear
seat cushion
r::.> fig. 119.
Lower anchorages secure the ch ild restrai nt in
the seat without using the vehicle's safety
belts. Anchorages provide a secure and easy
to-use attachment and minimize the possib ili
ty of improper child restra int installation .
All child restraints manufactured after Sep
tember 1, 2002, must have lower anchorage attachments for the
LATCH system.
Remember that the lower anchorage po ints
are only intended for installation and attach ment of child restraints specifically certified
for use with
LATCH lower a nchorages. Chi ld IJ>
Page 147 of 262

restraints that are not equipped with the low
er anchorage attachments can still be instal
led in compliance with the child restra int
manufacturer's instructions on using vehicle
safety belts.
A WARNING
Improper use of LATCH lower anchorages
can cause serious personal injury in an ac
cident.
-Always carefully follow the ch ild re
straints manufacturer's inst ruct ions for
proper installation of the child restraint
and proper use of the lowe r anchorages
or safety belts in your vehicle.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or
other items to the
LATCH lower ancho
rages.
- Always read and heed the important in
formation about child restraints in this
chapter and WARNINGS
c;, page 130,
Child Safety.
Guidance fixtures for lower anchorages
Special guidance fixtures increase the conven
ience of the lower anchorages and are availa
ble from your authorized Audi dealer.
F ig. 120 Rear seats : install ing the guidance fixtures
Child Safety 145
Fig. 121 Close -up: fitt ing the guidance fixture over the
l ower anchorage bracket
The lower anchorage attachment points are
located on the rear seats between the seat
back and the seat cushion. Special guidance
fixtures increase the convenience of the lower
anchorages and help protect the seat material
from possible damage when installing child restraints .
Installing the guidance fixtures
... Push down on the seat cushion so that the
lower anchorages are visible.
.,. Hold the guidance fixture with the part
number facing downward and push it in the
direction of the arrow onto the anchorage
c;,fig. 121.
.,. Make sure that each of the two guidance fix
tures per seat snaps into place.
Removing the guidance fixtures
... Remove the ch ild restraint according the
child restraint manufacturer's instructions .
.,. Push down on the seat cushion so that the
lower anchorages are visible .
.,. Pull off the guidance fixtures from the low
er anchorages .
... Always remove the guidance fixt ures and
keep them in a safe p lace when not in use.
You may find it easier to install chi ld re
straints equipped with hooks attached to
straps without the g uidance fixtures in place.
If this is the case, remove the guidance fix
tures by pulling them off the anchorages. However, the guidance fixtures can help you
to locate the
LATCH anchorages . ..,.
Page 148 of 262

146 Child Safet y
& WARNING
Improper use of tether anchorages or low
er anchorages can cause serious personal
injury in a crash.
- Always carefully follow the ch ild re
straint manufacturer 's instructions for
proper installation and use of child re
st raint systems .
- Never use the
LATCH or tethe r anchorag
es to attach safety belts or other kinds of
occupant restraints.
- Child restraint tether attachments and
lower attachments are only des igned to
se cu re a child res traint that has been
equipped to use these anchorages.
- T ether anchorages and lower anchorages
are designed to withstand only those loads imposed by correct ly fitted ch ild
restraints . Under no circumstances can
they be used safe ly for adu lt or chi ld
safety belts or harnesses.
- Never mount more than one chi ld re
straint to a sing le tether or to a lower an
chorage point. Attaching two chi ld re
straints to a single anchorage point can cause the anchorage to fail and cause se
rious personal injury in a crash.
(D Note
- Remove the guidance f ixtures before
fold ing the rear seatback to prevent
damaging the seat cushion.
- If you leave the guidance fixtures instal
led for several days, they could leave a
mark on the upholstery on the seat cush
ion and backrest in the area that the
guidance fixtures were insta lled. The up
ho lstery would also be permanently
stretched around the guid ance fixtu res.
This applies especially to leather seats.
Installing a child restraint with LATCH
lower anchorages
Whenever you install a child restraint always
follow the child restraint manufacturer's in
structions.
Fig . 122 Lower ancho rages: proper mount ing
Mo unting
.,. Make s ure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in the upright position and securely
latched in place.
.,. Attach both hook-on connectors with the
spring catch release on the child safety seat
onto the LATCH lower anchorage so that the
connectors lock into place
~ fig. 122.
.,. Pull on the connector attachments to make
sure they are properly attached to the LATC H
lower ancho rage .
.,. Pull straps tight fo llow ing the child re
straint manufacturer's instructions .
Releasing
.,. Loosen the tension on the straps following
t he child restra int manufac turer's inst ruc
tions.
.. Depress the spring catches to release the
anchorage hooks from the lower anchorag
es.
Remember: Use tether straps to help keep the
child restraint firmly in place.
A WARNING
'-
Improper use of the LATCH system can in-
crease the risk of serious personal injury
and death in an accident.
Page 149 of 262

-These anchors were developed only for
child safety seats us ing the "LATCH" sys
tem.
- Never attach other child safety seats,
belts or other objects to these anchors .
- Always make sure that you hear a click
when latching the seat in place. If you do
not hear a click the seat is not secure and
could fly forward and h it the interior of
the vehicle, or be ejected from the vehi
cle.
A WARNING
Imprope r insta llation of chi ld restraints
w ill increase the risk of inju ry in an acci
dent .
- Always follow the child restraint system
man ufacturer's instructions for proper
installation of the child restraint system
and proper use of tether straps as we ll as
the lower anchorages or safety belts in
your vehicle.
- Always read and heed the important in
formation and WARNINGS about child
safety and the installation of child re
straint systems
¢ page 130, Child Safe
ty.
Tether anchors and tether straps
Fi g. 123 Tether ancho rs : attachment hook locatio ns
behind t he rear seatbacks
The tether anchors for the rear seating posi
tions are located on the backside of the rear
seatbacks
¢ fig . 123 .
A tether is a straight or V-shaped strap that
attaches the top part of a child restraint to
special anchorage points in the veh icle.
-
Child S afety 14 7
The purpose of the tether is to reduce the for
ward movement of the child restraint in a
crash, in order to help reduce the risk of head
injury that cou ld be caused by striking the ve
hicle interior .
Forward facing child restraints manufactured
after September 1, 1999, are requ ired by U.S .
federal regu lations to comply with new child
head movement performance requirements.
These new performance requirements make a
tether necessary on most new child safety
seats .
A WARNING
Imp roper installat ion of ch ild restra ints
will increase the risk of injury and death in
a crash.
- Always follow the instr uctions provided
by the manufacturer of the child re
straint you intend to install in your Audi.
- Improper use of child restraint ancho rs
(including tether anchors) can lead to in
jury in a collision . The anchors are de
signed to withstand only those loads im
posed by correctly fitted child restraints .
- Never mount two child restraint systems
on one LATCH lower anchor point.
- Never attach two child restraint systems to one tether strap or tether anchorage.
- Never attach a tether strap to a tie-down
hook in the luggage compartment .
- Never use child restraint tether ancho
rages to secure safety belts or other
kinds of occupant restraints .
- Never secure or attach any luggage or
other items to the LATCH lower ancho rages or to the tether anchors.
- If a tether or other strap is used to at
tach a chi ld restraint to the front passen
ger seat, make s ure that it is not so
tight, that it causes the weight-sens ing
mat to measure more we ight than is ac
tually on the seat .
- The heavier weight registered can make
the Advanced Airbag System work as
though an adult were on the seat and de-
ploy the Advanced Airbag when it must ..,
Page 150 of 262

148 Child Safet y
be suppressed causing ser ious 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 circumstan
ces and the
P A SS EN GER AIR BA G OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im
med iately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have t he a irbag system inspected by your
Audi dealer.
Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
Fig. 12 4 Tet her st rap : proper ro uting a nd mountin g
F ig . 125 Tether strap: p rope r ro uting a nd mo unting
Inst all ing th e tether strap
.,. Release or deploy the tether strap on the
child restra int according to the child re
stra int manufacturer's instruct ions .
.,. Gu ide the upper tether st rap into the rear
cargo area
¢fig. 125 .
.,. Slide the tether strap hook over the anchor
bracket.
.,. Pull on the tether strap hook so that the
spring catch of the hook engages .
.,. Tighten the tether stra p firmly following
t he child res train t manufacturer 's instruc
t ions .
Releasing the teth er strap
.,. Loosen the tension follow ing the child re
straint manufacturer's instructions.
.,. Depress the spring catch on the hook and
release it from the anchorage .
(D Note
If you leave the child restraint with the
tether strap firm ly installed for several
days, this could leave a mark on the up
ho lstery on the seat cushion and backrest
i n the area where the tether strap was in
stalled . The upholstery would also be per
manently st retched a round the tether
strap. This applies especia lly to leather
seats .
· Using tether straps on rearward-facing
child restraints
C urrently, few rear-facing chi ld restraint sys
tems come with a tether . Please read and
heed the child restrain t system manufactur
er's instructions carefully to determine how to
properly install the tether .
A WARNING -
A child in a rearward-facing ch ild safety
seat installed on the front passenger seat
will be serio usly inju red and can be killed if
the front airbag infla tes - even wi th an Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- The infla ting airbag will h it the c hild
safety seat or infant carrier wi th great
force and will smash the child safety seat
a nd child against the backrest, or door .
- A t ight tether or o ther strap on a rea r
ward-facing child restraint attached to the front passenger seat can p ut too
much pressure on the weight-mat in the
seat and register a heavier weight in the
Advanced Airbag System . The heavier
weight registered can make the sys tem
work as though an adult we re on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
m ust be suppressed causing ser ious or
even fata l injury to the ch ild .
Page 151 of 262

-If you must insta ll a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan ces and the
PASS ENG ER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im
med iately install the rea r-facing child
safety sea t in a rear seating position a nd
have t he a irbag system inspec ted by you r
Audi dealer .
Additional Information
Sources of information about child
restraints and their use
There are a numbe r of sources of additional
i n fo rmation abou t ch ild restrai nt sele ct io n, in
stallat io n a nd use :
NHTSA advises that t he best child safe ty seat
i s the one that fits your child and fits in your
ve hicl e, and that you w ill use cor rectly and
consis ten tly.
T ry befo re you buy!
U.S National Highway Traffic Safety Admin
istrat ion
T e l.: 1-888 -327 -4236 (T TY : 1-800 -424 -9153)
www .nhtsa .gov
National SAFE KIDS Campaign
Te l.: (202) 662-0600
www .safekids .org
Safety BeltS afe U .S .A
Te l.: (800) 745-SAFE (English)
Te l.: (800) 747-SANO (Spanish)
www .carseat .org
Transport Canada Inform ation Cent re
Te l.: 1 (800) 333-0371 or ca ll
1 (613) 998-8616 if you are in the Ottawa
area h ttp://www .tc .gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/
menu.htm
Audi Customer Relations
T e l.: (800) 822-2834
Child Sa fet y 149
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•
Page 152 of 262

150 Intelligent technology
Intelligent technology
Notice about data
recorded by vehicle
control modules
Your vehicle is not equipped with an Event Da
ta Recorder (EDR), installed by some manu
facturers fo r the express purpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or crash
event . EDR's are sometimes ca lled "crash re
corders".
Some state laws restrict the retr ieval or down
loading of data stored by EDR's that were in
stalled in a vehicle for the express purpose of
retrieving data after an accident or crash
event without the owner's consent.
A lthough your vehicle is not equipped with an
EDR, it is equipped with a number of electron
ic control modules for various vehicle systems
such as, for examp le, eng ine function, em is
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic contro l modules also record
vehicle-re lated data during normal vehicle op
eration for diagnostic and repair purposes.
The recording capacity of the electronic con
trol modules is limited to data (no sound is re
corded) and only a small amount of data is ac
tually recorded over a very limited pe riod of
time and stored when a system fault or other
condition is sensed by a control unit. Some of
the data then stored may relate to vehicle
speed, direction, braking as we ll as restraint
system use and performance in the event of a
crash or other condition. Stored data can only
be read and downloaded with special equip
ment.
Electronic Stabilization
Control (ESC)
Description
ESC helps to improve road holding and vehicle
dynamics to help reduce the probability of
skidd ing and loss of vehicle control. It works
only when the engine is running. ESC detects certain difficult driving situat
ions, including
when the vehicle is beginning to spin (yaw)
out of control and helps you to get the veh icle
back under control by se lectively braking the
wheels, and/or reducing engine power and
providing steering assistance to help hold the
vehicle on the driver's intended course. The in
dicator light
G) in the instrument cluster
blinks when ESC is taking action to help you
control the vehicle.
ESC has limitations.
It is important to remem
ber that ESC cannot overcome the laws of
physics. It wi ll not always be able to help out
under all conditions you may come up against.
For example, ESC may not always be able to
help you master situations where there is a
sudden change in the coefficient of friction of
the road surface. When there is a section of
dry road that is suddenly covered with water,
slush or snow, ESC cannot perform the same
way it wou ld on the dry surface . If the vehicle
hydroplanes (rides on a cushion of water in
stead of the road surface), ESC will not be
able to help you steer the vehicle because con
tact with the pavement has been interrupted
and the vehicle cannot be braked or steered.
During fast cornering, particularly on winding
roads, ESC cannot always deal as effectively
with difficult driving situations as at lower
speeds.
Always adjust your speed and driving style to
road , traffi<;: and weather conditions. ESC can
not override the vehicle's physical limits, in
crease the available tract ion, or keep a vehicle
on the road if road departure is a result of
driver inattention . Instead, ESC improves the
poss ibility of keeping the vehicle under con
t rol and on the road during extreme maneu
vers by using the driver's steering inputs to
help keep the vehicle going in the intended di
rection . If you are traveling at a speed that
causes you to run off the road before ESC can
provide any assistance, you may not experi
ence the benefits of ESC.
ESC includes and/or works together with the
anti- lock brake system (ABS), brake assist sys-
tem and anti-slip regu lation (ASR). ESC is .,..