120 Airbag system
- the weight registered on the front passen
ger seat is equa l to or less than the com
bined weight of a typical 1 year-old restrain
ed in one of the rear-facing or forward-fac
ing infant restraints listed in Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which the
Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle was
certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on. Nev
er insta ll a rearward-facing child restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any kind of child restraint is at one
of the seat ing positions on the rear seat
¢ page 110, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 130, Child Safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on
when one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignition is on. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light does not appear and not stay on all
the time, stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off and then turning it on again;
- remove and re install the child restraint.
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety belt for the
front passenger seat has been correct ly
r outed a round the child restraint as descri
bed in the chi ld restrai nt manufacturer's in
struct ions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea
ture on the safety belt for the front passen
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight . The belt
must not be loose or have loops of slack so
that the sensor below the safety be lt latch
on the seat can do its job
¢ page 140.
-make sure that th ings that may increase the
weight of the chi ld and child safety seat are
not being transported on the front passen
ger seat; -
make sure that the safety belt tension sen
sor is not blocked. Shake the safety belt
latch on the front passenger seat back and
forth;
- If a strap or tether is being used to tie the
child safety seat to the front passenger
seat, make sure that it is not so tight that it
causes the weight-sensing mat to measure
more weight than is actually on the seat .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on
and does not stay on con
t inu ously (when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passen-
ger seat and install it properly at one of the rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer immediately.
- move the child to a rear seat position and make sure that the child is properly restra in
ed in a ch ild restraint that is appropriate for
its s ize and age.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when the ignition is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
the front passenge r seat. If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or
flashes for about 5 seconds w hile d riving, un
der these circumstances, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenge r seat is
properly seated on the cente r of the sea t
cushion with his or her back up aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is not recl ined
¢ page 91, Proper occupant seating posi
tions,
- the adult is not tak ing we ight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
abovethefrontpassengerdooG
- t he sa fe ty belt is being properly worn and
t hat there is not a lot o f sla ck in the safety
be lt webbing,
- accessory seat covers or cushions or other
things that may cause an incorrect reading
or impression on the weight-sensing mat
under the upho lstery of the seat have been
removed from the front passenger seat, .,.
-a safety be lt extender has not been left in
the safety belt latch for the front passenger
seat .
I n addition to the
P ASS ENGER AIR B AG OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel,
the message
PA SSENGE R AIR BAG OFF or
PASSENGER AI R BAG ON will briefly appear
in the instrument cluster display. Th is is to in
form the driver of the current front passenger
airbag status .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light comes on, it
means that there may be someth ing
wrong with the Advanced Airbag System .
It is possible that the airbag will inflate
when it is not supposed to, or w ill not in
flate when it should.
- Have the airbag system inspected imme
diately by your Aud i dealer.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a ch ild without
a child restra int, in a rearward-facing child
safety seat or in a forward-facing chi ld re
straint that has not been properly insta lled
wi ll be seriously injured and can be ki lled .
- Even though your veh icle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that a ll children, especially 12
years and younger, a lways ride on the
back seat properly restrained for their
age and size.
- Always install forward or rear-facing
child safety seats on the rear seat -even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
- If you must install a rearward-facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan ces and the
PAS SENG ER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and stay on, imme-
A irbag system 12 1
diately install the rear- facing child safety
seat in a rear seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
deale r.
- A t ight tether or other strap on a rear
ward-facing child restraint attached to
the front passenger seat can put too much p ressu re on the weight-sensing
mat in the seat and reg ister more weight
than is a ctually on the seat. The heavier
weight regis tered can make the system
wo rk as tho ugh an adult we re on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
m ust be suppressed causing serious or
even fata l injury to the ch ild.
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you
m ust install a forward-fac ing ch ild re
straint on the front passenger seat, al
ways move the seat into its rearmost po
sition in the seat's fore and aft adjust
ment range, as fa r away from the a irbag
as poss ible. The backrest must be ad just
ed to an upright pos ition. Make sure that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when
ever the ignition is switched on .
A WARNING
-
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out when an ad ult is sitting
on the front passenger seat after taking
the steps described above, make sure the adu lt is properly seated and restra ined at
one of the rear seat ing pos itions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea ler before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
(l) Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front pas
senger seat detects an empty seat, the
front airbag on the passe nger side will be
turned off, and
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
will stay on.
•
•
124 Airbag sys te m
about the same height in the instrument pan
e l underneath the glove compartment.
The knee a irbag offers add it iona l pro tect ion
to the driver's and passenger 's knees and up
per and lower thigh areas and supp lements
the protection by the safety be lts .
I f the front airbags deploy , the knee airbags
a lso deploy in frontal co llisions when the de
p loyment thresho ld stored in the cont rol unit
is met ¢
page 117, More important things to
know about front airbags .
In addi tion to their normal safety function,
safety belts he lp keep the driver or front pas
senger in position in a frontal collisio n so that
the airbags can prov ide supplemental protec
tion.
The airbag system is not a s ubstitute for yo ur
safety be lt . Rather, it is part of the overall oc
cupant restraint system in your veh icle. Al
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wear ing it properly . Th is
i s why you shou ld always wear you r safety
be lt, not just because the law requires you to
do so ¢
page 100, General notes.
The safety belt buck le for the dr iver and front
seat passenger have switches that te ll the a ir
bag control module if the safety belt is being
used or not. If the safety belt is being used,
the knee airbag will deploy at a slightly highe r
rate of deceleration than if the belt is not be
ing used . Therefore, in a partic ular collision , it
is possible that an airbag will not deploy at a
seating position where the safety belt is being used but will inflate at the position where the
safety belt is not be ing used.
Remembe r too, airbags will deploy only once
and on ly in certain kinds of accidents -your
safety belts are always there to offer protec
tion in those acc idents in which airbags are
n ot supposed to deploy or when they have a l
ready deployed, fo r example whe n your veh i
cle str ikes or is struck by another after the
fi rs t collis io n. This is
just one of the reasons why an airbag is
not a s ubstitute for the safety be lt. The airbag
system works most effect ively when used with
the safety belts. Therefore, always wear yo ur
safety belts correct ly.
It is important to remember that w hil e the
s u pplementa l knee airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of ser ious injuries,
other injur ies, for example, swelling, bru is ing,
minor abrasions and friction bu rns can a lso
occur when an airbag inflates.
The knee airbag system basically consi sts
of:
- The e lectronic control module
- Two inflatable a irbags (a irbag and gas gen-
erator), one for the driver and one for the
front passenge r
- The a irbag ind icator light in the instrument
panel
The knee airbag sy ste m w ill not depl oy :
- when the ignition is t urned off
- in frontal collisions when the deceleration
measured by the contro l unit is too low
- in side co llisions
- in rea r-end co llisions
- in rollove rs
- in the event of a system malfunction (warn -
ing/ind icator light is on)
¢ page 15.
A WARNING
-Safety belts and th e airbag system can
only provide pro te ction when occupa nts
a re in the proper se ating posi tion
<=:>page 117.
- If the airbag ind icator light come s when
the vehicle is be ing used, have the sys
tem inspected immediate ly by yo ur au
thor ized A udi dealer.
-
and minor abrasions can also be associated
with deployed side airbags. Remember too,
side airbags will deploy only once and only in
certain kinds of accidents -your safety belts
are always there to offer protect ion.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage are not necessar ily an indi
cation of over-sensitive or failed airbag activa
tion. In some collisions, both front and side
a irbags may inflate . Remember too, that air
bags will deploy only once and only in certain
kinds of collisions -your safety belts are al
ways there to offer protect ion in those acci
dents in wh ic h airbags are not supposed to
deploy or w hen they have already deployed .
The side airbag system will not depl oy :
- when the ignition is turned off
- in side collisions when the acceleration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in rear-end collisions
- in ro llovers.
I n some types o f acc idents the front airbags
and side airbags may be triggered together.
& WARNING
-Safety belts and the a irbag system will
only provide protection when occ upants
are in the proper seating posit ion
c') page 128.
- If the airbag indicator light comes on
when the vehicle is being used, have the
system inspected immediately by your
authorized Aud i dealer. The a irbag may
not wo rk p roperly when the vehicle ac
c ele ra tion in a side co llision is h igh
enough to ac tiva te the airbag.
.
A irba g sy stem 12 7
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu
pants who are properly restrained.
F ig . 1 11 Inflated side airbags on left side of vehicle
i
When the system is triggered, t he a irbag is
filled with propellant gas and breaks through
a seam in the seat surface area ma rked
"AIR
BAG". It expands between the side trim panel
and the passenger. In order to help provide
th is add itiona l protection, the side airbag
must inflate within a fraction of a second at
very h igh speed and with great force. The sup
plementa l side airbag could injure you if your
seat ing pos ition is not proper or up right o r if
items are loca ted in the area where the s up
plementa l side airbag expands. This applies
especially to chi ldren ¢
page 130, Child Safe
ty .
Supplemental side airbags inflate between
the occupant and the door panel on the side
of the vehicle that is struck in certain side col
lis ion ¢
fig. 111.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper
part of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag de
ploys . This is normal and does not mean there
is a fire in the vehicle.
-Always install rear-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat in exceptional circumstances and
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately
install the rear-facing child safety seat in
a rear seating position and have the air
bag system inspected immediately by
your Audi dealer.
_& WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's in
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were
installed in a vehicle during a crash. Dam
age to a child restraint that is not visible
could cause it to fail in another collision
situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
Child Safety 131
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re
quirements for 3- and 6-year old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates . In addition, the system
has been certified to comply with the "sup
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front
passenger seat in child restraints that are list
ed in the Standard.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, all children, espe cially those 12 years and younger, should al
ways ride in the back seat properly restrained
for their age and si ze. The airbag on the pas
senger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to ride . The front
seat is not the safest place for a child in a for
ward-facing child safety seat. It can be a very
dangerous place for an infant or a larger child
in a rearward-facing seat .
Advanced Airbags and the weight
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us
ing the weight -sensing mat in the seat cush
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight -sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the ..,.
•
•
Model
Evenflo First Choice
1 204
Graco Infant 8457
Graco Snug ride
-M anufactured on or
a fter
December 1, 1999
December 1, 1999
September 25, 2007
Peg Perego Primo Vi -September 25, 200 7
aggio SIP IMUN00US
Subpart C -Forward -fa cing and
c on vert ible child restraint s
Model
Britax Roundabout
E9L02xx
Cosco Touriva 02519
Cosco Summit Deluxe
High Back Booster
2 2-262
Manufactured on or
after
September 25, 2007
December 1, 1999
September 25, 2007
Cosco High Back Boos- September 25, 2007
ter 22-209
E venflo Tribu te V
379xxxx
Evenflo Medallion 25 4
Evenflo Generations
352xxxx
Graco ComfortSport
Graco Toddler Safety
Seat Step 2
Graco Platinum Cargo
& WARNING
September 25, 2007
December 1, 1999
September 25, 2007
September 25, 2007
September 25, 2007
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
child restraint is installed on the front pas
senger seat and the ignition is switched
on.
- Take the child restraint off the front pas
senger seat and install it proper ly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
yo ur authorized Aud i dealer immediate
ly.
Child Sa fet y 133
'
(D Tips
The child seats listed in categories A to C
have been statically tested by A udi on ly for
the Advanced A irbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially
reduces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the dr iver, you are responsible for the safe
ty of everybody in the vehicle, especially ch il
dren:
... Always use the right chi ld safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
¢page 135.
... Always carefully fo llow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instruct ions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child
safety seat.
... When usi ng the veh icle sa fe ty belt to ins tall
a child safety se at, you m ust first act ivate
the convertib le locking retractor on the
safety belt to p revent the child safety seat
from mov ing
¢ page 140 .
... Push the ch ild safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety be lt really tight
so that the seat cannot move forwa rd or
sideways mo re than one inch (2.5 cm) .
... If a strap o r tethe r is be ing used to t ie the
child safety seat to the fron t passenger
s eat, make sure tha t it is not so tight that it
causes the weight-sensing ma t to measure
more weight than is act ually on the seat.
... Sec ure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 135.
Always remember : Even tho ugh yo ur vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all c h il dren, especially those 12 years and young
er, shou ld always r ide in the back seat proper -
ly restra ined for the ir age and size. .,. •
•
as possible before installing the child
restraint.
- Always make sure that nothing pre
vents the front passenger's seat from
be ing moved to the rearmost position
in its fore and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure that the backrest is
in the upr ight position.
- Always buck le the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a child is not sitting in it.
A loose ch ild safety seat can fly around
dur ing a sudden stop or in a col lision .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave
hicle is being used
¢page 100, Safety
belts,¢ page 108, Airbag system
and
¢ page 130, Child Safety.
A WARNING
To reduce t he ris k of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
child rest raint is installed on the front pas
senger seat and the ignition is switc hed
on.
- Take the child restraint off t he fro nt pas
senger seat and install it properly at one of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN ·
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Aud i dealer immediate
ly.
Secure unused safety belts on the rear
seat
F ig. 112 Schematic overv iew: keep un used safety belts
away from children in child safety seats. • outer rear
safety belt,
Child S afety 13 5
If a child safety seat is used on the rea r bench,
especially with LATCH universal lower ancho
rages, the unused safety belts
must be se
cured so that the child in the child restraint
cannot reach them
¢ &.
-Fasten th e un used safety be lt behind the
child seat and let the be lt ret ractor wind up
the safety belt webbing.
A WARNING
A child in a chi ld safety seat installed with
the LATCH lower anchorages or with the
standard safety belt or a child in a booster
seat on the rea r seat co uld p lay w ith un
used rear seat safety belts and become en
tang led. This cou ld cause the chi ld ser ious
personal injury and even dea th.
- Always secure unused rear sea t safe ty
be lts ou t of re ach o f chi ldren in child
seats such as by fastening the un used
safety belt behind the ch ild seat and let
ting the belt retracto r wind up the web
bing.
Child safety seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old
and 20 lbs . or
9 kg need special rearward-fac
ing child restraints that support the back,
neck and head in a crash .
Fig. 1 13 Schema tic overv iew: rea rward-facing infant
seat, properly installed on the rear seat
.,. When usi ng the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertib le locki ng retractor on the
safety bel t to p reven t the child safe ty seat
Ill>-
138 Child Safet y
time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
- If the light does not stay on, perform the
checks
i=> page 119, Monitoring the Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- Take the child restraint off the front pas
senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
P A SSEN
G ER A IR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is sw itched on.
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats con help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs. and
80 lbs . (18 kg and 36 kg) who ore less than 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inchesll .45 meters) toll.
Fi g. 11 6 Rear seat: child properly restra ined in a boos
te r seat
Booster seats raise these children up so that
the safety belt will pass properly over the
stronger parts of their bodies and the safety belt can help protect them in a crash .
> Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to re
stra in a child on a booster seat .
> The shoulder belt must lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as poss ible
and must lie and snug on the upper body. It
must never lie across the th roat or neck . The
l ap belt must lie across the pe lvis and never
across the stomac h or abdomen. Make sure
the belt lies f lat and snug . Pull on the be lt
to t ighten if necessary.
> Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:> poge 135.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40
lbs. or 18 kg) are best protected in child safe
ty seats des igned for their age and weight. Ex
perts say that the skeletal structure, particu
larly the pelvis, of these children is not fully
developed, and they must not use the vehicle
safety belts without a suitable c hild restraint.
It is usually best to put these chi ldren in ap
propr iate booster seats. Be sure the booster
seat meets all applicable safety standards.
Booster seats ra ise the seating posit ion of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass
across the ch ild's body in the r ight p laces . The
routing of the belt over the ch ild 's body is very
important for the child's protect ion, whether
o r not a booster seat is used. Chi ldren age 12
and under must always r ide in the rea r seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 in
ches/1.45 mete rs) tall can gene ra lly us e the
vehicle's three point lap and shoulder belts.
Never use the lap belt port io n of the vehicle 's
safety belt alone to restrain any chi ld, regard
less of how big the chi ld is . Always remember
that children do not have the pronounced pel
vic structure required for the proper funct ion
of lap belt portion of the vehicle's three point
lap and shou lder belts. T he child's safety ab
solutely requires that a lap belt portion of the
safety belt be fastened snugly and as low as
poss ible a round the pe lvis. Neve r let the lap
belt port ion of the safety belt pass over the
c hi ld 's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, a irbags must inflate within a blink
of an eye and with considerable force. In o rder
to do its job, the a irbag needs room to inflate
so that it will be the re to p rotect the occ upan t
as the occupant moves forward into the air
bag.
A vehicle oc cupant who is out of posit ion and
too close to the a irbag gets in the way of an
inflating airbag. When an occ upant is too
close, he or s he will be struck violently and
will receive serious or possibly even fatal in-
jury. .,.