2014 AUDI A5 CABRIOLET Owners Manual

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 correctly 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
135
- 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
that 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.
- 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 you rs elf .
- Always keep the belts clean. Dirty belts
may not work properly and can impair
the function of the inertia reel¢
ta­
ble Cleaning interior on page 197 .
Safety belts
Belt positioner
The driver and front passenger seats are
equipped with belt positioners.
Fig. 145 Drive r's se at: B elt pos itio ner

136 Safet y belt s
The front seats are equipped with belt posi­
tioners so it is easier to fasten the safety
be lts . T he belt positioners automatically ex­
tend when the door closes and the ignition
switches on
¢ fig . 145.
The belt positioner returns to its starting posi­
tion again when
- the tongue in the belt latch engages or the
belt was not fastened within 60 seconds .
- yo u sw itch the igni tion off .
- you open the doo r.
&_ WARNING
- Only yo ur autho rized Aud i dea le r shou ld
wor k on the sys tem or remove and insta l­
ling system com ponents when per form ­
ing other work .
- T he be lt positione rs could cause injury or
damage if they p inch peop le or objects
when extending or retracting .
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 146 Belt buckle a nd tong ue o n th e dr iver's seat
To prov ide maximum protection, sa fety belts
must always be posit ioned correctly on the
wearer's body .
.. Adjust the front seat and head restra int
properly ¢
page 60, Seats and storage .
.. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in an upright pos ition and securely
latched in place before using the belt¢,& .
.. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it even-
ly across the chest and pelvis
c:::> &, .
.. Insert the tongue into the correct buck le of
your seat unti l you hear it latch securely
c:::> fig . 146.
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is se-
curely latched in the buckle.
Automatic safety belt r etractors
Every safety belt is equipped with an a utomat ­
ic be lt retractor on t he shou lder belt. This fea­
ture locks the belt when the be lt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and in an accide nt.
The belt may a lso lock when you drive up or
down a steep h ill or through a sha rp curve.
D uring normal driv ing the be lt lets you move
freely .
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped with a belt pre­
tensioner that he lps to tighten the safety belt
and remove slack when t he pretensioner is ac ­
t ivated . T he function of the pretensione r is
monitored by a war ning light
c:::> page 20.
Switchable locking feature
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a sw itchable lock ing fea­
ture that
must be used when the safety be lt is
u sed to attach a c hild safety s eat. Be sure to
read the important information abou t this
feature
c:::> page 171.
&_ WARNING
I mp roperly posit ioned s afety be lts c an
cause ser ious injury in an accident
c:::> page 137, Safety belt position .
-Safety belts offer opt imum protection
only when the seat back is u pright and
be lts are proper ly posit ioned o n the
body.
-
- Never attach t he safety belt to the buck­
le for another seat. Attaching the belt to
the wrong buckle will reduce safety be lt
effectiveness and can cause serious per ­
sonal injury .
- A passenger who is not proper ly 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 safety seat in the vehicle ¢
page 173.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting
maximum protection from safety belts .
Fig. 147 Safety belt pos it io n
"' ,-. 0 ± Standard features on your vehicle help you ad­
just the position of the safety belt to match your body size .
- height -adjustable front seats.
A 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
evenly across the chest so that it sits as
low as possible on the pelvis and there is
no pressure on the abdomen. The belt
should always fit snugly
¢ fig. 147. Pull
on the belt to tighten if necessary.
- The lap belt portion of the safety belt
must be positioned as Low as possible
across pelvis and never over the abdo­
men. Make sure the belt lies flat and
snug
¢ fig . 147 . Pull on the belt to tight­
en if necessary.
Safety belts 13 7
-A loose-fitting safety belt can cause seri­
ous injuries by shifting its position on
your body from the strong bones to more
vulnerable, soft tissue and cause serious injury.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
¢page 135.
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.
Fig. 148 Safety bel t position during pregnancy
To provide maximum protect ion, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer's body¢
page 13 7.
.,. Adjust the front seat and head restraint cor­
rectly
¢ page 60, Seats and storage.
.,. 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 even­
ly across the chest and pelvis~
fig. 148,
¢ _& .
.,. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
¢page 136, fig. 146 .
.,. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is se­
curely latched in the buckle.

138 Safet y belt s
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious personal injury in an acci ­
dent .
- Expectant mothers must always wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as
poss ible across the pelv is and be low the
rounding of the abdome n.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
Q &. in Fas­
tening safety belts on page 136.
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped .

'lJJ
Fig. 149 Relea sing the to ngue from t he buckle
.. Push the red re lease but ton on the buck le
Q fig. 149 . The belt tongue wi ll spring out
of the buckle
Q .&_ .
.. Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position.
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the veh i­
cle is moving. Doing so will increase your
r isk of being injured or killed .
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause
severe injuries .
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause se­
rious injury or death. Safety belts can only
work when they are correctly positioned on the body . Improper seating positions reduce
the effectiveness of safety belts and wi ll
even
increase the risk of injury and death by mov­
ing the safety be lt to critica l areas of the
body. Improper seating positions also in­
crease the r isk of serious injury and death
when an airbag deploys and strikes an occu­ pant who is not in the correct seating posi­
t ion. A driver is responsible for the safety of
all veh icle occupants and especially for chil­
dren. Therefore:
.,. Never perm it anyone to assume an incorrect
sitt ing pos ition in the vehicle while traveling
Q A .
A WARNING
Improperly worn safety be lts inc rease the
risk of ser ious persona l inju ry and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- Always ma ke sure that all vehi cle o cc u ­
pants are correctly restra ined and stay in
a correct seating position whenever the
vehicle is being used.
- A lways read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
Q page 135.
Safety belt preten-
• s1oners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear-end collisions above a
particular severity, safety belts are tensioned
automatically.
The safety belts are equipped with safety belt
pretensioners. The system is activated by sen­
sors in front, s ide and rear-end collisions of
great severity. This tightens the belt and takes
up belt slack
Q .&. in Service and disposal of
safety belt pretensioner on page 139.
Taking
up the slack he lps to reduce fo rward occupant
movement during a collision .
(D Note
Never let the belt remain over a rear seat­
back that has been fo lded forward.

@ Tips
The safety belt pretensioner can only be
activated once .
- In mino r frontal and side collisions, in
rear-end collisions and in accidents in­
volving very little impact force, the safe­
ty belt pretens ioner are not activated .
- When the safety be lt pretensioners are
activated, a fine dust is released. This is
norma l and is not caused by a fire in the
vehicle.
- The relevant safety requirements must
be observed when the vehicle or compo­
nents of the system are scrapped . An au ­
thorized Audi dealer or qua lified work­
shop is fam iliar with these regulations
and will be p leased to pass on the infor­
mation to you.
- Be sure to observe all safety, environ­
mental and othe r regula tions if the vehi­
cle or individ ual pa rts of the system, par­
ticularly the sa fety belt or airbag, are to
be disposed. We recommend you have
your a uthorized Audi dea ler perform this
serv ice for you .
Service and disposal of safety belt
pretension er
The safety belt pretensioners are pa rts of the
safety belts on you r Audi . Installing, remov­
i n g, servicing or repa iring of belt prete nsion­
ers can damage the safety be lt system and
p revent it from work ing correct ly in a colli­
sion.
There are some impor tant thi ngs you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of
the system will not be impaired and that dis­
carded components do not cause injury or po l­
l ute the env ironment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal in­
jury and death by preventing a safety belt pretens ione r from act ivat ing when needed
or act ivat ing it unexpectedly:
Sa fety belts 139
- The belt pretensioner system can be act i­
vated only once. If be lt pretensioners
have been activated, the system m ust be
replaced.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the safety be lt system.
- Safety belt systems incl uding safety belt
pretens ioners cannot be repaired. Spe­
cial procedures are required for removal, installation and d isposal of th is system .
- For any work on the safety belt system,
we strongly recommend that you see
your author ized Audi dealer or qualif ied
technician who has an Audi approved re­ pa ir manua l, train ing and spe cial eq uip­
ment necess ary.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and p reten­
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate Materia l - specia l handli ng may apply, see
www .dtsc.c a.gov/h azardouswaste/per­
ch lor ate. When the veh icle or parts o f the
restraint system including airbag modules
safety be lts with pretensioners are scrap­
ped, a ll applicable laws and regulations
must be observed. Your authorized A udi
dealer is familiar with these requirements
and we recommend that you have your
dealer perform th is service fo r you.
•
•

140 Airbag system
Airbag system
Important things to know
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For
airbags to do their job , occupants must al­
ways properly wear their safety belts and be
in a proper seating position.
F or your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers, before driving off, always:
• Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly ¢
page 122,
• Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
r=; page 61,
• Wear safety be lts properly ¢ page 135,
• Always properly use the proper child re-
straint to protect children ¢
page 161.
In a collision airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force.
The supplemental airbags can cause injuries if
the dr iver or the front seat passenger is not
seated properly . Therefore in order to help the
a ir bag to do its job, it is important, both as a
d river and as a passenger to sit prope rly at all
times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steering wheel and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
comp letely and provide supplemental protec­
tion in ce rtain frontal collisions
¢page 122,
Proper occupant seating positions.
F or details
on the operation of the seat adjustment con­
t rols ¢
page 61.
It's especially important that children are
properly restrained ¢
page 161.
There is a lot that the driver and the passen­
ge rs can and must do to help the individua l
safety features installed in your A udi work to­
gether as a system.
Proper seating pos ition is important so that
the front airbag on the driver side can do its
job. If yo u have a physical impa irment or con- dition that
prevents you from sitting properly
on the driver seat with the safety belt properly
fastened and reaching the pedals , spec ial
modif ications to your vehicle may be necessa­
ry.
Contact your a uthorized Audi dealer, or call
Audi C ustomer Relations at 1-800-822-2834 .
When the airbag sys tem dep loys , a gas gener­
ator will f ill the airbags, break open the pad­
ded covers, and inflate between the steering
whee l and the driver and between the instru­
ment pane l and the front passenger. The air­
bags will deflate immediately after deploy­
ment so that the front occupants can see
th rough the windshield aga in without inter­
ruption .
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the a irbags have deployed . The airbags also
inflate with a great deal of force and nothing
shou ld be in their way when they deploy.
Front airbags in comb ination with prope rly
worn safety belts slow down and limit the oc­
cupant's forward movement. Together they
help to prevent the driver and front seat pas­
senger from hitting parts of the inside the ve­
hicle while reducing the forces acting on the
occupant dur ing the crash. In this way they
help to reduce the risk of injury to the head
and upper body in the crash . A irbags do not
protect the arms or the lower parts of the
body.
Both front a irbags w ill not inflate in all fronta l
collisions . The triggering of the airbag system
depends on the vehicle deceleration rate
caused by the collision and registered by the
electron ic control unit. If this rate is below
the reference value programmed into the con­
trol unit, the airbags will not be triggered ,
even though the car may be bad ly damaged as
a result of the co llision . Vehicle damage, re­
pair costs or even the lack of veh icle damage
is no t necessarily an indication of whether an
airbag should inflate or not .
It is not possib le to define a range of vehicle
speeds that w ill cover every possib le kind and .,.

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 132.
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 135, Safety belts .
Airbag system 141
-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 122.
-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 importa nt information
and head the WARNINGS fo r important de­
tails about children and Advanced Airbags
¢ page 161. ..,.
•
•

142 Airbag system
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag System, make certain that
all chi ldren, especially those 12 years and
younger, a lways ride in the back seat properly
restrained for their age and size. The airbag
on the passenger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a ch ild to ride.
The front seat is not the safest place for a
child in a forward-facing child safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for an infant or
a child in a rearward-facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle
has been certified to comply with the Requ ire­
ments of United States Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard 208 as applicable at the time
your vehicle was manufactured.
The Standard requires the front a irbag on the
passenger side to be turned off ("sup­
pressed") if a child up to about one year of
age restrained in one of the rear-facing or for­
ward -facing infant restraints listed in Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which
the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
was certified has been installed on the front passenger seat . For a listing of the child re ­
strai nts that we re used to certify compliance
with the US Safety Standard
r=v page 163.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the in­
strument panel te lls you when the front Ad­
vanced A irbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the e lectronic control unit.
Each t ime you turn on the ignition, the
PAS ­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on for a
few seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small child or child restraint on the front passenger seat,
- wi ll go off if the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing mat
r=v page 150, Monitor­
ing the Advanced Airbag System .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when the control un it detects a total weight
on the front passenger seat that requires the
front airbag to be turned off.
If the total weight on the front passenge r
seat is more than that of a typica l 1 year -old
chi ld but less than the weight of a small
adult, the front airbag on the passenger side
can deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on). If the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on, the
front airbag on the passenger side has not
been turned off by the electronic con trol unit
and can deploy if the control unit senses an
impact that meets the cond itions stored in its
memory .
For example, the airbag may deploy if:
-a small ch ild that is heav ier than a typical 1
year-old ch ild is on the front passenger seat
( re gard less of whether the child is in one of
the child safety seats listed
r=v page 163), or
- a child who has outgrown ch ild restraints is
on the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in
the instrument cluster and stays on.
The front airbag on the passenger s ide may
not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not illum inate and stay lit) even if a
small adult or teenager, or a passenger who is
not sitt ing upright with their back against a
non-reclined backrest with their feet on the
vehicle floor in front of the seat is on the front
passenger seat
r=v page 122, Proper seating
position for the driver.
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the
Federal Standard requires the airbag to meet
the "low risk" deployment criteria to reduce
the risk of injury t hroug h interaction with the
airbag. "Low risk" deployment occurs in those
crashes that take place at lower dece lerat ions
as defined in the electronic control unit
r=v page 151, PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light .
Always remember, a child safety seat or infant
carr ier installed on the front seat may be
struck and knocked out of posit ion by the rap­
idly inflat ing passenger's airbag in a frontal
collision . The air bag could greatly reduce the
effectiveness of the ch ild restraint and even
seriously injure the child during inflation .