1 70 Child Safety
It is usually best to put these children in ap
propriate booster seats. Be sure the booster
seat meets all applicable safety standards.
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass
across the child's body in the right places. The
routing of the belt over the child's body is very
important for the child's protection, whether
or not a booster seat is used . Children age 12
and under must always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 in
ches/1.45 meters) tall can generally use the
vehicle 's three point lap and shoulder belts .
Never use the lap belt portion of the vehicle's
safety belt alone to restrain any child, regard
less of how big the child is. Always remember
that children do not have the pronounced pel
vic structure required for the proper function
of lap belt portion of the vehicle's three point lap and shoulder belts. The child 's safety ab
solutely requires that a lap belt portion of the
safety belt be fastened snugly and as low as
possible around the pelvis. Never let the lap
belt portion of the safety belt pass over the
child's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink
of an eye and with considerable force. In order
to do its job, the airbag needs room to inflate
so that it will be there to protect the occupant
as the occupant moves forward into the air bag.
A vehicle occupant who is out of position and
too close to the airbag gets in the way of an
inflating airbag. When an occupant is too
close, he or she will be struck violently and
will receive serious or possibly even fatal in
jury.
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especial
ly any children, who must be in the front seat
because of exceptional circumstances, be
properly restrained and as far away from the
airbag as possible. By keeping room between
the child's body and the front of the passen
ger compartment, the airbag can inflate com- pletely and provide supplemental protection
in certain frontal collisions.
A WARNING
--
Not using a booster seat, using the boos
ter seat improperly, incorrectly installing a booster seat or using the vehicle safety
belt improperly increases the risk of seri
ous personal injury and death in a collision
or other emergency situation. To help re
duce the risk of serious personal injury
and/or death:
- The shoulder belt must lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as possi
ble and must lie flat and snug on the up
per body.
It must never lie across the
throat or neck. The lap belt must lie
across the pelvis and never across the
stomach or abdomen. Make sure the belt
lies flat and snug. Pull on the belt to
tighten if necessary .
- Failure to properly route safety belts
over a child's body will cause severe inju ries in an accident or other emergency
situation
~ page 132 .
-The rear side of the child safety seat
should be positioned as close as possible
to the backrest on the vehicle seat .
- Children on the front seat of any car, even with Advanced Airbags, can be seri
ously injured or even killed when an airbag inflates .
- Never let a child stand or kneel on any
seat .
- Never let a child ride in the cargo area of
your vehicle.
-Always remember that a child leaning
forward, sitting sideways or out of posi tion in any way during an accident can be
struck by a deploying airbag. This will re
sult in serious personal injury or death.
- If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of excep
tional circumstances the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light must come on and
stay on, whenever the ignition is switch
ed on .
-If the PA SS ENGER AIR BAG O FF light
does not come o n an d stay on, perform
the checks described
c:> page 150, Moni
toring the Advanced 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
PAS SEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child rest rained in ave
hicle is being used
c:> page 132, Safety
belts,
c:> page 140, Airbag system and
c:> page 161, Important things to know.
Installing a child safety
seat
Securing a child safety seat using a
safety belt
Safety belts for the rear seats and the front
pas senger's seat can be locked with the con
vertible locking retractor to properly secure
child saf ety seat s.
The safety belts eme rgency lock ing re tracto rs
for the re ar seats safety belts and for the
front passenger 's seat sa fety belt have a con
ve rtible locking retractor for child restraints.
The safety belt must be locked so that belt
webbing cannot unreel. The retractor can be
activated to lock the safety belt and prevent
t he safety belt webbing from loosening up
during normal driving . A child safety seat can
only be properly installed when the safety belt
i s locked so tha t the child and ch ild safety
seat will stay in place.
Always remember: Even though your veh icle is
equ ipped w it h an Advanced A irbag system, all
chi ld ren , espec ia lly those 12 yea rs and yo ung
e r, should always ride in the back seat proper
l y rest rained for thei r age and weig ht.
~ WARNING
Improperly insta lled child sa fety seats in
crease the risk of ser ious personal inju ry
and death in a collision.
Child Sa fet y 1 71
-Always ma ke sure that the safety be lt re
tractor is locked when insta lling a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re
tracto r cannot hold the child safety seat
in place dur ing no rma l dr iving o r in a
crash .
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a ch ild is not sitt ing in it .
A loose child safety seat can fly around
du ring a s udden stop or in a collision.
- If t he backrest is not securely latched,
the child and the child res traint will be
thrown fo rward togethe r with the bac k
rest and wi ll stri ke par ts of the ve hicle
interior. The child can be seriously i n
jured or killed .
- Never install rearwa rd -fac in g ch ild safety
seats or infant ca rrie rs on the front pas
senger seat . A child will be serio usly in
jured and can be killed when the passen
ger airbag inflates .
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smas h the child safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
armrest, doo r or roof .
- Always install rearward-facing chi ld safe
ty seats or infant carriers on the rea r
seat.
- Forward-facing child safety seats or in
fant carriers installed on the front pas
senger's seat may interfer e with the de
ployment of t he a irbag and cause serious
in jur y to the child.
- I t is safer to install a forwa rd-facing
child safety seat on t he rear seat.
- Always read a nd heed a ll WAR NIN GS
wheneve r us ing a chi ld restrained in ave
hicle is being used
c:> p age 161. Special
prec autions apply when instal ling a child
safety seat on the fron t passenger seat
c:> page 141, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
A WARNING
A lways take specia l precautions if you
must install a forward or rearward-facing •
•
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se
cure a child restraint .
Always heed the child safety seat manufactur
er's instructions when installing a child re
straint in your vehicle. To activate the conver
tible locking retractor :
"" Place the child restraint on a seat, prefera
bly on the rear seat.
.. Slowly pull the belt
all the way out.
.. Route it around or through the child re
straint belt path¢.&_ .
.. Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really tight.
.. Insert the belt tongue into the buckle for
that seating position .
.. Guide the sa fety belt back into the retractor
until the belt lies flat and snug on the child
safety seat .
.. You should hear a "clicking " noise as the
belt winds back into the inertia reel. Test the
convertible locking retractor by pulling on
the belt. You should no longer be able to
pull the belt out of the retractor. The con
v ertible locking retractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is fac
ing away from the child restraint so that it
can be unbuckled quickly .
""Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt
is properly tight and fastened so that the
seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2.5 cm).
A WARNING
Using the wrong child restraint or an im
properly installed child restraint can cause
serious personal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re-
tractor is locked when installing a child safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re
tractor cannot hold the child safety seat in place during normal driving or in a
crash .
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a child is not sitting in it.
-
Child Safety 173
A loose child safety seat can fly around
during a sudden stop or in a crash.
- Always make sure the seat backrest to
which the child restraint is installed is in
an upright position and securely latched
into place and cannot fold forward . Oth
erwise, the seatback with the child safety
seat attached to it could fly forward in
the event of an accident or other emer
gency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave
hicle is being used¢
page 161. Special
precautions apply when installing a child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 141, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know .
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
T he convertible locking retractor for child re
straints will be deactivated automatically
when the bel t is wound oil the way bock in to
the retractor .
.. Press the red button on the safety belt buck
le . The belt tongue will pop out of the buck
le.
.,. Guide the safety belt all the way back into
its stowed position .
Always let the sa fety belt retract completely
into its stowed position . The safety belt can
now be used as an ordinary safety belt with
out the convertible locking retractor for child
restraints.
If the convertible locking retractor should be
activated inadvertently, the safety belt must be unfastened and guided completely back in
to its stowed position to deactivate this fea
ture. If the convertible locking retractor is not
deactivated , the safety belt will gradually be-
come tighter and uncomfortable to wear.
11>
•
•
174 Child Saf ety
A WARNING
Improperly installed 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 retractor for
child rest raints while the veh icle is mov
ing. You would not be rest rained and
c ou ld be ser iously injured in an ac cident.
- Always read and heed all WARNI NGS
whenever using a child rest rained in ave
hicle is being use d
¢page 161. Spe cial
precautions apply when installing a ch ild
sa fety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 141, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
1 76 Child Safety
location
Fig. 163 Schematic overview: LATCH anchorage point
locations
The illustration shows the seating locations in
your vehicle which are equipp ed with the low
er anchorages system.
Description
The lower anchorage positions are marked
for quick locating.
Fig. 164 Rear seatbacks: locator buttons for lower an
chorages
Fig. 165 Rear seats: lower anchorage bracket locations
Attachment locator markers for lower
anchorages
Circular locator buttons on the rear seatback
indicat e the lower anchorage locations on the
rear seating positions
¢ fig . 164.
lower anchorages
Th e lower anchorage attachment points are
located between the rear seatback and rear
seat cushion
¢fig. 165.
Lower anchorages secure the child restraint in
the seat without using the vehicle's safety belts. Anchorages provide a secure and easy
to-use attachment and minimize the possibili
ty of improper child restraint installation .
All child restraints manufactured after Sep
tember 1, 2002, must have lower anchorage
attachments for the
LATCH system.
Remember that the lower anchorage points
are only intended for installation and attach
ment of child restraints specifically certified
for use with
LATCH lower anchorages. Child
restraints that are not equipped with the low
er anchorage attachments can still be instal
led in compliance with the child restraint
manufacturer's instructions on using vehicle
safety belts .
.&_ WARNING
-Improper use of LATCH lower anchorages
can cause serious personal injury in an ac
cident.
-Always carefully follow the child re
straints manufacturer's instructions for proper installation of the child restraint
and proper use of the lower 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
¢page 161,
Child Safety.
Installing a child restraint with LATCH
lower anchorages
Whenever you install a child restraint always
follow the child restraint manufacturer's in
structions.
F ig . 166 Lower anchorages: proper mounting
Mou nting
~ Make sure 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 LATC H lower anchorage so that the
connectors lock into p lace
c::> fig. 166 .
~Pullon the connector attachments to make
s u re they are properly attached to the LATCH
lower anchorage.
~ Pull straps tight following the child restraint
manufacturer's instructions.
Releasing
~ Loosen the te nsion on the straps following
the chi ld restraint manufacturer's instr uc
tions.
~ Depress the spring catches to re lease the
anchorage hooks from the lower anchorag
es.
Remember: Use tether straps to help keep the
child restraint firmly in p lace.
A WARNING
Improper use of the LATCH system can in
crease the risk of ser ious personal injury
and death in an acc ident.
Child S afety 177
- These anchors were deve loped only for
child safety seats using the "LATCH" sys
tem.
- Never attach other chi ld safety seats,
belts or other objects to these anchors.
- Always make sure that you hear a click
when latch ing the seat in p lace. If you do
not hear a click the seat is not secure and
could fly forward and hit the interior of
the vehicle, or be ejected from the veh i
cle .
A WARNING
Improper installat ion of ch ild rest ra ints
will increase the risk of injury in an acci
dent.
- Always follow the child restraint system
manufacturer's inst ruct io ns for prope r
installation of the ch ild restra int system
and proper use of te ther s traps as well as
the lower anchorages or safety belts in
your vehicle.
- Always read and heed the im portant in
formation and WARNINGS about chi ld
safety and the insta llation of chi ld re
straint systems
c::> page 161, Child Safe
ty.
Using tether straps on rearward-facing
child restraints
-
Currently, few rearward-facing chi ld res traint
systems come w ith a tether . Please read and
heed the ch ild restraint system ma nufactur
er's instr uctions carefully to dete rmine how to
proper ly install the tether.
A WARNING
-
A child in a rearward-fac ing chi ld safety
seat installed 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 airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or i nfant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
11>-
178 Child Saf ety
and child against the backrest, center
armrest, or door .
- A tight tether or other strap on a rear
ward -facing child restra int attached to
the front passenger seat can put too much pressure on the weight-mat in the
seat and register a heavier weight in the
Advanced Airbag System. The heav ier
we ight registered can make the system
wor k as though an adu lt were on the seat
and dep loy the Advan ced Airbag when i t
must be suppressed ca using serious 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 circ umstan
ces and the
PASSENG ER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im
med iately install the rearward-facing
child safety seat in a rear seat ing pos i
t io n and have the airbag system inspect
ed by your authorized Audi dea le r.
Additional Information
Sources of information about child
restraints and their use
There are a number of sources of additional
information about ch ild restraint select ion, in
stallat io n and use:
NHTSA advises that the best child safety seat
is the one that fits your child and fits in your
vehicle, and that you w ill use correctly and
consistently.
Try before you buy!
U.S N ation al H ighw ay Traffic S afety Admin
i s tr ation
Te l.: 1-888-327-4236 (TTY : 1-800-424-9153)
www .nhtsa.gov
N ation al SA FE KIDS Campaign
Te l.: (202) 662-0600
www .safekids.org
Safet y Belt Safe U.S.A
Tel.: (800) 74S-SAFE (English)
Tel.: (800) 747 -SANO (Span ish)
www.carseat .org
T ransport Can ada Information Centre
Tel.: 1-800-333-0371 or ca ll
1-6 13-998-86 16 if yo u are in the Ottawa area
http://www .tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/
menu. htm
Audi Cu stome r Rel ation s
Tel.: (800) 822-2834
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 for the express purpose of capturing
data for retrieval after an accident or crash
event. EDR's are sometimes called "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.
Although 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, engine function, emis
sion control, as well as for the airbags and
safety belts.
These electronic control modules also record
vehicle-related data during norma l 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 period 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
skidding and loss of veh icle control. It works
only when the engine is running. ESC detects
Intelligent technology 179
certain difficult driving situations, 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 ass istance to help hold the
vehicle on the driver's intended course. The in
dicator light
B.J 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 will 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 would 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 difficu lt driving situations than at lower
speeds. When towing a trailer, ESC is not able
to help you regain control as it would if you
were not tow ing a trailer.
Always adjust your speed and driving style to road, traffic and weather conditions. ESC can
not override the vehicle's physical limits, in
crease the available traction, or keep a vehicle
on the road if road departure is a result of
driver inattention. Instead, ESC improves the
possibility of keeping the vehicle under con
trol and on the road dur ing 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.
•
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