forces on the body more "tolerable" and less likely to cause injury.
Although these examples are based on a fron
tal collision , safety belts can also substantial
ly reduce the risk of injury in other kinds of
crashes. So, whether you're on a long trip or
just going to the corner store, always buckle
up and make sure others do, too. Accident sta
tistics show that vehicle occupants properly
wearing safety belts have a lower risk of being
injured and a much better chance of surviving
an accident . Properly using safety belts also
greatly increases the ability of the supplemen
tal airbags to do their job in a collision. For
this reason, wearing a safety belt is legally re
quired in most countries including much of
the United States and Canada.
Although your Audi is equipped with airbags ,
you still have to wear the safety belts provid
ed. Front airbags, for example, are activated
only in some frontal collisions. The front air
bags are not activated in all frontal collisions,
in side and rear collisions, in roll overs or in
cases where there is not enough deceleration
through impact to the front of the vehicle .
The same goes for the other airbag systems in
your Audi. So, always wear your safety belt
and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained!
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 .
Safety belts 177
-Always fasten your safety belts 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 driv
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 being 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 .
- 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 required 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 .,..
L,_ _______________ _J
•
•
178 S afet y belt s
damaged, have belts replaced by an au
thorized Aud i dealer or qualified
workshop.
- Safety belts that have been worn and
loaded in an accident must be replaced
with the correct rep lacement safety be lt
by an authorized Audi dea le r. Replace
ment may be necessary even if damage
c anno t be clear ly seen. Anchorages that
we re loaded m ust also be inspected.
- Never remove, modify, disass emble, or
t ry to repa ir t he safety be lts yourself.
- Always keep the belts clean . Dirty belts
may not wo rk p roperly and can impa ir
the funct io n of t he in ertia reel¢
ta
ble Cleaning in terior on page 246.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 2 02 Belt buckle and tongue o n th e dr iver 's seat
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be posit ioned correctly on the
wearer 's body .
.. Adjust the front seat and head restra int
properly¢
page 72, General recommenda
tions .
.. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in a n upright pos ition and securely
l atched in place before using the belt ¢&_ .
.. Hold the belt by the to ngue and pull it even
l y across the chest and pelvis
c:::> &, .
.. Inse rt the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hea r it latc h securely
¢ fig . 202.
.. Pull on the belt to ma ke sure t hat it is se -
curely latched in the buck le .
Automatic safety belt retractors
Eve ry safety belt is equipped with an automat
ic be lt r etractor on t he shou lde r belt. This fea
tu re locks the belt when the be lt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and in an accident .
The be lt may a lso lock when you drive up or
down a steep hi ll or thro ugh a sharp curve.
D uring normal driving the belt 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 the pretensioner is ac
t ivated. The function of the pretensioner is
monitored by a war ning light¢
page 16.
Switchable locking feature
Every safety belt except the one on the d river
seat is equipped with a sw itchab le locking fea
ture that
must be used when the safety be lt is
used to attach a c hild safety seat. Be sure to
read the important information about this
feature
c:::> page 214.
A WARNING
Imp roperly posit ioned safety be lts can
cause ser ious injury in an accide nt
c:::> page 179, Safe ty belt posi tion.
-
- Safety b elts offer opt imum protect ion
only whe n the sea tbac k is u prigh t an d
be lts a re pr operly posit ioned on the
body .
- Always m ake sure that the rear sea t
b a ckrest to wh ich the center rear s afety
be lt is at tached is secure ly latched when
ever the rear center safety belt is being
used . If the backrest is not secure ly
latched, the passenger w ill move for
ward with the backrest dur ing sudden
brak ing, in a sudden maneuver and espe
cially in a c rash.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buck-
le for another seat . Attaching the belt to .,_
the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt
effectiveness and can cause serious per
sonal injury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrain
ed can be seriously injured by the safety
belt i tself 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 secur ing a child
safety seat in the vehicle~
page 216.
Safety belt position
Correc t bel t posi tion is the key to ge tting
maximum protection from safety belts .
Fig. 203 Safety belt pos it io n
Standard features on your vehicle help you ad
just the position of the safety belt to match
your body size.
- belt height adjustment for the front seats
and the outer seating positions in the sec
ond row seating,
- 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. Ho ld 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
Safety belts 179
should always fit snugly= fig. 203. 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. 203 . Pull on the belt to tight
en if necessary .
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause seri
ous injuries by shifting its pos ition 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 177 .
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make
sure that expectant mothers always wear
saf ety belts correctly -throughout the preg
nancy.
Fig. 204 Safety belt pos ition du ring pregnan cy
To provide max imum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer's body
¢ page 179 .
... Adjus t the fron t seat and head restra in t cor
rectly ¢
page 72, General recommenda
tions .
.,. 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 pu ll it even
ly across the chest and pelvis¢
fig. 204,
=A . ~
180 Safety belts
• Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your sea t until you hear it latch securely
¢ page 178, fig. 202.
•Pullon the belt to make sure that it is se
curely latched in the buckle .
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
possible across the pelv is and be low the
rounding of the abdomen.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information¢ .&.
in Fas
tening safety belts on page 178.
Unfastening safety belt s
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped .
Fig. 205 Releasing the to ngue from th e buckle
• Push the red release button on the buckle
¢
fig. 205 . The belt tongue will spring out
of the buckle
c:> ,& .
• Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position.
On vehicles with
third row seat* : an unfas
tened safety belt can be secured in the retain ing clip in the luggage compartment side
tr im . In this way, the luggage compartment
cover can be removed without obstruction . Al
so, the belt tongue height can be adjusted so
that luggage compartment can be loaded
without obstruction with the backrest folded
forward .
A WARNING
-Never unfasten safety belt while the vehi-
cle is mov ing . Do ing so will increase your
risk of being injured or killed.
Adjusting safety belt height
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust
ment, the three point safety belt strap rout
ing can be fitted to the shoulder area , accord
ing to body size .
Fig. 206 Safet y bel t heigh t adju stm en t- loop-a roun d
f itt ings
The shoulder belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possible and
should fit well on the body¢.&.
in Safety belt
position on page 179.
• Push
the loop-around fittings up c:> fig. 206
@,or
• squeeze together the (D button, and push
the loop-around fittings down@.
• Pull the be lt to make sure that the upper at
tachment is properly engaged .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information ¢
page 177.
(D Tips
With the front seats, the he ight adjust
ment of the seat can also be used to adjust
the position of the safety belts.
Model Manufactured on or
after
Evenflo First Choice December 1, 1999
204
Graco Infant 8457 December 1, 1999
Graco Snugride September 25, 2007
Peg Perego Primo Vi- September 25, 2007
aggio SIP IMUN00US
Subpart C - Forward-facing and
convertible child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Britax Roundabout September 25, 2007
E9L02xx
Cosco Touriva 02519 December 1, 1999
Cosco Summit Deluxe September 25, 2007
H igh Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back September 25, 2007
Booster 22-209
Evenflo Tribute V September 25, 2007
379xxxx
Evenflo Medallion December 1, 1999
254
Evenflo Generations September 25, 2007
352xxxx
Graco Comfo rtSport September 25, 2007
Graco Toddler Safety September 25, 2007
Seat Step 2
Graco Platinum Cargo September 25, 2007
A WARNING
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 properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
Child Safety 207
-Have the airbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi dealer immed iate
ly.
@ Tips
The child seats listed in categories A to C
have been statically tested by Audi on ly for
the Advanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially
reduces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsib le for the safe
ty of everybody in the veh icle, especially ch il
dren:
... Always use the right chi ld safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
¢page 210.
... Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instruct ions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child
safety sea t .
... When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
t he convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
¢ page 214.
... Push the ch ild safety seat down with yo ur
full weight to get the safety belt really tight
so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2 .5 cm) .
... If a strap or tether is be ing 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-sens ing mat to measure
more weight than is actually on the seat.
... Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 209.
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
c hild ren, especially those 12 years and young
er, shou ld always r ide in the back seat proper-
ly restrained 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 174, Safety
belts,¢ page 183, Airbag system
and
¢ page 204, 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. 21 5 Schematic overv iew : keep un used safety belts
away from children in child safety seats.@-oute r rear
safety belt,
@ -center rear safety belt
Child S afety 209
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¢&.
- Guide the safety belt webbings @and @
beh ind the head restraint of the seat where
the child restra int is insta lled ¢
fig. 215.
When doing so, do not engage the switcha
ble locking retracto r! You shou ld not hear a
"cl icking" sound when w inding up the safety
be lt .
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt
webbing.
A WARNING
A child in a chi ld safety seat i nstalled with
the LA TCH lower ancho rages or with the
standard s afety be lt or a child in a boos ter
seat on the rea r seat co uld p lay with un
use d rea r seat safety belts and become en
tang led . This could cause t he chi ld ser ious
personal injury and even death.
- Always secure unused rear seat safety
be lts out of reach of children in child
seats such as by proper ly rout ing t hem
around the head restrai nt of the seat
where the ch ild restraint is installed.
- Never activate t he switchable l ock ing re
tracto r when routing the safety be lts
arou nd the head restraints.
- Never let anyone s it at the center rear
seating position if the center rea r safety
be lt has been routed around a rear head
restraint.
210 Child Safe ty
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 . 216 Sche matic overview: rearward- facing infant
seat, properly installed o n the rear seat
> When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a ch ild safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving ¢
page 214 or install the seat
using the LATCH attachments.
> Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt rea lly tight
so that the seat cannot move forward or
sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm).
> Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 209.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg)
are best protected in special infant carriers
and child safety seats designed for their age
group . Many experts believe that infants and
small children should ride only in spec ial re
straints in which the chi ld faces the back of
the vehicle . These infant seats support the ba
by's back, neck and head in a crash ¢
fig. 216.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
fro nt seat a potentially dangerous place for a
child to r ide . The front seat is not the safest
p lace for a child in a forwa rd-facing child seat.
I t is a very dangerous p lace for an infant or a
larger child in a rearward-facing seat.
A WARNING
-Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child safety seat or improperly in
stalling a ch ild restra int increases the risk
of ser ious personal in jury and death in a
crash.
- Never install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant ca rr ie rs on the front pas
senger sea t -even with an Advanced Air
bag Sys tem. A c hild will be ser iously in
jured and can be killed whe n the inflat
ing ai rbag hits the child safety seat or in
fant carrier with great force and smashes the child safety seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or
roof ¢
page 185, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- Always install rear-facing ch ild safety
seats or infant ca rr ie rs on the rear seat .
- Never install a rear-fac ing ch ild restra int
in the forward-fac ing direct ion. Such re
straints are designed for the special needs of infants and very small ch ild ren
a nd cannot protect them prope rly if the
seat is forward- facing.
- If you m ust insta ll a rearwa rd fa cing
child safety seat on the fro nt passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come o n and stay on, im
mediately insta ll the rear-fac ing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i deale r.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever us ing a child restrained in ave
h icle is being used¢
page 174 , Safety
belts, ~ page 183, Airbag system
and
c::> page 204, Important things to know.
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats
can help protect toddlers and children over
age one who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9
and 18 kg) in a crash.
F ig . 217 Sche mati c overvi ew : ins tallat ion o f the at
tachments appl icable to a LA TCH seat
F ig. 2 18 Schem atic overview: installat ion of t he seat
u sing the ve hicle' s safety b elt sy stem
.. When using the vehicle safety be lt to insta ll
a chi ld safety seat, you must f irst activate
the convertible locking feature on the safety
belt to prevent the child safety seat from
moving
c::> page 214 or install the seat using
the LATCH attachments .
.,. Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really t ight
so that the seat cannot
move forward or
s ideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
c::>page 214.
.,. If the child safety seat is equ ipped with a
tet her strap, attach it to the tether anchors
c::> poge 221.
.. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:;, page 209.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in
fant restraint if it is more than one year o ld
and weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
Child Safety 211
Toddlers and children who are older than one
year up to about 4 years old and weigh more
than 20 lbs. (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must always be properly restrained in a child safety
seat cert ified for their si ze and weight
c::> fig . 217and c::>fig. 218 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentially dangerous place for a
child to ride . The front sea t is not the sa fest
place for a child in a forward -facing child safe
ty seat .
It is a very dangerous place for a n in
fant or a large r ch ild in a rearward-facing seat .
.&_ WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child s afety seat o r imprope rly in
stalling a chi ld restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death in a
collision or other emergency situation .
- Ch ildren on the front seat o f any car,
even with Advanced Airbags, can be se ri
ously injured or
even killed when an air
bag inflates. A chi ld in a rearward-facing
child safety seat installed o n the front
passenger seat will be serious ly injured
and can be k illed if the front airbag in
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force a nd will smash the child safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
a rmrest, doo r or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild safety
seats o n the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearwa rd fac ing
child safety seat on the fro nt passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan
ces and t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im
mediately insta ll the rear -facing chi ld
safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i dea ler .
- The rear side of the child safety seat
should be pos itioned as close as poss ib le
~