-Improper repair or disassembly of the
front passenger and driver seat will pre
vent the Advanced Airbag System from
functioning properly .
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must
be performed by qualified and properly
trained workshop personnel.
- Never remove the front passenger or
dr iver seat from the veh icle .
- Never remove the upholstery from the
front passenger seat .
- Never disassemble or remove parts from
the seat or disconnect wires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or place them on the seat. If the weight
sensing mat in the passenger seat is
punctured it cannot work properly.
- Never carry things on your lap or carry
objects on the passenger seat . Such
items can increase the weight registered
by the weight-sens ing mat and send the
wrong info rmation to the airbag control
uni t.
- Never store items under the front pas
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Ai r
bag System under the passenge r seat
cou ld be damaged, prevent ing them and
the a irbag system from working proper
ly .
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholste ry that have not been specifical
ly approved by A udi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the A dvanced
Airbag System from recognizing child re
straints or occupants on the front pas
senger seat and prevent the side airbag in the seat backrest from deploy ing prop
erly.
- Never use cush ions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger
seat . The add itiona l padd ing will prevent
the weight-sens ing mat in the seat from
accu rately reg iste ring the ch ild restra int
o r person on the se at and prevent the
Advance d Airbag System from func tion
ing properly .
-If you mus t use a child restra int on the
front passenger seat and the ch ild re-
A irbag system 19 1
straint manufacture r's instructions re
quire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something e lse to properly position the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the ch ild re
s t raint is installed on the front passen
ge r seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immed i
a tely insta ll child rest raint in a rear seat
ing position and have the ai rbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dealer .
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the
s ide airbags supp lement the protection of
fered by the front three-poi nt safety belts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head res traints to help reduce the
r isk of inj ury in a wide range of ac ciden t and
c rash situations. Be s ure to read the impor
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adv a need A irbag System
and t he activation of the safe ty belt preten
sioners depend on the deceleration measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
electronic contro l unit. Crash severity depends
on speed and dece leration as we ll as the mass
and stiffness of the veh icle or object involved
in the crash .
When the e lectronic control unit registers a
l ow severity crash and the safety belt is being
used, the airbag will not deploy. If the safety
belt is not being used, the first stage deploys,
followed by the second stage after a much lat er t ime in the crash sequence.
If the electron ic control unit registers a crash
of medium severity , the first stage of the air
bag deploys followed by the second stage at a
much later time in the crash sequence -re
gard less of whether the safety belt is be ing
u sed or not . In highe r sever ity crashes as reg
iste red by the electronic con trol unit, both the
II>
•
•
192 Airbag system
firs t a nd second stages deploy a lmost at the
same time.
O n the passenger side, regard less of safety
be lt use, the airbag will be turned off if the
weight on the passenger seat is less than the
amount programmed in the electronic control
un it. The front a irbag on the passenger side
will also be turned off if one of the child safe
ty seats that has been certified under Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been
recogn ized on the seat. The
PAS SENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on to te ll
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been t urned off
c::> page 185, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know .
~ WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inf lates, always wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of inj ury is much higher.
- You wi ll also receive serious 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
o page 183.
More important things to know about
front airbags
Fig. 2 09 Inflated front a irbags
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated pos ition
so that airbags can unfo ld properly and pro
vide supplemental protection in a frontal col lision. T
he front airbags are designed to provide ad
ditional protection for the chest and face of
the driver and the front seat passenger when:
- safety belts are worn properly
- t he seats have bee n positioned so that the
occ upan t is prope rly seated as far as poss i
b le from the airbag
- and the head restraints have been properly
ad justed
Because airbags inflate in the bli nk of an eye
with great force, th ings you have on your lap
o r have placed on the seat co uld become dan
gerous p ro jecti les, and be p ushed in to you if
the a irbag inflates.
When an airbag deploys, fine dust is re leased.
T h is is no rma l and is not caused by a fire i n
the ve hicle. This dust is made up mos tly of a
powde r used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy.
It could irr itate skin.
It i s impo rtant to remember that wh ile the
s u pplementa l airbag system is designed to re
duce the like lihood o f serious injur ies, other
injuries , for examp le swelling, bruising and
minor ab rasions, can also happen when air
bags inflate . A irbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body. Front a irbags
supplement the three-point safety belts only i n some fronta l col lisions in wh ich the vehicle
deceleration is h igh eno ugh to deploy the air
bags.
Front airbags will not deploy:
- if the ignition is sw itched off when a crash
occurs
- in side co llisions
- in rear-end co llisions
- in rollove rs
- when the crash dece lerat ion meas ured by
the air bag system is less than the min imum
threshold needed for airbag deployment as
reg istered by the elect ronic contro l unit
The front pass enger airbag also w ill not
deploy:
- when the front passenger seat is not occu-
pied .,.
194 Airbag sys te m
aw ay by ge tting out of the vehicle or
o pening windows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy, wash your hands and face with
mild soap and water before eating.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your
eyes, or into any cuts or scratches.
- If the residue should get into your eyes,
flush them with water.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag
System
Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advanced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indicator Light and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light.
The Advanced Airbag System (including the
e lectronic control un it, sensor circuits and sys
tem wiring) is monitored cont inuously to
make sure that it is functioning properly
whenever the ignit ion is on . Each t ime you
turn on the ignition, the airbag monitoring in
d icator light
I will come on fo r a few seconds
(self diagno stics) .
The system mu st be inspected when the
indicator light
I :
- does not come on when the ignit io n is
switched on
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have swi tched on the ign ition, o r
- comes on while driving
If an airbag system malfunct ion is detected,
the ind icator light will fi rst start flash ing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to serve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately .
If a malfunction occurs that turns the front
a ir bag on the passenger side off, the
PAS SEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght w ill come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on.
A WARNING
An a irbag system that is not functioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag ind icator light¢
page 16
comes when the veh icle is being used,
have the system inspected immediately
by your authori zed Audi dealer. It is pos
sib le that the airbag will infla te when it
is not supposed to, or will not infla te
when it should .
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
-
.r--------------,
------------------
Fig. 210 Sect io n from the instru men t pa nel: PASS EN
GER AIR BAG OFF lig ht
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located
in the center of the instrument pane l
¢fig . 210.
T he PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light wi ll come
on and stay on to tell you w hen the front Ad
vanced Airbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the electron ic contro l unit. Each
t ime you turn on t he ignition, the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light will flas h for a few
seconds and:
- w ill stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied
- will stay on i f the re is a small chi ld or child
restraint on the front passenger seat
- will go out if the front passenger seat is oc
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing mat
T he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and sta y on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been ins talled on the fron t
seat, or
-a rearward-facing child restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward -facing child restraint has been in
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
- 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 w ith which the
Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle 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 install 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 seating positions on the rear seat
¢ page 185, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 204, 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 certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght stays on continuous ly whenever the
ignition is on. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light does not appear on and does not
stay on all the time, stop as soon as it is safe
to do so and
- reactivate the system by turning the ignition
off and then turning it on again;
- remove and reinstall the chi ld restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety be lt for the
front passenger seat has been correctly
routed through the child restraint as descri
bed in the chi ld restraint manufacturer's in
st ructio ns;
- make sure that the convert ible locking fea
ture on the safety belt for the front passen
ger seat has been activated and that the
sa fety belt has been pulled tight. The belt
must not be loose or have loops of slack so
that the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the seat can do its job
¢ page 214.
Airbag system 195
-make sure that things that may increase the
weight of the child and chi ld safety seat are
not being transported on the front passen
ger seat;
- make s ure that the safety belt tension sen
sor is not blocked. Shake the safety belt
latch on the front passenger seatback and
forth;
- 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-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 proper ly at one of the
rear seat positions . Have the airbag system
inspected by you r authorized Aud i dealer
immed iate ly.
- move the ch ild to a rear seat position and
make sure that the child is properly restra in
ed in a child restraint that is appropriate for
its size 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 passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or
flashes for about 5 seconds wh ile driving, un
der these circumstances, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is
properly seated on the cente r of the seat
cushion with his or her back up against the
backrest and the backrest is not reclined
¢ page 165, Proper occupant seating posi
tions,
- the adult is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or support
ing their weight on the armrest,
- the safety be lt is being properly worn and
that there is not a lot of slack in the safety
be lt webb ing, .,..
•
•
196 Airbag sys te m
- accessory seat covers or cushions or other
things that may cause an incorrect reading
or impress ion on the weight-sens ing mat
under the upholstery of the seat have been
removed from the front passenger seat,
- a safety belt extender has not been left in
the safety belt latch for the front passenger
seat.
In addition to the
PA SSENGER AIR B AG OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel,
the message
PASS ENGER AIR B AG O FF or
PASS ENGER AIR B AG O N will briefly appear
in the instrument cluster display . T his is to in
form the driver of the current front passenger
a irbag status .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
_&. WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning
prope rly cannot provide supplemental pro
tect ion in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light
c::> page 16
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
have the system inspected immediately
by you r authorized Aud i dea ler.
It is pos
sible that the airbag will inflate when it
is not supposed to, or w ill not inflate
when it should .
_&. WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child witho ut
a child restraint, or in a rearward-facing
child safety seat, or in a forward-facing
child restraint that has not been properly
installed will be seriously injured and can
be killed .
- Even though your veh icle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that all children, especially 12
years and younger, a lways ride on the
back seat properly restrained for their
age and size.
- Always install forwa rd 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 c ircumstan
ces and the
PA SS ENGER AIR BA G OFF
light does not appear and stay on, imme
diate ly install the rear-facing child safety
seat in a rear seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspected by your au
thorized A udi dealer.
- A tight tether or other strap on a rear ward-facing child restraint attached to the front passenger seat can p ut too
m uch pressure on the weight-sensing
mat in the seat and register more weight
than is actually on the seat. The heavier
weight registered can make the system
work as though an adult were on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
must be suppressed causing ser ious or
even fata l injury to the ch ild.
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you
must install a forward-fac ing ch ild re
straint on the front passenger seat, al
ways move the seat into its rearmos t po
sition in the seat's fore and aft adjust
ment range, as far away from the airbag
as possible. The backrest must be adjust
ed to an upright position. Make sure that
the
PASSEN GER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when
ever the ignit ion is switched on .
_&. WARNING
r-
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out when an adult 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 rea r seat ing pos itions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi dealer befo re trans
port ing anyone on the front passenger
seat.
('D Tips
If t he weight-sensing mat in the front pas
senger seat de tects an empty seat, the
front airbag on the passenger side wi ll be
jll,,
200 Airbag system
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and con help re
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu
pants who ore properly restrained.
Fig. 212 Infl ated sid e airbags o n left side of vehicle,
r ea r sid e airbag optional equipment
ID
When the system is triggered, the airbag is
filled with propellant gas and breaks through
a seam in the seat surface area marked "AIR
BAG".
It expands between the side trim panel
and the passenger . In order to help provide
this additional protection, the side airbag must inflate within a fraction of a second at
very high speed and with great force. The sup
plemental side airbag could injure you if your
seating position is not proper or upright or if
items are located in the area where the sup
plemental side airbag expands . T hi s applies
especially to children
c::> page 204, 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
lision
c::> fig . 212.
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.
Important safety instructions on the
side airbag system
Airbags ore only supplemental restraints. Al
ways properly wear safety belts and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and act accordingly to help the
safety belts and airbags do their job to pro
vide supplemental protection.
A WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious
or fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety belts and improper seating positions in
crease the risk of serious personal injury
and death whenever a vehicle is being
used.
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental side airbag inflates:
- Always sit in an upright position and
never lean against the area where the
supplemental side airbag is located.
- Never let a child or anyone else rest
their head against the side trim panel
in the area where the supplemental
side airbag inflates.
-Always make sure that safety belts are worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone sitting in the front
seat put their hand or any other parts
of their body out of the window.
-Always make sure that the side airbag can inflate without interference.
- Never install seat covers or replace
ment upholstery over the front seat
backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags
deploy.
- Damage to the original seat covers or
to the seam in the area of the side air
bag module must always be repaired
immediately by an authorized Audi
dealer.
vehicle that is struck in a side collision
~fig. 214.
When the system is triggered , the side curtain
airbag is filled with propellant gas and breaks
through a seam above the front and rear side
windows identified by the AIRBAG label. In or
der to help provide this additional protection,
the side curtain airbag must inflate within the
blink of an eye at very high speed and with
great force. The side curtain airbag could in
jure you if your seating position is not proper
or upright or if items are located in the area
where the supplemental side curtain airbag
inflates . This applies especially to children
~ page 204.
Although they are not a soft pillow, side cur
tain airbags can "cushion" the impact and in
this way they can help to reduce the risk of in
jury to the head and the upper part of the
body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag de
ploys. This is quite normal and does not mean
there is a fire in the vehicle.
Important safety instructions on the
side curtain airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al
ways properly wear safety belts and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and do to help the safety belts and
airbags do their job to provide supplemental
protection.
A WARNING
Improperly wearing safety belts and im
proper seating positions increase the risk
of serious personal injury and death when
ever a vehicle is being used.
- Never let occupants place any parts of
their bodies in the area from which the
side curtain airbags inflate.
-A lways make sure that the side curtain
airbags can inflate without interference.
Unsuitable accessories fitted inside the
Airbag system 203
expansion range of a side curtain airbag
can dangerously interfere with its func
tion. A deploying head airbag develops
enough force to catapult any piece of
add-on component out of its path of in
flation and into the passenger compart
ment. An occupant hit by such a projec
tile can suffer serious injury or death
~ page 319, Technical Modifications.
- Do not swivel the sun visors to the side if
you have any objects clipped onto them
(for example pens). If the airbag should
deploy, you could be injured by these ob
jects.
- Use the built-in coat hooks only for light
weight clothing. Never leave any heavy or sharp-edged objects in the pockets that
may interfere with airbag deployment
and can cause personal injury in an acci
dent.
- Never use hangers to hang clothing from
the hooks.
- Only use factory-installed sun shades or,
in the case of shades installed after the
vehicle leaves the factory, only Audi roll up sunscreens may be used~ page 318,
Additional accessories and parts re
placement.
- Always sit in proper seating position and
wear safety belts while traveling so that
the side curtain airbags can help provide
protection.
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once . If the airbag has been triggered,
the system must be replaced by an au
thorized Audi dealer or qualified work
shop.
-Always have work involving the side cur
tain airbag system, removal and installa
tion of the airbag components, or other
repairs performed by an authorized Audi
dealer or qualified workshop. Otherwise
the airbag system may not work correct
ly.
- Never attempt to modify any compo
nents of the airbag system in any way.
•
•
204 Child Saf ety
Child Safety
Important things to
know
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision.
The physical principles of what happens when
your ve hicle is in a crash app ly also to chi ldren
~ page 176, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts?.
But unlike adu lts and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not
fu lly deve loped . In many respects chi ldren are
at greater risk of serious injury in crashes than
ad ults.
Because children's bod ies are not fully deve l
oped, they require restraint systems especial
l y designed for their size, weight, and body
structure. Many co untries and all states of the
United States and provinces of Canada have
laws requ iring the use of approved ch ild re
straint systems for infants and small ch ildren.
In a fronta l crash at a speed of 20 -35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-po und
(6 kg) infant w ill be more than 20 t imes the
weight of the child. This means the weight of
the child would suddenly be more t han
260 pounds ( 120 kg). Unde r these conditions,
only an appropria te ch ild restrai nt properly
used c an reduce the risk of ser ious inju ry.
Chi ld restra ints, like adult safety belts, mus t
be used properly to be effective . Used improp
e rly, they can increase the risk of serious in
jury in an acc ident.
Consul t the child safety seat manufactu re r's
instr uctions in order to be sure the seat is
right fo r you r ch ild's size ~
page 207, Impor
tant safety instructions for using child safety
seats.
Please be sure to read and heed all of
the important informat ion and WARNINGS
about ch ild safety, Advanced A irbags, and the
i nstallation of child r estraints in this chapter .
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad
vanced A irbags in your vehicle and how they
wo rk whe n infants and children i n child re- stra
ints are on the front passenger seat . Be
ca use of the large amount of impo rtant infor
mation, we cannot repeat it a ll here . We urge
you to read the detai led information in t his
owner 's ma nual about airbags and the Ad
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the
very importa nt information about transport
ing ch ildr en on the fro nt passenge r seat.
Please be su re to heed the WAR NINGS -they
are extremely import ant for yo ur safe ty and
the safety o f your passenge rs, especially in
f ants and small children .
A WARNING
-Accident statistics have shown that chil
dren are generally sa fer in the rear seat
area than in the front seating position.
Always restrain any child age 12 and un
de r in the rear.
- All vehicle occupants and especially chil
d ren must be restrai ned properly when
eve r riding in a vehicle. An unrest rained
or improp erly restrained chi ld co uld be
in jur ed by str iking the i nterior o r by be
i n g ejected from the vehicle dur ing a
sud den maneuve r o r i mpac t. An un re
s traine d or improperly restrained ch ild is
also at greater risk of injury o r death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- A suitable c hild restrai nt properly instal
led and used at one of the rear seat ing
positions prov ides the highest degree of
protection for infants and small children
in most accident situations.
A WARNING ,_
Children on the front seat of any car even
wi th Advanced Airbags can be ser iously in
j u red or even kil led when an airbag in
flates. A chi ld in a rearwa rd-fac ing c hild
safety seat in sta lled on t he fro nt passen
ger sea t will be ser iously injure d and ca n
b e killed if t he front airbag inflates .
- T he infla ting air bag will h it the chi ld
safety sea t or infan t carrie r wi th great
force and wi ll smash the child safe ty seat
an d chi ld aga inst the bac krest, center
armrest, or door.
II>-