2014 AUDI RS7 SPORTBACK warning

cushion with his or her back up against the
backrest and the backrest is not reclined,
- 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 we ight on the armrest,
- the safety be lt is being properly worn and
that there is not a lot of slack in the safety
belt webbing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or
cushions or other things (such as blankets)
on the front passenger seat that might
cause the capacitive passenger detection
system to miscalculate electrical capac i­
tance.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
- If the status of the Adva need A irbag Sys­
tem has changed wh ile the vehicle is
moving, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light b links for about 5 seconds to catch
the driver's attent ion. If this happens, al­
ways stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and check the steps described above.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go off when an adu lt who is not
very small is sitting on the front passen ­
ger seat after taking the steps described
above, make sure the adult is properly
seated and restrained at one of the rear
seating pos it ions. Have the airbag sys­
tem inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer before transpo rting anyone on the
front passenger seat.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning
prope rly cannot provide supplemental p ro­
t e ction in a fron tal crash.
- If the airbag indicato r light ~page 18
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
h ave the system inspected immedi ately
by you r autho rized Aud i dea ler . It is pos­
sible that the airba g will inflate when it
A irbag system 157
is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child without
a child restraint, or in a rearward-facing
chi ld safety seat, or in a forward-facing
chi ld restraint that has not been proper ly
install ed w ill be seriou sly injur ed and can
be killed.
- Even tho ugh yo ur vehicle is equipped
wit h an Advanced A irbag System, make
certain that all children, espec ial ly 12
ye ars and younger, always ride on the
back seat properly rest rained for their
age an d size .
- Always install forward o r rear-facing
child seats on the rear sea t - even with
an Advanced Ai rba g System.
- If you must install a rearwa rd -fa cing
child seat on the front passenger seat because of exceptional circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not appear and stay on, immediate ­
ly install the rear-facing child seat in a
rear seat ing pos itio n and have the airbag
system inspected by you r Audi dealer.
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you
must ins tall a forward-fac ing ch ild re­
s traint on the front passenger seat, al­
ways move the sea t into its rearmos t po­
sition in the seat 's fore and aft adjust­
men t range, as fa r away from the a irbag
as possi ble . The backrest must be adjust ­
ed to an upright pos ition. Make su re that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when­
ever the ignit ion is switched on.
A WARNING
-
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out w hen an ad ult is sitting
on the front passenger seat after taking
the steps described above, make su re the
adu lt is prope rly seated and restra ined at
one o f the rea r seat ing pos itions. .,.
•
•

158 Airb ag sys te m
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
If the capacitive passenger detection sys­
tem determines that the front passenger seat is empty, the frontal airbag on the
passenger side will be turned off, and the
P ASS ENGER AIR BA G OFF light w ill stay
on .
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at
many different pla ces on your Audi . Installing,
removing, servicing or repairing a part in an
area of the vehicle can damage a part of an
airbag system and prevent that system from
working properly in a co llision.
There are some important things 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
lute the environment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal in­
jury and death by preventing an airbag from deploy ing when needed or deploying
an airbag unexpectedly:
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the
steering wheel ho rn pad or airbag cover
or the instrument pane l or modify them
in any way .
- Never attach any objects such as cup
holders or telephone mountings to the
surfaces covering the airbag uni ts.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
pane l, use only a soft, dry cloth or one
moistened w ith plain water. Solvents or
cleaners co uld damage the airbag cover
or change the stiffness or strength of the
material so that the airbag cannot de­
ploy and protect properly. -
Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the a irbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, front seats or e lectr ica l sys­
tem (including the installation of audio
equ ipment, cellu lar telephones and CB
radios, etc.) must be performed by a
qualified technic ian who has the training
and specia l equipment necessary.
- For any wo rk on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that yo u see your
author ized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop.
- Never modify the front bumper or parts
of the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the s ide airbag
can inf late without inte rfe rence:
- Never install seat covers or rep lace­
ment upholstery over the front seat­
backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat c ushions that
cover the areas where the side a irbags
inflate.
- Damage to the orig inal seat covers or
to the seam in the area of the side a ir­
bag module must a lways be repaired
immediately by an author ized Audi
dealer .
- The airbag system can deploy on ly once .
After an a irbag has been deployed, it
must be replaced w ith new replacement
pa rts des igned and app roved es pecially
for your Aud i mo del ve rsion. Replace ­
ment of comple te airbag systems or air ­
bag components must be performed by
qualified wor kshops only . Make sure that
any airbag service action is entered in
your Audi Warranty
& Maintenance book­
let under
AIRBAG REPLACEMENT RE­
CORD .
-For safety reasons in severe accidents,
the alternator and starter a re sepa rated
from the veh icle battery with a pyrotech­
n ic circuit inte rrupte r.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit inter­
rupter must only be performed by a
qualified technicians who have the
llll-

experience, informat ion a nd specia l
too ls necessary to perform the work
safely.
- If the veh icle or the circuit interrupter
is scrapped, all applicable safety pre­
cautions must be followed.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undep loyed airbag modu les and preten­
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate Material - special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca .gov/hazardouswaste/per­
chlorate. When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
and safety belts w ith pretens ioners are
scrapped, all applicable laws and regula­
tions must be observed. Your author ized
Aud i dea ler is familiar with these requi re­
ments an d we recommend that yo u have
your dea ler perform this se rvice for you .
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced A irbag Sys­
tem pe rforms in a crash. For example, us ing
tire -r im combinations not app rove d by Aud i,
l owering the vehicle, changing the stiffness o f
the suspension, incl uding the springs, s uspen ­
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that a re measured by the airbag
sensors and sent to the elect ronic control
u ni t. Some suspension changes can, for exam­
p le, increase the force levels measured by the
se nsors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in wh ich it would not dep loy if the
changes had not been made . Ot her k inds of
change s may reduce the force levels meas ­
u red by the sensors and prevent the a irbag
from deploying when it shou ld .
The sensors in the safety belt buckle fo r the
d river and front passenger sea t tell the elec ­
tronic control module if the safety belt is
l atched or not . If the safety belt is be ing used,
the front airbag will dep loy at a slightly high ­
er rate of vehicle deceleration than if the safe ­
ty belt is not being used. Therefore, in a pa r-
A irba g sy stem 159
ticular coll is io n, it is possible t hat an airbag
w ill not deploy at a seating position where the
safety belt is be ing used b ut w ill inflate at the
position where the safety belt is not be ing
used . It is important that nothing interfere
with the safety be lt buckles so that the sen ­
sors can send the cor rect info rmation about
safe ty be lt use to the electronic control un it .
A WARNING .
Changing the vehicle's suspension includ­
i ng use of unapp roved tire-r im combin a­
tions can cha nge Advanced Airbag per­
formance and increase the risk of se rious
personal injury in a crash.
- Never install s uspension componen ts
that do not have the same performance characteristics as the components origi ­
na lly installed on your vehicle.
- Never use tire -rim combinations that
have not been approved by Audi .
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
Applies to vehicles: wit h knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained
front seat occupants .
Fig. 1 63 Driver 's k nee airbag
T he driver knee airbag is in the ins trumen t
pane l underneath the steering wheel
r:::> fig. 163, the airbag for t he passenger is at
about the same height in the instrument pan-
el underneath the glove compartment. ..,.

160 Airbag sys te m
The knee airbag offers additiona l protect ion
to the driver's and passenger's knees and up­ per and lower thigh areas and supp lements
the protect ion provided by the safety belts.
I f the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
a lso deploy in frontal co llisions when the de ­
p loyment threshold stored in the contro l unit
is met
c:> page 152, More important things to
know about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function,
safety belts he lp keep the driver or front pas­
senger in posit ion in a frontal collis ion so that
the airbags can prov ide supplemental protec­
tion .
The airbag system is not a subst itute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your veh icle. Al­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety be lt and wear ing it properly . Th is
is why you shou ld always wear your safety
be lt, not just because the law requires yo u to
do so
<:> page 133, General notes.
The safety belt buck le for the dr iver and front
seat passenge r have switches that te ll t he a ir­
bag control mod ule if the safe ty belt is being
used or no t. If the safety be lt is being used,
the knee airbag will deploy at a slightly higher rate of deceleration than if the belt is not be­
ing used. Therefore, in a partic ular collision, it
is possible that an airbag will not deploy at a
seating position where the safety belt is being used but will inflate at the position where the
safety belt is not be ing used.
Remember too, airbags will deploy only once
and only in certain kinds of accidents -your
safety be lts are always there to offer protec ­
tion in those acc idents in which a irbags a re
not supposed to deploy or when they have a l­
r eady deployed, fo r example whe n your veh i­
cle strikes or is str uck by another after the
first coll is ion .
This is just one of the reasons why an a irbag is
n ot a substitute for the safety belt. The airbag
sys tem works mos t effective ly when used wi th the safety be
lts. Therefore, always wear yo ur
safety be lts correct ly .
It is important to remembe r that w hile the
s u pplement al knee airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of ser ious inju ries,
other injuries, for example, swelling, bruising
and minor abrasions and friction b urns can a l­
so occur when an airbag inflates.
Th e knee airbag system basically consist s
of:
-The e lectronic control module
- Two inflatable ai rbags (airbag and gas gen -
erator), one for the driver and one for the
front passenger
- The airbag indicator lig ht in the instrument
pane l
The knee airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ignit ion is swit ched off
- in frontal collisions when the deceleration
measured by t he control un it is too low
- in side co llisions
- in rear-end col lisions
- in rollovers
- in the event of a system malfunction (warn-
ing/ind icator light is on)
<:> page 18.
A WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system can
only provide protection when occupants
are in the proper seating position
<:>pag e 152 .
- If t he airbag ind icator light c:> page 18
comes when the veh icle is being used,
have the system inspected i mmediately
by you r au thori zed A udi dealer.
It is pos ­
sib le tha t the airbag will infla te when i t
is not supposed to, or will no t inflate
when it should.
-

How knee airbags work
Applies to vehicles: with knee airb ags
The risk of injury to the leg area can be re­
duced by fully inflated knee airbags.
Fig. 164 Inflated airbags protecting in a frontal coll i­
sio n
The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the airbags for the driver and front pas­
senger deploy in certain but not all frontal
collisions .
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
also deploy in frontal collisions when the de­ ployment threshold stored in the control unit
is met .
When the system deploys, the airbags fill
with a propellant gas, and inflate between the lower part of the instrument panel and the
driver and the lower part of the instrument panel and the front passenger¢
page 152,
fig. 161.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cush ion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the lower
extremities.
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the airbags have deployed . The airbags also
inflate with a great deal of force and it is im­
portant for occupant safety that nothing
should be in their way when they deploy.
Fully inflated airbags in combination with
properly worn safety belts slow down and lim­
it the occupant's forward movement and help
to reduce the risk of injury.
Airbag system 161
Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
Applies to vehicles: wit h knee airbags
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . Al­
ways wear safety belts correctly 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 to provide supplemental protection.
_&. WARNING .. -
An inflating knee airbag can cause serious injury. Wearing safety belts incorrectly and
imprope r seating positions increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- The knee airbag system cannot protect
you properly if you a re seated too close
to any of the airbag locations. When ad­
justing their seat positions, it is impor­
tant that both the driver and the front passenger keep their upper bodies and
knees at the following minimum safe
distances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instru­
ment panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- The risk of personal injury increases if
you lean forward or to the side, or if the seat is improperly positioned and you are
not wearing your safety belt . The risk in­
creases even more should the airbag de­
ploy.
- Always make sure that the knee airbag
can inflate without interference. Objects
between you and the airbag can increase
the risk of injury in an accident by inter­
fering with the way the airbag deploys or
by being pushed into you as the airbag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, especially children
or animals ride in the footwell in front

162 Airbag system
of the passenger seat. If the airbag de­
ploys, this can resu lt in serious or fata l
injuries.
- Never carry objects of any kind in the
footwell area in front of the driver's or
passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shop­
p ing bags, for examp le) can interfere
with or p revent proper dep loyment of
the airbag . Small objects can be
thrown through the vehicle i f the a ir­
bag deploys and injure you or yo ur pas­
sengers.
- Make sure there are no cra ck s, deep
scratches or ot her damage in the area of
the instrument pane l where the knee air­
bags are located .
- If children are incorrect ly sea ted, their
risk of inj ury i ncreases in a collision
<=> page 168, Child Safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
Fi g. 165 Side a irbag loca tion in the dr iver 's seat
The s ide airbags are lo cated i n the sides of the
front seat ba ckrests
<=> fig . 165 and the rear
backrest facing the doors. They are identified
by the word "AIRBAG" .
The s ide airbags installed for the front seating
positions have been designed a nd cer tified to
he lp reduce the risk of injury that can be
caused by airbags when they inflate, particu ­
larly when the occupant sitting next to it is
not seated properly. The side airbag for the
front passenger seat can be used with proper- ly installed child restraints. Please be sure to
read the important information and warnings
whenever using a child restraint in a vehicle:
Safety be lts <=>
page 133, Airbag system
<=>page 142, Child safety <=> page 168.
The side airbag system ba sicall y consi st s o f:
- t he ele ctron ic cont ro l modu le and external
side impact sensors
- t he two a irbags located in the s ides of the
front backrests and the two a irbags* located
in the rear backrest
- the airbag warning light in the ins trument
cl uster.
The airbag system is mon itored electronically
to make ce rtain that it is functioning p roperly
at all times. Each time you switch on the ign i­
t io n, the airbag system ind icator light will
come on for a few seconds (se lf diagnostics) .
The side airbag system supplements the safe­
ty be lts and can he lp to red uce the risk of in­
j u ry to the driver's, front and rear passenger's
u pper torso on the side of the veh icle that is
struck in a side collision. The airbag dep loys
only in side impacts and only when the vehicle
acce lerat ion reg istered by the control unit is
high enough. If this rate is be low the refer­
ence value programmed into the control unit,
the side airbags will not be triggered, even
though the car may be badly damaged as a re­ su lt of the collision .
It is not possib le to de­
fine an airbag triggering range th at will cover
every possib le ang le of impact, s ince the cir ­
cumstances will vary cons iderably between
one collision and another. Important factors
include, for example, the nature (hard or soft)
of the impacting object, the angle of impact,
vehicle speed, etc.
<=> page 164 , Important
safety instructions on the side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety function, safe­
ty belts work to help keep the driver or front
passenger in position in the event of a side
collision so that the side airbags can provide
protection.
The airbag system is
not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc-
cupant restra int system in your vehicle . .,,.

Always remember that the side airbag system
can only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wear ing it properly. This
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re­
qu ires you to do soc>
page 133, General
notes.
It is important to remember that while the
supp lemental s ide airbag system is designed
to reduce the like lihood of serious injur ies,
other i njuries, for example, swel ling, b ruising,
frict ion bu rns and minor ab rasions can also be
assoc ia ted with deployed side airbags. Re­
member too, side airbags will deploy only
once and only in certain kinds of accidents -
your safety belts are always there to offer pro­
tection.
Vehicle damage, repa ir costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage are not necessar ily an indi­
cation of over-sensitive or failed airbag activa ­
tion. In some co llisions, both front and side
airbags may inflate. Remember too, that air­
bags will dep loy only once and only in certain
kinds of collisions -your safety belts are al­
ways there to offer protection in those acci­ dents in wh ic h airbags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have already deployed.
The side airbag sy stem will not deploy :
-when the ign ition is switched off
- in s ide collisions when the acceleration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end collisions
- in rear -end collisions
- in ro llovers.
In some types of acc idents the front airbags,
side curta in a irbags and side airbags may b e
tr iggered toge ther.
_& WARNING
- Saf ety belts and the a irbag system will
only prov ide protection when occ upan ts
are in the proper seating posit ion
c>page 164.
- If the airbag indicator light c> page 18
comes when the vehicle is being used,
-
Airba g sy stem 163
have the system inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer.
It i s pos­
sible that the airbag will inflate when it
is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should.
How supplemental s ide airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re­
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu­
pants who are properly restrained .
Fig. 16 6 In flated side airbags on left side of vehicle,
rear side airbag
When the system is triggered, the airbag is
filled with propellant gas and breaks through
a seam in the seat surface area ma rked "AIR­
BAG". It expands between the side trim panel
and the passenger. In orde r to help provide
th is add it io na l prote ction, the side airbag
mus t inflate within a fraction of a second a t
very h igh speed and with great force. The sup­
plementa l side air bag could injure you if your
seating pos ition is not proper or up right o r if
items are located in the area where the sup­
plemental side airbag expands. This applies
especially to children
c> page 168, Child Safe­
ty .
Supplementa l side airbags i nflate be­
tween the occupant and the door panel on the
s id e of th e vehicle th at is str uck in certain side
collision
c> fig. 166.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
h elp to reduc e the risk of injury to the upper
part o f the body.
A f ine dust may develop w hen the airbag de­
ploys . This is normal and does not mean there
is a fire in th e vehicle.

164 Airbag system
Important safety instructions on the
side 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 act accordingly to help the
safety belts and airbags do their job to pro­
vide supplemental protection.
& 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. -
Objects between you and the airbag can
increase the risk of injury in an accident
by interfering with the way the airbag
unfolds or by being pushed into you as
the airbag inflates.
- Never place or attach accessories or
other objects (such as cup holders, tel­
ephone brackets, or even large, bulky
objects) on the doors, over or near the
area marked "AIRBAG" on the seat backrests.
- Such objects and accessories can be­ come dangerous projectiles and cause
injury when the supplemental side air­
bag deploys.
- Never carry any objects or pets in the
deployment space between them and
the airbags or allow children or other passengers to travel in this position.
-Always use the built-in coat hooks only for lightweight clothing. Never leave any
heavy or sharp-edged objects in the
pockets that may interfere with side air­
bag deployment and can cause personal
injury in an accident.
- Always prevent the side airbags from be­
ing damaged by heavy objects knocking
against or hitting the sides of the seat­
backs.
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once. If the airbag has been triggered,
the system must be replaced by an au­
thorized Audi dealership.
- Damage (cracks, deep scratches etc.) to
the original seat covers or to the seam in
the area of the side airbag module must always be repaired immediately by an au­
thorized Audi dealer.
- If children are seated improperly, their
risk of injury increases in the case of an
accident
~ page 168, Child Safety .
-Never attempt to modify any compo­
nents of the airbag system in any way .
- In a side collision, side airbags will not
function properly if sensors cannot cor­ rectly measure increasing air pressure in-
side the doors when air escapes through ..,.