Page 105 of 244

Remember too, that airbags will deploy only
once and that your safety belts are always
there to
offer protection in those accidents in
which airbags are not supposed to deploy or
when they have already deployed . Unbelted
occupants can also be thrown out of the vehi
cle where
even more severe or fatal injuries
can occur .
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision . It's simply
not true!
Fig . 107 Driver is properly restrained in a sudden b rak
i ng maneuve r.
Safety belts used properly can make a big dif
ference . Safety belts help to keep passengers
in their seats, gradually reduce energy levels
applied to the body in an accident, and help
prevent the uncontrolled movement that can
cause serious injuries. In addition, safety belts
reduce the danger of being thrown out of the
vehicle.
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and
give them the benefit of being slowed down
more gently or "softly" through the "give" in
the safety belts, crush zones and other safety
features engineered into today's vehicles . By
"absorbing" the kinetic energy
over a longer
period of time, the safety belts make the
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 tr ip or
just going to the corner store, always buckle
Safety belts 103
up and make sure others do, too. Accident sta
tistics show that vehicle occupants properly
wearing safety belts have a lower risk of be ing
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 the ir job in a collision . For
th is reason, wearing a safety belt is legally re
quired in mos t countries including much of
the United States and Canada.
Although your Audi is equipped with a irbags,
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 coll isions,
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 properly posi
tioned across the strongest bones of your
body .
"' Always wear safety belts as illustrated and
described in th is chapter.
"'Make sure that your safety belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
A WARNING ~
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them
improperly increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death. Safety belts can
work only when used correctly.
- Always fasten your safety belts correctly
before driving
off and make sure all pas
sengers are properly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must always be positioned correctly on
the body .
Page 106 of 244

104 Safety belts
-Never strap more than one person, in
cluding small children, into any single
safety belt.
- Never place a safety belt over a child sit
t ing 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 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 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 their effectiveness.
- 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
correct use of some child restraint sys
tems.
- Never allow safety belts to become dam
aged by being caught in door or seat hardware.
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear and
damaged belt hardware can break in an
accident. Inspect belts regularly.
If web
bing, bindings, buckles, or retractors are
damaged, have belts replaced by an au
thorized Audi dealer or qualified work
shop.
- Safety belts that have been worn and
loaded in an accident must be replaced
with the correct replacement safety belt by an authorized Audi dealer or qualified
workshop . Replacement may be necessa- ry even if damage cannot be clearly seen.
Anchorages that were loaded must also
be inspected.
- Never remove, modify, disassemble, or
try to repair the safety belts yourself.
- Always keep the belts clean. Dirty belts
may not work properly and can impair
the function of the inertia reel¢
ta
ble Cleaning interior on page 157.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Seat first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 108 Belt buckle and tongue on the driver's seat
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer's body.
.,. Adjust the front seat and head restraint
properly ¢
page 60, General recommenda
tions.
.,. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it even
ly across the chest and pelvis ¢
.&_.
.,. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
¢fig . 108.
.,. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is se-
curely latched in the buckle.
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped with an automat
ic belt retractor on the shoulder belt . This fea
ture locks the belt when the belt is pulled out
fast, during hard braking and in an accident .
The belt may also lock when you drive up or
down a steep hi ll or through a sharp curve.
Page 107 of 244

During normal driving the belt lets you move
freely.
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped with a belt p re
tensione r that helps to t igh ten the safety belt
and remove s lack when the pretensione r is ac
tivated. The function of the pretensioner is monitored by a warning light
q page 15.
Switchable lo cking feature
Every safe ty belt excep t the one on the driver
seat is eq uipped w ith a switchab le locking fea
ture that
mu st be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat . Be s ure to read the
important informat ion about th is feature
q page 138.
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious injury in an accident
¢ page 105, Safety belt position .
-Safety belts offer optimum protection
only when the seatback is upright and
belts are properly positioned on the
body .
-
- Never attach the safety belt to the buck
le for another seat . Attach ing the belt to
the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt
effect iveness and ca n cause serious per
sonal in jury.
- A passenger who is no t properly rest rain
ed can be serio usly inju red by the safety
belt itself when it moves from the stron-
ger parts of the body into critical areas
like the abdomen .
- Always lock the convert ible locking re
tractor when yo u are secur ing a chi ld
seat in the vehicle
¢ page 140.
Safety belts 105
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting
maximum protection from safety belts .
Fig . 1 09 Safety belt po sit ion
;;;
9 r ., a,
Standard fea tures on your veh icle he lp you ad
just the position o f the safety bel t to matc h
your body size .
- he ight-adjustable fron t seats.
A WARNING
Improperly posit ioned s afety be lts c an
cause serious persona l injury in an acci
dent .
-
-The s hou lder belt should lie as close to
the center o f the collar bone as possible
a nd should fit well on the body. Hold the
be lt above the latch tongue and pull it
evenly across the chest so that it sits as
low as possib le on the pelv is and there is
no pressure on the abdomen . The belt
should always fit snugly¢
fig. 109 . Pull
on the belt to t ighten if necessary.
- The lap belt portion of the safety belt
must be posit ioned as low as possible
across pelvis and never over the abdo
men . Make sure the belt lies flat and
snug
q fig. 109. Pu ll on the be lt to tight
e n if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause seri
ous injuries by shifting its pos it ion on
your body from the strong bones to more
vulnerable, soft tissue and cause ser ious
injury.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
¢ page 103.
Page 108 of 244

106 Safet y belt s
Pregnant women must also be properly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make
sure that expectant mothers always wear
safety belts correctly -throughout the preg
nancy.
Fig . 1 10 S afety be lt pos it io n dur ing p regnancy
To provide maximum prote ction , safety belts
must always be po sitioned correctly on the
wearer's body
c> page 105 .
• Adjust the front seat and head restraint cor
rect ly
c> page 60, General recommenda
tions.
• Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in up right posit io n and securely
latched in p lace before using the b elt .
• Hold the be lt by the tongue and pull it even
l y across the ches t and pelvis
c> fig. 110,
c>,& .
• Inse rt the tongue into the correct buckle of
yo ur seat until you hear it latc h securely
c> page 104 , fig . 108.
•Pullon the belt to make sure that it is se
curely latched in t he buckle .
A WARNING
Imprope rly positioned safety belts can
cause se rious personal injury in an acci
de nt.
-
- E xpec tant mothers mus t always wear the
lap po rtion of the safety b elt as low as
poss ible ac ross the pe lv is and be low the
ro unding of the a bdome n.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS and
ot her impo rtan t info rma tion
c> .&. in Fas
tening safety belts on page 105.
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only a~er the vehicle has stopped .
,,
}_
Fig . 11 1 Rele asing the ton gu e from the buc kle
• Push the red release b utton on the buckle
c> fig . 111. T he be lt tongue will spring out
of t he b uckle
c> ,& .
N 0 ;c
a1i
• Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
A WARNING
-
Never unfasten safety belt whi le the vehi-
cle is mov ing . Do ing so will increase yo ur
r isk of being i njured o r kill ed .
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause
severe injuries.
Wearing safety belts improper ly can ca use se
rious injury or deat h. Safety belts can o nly
work when they are correc tly positioned on
the body . Improper seat ing positions reduce
the effectiveness of safety be lts and will even
increase the risk of inju ry and death by mov
ing the safety be lt to crit ical areas o f the
body . Imp roper seati ng po siti ons also in
c rease the risk of serious injury and death
whe n an a irbag dep loys and strikes an occu
pant who is not in the co rrect seating posi
t ion. A driver is respons ible for the safety of
all veh icle occupants and especially for chil
dren . There fore:
• Never pe rm it anyone to assume an incorrect
sitt ing position in the vehicle while trave ling
c> ,& . ~
Page 109 of 244

& WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- Always make sure that all vehicle occu
pants are correctly restrained and stay in
a correct seating position whenever the
vehicle is being used.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
Q page 103.
Safety belt preten
sioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front and side collisions above a particular
severity, safety belts in use are tensioned au
tomatically.
The safety belts are equipped with safety belt
pretensioners. The system is activated by sen
sors in front and side collisions of great se
verity. This tightens the belt and takes up belt
slack
Q &. in Service and disposal of safety
belt preten sioner on page 107.
Taking up the
slack helps to reduce forward occupant move
ment during a collision .
@ Tips
The safety belt pretensioner can only be
activated once.
- In minor frontal and side collisions, in
rear-end collisions, in a rollover and in
accidents involving very little impact
force, the safety belt pretensioner are not activated.
- When the safety belt pretensioner is ac
tivated, a fine dust is released. This is
normal and is not caused by a fire in the
vehicle.
- The relevant safety requirements must
be observed when the vehicle or compo
nents of the system are scrapped. A
qualified dealership is familiar with
these regulations and will be pleased to
pass on the information to you.
Safety belts 107
-Be sure to observe all safety, environ
mental and other regulations if the vehi
cle or individual parts of the system, par
ticularly the safety belt or airbag, are to be disposed. We recommend you have
your authorized Audi dealer perform this service for you.
Service and disposal of safety belt
pretensioner
The safety belt pretensioners are parts of the
safety belts on your Audi. Installing, remov
ing, servicing or repairing of belt pretension
ers can damage the safety belt system and
prevent it from working cor rectly in a colli
sion.
There are some important things you have to know to make sure that the effectiveness of
the system will not be impaired and tha t dis
carded components do no t cause injury or pol
lute the environment.
& WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce
dures can increase the risk of personal in
jury and death by preventing a safety belt
pretensioner from activating when needed
or activating it unexpectedly :
- The belt pretensioner system can be acti
vated only once. If belt pretensioners
have been activated, the system must be
replaced.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the safety belt system.
- Safety belt systems including safety belt
pretensioners cannot be repaired. Spe
cial procedures are required for removal,
installation and disposal of this system.
- For any work on the safety belt system,
we strongly recommend that you see
your authorized Audi dealer or qualified
technician who has an Audi approved re pair manual, training and special equip
ment necessary . •
•
Page 110 of 244
108 Safety belts
@ For the sake of the environment
Undep loyed airbag modu les and preten
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate
Material -specia l hand ling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/per
chlorate . When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
safety belts w ith pretens ioners are scrap
ped, all appli cable laws and regulat ions
m ust be observed . Yo ur autho riz e d Au di
dea ler is familiar with these requ irements
an d we recommend that you have your
dea le r perform this serv ice for you .
Page 111 of 244

Airbag system Important things to know
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For
airbags to do their job, occupants must al
ways properly wear their safety belts and be
in a proper seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen
gers, before driving off, always:
"" Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly¢
page 93,
"" Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
¢page 61,
""Wear safety be lts properly ¢ page 103,
""Always properly use the proper child re-
straint to protect children
r::::> page 130.
In a collision airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force.
The supplemental airbags can cause injuries if
the driver or the front seat passenger are not
seated properly . Therefore in order to help the
airbag to do its job, it is impo rtant, both as a
d river and as a passenger to s it properly at all
times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steer ing whee l and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
comp lete ly and provide supplemental protec
tion in certain frontal collisions
r::::> page 93,
Proper occupant seating positions.
F or details
on the operation of the seat adjustment con
trols ¢
page 61 and ¢ page 62.
It's especially important that children a re
properly restrained
r::::> page 130.
There is a lot that the driver and the passen
ger can and must do to help the individua l
safety features installed in your Aud i work to
gether as a system.
Proper seating pos ition is important so that
the front airbag on the driver side can do its
job. If you have a physical impairment or con-
Airbag system 109
dition that prevents you from sitting properly
on the driver seat with the safety belt properly
fastened and reach ing the pedals, or if you
have concerns with regard to the function or
operation of the Advanced Airbag System,
please contact your authorized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop, or call Audi Customer Re
lations at 1-800-822-2834 for poss ible modi
fications to your vehicle.
When the airbag system dep loys, a gas gener
ator will fill the a irbags, break open the pad
ded covers, and inflate between the steer ing
whee l and the driver and between the instru
ment panel and the front passenger. The air
bags will deflate immediately after deploy
ment so that the front occupants can see
through the windshield again without inter
ruption.
A ll of th is takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the airbags have deployed. The airbags a lso
inflate with a great dea l of force and nothing
should be in their way when they deploy.
Front airbags in combination with properly
worn safety belts slow down and lim it the oc
cupant's forward movement. Together they
help to prevent the driver and passenger from
hitt ing parts of the inside the vehicle while re
ducing the forces acting on the occupant dur
ing the crash . In this way they help to reduce
the risk of injury to the head and upper body
in the crash. Airbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all fronta l
collisions . The triggering of the airbag system
depends on the vehicle dece leration rate
caused by the co llision and registered by the
electronic control unit. If th is rate is below
the reference value programmed into the con
trol unit, the airbags will not be triggered,
even though the car may be badly damaged as
a result of the collision . Vehicle damage, re
pair costs or even the lack of veh icle damage
is not necessarily an indication of whether an
airbag shou ld inf late or not .
It is not possible to define a range of vehicle
speeds that will cover every possible kind and ..,. •
•
Page 112 of 244

110 Airbag system
angle of impact that will always trigger the
airbags, since the circumstances will vary con
siderably between one collision and another.
Important factors include, for example, the
nature (hard or soft) of the object which the
car hits, the angle of impact, vehicle speed,
etc. The front airbags will also not inflate in
side or rear collisions, or in roll-overs.
Always remember: Airbags will deploy only
once, and only in certain kinds of collisions.
Your safety belts are always there to offer pro
tection in those situations in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy, or when they have
already deployed; for example, when your ve hicle strikes or is struck by another after the
first collision.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is
a supplementary restraint and is not a substi
tute for a safety belt. The airbag system
works most effectively when used with the
safety belts. Therefore, always properly wear
your safety belts¢
page 101.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel or
instrument panel will decrease the effec
tiveness of the airbags and will increase
the risk of personal injury in a collision .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm)
to the steering wheel or instrument pan el.
- If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
(25 cm) from the steering wheel, investi
gate whether adaptive equipment may
be available to held you reach the pedals
and increase your seating distance from
the steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You will also receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against
the airbag or too close to it when it in
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag.
- To reduce the risk of injury when an air
bag inflates, always wear safety belts
properly
c::> page 104, Safety belts.
- If children are not properly restrained,
they may be severely injured or killed
when an airbag inflates.
- Never let children ride unrestrained or
improperly restrained in the vehicle. Ad
just the front seats properly.
- Always sit as far as possible from the steering wheel or the instrument panel
¢ page 93, Proper occupant seating po
sitions.
- Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat.
- Never place your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the floor in front of the seat to help prevent serious injuries to the legs
and hips if the airbag inflates.
A WARNING
Airbags that have deployed in a crash must
be replaced.
- Use only original equipment airbags ap
proved by Audi and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary tools
and diagnostic equipment to properly re
place any airbag in your vehicle and as
sure system effectiveness in a crash.
- Never permit salvaged or recycled air bags to be installed in your vehicle.
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.. Be sure to read the important information
and head the WARNINGS for important de
tails about children and Advanced Airbags
¢page 130.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentially dangerous place for a
child to ride. The front seat is not the safest
place for a child in a forward-facing child safe
ty seat.
It can be a very dangerous place for an
infant or a child in a rearward-facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
has been certified to comply with the Require
ments of United States Federal Motor Vehicle .,.