2015 AUDI A3 child lock

154 Airbag sys te m
- and i f th e e lec trica l capacitance registered
on the front passenger seat is equal to or
l ess than t he combined capacitance of a ty p­
ical 1 year-old infant and one of the rear ­
ward-facing o r forward-facing child re­
stra ints listed in Federal Motor Ve hicle Safe ­
ty Standard 208 w ith whic h the Adva nce d
Airbag System in your vehicle was ce rtified .
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS ­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght w ill stay on . Nev­
e r i nsta ll a rearwa rd-fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place fo r
a child in any kind of child restraint is at o ne
of the seat ing positions on the rear seat
¢ page 142, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 166, Child Safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on when one of the cond itions listed above is
met , be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignit io n is on . If t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
l ight does not appear on and does not
stay o n all the time, s top as soon as it is safe
to do so a nd
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off for more than 4 seconds and then tu rn­
i ng it on agai n;
- remove and re install the chi ld restraint.
Make su re that the child res traint is properly
insta lled and that the safety be lt fo r the
fron t passenger seat has been correct ly
ro uted throug h the child restrain t as descri ­
bed in t he chi ld restraint man ufact urer 's in­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea ­
ture on the safety be lt fo r the front passen ­
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight.
- ma ke sure that no e lectrica l device (such as
a laptop, CD playe r, electronic games device,
power inverter or seat heater for child seats)
is p laced or used on the front passenger seat
if the dev ice is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter soc ket;
- ma ke s ure that no seat heater has been ret ­
rofitted or otherwise added to the front pas­
senger seat;
- ma ke s ure that no thing can interfere with
the safety belt buck les an d that they are not
obstructed ;
- make sure that there are no wet objects (such as a wet towe l) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cushion.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still
does not c ome on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on and does not stay on con ­
t in uous ly (when the ignition is switched on),
- t ake the child restraint off the front passen -
ge r seat and install it proper ly at o ne of the
rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by yo ur Audi dealer immed iately.
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure t hat the c hil d is properly restra in­
ed in a c hild restra int that is appropriate for
its size and age .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should
NOT come on . ..
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when the ignit ion is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat. If t he
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes o n and s tays on o r
flashes fo r about S seconds w hile d riving, un ­
der these circumstances, make sure tha t:
- t he adult on the front passenge r sea t is
prope rly seated on the cente r of the seat
cushion wi th his o r her back up aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is no t re cli ned,
- t he adult is not tak ing we ight o ff the sea t by
holding on to the passenger assis t handle
above the front passenger door or s upport ­
ing their weight on the armrest ,
- t he sa fe ty belt is be ing properly wo rn and
t ha t the re is not a lot o f slack in the safety
be lt webbing,
- t here are no aftermar ket sea t covers or
cushions or other things (such as blankets) .,..

1 70 Child Safety
-Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Audi dealer immediate­
ly.
The child seats listed in categories A to C have been statically tested by Audi only for
the Advanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correc t use of child safety seats substantially
reduces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safe­
ty of everybody in the vehicle, especially chil­
dren :
• Always use the right child safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
c:> page 172.
• Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child
safety seat.
• When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
cc> page 177.
• Push the child safety seat down with your
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) .
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:>page 172.
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
children , especially those 12 years and young­
er, should always ride in the back seat proper­
ly restrained for their age and size.
.&_ WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child safety seat or improperly in­ stalling a child restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death . -
-All vehicle occupants and especially chil­
dren must be restrained properly when­
ever riding in a vehicle. An unrestrained
or improperly restrained child could be
injured by striking the interior or by be­
ing ejected from the vehicle during a
sudden maneuver or impact. An unre­
strained or improperly restrained child is
also at greater risk of injury or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- Commercially available child safety seats
are required to comply with U.S. Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
213 (in Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restraint, select one that fits your child and the vehicle.
- Only use child restraint systems that fully contact the flat portion of the seat cushion . The child restraint must
not tip or lean to either side . Audi does
not recommend using child safety
seats that rest on legs or tube-like
frames. They do not provide adequate
contact with the seat.
- Always heed all legal requirements per­
taining to the installation and use of
child safety seats and carefully follow
the instructions provided by the manu­
facturer of the seat you are using.
- Never allow children under 57 inches
(1.45 meters) to wear a normal safety
belt. They must always be restrained by a
proper child restraint system . Otherwise,
they could sustain injuries to the abdo­ men and neck areas during sudden brak­
ing maneuvers or accidents.
- Never let more than one child occupy a
child safety seat.
- Never let babies or older children ride in
a vehicle while sitting on the lap of an­
other passenger .
- Holding a child in your arms is never a
substitute for a child restraint system .
- The strongest person could not hold
the child with the forces that exist in
an accident. The child will strike the in­
terior of the vehicle and can also be struck by the passenger.

172 Child Safety
Secure unused safety belts on the rear
seat
Fig . 132 Schematic overview: keep unused safety belts
away from children in child safety seats.@-outer rear
safety belt,
® -center rear safety belr
If a child safety seat is used on the rear 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
®*
behind the head restraint of the seat where
the child restraint is installed
¢fig . 132.
When doing so, do not engage the switcha­
ble locking retractor! You should not hear a
"clicking" sound when winding up the safety
belt.
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt webbing.
A WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with
the LATCH lower anchorages or with the
standard safety belt or a child in a booster
seat on the rear seat could play with un­
used rear seat safety belts and become en­
tangled. This could cause the child serious personal injury and even death.
-Always secure unused rear seat safety
belts out of reach of children in child
seats such as by properly routing them
around the head restraint of the seat
where the child restraint is installed.
- Never activate the switchable locking re­
tractor when routing the safety belts
around the head restraints.
- Never let anyone sit at the center rear
seating position if the center rear safety belt has been routed around a rear head
restraint.
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. 133 Schemat ic overview: rearward -facing in fant
seat, properly installed on the rear seat
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
¢page 177 or install the seat
using the LATCH attachments.
.,. Push the child safety seat down with your
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).
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 172.
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 special re­
straints in which the child faces the back of
the vehicle. These infant seats support the ba­
by's back, neck and head in a crash¢
fig. 133.
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 seat . ..,.

174 Child Safety
• When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking feature on the safety
belt to prevent the child safety seat from
moving
c::;, page 177 or install the seat using
the LATCH attachments .
• Push the child safety seat down with your
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)
c::;, page 177.
• If the child safety seat is equipped with a
tether strap, attach it to the tether anchors
c::;, page 183.
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c::;, page 172.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in­
fant restraint if it is more than one year old
and weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
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 certified for their size and weight
c::;, fig. 134 and c::;, fig . 135.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a poten tially 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 is a very dangerous place for an in­
fant 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 child restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death in a
collision or other emergency situation.
- Children on the front seat of any car,
even with Advanced Airbags, can be seri­
ously injured or even killed when an air­
bag inflates. A child in a rearward-facing
child safety seat installed on the front
passenger seat will be seriously injured
and can be killed if the front airbag in-
-
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
- The inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
arm rest, door or roof .
- Always install rear-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan ­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
mediately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
Audi dealer.
- The rear side of the child safety seat
should be positioned as close as possible
to the backrest on the vehicle seat.
- For adjustable head restraints: adjust or
remove the rear seat head restraint if it
is difficult to install the child seat with
the head restraint in place
c::;, page 55. In­
stall the head restraint again immediate­ ly once the child seat is removed. Driving
without head restraints or with head re­ straints that are not properly adjusted
increases the risk of serious or fatal neck
injury dramatically.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used
¢page 131, Safety
belts, c::;, page 140, Airbag system
and
c::;, page 166, Important things to know.
A WARNING
-
If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's safe­
ty and well-being require that the follow­
ing special precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed and certified by its manu­
facturer for use on a front seat with a passenger front and side airbag.

-Always follow the manufacturer's in­
struct ions provided with the child safety
seat or infant carrier.
- Always m ove the front passenger seat in­
to the rearmost position of the passen­ ger seat's f ore and aft adjustment range,
and as far away from the airbag as possi­
ble before install ing the child restraint.
- Always make sure that noth ing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being moved to the rearmost position in its
fore and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an
upr ight position .
- Never place o r use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electron ic
games dev ice, power inverter o r seat
heater for child se ats ) on the fr ont pas­
senger se at if the device is connected to
the 12-vo lt socket or the cigarette light ­
er socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys ­
tem on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or
other liquids on the front passenger seat
cushion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as
a laptop, CD player, electronic games de­
vice, power inverter or seat heate r for
child seats). These may influence the
elect rical capacitance measu red by the
capacit ive passenger detection system
and can a lso fly aro und in an accident
a nd cau se se riou s person al injury.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
lig ht comes on an d stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched
on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and s tay on, immedi­
ately install the forward-facing child seat
at a seating posit ion on the rear seat and
have the a irbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer. Child S
afety 175
- Ta ke the chi ld 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
li ght does not stay on
whenever the ignit ion is switched on.
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs. and
80 lbs . (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9 in . tall. 9 in . (57 inches/1 .45 meters)
tall.
F ig. 1 36 Rea r seat : ch ild p roperly res trained in a boos ­
ter seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit
most children until they are at leas t 4 ft . 9 in .
(57 inches/1.45 meters) tall and weig h about
80 lbs. (36 kg). Booster seats rai se t hese chi l­
dren up so that the safety belt w ill pass prop­
erly over the stronge r parts of the ir bodies
and t he safety be lt can he lp pro tect them in a
c rash .
.,. Do not use the convert ible lock ing retractor
when using the veh icle's safety be lt to re­
strain a ch ild on a booster seat .
.. The s houlde r belt must lie as close to the
center of the chi ld's collar bone as possib le
and must lie flat and snug on the upper
body. It must never lie across the throat or
neck . The lap be lt must lie across the pelvis
and never ac ross the stomach or abdomen .
Mak e su re the be lt lies flat and sn ug. P ull on
the belt to tighten if necessary .
.,. If you must tra nsport an older c hild in a
booste r seat on the front passenger sea t, .._

without head restraints or with head re­
straints that are not pr operly ad justed
increases the risk of ser ious or fatal neck
injury dramat ically .
- Children on the front seat of any car,
even with Advanced A irbags, can be seri­
ously injured or even killed when an a ir ­
bag inflates .
- Never let a child stand or knee l on any
seat, for example the front seat.
- Never let a child ride in the cargo area of
your vehicle .
- Always remember that a ch ild lean ing
forward, sitt ing s ideways o r out of posi­
t ion i n any way during an acc ident can be
st ruck by a deploying airbag . This will re­
s u lt in se rious personal injury or death.
- If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of excep­
tio nal circumstan ces the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light must come on and
stay on, whenever the igni tion is switch­
ed on .
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and s tay on, per form
the checks described ¢
page 152, Moni­
toring the Advanced Airbag System.
- Take the child rest raint off the front pas ­
senger seat and install it proper ly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS whenever using a child restrained in ave­
hicle is bei ng used ¢
page 131 , Safety
belts, ¢ page 140, Airbag system
and
¢page 166, Important things to know .
Child Safet y 177
Installing a child safety
seat
Securing a child safety seat using a
safety belt
Safety belts for the rear seats and the front
passenger con be locked with the convertible locking retractor to properly secure child
safety sea ts.
T he safety belts emergency locking retractors
fo r the rear seats safety belts and for the
front passenger's seat safety belt have a con­
vertib le locking retractor for child restraints.
The safety belt must be locked so that be lt
webb ing cannot unreel. The retractor can be
activated to loc k the safe ty belt and prevent
t h e safety be lt webb ing from looseni ng up
dur ing no rm al driv in g. A ch ild safety seat can
o nl y be prope rly installed w hen t he s afety bel t
is locked so that the chi ld and child sa fety
seat w ill stay in place.
A lways remember: Even tho ugh yo ur vehicle is
equipped wi th an A dvanced Airbag sys tem, all
c hi ldren, es pecially those 12 years and young ­
er, sho uld always r ide in the back seat proper ­
l y restra ined for t he ir age and size.
A WARNING
Im properly installed chi ld safety seats in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury
a n d death in a co llision .
- Always make sure that the safety belt re­
tractor is locked w hen insta lling a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re­
trac to r cannot hold the child safety seat
in place dur ing norma l dr iving o r in a
crash.
- Always buckle the child safe ty seat firmly
i n place even if a ch ild is not sitt ing in it.
A l oose child safe ty se at can fly aroun d
du ring a sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always ma ke sure tha t the rear seat
b ackrest to which the ce nter re ar safe ty
be lt * is attache d is se curely latched
wheneve r the rea r cente r safety belt is
be ing used to secure a child rest raint .
•
•
•

A WARNING ,~
Rearward-facing ch ild restraints:
-A chi ld in a rearward-facing child safety
seat installed on the front passenger
seat will be ser iously injured and can be
killed if the front airbag inflates -even
with an Advanced Airbag System .
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier w ith great
force and w ill smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against the backrest, cente r
armrest, door or roo f.
- Always be especially caref ul if you must
install a rearwa rd fa cing child safety seat
on the front passenge r sea t in exception­
al circumstances .
- Make su re that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and s tays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install the rea r-facing chi ld safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the a irbag system inspected by you r Audi
dealer.
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se­
cure a child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufactur­
er's instructions when install ing a chi ld re­
straint in your vehicle . To activate t he conver ­
tible locking retracto r:
.,. Place the child restraint on a seat, prefera­
bly on the rear sea t.
.,. Slow ly pull the be lt
all the way out .
.. Route it around or through the ch ild re­
st ra int be lt path ¢&, .
.,. Push the child safety seat dow n with your
f ull weight to ge t the safety belt really t ight.
.,. Insert the be lt tongue into the buckle for
that seating position .
Child Safet y 1 79
.,. Guide the sa fe ty be lt back into the retractor
until the be lt lies flat and sn ug on the child
safety seat .
.,. You shou ld hear a "clicking" noise as the
be lt winds back into the iner tia ree l. Test the
convert ible lock ing retractor by pulling on
the belt. You sho uld no lo nger be able to
pull the be lt out of the retracto r. T he con­
ver tible locking re trac to r i s now ac tiva ted .
.,. Mak e s ure t hat t he red release b utton is fac ­
ing away from the child rest rain t so t hat i t
can be unbuckled q uic kly .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety be lt
is properly tight and fastened so that the
seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2 .5 cm).
A WARNING
Using the wrong child restraint o r an im­
p roperly installed chi ld restraint can cause
serious pe rsonal injury or death in a crash.
- Always ma ke sure that the safe ty belt re-
tracto r is loc ked when insta lling a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re­
tracto r can not hold the child safety seat
in place dur ing no rma l driving o r in a
cras h.
- Always buckle the child sa fe ty seat firmly
in place even i f a ch ild is not sitt ing in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly aroun d
during a sudden stop or in a crash .
- Always ma ke s ure the seat backrest to
which the child restraint is installed is in
an upright pos ition and securely latched
into place and can not fold forward . Oth­
erw ise, the seatback with the child safety
seat attached to it could fly forward in
the ev ent of an accident o r othe r emer­
gency situatio n.
- Always read a nd heed al l WAR NINGS
wheneve r us ing a child restrained in ave­
hicle is being used ¢
page 166. Special
pre cau tions apply whe n inst alling a child
safety sea t on the fron t passenger seat
¢ page 142, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
-
•
•
•

180 Child Saf ety
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
The convertible locking retractor for child re­
straints will be deactivated automatically when the belt is wound all the way back into the retractor .
.,. Press the red button on the safe ty belt buck­
le. The be lt tongue w ill pop out of the buck­
le .
.. Guide the safety be lt all the way back into
its stowed position .
A lways le t the safety bel t retract comp lete ly
into its stowed posit ion . The sa fety belt can
now be used as an ordinary safety belt with ­
out the convert ib le locking ret ractor for chi ld
restra ints.
If the convertible locking retracto r shou ld be
activated inadvertently, the safety belt m ust
be unfastened and guided comp letely back in­
to its stowed pos ition to deactivate th is fea­
ture. If the convertib le locki ng retractor is not
deactivated, the safety be lt will gradually be­
come tighter a nd u ncomfo rtable to wea r.
A WARNING
Imprope rly insta lled child saf ety seats in­
crease t he risk of ser ious personal inju ry
a n d death in a collision .
- Never unfaste n the safety belt to deacti­
vate the convert ible lo cking re tr actor fo r
ch ild rest rain ts while the veh icle is mov­
ing. You would not be res trained and
cou ld be seriously injured in an accident.
- Always re ad and heed all WARN INGS
whenever using a child rest rained in ave ­
hicle is being used¢
page 166. S pecial
precautions apply when installing a ch ild
safety seat on the front passenge r seat
¢ page 142, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
LATCH Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
T o p rov ide a simple r and more practicable way
to a ttach the child restra int on t he vehi cle
sea t, Federal regulat ions re quire spe cial lowe r
anchorages in vehicles and devices on new
c h ild restraints to attach to the vehicle ancho­
rages.
T he comb inat io n of th e tether anc horages and
the lowe r anchorages is now genera lly c alled
t h e
LATCH system fo r "Lower Anchorages and
T ethers for Child ren."
F o rward-f ac ing ch ild res trai nts ma nufacture d
after September 1, 1999, are req uired by U .S .
f ede ra l regu lations to comply with new child
head movement performance req uirements.
These new performance req uirements make a
tether necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a child restraint that requires a top
tethe r without one can seriously impair the
performance of the c hild restra int and its abil­
ity to protect the child in a coll is ion. Insta lling
a chi ld restrai nt that requires a top tether
without the top tether may be a violat ion of
state law.
Child rest raint manufacturers offer LATCH
lower anchorages on their child seats w ith
hook-on or push-on connectors attached to
adjustable straps .
In add ition to the LATCH lower anchorages,
t h ese chi ld restraint systems usually require
t h e use of tethe r straps to he lp keep the ch ild
rest raint fi rmly in place.
A WARNING
-Imp roper installat ion of ch ild restra ints
will i ncrease the r is k of injury a nd dea th i n
a cr ash.
-