
M N
0 <.J 'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1"1 ,...., 1.1"1 ,....,
-never knee l on the seats
- never ride with the seatback reclined
- never lie down on the rear seat
- never lean up against the instrument pa nel
- never sit on the edge of the seat
- never sit s ideways
- never lean out the window
- never put yo ur feet out the window
- never put yo ur feet o n the ins trumen t panel
- never rest you r feet on the seat cushion o r
back of the seat
- never r ide in the footwe ll
- never r ide in the cargo area
A WARNING
Imprope r seat ing positions increase the
r is k of se rious personal injury and death
whenever a veh icle is being used.
- Always make sure that a ll vehicle occu
pants stay in a p ro per seat ing pos it ion
and are properly restra ined whenever the
vehicle is be ing used .
Driver and passenger
side footwell
Important safety instructions
Appl ies to vehicles: with knee a irbags
A WARNING
Always make s ure that the knee ai rbag can
inf late without interfe rence. Objects be
tween yourse lf and the airbag can increase
the risk of injury in an acc ident by interfer
ing w ith the way the a irbag deploys or by
being p ushed into you as the airbag de
ploys.
- No persons (ch ildren) or animals should
ride in the footwell in front of the pas
senger seat. If the airbag deploys, this
c an res ult in serious or fata l injuries.
- No objects of any k ind sho uld be car ried
in the footwell area in fron t of the driv
er's or passenger's seat. Bul ky objects
(shopping bags, for example) can ham
per or prevent p roper deployment of the
airbag. Small objects can be thrown
Dr iving Safel y 131
through the vehicle if the airbag deploys
and in jure you or your passengers.
Pedal area
Pedals
The pedals must always be free to move and
must never be interfered with by a floor mat
or any other object.
Make sure that a ll peda ls move free ly without
interference and that nothing prevents them
from return ing to their orig inal positions.
Only use floor mats that leave t he pedal area
free and can be secured with floor mat fasten
ers .
If a brake circ uit fai ls, increased brake pedal
trave l is required to bring the vehicle to a full
stop.
A WARNING
Pedals that can not move free ly can cause
loss of vehicle control and incr ease the risk
of ser ious injury.
- Never p lace any objec ts in the drive r's
footwell. An ob je ct cou ld get into the
pedal area a nd inte rfe re wi th pedal fun c
tion. In case of sudde n brak ing o r an a c
cident, yo u wou ld not be a ble to brake or
accelerate!
- Always ma ke su re th at nothing can fall
or move into the driver's footwel l.
Floor mats on the driver side
Always use floor mats that can be securely
attached to the floor mat fas teners and do
not in terfere with the free movement of the
pedals.
.,. Ma ke s ure t hat the floor ma ts are prope rly
secured an d cannot move and interfere wi th
the peda ls ~ _& .
Use only floor mats tha t leave the peda l area
u nobstru cte d a nd th at are firmly secured so
that they cannot slip o ut o f position. You can
II>
•
•

M N
0 <.J 'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
A WARNING
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas
from being drawn into the vehicle, always keep the rear lid closed while driving .
- Never transport objects larger than
those fitting completely into the luggage
area because the rear lid cannot be fully
closed.
- If you absolutely must drive with the rear
lid open, observe the following notes to
reduce the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the power roof*,
- Open all air outlets in the instrument
panel,
- Switch off the air recirculation,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest
speed.
A WARNING
Always make sure that the doors, all win dows, the power roof* and the rear lid are
securely closed and locked to reduce the
risk of injury when the vehicle is not being
used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make
sure that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your vehicle unattended es
pecially with the rear lid left open. A
child could crawl into the vehicle through
the luggage compartment and close the
rear lid becoming trapped and unable to
get out. Being trapped in a vehicle can
lead to serious personal injury.
- Never let children play in or around the
vehicle .
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compartment. Vehicle occupants must
always be properly restrained in one of
the vehicle's seating positions.
Gj) Tips
-Air circulation helps to reduce window
fogging. Stale air escapes to the outside
through vents in the trim panel. Be sure
to keep these slots free and open .
-
Driving Safely 133
-The tire pressure must correspond to the
load. The tire pressure is shown on the
tire pressure label. The tire pressure la
bel is located on the driver's side B-pillar.
The tire pressure label lists the recom
mended cold tire inflation pressures for
the vehicle at its maximum capacity
weight and the tires that were on your
vehicle at the time it was manufactured.
For recommended tire pressures for nor
mal load conditions, please see chapter
~page 244.
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with
four tie-downs to secure luggage and other
items.
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo prop
erly~
page 132, Loading the luggage com
partment.
In a collision, the laws of physics mean that
even smaller items that are loose in the vehi
cle will become heavy missiles that can cause
serious injury. Items in the vehicle possess en
ergy which vary with vehicle speed and the
weight of the item. Vehicle speed is the most
significant factor.
For example , in a frontal collision at a speed
of 30 mph (48 km/h), the forces acting on a
10-lb (4.5 kg) object are about 20 times the
normal weight of the item. This means that
the weight of the item would suddenly be about 200 lbs. (90 kg) . You can imagine the
injuries that a 200 lbs . (90 kg) item flying
freely through the passenger compartment
could cause in a collision like this.
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used
to secure items to tie-downs can fail dur
ing hard braking or in a collision and cause
serious personal injury.
-Always use suitable mounting straps and properly secure items to the tie-downs in
.
•
•

M N
0 I.J "". rl I.O
"' rl
"' rl
Important safety instructions about
safety belts
Safety belts must always be correctly posi
tioned across the strongest bones of your
body.
~ Always wear safety belts as illustrated and
described in this chapter.
~ Make sure that your safety belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them
improperly increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death. Safety belts can
work only when used correctly.
- Always fasten your safety be lts correctly
before driving off and make sure all pas
sengers are correctly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must always be positioned properly on
the body .
- Never strap more than one person, in
cluding small children, into any belt.
- Never place a safety belt over a child sit ting on your lap.
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front
of the seat while the vehicle is being d riv
en .
- Never let any person ride with their feet
on the instrument panel or sticking out
the window or on the seat.
- Never remove a safety belt while the ve
hicle is moving. Doing so will increase
your risk of be ing injured or killed.
- Never wear belts twisted.
- Never wear belts over rigid or breakable
objects in or on your clothing, such as
eye glasses, pens, keys, etc., as these may cause injury.
- Never allow safety belts to become dam
aged by being caught in door or seat
hardware .
- Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt
under your arm or otherwise out of posi
tion . Safety belts
139
- Several layers of heavy clothing may in
terfere with correct positioning of belts and reduce the overall effectiveness of
the system .
- Always keep belt buckles free of anything
that may prevent the buckle from latch
ing securely .
- Never use comfort clips or devices that
create slack in the shoulder belt . Howev
er, special clips may be requ ired for the
proper use of some child restraint sys
tems .
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt hardware can break in an
accident. Inspect belts regularly.
If web
bing , bindings, buckles, or retractors are
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. Replace
ment may be necessary 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 211.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 152 Bel t b uckle and to ngue on the drive r's seat

M N
0 <.J 'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
sudden maneuver. Objects near the
airbags can become projectiles and cause
injury, particularly when the seat is re
cl ined .
- Never place or transport objects on the
front passenger seat. Objects on the
front passenger seat could cause the ca
pacitive senso r in the seat to s ignal to
airbag system that the seat is occupied
by a pe rson whe n it in fact is not, o r that
the person on the sea t is heavier than he
o r she actually is. The change in electric
capacitance beca use of such objects can
cause the passenger front airbag to be
turned on when it sho uld be off, or can
cause the airbag to work in a way that is
different from the way it wou ld have
worked w ithout objects on the seat.
- Always make sure that there is nothing
on the front passenger seat that will
cause the capacitive passenge r detection
system in the seat to s ignal to the A irbag
System that t he seat is occupied by a
pers on when it is not, or to sign al t hat it
is occupied by someone who is heavier
than the pe rson actually sitting on the
seat . The presence of an object co uld
cause the passenger front a irbag to be
turned on when it sho uld be off, or co uld
cause the airbag to work in a way that is
different from the way it wou ld have
wor ked w ithout the object on the sea t.
A WARNING
The fine dust created when a irbags dep loy
c an cause b reathing problems for peop le
w ith a his to ry o f asthma o r other brea th
ing condi tio ns .
- T o reduce the r is k of b rea thing prob lems,
those w it h a sthma or o ther resp iratory
c ondit ions should ge t fresh a ir right
away by getting out of the vehicle o r
opening windows or doo rs .
- If you are in a coll is ion in which a irbags
deploy, wash yo ur hands and face with
mild soap and water befo re eating.
A irbag system 157
-Be ca reful not to get the d ust into your
eyes, or into any c uts o r scratches.
- If the resi due s hou ld get into your eyes,
f lush them w ith water.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag
System
tli Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two seporate indicators monitor the function
of the Advanced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indicator light and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light.
The Advanced Ai rbag System as well as t he
s ide airbags and side curta in a irbags w ith
eject ion mit igat ion features (includi ng the
electron ic co ntrol unit, se nsors and system
wiring) are all mon itored continuously to
make su re that they are function ing p roper ly
whe never the ignition is on . E ve ry time you
tu rn o n the ignition, the airbag sys tem indica
tor lig ht
II will c ome on fo r a few seconds
(funct ion check) .
The system must be inspected when the
indicator light
II:
- does not come on when the igni tion is
switched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have switched on the ignit ion, or
- come s on while driv ing.
If an airbag system malfunction is detected,
the indicator lig ht w ill first sta rt flash ing to
catch the d rive r's atte ntio n and the n stay on
continuously to serve as a constant rem inder
t o have the sys tem inspected immedi ate ly.
If a ma lfu nction occurs that turns the front
airbag on the passenger s ide off, the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on and st ay
o n wheneve r the igni tion is on.
•
•

166 Airbag system
& WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system will
only provide protection when occupants
are in the proper seating position
<=>page 166.
- If the airbag indicator light c::> page 19
comes when the vehicle is being used,
have the system inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer. It is pos
sible that the airbag will inflate when it
is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should.
How supplemental side 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. 164 Inflated side airbags o n left side of vehicle,
rear s ide airbag
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 . This applies
especially to children
c::> page 171, Child Safe
ty.
Supplemental side airbags inflate be
tween the occupant and the door panel on th e
side of the vehicle that is struck in certain side
coll is ion
c::> fig. 164 .
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 bel ts and ride in a
proper seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and act accord ingly 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.

168 Airbag sys tem
The side curtain airbags are located on both
sides of the interior above the front and rear
side windows ¢
fig. 165. They are ident ified
by the word "AIRBAG" on the windshie ld
frame and the center roof p illar.
The side curtain airbags contain features that provide e jection m itigat ion to he lp prevent ve
h icle occupants or parts of their bodies from
be ing completely or partially ejected from the
ve hicle interior in certain side impacts and ve
h icle rollovers.
The s ide curtain airbag system supp lements
the safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of injury for occupants' heads and upper
torso. The s ide curtain airbag inflates in side
impacts and only when the vehicle acce lera
tion registered by the control u nit is high
enough. If t his rate is below the reference val
ue programmed into the control unit, the s ide
curtain ai rbag will not be triggered, even
though the car may be badly damaged as a re
sult of the collision. It is not possible to de
f ine an a irbag tr igger ing range that will cover
every possible angle of impact, since the cir
cumstances wi ll vary considerably between
one coll ision and another. Important factors
include, for examp le, the natu re (hard o r soft)
of the impacting object, the ang le of impact ,
ve hicl e speed, etc. ¢
page 169, How side cur
tain airbags work .
Aside from their normal safety function, safe
ty belts wor k to he lp keep t he d river or front
passenger in posi tion in the event of a co ll i
sion so tha t the side curta in ai rbags can pro
vide protection.
The airbag system is not a s ubst itute for your
safety be lt. R athe r, it is p art of the overall oc
cupant restraint system in your ve hicle . Al
ways remember that the airbag system can
on Ly help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wear ing it properly. Th is
is another reason w hy you should always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re qu ires you to do so¢
page 136, General
notes .
It is important to remembe r that wh ile the
side curtain airbag system is designed to help
reduce the likelihood of ser ious injuries, other
injur ies, for example, swelling, br uising, fric
t ion burns and minor abras ions can also be as
sociated w ith these airbags upo n deployment .
Remember too, these airbags will deploy only
once a nd on ly in ce rtain kinds of accide nts -
yo ur safety belts a re always the re to offer p ro
tection .
The side curtain airbag system basic ally
consists of:
- The e lectro nic co ntrol module and external
side impa ct sensors
- The side curtain a irbags above the front and
rea r side windows wit h ejection mitigation
fe atu res
- The a irbag i ndicator lig ht in the inst rument
pa nel
The airbag system is mon itored electronically
to make ce rtain it is functioning prope rly at all
t imes. Each time you sw itch on the ign ition,
t h e airbag system ind icator light will come on
f o r a few seconds (sel f diagnos tics) .
The side curtain airbag is not activated:
-if the ignition is sw itched off,
- in side co llisions whe n the acceleration
measu red by the sensor is too low,
- in rear-end collisions.
A WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system will
only provide protection when occupants
are in the proper seating posi tion
¢ page 52, General re commendations.
- If the ai rbag ind icator light ¢ page 19
comes when the veh icle is being used,
have the system inspe cted immedia tely
by your au thori zed A udi deale r.
It is pos
sible tha t the airbag will infla te when it
is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should.

M N
0 I.J "". rl I.O
"' rl
"' rl
How side curtain airbags work
Side curtain airbags can work together with
side airbags to help reduce the risk of head
and upper torso injuries for occupants who
are properly restrained.
Fig. 166 Illustrat ion of p rinc iple: Infla ted side cur ta in
airbags on the left side
The side curtain airbags inflate between the
occupant and the windows on the side of the
vehicle that is struck in a side collision
¢fig. 166.
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 supplementa l side curtain airbag
inf lates . This applies especially to children
¢page 171.
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 .
Airbag system 169
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 airbag inflate.
- Always make sure that the side curtain
airbags can inflate without interfere nce.
- 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 a colli
sion.
- Never use hangers to hang clothes on the hooks .
- Only use factory-installed sun shades or,
if shades installed after the vehicle
leaves the factory, use only genuine Audi
sun shades .
- Never swing the sun visors over to the
side windows if things such as pens, ga rage door openers, hands-free speakers,
etc. are attached to the sun visors. They
could come loose and cause serious in
jury if the side curtain airbag inflates.
-A deploying airbag inflates in a fraction
of a second and with great force.
- Never attach objects to the cover or in
the deployment zone of a side curtain airbag.
- The airbag deployment zones must be
kept clear at all times. Make sure there
are no objects, pets, or other persons in
-

190 Audi pre sense
Audi pre sense
Preventative passenger
protection
A pp lies to veh icles: with Audi pre se nse
Audi pre sense can initiate steps to help pro
tect vehicle occupants in certain situations.
The functions described depend on equ ipment
installed in your vehicle:
Audi pre sense basic*
The following functions can be triggered in
certain driving situations:
- Tightening of the safety belts (for example,
during heavy braking) : the front safety belts
have reversible belt pretensioners. If a colli
sion does not occur, the safety belts loosen
slightly and are ready to be tightened again.
- Closing the windows and the sunroof*: the
windows and the sunroof* close leaving a
small open gap.
Audi pre sense basic functions can be trig
gered at speeds above 20 mph (30 km/h).
Vehicles with Aud i drive select*: the deploy
ment time is adapted in
Dynamic mode.
Audi pre sense front (vehicles with
adaptive cruise control*)
Audi pre sense front includes the functions in
Audi pre sense basic. In addition, within the
limits of the system, the likelihood of a colli
sion with the vehicle immediately ahead is al
so calculated . If the system senses an immi
nent collision the following functions can be
tr iggered :
- Braking guard c::>poge
90
-Tightening the safety be lts
- Closing the windows and the sunroof* (leav -
ing a small open gap)
Audi pre sense rear (vehicles with Audi
side assist*)
Audi pre sense rear includes the functions in
Audi pre sense basic. In addition, the likeli
hood of a rear-end collision with the vehicle
coming from behind is also calcu lated.
If the risk
of a co llision is detected, the following
functions can be triggered:
- Tig htening the safety belts
- Closing the windows and the sunroof* (leav-
ing a small open gap)
Audi pre sense plus*
Audi pre sense plus includes the functions in
Audi pre sense front and Audi pre sense rear.
Error message
Audi pre sense: not available
Preventative passenger protection is not avail
able. See your authorized Audi dealer immedi
ately to have the malfunction corrected.
_& WARNING
-=
Audi pre sense cannot overcome the laws
of physics. It cannot prevent a collision. Do
not let the increased safety provided
tempt you to take risks. This will increase
the r isk of a collis ion and serious personal
in juries .
- The sensors cannot always detect all ob
jects. This increases the risk of a colli
s10n.
-Aud i pre sense does not detect people or
an im als or objects that are crossing the
veh icle's path c::> page
84.
-The radar sensor's vis ion can be reduced
by heavy rain, ice, snow, heavy road sp ray
and reflections from guard rails, tunnel
entrances, etc. These and similar condi
tions can prevent vehicles from being ac
curately detected and in some cases they
may not be detected at all.
(D Note
The sensors can be displaced by impacts or
damage to the bumper, wheel housing and
underbody. This can affect the function of
the Audi pre sense system. Have your au
thorized Audi dealer check to make sure
that the system is working properly.