140 Driving Safely
-Always distribute the load as evenly as
possible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in
the luggage compartment as possible.
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rat
ing or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
specified on the safety compliance stick
er on the left door jamb. Exceeding per
missible weight standards can cause the
vehicle to slide and handle differently.
- Please observe information on safe driv
ing
q page 133.
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 .
(D Tips
-Air circulation helps to reduce window
fogging. Stale air escapes to the outside
through vents in the trim panel, on the
Left side of the Luggage compartment.
Be sure to keep these slots free and
open .
- 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 249.
Tie-downs
The luggage compartmen t is equipped wi th
four tie-downs to secure luggage and o ther
items.
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo p rop
erly ¢
page 139 , 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
154 Airbag sys te m
as def ined in the electronic control unit
Q page 162, PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light.
A lways remember, a chi ld seat or infant carr i
e r i nsta lled on the front seat may be struck
and knocked out of position by the rapidly in
flating passenger's airbag in a frontal colli
sion. The airbag could greatly reduce the ef
fectiveness of the chi ld restraint and even se
riously injure the child during inflat ion.
F or this reason, and because the back seat is
the safest p lace for chi ldren -when properly
restra ined accord ing to their age and si ze -we
strongly recommend that children always sit
in the back seat
Q page 174, Child Safety .
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat in
stalled on the front passenger seat will be
ser iously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates -even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating a irbag will hit the child seat
or infant carrier w ith great force and w ill
smash the ch ild seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or
roof .
- Always install rear -facing child seats on
the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearward facing
child seat on the f ront passenge r seat
because of except iona l circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi
ately i nstall the rear-facing chi ld seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Aud i dealer .
- Forward-fac ing ch ild seats installed on
the front passenger's seat may interfere
with the deployment of the airbag and c ause se rious pe rsonal injury to the
c hild.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional c ircumstances, you mus t
install a forwa rd-facing child restra int on
the front passenger's seat: -
Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and s ide a irbag .
- Never put the forward-facing child re
straint up against or very near the instru ment panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost pos ition in the seat's fore a nd
aft adjustment range, as fa r away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the forwa rd-fa cing ch ild restra int. The
b ackrest mus t be ad justed to an up right
position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays o n all the
time wheneve r the ignition is switched
on.
A WARNING -ra----
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will be displayed whenever a child re
straint is installed on the front passenger
seat and the ignition is sw itched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not stay on, perform the checks de
scribed
Q page 161, Monitoring the Ad
vanced Airbag System .
-Take t he 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
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea le r i mmediately .
- Always carefully follow instr uctions from
child restraint manufacture rs when in
stall ing c hild restra ints .
A WARNING
If, in except iona l circumstances, you m ust
i nstall a forward o r rearwa rd-fa cing child
r estra int on the front p assenger's se at:
- I mp roper installation of ch ild restra ints
c a n reduce their effectiveness or even
p revent them from providing any protec -
tion. .,..
,....,
N ,....,
N
0 J:
'SI: ,...., \!) ..,.,
,...., ..,., ,....,
but less than the weight of a small adult, the
fro nt airbag on the passenger side may deploy
(the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OF F light does not
come on).
For example, the a irba g may deplo y if:
- a small child that is heavier than a typical 1
year-o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regardless of whether the child is in one of
the chi ld seats listed
page 176),
-a ch ild who has outgrown child rest raints is
on the front passenger seat.
I f the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the center
of the inst rument panel w il l come on and stay
on.
The front a irbag on the passenger side may
not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not illuminate and stay lit) if:
- a small adult or teenager is on the front pas
senger seat
- a passenger who is not sitt ing upr ight w ith
their back against a non-reclined backrest
with their feet on the veh icle floo r in front
of the sea t is on the front passenge r seat.
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the
Federal Standard requires the a irbag to meet
the " low risk" deployment criteria to help re
duce the risk of inj ury through in terac tion
with the airbag . "Low risk" deployment occurs
in those crashes that take place at lower de
celerations as defined in the electronic control unit
~ page 161.
Always remember : Even though you r vehicle
is equipped with Advanced Airbags, the safest
p lace for children is properly restrained on the
back seat . Please be sure to read the impor
tant information in the sect ions that follow
and be sure to heed all of the WARNINGS.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of in jury is much highe r.
A irbag system 157
-You will a lso receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if yo u are up aga inst
the airbag or too close to it when it in
flates - even w ith an Advanced A irbag
~page 151 .
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild seat in
stalled on the front passenger seat will be
se riously in ju red and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even w ith an Ad
vanced A irbag System.
- Altho ugh the Advan ced Airbag Sys tem in
your veh icle is designed to turn
off the
front airbag when a rearward-facing
child restraint has been installed on the
front passenge r seat, nobody can abso
lutely guarantee that dep loyment is im
possible in all conceivable situations that
may happen dur ing the usefu l life of your
veh icle.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild seat
or infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child aga inst
the backrest, center armrest, doo r, or
roof.
- Always install rearward-facing child re
straints on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing
child seat on the front passenger s eat
because of exceptional cir cumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immed i
ately insta ll the rear -facing child seat in a
rea r seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If, in except iona l circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
-Always make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and s ide a irbag.
•
•
-
,....,
N ,....,
N
0 J:
'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
-Occ upants who are unbelted, out of posi
t ion or too close to the airbag can be
seriously injured by an airbag as it un
folds with great force in the blink of an
eye
¢ page 153.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat i n
stalled on the front passenger seat will be
ser iously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System .
- The inflati ng a irbag w ill hit the child sea t
or infant carrier w ith great force and w ill
smash the ch ild seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear -facing child sea ts on
the rear seat .
- If you mus t install a rearward facin g
child seat on the front passenger seat
because of exceptiona l circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi ·
ately install the rear-facing chi ld seat in a
rear seating position and have the a irbag
system inspected by your Aud i deale r.
A WARNING
Objects be tween you and the a irbag will
increase the risk of i njury in a crash by i n
terfering wi th the way the air bag unfolds
or by being pushe d in to yo u as the airbag
inflates.
- Never hold th ing s in your hand s or on
yo ur lap when the vehicle is in use.
- Never tran sport i tems on or in the are a
o f the front passenge r seat. Objects
cou ld move into the area of the front air
bags during braking or other s udden ma
neuvers and become dangerous projec
t il es that can cause serious persona l in
jury if the airbags inflate.
- Never place or attach accessories or oth
er objects (such as cup ho lders, tele
phone brackets, large, heavy or bu lky ob
jects) o n the doors, over or near the area
-
-
A irbag system 16 1
marked "AIRBAG" on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat bac krests or be
tween those areas and yo urself . These
objects could cause in ju ry in a crash, es
pecia lly when the airbags inflate .
- Never recline the front passenger 's seat
to transport objects. Items can a lso
move into the area of the s ide a irbag or
the front a irbag du ring braking or in a
sudden maneuve r. Obje cts near the air
b ags can become projec tiles and c ause
in jur y, partic ula rly when the sea t is re
clined .
& WARNING
-=
The fine dust created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing prob lems fo r people
with a history of asthma or ot her breath
ing cond itions.
- To reduce the risk of breath ing problems,
those with asthma or other respiratory
conditions shou ld get fresh air r ight
away by getting out of the veh icle or
ope ning windows or doors .
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy , was h your hands a nd face with
mild soap and water before eating .
- Be careful not to get the dust into your
eyes, or into any c uts or sc ratches .
- If the residue should get into your eyes,
f lush them w ith wate r.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag
System
tli (USA models)/!f (Canada models)
Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advan ced Airbag System: the airbag
moni toring indicator light and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light.
T he Adva nced A irbag System ( in cl uding the
electron ic co ntro l u nit, se nsor circu its and sys
t em wir ing) is mo nitore d con tinuously to
make su re that it is funct ion ing properly
•
•
-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 a irbags from be
ing damaged by heavy objects knocking
against or hitting the sides of the seat
backs.
- The airbag system can only be trigge red
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 17 4 , 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
Airbag system 1 71
larger, unclosed openings in the door
panel.
- Never drive with interior door trim pan
els removed .
- Never drive when parts have been re
moved from the inside door panel and
the open ings they leave have not been
properly closed.
- Never drive when loudspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been p roperly
closed.
- Always make certain that openings are
covered or filled if additiona l speakers
or other equipment is installed in the
inside door panels .
- Always have work on the doors done by
an authorized Audi dealer or qualified
workshop.
Side curtain airbags
Description of side curtain airbags
The side curtain airbag sy stem can provide
supplemental protection to properly restrain
ed occupants .
Fig. 173 Side curta in a irbags, driver' s sid e: s ide cur ta in
airb ag loc ation
The side curtain airbags are located on both
sides of the interior above the front and rear
side windows ~ fig . 173 . They are identified
by the word "AIRBAG" on the windshield
frame and the center roof pillar.
T he side curtain airbag system supplements
the safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of injury for occupants' heads and upper
torso on the side of the vehicle that is struck .,.
178 Child Safety
&_ 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 always be restrained properly
whenever riding in a vehicle.
-
- An unrestrained or improperly restrain
ed child can be injured or killed by be
ing thrown against the inside of the ve
hicle or by being ejected from it during
a sudden maneuver or impact .
- An unrestrained or improperly restrain
ed child is at much greater risk of injury
or death by being struck by 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.
- The child and the passenger can also
injure each other in an accident.
- Never install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the front pas
senger seat. A child will be seriously in
jured and can be killed when the passen
ger airbag inflates -even with an Ad
vanced 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
armrest, door or roof.
-Always install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant carriers on the rear seat .
- Forward-facing child safety seats instal
led on the front passenger's seat can in
terfere with the airbag when it inflates
and cause serious injury to the child. Al
ways install forward-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat.
- If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's
safety and well-being require that the
following special precautions be taken :
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has
been designed and certified by its man
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
-Always carefully follow the manufac
turer's instructions provided with the child safety seat or carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat
into the rearmost position of the pas
senger seat's fore and aft adjustment range, and as far away from the airbag
180 Child Safet y
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 . 176 Sche matic overview: rearward- facing infant
seat, properly installed o n the rear seat
> When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a ch ild safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving ¢
page 184 or install the seat
using the LATCH attachments.
> Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt rea lly 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 179.
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 spec ial re
straints in which the chi ld faces the back of
the vehicle . These infant seats support the ba
by's back, neck and head in a crash ¢
fig. 176.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
fro nt seat a potentially dangerous place for a
child to r ide . The front seat is not the safest
p lace for a child in a forwa rd-facing child seat.
I t is a very dangerous p lace for an infant 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 ch ild restra int increases the risk
of ser ious personal in ju ry and death in a
crash.
- Never install rear-facing child safety
seats or infant ca rr ie rs on the front pas
senger sea t -even with an Advanced Air
bag Sys tem. A c hild will be ser iously in
jured and can be killed whe n the inflat
ing ai rbag hits the child safety seat or in
fant carrier with great force and smashes the child safety seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door or
roof ¢
page 153, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- Always install rear-facing ch ild safety
seats or infant ca rr ie rs on the rear seat .
- Never install a rear-fac ing ch ild restra int
in the forward-fac ing direct ion. Such re
straints are designed for the special needs of infants and very small ch ild ren
a nd cannot protect them prope rly if the
seat is forward- facing.
- If you m ust insta ll a rearwa rd fa cing
child safety seat on the fro nt passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come o n and stay on, im
mediately insta ll the rear-fac ing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i deale r.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever us ing a child restrained in ave
h icle is being used
¢ page 143, Safety
belts,
~ page 151, Airbag system and
c::> page 174, Important things to know.
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats
can help protect toddlers and children over
age one who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9
and 18 kg) in a crash.
F ig . 177 Sche mati c overvi ew : ins tallat ion o f the at
tachments appl icable to a LA TCH seat
F ig. 178 Schem atic overview: installat ion of t he seat
u sing the ve hicle' s safety b elt sy stem
.. When using the vehicle safety be lt to insta ll
a chi ld safety seat, you must f irst activate
the convertible locking feature on the safety
belt to prevent the child safety seat from
moving
c::> page 184 or install the seat using
the LATCH attachments .
.,. Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really t ight
so that the seat cannot
move forward or
s ideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
c:;, page 184.
.,. If the child safety seat is equ ipped with a
tet her strap, attach it to the tether anchors
c:;, page 191 .
.. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:;, page 179.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in
fant restraint if it is more than one year o ld
and weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg) .
Child Safety 181
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 cert ified for their si ze and weight
c:;, fig . 177 and c:;, fig. 178 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a potentially dangerous place for a
child to ride . The front sea t is not the sa fest
place for a child in a forward -facing child safe
ty seat .
It is a very dangerous place for a n in
fant or a large r ch ild in a rearward-facing seat .
.&_ WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the
wrong child s afety seat o r imprope rly in
stalling a chi ld restraint increases the risk
of serious personal injury and death in a
collision or other emergency situation .
- Ch ildren on the front seat o f any car,
even with Advanced Airbags, can be se ri
ously injured or
even killed when an air
bag inflates. A chi ld in a rearward-facing
child safety seat installed o n the front
passenger seat will be serious ly injured
and can be k illed if the front airbag in
flates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force a nd will smash the child safety seat
and child against the ba ckrest, center
a rm rest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild safety
seats o n the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearwa rd fac ing
child safety seat on the fro nt passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan
ces and t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im
mediately insta ll the rear -fac ing chi ld
safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i dea ler .
- The rear side of the child safety seat
should be pos itioned as close as poss ib le
~