
M N
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'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
~ Adjust the head restraints so the upper edge is as even as possib le with the top of yo ur
head. If that is not possib le, try to ad just
the head restraint so that it is as close to
th is position as possible ¢
fig. 195.
~ If there are passengers in rear seat, fo ld the
head restraints up on the occupied seats or
s li de the center head restra int upward at
least to the next notc h.
Adjust ing head restraints ¢
page 79.
A WARNING
All seats are equipped with head re
st raints. Dr iv ing without head restra ints or
w it h head restra ints that are not properly
adjusted incre ases the risk of ser io us or fa
t al neck injury dramat ica lly. To help reduce
the risk of injury:
- Always drive wit h the head restraints in
place and properly adjusted.
- E very person in the veh icle must have a
properly ad justed head restra int .
- Alw ays make sure e ach pe rson in the ve
hicle properly adjus ts the ir head re
st raint . Adj ust the head rest rain ts so the
upper edge is as even as possib le wit h
the top of your head. If that is not possi
ble, try to adjust the head restra int so
that it is as close to this position as pos
sible .
- Never attempt to adjust head restraint
wh ile driving. If you have driven off and
must adjust the dr iver headrest for any
reason, first stop the vehicle safe ly be
fore attempting to adjust t he head re
st ra in t.
- Children must always be properly re
strained in a ch ild restrai nt that is app ro
pr iate for their age and s ize
c> page 203.
Examples of improper seating posit ions
The occupant restraint system can only re
duce the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are
properly seated.
Improper seat ing posit ions can cause serious
inju ry or death . Saf ety belts can on ly work
Dr iving S afel y 167
when they are properly positioned on the
body. Improper seating positions red uce the
effectiveness of safety belts and will even in
crease the r isk of injury and death by moving
the safety belt to crit ica l areas of the body.
Improper seating positions a lso increase t he
risk of serious in ju ry and death when an a ir
bag deploys and str ikes an occupant who is
not in the p roper sea ting posit ion. A dr iver is
responsible for the s afe ty of all ve hicle occu
pan ts and espec ially for children . There fore:
~ Never allow anyone to assume a n incor rect
seating posi tion when the vehicle is being
used¢ &.
The following bullet ins list o nly some samp le
pos itions t hat will i ncrease the risk of se rio us
injury and dea th. O ur hope is that t hese exam
ples will ma ke yo u more aware o f seating po
s itions tha t are dangerous .
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is
moving:
- neve r st and up in the vehicle
- neve r stand on the seats
- neve r kneel on the seats
- neve r ride w it h the seatback reclined
- never lie down on the rear seat
- neve r lean up against the instrument panel
- never sit on the edge of the seat
- neve r sit sideways
- neve r lean out the window
- neve r put your feet out the window
- never put your feet on the instrument panel
- neve r rest your feet on the seat cush ion or
back of the seat
- never ride in the footwell
- never ride in the cargo area
A WARNING
Imp roper seating posit ions increase the
risk of serious persona l injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
-Always make sure that all vehicle occ u-
pants stay in a proper seating position
a nd are p roperly rest rained whenever the
veh icle is being used .
-
•
•

Safety belts
General notes
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety bel ts correc tly saves live s!
This chapter explains why saf ety belts ar e nec
essary, how they work and how to adjust and
wear them correc tly .
... Read all the information that follows and
heed all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them
improperly increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death .
- Safety belts are the single most effective
means available to reduce the risk of se
rious injury and death in automobile acci
dents . For your protection and that of
your passengers, always correctly wear
safety belts when the vehicle is moving.
- Pregnant women, injured, or physically
impaired persons must also use safety
belts. Like all vehicle occupants, they are
more likely to be seriously injured if they
do not wear safety be lts . The best way to
protect a fetus is to protect the mother -
throughout the entire pregnancy.
Number of seats
Vehicles with five seats: Your vehicle has two
front seats and three rear seats. Each seating
position has a safety belt.
Vehicles with six seats:* Your vehicle has two
front seats, two seats in the second row and two seats in the third row. Each seating posi
tion has a safety belt .
Vehicles with seven seats:* Your vehicles has
two front seats, three seats in the second row and two seats in the third row. Each seating
~ position has a safety belt.
0 ..J
'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1"1 ,....,
"' ,....,
Safety belts 173
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them
improperly increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death .
- Never strap more than one person, in
cluding small children, into any belt . It is
especially dangerous to place a safety
be lt over a child sitting on your lap.
- Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are safety belts available .
- Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained with a separate safe
ty belt or child restraint.
Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle has a warning system for the
driver and front seat passenger (on USA mod
els only) to remind you about the importance
of buckling-up.
Fig. 197 Safet y bel t warn in g ligh t in the inst rum ent
cl uster -enla rged
Before driving off, always:
... Fasten your safety belt and make sure you
are wearing it properly .
"' Make sure that your passengers also buckle
up and properly wear their safety belts.
"' Protect children with a child restraint sys-
tem appropriate for the s ize and age.
The warning light . in the instrument clus
ter lights up when the ign it ion is switched on
as a reminder to fasten the safety belts. In ad
dition, you will hear a warning tone for a cer
tain period of time.
Fasten your safety belt and make sure that
your passengers also properly put on their
safety belts.
•
•

178 Safety belts
the wrong buckle will reduce safety belt effectiveness and can cause serious per
sonal injury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrain
ed can be seriously injured 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 convertible locking re
tractor when you are securing a child safety seat in the vehicle
c:::> page 215.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting
maximum protection from safety belts .
Fig. 204 Safety be lt pos it ion
u, .... 0 :t
~
Standard features on your vehicle help you ad
just the position of the safety belt to match
your body size.
- belt height adjustment for the front seats
and the outer seating positions in the sec
ond row seating,
- height-adjustable front seats.
.&_ WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious personal injury in an acci
dent.
-
- The shoulder belt should lie as close to
the center of the collar bone as possible
and should fit well on the body. Hold the
belt above the latch tongue and pull it
evenly across the chest so that it sits as
low as possible on the pelvis and there is
no pressure on the abdomen. The belt should always fit snugly
¢
fig. 204. Pull
on the belt to tighten if necessary.
- The lap belt portion of the safety belt
must be positioned as low as possible
across pelvis and never over the abdo
men. Make sure the belt lies flat and
snug¢
fig. 204 . Pull on the belt to ti9ht
en if necessary .
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause seri
ous injur ies by shifting its position on
your body from the strong bones to more
vulnerable, soft tissue and cause serious
injury.
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
c:::> page 176.
Pregnant women must also be correctly
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. 20S Safety belt position during pre gnancy
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer's body
¢ page 178.
"Adju st the front seat and head restraint cor
rectly
c:> page 74, General recommenda
tions .
"Make sure the seatback of the rear seat
bench is in an upright position and securely
latched in place before using the belt.
"Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it even
ly across the chest and pelvis ¢
fig. 205 ,
¢A . ~

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'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1"1 ,...., 1.1"1 ,....,
Since the circums tances will vary considerab ly
between one collision and another , it is not
possible to define a range of veh icle speeds
that will cover every possible k ind and angle
of impact t hat w ill always t rig ger the a irbags .
Important factors include, for example, the
nature (hard or so ft) of the object which the
car h its, the ang le of impact, vehicle speed ,
etc. The front airbags will a lso not inflate in
side or rear collisions, or in ro ll-overs .
Alw ays rememb er: Airbags will deploy only
once, and only in certa in kinds of co llisions.
Your safety belts are always there to offe r pro
tect ion in those s ituations in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy , or when they have
a lready deployed ; for example , when your ve
hicle strikes or is struck by another vehicle af
ter the first co llision .
This is just one of the reasons why an a irbag is
a supp lementary restraint and is not a s ubsti
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 173.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steer ing whee l or
instrument panel will dec rease the effec
tiveness of the airbags and will inc rease
the risk of pe rsonal injury in a co llision .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (2S cm)
to the stee ring wheel or instr ument pan
el.
- If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
( 2 5 cm) from the steer ing whee l, investi
ga te whethe r adaptive equipment may
be available to help you reach the pedals
and increase your seating distance from
the steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, yo ur risk of inj ury is much higher.
- You w ill also receive serio us injuries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag.
A irbag system 183
-To reduce the risk of injury when an air
bag inflates, always wear safety belts
properly ¢
page 177, Safety belts.
-Always make certain that ch ild ren age 12
or younger a lways ride in the rear seat. If
children are not properly restrained, they may be severe ly inju red or killed when an
airbag inf lates .
- Never let ch ildren ride unrestra ined or
improperly restrained in the vehicle. Ad
just the front seats prope rly .
- Never ride with the back rest reclined .
- Always sit as far as possible from the
steer ing whee l or the instrument pane l
¢page 164.
-Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat .
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the f loor in front of the seat to
he lp preven t serio us in ju ries to the legs
and h ips if the airbag infla tes.
- 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 bra king or in a
sud den maneuve r. Obje cts near the air
bags can become projectiles and cause
in jur y when an airbag inflates.
A WARNING
Airbags that have de ployed in a crash must
be replaced.
- Use on ly orig inal equipment airbags ap
proved by Aud i an d installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary too ls
and d iagnost ic equipment to properly re
place any airbag in your vehicle and as
sure system effectiveness in a crash .
- Never perm it salvaged or recycled air
bags to be installed in your vehicle . •
•

184 Airbag sys tem
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
• Be sure to read the important information
and heed the WARNINGS for important de
ta ils about ch ildren and Advanced Airbags
i=> page 203.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag System, make certain that
all children, especially those 12 years and
younger, a lways ride in the back seat properly
restra ined for their age and size. The airbag
on the passenger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to r ide .
The front seat is not the safest place fo r a
chi ld in a fo rward-facing chi ld safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for a n infan t or
a child in a rearward -facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System i n your veh icle
has been certified to comply with the require
men ts of United States Federa l Mo to r Veh icle
Safety Standard 208 as applicable at the time
your ve hicle was manufact ured.
The Standa rd requires the fron t air bag on t he
passenger side to be turned off ("sup
p ressed") if a ch ild up to about one yea r of
age restrained in one of the rear-facing or for
ward-facing infant restraints listed in Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which
the Advanced A irbag System in your vehicle
was certified has been installed on the front passenger seat . For a listing of the child re
straints that we re used to certify compliance
with the US Safety Sta ndard
c> page 205.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the in
strument panel tells you when the front Ad
vanced A irbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by t he e lectronic control unit.
Each t ime you tur n on the ignition, the
PAS
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght will come on for a
few seconds a nd:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied
- will stay on if there is a small child or child
restraint on the front passenger seat -
w ill go off i f the front passenger seat is oc
cupied by an adult as registere d by the
weight -sensing mat
r::!) page 193, Monitor
ing the Advanced Airbag System.
T he PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when the control unit detects a tota l weight
on the front passenger seat that req uires the
front a irbag to be turned off .
If the total weight on the front passenge r
seat is more than that of a typica l 1 year -old
c hi ld b ut less than the weight of a small
adult, the front airbag on the passenger side
can deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not come on). If the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on, the
front a irbag on the passenger side has not
been turned off by the elect ronic con trol unit
and can deploy if the control uni t se nses an
impact that meets the cond itions stored in its
memory .
For exampl e, the airbag may deploy if:
- a small ch ild that is heav ie r th an a typical 1
year-old ch ild is on the front passenger seat
( r egard less of whethe r the child is in one of
the child safety seats listed
r::!) page 205), or
- a child who has outgrown ch ild restraints is
on t he front passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in
the instrument cluster and stays on.
The front airbag on the passenger side may
not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not illum inate and stay lit) even if a
small ad ult o r teenager, or a passenger who is
not sitt ing up rig ht w ith their back against a
non- re cli ned ba ck res t w it h thei r feet on the
vehicle floor in front of the sea t is on the front
passenge r seat
c::> page 164, Proper sea ting
position for the driver.
If t he fron t passenger a irbag dep loys, the
F ede ra l St andard req uires the airbag to meet
the "low risk" dep loyment criteria to red uce
the risk of injury t hro ugh interactio n wit h the
airbag. "Low risk" dep loyment occ urs in those
crashes that take place at lower dece lerat ions ..,_

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as defined in the electronic control unit
¢ page 193, PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light .
Always remember, a chi ld safety seat or infant
carrier installed on the front seat may be
struck and knocked out of position by the rap
id ly inflating passenger's airbag in a frontal
coll is ion . The airbag cou ld greatly reduce the
effectiveness of the child restraint and even
seriously injure the child during inflat ion.
F or this reason, and because the back seat is
the safest p lace for children -when properly
restra ined accord ing to their age and si ze - we
strongly recommend that children always sit in the back seat¢
page 203, Child Safety.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety
seat insta lled on the front passenger seat
w ill be seriously injured and can be k illed if
t he fron t airbag inf lates - even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System .
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child
sa fety seat or infant carrier w it h great
f orce and w ill smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear -facing child sa fety
seats on the rear seat.
- If you mus t install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circ umstan
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG O FF
light does not come on and stay on, im
med iately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating posit ion and
have the a irbag system inspected by you r
authori zed Aud i dealer.
- Forward-fac ing ch ild safety seats instal
led on the front passenger's seat may in
terfere with the deployment of the air
b ag and cause serious person al injury to
the ch ild .
WARNING
If, in exceptional c ir c umstances, you mus t
install a forwa rd -facing child restra int on
the front passenger's seat:
A irbag system 185
-Always ma ke sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat
wit h 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 position in t he seat's fore and
aft adj ustment range, as fa r away from
the airbag as possible before installing
the forward-fa cing ch ild restra int. The
backrest mu st be a dju ste d to an upright
posi tion.
- Ma ke sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the
time wheneve r the ignit ion is swi tched
on.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light wi ll 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 ¢
page 193, 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
li g ht does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi dealer immed iate
ly.
- Always carefully follow instr uctions from
child r estraint manufa cture rs when in
s tall ing c hild restra ints.
A WARNING
If, in exce ptiona l circumstan ces, you must
ins tall a forward or rearw ard-facing c hild
restra int on the front passenger's seat:
- Imp roper ins tal lation o f ch ild restraints
can reduce t heir effec tiveness or even
•
•

186 Airbag system
prevent them from providing any
protection.
- An improperly installed child restraint
can interfere with the airbag as it de
ploys and serious ly injure or even kill the
child -even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
- Always carefully follow the manufactur
er's instructions provided with the child
safety seat or carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis
tered by the weight-se nsing mat and can
cause injury in a crash.
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants.
Fig. 2 08 Locat ion of dr ive r air bag : in stee ring wheel
Fig. 2 09 Locat ion of front passenger's a irbag: in the in
st rument panel
Your veh icle is equipped with an "Advanced
A irbag System" in complia nce w ith United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
( FM VSS) 208 as app licab le at the time your
veh icle was manufactured. The safety belts f
or the seats have "pretensioners" that help
to take slack out of t he belt system . The pre
tens ioners are also act ivated by the electronic
control unit for the airbag system.
T he front safety be lts also have load limiters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
i n a crash .
T he airbag for the drive r is in the stee ring
whee l hub ¢
fig. 208 and the airbag for the
front passenger is in the instr ument panel
~ fig. 209 . The general locat ion of the a irbags
is marked "AIRBAG".
T here is a lot you nee d to know about the ai r
bags in your vehicle . We urge you to read the
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
chapters that make up the owner's literature.
P lease be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they
are extremely importa nt for your safety and
the safety of you r passengers, especially in
fants and small chi ldren.
_&. WARNING
Neve r rely on airbags alo ne for p rotection.
- E ven w hen they deploy, airbags provide
only supplement al pro tectio n.
- Airbag work most effect ive ly when used
with p roperly wor n safety bel ts.
- Therefore, always wea r you r safety belts
a nd make sure tha t eve rybody in your ve
h icle is properly res trained.
_&. WARNING
A pe rso n on the fron t passenger seat, es
pe cial ly infa nts and sm all ch ildren, w ill re
ceive serio us inju ries and can even be kil-
l ed by being too close to the airbag when
it inflates .
- A lthough t he Advanced Airbag System in
your veh icle is des igned to tur n off the
front passenge r airbag if an infant or a
small child is on the front passenger
seat, nobody can absolutely guarantee
-
that deployme nt under these special ..,

188 Airbag sys tem
If the tota l weight on the front passenger
seat is more than that of a typical 1 year-o ld,
but less than the weight of a small adu lt, the
front airbag on the passenger side may deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on).
For e xample , the airbag m ay deploy 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 safety seats listed
¢ page 205),
-a chi ld who has outgrown child restraints is
on the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the center
of the instrument pane l w ill come on and stay
on.
The front airb ag on the passenger side may
not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not ill uminate and stay lit) if:
- a small adu lt o r teenager is o n the front pas
senger se at
- a passenger who is not sitt ing upr ight w it h
their back against a non-reclined backrest
with their feet on the veh icle floo r in front
of the seat is on the front passenge r seat .
I f the front passenge r airbag deploys, the
F ederal Standa rd requires the airbag to meet
the " low ris k'' deployment criter ia to help re
d uce the risk of inj ury through interaction
with the airbag. "Low risk" deployment occurs
in those crashes that take place at lower de
celerations as defined in the electronic control un it.
¢ page 193
Always remember: Even tho ugh yo ur 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 i n the sect ions that follow
and be sure to heed a ll of the WARNINGS.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inf lates, a lways wear safety belts prope rly. -
If you are unrestra ined, leaning forward,
sitt ing s ideways or o ut of pos ition in any
way, your risk of injury is m uch higher.
- 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
f lates -eve n w it h an Advanced A irbag
¢page 182.
A WARNING "---
A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild safety
seat installed on the front passenger seat
will be serious ly inju red and ca n be killed if
the front air bag infla tes -even with an Ad
vanced A irbag System.
- Al tho ugh t he Advanced Airbag Sys tem in
your veh icle is designe d to tur n off the
front airbag when a rearward -facing
child restraint has been insta lled on the
front passenger seat, nobody can abso lutely g uarantee 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 c hild
safety seat or i nfant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
a nd child aga inst the bac krest, center
armrest, doo r, or roof.
- Always install rea rward-fac ing ch ild re
s traint s on the rear seat.
- If you must ins tall a rearwa rd fac ing
child safety seat on the fro nt passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circu mstan
ces and t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on an d stay on, im
mediately insta ll the rear-facing c hild
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
author ized Audi dealer.
A WARNING
-If, in except io nal circumstances, you m ust
i nstall a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenge r's seat:
II--