182 Airbag sys tem
Airbag system
Important things to know
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For
airbags to do their job , occupants must al
ways properly wear their safety belts and be
in a proper seating position.
F or your safety and the safety of your passen
gers, before driving off, a lways:
• Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly ¢
page 164,
• Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
r=; page 75,
• Wear safety be lts properly ¢ page 176,
• Always properly use the proper child re-
straint to protect children¢
page 203.
In a collision, airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force .
The supplemental airbags can cause injuries if
the dr iver or the front seat passenger is not
seated properly . Therefore in order to he lp the
a irbag to do its job, it is important, both as a
d river and as a passenger to sit prope rly at all
times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steering wheel and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
comp letely and provide supp lemental protec
tion in ce rtain frontal collisions¢
page 164,
Proper occupant seating positions.
F or detai ls
on the operation of the seat adjustment con
t rols ¢
page 75.
It's especially important that children are
properly restrained ¢
page 203.
There is a lot that the driver and the passen
gers can and must do to help the individua l
safety features installed in your A udi work to
gether as a system.
Proper seat ing pos ition is important so that
the front airbag on the driver s ide can do its
job. If yo u have a physical impa irment or con- dition that prevents you from sitting properly
on the driver seat with the safety belt properly
fastened and reaching the pedals , or if you
have concerns with regard to the function or
operation of the Advanced Airbag System ,
please contact your author ized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop, or call Audi Customer Re
lations at 1-800-822-2834 fo r poss ible modi
ficat ions to your veh icle.
When the airbag system deploys, a gas gener
ator will f ill the a irbags, break open t he pad
ded cove rs, and inflate between the steering
whee l and the dr iver and between the instru
ment pane l and the fron t passenger. The a ir
bags will deflate immediately after dep loy
ment so that the front occupants can see
t h rough the windshie ld again witho ut inter
ruption .
All of th is takes p lace in the b link of an eye, so
fast that many peop le don't even realize tha t
the airbags have deployed. The airbags a lso
inflate with a great dea l of force and nothing
shou ld be in their w ay when they deploy.
Front airbags in combination with properly
worn safety belts slow down and lim it the oc
cupant's forward movement . T ogether they
help to prevent the drive r and front seat pas
senger from hitting pa rts of the inside of the
vehicle while reducing the forces acting on the
occupant during the crash . In this way they
help to reduce the risk of injury to the head
and upper body in the crash. A irbags do not
protect the arms or the lower parts of the
body.
Both front airbags wi ll not inflate in all fronta l
collisions . The triggering of the airbag system
depends on the vehicle dece lerat ion rate
caused by the co llision and registered by the
electron ic control unit. If th is rate is below
the reference value programmed into the con
t rol unit , the airbags will not be trigge red,
even though the car may be badly damaged as
a res ult of the co llision . Ve hicl e damage, re
pair costs or even the lack of ve hicle damage
is not necessari ly an indication of whether an
airbag shou ld inflate or not .
IJll-
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-Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been des igned and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag .
- Never put the forward-facing child re
straint up aga inst or very near the instru
ment panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the a irbag as poss ible, before insta lling
the fo rward -facing child restraint . T he
b ack res t m ust be adjus ted to an upr igh t
posit ion.
- Make su re that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and s tay s on all the
t ime w henever the i gnition is switched
on .
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a
l ot of very important parts of the Advanced
Airbag System in it. These parts include the
weight-sens ing mat, sensors, wiring, brack
ets, and more . The function of the system in
the front passenger seat is checked by the
e lectronic control un it when the ignit ion is on .
The control un it mon itors the Advanced Air
bag Sys tem and turn s the a irbag i ndica tor
light on when a ma lfunction in t he system
components is detected . The function of the
airbag indicator light is described in greater
deta il below. Because the front passenger
seat contains important parts of the Ad
va nced A irbag System, you must take care to
prevent it from being damaged . Damage to
the seat may p revent the Advanced A irbag for
the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a crash .
The front Advanced Airb ag System
consists of the following:
- Crash senso rs in the front of the veh icle that
measu re ve hicle accelera tion/decele ra ti on
to provide info rm ation to the Advanced Air
bag System abo ut the severity of the crash.
A irbag system 189
-An elect ron ic cont ro l unit, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts .
The control un it "decides" whether to f ire
the front a irbags based on the informat ion
received from the crash sensors. The control
unit also "decides" whether the safety belt
prete nsione rs shou ld be act iva ted.
- An Advanced A irbag w it h gas generator for
the driver inside the steering wheel hub .
- An Advanced A irbag w ith gas generator in
side the instrument pa nel for the front pas
senge r.
- A weight-sensing mat under the upholstery
padding of the front passenge r seat cushion
that measures the to tal weight o n the seat.
The informat ion reg iste red is sent continu
ously to the elect roni c con trol u nit to regu
la te deployment of the front Adv anced Air
bag on the passenger side .
- An airbag moni tori ng sys tem and ind ic a tor
light in the instr ument cluster
q page 193.
- The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t comes
on and st ays on in the cen ter o f th e ins tru
ment panel
q page 193, fig . 211 and tells
you whe n the front Advanced Airbag on the
passenger side has been tu rned
off .
-A sensor below the safety be lt latch fo r the
front seat passenger to meas ure the tension
on the safety be lt . The tension on the safety
be lt and the weight registered by the
weight-sensi ng mat he lp the control unit
"decide" whether the front a irbag for the
front passenge r seat should be turned
off or
not
q pag e 184, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- A senso r in the safety be lt latch fo r the d riv
er a nd fo r the fro nt sea t passenger tha t
senses w hethe r that safe ty belt is latche d or
no t and transmi ts this informa tion to the
electronic contro l unit.
.&_ WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can
prevent the front airbag from work ing
properly .
-
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228 Intelligent technology
will have no warning from a sudden in
crease in engine speed as with a front
wheel drive vehicle. Always drive at speeds wh ich are suited to the road con
ditions -risk of crash.
Energy management
Starting ability is optimized
Energy management controls the distribution
of electrical energy and thus optimizes the
availability of electrical energy for starting
the engine.
I f a vehicle with a conventional energy system
is not driven for a long period of time, the bat
tery is discharged by idling current consumers
(e.g. immobilizer) . In certain circumstances it
can result in there being insufficient energy
available to start the engine.
I ntelligent energy management in your vehi
cle handles the distribution of electrical ener
gy . Starting ability is markedly improved and
the life of the battery is extended.
Basically , energy management consists o f
battery diagnosis, idling current manage
ment
and dynamic energy management.
Battery diagnosis
Battery diagnosis continuously determines
the state of the battery. Sensors determine
battery vo ltage, battery current and battery
temperature. This determines the current
state of charge and the power of the battery.
Idling current management
I dling current management reduces energy
consumption while the vehicle is standing.
With the ignition switched off, it contro ls the
energy supply to the various e lectrica l compo
nents. Data from battery diagnosis is consid
ered.
Depending on the battery's state of charge,
individual consumers are gradually turned off
to prevent excessive discharge of the battery
and thus ma intain starting capability.
Dynamic energy management
While the vehicle is being driven, dynamic en
ergy management distributes the energy gen
erated according to the needs of the individu
al components.
It regulates consumption, so
that more electrical energy is not being used
than is being generated and ensures an opti
mal state of charge for the battery.
(!) Tips
- But even energy management cannot
negate the limits of physics. Consider
that the power and life of a battery are
limited.
- If start ing ability is threatened, you are
informed by a warning
¢ page 229,
Driver notification in the instrument
cluster display.
What you should know
The highest priority is given to maintaining
starting capability.
The battery is severely taxed in short-distance
driv ing, in city traffic and during the cold time
of year. Abundant electrical energy is re
quired, but only a little is generated . It is also
critical if the engine is not running and electri
cal components are turned on. In this in
stance energy is being consumed but none is
being generated.
It i s in precise ly these s ituations that you will
notice energy management actively regu lat
ing the distribution of energy.
Vehicle stands for an extended period
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period
of several days or weeks, e lectr ica l compo
nents are gradually cut back or sw itched off.
T his reduces energy consumption and ma in
ta ins starting capability over a longer period.
T ake into consideration that when you unlock
your vehicle, some convenience functions,
such as the interior lights or the power seat
adjustment, may not be availab le. The con
venience functions will be availab le again
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Disconne cting the batt ery t erminals
Some vehicle functions (power w indow regu
l ators, for example) are lost if the battery ter
minals are disconnected . These functions have
to be re learned after the battery terminals are
connected again. To prevent this, the battery
should only be disconnected from the vehicle
electrical system when absolutely necessary
for repairs .
Vehicle s not driven fo r lo ng period s
If you do not drive your vehicle over a period
of several days or weeks, electrical compo
nents are gradually cut back or switched off .
This reduces energy consumption and main
tains starting capab ility over a longer per iod
¢ page 228 .
Take into consideration that when you unlock
your vehicle, some convenience functions,
such as the inter ior lights or the power seat
adjustment, may not be available . The con
ve nience funct ions w ill be available again
when yo u turn on the ignition and start the
engine.
Winter op eration
During the winter months, battery capacity
tends to decrease as tempe ratures d rop . This
i s because more powe r is also consumed while
start ing, and the headl ights, rea r window de
fogger, etc., are used more often.
Avo id unnecessary power consumption, par
ticularly in c ity t raffic or when t rave ling on ly
short d istances. Let you r autho rized Aud i
dealer check the capacity of the vehicle bat
tery before winter sets in ¢
page 268. A well
charged battery wi ll not only prevent starting
prob lems when the weather is cold, but will
also last longer .
If your vehicle is left standing for severa l
weeks at extremely low temperat ures, the
veh icle battery should be removed and
stored where it will not freeze. This will
prevent it from bei ng damaged and hav ing
to be replaced.
Checkin g and fillin g 267
Working on the battery
Be especially careful when working on or near
the battery.
The battery is located under the driver 's seat.
Before you check anyth ing under the dr iver's
seat,
read and h eed all WARNINGS G &_ .
Always heed the safety warnings , when work
ing on the vehicle battery or the vehicle e lec
trical system to prevent injury .
The following WARNINGS are ver y
important when working on the batter y:
Alway s heed the following WARN IN G SY M-
BOLS a nd safety p re caution s when working
on the battery .
®
Alway s wear e ye prote ction.
~
Batt ery acid contain s sulfuric acid. Al -
w ay s we ar gloves and eye prot ection.
@
No
-spa rk s
- flam es
- smoking .
~
When a b atter y is ch arged , it produces
h y drogen g as w hic h is e xplosi ve and
could cause pe rsonal injur y.
®
Alw ays keep the batt ery well out of
r e a ch of childr en.
A WARNING
Whenever working on the battery or on
the electrical system, there is the risk of
injury, accident and even fire. Read and
heed the following WARNINGS:
- Always wear eye protection. Do not let
battery ac id or any lead particles get on
your skin or clothing. Shield your eyes.
Exp losive gases can cause blindness or
other inju ry.
- Battery acid conta ins sulfuric acid. Sulfu
ric acid can cause blindness and severe
bu rns.
- Always wear g loves and eye protection.
Do not tilt the battery because acid
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Doors
Power child saf ety lock . ... .. .. .. .. .. 48
Dr iver information system ... .. .. .. .. .. 2 1
Di gita l speedomete r ...... .. .. .. .. .. 22
D river info rmation messages . . . . . . . . . 30
Open door or rear lid warning . . . . . . . . . 22
Outside temperature display . ... .. .. .. 22
Sound system display .. ... .. .. .. .. .. 21
D river seat
refer to Seat ing pos it ion ... .. .. .. .. . 164
Driver's seat ................. .... ... 75
Driver's seat memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Activating remote control key . . . . . . . . . 77
Recall ing a seat posit ion ... .. .. .. .. .. 76
Sto ring a seat position . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
D riving messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Driving mode
refer to Adaptive Air Suspe nsion. 157, 1 59
Driving offroad Driving through water ......... ... .. 236
Driving tips .... ........... ... ... .. 235
Rul es of behav io r ............ .. .... 235
S and and m ud ........... .... .. .. . 236
Snow-covered groun d ..... .. .. .. .. .
236
Unpaved roads ........... .... .. ... 23 6
Driving safe ly .......... ...... .... .. 163
Driving through water ... ... .. .. .. .. . 236
D riving t ime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Duplicate key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
D ust filter
Climate controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
E
Easy en try featu re .. ..... ... .. .. .. .. . 10 6
E fficiency program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Fue l economy messages . ...... ... ... 27
M emory levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Othe r equipmen t ......... .. .. .. .. .. 2 7
Electric seat adjustment
refer to Power seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 5
Electro nic differential lock (EDL) . ... .. . 223
Warn ing/ indicator lights . . . . . . . . . 16, 18
E le ctr onic immobili ze r ...... .. .. .. .. .. 40
Electronic power co ntrol
( E PC) wa rn ing/indicator light ... ... ... 15
Electronic speed limiter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Inde x 335
Electronic Stabilization Cont ro l (E SC) ... 223
Hill descent contro l ..... .... ... .. .. 224
•
Offroad mode .. .. .. . .. ... .... ... .. 224 •
Warning/ind icator lights .......... .. . 16
E merge ncy flashe r . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Wa rning/ind icator lights ..... ... .. .. . 16
Emergency locking of doors ............ 45
Emergency operation Rear lid . .. .. .. .. .. ............... . 48
Emergency starting . .. .. ..... ... .. .. 317
Emerge ncy towing ... . .. .. .. ... ... .. 319
Energy management ... .. .... ... .. .. 228
Battery power . .. .... ........... .. 229
Driver notification ................. 229
Engine Compartment .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 258
Coolant ... .. .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 262
Data ..... .. .. .. ... ............ .. 325
Hood ..... .. .. .. ................. 256
Start ing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107, 108
Starting with jumpe r cables ........ . 317
Stopping ........ .. ............... 108
Engine compartment
Safety instr uctions .. ........... .... 256
Work ing the eng ine compartment .. .. 256
Engine coolant system . .. ..... ... .. .. 262
Adding coo lant ..... . .. .. ..... ... .. 264
Checking coolant level .............. 263
Checking the engine coolant level ... .. 263
Malfunction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Radiator fan ..... .. ............... 265
E ngine coolant temperature
Temperat ure gauge ............ .... . 10
E ngine hood
Closing ... .. .... .. . .. .. ..... ... .. 2 56
How to re lease the hood ..... ... .. .. 256
Engine o il ..... ... .. ............... 258
Adding ... .. .. .. ............... .. 261
Addi tives .... .. ...... ........... .. 261
Chang ing ... .. .... .. ... ..... ... .. 261
Checking the engine oil leve l .. ... .. .. 260
Consumption . ..... . .. .. ..... ... .. 259
Ind ications and conditions requir ing ex-
tra checking . .. .. ............... .. 260
Oil grades . .. .. .. ................. 258
Recommended oil check intervals . .. .. 260
Spec ificat io n and viscosity .......... . 258
34 0 Index
Parking systems ........ ... .. .. .... . 145
Adjusting the disp lay/warning tone . .. 155
Audi parking system plus with front- and
rearv iew camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Audi parking system plus with rearv iew
camera .. .. ................ ... ... 146
Cleaning sensors/camera lenses ... .. . 243
Malfunct ion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Rear pa rk ass ist ........ .. .. .. .. .. . 146
Safety precautions ........ .. .. .... . 147
Trailer hitch . ... ...... ... .. .. .... . 155
Part icle fi lter
refer to Diesel part iculate filter . .. .... 36
Parts replacement .................. 328
PASSENG ER AIR BAG OFF l ight . .. .... . 193
Passenger's seat ............... .. .... 75
Passive safety system .. ... .. .. ... ... . 163
Pedals .. .. .... ........... .... .... . 168
Perimeter light ing ................... 62
Physica l pr inciples of a frontal collision 174
Plastic parts Cleaning . .. ..... ........... ... .. . 244
Polishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
P ollen filte r
Climate controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Power locking switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Power locking system ................. 41
Conven ience close/open feature ... .... 53
Lock ing and unlocking the vehicle from
ins ide ... ................. ...... .. 44
Opening and clos ing the w indows ...... 53
Rear lid/t runk lid ................... 45
Remote cont rol key ................ . 38
Selec tive unlock fea ture ... .. .. .... .. 44
Settings ... ... . ...... ... .. .. .... .. 44
Unlock ing and locking veh icle ..... .. . . 43
Powe r outlets 90
Power seat
Con trols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 5
Seat adjustment .............. .. .... 75
Power steering .. .. ..... ... .. .. .... . 226
Powe r window swi tches ..... .. .. .. .. . . 5 1
I n the driver 's door ................. 52
I n t he front passenger's door . . . . . . . . . 53
Reactivating the system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 Pregnant women
Special considerations when wearing a
safety belt .. .. .. ... .. ..... ... .. .. 178
Proper occ upan t seating positions . .. .. 164
Proper safety belt position ............ 178
Proper seating position Front passenger .. .. ... ..... ... .. .. 165
Occ upants . .... .. ............. .... 164
Rear passengers .. ............. .. .. 166
Protecting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 4
Protective tray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Q
quattro
refer to All -wheel drive
Question What happens to unbelted occupants?
Why safety belts? ... .......... .. . .
R
227
175
173
Radiator fan .... .. ... .. ..... .... . .. 265
Rain sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Rain sensor defective .............. .. . 35
Reading lights Front ... .. .... .. .. .... . ..... ... .. . 64
Rea r . .. .. .... .. .. ... .. ..... ... .. . 64
Rea r asht ray .... ... .............. .. . 89
Rear fog lights ...................... 62
Rea r lid
Automatic operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Emergency un locking ........... .... . 48
Open ing and closing ........... .. .. . 45
Valet key function ............. .... . 41
Rea r light
Defective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Rea r operation
Fo ur-z one automatic comfort air condi-
t io ni ng ..... .. .. .. ........... .... 103
Rea r seats
Adjust ing seat ... .. ... ....... ... .. . 78
E nt ry assist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Folding seatba ck up and down ..... .. . 79
Rearv iew camera
refer to Park ing systems ............ 146
Rea r view m irror ... .. .... .... ... .. .. . 71
Rea r window de fogger ........... .. .. . 98