146 Airbag sys te m
of a typ ica l 1 year -old, but less than the
weight of a sma ll adult, the front airbag on
the passenger side may deploy (the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not come on).
For exa mple , the air b ag m ay depl oy if:
- a small child that is heavier than a typical 1
year-o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regardless of whe ther the child is in one of
the chi ld seats listed
c':> page 167),
-a ch ild who has outgrown child rest raints is
on the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the cente r
of the instrument panel w ill come on and stay
on.
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 injury through interaction
with the airbag. " Low risk" deployment occurs
in those crashes that take place at lower de
celerations as defined in the e lectronic control
un it
c':>page 151.
Alwa ys rememb er: Even tho ugh your 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 unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You w ill also receive serious in juries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in
fla tes -even with an Advanced Airbag
c':>page 139.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward -facing child seat in
stalled on the front passenger seat will be seriously injured and can be killed
if the
front airbag inflates - even w ith an Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- Altho ugh the Advanced Airbag System 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 con ceivable s ituations that
may h appen dur ing the usefu l life of y our
veh icle .
- T he inflating airbag will h it the ch ild seat
or infant carrier wi th grea t force and will
smash the child seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, door, or
roof.
- Always install rearward-facing chi ld re
straints on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing
child seat on the front passenger seat
because of exceptional circumstances
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 seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
system inspected by you r Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If, in except iona l circumstances, you must
i nsta ll a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenge r's sea t:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and ce rtified by
its manufacture r fo r u se on a fron t seat
with a passenger fron t and s ide a irbag .
- Never p ut the fo rward-facing child re
straint up agains t or ve ry near the instru
ment panel.
- Always move the p assenge r seat into its
rearmost pos ition in the seat's fore and
aft ad justment range, as fa r away from
the airbag as possible, before installing
the forward-facing ch ild restra int. The
backrest must be ad justed to an upright
position.
148 Airbag system
-Never remove the front passenger or
driver seat from the vehicle.
- Never remove the upholstery from the
front passenger seat.
- Never disassemble or remove parts from
the seat or disconnect wires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or put them on the seat. The capacitive
passenger detection mat in the front
passenger seat will not function properly
if it is punctured .
- Never carry things on your lap or carry objects on the front passenger seat.
Such objects can influence the capaci
tance registered by the capacitive pas
senger detection system, so that incor
rect information is provided to the airbag
control unit.
- Never store items under the front pas
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Air
bag System under the passenger seat
could be damaged, preventing them and
the airbag system from working proper
ly.
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholstery that have not been specifical
ly approved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Airbag System from recognizing child re
straints or occupants on the front pas
senger seat and prevent the side airbag
in the seat backrest from deploying prop
erly.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys
tem on this seat .
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets, or similar items on the front passenger
seat. The additional layers prevent the
capacitive passenger detection system
from accurately measuring the capaci
tance of the child safety seat and/or the
person on the seat and thus keep the Ad
vanced Airbag System from working properly.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic games device, power inverter or seat
heater for child seats) on the front pas
senger seat if the device is connected to
the 12-volt socket or the cigarette light
er socket . Such devices can influence the
capacitance registered by the capacitive passenger detection system, so that in
correct information is provided to the air
bag control unit.
- If you must use a child restraint on the
front passenger seat and the child re
straint manufacturer's instructions re
quire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something else to properly position the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the child re
straint is installed on the front passen
ger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi
ately install child restraint in a rear seat
ing position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
,8. WARNING
If the front passenger seat gets wet, dry it
immediately.
- If liquid soaks into the front passenger
seat, this can keep the airbag system
from working properly and may, for in
stance, deactivate the passenger frontal
airbag. If this happens, the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will come on and stay
on together with the airbag indicator light
fl in the instrument cluster .
- If liquid is pooled on the seat, but has
not soaked in, this may also keep the air
bag system from working properly and
cause the passenger frontal airbag to be
enabled (turned on), even though there is a properly installed child restraint sys
tem on the seat . Wet towels or other wet
things on the seat cushion can have the
same effect. If the front passenger fron
tal airbag is turned on, the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light light will go out.
"' N
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How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the
side airbags supplement the protection of
fered by the front three -point safety be lts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head restra ints* to help reduce the
risk of injury in a wide range of acc ident and
crash situat ions. Be sure to read the impor
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS i n this chap ter.
Dep loyment of the Advanced Airbag System
and the activat ion of the safety be lt pre ten
sioners depend on the dece lerat ion meas ured
by the c rash senso rs and registered by the
e lectronic control u nit. Cr ash severity depends
on speed and dece leration as well as the mass
and stiffness of the vehicle or object involved
in the crash.
On the passenge r side, reg ard less of safety
be lt use, the fron t passenger fronta l airbag
will be t urned off i f the electrical capacitance
measured by the capac itive passenger detec
tion system on the front passenger seat is less
than the amount programmed in the e lectron
ic control unit. The front passenger frontal air
bag will also be turned off if the capac itance
measured by the system for the front passen
ge r seat equa ls that of an infant of about one
year of age in one of the child seats that was
used to cert ify the Advanced Airbag Sys tem
u nder Fede ral Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208 . The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on to tell you when t he
front Advanced Airbag System on the passen
ger s ide has been turned off
r:=:, page 152.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inf lates, a lways wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, yo ur r isk of inj ury is much hig he r.
- You w ill also receive serious injuries and
cou ld eve n be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in-
A irba g sy stem 149
flates -even w it h an Advanced A irbag
c=:, page 139.
More important things to know about
front airbags
Fi g. 16 1 In flated front airbags
Safety be lts are important to he lp keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated position
so that airbags can unfold properly and pro
vide supplementa l protect ion in a frontal col
li s ion.
The front airbags are des igned to provide ad
ditional protection for the chest and face of
the driver and the front seat passenger when:
- safety belts are worn proper ly,
- t he seats have been positioned so that the
occupant is properly seated as far as poss i
ble from the airbag,
- and for ad justab le head restra ints: the head
restraints have been properly adj usted .
Bec ause airbags infl ate in the bli nk of an eye
wi th great force, th ings you have on your lap
o r have p laced on the seat co uld become dan
gerous projectiles, and be p ushed into you if
the a irbag inf lates.
When an airbag deploys, fine dust is re le ased.
This is norma l and is not caused by a fi re in
the ve hicle . This dust is made up mostly of a
powder used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy. It could irr itate skin.
It is important to remembe r that wh ile the
supplementa l airbag system is designed to re
duce the like lihood of serious injur ies, other
i njur ies, for example swelling, bruis ing and
minor abrasions, can also happen when air-
bags inflate. A irbags do not protect the arms .,_
152 Airbag system
-If the air bag indicator light ¢ page 18
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
have the system inspected immediately
by your autho rized Aud i dea ler . It is pos
s ible that the airbag will inflate when it
is not s upposed to, or w ill not inflate
when it sho uld.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fig. 162 Sect ion from t he in st rument pa nel : PASS EN
GER AIR BAG O FF ligh t
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located
in the cen ter o f the instr ument panel
¢ fig . 162.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come
on an d stay on to te ll you when the fron t Ad
v a nce d Airb ag on t he passenger side h as been
turned off by the e lectronic control unit . If the
b ul b for the
PASSENGER A IR BAG O FF light
burns o ut, the airbag ind icator light
II wi ll
come on to signal a malfunction in the Ad
vanced A irbag System . Although the burned
out bulb w ill not change the way the front
passenger's frontal airbag works, it w ill no
longer be possib le to use the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light to make sure that the ai rbag
on/off s tat us is correct for the occupant on
the front passenger seat. Have the airba g sys
tem i nspected immediate ly by your autho r
ized A udi dealer.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will blink
for about 5 se cond s when :
-the ignit ion is switched on and
- the capac itive passenger detect ion system,
wh ich sw itches the front seat passenger 's
fron tal Advanced Airbag on and off, detects a change in the status of the front passen
ger seat.
As soon as the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li gh t stops b linking, a lways make sure tha t
the airbag s tatus (on or off) as shown by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is proper for
the age, size and e lectrica l capacitance of the
person occupy ing the front passenge r seat.
Always make sure that the safety belt for the
front passenger seat is properly fastened .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will
show the status of the front seat passenger 's
frontal Advanced Airbag a few seconds after
the ignition is sw itched on and the airbag in
dicator light go es off . The PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF light :
-will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occ upied;
- will stay on if the electrical capacitance
measured by the capacitive passenger de
tect ion system for the front passenger seat
equa ls the combined capacitance of an in
hnt up to abou t one year of age and one of
the rearw ard-facing o r forward-fac ing ch ild
restrai nts listed i n Fede ral Motor Vehicle
Safety Stan dard 2 08 wi th which the Ad
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle was certified; For a listing of the child restraints
that we re used to certify your vehicle's com
pliance w ith the U.S. Safety Standard
¢ page 167.
-will go out if the front passenger seat is oc
cupied by an adult as registered by the ca
pacitive passenger detection system .
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on if the ignition is on
and ...
- a car bed has been installed on the front
passenger seat, or
- a rearward-facing child restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward-facing ch ild restra int has been in
stalled on the front passenger seat,
- and if the electrical capacitance registered
on t he front passenger seat is equal to or
less than the combined capaci tance of a typ-
ical 1 year-o ld i nfant and one of the
1111>
M N
0:: <.J 'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1"1 ,...., 1.1"1 ,....,
rearward-facing or forward-facing chi ld re
straints listed in Federa l Motor Vehicle Safe
ty Standard 208 w ith which the Advanced
Airbag System in your vehicle was certif ied.
I f the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the PAS
SENGER AIR BAG OF F light w ill stay on. Nev
er insta ll a rearward-fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any kind of child restraint is at o ne
of the seating positions on the rear seat
¢ page 141, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 165, Child Safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on when one of the cond itions l isted above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certain that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light stays on continuo usly whenever the
ignition is on.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light does not appear on and does not
stay on all the time, stop as soon as it is safe
to do so and
- reactivate the system by turning the ignition
off for more than 4 seconds and then turn ing it on again;
- remove and reinstall the chi ld restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety belt for the
front passenger seat has been correct ly
routed through the child restraint as descri
bed in the chi ld restraint manufactu rer's in
structions;
- make sure that the convert ible locking re
t ractor on t he safety be lt for the front pas
senger seat has been act ivate d and that the
sa fety belt has been pulled tight .
- make su re that no electr ica l device (such as
a laptop, CD player, elect ro nic games devi ce,
power inverter or seat heater for chi ld seats)
is p laced or used on the front passenge r
seat if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the c igarette lighter socket;
A irbag system 153
- make sure that no seat heater has been ret
rofitted o r otherwise added to the front pas
senge r seat;
- make sure that nothing can interfere with
the safety belt buck les and that they are not
obstructed;
- make sure t hat there are no wet objects
(s uch as a wet towe l) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cushion .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still
do es not c ome on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on and does not stay on con
ti nu ously (when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passen -
ger seat and install it proper ly at one of the
rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer immed iate ly.
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure that the c hild is properly restra in
ed in a ch ild restra int that is appropriate for
its size and age.
Th e PASSENGER AIR BAG light should
NOT come on .. .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when the ignit io n is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating posit ion on
the front passenge r seat. If the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays on o r
fla shes for about S seconds wh ile d riving, un
der these c ircumstances, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenge r seat is
p rope rly seated on the ce nte r of the sea t
cushion with his or her back u p ag ainst the
backrest and the backrest is not re clined,
- t he adult i s not tak ing we ight off the sea t by
holding on to the passenger assis t handle
above the fron t passenger door or s upport
ing their weight on the armrest,
- the sa fe ty belt is being proper ly wo rn and
that the re is not a lot of s lack in the safety
be lt webbing,
- t here are no aftermar ket seat covers o r
cushions or other things (s uch as blankets)
on the front passenger seat that might
cause the capacitive passenger detect ion
•
•
M N
0:: <.J 'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
caused by airbags when they inflate, particu
l arly when the occupant sitting next to it is
not seated properly. The s ide a irbag for the
front passenger seat can be used with proper ly installed chi ld restraints. Please be sure to
read the important information and warnings
whenever us ing a child restraint in a veh icle :
Safety belts
c::;, page 130, A irbag system
c::;, page 139, Child safety ~ page 165.
The side airbag system basically con sists of:
- the e lectronic control module and external
s ide impact sensors
- the two airbags located in the sides of the
front backrests and the two airbags* located
in the rear backrest
- the airbag warning light in the instrument
cluster.
The airbag system is monito red elect ron ica lly
to make certain that it is functioning properly
at all times. Each time you switch on the igni
tion, the airbag system indicator light will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics) .
T he side airbag system supplements the safe
ty belts and can help to reduce the risk of in
jury to the driver's, front and rear passenger's upper torso on t he side of the vehicle that is
struck in a side collision . The airbag deploys
only in s ide impac ts and on ly when the veh icle
acceleration registered by the control u nit is
hi gh enough . If this rate is below the refer
e nce va lue progr ammed i nto the con trol un it,
the side airbags will not be triggered, even
though the ca r may be badly damaged as a re
sult of the collision . It is not possible to de
f ine an a irbag trigger ing range that will cover
eve ry possible angle of impact, since the cir
cumstances will vary considerably between
one co llision and another . Important facto rs
in clude, for examp le, the natu re (hard o r soft)
of the impacting objec t, the ang le of impact ,
ve hicl e speed, etc. ~
page 1 60, Impor tan t
safety instructions on the side airbag sy stem.
Aside from the ir no rmal safety function, safe
ty belts wor k to he lp keep the d river or front
passenger in posi tion in the event of a side
Airbag system 159
collision so that the side airbags can provide
protection.
T he airbag system is
not a substi tute fo r your
s af ety belt . Ra ther, it is part o f the over all oc
cupant restra int system in you r vehicle . A l
ways remember that the side airbag system
can on ly help to protect yo u if you are wearing
your safety be lt and wearing it proper ly. This
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety be lts, not just because the law re
quires you to do so c::;,
page 130, General
notes.
It is important to remember that wh ile the
suppleme nta l side airbag system is desig ned
to r educe the likelihood of ser ious injuries,
othe r injur ies, for exampl e, swelling, bru is ing ,
friction bur ns and m ino r abrasions can a lso be
associ ated w ith dep loye d side airbags. Re
member too, si de a irbags w ill dep loy o nly
once an d only in ce rtain kinds of accidents -
yo ur safety be lts a re a lways there to offer p ro
tection .
Vehicle damage, repair costs o r even the lack
of ve hicle damage are not necessarily a n indi
cation of ove r-sensitive or failed airbag activa
tion. In some coll is ions, both front and side
a irbags may inflate. Remember too, that air
bags will deploy only once a nd only in certain
ki nds of col lisions - you r safety belts a re a l
ways t he re to offe r protection in those acc i
dents i n which a irbags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have a lready deployed .
The side airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ignit io n is switched off
- in side co llisions whe n the acceleration
meas ured by t he sensor is too low
- in front-end collisions
- in rear -end co llisions
- in rollove rs .
In some types of accidents the front airbags,
s ide cu rtain airbags and s ide a irbags may be
t rigge red together. .,,. •
•
160 Airbag system
& WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system will
only provide protection when occupants
are in the proper seating position
<=>pag e 160.
- If the airbag indicator light c::> page 18
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. 166 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 165, 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 ision
c::> fig. 166 .
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 supplementa l 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.
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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. 168 Illustration of principle: In flated 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. 168 .
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 supplemental side curtain airbag
inflates . This applies especially to children
¢ page 165.
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 163
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 interference.
- Use the bui lt-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 Aud i
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
-