M N <( I.J "". rl I.O
"' rl
"' rl
Use the height adjustment to change the posi
tion of the shoulder belt of the front safety
belts.
.&_ 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. 157. Pull
on the belt to tighten if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause seri
ous injuries 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
¢ page 141.
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. 158 Safety belt pos itio n during pr egnancy
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the
wearer's body
¢ page 142.
Safety belts 143
.. Adjust the front seat and adjustable head
restraint* correctly ¢
page 53, General rec
ommendations .
.. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it even
ly across the chest and pelvis ¢
fig. 158,
¢& .
.. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
r=:;, page 141, fig. 156 .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is se
curely latched in the buckle.
A WARNING
-
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious personal injury in an acci
dent.
- Expectant mothers must always wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as
possible across the pelvis and below the
rounding of the abdomen.
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information¢ &.
in Fas
tening safety belts on page 142.
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped.
,,,,,
Fig. 159 Re leas ing the tong ue from the buck le
.,. Push the red release button on the buckle
r=:;, fig. 159. The belt tongue will spring out
of the buckle
r=:;, .&, .
0 ...
"' 0 ±
~
.,. Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position.
Ill>
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-Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Audi dealer immediate
ly.
(D Tips
The child seats listed in categories A to C have been statically tested by Audi only for
the Advanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially
reduces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safe
ty of everybody in the vehicle, especially chil
dren:
~ Always use the right child safety seat for
each child and always use it properly
¢ page 179.
~ Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child
safety seat.
~ When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the child safety seat
from moving
¢ page 184.
~ Push the child safety seat down with your
full weight to get the safety belt really 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.
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
children, especially those 12 years and young
er, should always ride in the back seat proper
ly restrained for their age and size.
_& 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.
-
Child Safety 177
- 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
•
•
M N <( I.J ""'. rl I.O
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Secure unused safety belts on the rear
seat
F ig. 171 Schematic overview: keep unused safety belts
away from chi ldren in child safety seats. @-outer rear
safety belt,
@-center rear safety belt*
If a child safety seat is used on the rear bench,
espec ially with LATCH universal lower ancho
rages, the unused safety belts
mu st be se
cured so that the ch ild in the ch ild restra int
cannot reach them
Q ,&. .
- Gu ide the safety belt webbings @and @*
behind the head restraint of the seat whe re
the ch ild restrai nt is installed
Q fig . 171.
When doing so, do not engage the converti
ble locking retractor! Yo u should not hear a
"clicking" sound when winding up the safety
belt.
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety be lt
webbing.
A WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with
the LATCH lower anchorages or w ith the
standard safety belt or a child in a booster
seat on the rear seat could play with un
used rear seat safety belts and become en
tangled. This could ca use the child serious
personal i nju ry and even death.
- Always secure un used rear seat safety
belts out of reach of chi ld ren in ch ild
sea ts such as by p rope rly routing them
around the head res traint of the seat
whe re the child restraint is installed.
- Never act ivate the convertib le loc king re
t ractor when rout ing the safety belts
around the head res traints .
- Never le t anyone sit at the center rear
sea ting pos it ion if the cente r rear safety
Child S afety 1 79
belt has been ro uted around a rear head
restraint.
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. 172 Schemat ic overv iew: rearward -facing infant
seat, properly installed on the rear seat
~ When using the vehicle safety belt to install
a child safety seat, you must first activate
the convertible locki ng retractor on the
safety belt to preven t the child safe ty seat
from mov ing
Qpage 184 or install the seat
using the LATCH attachments .
~ Push the child safety seat down with you r
full weight to get the safety belt really 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
Qpage 179.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg)
are best protected in special infant car riers
and child safety seats designed for their age
group. Many experts be lieve that infants and
small chi ld ren shou ld r ide o nly in special re
str aints in wh ic h t he child faces the back of
the ve hicle. These infant sea ts suppo rt the ba
by's back, neck and head in a crash ¢
fig. 172 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
fron t seat a pote ntia lly dange ro us place for a
c hi ld to ride. The fron t se at is not t he safest
place for a child in a fo rward -facing child seat . ..,_
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~ When using the vehicle safety belt to insta ll
a chi ld safety s eat, you must first activate
the convertible locking retractor on the
safety belt to prevent the ch ild safety seat
from moving
c:::, page 184 or install the seat
us ing the LA TCH attachments.
~ Push the child safety seat dow n with your
full weight to get the safety belt rea lly t ight
so that the seat cannot move forwa rd or
s ideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
c:::, page 184 .
~ If the child safety seat is equ ipped with a
tether strap, attach it to the tether anchors
c:::, page 190.
~ 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) .
Todd lers and c hildren who are older than one
year up to abo ut 4 years o ld and weigh more
than 20 lbs (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must always be properly restra ined in a ch ild safety
seat certified for the ir s ize and weight
¢ fig . 173 and ¢ fig . 174 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the
front seat a poten tially dangerous place for a
chi ld to r ide . The front seat is not the safest
place for a ch ild in a forward-fac ing ch ild safe
ty seat .
It is a very dange rous p lace for an in
fant or a la rger chi ld in a rearwa rd-fa cing seat.
A WARNING
Not using a ch ild safety se at, using the
w rong chi ld safety seat or improper ly in
stalling a child res traint increases the risk
of se rious personal injury and death in a
co llision or other emergency s ituation.
- Children on the front seat of any car,
even with Advanced Ai rbags, can be seri
ous ly injured or even killed when an a ir
bag inf lates. A child in a rearward-facing
child safety seat installed on the front
passenge r seat w ill be seriously injured
and can be ki lled if the front ai rbag in-
-
Child Sa fet y 181
flates -even with an Advanced 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
arm rest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild safety
seats on the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearward fac ing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional c ircumstan
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im
mediately ins ta ll t he rear-fac ing ch ild
s afety sea t in a rear se ating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i dea le r.
- Th e rear side o f the child sa fety seat
should be pos itione d as close as possi ble
to the backrest on the vehicle seat.
- For ad justab le head restra ints: adjust or
remove the rear seat hea d restraint if it
is difficult to install the child seat with
the head restraint in place
c:::, page 57. I n
stall the head restraint again immed iate
ly once the child seat is removed. Dr iv ing
without head restraints o r with head re
straints that are not properly adjusted
increases the risk of serious or fatal neck
in ju ry dramatically.
- Always read and heed all WAR NINGS
whenever us ing a child restrained in ave
hicle is being used
c:::, page 138, Safety
belts,
c:::, page 147, Airbag system and
c:::, page 173, Important things to know .
A WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward -facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat, the child's safe
ty and we ll-being require that the follow
ing spec ial precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed and certified by its manu
facturer for use on a front seat with a passenger front and side airbag .
•
•
-
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~ Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 179.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs
or 18 kg) are best protected in child safety
seats designed for their age and weight. Ex
perts say that the skeletal structure, particu
larly the pelvis, of these children is not fully
developed, and they must not use the vehicle
safety belts without a suitable child restraint.
It is usually best to put these children in ap
propriate booster seats. Be sure the booster
seat meets all applicable safety standards .
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass
across the child 's body in the right places. The
routing of the belt over the child's body is very
important for the child's protection, whether
or not a booster seat is used . Children age 12
and under must always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft . 9 in. (57 in
ches/1.45 meters) tall can generally use the
vehicle's three point lap and shoulder belts .
Never use the lap belt portion of the vehicle's
safety belt alone to restrain any child, regard
less of how big the child is. Always remember
that children do not have the pronounced pel
vic structure required for the proper function
of lap belt portion of the vehicle's three point
lap and shoulder belts. The child's safety ab
solutely requires that a lap belt portion of the
safety belt be fastened snugly and as low as
possible around the pelvis. Never let the lap
belt portion of the safety belt pass over the
child's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink
of an eye and with considerable force. In order
to do its job, the airbag needs room to inflate
so that it will be there to protect the occupant
as the occupant moves forward into the air
bag.
A vehicle occupant who is out of position and
too close to the airbag gets in the way of an inflating airbag. When an occupant is too
close, he or she will be struck violently and
Child Safety 183
will receive serious or possibly even fatal in
jury.
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especial
ly any children, who must be in the front seat
because of exceptional circumstances, be
properly restrained and as far away from the
airbag as possible . By keeping room between
the child's body and the front of the passen
ger compartment, the airbag can inflate com
pletely and provide supplemental protection
in certain frontal collisions .
_&. WARNING
Not using a booster seat, using the boos
ter seat improperly, incorrectly installing a booster seat or using the vehicle safety
belt improperly increases the risk of seri
ous personal injury and death in a collision
or other emergency situation. To help re
duce the risk of serious personal injury
and/or death:
- The shoulder belt must lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as possi
ble and must lie flat and snug on the up
per body . It must never lie across the
throat or neck . The lap belt must lie
across the pelvis and never across the
stomach or abdomen. Make sure that the
belt lies flat and snug. Pull on the belt to
tighten if necessary.
- Failure to properly route safety belts
over a child's body will cause severe inju
ries in an accident or other emergency
situation
¢page 138.
- The rear side of the child safety seat
should be positioned as close as possible
to the backrest on the vehicle seat.
- For adjustable head restraints: adjust or remove the rear seat head restraint if it
is difficult to install the child seat with
the head restraint in place¢
page 57. In
stall the head restraint again immediate
ly once the child seat is removed. Driving
without head restraints or with head re-
.
straints that are not properly adjusted ~
•
•
184 Child Saf ety
in creases the risk of serious or fatal neck
injury dramat ically.
- Children on the front seat of any car,
even w ith Advanced Airbags, can be seri
ous ly injured or even killed when an a ir
bag inf lates.
- Never let a child stand or knee l on any
seat, for example the front seat.
- Never let a child ride in the cargo area of
your vehicle.
- Always remember that a chi ld leaning
forward, sitt ing s ideways or out of posi
t ion in any way during an acc ident can be
struck by a deploying airbag . This will re
sult in serious personal injury or dea th .
- If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of excep
t ional circumstances the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light must come on and
stay on, whenever the igni tion is sw itch
ed on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come o n and s tay on, perform
the chec ks des cribed
<=> page 159, Moni
toring the Advanced Airbag System.
- T ake the child rest rain t off the front pas
senge r seat and install it proper ly at one
of the rea r seat positions if the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not stay on
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- Always read and hee d all WARNINGS
whenever using a child rest ra ined in ave
hicle is being used<=>
page 138, Safety
belts,<=> page 147, Airbag system
and
<=> page 173, Important things to know.
Installing a child safety
seat
Securing a child safety seat using a
safety belt
Safety belts for the rear seats and the front
passenger can be locked with the conver tible
locking retractor to properly secure child
safety seats.
The safety belts emergency locking retractors
f or the rear seats safe ty belts and for the fron
t passenger's seat safety be lt have a con
vertib le locking ret ractor for child restraints .
The safety belt m ust be locked so that be lt
webbing cannot unreel. The retractor can be activated to lock the safety belt and prevent
the safety belt webbing from looseni ng up
duri ng normal dr iv ing. A child safety seat can
o nl y be prope rly insta lled when the safety be lt
i s lo cked so that t he ch ild and child safety
sea t w ill stay in place .
Always remember : Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
c hi ld ren, especially those 1 2 years and young
er, sho uld always r ide in the back seat prope r
l y restra ined for the ir age and size.
& WARNING ,____._
I mproperly installed chi ld safety seats in
crease the risk of serious pe rsonal in jury
and death in a co llision.
-
- Always make s ure that the safety belt re
tracto r is locked when insta lling a child
safety seat. An un locked safety belt re
tractor cannot hold the child safety seat
in place dur ing no rma l driving o r in a
crash .
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a ch ild is not sitt ing in it .
A loose child safety seat can fly arou nd
du ring a sudden stop or in a collision.
-Always make sure that the rear seat
backrest to wh ich the center r ear safety
be lt* is attached is sec urely latched
wheneve r the rea r ce nter sa fe ty belt i s
be ing use d to secu re a c hild re strain t.
- If th e backrest is not se curely la tched,
t he child and t he child res tra in t wi ll be
thrown forward together with the bac k
rest and will strike parts of the vehicle
interior. The chi ld can be seriously i n
jured or killed.
- Never install rear-facing child safety
seats or in fant ca rr ie rs on the front pas
senger seat. A child will be serious ly in
jured and can be killed whe n the passen-
ger a irbag i nflates .
~
186 Child Safety
-Always be especially careful if you must
install a rearward facing child safety seat
on the front passenger seat in exception
al circumstances.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
time whenever the ignition is switched
on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi
ately install the rear-facing child safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi dealer.
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to se
cure a child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufactur
er's instructions when installing a child re
straint in your vehicle. To activate the conver
tible locking retractor:
"" Place the child restraint on a seat, prefera
bly on the rear seat.
""Slowly pull the belt
all the way out.
""Route it around or through the child re
straint belt path¢,&. .
"" Push the child safety se at down with you r
full weight to get the safety belt really tight.
"" Insert the belt tongue into the buckle for
that seating position.
""Guide the safety belt back into the retractor
until the belt lies flat and snug on the child
safety seat.
""You should hear a "clicking" noise as the
belt winds back into the inertia reel. Test the
convertible locking retractor by pulling on
the belt. You should no longer be able to
pull the belt out of the retracto r. The con
vertible locking retractor is now activated.
"" Make sure that the red release button is fac
ing away from the child restraint so that it
can be unbuckled quickly .
""Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt
is properly tight and fastened so that the seat cannot move forward or sideways more
than one inch (2.5 cm).
A WARNING .,__
Using the wrong child restraint or an im
properly installed child restraint can cause
serious personal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re-
tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt re
tractor cannot hold the child safety seat
in place during normal driving or in a
crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly
in place even if a child is not sitting in it.
A loose child safety seat can fly around
during a sudden stop or in a crash.
- Always make sure the seat backrest to
which the child restraint is installed is in
an upright position and securely latched
into place and cannot fold forward. Oth
erwise, the seatback with the child safety
seat attached to it could fly forward in
the event of an accident or other emer
gency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restrained in ave
hicle is being used
¢ page 173. Special
precautions apply when installing a child
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 149, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
Deactivating the convertible locking
retractor
-
The convertible locking retractor for child re
straints will be deactivated automatically when the belt is wound all the way back into
the retractor.
"" Press the red button on the safety belt buck
le. The belt tongue will pop out of the buck
le.
""Guide the safety belt all the way back into
its stowed position .
Always let the safety belt retract completely
into its stowed position. The safety belt can
IJll-
M N <( (.J
'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1 ,...., 1.1'1 ,....,
now be used as an ordinary safety belt with
out the convertible locking retractor for child
restra ints.
I f the convertible locking retractor shou ld be
activated inadvertently, the safety belt must
be unfastened and guided completely back in
to its stowed position to deactivate this fea
ture.
If the convertib le locking retractor is not
deactivated, the safety belt will gradually be
come tighter and uncomfortable to wear .
A WARNING
Improperly installed child safety seats in
crease the risk of ser ious personal injury
and death in a collision.
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deacti
vate the convert ible lock ing ret ractor for
c hild restraints while the veh icle is mov
ing. You would not be restrained and
cou ld be ser iously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS
whenever using a child rest rained in ave
hicle is being used
¢page 173. Special
precautions apply when installing a chi ld
safety seat on the front passenger seat
¢ page 149, Child restraints on the front
seat -some important things to know.
LATCH Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a s imp le r and more pract icable way
to attach the ch ild res traint on the veh icle
seat, Federa l regu lations require specia l lower
anchorages in vehicles and devices on new
chi ld restraints to attach to the vehicle ancho
rages.
The combination of the tether anchorages and
the lower anchorages is now generally called
the
LA TCH system for "Lower Anchorages and
T ethers for Children."
F orward- facing child restraints manufactured
after September 1, 1999, are required by U.S.
Child Sa fet y 187
federa l reg ulations to comply with new child
head movement performance requirements.
These new performance requirements make a
tether necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a ch ild restra int that requires a top
tethe r without one can seriously impair the
performance of the c hild restra int and its abil
ity to protect the child in a collis ion. Insta lling
a child restraint that requires a top tether
without the top tether may be a violat ion of
state law.
Child restraint manufacturers offer LATCH
lower anchorages on their child seats with
hook-on or push-on connectors attached to
adjustable straps.
In add ition to the LATCH lower anchorages,
these child restraint systems usually require
the use of tether straps to help keep the ch ild
restraint firmly in place.
A WARNING
Imp roper installat ion of child restra ints
will increase the r isk of injury a nd death in
a cr ash.
- Always follow the instr uctions provided
by the manufa cture r of the child re
s traint yo u intend to install in your vehi
cle.
- Never inst all a child restraint withou t a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instruc
tions require the top tether strap to be
used.
- Improper use of child rest raint LATCH
lowe r ancho rage points can lead to injury
in a collision. The LATCH lower anchorage
points are designed to withstand on ly
those loads imposed by correctly fitted
child restraints.
- Never mount two child restra int systems
on one LATCH lower anchorage point.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or
other item to the LATCH lower anchorag-
-
es. Ill-
•
•