2016 AUDI A4 steering wheel adjustment

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General information
Why is your seat adjustment so important?
The safety belts and the airbag system can only
provide maximum protection if the front seats are corr ectly adjusted.
There are various ways of adjusting the front
seats to provide safe and comfortable support
for the driver and the front passenger. Adjust
your seat properly so that:
- you can easily and quickly reach all the switches
and controls in the instrument panel
- your body is properly supported thus reducing
physical stress and fatigue
- the safety belts and airbag system can offer
maximum protection
Q page 138.
In the following sections, you will see exact ly
how you can best adjust your seats.
There are spec ial regulations and instr uctions for
installing a child safety seat on the front pas­
senger's seat. Always fo llow the information re­
garding child safety provided in
¢page 158,
Child safety.
A WARNING -
Refer to Q page 121, Driving safety for im­
portant information, tips, suggestions and
warnings that you should read and follow for
your own safety and the safety of yo ur pas­
senge rs.
A WARNING
Incorrect seat ing position of the driver and all
other passengers can result in serious person­
al injury .
- Always keep yo ur feet on the floor when the
vehicle is in motion -never pu t your feet on
top of the instrument pane l, out o f the win ­
dow or on top of the seat cushion. This ap­
plies especially to the passengers. If your
seating pos it ion is incorrect, you increase
the risk of injury in the case of sudden brak­
ing or an accident. If the airbag inflates and
Seat s and sto rage
the seating position is incorrect, this could
result in persona l injury or even death.
- It is important for both the driver and front
passenger to keep a distance of at least
10 inches (25 cm) between themselves and
the steering wheel and/or instrument pan­
el. If you're sitt ing any closer than this, the
airbag system cannot protect you properly.
In addition, the front seats and head re­
stra ints must be adjusted to you r body
he ight so that they can g ive you maximum
p rotection.
- Always try to keep as much dis tance as pos­
sible between yourself and the steer ing
wheel or instrument pane l.
- Do not adjust the driver's o r front passeng­
er 's seat while the veh icle is moving . Your
seat may move unexpectedly, causing sud­
den loss of vehicle contro l and personal in­
jury. If you ad just your seat while the veh icle
is moving, you are out of pos ition.
Driver's seat
The correct seat position is important for safe
and relaxed driving.
We recommend that you adjust the dr iver's seat
in the following manner:
.,. Adjust the seat in fo re and aft direction so tha t
you c an ea sil y push the pedals to the floor
while keeping yo ur knees s light ly bent¢ .&.
in
Why is your seat adjustment so important? on
page 59.
.,. Adj ust the seatback so that when you sit with
your back against the seatback, you can still
grasp the top of the steering wheel.
.,. App lies to ve hicles w ith ad justab le head re­
stra ints: Adjust the head rest raint so the upper
edge is as even as possible w ith the top of your
head. If t hat is not possible, try to adjust the
he ad restraint so that it is as close to this pos i­
tion as possible ¢
page 61.
A WARNING ~
Never place any objects in the driver's foot-
well. An object could get into the pedal area and interfere with pedal function. In case of
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Driving
Driving
Steering
Manually adjustable steering wheel
The steering wheel position is fully adjustable up
and down and forward and back .
Fig. 95 Lever under the steering column
First, adjust the driver's seat correctly.
• Pull the lever¢
fig. 95 ¢ .&_ .
• Move the steering wheel to the desired posi­
tion.
• Push the lever against the steering column un-
til it locks.
There must be at least 10 inches (25 cm) be­ tween your chest and the center of the steering
wheel. If you cannot sit more than 10 inches (25
cm) from the steering wheel, see if adaptive
equipment is available to help you reach the ped­
als and increase the distance from the steering
wheel.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
driver's seat, see
¢page 60.
A WARNING
Improper use of steering wheel adjustment
and improper seating position can cause seri­
ous personal injury.
- Adjust the steering wheel column only when
the vehicle is not moving to prevent loss of
vehicle control.
- Adjust the driver's seat or steering wheel so
that there is a minimum of 10 inches (25
cm) between your chest and the steering
wheel
¢page 122, fig. 138 . If you cannot
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maintain this minimum distance, the airbag
system cannot protect you properly.
- If physical limitations prevent you from sit­
ting 10 inches (25 cm) or more from the
steering wheel, check with your authorized
Audi dealer to see if adaptive equipment is
available.
- If the steering wheel is aligned with your
face, the supplemental driver's airbag can­
not provide as much protection in an acci­
dent. Always make sure that the steering
wheel is aligned with your chest.
- Always hold the steering wheel with your
hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock posi­
tions to reduce the risk of personal injury if
the driver's airbag deploys.
- Never hold the steering wheel at the 12
o'clock position or with your hands inside
the steering wheel rim or on the steering
wheel hub. Holding the steering wheel the
wrong way can cause serious injuries to the
hands, arms and head if the driver's airbag
deploys.
Ignition lock
Starting engine with the key
App lies to vehicles: wit h ignition lock
The ignition is switched on and the engine start­
ed with the ignition key .
Fig. 96 Ignition key
Starting the engine
• Insert the key into the ignition lock.
• Manual transmission: Fully depress the clutch
pedal and move the shift lever to the neutral
position. ..,.

Airbag syste m
Airbag system
Important information
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . For
airbags to do their job, occupants must always
properly wear their safety belts and be in a prop ­
er seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
ge rs , before driving off, always :
"' Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly ¢
page 122,
"'Adjust the front passenge r's seat properly
¢ page 60,
"'Wear safety belts p roperly ¢ page 132 ,
"'Always properly use the proper child restraint
to protect children
¢ page 158.
In a coll is io n airbags must inflate wi thin the b link
of an eye and with cons iderable force . The sup­
p lemental airbags can cause injuries if the driver
or the front seat passenger is not s eated proper ·
Ly. T herefore in order to help the airbag to do its
job, it is important, both as a dr iver and as a pas­
senger to sit properly at all t imes .
By keeping room between your body and the
steering whee l and the front of the passenger
compartment, the a irbag can inflate fully and
completely and provide supplemental protect ion
in certain frontal collisions¢
page 122, Correct
passenger seating positions .
For details on the
operation of the seat adjustment con trols
¢ page 60.
It's especially important that children are proper ­
ly restra ined
¢ page 158 .
There is a lot that the driver and the passengers
can and must do to help the ind iv idual safety fea­
tures installed in your Audi work together as a
system .
Proper seating posit ion is important so that the
front airbag on the drive r side can do its job. If
you have a physical impairment or cond ition that
prevents you from s itting properly on the driver
seat with the safety be lt properly fastened and
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reaching the peda ls, special modifications to
your vehicle may be necessary.
Contact yo ur aut ho rized Aud i dea le r, or call A udi
C u stomer Rela tions a t 1-800-822-2834.
When the airbag sys tem dep loys, a gas generator
will fill the a irbags, b reak open the padded cov­
e rs, and inflate betwee n the steering wheel and
the driver and between the inst rument pa nel and
the front passenger . The a irbags w ill deflate im­
mediate ly after dep loyment so t hat the front oc­
cupants can see th ro u gh the windsh ie ld again
without interruption.
A ll of th is takes p lace in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even rea lize that the
airbags have deployed. The airbags a lso inflate
with a great deal of force and nothing should be i n the ir way when they deploy. Front airbags in
combination with properly worn safety belts slow
down and lim it t he occupant's forward move­
ment . T ogether they he lp to prevent the driver
and front sea t passenger from h itti ng pa rts of
t h e i nside the veh icle w hile reducing the fo rces
acti ng on the occupant dur ing the cras h. In th is
way they help to reduce the risk of inju ry to the
head and uppe r body i n the crash. Airbags do not
protect the arms or the lower parts of the body.
Both front airbags will not infla te in all frontal
collisions . The trigge ring of the airbag system de ­
pends on the vehicle deceleration rate caused by
the coll is ion and registered by the electronic con­
tro l unit . If this rate is be low the reference value
programmed into the contro l unit, the airbags
will not be triggered, even though the car may be
badly damaged as a resu lt of the co llision. Vehi­
cle damage, repa ir costs or even the lack of vehi­
cl e damage is not ne cessari ly an indication of
whethe r an a irbag should infla te o r not.
It is not possib le to define a range of vehicle
speeds that w ill cove r every possible k ind and an­
gle of impa ct that will always tr igger the airbags ,
s in ce the circumst ances w ill vary cons iderably be ­
tween one collision and anot her. Important fac­
tors include, for examp le, the natu re (hard or
soft) of the object which the car hits, t he angle of
i mpact, vehicle speed, etc . The front airbags will ..,_

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GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immediately insta ll the rear­
ward-facing child safety seat in a rear seat­
ing posit ion and have the airbag system in­
spected immediately by your authorized
Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If, in except ional circumstances, you must in­
stall a forward-facing chi ld restraint on the
front passenger's seat :
- Always make sure the forward-fac ing seat
has been designed and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and s ide airbag .
- Always follow the manufac turer 's instruc­
tions provided with the chi ld safety seat or
carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air­
bag as possib le before installing the child
restra int. The backrest must be adjusted to
an upr ight position.
-Always make sure that the
PA SSENGER AIR
B AG OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
Always replace ch ild restraints that were in­
stalled in a vehicle dur ing a crash. Damage to
a child restraint that is not visib le could cause
it to fail in another collision situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your veh icle is equipped with a front "Advanced
A irbag System" i n compliance w ith United States
F edera l Moto r Vehicle Safety Standard ( FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Ve hicle Safety
Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time
your vehicle was manufactured .
The Advanced Airbag system in your ve hicle has
been ce rtified to meet the " low-risk" requ ire­
ments for 3 -and 6-yea r old children on the pas ­
senger side and sma ll adults on the driver side .
Child safety
The low risk deployment criteria a re intended to
reduce the risk of injury through interaction with
the a irbag that can occur, for example, by be ing
too close to the steering wheel and instrument panel when the airbag inflates. In addition, the
system has been certified to comply with the "suppression" requirements of the Safety Stand·
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up to
12 months who are restrained on the front pas­
senger seat in ch ild rest raints that are listed in
the Standard.
Even though your veh icle is equipped with an Ad·
vanced Airbag system, all ch ild ren, especially
those 12 yea rs and you nger, sho uld a lways ride
in the back seat proper ly restrained for their age
and size . The airbag on the passenger side makes
the front seat a potentially dangerous p lace for a
child to ride. The front seat is not the safest place
for a ch ild in a forward-fac ing ch ild safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for an infant or a
larger ch ild in a rearward-facing seat .
' Advanced Airbags and the weight-sensing
mat in the front seat
The Advanced A irbag System in you r vehicle de ­
tects the presence of an infant or chi ld in a chi ld
restraint on the front passenger seat using the
weight -sensing mat in the seat cushion and the
sensor below the safety belt latch on the front
passenger seat that measures the tens ion on the
safety belt.
The weight-sensing mat measures total weight of the child and the chi ld safety seat and a child
blanket on the front passenger seat . The weight
on the front passenger seat is related to the de­
s ign of the child restra int and its "footprint", the
s ize and shape of the bottom of the ch ild re-
straint as it sits on the seat. The weight of a ch ild
restra int and its "footprint" va ry for different
k inds of child restra ints and for the different
models of the same kind o f chi ld rest raint of -
fered by chi ld restraint manufacturers.
T he we igh t ranges for the indiv id ual types,
makes and mode ls of ch ild restraints that the
NH TSA has specified in the Safety Standard to­
gether with the weight ranges of typical infants .,.
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