Child safety
-Always make sure the forward-facing seat
has been designed and certified by its man
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up, against or very near the instrument pan
el.
- 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 possible before installing the for
ward-facing child restraint. The backrest
must be adjusted to an upright position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
_&. WARNING
Rearward-facing child restraints:
- A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates -even with an Ad
vanced 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 armrest, door
or roof.
- Always be especially careful if you must in
stall a rearward facing child safety seat on
the front passenger seat in exceptional cir
cumstances.
- 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, immediately in
stall the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Audi dealer .
178
· Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufacturer 's
instructions when installing a child restrain t in
your vehicle . To activate the convertible locking
retractor:
.. Place the child restraint on a seat, preferably
on the rear seat.
.. Slowly pull the belt
all the way out .
.. Route it around or through the child restraint
belt path
~ ,&. .
.. Push the child safety seat down with your 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 un
til 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 con
vertible locking retractor by pulling on the belt.
You should no longer be able to pull the belt
out of the retractor. The convertible locking re
tractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is facing
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) .
_&. WARNING
Using the wrong child restraint or an improp
erly 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 retrac
tor 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 up
right position and securely latched into
place and cannot fold forward. Otherwise,
the seatback with the child safety seat at
tached to it could f ly forward in the event of
an accident or other emergency situation.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a veh icle is
being used
r=;, page 166. Specia l precaut ions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 143, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant 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 re
tractor .
~ Press the red button on the safety belt buckle.
The belt tongue will pop out of the buckle.
~ 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 now be
used as an ordinary safety belt without the con
vertible locking retractor for child restraints.
If the convertible locking retractor should be ac
tivated inadvertently, the safety belt must be un
fastened and guided completely back into its
stowed position to deact ivate this feature. If the
convert ible locking retractor is not deactivated,
the safety belt w ill gradually become tighter and
uncomfortable to wear.
_& WARNING
-
Improperly installed chi ld safety seats in
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
- Never unfasten the safety belt to deactivate
the convertible locking retractor for child re
straints while the vehicle is moving . You
Child safety
would not be restrained and could be seri
ously injured in an accident.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing used
¢page 166. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 143, Child
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
LATCH system (Lower
anchorages and tethers
for children)
Child Restraint System anchors and how
are they related to child safety
To provide a simpler and more practicab le way to
attach the child restraint on the vehicle seat,
Federal regulations require special lower ancho
rages in vehicles and devices on new child re
straints to attach to the vehicle anchorages .
In the United States, the combination of the
tether anchorages and the lower anchorages is
now generally called the LATCH system for
"Lower Anchorages and Tethers for Children". In
Canada, the terms "top tether" with "lower uni
versa l anchorages" (or "lower universal anchor
age bars") are used to descr ibe the system .
In other countries the term "ISOFIX" is used to
describe the lower anchorages .
Forward-facing child restraints manufactured af
ter September 1, 1999, are required by U.S. fed
eral regulations to comply with new child head
movement performance req uirements. These
new performance requirements make a tether
necessary on most new ch ild seats.
Installing a child restraint that requires a top
tethe r without one can seriously impair the per
formance of the child restraint and its ab ility to
protect the child in a collision. Installing a child
restra int that requi res a top tether without the
top tether may be a violation of state law.
Child restraint manufacturers offer LATCH lower
anchorages on their child seats w ith hook-on or ..,.
179
Child safety
push-on connectors attached to adjustable
straps.
I n addition to the LATCH lower anchorages, these
chi ld restraint systems usually require the use of
tether straps to he lp keep the child restraint
firm ly in place.
A WARNING
Improper installation of child restraints will
increase the risk of injury and death in a
crash.
- Always follow the instructions provided by
the manufacturer of the child restraint you intend to install in your veh icle.
- Never install a child restraint without a properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instruct ions
requ ire the top tether strap to be used.
- Improper use of child restra int LATCH lower
anchorage points can lead to injury in a colli
s ion . The LATCH lower anchorage points are
designed to withstand on ly those loads im
posed by cor rect ly fitted child restraints .
- Never mount two child restraint systems on
one LATCH lower anchorage point.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other
item to the LATCH lower anchorages.
Location
Fig. 171 Schem atic overv iew: LATCH ancho rage point loca
t io ns
The illustration shows the seating locatio ns in
your veh icle which are equipped with the lower
anchorages system.
180
Description
The lower anchorage positions are marked for
quick locating .
Fig. 17 2 Lower ancho rages, covers marked
Fig. 173 Rear seats: lowe r anchorage bracket locations
L o wer anch ora g es
The circular markings on the rear seat help you to
identify the location of lower anc horages for the
two outboard seating positions
¢ fig . 172 . The
LATCH lower universal anchorage attachment
points are between the rear seatback and rear
seat cushion .
Remove the covers ¢
fig. 172 to access the lower
anchorage attachment points.
The lower ancho rage attac hment po ints are vis i
ble
¢ fig. 173.
Lowe r anchorages secure the child restra int in
the seat wi thou t usi ng the vehicle's safety belts.
Anchorages p rov ide a secure and easy-to-use at
tachment and minimize the possibility o f improp
er child restraint installation.
All child restra ints manufact ured after Septem
ber 1 , 2002, must have lower anchorage attach -
ments for the
LATCH system. ..,.
Please remember that the lower anchorage
points are only intended for installation and at
tachment of child restraints specifically cert ified
for use with
LATCH lower anchorages. Child re
straints that are not equipped with the lower an
chorage attachments can still be installed in
compliance w ith the child restra int manufactur
er 's instructions on using vehicle safety belts .
.8, WARNING
Improper use of LATCH lower anchorages can
cause serious personal injury in an accident.
- Always caref ully follow the child restra ints
man ufactu rer's inst ructions for proper in
sta llation of the child restr aint and proper
u se of the lower anchorages or safety be lts
in your vehicle.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other
items to the
LATCH lower anchorages.
- Always read and heed t he important infor
mation about child restraints in this chapter
and WARNINGS
~ page 166, Child safety .
Installing a child restraint with LATCH
lower anchorages
Whenever you install a child restraint always fol
low the child restraint manufacturer's instruc
tions.
F ig . 174 Lower anchorages: proper mount ing
Mounting
.,. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench
is in the upr ight position and sec urely latched
i n place .
.. Attach both hook-on connectors with the spring
catch re lease on the ch ild safety seat onto the
Ch ild safety
LATCH lower anchorage so that the connectors
lock into p lace
¢ fig. 174.
.. Pull on the connector attachments to make
sure they are properly attached to the LATCH
lower anchorage.
.. Pull straps tight following the ch ild restraint
manufacturer 's instructions .
Relea sing
.. Loosen the tension on the straps fo llow ing the
child restra int manufacturer's instructions.
.. Depress the spr ing catches to release the an
chorage hooks from the lower anchorages .
Remember: Use tether straps to help keep the
child restraint firmly in p lace.
.8, WARNING "---Imp roper use of the LATCH system can in
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in an accident.
- These anchors were developed only for child safety seats using the "LATCH" system.
- Never attach other ch ild safety seats, belts
or other objects to these anchors.
- Always make sure that you hear a click when
latching the seat in place. If you do not hear
a click the seat is not sec ure and co uld f ly
forward and hit the inter io r of the vehicle,
or be ejected from the vehicle .
.8, WARNING
I mp roper installation of child restra ints w ill
i n cr ease the risk of inju ry in an a ccident.
- Always follow the ch ild restraint system
manufac ture r's ins tructions fo r prope r in
s tallat ion of the ch ild restrain t system and
proper use of tether straps as well as the
lower anchorages or safety belts in yo ur ve
h icle.
- Always read and heed the important infor
matio n and WARNINGS about ch ild safety
and the installat ion of child restraint sys
tems
¢ page 166, Child safety .
-
181
Child safety
Tether anchors and tether straps
Fig. 175 Tether anchors: recess flaps behind the rear seat·
backs
The tether anchors fo r the rear seating positions
are located in recesses in the rear window shelf
~ fig.175
A tether is a stra ight or V-shaped strap tha t at
taches the top part of a child restra int to speci al
anchorage points in the vehicle.
The purpose of the tether is to red uce the for
ward movement of the child restraint in a crash,
in order to help red uce the risk of head injury
that could be caused by strik ing the vehicle inte
rior.
Forward fac ing child restraints manufactured af
ter September 1, 1999, are required by U.S. fed
eral regulations to comply with new child head
movement performance requirements. These
new perfo rmance requirements make a tethe r
necessary on most new child safety seats.
A WARNING
Improper installation of ch ild restraints will
increase the r isk of injury and death in a
crash.
- Always follow the instructions provided by
the manufacturer of the child restra int you
intend to install i n your Audi .
- Improper use of child restra int anchors (in
clud ing tether anchors) can lead to inj ury in
a collision . The ancho rs are designed to
withs tand only those loads imposed by cor
rectly fitted child restra ints.
- Never mount two chi ld restraint systems on
one LATCH lower a nchor po int.
182
- Never attach two child restraint systems to
one tether strap or tether anchorage.
- Never attach a tether strap to a tie-down
hook in the luggage compartment .
- Never use child restraint tether anchorages
to secure safety be lts or other kinds of occu
pant restraints.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or othe r
items to the LATCH lower anchorages or to
the tether anchors.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASSEN GER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rea r-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the ai rbag system
inspected by yo ur Audi dea ler.
Installing the upper tether strap on the
anchorage
Fi g. 176 Tether strap: p roper rout ing and mount ing
Install ing the tether strap
.. Release or deploy the tether strap on the ch ild
restraint according to the chi ld restraint manu
facturer's instructions.
.. Guide the upper tether strap
under the rea r
head restraint ~
fig. 176 (raise the head re
straint if necessary).
.. Tilt the recess flap up to expose the anchor
bracket.
.. Attach the tether strap anchorage hook into
the opening of the tether a nchorage .
., Pull on the tether strap hook so that the spring
catc h of the hook engages .
.. Tigh ten the te ther strap f irm ly following the
c hild restra in t manufac turer's ins truc tions.
Releas ing the t eth er strap
"'Loosen the tension following the child restraint
manufacturer's instructions.
"' Depress the spring catch on the hook and re
lease it from the anchorage.
(D Note
I f you leave the chi ld restraint with the tether
strap firmly installed for several days, this
could leave a mark on the upholstery on the
seat cush ion and backrest in the area where
the tether strap was installed. The upholstery
wou ld also be permanently stretched around
the tether strap . This applies especially to
leather seats .
Using tether straps on rearward -facing
child restraints
Current ly, few rear-facing chi ld restraint systems
come with a tether. Please read and heed the
chi ld restraint system manufacturer's instruc
tions carefully to determine how to properly in
stall the tether.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat w il l be
ser iously injured and can be killed if the front
airbag inflates -even w ith an Advanced A irbag
System.
- T he inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrie r wi th great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and chi ld
against the backrest, center armrest, or
door.
- If you mus t install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptiona l circumstances and the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iate ly install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seating pos it ion and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
Ch ild safety
Additional information
Sources of information about child
restraints and their use
There are a number of sources of additional in
formation about child restraint se lection, instal
lation and use:
N HT SA advises that the best ch ild safety seat is
the one that fits your child and fits in your vehi
cle, and that you wi ll u se correct ly and consis
tent ly.
T ry befo re yo u buy!
U.S National H ighwa y Tr affic S afety Administra
ti on
Tel. : 1-888-3 27-4236 ( TTY: 1-800-424-9153)
www .nhtsa .gov
National SAF E KIDS Campai gn
Tel. : (202) 662-0600
www .safekids.org
S af ety Belt Saf e U.S. A
Tel.: (800) 745-SAFE (English)
Tel.: (800) 747-SANO (Spanish)
www .carseat.org
T ransport C anada Information C entre
Tel.: 1-800-333-0371 or call 1-613-998-86 16 if
you are in the Ottawa area
http://www.tc.gc.ca/ eng/ roadsafety/men u. h tm
Aud i Cu stom er R elations
Tel.: (800) 822-2834
183
Audi pre sense
Audi pre sense
Preventative passenger
protection
A pp lies to ve hicles : w ith Audi p re se nse
Pre sense can initiate steps to protect vehicle oc
cupants in certain dangerous situations. The
functions described are available depending on
veh icle equipment :
Pre sense basic*
The following functions can be triggered in cer
tain driving situations:
- Tensioning of the safety belts (for example,
during heavy braking): The front safety belts
have reversible belt pretensioners. If a collision
does not occur, the safety belts loosen slightly
and are ready to trigger again .
- Closing the windows and the sunroof* (for ex
ample, when
over-or understeering): The door
windows and the sunroof* are closed almost
completely until only a small gap is open .
Audi pre sense basic functions can be triggered at
speeds
above 20 mph (30 km/h).
Drive select : The dep loyment time is adapted in
Dynamic mode.
Pre sense front (vehicles with adaptive cruise
control*}
Pre sense front contains the functions of pre
sense basic . In addition, the likelihood of a rear
end collision with the vehicle ahead is also calcu
lated, within the limits of the system. If the risk
of a collision is detected, the following functions
can trigger :
- Braking guard
c:> page 90
- Tensioning of the safety belts
- Closing the windows and the sunroof*
Pre sense rear (vehicles with side assist*)
Pre sense rear contains the functions of pre sense
bas ic. In addition, the likelihood of a rear-end
coll ision from the vehicle beh ind is also calculat
ed, within the limits of the system. If the risk of a
collision is detected, the following functions can
trigger:
184
- Tensioning of the safety belts
- Closing the windows and the sunroof*
Pre sense plus*
Pre sense plus contains the functions of pre
sense front and pre sense rear .
Error message
Audi pre sense: Unavailable
Preventative passenger protection is not availa
ble. Drive to your authorized Audi dealer or au
thorized Audi Service Facility immediately to have
the malfunction corrected.
A WARNING
Pre sense cannot overcome natural physical
laws. It is a system designed to assist and it
cannot prevent a collision . Do not let the in
creased safety provided tempt you into taking
risks. This could increas e your risk of a colli
sion.
- The system can deploy incorrectly .
- Please note that the sensors do not always
detect all objects . This increases the risk of
a collision .
- Pre sense does not react to people or ani
mals or objects that are crossing the vehi
cle 's path or are difficult to detect
c:> page 84.
- Reflective objects such as guard rails or the
entrance to a tunnel, heavy rain and ice can
affect the function of the radar sensors and
the system's ability to detect a collision risk.
(D Note
The sensors can be displaced by impacts or
damage to the bumper, wheel housing and
underbody. Pre sense can be impaired by this.
Have an authorized Aud i dealer or authorized
Audi Service Facility check their function.
{!) Tips
-Certain pre sense front functions switch off
when sport mode is switched off or when
driving in reverse.
1J11>
Intelligent Technology
will switch on again automat ically when condi
tions have returned to normal.
Steering recommendation
The ESC helps to stabilize the veh icle by changing
the steering torque.
In vehicles with dynam ic steering*, ESC also
helps to stabilize the steering in critical situa
tions.
Selective wheel torque control
Selective wheel torque control is used when driv
ing on curves . The front wheel on the inside of
the curve or both wheels on the inside of the
curve are braked selectively as needed. This al
lows more precise driving in curves.
Automatic post-collision braking system
The "Automatic post-collision braking system"
can help to reduce the risk of slid ing and of other
coll is ions after an accident . If the airbag control
module detects a collision above a certain vehicle
speed, the vehicle is braked by the ESC.
The vehicle does not brake automat ically if:
- the driver presses the accelerator pedal, or
- the braking force generated by the pressed
brake pedal is greater than the braking force
that would be initiated by the system, or
- the ESC, the brake system or the vehicle electri
cal system are not functioning.
Switchin on/off
A WARNING
- The ESC and its integrated systems cannot
overcome the limits posed by natural physi
cal laws. This is especially important on slip
pery or wet roads. If the systems beg in act
ing to stabilize your vehicle, yo u should im
mediately alter your speed to match the
road and traffic conditions . Do not let the
increased safety provided tempt you into
taking risks. This could increase your risk of
a co llision.
- Please note the risk of a collision increases
when driving fast, especially through curves
and on slippery or wet roads, and when driv
ing too close to objects ahead. The ESC and
its integrated systems cannot always pre
vent collisions -there is still a risk of acci
dents!
- Press the accelerator pedal carefully when
accelerating on even, slippery surfaces such
as ice and snow. The drive wheels can spin
even when these control systems are instal
led and this can affect driving stability and
increase the risk of a collision.
{l) Tips
-ABS and ASR only function correctly when
all four wheels are equipped with identical
tires. Different tire sizes can lead to a reduc
tion in engine power.
- You may hear noises when the systems de
scribed are working.
ESC turns on automatically when you start the engine.
Fig. 177 Center conso le; !j. OFF button
188
The following examples are unusual situations
where it may make sense to switch sport mode
on in order to allow the wheels to spin:
- Rock ing the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Driving in deep snow or on loose ground
- Driving with snow chains