
~ Always keep both feet in the footwell so that
you are in control of the vehicle at all times.
F or detailed information on how to adjust the
driver's seat, see
¢ page 54.
A WARNING
Drivers who are unbelted, out of position or
too close to the airbag can be seriously in
jured by an airbag as it unfolds. To help re
duce the risk of serious personal injury:
- Always adjust the driver's seat and the
steering wheel so that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between your breastbone
and the steering wheel.
- Always adjust the driver's seat and the
steering wheel so that there are at least
4 inches (10 cm) between the knees and the
lower part of the instrument panel.
- Always hold the steering wheel on the out
side of the steering wheel rim with your
hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock posi
tions to help reduce the risk of personal in
jury if the driver's airbag inflates.
- Never hold the steer ing wheel at the
12 o'clock posit ion or with your hands at
other positions 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 inflates.
- Pointing the steering wheel toward your
face decreases the ability of the supplemen
tal driver's airbag to protect you in a colli sion.
- Always sit in an upright position and never
lean against or place any part of your body
too close to the area where the airbags are
located.
- Before driving, always adjust the front seats
properly and make sure that all passengers
are properly restrained.
- For adjustable head restraints: before driv
ing, always also adjust the head restraints
properly .
- Never adjust the seats while the vehicle is
moving. Your seat may move unexpectedly
and you could lose control of the vehicle.
-
Driving safety
-Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests are
tilted back, the greater the risk of injury due
to incorrect positioning of the safety belt
and improper seating position.
- Children must always ride in child seats
¢ page 166 . Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front
passenger seat¢
page 142.
Proper seating position for the front
passenger
The proper front passenger seating position is
important for safe, relaxed driving.
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of in
jury in the event of an accident, we recommend
that you adjust the seat for the front passenger
to the fol lowing position:
~ Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is in
an upright position and your back comes in full
contact with it whenever the vehicle is moving.
~ For adjustable head restraints: adjust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos
sible, try to adjust the head restraint so that it is as close to this position as possible
¢
page 128 . Move the head restraint so that it
is as close to the back of the head as possible.
~ Keep both feet flat on the floor in front of the
front passenger seat.
~ Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
¢page 137.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
front passenger's seat, see
¢ page 53 .
A WARNING
Front seat passengers who are unbe lted, out
of position or too close to the airbag can be
seriously injured or killed by the airbag as it
unfolds . To help reduce the risk of serious
personal injury:
- Passengers must always sit in an upright po
sition and never lean against or place any pa rt of their body too close to the area
where the airbags are located. ..,.
127

Driving safety
-Passengers who are unbelted , out of posi
tion or too close to the airbag can be seri
ously injured by an airbag as it unfolds with
great force in the blink of an eye .
- Always make sure that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between the front pas
senger 's breastbone and the instrument
panel.
- Always make sure that there are at least
4 inches (10 cm) between the front passen ger's knees and the lower part of the instru
ment panel.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of
their own and properly fasten and wear the
safety belt belonging to that seat.
- Before dr iving, always adjust the front pas
senger seat properly .
- For adjustable head restraints: before driv
ing, always also adjust the head restraints
properly .
- Always keep your feet on the floor in front
of the seat. Never rest them on the seat, in
strument pane l, out of the window, etc. The
airbag system and safety be lt will not be
able to protect you properly and can even in
crease the risk of injury in a crash .
- Never dr ive with the backrest reclined or
ti lted far back! The farther the backrests are
ti lted back , the greater the risk of injury due
to incorrect positioning of the safety belt
and improper seating position.
- Children must always ride in child seats
<='> page 166. Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front
passenger seat
<='> page 142.
Proper seating positions for passengers in
rear seats
Rear seat passengers must sit upright with both
feet on the floor consistent with their physical
size and be properly restrained whenever the ve
hicle is in use.
To reduce the r isk of injury caused by an incorrect
seating position in the event of a sudden braking
maneuver or an accident, you r passengers on the
rear bench seat must always observe the follow
ing:
128
.,. For adjustab le head restraints: adjust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos
sible, try to adjust the head restraint so that it
is as close to this position as possible
<='> page 128.
.,. Keep both feet flat in the footwell in front of
the rear seat .
.,. Fasten and wear safety belts properly
<='> page 137.
.,. Make sure that children are a lways properly re
strained in a child restraint that is appropriate
for their size and age
c:::> page 166.
A WARNING
Passengers who are improperly seated on the
rear seat can be seriously injured in a crash.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of
their own and properly fasten and wear the safety belt belonging to that seat .
- Safety belts only offer maximum protection
when the safety belts are properly posi
tioned on the body and securely latched . By
not sitting upright, a rear seat passenger in
creases the risk of personal injury from im
properly positioned safety belts!
- For adjustable head restraints: always ad
just the head restraint properly so that it
can give maximum protection.
Proper adjustment of head restraints
Applies to vehicles: with adjustable head restraints
Correctly adjusted head restraints ore an impor
tant part of your vehicle's occupant restraint sys
tem and can help to reduce the risk of injuries in
accident situations.
Fig. 144 Head restraint : viewed from t he front

The head restraints must be correctly adjusted to
achieve the best protection. .,. Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge is
as even as possible with the top of your head. If
that is not possible, try to adjust the head re
straint so that it is as close to this position as
poss ible ¢
fig. 144. Move the head restraint so
that it is as close to the back of the head as
possible.
... If there is a passenger on the rear center seat
ing posit ion, slide the center head restraint up
ward at least to the next notch.
Adjusting head restraints
c> page 56.
_& WARNING
All seats are equipped with head restraints .
Dr iving without head restraints or with head
restraints that are not properly adjusted in
creases the risk of serious or fatal neck injury
dramatically. To help reduce the risk of injury:
- Always dr ive with the head restraints in
place and properly adjusted.
- Every person in the vehicle must have a
properly adjusted head restra int.
- Always make sure each person in the vehicle
properly adjusts their head restraint. Adjust
the head restra int so the upper edge is as
even as possible with the top of your head.
If that is not possible, try to adjust the head
restraint so that it is as close to this position
as possib le. Move the head restraint so that
it is as close to the back of the head as pos
sible.
- Never attempt to adjust head restraint
while driving. If you have driven off and
must adjust the driver headrest for any rea
son, first stop the vehicle safely before at
tempting to adjust the head restra int.
- Children must always be properly restrained in a ch ild restraint that is appropriate for
their age and size
c> page 166 .
-
Driving safety
Examples of improper seating positions
The occupant restraint system can only reduce
the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are properly
seated.
Improper seating positions can cause serious in
jury or death . Safety belts can only work when
they are properly positioned on the body . Im
proper seat ing positions reduce the effectiveness
of safety belts and will even increase the risk of
injury and death by moving the safety belt to crit
ical areas of the body. Improper seating positions
also increase the risk of serious injury and death
when an airbag deploys and strikes an occupant
who is not in the proper seating position. A driver
is responsible for the safety of all vehicle occu
pants and especially for children . Therefore:
... Never allow anyone to assume an incorrect
seating position when the vehicle is being used
c> .,& .
The following bulletins list only some sample po
sitions that will increase the risk of serious injury
and death . Our hope is that these examples will
make you more aware of seating positions that
are dangerous .
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is moving:
-never stand up in the vehicle
- never stand on the seats
- never kneel on the seats
- never ride with the seatback recl ined
- never lie down on the rear seat
- never lean up against the instrument panel
- never sit on the edge of the seat
- never sit sideways
- never lean out the window
- never put your feet out the window
- never put your feet on the instrument panel
- never rest your feet on the seat cushion or back
of the seat
- never ride in the footwell
- never ride in the cargo area
129

Safety belt s
Safety belts
General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safe ty belts correctly saves lives!
This chapte r explains why safety be lts a re neces
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them correct ly.
.. Read all the information that follows and heed
all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
&_ WARNING
Not wea ring safety belts or wearing them im
properly increases the risk of ser ious personal
injury and dea th .
- Safety belts are the s ingle most effective
mea ns ava ilab le to reduce the risk of serious
injury and dea th in automob ile accidents .
For yo ur protect ion and that of your passe n
gers, alw ays co rre ctly wea r sa fety be lt s
when the veh icle is moving .
- Pregnant wom en, in ju re d, o r physically i m
paired persons mus t also use s afety be lts.
L ik e all vehi cle o ccu pants, they are mo re
li kely to be serio usly injure d if th ey do no t
wea r safety be lts. The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mothe r -th roughout
the ent ire pregnancy .
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of five seating positions:
two in the front and three in the rear. Each seat
i n g position has a safety belt.
&_ WARNING
N ot wea ring safety bel ts or weari ng them im
properly increases th e r isk of ser ious personal
inju ry and dea th.
- N ever st rap more tha n one perso n, includ
ing small ch ildren, into a ny be lt .
It is espe
ci ally dan gerous to pla ce a sa fety bel t over a
c hild s itting on you r lap.
- N ever le t mo re people ride in t he vehicle
t h an t he re are saf ety bel ts availab le.
134
-Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained with a separate safety
be lt or ch ild restraint.
~ Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle has a warning system for the driver
and front seat passenger (on USA models only)
to remind you about the importance of buckling
up .
Fig. 14S Safety be lt wa rning lig ht in the inst rument clu s
ter -en larged
Before driving off, alway s:
.. Fasten your sa fety belt and make sure you are
wearing it prope rly .
(0
"'
"' 9
"'
and proper ly wea r th eir safety belts .
.. Protec t ch ild ren w ith a c hild restraint system
app ropr iate for the size and age .
The wa rning lig ht . in the inst rument cluste r
li ghts up w hen the ig nition is o n as a rem inder to
fasten the safety belts. In addition , you w ill hear
a war ning tone for a cert ain period of time.
Fasten your safety belt and make sure that your
passengers also properly put on their safety
belts.
&_ WARNING
-
- Safety belts are the sing le most effective
means av ailable to re duc e the ris k of ser ious
in jur y and de ath in a utomo bile acciden ts.
F or your protection and that o f yo ur p assen
ge rs, a lways cor rect ly wear safety belts
when t he vehicle is moving .
- Fa ilure to pay atte ntion to the wa rning light
that come on, cou ld lead to personal in jury.

.... N
0 CJ '
Why use safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for peo
ple riding in vehicles .
Fig. 146 Unbelted occupants in a vehicle heading for a wall
Fig . 147 The vehicle crashes into the wall
CD
~ ±
cle and the passengers possess energy which var
ies with vehicle speed and body weight. Engi
neers call this energy "kinetic energy."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the
greater the vehicle's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash.
Veh icle speed is the most significant factor.
If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to SO
km/h), the energy increases 4 times!
Because the passengers of this vehicle are not us
ing safety belts ¢
fig. 146, they will keep mov ing
at the same speed the vehicle was moving just
before the crash, until something stops them -
here, the wall ¢
fig. 147.
The same principles apply to people sitting in a
vehicle that is involved in a frontal collision. Even
at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to SO km/h),
the forces acting on the body can reach one ton
Safety belts
(2,000 lbs, or 1,000 kg) or more . At greater
speeds, these forces are even higher.
People who do not use safety belts are also not
attached to their vehicle. In a frontal collision
they will also keep moving forward at the speed
their vehicle was travelling just before the crash.
Of course, the laws of physics don't just apply to
frontal collisions, they determine what happens in all kinds of accidents and collisions.
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in
jured or killed . Always wear your safety belts!
Fig. 148 A dr iver not wea ring a safe ty belt is v io lent ly
throw n forward
Fig. 149 A rea r passe nge r not wea ring a safe ty belt will f ly
forwa rd and strike th e
driver
Unbelted occupants are not able to resist the tre
mendous forces of impact by holding tight or
bracing themselves . Without the benefit of safe
ty restraint systems, the unrestrained occupant
will slam viol ently into the steering wheel, in
strument panel, windshield , o r whatever else is
in the way
¢fig. 148. This impact with the vehi
cle interior has all the energy they had just be-
fore the crash . ..,.
135

Safe ty belts
Never rely o n airbags alone for protection . Even
when they deploy, airbags provide only additional
protection. A irbags are not supposed to dep loy in
all kinds of accidents. A lthough your Audi is
equipped w ith airbags, all vehicle occupants, in
cluding the driver, must wear safety belts cor
rectly in order to minimize the risk of severe in
jury or death in a crash .
Remember too, that airbags will deploy only
once and that your safety belts are a lways there
to offer protect ion in those accidents in wh ic h
airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they
have a lready dep loyed. Unbel ted occupants can
a lso be thrown o ut of the veh icle where eve n
mo re severe or fatal injur ies can occur .
It is also important for the rear pass enge rs to
wear safety belts co rrectly. Unbelted passengers
i n t he rea r seats endanger no t on ly themse lves
but also the drive r and other passengers
~ fig . 149. In a frontal collision they will be
thrown forward violently, where they can hit and
in jure the driver and/or front seat passenger.
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision . It's simply
not true!
F ig . 1 50 Driver is correctly restrai ned in a sudde n braking
m aneuver
Safety belts used properly can make a b ig d iffer
ence. Safety belts help to keep passengers in
their seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap
plied to the body in an accident, and he lp prevent
the uncont rolled moveme nt that can cause seri
ous injur ies. In addition, safety belts reduce the
danger of being thrown out of the veh icle .
136
Safety be lts attach passengers to the car an d give
them the benefit of being s lowed down more
gently or "soft ly" thro ugh the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety feat ures engi
neered into today's vehicles. By "absorbing" the
k inet ic energy over a longer per iod of t ime, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more
"tole rab le" and less likely to cause inj ury.
Although these examples are based on a frontal
collision, safety be lts ca n also substantially re
duce the r isk o f injury in ot her kinds of crashes.
So, whethe r yo u're on a long trip or just going to
the cor ne r store, a lways b uckle up and make s ure
othe rs do, too. Ac ciden t stat ist ics show that veh i
cl e o ccupants prope rly wearing safety bel ts have
a lowe r risk of being injured and a m uch better
chance of surviving an acc ident . Properly using
safety be lts also great ly increases the ability of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col
li sion. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is le
gally required in most countries including much
of the United States and Canada .
Although your Aud i is equipped with airbags, you
still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front
airbags, for examp le, are activated only in some
frontal collisions. The front airbags are not act i
vated in all frontal collisions, in side and rear co l
li sions, in roll overs or in cases where the re is not
eno ugh deceleration throug h impa ct to the front
of the vehicle. The same goes for the other a irbag
systems in your Audi. So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly rest rained!
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be correctly positioned
across the strongest bones of your body.
.,. Always wear safety belts as illustrated and de
scribed in this chapter.
.,. Make sure that your safety be lts are always
ready fo r use a nd are not damaged .

.... N
0 CJ '
_& WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death . Safety belts can work only
when used correct ly.
-Always fasten your safety belts correctly be fore driving off and make sure all passen
gers are cor rect ly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must
always be posit ioned properly on the body .
- Never strap more than one person, includ
ing small ch ildren, into any belt .
- Never place a safety belt over a child sitt ing
on your lap.
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front of
the seat wh ile the vehicle is being driven.
- Never let any person ride w ith their feet on
the instrument panel or sticking out the
window or on the seat .
- Never remove a safety belt while the vehicle
is moving . Do ing so will increase your risk of
being injured or k illed.
- Never wear belts twisted.
- Never wear belts over rigid or breakable ob-
jects in or on your clothing, such as eye
glasses, pens, keys, etc., as these may cause
injury.
- Never allow safety belts to become dam
aged by being caught in door or seat hard
ware.
- Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt
under your arm or otherwise out of position .
- Several layers of heavy clothing may inter
fere with correct positioning of belts and re
duce the overall effectiveness of the system.
- Always keep belt buckles free of anything
that may prevent the buckle from latching
securely .
- Never use comfort clips or devices that cre
ate slack in the shoulder be lt . However, spe
cial clips may be requ ired for the proper use
of some child restraint systems.
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt ha rdware can break in an acc i
dent. Inspect belts regularly .
If webbing,
bind ings, buckles, or re tractors are dam-
Safet y bel ts
aged, have belts rep laced by an authorized
Aud i dea ler or qualified workshop.
- Safety belts that have been worn and loaded
in an accident must be replaced with the
correct replacement safety belt by an au
thor ized Audi dealer. Replacement may be
necessary even if damage cannot be clearly
seen. Anchorages that were loaded must al
so be inspected.
- Never remove, mod ify, d isassemble, or try
to repair the safety belts yourse lf.
-Always keep the belts clean . Dirty belts may
not work properly and can impair the func
tion of the inert ia reel¢
table on page 205.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 151 Belt buckle and tongu e on t he d river' s se at
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wear
er 's body .
... Adjust the front seat and head restraint proper
ly ¢
page 53 , General information.
... Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench
is in an upright posit ion and securely latched in
place before using the belt
Q _&. .
"' Ho ld the bel t by the tongue and pu ll it evenly
across the chest and pelvis¢_&. .
... Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat unti l you hear it latch securely
Qfig. 151.
... Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
Iii>
137

Safe ty belts
Autom ati c s afet y belt retr actors
Every safety belt is equ ipped with an automa tic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. This feature
locks the belt when the belt is pulled out fast,
during hard braking and in a n accident . The belt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
hill or through a sharp curve. Dur ing normal driv
ing the belt lets you
move freely .
Safety belt p ret en sion ers
The safety belts are equipped with a belt preten
sioner that helps to t ighten the safety belt and
remove slack when the pretensioner is activated
¢
page 140 . The function of the pretensioner is
mon itored by a warn ing light
¢page 18.
Con vertible loc king retracto r
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac
tor that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
¢ page 176 .
.&_ WARNING
Improperly pos it ioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious injury in an accident ¢
page 138,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat bac k
rest to which the center rea r safety belt* is
attached is secure ly latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used. If the
backrest is not securely latched, the passen
ger will move forward with the backrest dur
ing sudden braking, in a sudden maneuver
and especially in a crash.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong b uckle will reduce safety belt effec
t iveness and can cause serious persona l in
jury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrained can be seriously in jured by the safety be lt it
self when it
moves from the stronger parts
138
of the body into critical areas like the abdo men.
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child seat in the ve
hicle
¢ page 178.
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretensioners,
refer to¢
page 140 .
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 152 Safety belt posit ion
Use the height adjustment to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
.&_ WARNING
Imp roperly positioned safety belts can cause
serio us pe rsonal injury in an a cc ident.
- The shou lde r belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fi t well on the body. Ho ld the belt
above the latch to ngue and pull it evenly
across the chest so that it sits as low as pos
sible on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should a lways f it
snug ly ¢
fig. 152. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
injuries by sh ifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious i nju ry .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat ion
r=;, page 136 .