A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat insta l
led on the front passenger seat will be ser i
ously injured and can be k illed if the front air
bag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- Although the Advanced A irbag System in
yo ur vehicle is designed to t urn off t he front
airbag when a rea rward-facing child re
straint has been insta lled on the fron t pas
senger seat, nobody can absolutely g uaran
tee that deployment is impossible in a ll con
ceivable situations that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicle.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child seat or
infant carrier w ith great force and will
smash the c hild seat and child against the
backrest, center armrest, door, or roof.
-Always install rearward-fac ing ch ild re
straints on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
seat on the front passenger seat because of
exceptiona l circumstances and the
PASSEN
GER A IR BAG OFF light does not come on
and stay on, immediately install the rear
facing child seat in a rea r seat ing position
and have the airbag system inspected by
yo ur Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If, in except io nal circumst ances, you must in
stall a forward-f acing chi ld restraint on the
front passenger's seat:
- Always ma ke sure the forward-fac ing seat
has been designed and ce rtified by its man
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and s ide a irbag .
- Never put the forward -facing child restraint
up against or very near the instrument pan
el.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rea rmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air
bag as possib le, before insta lling the for
ward-facing child restra int. The backrest
must be adjusted to an up right posit ion .
Airb ag sys tem
-Always make sure that there is noth ing on
the front passenge r seat that will cause the
capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occup ied by a person when it is
not, or to s ignal that it is occupied by some
one w ho is heavier than the person actually
sit ting on the sea t. T he presen ce of addi
tional ob je cts cou ld cause t he passenger
front airbag to be turned on when it should
be off, or cou ld cause the ai rbag to work in a
way that is d ifferent from the way it wou ld
have wo rked without the object on the seat.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light comes on and stays on a ll the time
whenever the ignit ion is switched on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your veh icle has a lot
of very important parts of the Advanced Airbag
System in it . These parts include the capacitive
passenger detection system, wir ing, brackets,
and more. The contro l unit m onito rs the sys tem
o n t he fro nt passenge r seat when t he igni tion is
swi tched on and turns the airbag indica tor ligh t
on when a malfunction in the one of the system
components is detected ¢
page 154. Because
the front passenger seat contains important
parts of the Advanced A irbag System, you must
take care to prevent it from being damaged.
Damage to the seat may prevent the Adva nced
Airbag System for the front passenge r seat from
doing its job in a crash.
The front Ad vanced Airbag System consists
of the following:
- Crash senso rs in the front of the veh icle tha t
measure vehicle acce le ra tion/decele ration to
p rov ide informa tion to the Advanced A irbag
System abo ut the sever ity of the cras h.
- An elect ronic contro l unit, with integ rated
cr ash sensors for front a nd side impac ts. Th e
cont rol un it "decides" whether to fi re the fron t
airbags based on the info rmation rece ived from
the crash sensors . The contro l un it also "de
cides" whether the safety belt pretensioners
should be activated. .,.
149
Airbag system
-An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control valve for the driver inside the steering
wheel hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control valve inside the instrument panel for
the front passenger.
- A capacitive passenger detection system under
neath the front passenger seat cover. This sys
tem measures the electrical capacitance of the
person in the seat. The information registered
is sent continuously to the electronic control
unit to regulate deployment of the front Ad
vanced Airbag on the passenger side.
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
light in the instrument cluster~
page 153.
-A sensor in each front seat registers the dis
tance between the respective seat and the
steering wheel or instrument panel. The infor
mation registered is sent continuously to the
electronic control unit to regulate deployment
of the front Advanced Airbags.
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on in the center of the instrument
panel
~ pag e 154, fig. 159 and tells you when
the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned
off.
- A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driver
and for the front seat passenger that senses
whether that safety b elt is latched or not and
transmits this information to the electronic control unit.
A WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can pre
vent the front airbag from working properly .
- Improper repair or disassembly of the front
passenger and driver seat will prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from functioning properly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must be
performed by qualified and properly trained
workshop personnel.
- 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.
150
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets or
put them on the seat. The capacitive pas
senger detection mat in the front passenger
seat will not function properly if it is punc
tured .
- Never carry things on your lap or carry ob
jects on the front passenger seat . Such ob
jects can influence the capacitance regis
tered by the capacitive passenger detection
system, so that incorrect information is pro
vided to the airbag control unit.
- Never store items under the front passenger
seat . Parts of the Advanced Airbag System
under the passenger seat could be dam
aged, preventing them and the airbag sys
tem from working properly.
- Never place seat covers or replacement up
holstery that have not been specifically ap
proved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Air
bag System from recognizing child re
straints or occupants on the front passenger
seat and prevent the side airbag in the seat
backrest from deploying properly.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restraint system 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 capacitance of the child safe
ty seat and/or the person on the seat and
thus keep the Advanced 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 passenger seat
if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket. Such
devices can influence the capacitance regis
tered by the capacitive passenger detection
system, so that incorrect information is pro
vided to the airbag control unit.
- If you must use a child restraint on the front
passenger seat and the child restraint
~
.... N
0 CJ -
manufacturer's instructions require the use
of a towel, foam cushion or someth ing else
to properly pos ition the child restraint,
make certain that the
PA SS EN GE R A IR B AG
OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever
the ch ild restraint is installed on the front
passenge r seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BA G OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in
stall child res traint in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer .
_& WARNING
If the front passenger seat gets wet, dry it im
mediately .
-If liqu id soaks into the fron t passenger seat,
this can keep the airbag system from work
ing properly and may, for instance, deacti
vate the passenger frontal airbag. If this
happens, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on and stay on together with
the a irbag indicator light
II (USA models)/
E,I (Canada models) in the instrument clus
ter .
- If liquid is pooled on the seat, but has not soaked in, this may also keep the a irbag sys
tem from working properly and ca use the
pa ssenge r frontal a irbag to be enabled
(t ur ned on), even t hough the re is a properly
installed child restraint system on the seat.
Wet towe ls or other wet things o n the seat
cushion can have the same effect. If the
front passenger frontal airbag is t urned on,
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light light
will go out .
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the side
airbags s upplemen t the protection offered by the
front three-point safety bel ts with pretensioners
and load limiters and the adjustable head re
straints * to help reduce the risk of injury in a
wide range of accident and crash situations. Be
sure to read the important information about
safety and heed the WARNINGS in this chapter.
Airb ag sys tem
Deployment of the Adv a need Airbag System and
the activation of the safety belt pretensioners de
pend on the dece leration measured by the crash
sensors and registered by the electronic control
unit. Crash severity depends on speed and decel
eration as well as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object involved in the crash .
On the passenger side, regard less of safety belt
use, the front passenger frontal airbag will be
turned off if the e lectr ica l capacitance measured
by the capacitive passenger detect ion system on
the front passenger seat is less than the amount
programmed in the electron ic contro l unit. The
front passenge r frontal a irbag wi ll also be turned
off if the capaci tance measured by the system for
the front passenger seat equals that of an infant
of about one year of age in one of the chi ld seats
that was used to certify the Advanced Airbag Sys
tem under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208 . The
P ASS ENGER AIR BA G OFF light comes
on and stays o n to tell you when the front Ad
vanced Airbag System on the passenger side has been t urned off
c::> page 154 .
_& WARNING
To reduce the ris k of injury when an airbag in
flates, always wear safety belts prope rly.
- If you are un restra ined, leaning forward, sit
ting sideways or ou t of position in a ny way ,
your r isk of injury is much higher .
- You will a lso receive ser ious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against the
a ir bag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
c::> page 142.
More important things to know about front
airbags
Fig . 158 Inflated front airbags
151
Airbag syste m
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated position so
that airbags can unfold properly and provide sup
p lemental protection in a frontal collision.
The front airbags are designed to provide addi
tional protection for the chest and face of the
driver and the front seat passenger when:
- safe ty belts are worn properly,
- the seats have been posit ioned so that the oc-
c u pan t is properly seated as far as possible
from the airbag,
- and for adjustable head restraints: the head re-
straints have been prope rly adjusted.
Because airbags inflate in the blink of an eye with
g reat fo rce, things you have on your lap or have
p laced on the seat could become da ngerous pro
jectiles, and be p ushed into you if the airbag in
flates .
W hen an a irbag deploys, fine dust is re leased.
This is normal and is not caused by a fire in the
ve hicle. This dust is made up mostly of a powder
used to lubricate the airbags as they deploy. It
could irritate skin.
It is important to remember that whi le the sup
p lemental a irbag sys tem is designed to reduce
the likelihood of serious injuries, other inj uries,
for example swelling, bruising and minor abra
sions, can a lso happen when airbags inflate . Air
bags do not protect the arms or the lower parts
of the body. Front airbags supplement the three
point safety belts only i n some frontal collisions
in which the veh icle decelerat ion is high enough
to deploy the airbags .
Front airbag s will not deplo y:
- if the ignit ion is switched off when a crash oc-
curs,
- in s ide collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollovers,
- whe n the crash decelerat ion meas ured by the
airbag system is less than the minim um thresh
o ld needed for airbag deployment as registered
by the electronic contro l unit.
152
The front passenge r airbag als o will not
deplo y:
- when the front passenger seat is not occupied,
- when the e lectrical capacitance measured by
the capacitive passenger detection system for
the front passenger seat ind icates that the pas
senger s ide frontal a irbag must be switched off
by the electron ic control un it (the
PA SSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light c> page 154 and how they
work comes on and stays on) .
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong posit ion can increase the
risk of serious injury in cras hes.
- To reduce the r isk of injury when the ai rbags
inflate, the drive r and passenge rs must al
ways sit in an up right posit ion, m ust not
le an aga inst or place any part of their body
too close to the area where the airbags are
located .
- Occupants who are unbe lted, out of posit ion
or too close to the airbag can be serio usly
injured by an airbag as it unfolds with g reat
force in the blink of an eye~ page 14 3.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal
led on the front passenger seat will be seri
ously injured and can be killed if the front air
bag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild seat or
infant carrier with great force and wi ll
smash the child seat and child against the
backrest, cen ter armrest, doo r or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild seats o n the
rear seat.
- If you must install a rearwa rd facing child
seat o n the front passenge r seat because of
except io nal circumstances and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
l igh t does not come on
and s tay on, immed iate ly ins tall the rea r
facing chi ld seat in a rear seating posit ion
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dea ler.
restraints that were used to certify your vehi
cle's compliance with the U.S. Safety Standard
¢ page 168.
-will go out if the front passenger seat is occu
pied by an adult as registered by the capacitive
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 insta lled on the front pas
senger seat, or
- a rearward- facing child restraint has been in
sta lled on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward-facing child restra int has been instal
led on the front passenger seat,
- and if the e lectr ica l capacitance reg istered on
the front passenger seat is equal to or less than
the combined capacitance of a typical 1 year
old infant and one of the rearward-facing or
forward-facing chi ld restraints listed in Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 w ith which
the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was
certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied, the
front a irbag w ill not deploy, and the P A SSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on. Never install a
rearward -fac ing ch ild restraint on the front pas
senger seat, the safest place for a child in any
kind of child rest ra int is at one of the seat ing po
sitions on the rea r seat
¢ page 143, Child re
straints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and ~ page 166, Child safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t comes on
when one of the condit ions listed above is met,
be sure to check the light regularly to make cer
tain that the
PAS SENGER AIR BA G OFF lig ht
stays on cont inuous ly whenever the ign ition is
on. If the
PA SSENGER 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 ign ition
off for more than 4 seconds and then turning it
on again;
- remove and reinstall the child restra int. Make
sure that the child restraint is properly instal-
Airb ag sys tem
led and that the safety belt for the front pas
senger seat has been correct ly routed through
the child restraint as described in the c hil d re
straint manufacturer's instruct ions;
- make sure that the convertible locking retrac
tor on the safety belt for the front passenger
seat has been activated and that the safety belt
has been pulled tight.
- make sure that no e lectr ica l device (such as a
laptop, CD player, e lectron ic games device,
power inverter or seat heater for ch ild seats) is
placed or used on the fro nt passenger seat if
the device is connected to the 12-volt socket or
t he c igarette ligh ter socket;
- make sure that no seat heater has been ret ro
fitted o r othe rw ise added to the front passen
ge r seat;
- make sure that not hing can inte rfere wi th the
safety belt buckles and t hat they are not ob
s t ructed;
- make sure that there are no wet objects (such
as a wet towe l) and no wa ter or other liquids on
t he front p assenge r seat cushion .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still does
not come on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still does
not come on and does no t stay on continuously
(when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restra int off the front passenge r
seat and insta ll it properly at o ne of the rear
seat pos itions. Have the airbag system i nspect
ed by yo ur Audi dealer immed iately .
- move the child to a rear seat pos ition and ma ke
sure that the chi ld is p roperly rest rained in a
child restra int that is app ropr iate for its s ize
and age .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should NOT
come on ...
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should NOT
come on when the ignition is on and an adu lt is
sitting in a prope r seating position on the front
passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
5 seconds while dr iv ing, under these circumstan-
ces, make sure that :
Ill-
155
Airbag syste m
-the adu lt on the front passenger seat is proper
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his or her back up against the backrest and the
backrest is not reclined,
- the ad u Lt is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or supporting
their we ight on the armrest,
- the safety belt is being properly worn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety belt web
bing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or cush
ions or other things (such as blankets) on the
front passenger seat that might cause the ca
pacit ive passenger detection system to miscal
cu late electrical capacitance.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
- If the status of the Adva need A irbag System
has changed wh ile the vehicle is mov ing, the
PASSENGE R AIR B AG OFF light blinks for
about 5 seconds to catch the driver's atten
t ion. If this happens, a lways stop as soon as
it is safe to do so and check the steps descri
bed above.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go off when an adul t who is not very
small is sitt ing on the front passenger seat
after taking the steps described above,
make sure the adult is properly seated and
restra ined at one of the rear seating posi
t ions. Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Aud i dealer before trans
porting anyone on the front passenger seat.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ion ing prop
erly cannot p rovide supplemental p rotection
in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light
r:::;, page 18
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediate ly by yo ur
authorized Aud i dealer. It is possible that
156
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup
posed to, or will not inf late when it should.
A WARNING
If the front a irbag inflates, a ch ild without a
chi ld restraint, or in a rearward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-fac ing ch ild re
stra int that has not been properly instal led
will be ser iously injured and can be killed .
- Even though you r vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that a ll children, espec ia lly 12 years a nd
younge r, always ride on the bac k sea t prop
erly rest rained for thei r age and s ize.
- Always install fo rwa rd o r rea r-facing child
seats on the re ar seat -even w ith an Ad
vanced Ai rbag System.
- If you must install a rea rwa rd-facing child
seat on the fron t passenge r seat bec ause o f
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and
stay on, immediate ly install the rear-facing
child seat in a rear seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
dea ler.
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, always move the
seat into its rearmost position in the seat's
fore and aft ad justment range, as far away
from the a irbag as poss ible. The back rest
m ust be adjus ted to an upr ight position.
Ma ke sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on .
A WARNING
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go out when an adult is sitting on the
front passenger seat afte r taking the steps
described above, make sure the adult is
properly seated and restra ined at one of the
rear sea ting posit ions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i deale r before transporting anyone on
the front passenge r seat .
Airbag syste m
Important safety instructions on the knee
airbag system
A pplies to veh icles: w ith knee a irbags
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always
wear safety belts correctly and ride in a proper
seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
know and do to help the safety be lts and airbags
to provide supplemental protection .
A WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause serious in
jury . Wearing safety belts incorrect ly and im
proper seating pos it ions increase the r isk of
serious personal injury and death whenever a
vehicle is being used.
- The knee airbag system cannot protect you
properly if you are seated too close to any of
the airbag locations. When adjusting their
seat positions, it is important that both the dr iver and the front passenger keep their
upper bod ies and knees at the following
min imum safe distances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instrument
panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the instru
ment panel.
- The risk of personal injury increases if you
lean forward or to the side, or if the seat is
improperly positioned and you are not wear
ing your safety belt. The risk increases even
more should the a irbag deploy.
- Always make sure that the knee airbag can
inflate without interference. Objects be
tween you and the airbag can increase the
risk of injury in an accident by interfer ing
with the way the a irbag dep loys or by being
pushed into you as the airbag deploys.
- Never let anybody, especially children or
animals ride in the footwell in front of the passenger seat . If the a irbag deploys, this
can result in serious or fatal injuries.
- Never carry objects of any k ind in the foot
well area in front of the driver's or pas
senger's seat . Bulky objects (shopping
1 6 0
bags, for example) can interfere with or
prevent proper deployment of the a irbag.
Small objects can be thrown through the
vehicle if the airbag deploys and injure you
or your passengers.
- Make sure there are no cracks, deep scratch
es or other damage in the area of the i nstru
ment panel where the knee airbags are lo
cated .
-If ch ildren are incorrectly seated, their risk
of injury increases in a coll ision
c::;, page 166, Child safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
Fig. 162 Side airbag location in the driver"s seat
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests
c::;, fig. 162 and the rear back
rest fac ing the doors . They are identified by the
word "AIRBAG".
The side airbags installed for the front seating
positions have been designed and certified to
help reduce the risk of injury that can be caused
by a irbags when they inflate, particu larly when
the occupant sitting next to it is not seated prop
erly. The side airbag for the front passenger seat can be used with properly installed child re
straints . Please be sure to read the important in
formation and warnings whenever using a child
restraint in a vehicle: Safety belts
c::;, page 134,
Airbag system c::;, page 142, Child safety
c::;, page 166 .
The s ide ai rbag sys tem basica lly c onsi st s of: ..,.
Airbag syste m
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 . 1 63 In fla ted side airbags o n lef t s ide of vehicle , rear
side a irbag
When the system is triggered, the a irbag is filled
with propellant gas and breaks through a seam in
the seat surface area ma rked "AIRBAG". It ex
pands between the side trim pane l and the pas
senger. In order to help provide th is additiona l
protection, the side ai rbag must inflate within a
fraction of a second at very h igh speed and with
great force . The supplementa l side airbag could
injure you if your seating position is not proper or
upright or if items are located in the area where
the supplemental side airbag expands . This ap
plies especially to children
~ page 166, Child
safety .
Supplemental side a irbags inflate be
tween the occupant and the door pane l on the
side of the vehicle that is struck in certa in side
coll is ion
~ fig. 163.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in th is way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the uppe r part
of the body .
A fine dust may develop when the airbag deploys .
This is normal and does not mean there is a fire
in the vehicle .
162
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . Always
properly wear safety belts and ride in a proper
seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
k now and act according ly to help the safety belts
and airbags do their job to prov ide supplemental
protect ion .
_& WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious or
fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety be lts
and improper seating posit ions increase the
risk of serious persona l injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental side airbag inflates:
- Always s it in an upr ight position and never
l ean agains t the area where the supple
mental s ide airbag is located .
- Never let a child or anyo ne e lse rest their
head against the side tr im panel in the
area where the s upplementa l side airbag
inflates .
- Always make s ure t hat safety belts are
worn correctly,
- Do no t let anyone s itting in the front seat
p ut their hand or any other parts of their
body out of the window.
- Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate w ithout interference.
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not bee n specifical ly approved by
A udi .
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags de ploy.
- Damage to the orig inal seat cove rs or to
the seam in the area of the s ide airbag
module must a lways be repaired immedi
ate ly by an autho rized Aud i dealer .
-
-Objects between you and the a irbag can in
crease the r isk of injury in an acc iden t by in
t erfering wi th the way the airbag unfolds or .,._