Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with Un ited States
F edera l Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208, as
well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your vehi
cle was manufactured .
The front Advanced Airbag System supp lements
the safety belts to provide additional protection
for the driver's and front passenger's heads and upper bodies in frontal crashes . The airbags in
f late only in frontal impacts when the veh icle de
celeration is high enough.
The front Advanced Airbag System for the front
seat occupants is not a substitute for your safety be lts . Rather, it is part of the overall occupant re
stra int system in your vehicle. Always remember
that the airbag system can on ly help to protect
you, if you are sitting upr ight, wear ing your safe
ty belt and wear ing it prope rly. This is why you
and your passengers must always be prope rly re
stra ined, not just beca use the law req uires yo u to
be .
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle has
been ce rtified to meet the "low r is k" requi re
ments fo r 3 and 6 ye ar-old children o n the pas
senger side and very sma ll adults on the drive r
side . The low risk dep loyment criteria are intend
ed to help reduce the risk of injury through inter
action with the front a irbag that can occur, for
examp le, by being too close to the steering wheel
and instrument panel when the airbag inflates .
In addition, the system has been certified to
comp ly with the "suppression" requirements of
the Safety Standard, to turn off the front a irbag
for i nfants 12 months old and younger who are
restrained on the front passenger seat in child re
stra ints that are listed in the Standa rd
¢ page 170, Child restraints and Advanced Air
bags.
"Suppress ion" requ ires the front a irbag on the
passenger side to be turned off if:
- a ch ild up to about one year of age is restra ined
on the front passenger seat in one of the rear
facing or forward-fac ing infant restra ints listed
Airb ag sys tem
in Federal Motor Veh icle Safety Standard 208
with which the Advanced Airbag System in your
veh icle was certif ied. For a List ing of the child
restraints that were used to certify your vehi
cle's compliance with the US Safety Standard
¢page 170,
-weight less than a threshold level stored in the
control un it is detected on the front passenger
seat .
When a person is detected on the front passen ger seat, weighing more than the total weight of
a chi ld that is about
1 year old restra ined in one
of the rear-facing or forward-fac ing infant re
straints (listed in Federal Motor Veh icle Safety
Standard 208 with w hich the Advanced A irbag
System in your veh icle was certified), the front
airbag on the passenge r side may o r may not de
ploy .
T he
PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht comes o n
whe n the elect ronic control uni t detects a tota l
weight on the fron t passenger sea t th at req uires
the front a irbag to be turned off . If the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on, the
front airbag on the passenger side has not been
turned off by the control unit and can dep loy if
the control unit senses an impact that meets the
condit ions stored in its memory .
If the total weight on the front passenger seat is
more than that of a typica l 1 year-old, but less
than the weight of a small adult, the front airbag
o n the passenger s ide may deploy (the
PAS SEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on) .
For example , the ai rb ag may deploy if :
- a small chi ld that is heav ier than a typ ica l 1
yea r-o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regard less of whether the child is in one of the
child seats listed
¢ page 170),
- a child who has outgrown c hild restraints is on
the front passenger seat.
If the front passenge r a irbag is t urned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the center of
the instrument pane l wi ll come on and stay on .
T he front airbag on the passenger side m ay
not
deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not illuminate and stay lit) if: ..,.
151
(D Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front passen
ger seat detects an empty seat, the front air
bag on the passenger side will be turned off,
and the
P ASS ENGER AI R BA G OFF light will
stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at many
d ifferent p laces on your Aud i. Installing , remov
ing, servic ing or repa iring a part in an area of the
vehicle can damage a part of an airbag system
and p revent that system from working properly
in a co llision.
There are some important things you have to
know to make su re that the effectiveness of the
system w ill not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environm ent .
A WARNING
Improper care, serv icing and repa ir proce
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de
ploying when needed or deploying an airbag
unexpectedly:
-
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer
ing wheel horn pad or a irbag cover or the in
strument panel or mod ify them in any way .
- Never attach any objects such as cup holders or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov
er ing the airbag units.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
pane l, use on ly a soft, dry cloth or one mois
tened with plain water. Solvents or cleaners cou ld damage the a irbag cover or change
the stiffness or strength of the material so
that the airbag cannot dep loy and protect
properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instr ument
pane l, front seats or electrical system (in
cluding the installation of audio equipment,
cellu lar telephones and CB radios, etc.)
must be performed by a qualified technician
Airb ag sys tem
who has the training and special equ ipment
necessary.
- For any wo rk on the airbag system, we
strong ly recommend that you see your au
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
- Never modify the front bumper or parts of
the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery ove r the front seatbacks that
have not been specifica lly approved by
Audi .
- Never use addi tional seat c ushions that
cove r the areas where the side airbags in
flate.
- 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 authorized Aud i dealer.
- The airbag system can be activated only
once . A fter an airbag has inflated, it must
be replaced by an authorized Audi dealer or
qualified technic ian who has the technical
information, t raining and spec ial equ ipment
necessary.
- The airbag system can be deployed only
once . After an airbag has been deployed, it
must be replaced with new rep lacement
parts des igned and approved especially for
your Aud i model version. Replacement of
comp lete airbag systems or airbag compo
nents must be performed by qualified work
shops only. Ma ke sure that any airbag serv
ice act ion is en tered in your Aud i Wa rranty
& Maintenance booklet under AIRBAG RE
PLACEMENT RECORD.
- For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starter are separated from
the vehicle battery with a pyrotechnic circ uit
interrupter.
- Wo rk on the pyrotechnic c ircuit inte rrupt
er must on ly be performed by a qua lified
dealer -risk of an acc ident!
- If the vehicle or the circuit interr upter is
scrapped, all applicable safe ty p recau tions
mus t be followed.
159
Airbag syste m
@ For the sake of the en vironment
Undep loyed airbag modu les and pretension
ers might be classified as Perchlorate Materi
al -special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo rate . When the vehicle or parts of the re
straint system including airbag modules and
safety belts w ith pretensioners are scrapped,
all applicable laws and regu lations must be
observed. Your authorized Audi dealer is fa
m iliar with these requirements and we recom
mend that you have your dealer perform this
service for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
cha nge the way that the Advanced Airbag System
pe rforms in a crash. For example, using tire-r im
comb inat ions not approved by Audi, lower ing the
veh icle, chang ing the stiffness of the suspens ion,
including the spr ings, suspension struts, shock
absorbers etc . can change the forces that are
measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the
electronic control unit . Some suspens ion changes
can, for example, increase the force levels meas
ured by the sensors and make the airbag system
deploy in crashes in wh ich it would not deploy if
the changes had not been made. Other ki nds of
changes may reduce the force levels measured by
the sensors and preven t the airbag from deploy
ing when it should .
A WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension including
use of unapproved tire-rim combinations can
change Advanced A irbag performance and in
crease the risk of serious personal injury in a
crash.
- Never install suspension components that do not have the same performance charac
teristics as the components originally insta l
led on your veh icle .
- Never use tire-rim comb inations that have
not been approved by Audi.
160
A WARNING
Items stored between the safety belt buckle
and the center console can cause the sensors in the buckle to send the wrong information
to the electronic contro l module and prevent
the Advanced A irbag System from wo rking
p roperly.
- Always make sure that noth ing can inte rfe re
w ith the safety belt buckles and that they
are not obst ructed.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supplemen
tal protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants.
Fig. 167 Driver's kn ee ai rbag
The driver knee airbag is in the inst rument panel
u nderneath the s teer ing whee l
~ fig. 16 7, the
airbag fo r the passenger is at about the same
height in the instrument panel underneath the
glove compartment.
The knee airbag offers add itiona l protection to
the d river's and passenge r's knees and uppe r and
l ower thigh areas and supp lements the protec
tion prov ided by the safety belts .
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags a lso
deploy in frontal coll is ions when the deployment
th reshold stored in the control unit is met
~ page 154, More important things to know
about front airbags.
In add ition to their normal safe ty f unct ion, safe-
ty belts help keep the driver or front passenger in ..,
exceptional circumstances and the
PASS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iately install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seating pos it ion and have the airbag system
inspected immediately by your Audi dealer .
A WARNING
If, in exceptio nal 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 ce rtified by its man
ufact urer fo r use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and side airbag .
- Always follow the manufact urer's instruc
tions prov ided with the ch ild 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
restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to
an upr ight position.
- Always make sure that the
PA SSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
{D) Tips
Always replace chi ld restraints that were in
stalled in a vehicle dur ing a crash . Damage to
a child restraint that is not visible could cause
it to fail in another collision situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your veh icle is equipped with a front "Advanced
Airbag System " in compliance w ith United States
F edera l Moto r Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Ve hicle Safe ty
Stand ard (CMVSS) 208 as appli cable at the t ime
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-year old children on the pas
senger side and small adults on the driver side .
The low risk deployment criteria are intended to
Ch ild safety
reduce the risk of injury through interaction with
the airbag that can occur, for example, by being
too close to the steering wheel and instr ument
panel when the airbag inflates. In addition, the
system has been cert ified 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 lis ted in
the S tanda rd .
Even thoug h your veh icle is equipped with an Ad
vanced Airbag system, all ch ildren, especially
those 12 yea rs and younger, sho uld a lways ride
i n the back seat properly restra ined for their age
and size . The airbag on the passenger side makes
the front seat a potentia lly 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
T he Advanced A irbag System in you r vehicle de
tects the presence of a n in fan t or child in a ch ild
restra int 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 tension 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 c hild re
straint as it s its on the seat. The weight of a chi ld
r estra int and its "footprint " va ry for different
k inds of child restra ints and for the different
models of the same kind of ch ild rest raint of
fered by child restraint manufacturers.
T he weight ranges for the individ ual types,
makes and mode ls of chi ld restrain ts that the
N HT SA has spec ified in the Safety Standard to
gether with the weight ranges o f typical infants
and typical 1 year-old chi ld have been stored in .,.
169
Child safety
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
child in a forward-facing child seat. It is a very
dangerous place for an infant or a larger child in
a rearward-fac ing seat.
A WARNING
Not using a ch ild safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
child restra int increases the r isk of serious
personal inju ry and death in a crash.
- Never install rear-facing chi ld safety seats
or infant carriers on the front passenger
seat -even with an Advanced Airbag System.
A chi ld will be seriously injured and can be
killed when the inflating airbag hits the
child safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and smashes the child safety seat and
child against the backrest, center armrest,
door or roof
c::, page 147, Child restraints on
the front seat -some important things to
know.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant carr iers on the rear seat.
- Never install a rear-facing child restra int in
the forward-facing direct ion. Such restraints
are designed for the spec ial needs of infants
and very sma ll children and cannot protect
them properly if the seat is forward-fa cing.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safe ty seat on the front passenger seat be
ca use of exceptiona l circumsta nces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iate ly install
the rear-facing chi ld safety seat in a rear
seat ing position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
c:> page 138, Safety belts,
c::, page 146, Airbag system and
c:> page 168, Important information.
174
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats can
help protect toddlers and children over age one
who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9 and 18 kg)
in a crash.
Fig . 1 7 5 Schemat ic overv iew : installat ion of the attach
ments applicable to a LA TCH seat
Fig. 176 Schemat ic overv iew: i nstallat ion of the seat using
the vehicle's safety belt system
.. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertib le locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
c:> page 177 or install the seat using the LATCH
attachments .
.. Push the chi ld safety seat down wi th your full
we igh t to get the safe ty belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2 .5 cm)
c:>page 177.
.. If the child safety seat is equipped with a tether
strap, attach it to the tether anchors
c:>page 184.
.. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c:>page 173.
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in
fant restraint if it is more than one year old and
weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg). ..,.
Child safety
-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 fly 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 vehicle is
being used
c:::> page 168 . Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 147, 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 bock into the re
tractor .
~ Press the red button on the safety belt buckle.
Th@ 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 deactivate this feature. If the
convertible lock ing retractor is not deactivated,
the safety belt will gradually become tighter and
uncomfortable to wear.
A WARNING
-
Improperly installed child 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
180
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
being used
¢page 168. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
c:::> page 147, 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 practicable 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
versal anchorages" (or "lower universal anchor
age bars") are used to describe 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 requirements . These
new performance requirements make a tether
necessary on most new child seats.
Installing a child restraint that requires a top
tether 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
restraint that requires 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 with hook-on or ...
Trailer load distribution
Be sure the load in the trailer is held securely in
p la ce to prevent it from sh ifting forward, back
ward or sideways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer¢.&.
in Driving instructions on page 204.
Engine cooling system
Towing a trailer makes the engine work harder . It
is important that the cool ing system's perform
ance is up to the addit ional load. Make sure that
the cooling system has enough fluid.
Tire pressure
When towing a trailer, inflate the tires of your
veh icle to the cold tire pressure listed under "Full
load " on the label located on the driver's side B
pillar (vis ible when the door is open). Inflate
trailer tires to trailer and tire manufacturers'
specif ications.
Lights
Check to make sure both vehicle and trailer lights
are working proper ly.
Safety chains
Be sure trailer safety chains are properly connect
ed from the trailer to the hitch on the vehicle.
Leave enough slack in the chains to permit turn
in g corners . When you install safety cha ins, make
sure they wi ll not drag on the road when you are
driving.
The chains should cross under the trailer tongue
to prevent it from dropping in case of separat ion
from the hitch.
Adjusting the Audi drive select
Make sure the vehicle is on a level surface before
hitching up the trailer and before adjusting the
tongue we ight. The vehicle must be in
auto or
comfort driving mode and not ra ised
¢ page 106, 9Q) .
Make sure that the vehicle is lowered. In Info
tainment, select:
I CARI function button > lower
control button .
Trailer mode
If you must drive under poor road conditions, you
can raise the vehicle
after coupling the trailer or
after adjusting the tongue weight¢ page 108.
(D Note
-Changes in temperature or load can affect
the height of the vehicle.
- Always select auto or comfort mode. Other
w ise, the tong ue load specified for your ve
hicle will no longer be applicable .
Driving instructions
Driving with a trailer always requires extra care
and consideration.
T o obtain the best possible handling of veh icle
and trailer, p lease note the following:
.,. Do not tow a loaded trailer when your car itself
is not loaded.
.,. Be especially careful when passing other
vehicles.
.,. Observe speed limits.
.,. Do not drive at the maximum permissible
speed .
.,. Always apply brakes early.
.,. Monitor the temperature gauge.
Weight distribution
Towing a loaded tra iler with an empty car results
in a highly unstab le distribution of weight . If this
cannot be avoided, drive at very low speeds only
to avoid the risk of losing steering control.
A "balanced" rig is easier to operate and control.
This means that the tow vehicle shou ld be loaded
to the extent possib le and permissib le, while
keeping the trailer as light as possible under the
cir cumstances . Whenever poss ible, transfer
some cargo to the luggage compartment of the
tow veh icle while observing tongue load require
ments and vehicle load ing conside rations.
Speed
The higher the speed, the more difficult it be
comes for the driver to control the r ig. Do not
drive at the maximum permissible speed. Reduce
your speed even more if load, weather or wind .,._
203
-Do not remove the engine cover under any
circumstances. This increases the risk of
burns.
- If work on the fuel system or the electrical
system is necessary:
- Always d isconnect the battery.
- Never smoke or work near heaters or open
flames. Flu ids in the engine compartment
could start a fire.
- Keep an app roved fire ext inguisher imme
d iate ly availab le.
- To avo id electr ical shock and personal injury
wh ile the eng ine is running or being started,
never touch:
- Ignition cables
- Other components of the high voltage
electronic ignition system.
- If you must perform a check or repa ir with
the engine running:
- First, fully apply the parking brake, move
selector lever to "P" (Park).
- Always use extreme caution to prevent
cloth ing, jewelry, or long hair from get
ting caught in the radiator fan, V-belts or
other mov ing parts, or from contacting
hot parts. Tie back ha ir before starti ng,
and do not wear clothi ng that will hang or
d roop into t he engine.
- Min imize exposu re to emission and chem i
cal hazards¢ .&.-
_& WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warn ing:
- E ngine exhaust, some of its constituents,
and certain vehicle components contain or
em it chem ica ls known to the St ate of C ali
f orn ia to cause cancer and bi rth de fects and
reproductive harm . In addition, certain flu
ids contained in ve hicles and certain prod
ucts of component wear contain or emit
Ch eck ing and Filling
chemicals known to the State of California
to cause cancer and birth defects or other
reproductive harm.
- Battery posts, term inals and related acces
sories contain lead and lead compounds,
chemicals known to the State of Californ ia
to cause cancer and reproductive harms.
Was h hands afte r handling .
([) Note
When adding flu ids, always make sure that
they are poured into the proper co nta iner or
fille r opening, otherwise serious damage to
vehicle systems w ill occur.
® For the sake of the environment
To detect leaks in time, inspect the veh icle
floor pan from unde rneath regularly . If you
see spots from oil or other veh icle fluids, have
your vehicle inspected by an authorized Audi
dealer.
Closing the engine hood
.,.. Pull the hood down un til the press ure from the
struts is reduced.
.,.. Let the hood
drop down and latch in p lace . Do
not try to push it shut;
it may fail to engage
¢ _& .
_& WARNING
--A hood that is not completely latched co uld
fly up and block your view while driv ing.
- When you close the engine hood, check it to
make sure the safety catch has properly en
gaged . The hood s hou ld be flush with the
sur rounding vehicle body parts.
- If you notice while driv ing that the hood is
not secured properly, stop at once and close
it.
-
221