Child safet y
A WARNING
Improperly installed child safety seats in
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
- 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
dur ing no rma l driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
pla ce even if a child is not s itting in i t. A
loose child safety seat can f ly around d uring
a sudden stop or in a coll is ion .
- Always make sure that the rear seat bac k
rest to which the center rea r safety be lt is
attached is securely latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used to se
cure a chi ld restraint.
- If the backrest is no t securely latched, the
child and the child restraint will be thrown
forward together with the backrest and will
strike parts of the vehicle interior. The child
can be seriously injured or killed.
- Never install rear-facing child safety seats or infant carr iers on the front passenger
seat. A child will be seriously injured and
can be killed when the passenger airbag in
flates .
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant car rier with great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, doo r
o r roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
o r infant carr iers on the rear seat.
- Forward-facing ch ild safety seats or infant
carr iers installed on the front passenger's
seat may inte rfere with the deployment of
the airbag and cause serious injury to the
child.
- It is safer to install a forward-facing ch ild
safety seat on the rear seat.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS when
ever using a child restrained in a veh icle is
being used
r=> page 132. Specia l preca utions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
r=> page 113, Child
142
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
A WARNING
Always take special precautions if you must
install a forward or rearward-facing child re
stra int on the front passenger's seat in excep
tional s ituations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-fac ing
child restraint is installed on the front pas
senger seat, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light must come on and stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, perform the
checks described
r=> page 122, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag System.
- Take the child restra int off the front passen
ger seat and install it prope rly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PA SSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on .
- Improper installation of child restraints can reduce their effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protect ion .
- An improperly installed child restraint can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
serious ly injure or even kill the child.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Never p lace additiona l items on the seat
that can increase the tota l weight registered
by the weight-sensing mat and can cause in
jury in a crash.
A WARNING
Forward-facing child restra ints:
-Always make sure the forward-facing seat has been des igned 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 a ft
adjustment range , as fa r away from the air
bag as possible before installing the for
ward-facing child r estra int. T he backrest
must be adjusted to an upright posit io n.
- Make sure tha t th e
PA SSEN GER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the tim e
w henever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
Rearwa rd-facing child restra ints:
- A ch ild in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat wi ll be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System .
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and chi ld
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 c ir
cumstances.
- A tight tether strap on a rearward-facing
child restraint attached to the front passen
ger seat can put too much pressure on the
we ight-mat in the seat and register a heavi
er we ight in the Advanced Airbag System.
The heavier we ight registered can make the
system work as though an adult were on the
seat and deploy the Advanced Airbag when
it m ust be suppressed c ausing serious or
even fatal injury to the child.
- Make sure tha t 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, immedia tely in
stall the rear-facing child safety seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Aud i dealer .
Child safety
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint .
Always heed the ch ild safety seat manufacturer 's
instruct ions when installing a child restraint 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 w ay out .
.. Route it around or through the child restra int
be lt path
¢ & .
.. Push the ch ild safety sea t down with you r full
weigh t to ge t the safety belt really tight.
.. Insert the belt tong ue into the b uck le 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 ''cl icking" noise as the belt
w inds back into the inertia reel. Test the con
vert ib le lock ing retractor by pull ing on the belt .
You shou ld no longer be able to pull the belt
out of the re tractor. The convertib le loc kin g re
t ractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is facing
away from the c hild rest raint 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) .
A WARNING
Using the wrong ch ild rest raint o r an improp
e rly inst alled child restra int can cause se rious
person al injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety be lt re
tr actor is locked when installing a child
safety seat . An un locked safety be lt retrac
tor cannot hold the ch ild safety seat in p lace
during normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat fi rm ly in
p lace even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly a round during
a sudden stop or in a c rash. .,.
143
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 132. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 113, 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
144
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 132. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat
c:::> page 113, 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 ...
.... N
c:i ::J CX)
.... I.Cl U"I
N I.Cl ......
push-on connectors attached to adjustable
straps .
I n addition to the LATCH lower anchorages, these
child restraint systems usually require the use of
tether straps to h elp 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 restra int you
intend to install in your veh icle.
- Never install a child restra int w ithout 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 po ints can lead to injury in a colli
sion. The LATCH lower anchorage points are designed to withstand only those loads im
posed by correc tly fit ted child res traints .
- Never mount two chi ld restraint systems on
one LATCH lower anchorage poin t.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other
item to the LATCH lower anchorages .
Location
F ig. 134 Sche matic overv iew: LA TCH an ch orag e point loc a
t io ns
The illustration shows the seating locations in
your veh icle which a re equipped with the lower
ancho rages system.
Ch ild sa fety
Description
T he lower anchorage positions are marked for
quick locating .
Fig . 1 35 Rear seats: lowe r anc horages , covers m arked
F ig . 1 36 Rear s eats: l ower an chorag e brac ket loc ations
Lower anchorages
T he lower anc horage a ttac hment po ints a re lo
cated between the rear seatback and rear seat
cush ion .
Remove the covers ~
fig. 135 to ac cess the lower
anchorage at tachment points .
The lower anchorage attachment po ints are v is i
ble ~
fig. 136 .
Lower anchorages secure the child restraint in
the seat without using the vehicle's safety belts.
Anchorages provide a secure and easy-to-use at
tachment and min imize the possibi lity of improp
er child res tra int installat ion.
All child restra ints manufactured after Septem
ber 1 , 2002 , must have lower anchorage attach
ments for the
LATCH system .
Remember that the lower anchorage points are
o nly intended for installation and attachment of
ch ild restraints specifically certified for use with
LATCH lower ancho rages. Child restrain ts that .,.
145
Child safety
are not equipped with the lower anchorage at
tachments can still be insta lled in compliance
with the child restra int manufacturer 's instruc
tions on using vehicle safety belts.
A WARNING
Improper use of LATCH lower anchorages can
cause serious personal injury in an acc ident .
- Always carefully follow the child restra ints
manufacturer's instruct ions for proper in
stallation of the child restra int and proper
use of the lower anchorages or safety belts
in your vehicle.
- Never secure or attach any luggage or other
items to the
LATCH lower anchorages .
- Always read and heed the important infor
mation about child restraints in this chapter
and
WARNINGS ~ page 132, 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. 137 Lower anchorages: proper mou nting
Mounting
~ Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench
is in the upr ight position and securely latched
in place.
~ Attach both hook -on connectors with the spring
catch re lease on the ch ild safety seat onto the
LATCH lower ancho rage so that the connectors
lock into place
~ fig. 137.
~ Pull on the connec to r attachments to make
sure they are properly attached to the LA TCH
lower anchorage.
146
~ Pull straps tight following the chi ld restraint
manufacturer 's instructions .
Releasing
~ Loosen the tension on the straps fo llow ing the
child restra int manufac turer's ins truc tions.
~ Depress the spr ing catches to re lease the an
chorage hooks from the lower anchorages.
Remember: Use tethe r straps to help keep the
c hi ld restraint firmly in p lace.
A WARNING -
I mproper use o f the LA TC H system can in
crease the risk of serious persona l injury and
death in an accident .
- These anchors were developed on ly for child
safety seats using the "LATCH" system .
- Never attach othe r chi ld safety seats, be lts
or other objects to these anchors .
- Always make sure th at yo u hear a click when
latching the seat in place. If yo u do not hear
a click the seat is not sec ure and cou ld f ly
forward and hit the inter ior of the vehicle,
or be ejected from the vehicle.
A WARNING
Imp roper installation of child restra ints will
i n crease the risk of injury in a n accident.
-Always follow the chi ld restraint system
manufacturer's instructions for proper in
stallation of the child restraint system and
proper use of te ther stra ps as well as the
lower anchorages or safety belts in your ve
hicle .
- Always read and heed th e important infor
mat ion an d W ARNIN GS about ch ild safety
a nd the installation of c hild res traint sys
tems
~ page 13 2, Child safety.
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N I.Cl ......
Tether anchors and tether straps
Fig. 138 Tether ancho rs: attachment hook locatio ns be
h ind the rear seatbacks
The tether anchors for the rear seating positions
are located on the backside of the rear seatbacks
¢fig. 138.
A tether is a straight or V-shaped strap that at
taches the top part of a child restraint to special anchorage points in the vehicle.
The purpose of the tether is to reduce the for
ward movement of the child restraint in a crash,
in order to help reduce the risk of head injury
that could be caused by striking the vehicle inte
rior.
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 safety seats.
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 Audi.
- Improper use of child restraint anchors (in
cluding tether anchors) can lead to injury in
a collision. The anchors are designed to
withstand only those loads imposed by cor rectly fitted child restraints .
- Never mount two child restraint systems on
one LATCH lower anchor point .
Child safety
- 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 belts or other kinds of occu
pant restraints.
- Never secure or attach any luggag e or other
items to the LATCH lower anchorages or to
the tether anchors.
- If a tether or other strap is used to attach a
child restraint to the front passenger seat,
make sure that it is not so tight, that it
causes the weight-sensing mat to measure more weight than is actually on the seat.
- The heavier weight registered can make the
Advanced Airbag System work as though an
adult were on the seat and deploy the Ad
vanced Airbag when it must be suppressed
causing serious or even fatal injury to the
child.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
147
Trailer mod e
Trailer mode
Driving with a trailer
General information
Your Audi was designed primarily for passenger
transportation.
If you plan to tow a trailer, please remember that
the additional load will affect durability, economy and performance.
Trailer towing not only places more stress on the
vehicle, it also calls for more concentration from
the driver.
F or this reason, always follow the operating and
driving instructions provided and use common
sense.
Technical requirements
Tr aile r hitch
Use a weight-carrying hitch conforming to the
gross trailer weight. The hitch must be suitable
for your veh icle and trailer and must be mounted
securely on the vehicle's chassis at a technically
sound
location . Use only a trailer hitch with a re
movable ball mount . Always check w ith the t rail
er hitch man ufact urer to make su re that you are
using the co rrect hitch .
Do not use a bump er hit ch .
The hitch must be installed in such a way that it
does not interfere with the impact -absorbing
bumper system. No mod ificat ions should be
made to the vehicle exhaust and brake systems .
From t ime to t ime, check that a ll hitch mount ing
bolts rema in securely fastened.
When you are not tow ing a tra iler, remove the
tra iler hitch ba ll mount . This prevents the hitch
from caus ing damage shou ld your veh icle be
s truck from be hind ¢
,&..
Trailer brakes
If your trailer is equipped with a brak ing system,
check to be sure that it conforms to all regula
tions .
164
The trailer hydraulic brake system must not be
directly connected to the vehicle's hydraulic
brake system ¢&. .
Safety chains
Always use safety chains between you r vehicle
and the trailer.
Trailer lights
Traile r lights must meet all regulations . Be sure
to check w ith your author ized Audi dealer for cor
r ec t wiring , switches, and relays.
M irrors
If you are unable to see the traffic behind you us
ing the regular outs ide mirrors, then you
must in
stall extended mirrors . It is important that you
always have clear vision to the rear.
.&_ WARNING
- If a tra ile r has e lectr ica l brakes p lease no te
t hat these brakes are not activated by the
factory-fit ted contro l unit -risk of accident!
- After removing the trai ler hitch, do not
store it in your vehicle. In case of sudden
braking, the hitch co uld fly forward and in
jure you or yo ur passengers.
- Never install a "we ight distribu ting" or
"load eq ualizing" trailer hitch on your vehi
cle. The vehicle was not designed for these
kinds of trailer hitches. The hitch attach ment can fail, caus ing the tra iler to tear
loose from the vehicle.
- The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating for your
veh icle, found on the safety compliance la
be l on the driver's s ide B-pillar, must never
be exceeded under any circumstances . Ex
ceed ing the Gross Vehicle Weight Rat ing of
your veh icle is likely to damage yo ur vehicle,
and such damage will not be covered by
your Limited New Vehicle Warranty . Exceed
ing the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating will al
so change the performance and handling
characteristics of your vehicle, which could
cause a crash result ing in serious injury or
death.
Operating instructions
6" r-2
~·~
1/2"
1·1/2"
ill
Fig. 143 Permitted ball pos ition of the trailer hitch
Trailer towing weights
With a
factory-installed or an aftermarket trailer
hitch, the maximum permissib le trailer weight is
2,200 lbs (1,000 kg). The maximum permiss ible
unbraked trailer weight is 1,650 lbs (750 kg).
These specifications apply when dr iv ing on roads
h av ing an incl ine of less than 12%.
Permissible tongue load
For best vehicle handling under these changed
conditions, adjust the trailer load so that the
tongue load is at the maximum allowable or
slightly lower. You can get an approximation of
the tongue load w ith a bathroom scale o r you can
measure the load at a trucking company or
weighing station.
With a
factory-installed or an aftermarket trailer
hit ch, the maximum permissib le load on the ball
hitch may not exceed 220 lbs (100 kg).
It is rec
ommended to use the maximum permissible
l oad.
Trailer load distribution Be sure the load in the trailer is held securely in
place to prevent it from s hiftin g forward, back
ward or sideways.
Never allow a passenger to ride in a trailer ¢.&.
in Driving instructions on page 166.
Ball mount
The trailer hitch may only be used w ith suitable
ball mount and ball¢
fig. 143. Installation of
the hitch ball must be carr ied out in accordance
with the manufacturer's instructions.
Trailer mode
Engine cooling system
To wing a trailer makes the engine work harder. It
is important that the cooling system's perform
ance is up to the additional load . Make sure that
the cooling system has enough fluid .
Tire pressure
When towing a trailer, inflate the tires of your
vehicle to th e cold tire pressure lis ted under "Full
load" on the tire pressure label. The tire pressu re
label is located on the driver's side B-pi llar . In
flate trailer t ires to trailer and tire manufactur
ers' specifications.
Lights
T he headlight settings shou ld be checked with
the trai ler attached before driving off. Check to
make s ure both vehicle and trailer lights are
working properly.
Safety chains
Be sure trailer safety chains are properly connect
ed from the trailer to the hitch on the vehicle.
Leave enough s lack in the chains to permit turn
ing corners . When you install safety chains, make
sure they will not drag on the road when you are
driv ing.
The chains should cross under the trai ler tongue
to prevent it from dropping in case of separation
from the hitch.
Driving instructions
Driving with o trailer always requires extra core
and consideration .
To obtain the best possib le handling of vehicle
and trailer, p lease note the following:
.. Do not tow a loaded trailer when your car itself
is not loaded.
.. Be especially care ful when passing other
vehicles .
.. Observe speed limits.
.. Do not drive at the maximum permissib le
speed.
.. Always apply brakes early.
.. Mon itor the temperature gauge .
165