Driving sa fe ty
Driving safety
Basics
Safe driving habits
Please remember -safety first!
This chapter contains important information,
tips, instruct ions and warn ings that you need to
read and observe for your own safety, the safety
of your passengers and others. We have summar ized here what you need to know about safety
be lts, a irbags, child restra ints as well as child
safety. Your safety is for us
priority number 1 . Al
ways observe the i nfo rmation and wa rn ings in
this section - for your own safety as well as that
of your passengers.
The information i n this section applies to all
model versions of yo ur vehicle . Some of the fea
tures descr ibed in t his sections may be s tanda rd
equipment on some models, or may be optional
equipment on others . If you are not sure, ask
your authorized Audi dealer.
A WARNING
- Always make sure that you follow the in
structions and heed the WARNINGS in th is
Manual.
It is in your interest and in the in
te rest of your passengers.
- Always keep the comp lete Owner's Litera
ture in your A udi when you lend or sell your
vehicle so that this important information
will always be available to the d river and
passenge rs.
- Always keep the Owner 's literature handy so
that you can find it easily if you have ques
t ions.
Safety equipment
The safety features are part of the occupant re
straint system and work together to help reduce
the risk of injury in a wide variety of occident si t
uations.
Your safety and the safety of your passenge rs
should not be left to chance. Advan ces i n tech
nology have made a var iety of features avai lab le
to help reduce t he risk of injury in an accident .
118
The following is a list of just a few of the sa fety
features in your Audi :
- sophis tica ted safety be lts fo r dr ive r and all pas-
senge r seat ing pos itions,
- safety belt p retensioners,
- safety belt force lim ite rs fo r th e front seats,
- safety belt he ight adjustment systems for the
front seats,
- front airbags,
- knee airbags for the front seats*
- side airbags in the front seats and outer rear
seats*,
- side curtain airbags with ejection mitigation
features,
- special LATCH anchorages for child restraints,
- head rest raints fo r ea ch seating position,
- adj ustab le steering col umn.
These ind iv idual safety features, can work to
ge ther as a system to help protect you and your
passengers in a wide range of acc idents. These
features canno t wo rk as a sys tem if they are not
alw ays cor rec tly adj usted and cor rect ly used.
Safety is everybody' s re sponsibility!
Important things to do before driving
Safety is everybody's job! Vehicle and occupant
safety always depends on the informed and care
ful driver .
For your safety and the safety of your passen
gers,
before driving alway s:
.. Make sure that a ll lights and signals are operat
ing correctly.
.. Make sure that the tire pressure is correct.
.,. Make sure that all windows are clean and afford
good visibility to the outs ide .
.. Sec ure all luggage and othe r items carefully
~page 62, ~ page 60.
.. Ma ke sure that noth ing ca n interfere wi th the
peda ls .
.. Adjust front seat, head restraint and mirrors
correctly for yo ur height .
.. Instruct passengers to adjust the head re
straints according to their he ight.
Driving safety
"' Always keep both feet in the footwell so that
you are in control of the vehicle at all times.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
driver's seat, see
c;, page 53.
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 steering wheel at the
12 o'clock position 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 su pplemen
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.
120
-
-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
c:;, page 159 . Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front
passenger seat
c:;, page 135.
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 following 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
c:;, page 121 . 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
c;,page 130.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
front passenger's seat, see
c:;, page 52 .
A WARNING
Front seat passengers who are unbelted, 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 part of their body too close to the area
where the airbags are located.
Ill-
-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 driving, 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 panel, out of the window, etc. The
airbag system and safety belt will not be
able to protect you properly and can even in
crease the risk of injury in a crash .
- 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
c> page 159. Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front
passenger seat
c> page 135.
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 risk of injury caused by an incorrect
seating position in the event of a sudden braking
maneuver or an accident, your passengers on the
rear bench seat must always observe the follow
ing:
Driving safety
.,. 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
c>page 121 .
.,. Keep both feet flat in the footwell in front of
the rear seat.
.,. Fasten and wear safety belts properly
c> page 130.
.,. Make sure that children are always properly re
strained in a child restraint that is appropriate
for their size and ager:!;>
page 159.
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
App lies to: vehicles with adjusta ble head restraints
Correctly adjusted head restraints are 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. 142 Head restraint: viewed from the front
121
Driving sa fe ty
The head restraints must be correc tly adjusted to
achieve the best protection .
.,. Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge is
as even as poss ible 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 ib le ¢
fig . 142. Move the head restraint so
that it is as close to the back of the head as
poss ible.
Adjusting head restraints ¢
page 55.
A WARNING
All seats are equipped with head restraints.
Dr iv ing without head restraints or with head
restraints that are not properly adjusted in
creases the risk of ser ious or fatal nec k inju ry
dramatically. To help reduce the r isk of injury:
-Always dr ive with the head restraints in
place and properly adj usted .
- 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 uppe r edge is as
even as possib le w ith the top of you r head.
If that is not possib le, t ry to adjust the head
restra int so that it is as close to th is posi tion
as possib le. Move the head restr aint so that
it is as close to the back of the head as pos
sible.
- Never attempt to adjus t head restraint
whi le driving. If you have dr iven off and
must adjust the driver headrest for any rea
son, first stop the vehicle sa fely before at
tempting to ad just the head restra int.
- Children must always be proper ly restrained
in a chi ld restraint that is appropriate for
their age and size
¢page 159.
Examples of improper seating positions
The occupant restraint system can only reduce
the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are properly
seated.
Imp roper seating positions can cause se rious in
jury or deat h. Safety belts can only work when
122
they a re prope rly positioned on t he body . Im
proper seating positions reduce the effectiveness
of safety belts and will even increase t he risk of
i njury and death by moving the safety belt to cr it
i ca l areas of the body. Improper seating positions
also increase the r isk of serious i nju ry and death
whe n an airbag deploys and str ikes a n occupant
who is not in the proper sea ting posit io n. A dr iver
i s respons ible fo r th e safety of al l veh icle occu
pan ts and espe cially for children . Therefore:
.,. Never allow anyone to assume a n incor rect
seating position when the vehicle is being used
¢ _& .
The following bulletins list only some samp le po
s it ions that will increase the r is k of se rious injury
and death . Our hope is that t hese examples w ill
make yo u mo re awa re of seating posi tions that
are dangerous .
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is moving:
- never stand up in the vehicle
- never stand on the seats
- neve r kneel on the seats
- neve r ride wit h the seatback reclined
- never lie down on the rear seat
- neve r lean up aga inst the ins trumen t pa nel
- neve r sit on the edge of the seat
- never s it sideways
- never lean out the window
- never put your feet out the window
- never p ut your feet on the instr ument panel
- never rest your feet on the seat c ushion or back
of t he seat
- neve r ride in the footwell
- neve r ride in the ca rgo a rea
A WARNING
I mp roper se ating positions inc re ase the risk
of ser ious personal inju ry and dea th whenever
a vehicle is being used.
- Always make sure that all veh icle occupants
s tay in a pro per seating posit ion and a re
properly restrained whenever the vehicle is
be ing used .
....
Safety belts
General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety belts are neces
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them correctly.
~ Read all the information that follows and heed
all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Safety belts are the single most effective
means available to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents.
For your protection and that of your passen
gers, always correctly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving.
- Pregnant women, injured, o r physically im
paired persons must also use safety belts.
Like all vehicle occupants, they are more
likely to be seriously injured if they do not
wear safety belts. The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mother -throughout
the entire pregnancy.
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of four seating positions:
two in the front and two in the rear. Each seating position has a safety belt.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Never strap more than one person, includ
ing small children, into any belt.
It is espe
cially dangerous to place a safety belt over a
N child sitting on your lap. er:
~ -Never let more people ride in the vehicle
~ than there are safety belts available. Lil
N v:, ......
Safety belts
-Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained with a separate safety
belt or child restraint.
, ff. 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. 143 Safety belt warn ing light in the instrument clus
te r -enlarged
Before driving off, always:
.. Fasten your safety belt and make sure you are
wearing it properly.
.,, N
"' 0 ..:, ., m
~ Make sure that your passengers also buckle up
and properly wear their safety belts .
~ Protect children w ith a ch ild restraint system
appropr iate for the size and age .
The warning light . in the instrument cluster
lights up when the ignit ion is on as a reminder to
fasten the safety belts. In addition, you wil l hear
a warning tone for a certain period of time.
Fasten your safety belt and make sure that your
passengers also properly put on their safety
belts.
A WARNING
-
- Safety belts are the sing le most effective
means available to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents.
For your protection and that of your passen
gers, a lways correctly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving .
- Failure to pay attention to the warning light
that come on, could lead to personal injury.
127
Never rely on airbags alone for protection. Even
when they deploy, airbags provide on ly additional
protection. Airbags are not supposed to dep loy in
all kinds of accidents. A lthough your Audi is
equipped with airbags, all vehicle occupants, in
cluding the dr iver, 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 always there
to offer protect ion in those accidents in w hich
a ir bags are not supposed to deploy or when they
have already deployed. Unbelted occupants can
also be thrown o ut of the vehicle where even
more severe or fatal injur ies can occur.
It is also important for the rear passengers to
wear safety belts correctly . Unbelted passengers
in the rear seats endanger not only themse lves
but also the driver and other passengers
¢ fig. 147. In a frontal collision they will be
thrown forward violently, where they can hit and
injure 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!
Fig. 148 Dr iver is correctly restra ined in a sudden b raking
maneuver
Safety belts used properly can make a big differ
ence. Safety belts help to keep passengers in
their seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap
plied to the body in an accident, and help prevent
the uncontrolled movement that can cause se ri
ous injur ies. In addition, safety belts reduce the
danger of being thrown out of the vehicle.
Safety belts
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and give
them the benefit of being slowed down more
gently or "softly" through the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety features engi
neered into today's vehicles. By "absorbing" the
kinetic ene rgy over a longer period of time, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more
"tolerab le" and less likely to ca use injury .
Although these examples are based on a frontal collision, safety be lts can also substantially re
duce the r isk of injury in other k inds of crashes.
So, whether you're on a long trip or just going to
the corner store, always buckle up and make sure
others do, too. Acciden t statist ics show that vehi
cle occupants properly wearing safety belts have
a lower risk of being injured and a much better
chance of surviving an accident . Properly using
safety belts also greatly increases the ability of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col
lision. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is le
gally required in most count ries 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 example, are activated only in some
frontal collisions. The front airbags are not act i
vated in all frontal collisions, in side and rear col
lisions , in roll overs or in cases where there is not
enough deceleration through impact to the front
of the vehicle. The same goes for the other air bag
systems in your Audi . So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained!
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 belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
129
Safe ty belts
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
that expectant mothers always wear safety belts
corre ctly -throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 151 Safety belt pos ition during pregnancy
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be posit ioned correctly on the wear
er's body
¢ page 131.
... Adjust the front seat and ad justable head re
straint* correctly ¢
page 52, General informa
tion .
... Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest and pelv is
r::;, fig. 151 , ¢ _&..
... Inse rt the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch secure ly
¢page 130, fig. 149.
... Pull on t he be lt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buck le .
A WARNING
Improperly pos itioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious persona l injury in an accident.
- Expectant mothers must a lways wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as pos
sible across the pelvis and below the round ing of the abdomen .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information¢ &.
in Fasten
ing safety belts on page 131.
132
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only ofter the vehicle hos stopped.
.,,
Fig . 15 2 Releasing the tongue from the buckle
... Push the red re lease button on the buck le
r:::;, fig. 152. The belt tongue wi ll spring out of
the buck le
r::;, A .
... Let the belt wind up on the retractor as yo u
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is
moving . Do ing so will increase your r isk of be
ing inj ured or killed .
Adjusting safety belt he ight
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust
ment, the three point safety belt strop routing
con be fitted to the shoulder area, according to
body size.
F ig . 153 Safety belt height adj ustment for the front seats
- loop -around fittings
0 ,-. N 0 :i: .. m
The shoulder be lt shou ld lie as close to the center
of the co llar bo ne as poss ible and s hou ld fit well
o n the body
r::;, .&. in Safe ty belt posi tion on
page 131. ..,,.
~ Push the loop-around fittings up qfig. 153 @,
or
~ squeeze together the(!) button, and push the
loop-around fittings
do wn@ .
~ Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at
tachment is properly engaged .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth
er important informat ion
qpage 129.
With the front seats, the height adjustment
of the seat can also be used to adjust the po
sition of the safety belts.
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause se
vere injuries.
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause seri
ous injury or death. Safety belts can only work
when they are correctly pos itioned on the body .
Improper seating positions reduce the effect ive
n ess of safety be lts and will
even i ncrease the
ris k of injury and death by mov ing the safety belt
to cr it ica l areas of the body. Imp roper seating
positions also increase the risk of serious inj ury
and death when an airbag deploys and strikes an
occ upant who is not in the correct seat ing posi
tion. A driver is respons ible for the safety of all
vehicle occupants and espec ia lly for children.
Therefore:
~ Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect
s itting position in the veh icle wh ile traveling
Q A .
A WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts increase the risk
of serious personal injury and death wheneve r
a vehicle is be ing used.
- Always make sure that al l vehicle occupants
are correctly restra ined and stay in a co rrect
seating pos it io n whenever the ve hicle is be
ing used.
S afet y be lts
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important in format ion
q page 129.
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear-end collisions above a
particular severity and in a rollover, safety belts are tensioned automatically.
Rever sible safety belt tensioner s
The safety belts on the front seats are equipped
with power reversible tensioners. The following
funct ions are available when the dr iver's/front
passenger's safety belts are fastened:
- Automatic tens ioners: at the start of a drive,
the safety belts automatically adjust to the passenger after a certain time period or vehicle
speed. To switch the automatic tensioners off,
select the following in the MMI :
!CARI function
button
> (Car )* system s > Vehicle setting s >
Seats > Driver's seat or Passeng er' s s eat > Au
tom atic belt ten sioner
> Off .
- In certain driving situations, the safety bel ts
may tighten w it h a reve rsib le tensioning func
tion
q page 177.
-The safety be lts may also tigh ten with this re-
versible tension ing function in m inor collisions.
Pyrotechnic safety belt pretens ioners
The safety belts are equipped w it h safety belt
prete nsioners. The system is activated by sensors
in front, side and rear -end collisions of great se
verity and in a ro llover. This tightens the belt and
takes up belt slack
q .& in Service and disposal of
safety belt pretensioner on page 134.
Taking up
the slack he lps to reduce forward occupant
movement during a collision.
A WARNING
--
- It is poss ible for the pretensioners to dep loy
incorrectly.
- The pyrotechnic system can only provide
protection for one collision. If the pyrotech
n ic pretens ioners deploy, the pretensioning
system must be replaced.
133