2016 AUDI S7 warning

A WARNING ,~
Improper seating positions increase the risk
of serious personal injury and death whenever
a vehicle is be ing used.
- Always make sure that all vehicle occupants
stay in a proper seating position and are
properly restrained whenever the vehicle is
being used.
Driver's and front
passenger's footwell
Important safety instructions
Applies to vehicles: with knee airbags
A WARNING
Always make sure that the knee a irbag can in­
flate without interference . Objects between
yourself and the airbag can increase the risk of injury in an accident by interfering with the
way the airbag deploys or by being pushed in­
to you as the airbag deploys.
- No persons (chi ldren) or animals should ride
in the footwell in front of the passenger
seat. If the airbag deploys, this can result in
serious or fatal injuries.
- No objects of any k ind shou ld be carried in
the footwe ll area in front of the dr iver's or
passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shopp ing
bags, for example) can hamper or p revent
proper deployment of the airbag . Small ob­
jects can be thrown thro ugh the vehi cle if
the a irbag deploys and injure you or you r
passenge rs .
Pedal area
Pedals
The pedals must always be free to move and
must never be interfered with by a floor mat or
any other object.
Make sure that all pedals move freely witho ut in-
~ terference and that noth ing prevents them from
j returning to their original pos it ions .
'SI:
~ Only use floor mats that leave the peda l area free 1.1'1
~ and can be secured with floor mat fasteners . ......
Drivin g s afet y
If a brake circuit fai ls, increased brake pedal trav­
el is required to bring the vehicle to a full stop.
A WARNING
-Pedals that cannot move free ly can cause loss
of vehicle control and increase the risk of ser i­
ous injury.
- Never p lace any objects in the driver's foot­
well. An object could get into the pedal area
and interfere with pedal function. In case of
sudden braking or an accident, you would
not be able to b rake or accelerate!
- Always make sure that nothing can fall or
move into the d river's footwell.
Floor mats on the driver side
Always use floor mats that can be securely at­
tached to the floor mat fasteners and do not in­
terfere with the free movement of the pedals .
.. Make sure that the floor mats are properly se-
cured and cannot move and interfere with the
pedals¢ .&,.
Use only floor mats that leave the peda l area un­
obstructed and that are firmly secured so that
they cannot slip out of position . You can obtain
su itable floor mats from your authorized Aud i
Dealer .
Floor mat fasteners are insta lled in your Audi.
Floor mats used in yo ur vehicle must be attached
to these fasteners. Properly sec uring the floor
mats will prevent them from s liding into posi­
t ions that could interfere with the pedals or im­
pair safe operation of your vehicle in other ways .
A WARNING ~
Pedals that cannot move freely can result in a
l oss of vehicle control and increase the risk of
se rious pe rsonal injury.
- Always ma ke sure that floor mats a re prop­
erly secured .
- Never p lace or install floor mats or other
f loor cove rings in the vehicle that cannot be
properly secu red in p lace to prevent them
from slipp ing and in terfering wi th the ped-
als o r the ab ility to cont rol the vehicle.
~
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Driving safety
-Never place or install floor mats or other
floor coverings on top of already installed
floor mats. Additional floor mats and other coverings will reduce the size of the pedal
area and interfere with the pedals .
- Always properly reinstall and secure floor
mats that have been taken out for cleaning .
- Always make sure that objects cannot fall
into the driver footwell while the vehicle is
moving . Objects can become trapped under
the brake pedal and accelerator pedal caus­ ing a loss of veh icle control.
Storing cargo correctly
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be properly
stowed and secured in the luggage compart­
ment.
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift suddenly, changing vehicle handling charac ­
teristics. Loose items can also increase the risk of
serious personal injury in a sudden vehicle ma­
neuver or in a collision.
.. Distribute the load evenly in the luggage com­
partment.
.. Always place and properly secure heavy items in
the luggage compartment as far forward as
possible.
.. Secure luggage using the tie-downs provided
¢ page 63, Luggage compartment.
.,. Make sure that the rear seatback is securely
latched in place .
_& WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items can
fly through the vehicle causing serious per­
sonal injury in the event of hard braking or an
accident. To help reduce the risk of serious
personal injury:
- Always put objects, for example, luggage or
other heavy items in the luggage compart­
ment.
- Always secure objects in the luggage com­
partment using the tie-down hooks and
suitable straps.
132
_& WARNING ~ -
Heavy loads will influence the way your vehi­
cle handles. To help reduce the r isk of a loss
of control leading to serious personal injury:
- Always keep in mind when transporting
heavy objects, that a change in the center of
gravity can also cause changes in vehicle
handling:
- Always distribute the load as evenly as
possible .
- Place heavy objects as far forward in the luggage compartment as possible.
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating
or the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating specified
on the safety compliance sticker on the left
door jamb. Exceeding permissible weight
standards can cause the vehicle to slide and
handle differently .
- Please observe information on safe driving
¢page 126.
_& WARNING
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas from
being drawn into the vehicle, always keep the
rear lid closed wh ile driving .
- Never transport objects larger than those
fitting completely into the luggage area be­
cause the rear lid cannot be fully closed .
- If you absolutely must drive with the rear lid open, observe the following notes to reduce
the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the power roof*,
- Open all a ir outlets in the instrument pan-
el,
- Switch off the air rec irculat ion,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest speed.
_& WARNING
Always make sure that the doors, all windows,
the power roof* and the rear lid are securely
closed and locked to reduce the risk of injury
when the vehicle is not be ing used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make sure
-
that it is properly closed and locked. ~

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-Never leave your vehicle unattended espe­
cially w ith the rear lid left open. A chi ld
could crawl into the vehicle through the lug­
gage compartment and close the rear lid be­
coming trapped and unable to get out . Be­
ing trapped in a vehicle can lead to serious
persona l inju ry.
- Never let children play in or around the vehi­
cle.
- Never let passengers r ide in the luggage
compartment . Veh icle occupants m ust al­
ways be properly restrained in one of the ve­
hicle's seat ing pos itions.
-Air c irculation helps to reduce window fog­
ging . Stale air escapes to the outside
th rough vents in the trim pane l. Be su re to
k eep the se slots free and open.
- The t ire pressure must correspond to the
l oad. The t ire pressure is shown o n the tire
pres sure label. T he tire pressure l abe l is lo­
cated on the d river 's side B-pi llar . The t ire
pressure label lists the recommended cold
tire inflation pressures for the vehicle at its max imum capacity weight and the t ires that
were on your vehicle at the time it was man­
ufactured. For recommended tire pressures
for normal load cond it ions, please see chap­
te r
c:> page 244.
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with four
tie-downs to secure luggage and other items.
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo properly
c:> page 132, Loading the luggage compartment.
I n a collision, the laws of physics mean that even
sma ller items that are loose in the vehicle wi ll
become heavy miss iles that can cause serious in­
jury . Items in the vehicle possess energy which
vary with vehicle speed and the weight of the
item . Vehicle speed is the most s ignificant factor .
For example, in a frontal collis ion at a speed of
30 mph (48 km/h), the forces acting on a 10-lb
(4 .5 kg) object are about 20 times the normal
weight of the item. This means that the we ight
Dr ivin g s afet y
of the item would sudden ly be about
200 lbs. (90 kg) . You can imagine the injuries
that a 200 lbs. (90 kg) item flying freely through
the passenger compartment co uld cause in a col­
li sion like this.
A WARNING
=
Weak, damaged or imprope r straps used to
secure items to tie-downs can fail during ha rd
b raking o r in a coll is ion and cause serious per­
sona l injury.
- Always use su itable mount ing straps and
p roperly secu re items to the tie-downs in
the l uggage compa rtment to he lp prevent
items from sh ifting or flying forw ard as dan­
ge ro us m issi les.
- W hen the rea r seat backrest is folded down,
always use s uitable mo unt ing straps and
properly secu re items to the tie -downs in
the l uggage compa rtment to he lp prevent
items from f ly ing forward as dangerous mis­
siles into the passenger compartment.
- Never attach a chi ld safety seat tether strap
to a tie-down.
-
Reporting Safety Defects
Applicable to U.S.A.
If you belie ve that your vehicle
has a def ect which could cause a
c rash or could cau se injur y or
de ath, you should imm ediately in­
form the National High way Traffic
S afet y Adm ini stration (NHTSA) in
a ddition to notif yin g Audi of
America, In c.
If NHT SA re ceive s similar com­
pl aint s, it may open an inv estig a­
tion , and if it finds that a safety
defe cts exists in a group of
ve hicles, it may ord er a recall and .,
133

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Safety belts
General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter exp lains why safety be lts are neces­
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them cor rectly.
~ Read a ll the information that fo llows 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 sing le most effective
means availab le to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents.
For yo ur protection and that of your passen­
gers, always correct ly wear safety belts
when the veh icle is moving.
- Preg nant women, injured, or physically im­
paired pe rsons must also use safety belts.
Lik e all ve hicle occupants, t hey are more
likely to be seriously injured if they do not
wea r safety belts . The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mother -througho ut
the entire pregnancy.
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of four seating positions:
two in the front and two in the rear. In some
ve hicles, there are five seat ing positions: two in
the front and th ree in the rear . Each seat ing pos i­
tion has a safety belt.
A WARNING
N ot wea ring safety bel ts or wearing them im­
prope rly i ncrea ses the r is k of se rious person al
injury and death.
- Never st rap more than o ne pe rson, in cl ud ­
ing small c hildren, in to any bel t. It is espe­
c ially dangerous to place a sa fety belt over a
child sitting on your lap.
Sa fety bel ts
- Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are safety belts available.
- Be s ure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained with a separate safety
belt or child restraint.
~ Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle has a warning system for the driver
and front seat passenger (on USA models only)
to remind you about the importance of buckling­
up.
Fi g. 146 Safety belt warni ng light in the instr ument clus­
te r -en larged
Befor e dr iv ing off , always :
~ Fasten yo ur safety belt and make su re you are
wearing it properly.
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~ Make sure that your passengers also buck le up
and properly wear their safety belts.
~ Protect childre n w ith a child restraint system
app rop riate for the s ize and age .
The warning lig ht . in the instrument cluster
li ghts up when the ignit ion is on as a reminder to
fasten the safety belts . In add ition, you will hear
a warn ing tone for a certa in pe riod of time .
Fasten your safety belt and make sure that your
passengers al so properly put on their safety
belts .
A WARNING
-
-Safety belts are the s ingle most effective
means ava ilable to reduce t he risk of se rious
inj ury and death in au tomobile acc iden ts.
F or your protec tion and that of your passen ­
ge rs, always correctly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving .
13 5

Safety belts
-Failure to pay attention to the warning light
that come on, could lead to personal injury.
Why use safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for peo­
ple riding in vehicles.
F ig. 147 Unbelted occupants in a vehicle heading for a wall
Fig . 148 The vehicle crashes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the vehi­
cle and the passengers possess energy which var­ies with vehicle speed and body weight. Engi­
neers call this energy "kinetic energy."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the
greater the vehicle's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash.
Vehicle speed is the most significant factor.
If the
speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to 50 km/
h), the energy increases 4 times!
Because the passengers of this vehicle are not us­
ing safety belts¢
fig . 147, they will keep moving
at the same speed the vehicle was moving just
before the crash, until something stops them -
here, the wa ll
c> fig. 148.
136
The same principles apply to people sitting in a
vehicle that is invo lved in a frontal collision. Even
at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50 km/h),
the forces acting on the body can reach one ton
(2,000 lbs, or 1,000 kg) or more. At greater
speeds, these forces are even higher .
Peop le who do not use safety belts are also not
attached to their vehicle. In a fronta l co llision
they will also keep moving forward at the speed
their vehicle was travelling just before the crash.
Of course, the laws of phys ics don't just apply to
frontal coll is ions, they determine what happens
in all kinds of accidents and collisions.
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in­
jured or killed. Always wear your safety belts!
Fig. 149 A driver not wearing a safety belt is violently
thrown forwar d
Fig. 150 A rear passenge r not wea ring a safety belt will fly
forward and strike the drive r
Unbelted occupa nts are not able to resist the t re­
mendous forces of impact by holding tight or
bracing themselves. Without the benefit of safe ­
ty restraint systems, the unrestrained occupant
will slam violently into the steering wheel, .,.

Safety belts
_&. WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death . Safety belts can work only
when used correctly .
- Always fasten your safety belts correctly be­
fore driving off and make sure all passen­
gers are correctly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must
always be positioned properly on the body .
- Never strap more than one person, includ­
ing small children, into any belt .
- Never place a safety belt over a child sitting
on your lap .
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front of
the seat while the vehicle is being driven .
- Never let any person ride with their feet on
the instrument panel or sticking out the
window or on the seat .
- Never
remove a safety belt while the vehicle
is moving . Doing so will increase your risk of
being injured or killed .
- Never wear belts twisted .
- Never wear belts
over rigid or breakable ob-
jects in or on your clothing, such as eye
glasses, pens, keys, etc ., as these may cause
injury .
- Never allow safety belts to become dam­
aged by being caught in door or seat hard ­
ware.
- Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt
under your arm or otherwise out of position .
- Several layers of heavy clothing may inter­
fere with correct positioning of belts and re ­
duce the overall effectiveness of the system.
- Always keep belt buckles free of anything
that may prevent the buckle from latching
securely .
- Never use comfort clips or devices that cre­
ate slack in the shoulder belt. However, spe­
cial clips may be required for the proper use
of some child restraint systems.
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt hardware can break in an acci­
dent . Inspect belts regularly. If webbing,
bindings, buckles, or retractors are dam-
138
aged, have belts replaced by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
- Safety belts that have been worn and loaded
in an accident must be replaced with the
correct replacement safety belt by an au­
thorized Audi dealer. Replacement may be
necessary
even if damage cannot be clearly
seen. Anchorages that were loaded must al­
so be inspected.
- Never
remove, modify, disassemble, or try
to repair the safety belts yourself .
-Always keep the belts clean . Dirty belts may
not work properly and can impair the func­
tion of the inertia reel¢
table on page 207.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 152 Be lt buckl e and to ngue o n th e dri ver's se at
To provide maximum protection, s afety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wea r­
er's body.
... Adjust the front seat and head restra int proper ­
ly ¢
page 52, General informa tion.
... Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench is
in an upright position and securely latched in
place before using the belt
q &_ .
.,. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest and pelvis ¢&_ .
.,. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
¢fig. 152.
... Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle .
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Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safe ty belt is eq uipped w ith an automatic
be lt re tractor on the shou lder belt. This fea ture
l ocks the belt when the be lt is pulled o ut fast ,
d uring hard braking and in an accident . The belt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
h ill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv­
ing the belt lets you move free ly.
Safety belt preten sioner s
The safety belts are equipped w ith a be lt p reten ­
sioner that helps to tighten the safety belt and
remove s lack when the pretensioner is activated
c::> page 141. The funct ion of the pretensioner is
monitored by a warni ng light
c::> page 18.
Convert ible locking ret ra ctor
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertib le locking retrac­
tor that
m ust be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
c::> page 177 .
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can ca use
ser ious injury in an a cci dent
c::> page 139,
Safety belt position .
-Safety belts offe r optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Always make sure that t he rear seat back­
re st to which the cente r rear safety belt* is
attached is securely latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used . If the
backrest is not securely latched, the passen ­
ger will move forward with the backrest dur­
ing sudden braking, i n a sudden maneuver
and especially in a crash.
- Never attac h the sa fety belt to the buck le
for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong buckle will reduce safety be lt effec­
t iveness and can cause serious personal in­
jury.
- A passenger who is not p roperly rest rained
can be seriously in ju red by the safety belt it­
self when it moves from t he stronger parts
Safety belts
of the body into critical areas like the abdo­
men .
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when yo u are secur ing a chi ld seat in the ve­
hicle
c::> page 179.
@ Tips
For information on safety belt pretensione rs,
r efer to
c::> page 141.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting ma xi­
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig . 1 53 Safety belt posit ion
Use the height adjustme nt to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
A WARNING ~
Imp roperly posit ioned safety be lts can cause
se riou s pe rsonal injury in an accident.
- The s hou lder belt should lie as close to the
ce nter of the collar bone as possib le and
should fi t well on the body. Hold the bel t
above the latch tongue and pull it evenly
across the ches t so t hat it sits as low as pos ­
sib le on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should always fit
snug ly
c::> fig. 153. Pu ll on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can ca use serio us
in juries by shifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable, soft t issue and cause serious injury .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information<=:>
page 137.
139

Safety 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
correctly -throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 154 Safety belt posit ion during pregnancy
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be pos itioned correctly on the wear­
er's body ¢
page 139 .
... Adjust the front seat and adjustab le head re­
stra int* correctly ¢
page 52, General informa­
tion .
... Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest and pelvis¢
fig. 154, ¢ ,.&. .
... Inse rt the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
¢page 138, fig . 152.
... Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious personal injury in an accident.
- Expectant mothers must always 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
¢ A in Fasten­
ing safety belts on page 139 .
140
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped.
.,,
Fig. 155 Re leasing th e tongue from th e buckle
... Push the red release button on the buckle
¢ fig. 155. The belt tongue will spring out of
the buckle
¢ A.
... Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is
moving . Doing so will increase your risk of be­
ing injured or killed .
Adjusting safety belt height
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust­
ment, the three point safety belt strap routing
can be fitted to the shoulder area, according to
body size.
Fig. 156 Safety belt heigh t adjustment for the front seats
- loop -around fittings
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The shoulder belt should lie as close to the center
of the collar bone as possible and should fit well
on the body
¢ ,.&. in Safety belt position on
page 139.
~