
Airbag syste m
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal
led on the front passenger seat wi ll be seri
ously injured and can be killed if the front air
bag inflates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the front
airbag when a rearward-facing child re
straint has been installed on the front pas
senger seat, nobody can absolutely guaran
tee that deployment is impossible in all con
ceivable s ituations that may happen dur ing
the usef ul life o f you r vehicle.
- The inf lating a irbag w ill hit the child seat or
infa nt carrier w ith great force and w il l
smash the ch ild seat and child agains t the
backrest, center armrest, door, or roo f.
- Always insta ll rearward -facing child re
straints on the rear sea t.
-If you mus t install a rearward facing chi ld
seat on the fron t passenger sea t beca use of
exceptional circ umstances and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on
and stay on, immediately install the rear
facing child seat in a rear seating position
and have the a irbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional c ircumstances, 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 for use on a front seat wit h a pas
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forwa rd-facing child rest raint
up against or ve ry nea r the instrument pan
el.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the se at's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air
bag as possib le, before installing the fo r
war d-fac ing c hild restraint . The backrest
must be adjuste d to an up right position .
150
-
-Always ma ke sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that w ill cause the
capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occup ied by a person when i t is
not, or to s ignal that it is occupied by some
one who is heavier than the person a ctua lly
si tti ng on the se at. T he presence of addi
tional objects could cause the p assenger
front airbag to be turned on when it s hou ld
be off, or co uld cause the a irbag to wo rk in a
way that is different from the way it would
have worked without the object on the seat.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OF F light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignit ion is switched on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a lot
of very impo rtant parts of the Advanced A irbag
System i n it. T hese pa rts include the capacitive
passenger detection system, wir ing, b ra ckets,
and more. The control u nit mon itors the system
o n the fron t passenger seat when the ign it ion is
swi tched on and turns the airbag indica tor ligh t
o n when a malfunction in the one of the system
components is detected~
page 155. Because
the front passenger seat contains important
parts of the Adv a need A irbag System, you must
take care to prevent it from being damaged .
Damage to the seat may prevent the Advanced
A irbag System for the front passenger seat from
do ing its job in a crash.
The front Advanced Airbag Sy stem consists
of the following:
- Cras h sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measu re vehicle acceleration/deceleration to
provide i nfo rmat ion to the Advanced Airbag
System abo ut the sever ity of the cr ash.
- An ele ct ro nic contro l unit, with integrated
crash sensor s for front and s ide impac ts. The
cont ro l uni t "dec ides" whether to fire the fron t
airbags based on the information received from
the crash se nsors . The control unit a lso "de
cides" whether the sa fety belt pretensioners
should be activated. ..,_

-An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control valve for the driver inside the steering
wheel hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control valve inside the instrument panel for
the front passenger .
- A capacitive passenger detection system under
neath the front passenger seat cover. This sys
tem measures the electrical capacitance of the
person in the seat. The information registered
is sent continuously to the electronic control
unit to regulate deployment of the front Ad
vanced Airbag on the passenger side .
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
light in the instrument cluster~
page 154.
-A sensor in each front seat registers the dis
tance between the respective seat and the steering wheel or instrument panel. The infor
mation registered is sent continuously to the
electronic control unit to regulate deployment
of the front Advanced Airbags.
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on in the center of the instrument
panel ~
page 155, fig. 160 and tells you when
the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned
off.
- A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driver
and for the front seat passenger that senses
whether that safety belt is latched or not and
transmits this information to the electronic control unit.
A WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can pre
vent the front airbag from working properly.
- Improper repair or disassembly of the front
passenger and driver seat will prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from functioning properly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must be
performed by qualified and properly trained
workshop personnel.
- Never remove the front passenger or driver
seat from the vehicle.
~ - Never remove the upholstery from the front <(
~ passenger seat.
~ -Never disassemble or remove parts from the 1.1'1
N seat or disconnect wires from it. ID ......
Airbag system
-Never carry sharp objects in your pockets or
put them on the seat. The capacitive pas
senger detection mat in the front passenger
seat will not function properly if it is punc
tured.
- Never carry things on your lap or carry ob
jects on the front passenger seat . Such ob
jects can influence the capacitance regis
tered by the capacitive passenger detection
system, so that incorrect information is pro
vided to the airbag control unit.
- Never store items under the front passenger
seat. Parts of the Advanced Airbag System
under the passenger seat could be dam
aged, preventing them and the airbag sys
tem from working properly.
- Never place seat covers or replacement up
holstery that have not been specifically ap
proved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Air
bag System from recognizing child re
straints or occupants on the front passenger
seat and prevent the side airbag in the seat
backrest from deploying properly.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restraint system on
this seat.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets, or
similar items on the front passenger seat .
The additional layers prevent the capacitive
passenger detection system from accurately
measuring the capacitance of the child safe
ty seat and/or the person on the seat and
thus keep the Advanced Airbag System from
working properly.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket. Such
devices can influence the capacitance regis
tered by the capacitive passenger detection
system, so that incorrect information is pro
vided to the airbag control unit.
- If you must use a child restraint on the front
passenger seat and the child restraint
~
151

Airb ag syst em
manufacturer's instructions require the use
of a towel, foam cushion or something else
to properly position the child restraint,
make certain that the
PA SSE NGE R A IR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever
the chi ld restraint is insta lled on the front
passenge r seat.
- If the PA SSEN GER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immed iate ly in
sta ll c hild restra int in a rear seating position
and have the a irbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer .
_& WARNING
If the front passenger seat gets we t, dry i t i m
mediately .
- If liquid soaks into the front passenger sea t,
this can keep the airbag system from work
ing properly and may, for instance, deacti
vate the passenger frontal airbag. If th is
happens, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on and stay on together with
the airbag ind icator light
fl in the inst ru
ment cluster.
- If liquid is poo led on the seat, but has not
soaked in, this may a lso keep the airbag sys
tem from work ing properly and cause the
passenge r frontal a irbag to be enab led
(turned on), even tho ugh there is a properly
insta lled child restraint system on the sea t.
Wet towels or other wet things on the seat cus hion can have the same effect .
If the
front passenger fronta l airbag is turned on,
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light light
will go out.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The fron t Advanced A irbag System and the s ide
a ir bags s upplement the prote ction offered by the
front three-point s afety be lts wi th pre tensioners
a nd load limiters and the adjustable head re
straints * to he lp red uce the risk of i njury in a
wide range of acc ident and crash situations . Be
sure to read the important informat ion about
safety and heed the WARNINGS in this chapter.
152
Deployment of the Advanced A irbag System and
the activation of the safety belt pretensioners de
pend on the dece leration meas ured by the crash
sensors and registered by the electronic control unit. Crash severity depends on speed and decel
eration as we ll as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object involved in the crash .
On the passenger side, regardless of safety belt
use, the front passenger frontal airbag will be
turned
off if the electrical capacitance measured
by the capacitive passenge r detection system on
the front passenger seat is less than the amount programmed in the electronic cont rol uni t. T he
fron t passenger frontal airbag will a lso be turned
off if the capac itance meas ured by the sys tem for
the front passenger seat equals that of an infant of about one year of age in one of the chi ld seats
that was used to certify the Advanced Airbag Sys
tem under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208. The
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on a nd stays on to tell you when the front Ad
vanced Airbag System on the passe nger side has
been t urned
off ¢ page 155.
_& WARNING
To reduce the ris k of inj ury w hen an a irbag i n
fla tes, a lways wear safety belts prope rly.
- If you are unrestra ined, leaning forward, sit
ting sideways or out of posit io n in any way,
your r isk of injury is much higher.
- You will also receive se rious injuries and
co uld even be killed if yo u are up ag ains t t he
ai rbag or too close to it when i t inflates -
eve n with an Advanced Airbag
¢ page 143.
More important things to know about front
airbags
Fig . 159 Inflated fro nt a irbags
" "' 0 ± ., a,

Safety belts are important to help keep front seat
occupants in the proper seated position so that
airbags can unfold proper ly and provide supple
mental protection in a frontal collision.
The front airbags are designed to provide addi
tional protection for the chest and face of the
driver and the front seat passenger when:
- sa fety belts are worn properly,
- the seats have been posit ioned so that the oc-
c u pant is properly seated as far as poss ib le
from the airbag,
- and for adjustable head restraints: the head re -
stra ints have been properly adjusted.
Because airbags inflate in the blink of an eye w ith
g reat force, things you have on your lap or h ave
p laced on the seat cou ld become dangerous p ro
jectiles, and be pus hed into yo u if the airbag in
flates.
W hen an a irbag deploys, fine dust is released.
This is normal and is not caused by a fire in the
ve hicl e. This dust is made up mos tly of a powde r
used to lubricate the airbags as they deploy. It
could irritate skin.
I t is impor tan t to remember that while the sup
p lemental air bag sys tem is designed to reduce
the likelihood o f se rious injuries, othe r injuries,
for example swe lling, bruising and minor abra
sions, can also happen when airbags inflate . Air
bags do not protect the arms or the lower parts
of the body. Front airbags supplement the three
point safety belts only in some frontal collisions
in which the veh icle deceleration is h igh enough
to deploy the airbags .
Front airbags will not deploy:
- if the ignit ion is switched off when a crash oc-
curs,
- in side collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in ro llovers,
- when the crash deceleration measured by the
airbag system is less than the minimum thresh -
~ old needed for airbag deployment as registered <( o by the electronic control unit. 'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1"1
N \!) ,....,
Airbag syste m
The front passenge r airbag also will not
deploy :
-when t he front passenger seat is not occupied,
- when the electr ica l capacitance measured by
the capacitive passenger detection system for
the front passenger seat indicates that the pas
senger s ide frontal airbag must be switched off
by the electronic control unit (the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light¢ page 155 and how they
work comes on and stays on).
A WARNING ,..__ -Sitting in the wrong pos ition can increase the
r isk of ser ious injury in crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the airbags
inflate, the driver and passenge rs must al
ways sit in an up right pos ition, must no t
lean ag ains t or place any part of the ir body
too close to the area where the a irb ags are
located .
- Occupants who are unbel ted, out of position
or too close to the airbag can be serio usly
inj ured by an ai rbag as it unfo lds with great
force in the blink of an eye ¢ page 1 44 .
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing ch ild seat insta l
l ed on the front passenger seat will be ser i
ously injured and can be k illed if the front air
bag inflates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the ch ild seat o r
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the
backrest, cente r armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild seats on the
rea r seat .
- If you must install a rearward fac ing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
exceptiona l circumstances and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
l ight does not come on
an d stay on , immedi ately ins tall the rear
facing chi ld seat in a rear seat ing pos ition
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dea ler.
153

Airbag system
compliance with the U.S. Safety Standard
¢page 169 .
-will go out if the front passenger seat is occu
pied by an adult as registered by the capacitive
passenger detection system.
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must come
on and stay on if the ignition is on and .. .
- a car bed has been installed on the front pas
senger seat, or
- a rearward-facing child restraint has been in
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
- a fo rward -facing child restraint has been instal
led on the front passenger seat,
- and if the e lectrica l capacitance registered on
the front passenger seat is equal to or less than
the combined capacitance of a typical 1 year
o ld infant and one of the rearward-facing or
forward-facing chi ld restraints listed in Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which
the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied, the
front airbag will not deploy, and the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF light will stay on. Never install a
rearward-facing child restraint on the front pas
senger seat, the safest place for a child in any
kind of child restraint is at one of the seating po
sitions on the rear seat ¢
page 144, Child re
straints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and ¢ page 167, Child safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when one of the conditions listed above is met,
be sure to check the light regularly to make cer
tain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
stays on contin uously whenever the ignition is
on. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not appear on and does not stay on all the t ime,
stop as soon as it is safe to do so and
- reactivate the system by turning the ignition
off
for more than 4 seconds and then turning it on
again;
- remove and reinstall the child restraint . Make
sure that the chi ld restraint is properly installed
and that the safety belt for the front passenger
156
seat has been correctly routed through the
child restraint as described in the chi ld restraint
manufacture r's instruct ions;
- make sure that the convertib le locking retractor
on the safety be lt for the front passenger seat
has been activated and that the safety belt has
been pulled tight .
- make sure that no electrical device (such as a
laptop,
CD player, electron ic games dev ice,
power inverter or seat heater for ch ild seats) is
placed or used on the front passenger seat if
the device is connected to the 12-volt socket or
the cigarette lighter socket;
- make sure that no seat heater has been retrofit
ted or otherwise added to the front passenger
seat;
- make sure that nothing can interfere with the
safety belt buckles and that they are not ob
structed;
- make sure that there are no wet objects (such
as a wet towe l) and no water or other liquids on
the fron t passenger seat cushion.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still does
not come on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still does
not come on and does not stay on continuously
(when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint
off the front passenger
seat and insta ll it p roperly at one of the rear
seat positions. Have the airbag system inspect
ed by your Audi dealer immed iately.
- move the child to a rear seat position and make
sure that the child is pro pe rly restrained in a
child restraint that is appropriate for its siz e
and age .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should NOT
come on ...
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should NOT
come on when the ignit ion is on and an adult is
sitting in a proper seating position on the front
passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
S seconds while dr iv ing, under these c ircumstan
ces, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is proper-
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with ..,.

M N <( (.J
'SI: ,...., \!) 1.1'1
N \!) ,....,
his or her back up against the backrest and the
backrest is not reclined,
- the adult is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or supporting
their weight on the armrest,
- the safety be lt is being properly worn and that
there is not a lot of s lack in the safety be lt web
bing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or cush
ions or other things (such as blankets) on the
front passenger seat that m ight cause the ca
pacit ive passenger detection system to miscal
culate electrical capac itance.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
- If the status of the Adva need A irbag System
has changed while the vehicle is mov ing, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light blinks for
about S seconds to catch the driver's atten
t ion . If th is happens, always stop as soon as
it is safe to do so and check the steps descri
bed above.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go off when an adult who is not very
small is si tting on the front passenger seat
after taking the steps described above,
make sure the adult is properly seated and
restrained at one of the rear seating posi
t ions. Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Aud i dealer before trans
porting anyone on the front passenger seat.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning prop
erly cannot provide supplementa l protect ion
in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light c::;, page 18
comes when the vehicle is be ing used, have
the system inspected immed iate ly by your
au thori zed Audi dealer.
It is possible that
the a irb ag will inflate when it is not s up
posed to, or w ill not inflate when it should.
Airbag syste m
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child without a
chi ld restraint, or in a rearward-facing chi ld
safety seat, or in a forwa rd-fac ing child re
straint that has not been proper ly installed
will be ser ious ly injured and can be killed .
- Even though you r vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make ce rtain
that al l children, especially 1 2 years and
younge r, al ways ride on the back seat prop
erly restra ined for their age and size.
- Always install forward o r rear-facing child
seats on the rear seat -even with an Ad
vance d Ai rbag System.
- If you must ins tall a rearwa rd-fa cing c hild
seat on the front passenger seat because of
exceptiona l circumstances and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and
stay on, immediately install the rear-facing
child seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
deale r.
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you must
install a forwa rd-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat , always move the
seat into i ts rearmost pos ition in the seat's
fore and a ft ad justmen t range, as fa r away
fr om the airb ag as possib le. The b ackrest
m ust be adjus ted to an upr ight position.
Make sure t hat the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
- I f the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go out when an adult is s itting on the
front passenger seat after tak ing the steps
described above, make su re the adult is
p roperly seated and restrained a t one of the
rea r seat ing pos itions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
Aud i deale r before t ransporting anyone on
the front passenger seat.
157

M N <( I.J "". rl I.O
"' N I.O rl
Important safety instructions on the knee
airbag system
Applies to vehicles: with k nee a irbags
Airbags are only supplemental restraint s. Always
wear safety belts correctly and ride in a proper
seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
know and do to help the safety belts and airbags
to prov ide supplementa l protection.
A WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause ser ious in
jury. Wearing safety belts incorrect ly and im
proper seating positions increase the risk of
serious personal injury and death whenever a
vehicle is being used.
- The knee airbag system cannot protect you
properly if you are seated too close to any of
the a irbag locat ions . When adjust ing their
seat positions, it is important that both the
dr iver and the front passenger keep the ir
upper bod ies and knees at the followi ng
mi nimum safe distances :
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instr ument
panel.
- at least 4 inc hes (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the instru
ment panel.
- The risk of persona l injury increases if yo u
lean forward or to the s ide, or if the seat is
improperly pos it ioned and you are not wear
ing your safety belt . The risk increases even
more should the airbag deploy .
- Always make sure that the knee airbag can
inflate without inte rference . Objects be
tween you and the a irbag can increase the
risk of i nju ry i n an accident by inte rfe ring
w ith the way the ai rbag dep loys o r by be ing
pushed into you as the airbag dep loys.
- Never let anybody, especially ch ildren o r
animals ride in the footwell in front of the
passenger seat . If the airbag deploys, th is
can result in ser ious or fatal injuries .
- Never carry objects of any kind in the foot
well area in front of the driver's or pas
senger's seat . Bul ky objects (shopping
-
Airb ag system
bags, for examp le) can interfere with or
prevent proper deployment of the airbag .
Small objects can be thrown through the
vehicle if the airbag deploys and injure you
or your passengers.
- Make sure the re are no cracks , deep scratch
es o r other damage in the area of the instru
ment panel where the knee airbags are lo
cated .
- I f chi ldren are inco rrectly seated, their ris k
of injury increases in a coll is ion
c::> page 167, Child safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
Fi g. 163 Sid e airbag location in the driver's seat
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests
c::> fig. 163 and the rear back
rest facing the doors . They are ident ified by the
word "AIRBAG".
The side airbags insta lled for the front seat ing
pos it ions have been des igned and certified to
help reduc e the r isk of injury that can be caused
by a irbags when they inflate, particularly when
t h e occ upant s itting next to it is not seated p rop
erly. The s ide a irbag for the front passenger seat
can be used with properly insta lled child re
straints. P lease be sure to read the important in
formation and warn ings whenever using a ch ild
restraint in a vehicle : Safety be lts
c::> page 135,
Airbag system c::> page 143, Child safety
<=>page 167.
The side airbag sy stem basi cally consi st s of: ..,.
161

M N <( I.J "". rl I.O
"' N I.O rl
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help reduce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu
pants who are properly restrained.
Fig. 164 Inflated side a irbags on left side of veh icle, rea r
side airbag
When the system is triggered, the airbag is filled
with propellant gas and breaks through a seam in
the seat surface area marked "AIRBAG". It ex
pands between the side trim panel and the pas
senger . In order to help provide this additional
protection, the side airbag must inflate within a
fraction of a second at very high speed and with
great force. The supplemental side airbag could
injure you if your seating position is not proper or
upright or if items are located in the area where
the supplemental side airbag expands. This ap
plies especially to children
r:::.>page 167, Child
safety.
Supplemental side airbags inflate be
tween the occupant and the door panel on the
side of the vehicle that is struck in certain side
coll ision
r:::.> fig. 164.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"c ushion " the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper part
of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag deploys .
This is normal and does not mean there is a fire
in the vehicle .
Airbag system
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always
properly wear safety belts and ride in a proper seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
know and act accordingly to help the safety belts
and airbags do their job to provide supplemental
protection.
A WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious or
fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety belts
and improper seating positions increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental side airbag inflates:
- Always sit in an upright position and never
lean against the area where the supple
mental side airbag is located.
- Never let a child or anyone else rest their
head against the side trim panel in the
area where the supplemental side airbag
inflates.
- Always make sure that safety belts are
worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone sitting in the front seat
put their hand or any other parts of their
body out of the window.
- Always make sure that the side airbag can
inflate without interference.
- Never install seat covers or replacemen t
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that cover the areas where the side airbags deploy.
- Damage to the original seat covers or to
the seam in the area of the side airbag
module must always be repaired immedi
ately by an authorized Audi dealer.
-
- Objects between you and the airbag can in
crease the risk of injury in an accident by in
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds or
~
163