Airbag syste m
-the adu lt on the front passenger seat is proper
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his or her back up against the backrest and the
backrest is not reclined
c> page 130, Correc t
passenger seating positions,
- the adu lt is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the fron t passenger door or supporting
their we ight on the armrest,
- the safety bel t is being properly worn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety belt web
bing,
- accessory seat covers or cushions or other
th ings that may cause an incorrect read ing or
impression on the weight-sensing mat under
the upho lstery of the seat have been removed
from the front passenge r seat,
- a safety be lt extender has not been left in the
safety belt latc h for the front passenge r seat.
In addition to the
PA SSE NGER AIR BAG OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel, the
message
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF or PASSEN
GER AIR BAG ON
w ill briefly appear in the inst ru
ment cluster display . T his is to inform the driver
of the current front passenger airbag status.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ion ing prop
er ly cannot p rovide supplemental p rotection
in a frontal crash .
- If the airbag indicato r light
r=>page 18
comes when the vehicle is be ing used, h ave
the system inspected immediate ly by yo ur
authorized Aud i dealer . It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not s up
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child without a
child restraint, or in a rearward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-facing child re
straint that has not been properly installed
w ill be seriously injured and can be killed .
158
-Even tho ugh your vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that a ll children, espec ia lly 12 years and
younger, always ride on the back seat prop
erly restrained for their age and s ize.
- Always install forward or rear-facing child
seats on the rear seat -even w ith an Ad
vanced Airbag System .
- If you must install a rearward-facing child
seat o n the front passenge r seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and
s tay on, immediate ly ins tall the re ar-fa cing
child sea t in a rear seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
dea ler.
- A t ight tether or other s trap on a rearward
facing chi ld restraint attached to the front
passenger seat can put too much pressure
on the weight-sensing mat in the seat and
register more weight than is actually on the
seat . The heavier weight registered can
make the system work as thoug h an adu lt
were on the seat and deploy the Advanced
Airbag when it must be suppressed causing
serious or even f atal injury to the child .
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-fa cing child res traint on
the front p assenge r seat, always move the
seat into i ts rearmost posi tion in the sea t's
fore and aft ad justment range, as far away
from the ai rbag as possible . The back rest
must be adjusted to an upr ight position .
Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the time
wheneve r the ignit ion is switched on.
A WARNING
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go out when an adult is sitting on the
front passenger seat afte r taking the steps
described above, make s ure the adult is
p roper ly sea ted and restra ined at one o f the
rear sea ting posit ions .
- Have the ai rbag system inspec ted by your
Aud i dea le r before tr anspor ting anyone on
the front passenge r seat .
(D Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front passen
ger seat detects an empty seat, the front air
bag on the passenger side will be turned off,
and the
P ASS ENGER AI R BA G OFF light will
stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at many
d ifferent p laces on your Aud i. Installing , remov
ing, servic ing or repa iring a part in an area of the
vehicle can damage a part of an airbag system
and p revent that system from working properly
in a co llision.
There are some important things you have to
know to make su re that the effectiveness of the
system w ill not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environm ent .
A WARNING
Improper care, serv icing and repa ir proce
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de
ploying when needed or deploying an airbag
unexpectedly:
-
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer
ing wheel horn pad or a irbag cover or the in
strument panel or mod ify them in any way .
- Never attach any objects such as cup holders or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov
er ing the airbag units.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
pane l, use on ly a soft, dry cloth or one mois
tened with plain water. Solvents or cleaners cou ld damage the a irbag cover or change
the stiffness or strength of the material so
that the airbag cannot dep loy and protect
properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instr ument
pane l, front seats or electrical system (in
cluding the installation of audio equipment,
cellu lar telephones and CB radios, etc.)
must be performed by a qualified technician
Airb ag sys tem
who has the training and special equ ipment
necessary.
- For any wo rk on the airbag system, we
strong ly recommend that you see your au
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop .
- Never modify the front bumper or parts of
the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery ove r the front seatbacks that
have not been specifica lly approved by
Audi .
- Never use addi tional seat c ushions that
cove r the areas where the side airbags in
flate.
- Damage to the orig inal seat cove rs or to
the seam in the area of the s ide airbag
module must a lways be repaired immedi
ate ly by an authorized Aud i dealer.
- The airbag system can be activated only
once . A fter an airbag has inflated, it must
be replaced by an authorized Audi dealer or
qualified technic ian who has the technical
information, t raining and spec ial equ ipment
necessary.
- The airbag system can be deployed only
once . After an airbag has been deployed, it
must be replaced with new rep lacement
parts des igned and approved especially for
your Aud i model version. Replacement of
comp lete airbag systems or airbag compo
nents must be performed by qualified work
shops only. Ma ke sure that any airbag serv
ice act ion is en tered in your Aud i Wa rranty
& Maintenance booklet under AIRBAG RE
PLACEMENT RECORD.
- For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starter are separated from
the vehicle battery with a pyrotechnic circ uit
interrupter.
- Wo rk on the pyrotechnic c ircuit inte rrupt
er must on ly be performed by a qua lified
dealer -risk of an acc ident!
- If the vehicle or the circuit interr upter is
scrapped, all applicable safe ty p recau tions
mus t be followed.
159
by being pushed into you as the airbag in
flates.
- Neve r place or attach accessories o r other
objects (such as cup holders, telephone
b rackets, or even large, bulky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked
"AIRBAG" on the seat backrests.
- Such ob jects and accessories can become
dangerous projectiles and cause i njury
when the supplementa l side airbag de
p loys.
- Never carry any objects or pets in the de
p loyment space between them and the
airbags or allow chi ldren or other passen
gers to travel in this position.
- Always use the bui lt-in coat hooks only for
lightweight cloth ing. Never leave any heavy
or sharp-edged objects in the pockets that
may interfere with side airbag dep loyment
and can cause pe rsonal injury in an accident .
- Always prevent the side airbags from be ing
damaged by heavy objects knocking against
o r hitt ing the sides of the seatbacks.
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once . If the a irbag has been triggered, the
system must be replaced by an authorized
Audi dealership .
- Damage (cracks, deep scratches etc.) to the
original seat cove rs orto the seam in the
area of the s ide a irbag mod ule m ust always
be repaired immed iate ly by an autho rized
Audi dealer .
- If children are sea ted imp roperly, their ris k
of inj ury increases in the case of an ac ciden t
c;, page 168, Child safety.
-Never attempt to modify any components o f
t h e a irbag sys tem in any way.
- In a side collision, s ide a irb ags wi ll no t func
t io n proper ly if sensors cannot co rrect ly
measure increasing air pressure inside the
doors when air escapes through larger, un
closed openings in the door panel.
- Never drive w ith inter ior door trim pane ls
removed.
- Never drive when parts have been re
moved from the inside doo r panel and the
open ings they leave have not been prope r
ly closed.
Airb ag sys tem
-Never dr ive when lo udspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been properly closed.
- Always make certain that open ings are
covered or filled if additional speakers or
other equipment is installed in the inside
door panels.
- Always have work on the doors done by an
authorized Audi dea ler or qualified work
shop.
Side curtain airbags
Description of side curtain airbags
The side curtain airbag system can provide sup
plemental protec tion to properly restrained oc
cupants.
F ig . 1 71 S id e cur tain airbags, driver's side: s ide curtai n air
bag locat io n
The side c urt ain airbags are located on bot h sides
of the inter ior above the front and rear side win
dows
c;, fig. 171 . They are identified by the word
"AIRBAG" on the windshie ld frame and the cen
ter roof pillar .
T he side curtain airbag system supp leme nts the
safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of in
jury for occupants' heads and upper torso on the
side of the vehicle that is str uck in a side colli
sion. The s ide curta in a irbag inflates in side im
pacts and only when the vehicle acce leration reg
istered by the control unit is high enough . If this
rate is below the reference va lue programmed in
to the control unit, the side airbags will not be
triggered, even tho ugh the car may be badly
damaged as a res ult of the collision.
It is not pos
s ible to define an airbag triggering range that
will cover every possible angle of impact, since ..,.
165
items are located in the area where the supple
mental side curtain airbag inflates. This applies
especially to children¢
page 168.
Although they are not a soft pillow, side curtain
airbags can "cushion" the impact and in this way
they can help to reduce the risk of injury to the
head and the upper part of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag deploys.
This is quite normal and does not mean there is a
fire in the vehicle.
Important safety instructions on the side
curtain 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 do to help the safety belts and airbags
do their job to provide supplemental protection.
A WARNING
Improperly wearing safety belts and improper
seating positions increase the risk of serious
personal injury and death whenever a vehicle
is being used.
- Never let occupants place any parts of their
bodies in the area from which the side cur
tain airbags inflate.
-Always make sure that the side curtain air
bags can inflate without interference. Un
suitable accessories fitted inside the expan
sion range of a side curtain airbag can dan gerously interfere with its function. A de
ploying head airbag develops enough force
to catapult any piece of add-on component
out of its path of inflation and into the pas
senger compartment. An occupant hit by
such a projectile can suffer serious injury or
death ¢
page 283, Technical Modifications.
-Do not swivel the sun visors to the side if
you have any objects clipped onto them (for example pens). If the airbag should deploy,
you could be injured by these objects.
- Use the built-in coat hooks only for light
weight clothing . Never leave any heavy or
sharp-edged objects in the pockets that may
Airbag system
interfere with airbag deployment and can
cause personal injury in an accident.
- Never use hangers to hang clothing from
the hooks.
- Only use factory-installed sun shades or, in
the case of shades installed after the vehicle
leaves the factory, only Audi roll-up
sunscreens may be used
c:> page 283, Addi
tional accessories and parts replacement .
-Always sit in proper seating position and
wear safety belts while traveling so that the
side curtain airbags can help provide protec
tion .
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once. If the airbag has been triggered, the
system must be replaced by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
-Always have work involving the side curtain
airbag system, removal and installation of
the airbag components, or other repairs
performed by a qualified dealership . Other
wise the airbag system may not work cor
rectly.
- Never attempt to modify any components of
the airbag system in any way.
167
Child safety
Child safety
Important information
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision .
The physical principles of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash apply also to children
¢ page 139, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not fully
developed. In many respects children are at
g reater r isk of serious injury in crashes than
adults .
Because children's bodies are not fully devel
oped, they require restraint systems especially
des igned for their size, weight, and body struc
ture. Many countries and all states of the United
States and provinces of Canada have laws requir
ing the use of approved child restraint systems
for infants and small children .
I n a frontal crash at a speed of 20-35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13 -pound
(6 kg) infant will be more than 20 times the
weight of the child. This means the weight of the child would suddenly be more than 260 pounds (120 kg) . Under these conditions, only an appro
priate child restraint properly used can reduce
the risk of serious injury . Child restra ints, like
adu lt safety belts, must be used properly to be
effect ive. Used improperly, they can increase the
risk of serious injury in an acc ident.
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's in
structions in order to be sure the seat is right for
your child's size¢
page 171, Important safety
instructions for using child safety seats .
Please
be sure to read and heed all of the impo rtant in
formation and WARNINGS about child safety,
Advanced Airbags, and the installation of child
restraints in this chapter.
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad
vanced Airbags in your vehicle and how they work
when infants and children in child restraints are
on the front passenger seat . Because of the large
amount of important information, we cannot re-
168 peat it all here.
We urge you to read the detailed
information in this owner's manual about airbags
and the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the very important information about trans
porting children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS - they are
extremely importa nt for your safety and the safe
ty of your passengers, especia lly infants and
small chi ldren.
.&_ WARNING
- Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating position. Always restrain
any child age 12 and under in the rear.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restrained child cou ld be injured by striking
the inter ior or by being ejected from the ve
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is a lso at greater r isk of injury or death
through contact w ith an inf lating airbag.
- A suitable ch ild restraint properly installed
and used at one of the rear seating positions
provides the highest degree of pro tect ion
for infants and small children in most acci
dent sit uations.
.&_ WARNING
Children on the front seat of any car even with
Advanced Airbags can be seriously injured or
even killed when an airbag inflates. A child in
a rearward-facing chi ld safety seat installed
on the front passenger seat will be seriously injured and can be killed if the front airbag in
flates.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carr ier with great force and
w ill smash the child safety seat and child
aga inst the backrest , center armrest, or
door.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat in
exceptional circumstances and the
PASS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iately install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seating pos it ion and have the airbag system
inspected immediately by your Audi dealer .
A WARNING
If, in exceptio nal circumstances, you must in
stall a forward-facing chi ld restraint on the
front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-fac ing seat
has been designed and ce rtified by its man
ufact urer fo r use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and side airbag .
- Always follow the manufact urer's instruc
tions prov ided with the ch ild safety seat or
carrier.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air
bag as possib le before installing the child
restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to
an upr ight position.
- Always make sure that the
PA SSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
{D) Tips
Always replace chi ld restraints that were in
stalled in a vehicle dur ing a crash . Damage to
a child restraint that is not visible could cause
it to fail in another collision situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your veh icle is equipped with a front "Advanced
Airbag System " in compliance w ith United States
F edera l Moto r Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Ve hicle Safe ty
Stand ard (CMVSS) 208 as appli cable at the t ime
your vehicle was manufactured .
The Advanced Airbag system in your ve hicle has
been ce rtified to meet the "low-risk " requ ire
ments for 3 -and 6-year old children on the pas
senger side and small adults on the driver side .
The low risk deployment criteria are intended to
Ch ild safety
reduce the risk of injury through interaction with
the airbag that can occur, for example, by being
too close to the steering wheel and instr ument
panel when the airbag inflates. In addition, the
system has been cert ified to comply with the
"suppression" requirements of the Safety Stand
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up to
12 months who are restrained on the front pas
senger seat in ch ild rest raints that are lis ted in
the S tanda rd .
Even thoug h your veh icle is equipped with an Ad
vanced Airbag system, all ch ildren, especially
those 12 yea rs and younger, sho uld a lways ride
i n the back seat properly restra ined for their age
and size . The airbag on the passenger side makes
the front seat a potentia lly dangerous p lace for a
child to ride. The front seat is not the safest place
for a ch ild in a forward-fac ing ch ild safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for an infant or a
larger ch ild in a rearward-facing seat .
Advanced Airbags and the weight -sensing
mat in the front seat
T he Advanced A irbag System in you r vehicle de
tects the presence of a n in fan t or child in a ch ild
restra int on the front passenger seat using the
weight-sensing mat in the seat cushion and the sensor below the safety belt latch on the front
passenger seat that measures the tension on the
safety belt.
The weight-sensing mat measures total weight
of the child and the chi ld safety seat and a child
blanket on the front passenger seat. The weight
on the front passenger seat is related to the de
s ign of the child restra int and its "footprint" , the
s ize and shape of the bottom of the c hild re
straint as it s its on the seat. The weight of a chi ld
r estra int and its "footprint " va ry for different
k inds of child restra ints and for the different
models of the same kind of ch ild rest raint of
fered by child restraint manufacturers.
T he weight ranges for the individ ual types,
makes and mode ls of chi ld restrain ts that the
N HT SA has spec ified in the Safety Standard to
gether with the weight ranges o f typical infants
and typical 1 year-old chi ld have been stored in .,.
169
Child safet y
the control unit of the Advanced Ai rbag System.
When a chi ld restraint is being used on the front
passenger seat with a typical 1 year-old child, the
Advanced Airbag System compares the we ight
measured by the weight sensing mat with the in
formation stored in the electronic control unit.
The electronic cont rol un it also registers the ten
sion on the front passenger safety belt. The ten
sion on the safety belt for the front passenger
seat will be d ifferent fo r an adult who is properly
using the safety belt as compared to the tension
on the belt when it is used to attach a ch ild re
stra int to the seat. The senso r below the la tch fo r
the safety belt for the fro nt sea t passe nger
meas ures the tens io n on the belt. The inp ut from
this sensor is then used with the weight to "de
cide", whether there is a child restraint with a
typical 1 year-old child on the front passenger
seat and whethe r or not the a irbag must be
turned off.
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regardless of the child restra int tha t you use,
make sure that it has been cert ified to meet Safe
ty Standa rds and has been certified by its manu
facturer for u se wi th an a irb ag. Always be sure
t ha t th e chi ld res tra in t i s properly insta lled at
one o f th e rear seating posit ions . If i n excep tion
a l ci rcumstances yo u must use it on the front
passenger seat, carefully read all of the informa
tion on child safety and Advanced Airbags and heed a ll of the app licab le WARNINGS. Make cer
tain that the child restra int is correctly recog
n ized by the we ight-sens ing mat inside the front
passenger seat, that t he fron t passenger a irbag
is tu rned off and tha t the airbag status is a lways
cor rect ly signa led by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF ligh t.
M any types and models of c hild rest rai nts have
been available ove r th e yea rs, new models are in
t roduced regularly incorporat ing new and im
p roved designs and o lder mode ls are taken o ut o f
p roduction . Chi ld restraints a re not standardized .
Ch ild rest raints of the same type typica lly have
d ifferent weights and s izes and d ifferent 'foot
prints, ' the size and shape of the bottom of the
chi ld restraint that s its on the seat, when they
170
are ins talled on a vehicle seat . These d ifferences
make it virtua lly impossib le to certify compliance
with the requirements for advanced a irbags w ith
each and every child restra int that has eve r been
sold in the past or will be so ld over the course of
the usefu l life of your vehicle.
Fo r thi s reason, the United States Nationa l H igh
way Traffic Safety Administration has published a li st of specific type, makes and mode ls of ch ild
r estra ints that must be used to certify compli
ance of the Advanced Airbag System in your ve hi
cle w ith the s uppress ion requirements of Federa l
Motor Ve hicl e Safety Standa rd 208. These child
r es trai nts are:
Subpart A - Car bed child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Angel Guard Angel Septe mber 25, 2 007
R ide AA2 403FO F
Subpart B - Rear-facing child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Cent ury SmartFi t 454 3 Decembe r 1, 1999
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-013PAW and base
22- 999WHO
Evenf lo Discove ry Ad -December 1, 1999
just R ight 212
E venflo First Choi ce Decembe r 1, 1999
2 04
Graco I nfant 8457 December 1, 1999
Graco Snugr ide September 25, 20 07
Peg Perego Primo Viag- September 25, 2007
g io SIP I MUNOOUS
Subpart C -Forward-facing and convertible
child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
B rit a x Roun dabo ut September 25, 200 7
E 9 L02xx
Cosco Touriva 02519 December 1, 1999
Model Manufactured on or
after
Cosco Summit Deluxe September 25, 2007
High Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back Boos -
September 25, 200 7
ter 22-209
Evenflo Tr ibute V September 25, 2007
379xxxx
Evenflo Medallion 254 December 1, 1999
Evenflo Generations September 25, 2007
352xxxx
Graco ComfortSport September 25, 2007
Graco Toddler Safety September 25, 2007
Seat Step 2
Graco Platinum Cargo September 25, 2007
.&, WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious inju ry, make sure
that the
PA SSEN GER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on whenever a child re
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on.
- Take the child restraint off the front passen
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
P A SSEN GER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
(D Tips
The chi ld seats listed in categories A to C have
been statically tested by Audi only for the Ad
vanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially re
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safety
of everybody in the veh icle, especially children:
.,. Always use the right chi ld safety seat for each
child and a lways use it properly
q page 173.
Child safety
.,. Always carefully follow the chi ld safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the ch ild safe
ty seat.
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the chi ld safety seat from moving
q page 177.
.,. Push the ch ild safety sea t down with yo ur full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2.5 cm).
.,. If a strap or tether is being used to tie the child
safety seat 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 .
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
q page 173.
Always remember: Even though your veh icle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
c hi ldren, especia lly t hose 12 yea rs and younger,
sho uld a lways ride in th e back seat p roper ly re·
strained for their age and s ize.
A WARNING
=
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
chi ld safety seat or improperly insta lling a
chi ld restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must always be restrained properly whenev
er riding in a vehicle.
- An unrestra ined o r improperly restrained
c hi ld can be injured o r killed by being
thrown aga inst the inside of the veh icle or
by being ejected from it during a sudden
maneuver or impact.
- An unrestra ined or improperly restrained
child is at much greater risk of injury or
death by being struck by an inflating air bag.
- Commercially availab le child safety seats
are requi red to comply with U .S. Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 213
(in Canada CMVSS 213). ..,_
17 1