Airbag syste m
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that the
airbags have deployed. The a irbags also inflate
with a great deal of force and it is important for
occupant safety that nothing should be in their
way when they deploy .
Fully inflated airbags in comb ination with proper
ly worn safety belts slow down and limit the oc
cupant 's forward movement and help to reduce
the risk of inju ry .
Important safety instructions on the knee
airbag system
App lies to : ve hicles w ith knee a irbags
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . 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 provide supplemental protection .
,&. WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause ser ious in
jury. Wea ring safety bel ts incorrectly and im
proper seating positions increase the r isk 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 airbag locat ions. When adjusting their
seat positions, it is important that both the driver and the front passenger keep their
upper bod ies and knees at the following
min imum safe distances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instrument panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the instru ment panel.
- The risk of persona l injury increases if you
lean forward or to the s ide, or if the seat is
improperly positioned and you are not wear
ing your safety belt. The risk increases even
more should the airbag deploy .
146
-Always make sure that the knee a irbag can
inflate w ithout interference. Objects be
tween you and the airbag can increase the
r isk of injury in an accident by interfering
w ith the way the airbag deploys or by being
pushed into you as the a irbag deploys .
- Never let anybody, especially children or anima ls ride in the footwell in front of the
passenger seat. If the airbag deploys, this
can result in serious 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. Bulky objects (shopp ing
bags, for example) can interfere with or
prevent proper deployment of the a irbag.
Small objects can be thrown through the
vehicle if the airbag deploys and injure you
or your passengers.
- Make sure there are no crac ks, deep scratch
es o r othe r damage in the area of the inst ru
ment panel where the knee airbags are lo
cated.
- I f ch ildren are i ncorrectly se ated, their risk
of injury i ncreases in a col lision
~ page 150, Child safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The a irbag system con provide supplemental
protec tion to properly restrained occupants .
Fig. 152 S ide a irbag locat io n in th e dri ver's seat
The side airbags a re located in the s ides of the
front seat backrests
Q fig . 152. They a re identi
fied by the word "AIRBAG".
The side airbag sy ste m ba sically con sis t s of: IJII>
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-the e lectron ic control modu le and externa l side
impact sensors
- the two side airbags located in the sides o f the
front backrests
- the a irbag warning light in the inst rument cl us-
ter.
The a irbag system is monitored electronically to
make certa in that it is func tioning properly at all
times. Each time you turn on the ignit ion, the air
bag system indicator light will come on for a few
seconds (self diagnostics).
The s ide a irbag system supp lements the safety
be lts and can help to reduce the risk of injury to
the driver's and fron t passenger 's upper torso on
the side of the vehicle that is struck in a side col lision. The airbag d eploys on ly in side impacts
and only when the veh icle acceleration reg istered
by the contro l unit is high enough. If this rate is
below the reference value programmed into the
control un it, the s ide a irbags w ill not be tr ig
gered, even though the car may be badly dam
aged as a resu lt of the collision .
It is not possib le
to define an airbag trigge ring range that w ill cov
e r every possible angle of impact, since the ci r
cumstances wi ll vary considerably between one
collision and another. Important factors include,
for examp le, the nature (hard or soft) of the im
pacting objec t, the ang le of impact, vehicle
speed, etc. ¢
page 148, Impor tant safety in
structions on the side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety function, safety
be lts work to help keep the driver or front pas
senger in posit ion in the event of a side collision
so that the s ide a irbags can provide protection .
T he airbag system is
not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overa ll occu
pant restrain t system in your veh icle. Always re
member that the s ide a irbag system can only
h elp to protect yo u if you a re wearing your safety
be lt and wea ring it properly. This is another rea
son why you s hou ld always wear yo ur safety
be lts, not just bec ause the law req uires yo u to do
so ¢
page 122 , General information.
It is important to remember that wh ile the s up
p lemental s ide a irbag system is designed to re
d uce the likelih ood of serious injur ies, other inju-
Airb ag sys tem
ries, for example, swelling, bru is ing , and minor
abrasions can also be associated wit h deployed
s ide airbags . Remember too, s ide airbags will de
ploy only once and only in certain k inds of acci
den ts -your safety belts are always there to offer
protect io n.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack of
vehicle damage are not necessar ily an ind ication
of over-sens it ive or fa iled a irbag activation. In
some collisions, both front and side airbags may i nflate. Remember too, that a irbags w ill deploy
only once and only i n certa in kinds of collisions -
you r safety be lts are always there to offer protec
t ion in those accidents in wh ich airbags are no t
s u pposed to deploy or when they have already
deployed .
The side airbag system will not deploy:
-when t he ignit ion is t urned off
- in side collisions whe n the acceleration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low
- in front -end coll is ions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers.
In some types of accidents the fron t air bags and
s ide airbags may be triggered togethe r.
.&, WARNING ~
- Safety belts and the airbag system will only
provide protect ion when occupants are in
the proper seat ing pos ition ¢
page 148 .
-If the ai rbag ind icator light¢ page 17
comes when the veh icle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer. It is possib le that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup
posed to, or w ill not inflate w hen it should .
147
Airbag syste m
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu
pants who are properly restrained .
Fig . 1 53 Infla ted side airbags o n lef t s ide of vehicle
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
fract ion of a second at very high speed and with
great fo rce. The supplemental side airbag could
inj ure yo u if your seating position is not proper or
upright or if items a re loca ted in the area where
the s upplemental side airbag expands. This ap
plies especially to children¢
page 150, Child
safety .
Supplemental side a irbags inflate be
tween the occupant and the door panel on the
side of the vehicle that is struck in certain side
collis ion ¢
fig. 153 .
Although they are not a soft p illow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can he lp 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.
148
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . Always
properly wear safety bel ts and ride in a proper
seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
k now and act according ly to help the safety belts
and airbags do their job to prov ide supplemental
protect ion .
_& WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious or
fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety be lts
and improper seating posit ions increase the
risk of serious persona l injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental side airbag inflates:
- Always s it in an upr ight position and never
l ean agains t the area where the supple
mental s ide airbag is located .
- Never let a child or anyo ne e lse rest their
head against t he side tr im panel in the
area where the s upplementa l side airbag
inflates .
- Always make s ure t hat safety bel ts are
worn correctly,
- Do no t let anyone s itting in the front seat
p ut their hand or any other par ts of their
body out of the window.
- Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate w ithout in terference.
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not bee n specifical ly approved by
A udi .
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags de ploy.
- 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 autho rized Aud i dealer .
-
-Objects between you and the a irbag can in
crease the r isk of injury in an acc iden t by in
t erfering wi th the way the airbag unfolds or
~
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by being pushed into you as the airbag in
flates.
- Never place or attach accessories or other
objects (such as cupholders, telephone
brackets, or even large, bulky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked
"AIRBAG" on the seat backrests.
- Such objects and accessories can become
dangerous projectiles and cause injury
when the supplemental side airbag de
ploys.
- Never carry any objects or pets in the de ployment space between them and the
airbags or allow children or other passen
gers to travel in this position.
- Always prevent the side airbags from being
damaged by heavy objects knocking against
or hitting the sides of the seatbacks.
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once. If the airbag has been triggered, the
system must be replaced by an authorized
Audi dealership.
- Damage (cracks, deep scratches etc.) to the
original seat covers or to the seam in the
area of the side airbag module must always
be repaired immediately by an authorized
Audi dealer.
- If children are seated improperly, their risk
of injury increases in the case of an accident
~ page 150, Child safety.
-Never attempt to modify any components of
the airbag system in any way.
- In a side collision, side airbags will not func
tion properly if sensors cannot correctly
measure increasing air pressure inside the
doors when air escapes through larger, un
closed openings in the door panel.
- Never drive with interior door trim panels
removed.
- Never drive when parts have been re
moved from the inside door panel and the
openings they leave have not been proper
ly closed.
- Never drive when loudspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been properly closed.
- Always make certain that openings are
covered or filled if additional speakers or
Airbag system
other equipment is installed in the inside
door panels.
- Always have work on the doors done by an
authorized Audi dealer or qualified work
shop.
149
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 123, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults their
muscles and bones are not fu lly deve loped . In
many respects ch ildren are at greater risk of ser i
ous injury in crashes than adults.
Because children's bodies are not fu lly devel
oped, they requ ire restraint systems especially
des igned for their size, we ight, and body struc
ture. Many countries and all states of the United
S tates and p rovinces 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 th e
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 restraints must be
used properly to be effective . Used improperly,
they can increase the risk of serious injury in an
accident.
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's in
structions to be sure the seat is right for your
child's size¢
page 153, Important safety in
structions for using child safety seats.
Please be
sure to read and heed all of the important infor
mation and WARN INGS about ch ild safety, Ad
vanced Airbags, and the installation of child re
straints in this chapter.
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad
vanced Airbags in you r 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
peat it all here. We urge you to read the detailed
150
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 important for your safety and the safe
ty of your passengers, especially 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
m ust be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restrained child cou ld be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is also at greater r isk of injury or death
through contact w ith an inflating airbag .
- A suitable ch ild restraint properly installed
and used at one of the rear seating positions
provides the highest degree of protect ion
for infants and small children in most acci
dent sit uat ions.
&_ WARNING
Children on the front seat of any car even with
Advanced Airbags can be ser iously injured or
even killed when an airbag inflates. A child in
a rearward-facing child 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 ch ild safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
w ill smash the child safety seat and child
aga inst the backrest, center armrest or
door.
-Always install rearward-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat in
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exceptional circumstances and the PASSEN·
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immediately insta ll the rear
ward-facing child safety seat in a rear seat
ing posit ion and have the airbag system in
spected immediately by your authorized
Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If, in except ional 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 certified by its man
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and s ide airbag .
- Always follow the manufac turer 's instruc
tions provided with the chi ld 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
restra int. The backrest must be adjusted to
an upr ight position.
-Always make sure that the
PA SSENGER AIR
B AG OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
Always replace ch ild restraints that were in
stalled in a vehicle dur ing a crash. Damage to
a child restraint that is not visib le could cause
it to fail in another collision situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your veh icle is equipped with a front "Advanced
A irbag System" i n compliance w ith United States
F edera l Moto r Vehicle Safety Standard ( FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Ve hicle Safety
Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time
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-yea r old children on the pas
senger side and sma ll adults on the driver side .
Child safety
The low risk deployment criteria a re intended to
reduce the risk of injury through interaction with
the a irbag that can occur, for example, by be ing
too close to the steering wheel and instrument panel when the airbag inflates. In addition, the
system has been certified 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 listed in
the Standard.
Even though your veh icle is equipped with an Ad·
vanced Airbag system, all ch ild ren, especially
those 12 yea rs and you nger, sho uld a lways ride
in the back seat proper ly restrained for their age
and size . The airbag on the passenger side makes
the front seat a potentially 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
The Advanced A irbag System in your vehicle de
tects the presence of an infant or chi ld in a chi ld
restraint 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 tens ion 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 ch ild re-
straint as it sits on the seat. The weight of a ch ild
restra int and its "footprint" va ry for different
k inds of child restra ints and for the different
models of the same kind o f chi ld rest raint of -
fered by chi ld restraint manufacturers.
T he we igh t ranges for the indiv id ual types,
makes and mode ls of ch ild restraints that the
NH TSA has specified in the Safety Standard to
gether with the weight ranges of typical infants .,.
15 1
Child safet y
and typical 1 year -old child have been sto red in
the co ntrol unit of the Advanced Airbag System.
When a chi ld restra int 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 we ight sensing mat with the in
formation stored in the electronic control unit.
The electronic control un it also registers the ten
sion on the front passenger safety belt. The ten
sion on the safety belt for the fro nt passenger
seat will be d ifferent for an adult w ho is p roperly
using the safety belt as compared to the tension
on the belt w hen it is used to attach a ch ild re
s tra int to the sea t. The senso r below the la tch for
t he safety belt for the front sea t passenger
measures the tension on the belt. The inp ut from
this senso r is then used with the weight to "de
cide", whether there is a child restra int w ith a
typical 1 year-old child on the front passenge r
seat and whether or not the a irbag must be
turned off.
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regard less of the child restra int tha t you use,
make su re that it h as been cert ified to meet Safe
ty Standa rds and has been certified by its manu
facture r for use wi th an a irba g. A lways be sure
t hat the chi ld restrain t is properly insta lled at
one of the rear seating positions . If in exception
al c ircumstances yo u m ust 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 tha t the child res tra int is correc tly recog
n iz ed by the we ight-sens ing mat inside the front
passenger seat, that t he fron t passe nger a irbag
is t urned off and tha t the airbag st atus is always
corre ct ly sign aled by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF li ght .
M any types and mo dels of child res traints have
been available ove r the ye ars, new mode ls are in
troduce d regularly inco rpora ting new and im
p roved designs and o lder mode ls are taken o ut of
product ion . Chi ld restraints a re not standardized .
Ch ild restraints of the same type typ ica lly have
d ifferent weights and s izes and d ifferent 'foot
prints,' the size a nd shape of the bottom of t he
152 ch
ild restraint t hat sits on the seat, when they
a re installed on a vehicle seat . These differences
make it virtua lly impossib le to certify comp liance
with the requirements for advanced a irbags w ith
each and every child restra int that has ever been
sold in the past or wi ll be sold over the course of
t h e usefu l life of your vehicle .
For t his reason, the United States National High
way Traffic Safety Admin istrat ion has published a
li st of specific type, makes and mode ls of ch ild
res tra ints tha t must be used to certify compli
ance of the Advanced Airbag System in your ve hi
cl e w ith the s uppression requirements of Federa l
Mot or Ve hicl e Safety St and a rd 208. These child
r es tra ints are :
Subpart A- Car bed child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
A ngel Guard Angel Se pte mber 2 5, 20 07
Ride AA 2403F OF
Subpart B - Rear-facing child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Century SmartFit 4543 December 1, 1999
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-013PAW and base 22- 999WHO
Evenflo Discove ry Ad- December 1, 1999
just R ight 212
E ven flo Firs t Choi ce December
1, 1 999
2 04
Grace I nfant 8457 December 1, 1999
Grace Sn ugride September 25, 2007
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
Br itax Roundabo ut September 25, 2007
E9L02xx
Cosco Tou riva 0 2519 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:
gi .,. Always use the right chi ld safety seat for each ......
~ child and a lways use it properly qpage 155. N ...... 0
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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 159.
.,. 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 155.
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). ..,_
153