2017 AUDI A6 ESP

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-An improper ly installed ch ild restraint can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
seriously injure or even kill the child -even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
- Always carefu lly follow the manufacturer 's
instructions provided w ith the child seat or
carrier .
- Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that w ill cause the
capacit ive passenger detection system in
the seat to signa l to the Airbag System that
the seat is occupied by a person when it is
not, or to signa l tha t it is occ upied by some ­
one who is heavier than the person actua lly
sitting on the seat . The presence of addi ­
tional objects could cause the passenger
front airbag to be turned on when it shou ld
be off, or could cause the airbag to work in a
way that is different from the way it would have worked without the object on the seat .
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occu­
pants.
Fig. 153 Location of driver airbag: in ste.e ring whee l
Airb ag sys tem
Fig. 154 Location of front passenger's airbag: in the in­
st rument pane l
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced Air­
bag System" in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208, as well as Canada Motor Veh icle
Safety Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at
the time your veh icle was manufactured. The
safe ty belts fo r the seats have "pretensioners"
that help to take slack out of the bel t system.
T he pretensioners are also activated by the e lec ­
tronic control unit for the airbag system .
The front safety belts also have load limiters to
help reduce the fo rces applied to the body in a
c rash .
The airbag for the driver is in the steering wheel
hub
¢ fig. 153 a nd the airbag for the front pas­
senger is in the instrument panel~
fig. 154. The
general lo cation of the airbags is marked "A IR­
BAG".
There is a lot you need to know about the airbags i n your vehicle. We urge you to read the deta iled
information about airbags, safety be lts and c hild
safety in this and the other chapters that make
u p the owner's literatu re . Please be sure to heed
the WARNINGS -they are extremely important
for your safety and the safety of your passengers, especially infants and small children.
A WARNING
Never rely on airbags alone for protect ion.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
supplemental protection.
-Airbag work most effectively when used
with properly worn safety be lts .
151

Airbag system
-Therefore, always wear your safety belts and
make sure that everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained.
- Always hold the steering wheel with both
hands on the outside of the steering wheel
rim at the 9:00 o 'clock and 3 :00 o'clock po­
sitions to help reduce the risk of personal in ­
jury if the driver's airbag inflates .
- Never hold the steering wheel at the 12
o'clock position or with your hands any­
where inside the steering wheel or on the steering wheel hub. Holding the steering
wheel the wrong way increases the risk of
severe injury to the arms, hands, and head if
the driver airbag deploys.
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer­
ing with the way the airbag unfolds and/or by
being pushed into you as the airbag inflates.
- Always make sure nothing is in the front air-
-
bag deployment zone that could be struck
by the airbag when it inflates.
- Objects in the zone of a deploying airbag
can become projectiles when the airbag de­
ploys and cause serious personal injury.
- Never hold things in your hands or on your lap when the vehicle is in use .
- Never place accessories or other objects
(such as cup holders, telephone brackets,
note pads, navigation systems, or things
that are large, heavy, or bulky) on the doors;
never attach then to the doors or the wind­
shield; never place them over or near or at­
tach them to the area marked ,.AIRBAG" on
the steering wheel, instrument panel or the
seat backrests; never place them between
these areas and you or any other person in
the vehicle.
- Never attach objects to the windshield
above the passenger front airbag, such as
accessory GPS navigation units or music
players. Such objects could cause serious in­
jury in a collision, especially when the air­ bags inflate .
152
-Never recline the front passenger seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the deployment area of the side airbags or
the front airbag during breaking or in a sud­
den maneuver . Objects near the airbags can
fly dangerously through the passenger com­
partment and cause injury, particularly
when the seat is reclined and the airbags in­
flate.
A WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, espe­
cially infants and small children, will receive
serious injuries and can even be killed by be­ ing too close to the airbag when it inflates .
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in
-
your vehicle is designed to turn off the front
passenger airbag if an infant or a small child
is on the front passenger seat, nobody can
absolutely guarantee that deployment un­
der these special conditions is impossible in
all conceivable situations that may happen
during the useful life of your vehicle.
- The Advanced Airbag System can deploy in
accordance with the .,low risk" option for 3-
and 6-year-old children under the U.S . Fed­
eral Standard if a child with electrical capac­
itance greater than the combined capaci­
tance of a typical one-year old infant re­
strained in one of the forward facing or rear­
ward-facing child seats with which your ve­
hicle was certified is on the front passenger
seat and the other conditions for airbag de­
ployment are met.
- Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating position.
- For their own safety, all children, especially
12 years and younger, should always ride in
the back properly restrained for their age and size.
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208, as
well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard ..,.

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on when a malfunction in the one of the system
components is detected
c::> page 159. Because
the front passenger seat contains important
parts of the Advanced Airbag System, you must
take care to prevent it from being damaged .
Damage to the seat may p revent the Advanced
Airbag System for the front passenger seat from
doing its job in a crash.
The f ront Ad vanc ed Airb ag System con sists
of the following:
- Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measu re vehicle accelerat ion/ decelerat io n to
provide info rmation to the Advanced Airbag
System about the severity of the crash.
- An electro nic cont rol un it, with integrated
c rash senso rs fo r front and side impacts. The
contro l unit "decides" whether to fire the fro nt
airbags based on the information received from
the crash sensors . The contro l unit a lso "de­
c ides" whether the safety be lt pretensioners
shou ld be activated .
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
contro l valve for the driver ins ide the steer ing
wheel hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
contro l valve inside the instrument panel for
the front passenger.
- A capac itive passenger detect ion system under­
neath the front passenger seat cover. This sys­
tem measures the electrical capac itance of the
person in the seat . T he information registered
i s sent conti nuous ly to the electro nic cont rol
unit to regulate deployment of the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenge r side.
- An airbag monito ring system and indicator
li gh t in the ins trument cluster
c::> page 159.
-A sensor i n each front seat registers the dis­
tance between the respective seat and the
stee ring wheel or instrument pane l. The info r­
mation reg istered is sent cont in uous ly to the
electronic control unit to regulate deployment
of the front Adv a need Ai rbags.
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on in the center of the instrument
pane l
c::> page 159, fig. 156 and tells you when
Airb ag sys tem
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 be lt is latched or not and
transmits this information to the electronic
control un it.
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 p revent the
Advanced Airbag System from funct io ni ng
p roper ly .
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must be pe rformed by qualified a nd p roperly trained
wo rkshop personne l.
- Never remove the front passenger or driver
seat from the vehicle .
- Never remove the upholste ry from the front
passe nger seat.
- Never d isassemble or remove parts from the
s e at o r disco nnect w ire s from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets or
put them on the seat. The capacit ive pas­
senge r de tect io n 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 passenge r seat. S uch ob­
jects c an influen ce the cap aci tance reg is­
t ered by the capaci tive passenger dete ction
sys tem, so that incorrect in formation is pro ­
vided to the ai rbag control un it.
- Never store i tems unde r the front p assenger
seat . Parts of the Advanced Airbag System
under the passenger seat cou ld be dam­
aged, p reventing them and the airbag sys­
tem from working proper ly.
- Never p lace 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 A ir­
bag System from recognizing chi ld re­
stra ints or occupants on the front passenger
seat and preven t the side airbag in the seat
backrest from deploying prope rly .
155

Airbag system
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal­
led on the front passenger seat will be seri ­
ously injured and can be killed if the front air­
bag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child seat or
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child seats on the
rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of exceptional circumstances 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 airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer­
ing with the way the airbag unfolds or by be­
ing pushed into you as the airbag inflates .
- Never hold things in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use .
- Never transport items on or in the area of
the front passenger seat . Objects could
move into the area of the front airbags dur­
ing braking or other sudden maneuvers and
become dangerous projectiles that can
cause serious personal injury if the airbags
inflate.
- Never place or attach accessories or other
objects (such as cup holders, telephone
brackets , large, heavy or bulky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked "A IRBAG" on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, seat backrests or between
those areas and yourself. These objects
could cause injury in a crash, especially
when the airbags inflate .
- Never recline the front passenger 's seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the area of the side airbag or the front air-
158
-
bag during braking or in a sudden maneu­
ver. Objects near the airbags can become
projectiles and cause injury, particularly
when the seat is reclined.
- Never place or transport objects on the
front passenger seat. Objects on the front passenger seat could cause the capacitive
sensor in the seat to signal to airbag system
that the seat is occupied by a person when it
in fact is not , or that the person on the seat
is heavier than he or she actually is. The
change in electric capacitance because of
such objects can cause the passenger front
airbag to be turned on when it should be
off, or can cause the airbag to work in a way
that is different from the way it would have
worked without objects on the seat.
- Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that will cause the
capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occupied by a person when it is not, or to signal that it is occupied by some­
one who is heavier than the person actually
sitting on the seat. The presence of an ob­
ject could cause the passenger front airbag to be turned on when it should be off, or
could cause the airbag to work in a way that is different from the way it would have
worked without the object on the seat.
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy can
cause breathing problems for people with a history of asthma or other breathing condi­
tions .
- To reduce the risk of breathing problems,
those with asthma or other respiratory con­
ditions should get fresh air right away by
getting out of the vehicle or opening win­
dows or doors .
- If you are in a collision in which airbags de­
ploy , wash your hands and face with mild
soap and water before eating.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your eyes,
or into any cuts or scratches.
- If the residue should get into your eyes,
flush them with water .

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" N .... 0 0 <..:l - If the PA SSENGE R AIR BAG light st ill doe s
not c om e on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR B AG 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 install it properly at one of the rear
seat positions. Have the airbag system inspect­ ed by your Audi dealer immediately .
- move the chi ld to a rear seat position and make
sure that the child is properly restra ined in a
child restraint that is appropriate for its size
and age .
The PAS SENGER AIR BAG light should NOT
come on ...
The PASS ENGER AIR B AG OFF light should NOT
come on whe n the ignition is on and an adult is
sitting in a proper seating position on the front passenger seat .
If the PAS SENGER AIR BA G OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
5 seconds while d riving, under these c ir c umstan­
ces, make s ure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is proper­
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his o r her back up aga inst the bac kres t and the
backrest is not recl ined,
- the adult is not taking weight off t he seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or supporting
their weight on the armrest,
- the safety belt is be ing properly wo rn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety belt web ­
bing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or cush­
ions or other things (such as blankets) on the
front passenger seat that might cause the ca­
pacitive passenger detection system to miscal­
cu late electrical capac itance.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
_& WARNING t= -
- If the status of the Adv a need Airbag System
has changed while the vehicle is moving, the
PA SSENGER AIR BA G OFF light blinks for
Airb ag sys tem
about S seconds to catch the driver's atten­
tion.
If this happens, always stop as soon as
it is safe to do so and check the steps descri­
bed above.
- If the
PASS ENGER AIR B AG OFF light does
not go off when an adult who is not very
small is s itting on the front passenger seat
after taking the steps described above,
make sure the adu lt is properly seated and
rest rained at one of the rear seating posi­
tions. Have the a irbag system inspected by
your authorized Audi dealer before trans­
porting anyone on the front passenge r seat .
A WARNING
-
An airbag system that is not functioning prop­
erly cannot provide supplemental protection
i n a fronta l crash.
- If the airbag indicator light ¢page 17
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer.
It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed to, or w ill not inflate when it should .
A WARNING
If the front a irbag inflates, a ch ild witho ut a
chi ld restraint , or in a rearward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-fac ing child re­
stra int that has not been properly insta lled
will be serious ly injured and can be killed.
- Even tho ugh you r vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that all children, especially 12 years and
younger, always ride on the back seat prop­ erly restrained for their age and size.
-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 on the front passenger seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PA SSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and
stay on, immed iately install the rear-facing
child seat in a rear seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
deale r.
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Airbag system
-If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, always move the
seat into its rearmost position in the seat 's
fore and aft adjustment range , as far away
from the airbag as possible . The backrest
must be adjusted to an upright position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
_& WARNING
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go out when an adult is sitting 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 positions .
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
Audi dealer before transporting anyone on
the front passenger seat .
@ Tips
If the capacitive passenger detection system
determines that the front passenger seat is
empty, the frontal airbag on the passenger
side will be turned
off, and the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system are installed at many
different places on your Audi. Installing , remov­
ing, servicing or repairing a part in an area of the
vehicle can damage a part of an airbag system
and prevent that system from working properly
in a collision .
There are some important things you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of the
system will not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de-
162
ploying when needed or deploying an airbag
unexpectedly :
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer­
ing wheel horn pad or airbag cover or the in­
strument panel or modify them in any way .
- Never attach any objects such as cup holders
or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov­
ering the airbag units .
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one mois­
tened with plain water. Solvents or cleaners could damage the airbag cover or change
the stiffness or strength of the material so
that the airbag cannot deploy and protect properly.
- Never repair , adjust, or change any parts of
the airbag system.
-All work on the steering wheel, instrument
panel, front seats or electrical system (in­
cluding the installation of audio equipment,
cellular telephones and CB radios, etc.) must be performed by a qualified technician
who has the training and special equipment
necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we
strongly 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 airbag can inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replacement
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 in­
flate.
- 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 .
- The airbag system can deploy only once. Af­
ter an airbag has been deployed, it must be
replaced with new replacement parts de­
signed and approved especially for your
Audi model version. Replacement of com­
plete airbag systems or airbag components

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Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the lower ex­
tremities .
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 airbags also inflate
wi th 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 o c­
cupant 's forward movement and help to reduce
the r isk of injury .
Important safety instructions on the knee
airbag system
Applies to: veh icles wit h knee airbags
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 p rovide supplemental protection .
& WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause ser ious in­
jury. Wearing safety bel ts incorrec tly and im­
proper sea ting positions increase the r isk o f
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 ad justing their
seat positions, it is important that both the
driver and the front passenger keep their
upper bod ies a nd 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 inc hes (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- The risk of persona l injury inc reases if you
lean forward or to the side, or if the seat is
-
Airb ag sys tem
improperly positioned and you are not wear­
ing your safety belt. The risk increases even
more should the airbag deploy.
- Always make sure that the knee a irbag can
inflate w ithout interference . Objects be­
tween you and the airbag can increase the risk of injury in an acc ident by interfering
with the way the airbag deploys or by being
pushed into yo u as the a irbag deploys.
- Never let anybody, especia lly 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 inj uries.
- 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, fo r example) can interfere with or
prevent proper dep loyment of the airbag .
Small objects ca n be thrown th rough the
vehicle if the airbag deploys and injure you
o r your passengers .
- M ake sure the re are no c rac ks, deep scratch­
es or othe r damage in the area of the inst ru­
men t panel where the knee airbags are lo­
cated.
- If children are incorrec tly se ated, their risk
of injury inc reases in a coll is io n
~ page 171, Child safety.
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
pro tec tion to properly restrained occupan ts .
Fig . 1 59 Side a irbag locatio n in t he drive r's seat
165

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,&_ WARNING
-Safety belts and the a irbag system wi ll only
provide protection when occupants are in
the proper seating position ¢
page 167.
-If the airbag indicator light¢ page 17
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your authorized Audi dealer. It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed to, or will not inflate when it should .
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. 160 Inflated s ide a irbags on left side of ve hicle, rear
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 s ide trim panel and the pas­
senger. In order to help prov ide this add itiona l
protection, the side a irbag m ust inflate within a
fract ion of a second at very hig h speed and wi th
g reat force. The supplemental side airbag cou ld
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 ¢
page 171, Child
safety .
Supplemental side ai rbags inflate be­
tween the occupant and the door panel on the
side of the vehicle that is struck in certa in side
coll ision ¢
fig. 160 .
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in th is way they can
Airb ag sys tem
help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper part
of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the a irbag deploys.
This is no rma l and does not mean there is a fi re
in the vehicle .
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 according ly to he lp the safety belts
and airbags do their job to provide supplemental
protect ion.
A WARNING
-.
An inflat ing s ide a irbag can cause serious or
fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety belts and improper seating posit ions increase the
r isk of ser ious perso na l inju ry 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
lean against the area where the supp le­
mental side airbag is located.
- Never let a child or anyone e lse rest their
head against the side tr im panel in the
area where the supplementa l 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 w indow .
- Always make sure that the side airbag can
inflate w ithout interference.
- Neve r install seat cove rs or repla ceme nt
u pholste ry ove r the front seatb acks that
have not been specifica lly approved by
Audi.
- Never use additional seat c ushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags de- ploy .
Ill>
167