Safe ty belts
Autom ati c s afet y belt retr actors
Every safety belt is equ ipped with an automa tic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. This feature
locks the belt when the belt is pulled out fast,
during hard braking and in a n accident . The belt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
hill or through a sharp curve. Dur ing normal driv
ing the belt lets you
move freely .
Safety belt p ret en sion ers
The safety belts are equipped with a belt preten
sioner that helps to t ighten the safety belt and
remove slack when the pretensioner is activated
¢
page 146 . The function of the pretensioner is
mon itored by a warn ing light¢
page 17.
Con vertible loc king retracto r
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac
tor that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
¢ page 183 .
.&_ WARNING
Improperly pos it ioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious injury in an accident ¢
page 144,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat bac k
rest to which the center rea r safety belt* is
attached is secure ly latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used. If the
backrest is not securely latched, the passen
ger will move forward with the backrest dur
ing sudden braking, in a sudden maneuver
and especially in a crash.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong b uckle will reduce safety belt effec
t iveness and can cause serious persona l in
jury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrained can be seriously in jured by the safety be lt it
self when it
moves from the stronger parts
144
of the body into critical areas like the abdo men.
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child seat in the ve
hicle
¢ page 185.
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretensioners,
refer to¢
page 146 .
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 151 Safety belt posit ion
Use the height adjustment to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
.&_ WARNING
Imp roperly positioned safety belts can cause
serio us pe rsonal injury in an a cc ident.
- The shou lde r belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fi t well on the body. Ho ld the belt
above the latch to ngue and pull it evenly
across the chest so that it sits as low as pos
sible on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should a lways f it
snug ly ¢
fig. 151. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
injuries by sh ifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious i nju ry .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat ion
r=;, page 142 .
co
co
.... N
" N .... 0
00
<..:l 'SI'
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
that expectant mothers always wear safety belts
corre ctly -throughout the pregnan cy.
F ig. 152 S afe ty be lt pos it io n dur ing pregnan cy
To provide max imum pro tection, safety bel ts
mu st always be posit ioned correctly on the wear
er 's body ¢
page 144 .
.,. Adjust the front seat and adjustable head re
strain t* cor re ctly ¢
page 48, Seat s and stor
age .
.,. Pull the safety belt evenly across the chest so
that it sits as low as poss ib le on the pelv is and
the re is no pressu re on the abdomen
¢ fig . 152, ¢ ,& .
.,. Inse rt the tongue in to the correc t buckle of
your seat until you hea r it latch secure ly .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buck le .
.&_ WARNING
Improperly posit ioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious personal injury in an accident.
- Expectant mothers must always wear the lap portion of the safety belt as low as pos
sible across the pelvis and below the round
ing of the abdomen .
- Always read a nd heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
i:> &. in Fasten
ing safety belts on page 144 .
Safety bel ts
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only o~er the vehicle hos stopped .
J-L
Fig . 1 53 Re leas ing t he tong ue from the buckl e
.. Push the red re lease button on the buck le
¢
fig . 153. The belt tongue w ill spring out of
the buck le ¢ ,& .
.,. Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
_& WARNING
-Never unfasten safety belt wh ile the vehicle is
moving . Do ing so w ill increase your r isk of be
in g injured or killed .
Adjusting safety belt height
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust
ment , the three point safety belt strop routing
con be fitted to the shoulder area, according to
body size .
Fig. 154 Safet y belt he ig h t adj ust m en t fo r th e fro nt seats
- loop -a rou nd f itt ings
0 ..... N
0
:i:
"' CD
The shoulder be lt shou ld lie as close to the center
of the co ll ar bone as possible and shou ld fit well
o n the body
¢ ,& in Safe ty belt position on
page 144. ..,.
145
Safety belt s
"'Push the loop -around fittings up c> fig . 154 @,
or
"'squeeze together the (D button, and push the
loop-around fittings
down @.
"'Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at
tachment is properly engaged.
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth
er impo rtant informat ion
c>page 14 2.
(D Tips
With the front seats , the height adjustment
of the seat can also be used to adjust the po
sition of the safe ty belts.
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause se
vere injuries.
Wearing safety belts imprope rly can cause seri
ous injury or death. Safety belts can only work
when they a re correctly pos itioned on the body.
Imp roper seating positions reduce the effect ive
ness of safety be lts and will even inc rease the
ris k of injury a nd deat h by mov ing the safety bel t
to cr it ica l areas of the bo dy. Imp roper seating
positions a lso increase the risk of serio us inj ury
and deat h when an airbag deploys and strikes an
occ upant who is not in the co rrect seat ing pos i
tion. A driver is responsible for the safety of all
ve hicle occupants and especia lly for children.
Therefore:
"' Never permit anyone to assume an inco rrect
s itting position in the vehicle wh ile trave ling
c> ,&. .
A WARNING
Impro perly wor n safety belts increase t he risk
of se rious personal injury a nd death wheneve r
a vehicle is bei ng use d.
- Always make sure tha t all veh icle occupa nts
are co rrectly restra ined and stay in a co rrect
seat ing pos ition w heneve r the veh icle is be
ing used.
146
- Always read and heed all WAR NINGS and
o ther impo rtant in format ion
c>page 142.
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear-end collisions above a
particular severity and in a rollover, safety belts are tensioned automatically.
Reversible safety belt tensioner s
The safety belts on the front seats are equipped
with power revers ible tensioners. The following
funct io ns are available when the dr iver's/front
passenger 's safety belts are faste ned:
- Automatic tensione rs: at the start of a drive,
the safety belts automat ica lly adjust to the
passenger after a certain time period or ve hicle
spee d. To switch the a utomat ic tens ioners off,
select the following in t he M MI :
!CARI function
button
> ( Car )* systems > Vehicle settings >
Seat s > Driver's seat or Pas senger's seat > Au ·
tomatic belt tensioner > Off .
-In certain drivi ng s ituations, the s afe ty bel ts
m ay tighten w ith a reversib le tensioning func
tion
c> page 138 .
- The s afety be lts may also tigh ten with this re-
vers ible tension ing f unct io n in m ino r collisions .
Pyrotechnic safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are eq uipped w it h safety bel t
pretensione rs. The system is activa ted by se nsors
i n front, s ide a nd r ear-end collisions of grea t se
verity and in a ro llover. This tig htens the bel t and
takes up belt slack
c> &. in Service and disposal of
safety belt pretensioner on page 147.
Taking up
the slack helps to reduce forward occupant
movement during a collision.
A WARNING
-It is poss ible for the pretensioners to dep loy
incorrectly .
- The pyrotechnic system can only p rovide
protection for one collision. If the py rotech
nic pretens ioners deploy, the pretensioning
sys tem must be rep laced.
Airbag syste m
must be performed by qualified workshops
only. Make sure that any airbag service ac
tion is entered in your Aud i Warranty
&
Maintena nce booklet under AIRBAG RE
PLACEMENT RECORD.
- For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starter are separated from
the vehicle battery with a pyrotechn ic circuit
in terrupter.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit interrupt
er must only be performed by a qualified
technicians who have the experience, in
formation and special tools necessary to
perform the work safely.
- If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter is
scrapped, all applicab le safety precautions
must be followed .
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modu les and pretension
ers might be classified as Perch lorate Materi
al -special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo rate . When the veh icle o r parts of the re
stra int system including airbag modules and
safety belts w it h pretensioners are scrapped,
all applicable laws and regu lations must be
observed. Your authorized Audi dealer is fa
m iliar with these requirements and we recom
mend that you have your dealer perform this
serv ice for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced A irbag System
pe rforms in a crash. For e xamp le, using t ire -r im
comb inations no t approved by Audi, lowering t he
veh icle, chang ing the stiffness o f the suspe nsio n,
i n cluding the springs, suspension struts, shock
absorbers etc . can change the forces that are
measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the
electronic contro l unit . Some suspens ion changes
can, for example, increase the force levels meas
ured by the sensors and make the airbag system
deploy in c rashes in w hich it would not deploy if
the changes had not been made. Other ki nds of
164
changes may reduce the force levels measured by
the sensors and prevent the airbag from deploy
i ng when it should .
_& WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension including
use of unapproved tire-rim comb inations can
change Advanced Airbag performance and in
crease the r isk of serious personal injury in a
crash .
- Never install suspension components that do not have the same performance charac
ter istics as the components origina lly instal
led on your vehicle.
- Never use tire-r im combinations that have
not been approved by Aud i.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
Applies to : vehicles with knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supplemen
tal protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants .
Fig . 15 9 Driver 's knee a irbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument panel
u nderneath the s teer ing whee l¢
fig. 159, the
airbag fo r the passenger is at about the same
height in the i nstr ument panel underneath the
glove compa rtment.
The knee airbag offers add itiona l protect ion to
the d river's and passenge r's knees and uppe r and
l ower thigh areas a nd sup plements the p rotec
t ion prov ided by the safety belts .
If the front airbags deploy, the knee a irbags also
deploy in fron tal coll is ions when t he deployment ..,_
Child safety
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs . and 80
lbs. (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9
in. (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall .
Fig. 169 Rear seat: ch ild proper ly restrained in a booster
seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit most
children until they are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 in
ches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about 80 lbs.
(36 kg). Booster seats raise these chi ld ren up so
that the safety belt will pass properly
over the
stronger parts of their bodies and the safety belt
can help protect them in a crash.
• Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to restrain
a chi ld on a booster seat.
• The shoulder be lt must lie as close to the cen
ter of the child's collar bone as possible and
must lie flat and snug on the upper body. It
must never lie across the throat or neck. The
lap belt must lie across the pelv is and never
across the stomach or abdomen . Make sure the
belt lies flat and snug. Pull on the belt to tight
en if necessary .
• If you must transport an older child in a boos
te r seat on the front passenger seat, you can
use the safety belt height adjustment to help
adjust the shoulder portion properly .
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c> page 178.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs or
18 kg) are best protected in child safety seats de
signed for their age and weight. Experts say that
the skeletal structure, particularly the pelvis, of
these children is not fully developed, and they
182
must not use the vehicle safety belts without a
suitable child restraint .
It is usually best to put these children in appro
priate booste r seats. Be sure the booster seat
meets all applicab le safety standards.
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass across
the child's body in the right places. The routing of
the be lt
over the chi ld's body is very important
for the child's protection, whether or not a boos
ter seat is used. Children age 12 and under m ust
always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inches/
1.45 meters) ta ll can generally use the vehicle 's
three point lap and shoulder belts. Never use the
lap belt portion of the vehicle's safety belt alone
to restrain any child, regard less of how big the
c hi ld is. Always remember that children do not
have the p ronounced pelvic structure required for
the proper function of lap belt portion of the
ve
hicle's three point lap and shoulder belts. The
c hi ld's safety absolutely requ ires that a lap belt
portion of the safety belt be fastened snugly and
as low as possible around the pe lvis. Never let
the lap belt portion of the safety belt pass over
the child's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink of
an eye and with considerab le force . In order to do
i ts job, the airbag needs room to inflate so that it
will be there to protect the occupant as the occu
pant
moves forward into the airbag.
A ve hicle occupant who is out of position and too
close to the a irbag gets in the way of an inflating
airbag. When an occupant is too close, he or she
will be struck violently and will receive serious or
possibly even fatal injury .
In order for the a irbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especially
any ch ildren, who must be in the front seat be
cause of exceptional c ircumstances, be properly
re stra ined and as far away from the a irbag as
possible. By keeping room between the child's .,..
Wheels
(D Tires for passenger vehicles
(if applicable)
P indicates a tire for a passenger
vehicle. T indicates a tire desig
nated for temporary use.
@ Nominal width
Nominal width of the tire be
tween the sidewalls in millime
ters. In general: the larger the
number, the wider the tire.
@ Aspect ratio
Height/width ratio expressed as a
percentage.
@ Tire construction
R indicates a radial tire.
® Rim diameter
Size of the rim diameter in inches.
@ Load index and speed rating
The load index indicates the tire's
load-carrying capacity.
The speed rating indicates the maximum permitted speed
¢ & in
Winter tires on page 22
7.
"EXTRA LOAD", "xl" or "RF" indi
cates that the tire is reinforced or
is an Extra Load tire.
Speed rat- Maximum permitted speed
ing
p
up to 93 mph (150 km/h)
Q up to 99 mph (160 km/h)
212
Speed rat- Maximum permitted speed
Ing
R
up t o 106 mph (170 km/h)
s up to 110 mph (180 km/h)
T up to 1 18 mph (190 km/h)
u up to 124 mph (200 km/h)
H up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
V up to 149 mph (240 km/h)al
z above 149 mph (240 km/h)al
w up to 168 mph (270 km/h)al
y up to 186 mph (300 km/h)al
a) For tires above 149 mph (240 km/h),
tire manufacturers sometimes use the
code "ZR".
(j) US DOT number (TIN) and
manufacture date
The manufacture date is listed on
the tire sidewall (it may only ap
pear on the inner side of the tire):
DOT ... 2216 ...
means, for example, that the tire
was produced in the 22nd week of
the year 2016.
@ Audi Original Tires
Audi Original equipment tires
with the designation "AO" have
been specially matched to your
Audi. When used correctly, these
tires meet the highest standards
for safety and handling. An au
thorized Audi dealer or author
ized Audi Service Facility will be
able to provide you with more in
formation.
a,
a,
..... N r-. N ..... 0 a, OJ ..
® Mud and snow capability
"M/5" or "M+S" indicates the tire
is suitable for driving on mud and
snow. £ indicates a winter tire.
@Composition of the tire cord
and materials
The number of plies indicates the
number of rubberized fabric lay
ers in the tire . In general: the
more layers, the more weight a
tire can carry. Tire manufacturers
must also specify the materials
used in the ti re . These inc lude
stee l, nylon, polyester and other
materials.
@ Maximum permitted load
This number indicates the maxi
mum load in kilograms and
pounds that the tire can carry.
@ Un iform tire quality grade
standards for treadwear,
traction and temperature resistance
Tread wear, traction and temper
ature ranges¢
page 229 .
@ Running direction
The arrows indicate the running
direction of unidirectional tires.
You must always follow the speci
fied running direction
¢page 248 .
~ Maximum permitted
inflation pressure
Wheels
T his number indicates the maxi
mum pressure to which a tire can
be inflated under normal operat
ing conditions .
Glossary of tire and loading
terminology
Accessory weight
means the combined weight (in
excess of those standard items
which may be replaced) of auto matic t ransmission, power steer
ing, power brakes, power win
dows , powe r seats, radio, and
heater, to the extent tha t these
items are avai lab le as factory- in
stalled equipment (whether in
s t alled or not).
Aspect ratio
means the ratio of the height to
the w idth of the tire in percent.
Numbers of 55 or lower indicate a
low sidewall for improved steer
ing response and better overall
handling on dry pavement .
Bead
means the part of the tire that is
made of steel wires, wrapped or
reinfo rced by ply cords and that is
shaped to fit the rim. ...
213
Wheels
co ntrol, w hich inc reases t he risk of an
accident .
(D Note
-Snow cha ins can damage the rims/whee l
covers * if the chains come into d irect con
tact with them. Remove the whee l cove rs *
first. Use coated snow chains.
- Usin g sn ow chains that a dd more than 0 .4
i nch (10.5 mm) of he ight can severely dam
age the wheel ho usings and other vehicle
components .
- Do not install and use snow chains if there is
a malfunct ion in the adaptive air suspen
s io n*, because the vehicle height wi ll be
very low . If yo u drive with snow chains any
way, the wheel ho usings a nd othe r vehicle
co mp onen ts ca n be severe ly da mage d.
(D Tips
When using snow cha ins, it may b e usef ul to
sw itch on spo rt mo de
~ pag e 12 1.
Low aspect ratio tires
Your Aud i is f actory-equipped wi th low aspec t ra
t io tires. The se tir es h ave bee n thor oughly te sted
and b een se lected s pecific ally fo r yo ur model fo r
their superb perfo rmance , road feel and hand ling
un der a va riety of driving conditions. As k yo ur au
thor ized Audi dealer for mo re details .
Th e low aspect ratio of these tires is indi cate d by
a nume ra l of
55 or less in t he tire's size desig na
tion. The nume ra l r ep resents the rat io of t he
tire's sidewall he ight i n relat ion to its tread wi dth
expressed in pe rcentage. Conventional tires have
a heig ht/w idt h rat io o f 60 o r mo re.
The performance of low-aspect-ratio tires is par
ticularly sensitive to improper inflation pres
sure. It is therefore important that low aspect
ratio tires are inflated to the specified pressure
and that the inflation pressure is regularly
checked and maintained. Tire pressures should
be checked at least once a month and always
before a long trip~
page 221.
228
What you can do to avoid tire and rim
damage
Low aspect ratio tires can be damaged more eas i
l y by impact with potho les, curbs, gullies or
r idges on the road, particularly if the tire is un
der inflated.
In orde r to mi nimize the occurrence of impact
damage to the tires o f yo ur vehicle, we recom
mend that you observe the following preca u
tions:
- Always maintain recommended inflation pres
sures. Check yo ur tire pressure every 2,000
m iles (3,000 km) and add a ir if necessary.
- Dr ive carefully on roa ds w it h potholes, deep
gullies o r ridges. The impact from dr iv ing
throug h or over such obstacles can damage
your t ires. Impac t with a curb may a lso ca use
damage to yo ur tir es.
- After a ny impact, immed iate ly inspect you r
tires or have them inspected by the nearest au
t horize d Aud i dealer . Replace a damage d tire as
soo n as poss ible .
- Inspec t your tir es ev ery 2,000 m iles (3,000 km)
for d amage and wear . Damage is no t always
easy to see . Da mage ca n lead to loss o f air and
un derinfla tion, w hich could eve ntually ca use
t ire f ailure. If yo u be lieve th at a tir e m ay h ave
been dam age d, rep la ce the tire as soon as pos
sible .
- These tire s may wea r mo re quick ly th an ot hers.
- Ple ase also remember th at , while t hese tires
delive r respo nsive h andli ng, they may rid e less
c omforta bly an d make mo re noise than o ther
choices .
Reduced performance in winter/cold season
conditions
A ll t ires are des igned for certain purposes . T he
l ow aspect ratio, ultra h igh performance tires
o rigina lly installed on your veh icle are inten ded
fo r max imum d ry and wet road per formance and
h andling . They a re not suitable fo r co ld, snowy or
i cy weather conditions . If yo u drive under those
c ir cums tances, you should eq uip yo ur vehicle
wi th all-season o r winter tires, which offer be tter
t ra ct io n und er th ose condi tions. We suggest yo u ..,.