2017 AUDI A8 warning

Airbag system
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occu­
pants.
Fig. 230 Location of dr iver airbag: in steering whee l
Fig. 231 Location of front passenger's airbag: in th e in­
strument panel
Your veh icle is equipped with an "Advanced Air­
bag System " in compliance with Un ited States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208, as well as Canada Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at
the time your vehicle was manufactured. he safe­
ty belts for the seats have "pretensioners" that help to take s lack out of the belt system. The pre­
tensioners are also activated by the electronic
control unit for the airbag system.
The front safety be lts also have load limiters to
help reduce the forces applied to the body in a
crash.
The airbag for the driver is in the steering wheel
hub~
fig . 230 and the airbag for the front pas­
senger is in the instrument panel~
fig. 231. The
general location of the airbags is marked "AIR­
BAG".
230
There is a lot you need to know about the airbags
in your vehicle . We urge you to read the detai led
i nformation about airbags, safety belts and ch ild
safety in this and the other chapters that make
up the owner's literature. 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 .
.&_ WARNING -
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
supp lemental protection.
- Airbag work most effectively when used
with properly worn safety belts .
- Therefore, always wear your safety belts and make sure that everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained .
.&_ WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, espe­
cially infants and small ch ildren, wi ll receive
serious injuries and can even be killed by be­
ing too close to the airbag when it inf lates.
- 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 under
the U.S. Federal Standard if a child that is
heav ier than the typical one-year old ch ild is
on the front passenger seat and the other
conditions fo r airbag deployment are met.
- Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating pos ition.
- For their own safety, all children, especially
12 years and younger, should always ride in
the back proper ly restrained for their age
and size.

Airbag syste m
-a small adu lt or teenager is on the front pas ­
senger seat
- a passenger who is not sitting upright with
their back against a non -reclined backrest with
their feet on the vehicle floor in front of the
seat is on the front passenger seat.
I f the front passenger airbag dep loys, the Feder ­
al Standard requires the airbag to meet the "low
risk" deployment criteria to help reduce the risk
of injury through interaction with the airbag.
"Low risk" deployment occurs in those crashes
that take place at lower decelerations as def ined
in the electronic control unit¢
page 236.
Alway s remember: Even though your vehicle is
equ ipped w ith Advanced Airbags, the safest place
for children is properly restrained on the back
seat . Please be sure to read the important infor­
mat ion in the sections that follow and be sure to
heed a ll of the WARN INGS.
A WARNING
To red uce the risk of inj ury when an ai rbag in­
fla tes, a lways wear safety bel ts p roperly.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning fo rwa rd, s it­
t ing s ideways or o ut of pos ition in any way,
yo ur risk of in jury is much h igher .
- Yo u will also re ceive serious injur ies and
could even be killed if you are up aga inst the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag ¢
page 226.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing chi ld seat insta l­
led on the front passenger seat will be seri­
ously injured and can be k illed if the front air­
bag inflates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- Although the Advanced A irbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the front
airbag when a rearward-facing child re­
straint has been installed on the front pas­
senger seat, nobody can absolutely g uaran­
tee that deployment is impossible in all con­
ceivable s ituations that may happen during
the usef ul life of your vehicle .
- The inflating a irbag w il l hit the child seat or
infant carrier w ith great force and will
232
-
smash the child seat and child against the
backrest, center armrest, door, or roof.
- Always install rearward-facing child re ­
straints on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
seat on the front passenge r seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immed iate ly install the rear­
facing chi ld seat in a rear seating posit ion
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea le r.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional ci rcums tances, you must in­
stall a forward-facing child restraint on the
fron t passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-fa cing sea t
has been des igned and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas ­
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forwa rd-facing child restrain t
up against or very near the instr ument pan ­
el.
-Always move the front passenge r seat to
the highest position in the up and down ad­
justment range and move it back to the
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
ad justment range, as far away from the air­
bag as poss ible, before installing the for­
ward-facing chi ld restraint.
- Always make sure that the safety be lt upper
anchorage is behind the ch ild restraint and
not next to or in fron t of the child restraint
so that the safety be lt will be p roperly posi­
tioned.
- Ma ke sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on a ll the time
wheneve r the ign it ion is swi tched on.
· Advanced Airbag System components
The fro nt passenge r sea t in your veh icle has a lo t
of ve ry important parts o f the Advanced A irbag
System in it. These parts include t he weight­
sensing mat, sensors, wiring, brackets, and
more. The fu nction of the system in the front
passenger seat is checked by the electronic
1111>

control unit when the ignition is on. The control
unit monitors the Advanced Airbag System and
turns the airbag indicator light on when a ma l­
function in the system components is detected. The funct ion of the a irbag indicator light is de­
scr ibed in greater deta il below . Because the front
passenger seat contains important parts of the
Advanced Airbag System, you must take care to p revent it from being damaged. Damage to the
seat may preven t the Advanced A irbag for the
fron t passenger seat from doing its job in a
crash .
The front Advanced Airbag System consists
of the follo wing :
-Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measure vehicle acceleration/deceleration to
provide information to the Advanced Airbag
System a bout the severity of the crash.
- An e lectronic control unit, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts. The
control unit "decides" whether to fire the front
airbags based on the information received from
the crash sensors. The control unit also "de­
c ides" whether the safety belt pretens ioners
should be activated .
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control valve for the driver ins ide the steer ing
wheel hub .
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and control valve inside the instrument pa nel for
the front passenger.
- A weig ht-sensing mat under the upholstery
padd ing of the front passenger seat cushion
that meas ures the total weight on the seat. The
i nformation registered is sent continuously to
the e lectron ic cont rol unit to reg ulate dep loy­
ment of the front Adv a need Airbag on the pas­
senger side .
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
light in the instrument cluster
¢ page 236.
-A sensor in eac h front seat registers the dis­
tance between the respective seat and the steering wheel or instrument pane l. The infor­
mation registered is sent contin uously to the
0 co electronic control unit to regulate deployment ....
~ of the front Adva need A irbags. N .... 0 0 :c ' Airb ag sys tem
- The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on in the center of the instrument
pane l¢
page 237, fig . 233 and te lls yo u when
the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off.
- A sensor below the safety be lt latch for the
front seat passenger to measure the tension on the safety belt. The tension on the safety belt
and the we ight registered by the weight -sens­
ing mat help the contro l unit "decide" whether
the front airbag fo r the front passenger seat
should be tu rned off o r not ¢
page 22 7, Child
restraints on the front seat -some important
things to know.
- 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 o r not and
transmits this information to the electronic control unit.
A WARNING ,-
Damage to the front passenger seat can pre-
vent the front airbag from working properly.
- Improper repair or disassembly of the front passenger and driver seat will prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from funct ion ing
properly .
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must be
performed by qualified and properly trained
workshop personnel.
- Never remove the front passenger or driver
seat from the vehicle.
- Never remove the upholstery from the front
passenger seat.
- Never d isassemble or remove parts from the
seat or disconnect w ires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets or
p lace them on the seat. If the weight-sens­
ing mat in the passenger seat is punctured
it cannot work properly .
- Never carry things on your lap or carry ob­
jects on the passenger seat . Such items can
increase the weight reg istered by the
weight-sensing mat and send the wrong in­
formation to the a irbag con trol u nit.
- Never store items under the front passenger
seat. Parts of the Advanced Airbag System
under the passenger seat cou ld be
~
233

Airbag syste m
damaged, preventing them and the airbag
system from working properly.
- Never place seat covers or rep lacement up­
holstery that have not been specifically ap­
proved by Audi on the front seats .
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Air­
bag System from recognizing child re­
straints or occupants on the front passenger
seat and prevent the side a irbag in the seat
backrest from deploying properly.
- Never use cush ions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger seat.
The add it ional padding will prevent the
weight-sens ing mat in the seat from acc u­
rately reg istering the ch ild restraint or per­
son on the seat and prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from funct ioning properly.
- If you must use a child rest raint on the front
passenge r seat and the child restraint man­
ufacturer 's instructions require the use of a
towel, foam cushion or something else to properly position the ch ild restraint, make
certain that the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever the
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat.
- If the
PASSEN GER AIR B AG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immed iately in­
stall child restraint in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by
yo ur Audi dealer.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the side
airbags supplement the protection offered by the
front three-po int safety belts with pretensioners
and load limiters and the adjustable head re­
stra ints to help reduce the r isk of injury in a wide
range of accident and crash situations. Be sure to read the important informa tion about safety and
heed the WARN INGS in t his chapter.
Deployment of the Advanced Airbag System and
the act ivat ion of the safety belt pretensioners de­
pend on the deceleration measu red by the crash
sensors and regis tered by the electronic control
unit. Crash severity depends on speed and decel-
2 34
eration as well as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object involved in the crash .
On the passenger side, regard less of safety be lt
u se, the airbag will be turned off if the weight on
the passenger seat is less than the amount pro­
grammed in the electronic control unit . The front
airbag on the passenger side will also be turned
off if one of the child seats that has been certi­
fied under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been recognized on the seat. The
PA S­
S ENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on to tell you when the front Advanced A irbag on
the passenger side has been turned off
q page 22 7, Child restraints on the front seat­
some important things to know.
A WARNING
To reduce the ris k of injury when an airbag in ­
f lates, always wea r safety belts properly.
- If you are un restrained, leaning forward, sit ­
ting sideways or out of position i n any way,
your risk of injury is much higher.
- You will a lso receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
q page 226.
More important things to know about front
airbags
Fig . 232 Inflated front a irbags
Safety be lts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated position so
that airbags can unfold properly and prov ide sup-
plemental protection in a fronta l collision . ..,.

0 co .... N ,..... N .... 0 0 :c ' The front airbags are designed to provide addi­
tional protection for the chest and face of the
driver and the front seat passenger when:
- sa fety belts are worn prope rly,
- the seats have been positioned so that the oc-
c u pant is properly sea ted as far as possible
from the airbag,
- and the head restra ints have been p roperly ad-
justed.
Because airbags inflate in the blink of an eye w ith
g reat fo rce, things you have on your lap or have
p laced on the seat cou ld become dangerous pro­
jectiles , and be p ushed into you if the ai rbag in ­
flates.
When an a irbag deploys, fine dust is released.
This is normal and is not caused by a fire in the
ve hicl e. Thi s dust is made up mostly of a powder
used to lubricate the airbags as they deploy. It
could irritate skin.
It is important to remember that whi le the sup­
p lemental airbag system is designed to reduce
the likel ihood of ser ious injuries, other i nju ries,
for example swelling, bru is ing and minor abra­
sions, can a lso happen when airbags inflate . Air­
bags do not protect the arms or the lower parts
of the body. Front airbags supplement the three­
point safety belts only in some frontal collisions
i n which the ve hicle decelerat io n is high enough
to deploy the airbags .
Front airbag s will not deploy:
- if the ignit ion is switched off when a crash oc-
curs,
- in side collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollove rs,
- when the c rash decelerat io n meas ured by the
airbag system is less than the minimum thresh­
o ld needed for airbag deployment as registered
by the electronic contro l unit.
The front passenger airbag also will not
d eplo y:
- when the front passenger seat is not occ upied,
- when the we igh t on the fron t passenge r seat as
sensed by t he Advanced A irbag System indi-
Airb ag sys tem
cates that the front a irbag on the passenger
side has to be turned off by the e lectronic con­
trol unit (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on).
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase the r isk of ser ious injury in crashes .
- To reduce the r isk of injury when the airbags
inflate, the driver and passengers must al­
ways sit in an upright posit ion, must not
lean aga inst or place any part of their body
too close to the area where the airbags are
lo cated.
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posit ion
or too close to the airbag can be serio usly
in jur ed by an airbag as it unfolds with g reat
force in the blink of an eye
~ page 22 7.
A WARNING
-A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal­
l ed 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 h it the ch ild seat o r
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing child seats on the
rear seat.
- If you must install a rea rward facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immed iate ly install the rear­
facing chi ld seat in a rear seating posit io n
a nd have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea le r.
A WARNING
Objects between you an d the airbag will in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer ­
ing with the way the airbag unfolds or by be­
i ng p ushed into you as the airbag inflates .
- Never hold things in yo ur hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use .
235

Airbag syste m
-Ne ver t ransport items on or in the area of
t h e fr ont passenger seat. Objects could
m ove into the area of the front airbags dur­
ing brak ing or oth er sudden maneuvers and
become dangerous projectiles that can
cause serious pe rsonal injury if the a irbags
inflate.
- Never place or attach accessor ies or other
objects (such as cup holders, te lephone
brackets, large, heavy o r bulky objects) on
the doors, over or ne ar the area marked
"AIRBAG" on the steering wheel, instru ­
ment pane l, seat bac krests or between
t h ose areas and yourself. These objects
could cause injury in a crash, especially
when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenge r's seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the area of the side airbag o r the front a ir­
bag dur ing braking or in a s udden maneu­
ver. Objects near the airbags can become
projectiles and cause in ju ry, particularly
when the sea t is re clin ed.
.8, WARNING
The f ine dust create d when airbags deploy can
cause breathing problems for people w ith a
his tory of asthma or o ther breathing condi­
tions .
- T o reduce the risk o f brea thing pro blems,
those w ith asthma or o ther respiratory con ­
ditions should get fresh air right away by
gett ing out of the vehicle o r opening w in­
dows o r doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags de­
ploy, wash your hands and face with mild
soap and water before eat ing.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your eyes,
or into any cuts or scratches.
- If the resid ue should get into your eyes,
flush them with water.
236
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
tli (USA models )/!{' (Canada model s)
Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function of
the Advanced Airbag System: the airbag moni­
toring indicator light and the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light.
The Advanced A irbag System ( including the e lec ­
tronic control unit, sensor circuits and system
wiring) is monitored continuously to make sure
that it is functioning properly whenever the igni­
tion is o n. Each time you sw itch on the ig nition,
the a irbag mo nitor ing indica to r light
II (U SA
models)/ fll (Canada models) w ill come o n for a
few seconds (se lf d iagnost ic s) .
The system must be inspected when the
indicator light
fl (USA models) /E,I (Canada
models) :
-does not come on when the igni tion is sw itched
on,
- does not go out a few se co nd s afte r you h ave
sw itched on the ignit ion, or
- comes on while driv ing.
If an airbag system malfunction is detected, the
i ndica to r light will come on to se rve as a constant
r em inder to have t he system inspected immedi­
ate ly.
If a ma lfunction occurs that turns the front air­
bag on the passenge r side off, the
PASSENGER
A IR BAG OFF
light w ill come on and stay o n
whe never the ignition is on.
_& WARNING
A n a ir b ag system t hat i s no t functioning prop­
e rly cannot provide sup plemental pro te ct ion
in a fronta l crash .
- If the air bag ind icator ligh t<=? page 23
comes when the vehicle i s being u sed, 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 will not inflate when it should.

Airbag syste m
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 restrained in a
c h ild restraint that is appropriate for its size
and age .
The
PA SSENGER AIR BAG O FF light shou ld NOT
come on when the ignition is on and an adu lt is
sitting in a proper seating position on the front
passenger seat. If the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
5 seconds while driving, under these circumstan­
ces, make sure that:
- 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 aga inst the backrest and the
backrest is not recl ined
r=> page 208, Correct
passenger seating positions,
-the adult is not taking weight off the seat by
hold ing on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or supporting
their we ight on the arm rest,
- the safety be lt is be ing 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 inco rrect read ing o r
imp ression on the weight-sens ing mat under
the upho ls tery of the seat have been removed
from the front passenger seat,
- a safety be lt extende r has not been left in the
sa fety belt latch for the front passenge r seat .
I n addition to the
PASS ENGER AIR BAG OFF
light in the center of the inst rument panel, the
message
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF or PA SSEN­
GER AIR BAG ON
wi ll briefly appear in the inst ru ­
ment cluster display. This is to inform the driver
of the current front passenger airbag status.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
_& WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ion ing prop­
er ly cannot provide supplemental p rotection
in a frontal crash.
238
-If the airbag indicator light r=> page 23
comes when the veh icle 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 wi ll not inflate when it should.
_& WARNING
I f the front a irbag inflates, a ch ild without a
chi ld restraint, or in a rea rwa rd-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-fa cing c hild re­
stra int that has not been properly insta lled
will be seriously injured and can be killed.
- Even tho ugh you r vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that all children, espec ia lly 12 years and
younge r, 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 with an Ad ­
vanced Airbag System.
- If you must insta ll a rearwa rd-facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
except ional circumstances and the PASSEN·
GER AIR BAG OFF light does not appear and
stay on, immediate ly install the rear-facing
child seat in a rea r seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
dea le r.
- A t ight tether or other strap on a rearward­
facing chi ld restraint attached to the front
passenger sea t 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 though an adu lt
were on the seat and deploy the Advanced
Airbag when it must be suppressed causing
serious or even fatal injury to the child.
- 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 ad justment range, as far away
from t he air bag as poss ible. The back re st
m ust be adjus ted to an upr ight position.
Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG

0 co .... N ,..._
N .... 0 0 :c ' OFF light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition 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 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.
{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
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
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.
Airbag system
-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 be activated only
once. After an airbag has inflated, it must
be replaced by an authorized Audi dealer or
qualified technician who has the technical
information, training and special equipment
necessary.
- The airbag system can be deployed only
once. After an airbag has been deployed, it
must be replaced with new replacement
parts designed and approved especially for
your Audi model version. Replacement of complete airbag systems or airbag compo­nents must be performed by qualified work-
shops only. Make sure that any airbag
Ill-
239