2017 AUDI Q7 warning

Safe ty belts
passenge rs, a lways correct ly wear safety
belts when the vehicle is moving.
- Failure to pay attention to the warning light
that comes on could lead to personal injury.
Why use safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for peo­
ple riding in vehicles .
Fig. 2 28 Unbe lt ed occupants in a vehi cle headi ng for a wall
Fig . 229 T he ve hi cle c rashes into the wa ll
The physical principles are simple . Both the vehi­
cle and the passengers possess energy which var­ ies w ith vehicle speed and body weight . Engi­
neers call this energy "k inetic energy."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the
g reater the vehicle's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash.
Veh icle speed is the most signific ant fac tor .
If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to 50
km/h) , the energy increases 4 t imes!
Because the passengers of th is veh icle are not us­
i n g safety belts~
fig. 228, they will keep mov ing
at the same speed the ve hicle was mov ing j ust
266
before the crash, until something stops them -
here, the wall¢
fig. 229 .
The same principles apply to people s itting in a
vehicle that is invo lved i n a frontal collision . Even
at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50 km/h),
the forces acting on the body can reach one ton
(2,000 lbs . or 1,000 kg) o r more. At g reater
speeds, these forces are even higher.
People who do not use safety belts are a lso not
attached to their vehicle. In a frontal collision
they will also keep mov ing forward at the speed
their vehicle was travelling just before the crash. Of course, the laws of physics don 't just apply to
frontal collisions , they determine what happens
i n a ll kinds of accide nts and co llisions .
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in­
jured or killed . Always wear your safety belts!
F ig . 23 0 A drive r not wea ring a safety belt is vio lent ly
throw n forward
Fig . 2 31 A rea r passe nge r not we aring a sa fety be lt w ill fly
forwa rd an d str ike t he drive r
Unbelted occupants a re not ab le to res ist the tre-
mendous forces of impac t by holding tig ht o r
Ill-

Safety belts
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be correctly positioned across the strongest bones of your body.
• Always wear safety belts as illustrated and de­
scribed in this chapter .
• Make sure that your safety belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged .
~ WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death. Safety belts can work only
when used correctly.
- Always fasten your safety belts correctly be­
fore driving off and make sure all passen­
gers are correctly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must
always be positioned properly on the body.
- Never strap more than one person, includ­
ing small children, into any belt.
- Never place a safety belt over a child sitting
on your lap.
-Always keep feet in the footwell in front of
the seat while the vehicle is being driven .
- Never let any person ride with their feet on
the instrument panel or sticking out the
window or on the seat.
- Never remove a safety belt while the vehicle
is mov ing. Doing so will increase your risk of
being injured or killed.
- Never wear belts twisted.
- Never wear belts over rigid or breakable ob-
jects in or on your clothing, such as eye glasses, pens, keys, etc., as these may cause
injury.
- Never allow safety belts to become dam­
aged by being caught in door or seat hard­
ware.
- Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt
under your arm or otherwise out of position.
- Several layers of heavy clothing may inter­
fere with correct positioning of belts and re­ duce the overall effectiveness of the system.
268
- Always keep belt buckles free of anything
that may prevent the buckle from latching
securely.
- Never use comfort clips or devices that cre­
ate slack in the shoulder belt. However, spe­
cial clips may be required for the proper use
of some child restraint systems.
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt hardware can break in an acci­
dent. Inspect belts regularly.
If webbing,
bindings, buckles, or retractors are dam­
aged, have belts replaced by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- Safety belts that have been worn and loaded
in an accident must be replaced with the
correct replacement safety belt by an au­
thorized Audi dealer. Replacement may be
necessary even if damage cannot be clearly
seen. Anchorages that were loaded must al­
so be inspected.
- Never remove, modify, disassemble, or try
to repair the safety belts yourself.
-Always keep the belts clean. Dirty belts may
not work properly and can impair the func­
tion of the inertia reel
c::> table Interior
cleaning on page 356.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 233 Be lt bu ckle and to ngue on the driver's seat
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wear­
er 's body.
• Adjust the front seat and head restraint proper-
ly
c::> page 59, Front seats. .,.

u (0 ...... N r--. N ...... 0
0
:E .. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench
is in an upright position and securely latched in
place before using the belt¢.&_ .
.. Pull the safety belt evenly across the chest and
pelvis ¢
fig. 233, ¢ .&_ .
.. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely.
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
Automatic safety belt retractors
Every safety belt is equipped with an automatic
belt retractor on the shoulder belt. This feature
locks the belt when the belt is pulled out fast,
during hard braking and in an accident . The belt
may also lock when you drive up or down a steep
hill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv­
ing the belt lets you move freely.
Safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are equipped with a belt preten­
sioner that helps to tighten the safety belt and
remove slack when the pretensioner is activated
¢
page 2 71 . The function of the pretensioner is
monitored by a warning light
q page 29.
Convertible locking retractor
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 safety seat. Be sure to read
the important information about this feature
¢page 306.
.&._ WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious injury in an accident
q page 269,
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 back­ rest to which the center rear safety belt is
attached is securely 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-
Safety belts
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 buckle will reduce safety belt effec­
tiveness and can cause serious personal in­
jury .
- A passenger who is not properly restrained
can be seriously injured by the safety belt it­
self when it moves from the stronger parts
of the body into critical areas like the abdo­
men .
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child safety seat in
the vehicle
¢ page 308.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi ­
mum protection from safety belts .
Fig. 234 Safety belt position
Standard features on your vehicle help you adjust
the position of the safety belt to match your body
size .
- belt height adjustment for the front seats,
- height-adjustable front seats.
.&_ WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious personal injury in an accident.
- The shoulder belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possible and
should fit well on the body. Hold the belt
above the latch tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest so that it sits as low as pos-
sible on the pelvis and there is no pressure
~
269

Safety belts
on the abdomen. The belt should always fit
snugly
c> fig. 234. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- The lap belt portion of the safety belt must
be positioned as low as possible across pel­
vis and never over the abdomen. Make sure
the belt lies flat and snug
c> fig . 234. Pull on
the belt to tighten if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
injuries by shifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious injury.
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
c> page 268.
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
that expec tant mothers always wear safety belts
correctly -throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 235 Safety belt pos ition during pregnancy
To prov ide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wear­
er's body
c> page 269 .
.,. Adjust the front seat and head restraint cor­
rectly
c> page 59, Front seats .
.,. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench
is in an upright position and securely latched in
place before using the belt .
.,. Pull the safety belt evenly across the chest so
that it sits as low as possible on the pelvis and
there is no pressure on the abdomen
c:> fig. 235, ¢ ,&. .
.,. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely.
270
.,. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious 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 and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
c> .&. in Fasten­
ing safety belts on page
269 .
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped.
Fig. 236 Releasing the tongue from the buckle
.,. Push the red release button on the buckle
¢ fig. 236. The belt tongue will spring out of
the buckle
¢ ,&. .
.,. Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position.
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is
moving. Doing so will increase your risk of be­
ing injured or killed.

u (0 ...... N r--. N ...... 0
0
:E Adjusting safety belt height
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust­
ment, the three point safety belt strap routing
can be fitted to the shoulder area, according to
body size.
Fig . 237 Safety bel t height ad justment -loop -around fit ­
t ings
The shou lder belt should lie as close to the center
of the collar bone as poss ib le and should fit well
on the body¢&.
in Safety belt position on
page
269.
• Push the loop-around fitt ings up ¢ fig . 237 @,
or
• squeeze together the(!) button, and push the
loop-arou nd fittings
down @.
• Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at­
tachment is proper ly engaged .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth­
er important informat ion¢
page 268.
@ Tips
With the front seats, the height adjustment
of the seat can also be used to adjust the po­
sition of the safety belts .
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned saf ety belts can cause se­
vere injuries.
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause seri ­
ous injury or death. Safety belts can on ly work
when they are correctly pos itioned on the body .
Improper seating positions reduce the effective­ ness of safety belts and will even increase the
Safet y bel ts
risk of i nju ry and death by moving the safety be lt
to critical areas of the body . Improper seating
pos itions also increase the r isk of serious injury
and death when an airbag dep loys and strikes an
occupant who is not in the correct seating posi­
t ion . A driver is responsible for the safety of all
vehicle occupants and especially for ch ild ren.
The refore:
• Never perm it anyone to assume an incorrect
sitt ing position in the vehicle while traveling
¢ ,&. .
.8, WARNING
Imp roperly wo rn safe ty belts increase the risk
of ser ious personal in jury and death whe never
a veh icle is being used .
- Always make sure that all ve hicle occupants
are cor rec tly rest rained and stay in a corre ct
seating posi tion whenever t he vehicle is be­
ing used .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
o ther impor tant informat ion ¢
page 268.
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
Rever sible safety belt pretensioners
The following functions are available when safety
belts w ith reversible safety belt tensione rs are
fastened:
- Automatic tensioners : at the start of a drive,
the safety belts automatically adjust to the passenger after a certain time period or veh icle
speed . To switch the automatic tensioners off,
select the following in t he Infotainment sys­
tem:
! M EN UI button> Car > left con trol b utton
> Vehicle setting s > Seats > Driver' s seat or
Passenger' s seat > Automati c be lt ten sioner .
- In ce rta in driv ing s ituations, the safety bel ts
may tighten w it h a reversib le tensioning func­
tion
¢ page 117.
-The safety be lts may also tighten with this re­
vers ible te ns ion ing f unct ion in m inor collisions . .,.
271

Safety belt s
Pyro tec hni c safe ty bel t prete nsio ners
Seat belts with pyrotechnic safety belt preten­
sioners are tensioned automatica lly in severe col­
lisions , depending on the circumstances. This
helps to reduce the forward motion of the occu­
pants.
A WARNING
- It is possible for the pretensioners to deploy
incorrectly .
- Any work on the tensioner system or remov­
al and installation of system components
for other repairs must be performed by a qualified workshop .
- The pyrotechnic system can only prov ide
protect ion for one collision. If the pyrotech­
nic pretensioners deploy, the pretens ion ing
system must be replaced .
(D Tips
-A fine dust is released when the pyrotechnic
safety belt pretens ioners deploy . This is nor­
mal and is not caused by a fire in the vehi­
cle.
- The relevant safety requ irements must be
observed when the veh icle or components
of the system are scrapped. A qualified
dealersh ip is familiar with these regu lations
and will be p leased to pass on the informa­
tion to you.
Service and disposal of safety belt preten­
sioner
The safety belt pretens ioners are parts of the
safety belts on your Audi. Installing, removing,
servicing o r repa iring of belt pretensioners can
damage the safety belt system and prevent it
from working cor rectly in a collision .
There are some important th ings you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of the
system w ill not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
e nvironment.
272
A WARNING ,_ -
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing a safety belt preten­
sioner from activating when needed or act i­
vating it unexpected ly:
- The pyrotechnic safety belt pretens ioners
can only be activated once. If pyrotechnic
safety belt p retensioners have been activat­
ed, the system must be replaced.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the safety belt system.
- Safety belt systems including safety belt pretensioners cannot be repai red. Spec ial
procedures are required for remova l, instal­
lation and disposal of this system .
- For any wo rk on the safety be lt system, we
strong ly recommend that you see your au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified technician
who has an Audi approved repair manua l,
training and special equipment necessary.
(® For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and p re tension­
ers might be classified as Perchlorate Materi­
a l -special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo­
rate. When the vehicle or parts of the re­
straint system including airbag modules safe­
ty belts with pretensioners are scrapped, all
applicable laws and regulations must be ob­
served. Yo ur authorized Aud i dealer is familiar
wi th these requirements and we recommend
that yo u have your dealer perfo rm this service
for you .

Airbag syste m
also not inflate in s ide or rear collisions, or in
ro llovers.
Alwa ys rememb er: Airbags will deploy only once,
and on ly in ce rtain k inds of coll is ions. Yo ur safety
be lts are always there to offer protection in those
situations in which airbags are not supposed to
dep loy, or when they have already deployed; for
examp le, when your vehicle str ikes or is struck by
another vehicle after the first coll is ion.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is a
supp lementary restraint and is not a substitute
for a safety belt. The a irbag system works most
effect ively when used with the safety belts.
Therefore, always properly wear your safety belts
c::>page 265.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel o r in­
st rument panel will decrease the effective­
ness of the airbags and will inc rease the risk
of personal injury in a co llision.
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm) to
the steering wheel or instrument panel.
- If you cannot si t mo re than 10 inches
(25 cm) from the steering wheel, invest i­
gate whether adaptive equipment may be
available to help you reach the pedals and
increase your seating distance from the
steering wheel.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restra ined child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or imp roperly restrained
child is also at greate r risk of inju ry or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning fo rwa rd, s it­
t ing s ideways or o ut o f pos ition in any way,
yo ur risk of in ju ry is much h igher.
- Yo u will also receive serious injuries 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.
274
-
- To reduce the risk o f injury when an a irbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly
c::> page 268, Safety belts.
- Always make certa in that children age 12 or
younger always ride in the rear seat. If chil­
dren are not properly restrained, they may be severely injured or killed when an airbag
inflates.
- Never let ch ildren ride unrestra ined or im­
properly restrained in the vehicle. Ad just the
front seats properly.
- Never ride with the backrest recl ined .
- Always sit as far as possible from the steer-
ing wheel or the instrument panel
c::> page 257.
- Always sit upright w ith your back against
the backrest of your seat .
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both feet
on the floor in front of the seat to help pre­
vent serious injur ies to the legs and hips if
the airbag inflates.
- Never recl ine the front passenger's seat to
transpo rt objects . Items can also move in to
the area of the s ide a irbag or the front air­
bag du ring brak ing o r in a sudden maneu­
ver. Obje cts nea r the airbags can become
pro jecti les and cause injury when an airbag
inflates.
A WARNING
A irbags that have deployed in a crash must be
replaced.
- Use on ly original equipment airbags ap­
proved by Audi and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary tools and
diagnostic equipment to properly replace
any airbag in yo ur vehicle and assure system
effectiveness in a crash.
- Never perm it salvaged or recycled airbags to
be installed in your vehicle.
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.,. Be s ure to read the impo rtan t in format ion and
heed the WARN INGS for impor tant deta ils .,..

Airbag syste m
the electronic control unit¢ page 285, PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF~; ON@ light.
Always remember, a child safety seat or infant
carrier installed on the front seat may be struck
and knocked out of position by the rapid ly inflat­
ing passenger's airbag in a fronta l co llision. The
airbag cou ld greatly reduce the effect iveness of
the child restraint and even seriously injure the
child during inflation.
For this reason, and because the back seat is the
safest place for ch ildren -when properly restra in­
ed according to the ir age and size -we strong ly
recommend that children always sit in the back
seat ¢
page 295, Child safety.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat w ill be
ser iously injured and can be killed if the fron t
airbag infla tes -even w ith an Advanced Ai rbag
System.
- T he inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
- Always install rear -facing child safety seats
on the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearward facing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­
cause of exceptiona l circumstances and the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light does not
come on and stay on, immed iately install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seat ing pos ition and have the airbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dea ler.
- Forward-facing ch ild safety seats installed
on the front passenger's seat may interfere
with the deployment of the airbag and ca use serio us pe rsonal injury to the child.
A WARNING
If, in except ional circumstances, you must i n­
stall a forward -facing chi ld res train t on the
front passenger's seat:
- Alw ays make sure the forward-facing seat
has been designed and ce rt ified by its man-
276
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up against or very near the instrument pan­
el.
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest posit ion in the up and down ad­
justment range and move it back to the
rearmost posit ion in the seat's fore and aft
ad justment range, as far away from the a ir­
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 rest raint and
not next to o r in front of the child rest raint
so th at the safety be lt will be p roperly posi­
tioned.
- Ma ke sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF ~;
light comes on and stays on all the
time wheneve r the ign it ion is switched on .
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light
will be disp layed whenever a ch ild restraint is
installed on the front passenger seat and the
ignit ion is switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light
does not stay on, perform the checks descri­
bed ¢
page 285, Monitoring the Advanced
Airbag System.
- Take the child restra int off the front passen­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF~
light does not stay on .
- Have the airbag system inspected by your author ized Audi dealer immed iate ly.
- Always carefully follow instructions from
child restraint manufacturers when instal­
ling child restra ints.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional ci rcumstances, you must in­
stall a forward or rearward-fac ing child re-
stra int on the fron t passenger's seat: ..,.