2018 AUDI A4 child seat

Proper seating positions for passengers in
rear seats
Rear seat passengers must sit upright with both
feet on the floor consistent with their physical
size and be properly restrained whenever the ve­
hicle is in use.
To reduce the r isk of injury caused by an incorrect
seating position in the event of a sudden b raking
maneuver or an accident, your passengers on the
rear bench seat must a lways obse rve the follow ­
ing:
• Applies to: adjustable head restraints: If there
are passengers on the outer rear seats, adjust
the head restraints so the upper edge is as even
as possible with the top of your head . If that is
not possible, try to adjust the head restraint so
that it is as close to this position as possible. If
there is a passenger in the center rear seat,
slide the head restraint upward
r=> page 67 .
• Make sure that the seatback is sec urely latched
in the upright position
r=> page 71.
• Keep both feet flat in the footwell in front of
the rear seat .
• Fasten and wear safety be lts properly
r=> page 266 .
• Make sure that children are always properly re­
strained in a child restraint that is appropriate
for their size and
ager=> page 295 .
_&. WARNING
Passengers who are improperly seated on the
rea r seat can be ser iously injured in a crash.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of
their ow n and properly fasten and wear the
safety belt be long ing to that seat.
- Safety belts only offer maximum p rotection
when the seatback is securely latched in the
upr ight position and the safety be lts a re
prope rly positioned on the body. By not sit­
t ing upright, a re ar sea t passenger increases
the risk of personal inj ury from improperly
posit ioned safety be lts !
- Always adjust the head rest raint properly so
that it ca n give max imum protection.
Dr iving safety
Proper adjustment of head restraints
Correctly adjusted head restraints are an impor­
tant part of your vehicle's occupant restraint sys­
tem and can help to reduce the risk of injuries in
accident situations.
F ig . 225 Head restra int: v iewed from t he front
The head rest raints must be correctly adjusted to
achieve the best protection.
• Applies to: adjustable head restraints: Adjust
the head restraints so the upper edge is as even
as possible with the top of your head .
If that is
not possib le, try to adjust the head restraint so
that it is as close to this pos ition as poss ible.
Position* the head restra int as close as possible
to the back of your head .
• If the re is a passenger in the center rear seat,
slide the head restra int upward.
Adjusting head restraints
r=> page 66.
_&. WARNING
-A ll seats are eq uipped with head restraints .
Driving w ithout head restraints or w it h head
r est raints t hat are not prope rly adjusted in­
creases the r is k of se rious or fata l neck injury
dramat ically. To help reduce the risk of injury:
- Always d rive with the head restra ints in
p la ce and pro perly adjus ted.
- E very pe rson in the veh icle must have a
p roper ly adjusted hea d restraint.
- Always make sure each person in the veh icle
p roperly adjusts the ir he ad restrain t. Adj ust
the hea d restrain ts so the upper edge is as
even as possible wi th the top of your head .
If that is not poss ible, try to ad just the head
restraint so that it is as close to this position
as poss ible.
-
257

Driving sa fe ty
-Never attempt to adjust head restraint
wh ile driving. If you have dr iven
off and
must adjust the driver headrest for any rea­
son, first stop the vehicle safely before at­
tempting to adjust the head restra int.
- Children must always be properly restrained
in a child restraint that is appropriate for
their age and size
¢ page 295.
Examples of improper seating positions
The occupant restraint system can only reduce
the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are properly
seated .
Improper seating positions can cause serious in­
jury or deat h. Safety belts can only work when
they are properly positioned on the body . Im­
proper seating positions reduce the effect iveness
of safety belts and w ill even increase the r isk of
i njur y and dea th by moving the safety be lt to crit­
ical areas of the body. Impro per sea ting posit ions
a lso increase the risk of ser ious injury and dea th
when an airbag deploys and strikes an occupant
who is not in the proper seat ing position. A driver
is responsib le for the safety of all vehicle occu­
pants and especially for children. Therefore :
~ Never allow anyone to assume an incorrect
seat ing pos ition when the vehicle is being used
c> .&, .
The fo llowing bulletins list only some sample po ­
sitions that will increase the risk of serio us inj ury
and death. Our hope is that these examp les will
make you more aware of seating posit ions that
are dangerous.
The ref ore, when ever th e vehicle i s moving:
- never stand up in the ve hicle
- never s tand on the seats
- never knee l on the seats
- never r ide with the seatback reclined
- never lie down on t he seats
- never lean up against the instrument pane l
- never sit on the edge of the seat
- never sit s ideways
- never le an out the w indow
- never put yo ur feet out the window
258
- never put your feet on the instrument panel
- neve r rest your feet on the seat c ushion or back
o f the seat
- neve r ride in the footwell
- neve r ride in the ca rgo area
A WARNING
I mp roper seating positions inc re ase the risk
of ser iou s personal inju ry and de ath whenever
a veh icle is being used.
- Always make sure that all veh icle occupants
s tay in a proper sea ting posit ion and are
pro perly restrained whenever the vehicle is
be ing used .
Driver's and front
passenger's footwell
Important safety instructions
A WARNING
A lways make sure that the knee airbag can in­
flate w ithout interference. Objects between
yourself and the airbag can inc rease the risk
of injury in an accident by interfering with the
way the ai rbag dep loys o r by being pushed in­
to you as the airbag dep loys.
- No persons (ch ild ren) or animals should ride
in the footwell in front of the passenger
seat . If the airbag deploys, this can res ult in
serio us or fat al injuries.
- No objects of any kind should be carried i n
the footwell area in front of the dr iver's or
passenger's seat. Bu lky objects (shopping
bags, for examp le) can hamper or prevent
proper dep loyment of the airbag . Sma ll ob­
jects can be thrown thro ugh the vehicle if
the airbag deploys and injure you or your passengers.

Driving sa fe ty
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift s udden ly, changing vehicle handling charac­
ter istics. Loose items can also increase the risk of
serious personal in jury in a sudden vehicle
ma­
neuver or in a coll is ion.
.,. Distribute the load evenly in the luggage com­
partment .
.,. Always place and properly secure heavy items in
the luggage compartment as low and as far for­
ward as possible
c> fig . 226 .
.,. Secure luggage us ing the tie-downs provided
¢ page 73 .
.,. Make su re that the rea r seatbac k is securely
latched in place.
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or othe r items can
fly through the vehicle causing serious per­
sonal injury in the event of hard braking or an
accident. To help reduce the risk of serious
personal injury:
- Always put objects, for example, luggage or
other heavy items in the luggage compart­
ment.
- Always sec ure objects in the luggage com­
partment using the tie-down eyelets and
s u itable straps.
A WARNING
Heavy loads will influence the way your vehi­
cle handles. To he lp reduce the r isk of a loss
of contro l leading to serious pe rsonal i njury:
- Always keep in mind when transporting heavy objects, that a change i n the center of
grav ity can also cause changes in vehicle
hand ling:
- Always distr ibute the load as even ly as
possible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in the
luggage compartment as poss ible.
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating
o r the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating specified
on the safety compliance sticker on the driv­
er's side B-pillar respective ly on the front
end of the driver's door. Exceeding permissi­
ble weight standards can cause the veh icle
to slide and handle differently .
260
-Please observe info rmation on safe driving
¢page 254.
A WARNING
To he lp prevent po isonous exhaust gas from
being drawn into the vehicle, always keep the
rear lid closed while driving.
- Never transport objects larger than those
fitting completely into the luggage area be­
cause the rear lid cannot be fully closed.
- If you absolutely must dr ive with the rear lid
open, observe the following notes to reduce
the risk of poisoning :
- C lose all windows,
- Close the s unroof*,
- Open all a ir outlets in the instrument pan-
el,
- Switc h off the air reci rculat ion,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest speed.
A WARNING
-
Always make sure that the doo rs, all win­
dows, the sunroof * an d the rear lid are se­
curely closed and locked to red uce the risk of
i n jury when the veh icle is not being used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make sure
that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your ve hicle unattended espe­
cially with the rear lid left open. A child
co uld crawl into the vehicle th rough the lug­
g age com partment an d close the rea r lid
be­
coming tr apped and unab le to ge t out . Be­
ing trapped in a vehicle can lead to ser ious
pe rsonal i nju ry.
- Never let c hild ren p lay in or around the vehi­
cle.
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compa rtment. Vehicle occupants mus t
al­
ways be p roperly restrained in one of the ve ­
hicle's seat ing pos itions.
(D Tips
- Air circul ation helps to reduce w indow fog­
ging . Stale ai r escapes to the o uts ide
t h roug h vents in the trim panel. Be sure to
keep these slots free and open.

a co .... N ,....
N .... 0 0
3 co
-The tire pressure must correspond to the
load. The tire pressure label lists the recom­
mended cold tire inflation pressures for the
vehicle at its maximum capacity weight and
the tires that were on your vehicle at the
time it was manufactured. For recommend­
ed tire pressures for normal load condi­
tions, please see chapter
c:> page 345.
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with four
tie-downs to secure luggage and other items .
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo properly
c:> page 259, Loading the luggage compartment.
In a collision, the laws of physics mean that even
smaller items that are loose in the vehicle will
become heavy missiles that can cause serious in­
jury. Items in the vehicle possess energy which
vary with vehicle speed and the weight of the
item . Vehicle speed is the most significant factor .
For example, in a frontal collision at a speed of
30 mph (48 km/h), the forces acting on a 10 -lb
(4 .5 kg) object are about 20 times the normal
weight of the item . This means that the weight
of the item would suddenly be about
200 lbs . (90 kg). You can imagine the injuries
that a 200 lbs. (90 kg) item flying free ly through
the passenger compartment could cause in a col ­
lision like this.
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used to
secure items to tie-downs can fail during hard braking or in a collision and cause serious per­
sonal injury.
- Always use suitable mounting straps and
properly secure items to the tie-downs in
the luggage compartment to help prevent
items from shifting or flying forward as dan­
gerous missiles .
-When the rear seat backrest is folded down,
always use suitable mounting straps and
properly secure items to the tie-downs in
the luggage compartment to help prevent
items from flying forward as dangerous
missiles into the passenger compartment .
-
Driving safety
-Never attach a child safety seat tether strap
to a tie-down.
Reporting Safety Defects
Applicable to U.S.A.
If you believe that your vehicle
has a defect which could cause a
crash or could cause injury or
death, you should immediately in­
form the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NHTSA) in
addition to notifying Audi of
America, Inc.
If NHTSA receives similar com­
plaints, it may open an investiga­
tion, and if it finds that a safety
defects exists in a group of
vehicles, it may order a recall and
remedy campaign. However,
NHTSA cannot become involved in
individual problems between you,
your dealer, or Audi of America,
Inc.
To contact the N HTSA, you may
either call:
Tel.:
1-888-327-4236 (TTY:
1-800-424-9153) or
1 -800- 424-9393
or you may write to:
261

Safety belts
General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety belts are neces­
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them correctly.
.. Read all the information that follows and heed
all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Safety belts are the single most effective
means available to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents.
For your protection and that of your passen­
gers, always correctly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving.
- Pregnant women, injured, o r physically
im­
paired persons must also use safety belts.
Like all vehicle occupants, they are more
likely to be seriously injured if they do not
wear safety belts. The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mother
-throughout
the entire pregnancy.
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of five seating positions:
two in the front and three in the rear. Each seat­
ing position has a safety belt.
A WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Never strap more than one person, includ­
ing small children, into any belt.
It is espe­
cially dangerous to place a safety belt over a
~ child sitting on your lap.
~ -Never let mo re people ride in the vehicle
:::l than there are safety belts available. 0 0
3 Safety belts
-Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained with a separate safety
belt or child restraint.
Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle has a warning system for the driver
and front seat passenger to remind you about the importance of buckling-up.
Fi g. 227 Safety belt warn ing light in the instrument clus ·
te r
-enlarged
Before driving off, always:
.. Fasten your safety belt and make sure you are
wearing it properly.
"' 0 N ... m
.,. Make sure that your passengers also buckle up
and properly wear their safety belts.
.,. Protect children with a child restraint system
appropr iate for the size and age.
The warning light . in the instrument cluster
lights up when the ignit ion is switched on as a re­
minder to fasten the safety belts . In addition,
you w ill hear a warn ing tone for a certain period
of time.
Fasten your safety belt and make sure that your
passengers also properly put on their safety
belts.
A WARNING
-
- Safety belts are the sing le most effective
means available to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents.
For your protection and that of your passen­
gers, a lways correctly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving .
- Failure to pay attention to the warning light
that comes on could lead to personal injury.
263

Safety belts
_& 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 moving . 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.
-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-
266
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¢
table Interior
cleaning on page 356.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 233 Belt buckle and tongue 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¢
page 65, 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
q ,&. .
.. 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 r etractors
Every safety be lt is equ ipped wi th an automatic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. Th is feature
l ocks the belt when the belt is p ulled out fast,
during hard braking and in an accident. The belt may also lock when you drive up or down a steep
h ill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv­
ing the belt lets you move freely .
Safety be lt pret en sioner s
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
c:> page 269. The function of the pretensioner is
monitored by a warning light
c:> page 32.
Con vertible loc king retractor
Every safety belt exc ept the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac­
tor that
mu st be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child safety seat. Be sure to read
the impo rtant information about this feature
c:> page 306.
A WARNING
Improperly posit ioned safety be lts ca n cause
ser ious injury in an accident
c:> page 267,
Safety belt position.
-Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upr ight and belts are
prope rly pos itioned on the body.
-Always ma ke sure tha t the rear sea t bac k­
rest to wh ic h t he cente r rea r safety be lt 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 cras h.
-Never attach the safety belt to the buckle
for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong buckle w ill red uce safety belt effec­
t iveness and can cause serious personal in­
jury.
-A passenger who is not p roperly restrained
can be seriously in ju red by the safety be lt it­
self when it moves from the stronger par ts
Safet y bel ts
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
c:> page 308.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi­
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 23 4 Safety belt pos it ion
Standard features on your vehicle help you adjust
the position of the safety belt to ma tch your body
s iz e.
-be lt height adjustment for the front seats,
-he ight-adjustable front seats .
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can ca use
se rious personal injury in an acc ident.
-The shou lder belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fit well on the body . Ho ld the belt
above the latch to ngue and pull it evenly
across the chest so th at it sits as low as pos­
sible on the pe lvis and there is no p ressure
on the abdomen . The belt should a lway s fit
snug ly
c:> fig. 234. Pu ll on the belt to tighten
if necessary .
-The lap be lt portion of the sa fety 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 tighte n if necessary.
-A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
in ju ries by shifting its position on your body
~
267

a co .... N ..... N .... 0 0
3 co
The shoulder belt should lie as close to the center
of the collar bone as possib le and should fit w ell
on the bod y ¢
A in Saf ety belt position on
page 267 .
.. Push the loop- around fittings up ¢ fig . 237 @,
or
.. sque ez e to gether the @ button, and push the
loop-around fit tings
do wn@ .
.. Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at­
tachment is p roperly engaged .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth­
er important
i nformat ion ¢ page 265.
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 safety belts can cause se ­
vere injuries .
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause seri­
ous injury or death . Safety belts can only work
when they are correctly pos itioned on the body .
Improper seating positions reduce the effect ive­
n ess of safety be lts and will even inc rease the
ris k of injury and death by mov ing the safety bel t
to cr it ica l areas of the body. Imp roper seating
positions also increase the risk of serious inj ury
and death when an airbag deploys and strikes an
occ upant who is not in the co rrect s eat ing posi­
tion . A driver is respons ible for the safety of all
vehicle occupants and espec ia lly for children .
T herefore:
.. Nev er permit anyone to ass ume an incorr ect
s itting position in the veh icle wh ile traveling
¢ &, .
A WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts i ncrease the risk
of serious personal injury and death wheneve r
a vehicle is be ing used.
S afet y be lts
- Always make sure that all veh icle occupants
are correctly restrained and stay in a correct
seating position whenever the vehicle is be­ ing used .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important
i nformat ion¢ page 265.
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
Reversible safety belt pr etensioners
T he following fu nctions a re availab le w hen safety
bel ts w it h reversib le safety bel t tensione rs a re
f astened:
- In ce rtain driving situations , the safety belts
may tighten w it h a reversib le tensioning func ­
tion ¢ page 120.
-The safety be lts may also tighten with this re-
versible tens ion ing f un ct ion in m ino r colli sions.
Pyrotechnic safety belt pretens ioners
Seat belts with pyrotechnic safety belt preten ­
sioners are tensioned automatically i n severe col·
lisions , depending on the circumstances . This
helps to reduce the fo rwa rd motion of the o ccu­
pants.
A WARNING
r-----
- I t is poss ible for the pretensioners to dep loy
incorrectly .
- Any wo rk on the tens ioner system o r remov­
al and installation of system components
for other repairs m ust be performed by a
qualified wor kshop.
- The pyrote chnic system can only provide
protection for one collision. If the py rotech­
n ic pretens ioners deploy, the pretensioning
system must be replaced .
(D Tips
- A fine dust is re leased when the pyrotechnic
safety belt pretensioners dep loy. This is no r­
ma l and is not caused by a f ire in the veh i-
cle.
..,
269