Safety belts
A 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-
222
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 , d isassemble, 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 308.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 225 Be lt buckle and tongue on the drive r'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 54, Seats and storage.
.. Pull the safety belt evenly across the chest and
pelvis
Q fig . 225, Q _&. .
.. 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,
..,.
lL t:0 ....
"' ......
"' .... 0 0 :c '
during hard braking and in an accident. The belt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a ste ep
h ill or through a sharp curve . Dur ing normal driv
ing the belt lets you move freely .
Safety belt pretension ers
The safety belts are equipped with a belt pre ten
sioner that helps to tighten the safety belt and remove slack when the pretens ioner is activated
c:> page 225. The function of the p retensioner is
monitored by a warn ing light
c:> page 23.
Conv ert ible loc king 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 seat. Be sure to read the important information about this feature
c:> page 259 .
A WARNING
Improperly posit ioned safety belts ca n cause
ser ious injury in an accident
c:> page 223 ,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
prope rly pos itioned on the body.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle
for another seat . Attaching the belt to the
wrong bu ckle w ill reduce safety belt effec
t iveness and can cause serious persona l in
jury .
- A passenger who is not p roperly restrained
can be seriously injured by the safety be lt it
sel f when it moves from the stronger parts
of the body into critical areas like the abdo
men.
- Always lock the convert ible lock ing retractor
when you are secur ing a child seat in the ve
hicle
c> page 261.
@ Tips
For information on safety be lt pretensione rs,
refer to
c:> page 225.
Safet y bel ts
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi
mum protection from safety belts .
Fig . 2 26 Safet y be lt po sit ion
U se the height adjustment to change the position
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts.
.&_ WARNING ~
Improperly positioned safety belts can ca use
serious personal injury in an acc ident.
- The shou lder belt should l ie 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 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
on the abdomen. The belt should a lways fit
snug ly
c:> fig. 226. Pu ll on the bel t to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fit ting safety belt can cause serious
in jur ies by shi fting its position on your body
from the strong bones to mo re v ulnerable,
soft tissue and cause se rious in jury.
- Always read and heed all WARN INGS and
o ther impor tant informat ion
c:> page 221.
223
Airbag syste m
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come on
and stay on to tell you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been turned
off
by the electronic control unit. Each time you
sw itch on the ignit ion, the
P ASS ENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light will flash for a few seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small c hild or child re
straint on the front passenger seat,
- will go out if the front passenger seat is occu
pied by an adult as registered by the weight
sensing mat .
The
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light mu st come
on and sta y on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been insta lled on the front seat,
o r
- a rearward-fac ing child rest ra in t has been in
stalled on the front passe nger seat, or
- a fo rwa rd-facing child restra int has bee n in stal
led on the front passenger seat, o r
- the weight reg istered on the fro nt passenger
seat is equal to o r less than the comb ined
we ight of a typ ica l 1 yea r-old restrained in one
of the rear -facing or forward -fac ing infant re
straints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 with w hich the Advanced Airbag
System in your vehicle was certified.
I f t he front passenger seat is not occupied, the
front airbag wi ll not dep loy, and the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on . Never insta ll a
rearward-facing child restraint on the front pas
senger seat, the safest p lace for a child in any
kind of child restraint is at one of the seating po
sitions on the rear seat
¢ page 228, Child re
straints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and ¢ page 249, Child safety.
If the PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when one of the condit ions listed above is met,
be sure to check the light regularly to make cer
tain that the
P A SSENGER AIR B AG OFF light
s tays o n cont inuous ly wheneve r the ig nition is
on.
If the PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not appear on and does not stay on all the time,
stop as soon as it is safe to do so and
238
- reactivate the system by switching the ignition
off and then switching it on again;
- remove and reinsta ll the chi ld restraint . Make
sure that the child restraint is properly insta l
led and that the safety belt for the front pas
senger seat has been correct ly routed through
the child restraint as described in the ch ild re
straint ma nufacturer's instruct ions;
- make sure that the convert ib le lock ing retrac
tor on the safety belt for the front passenger
seat has been activated and that the safety belt
has been pulled t ight. The belt must not be
loose or have loops of slack so that the sensor
be low the safety belt latc h on the seat can do
i t s
job¢ page 259 .
-make sure that th ings that may increase the
weight of the ch ild and c hild seat a re not be ing
transpo rted on the front passenge r seat;
- ma ke sure that t he safety be lt te nsion sensor is
not b locked. S hake the safety belt latch on the
front passenger seatback and forth;
- If a strap or tether is being used to t ie the child
seat to t he fron t passenger sea t, make s ure
that it is not so tight that it causes the weight
sensing mat to measure more weight than is
actually on the seat.
If th e PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light still do es
n o t come on
and does not stay on continuously
(when the ignition is switc hed on),
- take the child restra int
off the front passenge r
seat and insta ll it p roperly a t one of the rear
seat pos itions. Have the airbag system inspect
ed by yo ur Audi dealer immediate ly .
- move the ch ild to a rear seat pos ition and m ake
sure that the child is proper ly restrained in a
child restraint that is appropriate for its size
and age .
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht sho uld NOT
come on when t he ignit ion is on and an ad ult is
sitting in a proper seating position on the front
passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght comes on and stays on or flashes for about
5 seconds while dr iv ing, under these c ircumstan
ces, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is proper-
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
..,.
Child safety
Subpart B - Rear-facing child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Century SmartFit 4543 December 1, 1999
Cosco Arriva September 2S, 2007
22-013PAW and base
22-999WHO
Evenflo Discovery Ad- December 1, 1999
just Right 212
Evenflo First Choice December 1, 1999
204
Graco Infant 84S7 December 1 , 1999
Graco Snug ride September 25, 2007
Peg Perego Primo Viag- September 2S, 2007
gio S IP IMUN00US
Subpart C -Forward -facing and convertible
child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Britax Roundabout September 2S, 2007
E9L02xx
Cosco Tour iva 02S19 December 1, 1999
Cosco Summ it Deluxe September 25, 2007
High Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back Boos-
September 25, 2007
ter 22-209
Evenflo Tribute V September 25, 2007
379xxxx
Evenflo Medallion 254 December 1, 1999
E venflo Generations September 25, 2007
352xxxx
Graco ComfortSport September 25, 2007
Graco Toddler Safety September 25, 2007
Seat Step 2
Graco Platinum Cargo September 25, 2007
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injur y, make sur e
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF l ig ht
co mes on and stays on whenever a chi ld re
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on.
252
-Take the child restraint 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 iately.
(D Tips
The child seats listed in categories A to C have
been statically tested by Audi only for the Ad
vanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially re
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the dr iver, you are responsible for the safety
of everybody in the vehicle, especia lly children:
.,. Always use the right child safety seat for each
child and always use it properly
q page 255 .
.,. Always carefully follow the chi ld safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the ch ild safe
ty seat .
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the chi ld safety seat from moving
qpage 259.
.,. Push the chi ld safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm) .
.,. If a strap or tether is being used to tie the child
safety seat to the front passenger seat, make
sure that it is not so tight that it causes the
weigh t-sens ing mat to measure more weight
than is actually on the seat.
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
,=;,page 254.
Always remembe r: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag sys tem, all
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
shou ld always ride in the back seat proper ly re -
strained for their age and size.
.,,.
Child safety
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible, before installing
the forward- facing child restraint.
- Always make sure that the safety belt up
per anchorage is behind the child restraint
and not next to or in front of the child re
straint so that the safety belt will be prop
erly positioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from be ing
moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range.
- Always make sure that the backrest is in
the upright position.
-Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a collision.
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
c::> page 219, Safety belts,
c::> page 22 7 , Airbag system and
c::> page 249, Child safety.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on whenever a child re
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on.
- Take the child restraint 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
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
254
Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
Fig. 239 Schematic overview: keep unused safety belts
away from children in child safety seats. @· ou ter rear
safety belt,® -center rear safety belt
If a ch ild safety seat is used on the rear bench,
especially with LATCH universal lower anchorag
es, the unused safety belts
must be secured so
that the child in the child restraint cannot reach
them
c::> .&. .
-Guide the safety belt webbing behind the head
restraint of the adjacent seat
c::> fig. 239 . When
doing so, do not engage the convertible locking
retractor! You should not hear a "clicking "
sound when winding up the safety belt.
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt
webbing.
A WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with the
LATCH lower anchorages or with the standard
safety belt or a child in a booster seat on the
rear seat could play with unused rear seat
safety belts and become entangled. This
could cause the child serious personal injury
and even death.
-Always secure unused rear seat safety belts
out of reach of children in child seats such
as by properly routing them around the
head restraint of the seat where the child
restraint is installed .
- Never activate the convertible lock ing re
tractor when routing the safety belts around
the head restraints.
- Never let anyone sit at the center rear seat
ing position if the center rear safety belt has
been routed around a rear head restraint.
Child safety seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old and
20 lbs. or 9 kg need special rearward -facing
child restraints that support the back, neck and
head in a crash .
Fig. 2 4 0 Sche matic overview: rearward-facing infant seat,
properly installed on the rear seat
• When using the vehicle safety be lt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety be lt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
¢ page 259 or install the seat using the LA TCH
attachments.
• Push the child safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2.5 cm).
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢page 254 .
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg) are
best protected in spec ial infant carriers and child
safety seats des igned for their age group . Many
experts believe that infants and small children
should ride only in spec ial restraints in which the
chi ld faces the back of the veh icle. These infant
seats support the baby 's back, neck and head in a
crash
c!;> fig . 240.
The airbag on the passenger side makes the front
seat a potentially dangero us p lace for a child to
ride. The front seat is not the safest place for a
chi ld in a forward -facing child seat . It is a very
lL dangerous place for an infant or a larger child in t:0
;:::: a rearward-facing seat.
" N ...... 0 0 :c '
Child s afe ty
A WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
child restraint increases the risk of ser ious
personal injury and death in a c rash .
-Never install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant car riers on the front passenger
seat
-even w ith an Advanced A irbag System .
A child will be serio usly inj ured and can be
killed when the inf lating airbag hits the
chi ld safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and smashes the child safety seat and
child against the backrest, center armrest,
door or roof
c!;> page 228, Child restraints on
the front seat
-some important things to
know.
- Always install rear-fac ing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the rear seat.
-Never install a rear-facing child restraint in
the forward-fac ing direction . Such restraints
are designed for the special needs of infants
and very small children and cannot protect
them p roperly if the seat is forward-facing .
-If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptional circumstances a nd the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF li ght does not
come on and stay on, immedia tely install
the rea r-facing child sa fety seat in a rear
seating position and have the a irbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer .
-A lways read and heed all WARNINGS whe n
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing used
c!;> page 219, Safety belts,
c!;> page 227, Airbag system and
c!;> page 249, Important information.
255
Child safety
Convertible child safety seats
Properly used convertible child safety seats can
help protect toddlers and children over age one
who weigh between 20 and 40 lbs. (9 and 18 kg)
in a crash.
Fig. 241 Schematic overview: installat ion of the attach
ments app licable to
a LATCH seat
Fig. 242 Schematic overview: installat ion of the seat using
the vehicle 's safety belt system
... When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
c:>page 259 or install the seat using the LATCH
attachments .
... Push the child safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm)
c:>page 259.
... If the child safety seat is equipped with a tether
strap, attach it to the tether anchors
r::>page 265.
... Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
r::>page254 .
A toddler or child is usually too large for an in
fant restraint if it is more than one year old and
weighs more than 20 lbs. (9 kg).
256
Toddlers and children who are older than one
year up to about 4 years old and weigh more than
20 lbs (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must always be
properly restrained in a child safety seat certified
for their size and weight
c> fig. 241 and
c:>fig. 242 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the front
seat a potentially dangerous place for a child to
ride. The front seat is not the safest place for a
child in a forward-facing child safety seat . It is a
very dangerous place for an infant or a larger
child in a rearward-facing seat .
.&_ WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death in a collision or oth
er emergency situation.
-Children on the front seat of any car, even
with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in
jured or even killed when an airbag inflates. A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates -even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System .
-The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child
against the backrest, center arm rest, door
or roof.
-Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat.
-If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear seating position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer .
- The rear side of the child safety seat should
be positioned as close as possible to the
backrest on the vehicle seat. Adjust the rear
seat head restraint if it is difficult to install
the child seat with the head restraint in
II>-
lL t:0 ....
'"" " '"" .... 0 0 :c '
place c:> page 211. Driving with head
restraints that are not properly adjusted in
creases the risk of serious or fatal neck in
jury dramatically.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used
c:> page 219, Safety belts,
¢ page 22 7, Airbag system and
¢ page 249, Important information.
A WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child's safety and
well-being require that the following special
precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-facing seat has been
designed and certified by its manufacturer
for use on a front seat with a passenger
front and side airbag .
- Always follow the manufacturer's instruc
tions provided with the child safety seat or infant carrier.
- Always move the front passenger 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
adjustment range, as far away from the air bag as possible, before installing the for
ward-facing child restraint.
-Always make sure that the safety belt upper anchorage is behind the child restraint and
not next to or in front of the child restraint
so that the safety belt will be properly posi
tioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents the
front passenger's seat from being moved to
the rearmost position in its fore and aft ad
justment range.
-Always make sure the backrest is in an up
right position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- If the light does not stay on, perform the
checks
c:> page 2 3 7, Monitoring the Ad
vanced Airbag System.
Child safety
- Take the child restraint 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 whenever
the ignition is switched on.
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. 243 Rear seat: c hild properly restrain ed in a boos ter
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 children 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 child on a booster seat.
"The shoulder belt 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 pelvis 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
ter 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:> page254.
257