
u co ..... N r--N ..... 0 <( 0 00
The shoulder belt should lie as close to the center
of the collar bone as possib le and should fit well
on the body
c> A in Safety belt position on
page 265.
~ Push the loop-around fittings up c> fig . 232 @,
or
~ squeeze together the @ button, and push the
loop-around fittings down@ .
~ Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at
tachment is properly engaged .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth
er important informat ion
c> page 263.
(D 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 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 .
Imp roper 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 belt
to cr it ic al areas of the body. Imp roper sea ting
positions also increase the risk of serious inj ury
and death when an airbag deploys and strikes an
occupant who is not in the co rrect seating posi
tion . A driver is respons ible for the safety of all
ve hicle occupants and espec ia lly for children.
Therefore:
~ Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect
s itting position in the veh icle wh ile traveling
c> &_ .
A WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts inc rease the risk
of serious personal injury and death wheneve r
a vehicle is be ing used.
Safet y be lts
- Always make sure that all veh icle occupants
are cor rectly restrained and stay in a correct
seating position whenever the vehicle is be ing used.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat ion
c> page 263.
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
Reversible safety belt pretensioners
T he following fu nctions a re availab le w hen safety
belts w it h reversib le safety bel t tensione rs ar e
fas tened:
- I n certa in driv ing s ituations, the safety belts
may tig hten w it h a reve rsib le tensioning func
t ion
c> page 112.
-The safety be lts may also t ighten with this re-
ve rs ible tens io ni ng f un ct io n in m ino r collisions.
Pyrotechnic safety belt pretensioners
Seat belts with pyrotechnic safety be lt preten
sioners are tensioned automatically i n severe col·
lis ions, depending on the circumstances . This
helps to reduce the fo rwa rd motion of the occu
pants.
A WARNING
r----
- I t is poss ible for the pretensioners to dep loy
incorrectly .
- Any wo rk on the tens ioner system or remov
al and installation o f system components
for other repairs must be performed by a
qualified wor kshop.
- The pyrotechnic system can only provide protection for one collision. If the pyrotech
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 nor
ma l and is not caused by a f ire in the veh i-
cle.
..,
267

u co ..... N r--N ..... 0 <( 0 00
Airbag system Important information
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For
airbags to do their job, occupants must always
properly wear their safety belts and be in a prop er seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen
gers, before driving off, always:
.,. Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly ~ page 253,
.,. Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
~page 254,
.,. Wear safety belts properly ~page 263,
.. Always properly use the proper child restraint
to protect children¢
page 291.
In a collision, airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force. The
supplemental airbags can cause injuries if the
driver or the front seat passenger is not seated
properly. Therefore in order to help the airbag to
do its job, it is important, both as a driver and as
a passenger to sit properly at all times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steering wheel and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
completely and provide supplemental protection in certain frontal
collisions¢ page 253, Correct
passenger seating positions .
For details on the
operation of the seat adjustment controls
¢page 56.
It's especially important that children are proper
ly
restrained ¢ page 291.
There is a lot that the driver and the passengers
can and must do to help the individual safety fea
tures installed in your Audi work together as a
system.
Proper seating position is important so that the
front airbag on the driver side can do its job. If
you have a physical impairment or condition that prevents you from sitting properly on the driver
seat with the safety belt properly fastened and
Airbag system
reaching the pedals, or if you have concerns with
regard to the function or operation of the Ad
vanced Airbag System, please contact your au
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop, or call Audi Customer Relations at 1-800-822-2834
for possible modifications to your vehicle.
When the airbag system deploys, a gas generator
will fill the airbags, break open the padded cov ers, and inflate between the steering wheel and
the driver and between the instrument panel and
the front passenger. The airbags will deflate im
mediately after deployment so that the front oc
cupants can see through the windshield again
without interruption.
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that the
airbags have deployed. The airbags also inflate
with a great deal of force and nothing should be
in their way when they deploy. Front airbags in
combination with properly worn safety belts slow
down and limit the occupant's forward move
ment. Together they help to prevent the driver
and front seat passenger from hitting parts of
the inside of the vehicle while reducing the forces acting on the occupant during the crash. In this
way they help to reduce the risk of injury to the
head and upper body in the crash. Airbags do not
protect the arms or the lower parts of the body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all frontal
collisions . The triggering of the airbag system de
pends on the vehicle deceleration rate caused by
the collision and registered by the electronic con
trol unit . If this rate is below the reference value
programmed into the control unit, the airbags
will not be triggered, even though the car may be badly damaged as a result of the collision. Vehi
cle damage, repair costs or even the lack of vehi
cle damage is not necessarily an indication of
whether an airbag should inflate or not.
Since the circumstances will vary considerably between one collision and another, it is not possi
ble to define a range of vehicle speeds that will
cover every possible kind and angle of impact
that will always trigger the airbags. Important
factors include, for example, the nature (hard or
soft) of the object which the car hits, the angle of
impact, vehicle speed , etc. The front airbags will
.,.
269

Child sa fety
A WARNING
Children on the front seat of any car even with
Advanced Airbags can be seriously injured 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 in
flates.
- 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 armrest, o r
doo r.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat in
exceptional c ircumstances and the
PASSEN
GER AIR BAG
OFF ~; light does not come
on and stay on, immediately install the rear
facing child safety seat in a rear seating po sition and have the airbag system inspected
immediately by your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
- Forward-facing chi ld seats installed on the
front passenger seat may interfere with the
deployment of the a irbag and cause serious
personal injury to the child.
- If except ional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child's safety
and well-being require the following special
precautions to be taken:
- Always make sure that the forward-facing
seat has been designed and cert ified by its
manufacturer for use on a front passenger
seat with a front and s ide a irbag.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's instructions provided with the child seat
or infant carrier.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instructions
require the top tether strap to be used.
292
- Never put the forward-facing child re
straint up aga inst or very near the instru
ment panel.
- Always set the safety belt upper anchor
age to the adjustment position that per
mits proper installation in accordance
with the child restraint manufacturer's in
str uctions .
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the h ighest position in the up and down
adjustment range and move it back to the
r earmost position in the seat's fore and
aft ad justmen t range, as far away from
the airbag as possible, before installing
the forward- facing child restra int .
- Always make s ure tha t the safety belt up
per anchorage is behind the chi ld restraint
and not next to or in front of the child re
straint so that the safety belt will be prop
erly pos itioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the f ront passenger's seat from being
moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
l aptop, CD player, elect ronic games de
v ice, power inverter or seat heater for
ch ild seats) . These may influence the elec
trical capacitance measu red by the capaci
tive passenger detection system and can
also fly a round in an acciden t and cause
se rious personal injury.
- Never place or use any elect rical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, powe r inverter or sea t heat
er for child seats) on the front passenger
seat if the device is connected to the 12-
vo lt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys
tem on this seat.
- Make su re that there a re no wet objects
(such as a wet towe l) and no water or oth
er liquids on the front passenger seat
cush ion .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG
OFF ~; light comes on and stays

Child sa fety
- The chi ld and the passenger can a lso in
jure each other in an accident .
- Never install rear-facing child safety seats
or infant carriers on the front passenger
seat. A child will be serious ly injured and
can be killed when the passenger airbag in
flates - even with an Advanced Airbag Sys
tem .
- The 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 bac krest, center armrest, doo r
o r roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
o r infant carr iers on the rear seat.
- Before you carry a ch ild in a rea r-facing child
sa fety seat on the rear seat, remove the
Rear Seat Entertainment (RS E)* and its
holder* from the ba ckres t of the front seat.
- Make s ure there is enough space in fron t of
the ch ild in the ch ild se at.
If necessary, ad
just the angle and posit ion of the seat in
front of the child seat .
- Forward-facing ch ild safety seats installed
on the front passenger's seat can interfere
with the airbag when it inflates and cause
serious injury to the child. A lways insta ll for
ward-facing child safety seats on the rear
seat.
- If except ional circumstances require the use
of a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child 's safety
and we ll-being require that the following
special p recautions be taken:
- Ma ke sure the forward -fac ing seat has
been designed and certified by its manu
facturer for use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and side airbag .
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or ca rrie r.
- 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 adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible, before installing
the forward-fac ing ch ild rest raint .
296
-Always make s ure that the safety belt up
per anchorage is behind the chi ld restraint
and not next to or in front of the child re
straint so that the safety belt wi ll be prop
erly pos itioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range.
- Always make s ure that the backrest is in
the up right pos ition.
- Never place or use any electrical device (such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, powe r inverter or seat heat
er for child seats) on the fro nt passenger
seat if the devi ce is connec ted to the
12-
vo lt socke t or the cigarette ligh ter soc ket.
- If a seat heate r has been retrofitted o r
othe rwise added to the fron t passenger
seat, neve r install any child restraint sys
tem on this seat .
- Make sure that there a re no wet objects
(such as a wet towe l) and no water or oth
er liquids on the front passenger seat
cush ion.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
l aptop, CD player, elect ronic games de
v ice, power inverte r or seat heater for
ch ild seats) . These may influence the elec
trical capacitance measured by the capaci
tive passenger detection sys tem and can
also fly a round in an accident and cause
se rious personal injury.
- Always buckle the child safety seat fi rmly in
place even if a ch ild is not sitt ing in it . A
loose child safety seat can fly a round dur ing
a sudden s to p or in a collision .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
eve r us ing a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing
used~ page 261, Safe ty belts,
~ page 269, Airbag system and
~ page 291, Child safety.
_&. WARNING
To reduce the ris k of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF 'I,;; light ~

Child sa fety
restraint in place ~ page 58. Install the
head restraint again immediately once the
child seat is removed. Driving without head
restra ints or w ith head restraints that are
not properly adjusted increases the risk of
serious or fatal neck injury dramatically .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a veh icle is
being used
~ page 261, Safety belts,
~ page 269, Airbag system and
~ page 291, Important information.
A WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the use
o f a forward- facing child restra int on the
front passenger's seat, the child's safety and
well-being require that the following special precaut ions be taken:
- Make s ure the forward-facing seat has been
designed and cert ified by its manufact urer
for use on a front seat with a passenger
front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's instruc tions prov ided with the ch ild safety seat or
infant carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat to the h ighest 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 fa r away from the air
bag as possib le, before insta lling the for
ward-facing child res tra int.
- Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is beh ind the child restrain t and
not next to or in front o f the child restrain t
so that the safety belt will be properly pos i
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 .
- Never place or use any electrical device (such as a laptop, CO player, elect ronic
games dev ice, power inverte r or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat
300
if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighte r socket.
- If a seat heater has been ret rofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat, never install any child restra int system on
this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects (such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cush ion .
- Never p lace objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CO p layer, electron ic games device,
power inverte r or seat heater for ch ild
seats) . These may influence the elect rical
capacitance measu red by the capacitive pas
senger detect ion system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause se rious per
sonal injury .
- Ma ke sure th at the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
1-f; light comes on and stays on all the
time wheneve r the ign it ion is switched on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF 1-f; light
does not come on and stay on, immediately
install the forward -facing child seat at a
seating position on the rear seat and have
the airbag system inspected by your author
ized Audi dealer.
- Take the child restra int off the front passen
ge r seat and install it prope rly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
1-f; 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 . 245 Rea r seat: chi ld p roper ly restrained in a booster
sea t
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 chi ld on a booster seat .
.. The shoulder belt must lie as close to the cen
ter of the child's collar bone as possib le and
must lie fla t 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
¢page 297.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs. or
18 kg) are best protected in chi ld safety seats de-
~ signed for their age and we ight. Experts say that .....
~ the skeletal structure, particularly the pelvis , of N
~ these children is not fully developed, and they
0 co
Child safety
must not use the vehicle safety belts without a
suitable child restraint .
It is usually best to put these children in appro
priate booster seats. Be sure the booster seat
meets all applicab le safety standards .
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass across
the chi ld's body in the right places. The routing of
the be lt over the chi ld's body is very important
for the ch ild's protection, whether or not a boos
ter seat is used. Children age 12 and under must
always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inches/
1.45 meters) tall can generally use the vehicle 's
three point lap and shoulder belts. Never use the
lap belt portion of the vehicle 's safety belt alone
to restrain any ch ild, regard less of how big the
ch ild is. Always remember that child ren do not
have the pronounced pelvic structure required for
the proper function of lap belt portion of the ve
hicle's three point lap and shoulde r belts. The
child's safety absolutely requires that a lap belt
portion of the safety belt be fastened snugly and
as low as possible around the pe lvis . Never let
the lap belt portion of the safety belt pass over
the child 's stomach or abdomen .
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink of
an eye and with considerab le force. In order to do
its job, the airbag needs room to inflate so that it
will be there to protect the occupant as the occu pan t moves forward into the airbag .
A vehicle occ upant who is out of position and too
close to the a irbag gets in the way of an inf lating
airbag. When an occupant is too close , he or she
will be struck violent ly and w ill rece ive serious or
poss ibly even fata l injury .
In order for the airbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especially
any ch ildren, who must be in the front seat be
cause of exceptiona l circumstances, be properly
restrained and as far away from the airbag as
poss ible. By keeping room between the child's
..,_
301

Child sa fety
- Never put the forward -facing child restraint
up, against or very near the instrument pan
el.
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the h ighest 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 possib le, before insta lli ng the for
wa rd-facing child restra int.
- Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is beh ind the child restra int and
not next to or in front of t he ch ild restraint
so tha t the safety belt w ill be properly pos i
tioned.
- Make s ure tha t the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF ~; light comes on and stays on a ll the
time whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
Rearward-facing child restraints:
- A ch ild in a rea rw ar d-facing child safety seat
insta lled on the front passenger seat wi ll be
seriously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates
-even with an Ad
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating airbag wi ll 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 be especially careful if you must in
sta ll a rearward facing child safety seat on
the front passenger seat in exceptional c ir
c u mstances.
- Make sure that the
PAS SENGER AIR BAG
OFF ~; light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ~; light
does not come o n and stay o n, immed iate ly
install the rea r-fa cing child safety seat in a
re ar seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
system inspe cte d by your Aud i de aler.
304
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint.
Always heed the child safety seat manufacturer's
i nstruct ions when installing a child restra int in
your vehicle. To activate the convertible locking r etractor:
.,. Place the child restraint on a seat, preferably
on the rear seat .
.,. Slowly pull the belt all th e w ay out .
.,. Route it around or through the child restra int
be lt
path~ .,&..
.,. Push the ch ild safety sea t down with yo ur full
weigh t to ge t the safety belt rea lly tigh t.
.,. Insert t he be lt tong ue into the b uck le for that
seating position .
.,. Guide the safety be lt back into the retractor un
til the belt lies flat and snug on the ch ild safety
seat.
.,. You shou ld hear a "cl icking" noise as the belt
w inds back into the inertia reel. Test the con
vert ib le lock ing retractor by pull ing on the belt.
You s hou ld no lo nge r be able to pull the belt
out of the retracto r. T he convertib le lock ing re
tracto r is now activa ted .
.,. Make sure that the red release button is facing
away from the chi ld restraint so that it can be
unb uc kled quickly .
.,. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt is
properly t ight and fastened so that the seat
cannot move forward or s ideways more than
one inch (2 .5 cm) .
A WARNING
Using the wrong ch ild rest raint or an improp
e rly insta lled child restra int can ca use se rio us
pe rsonal injury or death in a crash.
- Always make sure that the safety be lt re
tr actor is locked whe n in stalling a c hild
safety seat . An un lo cked sa fety be lt retr ac
tor cannot hold the chi ld safety seat in p lace
during normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle t he chi ld safety seat fi rm ly in
p lace even if a chi ld is not sitting in it. A
loose chi ld safety seat can fly a round during
a sudden stop or in a crash.

Checking and Filling
Detailed warnings for the vehicle battery:
~
Always wea r eye protection.
~
Battery acid is highly corrosive. Always
wea r protect ive g loves and eye pro tect io n .
.
®
Fire, sparks, open flame and smok ing are
forb idden .
~
A highly explosive mixture of gases can
form when charging batteries.
®
Always keep childre n far away from bat-
tery electrolyte and the batte ry .
~
Always follow the instructions in the oper-
ating manual.
A WARNING
All wo rk on the batte ry o r electrical system in
yo ur vehicle can result in inju ries, chemical
burns, accidents or burns. Because of this, all
wor k must be performed
only by an author
ized Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service
Facility.
A WARNING
California Proposition 65 Warning:
- Battery posts, terminals and re lated acces
sories contain lead and lead compounds,
chemica ls known to the State of California
to cause cancer and reproductive problems.
Wash hands after handling .
@ Note
-If the vehicle will be parked for long periods
of time, protect it against the cold so that it
will not be destroyed by "freezing"
<=>page 323.
-There are electrical components under the
cargo floor behind a trim pane l that warm
up during operation. To reduce the risk of
the components overheat ing, do not store
objects such as blankets under the cargo
floor . If they overheat, the components wi ll
switc h off temporarily. This will be ind icat ed
by a message in the instrument cluster, un
til the temperature returns to normal.
322
@ For the sake of the environment
i Batteries contain polluting substances such
as sulfur ic acid and lead. Contact an author
i zed Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service
Fac ility for more informat ion.
Vehicle battery
The term "vehicle battery" refers to the 12 Volt
battery in your vehicle.
Not running the vehicle for long periods of
time
If you do not drive your vehicle for severa l days or
weeks, electrical equ ipment is gradually sca led
back or switched off. This reduces energy use and
ensures the vehicle will be able to start after long
periods of
time<=> page 145 . Some convenience
funct ions, such as interior lighting or power seat
adjustment, may not be available under certain
circumstances . These convenience functions will
be available again once you switch t he ignition on
and start the engine .
Even when electrical equipment is switched off,
the equipm ent can still drain the vehicle battery
if the vehicl e is not driven for long periods of
time. Deep draining results in a chemical reaction
that destroys the inside of the vehicle battery.
The vehicle battery must be charged every month
to reduce the risk of this happening
<=> page 323.
Contact an authorized Aud i dealer or authorized
Audi Service Fac il ity for more information.
Winter operation
Cold weather places higher demands on the vehi
cle battery. This results in reduced starting abili
ty. Have the vehicle battery checked by an au
thorized Audi dealer or authorized Audi Service
Fac il ity before the cold time of year .