2018 AUDI Q5 Owners Manual

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How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re­
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu­
pants who are properly restrained.
Fig. 238 Inflated side airbags on left side of vehicle , rea r
side airbag optiona l equipment
When the system is triggered, the airbag is filled
with propellant gas and breaks through a seam in the seat surface area.
It expands between the
side trim panel and the passenger. In order to
help provide this additional protection, the side
airbag must inflate within a fraction of a second
at very high speed and with great force. The sup­ p leme ntal side airbag could injure you if your
seating position is not proper or upright or if
items are located in the area where the supp le­
mental side airbag expands. This applies espe­
cially to children
<=:>page 291, Child safety . Sup­
plemental side airbags inflate between the occu­
pant and the door panel on the side of the vehicle
that is struck in certain side collision<=:>
fig. 238.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper part
of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag deploys.
This is normal and does not mean there is a fire
in the vehicle.
Airbag system
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always
properly wear safety belts and ride in a proper
seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
know and act accordingly to help the safety belts
and airbags do their job to provide supplemental
protection.
_&. WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious or
fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety belts
and improper seating positions increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental side airbag inflates:
- Always sit in an upright position and never
lean against the area where the supple­
mental side airbag is located.
- Never let a child or anyone else rest their
head against the side trim panel in the
area where the supplemental side airbag inflates.
- Always make sure that safety belts are
worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone sitting in the front seat
put their hand or any other parts of their
body out of the window.
- Always make sure that the side airbag can
inflate without interference.
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags de­ ploy.
- Damage to the original seat covers or to
the seam in the area of the side airbag
module must always be repaired immedi­
ately by an authorized Audi dealer.
-
- Objects between you and the airbag can in­
crease the risk of injury in an accident by in­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds or
.,.
287

Airb ag syste m
by being pushed into you as the airbag in­
flates.
- Never p lace or attach accessories or other
objects (such as cupho lders, telephone
brackets, or even large, bulky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked
"AIRBAG" on the seat backrests.
- Such objects and accessories can become
dangerous projectiles and cause injury
when the supplemental side airbag de­ ploys.
- Never carry any objects or pets in the de­ ployment space between them and the
airbags or allow children or other passen­
gers to travel in this position.
- Always use the built-in coat hooks* only for
lightweight clothing . Never leave any heavy
or sharp-edged objects in the pockets that
may interfere w ith side airbag deployment
and can cause personal injury in an accident.
- Always prevent the side airbags from being
damaged by heavy objects knocking against
or hitting the sides of the seatbacks.
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once . If the airbag has been triggered, the
system must be replaced by an author ized
Audi dealership .
- Damage (cracks, deep scratches etc .) to the
original seat covers or to the seam in the
area of the side a irbag mod ule m ust always
be repa ired immed iate ly by an authorized
Audi dealer .
-If children are seated imp roperly, their risk
of injury increases in the case of an acc ident
¢ page 291, Child safety.
- Never attempt to modify any components of
the a irbag system in any way.
- In a side collision, side a irbags w il l not func­
t ion properly if sensors cannot correct ly
measure increasing air pressure ins ide the
doors when air escapes through larger, un­
closed openings in the door panel.
- Never drive with inter ior door tr im panels
removed .
- Never drive when parts have been re ­
moved from the inside door panel and the
open ings they leave have not been proper­
ly closed.
288
- Never drive when loudspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been properly closed.
- Always make certain that openings are
covered or filled if additional speakers or
other equipment is installed in the inside
door panels.
- Always have work on the doors done by an
authorized Aud i dea ler or qualified work­
shop.
Side curtain airbags
Description of side curtain airbags
The side curtain airbags can provide supplemen­
tal protection to properly restrained occupants.
Fig. 239 S id e curt ain air bags, driver's side : loc atio n
The side curtain airbags are located on both sides
of the inter ior
above the front and rear side win­
dows
¢ fig . 239 .
The side curtain airbags contain features that
provide ejection mitigation to help prevent vehi­
cle occupants or parts of the ir bodies from being
completely or part ially ejected from the vehicle
i nterior i n certa in side impacts and veh icle roll­
overs .
The side curtain airbag system supplements the
safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of in­
jury for occupants' heads and upper torso in a
s ide collision . The side curtain airbag inflates in
s ide impacts and on ly when the veh icle accelera­
tion registered by the control unit is high enough. If this rate is be low the reference va lue
programmed into the contro l unit, the side cur ­
tain airbag will not be triggered, even though the car may be badly damaged as a result of the
..,.

collision. It is not possible to define an airbag
triggering range that will cover every possible an­
g le of impact, s ince the circumstances will vary
considerably between one collision and another.
Important factors include, for example, the na­
ture (hard or soft) of the impacting object, the
angle of impact, vehicle speed, etc.
Q page 289,
How side curtain airbags work .
Aside from their normal safety function, safety
be lts work to he lp keep the driver or front pas­
senger in pos it ion in the event of a collision so
that the side curtain airbags can p rovide protec­
tion .
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt . Rat he r, it is part of the overa ll occu­
pant restraint system in your veh icle . Always re­
member that the airbag system can only help to
p rotect yo u if you are wea ring your safety bel t
and wearing it properly . T his is another reason
why you should always wear your safety belts, not j ust because the law requires you to do so
¢ page 261, General information.
It is important to remember that whi le the s ide
curtain ai rbag system is designed to he lp reduce
the likelihood of serious injuries, other inj uries,
for example, swelling, bruising, friction burns and minor abrasions can also be associated with
these airbags upon deployment . Remember too,
these airbags will deploy only once and only in
certa in ki nds of acc idents
-you r safety belts are
always there to offer protection .
The side curtain airbag sy stem basically
consists of:
- The electronic contro l modu le and external s ide
impact senso rs
- The side curtain airbags above the w indows of
the outer seating positions with ejection miti­
gation feat ures
- The airbag ind icator light in the instrument
panel
The airbag system is monitored electronically to make certain it is funct ion ing properly at all
u times. Each time you turn on the ignit ion, the air-co
~ bag system ind icator light will come on for a few r--
~ seconds (self d iagnost ics) .
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Airbag system
The side curtain airbag is not activ ated :
-if the ignition is turned off
- in side co llisions whe n the acceleration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low
- in rear-end col lisions .
_&. WARNING
-Safe ty bel ts and the airbag system will only
provide protect ion when occupants are i n
the proper seating position
¢ page 56,
Front seats.
- I f the airbag ind icator light¢ page 26
comes when the veh icle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer. It is possib le that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed to, or will not inf late when it should.
How side curtain airbags work
Side curtain airbags con work together with side
airbags to help reduce the risk of head and upper
torso injuries for occupants who are properly re­
strained.
Fi g. 24 0 Illustration of pr incip le: Inflated s ide curta in air­
bags o n the left s ide
The side curtain airbags inflate between the oc­
cupant and the w indows in a side collis ion
¢ fig . 240.
When the system is triggered, the side curtain
airbag is filled with propellant gas and breaks
through a seam above the front and rear side
windows identified by the AIRBAG label. In order
to help provide this additional protect io n, the
s ide curtain a irbag must inf late w ithi n the blink
of a n eye at very high speed a nd with g reat fo rce .
T he side c urtain airbag cou ld injure you if yo ur
..,.
289

Airbag syste m
seating position is not proper or upright or if
items are located in the area where the supp le­
mental side curtain airbag inf lates . This applies
especia lly to children
c::> page 291.
A lthough they are not a soft pi llow, side curtain
airbags can "cushion" the impact and in this way
they can help to reduce the risk of injury to the
head and the upper part of the body.
A fine dust may deve lop when the airbag deploys .
This is quite normal and does not mean there is a
f ire in the veh icle .
Important safety instructions on the side
curtain airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always
properly wear safety belts and ride in a proper
seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
know and do to help the safety be lts and airbags
do their job to provide supplemental protect ion.
A WARNING
Improperly wearing safety belts and improper
seating posit ions increase the risk of serious
personal inju ry and death whenever a vehicle
is being used.
- Never let occupants p lace any parts of the ir
bodies in the area from which the side cur­
ta in a irbag inflate.
- Always make sure that the side curtain air­
bags can inflate witho ut interference.
- Use the built- in coat hooks on ly for light­
weight cloth ing. Neve r leave any heavy or
sharp-edged objects in the pockets th at may
interfere w ith airbag deployment and can
ca use personal injury in a collision.
- Never use hangers to hang clothes on the
hoo ks.
- Only use factory-installed s un shades or, if
shades installed after the veh icle leaves the
factory, use only genuine Audi sun shades.
- Never swing the sun viso rs ove r to the side
windows if things such as pens, garage door
openers, hands-free speakers, etc. are at­
tached to the sun visors. They could come
290
loose and cause serious injury if the side cu r­
tain airbag inflates.
- A deploying airbag inflates in a fraction of a
second and with great force.
- Never attach objects to the cover or in the
deployment zone of a side curtain airbag .
- The airbag deployment zones must be kept clear at all times. Make s ure there are no
objects, pets, or othe r persons in the space
between any vehicle occupant and any air­
bag at any time.
- Do not attach any accessories to the doors.
A WARNING
- The a irbag system can deploy on ly once. If
the airbag has been triggered, the system
m ust be replaced by an authorized A udi
deale r or qualified workshop .
- Always have work invo lv ing the side curtain
airbag system, removal and installat ion of
the airbag components, or other repairs
pe rformed by a q ualified dealership. Other­
w ise the airbag system may not work cor­
rectly.
- Never attempt to mod ify a ny components of
the airbag system in any way.

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Child safety
Important information
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision .
The physical principles of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash apply also to children
c> page 262, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not fully
developed. In many respects children a re at
greater r isk of se rious injury in c rashes than
ad ults .
Because ch ildren's bodies are not fully devel­
oped, they requ ire restra int systems especially
des igned for their size, we ight, and body struc ­
ture. Many coun tries and a ll states of the United
States and p rovinces of Canada have laws requi r­
ing the use of approved child restraint systems
for infants and small children .
In a frontal crash at a speed of 20 - 35 mph (30 -
56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound (6 kg)
infant will be more than 20 times the weight of
the child . This means the weight of the chi ld
wou ld suddenly be more than 260 pounds
(120 kg) . Under these condit ions, only an appro­
priate ch ild restraint properly used can reduce
the r isk of serious injury . Child restra ints, like
adu lt safety belts, must be used properly to be
effect ive. Used imp roperly, they can increase the
risk of ser ious injury in an acc ident .
All ch ildren, especially those 12 years and you ng­
er must a lways r ide in the back seat properly re­
stra ined fo r their age and size. If you must insta ll
a child restra int on t he front passenger seat in
exceptional circumstances, be sure to read and h eed the important information and warnings
c> page 270. Infants and other chi ldren who are
properly restrained in an appropriate child re ­
stra int that is for their si ze and age can benefit
from the protection that supplemental s ide air­
bags provide in some kinds of crashes .
For more information please see information
provided by the:
Ch ild saf ety
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), currently at: http ://www .safe­
rcar.gov (for the USA)
- Transport Canada Information Centre, current-
ly at: http://www .tc .gc .ca (for Canada)
Cons ult the ch ild safety seat manuf acture r's in­
structions in order to be sure t he seat is right for
yo ur chi ld's size
c> page 295 , Important safety
instructions for using child safety seats .
Please
be sure to read and heed all of the important in­
format ion and WARNINGS about ch ild safety,
Advanced Airbags, and the installation of child
restra ints in this chapter .
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced Airbags in your veh icle and how they work
whe n infants and children in child restraints are
on the fro nt passenger seat . Because of the large
amount of important informat ion, we cannot re­
peat it all he re . We u rge you to read the detailed
i nformat ion in this owner 's ma nual about airbags
and the Advanced Airbag Sys tem in yo ur veh icle
and the very important information about trans ­
porting children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they are
extremely important for your safety and the safe­
ty of your passengers, especially infants and
small ch ildren .
A WARNING
-
-Accide nt statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
i n the front seat ing pos it ion. Always restrain
a ny child age 12 and unde r in t he rear.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
m ust be restra ined prope rly whe never r id ing
i n a vehicle. An u nres tra ined o r improperly
rest rained chi ld cou ld be inju red by st riking
the interio r or by being ejected from the ve ­
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is a lso at greater r isk of injury or death
through contact w it h an inflating a irbag.
- A suitable ch ild restraint properly installed
and used at one of the rear seating positions
prov ides the h ighest degree of protect io n
for infants and small children in most acc i­
dent situat ions .
291

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

on all the time whenever the ignition is
sw itched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ~. light
does not come on and stay on, immediate­
ly insta ll the forward-facing child seat in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your authorized Aud i
deale r.
- Always buckle the chi ld seat firmly in
place even if a ch ild is not sitt ing in it. A
loose ch ild seat ca n fly around during a
sudden stop o r in a coll is ion.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
wheneve r us ing a ch ild restraint in a veh i­
cle
~ page 261, Safety belts, ~ page 269,
Airbag system and ~page 291, Impor­
tant information .
(j) Tips
Always replace ch ild restraints that were in­
stalled in a veh icle dur ing a crash. Damage to
a child restra int tha t is not visib le co uld cause
it to fail in another collision situation .
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced Air­
bag System" in comp liance with United States
Federa l Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Veh icle Safety
Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the t ime
your ve hicle was manufactured .
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle has
been certified to meet the "low-risk" requ ire­
ments for 3- and 6-year old children on the pas­
senger side and small adults on the driver side.
The low risk deployment crite ria are intended to
reduce t he r isk of injury thro ugh inte ract ion with
the airbag t hat can occur, for examp le, by being
too close to the steering whee l and instrument
panel when the airbag inflates . In addition, the
system has been certified to comply with the
"suppression" req uirements of the Safety Stand ­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up to
~ 12 months who are restra ined on the front pas-...,
~ senger seat in child restraints that are listed i n
~ the Standard. 0 <( 0 00
Child s af ety
E ven thoug h your veh icle is equipped with an Ad ­
vanced Airbag system, all chi ldren, especially
those 12 years and younger, should a lways ride
in the back seat properly restrained for their age
and size . The airbag on the passenger side makes
the front seat a potentia lly dangerous p lace for a
ch ild to ride . Th e front seat is not the safest place
fo r a ch ild in a forward-fac ing ch ild safety seat.
It
can be a very dangerous place fo r an infant o r a
la rge r ch ild i n a rea rwa rd -facing seat.
T he veh icle 's Advanced A irbag System has a ca­
pacit ive passenger detection system in the front
passenge r seat cushion that can detect the p res ­
ence of a baby or a c hild in a child res tra int sys ­
tem on this seat .
T he capacitive passenger detection system reg is­
te rs the changes that result i n an elect rical field
whe n a child, a ch ild restraint, and a baby b la nket
are on t he fron t passenger seat. The change in
the measured capacitance due to the presence of a chi ld, a child restraint, and a baby blanket on
the front passenger seat is related to the child
restra int system resting on the seat. The meas­
ured capacitance of a child restra int system var­
ies depend ing on the type of system and specific
make and model.
The electrical capac itance of the various types,
makes, and models of child restraints specif ied
by the U .S . National Highway Traffic Safety Ad­
min istrat ion (NHTSA) in the relevant safety
standard are stored in the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem contro l unit together with the capacitances
typ ica l of infants and a 1 -year old child. When a
c h ild restraint is used on the front passenger
seat with a typical 1 year -old infant, t he Ad ­
vanced Airbag System compares the capacitance
measured by the capacitive passenger detection
system with the data stored in the electronic con­
trol un it .
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regardless of the ch ild restraint that you use,
make sure that it has been certified to meet Safe­
ty Standards and has been cert ified by its manu­
fact urer for use w ith an airbag . Always be s ure
t h at the c hild restraint is properly installed at
IJJ,,
293

Child sa fety
one o f th e rear seating positions . If in exception ­
a l circumstances you must use it on the front
passenger seat, carefully read all of the informa­
tion on child safety and Advanced Airbags and
heed all of the app licab le WARNINGS. Make cer­
tain that the child and child restraint are correct­
ly recogn ized by the capacitive passenger detec­
tion system in the front passenge r seat, that the
front passenger airbag is turned off, and t hat the
a ir bag stat us is a lways cor rectly signaled by the
PASSENGER AIR BA G OFF ~; light.
Many types and models of c hild rest raints have
been ava ilable ove r th e yea rs, new mode ls are in­
troduced regularly incorporat ing new and im ­
p roved designs and o lder mode ls are taken o ut of
p roduction . Chi ld restraints are not standardized .
Chi ld restraints of the same type typically have
d ifferent weights and sizes and d ifferent "foot­
prints", the s ize and shape of the bottom of the
chi ld restraint that s its on the seat, when they
are installed on a vehicle seat . These differences
make it virtually impossible to ce rtify compliance
with the requ irements fo r advanced airbags with
each and eve ry c hild rest raint that has ever been
sold in the pas t or will be sold ove r the co urse of
the useful life of your vehicle.
For this reason, the Un ited States Nat ional High­
way Traffic Safety Adm inist ration has p ublished a
lis t of specific type, makes and models of child
rest raints that must be used to cert ify comp li­
ance of the Advanced Airbag System in your vehi­
cle with th e suppression requirements of Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208. These child
restraints are:
Subpart A -Car bed child restraint s
Model Manufactured on or
after
Ange l Guard Ange l September 25, 2007
Ride AA2403FOF
294
Subpart B -Rear-facing child rest raints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Century SmartFit 4543 December 1, 1 999
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-013PAW and base
22 -999WHO
Evenflo Discovery Ad- December
1, 1999
just R ight 212
E venflo First Choice December
1, 1
999
204
Graco Infant 8457 December
1, 1 999
Graco Snugride September 25, 2007
P eg Perego P rimo Viag- September 25, 2007
g io SI P IMU NOOUS
Subpart C -Forward-facing and convertible
child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Britax Roundabout September 25, 2007
E9L02xx
Cosco Tou riva 025 19 December
1, 1999
Cosco Summit Deluxe September 25, 2007
H igh Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back Boos -September 25, 2007
ter 22-209
E venflo Tribute V September 25, 2007
379xxxx
Evenflo Medallion 254 December
1, 1999
E venflo Generat ions September 25, 200 7
35 2xxxx
Graco ComfortSport September 25, 2007
Graco Todd le r Safety September 25, 200 7
Seat Step 2
Graco Plat inum Cargo September 25, 2007
A WARNING
To reduce the ris k of se rious injury, ma ke sure
that t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ~; light
comes on and stays on whenever a c hild re ­
straint is insta lled on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on .