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Safety belts
General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter exp lains why safety be lts 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 s ingle most effective
means ava ilable 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
like ly 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 Aud i 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 wear ing them im
properly increases the risk of serious personal
inju ry and death.
- Never strap more than one person, includ
ing small children, into any belt.
It is espe
cia lly dangerous to place a safety belt over a
child sitt ing on you r lap.
- Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are safety belts available.
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.
Fig. 222 Safety belt warn ing ligh t in the instrument clus ·
te r - en larged
Before driving off, always:
• Fasten your safety belt and make sure you are
wearing it properly.
;;i;
• Make sure that your passengers also buckle up
and properly wear their safety belts.
• Protect ch ildren 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 add ition,
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 single most effect ive
means available to red uce the risk of serious
i njur y and death in automobile accidents.
F or your protection and that of yo ur passen
gers, a lways correct ly wear safety belts
when the vehicle is moving .
- Fail ure to pay attention to the warning light
that comes on cou ld lead to personal injury.
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Never rely o n airbags a lone fo r protection . Even
when t hey deploy, airbags provide on ly additiona l
protection. Airbags are not supposed to dep loy in
all kinds of accidents. A lthough your Audi is
equ ipped w ith airbags, all vehicle occupants, in
cluding the dr iver, must wear safety belts cor
rectly in order to minimize the risk of severe in
jury or death in a crash .
Remember too, that airbags will deploy only
once and that your safety belts are always there
to offer protection in those acc idents in w hich
airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they
have a lready deployed. Unbel ted occupants can
a lso be thrown o ut of the vehi cle where even
more severe or fatal injur ies can occur .
I t is also important for the rear passenge rs to
wear safety belts corre ctly . U nbel ted passengers
in the re ar seats endanger no t onl y themse lves
but also the driver and ot he r p assengers
¢ fig. 226. In a fronta l collision they will be
thrown forward violently, where they can hit and
in jure the driver and/or front seat passenger .
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision . It 's simply
not true!
F ig. 22 7 Driver is correct ly restra ined in a s udden b rak ing
maneuve r
Safety belts used properly can make a b ig d iffer
e nce. Safety belts he lp to keep passenge rs in
thei r seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap
p lied to the body in an ac cid en t, and h elp p reven t
the uncon trolled movement tha t can cause seri
ous injuries . In addition, safety belts reduce t he
danger of being thrown out of the vehicle .
Safet y bel ts
Safety be lts attach passengers to the car and g ive
t h em the benefit of being s lowed down more
gently or "soft ly" th rough the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety features engi
neered into today 's vehicles. By "absorbing" the
k inetic ene rgy over a longer period of t ime, the
sa fe ty belts make the fo rces on the body more
"tolerab le " and less likely to ca use in jury.
Although these examples are based on a frontal collision, safety be lts ca n also substa ntia lly re
duce the r is k of injury in ot her k inds of crashes.
So, whethe r you're on a long tr ip or just go ing to
t h e cor ner store, a lways b uck le up and make sure
othe rs do, too. A cciden t st atis tic s show tha t ve hi
cl e occupan ts properly wea ring safety bel ts have
a lower risk of be ing injured and a muc h better
chance of surviving an acci dent . Properly using
sa fety belts also great ly increases the ability of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col
lis ion. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is le
gally required in most count ries includ ing much
of the United States and Canada .
Although your Aud i is equipped with airbags, you
still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front airbags, for example, are activated only in some
frontal collisions. The front airbags a re not ac ti
vated in a ll frontal collisions, in side and rear co l
li sio ns, in rollove rs o r in cases whe re there is not
eno ugh deceleration throug h impact to the front
of the veh icle. The same goes for the othe r airbag
systems in your Audi . So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained !
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be correctly positioned
across the strongest bones of your body.
.. Always wear safety belts as illustrated and de
scribed in this chapter.
.. Make sure that your safety be lts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
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-
264
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 346.
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 228 Belt 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 56, Front seats.
.. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench
is in an upright position and securely latched in
place before using the belt ¢,&
.
.. Pull the safety belt evenly across the chest and
pelvis
¢ fig . 228, ¢ ,& .
.. 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.
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Automatic saf ety belt retractor s
Every safety be lt is equ ipped with an automatic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. Th is feature
l ocks the belt when the belt is pull ed out fast,
during hard braking and in an accident. The be lt
may a lso 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
Safety belts with pretensioners he lp to tighten
the safety belt and remove slack when the pre
tensioners are activated
c:> page 267. The func
tion of the pretensioner is monitored by a warn
i ng light
<=> page 26 .
Con vertible loc king retract or
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac
tor that
m ust be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child safety seat. Be sure to read
the important information about this feature
<=>page 302 .
A WARNING
Improperly posit ioned safety be lts ca n cause
ser ious injury in an accident
c:> page 265,
Safety belt position.
-Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
prope rly pos itioned on the body.
-Always ma ke sure tha t the rear seat bac k
rest to wh ich the center rear 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 reduce safety belt effec
t iveness and can cause serious personal in
jury.
-A passenger who is not properly restrained can be seriously in jured by the safety be lt it
self when it moves from the stronger parts
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 304.
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 229 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.
-belt height adjustment for the front seats,
-height-adjustable front seats.
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
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 tongue 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 lways fit
snug ly
c:> fig. 229. 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. 229. Pull on
the belt to tighten if necessary.
-A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
in juries by shifting its position on your body
ll>
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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
Airbag syste m
also not inflate in side or rear co llisions, or in
ro llovers .
Always rememb er: Airbags will deploy only once,
and on ly in ce rtain k inds of coll is ions. Yo ur safety
be lts are always there to offer protection in those
situations in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy, or when they have already deployed; for
examp le, when your vehicle str ikes or is struck by
another vehicle after the first col lision.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is a
supp lementary restraint and is not a substitute
for a safety belt. The a irbag system works most
effect ively when used with the safety belts.
Therefore, always properly wear your safety belts
¢ page 261 .
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel o r in
st rument panel will decrease the effective
ness of the airbags and will inc rease the risk
of personal injury in a co llision.
- Never sit closer than 1 0 inches (25 cm) to
the steering wheel or instrument panel.
- If you cannot sit mo re than 10 inches
( 2 5 cm) from the steering wheel, invest i
gate whether adaptive equipment may be
available to help yo u reach the pedals and
increase your seating distance from the
steering wheel.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restra ined child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or imp roperly restrained
child is also at greate r risk of inju ry or death
through contact with an infla ting airbag.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning fo rwa rd, s it
t ing s ideways or o ut o f pos ition in any way,
yo ur risk of in ju ry is much h igher.
- Yo u will also receive serious injuries and
c ould even be killed if you are up aga inst the
air bag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag.
270
-
- To reduce the r is k of i njury when an a irbag
inflates, always wear safety belts prope rly
¢ page 264, Safety belts.
- Always make certa in that children age 12 or
younge r always ride in the rear seat. If chil
dren are not properly restrained, they may be severely injured or killed when an airbag
inflates.
- Never let ch ildren r ide unrestra ined or im
properly restrained in the vehicle . Ad just the
front seats properly .
- Never ride with the back rest recl ined .
- Always sit as far as possible from the steer-
ing wheel or the instrument panel
¢page 253 .
-Always sit upright w ith your back against
the backrest of your seat.
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both feet
on the floor in front of the seat to help pre
vent serious injur ies to the legs and hips if
the airbag inflates.
- Never recl ine the front passenger's seat to
transpo rt objects . Items can also mo ve into
the area of the s ide airbag or the front air
bag du ring brak ing o r in a sudden maneu
ver . Obje cts nea r the airbags can become
pro jecti les and cause injury when an airbag
inflates.
A WARNING
Airbags that have deployed in a crash m ust be
replaced.
- Use on ly original equipment airbags ap
proved by Audi and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary tools and
diagnostic equipment to properly replace
any airbag in yo ur vehicle and assure system
effectiveness in a crash.
- Never perm it salvaged or recycled airbags to
be installed in your vehicle .
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.,. Be s ure to re ad the impo rtan t in format ion an d
hee d the WAR NINGS for impo rtant deta ils
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about children and Advanced Airbags
¢page 291 .
Even though yo ur vehicle is equ ipped with an Ad
vanced Airbag System, make certain that a ll chil
dren, especially those 12 years and younger, al
ways ride in the back seat proper ly restrained for
their age and size. 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 can be a very dange rous place for
a n in fant or a child in a rearward-fac ing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System i n your veh icle has
been certified to comply with the requirements
of United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standa rd (FMVSS) 208, as well as Canada Motor
Ve hicle Safety Standa rd (CMVSS) 208 as applica
b le at the time your veh icle was man ufactu red.
According to requirements, the front Advanced
Airbag System on the passenger side has been
certified for "suppression" for infants of about 12 month old and younger and for "low risk de
p loyment" for children aged 3 to 6 years o ld (as
defined in the standard).
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG O FF ~ ; light in the
headliner tells you when the front Advanced Air
bag on the passenger side has been turned off by
the electronic control unit.
Each time yo u turn on the ignition, the
PAS SEN
GER AIR BAG OFF
- PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ~; will come on if
the front passenger seat is not occupied
- PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
pacitive passenger detection system for the
front passenger seat equals the comb ined ca
pacitance of an infant up to about one year of
age and one of the rearward-facing or forward
facing child restra ints listed in Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 208 with
wh ich the Advanced Airbag System in your ve hi
cle was certified. Fo r a listing of the child re
straints that were used to ce rtify you r vehicle 's
compliance with the Safety Standard
¢ page 293 .
Airbag syste m
- PASSEN GER AIR BAG OFF ~; will come on if
there is a small chi ld or child restraint on the
front passenger seat
- PASSENGER AIR BAG ON @ will come on if the
front passenger seat is occupied by an adu lt as
registered by the capacitive passenger detec
tion system
¢ page 281, Monitoring the Ad
vanced Airbag System.
The PAS SEN GER AIR BAG OFF ~; light comes on
when e lectrica l capacitance registered on the
front passenger seat is equal to or less than the
combined capacitance of a typical 1 year-old in
fant and one of the rearward-facing or forward
facing child restra ints listed in Federal Motor Ve
hicle Safety Standard (F MVSS) 208 with wh ich
t h e Advanced Airbag System in you r vehicle was
ce rtified.
If the total electr ical capacitance reg istered on
t h e front passenger seat is mo re than that of a
typ ica l 1 yea r-old ch ild but less than the weight
of a sm all adul t, the front airbag on the passen
ger side can deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
not come on, the fro nt airbag on the passenge r
side has not been t urned off by the e lectronic
contro l unit and can deploy if the contro l unit
senses an impact that meets the conditions stor
ed in its memory.
For example , th e ai rb ag ma y deplo y if:
- a small c hild that is heav ier than a typ ica l 1
year -o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regard less of whethe r the child is in one of t he
child sa fe ty seats
listed ¢ page 293), or
- a child who has outgrown c hild rest raints is on
the front passenger seat .
If the front passenge r a irbag is tu rned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ~; light comes on in
t h e headliner a nd stays o n.
If the front passenger a irbag deploys, the Feder
al Standard requ ires t he a irbag to meet the " low
r isk" deployment cr ite ria to redu ce the r isk of in
j u ry throug h interact ion w it h t he airbag. "Low
risk" deployment occurs in t hose crashes that
take place at lower decelerations as defined in
..,.
271
Airbag syste m
the electronic control unit c> page 281, PASSEN
GER AIR BAG
OFF-,,;, ON@ light .
Always remember, a child safety seat o r infa nt
carrier insta lled on the front seat may be st ru ck
and knocked out of position by the rapid ly inflat
ing passenger's airbag in a fronta l co llision . The
airbag cou ld greatly reduce the effect iveness of
the child restraint and even seriously injure the
child dur ing inflation.
F or this reason, and because the back seat is the
safest place for ch ildren
-when properly restra in
ed according to the ir age and si ze
-we strong ly
recommend that children always sit in the back
seat
c> page 291, Child safety .
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat w ill be
ser iously injured and can be killed if the front
airbag infla tes
-even w ith an Advanced Ai rbag
System.
- T he inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier wi th great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
- Always install rear -facing child safety seats
on the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
cause of exceptiona l circumstances and the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF ,;; light does not
come on and stay on, immed iate ly install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seat ing pos ition and have the airbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dea ler .
- Forward-facing ch ild safety seats installed
on the front passenger's seat may interfere
with the deployment of the airbag and ca use serio us pe rsonal injury to the child.
A WARNING
If, in except ional circumst ances, you must in
stall a forward-f acing chi ld res train t on the
front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-f acing se at
h as been designed and ce rt ified by its man-
272 ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up against or very near the instrument pan
el.
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest posit ion in the up and down ad
justment range and move it back to the rearmost posit ion in the seat's fore and aft
ad justment range, as far away from the a ir
bag as poss ible, before ins tall ing the for
ward-facing chi ld restraint.
- Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is behind the ch ild rest raint and
not next to o r in fron t of the child rest raint
so th at the s afety be lt will be p roperly posi
tioned.
- Ma ke sure th at the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF -,,;, light comes on and stays on all the
time wheneve r the ign it ion is swi tched on .
A WARNING
To reduce the risk o f serious injury, ma ke sure
that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF -,,;; light
will be disp layed whenever a ch ild restraint is
installed on the front passenger seat and the
ignit ion is switched on.
- If the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF -,,;, light
does not stay on, perform the checks descri
bed
c> page 281, Monitoring the Advanced
Airbag System .
-Take the child restra int off the front passen
ger seat and install it properly at one of the rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG
OFF ,;; light does not stay on .
- Have the airbag system inspected by your author ized Audi dealer immed iate ly.
- Always carefully follow instructions from
child restraint manufacturers when instal ling child restra ints.
A WARNING
I f, in exceptional ci rcumstances, you must in
stall a forward or rearward-fac ing child re-
stra int on the fron t passenger's seat:
Ill>