
Cl a:, ...... N
" N ...... 0
0
::r '
ed by your Audi dealer immediately.
- move the chi ld to a rear seat position and make
sure that the child is properly restrained in a
child restraint that is appropriate for its size
and age.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light
should NOT come on ...
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light should
NOT come on when the ignition is on and an
adu lt is sitting in a proper seating position on the
front passenger seat. If the
PASS ENGER AIR
BAG OFF~;
light comes on and stays on while
driving, under these circumstances, make sure
that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is proper
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his or her back up aga inst the backrest and the
backrest is not reclined,
- the adult is not tak ing weight off the seat by
ho ld ing on to the passenger assist handle
above t he front passenger door o r supporting
the ir we ight on the arm rest,
- the safety be lt is be ing properly wo rn and that
the re is not a lot of slack i n the safe ty belt web
bing,
- the re are no aftermar ket seat covers or cush
ions or other things (s uch as blankets) on the
front passenge r seat tha t migh t cau se the ca
pacit ive passenger detection system to miscal
cu late electrical capacitance .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
-If the status of the Adv a need A irbag System
has changed while the vehicle is moving, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; ON @ light
blinks for about 5 seconds to catch the driv
er's attention. If this happens, always stop
as soon as it is safe to do so and check the
steps described above.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF,;; light
does not go
off when an adult who is not
very sma ll is sitting on the front passenger
Airbag syste m
seat a fter tak ing the steps described above,
make sure the adu lt is properly seated and
restrained at one of the rear seating posi
tions. Have the a irbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi dealer before trans
port ing anyone on the front passenge r seat.
A WARNING
-
An a irbag system that is not functioning prop
e rly cannot prov ide supplemental prote ct ion
i n a front al cra sh.
- I f the ai rbag ind icator light
~page 25
comes when the veh icle is being used, have
the system inspe cted immedia tely by your
author ized Audi dealer . It is possib le that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.
A WARNING
,= -
If the front airbag inflates, a child without a
chi ld restraint, or in a rea rward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-fac ing child re
stra int that has not been properly insta lled
will be serious ly injured and can be killed.
- Even though your vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that all children, espec ially 12 years and
younge r, always ride on the back sea t prop
erly rest rained for the ir age and s ize.
- Always install fo rwa rd or rea r-facing child
safety seats on the rear seat - even with an
Advan ced Airb ag Sys tem.
- I f you must install a rea rwa rd-facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be
c a use of ex cep tional cir cums tan ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF "1; light does not
appear and stay on, immediately install the rear-facing chi ld safety seat in a rear seat ing
position and have the a irbag system in
spected by your authorized Aud i dea ler.
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward- facing child restraint on
the front passenge r seat, always move the
seat into its rearmost position in the seat 's
fore and aft ad justmen t range, as far away
from the a irbag as poss ible. The back res t
m ust be adjusted to an upr ight position.
283

Airbag syste m
Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR B AG
OFF ,;;
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
- If the PASS ENGER AIR B AG O FF 1'i; light
does not go out when an adult is sitting on
the front passenger seat after tak ing the
steps described above, make sure the adult
is p roperly seated and restrained at one of
the rear seating positions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Aud i dealer before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
(D Tips
If the capacitive passenger detection system
determines that the front passenger seat is
empty, the frontal airbag on the passenge r
side w ill be tu rned off, and the
PA SSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
1'i ; light will stay on.
-
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system are installed at many
different places on your Audi. Installing, remov
ing, servic ing or repa iring a part in an area of the
veh icle can damage a part of an airbag system
and prevent that system from working properly
in a collision .
There are some important things you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of the
system w ill not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
env ironment.
A WARNING
Improper care, serv icing and repai r proce
dures can increase the r is k of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de
ploying when needed or dep loying an airbag
unexpectedly:
-
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer
ing wheel horn pad or airbag cover or the in
strument pane l or modify them in any way.
284
- Never attach any objects such as cupholders
or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov
ering the a irbag un its.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one mois
tened w ith plain water. Solvents or cleaners
could damage the airbag cover or change
the st iffness or strength of the material so
that the airbag cannot deploy and protect
properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instrument
panel, front seats or e lectr ica l system ( in
cluding the installation of a udio eq uipment,
cellular telephones and CB radios, etc.) m ust be performed by a qualified techn ician
who has the training and specia l equipment
necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we strong ly recommend that you see your au
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- Never modify the front b umper or parts of
the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
A udi.
- Never use additional seat c ushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags in
flate.
- Damage to the orig inal seat cove rs or to
the seam in the area of the s ide airbag
module mus t always be repaired immedi
ate ly by an autho rized Aud i dealer .
- The a irbag sys tem can deploy on ly once. Af
ter an airbag has been deployed, it m ust be
replaced with new replacement parts de
signed and approved especia lly for your
Audi model version . Replacement of com
plete airbag systems or airbag components
must be performed by qua lified workshops
only . Make sure that any airbag service ac
tion is entered in your Audi Warranty
&
Ma intenance booklet under AIRBAG RE-
PLAC EMENT RECORD.
Ii)-

a co ...... N r--. N ...... 0
0
:E '
-For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starter are separated from
the vehicle battery with a pyrotechnic circuit
interrupter.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit interrupt
er must only be performed by a qualified
technicians who have the experience, in
formation and special tools necessary to
perform the work safely.
- If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter is
scrapped, all applicable safety precautions
must be followed .
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and pretension
ers might be classified as Perchlorate Materi
al -special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo rate. When the vehicle or parts of the re
straint system including airbag modules and
safety belts with pretensioners are scrapped,
all applicable laws and regulations must be
observed. Your authorized Audi dealer is fa
miliar with these requirements and we recom
mend that you have your dealer perform this
service for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag System
performs in a crash . For example, using tire-rim
combinations not approved by Audi, lowering the
veh icle, chang ing the stiffness of the suspens ion,
including the springs, suspension struts, shock
absorbers etc. can change the forces that are
measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the
electronic contro l unit. Some suspension changes
can, for example, increase the force levels meas
ured by the sensors and make the airbag system
deploy in crashes in which it would not deploy if
the changes had not been made. Other kinds of changes may reduce the force levels measured by
the sensors and prevent the airbag from deploy
ing when it should .
Airbag system
A WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension including
use of unapproved tire-rim combinations can
change Advanced Airbag performance and in
crease the risk of serious personal injury in a
crash.
- Never install suspension components that
do not have the same performance charac
teristics as the components originally instal
led on your vehicle.
- Never use tire-rim combinations that have
not been approved by Audi.
Side airbags
· Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
Fig. 237 Side a irbag locatio n in the driver's seat
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests ¢
fig. 23 7 and the rear back
rest* facing the doors.
The side airbags installed for the front seating
pos itions have been des igned and certified to
help reduce the risk of injury that can be caused
by airbags when they inflate, particularly when
the occupant s itting next to it is not seated prop
erly. The side airbag for the front passenger seat
can be used w ith proper ly installed chi ld re
straints . Please be sure to read the important in
formation and warnings whenever using a child
restraint in a vehicle: Safety belts¢
page 261,
Airbag system ¢ page 269, Child safety
r:=> page 291.
The side airbag system basically consists of: .,..
285

Airbag system
-the e lectronic control module and externa l side
impact sensors
- th e two side airbags located in the sides of the
front backrests
- two rear side airbags*
- the air bag wa rn in g light in the instrument clus-
te r.
The a irbag system is monitored electronically to
make certa in that it is functioning properly at all
times. Each time you turn on the ignition, the air
bag system ind icator light will come on for a few
seconds (self diagnostics).
The s ide a irbag system supplements the safety
be lts and can help to reduce the risk of injury to
the driver's, front and rear* passenger's upper
torso on the side of the vehicle that is struck in a
side co llision . The airbag dep loys on ly in side im
pacts and on ly when the vehicle acceleration reg
istered by the control unit is high enough. If this
rate is below the reference value programmed in
to the control un it, the side airbags w ill not be
tr iggered, even though the car may be badly
damaged as a result of the collision. It is not pos
sib le to define an ai rbag tr igger ing range that
w ill cover every possible angle of impact, s ince
t he circumstances will vary considerably between
one collision and another. Important factors in
clude, for example, the nature (hard or soft) of
the impacting object, the angle of impact, vehicle
speed, etc.
c> page 287, Important safety in
structions on the side airbag system.
Aside from their normal safety function, safety
be lts work to help keep the driver or front pas
senger in position in the event of a side collision
so that the side a irbags can provide protection.
The airbag system is
not a substitute for your
safety belt . Rather, it is part of the overa ll occu
pant restraint system in your vehicle. Always re
member that the s ide airbag system can only
help to protect you if you are wearing your safety
belt and wearing it properly. This is another rea
son why you should always wear you r safety
be lts, not just because the law requ ires you to do
soc>
page 261, General information.
It is important to remember that while the sup
plemental s ide a irbag system is designed to re-
286
duce the likelihood of serious injuries, other inju
ries, for example, swelling, bruising, friction
burns and m inor abras ions can also be assoc iated
with deployed side airbags. Remember too, side
airbags will dep loy only once and only in certa in
kinds of accidents -your safety belts are always
there to offer protection .
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack of
vehicle damage are not necessar ily an ind ication
of over-sens itive or fa iled airbag activat ion . In
some collis ions, both front and side airbags may
i nflate. Remember too, that air bags w ill dep loy
only once and only in certain kinds of collisions -
yo ur safety belts are always there to offer protec
tion in those accidents in which airbags are not
supposed to deploy or when they have alr eady
deployed.
The side airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ignition is turned off
- in side co llisions whe n the accele ration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low
- in fro nt-end coll is ions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers.
In some types of accidents t he front airbags, side
curtain airbags and side airbags may be triggered
together.
A WARNING
- Safety belts and the airbag system will only
provide protection when occupants are in
the proper seat ing position
c> page 287.
-If the airbag ind icator light c> page 25
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer . It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.

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 airbags, driver's side: locatio 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 their 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
~ times. Each time you turn on the ignit ion, the air-,.....
~ bag system ind icator light will come on for a few
8 seconds (self d iagnost ics) .
0 :E '
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 54,
Front seats.
- I f the airbag ind icator light¢ page 25
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

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 . ...... N
" "' For more information please see information ......
8 provided by the: ::r '
- 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 sur e to heed th e 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
laptop, 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