2018 AUDI Q7 steering wheel

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:E ' ~ ALWAYS adjust your speed to road, traffic and
weather conditions.
~ Take frequent breaks on long trips. Do not drive
for more than two hours at a stretch.
~ Do NOT drive when you are tired, under pres­
sure or when you are stressed .
A WARNING
Impaired driv ing safety increases the risk of
ser ious personal inju ry and death whenever a
vehicle is being used .
Correct passenger
seating positions
Proper seating position for the driver
The proper driver seating position is important
for safe, relaxed driving .
Fig. 219 Correc t seating pos ition
F or your own s afety and to reduce the risk of in­
jury in the event of an accident, we recommend
that you adjust the driver 's seat to the following
position:
~ Adjust the dr iver's seat so tha t you can easily
push the pedals all the way to the f loor wh ile
keeping your knee(s) s light ly bent
c::> _& .
~ Adjust the ang le of the seatback so that it is in
an upright position so that your back comes in
full contact w ith it when you drive.
~ Adjust the steering wheel so that there is a dis­
tance of at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
stee ring wheel and you r breast bone
c::> fig. 219.
If no t possib le, see you r autho riz ed Aud i dea le r
abo ut adapt ive eq uipment.
Dri ving safety
~ Adjust the steering wheel so that the steering
wheel and airbag
cover points at your chest and
not at yo ur face.
~ Grasp the top of the steering wheel with your
elbow(s) slightly bent.
~ Adjust the head restra int so the upper edge is
as
even as possible w ith the top of your head . If
that is not possib le, t ry to adjust the head re­
straint so that it is as close to this posit ion as
possible .
~ Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
c::>page 264.
~ Always keep both feet in the footwell so that
you are in contro l of the ve hicle at a ll times.
F or detailed information on how to adj ust the
drive r's seat, see
c::> page 54 .
A WARNING
-
Drivers who are unbelted, out of position or
too close to the airbag can be seriously in­
jured by an airbag as it unfolds. To help re­ d uce the risk of serious personal injury:
- Always ad just the driver's seat and the
steer ing whee l so that there are at least
10 inc hes (25 cm) between you r breastbone
and the steering wheel.
- Always hold the steering wheel on the out­
side of the steering wheel r im with your
hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o' clock posi­
tions to help reduce the risk of personal in­
ju ry if the driver's airbag inflates.
- Never hold the stee ring wheel at the
12 o' clock position o r with you r hands at
o ther posi tions ins ide the s teer ing whee l
rim or on the steering wheel hub. Holding
the steering wheel the wrong way can cause
serio us injuries to the hands, arms and head
if the dr iver's airbag dep loys.
- Pointing the steering wheel toward your
face decreases the ability of the supplemen­ tal driver's airbag to protect you in a coll i­
sion.
- Always sit in an upright position and never
lean aga inst or place any part of your body
too close to the area where the airbags are located .
253

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:E ' bracing themselves. Without the benefit of safe­
ty restraint systems , the unr estrained occupant
will slam violently into the steering wheel, in ­
strument panel, windshield , or whatever else is
in the way
c:;, fig. 225 . This impact with the vehi­
cle interior has all the energy they had just be ­
fore the crash.
Never rely on airbags alone for protection. Even
when they deploy , airbags provide only additional
protection . Airbags are not supposed to deploy in
all kinds of accidents. Although your Audi is
equipped with airbags, all vehicle occupants, in­
cluding the driver, 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 accidents in which
airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they
have already deployed. Unbelted occupants can
also be thrown out of the vehicle where even more severe or fatal injuries can occur.
It is also important for the rear passengers to
wear safety belts correctly. Unbelted passengers in the rear seats endanger not only themselves
but also the driver and other passengers
c:;, fig. 226 . In a frontal collision they will be
thrown forward violently, where they can hit and injure 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!
Fig. 227 Drive r is co rr ectly restrained in a sudden b rak ing
maneuver
Safety belts
Safety belts used properly can make a big differ­
ence. Safety belts help to keep passengers in
their seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap­ plied to the body in an accident , and help prevent
the uncontrolled movement that can cause seri­ ous injuries. In addition, safety belts reduce the
danger of be ing thrown out of the vehicle .
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and give
them the benefit of being slowed down more gently or "softly" through the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety features engi­
neered into today's vehicles . By "absorbing" the
kinetic energy over a longer period of time, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more
"tolerable" and less likely to cause injury .
Although these examples are based on a frontal collision, safety belts can also substantia lly re­
duce the risk of injury in other kinds of crashes.
So, whether you're on a long trip or just going to
the corner store, always buckle up and make sure
others do, too. Accident statistics show that vehi­
cle occupants properly wearing safety belts have
a lower risk of being injured and a much better
chance of surviving an accident. Properly using
safety belts also greatly increases the ability of
the supplemental a irbags to do their job in a col­
lision. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is le­
gally required in most countries including 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 are not acti­
vated in all frontal collisions, in side and rear col­
lisions, in rollovers or in cases where there is not
enough deceleration through impact to the front
of the vehicle . The same goes for the other airbag
systems in your Audi. So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained!
263

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::r ' 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 264,
.. 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 54.
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
thori zed 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

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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:E ' -Improper installation of child restraints can
reduce their effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protection .
- An improperly installed child restraint can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
seriously injure or even kill the child -even
with an Advanced Airbag System .
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that will cause the
capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occupied by a person when it is
not, or to signal that it is occupied by some­
one who is heavier than the person actually
sitting on the seat. The presence of addi ­
tional objects could cause the passenger
front airbag to be turned on when it should
be off, or could cause the airbag to work in a
way that is different from the way it would
have worked without the object on the seat .
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occu­
pants.
Fig. 233 Lo ca ti on of driver airb ag: in stee ring wheel
Airbag system
Fig. 234 Locat io n of fro nt passen ger 's airbag : in t he in·
s tr um en t pan el
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced Air­
bag System" in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208, as well as Canada Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at
the time your veh icle was manufactured .
The airbag for the driver is in the steering wheel
hub
¢ fig . 233 and the airbag for the front pas­
senger is in the instrument panel
¢fig . 234 . The
general location of the airbags is marked "AIR­
BAG".
There is a lot you need to know abou t the airbags
in your vehicle . We urge you to read the detailed
information about airbags, safety belts and child
safety in this and the other chapters that make
up the owner's literature . Please be sure to heed
the WARNINGS -they are extremely important
for your safety and the safety of your passengers,
especially infants and small children.
_& WARNING
-
Never rely on airbags alone for protection .
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
supplemental protection.
- Airbag work most effectively when used
with properly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, always wear your safety belts and
make sure that everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained.
- Always hold the steering wheel with both
hands on the outside of the steering wheel
rim at the 9:00 o'clock and 3:00 o'clock po­
sitions to help reduce the risk of personal in-
jury if the driver's airbag inflates. ..,..
273

Airbag syste m
-Never hold the steering whee l at the 12
o'clock pos it ion or w ith your han ds any­
where inside the steering wheel or on the steering wheel hub. Holding t he steering
wheel the wrong way increases the risk of severe injury to the arms, hands, and head if
the d river a irbag deploys.
A WARNING
Objects between you and the a irbag w il l in­
crease the risk of inj ury in a crash by interfer­
ing w ith the way the airbag unfo lds and/or by
being pushed into you as the airbag inflates .
- Always make sure nothing is in the front air-
bag deployment zone that could be str uck
by the airbag when it inflates.
-
- Objects in the zone of a deploying airbag
can become projectiles when the airbag de ­
ploys and cause serious persona l injury .
- Never hold th ings in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use.
- Never place accessor ies or other objec ts
(s uch as c up ho lders, telephone brackets,
note pads, navigation systems, or things
that are large, heavy, o r bulky) on the doors;
never attach then to the doors or the wind­
shield; never place them over or near or at­
tach them to the area marked ,,AIRBAG" on
the steering wheel, instrument panel or the seat backrests; never p lace them between
these a reas and yo u or any other person in
the vehicle.
- Never attach objects to the w indshield
above the passenger front airbag, s uch as
accessory GPS navigation uni ts or mus ic
players . S uch objects could ca use serio us in ­
jury in a collision, especially when the air­ bags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger seat to transport objects . Items can also move into
the deployment area of the side a irbags or
the front a irbag during breaking o r in a sud­
den maneuver. Objects near the airbags can
fly dangerous ly through the passenger com­
partment and cause injury, particularly
when the seat is reclined and the airbags in­
flate.
274
A WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, espe­
cially infants and small ch ildren, wi ll receive
serious in juries and can even be k illed by be­
ing too close to the airbag when it inflates .
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle is designed to turn off the front
passenger airbag if an infant o r a small child
is on the fron t passenger sea t, nobody can
absolu tely guarantee tha t deployment un­
de r these specia l condi tions is impossible in
all conceivable situations that may happen
during the useful life of yo ur vehicle.
- The Advanced Airbag System can dep loy in
accordance with the ,.low risk" option for 3-
and 6-year-old children under the U.S. Fed­
eral Standard if a child w ith electrical capac­
itance greater than the combined capac i­
tance of a typical one-year o ld infant re­
strained in one of the forward facing or rea r­
ward-facing chi ld seats with which yo ur ve­
hicle was certified is on the front passenger
seat and the o ther conditions for airbag de-
ployment are me t.
- Accident s tatisti cs have shown th at children
are generally safer in the rear seat are a than
in the front seat ing pos ition.
- For their own s afety, all ch ildren, especi ally
12 years and younger, should alw ays ride in
the back proper ly restrained for their age
and size .
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the t ime
you r vehicle was manufactured .
-
The front Advanced Airbag System supplements
the safety belts to provide add itiona l protect ion
for the driver 's and front passenger's heads and
upper bod ies in fronta l crashes. The a irbags in­
flate only in frontal impacts when the vehicle de-
ce le ra tion is high e no ugh.
II>-

Airbag syste m
airbag inflates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof .
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearward-fac ing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­
cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light does not
come on and stay on, 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 a uthorized Audi dea ler.
A WARNING
Objects between you and the a irbag w ill in ­
crease the risk of inj ury in a crash by interfer­
ing with the way the airbag unfo lds or by be­
ing pushed into you as the a irbag inflates.
- Never hold things in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use.
- Never transport items on or in the area of
the front passenger seat . Objects could
move into the area of the front airbags dur­
ing brak ing or other sudden maneuvers and
become dangerous projectiles that can
cause serious personal injury if the a irbags
inflate .
- Never place or attach accessor ies or other
objects (such as cupholders, telephone
brackets, large, heavy o r bulky objects) on
the doors, over or nea r the area marked
"AIRBAG" on the steering wheel, instru­
ment pane l, sea t backrests or between
those areas and yoursel f. These objects
could cause injury in a crash, especially
when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger's seat to
transport objects . Items can also move into
the area of the side airbag o r the front a ir­
bag dur ing braking or in a sudden maneu­
ver. Objects near the airbags can become
280
-
pro jecti les and cause injury, part icularly
when the seat is reclined.
- Never p lace or transport objects on the
front passenger seat. Objects on the front passenger seat could cause the capacitive
sensor in the seat to signal to airbag system
that the seat is occupied by a person when it
in fact is not, or that the pe rson on the seat
is heavie r than he or she act ually is . The
change in elec tric capa citan ce beca use of
such o bje cts can c ause the p assenge r front
airbag to be turned on when it should be
off, or can cause the airbag to work in a way
that is different from the way it would have
wo rked without objects on the seat.
- Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenge r seat that will cause the
capacitive passenge r detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occup ied by a person when it is
not , or to signal that it is occupied by some­
one who is heavier than the person act ually
sitt ing on the seat. The presence of an ob­
ject could ca use the passenger front air bag
to be turned on when it should be off, or
could cause the airbag to work in a way that
is different from the way it would have
worked without the object on the seat.
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy can
cause breathing prob lems for people with a
h istory of asthma or other breath ing cond i­
tions .
- To reduce the r isk of breathing p roblems,
those with asthma or other respiratory con­
ditions should get fresh a ir right away by
getting out of the vehicle or opening win­
dows or doors .
- If you are in a collision in which airbags de­
ploy, wash your hands and face with m ild
soap and water before eating.
- Be ca refu l not to get the dust into your eyes,
or into any cuts or scratches.
- If the residue should get into your eyes,
flush them w ith wate r.

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)-