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.
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
Cl a:, ...... N
" N ...... 0
0
::r '
switched 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 .
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
Angel 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, 1999
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, 1999
204
Graco Infant 8457 December 1, 1999
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 .
a co ...... N r--. N ...... 0
0
:E '
comes on and stays on whenever a child re
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on.
- Take the child restraint off the front passen
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OF F ~;
light does not stay on .
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately .
Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
Fig . 241 Schematic overv iew: keep unused safety belts
away from children in chil d safety seats. @· oute r rear
sa fety belt, ® · ce nter rear safety bel t
If a chi ld safety seat is used on the rear bench,
especia lly with LATCH universal lower anchorag
es, the unused safety be lts
mu st be secured so
that the child in the child restraint cannot reach
them <=>.&. .
- Guide the safety belt webbings @ and @ be
hind the head restra int of the seat where the
child restraint is installed <=>
fig. 241. When do
ing so, do not engage the convertible locking
retractor! You shou ld not hear a "clicking"
sound when w inding up the safety be lt .
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt webbing .
A WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with the
LA TC H l ower anchorages or w ith the standard
safety belt or a child in a booster seat on the
rear seat could play with unused rear seat
safety belts and become entangled. This
co uld cause the chi ld serious personal i njury
and even death.
Ch ild s afe ty
-Always secure unused rear seat safety belts
out of reach of children in child seats such
as by properly routing them around the
head restraint of the seat where the child
restraint is installed .
- Never activate the convert ible lock ing re
tractor when rout ing the safety belts around
the head restraints.
- Never let anyone sit at the center rear seat
ing position if the center rear safety belt has
been routed around a rear head restraint.
Child safety seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old and
20 lbs. or
9 kg need special rearward-facing
child restraints that support the back, neck and
head in a crash .
Fig. 242 Sc hematic overview: rearward -facing i nfant seat,
properly i nstalled o n the rear seat
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertib le locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
<=>
page 302 or install the seat using the LATCH
attachme nts .
.,. Push the ch ild safety seat down with you r full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways more than one inch (2.5 cm).
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
<=>page 297 .
Infan ts up to about one yea r (20 lbs. or 9 kg) are
best protected in special infant ca rr ie rs and child
sa fety seats designed for the ir age group. Many
experts believe that infants and small ch ildren
Iii>-
297
Child sa fety
restraint in place~ page 58. Install the
head restraint again immediately once the
child seat is removed. Driving without head
restra ints or w ith head restraints that are
not properly adjusted increases the risk of
serious or fatal neck injury dramatically .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child restrained in a veh icle is
being used
~ page 261, Safety belts,
~ page 269, Airbag system and
~ page 291, Important information.
A WARNING
If exceptional circumstances require the use
o f a forward- facing child restra int on the
front passenger's seat, the child's safety and
well-being require that the following special
precaut ions be taken:
- Make s ure the forward-facing seat has been
designed and cert ified by its manufact urer
for use on a front seat with a passenger
front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's instruc tions prov ided with the ch ild safety seat or
infant carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat to the h ighest position in the up and down ad
justment range and move it back to the
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as fa r away from the air
bag as possib le, before insta lling the for
ward-facing child res tra int.
- Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is beh ind the child restrain t and
not next to or in front o f the child restrain t
so that the safety belt will be properly pos i
tioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents the
front passenger's seat from being moved to
the rearmost position in its fore and aft ad
justment range.
- Always make sure the backrest is in an up
right position .
- Never place or use any electrical device (such as a laptop, CO player, elect ronic
games dev ice, power inverte r or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat
300
if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighte r socket.
- If a seat heater has been ret rofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat, never install any child restra int system on
this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects (such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cush ion .
- Never p lace objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CO p layer, electron ic games device,
power inverte r or seat heater for ch ild
seats) . These may influence the elect rical
capacitance measu red by the capacitive pas
senger detect ion system and can also fly
around in an accident and cause se rious per
sonal injury .
- Ma ke sure th at the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
1-f; light comes on and stays on all the
time wheneve r the ign it ion is switched on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF 1-f; light
does not come on and stay on, immediately
install the forward -facing child seat at a
seating position on the rear seat and have
the airbag system inspected by your author ized Audi dealer.
- Take the child restra int off the front passen
ge r seat and install it prope rly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
1-f; light does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
Child sa fety
body and the front of the passenger compart
ment, the air bag can inflate comp lete ly and pro
vide supp lemental protect ion in certain fronta l
coll is ions.
A WARNING
Not using a booster seat, us ing the booster
seat improperly, incorrectly installing a boos
ter seat or using the vehicle safety belt im
properly increases the risk of ser ious personal
injury and death in a collision or other eme r
gency sit uat ion. To help red uce the risk of se
rious persona l injury and/or death:
- The shoulder be lt mus t lie as close to the
center of the child's collar bone as possib le
and must lie flat and snug on the upper
body. It must never lie across the throat or
neck . The lap be lt must lie across the pelvis
and never across the stomach or abdomen.
Make sure the belt lies flat and snug. Pull on
the belt to tighten if necessary.
- Failure to proper ly route safety belts over a
child's body will cause severe injuries in an
acc ident or other emergency situation
¢ page 261.
-The rear side of the child safety seat should
be pos itioned as close as possible to the
backrest on the vehicle seat. Adjust or re
move the rear seat head restraint if it is d if
ficult to install the child seat with the he ad
restra int in place¢
page 58. Ins tall the
head restraint again immediately once the
child seat is removed . Driving without head
restra ints or w ith head rest raints that are
not properly adjusted increases the risk of
serious or fatal neck injury dramatically.
- Never let a child put the sho ulder belt under
the arm or beh ind the back, because it cou ld
cause severe injur ies in a crash.
- Children on the front seat of any car, even with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in
jured or even killed when an airbag inflates .
- Never let a child stand or knee l on any seat,
for example the front seat.
- Never let a child ride in the ca rgo area o f
you r vehicle.
- Always remember that a child leaning for
ward, s itting sideways or out of position in
302
-
any way du ring an accident can be struck by
a deploying airbag. Th is w ill result in serious
personal injury or death.
- If you must install a booster seat on the
front passenger seat because of exceptiona l
circumstances the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
'1; light must come on and stay on,
wheneve r the ign it ion is swi tched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF '1; light
does not come on and stay on, perform the
checks desc ribed ¢
page 281, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag System.
- Take the child res tra int off the front passen
ge r seat and install it prope rly at one of the
rear sea t positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
'1; light does not st ay on whenever
the ignition is switched on .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
eve r us ing a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing used ¢
page 261, Safety belts,
¢ page 269, Airbag system and
¢ page 291 , Important information .
Securing child safety
seats
Securing a child safety seat using a safety
belt
Safety belts for the rear seats and the front pas
senger can be locked with the convertible locking
retractor to properly secure child safety seats .
The safety belts for the rea r seats and for the
front passenge r's seat have a conve rtible locking
r etractor for child safety seats. The safety belt
must be locked so that be lt webb ing cannot un
r eel. The retractor can be act ivated to lock the
safety belt and prevent the safety belt webbing
from loosening up dur ing norma l dr iving . A ch ild
safety seat can o nly be prope rly installed when
t h e safety be lt is locked so that the c hild and
c hi ld s afety seat will stay in place.
Always remember : Even though your veh icle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
c hi ld re n, especially those 12 yea rs and you nger,
sho uld always ride in t he b ack seat p roperly re-
strained for their age and s ize.
II>-
Cl a:, ...... N
" N ...... 0
0
::r '
-
Improperly installed child safety seats in
crease the risk of serious personal injury and
death in a collision.
- Always make sure that the safety belt re
tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt retrac
tor cannot hold the child safety seat in place dur ing normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always make sure that the rear seat back
rest to wh ich the center rear safety belt* is
attached is secure ly latched whenever the
rea r cente r safety belt is being used to se
cur e a ch ild rest raint.
- If the backrest is not securely latched, the
child and the child restraint will be thrown
forwar d toge ther w it h the backrest and will
st rike parts of the vehicle interior. The ch ild
can be se riously in jured or killed .
- Never ins tall rear-f acing chi ld safety sea ts
or infant carriers on the front passen ger
seat . A child will be serious ly inju red and
can be killed when the passenger airbag in
flates.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the ch ild safety seat and chi ld
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof .
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
o r infant carriers on the rear seat.
- Forward-fac ing ch ild safety seats or infant
carriers installed on the front passenger's
seat may interfere with the deployment of
the a irbag and cause serious injury to the
child .
- It is safe r to install a forward-fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the rear seat .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when
ever using a child res trained in a veh icle is
being used~
page 291 . Specia l precaut ions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
t h e fron t passenger sea t~
page 2 70, Child
Ch ild saf ety
restraints on the front seat -some impor
tant things to know.
A WARNING
--
A lways take special precautions if you must
i nstall a forward or rearward-facing child re
stra int on the front passenger's seat in excep
tional s ituations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-fac ing
child restraint is installed on the front pas
senger sea t, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
~; lig ht must come on and stay on whenev
er the ign ition is swi tched on.
- I f the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light
does not come on and stay on, perform the
checks desc ribe d
~ page 281, Monito ring
t he Advanced Airbag System.
- T ake the child res tra int off the front passen
ge r seat and inst all it prope rly at one of the
rear sea t positions i f the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF~;
light does not stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on .
- Imp roper installat ion of child restra ints can
reduce the ir effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protect ion .
- An imprope rly installed child restra int can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
serio usly injure or even kill the chi ld.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instr uctions provided with the child sa fety
seat or ca rr ie r.
- After checking to make su re that the child
rest raint is proper ly installed, make ce rtain
that the child restraint is co rrectly recog
n ized by the capacitive passenger detection
system in the front passenger seat and that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light sig
na ls the correct front passenger fronta l air
b ag sta tus.
A WARNING
F orw ard-facing child restra int s:
- Always make sure the forward-facing sea t
has been des igned and certified by its man
ufa cturer for use on a fron t sea t with a pa s
senger front and side air bag.
303