
Cl 00 .-< N r--N .-< 0 r--Vl 00
adjustment range, as far away from the air
bag as possib le, before insta lling the for
ward-facing child restra int.
- Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is beh ind the child restraint and
not next to or in front of the chi ld restraint
so that the safety belt will be properly pos i
t ioned.
- Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that w ill cause the
capacit ive passenger detection system in
the seat to signa l to the Airbag System that
the seat is occupied by a person w hen it is
not, or to sign al that it is occ upied by some
one who is heavier than t he pe rson actua lly
sitting on the seat . The presence of addi
tiona l objects could ca use the passenge r
front airbag to be turned on when it shou ld
be off, or could cause the airbag to work in a
way that is different from the way it would
have worked wi tho ut the object on t he seat .
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF ~; light comes on and stays on all the
t ime w henever the ignition is sw itc hed on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in you r vehicle has a lot
of very impo rtant parts of the Advanced Airbag
Sys tem in it. These pa rts in cl ude the capaci tive
passenger detection system, w iring, brac kets,
and more. The control unit monitors the system
on the front passenger seat when the ignition is
switched on and turns the airbag indicator light
on when a malfunct ion in the one of the system
components is detected
¢ page 206. Because
the front passenger seat contains important
pa rts of the Advanced Airbag System, you must
take ca re to prevent it from be ing damaged .
D amage to the seat may p reve nt the Advanced
A irbag System fo r the fron t passenger seat from
doi ng its job in a crash.
The front Advanced Airbag System consists
of the following :
-Cr ash sensors in the front of the vehicle t hat
measure vehicle accelerat ion/dece lerat ion to
Airbag syste m
prov ide information to the Advanced A irbag
System about the severity of the cras h.
- An electronic contro l uni t, with integrated
cras h sensors for front and side impacts . The
control unit "decides" whether to fire the front
airbags based on the information rece ived from
the crash sensors . The control unit also "de
cides" whether the safety belt pretensioners
should be activated.
- An Advanced A irbag w it h gas generator for the
driver inside the steering wheel hub .
- An Advanced A irbag w ith gas generator inside
the instrument panel for the front passenger.
- A capacit ive passenger detection system under
neat h the front passenger seat cover. This sys
tem meas ures the e lectr ica l capacitance of the
person in the seat. The informat ion registered
is sent cont inuously to the elect ronic contro l
un it to reg ulate dep loymen t of the front Ad
vance d Airbag on the p assenger side.
- An airbag monitor ing system and ind icator
ligh t
El in the inst rument cl uste r.
- A sensor in each front seat registe rs the d is
t ance betwee n the respective seat and the
s teer ing whee l o r i nst rument p anel. The infor
mation registered is sent con tinuous ly to the
elect ronic contro l unit to regu late dep loyment
of the front Advanced Airbags .
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ~; lig ht comes
on and stays on in the
headliner¢ page 206,
fig. 164 and tells you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been turned
off.
- A sensor in the safety be lt latch for the driver
and for the front seat passenger that senses
whether that safety be lt is latched or not and
transmits this information to the e lectronic
control un it .
A WARNING
-
Damage to the front passenge r seat can pre
vent the front airbag from wo rk ing prope rly.
- Imp roper repair or d isassembly of the front
passenger and driver seat will p reve nt the
Advanced A irbag Sys tem from f unct io ni ng
p roperly .
201

Airbag syste m
Front airbag s will not d eploy:
- i f the ig nition is switched off whe n a cr ash oc-
cu rs,
- i n s ide collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollovers,
- when the crash decelerat ion measured by the
airbag system is less than the minimum thresh
old needed for airbag deployment as registered
by the electronic contro l unit .
The front p assenger airb ag will also not
deploy:
- when the front passenger seat is not occup ied,
- whe n the electrical capac itance measured by
the capacitive passenger detect ion system for
the front passenger seat indicates that the pas
senger side frontal airbag must be switched off
by the electronic contro l unit (the
PASSENGER
A IR BAG
OFF ~; ligh t~ page 206 and how
they work comes on and stays on) .
.&_ WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase the
risk of serious injury in crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the airbags inflate, the driver and passengers must al
ways sit in an upright position, must not
lean against or p lace any part of their body
too close to the area where the airbags are located.
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of position
or too close to the a irbag can be seriously
injured by an airbag as it unfolds with great
force in the b link of an
eye <=;> page 195.
.&_ WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing chi ld seat insta l
led on the front passenger seat will be ser i
ously inju red and can be killed if the front air
bag inflates
-even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- T he inflating a irbag w ill hit the child seat or
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the chi ld seat and child against the
backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
204
-
- Never install a rearward facing chi ld safety
seat on the front passenger seat unless the
PAS SEN GER AIR B AG OFF ~; light comes
on and stays on . If the
PA SSENGER AIR
BAG
OFF ~; light does not come on and stay
on, the inflat ing airbag will hit the chi ld
safety seat or infant carrie r wi th great force
and will smash the child safety seat and
child against the bac krest, door or roof .
Have the airbag system inspected immedi
ately by your authorized Audi dealer .
.&_ WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in
crease the r isk of injury in a crash by interfer
ing with the way the airbag unfolds or by be
ing pushed into you as the airbag inflates.
- Never hold things in your hands or on your lap when the veh icle 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 braking or other sudden maneuver and
become dangerous projectiles that can
cause serious persona l injury if the airbags
inflate.
- Never place or attach accesso ries o r othe r
objects (such as cup holders, telephone brackets, large, heavy or bulky ob jects) on
the doo rs, ove r or near the area ma rked
"AIRBAG" on the steering wheel, instru
ment panel, seat backrests or between
those areas and yourself. These objects
could cause injury in a crash, especially
when the a irbags inflate.
- Never recl ine the front passenger's seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the area of the side a irbag or the front air
bag during brak ing or in a sudden maneu
ver. Objects near the airbags can become projecti les and cause injury, part icularly
when the seat is reclined.
- Never p lace or t ransport objects on the
-
front passenger seat. Objects on the front
passenger seat could ca use the capaci tive
sensor in the seat to signal to airbag system
that the seat is occ upied by a person when it
..,

Cl 00 .-< N r-N .-< 0 r-Vl 00
in fact is not, or that the person on the seat
is heavier than he or she actually is. The
c h ange in electric capac itance b ecause o f
such obj ects can caus e the passenger front
airbag to be turned on when it should be
off, or can cause the a irbag to wo rk in a way
that is diffe rent from the way it would have
wor ked witho ut objec ts on the se at.
- Always make sure that the re is nothing on
the fron t passenger sea t that w ill cause the
c apa citi ve passenger dete ction system in
the seat to sign al to the Airbag Sys tem tha t
the seat is occupied by a person when it is not, or to signa l that it is occ upied by some
one who is heavier than the person actually
sitting on the seat. The presence of an ob
ject could cause the passenger front a irbag
to be t urned on when it sho uld be off, or
cou ld cause the ai rbag to wo rk in a way that
is d ifferent from the way it wou ld have
wor ked witho ut the ob je ct on the seat.
A WARNING
The fine dust cre ate d when air bag s d eploy can
c ause bre athing problems for peop le w ith a
history of asthma or other breathing condi
tions .
- T o reduce the risk of brea thing pro blems,
those w ith asthma or other respiratory con
ditions should get fresh air right away by
gett ing out of the veh icle or opening w in
dows o r doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags de
ploy, wash your hands and face with mild
soap and water before eat ing.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your eyes,
o r into any cuts or sc ratches.
- If the resi due should get into your eyes,
flush them with water .
Airbag syste m
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
Airbag monitoring indicator light
T wo separate indi cators monitor the func tion of
t he Advan ced Airbag Sys tem: the
E,I ligh t and
t he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF '1,; ; ON @ light.
The Adva nced A irbag System as well as the s ide
airbags with e je ct ion m itigat ion fe atures (i nclud
i ng the e lectron ic cont ro l un it, senso rs and sys
tem wiring) are all monito red contin uous ly to
make su re that they are functioning proper ly
whenever the ignition is on. Eve ry t ime yo u tur n
o n the ignition, the a irbag system indicator light
m w ill come o n for a few seconds (function
check) .
The sy stem mu st be in spected when the
indicator light
E,I:
- does not come on when the ignition is sw itched
on,
- does not go out a few seconds afte r you have
sw itched on the ignition, or
- comes on while driv ing.
If an airbag system mal func tion is detected, t he
indicator light will come on to se rve as a constant
r eminder to have the system inspected immedi
ately.
If a ma lfunction occurs tha t turns the front air
bag on the passenge r side off , the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
'1,; ; light will come on and stay on
whenever the ignition is on.
A WARNING "---
An a irbag system that is not functioning prop
e rly cannot prov ide supplemental protect ion
i n a fronta l crash.
- If the ai rbag ind icator light
<=> page 14
comes when the veh icle is being used, have
the system inspected immedia tely by your
author ized Audi dealer . It is possib le that
the air bag will inflate when i t is not sup
posed to, or w ill not in flate w hen it should.
205

Cl 00 .-< N r-N .-< 0 r-Vl 00
-Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
Aud i.
- Never use add itiona l seat cushions that
cover the areas where the s ide airbags in
flate.
- Damage to the origina l seat covers or to
the seam in the area of the side airbag module must always be repaired immedi
ately by an authorized Audi dealer.
- The airbag system can deploy only once . Af
ter an airbag has been deployed, it must be
rep laced with new rep lacement parts de
signed and approved especially fo r you r
Audi mode l version. Replacement of com
plete airbag systems or airbag components
must be performed by qualified workshops
only . Make sure that any airbag service ac
tion is entered in your Audi Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet under AIRBAG RE
PLACEMENT RECORD.
- For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starter are separated from
the vehicle battery with a pyrotechn ic circuit
interrupter.
-Work on the pyrotechnic circu it 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 app licab le safety precautions
must be followed.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undep loyed airbag modu les and pretension
ers might be classified as Perch lorate Materi
al
-special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo
rate . When the veh icle or parts of the re
straint system including airbag modules and
safety belts with p retensioners are scrapped,
all appli cable laws and regulations must be
observed. Your authorized Audi dealer is fa
m il iar with these requi rements and we re com
mend that you have you r dealer per form this
service for you.
Airbag syste m
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
vehicle, changing the stiffness of the suspension, including the springs, suspension struts, shock
absorbers etc . can change the forces that are
measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the
electronic cont rol u nit. Some suspension c hanges
can, for example, increase the fo rce leve ls meas
u red by the sensors and make t he a irbag system
deploy in crashes in which it wou ld 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 a irbag from deploy
ing when it should.
A WARNING
-
Changing the vehicle's suspension including use of unapproved tire-rim combinations can
change Advanced Airbag perfo rmance and in
crease the risk of serious personal injury in a
crash.
- Never install suspension components that
do not have the same performance charac
ter istics as the components o riginally instal
led on your vehicle .
-Never use tire-rim combin ations that have
not been approved by Audi .
209

Cl co .... N ,....
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Vl co
How knee airbags work
The risk of injury to the leg area can be reduced
by fully inflated knee airbags.
Fig. 166 Inflated airbags protecting in a frontal collision
The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the airbags for the driver and front passen
ger deploy in certain but not all frontal collisions.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags also
deploy in frontal collisions when the deployment
threshold stored in the control unit is met.
When the system deploys, the airbags fill with a propellant gas, and inflate between the lower
part of the instrument panel and the driver and
the lower part of the instrument panel and the front
passenger ~ page 203, fig. 163.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the lower ex
tremities.
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 it is important for
occupant safety that nothing should be in their
way when they deploy .
Fully inflated airbags in combination with proper
ly worn safety belts slow down and limit the oc
cupant 's forward movement and help to reduce
the risk of injury.
Airbag system
Important safety instructions on the knee
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . Always
wear safety belts correctly and ride in a proper
seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passenger must
know and do to help the safety belts and airbags
to provide supplemental protection.
_& WARNING
-
An inflating knee airbag can cause serious in-
jury. Wearing safety belts incorrectly and im proper seating positions increase the risk of
serious personal injury and death whenever a
vehicle is being used.
-The knee airbag system cannot protect you properly if you are seated too close to any of
the airbag locations. When adjusting their
seat positions, it is important that both the
driver and the front passenger keep their
upper bodies and knees at the following minimum safe distances:
-at least 10 in (25 cm) between the chest
and the steering wheel/instrument panel.
-at least 4 in (10 cm) between the knees and the lower part of the instrument pan
el.
-The risk of personal injury increases if you
lean forward or to the side, or if the seat is
improperly positioned and you are not wear
ing your safety belt. The risk increases even
more should the airbag deploy .
- Always make sure that the knee airbag can
inflate without interference. Objects be
tween you and the airbag can increase the risk of injury in an accident by interfering
with the way the airbag deploys or by being pushed into you as the airbag deploys.
-Never let anybody, especially children or
animals ride in the footwell in front of the
passenger seat. If the airbag deploys, this
can result in serious or fatal injuries .
-Never carry objects of any kind in the foot
well area in front of the driver's or pas
senger's seat. Bulky objects (shopping bags, for example) can interfere with or
~
211

Cl co .... N ,....
N .... 0 ,....
Vl co
with deployed side airbags. Remember too, side
airbags wi ll deploy on ly once and on ly in certain
kinds of acc idents -your safety be lts are always
there to offer protection.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack of
ve hicle damage are not necessarily an indication
of over-sensitive or failed airbag act ivation. In
some collisions, both front and side a irbags may
inflate. Remember too, that airbags will deploy
only once and only in ce rtain kinds of coll is ions
-
your safety belts are always there to offer protec
tion in those acc idents in which airbags are not
supposed to deploy or when they have already
deployed.
The side airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ign ition is switched off
-in side collisions when the acceleration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low
-in front-end collisions
-in rear-end collisions
-in rollovers.
I n some types of accidents the front airbags and
side airbags may be triggered together.
_& WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system will only
provide protection when occupants are in
the proper seating position¢
page 214.
-If the airbag indicator light q page 14
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immed iate ly by your
authorized Audi dealer. It is possible that
the a irbag will inflate when it is not sup
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.
Airbag system
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu
pants who are properly restrained.
Fig. 168 Inflated side airbag on left side of vehicle
When the system is triggered, the airbag is filled
with propellant gas and breaks through a seam in
the seat surface area marked "AIRBAG". It ex
pands between the side trim panel and the pas
senger . In order to help provide this addit ional
protect ion, the side airbag must inflate w ith in a
fraction of a second at very high speed and with
great force. The supplemental sid e a irbag could
injure you if you r seating position is not proper or
u pr ight or if items are located in the area where
the supp lemental side airbag expands . This ap
plies especially to children
¢ page 216, Child
safety.
Supplementa l side airbags inflate be
tween the occupant and the door panel on the
s ide of the vehicle that is struck in certain side
collision ¢
fig. 168.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper part
of the body .
A fine dust may develop when the airbag deploys.
This is normal and does not mean there is a fire
in the veh icle.
213

Child safety
Child safety
Important information
Introduction
The physical princip les of what happens when
your veh icle is in a cras h apply also to childr en
¢ page 188, 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 are at
greater risk of serious injury in crashes than
adu lts.
Because children's bodies are not fu lly devel
oped, they require restraint systems especially
designed for their size, weight, and body struc
ture. Many countries and all states of the United
States and provinces of Canada have laws requir
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 lbs (6 kg)
infant will be more than 20 times the we ight of
the child . This means the weight of the child
wou ld suddenly be more than 260 lbs ( 120 k g).
Under th ese conditions, only an appropriate child
rest raint properly used can reduce the r isk of se
rio us injury. Child restraints, like adult safety
be lts, must be used properly to be effective.
Used improperly, they can increase the risk of se
rious inj ury in an accident.
If you must install a child restraint on the front
passenger seat in exceptional circumstances, be
sure to read and heed the important information
and warn ings
¢ page 195. Infants and other ch il
dren who are properly restrained in an appropri
ate child restraint that is for their size and age
can benefit from the protection that supplemen
tal side airbags provide in some kinds of crashes .
For more information please see information
provided by the:
- Nationa l Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), current ly at: http:/ /www .safe
rcar.gov (for the USA)
- Transport Canada Information Centre, current
ly at: http://www.tc .gc.ca (for Canada)
216
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's in
structions in order to be sure the seat is right for
your ch ild's s ize
¢ page 219, 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 child safety,
Advanced Airbags, and the installation of child
restraints in this chapter.
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad
vanced Airbags in your veh icle and how they work
when infants and children in ch ild restraints are
on the front passenger seat . Because of the large
amount of impo rtant informat ion, we ca nnot re
peat it all he re. We urge you to read the detailed
inf ormation in this owner's manual about airbags
and the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
and the very important information about trans
porting children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS
-they are
extremely important for your safety and the safe
ty of your passengers, especially infants and
small children .
.&_ WARNING
All vehicle occupants and especially child re n
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly re
stra ined child could be injured by striking the
interior or by being ejected from the vehicle
during a sudden maneuver or impact . An un
restrained or improperly restrained child is al
so at greater r isk of injury or death through
contact w ith an inflating airbag.
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 ch ild in
a rearward-fac ing child safety seat installed
on the front passenger seat will be seriously
in ju red and can be killed if the front airbag in
flates.
- The inflat ing airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infa nt carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, or
door.

Cl 00 ... N r-N ... 0 r-Vl 00
For this reason, the United States National High
way Traffic Safety Administration has published a list of specific type, makes and models of child
restraints that must be used to cert ify compli
ance of the Advanced Airbag System in your vehi
cle with the suppression requ irements of Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 . These child
restraints are:
Subp art A - C ar bed child re str aint s
Model Manufactured on or
after
Angel Guard Angel September 25, 2007 Ride AA2403FOF
Subp art B -Re ar-f acing child restr aint s
Model Manufactured on or
aft er
Century Sma rtFit 4543 December 1, 1999
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-013PAW and base
22-999WHO
Evenflo Discovery Ad -December 1, 1999
just Right 2 12
Evenflo F irst Cho ice December 1, 1999
204
Grace Infant 8457 December 1, 1999
G race Snug ride September 25, 2007
Peg Perego Primo Viag- September 25, 2007
gio SIP IMUNOOUS
Subp art C - Forward-facing and con vertibl e
child res traints
Model Manufactured on or
after
B ritax Roundabout September 25, 2007
E 9 L02xx
Cosco Tour iva 02519 December 1, 1999
Cosco S umm it Deluxe September 25, 2007
High Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back Boos- September 25, 2007
te r 22-209
Evenflo Tribute V September 25, 2007
379xxxx
Ch ild saf ety
Model Manufactured on or
after
Evenflo Meda llion 254 December 1, 1999
E venflo Generat io ns September 25 , 200 7
352xxxx
Graco ComfortSport September 25, 2007
Graco Todd le r Safety September 25, 2007
Seat Step 2
Graco Plat inum Cargo September 25, 2007
_&. WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, ma ke sure
t hat the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF '-1; light
comes on and stays on whenever a child re
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ign it ion is switched on.
- Never install a reward facing child safety
seat on the front passenger seat if the
PAS
S ENGER AIR BAG
OFF '-1; light does not
turn on and stay on.
- Have the ai rbag system inspected by your
author ized Audi dealer immed iate ly.
(D Tips
The child seats listed in categor ies A to C have
been statically tested by Audi only for the Ad
vanced Airbag f unction.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially re
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsib le for the safety
of everybody in the vehicle, especia lly children:
.. Always use the right child safety seat for each
child and always use it properly ¢
page 221.
.. Always carefully follow the chi ld safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the ch ild safe
ty seat.
.. When us ing the veh icle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertib le loc king ret racto r on the safety belt
to p revent the ch ild safety seat from moving
q page 225 . ..,
219