Airbag system
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occu
pants.
Fig. 161 location of driver airbag: in steering wheel
Fig. 162 location of front passenger's airbag: in the in
strument panel
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced Air
bag System" in compliance with Un ited States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208, as well as Canada Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at
the time your vehicle was manufactured.
The airbag for the driver is in the steer ing whee l
hub
~ fig. 161 and the airbag for the front pas
senger is in the instrument panel
~fig. 162. The
general location of the airbags is marked "AIR
BAG" .
There is a lot you need to know about the airbags
in your vehicle. We urge you to read th e 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
198
for your safety and the safety of your passengers,
especially infants and small children.
A WARNING -
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
supplemental protection.
- Airbag work most effectively when used with proper ly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, always wear your safety be lts and
make sure that everybody in your veh icle 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.
- Never hold the steering wheel at the 12
o'clock position or with your hands any
where inside the steering wheel or on the
steering wheel hub. Holding the steering
wheel the wrong way increases the risk of
severe injury to the arms, hands, and head if
the dr iver airbag deploys .
.&_ 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 and/or by
being pushed into you as the airbag inflates.
-Always make sure nothing is in the front air-
bag deployment zone that cou ld be struck
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 personal injury.
- Never hold things in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use.
- Never p lace accessories or other objects
(such as cup holders, telephone brackets,
note pads, navigation systems, or things
that are large, heavy, or 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
.,..
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
..,
Airbag syste m
the system inspected immediately by your
authorized Aud i dealer. It is possible that
the a irbag 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
child restra int, or in a rearward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-facing child re
st raint that has not been p roperly installed
w ill be seriously injured and can be killed.
- If you must install a rearward-fac ing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
exceptional c ircumstances and the
PA SSEN
GER AIR BAG
OFF ,;; light does not appear
and stay on, have the airbag system inspect
ed by your Audi dealer.
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing chi ld restraint on
the front passenger seat, always move the
seat into its rearmost pos ition in the seat's
fore and aft adjustment range, as far away
from the airbag as possible. The backrest
must be adjusted to an upright posit ion .
Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF ,;; light comes on and stays on a ll the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ~; ligh t does
not go o ut when an adult is s itting on the
front passenger seat after taking the steps described above, have the airbag system in
spected by your Audi dealer before transport
ing 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 passenger
side w ill be turned off, and the
PA SSENGER
AIR BAG
OFF ~; light will stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at many
d ifferent p laces on your Aud i. Insta lling, remov-
208
ing, servicing or repair ing a part in an area of the
vehicle can damage a part of an airbag system
and prevent that system from work ing properly
i n a coll is ion.
There are some important things you have to know to make sure that the effectiveness of the
system will not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environment .
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce
du res can increase the risk of personal in jury
and death by p reventing an airbag from de
p loying when needed or deploy ing an a irbag
unexpectedly:
-
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer
ing wheel ho rn pad or airbag cover or the in
s trumen t panel or modify them in any way.
- Never attach any objects s uch as c up ho lde rs
or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov
ering the a irbag un its.
- For cleaning the horn p ad or instr ument
panel, use only a soft, dry doth or one mois
tened w ith plain water . Solvents or cleaners
could damage the airbag cover or change
the stiffness o r strength of the material so
that the airbag cannot deploy and protect properly.
- Never repair, ad just, or change any parts o f
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 te lephones and CB radios, etc.)
m ust be performed by a qualified techn ician
who has the training and spec ial equipment
necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we
strong ly recommend tha t you see you r au
thori zed A udi dealer or qualified wo rkshop.
- Never modify the front bumper or pa rts of
the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate w ithout interfe rence:
Airbag syste m
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always
p roperly wear safety belts and ride in a proper
seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
know and act accord ingly to help t he safety be lts
and a irbags do the ir job to provide supplemental
protection.
A WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious or
fatal injury . Improperly wearing safety belts
and improper seating positions increase the
r isk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used .
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental s ide airbag inflates:
- Always sit in an up right posit ion and never
lean ag ainst the area where the s upple
mental side airbag is located.
-
- Never let a chi ld or anyone else rest the ir
head agains t the side t rim p anel in the
area whe re the supp lemental s ide a irbag
inflates.
- Always make sure that safety belts are
worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone sitting in the fron t seat
put their hand or any other parts o f the ir
body out of the window .
- Always make sure tha t the side airbag can
inflate without inter ference.
- Never install seat covers or rep lacement
upho lstery 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 de
ploy .
- Damage to the origina l seat covers or to
the seam in the area of the side airbag
mod ule m ust always be repaired immed i
ately by an authorized Audi dealer.
- Objects between you and the airbag can in
cr ease t he risk of inju ry in an accident by in
te rfe ring w ith the way the airb ag unfo lds or
214 by being pushed
into you as the airbag in
flates .
- Never place or attach accessor ies or other
ob jects (s uch as cup ho lde rs, telephone
bracke ts, or even l arge, b ulk y objec ts) on
the doors, over or near the area mar ke d
"A IRBAG" on the seat backrests .
- Such objec ts and accessories can become
dange ro us projecti les 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 trave l in this position .
- Always prevent the side airbags from being
damaged by heavy objects knocking against
or hitting the sides of the seatbacks.
- The a irbag system can only be triggered
once . If the airbag has been triggered, the
system must be replaced by an authorized
Aud i dealership.
- Damage (cracks, deep scratches etc.) to the
or iginal seat covers or to the seam in the
area of the side airbag module must always
be repaired immediately by an authorized
Aud i dea le r.
- If ch ildren are seated imprope rly, thei r risk
of injury increases in the case of an accident
~ page 216, Child safety .
-Never attempt to mod ify any components of
the airbag system in any way.
- In a side collision, side airbags will not func
tion properly if sensors cannot correctly measure increasing air press ure inside the
doors when a ir e scapes th rough large r, un
closed openings in the door p anel.
- Never dr ive with interior door t rim panels
removed.
- Never dr ive when parts have been re
moved from the inside door panel and the
openings they leave have not been proper
ly closed .
- Never dr ive when loudspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been properly closed .
Cl 00 .-< N r-N .-< 0 r-Vl 00
availab le . It only provides a warning if one o r
more tire pressures is be low the minimum per
mitted specif ied pressure .
If the
[I] indica to r lig ht turns on and the mes
sage
Tire pressure: wheel change detected .
Please check all tires and store pressures in
MMI also appears, the system has detected that
the posit ion of the sensors has changed because
of a tire rotation, or that new sensors were in
stalled . Store the new tire pressures.
A WARNING -
Read and follow the important informa tion
and notes<=;>
page 263.
Malfunctions
App lies to: ve hicles with tire press ure m onitoring system
If t he tire pressure monitoring system is not
available, the
m;i ind icat or light appears in the
in str ument cluster display along with th e mes
sage
Tire pressure: malfunction! See owner's
manual.
I f the @m in dica tor light appears after switch
ing the ignition on or while dr iv in g and the
[I] in
d icator light also blinks for approximate ly one
minute and t hen stays on, there is system ma l
function. The following are examples of sit ua
tions that cou ld cause a malfunction:
-If the message appears at the end o f the adap
tation phase, the system may not detect one or
severa l of the wheel senso rs necessa ry for pres
s ur e monitoring. This may result from one or
more wheels being installed without wheel sen
sors or with incompatible wheel sensors .
- A wheel sensor o r another component has
failed.
- Using snow cha ins can affect the f unction of
the system because of the shie lding effect of
the cha ins.
- The tire pressure monitor ing system is not
available due to a malfunction.
- Transmitters with the same frequency, such as
headphones or remote-controlled dev ices, may
cause a temporary system malfunction due to
the strong electromagnetic field .
Wheels
The m;i indicator lig ht and the message turn off
once the tire pressure monitoring system is avail
able again. If you cannot co rrect the malfunction
and
the m indicator light stays on, drive imme
diately to an authorized Audi dea ler or author
ized Audi Se rvice Facility to have the malfunct ion
repaired.
265
Cl co .... N ,....
N ...... 0 ,....
Vl co
Interior fuse assignment
Fig. 207 Vehicle interior: fuse assignmen t
No. Equipment
Fl Power top cont
rol module (Roadster)
F2 Power top control module (Roadster)
F4 Central computer processor (MIB
-2)
FS Gateway
F6 Selector lever (automatic transmission)
Climate control system controls, rear w in-
F7 dow defogger relay coil, tire pressure
mon itoring
Switch for the electromechanical parking
F8 brake, light switch, rain/light sensor, inte-
rior lighting, anti -theft alarm system, di -
agnostic connector
F9 Steering column switch module
FlO Display
Fll All whee
l drive clutch
F12 Infotainment components
F13 Control module for suspension control
F14 Climate control system blowe r
FlS Electronic steering column
lock
F16 I
nfotainment system components, safety
be lt microphone (Roadster)
No.
Fl7
F1 8
Fl9
F20
F 22
F24
F 25
F 26
F 27
F28
F2 9
F 31
F3 2
F33
F 34
F 35
F36
F37
F3 8
F39
F40
F41
F 42
F43
F44
F45
F46
F49
F S3
Fuses and bulbs
Equipment
Instrument cluster
Rearview camera
Convenience access control module
Power lumbar support adjustment
Front passenger's side neck heating (Road-
ster)
R ight vehicle electrica l system control
module
Driver's s ide door (for example power w in-
dows)
Seat heating
Vehicle electrical system control module
AMI High media port
Vehicle e lectr ical system control module
Left vehicle electrical system contro l mod-
ule
Driver assistance systems
Airbag
Socket relay, inte rior sound , back-up light
switch, temperature sensor, oil leve l sen -
sor
Diagnosis, headlight range control system,
a ir quality sensor, automatic dimming
rearview mirror
R ight cornering light/ right LED-headlight
L eft cornering light/ left LED-headlight
Engine control module, ESC control mod-
ule
Front passenger's side door (for example
power windows)
C igarette lighter, sockets
SCR relay and delivery unit
Central locking area
On-board computer
A ll wheel d rive clutch control module
Power adjustable driver's side seat
Driver's side neck heating (Roadster)
Starter, clutch sensor
Rear window defogger
281
Consum er Info rmation
@ For the sake of the environment
- Changing the engine settings wi ll adverse ly
affect emission leve ls. Th is is detrimental to
the env ironment and increases fuel con
sumption.
- Always observe environmenta l regu lations
when disposing of o ld engine o il, used brake
flu id, d irty engine coolant, spent batteries
or worn out tires.
- Undeployed airbag modules and pretension
ers might be classif ied as Perchlorate Mate
rial -spec ia l handl ing may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perch lo
r ate. When t he vehicle or pa rts of t he re
stra in t sys tem including a irbag modu les
s a fe ty be lts wi th prete nsione rs ar e s crap
ped, a ll applicab le laws and reg ulations
must be observed. Your a uthorized Audi
dealer is familiar with these requirements
and we recommend that you have your deal
er perform this service for you.
Accessories and technical changes
Additional accessories and parts
replacement
Always consult on authorized Audi dealer before
purchasing accessories.
Audi ve hicles that are constructed with advanced
materials like Steel/Alum inum (Hybrid construc
tion), Aluminum (Aud i Space Frame), and/or A lu
minum/Carbon F iber (Ultra Advanced L ight
We ight Materials) are as un ique as the ir drivers .
Therefo re, the ava ilability of certain parts needed
for repair, restorat ion, or reco nstr uction w ill be
rest ric ted, or p arts w ill be unav ailable, if the ve
h icl e is not repa ired a t an a uth o rized Aud i colli
sion repair facili ty . This includes but is not limit
ed to structura l parts w hic h require specia lized
training and equipment to restore their crash
worthiness back to the orig inal NHTSA and IIHS
performance.
Your vehicle incorporates the latest safety design
features ensuring a hig h standard of active and
passive safety.
292
This sa fety could be compromised by non -ap
proved changes to the vehicle . For t his reason, if
parts have to be rep laced, p lease observe the fol
l owing points when install ing additional accesso
ries:
Approved Audi accesso ries and gen uine A udi
parts are avai lab le from a uthorized Aud i dea le rs .
These dea le rs al so have t he necessa ry fa cilit ies,
tools and trained specialists to install the parts
and accessories properly .
A WARNING
Using the wrong spare parts or using non -ap
p roved accessories can cause damage to the
vehicle and serious personal i njury.
- Use on ly accessories expressly approved by
Aud i and genuine Audi spare parts
- These parts and accessor ies have been spe
cially des igned to be used on your vehicle.
- Do not use license p late brac kets in the
front area that are d if f erent from the one
installed at the factory, or add additional li
cense plate brackets.
- Never install accessor ies such as telephone
cradles or beverage holders on airbag covers
or w ith in the airbag dep loyment zones. Do
ing so will increase the risk of injury if a ir
bags are triggered in an accident!
- Before you check anyth ing in the eng ine
compa rtme nt, always read a nd heed all
WARN INGS
~page 233.
@ Note
- If items other than genu ine A udi spare
parts, add-on equipment and accessory
i t ems are used o r if repa ir wor k is not per
formed according to specified methods, th is
c an resul t in seve re damage to you r vehi
cl e's eng ine a nd body ( such as cor rosion)
and adve rsely aff ec t your ve hicle's war ran ty.
- I f emergen cy rep air s m ust be pe rformed
elsew here, have the vehicle exam ined by an
au thorized A ud i dealer as soon as possib le .
- Th e manuf acture r ca nnot be held liable fo r
d amage wh ich occu rs du e to fail ure to com
ply with these stipulations.
Cl 00 ... N r-N ... 0 r-Vl 00
Technical Modifications
Our guidelines must be complied with when tech
nical modifications are made .
Always consult an authorized Audi dealer before
starting work on any mod ificat ions.
This will help ensure that vehicle function, per
formance and safety are not impaired
c> ,&.
Attempting to work on e lectronic components
and the software used with them can cause mal
functions. Because of the way electronic compo nents are interconnected with each other, such
malfunct ions can also have an adverse effect on
other systems that are not directly involved. This
means that you risk both a substantial reduct ion
in the operational safety of your veh icle and an
in creased wea r of ve hicle pa rts
c> ,& .
Author ized Audi dealers w ill perform this work in
a profess ional and competent manner or, in spe
cial cases, refer you to a professional company
that spec ializes in such modifications.
.&_ WARNING
Improper repairs and modifications can
change the way vehicle systems work and
cause damage to the vehicle and serious per
sonal injury.
{Q) Note
If emergency repa irs must be performed else
where, have the vehicle examined by an au
t horized A udi dealer as soon as possible.
Declaration of
compliance for telecom munications equipment
and electronic systems
The manufacturer is not liable for radio malfunc
tions that are caused by unauthorized changes to
the equipment.
Equipment
The following equipment comp lies w it h FCC sec
tion 15 and RSS-Gen:
Consumer Information
-Audi side assist*
- Remote control key
- Garage door opener (Homel ink)*
- Cell phone package*
- Tire pressure monitoring system*
FCC Part 15.19
This device complies with part 15 of the FCC
Rules . Operation is subject to the fo llowing two
condit ions: (1) This device may not cause harmful
interference, and (2) this device must accept any
interference received, includ ing interference that
may cause undesired operation.
FCC Part 15 .21
Changes or mod ificat ions not express ly approved
by the party responsible for compliance could
vo id the user's authority to operate the equ ip
ment .
RSS-Gen
This device complies with Industry Canada's li
cense-exempt RSSs. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions :
(1) This device may not cause interference; and
(2) This dev ice must accept any interference, in
cluding interfe rence that may cause undes ired
operation of the device.
CNR-Gen
Le present appare il est conforme aux CNR d'In
dustrie Canada applicables aux appare ils radio
exemp ts de licence . L'exploitation est autorisee
aux deux conditions s uivantes:
1) l'appareil ne doit pas produ ire de brouillage;
2) l'appareil do it accepter tout brouillage
radioe
lectrique subi, meme si le brouillage est suscept i
ble d'en compromettre le fonctionnement.
293