2019 AUDI A4 child restraint

Airbagsystem


passengerdetectionsystemfromaccurately
measuringthecapacitanceofthechildsafe-
tyseatand/orthepersonontheseatand
thuskeeptheAdvancedAirbagSystemfrom
cushioncanhavethesameeffect.Ifthe
frontpassengerfrontalairbagisturnedon,
thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;lightwill
turnoff.

workingproperly.
—Neverplaceoruseanyelectricaldevice
(suchasalaptop,CDplayer,electronic
gamesdevice,powerinverterorseatheater
forchildseats)onthefrontpassengerseat
ifthedeviceisconnectedtothe12-volt
socketorthecigarettelightersocket.Such
devicescaninfluencethecapacitanceregis-
teredby thecapacitivepassengerdetection
system,so thatincorrectinformationispro-
videdtotheairbagcontrolunit.
—Ifyoumustusea childrestraintonthefront
passengerseatandthechildrestraintman-
ufacturer'sinstructionsrequirethe useofa
towel,foamcushionorsomethingelseto
properlypositionthechildrestraint,make
certainthatthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF
¥;lightcomesonandstaysonwhenever
thechildrestraintisinstalledonthefront
Passengerseat.
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF7%;light
doesnotcomeonandstayon,immediately
installchildrestraintinarearseatingposi-
tionandhavetheairbagsysteminspected
byyourAudidealer.
HowtheAdvancedAirbagSystem
componentsworktogether
ThefrontAdvancedAirbagSystemandtheside
airbagssupplementtheprotectionofferedbythe
frontthree-pointsafetybeltsandtheadjustable
headrestraintstohelpreducetheriskofinjuryin
awiderangeofaccidentandcrashsituations.Be
suretoreadtheimportantinformationabout
safetyandheedtheWARNINGSinthischapter.
DeploymentoftheAdvancedAirbagSystemand
theactivationofthesafetybeltpretensionersde-
pendonthedecelerationmeasuredbythecrash
sensorsandregisteredbytheelectroniccontrol
unit.Crashseveritydependsonspeedanddecel-
erationaswellasthemassandstiffnessofthe
vehicleorobjectinvolvedinthecrash.
Onthepassengerside,regardlessof safetybelt
use,thefrontpassengerfrontalairbagwillbe
turnedoffiftheelectricalcapacitancemeasured
bythecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystemon
thefrontpassengerseatislessthantheamount
programmedintheelectroniccontrolunit.The
frontpassengerfrontalairbagwillalsobeturned

AWARNINGoffifthecapacitancemeasuredby thesystemfor
~thefrontpassengerseatequalsthat ofaninfant
Ifthefrontpassengerseatgetswet,dryitim-ofaboutoneyearofagein oneofthechildseats
mediately.thatwasusedtocertifytheAdvancedAirbagSys-
temunderFederalMotorVehicleSafetyStandard
208.ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;light
comesonandstaysontotellyouwhenthefront
AdvancedAirbagSystemonthepassengerside
hasbeenturnedoff>page273.
—Ifliquidsoaksintothefrontpassengerseat,
thiscankeeptheairbagsystemfromwork-
ingproperlyandmay,forinstance,deacti-
vatethepassengerfrontalairbag.Ifthis
happens,thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#¥,
lightwillcomeonandstayontogetherwith
theairbagindicatorlightkaintheinstru-
mentcluster.
—Ifliquidispooledontheseat,but hasnot
soakedin,thismayalsokeeptheairbagsys-
temfromworkingproperlyandcausethe
passengerfrontalairbagtobeenabled
(turnedon),eventhoughthereisaproperly
installedchildrestraintsystemontheseat.
Wettowelsorotherwetthingsontheseat

Z\WARNING
To reducetheriskofinjurywhenanairbagin-
flates,alwayswearsafetybeltsproperly.
—Ifyouareunrestrained,leaningforward,sit-
tingsidewaysoroutofpositioninanyway,
yourriskofinjuryismuchhigher.
—Youwillalsoreceiveseriousinjuriesand
couldevenbekilledifyouareupagainstthe|>


270

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Airbagsystem


airbagortooclosetoitwhenitinflates-
evenwithanAdvancedAirbag>page261.

TMLeeMoMdahaiamcelta
airbags

B4L-1300


Fig.229Inflatedfrontairbags
Safetybeltsareimportanttohelpkeepfrontseat
occupantsintheproperseatedpositionsothat
airbagscanunfoldproperlyandprovidesupple-
mentalprotectioninafrontalcollision.
Thefrontairbagsaredesignedtoprovideaddi-
tionalprotectionforthechestandfaceofthe
driverandthefrontseatpassengerwhen:
—safetybeltsarewornproperly
—theseatshavebeenpositionedsothattheoc-
cupantisproperlyseatedasfaraspossible
fromtheairbag
—andtheheadrestraintshavebeenproperlyad-
justed
Becauseairbagsinflateintheblinkofaneyewith
greatforce,thingsyouhaveonyourlaporhave
placedontheseatcouldbecomedangerouspro-
jectiles,andbepushedintoyouiftheairbagin-
flates.
Whenanairbagdeploys,finedustisreleased.
Thisisnormalandisnotcausedbyafireinthe
vehicle.Thisdustismadeupmostlyofapowder
usedtolubricatetheairbagsastheydeploy.It
couldirritateskin.
Itisimportanttorememberthatwhilethesup-
plementalairbagsystemisdesignedtoreduce
thelikelihoodof seriousinjuries,otherinjuries,
forexampleswelling,bruisingand minorabra-
sions,canalsohappenwhenairbagsinflate.Air-
bags donotprotectthearmsorthelowerparts
ofthebody.Frontairbagssupplementthethree-
pointsafetybeltsonlyinsomefrontalcollisions
inwhichthevehicledecelerationishighenough
todeploytheairbags.
Frontairbagswillnotdeploy:
—iftheignitionisswitchedoffwhenacrashoc-
curs
—insidecollisions
—inrear-endcollisions
—inrollovers
—whenthecrashdecelerationmeasuredbythe
airbagsystemislessthantheminimumthresh-
old neededforairbagdeploymentasregistered
bytheelectroniccontrolunit
Thefrontpassengerairbagalsowillnot
deploy:
—whenthefrontpassengerseatisnotoccupied,
—whentheelectricalcapacitancemeasuredby
thecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystemfor
thefrontpassengerseatindicatesthatthepas-
sengersidefrontalairbagmustbeswitchedoff
bytheelectroniccontrolunit(thePASSENGER
AIRBAGOFF%;light>page273comeson
andstayson).

ZAWARNING
Sittinginthewrongpositioncanincreasethe
riskofseriousinjuryincrashes.
—Toreducetheriskofinjurywhentheairbags
inflate,thedriverandpassengersmustal-
wayssitinanuprightposition,mustnot
leanagainstorplaceanypart oftheirbody
tooclosetotheareawheretheairbagsare
located.
—Occupantswhoareunbelted,outofposition
ortooclosetotheairbagcanbeseriouslyin-
juredby anairbagasitunfoldswithgreat
forceintheblinkofaneye>page262.

Z\WARNING
Achildinarearward-facingchildsafetyseat
installedonthefrontpassengerseatwillbe
seriouslyinjuredandcanbekilledifthefront
airbaginflates-evenwithanAdvancedAirbag
System.

271

Airbagsystem

frontseatpassenger'sfrontalAdvancedAirbag.
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light:
—willcomeonifthefrontpassengerseatisnot
occupied;
—willcomeoniftheelectricalcapacitancemeas-
uredby thecapacitivepassengerdetectionsys-
temforthefrontpassengerseatequalsthe
combinedcapacitanceofaninfantuptoabout
oneyearofageandoneoftherearward-facing
orforward-facingchildrestraintslistedinFed-
eralMotorVehicleSafetyStandard208with
whichtheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehi-
cle wascertified;Foralistingofthechildre-
straintsthatwereusedtocertifyyourvehicle's
compliancewiththeU.S.SafetyStandard
=>page287.
—willgooutifthefrontpassengerseatisoccu-
piedbyanadultasregisteredbythecapacitive
passengerdetectionsystem.
—ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#¥;lightmust
comeonandstayoniftheignitionisonand...
—a-carbedhasbeeninstalledonthefront pas-
sengerseat,or
—arearward-facingchildrestrainthasbeenin-
stalledonthefrontpassengerseat,or
—aforward-facingchildrestrainthasbeeninstal-
ledonthefrontpassengerseat,
—andiftheelectricalcapacitanceregisteredon
thefrontpassengerseatisequaltoorlessthan
thecombinedcapacitanceofatypical1year-
old infantandoneoftherearward-facingor
forward-facingchildrestraintslistedinFederal
MotorVehicleSafetyStandard208withwhich
theAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehiclewas
certified.
Ifthefrontpassengerseatisnotoccupied,the
frontairbagwillnotdeploy,andthePASSENGER
AIRBAGOFF3;lightwillstayon.
Neverinstallarearward-facingchildrestrainton
thefrontpassengerseat,thesafest placefora
child
inanykind ofchildrestraintisatoneofthe
seatingpositionsontherearseat>page262,
Childrestraintsonthefrontseat-someimpor-
tantthingstoknowand>page285,Childsafe-
ty.
274
IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;light
comeson...
IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;lightcomes
onwhenoneoftheconditionslistedaboveis
met, besuretocheckthelightregularlytomake
certainthatthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;
lightstaysoncontinuouslywhenevertheignition
ison.IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light
doesnotappearonanddoesnotstayonallthe
time,stopassoonasitissafe todosoand
—reactivatethesystembyturningtheignitionoff
formorethan4secondsandthenturningiton
again;
—removeandreinstallthechildrestraint.Make
surethatthechildrestraintisproperlyinstalled
andthatthesafetybeltforthefrontpassenger
seathasbeencorrectlyroutedthroughthe
childrestraintasdescribedinthechildrestraint
manufacturer'sinstructions;
—makesurethattheconvertiblelockingretractor
onthesafetybeltforthefrontpassengerseat
hasbeenactivatedandthatthesafetybelthas
beenpulledtight.
—makesurethatnoelectricaldevice(suchasa
laptop,CDplayer,electronicgamesdevice,
powerinverterorseatheaterforchildseats)is
placedorusedonthefrontpassengerseatif
thedeviceisconnectedtothe12-voltsocketor
thecigarettelightersocket;
—makesurethatnoseatheater hasbeenretrofit-
tedorotherwiseaddedtothefrontpassenger
seat;
—makesurethatnothingcaninterferewiththe
safetybeltbucklesandthattheyarenotob-
structed;
—makesurethattherearenowetobjects(such
asawettowel)andnowaterorotherliquidson
thefrontpassengerseatcushion.
IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF&,lightstill
doesnotcomeon...
IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3%;lightstill
doesnotcomeonanddoesnotstayoncontinu-
ously(whentheignitionisswitchedon),
—takethechildrestraintoffthefrontpassenger
seatandinstallitproperlyatoneoftherear>

8W0012721BG
Airbagsystem

seatpositions.Havetheairbagsysteminspect-
ed byyourAudidealerimmediately.
—movethechildtoarearseatpositionandmake
sure thatthechildisproperlyrestrainedina
childrestraintthatisappropriateforitssize
andage.
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;light
shouldNOTcomeon...
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3%;lightshould
NOTcomeonwhentheignitionisonandanadult
issittinginaproperseatingpositiononthefront
passengerseat.IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF
¥;lightcomesonandstaysonwhiledriving,un-
derthesecircumstances,makesurethat:
—theadultonthefrontpassengerseatisproper-
lyseatedonthecenteroftheseatcushionwith
hisorherbackupagainstthebackrestandthe
backrestisnotreclined,
—theadultisnottakingweightofftheseatby
holdingontothepassengerassisthandle
abovethefrontpassengerdoororsupporting
theirweightonthearmrest,
—thesafetybeltisbeingproperlywornandthat
thereisnotalotofslackinthesafetybeltweb-
bing,
—therearenoaftermarketseatcoversorcush-
ionsorotherthings(such as blankets)onthe
frontpassengerseatthatmightcausetheca-
pacitivepassengerdetectionsystemto miscal-
culate
electricalcapacitance.
Macatawa)
monitoringtheAdvancedAirbagSystem
ZAWARNING
—IfthestatusoftheAdvancedAirbagSystem
haschangedwhilethevehicleismoving,the
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;ON®light
blinksforabout5secondstocatchthedriv-
er'sattention.Ifthishappens,alwaysstop
assoonasitissafe todosoandcheckthe
stepsdescribedabove.
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light
doesnotgooffwhenanadultwhoisnot
verysmallissittingonthefrontpassenger

makesuretheadultisproperlyseatedand
restrainedatoneoftherearseatingposi-
tions.Havetheairbagsysteminspectedby
yourauthorizedAudidealerbeforetrans-
portinganyoneonthefrontpassengerseat.


ZAWARNING
Anairbagsystemthatisnotfunctioningprop-
erlycannotprovidesupplementalprotection
inafrontalcrash.
—Iftheairbagindicatorlight>page23
comeswhenthevehicleisbeingused,have
thesysteminspectedimmediatelybyyour
authorizedAudidealer.Itispossiblethat
theairbagwillinflatewhenitisnotsup-
posedto,orwillnotinflatewhenitshould.



seataftertakingthestepsdescribedabove,
ZA\WARNING
Ifthefrontairbaginflates,a childwithouta
childrestraint,orinarearward-facingchild
safetyseat,orinaforward-facingchildre-
straintthathasnotbeenproperlyinstalled
willbeseriouslyinjuredandcanbekilled.
—Eventhoughyourvehicleisequippedwith
anAdvancedAirbagSystem,makecertain
thatallchildren,especially12yearsand
younger,alwaysrideonthebackseatprop-
erlyrestrainedfortheirageandsize.
—Alwaysinstallforwardorrear-facingchild
safetyseatsontherearseat-evenwithan
AdvancedAirbagSystem.
—Ifyoumustinstallarearward-facingchild
safetyseatonthefrontpassengerseatbe-
causeofexceptionalcircumstancesandthe
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;lightdoesnot
appearandstayon,immediatelyinstallthe
rear-facingchildsafetyseatinarearseating
positionandhavetheairbagsysteminspect-
edbyyourauthorizedAudidealer.
—If,inexceptionalcircumstances,youmust
installaforward-facingchildrestrainton
thefrontpassengerseat,alwaysmovethe
seatintoitsrearmostpositionintheseat's
foreandaftadjustmentrange,asfaraway
fromtheairbagaspossible.Thebackrest
mustbeadjustedtoanuprightposition.
MakesurethatthePASSENGERAIRBAG

275

8W0012721BG
Airbagsystem

tailSelecaetLiamiedoMolmat-Mdal-1-)
airbagsystem
Airbagsareonlysupplementalrestraints.Always
wearsafetybeltscorrectlyandrideinaproper
seatingposition.
Thereisalotthatyou andyourpassengersmust
knowanddotohelpthesafetybeltsandairbags
toprovidesupplementalprotection.

Z\WARNING
Aninflatingkneeairbagcancauseseriousin-
jury.Wearingsafetybeltsincorrectlyandim-
properseatingpositionsincreasetheriskof
seriouspersonalinjuryanddeathwhenevera
vehicleisbeingused.
— Thekneeairbagsystemcannotprotectyou
properlyifyouareseatedtooclosetoanyof
theairbaglocations.Whenadjustingtheir
seatpositions,it isimportantthatboththe
driverandthefrontpassengerkeeptheir
upperbodiesandkneesatthefollowing
minimumsafedistances:
—atleast10inches(25cm)betweenthe
chestandthesteeringwheel/instrument
panel.
—atleast4inches(10cm)betweenthe
kneesandthelowerpartoftheinstru-
mentpanel.
—Theriskofpersonalinjuryincreasesifyou
leanforwardortotheside,oriftheseatis
improperlypositionedandyouarenotwear-
ingyoursafetybelt.Theriskincreaseseven
moreshouldtheairbagdeploy.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthekneeairbagcan
inflatewithoutinterference.Objectsbe-
tweenyouandtheairbagcanincreasethe
riskofinjuryinanaccidentbyinterfering
withthewaytheairbagdeploysorbybeing
pushedintoyouastheairbagdeploys.
—Neverletanybody,especiallychildrenor
animalsrideinthefootwellinfrontofthe
passengerseat.Iftheairbagdeploys,this
canresultinseriousorfatalinjuries.
—Nevercarryobjectsofanykindinthefoot-
wellareainfrontofthedriver'sor pas-
senger'sseat.Bulkyobjects(shopping

bags,forexample)caninterferewithor

preventproperdeploymentoftheairbag.
Smallobjectscanbethrownthroughthe
vehicleiftheairbagdeploysandinjureyou
oryourpassengers.
— Makesuretherearenocracks,deepscratch-
esorotherdamageintheareaoftheinstru-
mentpanelwherethekneeairbagsarelo-
cated.
—Ifchildrenareincorrectlyseated,theirrisk
ofinjuryincreasesinacollision>page285,
Childsafety.


Sideairbags
Descriptionof sideairbags
Theairbagsystemcanprovidesupplemental
protectiontoproperlyrestrainedoccupants.
QS
9
==3S

Fig.233Sideairbaglocationinthedriver'sseat
Thesideairbagsarelocatedinthesidesofthe
frontseatbackrests>fig.233andtherearback-
rest*facingthedoors.
Thesideairbagsinstalledforthefrontseating
positionshavebeendesignedandcertifiedto
helpreducetheriskofinjurythatcanbecaused
byairbagswhentheyinflate,particularlywhen
theoccupantsittingnexttoitisnotseatedprop-
erly.Thesideairbagforthefrontpassengerseat
canbeusedwithproperlyinstalledchildre-
straints.Pleasebesuretoreadtheimportantin-
formationandwarningswheneverusingachild
restraintinavehicle:Safetybelts>page253,
Airbagsystem>page261,Childsafety
=>page285.
Thesideairbagsystembasicallyconsistsof:
—theelectroniccontrolmoduleandexternalside
impactsensors
279
>

8W0012721BG
Airbagsystem

Howsupplementalsideairbagswork
Sideairbagsdeployinstantlyandcanhelpre-
ducetheriskofuppertorsoinjuriesforoccu-
pantswhoareproperlyrestrained.
rr8Ss
e
=o3


Fig.234Inflatedsideairbagsonleftsideofvehicle,rear
sideairbagoptionalequipment
Whenthesystemistriggered,theairbagisfilled
withpropellantgasandbreaksthroughaseamin
theseatsurfacearea.Itexpandsbetweenthe
sidetrimpanelandthepassenger.Inorderto
helpprovidethisadditionalprotection,theside
airbagmustinflatewithinafractionofasecond
atveryhighspeedandwithgreatforce.Thesup-
plementalsideairbagcouldinjureyouifyour
seatingpositionisnotproperoruprightorif
itemsarelocatedintheareawherethesupple-
mentalsideairbagexpands.Thisappliesespe-
ciallytochildren>page285,Childsafety.Sup-
plementalsideairbagsinflatebetweentheoccu-
pantandthedoorpanelonthesideofthevehicle
thatisstruckincertainsidecollision>fig.234.
Althoughtheyarenotasoftpillow,theycan
“cushion” the
impactandinthiswaytheycan
helptoreducetheriskofinjurytotheupperpart
of
thebody.
Afinedustmaydevelopwhentheairbagdeploys.
Thisisnormalanddoesnotmeanthereisafire
inthevehicle.
Importantsafetyinstructionsontheside
airbagsystem
Airbagsareonlysupplementalrestraints.Always
properlywearsafetybeltsandrideinaproper
seatingposition.
Thereisalotthatyou andyourpassengersmust
knowandactaccordinglytohelpthesafetybelts
andairbagsdotheirjobtoprovidesupplemental
protection.

Z\WARNING
Aninflatingsideairbagcancauseserious or
fatalinjury.Improperlywearingsafetybelts
andimproperseatingpositions increasethe
riskofseriouspersonalinjuryanddeath
wheneveravehicleisbeingused.
—Inordertoreducetheriskofinjurywhenthe
supplemental
sideairbaginflates:
—Alwayssitinanuprightpositionandnever
leanagainsttheareawherethesupple-
mentalsideairbagislocated.
—Neverletachildoranyoneelseresttheir
headagainstthesidetrimpanelinthe
areawherethesupplementalsideairbag
inflates.
—Alwaysmakesurethatsafetybeltsare
worncorrectly,
— Donotletanyonesittinginthefrontseat
puttheirhandoranyotherpartsoftheir
bodyoutofthewindow.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthesideairbagcan
inflatewithoutinterference.
—Neverinstallseatcoversorreplacement
upholsteryoverthefrontseatbacksthat
havenotbeenspecificallyapprovedbyAu-
di.
—Neveruseadditionalseatcushionsthat
covertheareaswherethesideairbagsde-
ploy.
—Damagetotheoriginalseatcoversor to
theseamintheareaofthesideairbag
modulemustalwaysberepairedimmedi-
atelyby anauthorizedAudidealer.
—Objectsbetweenyouandtheairbagcanin-
creasetheriskofinjuryinanaccidentbyin-

terferingwiththewaytheairbagunfoldsor

281

Airbagsystem

sidecurtainairbagmustinflatewithintheblink
ofaneyeatvery highspeedandwithgreatforce.
The
sidecurtainairbagcouldinjureyouifyour
seatingpositionisnotproperoruprightorif
itemsarelocatedintheareawherethesupple-
mentalsidecurtainairbaginflates.This applies
especiallytochildren>page285.
Althoughtheyarenotasoftpillow,sidecurtain
airbagscan“cushion”theimpactandinthisway
theycanhelptoreducetheriskofinjurytothe
headandtheupperpartofthebody.
Afinedustmaydevelopwhentheairbagdeploys.
Thisisquitenormalanddoesnotmeanthereisa
fireinthevehicle.
Importantsafetyinstructionsontheside
curtainairbagsystem
Airbagsareonlysupplementalrestraints.Always
properlywearsafetybeltsandrideinaproper
seatingposition.
Thereisalotthatyou andyourpassengersmust
knowanddotohelpthesafetybeltsandairbags
dotheirjobtoprovidesupplementalprotection.

Z\WARNING
Improperlywearingsafetybeltsandimproper
seatingpositionsincreasetheriskofserious
personalinjuryanddeathwheneveravehicle
isbeingused.
—Neverletoccupantsplaceanypartsoftheir
bodiesintheareafromwhichthesidecur-
tainairbaginflate.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthesidecurtainair-
bagscaninflatewithoutinterference.
—Usethebuilt-incoathooksonlyforlight-
weightclothing.Neverleaveanyheavyor
sharp-edgedobjectsinthepocketsthatmay
interferewithairbagdeploymentandcan
cause
personalinjuryinacollision.
—Neverusehangerstohangclothesonthe
hooks.
—Onlyusefactory-installedsunshadesor,if
shadesinstalledafterthevehicleleavesthe
factory,useonlygenuineAudisunshades.
—Neverswingthesunvisorsovertotheside

openers,hands-freespeakers,etc.areat-
tachedtothesunvisors.Theycouldcome
looseandcauseseriousinjuryifthesidecur-
tainairbaginflates.
—Adeployingairbaginflatesinafractionofa
secondandwithgreatforce.
—Neverattachobjectstothecoverorinthe
deploymentzoneofasidecurtainairbag.
—Theairbagdeploymentzonesmustbekept
clearatalltimes.Makesuretherearenoob-
jects,pets,orotherpersonsinthespacebe-
tweenanyvehicleoccupantandanyairbag
atanytime.
—Donotattachanyaccessoriestothedoors.



ZAWARNING
— Theairbagsystemcandeployonlyonce.If
theairbaghasbeentriggered,thesystem
mustbereplacedby anauthorizedAudi
dealerorqualifiedworkshop.
—Alwayshaveworkinvolvingthesidecurtain
airbagsystem,removalandinstallationof
theairbagcomponents,orotherrepairsper-
formedbyaqualifieddealership.Otherwise
theairbagsystemmaynotworkcorrectly.
—Neverattempttomodifyanycomponentsof
theairbagsysteminanyway.



windowsifthingssuchaspens,garagedoor

284

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Childsafety

Childsafety
Importantinformation
Introduction
Therearseatisgenerallythesafestplaceina
collision.
Thephysicalprinciplesofwhathappenswhen
yourvehicleisinacrashapplyalsotochildren
=page254,Whathappenstooccupants not
wearingsafetybelts?.Butunlikeadultsand
teenagers,theirmusclesandbonesarenotfully
developed.Inmanyrespectschildrenareat
greaterriskofseriousinjuryincrashesthan
adults.
Becausechildren'sbodiesarenotfullydeveloped,
theyrequirerestraintsystemsespeciallyde-
signedfortheirsize,weight,and bodystructure.
Manycountriesandallstatesofthe United
StatesandprovincesofCanadahavelawsrequir-
ingthe useofapprovedchildrestraintsystems
forinfantsandsmallchildren.
Inafrontalcrashataspeedof20-35mph(30-
56km/h)theforces actingona13-pound(6kg)
infantwillbemorethan20timestheweightof
thechild.Thismeanstheweightofthechild
wouldsuddenlybemorethan260pounds
(120kg).Undertheseconditions,onlyanappro-
priatechildrestraintproperlyusedcanreduce
theriskofseriousinjury.Childrestraints,like
adultsafetybelts,mustbeusedproperlytobe
effective.Usedimproperly,they canincreasethe
riskof seriousinjuryinanaccident.
Allchildren,especiallythose12yearsand young-
ermustalwaysrideinthebackseatproperlyre-
strainedfortheirageandsize.Ifyoumustinstall
achildrestraintonthefrontpassengerseatin
exceptionalcircumstances,besuretoreadand
heedtheimportantinformationandwarnings
=page262.Infantsandotherchildrenwhoare
properlyrestrainedinanappropriatechildre-
straintthatisfortheirsizeand agecanbenefit
fromtheprotectionthatsupplementalsideair-
bagsprovideinsomekindsofcrashes.
Formoreinformationpleaseseeinformationpro-
videdbythe:
—NationalHighwayTrafficSafetyAdministration
(NHTSA),currentlyat:http://www.safercar.gov
(fortheUSA)
—TransportCanadaInformationCentre,currently
at:http://www.tc.gc.ca(forCanada)
Consultthechildsafetyseatmanufacturer'sin-
structionsinordertobesuretheseatisrightfor
yourchild'ssize>page289,Importantsafety
instructionsforusingchildsafetyseats.Please
besuretoreadandheedalloftheimportantin-
formationandWARNINGSaboutchildsafety,Ad-
vancedAirbags,andtheinstallationofchildre-
straintsinthischapter.
ThereisalotyouneedtoknowabouttheAd-
vancedAirbagsinyourvehicleandhowtheywork
wheninfantsandchildreninchildrestraintsare
onthefrontpassengerseat.Becauseofthelarge
amountofimportantinformation,wecannotre-
peatitallhere.Weurgeyoutoreadthedetailed
informationinthisowner'smanualaboutairbags
andtheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehicle
andtheveryimportantinformationabouttrans-
portingchildrenonthefrontpassengerseat.
PleasebesuretoheedtheWARNINGS-theyare
extremelyimportantforyoursafetyandthesafe-
tyofyourpassengers,especiallyinfantsand
smallchildren.

ZAWARNING
—Accidentstatisticshaveshownthatchildren
aregenerallysaferintherearseatareathan
inthefrontseatingposition.Alwaysrestrain
anychildage12andunderintherear.
—Allvehicleoccupantsandespeciallychildren
mustberestrainedproperlywheneverriding
inavehicle.Anunrestrainedorimproperly
restrainedchildcouldbeinjuredbystriking
theinteriororbybeingejectedfromtheve-
hicleduringasuddenmaneuverorimpact.
Anunrestrainedorimproperlyrestrained
childisalsoatgreaterriskofinjuryordeath
throughcontactwithaninflatingairbag.
—Asuitablechildrestraintproperlyinstalled
andusedatoneoftherearseatingpositions
providesthehighestdegreeofprotection
forinfantsandsmallchildreninmostacci-
dentsituations.


285