2019 AUDI Q7 light

Safetybelts

>Makesuretheseatbackoftherearseatbenchis
inanuprightpositionandsecurelylatchedin
placebeforeusingthebelt>/\.
>Pullthesafetybeltevenlyacrossthechestand
pelvis©fig.229,>A\.
> Insertthetongueintothecorrectbuckle of
yourseatuntilyouhearitlatchsecurely.
>Pullonthebelttomakesurethatitissecurely
latchedinthebuckle.
Automaticsafetybeltretractors
Everysafetybeltisequippedwithanautomatic
beltretractorontheshoulderbelt.Thisfeature
locksthebeltwhenthebeltispulledoutfast,
duringhardbrakingandinanaccident.Thebelt
mayalsolockwhenyoudriveupordownasteep
hillorthroughasharpcurve.Duringnormaldriv-
ingthebeltletsyoumovefreely.
Safetybeltpretensioners
Safetybeltswithpretensionershelptotighten
thesafetybeltandremoveslackwhenthepre-
tensionersareactivated>page266.Thefunc-
tionofthepretensionerismonitoredbyawarn-
inglight>page22.
Convertiblelockingretractor
Everysafetybeltexcept theoneonthedriver
seatisequippedwithaconvertiblelockingretrac-
torthatmustbeusedwhenthesafetybeltis
usedtoattacha childsafetyseat.Besuretoread
theimportantinformationaboutthisfeature
=>page301.

ZAWARNING
Improperlypositionedsafetybeltscancause
seriousinjuryinanaccident>page264,
Safetybeltposition.
—Safetybeltsofferoptimumprotectiononly
whentheseatbackisuprightandbeltsare
properlypositionedonthebody.
—Alwaysmakesurethattherearseatbackrest
towhichthecenterrearsafetybeltisat-
tachedissecurelylatchedwhenevertherear
centersafetybeltisbeingused.Iftheback-
restisnotsecurelylatched,thepassenger
willmoveforwardwiththebackrestduring

264

suddenbraking,inasuddenmaneuverand
especiallyinacrash.
—Neverattachthesafetybelt tothe buckle
foranotherseat.Attachingthebelttothe
wrongbucklewillreducesafetybelteffec-
tivenessandcancauseseriouspersonalin-
jury.
—Apassengerwhoisnotproperlyrestrained
canbeseriouslyinjuredbythesafetybeltit-
selfwhenitmovesfromthestrongerparts
ofthebodyintocriticalareasliketheabdo-
men.
—Alwayslocktheconvertiblelockingretractor
whenyouaresecuringachildsafetyseatin
thevehicle>page303.
Safetybeltposition
Correctbeltpositionisthekeytogettingmaxi-
mumprotectionfromsafetybelts.



B4H-0751



Fig.230Safetybeltposition
Standardfeaturesonyourvehiclehelpyouadjust
thepositionofthesafetybelttomatchyourbody
size.
—beltheightadjustmentforthefrontseats,
—height-adjustablefrontseats.

ZAWARNING
Improperlypositionedsafetybeltscancause
seriouspersonalinjuryinanaccident.
— Theshoulderbeltshouldlieasclosetothe
center ofthecollarboneaspossibleand
shouldfitwellonthebody.Holdthebelt
abovethelatchtongueandpullitevenly
acrossthechestsothatitsitsaslowaspos-
sibleonthepelvisandthereisnopressure
ontheabdomen.Thebeltshouldalwaysfit[>

Airbagsystem

aboutchildrenandAdvancedAirbags
=>page290.
EventhoughyourvehicleisequippedwithanAd-
vancedAirbagSystem,makecertainthatallchil-
dren,especiallythose12yearsandyounger,al-
waysrideinthebackseatproperlyrestrainedfor
theirageandsize.Theairbagonthepassenger
sidemakesthefrontseatapotentiallydangerous
placeforachildtoride.Thefrontseatisnot the
safestplaceforachildinaforward-facingchild
safetyseat.Itcanbeaverydangerousplacefor
aninfantorachildinarearward-facingseat.
TheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehiclehas
beencertifiedtocomplywiththerequirements
ofUnitedStatesFederalMotorVehicleSafety
Standard(FMVSS)208,aswellasCanadaMotor
VehicleSafetyStandard(CMVSS)208asapplica-
bleatthetimeyourvehiclewasmanufactured.
Accordingtorequirements,thefrontAdvanced
AirbagSystemonthepassengersidehasbeen
certifiedfor“suppression”forinfantsofabout
12montholdandyoungerandfor“lowriskde-
ployment”forchildrenaged3to6yearsold(as
definedinthestandard).
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3%;lightinthe
headlinertellsyouwhenthefrontAdvancedAir-
bagonthepassengersidehasbeenturnedoffby
theelectroniccontrolunit.
Eachtimeyouturnontheignition,thePASSEN-
GERAIRBAGOFF#¥;ON@lightwillcomeon
forafewsecondsand:
—PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;willcomeonif
thefrontpassengerseatisnotoccupied
—PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;willcomeonif
theelectricalcapacitancemeasuredbytheca-
pacitivepassengerdetectionsystemforthe
frontpassengerseatequalsthecombinedca-
pacitanceofaninfantuptoaboutoneyearof
ageandoneoftherearward-facingorforward-
facingchildrestraintslistedinFederalMotor
VehicleSafetyStandard(FMVSS)208with
whichtheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehi-
cle wascertified.Foralistingofthechildre-
straintsthatwereusedtocertifyyourvehicle's
compliancewiththeSafetyStandard
=>page292.
270
—PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;willcomeonif
thereisasmallchildorchildrestraintonthe
frontpassengerseat
—PASSENGERAIRBAGON@willcomeonifthe
frontpassengerseatisoccupiedbyanadultas
registeredbythecapacitivepassengerdetec-
tionsystem>page280,MonitoringtheAd-
vancedAirbagSystem.
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;lightcomeson
whenelectricalcapacitanceregisteredonthe
frontpassengerseatisequaltoorlessthanthe
combinedcapacitanceofatypical1year-oldin-
fantandoneoftherearward-facingorforward-
facingchildrestraintslistedinFederalMotorVe-
hicleSafetyStandard(FMVSS)208withwhich
theAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehiclewas
certified.
Ifthetotalelectricalcapacitanceregisteredon
thefrontpassengerseatismorethanthatofa
typical1year-oldchildbutlessthantheweight
ofasmalladult,thefrontairbagonthepassen-
gersidecandeploy(thePASSENGERAIRBAG
OFF%;lightdoesnotcomeon).
IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;lightdoes
notcomeon,thefrontairbagonthepassenger
sidehasnotbeenturnedoffbytheelectronic
controlunitandcandeployifthecontrolunit
senses animpactthatmeetstheconditionsstor-
edinitsmemory.
Forexample,theairbagmaydeployif:
—asmallchildthatisheavierthanatypical1
year-oldchildisonthefrontpassengerseat(re-
gardlessofwhetherthechildisinoneofthe
childsafetyseatslisted>page292),or
—achildwhohasoutgrownchildrestraintsison
thefrontpassengerseat.
Ifthefrontpassengerairbagisturnedoff,the
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;lightcomesonin
theheadlinerandstayson.
Ifthefrontpassengerairbagdeploys,theFederal
Standardrequirestheairbagtomeetthe“low
risk”deploymentcriteriatoreducetheriskofin-
jurythroughinteractionwiththeairbag.“Low
risk”deploymentoccursinthosecrashesthat
takeplaceatlowerdecelerationsasdefinedin>

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Airbagsystem

theelectroniccontrolunit>page280,PASSEN-
GERAIRBAGOFF$#;ON®light.
Alwaysremember,achildsafetyseatorinfant
carrierinstalledonthefrontseatmaybestruck
andknockedoutofpositionbytherapidlyinflat-
ingpassenger'sairbaginafrontalcollision.The
airbagcouldgreatlyreducetheeffectivenessof
thechildrestraintandevenseriouslyinjurethe
childduringinflation.
Forthisreason,andbecausethebackseatisthe
safestplaceforchildren-whenproperlyrestrain-
edaccordingtotheirageandsize-westrongly
recommendthatchildrenalwayssitintheback
seat>page290,Childsafety.


ZAWARNING
Achildinarearward-facingchildsafetyseat
installedonthefrontpassengerseatwillbe
seriouslyinjuredandcanbekilledifthefront
airbaginflates-evenwithanAdvancedAirbag
System.
—Theinflatingairbagwillhitthechildsafety
seatorinfantcarrierwithgreatforceand
willsmashthechildsafetyseatandchild
againstthebackrest,centerarmrest,door
orroof.
—Alwaysinstallrear-facingchildsafetyseats
ontherearseat.
—Ifyoumustinstallarearwardfacingchild
safetyseatonthefrontpassengerseatbe-
causeofexceptionalcircumstancesandthe
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3%;lightdoesnot
comeonandstayon,immediatelyinstall
therear-facingchildsafetyseatinarear
seatingpositionandhavetheairbagsystem
inspectedbyyourauthorizedAudidealer.
—Forward-facingchildsafetyseatsinstalled
onthefrontpassenger'sseatmayinterfere
withthedeploymentoftheairbagandcause
seriouspersonalinjurytothechild.
facturerforuseonafrontseatwithapas-
sengerfrontandsideairbag.
—Neverputtheforward-facingchildrestraint
upagainstorverynear theinstrumentpan-
el.
—Alwaysmovethefrontpassengerseattothe
highestpositionintheupanddownadjust-
mentrangeandmoveitbacktotherear-
mostpositionintheseat'sforeandaftad-
justmentrange,asfarawayfromtheairbag
aspossible,beforeinstallingtheforward-
facingchildrestraint.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthesafetybeltupper
anchorageisbehindthechildrestraintand
notnexttoorinfrontofthechildrestraint
so thatthesafetybeltwillbeproperlyposi-
tioned.
—MakesurethatthePASSENGERAIRBAG
OFF7%;lightcomesonandstaysonallthe
timewhenevertheignitionisswitchedon.

ZA\WARNING
To reducetheriskofseriousinjury,makesure
thatthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;light
willbedisplayedwheneverachildrestraintis
installedonthefrontpassengerseatandthe
ignitionisswitchedon.
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;light
doesnotstayon,performthechecksdescri-
bed>page280,MonitoringtheAdvanced
AirbagSystem.
—Takethechildrestraint offthefrontpassen-
gerseatandinstallitproperlyatoneofthe
rearseatpositionsifthePASSENGERAIR
BAGOFF#¥%;lightdoesnotstayon.
—Havetheairbagsysteminspectedbyyour
authorizedAudidealerimmediately.
—Alwayscarefullyfollowinstructionsfrom
childrestraintmanufacturerswheninstal-
lingchildrestraints.



ZA\WARNING
If,inexceptionalcircumstances,youmustin-
stallaforward-facingchildrestraintonthe
frontpassenger'sseat:
—Alwaysmakesuretheforward-facingseat
hasbeendesignedandcertifiedbyitsmanu-


Z\WARNING
If,inexceptionalcircumstances,youmustin-
stallaforwardorrearward-facingchildre-
straintonthefrontpassenger'sseat:


271

Airbagsystem

ThefrontAdvancedAirbagSystemforthefront
seatoccupantsisnotasubstituteforyoursafety
belts.Rather,itispart oftheoveralloccupantre-
straintsysteminyourvehicle.Alwaysremember
thattheairbagsystemcanonly helptoprotect
you,ifyouaresittingupright,wearingyoursafe-
tybeltandwearingitproperly.Thisiswhyyou
and
yourpassengersmustalways beproperlyre-
strained,notjustbecausethelawrequiresyouto
be.
TheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehiclehas
beencertifiedtomeetthe“lowrisk”require-
mentsfor3and6year-oldchildrenonthepas-
sengersideandverysmalladultsonthedriver
side.Thelowriskdeploymentcriteriaare intend-
edtohelpreducetheriskofinjurythroughinter-
actionwiththefrontairbagthatcanoccur,for
example,bybeingtooclosetothesteeringwheel
andinstrumentpanelwhentheairbaginflates.
Inaddition,thesystemhasbeencertifiedto
complywiththe“suppression”requirementsof
theSafetyStandard,toturnoffthefrontairbag
forinfants12monthsoldandyoungerwhoare
restrainedonthefrontpassengerseatinchildre-
straintsthatarelistedintheStandard
=>page292,ChildrestraintsandAdvancedAir-
bags.
“Suppression”requiresthefrontairbagonthe
passengersidetobeturnedoffif:
—achilduptoaboutoneyearofageisrestrained
onthefrontpassengerseatinoneoftherear-
facing orforward-facinginfantrestraintslisted
inFederalMotorVehicleSafetyStandard208
withwhichtheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyour
vehiclewascertified.Foralistingofthechild
restraintsthatwereusedtocertifyyourvehi-
cle'scompliancewiththeUSSafetyStandard
=>page292,
—Whenapersonisdetectedonthefrontpassen-
gerseat thathasanelectricalcapacitancethat
ismorethanthetotalelectricalcapacitanceof
achildthatisabout1yearoldrestrainedinone
oftherear-facingorforward-facinginfantre-
straints(listedinFederalMotorVehicleSafety
Standard208withwhichtheAdvancedAirbag
Systeminyourvehiclewascertified),thefront
274
airbagonthepassengersidemayormaynot
deploy.
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;lightcomeson
whentheelectroniccontrolunitdetectsatotal
electricalcapacitanceonthefrontpassengerseat
thatrequiresthefrontairbagtobeturnedoff.If
thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;lightdoesnot
comeon,thefrontairbagonthepassengerside
hasnotbeenturnedoffby thecontrolunitand
candeployifthecontrolunitsenses animpact
thatmeetstheconditionsstoredin itsmemory.
Ifthetotalelectricalcapacitanceregisteredon
thefrontpassengerseatismorethanthatofa
typical1year-old,butlessthantheweightofa
smalladult,thefrontairbagonthepassenger
sidemaydeploy(thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF
8%;lightdoesnotcomeon).
Forexample,theairbagmaydeployif:
—asmallchildthatisheavierthanatypical1
year-oldchildisonthefrontpassengerseat(re-
gardlessofwhetherthechildisinoneofthe
childsafetyseatslisted>page292),
—achildwhohasoutgrownchildrestraintsison
thefrontpassengerseat.
Ifthefrontpassengerairbagisturnedoff,the
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;lightinthe head-
linerwillcomeonandstayon.
Ifthefrontpassengerairbagdeploys,theFederal
Standardrequirestheairbagtomeetthe“low
risk”deploymentcriteriatohelpreducetherisk
ofinjurythroughinteractionwiththeairbag.
“Lowrisk”deploymentoccursinthosecrashes
that takeplaceatlowerdecelerationsasdefined
intheelectroniccontrolunit.>page280
Alwaysremember:Eventhoughyourvehicleis
equippedwithAdvancedAirbags,thesafest place
forchildrenisproperlyrestrainedontheback
seat.Pleasebesuretoreadtheimportantinfor-
mationinthesectionsthatfollowandbesureto
heedalloftheWARNINGS.

ZAWARNING
Toreducetheriskofinjurywhenanairbagin-
flates,alwayswearsafetybeltsproperly.>

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Airbagsystem


—Ifyouareunrestrained,leaningforward,sit-
tingsidewaysoroutofpositioninanyway,
yourriskofinjuryismuchhigher.
—Youwillalsoreceiveseriousinjuriesand
couldevenbekilledifyouareupagainstthe
airbagortooclosetoitwhenitinflates-
evenwithanAdvancedAirbag>page268.

Z\WARNING
Achildinarearward-facingchildsafetyseat
installedonthefrontpassengerseatwillbe
seriouslyinjuredandcanbekilledifthefront
airbaginflates-evenwithanAdvancedAirbag
System.
—AlthoughtheAdvancedAirbagSystemin
yourvehicleisdesignedtoturnoffthefront
airbagwhenarearward-facingchildre-
strainthasbeeninstalledonthefront pas-
sengerseat,nobodycanabsolutelyguaran-
teethatdeploymentisimpossibleinallcon-
ceivablesituationsthatmayhappenduring
the
usefullife ofyourvehicle.
—Theinflatingairbagwillhitthechildsafety
seatorinfantcarrierwithgreatforceand
willsmashthe childsafetyseatandchild
againstthebackrest,centerarmrest,door,
orroof.
—Alwaysinstallrearward-facingchildre-
straintsontherearseat.
—Ifyoumustinstallarearwardfacingchild
safetyseatonthefrontpassengerseatbe-
causeofexceptionalcircumstancesandthe
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;lightdoesnot
comeonandstayon,immediatelyinstall
therear-facingchildsafetyseatinarear
seatingpositionandhavetheairbagsystem
inspectedbyyourauthorizedAudidealer.


Z\WARNING
If,inexceptionalcircumstances,youmustin-
stallaforward-facingchildrestraintonthe
frontpassenger'sseat:
—Alwaysmakesuretheforward-facingseat
hasbeendesignedandcertifiedbyitsmanu-
facturerforuseonafrontseatwithapas-
sengerfrontandsideairbag.

—Neverputtheforward-facingchildrestraint
upagainstorverynear theinstrumentpan-
el
—Alwaysmovethefrontpassengerseattothe
highestpositionintheupanddownadjust-
mentrangeandmoveitbacktotherear-
mostpositionintheseat'sforeandaftad-
justmentrange,asfarawayfromtheairbag
aspossible,beforeinstallingtheforward-
facingchildrestraint.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthesafetybeltupper
anchorageisbehindthechildrestraintand
notnexttoorinfrontofthechildrestraint
so thatthesafetybeltwillbeproperlyposi-
tioned.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthereisnothingon
thefrontpassengerseatthatwillcausethe
capacitivepassengerdetectionsystemin
theseattosignaltotheAirbagSystemthat
theseatisoccupiedbyapersonwhenitis
not,ortosignalthatitisoccupiedbysome-
onewhoisheavierthanthepersonactually
sittingontheseat.Thepresenceofaddi-
tionalobjectscouldcausethepassenger
frontairbagtobeturnedonwhenitshould
beoff,orcouldcausetheairbagtoworkina
waythatisdifferentfromthewayitwould
haveworkedwithouttheobjectontheseat.
—MakesurethatthePASSENGERAIRBAG
OFF$¥;lightcomesonandstaysonallthe
timewhenevertheignitionisswitchedon.
EeeWelemyeeey
Thefrontpassengerseatinyourvehiclehasalot
ofveryimportantparts oftheAdvancedAirbag
Systeminit.Theseparts includethecapacitive
passengerdetectionsystem,wiring,brackets,
andmore.Thecontrolunitmonitorsthesystem
onthefrontpassengerseatwhentheignitionis
switchedonandturnstheairbagindicatorlight
onwhenamalfunctionintheoneofthesystem
componentsisdetected>page280.Becausethe
front
passengerseatcontainsimportantpartsof
theAdvancedAirbagSystem,youmusttakecare
topreventitfrombeingdamaged.Damageto

275

Airbagsystem

theseatmaypreventtheAdvancedAirbagSys-
temforthefrontpassengerseatfromdoingits
jobinacrash.
ThefrontAdvancedAirbagSystemconsists
ofthefollowing:
—Crashsensorsinthefrontofthevehiclethat
measurevehicleacceleration/decelerationto
provideinformationtotheAdvancedAirbag
Systemabouttheseverityofthecrash.
— Anelectroniccontrolunit,withintegrated
crashsensorsforfrontandsideimpacts.The
controlunit“decides”whethertofirethefront
airbagsbasedontheinformationreceivedfrom
thecrashsensors.Thecontrolunitalso“de-
cides”whetherthesafetybeltpretensioners
shouldbeactivated.
— AnAdvancedAirbagwithgasgeneratorand
controlvalveforthedriver insidethesteering
wheelhub.
— AnAdvancedAirbagwithgasgeneratorand
controlvalveinsidetheinstrumentpanelfor
thefrontpassenger.
—Acapacitivepassengerdetectionsystemunder-
neaththefrontpassengerseatcover.Thissys-
temmeasurestheelectricalcapacitanceofthe
personintheseat.Theinformationregistered
issent continuouslytotheelectroniccontrol
unit toregulatedeploymentofthefrontAd-
vancedAirbagonthepassengerside.
— Anairbagmonitoringsystemandindicator
lightEaintheinstrumentcluster.
—Asensorineachfrontseatregistersthedis-
tancebetweentherespectiveseatandthe
steeringwheelorinstrumentpanel.Theinfor-
mationregisteredissent continuouslytothe
electroniccontrolunittoregulatedeployment
ofthefrontAdvancedAirbags.
—ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;ON@light
comesonintheheadliner>page280,fig.237
andtellsyouthestatusoftheAdvancedAirbag
onthepassengerside.
—Asensorinthesafetybeltlatchforthedriver
andforthefrontseatpassengerthatsenses
whetherthatsafetybeltislatchedornotand
transmitsthisinformationtotheelectronic
controlunit.
276


ZAWARNING
Damagetothefrontpassengerseatcanpre-
ventthefrontairbagfromworkingproperly.
—Improperrepairordisassemblyofthefront
passengeranddriverseatwillpreventthe
AdvancedAirbagSystemfromfunctioning
properly.
—Repairstothefrontpassengerseatmustbe
performedbyqualifiedandproperlytrained
workshoppersonnel.
—Neverremovethefrontpassengeror driver
seatfromthevehicle.
—Neverremovetheupholsteryfromthefront
PassengerSeat.
—Neverdisassembleorremovepartsfromthe
seatordisconnectwiresfromit.
—Nevercarrysharpobjectsinyourpocketsor
putthemontheseat.Thecapacitivepassen-
gerdetectionmatinthefrontpassenger
seatwillnotfunctionproperlyifitispunc-
tured.
—Nevercarrythingsonyourlaporcarryob-
jectsonthefrontpassengerseat.Suchob-
jectscaninfluencethecapacitanceregis-
teredbythecapacitivepassengerdetection
system,so thatincorrectinformationispro-
videdtotheairbagcontrolunit.
—Neverstoreitemsunderthefrontpassenger
seat.PartsoftheAdvancedAirbagSystem
underthepassengerseatcouldbedam-
aged,preventingthemandtheairbagsys-
temfromworkingproperly.
—Neverplaceseatcoversorreplacementup-
holsterythathavenotbeenspecificallyap-
provedbyAudionthefrontseats.
—SeatcoverscanpreventtheAdvancedAirbag
Systemfromrecognizingchildrestraintsor
occupantsonthefrontpassengerseatand
preventthesideairbagintheseat backrest
fromdeployingproperly.
—Ifaseatheaterhasbeenretrofittedor oth-
erwiseaddedtothefrontpassengerseat,
neverinstallanychildrestraintsystemon
thisseat.
—Neverusecushions,pillows,blankets,or
similaritemsonthefrontpassengerseat.
Theadditionallayerspreventthecapacitive

4M0012721BG
Airbagsystem


passengerdetectionsystemfromaccurately
measuringthecapacitanceofthechildsafe-
tyseatand/orthepersonontheseatand
thuskeeptheAdvancedAirbagSystemfrom
workingproperly.
—Neverplaceoruseanyelectricaldevice
(suchasalaptop,CDplayer,electronic
gamesdevice,powerinverterorseatheater
forchildseats)onthefrontpassengerseat
ifthedeviceisconnectedtothe12-volt
socketorthecigarettelightersocket.Such
devicescaninfluencethecapacitanceregis-
teredby thecapacitivepassengerdetection
system,sothatincorrectinformationispro-
videdtotheairbagcontrolunit.
—Ifyoumustusea childrestraintonthefront
passengerseatandthechildrestraintman-
ufacturer'sinstructionsrequirethe useofa
towel,foamcushionorsomethingelseto
properlypositionthechildrestraint,make
certainthatthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF
¥;lightcomesonandstaysonwhenever
thechildrestraintisinstalledonthefront
passengerseat.
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF7%;light
doesnotcomeonandstayon,immediately
installchildrestraintinarearseatingposi-
tionandhavetheairbagsysteminspected
byyourAudidealer.



ZAWARNING
Ifthefrontpassengerseat getswet,dryitim-
mediately.
—Ifliquidsoaksintothefrontpassengerseat,
thiscankeeptheairbagsystemfromwork-
ingproperlyandmay,forinstance,deacti-
vatethepassengerfrontalairbag.Ifthis
happens,thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;
lightwillcomeonandstayontogetherwith
theairbagindicatorlightkaintheinstru-
mentcluster.
—Ifliquidispooledontheseat,but hasnot
soakedin,thismayalsokeeptheairbagsys-
temfromworkingproperlyandcausethe
passengerfrontalairbagtobeenabled
(turnedon),eventhoughthereisaproperly
installedchildrestraintsystemontheseat.
Wettowelsorotherwetthingsontheseat

cushioncanhavethesameeffect.Ifthe
frontpassengerfrontalairbagisturnedon,
thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;lightwill
turnoff.
HowtheAdvancedAirbagSystem
componentsworktogether
ThefrontAdvancedAirbagSystemandtheside
airbagssupplementtheprotectionofferedbythe
frontthree-pointsafetybeltsandtheadjustable
headrestraintstohelpreducetheriskofinjuryin
awiderangeofaccidentandcrashsituations.Be
suretoreadtheimportantinformationabout
safetyandheedtheWARNINGSinthischapter.

DeploymentoftheAdvancedAirbagSystemand
theactivationofthesafetybeltpretensionersde-
pendonthedecelerationmeasuredbythecrash
sensorsandregisteredbytheelectroniccontrol
unit.Crashseveritydependsonspeedanddecel-
erationaswellasthemassandstiffnessofthe
vehicleorobjectinvolvedinthecrash.
Onthepassengerside,regardlessofsafetybelt
use,thefrontpassengerfrontalairbagwillbe
turnedoffiftheelectricalcapacitancemeasured
bythecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystemon
thefrontpassengerseatislessthantheamount
programmedintheelectroniccontrolunit.The
frontpassengerfrontalairbagwillalsobeturned
offifthecapacitancemeasuredby thesystemfor
thefrontpassengerseatequalsthat ofaninfant
ofaboutoneyearofagein oneofthechildseats
thatwasusedtocertifytheAdvancedAirbagSys-
temunderFederalMotorVehicleSafetyStandard
208.ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light
comesonandstaysontotellyouwhenthefront
AdvancedAirbagSystemonthepassengerside
hasbeenturnedoff>page280.

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

277

Airbagsystem


airbagortooclosetoitwhenitinflates-
evenwithanAdvancedAirbag>page268.

TmtmeeRomanalLolimicedta
airbags

B4L-1300


Fig.236Inflatedfrontairbags
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,bruisingandminorabra-
sions,canalsohappenwhenairbagsinflate.Air-
bagsdonotprotectthearmsorthelowerparts
278
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>page280comeson
andstayson).
ZAWARNING
Sittinginthewrongpositioncanincreasethe
riskofseriousinjuryincrashes.

—Toreducetheriskofinjurywhentheairbags
inflate,thedriverandpassengersmustal-
wayssitinanuprightposition,mustnot
leanagainstorplaceanypartoftheirbody
tooclosetotheareawheretheairbagsare
located.
—Occupantswhoareunbelted,outofposition
ortooclosetotheairbagcanbeseriouslyin-
juredby anairbagasitunfoldswithgreat
forceintheblinkofaneye>page269.

ZXWARNING
Achildinarearward-facingchildsafetyseat
installedonthefrontpassengerseatwillbe
seriouslyinjuredandcanbekilledifthefront
airbaginflates-evenwithanAdvancedAirbag
System.