2019 AUDI TT COUPE warning light

Airbagsystem

electroniccontrolunittoregulatedeployment
ofthefrontAdvancedAirbags.
—ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;lightcomes
onandstaysonintheheadliner>page200,
fig.155andtellsyouwhenthefrontAdvanced
Airbagonthepassengersidehasbeenturned
off.
—Asensorinthesafetybeltlatchforthedriver
andforthefrontseatpassengerthatsenses
whetherthatsafetybeltislatchedornotand
transmitsthisinformationtotheelectronic
controlunit.


ZA\WARNING
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-
teredby thecapacitivepassengerdetection
system,sothatincorrectinformationispro-
videdtotheairbagcontrolunit.
—Neverstoreitemsunderthefrontpassenger
seat.PartsoftheAdvancedAirbagSystem
underthepassengerseatcouldbedam-
aged,preventingthemandtheairbagsys-
temfromworkingproperly.
—Neverplaceseatcoversorreplacementup-
holsterythathave notbeenspecificallyap-
provedbyAudionthefrontseats.

—SeatcoverscanpreventtheAdvancedAirbag
Systemfromrecognizingchildrestraintsor
occupantsonthefrontpassengerseatand
preventthesideairbagintheseat backrest
fromdeployingproperly.
—Ifaseatheaterhasbeenretrofittedor oth-
erwiseaddedtothefrontpassengerseat,
neverinstallanychildrestraintsystemon
thisseat.
—Neverusecushions,pillows,blankets,or
similaritemsonthefrontpassengerseat.
Theadditionallayerspreventthecapacitive
passengerdetectionsystemfromaccurately
measuringthecapacitanceofthechildsafe-
tyseatand/orthe personontheseatand
thuskeeptheAdvancedAirbagSystemfrom
workingproperly.
—Neverplaceoruseanyelectricaldevice
(suchasalaptop,CDplayer,electronic
gamesdevice,powerinverterorseatheater
forchildseats)onthefrontpassengerseat
ifthedeviceisconnectedtothe12-volt
socketorthecigarettelightersocket.Such
devicescaninfluencethecapacitanceregis-
teredbythecapacitivepassengerdetection
system,so thatincorrectinformationispro-
videdtotheairbagcontrolunit.
—Ifyoumustuseachildrestraintonthefront
passengerseatandthechildrestraintman-
ufacturer'sinstructionsrequirethe useofa
towel,foamcushionorsomethingelseto
properlypositionthechildrestraint,make
certainthatthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF
3%;lightcomesonandstaysonwhenever
thechildrestraintisinstalledonthefront
passengerseat.
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light
doesnotcomeonandstayon,immediately
installchildrestraintinarearseatingposi-
tionandhavetheairbagsysteminspected
byyourAudidealer.


ZAWARNING
Ifthefrontpassengerseat getswet,dryitim-
mediately.


196

8S1012721BA
Airbagsystem


—Ifliquidsoaksintothefrontpassengerseat,
thiscankeeptheairbagsystemfromwork-
ingproperlyandmay,forinstance,deacti-
vatethepassengerfrontalairbag.Ifthis
happens,thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF¥;
lightwillcomeonandstayontogetherwith
theairbagindicatorlightEaintheinstru-
mentcluster.
—Ifliquidispooledontheseat,but hasnot
soakedin,thismayalsokeeptheairbagsys-
temfromworkingproperlyandcausethe
passengerfrontalairbagtobeenabled
(turnedon),eventhoughthereisaproperly
installedchildrestraintsystemontheseat.
Wettowelsorotherwetthingsontheseat
cushioncanhavethesameeffect.Ifthe
frontpassengerfrontalairbagisturnedon,
thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;lightwill
turnoff.
temunderFederalMotorVehicleSafetyStandard
208.ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;light
comesonandstaysontotellyouwhenthefront
AdvancedAirbagSystemonthepassengerside
hasbeenturnedoff>page200.

Z\WARNING
Toreducetheriskofinjurywhenanairbagin-
flates,alwayswearsafetybeltsproperly.
—Ifyouareunrestrained,leaningforward,sit-
tingsidewaysoroutofpositioninanyway,
yourriskofinjuryismuchhigher.
—Youwillalsoreceiveseriousinjuriesand
couldevenbekilledifyouareupagainstthe
airbagortooclosetoitwhenitinflates-

evenwithanAdvancedAirbag>page188.



HowtheAdvancedAirbagSystem
componentsworktogether
ThefrontAdvancedAirbagSystemandtheside
airbagssupplementtheprotectionofferedbythe
frontthree-pointsafetybeltstohelpreducethe
riskofinjuryinawiderangeofaccidentandcrash
situations.Besuretoreadtheimportantinfor-
mation
aboutsafetyandheedtheWARNINGSin
thischapter.
DeploymentoftheAdvancedAirbagSystemand
theactivationofthesafetybeltpretensionersde-
pendonthedecelerationmeasuredbythecrash
sensorsandregisteredbytheelectroniccontrol
unit.Crashseveritydependsonspeedanddecel-
erationaswellasthemassandstiffnessofthe
vehicleorobject involvedinthecrash.
Onthepassengerside,regardlessof safetybelt
use,
thefrontpassengerfrontalairbagwillbe
turnedoffiftheelectricalcapacitancemeasured
bythecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystemon
thefrontpassengerseatislessthantheamount
programmedintheelectroniccontrolunit.The
frontpassengerfrontalairbagwillalsobeturned
offifthecapacitancemeasuredbythesystemfor
thefrontpassengerseatequalsthatofaninfant
ofaboutoneyearofageinoneofthechildseats
thatwasusedtocertifytheAdvancedAirbagSys-

TealSltmcomaluLSelLal
airbags


Fig.154Inflatedfrontairbags
Safetybeltsareimportanttohelpkeepfrontseat
occupantsintheproper seatedpositionsothat
airbagscanunfoldproperlyandprovidesupple-
mentalprotectioninafrontalcollision.
Thefrontairbagsaredesignedtoprovideaddi-
tionalprotectionforthechestandfaceofthe
driverandthefrontseatpassengerwhen:
—safetybeltsarewornproperly,
—theseatshavebeenpositionedso thattheoc-
cupantisproperlyseatedasfaras possible
fromtheairbag.
Because
airbagsinflateintheblinkofaneyewith
greatforce,thingsyouhaveonyourlaporhave
placedontheseatcouldbecomedangerouspro-
jectiles,andbepushedintoyouiftheairbagin-
flates.
197
>

Airbagsystem

Whenanairbagdeploys,finedustisreleased.
Thisisnormalandisnotcausedbyafireinthe
vehicle.Thisdustismadeupmostlyofapowder
usedtolubricatetheairbagsastheydeploy.It
couldirritateskin.
Itisimportanttorememberthatwhilethesup-
plementalairbagsystemisdesignedtoreduce
thelikelihoodof seriousinjuries,otherinjuries,
forexampleswelling,bruisingandminorabra-
sions,canalsohappenwhenairbagsinflate.Air-
bags donotprotectthearmsorthelowerparts
ofthebody.Frontairbagssupplementthethree
pointsafetybeltsonlyinsomefrontalcollisions
inwhichthevehicledecelerationishighenough
todeploytheairbags.
Frontairbagswillnotdeploy:
—iftheignitionisswitchedoffwhenacrashoc-
curs,
—insidecollisions,
—inrear-endcollisions,
—inrollovers,
—whenthecrashdecelerationmeasuredbythe
airbagsystemislessthantheminimumthresh-
old neededforairbagdeploymentasregistered
bytheelectroniccontrolunit.
Thefrontpassengerairbagwillalsonot
deploy:
—whenthefrontpassengerseatisnotoccupied,
—whentheelectricalcapacitancemeasuredby
thecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystemfor
thefrontpassengerseatindicatesthatthepas-
sengersidefrontalairbagmustbeswitchedoff
bytheelectroniccontrolunit (thePASSENGER
AIRBAGOFF%;light>page200andhowthey
workcomesonandstayson).

—Occupantswhoareunbelted,outofposition
ortooclosetotheairbagcanbeseriouslyin-
juredby anairbagasitunfoldswithgreat
forceintheblinkofaneye>page189.

ZA\WARNING
Achildinarearward-facingchildseatinstal-
ledonthefrontpassengerseatwillbeseri-
ouslyinjuredandcanbekilledifthefrontair-
baginflates-evenwithanAdvancedAirbag
System.
—Theinflatingairbagwillhitthechildseator
infantcarrierwithgreatforceandwill
smashthechildseatandchildagainstthe
backrest,centerarmrest,doororroof.
—Alwaysinstallrear-facingchildseatsonthe
rearseat.
—Ifyoumustinstallarearwardfacingchild
seatonthefrontpassengerseatbecauseof
exceptionalcircumstancesandthePASSEN-
GERAIRBAGOFF%;lightdoesnotcomeon
andstayon,immediatelyinstalltherear-
facingchildseatinarearseatingposition
andhavetheairbagsysteminspectedby
yourAudidealer.


ZA\WARNING
Sittinginthewrongpositioncanincreasethe
riskofseriousinjuryincrashes.
—Toreducetheriskofinjurywhentheairbags
inflate,thedriverandpassengersmustal-
wayssitinanuprightposition,mustnot
leanagainstorplaceanypartoftheirbody
tooclosetotheareawheretheairbagsare
located.


198
ZAWARNING
Objectsbetweenyouandtheairbagwillin-
creasetheriskofinjuryinacrashbyinterfer-
ingwiththewaytheairbagunfoldsorbybe-
ingpushedintoyouastheairbaginflates.
—Neverholdthingsinyourhandsoronyour
lapwhenthevehicleisinuse.
—Nevertransportitemsonorintheareaof
thefrontpassengerseat.Objectscould
moveintotheareaofthefrontairbagsdur-
ingbrakingorothersuddenmaneuverand
becomedangerousprojectilesthatcan
causeseriouspersonalinjuryiftheairbags
inflate.
—Neverplaceorattachaccessoriesorother
objects(suchascupholders,telephone
brackets,large,heavyorbulkyobjects)on
thedoors,overornear theareamarked
“AIRBAG”onthesteeringwheel,instrument
panel,seatbackrestsorbetweenthose
areasandyourself.Theseobjectscould

8S1012721BA
Airbagsystem


causeinjuryinacrash,especiallywhenthe
airbagsinflate.
—Neverreclinethefrontpassenger'sseatto
transportobjects.Itemscanalsomoveinto
theareaofthesideairbagorthefrontair-
bagduringbrakingorinasuddenmaneuver.
Objectsnear theairbagscanbecomeprojec-
tilesandcauseinjury,particularlywhenthe
seatisreclined.
—Neverplaceortransportobjectsonthefront
passengerseat.Objectsonthefrontpassen-
gerseatcouldcause thecapacitivesensorin
theseattosignaltoairbagsystemthatthe
seatisoccupiedbyapersonwhenitinfactis
not,orthatthepersonontheseatisheavier
thanheorsheactuallyis.Thechangein
electriccapacitancebecauseofsuchobjects
cancausethepassengerfrontairbagtobe
turnedonwhenitshouldbeoff,orcan
causetheairbagtoworkinawaythatisdif-
ferentfromthewayitwouldhaveworked
withoutobjectsontheseat.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthereisnothingon
thefrontpassengerseatthatwillcausethe
capacitivepassengerdetectionsystemin
theseattosignaltotheAirbagSystemthat
theseatisoccupiedbyapersonwhenitis
not,ortosignalthatitisoccupiedbysome-
onewhoisheavierthanthepersonactually
sittingontheseat.Thepresenceofanob-
jectcouldcausethepassengerfrontairbag
tobeturnedonwhenitshouldbeoff,or
couldcausetheairbagtoworkinawaythat
isdifferentfromthewayitwouldhave
workedwithouttheobjectontheseat.
—Nevertiltthefrontpassengerseat backrest
forwardwhenthevehicleismoving.Anin-
flatingairbagwillforcethebackrestback-
wardandcaninjurerearseatoccupants.
gettingoutofthevehicleoropeningwin-
dowsordoors.
—Ifyouareinacollisioninwhichairbagsde-
ploy,washyourhandsandfacewithmild
soapandwaterbeforeeating.
—Becarefulnottogetthe dustintoyoureyes,
orintoanycuts orscratches.
—Iftheresidueshould getintoyoureyes,
flushthemwithwater.




ZA\WARNING
Thefinedustcreatedwhenairbagsdeploycan
cause
breathingproblemsforpeoplewitha
historyofasthmaorotherbreathingcondi-
tions.
—Toreducetheriskofbreathingproblems,
thosewithasthmaorotherrespiratorycon-
ditionsshouldgetfreshairrightawayby


Monitoringthe
AdvancedAirbagSystem
Airbagmonitoringindicatorlight
Twoseparateindicatorsmonitorthefunctionof
theAdvancedAirbagSystem:thekalightand
thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;ON@light.
TheAdvancedAirbagSystemaswellastheside
airbagsandsidecurtainairbagswithejection
mitigationfeatures(includingtheelectroniccon-
trolunit,sensorsandsystemwiring)areall
monitoredcontinuouslytomakesurethatthey
arefunctioningproperlywhenevertheignitionis
on.Everytimeyouturnontheignition,theair-
bagsystemindicatorlightBjwiltcomeonfora
fewseconds(functioncheck).
The systemmustbeinspectedwhenthe
indicatorlightBa:
—doesnotcomeonwhentheignitionisswitched
on,
—doesnotgooutafewsecondsafteryouhave
switched
ontheignition,or
—comesonwhiledriving.
Ifanairbagsystemmalfunctionisdetected,the
indicatorlightwillcomeontoserveasaconstant
remindertohavethesysteminspectedimmedi-
ately.
If amalfunctionoccurs thatturnsthefrontair-
bagonthepassengersideoff,thePASSENGER
AIRBAGOFF4%;lightwillcomeonandstayon
whenever theignitionison.
199

Airbagsystem


ANWARNING
Anairbagsystemthatisnotfunctioningprop-
erlycannotprovidesupplementalprotection
inafrontalcrash.
—Iftheairbagindicatorlight>page18
comes
whenthevehicleisbeingused,have
thesysteminspectedimmediatelybyyour
authorizedAudidealer.Itispossiblethat
theairbagwillinflatewhenitisnotsup-
posedto,orwillnotinflatewhenitshould.
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;ON®light



Fig.155Sectionfromtheheadliner:PASSENGERAIRBAG
OFF3%;ON@light
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;ON®lightis
locatedintheheadliner>fig.155.
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;lightwillcome
onandstayontotellyouwhenthefrontAd-
vancedAirbagonthepassengersidehasbeen
turnedoffby theelectroniccontrolunit.Ifthe
bulbforthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#%;ON@
lightburnsout,theairbagindicatorlightEawill
comeontosignalamalfunctionintheAdvanced
AirbagSystem.Althoughtheburned-outbulb
willnotchangethewaythefrontpassenger's
frontalairbagworks,itwillnolongerbepossible
touse thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3%;ON@
lighttomakesurethattheairbagon/offstatusis
correctfortheoccupantonthefrontpassenger
seat.Havetheairbagsysteminspectedimmedi-
atelybyyourauthorizedAudidealer.
The PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF2;ON@light
willblinkforabout5secondswhen:
—thecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystem,
whichswitchesthefrontseatpassenger'sfron-
talAdvancedAirbagonandoff,detectsa
200
changeinthestatusofthefrontpassenger
seat.
AssoonasthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF¥;ON
®lightstopsblinking,alwaysmakesurethatthe
airbagstatus(onoroff)asshownbythelightis
properfortheage,sizeandelectricalcapacitance
ofthepersonoccupying thefrontpassengerseat.
Alwaysmakesurethatthesafetybeltforthe
frontpassengerseatisproperlyfastened.
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;/PASSENGER
AIRBAGON@lightwillshowthestatusofthe
frontseatpassenger'sfrontalAdvancedAirbag.
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light:
—willcomeonifthefrontpassengerseatisnot
occupied;
—willcomeoniftheelectricalcapacitancemeas-
uredby thecapacitivepassengerdetectionsys-
temforthefrontpassengerseatequals the
combinedcapacitanceofaninfantuptoabout
oneyearofageandoneoftherearward-facing
orforward-facingchildrestraintslistedinFed-
eralMotorVehicleSafetyStandard208with
whichtheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehi-
cle wascertified;Foralistingofthechildre-
straintsthatwereusedtocertifyyourvehicle's
compliancewiththeU.S.SafetyStandard
=>page214.
—willgooutifthefrontpassengerseatisoccu-
piedbyanadultasregisteredby thecapacitive
passengerdetectionsystem.
—ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;lightmust
comeonandstayoniftheignitionisonand...
—acarbedhasbeeninstalledonthefront pas-
sengerseat,or
—arearward-facingchildrestrainthasbeenin-
stalledonthefrontpassengerseat,or
—aforward-facingchildrestrainthasbeeninstal-
ledonthefrontpassengerseat,
—andiftheelectricalcapacitanceregisteredon
thefrontpassengerseatisequaltoorlessthan
thecombinedcapacitanceofatypical1year-
old infantandoneoftherearward-facingor
forward-facingchildrestraintslistedinFederal
MotorVehicleSafetyStandard208withwhich
theAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehiclewas
certified.

Airbagsystem

tuilSelaeatiamaaela|
monitoringtheAdvanced

nson
irbagSystem

Z\WARNING
—IfthestatusoftheAdvancedAirbagSystem
haschangedwhilethevehicleismoving,the
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#7;ON®light
blinksforabout5secondstocatchthedriv-
er'sattention.Ifthishappens,alwaysstop
assoonasitissafe todosoandcheckthe
stepsdescribedabove.
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3%;light
doesnotgooffwhenanadultwhoisnot
verysmallissittingonthefrontpassenger
seataftertakingthestepsdescribedabove,
makesuretheadultisproperlyseatedand
restrainedatoneoftherearseatingposi-
tions.Havetheairbagsysteminspectedby
yourauthorizedAudidealerbeforetrans-
portinganyoneonthefrontpassengerseat.

ZAWARNING
Anairbagsystemthatisnotfunctioningprop-
erlycannotprovidesupplementalprotection
inafrontalcrash.
—Iftheairbagindicatorlight>page18
comes
whenthevehicleisbeingused,have
thesysteminspectedimmediatelybyyour
authorizedAudidealer.Itispossiblethat
theairbagwillinflatewhenitisnotsup-
posedto,orwillnotinflatewhenitshould.

ZAWARNING
Ifthefrontairbaginflates,a childwithouta
childrestraint,orinarearward-facingchild
safetyseat,orinaforward-facingchildre-
straintthathas notbeenproperlyinstalled
willbeseriouslyinjuredandcanbekilled.
—Eventhoughyourvehicleisequippedwith
anAdvancedAirbagSystem,makecertain
thatallchildren,especially12yearsand
younger,alwaysrideonthebackseatprop-
erlyrestrainedfortheirageandsize.
—Alwaysinstallforwardorrear-facingchild
seatsontherearseat-evenwithanAd-
vancedAirbagSystem.

202

—Ifyoumustinstallarearward-facingchild
seatonthefrontpassengerseatbecauseof
exceptionalcircumstancesandthePASSEN-
GERAIRBAGOFF3;lightdoesnotappear
andstayon,immediatelyinstalltherear-
facingchildseatinarearseatingposition
andhavetheairbagsysteminspectedby
yourAudidealer.
—If,inexceptionalcircumstances,youmust
installaforward-facingchildrestrainton
thefrontpassengerseat,alwaysmovethe
seatintoitsrearmostpositionintheseat's
foreandaftadjustmentrange,asfaraway
fromtheairbagaspossible.Thebackrest
mustbeadjustedtoanuprightposition.
MakesurethatthePASSENGERAIRBAG
OFF%;lightcomesonandstaysonallthe
timewhenever theignitionisswitchedon.

ZAWARNING
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light
doesnotgooutwhenanadultissittingon
thefrontpassengerseataftertakingthe
stepsdescribed above,makesuretheadult
isproperlyseatedandrestrainedatoneof
therearseatingpositions.
—Havetheairbagsysteminspectedbyyour
Audidealer before transportinganyoneon
thefrontpassengerseat.

(i)Tips
Ifthecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystem
determinesthatthefrontpassengerseatis
empty,thefrontalairbagonthepassenger
sidewillbeturnedoff,andthePASSENGER
AIRBAGOFF%;lightwillstayon.
Repair,careanddisposaloftheairbags
Partsoftheairbagsystemareinstalledatmany
differentplacesonyourAudi.Installing,remov-
ing,servicingorrepairingapartinanareaofthe
vehiclecandamageapartofanairbagsystem
andpreventthatsystemfromworkingproperly
inacollision.
Therearesomeimportantthingsyouhaveto
knowtomakesurethattheeffectiveness ofthe>

Airbagsystem


ZA\WARNING
Changingthevehicle'ssuspensionincluding
useof unapprovedtire-rimcombinationscan
changeAdvancedAirbagperformanceandin-
creasetheriskofseriouspersonalinjuryina
crash.
—Neverinstallsuspensioncomponentsthat
donothavethesameperformancecharac-
teristicsasthecomponentsoriginallyinstal-
ledonyourvehicle.
—Neverusetire-rimcombinationsthathave
notbeenapprovedbyAudi.


Kneeairbags
Descriptionofkneeairbags
Thekneeairbagsystemcanprovidesupplemen-
talprotectiontoproperlyrestrained frontseat
occupants.

BFV-0186



Fig.156Driver'skneeairbag
Thedriverkneeairbagisintheinstrumentpanel
underneaththesteeringwheel>fig.156,the
airbagforthepassengerisataboutthesame
heightintheinstrumentpanelunderneaththe
glovecompartment.
Thekneeairbagoffersadditionalprotectionto
thedriver'sandpassenger'skneesandupperand
lowerthigh areasandsupplementstheprotec-
tionprovidedbythesafetybelts.
Ifthefrontairbagsdeploy,thekneeairbagsalso
deployinfrontalcollisionswhenthedeployment
thresholdstoredinthecontrolunitismet
=page197,Moreimportantthingstoknow
aboutfrontairbags.
204

Inadditiontotheirnormalsafetyfunction,safe-
tybeltshelpkeepthedriverorfrontpassengerin
positioninafrontalcollisionso thattheairbags
canprovidesupplementalprotection.
Theairbagsystemisnotasubstituteforyour
safetybelt.Rather,itispartoftheoveralloccu-
pantrestraintsysteminyourvehicle.Alwaysre-
memberthattheairbagsystemcanonlyhelpto
protectyouifyouarewearingyoursafetybelt
andwearingitproperly.Thisiswhyyoushouldal-
wayswearyoursafetybelt,notjustbecausethe
law
requiresyoutodoso>page180,General
notes.
Remembertoo,airbagswilldeployonlyonceand
onlyincertainkindsofaccidents-yoursafety
beltsarealwaystheretoofferprotectioninthose
accidentsinwhichairbagsarenotsupposedto
deployorwhenthey havealreadydeployed,for
examplewhenyourvehiclestrikesorisstruckby
anotherafterthefirstcollision.
Thisisjustoneofthereasonswhyanairbagis
notasubstituteforthesafetybelt.Theairbag
systemworksmosteffectivelywhenusedwith
thesafetybelts.Therefore,alwayswearyour
safetybeltscorrectly.
Itisimportanttorememberthatwhilethesup-
plementalkneeairbagsystemisdesignedtore-
ducethelikelihoodof seriousinjuries,otherinju-
ries,forexample,swelling,bruisingand minor
abrasionsandfrictionburnscanalsooccurwhen
anairbaginflates.
Thekneeairbagsystembasicallyconsistsof:
—Theelectroniccontrolmodule
—Twoinflatableairbags(airbagandgasgenera-
tor),oneforthedriverandoneforthefront
passenger
—Theairbagwarninglightintheinstrumentclus-
ter
Thekneeairbagsystemwillnotdeploy:
—whentheignitionisswitchedoff
—infrontalcollisionswhenthedeceleration
measuredbythecontrolunitistoolow
—insidecollisions
—inrear-endcollisions

8S1012721BA

Airbagsystem

—inrollovers
—intheeventofasystemmalfunction(warning/
indicatorlightison)>page18.

Z\WARNING
—Safetybeltsandtheairbagsystemcanonly
provideprotectionwhenoccupantsarein
theproperseatingposition>page197.
—Iftheairbagindicatorlight>page18
comes
whenthevehicleisbeingused,have
thesysteminspectedimmediatelybyyour
authorizedAudidealer.Itispossiblethat
theairbagwillinflatewhenitisnotsup-
posedto,orwillnotinflatewhenitshould.



Howkneeairbagswork
Theriskofinjurytothelegareacanbereduced
byfullyinflatedkneeairbags.
S 6
= o

Fig.157Inflatedairbagsprotectinginafrontalcollision

Thekneeairbagsystemhasbeendesignedso
thattheairbagsforthedriverandfrontpassen-
gerdeployincertainbut notallfrontalcollisions.
Ifthefrontairbagsdeploy,thekneeairbagsalso
deployinfrontalcollisionswhenthedeployment
thresholdstoredinthecontrolunitismet.
Whenthesystemdeploys,theairbagsfill witha
propellantgas,andinflatebetweenthelower
partoftheinstrumentpanelandthedriverand
thelowerpartoftheinstrumentpanelandthe
frontpassenger>page197,fig.154.
Althoughtheyarenotasoftpillow,theycan
“cushion”theimpact andinthiswaythey can
helptoreducetheriskofinjurytothelowerex-
tremities.
Allofthistakesplaceintheblinkofaneye,so
fastthatmanypeopledon'tevenrealizethatthe
airbagshavedeployed.Theairbagsalsoinflate
withagreatdeal offorceanditisimportantfor
occupantsafetythatnothingshouldbeintheir
waywhentheydeploy.
Fullyinflatedairbagsincombinationwithproper-
lywornsafetybeltsslowdownandlimittheoc-
cupant'sforwardmovementandhelptoreduce
theriskofinjury.
Importantsafetyinstructionsontheknee
airbagsystem
Airbagsareonlysupplementalrestraints.Always
wearsafetybeltscorrectlyandrideinaproper
seatingposition.
Thereisalotthatyou andyourpassengersmust
knowanddotohelpthesafetybeltsandairbags
toprovidesupplementalprotection.

ZAWARNING
Aninflatingkneeairbagcancauseseriousin-
jury.Wearingsafetybeltsincorrectlyandim-
properseatingpositions increasetheriskof
seriouspersonalinjuryanddeathwhenevera
vehicleisbeingused.
—Thekneeairbagsystemcannotprotectyou
properlyifyouareseatedtooclosetoanyof
theairbaglocations.Whenadjustingtheir
seatpositions,it isimportantthatboththe
driverandthefrontpassengerkeeptheir
upperbodiesandkneesatthefollowing
minimumsafedistances:
—atleast10in(25cm)betweenthechest
andthesteeringwheel/instrumentpanel.
—atleast4in(10cm)betweentheknees
andthelowerpartoftheinstrumentpan-
el.
—Theriskofpersonalinjuryincreasesifyou
leanforwardortotheside,oriftheseatis
improperlypositionedandyouarenot wear-
ingyoursafetybelt.Theriskincreaseseven
moreshould theairbagdeploy.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthekneeairbagcan
inflatewithoutinterference.Objectsbe-
tweenyouandtheairbagcanincreasethe


205