2020 AUDI A3 warning

8V2012721BK
Safety belts

Adjusting the safety belt latch tongue
Applies to: vehicles with adjustable latch tongue
& Ss
g = & 3

Fig. 213 Safety belt: latch tongue clip (example)
> Slide the clip so that you can easily reach the
belt latch when putting the safety belt on.
ONT Leia aia tell
Applies to: vehicles with safety belt height adjustment
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust-
ment, the three point safety belt strap routing
can be fitted to the shoulder area, according to
body size.

B4G-0004)



Fig. 214 Safety belt height adjustment for the front seats
- loop-around fittings
The shoulder belt should lie as close to the center
of the collar bone as possible and should fit well
on the body > A\ in Safety belt position on
page 249.
> Push the loop-around fittings up > fig. 214@,
or
> squeeze together the (@) button, and push the
loop-around fittings down (2).
> Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at-
tachment is properly engaged.

ZA WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth-
er important information > page 248.
(i) Tips
With the front seats, the height adjustment
of the seat can also be used to adjust the po-
sition of the safety belts.
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause se-
vere injuries.

Wearing safety belts improperly can cause seri-
ous injury or death. Safety belts can only work
when they are correctly positioned on the body.
Improper seating positions reduce the effective-
ness of safety belts and will even increase the risk
of injury and death by moving the safety belt to
critical areas of the body. Improper seating posi-
tions also increase the risk of serious injury and
death when an airbag deploys and strikes an oc-
cupant who is not in the correct seating position.
A driver is responsible for the safety of all vehicle
occupants and especially for children. Therefore:
> Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect sit-
ting position in the vehicle while traveling
of.

ZA\ WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts increase the risk
of serious personal injury and death whenever
a vehicle is being used.
— Always make sure that all vehicle occupants
are correctly restrained and stay in a correct
seating position whenever the vehicle is be-
ing used.
— Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information > page 248.

251

Safety belts

Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
Reversible safety belt tensioners
The following functions are available when safety
belts with reversible safety belt tensioners are
fastened:
—Incertain driving situations, the safety belts
may tighten with a reversible tensioning func-
tion > page 125.
— The safety belts may also tighten with this re-
versible tensioning function in minor collisions.
Pyrotechnic safety belt pretensioners
Seat belts with pyrotechnic safety belt preten-
sioners are tensioned automatically in severe col-
lisions, depending on the circumstances. This
helps to reduce the forward motion of the occu-
pants.

ZA\ WARNING
— It is possible for the pretensioners to deploy
incorrectly.
— The pyrotechnic system can only provide
protection for one collision. If the pyrotech-
nic pretensioners deploy, the pretensioning
system must be replaced.

@) Tips
—A fine dust is released when the pyrotechnic
safety belt pretensioners deploy. This is nor-
mal and is not caused by a fire in the vehi-
cle.
— The relevant safety requirements must be
observed when the vehicle or components
of the system are scrapped. A qualified
dealership is familiar with these regulations
and will be pleased to pass on the informa-
tion to you.
Service and disposal of safety belt preten-
CTs
The safety belt pretensioners are parts of the
safety belts on your Audi. Installing, removing,
servicing or repairing of belt pretensioners can
252
damage the safety belt system and prevent it
from working correctly in a collision.
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.

ZA WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce-
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing a safety belt preten-
sioner from activating when needed or acti-
vating it unexpectedly:
— The belt pretensioner system can be activat-
ed only once. If belt pretensioners have
been activated, the system must be re-
placed.
— Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the safety belt system.
— Safety belt systems including safety belt
pretensioners cannot be repaired. Special
procedures are required for removal, instal-
lation and disposal of this system.
— For any work on the safety belt system, we
strongly recommend that you see your au-
thorized Audi dealer or qualified technician
who has an Audi approved repair manual,
training and special equipment necessary.

Airbag system

also not inflate in side or rear collisions, or in roll-
overs.
Always remember: Airbags will deploy only once,
and only in certain kinds of collisions. Your safety
belts are always there to offer protection in those
situations in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy, or when they have already deployed; for
example, when your vehicle strikes or is struck by
another vehicle after the first collision.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is a
supplementary restraint and is not a substitute
for a safety belt. The airbag system works most
effectively when used with the safety belts.
Therefore, always properly wear your safety belts
=> page 245.


ZA WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel or in-
strument panel will decrease the effective-
ness of the airbags and will increase the risk
of personal injury in a collision.
— Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm) to
the steering wheel or instrument panel.
— If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
(25 cm) from the steering wheel, investi-
gate whether adaptive equipment may be
available to help you reach the pedals and
increase your seating distance from the
steering wheel.
— All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restrained child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve-
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is also at greater risk of injury or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
— If you are unrestrained, leaning forward, sit-
ting sideways or out of position in any way,
your risk of injury is much higher.
— You will also receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
—To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly
=> page 248, Safety belts.
— Always make certain that children age 12 or
younger always ride in the rear seat. If chil-
dren are not properly restrained, they may
be severely injured or killed when an airbag
inflates.
— Never let children ride unrestrained or im-
properly restrained in the vehicle. Adjust the
front seats properly.
— Never ride with the backrest reclined.
— Always sit as far as possible from the steer-
ing wheel or the instrument panel
> page 238.
— Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat.
— Never place your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both feet
on the floor in front of the seat to help pre-
vent serious injuries to the legs and hips if
the airbag inflates.
— Never recline the front passenger's seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the area of the side airbag or the front air-
bag during braking or in a sudden maneuver.
Objects near the airbags can become projec-
tiles and cause injury when an airbag in-
flates.

ZA WARNING
Airbags that have deployed in a crash must be
replaced.
— Use only original equipment airbags ap-
proved by Audi and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary tools and
diagnostic equipment to properly replace
any airbag in your vehicle and assure system
effectiveness ina crash.
— Never permit salvaged or recycled airbags to
be installed in your vehicle.



even with an Advanced Airbag.

254
Child restraints on the front seat - some

important things to know
> Be sure to read the important information and
heed the WARNINGS for important details >

Airbag system

Always remember, a child seat or infant carrier
installed on the front seat may be struck and
knocked out of position by the rapidly inflating
passenger's airbag in a frontal collision. The air-
bag could greatly reduce the effectiveness of the
child restraint and even seriously injure the child
during inflation.
For this reason, and because the back seat is the
safest place for children - when properly restrain-
ed according to their age and size - we strongly
recommend that children always sit in the back
seat > page 278, Child safety.


Z\ WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal-
led on the front passenger seat will be seri-
ously injured and can be killed if the front air-
bag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
— The inflating airbag will hit the child seat or
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the
backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
— Always install rear-facing child seats on the
rear seat.
— If you must install a rearward facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
exceptional circumstances and the PASSEN-
GER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on
and stay on, immediately install the rear-
facing child seat in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer.
— Forward-facing child seats installed on the
front passenger's seat may interfere with
the deployment of the airbag and cause seri-
ous personal injury to the child.
— Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up against or very near the instrument pan-
el,
— Always move the front passenger seat to the
highest position in the up and down adjust-
ment range and move it back to the rear-
most position in the seat's fore and aft ad-
justment range, as far away from the airbag
as possible, before installing the forward-
facing child restraint.
— Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is behind the child restraint and
not next to or in front of the child restraint
so that the safety belt will be properly posi-
tioned.
— Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.



ZA WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in-
stall a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat:
— Always make sure the forward-facing seat
has been designed and certified by its manu-
facturer for use on a front seat with a pas-
senger front and side airbag.

ZA\ WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will
be displayed whenever a child restraint is in-
stalled on the front passenger seat and the ig-
nition is switched on.
— If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not stay on, perform the checks described
= page 265, Monitoring the Advanced Air-
bag System.
— Take the child restraint off the front passen-
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF light does not stay on.
— Have the airbag system inspected by your
Audi dealer immediately.
— Always carefully follow instructions from
child restraint manufacturers when instal-
ling child restraints.


ZA, WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in-
stall a forward or rearward-facing child re-
straint on the front passenger's seat:
— Improper installation of child restraints can
reduce their effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protection.

256

8V2012721BK
Airbag system


— An improperly installed child restraint can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
seriously
injure or even kill the child - even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
— Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child seat or
carrier.
— Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that will cause the
capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occupied by a person when it is
not, or to signal that it is occupied by some-
one who is heavier than the person actually
sitting on the seat. The presence of addi-
tional objects could cause the passenger
front airbag to be turned on when it should
be off, or could cause the airbag to work ina
way that is different from the way it would
have worked without the object on the seat.



Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occu-
pants.

B8U-0376


Fig. 215 Location of driver airbag: in steering wheel
oO
x
g > @ a
Fig. 216 Location of front passenger's airbag: in the instru-
ment panel
Your vehicle is equipped with an “Advanced Air-
bag System” in compliance with United 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 steering wheel
hub > fig. 215 and the airbag for the front pas-
senger is in the instrument panel > fig. 216. 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 the 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
for your safety and the safety of your passengers,
especially infants and small children.

Z\ WARNING
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
— Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
supplemental protection.
— Airbag work most effectively when used
with properly worn safety belts.
— Therefore, always wear your safety belts and
make sure that everybody in your vehicle 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. >


257

Airbag system


— 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 driver airbag deploys.

ZA\ WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in-
crease the risk 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 could be struck
by the airbag when it inflates.
— Objects in the zone of a deploying airbag can
become projectiles when the airbag deploys
and cause serious personal injury.
— Never hold things in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use.
— Never place 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 them 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
seat backrests; never place them between
these areas and you or any other person in
the vehicle.
— Never attach objects to the windshield
above the passenger front airbag, such as
accessory GPS navigation units or music
players. Such objects could cause serious in-
jury in a collision, especially when the air-
bags inflate.
— Never recline the front passenger seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the deployment area of the side airbags or
the front airbag during breaking or in a sud-
den maneuver. Objects near the airbags can
fly dangerously through the passenger com-
partment and cause injury, particularly
when the seat is reclined and the airbags in-
flate.

258
Z\ WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, espe-
cially infants and small children, will receive
serious injuries and can even be killed by be-
ing too close to the airbag when it inflates.
— Although the Advanced Airbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the front
passenger airbag if an infant or a small child
is on the front passenger seat, nobody can
absolutely guarantee that deployment un-
der these special conditions is impossible in
all conceivable situations that may happen
during the useful life of your vehicle.
— The Advanced Airbag System can deploy in
accordance with the ,,low risk“ option for 3-
and 6-year-old children under the U.S. Fed-
eral Standard if a child with electrical capac-
itance greater than the combined capaci-
tance of a typical one-year old infant re-
strained in one of the forward facing or rear-
ward-facing child seats with which your ve-
hicle was certified is on the front passenger
seat and the other conditions for airbag de-
ployment are met.
— Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating position.
— For their own safety, all children, especially
12 years and younger, should always ride in
the back properly restrained for their age
and
size.
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208, as
well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your vehi-
cle was manufactured.

The front Advanced Airbag System supplements
the safety belts to provide additional protection
for the driver's and front passenger's heads and
upper bodies in frontal crashes. The airbags in-
flate only in frontal impacts when the vehicle de-
celeration is high enough.

8V2012721BK
Airbag system

The front Advanced Airbag System for the front
seat occupants is not a substitute for your safety
belts. Rather, it is part of the overall occupant re-
straint system in your vehicle. Always remember
that the airbag system can only help to protect
you, if you are sitting upright, wearing your safe-
ty belt and wearing it properly. This is why you
and
your passengers must always be properly re-
strained, not just because the law requires you to
be.
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle has
been certified to meet the “low risk” require-
ments for 3 and 6 year-old children on the pas-
senger side and very small adults on the driver
side. The low risk deployment criteria are intend-
ed to help reduce the risk of injury through inter-
action with the front airbag that can occur, for
example, by being too close to the steering wheel
and instrument panel when the airbag inflates.
In addition, the system has been certified to
comply with the “suppression” requirements of
the Safety Standard, to turn off the front airbag
for infants 12 months old and younger who are
restrained on the front passenger seat in child re-
straints that are listed in the Standard
=> page 280, Child restraints and Advanced front
airbag system.
“Suppression” requires the front airbag on the
passenger side to be turned off if:
—achild up to about one year of age is restrained
on the front passenger seat in one of the rear-
facing or forward-facing infant restraints listed
in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208
with which the Advanced Airbag System in your
vehicle was certified. For a listing of the child
restraints that were used to certify your vehi-
cle's compliance with the US Safety Standard
=> page 280,
—a person is detected on the front passenger
seat that has an electrical capacitance that is
more than the total electrical capacitance of a
child that is about 1 year old restrained in one
of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant re-
straints (listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 with which the Advanced Airbag
System in your vehicle was certified), the front
airbag on the passenger side may or may not
deploy.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when the electronic control unit detects a total
electrical capacitance on the front passenger seat
that requires the front airbag to be turned off. If
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on, the front airbag on the passenger side
has not been turned off by the control unit and
can deploy if the control unit senses an impact
that meets the conditions stored in its memory.
If the total electrical capacitance registered on
the front passenger seat is more than that of a
typical 1 year-old, but less than the weight of a
small adult, the front airbag on the passenger
side may deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on).
For example, the airbag may deploy if:
—asmall child that is heavier than a typical 1
year-old child is on the front passenger seat (re-
gardless of whether the child is in one of the
child seats listed S page 280),
—a child who has outgrown child restraints is on
the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the center of
the instrument panel will come on and stay on.
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the Federal
Standard requires the airbag to meet the “low
risk” deployment criteria to help reduce the risk
of injury through interaction with the airbag.
“Low risk” deployment occurs in those crashes
that take place at lower decelerations as defined
in the electronic control unit > page 265.
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with Advanced Airbags, the safest place
for children is properly restrained on the back
seat. Please be sure to read the important infor-
mation in the sections that follow and be sure to
heed all of the WARNINGS.

ZA\ WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag in-
flates, always wear safety belts properly. >

259

Airbag system


— If you are unrestrained, leaning forward, sit-
ting sideways or out of position in any way,
your risk of injury is much higher.
— You will also receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag > page 253.

Z\ WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal-
led on the front passenger seat will be seri-
ously injured and can be killed if the front air-
bag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
— Although the Advanced Airbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the front
airbag when a rearward-facing child re-
straint has been installed on the front pas-
senger seat, nobody can absolutely guaran-
tee that deployment is impossible in all con-
ceivable situations that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicle.
— The inflating airbag will hit the child seat or
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the
backrest, center armrest, door, or roof.
— Always install rearward-facing child re-
straints on the rear seat.
— If you must install a rearward facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
exceptional circumstances and the PASSEN-
GER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on
and stay on, immediately install the rear-
facing child seat in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer.

Z\ WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in-
stall a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat:
— Always make sure the forward-facing seat
has been designed and certified by its manu-
facturer for use on a front seat with a pas-
senger front and side airbag.

260
— Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up against or very near the instrument pan-
el,
— Always move the front passenger seat to the
highest position in the up and down adjust-
ment range and move it back to the rear-
most position in the seat's fore and aft ad-
justment range, as far away from the airbag
as possible, before installing the forward-
facing child restraint.
— Always make sure that the safety belt upper
anchorage is behind the child restraint and
not next to or in front of the child restraint
so that the safety belt will be properly posi-
tioned.
— Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that will cause the
capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occupied by a person when it is
not, or to signal that it is occupied by some-
one who is heavier than the person actually
sitting on the seat. The presence of addi-
tional objects could cause the passenger
front airbag to be turned on when it should
be off, or could cause the airbag to work ina
way that is different from the way it would
have worked without the object on the seat.
— Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a lot
of very important parts of the Advanced Airbag
System in it. These parts include the capacitive
passenger detection system, wiring, brackets,
and more. The control unit monitors the system
on the front passenger seat when the ignition is
switched on and turns the airbag indicator light
on
when a malfunction in the one of the system
components is detected > page 265. Because the
front passenger seat contains important parts of
the Advanced Airbag System, you must take care
to prevent it from being damaged. Damage to

>