tow AUDI A3 CABRIOLET 2016 Owner's Manual
Page 96 of 272
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Overriding cruise control
Ove rriding means ex ceeding the selected speed
when adaptive cruise control is active, for exam
p le when pressing the accelerator peda l when
pass ing.
"'T o accelerate manua lly, p ull the lever toward
you into position @and ho ld it there . T he mes
sage
ACC : over ride appears . Or
"' press th e accelerator pedal.
"' To resume cruise control, release the lever or
take your foot off the acce lerator pedal.
Inte rrupting cruise contr ol w hil e driving
"'Move the lever into position @. The message
ACC: standb y appears. Or
"' press th e brake pedal.
"' To resume the stored speed, move the lever in
to posit ion @.
Int errupting c rui se contr ol wh en stopped
"' Push the lever away from you into position @.
The message
ACC : stan dby appears.
"' To resume cruise control, press the brake pedal
and pull the lever toward you into position@.
A WARNING
It is dangerous to activate cruise control and
resume the stored speed when the current
road, traffic or weather conditions do not pe r
m it this. This could result in a crash.
Setting the distance
App lies to: vehicles with Audi adaptive cruise control
F ig. 95 O perat ing leve r: sett ing the d ist an ce
"'Tap the switch to display the current set dis
tance
c> fig . 95 .
Assist
"'To increase or reduce the d istance in incre
ments, tap th e switch again to the right or left.
T he distance between the two veh icles will
change in the instrument cluster display.
When approaching an object detected ahead, the adaptive cruise contro l system brakes to match
that object's speed and then regul ates to the
stored distance. If the object detected ahead ac celerates, adaptive cruise contro l will also accel
erate up to the stored speed .
The higher the speed, the greater the distance in meters
c> & . The Distance 3 setting is recom
mended . That is equa l to the general recommen
dation of "half t he speed shown on the speedom
eter ".
The distances provided are example values. De pending on the driv ing s ituation, the current
speed and the way the object detected ahead is
driv ing, the actual d ista nce may be more or less
t h an these target d istances .
o::::::::,_o::::::::, ___ Distance 1: th is sett ing corresponds
to a distance of 92 feet/ 28 meters when at a speed of 62 mph ( 100 km/h), for example (time
betwee n: 1 second).
o::::::::, __ o::::::::, __ Distanc e 2: this setting corresponds
to a distance of 118 feet/ 36 meters when at a speed of 62 mph ( 100 km/h), for example (time
betwee n: 1.3 seconds) .
o::::::::, ___ o::::::::,_ Distance 3: this setting corresponds
to a distance of 164 feet
I SO meters when at a
speed of 62 mph ( 100 km/h), for example (time
betwee n: 1.8 seconds) .
o::::::::, ____ o::::::::, Distance 4: this setting corresponds
to a distance of 219 feet
I 67 meters when at a
speed of 62 mph ( 100 km/h), for example (time
betwee n: 2.4 seconds) .
A WARNING
-Driving too close to other vehicles increa ses
the risk of collis ions an d serio us inju ries .
- Sett ing sho rt d istances to vehicles ahead re
duces the dis tance an d time th at you have
to stop your vehicle safe ly . Th is increases
the need for you to pay attention to traffic . ..,.
95
Page 103 of 272
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_& WARNING
With the vibration warning switched off, no
visible warning will appear in the instrument
cluster display when crossing a lane marker.
(D Tips
Market-spec ific: your settings are stored au
tomatically and assigned to the remote con
trol key in use .
Audi side assist
Description
Applies to: veh icles with Audi side assist
Fig. 102 Sensor detection range
Fig. 103 Disp lay on the exte rior mirro r
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Side assist he lps you monitor your blind spot and
traffic behind your vehicle. Wi thin the limits of
the system, it warns you about vehicles that are
coming closer or that are traveling with you with in sensor range@
¢fig. 102: if a lane change is
classified as critical, the display @ in the exter ior
mirror
¢ fig. 103 turns on .
The display in the left exterior mirror provides as
sistance when making a lane change to the left,
while the display in the right exterior mirror pro-
Assist
vides assistance when making a lane change to
t h e right.
Information stage
As long as you do not act ivate the turn signal,
s ide ass ist
informs you about vehicles that are
detected and classified as critical. The display in
the mirror turns on, but is dim.
T he display remains dim in the information stage
so that your view toward the front is not distur
bed.
Warning stage
If you activate the turn signal, side assist warns
you about vehicles that are detected and classi
fied as critical. The display in the respective mir
ror blinks brightly. If this happens, check traffic
by glancing in the rearv iew mirror and over your
shoulder¢ .&.
in General information on
page 104.
@ Tips
You can adjust the brightness on of t he dis
play on the rearview mirror¢
page 105.
103
Page 104 of 272
Assist
General information
Applies to: ve hicles w ith Audi side assis t
®
@
©
Fig. 104 Driving s itu atio ns
I! AU DI
Fig. 105 Rear of the vehicle: pos it ion of the senso rs (exa m·
pie)
Side assist functions at speeds above approxi·
mately 19 mph (30 km/h).
@ Vehicles that are approaching
In certain cases, a vehicle will be classified as
cr itical for a lane change even if it is still some·
what far away . The faster a veh icle approaches,
the sooner the display in the exterior mirror wi ll
turn on .
@ Vehicles traveling with you
Vehicles traveling with you are indicated in the
exterior mirror if they are classified as critical for
a lane change. All vehicles detected by side assist
104
are indicated by the time they enter your "blind
spot", at the latest .
© Vehicles left behind
If you slow ly pass a vehicle that side assist has
de tected (the diffe rence in speed between the
vehicle and your vehicle is less than 9 mph or 15
km/h), the display in the exterior mirror turns on
as soon as the vehicle enters your blind spot.
The display will not turn on if you quickly pass a
vehicle that side ass ist has detected (the differ
ence in speed between the vehicle and your vehi
cle is greater than 9 mph or 15 km/h).
Functional limitations
The radar sensors are designed to detect the left
and right adjacent lanes when the road lanes are
the normal width . In some situations, the display
in the exterior mirror may turn on even though
there is no vehicle located in the area that is criti·
cal for a lane c hange. For example:
- If the lanes are narrow or if your are driving on
the edge of your lane . If this is the case, the
system may have detected the vehicle in anoth·
er lane that is
not adjacent to your current lane.
- If you are driving through a curve . Side assist
may react to a vehicle that is one lane over
from the adjacent lane.
- If side assist reacts to other objects (such as
high or disp laced guard rai ls) .
- In poor weather conditions. The side assist
functions are limited.
Do not cover the radar sensors ¢
fig. 105 with
stickers, deposits, bicycle wheels or other ob
jects, because this will affect the function. Do not
u se side assist when towing a trailer . For infor·
mation on cleaning, refer to ¢
page 224.
A WARNING
-Always pay attention to traffic and to the
area around your veh icle . S ide assist cannot
replace a driver's attention. The driver alone
is always responsible for lane changes and
similar driving maneuvers .
ll>-
Page 112 of 272
Parking system s
General information
Applies to: ve hicles w ith park ing system p lus with rearv iew
camera
F ig . 1 13 Area covered © and area not covered @by the
r earv iew came ra (example)
Fig. 114 Rear lid : locat io n of the rearview camera (exam ·
ple)
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lll
The rearview camera is located above the rear li
cense plate bracket. Make sure that the lens for
the parking system
c.:> fig. 114 is not covered by
depos its or any other obstructions because th is
can affect the function of the parking system . For
information on cleaning, refer to
c.:> page 224 .
The rearview camera coverage area includes(!)
c.:> fig. 113. Only this area is displayed in the MMI.
Objects that are outside of th is area @are not
displayed .
The accuracy of the orientation lines and b lue
surfaces d iminishes if
D ynamic mode is activated
¢ page 106.
A WARNING
-Always read and follow the applicable warn
ings
c.:> .&. in General information on
page 109.
- If the posit ion and the installation ang le of
the rearv iew camera was changed, for ex
ample, after a co llision, do not continue to
112
use the system for safety reasons . Have it
checked by an a uthorized Audi dea ler or au
thorized Audi Service Fac ility.
- Only use the rearview camera to assist you if
it shows a good, clear picture . For example,
the image may be affected by the sun shin
ing into the lens, dirt on the lens or if there is a defect.
- Use the rearv iew camera on ly if the luggage
compa rtment lid is completely closed.
If the
luggage compartment lid is open the orien
tation lines and b lue surfaces are hidden.
Ma ke sure a ny objects you may h ave mo unt
ed on t he luggage compartment lid do not
b lock the rearview camera .
- The camera lens enlarges and distorts the
fie ld of vision. The object appears both a l
tered and inaccurate on the screen .
- I n cer tain s itu ations, people or objects in
the display appea r closer or farther away:
- For objects that do not touch the ground,
such as the bumper of a parked vehicle, a
trailer hitch or the rear of a truck . Do not
use the help lines in th is case.
- If driven from a level surface onto an in cline, or a downward slope .
- If driven toward protruding objects.
- If the vehicle is carrying too much load in
the rear .
(D Note
-Always read and fo llow the applicable warn
ings
c.:> (D in General information on
page 109.
- The orange colored orientat ion lines in the
MMI display show the direction of trave l of
the vehicle rear depending on the steering
wheel angle . The front of the vehicle swings
out more than the rear of the veh icle. Main
tain plen ty of dis tance so tha t your outside
mi rror or a co rne r of your veh icle does not
c o llide wit h any obs tacle s.
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-On steep slopes, reduce the speed and se
lect a lower gear or lower selector lever po
sition. Dr ive as little as possible while press
ing the brake pedal and avoid putt ing your
left foot on the brake pedal while driving.
Th is co uld cause the brakes to overheat and
impai r the efficiency of the brakes.
- Do not let the brakes "g rind " by a lways
keeping your foot on the brake pedal. This
can cause the br akes to overhea t, i ncrease
wea r and incre ase braking dis tance unneces
sari ly.
- Certa in wea ther an d operat ing co ndi tio ns
s u ch as dr iving through wate r, d riving in
heavy ra in or d riving after washing your ve
hicle can impair the effectiveness of the
brakes . In the w inte r, ice may b uild up on
the brake pads, rotors and drums. Check
these components by braking ca refu lly . Ap
plying the brakes carefu lly severa l times
dr ies the brakes and removes ice bu ild-up .
- The effic iency of the brakes can also be im
paired by driving for long st retches on roads
cove red w ith salt without using the b rakes .
Yo u can remove sa lt deposits from the
bra ke rotors and pads by caref ully app lying
the brakes severa l t imes .
-If the front spoiler is damaged or you ins tall
ano ther spoiler, m ake sure the front wheel
bra kes are vent ilated p roper ly. O therwise,
the b rake system could overheat, whic h re
duces the ir effectiveness.
- Failure of a brake circuit impai rs b raking
performance, which increases braking dis
tance . Avoid driving the vehicle . Have it tow
ed to the nearest authorized Aud i dealer or
authorized Audi Service Fac ility .
- Never let the vehicle roll while the engine is
stopped because this increases the risk of an
acc ident.
- If the brake booster is not working, you will
have to press m uch ha rder on the brake
peda l to compensate for the lack o f the
booster .
0 Note
-Never let the bra kes " rub" by pressing the
pedal lightly when braking is not really nee-
Intellig ent Technology
essary . This causes the b rakes to overheat
and increases braking distance and causes
wear .
- Before driving on a long st retch with steep
slopes, reduce your speed and shift to the
next lower gear Th is makes use of the en
gine braking effect and relieves the brakes.
If you need to brake additionally, brake in
intervals and not continuously .
(D Tips
-If the brake booster is not work ing, you
must press the brake peda l with much more
force than normal.
- If you retrof it your vehicle with a front spo il
er, wheel covers or sim ilar items, make sure
that the air flow to the fro nt wheels is not
inter rupted . Otherwise the b rake system
can become too hot.
Electromechanical
steering
The electromechanical steering supports the
driver's steering movement s.
Power steering adapts electronically based on
the ve hicle speed .
T he veh icle st ill has f ull s teer ing f unct iona lity if
t h e power steering fails or when the engine is
stopped (towing) . To steer, you must app ly m uch
more force than usual.
Indicator lights and messages
• Do not driv e vehicle : steering defective
If this indicator light turns on and stays on and
t hi s message appears , the power steering may
have failed .
Do
not continue dr iv ing . See an author ized Audi
dealer or authorized A udi Se rvice Fac ility for as
s istance .
• Do not dr ive vehicle: steering defecti ve
There is a ma lfunction in the e lectronic steering
l ock. You cannot turn the ignition on. ..,.
119
Page 120 of 272
Intelligent Technology
Do not tow your veh icle bec ause it cannot be
steered. See an authorized Audi dealer or author
ized Audi Service Fac ility for assistance .
,IM Steering: Sy stem fault You can continu e
dri ving
If the indi cator lig ht t urns on , the steering whee l
may be mo re diff icu lt to move o r more sensitive
than usual. The steering wheel may also be a t an
angle when dr iving straight.
D rive s low ly to an authorized A udi dealer or au
thor ized A udi Se rvice Fa cility to have the m al
f u nction co rrected.
m Steering lock: sy stem fault! Please contact
Servic e
There is a malfunction in the electronic steering
lock.
Drive to an a uthori zed Aud i dea ler or authori zed
Aud i Serv ice Facility immedia tely to have the
malfunct io n corrected .
A WARNING
Have the system malfunction corrected as
soon as poss ible by an author ized Audi dealer
or au thori zed Aud i Serv ice Fa cili ty, as this in
c re ases the risk of an accident.
{D Tips
If the . or ,:rM i ndica to r light only turns on
for a short time, you may continue dr iv ing.
All wheel drive (quattro)
Applies to: veh icles with all whee l drive
In all wheel drive, all four wheels are powered .
General information
In all wheel drive, the driving power is divided be
tween all four wheels. This happens automatical
ly depe nding on your driving behavior as well as
the c urrent road cond itions . Also see
s>
page 116, Electronic stabilization control
( ES C).
The all wheel drive concept is designed for high
engine power . Your ve hicle is exceptionally pow
erful and has ex cellent driving characterist ics
120
both under normal d riving conditions and on
snow and ice . A lways read and follow safety pre
ca utions s>
.&..
Winter tires
By using all wheel dr ive, your veh icle has good
forward motion w it h standard t ires in win ter con
ditions . However, in winter we recommend using
winter or all season tires on
oil four whee ls, be
ca use this will improve the
broking effect.
Snow chains
I f there are snow ch ain laws , snow ch ains m ust
a lso be used on veh icles with all wheel drive
s>
page 219 , Snow chains .
Replacing tires
For vehicles with a ll w heel drive, o nly wheels with
t h e same ro lli ng ci rcumfe rence sho uld be used.
Avo id whee ls with diffe rent t read depths
¢ page 211 .
Offroad vehicle?
You r Audi is no t an off road vehicle - there is not
enough ground clearance. For th is reaso n, avoid
difficul t ter rain . Also see s>
page 251.
A WARNING
-Also, in veh icles with all wheel drive, ad apt
your d riving sty le to the cu rren t road and
traffic conditions. Do not let the increased
safety provi ded tempt you into taking r is k s,
because this inc reases the risk of an acc i
dent.
- The braking abi lity of your vehicle is limited
to the traction of the whee ls. I n this way, it
is not different from a two w heel drive vehi
cle . Do not be tempted to accelerate to a
hig h speed when the road is slippery, be
cause t his i ncreases the r is k of an accident .
- Note that on wet s treets, the front wheels
can " hydrop la ne" if dr iv ing at spee ds that
are too high. Unlike front w heel d rive
veh icles, t he engine does no t rev h ig her sud
de nly when t he vehi cle begins hydrop lan ing.
F or this reason, pay atte ntion to the road
conditions rega rdless of your speed to re
duce t he risk of an accident .
Page 126 of 272
Driving safety
"' Always keep both feet in the footwell so that
you are in control of the vehicle at all times.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
driver's seat, see
c;, page 53.
A WARNING
Drivers who are unbelted, out of position or
too close to the airbag can be seriously in
jured by an airbag as it unfolds . To help re
duce the risk of serious personal injury:
- Always adjust the driver's seat and the
steering wheel so that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between your breastbone
and the steering wheel.
- Always adjust the driver's seat and the
steering wheel so that there are at least
4 inches (10 cm) between the knees and the
lower part of the instrument panel.
- Always hold the steering wheel on the out
side of the steering wheel rim with your
hands at the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock posi
tions to help reduce the risk of personal in
jury if the driver's airbag inflates.
- Never hold the steering wheel at the
12 o'clock position or with your hands at
other positions inside the steering wheel
rim or on the steering wheel hub. Holding
the steering wheel the wrong way can cause
serious injuries to the hands, arms and head if the driver's airbag inflates.
- Pointing the steering wheel toward your
face decreases the ability of the su pplemen
tal driver's airbag to protect you in a colli
sion.
- Always sit in an upright position and never lean against or place any part of your body
too close to the area where the airbags are
located .
- Before driving, always adjust the front seats
properly and make sure that all passengers
are properly restrained .
- For adjustable head restraints: before driv
ing, always also adjust the head restraints
properly .
- Never adjust the seats while the vehicle is
moving. Your seat may move unexpectedly
and you could lose control of the vehicle.
126
-
-Never drive with the backrest reclined or
tilted far back! The farther the backrests are
tilted back, the greater the risk of injury due
to incorrect positioning of the safety belt
and improper seating position .
- Children must always ride in child seats
c:;, page 165 . Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front
passenger seat
c:;, page 143.
Proper seating position for the front
passenger
The proper front passenger seating position is
important for safe, relaxed driving.
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of in
jury in the event of an accident , we recommend
that you adjust the seat for the front passenger
to the following position:
"'Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is in
an upright position and your back comes in full
contact with it whenever the vehicle is moving.
"'For adjustable head restraints: adjust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos
sible, try to adjust the head restraint so that it
is as close to this position as possible
c:;, page 12 7 . Move the head restraint so that it
is as close to the back of the head as possible.
"' Keep both feet flat on the floor in front of the
front passenger seat .
"' Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
c;,page 138.
For detailed information on how to adjust the
front passenger's seat, see
c:;, page 53 .
A WARNING
Front seat passengers who are unbelted, out
of position or too close to the airbag can be
seriously injured or killed by the airbag as it
unfolds. To help reduce the risk of serious
personal injury:
- Passengers must always sit in an upright po
sition and never lean against or place any part of their body too close to the area
where the airbags are located.
Ill-
Page 130 of 272
Driving safety
-Never place or install floor mats or other
floor coverings on top of already installed
floor mats. Additional floor mats and other
coverings will reduce the size of the pedal
area and interfere with the pedals .
- Always properly reinstall and secure floor
mats that have been taken out for cleaning.
- Always make sure that objects cannot fall
into the driver footwell while the vehicle is
moving . Objects can become trapped under
the brake pedal and accelerator pedal caus ing a loss of veh icle control.
Storing cargo correctly
Loading the luggage compartment
All luggage and other objects must be properly
stowed and secured in the luggage compart
ment.
Fig. 122 Safe load positio nin g: place heavy objects as low
and as far forward as possible (example).
N ;;:; 0
> ill
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift suddenly, changing vehicle handling charac
teristics . Loose items can also increase the risk of
serious personal injury in a sudden vehicle ma
neuver or in a collision.
.,. Distribute the load evenly in the luggage com
partment .
.,. Always place and properly secure heavy items in
the luggage compartment as far forward as
possible .
.,. Secure luggage using the tie-downs provided
~ page 58.
.,. Make sure that the rear seatback is securely
latched in place .
130
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or other items can
fly through the vehicle caus ing serious per
sonal injury in the event of hard braking or an
accident. To help reduce the risk of serious
personal injury:
- Always put objects, for example, luggage or
other heavy items in the luggage compart
ment.
-Always secure objects in the luggage com
partment using the tie-down hooks and
suitable straps .
A WARNING
Heavy loads will influence the way your vehi
cle handles. To help reduce the risk of a loss
of control leading to serious personal injury:
- Always keep in m ind when transporting
heavy objects, that a change in the center of
gravity can also cause changes in vehicle
handling:
- Always distribute the load as evenly as
possible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in the
luggage compartment as possible .
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating
or the Gross Veh icle Weight Rating specified
on the safety compliance sticker on the left
door jamb. Exceeding permissible we ight
standards can cause the vehicle to slide and
handle differently.
- Please observe information on safe driving
~page 124.
A WARNING
To help prevent poisonous exhaust gas from
being drawn into the vehicle, always keep the
rear lid closed while driving .
- Never transport objects larger than those
fitting completely into the luggage area be
cause the rear lid cannot be fully closed.
- If you absolutely must dr ive with the rear lid
open, observe the following notes to reduce
the risk of poisoning:
- Close all windows,
- Close the power top,
Page 140 of 272
Safe ty belts
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
r::;, page 13 7.
Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
t hat expec tan t mothers always wear safety bel ts
correctly -throughout the pregnancy .
Fig . 135 Safety belt pos ition dur ing preg nan cy
To prov ide max imum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wear
er 's body
,:::;, page 139.
• Adjust the front sea t and adjustable head re
straint * correctly
r::;, page 53, Front seats.
• Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it even ly
across the chest and pe lvis
r::;, fig. 135, r::;, A .
• Insert the tongue into the correct b uckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
r::;, page 138, fig . 133.
• Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
A WARNING
Improperly pos itioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious persona l inju ry in an accident.
- Expectan t mothe rs must a lways wear the
lap po rtion of the safe ty belt as low as pos
sible across the pelvis and below the ro und
ing of the abdomen.
- Always rea d and heed a ll WARN INGS and
othe r important information
r::;, .&. in Fasten
ing safety belts on page 139 .
140
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only ofter the vehicle hos stopped .
.,,
Fig. 136 Releasing the tongue from the buckle
• Push the red re lease button on the buck le
r::;, fig. 136. The belt tongue wi ll spring out of
the buck le
r::;, A .
• Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position .
A WARNING
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is
moving . Do ing so will increase your r isk of be
ing inj ured or killed .
Improperly worn safety belts
0 ,-. N 0 :i: .. m
Incorrectly positioned safety belts con cause se
vere injuries.
Wear ing safety belts improperly can cause seri
ous injury or deat h. Safety belts can only work
whe n they are correct ly posit ioned on the body .
Imprope r seating positions red uce the effective
ness of safety belts and w ill even increase the
risk of inj ury and death by moving the safety belt
to c rit ic al areas of the body . Imprope r seating
pos itions also increase the ris k of serious injury
and death when an airbag dep loys and strikes a n
occupant who is not in the correct seating posi
tion. A driver is responsible for the safety of all
vehicle occupants and especially for chi ldren .
Therefore:
• Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect
sitt ing position in the vehicle while traveling
¢ A -
Page 152 of 272
Airbag syste m
-If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restraint system on
this seat .
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets, or
similar items on the front passenger seat.
The additional layers prevent the capacitive
passenger detection system from accurately
measuring the capac itance of the ch ild safe
ty seat and/or the person on the seat and
th us keep the Advanced Airbag System from
working properly .
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket. Such devices can influence the capacitance reg is
tered by the capac itive passenger detection
system, so that incorrect information is pro
vided to the airbag control unit.
- If you must use a child restraint on the front passenger seat and the child restraint man
ufacturer's instructions require the use of a
towel, foam cushion or something else to properly position the ch ild rest raint, make
certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever the
child restraint is insta lled on the front pas
senger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in
stall child restraint in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If the front passenger seat gets wet, dry it im
mediately.
- If liquid soaks into the front passenger seat,
this can keep the a irbag system from work
ing properly and may, for instance, deact i
vate the passenger frontal airbag. If this
happens, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
ligh t will come on and stay on togethe r with
the airbag indicator light
II (USA models) I
152
E,I (Canada mode ls) in the instr ument clus
ter.
- If liq uid is pooled on the seat, but has not
soaked in, th is may also keep the airbag sys
tem from working proper ly and cause the
passenger frontal airbag to be enabled
(turned on), even though there is a p roperly
installed child restraint system on the seat.
Wet towels or other wet things on the seat
cushion can have the same effect. If the
front p assenger front al airbag is turned on,
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will go
out .
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced A irbag System and the side
airbags supp lement the protection offered by the
front th ree-point safety belts with pretens ioners
and load lim ite rs and the adj ustab le head re
straints* to help reduce the risk of i njury in a
wide range of accident and cras h situations. Be
s ur e to read the impo rtant informat ion about
sa fety and heed the WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Advanced A irbag System and
the activa tion of the safety belt pretens ioners de
pend on the dece lera tion measured by the crash
senso rs and registered by the electronic contro l
unit . Crash severity depends on speed and decel
eration as well as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object involved in the crash.
On the passenger side, regard less o f safety be lt
use, the front passenger frontal airbag will be
turned off if the e lectrica l capacitance measured
by the capacitive passenger detection system on
the front passenger seat is less than the amount
programmed in t he e lectronic contro l unit . The
front passenger frontal a irbag w ill also be tur ned
off if the capacitance measured by the system for
t h e front passenger seat equals that of an infant
of about o ne yea r of age in one o f the ch ild sea ts
that was used to certify the Advanced Airbag Sys
tem under Federa l Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208. The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on to tell you when the front Ad
vanced Airbag System on the passenger side has been turned off
c::;,page 155. ..,.