weight AUDI A5 2015 Owner´s Manual

Airbag syste m
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped w ith a front Advanced
A irbag System in compl iance with Un ited States
F ederal Motor Vehicle Sa fety Standard 208 asap­
plicab le at the time your vehicle was manu fac­
tured .
The front Advanced Airbag System supplements
the safety belts to provide add itiona l protect ion
for the driver's and front passenger's heads and
upper bodies in frontal crashes. The airbags in­
flate only in fronta l impacts when the vehicle de­
celeration is high enough.
The front Advanced Airbag System for the front
seat occupants is not a substitute for your safety be lts. Rather, it is part of the overall occupant re ­
straint system in your veh icle. Always remember
that the airbag system can only help to protect
you, if you are sitting upright, wearing your safe ­
ty belt and weari ng it properly . This is why you
and your passengers must always be p roper ly re­
strained, not just because the law requires you to
be.
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle has
been ce rtified to meet the "low risk" require­
ments for 3 and 6 yea r-old ch ild ren o n the pas ­
senger side and very small ad ults on the drive r
side . The low risk deployment c riteria a re intend­
ed to he lp red uce the risk of injury through inter­
action with the front airbag t hat can occur, for
examp le, by being too close to the steering wheel
and instrument panel when the airbag inflates.
I n addition, the system has been certified to
comp ly with the "suppression" requirements of
the Safety Standard, to turn off the front airbag
for infants 12 months old and yo unger who are
restrained on the front passenger seat in ch ild re­
straints that are listed in the Standard
c::> page 153, Child restraints and Advanced Air­
bags.
"Suppression" requires the front airbag on the passenger side to be turned off if:
- a chi ld up to about one year of age is restrained
on the front passenger seat in one of the rear­
facing or forward-fac ing infant restraints listed
i n Federa l Motor Veh icle Safety Standard 208
134 with which the Advanced Airbag System in you
r
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
c::> page 153,
- weight less than a thresho ld level stored in the
control unit is detected on the front passenger
seat.
When a person is detected on the front passen­
ger seat, weighing more than the tota l we ight of
a child that is about
1 year old restrained in one
of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant re­
stra ints (listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 with which the Advanced Airbag
System i n your vehicle was certified), the front
a irbag on the passenger s ide may or may not de­
ploy.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
whe n the elect ron ic cont ro l unit detects a total
weight on the fro nt passenger seat that requires
the front airbag to be tu rned off. If the
PASSEN ­
GER 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 dep loy if
the control unit senses an impact that meets the cond it ions stored in its memory.
If the total weight on the front passenger seat is
more than that of a typical 1 year-o ld, but less
than the weight of a small adult, the front airbag
on the passenger s ide may deploy (the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG O FF
light does not come on).
For ex ample , the air b ag ma y deplo y if:
-a small ch ild that is heavier than a typical 1
year -old chi ld is on the front passenger seat (re ­
gardless of whether the chi ld is in one of the
child safety seats listed
c::, page 153),
- a child who has outgrown chi ld restraints is on
the front passenger seat.
If the fron t passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the center of
the i nstr ument pane l will come on and stay on.
The front airbag on the passenger side may
not
deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not ill uminate and stay lit) if: .,..

Airbag syste m
detail below . Because the front passenger seat
contains important parts of the Advanced Airbag
System, you must take care to prevent it from be­ ing damaged. Damage to the seat may prevent
the Advanced Airbag for the front passenger seat
from doing its job in a crash .
The front Ad vanced Airb ag System con sis ts
of the follow ing :
-Crash sensors in the front of the veh icle that
measure veh icle acceleration/decelerat ion to
provide information to the Advanced Airbag
System about the severity of the crash .
- An electronic control unit, with integrated crash sensors for front and side impacts. The
control un it "decides" whether to fire the front
airbags based on the informa tion rece ived from
the crash sensors. The con trol un it also "de­
cides" whether the safety be lt pretensioners
shou ld be activated.
- An Advanced Airbag wi th gas generator and
control valve for the driver inside the steering
whee l hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control va lve inside the instrument panel for
the front passenger.
- A weight -sensing mat under the upholste ry
padding of the front passenger seat cushion
that measures the total weight on the seat. The information registered is sent continuously to
the electronic control un it to regu late dep loy­
ment of the front Advanced Airbag on the pas­
senger side.
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
light in the instrument cluster
r=> page 139.
-A sensor in each front seat registers the dis­
tance between the respect ive seat and the
steering wheel or instrument panel. The infor­
mation registered is sent cont inuously to the
electron ic co ntro l unit to regulate deployment
of the front Advanced Airbags.
- T he
PA SSENGER AIR B AG OFF light comes on
and stays on in the center of the instrument
pane l
c>page 139, fig . 135 and tells you when
the front Advanced A irbag on the passenger
side has been turned off.
- A sensor below the safety belt la tch for the
front seat passenge r to measure the tension on
136 the safety belt
. The tension on the safety be lt
and the weight registered by the weight-sens ­
ing mat help the control unit "decide" whether
the front a irbag for the front passenger seat
should be turned
off or not c> page 130, Child
restraints on the front seat -some important
things to know.
- A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driver
and for the front seat passenger that senses
whether that safety belt is latched or not and transm its this info rmat ion to the elect ro ni c
cont ro l unit .
_&. WARNING
Damage to the fron t passenger seat can pre­
vent the front a irbag from working properly.
- I mproper repa ir or d isassembly of the front
passenger and driver seat will p revent the
Advanced Airbag System from functioning properly.
- Repairs to the front passenge r seat must be
performed by qualified and properly trained
wo rkshop personne l.
- Never remove the front passenger o r driver
seat from the vehicle .
- Never remove the upho lstery from the front
passenger seat.
- Never d isassemble o r remove par ts from the
seat or disconnect w ires from it.
- Never carry sharp obje cts in yo ur pocke ts or
place them on the seat. If the weight-sens­
ing mat in the passenger seat is p unctured
it cannot work properly.
- Never carry things on you r lap or carry ob­
jects on the passenger seat. S uch items can
increase the weight registe red by the
weight-sensing mat and send the wrong in­ formation to the airbag contro l unit.
- Never store items under the front passenger
seat. Parts of the Advanced Airbag System
under the passenger seat could be dam­
aged, preventing them and the airbag sys­
tem from wo rking prope rly.
- Never p lace seat covers or rep lacement up­
holstery that have not been specifically ap­
proved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Air­ bag System from recogniz ing ch ild

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rl I.O
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"' rl
restraints or occupants on the front passen­
ger seat and prevent the side airbag in the
seat backrest from deploying properly.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger seat.
The additional padding will prevent the
we ight-sensing mat in the seat from accu­
rately registering the child rest raint or per­
son on the seat and prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from functioning properly.
- If you must use a child restra int on the front
passenge r seat and the child rest rain t man­
ufac turer's instructions requ ire the use of a
towel, foam c ushion or someth ing e lse to
properly position the child restraint, make
certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever the
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in­
stall child restra int i n a rear seating position
and have the a irbag system inspected by
your authorized Aud i dealer.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the s ide
a irbags supplement the protect ion offered by the
front three-point safety belts with pretensioners
and load limiters and the adjustable head re­
straints to help reduce the risk of injury in a wide
range of accident and crash situations . Be sure to
read the important information about safety and
heed the WARNINGS in this chapter.
Dep loyment of the Advanced Airbag System and
the act ivation of the safety belt pretensioners de­
pend on the deceleration measured by the crash
sensors and registered by the electronic control
un it . Crash sever ity depends on speed a nd decel­
e rat ion as well as the mass and st iff ness of the
ve hicle or objec t involved in the crash.
On the passenger s ide, regard less of safety belt
use, the a irbag w ill be turned off if the weight on
the passenge r seat is less than the amount pro­
grammed in the electronic con trol un it . The front
Ai rb ag system
airbag on the passenger side will also be turned
off if one of the child safety seats that has been certified under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 has been recogni zed on the seat .
The
P A SSENGER AIR B AG OFF light comes on
and stays on to tell you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off
q page 130, Child restraints on the front seat -
some important things to know .
_&. WARNING
To reduce the risk of inju ry when an airbag i n­
flates, a lways wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestra ined, leaning forward, sit­
ting sideways or out of posi tion in any way,
your risk of injury is m uch higher.
- You will a lso receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up aga inst the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
qpoge 129.
More important things to know about front
airbags
Fi g. 1 34 Inflated fro nt a irbags
-.... N 0 :i:
~
Safety be lts are important to he lp keep front seat
occupants in the proper seated position so that
airbags can unfold properly and provide supple­
mental protection in a frontal coll ision.
T he front airbags a re des igned to provide addi­
tiona l protection for the chest and face of the
driver and the front seat passenger when:
- safety belts are worn properly,
- t he seats have bee n positioned so tha t the oc-
cupant is properly seated as far as possible
from the airbag, ..,
137

Airbag syste m
-and the head restraints have been properly ad-
justed .
Because airbags inflate i n the blink of an eye with
g rea t force, things you have on yo ur lap or have
p laced on the seat cou ld become dangerous pro­
jectiles, and be pushed into you if the airbag in­
flates.
When an a irbag deploys , fine dust is released.
This is normal and is not caused by a fire in the
vehicle . This dust is made up most ly of a powder
used to lubricate the airbags as they deploy.
It
could irr itate sk in.
I t is important to remember that while the sup­
p lemental airbag system is designed to reduce
the likelihood of serious injuries, other injuries,
for example swel ling, bruising and m inor abra­
sions, can also happen when a irbags inflate. Air­
bags do not protect the arms or the lower parts
of the body. Front airbags only supplement the
three point safety belts in some fronta l collisions
i n which the veh icle deceleration is h igh enough
to deploy the airbags.
F ront airbags w ill not deplo y:
- if the ignit ion is switched off when a crash oc -
curs,
- in s ide collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in ro llovers,
- when the crash deceleration measured by the
airbag system is less than the minimum thresh­
o ld needed for airbag deployment as registered
by the electronic control un it.
Th e front pas seng er airbag will a lso not
depl oy:
-when the front passenger seat is not occupied,
- when the weight on the front passenger seat as
sensed by the Advanced Airbag System indi­
cates that the front airbag on the passenger
s ide has to be turned off by the e lectronic con­
trol unit (the
PAS SENGE R AIR BAG O FF ligh t
comes on and stays on).
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase the
r is k of serious injury in crashes .
138
-To reduce the risk of injury when the airbags
inflate, the driver and passengers must al­
ways sit in an upright pos ition, must not
lean aga inst or place any part of thei r body
too close to the area where the a irbags are
located.
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of position
or too close to the airbag can be seriously
injured by an a irbag as it unfolds with great
force in the blink of an eye
c:> page 130.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing ch ild safety seat
installed on the front passenge r seat w il l be
seriously inju red and can be killed if the front
ai rbag inflates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the chi ld safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
w ill smash the child safety seat and child
aga inst the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing ch ild safety seats
on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­
cause of exceptiona l circumstances and the
PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating posi tion and have the airbag system
inspected by your au thori zed Audi dealer .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in­
crease the risk of inj ury in a crash by inte rfe r­
ing with the way the airbag unfolds or by be­
ing p ushed into you as the airbag inflates.
- Never hold things in your hands o r on your
lap when the vehicle is in use .
- Never transpor t items on or in the a rea of
the front passenger seat. Objects could move into the area of the front ai rbags dur­
ing brak ing or other sudden maneuver and
become dangerous project iles that can
cause serious persona l injury if the airbags
inflate.

Airbag system
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come on
and stay on to tell you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been t urned off
by the electron ic control unit. Each time you turn
on the ignition, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will flash for a few seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small child or child re ­
straint on the front passenger seat,
- will go out if the front passenger seat is occu ­
pied by an adult as registered by the weight­
sensing mat .
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must come
on and stay on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the front seat ,
or
- a rearward-fac ing ch ild restra int has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
- a fo rward-facing child restraint has been instal­
led on the front passenger seat, or
- the weight registered on the front passenger
seat is equal to or less than the comb ined
weight of a typical 1 year-old restrained in one
of the rear-facing or forwa rd-facing infant re­
straints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 with which the Advanced Airbag
System in your vehicle was certified .
If the front passenger seat is not occupied, the
front airbag will not deploy, and the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on. Never install a
rearward -facing chi ld restraint on the front pas­
senger seat, the safest place for a child in any
kind of child restraint is at one of the seating po­
sitions on the rear seat
c> page 130, Child re ­
straints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and c> page 151, Child safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when one of the condit ions listed above is met,
be sure to check the light regularly to make cer­
tain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
stays on continuously whenever the ignition is
on.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not appear and not stay on all the time, stop as
soon as it is safe to do so and
140
- reactivate the system by turning the ignition off
and then turning it on again ;
- remove and reinstall the child restraint. Make
sure that the child restraint is properly installed
and that the safety belt for the front passenger
seat has been co rrectly routed around the child
restraint as described in the ch ild restra int
manufacturer's instructions;
- make sure that the convertible locking retractor
on the safety belt for the front passenger seat
has been activated and that the safety belt has
been pulled tight. The belt must not be loose or
have loops of s lack so that the sensor below the
safety belt latch on the seat can do its job
<=>page 160.
-make sure that things that may increase the
we ight of the child and child safety seat are not
being transported on the front passenger seat;
- make sure that the safety belt tension sensor is
not blocked. Shake the safety belt latch on the
front passenger seat back and forth;
- If a strap or tethe r is be ing used to tie the child
safety seat to the front passenger seat, make
sure that it is not so tight that it causes the
weight-sensing mat to measure more weight than is actually on the seat.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still does
not come on
and does not stay on continuously
(when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restra int off the front passenger
seat and install it p roperly at one of the rear
seat positions. Have the airbag system inspect­
ed by yo ur authorized Audi dealer immediately.
- move the child to a rear seat position and make
sure that the child is properly restrained in a
child restraint that is appropr iate for its size
and age .
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light sho uld NOT
come on when the ignit ion is on and an ad ult is
sitting in a proper seating position on the front
passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
5 seconds while dr iv ing, under these c ircumstan­
ces, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is proper-
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with ..,.

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his or her back up against the backrest and the
backrest is not reclined
~ page 113, Correct
passenger seating positions,
- the ad ult is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or supporting
their weight on the armrest,
- the safety be lt is being proper ly worn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety be lt web ­
bing,
- accessory seat covers or cushions or other
th ings that may cause an incorrect read ing or
impression on the weig ht-sens ing mat under
the upholstery of the seat have been removed
from the front passenger seat,
- a safety be lt extender has not been left in the
safety belt latch for the front passenger seat .
In addition to the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light in t he center of the instrument panel, the
message
PASS ENG ER AIR BAG OFF or PAS SEN­
GER AIR BAG ON
will br iefly appear in the instru­
ment cluster display . Th is is to inform the driver
of the current front passenger ai rbag status.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning prop­
erly cannot provide supplementa l protect ion
in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicato r light ~ page 19
comes when the vehicle is be ing used, have
the system inspected immed iate ly by your
authorized Audi dealer . It is possible that
the a irbag will inflate when it is not s up­
posed to, or wi ll not inflate when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a ch ild without a
child restraint, in a rearward-facing child safe­
ty seat or in a forward-facing child restraint that has not been proper ly installed will be
ser iously injured and can be killed.
- Even though your veh icle is equipped with
an Advanced Airbag System, make certa in
that all ch ild ren, especially 12 years and
Airbag syste m
younger, a lways ride on the back seat prop­
erly restra ined for their age and size.
- Always install forward o r rear-facing child
safety seats on the rear seat -even with an
Advanced Airbag System.
- If you must install a rearward-facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­
cause of except iona l circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
appear and stay on, immediately install the
rea r-facing chi ld safety seat in a rear seating
position and have the airbag system inspect­
ed by your authori zed Audi dealer .
- A tight tether or o ther s trap on a rea rward­
facing ch ild restraint attached to the front
p assenger seat can put too much pressure
on the weight-sens ing mat in the seat and
register more weight than is actually on the
seat. The heavier weight registe red can
make the system work as though an adult
were on the seat and deploy the Advanced
Airbag when it must be suppressed causing
serio us or even fatal injury to the child.
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, always move the seat into its rearmost pos ition in the seat's
fore and aft ad justmen t range, as fa r away
from the airbag as possib le. The b ackrest
m ust be adjus ted to an upr ight position.
Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignit ion is switched on.
A WARNING
--
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go out when an adult is s itting on the
front passenger seat after tak ing the steps
described above, make sure the adult is
p roperly seated and restrained at one of the
rea r seat ing pos itions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
author ized Audi dealer befo re transpo rting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
141

Airbag syste m
(D Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front passen­
ger seat detects an empty seat, the front air­
bag on the passenger side will be turned off,
and
PASS ENGE R AIR BAG OFF will stay on.
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at many
d ifferent places on your Audi . Install ing , remov­
ing, servicing or repa iring a part in an area of the
veh icle can damage a part of a n airbag system
and p revent that system from working properly
in a co llision.
There are some important things you have to know to make sure that the effect iveness of the
sys tem w ill not be impaired and that d iscarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environment.
A WARNING
-
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de­
ploying when needed or deploying an airbag
unexpectedly :
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer­
ing wheel horn pad or a irbag cover or the in ­
strument panel or modify them in any way .
- Never attach any objects such as cupholders
or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov­
ering the airbag units.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one mois­
tened with plain water. So lvents or cleaners
could damage the a irbag cover or change
the stiffness o r strength of the mater ial so
that the airbag cannot dep loy and protect
properly .
- Never repa ir, adjust, or change any parts of
the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, inst rument
panel, front seats or electrical system (in­
cluding the installation of audio equipment,
cellular telephones and CB radios, etc.)
must be performed by a qualified technician
142 who has the training and special equipment
necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that yo u see your au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- Never modify the front bumper or parts of
the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side airbag can
inflate w ithout interference :
- Never install seat covers or rep lacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
A udi .
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side a irbags in­
flate.
- Damage to the orig inal seat cove rs or to
the seam in the are a of the side ai rbag
module must a lways be repaired immedi­
ate ly by an authorized Aud i dealer.
- The a irb ag sys tem can be activated only
once . After an airbag has inflated, it mus t
be rep laced by an authorized Audi dealer or
qualif ied technic ian who has the technical
information, training and specia l equipment
necessary.
- The a irbag system can be deployed only
once . After an airbag has been deployed, it
must be replaced with new replacement parts des igned and approved espec ially for
your Aud i model version. Replacement of
comp lete airbag systems or airbag compo­
nents must be perfo rmed by qualified work­
shops only. Ma ke s ure tha t any airbag serv­
ice action is entered in yo ur Audi Warranty
&
Maintenance booklet under AIRBAG RE­
PLACEMENT RECORD.
- In accidents when an airbag is deployed, the
vehicle battery separates the alternator and
the starter from the vehicle electrical sys­
tem for safety reasons with a pyrotechn ic
circuit interrupter .
- Work on the pyrotechnic c ircuit inte rrupt­
er must on ly be performed by a qua lified
dealer -risk of an acc iden t!
- If the vehicle or the circuit interr upter is
scrapped, all app licable safety precautions
must be followed .
~

Airb ag syst em
by being pushed into you as t he airbag in­
flates.
- Never p lace or attach accessories or other
objects (such as cupholders, telephone brackets, or even large, bulky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked "AIRBAG" on the seat backrests.
- Su ch ob jects and ac cessories can become
dangerous projecti les and cause injury
when the supplemental side airbag de ­
p loys .
- Never carry any objects or pets in the de ­
p loyment space between them and the
airbags or allow chi ldren or other passen­
gers to trave l in this position .
- Always use the built-in coat hooks only for
lightweight clothing . Never leave any heavy
or sharp-edged objects in the pockets that
may interfere with side airbag deployment
and can cause personal injury in an accident .
- Always prevent the side a irbags from be ing
damaged by heavy objects knocking against
o r hitting the sides of the seatbacks .
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once . If the airbag has been triggered, the
system must be rep laced by an authorized
Audi dealership.
- Damage (c racks, deep scratches etc.) to the
o riginal seat covers or to the seam in the
area of the side airbag module must a lways
be repaired immedia tely by an authori zed
Audi dealer .
-If children a re seated improperly, their risk
of injury i ncreases in the case of an a ccident
~ page 151, Child safety .
-Never a ttempt to modify any com po nents of
the a irbag sys tem in any way .
- In a side collision, s ide a irbags w il l not fu nc­
t ion prope rly if sensors canno t correc tly
measure increas ing air pressure inside the
doors when air escapes through larger, un­
closed openings in the door panel.
- Never drive w ith inter io r doo r tr im panels
removed .
- Never drive when parts have been re ­
moved from the ins ide door panel and the
open ings they leave hav e not bee n prope r­
ly closed.
148
- Never drive when loudspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker ho les have bee n properly closed.
- Always make certain that openings are
covered or f illed if add itiona l speakers or
other equipment is installed i n the inside
door panels.
- Always have work on the doors done by an
autho rized Aud i dea le r or q ualified work­
shop .
Side curtain airbags
Description of side curtain airbags
The side curtain airbag system can provide sup­
plemental protection to properly restrained oc­
cupants .
Fig. 1 40 Sid e curt ain system , driver's s ide : side c urtain ai r­
bag loca tion
The side curtai n airbags are located on both sides
of the inter ior above the front and rear side win­
dows
~ fig. 140 . They are identif ied by the word
"AIRBAG" on the windsh ield frame and the cen ­
ter roof pi llar.
The side curtai n airbag system supplements the
safety belts and can help to reduce the risk o f in­
jury for occupants' heads and upper torso on the s ide of the vehicle that is struck in a side coll i­
s io n. The side curtain ai rbag inflates in side im­
pacts and only when the veh icle acceler ation reg­
istered by the cont ro l unit is high enough . If t his
rate is below the reference value prog ram med in­
to the control un it, the side a irbags w ill not be
trigge red, even thoug h the ca r may be bad ly
damaged as a resul t of t he coll is ion. It is no t po s­
s ible to define an airbag triggering range that
will cover every possible angle of impact, since .,._

Airbag syste m
Although they are not a soft pillow, side curtain
airbags can "cushion" the impact and in this way
they can help to reduce the risk of injury to the
head and the upper part of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag deploys.
This is quite normal and does not mean there is a
f ire in the vehicle.
Important safety instructions on the side
curtain airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Always
properly wear safety belts and ride in a proper
seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers must know and do to help the safety belts and airbags
do their job to provide supplemental protection.
A WARNING
Improperly wear ing safety belts and improper
seating posit ions increase the risk of serious
personal injury and death whenever a veh icle
is being used.
- Never let occupants p lace any parts of their
bodies in the area from which the side cur­
ta in a irbags inflate.
- Always make sure that the side curta in a ir­
bags can inflate witho ut interference. Un­
s u itable accessories fit ted inside the expan­
sion range of a head ai rbag can dangerous ly
interfere with its function. A deploying head
airbag develops enough force to catapu lt
any piece of add-on component out of its
path of inflation and into the passenger
compartment . An occupant hit by such a
project ile can suffer ser ious injury or death
¢ page 246, Technical Modifications.
- Do not swivel the sun visors to the side if yo u have any objects clipped onto them (fo r
example pens).
If the airbag should deploy,
yo u could be injured by these objects.
- Use the built-in coat hoo ks only for light­
weight cloth ing. Neve r leave a ny heavy or
sharp-edged objects in the pocke ts that m ay
in terfere with airbag deploymen t and can
ca use pe rsonal injury in an accident.
150
- Never use hangers to hang cloth ing from
the hooks.
- On ly use factory-installed sun shades or, in
the case of shades installed after the vehicle leaves the factory, on ly Audi roll-up
sunscreens may be used
¢ page 246, Addi­
tional accessories and parts replacement.
- Always sit in prope r seat ing pos ition and
wear safety belts wh ile traveling so that the
side curta in airbags can help provide protec­
tion .
- The a irbag system can only be triggered
once . If the airbag has been tr iggered, the
system must be replaced by an authorized
Aud i dea le r o r q ualified works hop.
- Always have work involving the side cu rtain
airbag system, removal and installation of
the airbag component s, or other repai rs per­
formed by an au thorized Aud i dealer or
qualified workshop . Othe rwise the ai rbag
system may not wo rk cor rectly.
- Never attempt to mod ify any components of
the airbag system in any way .

M N
i? co ,...., \!) 1.1'1
N 1.1'1 ,....,
Child safety
Important information
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision .
The physical principles of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash apply also to children
c:> page 122, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults their
muscles and bones are not fully developed. In
many respects children are at greater risk of seri­
ous injury in crashes than adults.
Because children's bodies are not fully developed,
they require restraint systems especially de­
signed for their size, weight, and body structure.
Many countries and all states of the United
States and provinces of Canada have laws requir­
ing the use of approved child restraint systems
for infants and small children.
In a frontal crash at a speed of 20-3S mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infant will be more than 20 times the
weight of the child. This means the weight of the
chi ld would suddenly be more than 260 pounds
(120 kg). Under the se cond itions, only an appro­
priate child restraint properly used can reduce
the risk of serious injury. Child restraints must be
used properly to be effective. Used improperly,
they can increase the risk of serious injury in an
accident.
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's in­
structions to be sure the seat is right for your
child's size
c:> page 154, Important safety in­
structions for using child safety seats.
Please be
sure to read and heed all of the important infor­
mation and WARNINGS about child safety, Ad­
vanced Airbags, and the installation of child re­
straints in this chapter.
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced Airbags in your vehicle and how they work
when infants and children in child restraints are
on the front passenger seat. Because of the large
amount of important information, we cannot re­
peat it all here. We urge you to read the detailed
Child safety
information in this owner's manual about airbags
and the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
and the very important information about trans­
porting children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they are
extremely important for your safety and the safe­
ty of your passengers, especially infants and
small children .
,&. WARNING
-Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating position. Always restrain
any child age 12 and under in the rear.
- 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 .
-A suitable child restraint properly installed and used at one of the rear seating positions
provides the highest degree of protection
for infants and small children in most acci­ dent situations.
,&. WARNING
Children on the front seat of any car even with
Advanced Airbags can be seriously injured or
even killed when an airbag inflates. A child in
a rearward-facing child safety seat installed
on the front passenger seat will be seriously
injured and can be killed if the front airbag in­
flates.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest or
door.
-Always install rearward-facing child safety seats on the rear seat .
- If you must install a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat in
151