AUDI A3 2012 Owner´s Manual

the forward-facing child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upr ight
posit ion.
- Make sure that the
PASSENG ER AI R BA G
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched
on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a
l ot of very important parts of the Advanced
Airbag System in it. These parts include the
weight-sens ing ma t, sensors, wiring, brack­
ets, and mo re. The function of the system in
the front passenger seat is checked by the
e lectronic control unit when the ignition is on .
The control unit monitors the Advanced Air­ bag System and turns the airbag indicator
light on when a malfunction in the system
components is detected. The function of the
airbag ind icator light is described in greater
deta il below. Because the front passenger
seat contains impo rtant parts of the Ad­
vanced A irbag System, you m ust take care to
p revent it from being damaged. Damage to
the seat may prevent the Advanced Airbag for
the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a crash .
The front Advanc ed Airbag Syst em
con sis ts o f th e following :
-Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measure vehicle acceleration/deceleration
to provide information to the Advanced Air­ bag System about the severity of the crash.
-An electronic control unit, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts .
The cont ro l unit "decides" whether to fire
the front airbags based on the information r eceived from the c rash sensors. The control
unit a lso "dec ides" whet her the safety be lt
pretensione rs should be activated.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator for
the d river ins ide the steer ing whee l hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator in­
s ide t he instr ument pane l for the front pas­
senger.
A irbag system 129
- A weight-sensing mat under the upho lstery
padding of the front passenger seat cushion
that measures the total weight on the seat .
The informat ion reg istered is sent continu­
ously to the electron ic control unit to regu­
late deployment of the front Advanced Air­
bag on the passenger side.
- An airbag monitoring system and ind icator
light in the instrument cluster
¢page 133.
-The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on in the center of the instru­
ment panel
c:::> page 133, fig . 134 and tells
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the passe nger side has been tu rned off.
- A senso r below the safety belt latch fo r the
front seat passenger to measure the tension
on the safety be lt. T he ten sion on the safety
be lt and the weight regis tered by the
weight -sensing mat he lp the control unit
"decide" whether the front airbag fo r the
front passenger seat should be turned off or not
¢ page 123, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
-A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driv­
er and for the front seat passenger that
senses whether that safety belt is latched or
not and transmits this information to the
electronic contro l un it .
A WARNING
D amage to the front passenger seat can
p revent the front airbag from wor king
properly.
- Imp roper repai r or d isassembly of the
fr on t passenge r and dr iver seat will pre­
vent the Advanced Airbag System from
functioning p roperly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must
be pe rformed by qualified and p roperly
trained workshop personne l.
- Never remove the front passenger or driver seat from the vehicle .
- Never remove the upho lstery from the
front passenger seat .
- Never disassemble or remove p arts from
-
the sea t or disconnect wires from it. ..,.
•
•

130 Airbag system
-Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or place them on the seat. If the weight­
sensing mat in the passenger seat is
punctured it cannot work properly .
- Never carry things on your lap or carry
objects on the passenger seat. Such items can increase the weight registered
by the weight-sensing mat and send the
wrong information to the airbag control
unit.
- Never store items under the front pas­
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Air­
bag System under the passenger seat
could be damaged, preventing them and
the airbag system from working proper­
ly.
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholstery that have not been specifical­
ly approved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Airbag System from recognizing child re­
straints or occupants on the front pas­
senger seat and prevent the side airbag
in the seat backrest from deploying prop­
erly .
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger
seat. The additional padding will prevent
the weight-sensing mat in the seat from
accurately registering the child restraint
or person on the seat and prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from function­
ing properly.
- If you must use a child restraint on the
front passenger seat and the child re­
straint manufacturer's instructions re­
quire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something else to properly position the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the child re­
straint is installed on the front passen­ ger seat .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install child restraint in a rear seat­
ing position and have the airbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dealer.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the
side airbags supplement the protection of­
fered by the front three-point safety belts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head restraints to help reduce the
risk of injury in a wide range of accident and
crash situations. Be sure to read the impor­
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adva need Airbag System
and the activation of the safety belt preten­
sioners depend on the deceleration measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
electronic control unit. Crash severity depends
on speed and deceleration as well as the mass
and stiffness of the vehicle or object involved
in the crash.
When the electronic control unit registers a
low severity crash and the safety belt is being
used , the airbag will not deploy. If the safety
belt is not being used, the first stage deploys,
followed by the second stage after a much lat­
er time in the crash sequence.
If the electronic control unit registers a crash
of medium severity, the first stage of the air­
bag deploys followed by the second stage at a
much later time in the crash sequence - re­
gardless of whether the safety belt is being
used or not . In higher severity crashes as reg ­
istered by the electronic control unit, both the
first and second stages deploy almost at the same time.
On the passenger side, regardless of safety
belt use, the airbag will be turned off if the
weight on the passenger seat is less than the
amount programmed in the electronic control
unit. The front airbag on the passenger side
will also be turned off if one of the child safe­
ty seats that has been certified under Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been
recognized on the seat. The
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on to tell
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off ..,_

¢ page 123, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know .
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You w ill also receive serious injuries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in­
flates - even with an Advanced Airbag
~ page 122.
More important things to know about
front airbags
F ig. 133 Inflated front a irbags
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated pos ition
so that airbags can unfold properly and pro­
vide supp lemental protection in a fronta l co l­
lision .
The front a irbags are designed to provide ad­
d itiona l protection for the chest and face of
the dr iver and the front seat passenger when :
- safety belts are worn properly,
- the seats have been positioned so that the occupant is properly seated as far as possi­
ble from the a irbag,
- and the head restraints have been proper ly
adjusted .
Because airbags i nflate in the blink of an eye
with great force, things you have on your lap or have placed on the seat could become dan­
gerous projectiles, and be pushed into you if
the airbag inflates.
A irba g sy stem 131
When an airbag deploys, fine dust is re leased.
This is norma l and is not caused by a fire in
the vehicle . This dust is made up mostly of a
powder used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy. It could irritate skin .
It is important to remember that whi le the
supplementa l airbag system is designed to re­
duce the like lihood of serious injuries, other
injur ies, for example swelling, bruising and
minor abras ions, can also happen when air­
bags i nflate. A irbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body . Front a irbags
supplement the th ree -po in t safety belts only
in some fronta l co llisions in which the vehicle
deceleration is high enough to deploy the air­
bags .
Front airbags will not deploy :
-if the ignition is sw itched off when a crash
o ccu rs,
- in side co llisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollovers,
- when the crash dece leration measured by
the airbag system is less than the minimum
threshold needed for a irbag deployment as
reg istered by the electron ic contro l unit .
The f ront pa ssen ger airbag als o will no t
deplo y:
- when the front passenger seat is not occu­
pied,
- when the weight on the front passenger
seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem ind icates that the front a irbag on the
passenger side has to be tu rned off by the
electronic contro l un it (the
PASSENGER AIR
BA G OFF
light comes on and stays o n).
.&, WARNING
Sitting in t he wrong pos ition can increase
the risk of serious injury in crashes.
- T o reduce the risk of injury when the air­
bags inflate, the driver and passenge rs
m ust always s it in an upright position,
m ust not lean against or place any part

132 Airbag system
of their body too close to the area where
the airbags are located.
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posi­
tion or too close to the airbag can be se­ riously injured by an airbag as it unfolds
with great force in the blink of an eye
r=> page 123 .
A WARNING
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 inflates -even with an Ad ­
vanced Airbag System.
- 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, door or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety
seats on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan ·
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
mediately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will
increase the risk of injury in a crash by in­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds
or by being pushed into you as the airbag
inflates.
- Never hold things in your hands or on
your lap when the vehicle is in use .
- Never transport items on or in the area
of the front passenger seat. Objects
could move into the area of the front air­
bags during braking or other sudden ma­
neuvers and become dangerous projec­
tiles that can cause serious personal in­
jury if the airbags inflate.
-
- Never place or attach accessories or oth­
er objects (such as cup holders, tele­
phone brackets, large, heavy or bulky ob­
jects) on the doors, over or near the area
marked "AIRBAG" on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat backrests or be­
tween those areas and yourself . These
objects could cause injury in a crash, es­
pecially when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger's seat
to transport objects. Items can also
move into the area of the side airbag or
the front airbag during brak ing or in a
sudden maneuver. Objects near the air­
bags can become projectiles and cause
injury, particularly when the seat is re­
clined.
A WARNING
-T he fine dust created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing problems for people
with a history of asthma or other breath­
ing conditions.
= To reduce the risk of breathing problems ,
those with asthma or other respiratory
conditions should get fresh air right
away by getting out of the vehicle or
opening windows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy, wash your hands and face with
mild soap and water before eating.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your
eyes, or into any cuts or scratches.
- If the residue should get into your eyes ,
flush them with water.

Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag
System
I Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advanced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indicator light and the
PAS SEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light.
The Advanced Airbag System (including the
e lectronic control unit, sensor circuits and sys­
tem wiring) is monitored continuously to
make sure that it is functioning properly
whenever the ignit ion is on . Each t ime you
turn on the ignition, the airbag monitor ing in­
d icator light
I will come on for a few seconds
(self diagnostics) .
t!i The syste m mus t be insp ected when the
indicato r light:
- does not come on when the ignit ion is
switched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after yo u
have switched on the ignition, o r
- comes on while d riving .
If an airbag system malfunction is detected,
the
I indicator light will first start flashing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to serve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately.
If a malfunction occurs that turns the front
a irbag on the passenger side off, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BA G OFF
light will come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on.
_& WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning
properly cannot provide supp lemen tal p ro­
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator l igh t comes on, it
means that there may be something
wrong wit h the Advanced Airbag System.
It is possible that the airbag will inflate
when it is not s upposed to, or wi ll not in­
flate when it should.
-
Airba g sy stem 133
-Have the airbag system inspected imme­
diate ly by you r authorized Aud i dea ler.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
F ig . 1 34 Sect ion from th e ce nter console: PASSENGER
AIR BAG O FF light
The PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located
in the center console
c::> fig. 134.
The PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come
on and stay on to tell you when the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the electron ic control unit. Each
time you turn on the ignit ion, the
PAS SEN­
GER A IR BAG OFF
light will flash for a few
seco nds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small ch ild or child
restraint on the front passenger seat,
- will go out if the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensi ng mat.
The
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and st ay on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the front
seat, or
- a rearward -facing child restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward -facing chi ld restraint has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
- t he weight reg iste red on the fron t passen-
ger seat is equal to or less than the com -
bined weight of a typical 1 year-old restrain­
ed in one of the rear-facing or forward -fac-
ing infant restraints listed in Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which the ..,_

134 Airbag sys te m
Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle was
certified.
I f the front passenger seat is not occ upied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS·
SENGER AIR B AG OFF
light will stay on. Nev ­
er insta ll a rearward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any kind of child restraint is at one
of the seat ing positions on the rear seat
c:> page 123, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
c:> page 143, Child Safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on
when one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PAS SENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
i gnit ion is on.
If the PAS SENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght does not appear on and does not
stay on all the time, stop as soon as it is safe
to do so and
- react iva te the system by turning the ignition
off and then turning it on again;
- remove and re insta ll the chi ld restraint.
Make su re that the child res traint is properly
insta lled and that the safety be lt for the
front passenger seat has been correct ly
ro uted throug h the child restraint as descri­
bed in the chi ld restraint man ufacturer's in­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea ­
ture on the safety be lt for the front passen­
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight. The belt must not be loose or have loops of slack so
t h at the sensor below the safety be lt latch
on the sea t can do its job
¢ page 152.
- make sure that th ings that may increase the
we ight of t he chi ld and child safety seat are
not be ing tra nspo rted on the front passen ­
ger seat;
- make su re that the safety be lt tension sen­
so r is not b locked. Shake t he safety be lt
l atch on the front passenger seatbac k and
forth;
- If a st rap or te ther is being 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 act ually on the seat.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on
and does not stay on con ­
tin uous ly (when the ignition is switched on),
- t ake the child res train t off the front passen-
ge r seat and ins tall it properly at one of the
rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dea ler
immed iate ly .
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure t hat the c hild is properly restra in­
ed in a ch ild restra int that is appropriate for
its size and age.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when t he ignit ion is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or
flashes fo r about 5 seconds wh ile driving, un­
der these c ircumstances, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is
properly seated on the center of the seat
cushion with his or her back up aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is not recl ined
c:> page 104, Proper seating position for the
driver,
- the adult is not tak ing weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the fron t passenger door or s upport­
ing their weight on the armres t,
- t he safety belt is be ing properly wo rn and
t hat the re is not a lot o f slack in the safety
be lt webb ing,
- accessory seat covers or cushions or othe r
t hings tha t may cause an incorrec t reading
or impression on the weight-sensing mat
under the upho lstery of the seat have been
removed from the front passenger seat,
- a safety belt extender has not been left in
the safety belt latch for the front passenger
seat.
In add ition to the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel,
the message
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF or

PASSENGER AIR B AG ON will briefly appear
in the instrument cluster display. This is to in­
form the driver of the current front passenger
airbag status .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light comes on, it
means that there may be someth ing
wrong with the Advanced Airbag System .
It is possible that the airbag will inflate
when it is not supposed to, or w ill not in ­
flate when it should .
- Have the airbag system inspected imme­
diately by your author ized Audi dealer .
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a ch ild without
a child restra int, or in a rearward-fac ing
child safety seat, or in a forward-facing
child restraint that has not been prope rly
installed will be serio usly injured and can
be killed.
- E ven though your veh icle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System , make
certain that a ll children, especially 12
years and younger, a lways ride on the
back seat properly restrained for their
age and si ze.
- Always install forward or rea r-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 because of exceptional circumstan­
ces and the
PAS SENG ER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and stay on, imme­
diately install the rear-fac ing ch ild safety
sea t in a rear seating position and have
the a irbag sys tem inspected by you r au­
tho rized Aud i dea ler.
-
A irbag system 135
-A t ight tether or other strap on a rea r­
ward-facing child rest raint attached to
the front passenger seat can put too much pressure on the weight-sensing
mat in the seat and reg iste r more weight
than is actually on the seat . The heavie r
weight registered can make the system
wo rk as tho ugh an adult we re on the seat
and deploy the Advanced Airbag when it
m ust be suppressed causing serious or
even fata l injury to the chi ld .
- If , in exceptiona l c ircumstances , you
m ust install a forward-facing child re­
straint on the front passenger seat, al­
ways move the seat into its rearmost po­ sition in the seat's fore and aft adjust­
ment range, as far away from the a irbag
as poss ible. The backrest must be adjust ­
ed to an upright pos ition. Make su re that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when­
eve r the ignit ion is switched on.
A WARNING
-
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go o ut when an ad ult is sitting
on the front passenger seat after taking
the steps described above, make sure the
adu lt is properly seated and restra ined at
one of the rear seating pos itions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your author iz ed Audi dealer before trans­
port ing anyone on the front passenger
seat .
(j) Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front pas­
senger seat detects an empty seat, the
front airbag on the passenger side will be
turned off, and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light will stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Pa rts of the airbag system are installed at
many different places on your Aud i. Insta lling,
removing, servicing or repa iring a part in an
area of the vehicle can damage a part of an ..,.
•
•

136 Airbag system
airbag system and prevent that system from
working properly 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 dis­
carded components do not cause injury or pol­
lute the environment.
.&_ WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal in­
jury and death by preventing an airbag
from deploying when needed or deploying an airbag unexpectedly:
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steering wheel horn pad or airbag cover
or the instrument panel or modify them
in any way.
- Never attach any objects such as cup
holders or telephone mountings to the
surfaces covering the airbag units.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one
moi5tened with plain water. Solvent5 or
cleaners could damage the airbag cover
or change the stiffness or strength of the
material so that the airbag cannot de­
ploy and protect properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the airbag system .
- All work on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, front seats or electrical sys­
tem (including the installation of audio
equipment, cellular telephones and CB
radios, etc .) must be performed by a
qualified technician who has the training
and special equipment necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that you see your authorized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop.
- Never modify the front bumper or parts
of the vehicle body .
-Always make sure that the side airbag
can inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replace­
ment upholstery over the front seat- backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags
inflate.
- Damage to the original seat covers or
to the seam in the area of the side air­
bag module must always be repaired
immediately by an authorized Audi
dealer .
- The airbag system can be activated only
once . After an airbag has inflated, it
must be replaced by an authorized Audi
dealer or qualified technician who has
the technical information, training and
special equipment necessary.
- The airbag system can be deployed only
once. After an airbag has been deployed,
it must be replaced with new replace­
ment parts designed and approved espe­
cially for your Audi model version. Re­
placement of complete airbag systems
or airbag components must be per­
formed by qualified workshops only. Make sure that any airbag service action
is entered in your Audi Warranty
& Main­
tenance booklet under
AIRBAG REPLACE­
MENT RECORD .
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and preten­
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate
Material - special handling may apply, see
www .dtsc .ca.gov/hazardouswaste/per­
chlorate. When the vehicle or parts of the restraint system including airbag modules
and safety belts with pretensioners are
scrapped, all applicable laws and regula­
tions must be observed. Your authorized
Audi dealer is familiar with these require­ ments and we recommend that you have
your dealer perform this service for you.

Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem performs in a crash. For example, us ing
tire-r im combinations not approved by Aud i,
lowering the vehicle, changing the stiffness of
the suspension, including the springs, suspen­ sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the a irbag
se nsors and sent to the electron ic control
u ni t. Some suspens ion changes c an, for exam­
p le, increase the force levels measured by the
sensors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in w hic h it would not dep loy if the
changes had not been made. Other k inds of
changes may reduce the force levels meas­
ured by the sensors and prevent the airbag
from deploying when it shou ld .
The sensors in the safety belt buckle for the
driver and front passenger seat tell the elec­
tronic control module if the safety belt is
l atched or not. If the safety belt is being used,
the front airbag will deploy at a slightly high­
e r rate of vehicl e deceleration than if the safe­
ty belt is not being used. Therefore, in a par­
ticular co llision, it is poss ible th at an a irbag
will not deploy at a seating position where the
safety be lt is bei ng used but will inflate at the
position whe re the safety belt is not being
used. It is important that nothing interfere
with the safety belt buckles so t hat the sen­
sors can send the correct information about
safety belt use to the electron ic cont rol unit.
A WARNING
Cha nging the vehicle's s uspension inclu d­
ing use of u napproved t ire-rim comb ina­
ti ons can change Advan ced A irb ag pe r­
formance and incre ase the risk of ser io us
personal in jury in a crash.
- Never ins tall suspe nsion compone nts
t h at d o not h ave the same per forman ce
characteristics as the components origi ­
nally installed on you r vehicle .
- Never use t ire-r im combinat ions that
have not bee n approved by A udi.
A irba g sy stem 13 7
A WARNING
Items stored between the safety be lt
buckle and the center console can cause
the sensors in the b uckle to send the
wrong informa tion to the e lectronic con­
trol module a nd prevent t he A dvan ced Air­
bag System from wo rking properly.
- Always ma ke sure t ha t nothing can inter­
fe re wi th the safety belt buckles and that
t hey are not obs truc te d .
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
Fi g. 135 Side a irbag location in t he drive r's seat
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests~
fig. 135 and the rear
back rest* facing the doors . Th ey are id entified
by the wo rd "AIRBAG".
The side airbag sy stem basically consi st s of :
-the electron ic control modu le and external
side impact sensors
- the two side airbags located in the s ides of
the front backrests
- two rear side airbags (as an ordered
option)
- t he airbag warn ing light in the ins trument
cl uste r.
T he airbag system is mo nitored e lec tronically
t o m ake ce rtain tha t it is fu nction ing p ro perl y
at all times . Each time you turn on the ig ni­
tion, the airbag system indicator light will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics) . ..,.

138 Airbag sys te m
The side airbag system supplements the safe­
ty belts and can help to reduce the risk of in­
jury to the driver's, front and rear* passeng­
er's upper torso and head on the side of the
vehicle that is struck in a side collision. The
a irbag dep loys only in side impacts and only
when the vehicle acceleration registered by
the contro l unit is high enough. If th is rate is
below the refe rence value p rogrammed into
the contro l unit, the side airbags will not be
tr iggered, even though the car may be badly
damaged as a result of the collision.
It is not
possible to define an airbag triggering range
that will cover every possible angle of impact,
since the c ircumstances will vary considerab ly
between one collision and another. Important
factors include, fo r example, the nature (hard
or soft) of the impacting object, the angle of
impact, veh icle speed, etc.
q page 139, Im­
portant safety instructions on the side airbag
system.
As ide from the ir normal safety function, safe­
ty belts work to he lp keep the driver or front
passenger in position in the event of a side
coll is ion so that the side a irbags can provide
p rotection.
The airbag system is
not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rathe r, it is pa rt of the overall oc­
cupant res traint system in your ve hicle. Al­
ways remember that the side airbag system
can only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety be lt and wearing it properly. This
is another reason why you sho uld always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re­
qu ires you to do so
<=')page 113, General
notes.
It is important to remember that while the
supp lemental s ide a irbag system is designed
to reduce the like lihood of serious injur ies,
other i njuries, for example, swell ing, bruising,
and minor abras ions can also be associated
with deployed side a irbags. Remember too,
side a irbags wi ll deploy on ly once and on ly in
cer tain k inds of ac cidents -yo ur sa fety belts
are a lways there to offer protection .
Vehicle damage, repa ir costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage a re not necessar ily an ind i- cation o
f over -sensitive or failed airbag activa­
tion . In
some collisions, both front and side
airbags may inflate . Remember too, that air ­
bags will deploy only once and only in certain
k inds of collisions -your safety belts are al­
ways there to offer protection in those acc i­
dents in which a irbags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have a lready deployed .
The side airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ignit ion is turned off
- in side co llisions when the acceleration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in front -end collisions
- in rear -end co llisions
- in rollove rs.
In some types of accidents the front airbags,
s ide curtain airbags and s ide a irbags may be
t rigge red togethe r.
&, WARNING
- Safety belts and the air bag system will
only provide pro tection when occupants
are in the proper seating posi tion
¢page 139.
- If the airbag ind icator light comes on
when the vehicle is being used, have the
system inspected immediately by you r
author ized Audi dealer. The airbag may
not work properly when the vehicle ac­
celeration in a side coll is ion is high
enough to activate the a irbag.
-