ABS AUDI A4 2018 User Guide

Intelligent Technology
Intelligent Technology
Electronic stabilization
control (ESC)
Description
Elect ronic stabilization control (ESC) supports
driver safety.
It red uces the risk of slipping and
improves driving stability. ESC detects crit ica l sit­
uations such as when the vehicle is oversteering
and understeering or the wheels are spinning.
The vehicle is stabilized by applying the brakes or reducing eng ine torq ue. When the ESC engages,
the hJ ind icator light blinks in the instrument
cluste r.
The fo llow ing systems are integrated in the ESC:
Ant i-loc k bra king system (ABS)
ABS prevents the whee ls from locking when brak­
ing. The vehicle can sti ll be steered even during
hard brak ing. Apply steady pressure to the brake
pedal. Do not pump the pedal. A puls ing in the
brake pedal indicates that the system is acting to
stabilize the vehicle .
Brake assist system
The brake assist system can decrease brak ing dis­
tance . It increases braking power when the driver
presses the brake pedal quick ly in emergency sit­
uations . You must press and hold the b rake pedal
until the dangerous situat io n is over . In veh icles
with adapt ive cr uise control*, the bra ke assist
sys tem is more sensitive if the d ista nce detec ted
t o the vehicle dr iv ing ahead is too small.
Anti -Slip Regulation (ASR )
ASR reduces eng ine power when the drive wheels
begin sp inning a nd adapts the force to the road
conditions . This makes it easie r to start, acceler­
a te and dr ive up h ills.
Electron ic differenti al lock (EDL )
The EDL applies the brakes to a wheel that starts
spinning and transfers the drive power to the
other driving wheel or wheels ( if the veh icle is
eq uipped w ith all whee l dr ive*) . T his function is
not available at higher speeds.
146 In extreme cases,
ED L automat ically switches off
to keep the brake on the braked wheel from over­ heating. The veh icle is still working correct ly. ED L
will switch on again automatically when condi­
tions have returned to normal.
Steering r ecommendat ion
The ESC he lps to stabilize the vehicle by changing
the steering torque.
In veh icles with dynamic s teer ing*, ESC a lso
helps to stab ilize the steering in cr it ica l situa ­
tions.
Selective wheel torque control
Se lective whee l torque cont rol is used when d riv­
i ng on curves. The front whee l on the inside of
t h e curve or both whee ls on the i nside of the
curve are braked se lectively as needed. This al­
l ows more precise driving in curves.
Automatic post -collision b raking system
The "automat ic post-collis io n braking system"
can help to reduce the risk of sliding and of addi­
tiona l collisions after an acc ident. If the a irbag
contro l modu le detects a collision, the ve hicle is
braked by the ESC.
The veh icle does not bra ke automatically if:
-the dr iver presses the accelerator pedal, or
-the ESC, the brake system or the veh icle electri-
cal system are not functioning.
&_ WARNING
-The ESC and its integrated systems cannot overcome the lim its imposed by natura l
phys ica l laws. This is espec ially important
on sl ippery or wet roads. If the systems be­
gin acting to stabilize your vehicle, you
should immediately alter your speed to match the road and traffic conditions. Do
not let the increased safety provided tempt
you into taking risks. This could increase
your r isk of a coll is ion.
-Please note the r isk of a coll is ion increases
when dr iv ing fast, especially through curves
and on slippery or wet roads, and when dr iv­
ing too close to objects ahead . The ESC and
its integrated systems cannot always

a co .... N ,....
N .... 0 0
3 co
prevent collisions -the re is still a risk of ac­
c idents!
- Press the accelerator pedal ca refully when
accelerating on smooth, slippery surfaces
such as ice and snow. The dr ive wheels can
spin even when these control systems are
installed and th is can affect driving stability
and increase the r isk of a coll is ion.
Switching on/off
Intellig ent Technology
{!) Tips
- The ABS and ASR only funct ion correct ly
when all four wheels have a sim ilar wear
condition. Different tire sizes can lead to a
reduction in engine power.
- You may hear noises when the systems de­
scribed are working.
£SC turns on automatically when you start the engine.
Fig. 1 55 Cente r co nso le w it h b utton~ °"
The following sit uat ions are exceptions where it
may be useful to switch on sport mode (sedan) or
offroad mode (allroad) to allow the whee ls to
spin :
- Rocking the vehicle to free it when it is stuck
- Dr iving in deep snow or on loose ground
- Dr iving with snow chains
- App lies to: allroad: Driv ing on ro ugh te rra in
when much of the car's weig ht i s l ifte d off the
wheels ( axle articul at ion)
The ESC is designed to fu nction in levels. Depe nd­
i ng o n the level that is selected , the s tabilization
f u nction o f the ESC is limited or switched off. The
amo unt of stabilization control will d iffer de ­
pending on t he leve l. -
App lies to: allroad: Driv ing down hill while brak­
ing on loose grou nd
Fo r yo ur safety, switch the spo rt mode/offroad
mode off in advance.
ESC levels
Applies to: sedan
Sport mode on ESC/ASR off Sport mode off or
ESC /ASRon
Behavior
The ESC and ASR stab ili za- The stabilization f unct io n is The f ull stabiliza tion f un c-
t ion f un ct ions are lim ited not avai
lab le
¢ &. . ES C and
tion of the ESC and ASR is
¢ &. . ASR are swi tched off . avai
lab le aga in.
Op eration Press the !.r, O FFI button P ress and hold the j.r, O FFI Press the j.r, O FFI button
briefly . button longer than 3 sec- aga in .
o nds.
Ind icato r II turns on. fl and jf'll•)~~ turn on. II turns off or II and
lights lf'll•U~ turn off.
Me ssages Stabilization contro
l (ESC ):
Stabilization control (ESC ): Stabilization control
s port . Warning! Restricted off. Warning! Restricted (ESC
): on
stability stability
147

Intelligent Technology
Applies to: allroad
Offroad mode on
ESC/ASR off Offroad mode off or
ESC /ASR on
Beha vior
T he ESC and ASR stabiliza -The stabi lization f unction is The f ull stabilization tune -
tion functions are limited not available
¢ .&. . ESC and tion of the ESC and ASR is
¢ & . ASR are sw itched off . available aga in .
Operation Press the l~ m l button b rief- Press an d ho ld the l~ "'' I but- Press the l~ "" I button again .
ly. ton longer than three sec-
onds.
Indicator II turns on. Iii and lf'tii•)H turn on. II turns off or II and
light s li'tii•)H turn off .
Message s Stabilization cont
rol (ESC ): Stabiliza tion control (ESC ): Stabilization cont rol (ESC ):
offroad . Warning! Redu ced off . Warning! Restricted
on
s tability stability
A WARNING
You should only switch sport/offroad mode
on or switch ESC/ASR off if you r drivi ng abili­
ties and road cond it ions permit .
- The stabilization function is lim ited w hen
sport mode/offroad mode is swi tched on.
T he driving w heels could sp in and the veh i­
cl e could swerve, especi ally o n slick or slip­
pery road sur faces.
- T here is no vehicle sta biliz at ion when ESC/
ASR a re swi tched off.
Hill descent assist
Applies to: allroad
Hill descent assist makes it possible to drive
down a hill at a constant speed.
F ig. 1 56 Center co nso le: hil l desce nt ass ist button
~ To switc h hill descent assist on, press the !"~I
button. The LED in the button t urns on.
~ Press the button again to switch it off. The LED
in the button turns off.
148
Hill descent assist brakes a ll four wheels auto­
matically in order to limit speed when d riving ei­
ther forward or reverse on hills with a grade from
approximately 6 to 60%. The wheels will not lock
u p because the ABS remains activated.
When hill descent assist is on, the speed your ve ­
hicle was traveling when it entered the hill is
maintained. It is only possib le to sw itch on the
ass ist when driving slower tha n 37 mph (60 km/
h) . The ass ist beg ins shortly af ter you start dr iv­
i ng and cont inues up to app roxima tely 19 mph
(30 km/h). The d rive r ca n in crease o r de crease
t h e ve hicle spee d wit hin these lim its by press ing
t h e accelerator or brake pedal.
However, there must be enough t ract ion . Hill de­
sce nt assist
cannot function as e xpec ted, if fo r
ex ample the h ill is icy o r if t he surface is loose
¢ &.
Active regulat io n of a speed up to approximate ly
19 mp h (30 km/h) is s ignaled in the instr ument
cl us ter by an ind ic a tor light
• . The in dica tor
li gh t tur ns on when i n the ready mode.
II.
The system does not work at speeds between ap­
prox imately 19 and 37 mph (30 and 60 km/ h).
The system is the n in ready-mode. This is indica t­
ed by the L ED in the b utton t urnin g on. The sys­
tem a utomatica lly switched o ff when you drive
faster than 37 mph (60 km/h). The LED w ill also
turn off in this scenar io.
Hill descen t assis t is au tomatically ac tiva ted un-
der the fo llowing cond itions:
.,.

Media
Audi music interface
Connect your mobile devices to the Audi music
interface in order to operate them through the
MMI and charge the battery.
F ig . 214 Connec ting mob ile dev ices
The Audi music inte rface is located under the
armrest in the center
console @c::> page 8, fig. 2.
-Connecting a mobile device u sin g a U SB
a dapt er:
connect the applicable USB adap ter @
c::> fig. 214 to the port on the Audi music inter­
face ® and then connect the adapter to the
mobile device @(such as an iPhone).
-Charging a mobile device u sing a USB adapter :
when you connect a mobile device to the Audi
music interface ® using the applicab le USB
adapter @
c::> fig. 214, the battery will auto­
matically charge .
-Disconnec ting a mobil e dev ice from the Au di
music int erfac e:
remove the USB adapter@
<=> fig. 214 from the Audi music interface .
-Di sco nn ect ing mob ile d evices with an Apple
Do ck con nector:
remove the Apple Dock con­
nector from the Apple device with the release
tabs pressed
i n @ c::> page 233, fig. 213 .
The media are started and operated through the
mobile device or the MMI, depending on the de­
vice being used
c::> page 236 .
Connecting two m obile d evi ce s: if two mob ile
dev ices (for example iPhone and smartphone) are
connected at the same time, then both devices
can be used as p layback so urces .
You can connect mobile devices using the analog
AU X port .
-Conn ecting a mobile d evic e to th e AU X input :
connect the cab le ® c::> fig. 214 to the AUX in-
234
put @ on the Audi music interface and then to
the mobile device @(such as an MP3 player or
smartphone).
- Discon necti ng a mobile d evice from the AU X
i nput :
remove the cable ® c::> fig. 214 from the
AUX
input @c::> fig. 214.
-Ope ration: select and confirm the Extern al au­
d io player
source ® c::> page 236, fig. 215 . The
media are started and operated through the
mobile
device @<=> fig. 214.
A WARNING
Driving requires your complete and undivided
attention . As the dr iver, you have complete
responsibility for safety in traffic . Neve r oper­
ate mobi le devices wh ile driving, because this
inc reases the risk of an acc iden t.
(D Note
- Remove the connector from the A udi music
interface carefully so it is not damaged.
- Use a USB extens ion cable to connect dev i­
ces that have an integrated USB connecto r
(s uch as a USB stick) to prevent damage to
your USB device and the A udi musi c inte r­
face.
- Ex tremely high o r low temperatures that
c an occur inside veh icles can damage mobile
devices and/or impa ir their performan ce.
Never leave mobi le devices in the vehicle in
extremely high or low temperat ures.
(D Tips
- Whe n you swi tch the ign ition o ff, the USB
ports are sti ll supplied w ith power until the
energy management intervenes.
- Do not use an additiona l adapter o r USB ex ­
tension cab le to connect mobile devices to
the A udi music interface that already have a
cable or that must be connected with a USB
adapter
(c::> page 233). They may impair the
functionality.
- You can purchase the AUX connector cab le
from an authorized Audi dealer or at spe­
cialty stores .

Driving sa fe ty
Loose items in the luggage compartment can
shift s udden ly, changing vehicle handling charac­
ter istics. Loose items can also increase the risk of
serious personal in jury in a sudden vehicle
ma­
neuver or in a coll is ion.
.,. Distribute the load evenly in the luggage com­
partment .
.,. Always place and properly secure heavy items in
the luggage compartment as low and as far for­
ward as possible
c> fig . 226 .
.,. Secure luggage us ing the tie-downs provided
¢ page 73 .
.,. Make su re that the rea r seatbac k is securely
latched in place.
A WARNING
Improperly stored luggage or othe r items can
fly through the vehicle causing 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 sec ure objects in the luggage com­
partment using the tie-down eyelets and
s u itable straps.
A WARNING
Heavy loads will influence the way your vehi­
cle handles. To he lp reduce the r isk of a loss
of contro l leading to serious pe rsonal i njury:
- Always keep in mind when transporting heavy objects, that a change i n the center of
grav ity can also cause changes in vehicle
hand ling:
- Always distr ibute the load as even ly as
possible.
- Place heavy objects as far forward in the
luggage compartment as poss ible.
- Never exceed the Gross Axle Weight Rating
o r the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating specified
on the safety compliance sticker on the driv­
er's side B-pillar respective ly on the front
end of the driver's door. Exceeding permissi­
ble weight standards can cause the veh icle
to slide and handle differently .
260
-Please observe info rmation on safe driving
¢page 254.
A WARNING
To he lp prevent po isonous 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 :
- C lose all windows,
- Close the s unroof*,
- Open all a ir outlets in the instrument pan-
el,
- Switc h off the air reci rculat ion,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest speed.
A WARNING
-
Always make sure that the doo rs, all win­
dows, the sunroof * an d the rear lid are se­
curely closed and locked to red uce the risk of
i n jury when the veh icle is not being used.
- After closing the rear lid, always make sure
that it is properly closed and locked.
- Never leave your ve hicle unattended espe­
cially with the rear lid left open. A child
co uld crawl into the vehicle th rough the lug­
g age com partment an d close the rea r lid
be­
coming tr apped and unab le to ge t out . Be­
ing trapped in a vehicle can lead to ser ious
pe rsonal i nju ry.
- Never let c hild ren p lay in or around the vehi­
cle.
- Never let passengers ride in the luggage
compa rtment. Vehicle occupants mus t
al­
ways be p roperly restrained in one of the ve ­
hicle's seat ing pos itions.
(D Tips
- Air circul ation helps to reduce w indow fog­
ging . Stale ai r escapes to the o uts ide
t h roug h vents in the trim panel. Be sure to
keep these slots free and open.

Safety belts
Why use safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for peo­
ple riding in vehicles .
Fig. 228 Unbelted occupants in a veh icle headi ng fo r a wall
Fig. 229 T he vehicle c rashes into the wall
The physical principles are simple. Both the vehi­
cle and the passengers possess energy which var­ ies w ith vehicle speed and body weight . Engi­
neers call this energy "k inetic energy."
The higher the speed of the vehicle and the
greater the vehicle's weight, the more energy
that has to be "absorbed" in the crash.
Vehicle speed is the most significant factor .
If
the speed doubles from 15 to 30 mph (25 to 50
km/h), the energy increases 4 times!
Because the passengers of this vehicle are not us­
ing safety
belts ~ fig. 228, they will keep moving
at the same speed the vehicle was moving just
before the crash, unti l something stops them -
here, the
wall ~ fig. 229.
The same principles apply to people sitting in a
vehicle that is involved in a frontal collision . Even
at c ity speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50 km/h),
the forces acting on the body can reach one ton
264 (2,000 lbs.
or 1,000 kg) or more . At greater
speeds, these forces are even higher.
People who do not use safety belts are also not
attached to their vehicle. In a frontal collision
they will also keep moving forward at the speed
their vehicle was travelling just before the crash.
Of course, the laws of physics don't just apply to
frontal collisions, they determine what happens in all kinds of accidents and collisions .
What happens to occupants not wearing
safety belts?
In crashes unbelted occupants cannot stop
themselves from flying forward and being in­
jured or killed . Always wear your safety belts!
Fig. 230 A drive r not wea ring a safety belt is vio len tly
t hrow n fo rward
Fig. 231 A rear passe nge r not wear ing a sa fety belt will f ly
forward an d str ike the driver
Unbelted occupants are not able to res ist the tre­
mendous forces of impact by holding tight or
bracing themselves. Without the benefit of safe­
ty restraint systems, the unrestra ined occupant
will slam violently into the steering wheel, in­
strument panel, windshield, or whatever e lse is
in the
way ~ fig. 230. T his impact with the vehi ­
cle interior has all the energy they had just be-
fore the crash.
liJJ,-

Never rely on airbags alone for protection. Even
when they deploy, airbags provide on ly additional
protection. Airbags are not supposed to dep loy in
all kinds of accidents. A lthough your Audi is
equipped with airbags, all vehicle occupants, in­
cluding the dr iver, must wear safety belts cor ­
rectly in order to minimize the risk of severe in­
jury or death in a crash .
Remember too, that airbags will deploy only
once and that your safety belts are always there
to offer protect ion in those accidents in w hich
a ir bags are not supposed to deploy or when they
have already deployed. Unbelted occupants can
also be thrown o ut of the vehicle where even
more severe or fatal injur ies can occur.
It is also important for the rear passengers to
wear safety belts correctly . Unbelted passengers
in the rear seats endanger not only themse lves
but also the driver and other passengers
¢ fig. 231. In a frontal collision they will be
thrown forward violently, where they can hit and
injure the driver and/or front seat passenger .
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision . It 's simply
not true!
Fig. 232 Driver is correct ly restra ined in a sudden b rak ing
maneuver
Safety belts used properly can make a big differ­
ence. Safety belts he lp to keep passengers in
thei r seats, gradually reduce energy leve ls ap­
plied to the body in an acciden t, and help prevent
the uncontrolled movement that can cause seri ­
ous injuries. In addition, safety belts reduce the
danger of being thrown out of the vehicle.
Safety belts
Safety belts attach passengers to the car and give
them the benefit of being slowed down more
gently or "softly" through the
"give" i n the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety features engi ­
neered into today's vehicles. By "absorbing" the
kinetic ene rgy over a longer period of time, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more
"tolerab le" and less likely to ca use injury .
Although these examples are based on a frontal collision, safety be lts can also substantially re ­
duce the r isk of injury in other k inds of crashes.
So, whether you're on a long trip or just go ing to
the corner store, always buckle up and make sure
others do, too. Acciden t statist ics show that vehi­
cle occupants properly wearing safety belts have
a lower risk of being injured and a much better
chance of surviving an accident . Properly using
safety belts also greatly increases the ability of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col­
lision. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is le­
gally required in most count ries including much
of the United States and Canada .
Although your Aud i is equipped with airbags, you
still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front
airbags, for example, are activated only in some
frontal collisions. The front airbags are not act i­
vated in all frontal collisions, in side and rear col­
lisions , in rollovers or in cases where there is not
enough deceleration through impact to the front
of the vehicle. The same goes for the other air bag
systems in your Audi . So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained!
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be correctly positioned
across the strongest bones of your body.
.,. Always wear safety belts as illustrated and de­
scribed in this chapter.
.,. Make sure that your safety belts are always
ready for use and are not damaged.
265

Airbag system
-Never hold the steering wheel at the 12
o'clock position or with your hands any­
where inside the steering wheel or on the
steering wheel hub. Holding the steering
wheel the wrong way increases the risk of
severe injury to the arms, hands, and head if
the driver airbag deploys.
,& WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer­
ing with the way the airbag unfolds and/or by
being pushed into you as the airbag inflates.
- Always make sure nothing is in the front air-
bag deployment zone that could be struck
by the airbag when it inflates.
-
- Objects in the zone of a deploying airbag
can become projectiles when the airbag de­
ploys and cause serious personal injury.
- Never hold things in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use.
- Never place accessories or other objects
(such as cup holders, telephone brackets,
note pads, navigation systems, or things
that are large, heavy, or bulky) on the doors;
never attach then to the doors or the wind­
shield; never place them over or near or at­
tach them to the area marked ,,AIRBAG" on
the steering wheel, instrument panel or the
seat backrests; never place them between
these areas and you or any other person in
the vehicle.
- Never attach objects to the windshield
above the passenger front airbag, such as
accessory GPS navigation units or music
players. Such objects could cause serious in­
jury in a collision, especially when the air­ bags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger seat to transport objects. Items can also move into
the deployment area of the side airbags or
the front airbag during breaking or in a sud­
den maneuver. Objects near the airbags can
fly dangerously through the passenger com­ partment and cause injury, particularly
when the seat is reclined and the airbags in­
flate.
276
,& WARNING
, -
A person on the front passenger seat, espe­
cially infants and small children, will receive
serious injuries and can even be killed by be­ ing too close to the airbag when it inflates .
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle is designed to turn off the front passenger airbag if an infant or a small child
is on the front passenger seat, nobody can
absolutely guarantee that deployment un­
der these special conditions is impossible in
all conceivable situations that may happen
during the useful life of your vehicle.
- The Advanced Airbag System can deploy in accordance with the
,.low risk" option for 3-
and 6-year-old children under the U.S. Fed­
eral Standard if a child with electrical capac­
itance greater than the combined capaci­
tance of a typical one-year old infant re­
strained in one of the forward facing or rear­
ward-facing child seats with which your ve­ hicle was certified is on the front passenger
seat and the other conditions for airbag de­
ployment are met.
- Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating position.
- For their own safety, all children, especially
12 years and younger, should always ride in
the back properly restrained for their age
and size.
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time
your vehicle was manufactured .
-
The front Advanced Airbag System supplements
the safety belts to provide additional protection
for the driver's and front passenger's heads and upper bodies in frontal crashes. The airbags in­
flate only in frontal impacts when the vehicle de-
celeration is high enough.
ll>

Airbag syste m
-If you are unrestrained, leaning forward, sit­
ting sideways or out of position in any way,
your risk of injury is much higher.
- You will also receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up aga inst the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates
-
even with an Advanced Airbag ¢ page 2 71.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat w ill be
ser iously injured and can be killed if the front
airbag inflates
-even w ith an Advanced Airbag
System.
- Although the Advanced A irbag System in
yo ur vehicle is designed to turn off the front
airbag when a rearward-facing child re­
straint has been insta lled on the front pas­
senger seat, nobody can absolutely guaran­
tee that deployment is impossible in all con­ ceivable s ituations that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicle.
- The inf lating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the chi ld safety seat and child
against the backrest, center armrest, door,
or roof.
- Always install rearward-facing ch ild re­
straints 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, immed iate ly install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dea ler.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in­
stall a forward-facing chi ld restraint on the
front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing seat
has been designed and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and side a irbag.
278
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up against or very near the instrument pan­
el.
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest posit ion in the up and down ad­
justment range and move it back to the rearmost posit ion in the seat's fore and aft
ad justment range, as far away from the a ir­
bag as poss ible, before install ing the for­
ward-facing chi ld restraint.
- Always make sure that the safety be lt upper
anchorage is behind the ch ild rest raint and
not next to o r in fron t of the child rest raint
so that the safety be lt will be properly posi­
tioned.
- Always make sure th at there is noth ing on
the front passenger seat that will cause the
capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that
the seat is occup ied by a person when it is
not, or to signal that it is occupied by some­
one who is heavier than the person actually
sitt ing on the seat. The presence of addi­
tional objects could cause the passenger
front airbag to be turned on when it should
be off, or could cause the airbag to work in a
way that is d ifferent from the way it wou ld
have worked withou t the objec t on the seat .
- Ma ke sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
"1; light comes on and stays on all the
time wheneve r the ignit ion is switched on .
' Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a lot
of very important parts of the Advanced Airbag
System in it. These parts include the capacitive passenger detection system, wir ing, brackets,
and more. The control unit monitors the system
on the front passenger seat when the ignit ion is
switched on and turns the airbag indicato r light
o n when a malfunction in the one of the system
components is detec ted
¢ page 283. Because
t h e fron t passenger seat contains impo rtant
parts of the Advanced Ai rbag System, you must
take care to prevent it from being damaged .
Damage to the seat may prevent the Advanced
.,.

-For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starter are separated from
the vehicle battery with a pyrotechn ic circuit
interrupter.
-Work on the pyrotechnic circ uit interrupt ­
er must only be performed by
a qualified
technicians who have the experience, in ­
formation and special tools necessary to
perform the work safely.
-I f the vehicle or the circuit interrupter is
scrapped, all app licab le safety precautions
must be followed .
@) For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modu les a nd pretension ­
ers might be classified as Perch lorate Materi­
al
-special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc .ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo­
rate. When the vehicle or parts of the re­
straint system including airbag modules and
safety belts with pretensioners are scrapped,
all applicable laws and regulations must be
observed. Your authorized Audi dealer is fa­
m iliar with these requi rements a nd we recom­
mend t hat you have you r 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 System performs in a crash . For example, using tire-r im
comb inat ions not approved by Audi, lowering the
ve hicl e, chang ing the stiffness of the suspens io n,
in clud ing the spr ings, suspens ion str uts, shock
absorbers et c. can change the forces that are
measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the
e lectronic contro l unit. Some suspension changes
can, for example, increase the force levels meas­
ured by the sensors and make the airbag system
deploy in crashes in wh ich it would not deploy if
the changes had not been made. Other ki nds of
changes may reduce the fo rce levels meas ured by
the sensors and prevent the airbag from deploy­
in g when i t should .
Airbag sys tem
A WARNING
-Changing the vehicle's suspension including
use of unapproved tire-rim combinations can
change Advanced Airbag performance and in­
crease the risk of serious persona l injury in a
crash.
- Never install suspension components that
do not have the same pe rformance charac­
teristics as the components o rigina lly ins tal­
led on your vehicle.
- Never use tire-rim combinations t hat have
not been approved by Audi.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supplemen­
tal protection to prop erly restrained front sea t
occupants.
F ig. 2 42 D river 's knee a irbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument panel
u nderneath the steering whee l
~fig. 242, the
airbag fo r the p asse nger is at about the same
height in the instr ument pane l underneath the
glove compa rtment.
T he knee airbag offers add itiona l protection to
the driver's and passenge r's knees and uppe r and
lower thigh areas and supp lements the protec­
tion provided by the safety be lts .
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags a lso
deploy in fron tal coll is ions when the deploymen t
threshold stored in the cont rol un it is me t
~ page 281, More important things to know
about front airbags.
287