instrument panel AUDI A4 2019 User Guide

Airbagsystem


—Neverholdthesteeringwheelatthe12
o'clockpositionorwithyourhandsany-
whereinsidethesteeringwheeloronthe
steeringwheelhub.Holding thesteering
wheelthewrongwayincreasestheriskof
severeinjurytothearms,hands,andheadif
thedriverairbagdeploys.

ZA\WARNING
Objectsbetweenyouandtheairbagwillin-
creasetheriskofinjuryinacrashbyinterfer-
ingwiththewaytheairbagunfoldsand/orby
beingpushedintoyouastheairbaginflates.
—Alwaysmakesurenothingisinthefrontair-
bagdeploymentzonethatcouldbestruck
by theairbagwhenitinflates.
—Objectsinthezoneofadeployingairbagcan
become
projectileswhentheairbagdeploys
andcauseseriouspersonalinjury.
—Neverhold thingsinyourhandsoronyour
lapwhenthevehicleisinuse.
—Neverplaceaccessoriesorotherobjects
(suchascupholders,telephonebrackets,
notepads,navigationsystems,orthings
thatarelarge,heavy,orbulky)onthedoors;
neverattachthemtothedoorsorthewind-
shield;neverplacethemoverornearorat-
tachthemtotheareamarked,,AIRBAG“on
thesteeringwheel,instrumentpanelorthe
seatbackrests;neverplacethembetween
theseareasandyouoranyotherpersonin
thevehicle.
—Neverattachobjectstothewindshield
abovethepassengerfrontairbag,suchas
accessoryGPSnavigationunitsormusic
players.Suchobjectscouldcauseseriousin-
juryinacollision,especiallywhentheair-
bagsinflate.
—Neverreclinethefrontpassengerseatto
transport
objects.Itemscanalsomoveinto
thedeploymentareaofthesideairbagsor
thefrontairbagduringbreakingorinasud-
denmaneuver.Objectsneartheairbagscan
flydangerouslythroughthepassengercom-
partmentandcauseinjury,particularly
whentheseatisreclinedandtheairbagsin-
flate.

266
ZAWARNING
Apersononthefrontpassengerseat,espe-
ciallyinfantsandsmallchildren,willreceive
seriousinjuriesandcanevenbekilledbybe-
ingtooclosetotheairbagwhenitinflates.
—AlthoughtheAdvancedAirbagSystemin
yourvehicleisdesignedtoturnoffthefront
passengerairbagifaninfantorasmallchild
isonthefrontpassengerseat,nobodycan
absolutelyguaranteethatdeploymentun-
derthesespecialconditionsisimpossiblein
allconceivablesituationsthatmayhappen
during theusefullife ofyourvehicle.
— TheAdvancedAirbagSystemcandeployin
accordancewiththe,,lowrisk“optionfor3-
and6-year-oldchildrenundertheU.S.Fed-
eralStandardifachildwithelectricalcapac-
itancegreaterthanthecombinedcapaci-
tanceofatypicalone-yearoldinfantre-
strainedinoneoftheforwardfacing orrear-
ward-facingchildseatswithwhichyourve-
hiclewascertifiedisonthefrontpassenger
seatandtheotherconditionsforairbagde-
ploymentaremet.
—Accidentstatisticshaveshownthatchildren
aregenerallysaferintherearseatareathan
inthefrontseatingposition.
—Fortheirownsafety,allchildren,especially
12yearsandyounger,shouldalwaysridein
thebackproperlyrestrainedfortheirage
andsize.
Advancedfrontairbagsystem
YourvehicleisequippedwithafrontAdvanced
AirbagSystemincompliancewithUnitedStates
FederalMotorVehicleSafetyStandard(FMVSS)
208,aswellasCanadaMotorVehicleSafety
Standard(CMVSS)208asapplicableatthetime
yourvehiclewasmanufactured.


ThefrontAdvancedAirbagSystemsupplements
thesafetybeltstoprovideadditional protection
forthedriver'sandfrontpassenger'sheadsand
upperbodiesinfrontalcrashes.Theairbagsin-
flateonlyinfrontalimpactswhenthevehiclede-
celerationishighenough.>

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Airbagsystem

ThefrontAdvancedAirbagSystemforthefront
seatoccupantsisnotasubstituteforyoursafety
belts.Rather,itispartoftheoveralloccupantre-
straintsysteminyourvehicle.Alwaysremember
thattheairbagsystemcanonly helptoprotect
you,ifyouaresittingupright,wearingyoursafe-
tybeltandwearingitproperly.Thisiswhyyou
and
yourpassengersmustalwaysbeproperlyre-
strained,notjustbecausethelawrequiresyouto
be.
TheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyourvehiclehas
beencertifiedtomeetthe“lowrisk”require-
mentsfor3and6year-oldchildrenonthepas-
sengersideandverysmalladultsonthedriver
side.Thelowriskdeploymentcriteriaare intend-
edtohelpreducetheriskofinjurythroughinter-
actionwiththefrontairbagthatcanoccur,for
example,bybeingtooclosetothesteeringwheel
andinstrumentpanelwhentheairbaginflates.
Inaddition,thesystemhasbeencertifiedto
complywiththe“suppression”requirementsof
theSafetyStandard,toturnoffthefrontairbag
forinfants12monthsoldandyoungerwhoare
restrainedonthefrontpassengerseatinchildre-
straintsthatarelistedintheStandard
=page287,ChildrestraintsandAdvancedAir-
bags.
“Suppression”requiresthefrontairbagonthe
passengersidetobeturnedoffif:
—achilduptoaboutoneyearofageisrestrained
onthefrontpassengerseatinoneoftherear-
facing orforward-facinginfantrestraintslisted
inFederalMotorVehicleSafetyStandard208
withwhichtheAdvancedAirbagSysteminyour
vehiclewascertified.Foralistingofthechild
restraintsthatwereusedtocertifyyourvehi-
cle'scompliancewiththeUSSafetyStandard
=>page287,
—Whenapersonisdetectedonthefrontpassen-
gerseat thathasanelectricalcapacitancethat
ismorethanthetotalelectricalcapacitanceof
a childthatisabout1yearoldrestrainedinone
oftherear-facingorforward-facinginfantre-
straints(listedinFederalMotorVehicleSafety
Standard208withwhichtheAdvancedAirbag
Systeminyourvehiclewascertified),thefront
airbagonthepassengersidemayormaynot
deploy.
ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;lightcomeson
whentheelectroniccontrolunitdetectsatotal
electricalcapacitanceonthefrontpassengerseat
thatrequiresthefrontairbagtobeturnedoff.If
thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF3;lightdoesnot
comeon,thefrontairbagonthepassengerside
hasnotbeenturnedoffbythecontrolunitand
candeployifthecontrolunitsenses animpact
thatmeetstheconditionsstoredin itsmemory.
Ifthetotalelectricalcapacitanceregisteredon
thefrontpassengerseatismorethanthatofa
typical1year-old,butlessthantheweightofa
smalladult,thefrontairbagonthepassenger
sidemaydeploy(thePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF
8%;lightdoesnotcomeon).
Forexample,theairbagmaydeployif:
—asmallchildthatisheavierthanatypical1
year-oldchildisonthefrontpassengerseat(re-
gardlessofwhetherthechildisinoneofthe
childsafetyseatslisted>page287),
—achildwhohasoutgrownchildrestraintsison
thefrontpassengerseat.
Ifthefrontpassengerairbagisturnedoff,the
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;lightinthe head-
linerwillcomeonandstayon.
Ifthefrontpassengerairbagdeploys,theFederal
Standardrequirestheairbagtomeetthe“low
risk”deploymentcriteriatohelpreducetherisk
ofinjurythroughinteractionwiththeairbag.
“Lowrisk”deploymentoccursinthosecrashes
that takeplaceatlowerdecelerationsasdefined
intheelectroniccontrolunit.>page273
Alwaysremember:Eventhoughyourvehicleis
equippedwithAdvancedAirbags,thesafest place
forchildrenisproperlyrestrainedontheback
seat.Pleasebesuretoreadtheimportantinfor-
mation
inthesectionsthatfollowandbesureto
heedalloftheWARNINGS.

ZXWARNING
Toreducetheriskofinjurywhenanairbagin-
flates,alwayswearsafetybeltsproperly.>

267

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Airbagsystem

theseatmaypreventtheAdvancedAirbagSys-
temforthefrontpassengerseatfromdoingits
jobinacrash.
ThefrontAdvancedAirbagSystemconsists
ofthefollowing:
—Crashsensorsinthefrontofthevehiclethat
measurevehicleacceleration/decelerationto
provideinformationtotheAdvancedAirbag
Systemabouttheseverityofthecrash.
— Anelectroniccontrolunit,withintegrated
crashsensorsforfrontandsideimpacts.The
controlunit“decides”whethertofirethefront
airbagsbasedontheinformationreceivedfrom
thecrashsensors.Thecontrolunitalso“de-
cides”whetherthesafetybeltpretensioners
shouldbeactivated.
— AnAdvancedAirbagwithgasgeneratorand
controlvalveforthedriver insidethesteering
wheelhub.
— AnAdvancedAirbagwithgasgeneratorand
controlvalveinsidetheinstrumentpanelfor
thefrontpassenger.
—Acapacitivepassengerdetectionsystemunder-
neaththefrontpassengerseatcover.Thissys-
temmeasurestheelectricalcapacitanceofthe
personintheseat.Theinformationregistered
issent continuouslytotheelectroniccontrol
unit toregulatedeploymentofthefrontAd-
vancedAirbagonthepassengerside.
— Anairbagmonitoringsystemandindicator
lightkaintheinstrumentcluster.
—Asensorineachfrontseatregistersthedis-
tancebetweentherespectiveseatandthe
steeringwheelorinstrumentpanel.Theinfor-
mationregisteredissent continuouslytothe
electroniccontrolunittoregulatedeployment
ofthefrontAdvancedAirbags.
—ThePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF#;ON@light
comesonintheheadliner>page273,fig.230
andtellsyouthestatusoftheAdvancedAirbag
onthepassengerside.
—Asensorinthesafetybeltlatchforthedriver
andforthefrontseatpassengerthatsenses
whetherthatsafetybeltislatchedornotand
transmitsthisinformationtotheelectronic
controlunit.


ZAWARNING
Damagetothefrontpassengerseatcanpre-
ventthefrontairbagfromworkingproperly.
—Improperrepairordisassemblyofthefront
passengeranddriverseatwillpreventthe
AdvancedAirbagSystemfromfunctioning
properly.
—Repairstothefrontpassengerseatmustbe
performedbyqualifiedandproperlytrained
workshoppersonnel.
—Neverremovethefrontpassengerordriver
seatfromthevehicle.
—Neverremovetheupholsteryfromthefront
PassengerSeat.
—Neverdisassembleorremovepartsfromthe
seatordisconnectwiresfromit.
—Nevercarrysharpobjectsinyourpocketsor
putthemontheseat.Thecapacitivepassen-
gerdetectionmatinthefrontpassenger
seatwillnotfunctionproperlyifitispunc-
tured.
—Nevercarrythingsonyourlaporcarryob-
jectsonthefrontpassengerseat.Suchob-
jectscaninfluencethecapacitanceregis-
teredbythecapacitivepassengerdetection
system,sothatincorrectinformationispro-
videdtotheairbagcontrolunit.
—Neverstoreitemsunderthefrontpassenger
seat.PartsoftheAdvancedAirbagSystem
underthepassengerseatcouldbedam-
aged,preventingthemandtheairbagsys-
temfromworkingproperly.
—Neverplaceseatcoversorreplacementup-
holsterythathavenotbeenspecificallyap-
proved by Audionthefrontseats.
—SeatcoverscanpreventtheAdvancedAirbag
Systemfromrecognizingchildrestraintsor
occupantsonthefrontpassengerseatand
preventthesideairbagintheseat backrest
fromdeployingproperly.
—Ifaseatheaterhasbeenretrofittedor oth-
erwiseaddedtothefrontpassengerseat,
neverinstallanychildrestraintsystemon
thisseat.
—Neverusecushions,pillows,blankets,or
similaritemsonthefrontpassengerseat.
Theadditionallayerspreventthecapacitive

269

Airbagsystem


—Theinflatingairbagwillhitthechildsafety
seatorinfantcarrierwithgreatforceand
willsmashthechildsafetyseatandchild
againstthebackrest,centerarmrest,door
orroof.
—Alwaysinstallrear-facingchildsafetyseats
ontherearseat.
—Ifyoumustinstallarearward-facingchild
safetyseatonthefrontpassengerseatbe-
causeofexceptionalcircumstancesandthe
PASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;lightdoesnot
comeonandstayon,immediatelyinstall
therear-facingchildsafetyseatinarear
seatingpositionandhavetheairbagsystem
inspectedbyyourauthorizedAudidealer.


ZAWARNING
Objectsbetweenyouandtheairbagwillin-
creasetheriskofinjuryinacrashbyinterfer-
ingwiththewaytheairbagunfoldsorbybe-
ingpushedintoyouastheairbaginflates.
—Neverhold thingsinyourhandsoronyour
lapwhenthevehicleisinuse.
—Nevertransportitemsonorintheareaof
thefrontpassengerseat.Objectscould
moveintotheareaofthefrontairbagsdur-
ingbrakingorothersudden maneuversand
becomedangerousprojectilesthatcan
causeseriouspersonalinjuryiftheairbags
inflate.
—Neverplaceorattachaccessoriesorother
objects(suchascupholders,telephone
brackets,large,heavyorbulkyobjects)on
thedoors,overornear theareamarked
“AIRBAG”onthesteeringwheel,instrument
panel,seatbackrestsorbetweenthose
areasandyourself.Theseobjectscould
causeinjuryinacrash,especiallywhenthe
airbagsinflate.
—Neverreclinethefrontpassenger'sseatto
transportobjects.Itemscanalsomoveinto
theareaofthesideairbagorthefrontair-
bagduringbrakingorinasuddenmaneuver.
Objectsnear theairbagscanbecomeprojec-
tilesandcauseinjury,particularlywhenthe
seatisreclined.
—Neverplaceortransportobjectsonthefront
passengerseat.Objectsonthefrontpassen-

gerseatcouldcausethecapacitivesensorin
theseattosignaltoairbagsystemthatthe
seatisoccupiedbyapersonwhenitinfactis
not,orthatthepersonontheseatisheavier
thanheorsheactuallyis.The changein
electriccapacitancebecauseofsuchobjects
cancausethepassengerfrontairbagtobe
turnedonwhenitshould beoff,orcan
causetheairbagtoworkinawaythatisdif-
ferentfromthewayitwouldhaveworked
withoutobjectsontheseat.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthereisnothingon
thefrontpassengerseatthatwillcausethe
capacitivepassengerdetectionsystemin
theseattosignaltotheAirbagSystemthat
theseatisoccupiedbyapersonwhenitis
not,ortosignalthatit isoccupiedbysome-
onewhoisheavierthanthepersonactually
sittingontheseat.Thepresenceofanob-
jectcouldcausethepassengerfrontairbag
tobeturnedonwhenitshouldbeoff,or
couldcausetheairbagtoworkinawaythat
isdifferentfromthewayitwouldhave
workedwithouttheobjectontheseat.


Z\WARNING
Thefinedustcreatedwhenairbagsdeploycan
causebreathingproblemsforpeoplewitha
historyofasthmaorotherbreathingcondi-
tions.
—Toreducetheriskofbreathingproblems,
thosewithasthmaorotherrespiratorycon-
ditionsshouldgetfreshairrightawayby
gettingoutofthevehicleoropeningwin-
dowsordoors.
—Ifyouareinacollisioninwhichairbagsde-
ploy,washyourhandsandfacewithmild
soapandwaterbeforeeating.
—Becarefulnottogetthedustintoyoureyes,
orintoanycuts orscratches.
—Iftheresidueshould getintoyoureyes,
flushthemwithwater.


272

Airbagsystem


OFF$¥;lightcomesonandstaysonallthe
timewhenever theignitionisswitchedon.

ZAWARNING
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light
doesnotgooutwhenanadultissittingon
thefrontpassengerseataftertakingthe
stepsdescribed above,makesuretheadult
isproperlyseatedandrestrainedatoneof
therearseatingpositions.
—Havetheairbagsysteminspectedbyyour
authorizedAudidealerbefore transporting
anyoneonthefrontpassengerseat.
G)Tips
Ifthecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystem
determinesthatthefrontpassengerseatis
empty,thefrontalairbagonthepassenger
sidewillbeturnedoff,andthePASSENGER
AIRBAGOFF;lightwillstayon.
Repair,careanddisposaloftheairbags
Partsoftheairbagsystemareinstalledatmany
differentplacesonyourAudi.Installing,remov-
ing,servicingorrepairingapartinanareaofthe
vehiclecandamageapartofanairbagsystem
andpreventthatsystemfromworkingproperly
inacollision.

Therearesomeimportantthingsyouhaveto
knowtomakesurethattheeffectivenessofthe
systemwillnot beimpairedandthatdiscarded
componentsdonotcauseinjuryorpollutethe
environment.

ZA\WARNING
Impropercare,servicingandrepairproce-
durescanincreasetheriskofpersonalinjury
anddeathbypreventinganairbagfromde-
ployingwhenneededordeployinganairbag
unexpectedly:
—Nevercover,obstruct,orchangethesteer-
ingwheelhornpadorairbagcoverorthein-
strumentpanelormodifytheminanyway.
—Neverattachanyobjectssuchascupholders
ortelephonemountingstothesurfacescov-
eringtheairbagunits.

276

—Forcleaningthehornpadorinstrument
panel,useonlyasoft,dryclothoronemois-
tenedwithplainwater.Solventsorcleaners
coulddamagetheairbagcoverorchange
thestiffnessorstrengthofthematerial so
that
theairbagcannotdeployandprotect
properly.
—Neverrepair,adjust,orchangeanypartsof
theairbagsystem.
—Allworkonthesteeringwheel,instrument
panel,frontseatsorelectricalsystem(in-
cludingtheinstallationofaudioequipment,
cellulartelephonesandCBradios,etc.)
mustbeperformedbyaqualifiedtechnician
whohasthetrainingandspecialequipment
necessary.
—Foranyworkontheairbagsystem,we
stronglyrecommendthatyouseeyourau-
thorizedAudidealerorqualifiedworkshop.
—Nevermodifythefrontbumperorpartsof
thevehiclebody.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthesideairbagcan
inflatewithoutinterference:
—Neverinstallseatcoversorreplacement
upholsteryoverthefrontseatbacksthat
havenotbeenspecificallyapprovedbyAu-
di.
—Neveruseadditionalseatcushionsthat
covertheareaswherethesideairbagsin-
flate.
—Damagetotheoriginalseatcoversorto
theseamintheareaofthesideairbag
modulemustalwaysberepairedimmedi-
atelyby anauthorizedAudidealer.
— Theairbagsystemcandeployonlyonce.Af-
teranairbaghasbeendeployed,it mustbe
replacedwithnewreplacementpartsde-
signedandapprovedespeciallyforyourAudi
model
version.Replacementofcomplete
airbagsystemsorairbagcomponentsmust
beperformedbyqualifiedworkshopsonly.
Makesurethatanyairbagserviceactionis
enteredinyourAudiWarranty&Mainte-
nancebookletunderAIRBAGREPLACEMENT
RECORD.
—Forsafetyreasonsinsevereaccidents,the
alternatorandstarterareseparatedfrom

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Airbagsystem


thevehiclebatterywithapyrotechniccircuit
interrupter.
—Workonthepyrotechniccircuitinterrupter
mustonlybeperformedbyaqualified
technicianswhohavetheexperience,in-
formationandspecialtoolsnecessaryto
performtheworksafely.
—Ifthevehicleorthecircuitinterrupteris
scrapped,allapplicablesafetyprecautions
mustbefollowed.
OtherthingsthatcanaffectAdvanced
Airbagperformance
Changingthevehicle'ssuspensionsystemcan
changethewaythattheAdvancedAirbagSystem
performsinacrash.Forexample,usingtire-rim
combinationsnotapprovedbyAudi,loweringthe
vehicle,changingthestiffnessofthesuspension,
includingthesprings,suspensionstruts,shock
absorbersetc.canchangetheforcesthatare
measuredbytheairbagsensorsandsenttothe
electroniccontrolunit.Somesuspensionchanges
can,forexample,increasetheforcelevelsmeas-
uredbythesensorsandmaketheairbagsystem
deployincrashesinwhichitwouldnotdeployif
thechangeshadnotbeenmade.Otherkindsof
changesmayreducetheforcelevelsmeasuredby
thesensorsandpreventtheairbagfromdeploy-
ingwhenitshould.

ZA\WARNING
Changingthevehicle'ssuspensionincluding
useof unapprovedtire-rimcombinationscan
changeAdvancedAirbagperformanceandin-
creasetheriskofseriouspersonalinjuryina
crash.
—Neverinstallsuspensioncomponentsthat
donothavethesameperformancecharac-
teristicsasthecomponentsoriginallyinstal-
ledonyourvehicle.
—Neverusetire-rimcombinationsthathave

notbeenapprovedbyAudi.

Kneeairbags
preaal)aCeaitLs-eh)
Thekneeairbagsystemcanprovidesupplemen-
talprotectiontoproperlyrestrained frontseat
occupants.
= g
=
8

Fig.231Driver'skneeairbag
Thedriverkneeairbagisintheinstrumentpanel
underneaththesteeringwheel>fig.231,the
airbagforthepassengerisataboutthesame
heightintheinstrumentpanelunderneaththe
glovecompartment.
Thekneeairbagoffersadditionalprotectionto
thedriver'sandpassenger'skneesandupperand
lowerthigh areasandsupplementstheprotec-
tionprovidedbythesafetybelts.
Ifthefrontairbagsdeploy,thekneeairbagsalso
deployinfrontalcollisionswhenthedeployment
thresholdstoredinthecontrolunitismet
=page271,Moreimportantthingstoknow
aboutfrontairbags.
Inadditiontotheirnormalsafetyfunction,safe-
tybeltshelpkeepthedriverorfrontpassengerin
positioninafrontalcollisionso thattheairbags
canprovidesupplementalprotection.
Theairbagsystemisnotasubstituteforyour
safetybelt.Rather,itispartoftheoveralloccu-
pantrestraintsysteminyourvehicle.Alwaysre-
memberthattheairbagsystemcanonlyhelpto
protectyouifyouarewearingyoursafetybelt
andwearingitproperly.Thisiswhyyoushouldal-
wayswearyoursafetybelt,notjustbecausethe
lawrequiresyoutodoso>page253,Generalin-
formation.
277
>

Airbagsystem

Remembertoo,airbagswilldeployonlyonceand
onlyincertainkindsofaccidents-yoursafety
beltsarealwaystheretoofferprotectioninthose
accidentsinwhichairbagsarenotsupposedto
deployorwhenthey havealreadydeployed,for
examplewhenyourvehiclestrikesorisstruckby
anotherafterthefirstcollision.
Thisisjustoneofthereasonswhyanairbagis
notasubstituteforthesafetybelt.Theairbag
systemworksmosteffectivelywhenusedwith
thesafetybelts.Therefore,alwayswearyour
safetybeltscorrectly.
Itisimportanttorememberthatwhilethesup-
plementalkneeairbagsystemisdesignedtore-
ducethelikelihoodofseriousinjuries,otherinju-
ries,forexample,swelling,bruisingandminor
abrasionsandfrictionburnscanalsooccurwhen
anairbaginflates.
Thekneeairbagsystembasicallyconsistsof:
—Theelectroniccontrolmodule
—Twoinflatableairbags(airbagandgasgenera-
tor),oneforthedriverandoneforthefront
passenger
—Theairbagindicatorlightintheinstrument
panel
Thekneeairbagsystemwillnotdeploy:
—whentheignitionisswitchedoff
—infrontalcollisionswhenthedeceleration
measuredbythecontrolunitistoolow
—insidecollisions
—inrear-endcollisions
—inrollovers
—inthe eventofasystemmalfunction(warning/
indicatorlightison)>page23.


Z\WARNING
—Safetybeltsandtheairbagsystemcanonly
provideprotectionwhenoccupantsarein
theproperseatingposition>page271.
—Iftheairbagindicatorlight>page23
comeswhenthevehicleisbeingused,have
thesysteminspectedimmediatelybyyour
authorizedAudidealer.Itispossiblethat
theairbagwillinflatewhenitisnotsup-
posedto,orwillnotinflatewhenitshould.

278
ataan-\-i-liaey1emela
Theriskofinjurytothelegareacanbereduced
byfullyinflatedkneeairbags.
5 ¢
2
=a 3
Fig.232Inflatedairbagsprotectinginafrontalcollision
Thekneeairbagsystemhasbeendesignedso
thattheairbagsforthedriverandfrontpassen-
gerdeployincertainbut notallfrontalcollisions.
Ifthefrontairbagsdeploy,thekneeairbagsalso
deployinfrontalcollisionswhenthedeployment
thresholdstoredinthecontrolunitismet.
Whenthesystemdeploys,theairbagsfillwitha
propellantgas,andinflatebetweenthelower
partoftheinstrumentpanelandthedriverand
thelowerpartoftheinstrumentpanelandthe
frontpassenger>page271,fig.229.
Althoughtheyarenotasoftpillow,theycan
“cushion”theimpactandinthiswaythey can
helptoreducetheriskofinjurytothelowerex-
tremities.
Allofthistakesplaceintheblinkofaneye,so
fastthatmanypeopledon'tevenrealizethatthe
airbagshavedeployed.Theairbagsalsoinflate
withagreatdeal offorceanditisimportantfor
occupantsafetythatnothingshouldbeintheir
waywhentheydeploy.
Fullyinflatedairbagsincombinationwithproper-
lywornsafetybeltsslowdownandlimittheoc-
cupant'sforwardmovementandhelptoreduce
theriskofinjury.

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Airbagsystem

tailSelecaetLiamiedoMolmat-Mdal-1-)
airbagsystem
Airbagsareonlysupplementalrestraints.Always
wearsafetybeltscorrectlyandrideinaproper
seatingposition.
Thereisalotthatyou andyourpassengersmust
knowanddotohelpthesafetybeltsandairbags
toprovidesupplementalprotection.

Z\WARNING
Aninflatingkneeairbagcancauseseriousin-
jury.Wearingsafetybeltsincorrectlyandim-
properseatingpositionsincreasetheriskof
seriouspersonalinjuryanddeathwhenevera
vehicleisbeingused.
— Thekneeairbagsystemcannotprotectyou
properlyifyouareseatedtooclosetoanyof
theairbaglocations.Whenadjustingtheir
seatpositions,it isimportantthatboththe
driverandthefrontpassengerkeeptheir
upperbodiesandkneesatthefollowing
minimumsafedistances:
—atleast10inches(25cm)betweenthe
chestandthesteeringwheel/instrument
panel.
—atleast4inches(10cm)betweenthe
kneesandthelowerpartoftheinstru-
mentpanel.
—Theriskofpersonalinjuryincreasesifyou
leanforwardortotheside,oriftheseatis
improperlypositionedandyouarenotwear-
ingyoursafetybelt.Theriskincreaseseven
moreshouldtheairbagdeploy.
—Alwaysmakesurethatthekneeairbagcan
inflatewithoutinterference.Objectsbe-
tweenyouandtheairbagcanincreasethe
riskofinjuryinanaccidentbyinterfering
withthewaytheairbagdeploysorbybeing
pushedintoyouastheairbagdeploys.
—Neverletanybody,especiallychildrenor
animalsrideinthefootwellinfrontofthe
passengerseat.Iftheairbagdeploys,this
canresultinseriousorfatalinjuries.
—Nevercarryobjectsofanykindinthefoot-
wellareainfrontofthedriver'sor pas-
senger'sseat.Bulkyobjects(shopping

bags,forexample)caninterferewithor

preventproperdeploymentoftheairbag.
Smallobjectscanbethrownthroughthe
vehicleiftheairbagdeploysandinjureyou
oryourpassengers.
— Makesuretherearenocracks,deepscratch-
esorotherdamageintheareaoftheinstru-
mentpanelwherethekneeairbagsarelo-
cated.
—Ifchildrenareincorrectlyseated,theirrisk
ofinjuryincreasesinacollision>page285,
Childsafety.


Sideairbags
Descriptionof sideairbags
Theairbagsystemcanprovidesupplemental
protectiontoproperlyrestrainedoccupants.
QS
9
==3S

Fig.233Sideairbaglocationinthedriver'sseat
Thesideairbagsarelocatedinthesidesofthe
frontseatbackrests>fig.233andtherearback-
rest*facingthedoors.
Thesideairbagsinstalledforthefrontseating
positionshavebeendesignedandcertifiedto
helpreducetheriskofinjurythatcanbecaused
byairbagswhentheyinflate,particularlywhen
theoccupantsittingnexttoitisnotseatedprop-
erly.Thesideairbagforthefrontpassengerseat
canbeusedwithproperlyinstalledchildre-
straints.Pleasebesuretoreadtheimportantin-
formationandwarningswheneverusingachild
restraintinavehicle:Safetybelts>page253,
Airbagsystem>page261,Childsafety
=>page285.
Thesideairbagsystembasicallyconsistsof:
—theelectroniccontrolmoduleandexternalside
impactsensors
279
>

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Airbagsystem

willnot betriggered,eventhoughthecarmaybe
badlydamagedasaresultofthecollision.Itis
notpossibletodefineanairbagtriggeringrange
thatwillcover everypossibleangleofimpact,
sincethecircumstanceswillvaryconsiderablybe-
tweenonecollisionandanother.Importantfac-
torsinclude,forexample,thenature(hardor
soft)oftheimpactingobject,theangleofim-
pact,vehiclespeed,etc.>page283,Howside
curtainairbagswork.
Asidefromtheirnormalsafetyfunction,safety
beltsworktohelpkeepthedriverorfront pas-
sengerinpositioninthe eventofacollisionso
that
thesidecurtainairbagscanprovideprotec-
tion.
Theairbagsystemisnotasubstituteforyour
safetybelt.Rather,itispartoftheoveralloccu-
pantrestraintsysteminyourvehicle.Alwaysre-
memberthattheairbagsystemcanonlyhelpto
protectyouifyouarewearingyoursafetybelt
andwearingitproperly.Thisisanotherreason
whyyoushould alwayswearyoursafetybelts,
notjustbecausethelawrequiresyoutodoso
=page253,Generalinformation.
Itisimportanttorememberthatwhiletheside
curtainairbagsystemisdesignedtohelpreduce
thelikelihoodof seriousinjuries,otherinjuries,
forexample,swelling,bruising,frictionburns
andminorabrasionscanalsobeassociatedwith
theseairbagsupondeployment.Remembertoo,
theseairbagswilldeployonlyonceandonlyin
certainkindsofaccidents-yoursafetybeltsare
alwaystheretoofferprotection.
Thesidecurtainairbagsystembasically
consistsof:
—Theelectroniccontrolmoduleandexternalside
impactsensors
—Thesidecurtainairbagsabovethewindowsof
theouterseatingpositionswithejectionmiti-
gationfeatures
—Theairbagindicatorlightintheinstrument
panel
Theairbagsystemismonitoredelectronicallyto
makecertainitisfunctioningproperlyatall
times.Eachtimeyouturnontheignition,theair-
bagsystemindicatorlightwillcomeonforafew
seconds(selfdiagnostics).
Thesidecurtainairbagisnotactivated:
—iftheignitionisturnedoff
—insidecollisionswhentheaccelerationmeas-
uredbythesensoristoolow
—inrear-endcollisions.

Z\WARNING
—Safetybeltsandtheairbagsystemwillonly
provideprotectionwhenoccupantsarein
theproperseatingposition>page58,
Frontseats.
—Iftheairbagindicatorlight>page23
comeswhenthevehicleisbeingused,have
thesysteminspectedimmediatelybyyour
authorizedAudidealer.Itispossiblethat
theairbagwillinflatewhenitisnotsup-
posedto,orwillnotinflatewhenitshould.
Howsidecurtainairbagswork
Sidecurtainairbagscanworktogetherwithside
airbagstohelpreducetheriskofheadandupper
torsoinjuriesforoccupantswhoareproperlyre-
strained.

~iBSs
2 = S 3


Fig.236Illustrationofprinciple:Inflatedsidecurtainair-
bagsontheleftside
Thesidecurtainairbagsinflatebetweentheoc-
cupantandthewindowsinasidecollision
>fig.236.
When
thesystemistriggered,thesidecurtain
airbagisfilledwithpropellantgasandbreaks
throughaseamabovethefrontandrearside
windowsidentifiedby theAIRBAGlabel.Inorder
tohelpprovidethisadditionalprotection,the
283
>

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Childsafety


onallthetimewhenevertheignitionis
switchedon.
—IfthePASSENGERAIRBAGOFF%;light
doesnotcomeonandstayon,immediate-
lyinstalltheforward-facingchildseatina
rearseatingpositionandhavetheairbag
systeminspectedbyyourauthorizedAudi
dealer.
—Alwaysbucklethechildseatfirmlyinplace
evenifa childisnotsittinginit.Aloose
childseatcanflyaroundduringasudden
stoporinacollision.
—AlwaysreadandheedallWARNINGS
wheneverusinga childrestraintinavehi-
cle>page253,Safetybelts,>page261,
Airbagsystemand>page285,Important
information.
@)Tips
Alwaysreplacechildrestraintsthatwerein-
stalledinavehicleduringacrash.Damageto
a childrestraintthatisnotvisiblecouldcause
ittofail inanothercollisionsituation.
ONETeeRicercaCele)
Yourvehicleisequippedwithan“AdvancedAir-
bagSystem”incompliancewithUnitedStates
FederalMotorVehicleSafetyStandard(FMVSS)
208,aswellasCanadaMotorVehicleSafety
Standard(CMVSS)208asapplicableatthetime
yourvehiclewasmanufactured.

TheAdvancedAirbagsysteminyourvehiclehas
beencertifiedtomeetthe“low-risk”require-
mentsfor3-and6-yearoldchildrenonthepas-
sengersideandsmalladultsonthedriverside.
Thelowriskdeploymentcriteriaareintendedto
reducetheriskofinjurythroughinteractionwith
theairbagthatcanoccur,forexample,bybeing
tooclosetothesteeringwheelandinstrument
panelwhentheairbaginflates.Inaddition,the
systemhasbeencertifiedtocomplywiththe
“suppression”requirementsoftheSafetyStand-
ard,toturnoffthefrontairbagforinfantsupto
12monthswhoarerestrainedonthefrontpas-
sengerseatinchildrestraintsthatarelistedin
theStandard.
EventhoughyourvehicleisequippedwithanAd-
vancedAirbagsystem,allchildren,especially
those12yearsandyounger,shouldalwaysridein
thebackseatproperlyrestrainedfortheirage
and
size.Theairbagonthepassengersidemakes
thefrontseatapotentiallydangerousplacefora
childtoride.Thefrontseatisnot thesafestplace
forachildinaforward-facingchildsafetyseat.It
canbeaverydangerousplaceforaninfantora
largerchildinarearward-facingseat.
Thevehicle'sAdvancedAirbagSystemhasaca-
pacitivepassengerdetectionsysteminthefront
passengerseatcushionthatcandetectthepres-
enceofababyorachildinachildrestraintsys-
temonthisseat.
Thecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystemregis-
tersthechangesthatresultinanelectricalfield
whenachild,achildrestraint,andababyblanket
areonthefrontpassengerseat.Thechangein
themeasuredcapacitanceduetothe presenceof
achild,a childrestraint,andababyblanketon
thefrontpassengerseatisrelatedtothechildre-
straintsystemrestingontheseat.Themeasured
capacitanceofachildrestraintsystemvariesde-
pendingonthetypeofsystemandspecificmake
andmodel.
Theelectricalcapacitanceofthevarioustypes,
makes,andmodelsofchildrestraintsspecified
bytheU.S.NationalHighwayTrafficSafetyAd-
ministration(NHTSA)intherelevant safety
standardarestoredintheAdvancedAirbagSys-
temcontrolunittogetherwiththe capacitances
typicalofinfantsanda1-yearoldchild.Whena
childrestraintisusedonthefrontpassengerseat
withatypical1year-oldinfant,theAdvancedAir-
bagSystemcomparesthecapacitancemeasured
bythecapacitivepassengerdetectionsystem
withthedatastoredintheelectroniccontrol
unit.
eaCMeeeTeaANElaeteWtylel)
Regardlessofthechildrestraintthatyouuse,
makesurethatithasbeencertifiedtomeetSafe-
tyStandardsandhasbeencertifiedbyitsmanu-
facturerforusewithanairbag.Alwaysbesure
thatthechildrestraintisproperlyinstalledat
287