instrument panel AUDI A5 CABRIOLET 2011 User Guide

___ s_a_ f_ e_ t_ y _ b_e _l_t _s ___________________________________________ _
Safety be lts attach passe ngers to t he car an d give th em the benef it of
b ei ng s lo we d d own mor e gentl y or "so ftly" throu gh th e "give" in the
sa fety bel ts, crush z ones a nd oth er safety feat ures engin eered in to
today 's vehicles . By "absor bing" the kinetic e ner gy over a lo ng er
p eriod of time, th e saf ety belts make the forces o n th e body mor e
"to lerable" and less likely to ca use inju ry .
Alt hou gh the se ex amp les a re based on a fr ontal col lis ion, safety bel ts
can a lso s ubstantially red uce the risk of in jur y in other ki nds of
cras hes. So , whe ther you 're o n a long tri p o r ju st go in g to th e co rner
sto re, a lways b uckle up a nd make sure others do, too. Accident statis­
t ics s how t hat vehi cle occupan ts properly wea rin g safety belts have a
lower risk of bei ng in jured and a muc h better cha nce of s urvivi ng an
acc ident. Properly usi ng safety belts also greatly increases the ability
of the supp lemental a irbags to do t heir job in a co llisio n. For this
reason, wea ring a safety belt is lega lly re quir ed in most countries
including muc h of th e Uni ted Stat es and Canad a.
Altho ugh your Audi is equipped with a irbags, yo u still have to wear
t he s afety bel ts provi ded. Fr ont airba gs, for ex ample, are activ ated
only in some fro nta l collisions . T he front a irbags are not activated in
all fr ont al collis ions, in side and re ar co llisions, in ro ll overs or in cases
w her e th er e is no t enough d ecelerat io n t hroug h im pac t to th e fron t
o f th e ve hicle. T he same goes for the ot he r air bag sys tems in yo ur
Audi. So, always wear your saf ety be lt and make sure eve rybody in
your vehicle is properly restrai ned! •
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
S afety bel ts m ust alw ays b e co rre ctly po sitio ned a cross
t he str ongest bones o f your bo dy.
- Al ways we ar saf ety be lts as illustra te d an d descri bed i n
this c hapter.
- M ake sure that your s afet y be lts are alw ays re a dy f or use
a nd a re n ot d amaged .
& WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them improperly increases
the risk of serious personal injury and death. Safety belts can work only when used correctly.
• Always fasten your safety belts correctly before driving off and
make sure all passengers are correctly restrained.
• For maximum protection , safety belts must always be posi ­
tioned properly on the body.
• Never strap more than one person, including small children,
into any belt.
• Never place a safety belt over a child sitting on your lap.
• Always keep feet in the footwell in front of the seat while the
vehicle is being driven.
• Never let any person ride with their feet on the instrument
panel or sticking out the window or on the seat.
• Never remove a safety belt while the vehicle is moving. Doing
so will increase your risk of being injured or killed.
• Never wear belt s twisted .
• Never wear belts over rigid or breakable objects in or on your
clothing, such as eye glasses, pens, keys, etc., as these may cause
injury .
• Never allow safety belts to become damaged by being caught
in door or seat hardware.
• Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt under your arm or
otherwise out of position.
• Several layers of heavy clothing may interfere with correct
positioning of belts and reduce the overall effectiveness of the
system .
• Always keep belt buckles free of anything that may prevent the
buckle from latching securely . .._

_______________________________________________ A_ ir_ b_ a_,,,g '--- s.:.y _s _t_ e _ m ___ _
Airbag system
Important things to know
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For airbags to
do their job, occupants must always properly wear their
safety belts and be in a proper seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passengers, before
driving off, always:
- Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel properly
=>
page 178,
- Adjust the front passenger's seat properly=> page 78,
-Wear safety belts properly=> page 192,
-Always properly use the proper child restraint to protect
children=>
page 221.
In a collision airbags must inflate within the blink of an eye and with
considerable force. The supplemental airbags can cause injuries if the
driver or the front seat passenger is not seated properly. Therefore in
order to help the airbag to do its job, it is important, both as a driver
and as a passenger to sit properly at all times.
By keeping room between your body and the steering wheel and the
front of the passenger compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
completely and provide supplemental protection in certain frontal
collisions =:,
page 178, "Proper occupant seating positions" . For
details on the operation of the seat adjustment controls=>
page 78.
It's especially important that children are properly restrained
=:,
page 221.
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first Vehicle operation
There
is a lot that the driver and the passengers can and must do to
help the individual safety features installed in your Audi work
together as a system .
Proper seating position is important so that the front airbag on the
driver side can do its job. If you have a physical impairment or condi­
tion that prevents you from sitting properly on the driver seat with
the safety belt properly fastened and reaching the pedals, special
modifications to your vehicle may be necessary .
Contact your authorized Audi dealer, or call Audi Customer Relations
at 1-800-822-2834.
When the airbag system deploys, a gas generator will fill the airbags, break open the padded covers, and inflate between the steering
wheel and the driver and between the instrument panel and the front
passenger. The airbags will deflate immediately after deployment so
that the front occupants can see through the windshield again
without interruption.
All of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so fast that many people
don 't even realize that the airbags have deployed . The airbags also
inflate with a great deal of force and nothing should be in their way
when they deploy . Front airbags in combination with properly worn
safety belts slow down and limit the occupant's forward movement.
Together they help to prevent the driver and front seat passenger
from hitting parts of the inside the vehicle while reducing the forces
acting on the occupant during the crash. In this way they help to
reduce the risk of injury to the head and upper body in the crash.
Airbags do not protect the arms or the lower parts of the body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all frontal collisions . The trig­
gering of the airbag system depends on the vehicle deceleration rate
caused by the collision and registered by the electronic control unit.
If this rate is below the reference value programmed into the control
unit , the airbags will not be triggered, even though the car may be
badly damaged as a result of the collision. Vehicle damage , repair .._
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

........ _A_ i_rb _ a_,g,:;._ s_, y'- s_ t_e _m ________________________________________________ _
costs o r ev en t he lack of v ehicle da mage is no t necessar ily an ind ica ­
t ion of whe the r an a irbag should inflat e or not.
It is not poss ible to defi ne a r ange of v ehicle speeds t hat w ill cove r
every possible k ind and a ngle of impact that will a lways t rigger t he
a ir bags, sin ce the c ircum stanc es will vary consider ably be twee n one
co llision and another. Important factors incl ude, fo r exam ple, the
n at ure (h ard or s oft) of th e obje ct whi ch the c ar hits , the ang le of
impact, vehicle speed, etc. The front airbags will also not inflate in
s ide o r rear coll isions , or in roll-ove rs.
Always remember: Airbags w ill deploy only once, an d on ly in certa in
kinds of co llisio ns. Your safety be lts are a lways there to offer protec­
t ion in those s ituatio ns in which airbags ar e no t sup pose d to d eploy,
or w hen they have alrea dy de ploye d; for examp le, when your ve hicl e
st rikes or is st ruc k by ano ther afte r the first collis io n.
T hi s is just one of the reasons w hy an airbag is a s upplementa ry
restra in t a nd is no t a su bst itute for a safe ty bel t. The air bag sy stem
works most effectively when used with the safety be lts. Therefore,
always p rope rly wear y ou r safety belts => page 189 .
& WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel or instrument panel will
decrease the effectiveness of the airbags and will increase the risk
of personal injury in a collision.
• Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm) to the steering wheel or
instrument panel.
• If you cannot sit more than 10 inches (25 cm) from the
steering wheel, investigate whether adaptive equipment may be
available to help you reach the pedals and increase your seating
distance from the steering wheel.
• If you are unrestrained, leaning forward, sitting 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 against the airbag or too close to it when it inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag.
& WARNING (co ntinued )
• To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag inflates, always
wear safety belts properly=>
page 193, "Safety belts ".
• Always make certain that children age 12 or younger always
ride in the rear seat. If children are not properly restrained, they
may be severely injured or killed when an airbag infl ates .
• Never let children ride unrestrained or improperly restrained in
the vehicle. Adjust the front seats properly.
• Never ride with the backrest reclined.
• Always sit as far as possible from the steering wheel or the
instrument panel =>
page 178.
• Always sit upright with your back against the backrest of your
seat.
• Never place your feet on the instrument panel or on the seat.
Always keep both feet on the floor in front of the seat to help
prevent seriou s injuries to the legs and hips if the airbag inflates.
• 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 braking or in a sudden maneuver. Objects near the
airbags can become projectiles and cause injury when an airbag inflates .
& WARNING
Airbags that have deployed in a crash must be replaced .
• Use only original equipment airbags approved by Audi and
installed by a trained technician who has the neces sary tools and
diagnostic equipment to properly replace any airbag in your
vehicle and assure system effectiveness in a crash.
• Never permit salvaged or recycled a irbags to be installed in
your vehicle. •

___ A_ i_r _b _a _, g,:;._ s_, y._ s _ t_e _m ________________________________________________ _
defined in the elect ronic contro l unit~ page 211, "PASSE NGER AIR
BA G OFF l ight ".
Always r emembe r, a c hild safety seat o r infa nt ca rr ie r i nsta lled on th e
fro nt seat may be struc k and k noc ke d out of position by t he ra pidly
i nflat ing pass enge r's air ba g in a fr ontal c oll ision. Th e airba g could
g reat ly re duce the effectiveness o f th e ch ild restraint an d even seri­
ousl y injur e th e child d uring inf lation .
For this r easo n, and b eca use the back seat is th e sa fest plac e for chil­
dre n -whe n pro per ly restra ined acc ordin g to their age and size -we
s tr ong ly r ecommen d that childr en a lways sit in the back s eat
~ pa ge 22 1, "Child S afety".
& 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 Advanced 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 circumstances and
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on and stay on,
immediately install the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer.
• Forward-facing child safety seats installed on the front
passenger's seat may interfere with the deployment of the airbag
and cause serious personal injury to the child.
& WARNING
If , in exceptional circumstances , you must install a forward-facing
child restraint on the front passenger's seat:
& WARNING (continued)
• Always make sure the forward-facing seat has been designed
and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
• Never put the forward-facing child restraint up against or very
near the instrument panel.
• Always move the passenger seat into its rearmost position in
the seat's fore and aft adjustment range, as far away from the
airbag as possible before installing the forward-facing child
restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position.
• Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on all the time whenever the ignition is switched on.
& WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will be displayed whenever a child
restraint is installed on the front passenger seat and the ignition
is switched on .
• If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not stay on, perform
the checks described~
page 210, "Monitoring the Advanced
Airbag System ".
• Take the child restraint off the front passenger seat and install
it properly at one of the rear seat positions if the PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF light does not stay on .
• Have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer immediately.
• Always carefully follow instructions from child restraint manu­
facturers when installing child restraints.
& WARNING
If , in exceptional circumstances , you must install a forward or
rearward-facing child restraint on the front passenger 's seat:

& WARNIN G (con tinued )
• Imprope r in stall ation of child re straints can redu ce their effec·
tiveness or even prevent them from providing any protection.
• An improperl y installed child re straint c an interfere with the
airbag a s it deploy s and seriously injure or even kill the child - even
with an Advanced Airbag Sy stem.
• Always carefully follow the manufacturer 's instruct ions
provided with the child safety seat or carrier.
• Ne ver place additional items on the seat that can increase the
total weight regi stered by the weight-sen sing mat and can cause
injury in a crash .•
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
T he airbag system can p rovide supplemental protection
to properly r estrained front se at oc cupants .
Safety first
Fig . 19 6 Locatio n of
drive r airb ag : in
s tee ring whee l
Vehicle OP-eration
Airbag system
Fig. 19 7 Locati on of
fr on t pass enge r's
a ir bag: in the instru ­
me nt pa nel
Yo ur vehicle is equi pped with an "Advanced A irbag Syst em" in compli ·
ance with United States Fe dera l Moto r Vehicle Safety Sta ndard
(FMVSS) 2 08 as a pplicable at t he time your vehi cle was manufac­
t u red . The system senses the position of the front seats and controls
front a irbag infl ation w ith a va lv e , dep ending on th e distanc e
between the respective seat and the stee ring wheel or instrument
pane l. The safe ty belts fo r the seats have "prete ns ione rs" t hat he lp to
take slack out of the belt system. The p retensioners are also activated
by the elec tron ic control u nit for the air bag sys tem.
T he front s afe ty belts also have load limiters to help red uce the forces
applied to the body in a cras h.
Th e airbag for the driver is in the stee ring whee l hub::::> fig. 196 and
the ai rbag for the front passenger is in the inst rument panel
::::> fig. 19 7. T he ge neral lo cat io n of the air bags is m ark e d "A IRBAG".
Th ere is a lot you need to know about the a irbags in your vehicle. We
urge yo u to read the det ailed in forma tion abou t air bags, sa fety be lts
and child safety in this and the other chap ters tha t make u p the
owner's literature. Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they are
e xtremely importa nt f or your safety and the saf ety of your pas se n­
gers, especially infants and sma ll ch ildren.
& WARNING
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data

ffl..,___A_ i_rb _ a_,g,:;._ s_, y'- s_ t_e _m ________________________________________________ _
& WARNING (conti nued)
• The inflating ai rbag will hit the child safety seat or infant
carrier with gr eat force and will sma sh the child safety seat and
c hild again st the backrest , center armrest , door , or roof.
• Alway s install rearward-facing child restraints in the back seat.
• If you must install a rearward facing child safety seat on the
front passenger seat because of e xceptional circumstances and
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on and stay on ,
immediately install the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
s eating po sition and have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer .
& WARNING
If, in except ional circumstances, you must install a forward-facing
child restraint on the front pas senger' s seat:
• Always make sure the forward-fac ing se at has been designed
and certified by its manufacturer for u se on a front seat with a
passenger front and side airbag.
• Never put the forward -facing child restraint up against or very
near the instrument panel.
• Alway s move the passenger seat into it s rearmost position
in
the seat 's fore and aft adjustment range, as far away from the
airbag a s possible, before in stalling the forward -facing child
restraint. The back rest must be adjusted to an upright position.
• Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on all the t ime whenever the ignition is switched on .•
Advanced Airbag System components
Th e front passenger seat in your veh icle has a lot of very important
parts of t he A dvanced A irbag System in it. These parts incl ude t he
we ight-sens ing mat, sensors, wiring, brackets, and more. The func- tion of the system
in the front passenger seat is checked by the elec­
t ronic c ontro l unit w hen the ignitio n is o n. The contr ol unit mon itors
t he Advanced Airbag System and tu rns the airbag indicato r light o n
w hen a malfunction in t he system components is detected. The func­
t ion of the a irbag indicator light is descr ibed in greater deta il below .
Because the front passenge r seat co nta ins impo rtant parts of t he
Adva nced Ai rbag System, you must ta ke care to p reve nt i t from be ing
damaged. Damage to the seat may p revent the A dvanced A irbag for
t he fro nt passenge r se at from do ing its job in a crash.
The front Advanced Airbag System consists of the
following:
• Cras h sensors in the front of t he vehicle that measu re vehicle
a cc ele ration/de ce le ra tion to provi de i nfo rm ation to the Advanced
Airbag System about the severity of the crash .
• An e lec tron ic contro l unit, w it h i ntegrated crash sensors fo r front
and side impacts. The contro l unit "dec ides" w het her to fire the front
a irbag s based o n the inform ation receive d fro m t he c rash se nso rs.
The contro l unit also "decides" whether the safety be lt pretens ioners
shoul d be activ at ed .
• An Advanced Air bag with gas generator and control va lve for the
dr ive r in side t he steering wheel hub.
• An Advanced Air bag with gas generator and control va lve inside
t he inst rument pa ne l for the fron t passenge r.
• A weight-sensi ng mat unde r th e up ho ls tery pad ding of the front
passenger s eat cushion that measures the tota l we igh t on the seat .
Th e informat io n registered is sent continuous ly to the elect ronic
con trol unit to regulate deployment of t he front Advanced A irbag o n
the passenger side.
• An airbag mon itoring system a nd ind icator light in the ins trument
cl uster => page
210 .
• A senso r in each front seat reg isters the distance between the
res pective sea t and t he steeri ng whee l o r i nst rument p ane l. T he
info rmation reg iste red is sent co ntin uously to the e lectronic con trol
uni t to reg ulate dep loyment of the front Advanced Air bags . ..,

___ A_ ir_b_ a --= ge....- s.:y _s_ t_ e_ m ________________________________________________ _
situat ions . Be sure to read the important i nformat ion about safety
a nd hee d the WAR NIN GS i n t his ch apte r.
Deployment of the Advanced A irbag System and the act ivat ion of the
safety belt pretensioners depend on the deceleration measured by
t he crash senso rs an d regis tered by the e lectroni c con trol u nit. The
amount of inflation of the front airbags can a lso be adapted to the
front seat pos it ion, depending on t he d istance be tween the respec ­
tive front seat and the steering wheel or instrument panel as reg is­
t ere d by sensors in the seats. Crash seve rity depends on speed and
deceleration as well as the mass and stiffness of the vehicle or object
involved in the crash .
On the passenger side, rega rd less of safety be lt use, the a irbag will
be t urned off if the we ight on the passenger seat is less tha n the
amount prog rammed in the e lec tronic contro l uni t. The fro nt airbag
on the passenger side will a lso be turned off if one of the chi ld safety
sea ts tha t has been cert ified under Federa l Mo to r Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 has been recognized on the seat . The
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
lig ht comes on and stays on to tell you w hen the fron t
Advanced Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off
=> page 201, "C hild restraints o n the front sea t - some impo rtant
things to know ".
& WARNING
To reduce the risk of inju ry when an a irbag inflates, always wear
safety belt s properly.
• If you are un rest rained, leaning forward, sitting sideways or
out of posit ion 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 again st the airbag or too clo se t o it wh en it inflates ·
even with an Advanced Airbag=>
page 199. •
More important things to know about front
airbags
Fi g. 1 98 I nfl ate d
front a irb ags
Safety belts are important to he lp keep front seat occupants in the
pro per seated pos ition so that a irbags can unfold prope rly and
prov ide supp lemental protect ion in a frontal collision.
Th e front airbags are designed to provide add itio na l protec tion for
the c hest and face of the driver and the front sea t passenge r when:
• safety belts are worn properly ,
• t he seats have been posit ioned so that the occupant is prope rly
seated as far as possible from the airbag,
• and the head restraints have been properly adjusted .
Because air bags inflate in the b link of a n eye w it h great force, things
you have on your lap o r have place d on the seat cou ld become
dangerous projectiles, and be pushed into you if the a irbag inf lates .
When a n airbag dep loys, fine dust is released. This is normal and is
not caused by a fire in the vehicle. This dust is made up mostly of a
powder used to l ubricate the ai rbags as they deploy.
It could irritate
skin .
I t is important to remember that while the supp lemental airbag
system is desig ned to reduce the li ke lihood of serious injur ies, other
injuries, for example swelling , b ruising and m inor abras ions, can also
happen when airbags infl ate. Airbags do not p rotect the arms or the ..,_

Airbag system --------------------------------------------- -=---=----
lowe r pa rts of the body . Front a irbags only supp lemen t th e t hree
po int saf ety b elt s in som e frontal col lisions in which t he vehicl e decel­
erat io n is high en ough to d ep loy the a irbags.
Front airbags will not deploy:
• if the ignition is switched off w hen a cras h occ urs ,
• in side co llisions,
• in re ar- end collisions,
• in rollove rs,
• when t he cra sh d ecelera tion m easur ed by the airbag sys te m is le ss
than the min imum threshold needed fo r airbag deployme nt as reg is­
t ere d by t he e lectr onic c ontrol u nit.
The front passenger airbag will also not deploy:
• when t he fro nt p ass eng er s eat i s not o ccupi ed,
• when the weight on the front passenge r seat as sense d by the
A dvanc ed Airba g Sy stem indicat es that t he front a irbag o n the
passenge r s id e has to be turned off by the e lectro nic con trol unit (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht c om es on an d sta ys on).
& WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase the risk of serious injury
in crashes.
• To reduce the risk of injury when the airbags inflate, the driver
and passengers must always sit in an upright position , must not
lean against or place any part of their body too close to the area
where the airbags are located.
• Occupants who are unbelted, out of position or too close to the
airbag can be seriously injured by an airbag as it unfolds with
great force in the blink of an eye=>
page 201.
Controls and equip­
ment Safety first Vehicle operation
& 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 Advanced 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 circumstances and
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come on and stay on,
immediately install the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer.
& WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will increase the risk of injury
in a cra sh by interfering 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 airbags during
braking or other sudden maneuver and become dangerous projec­
tiles that can cause serious personal injury if the airbags inflate .
• Never place or attach accessories or other objects (such as
cupholders, telephone brackets, large , heavy or bulky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked "AIRBAG " on the steering
wheel , instrument panel, seat backrests or between those areas
and yourself. These objects could cause injury in a crash, especially
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
IIJ,,
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

Airbag system Ill
----------------=--=---
& WARNING (co ntinued )
seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer.
• A tight tether o r other strap on a rearward -facing child
restraint attached to the front pa ssenger seat can put too much
pressure on the weight -sensing mat in the seat and register more
weight than i s actually on the seat . The heavier weight regi stered
can make the system work as though an adult were on the seat
and deploy the Advan ced Airbag when it mu st be suppre ssed
causing serious or even fatal injury to the child .
• If , in exceptional circumstanc es, you must install a forward­
facing child restraint on the front passenger seat, always move
the seat into its rearmost po sition in the seat' s fore and aft adjust­
ment range, as far away from the airbag as possible . The backrest
must be adjusted to an upright position. Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
& WARNING
• If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light doe s not go out when an
adult is sitting on the front passenger seat after taking the steps
described above, make sure the adult is properly seated and
restrained at one of the rear seating positions.
• Have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer before transporting anyone on the front passenger seat .
[ i ] Tips
If the we ight-sens ing mat in the front passenger seat detects an
em pty seat, the front airbag on the passenge r side will be t urne d off,
and PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF will stay on.•
Controls and equip­ ment Safety first Vehicle operation
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system a
re insta lled at many different places on
your Audi. I nstall ing, remov ing, serv icing o r rep airi ng a pa rt in an
area of the vehicle ca n damage a part of a n airbag system and prevent
t ha t sys tem from working prope rly in a coll is io n.
Th ere are some importa nt things you have to know to ma ke sure t hat
the effectiveness of the system will not be impai red and that
dis ca rded compo nents do not cause injury or po llute t he e nvir on­
ment .
& WARNING
Improper care , serv icing and repair procedures can increase the
risk of personal injury 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 cupholders 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 moistened with plain water . Solvent s or cleaners
could damage the airbag cover or change the stiffness or strength
of the material so that the airbag cannot deploy and protect prop ­
erly.
• Never repair, adjust, or change any part s of the airbag system .
• All work on the steering wheel, instrument panel , front seats
or electrical sy stem (including the installation of audio equip­
ment, cellular telephones and CB radios, etc. ) must be performed
by a qualified technician who has the training and special equip­ ment necessary .
• For any work on the airbag system, we strongly recommend
that you see your authorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
• Never modify the front bumper or parts of the vehicle body . ..,_
Vehicle care Do-it-yourself service Technical data

& WARNING
Changing the vehicle's susp ension including use of unapproved
tire -rim combination s can change Advan ced Airbag performance
and increase the risk of serious personal injury in a crash .
• Never install suspension component s that do not have the
same performance characteristics as the components originally
installed on your vehicle.
• Ne ver use tire-rim combinations that have not been approved
by Audi.
& WARNING
Items stored between the safety belt buckle and the center
console can cause the sensors in the buckle to send the wrong
information to the electronic control module and prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from working properly.
• Always make sure that nothing can interfere with the safety
belt buckles and that they a re not obstructed .
<£> For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modu les and pretensioners might be class ified as
P erch lo rate Mate rial -special handling m ay app ly, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate . When the vehicle or
parts o f th e re st ra int system includin g airb ag modu les s afety belts
with pretens io ners are scrapped, all applicable laws and regulat ions
must be observed . Your authorized Aud i dealer is fam iliar with these
req uirements and we recommend that you have your dealer perform
this service for yo u.•
Safety first Vehicle OP-eration
Airbag system
Knee airbags
App lies to ve hi cle s: w ith K nee air b ags
Description of knee airbags
The airbag system can provid e su pplemental protection
to properly restrained front seat occupants .
....
! 00 m
Fig . 2 00 Driv er' s knee
a ir bag
T he kne e airbag fo r the driver is located in the instrument panel
undernea th the s teer ing whee l~ fig. 20 0, the knee airbag for the
passenge r is at about the same height in the instr ument pane l u n de r­
neath the g love compa rtment.
Th e knee air bag offers ad diti onal protec tion t o th e driver's and
passenger 's knees and upper and lower thigh areas as a supplement
t o the sa fety belts .
If the front airbags deploy , the knee airbags also deploy i n frontal
co llisions above a certain severity ~
pag e 208, "M ore important
things to know about front airbags" .
Bes ides the ir no rmal safety function, safety be lts work to help keep
t he drive r o r fro nt pa ssenger i n posi tion in cas e o f a fr ontal coll isio n
so that the airbags can prov ide p rotect io n.
Th e a irbag system is not a substitute for your safety be lt. Rather, it is
part o f the ove rall occ upant rest rai nt system in your veh icle . Always
r emember t hat the airbag system can only help to protect you if you •
Vehicle care Do-it-yourselt service iTechnical data