ABS AUDI A5 COUPE 2018 User Guide

Intelligent Technology Electronic stabilization
control (ESC)
Description
Ele ctronic stabilization control (ESC) supports
driver safety . It reduces the risk of slipping and
improves d riving stability. ESC detects critica l sit ­
uations such as when the vehicle is oversteering
and understeering or the wheels are spinn ing.
T he vehicle is stabilized by applying the brakes or
reducing eng ine torq ue. When the ESC engages,
the
J;,j ind icator light blinks in the instrument
cluste r.
T he follow ing systems are integrated in the ESC:
Ant i-loc k bra king s ystem (ABS)
ABS prevents the whee ls from locking when brak­
ing. The vehicle can still be steered even during
hard brak ing. Apply steady pressure to the brake
pedal. Do not pump the pedal. A pulsing in the
b rake pedal indicates that the system is act ing to
stabilize the vehicle .
Br ake a ssist s ystem
The brake assist system can decrease braking dis­
tance. It increases brak ing power when the driver
presses the brake pedal quickly in emergency sit­
uations . You must press and hold the brake pedal
unti l the dangerous sit uat io n is ove r. In veh icles
with adaptive cr uise contro l*, the bra ke assist
system is more sensitive if t he d istance detec ted
to the veh icle dr iv ing ahead is too small.
Anti-Slip Regulation (ASR )
ASR red uces eng ine power when the drive wheels
begin spinning and adapts the force to the road
conditions . This makes it easie r to sta rt, acceler­
ate and dr ive up hill s.
Electronic differenti al lock (EDL )
EDL applies the brakes to a wheel that starts
spi nning and t ransfers t he drive powe r to the
;;§ other driving wheels. This f unct ion is not availa-....
~ b lea t higher speeds.
N .... 0 \0
3 Intellig ent Technology
In extreme cases , ED L automat ica lly switches off
to keep the brake o n 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.
Ste ering recommendation
The ESC he lps to stabilize the vehicle by changing
the steering torque.
In veh icles wi th dynamic steer ing*, ESC also
helps to stab ilize the steer ing in crit ica l sit ua ­
tions.
Selective wheel torque control
Se lective w heel to rque con trol is used w hen d riv­
i ng on curves. Bra king is targeted towa rd t he
whee ls on the inside of the cu rve as needed. This
allows mo re precise driving in curves .
Automatic post -collision braking system
The "automat ic post-collision braking system "
can help to reduce the risk of sliding and of addi­
tiona l co llisions after an acciden t. If the a irbag
contro l
module detects a co llision, the veh icle is
braked by the ESC.
T he veh icle does not bra ke automatically if:
- the dr iver presses the acce lerator pedal, or
- the ESC, the brake system or the veh icle elect ri-
cal system are not functioning.
A WARNING
=
- The ESC and its integrated systems cannot
overcome the lim its imposed by natural
phys ica l laws. This is especially important
on slippery or wet roads. If the systems be­
gin acting to s tabilize yo ur vehicle, you
should immediately alter your speed to
match the road and traffic conditions. Do
not let the inc reased safety provided tempt
you into taking risks. This could increase
your r isk of a coll is ion.
- Please note the ris k of a collis 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
~
151

Intelligent Technology
its integra ted systems cannot always pre­
vent collisions
-there is still a risk of acci­
dents!
- Press the accelerator pedal carefully when
acce lerating on smooth, slippery surfaces
such as ice and snow. The dr ive wheels can
spin even when these control systems are
Switching on and off
installed and this can affect dr iv ing stab ility
and increase the risk of a collision.
@ Tips
- The ABS and ASR only funct ion correctly
when a ll four wheels have a simi lar wear
condition . Different tire sizes can lead to a
red uction in engine power.
- You may hear noises when the systems de­
scribed are working.
ESC turns on automatically when you start the engine.
Fig . 159 Cente r co nso le w it h button ~Of'
fun ct io n of the ESC is lim ited or switc hed off. The
amount of s tabilization contro l w ill differ de­
pending on the leve l.
The following examp les are unusua l situat ions
whe re it may make se nse to sw itch sport mode
on in order to allow the wheels to sp in:
- Roc king the veh icle to free it when it is stuck
- Dr iving in deep snow or on loose g round
- Dr iving with snow chains
The ESC is des igned to function in levels . Depend­
i n g on the level that is selected, the stabilization For you
r safety, switch the sport mode
off in ad­
vance.
ESC levels
Sport mode on ESC/ASRoff Sport mode off or
ESC /ASRon
Behavior
The ESC and ASR stabiliza- The stabilization funct ion is The f ull s tabilization func-
t ion funct ions are lim ited not availab le
¢ .&. . ESC and tion of the ESC and ASR is
c;> .&. . ASR are switc hed off. ava ilab le aga in.
Operation Press the 11' OFF I button Press and hold the !1' O FFI Press the 11' OFFI button
briefly. button longer than 3 sec- aga in.
onds.
Indicator II turns on. fl and 14'tl•)H turn on . II turns off or II and
lights lf'tl•)H turn off .
Message s Stabilization control (ESC ): Stabilization control (ESC ): Stabilization control
sport . Warning! Restricted off . Warning! Restricted (ESC) : on
s tability stability
152

Audi music interface
Connect your mobile devices to the Audi music
interface in order to operate them through the
MMI and charge the battery.
Fig. 218 Connectin g mob ile dev ices
The Audi music interface is located under the
armrest in the center
console @<=:> page 8, fig. 2.
-Connecting a mobile device using a USB
adapter: connect the applicable USB adapter@
c::> fig. 218 to the port on the Audi music inter­
face @and then connect the adapter to the
mobile device
(D (such as an iPhone).
- Charging a mobile device using a USB adapter :
when you connect a mobile device to the Audi
music interface @ using the applicable USB
adapte r@
c::> fig . 218, the battery will auto­
matically charge .
-Disconnecting a mobile device from the Audi
music interface :
remove the USB adapter @
c::>fig . 218from the Audi music interface .
-Disconnecting mobile devices with an Apple
Dock connector:
remove the Apple Dock con­
nector from the Apple device with the release
tabs pressed
i n @ c::> page 236, fig . 217 .
The med ia are started and operated through the
mobile device or the MMI, depending on the de ­
vice being used
<=:> page 239 .
Connecting two mobile devices : if two mobi le
devices (for example iPhone and smartphone) are
connected at the same time, then both devices
can be used as playback sources .
You can connect mobile devices using the analog
AUX port.
-Connecting a mobile device to the AUX input:
connect the cable ® c::> fig. 218 to the AUX in-
Media
put@ on the Audi music interface and then to
the mobile device @ (such as an MP3 player or
smartphone).
-Disconnecting a mobile device from the AUX
input :
remove the cable@c::> fig. 218 from the
AUX
input @c::>fig. 218.
-Operation: select and confirm the External au­
dio player
source @c::> page 239, fig. 219. The
media are started and operated through the
mobile
device @<=:> fig. 218.
A WARNING
-Driving requires your complete and undivided
attention . As the driver, you have complete
responsibility for safety in traffic. Never oper­
ate mobile devices while driving, because this
i nc reases the risk of an accident.
(D Note
-Remove the connector from the Audi music
interface carefully so it is not damaged.
-Use a USB extens ion cable to connect devi­
ces that have an integrated USB connector
(such as a USB stick) to prevent damage to
your USB device and the Audi music inter­
face .
- Extremely high or low temperatures that
can occur inside vehi cles can damage mobile
devices and/or impair their performance.
Never leave mobi le dev ices in the vehicle in
extreme ly high or low temperat ures.
@ Tips
- When you switch the ignition off, the USB
ports are still supplied with power until the
energy management intervenes.
- Do not use an additional adapter or USB ex­
tension cable to connect mobile devices to
the Audi music interface that already have a
cable or that must be connected with a USB
adapter
( c::> page 236). They may impair the
functionality.
-You can purchase the AUX connector cable
from an authorized Audi dealer or at spe­
cialty stores .
237

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 . 230 .
.,. Secure luggage us ing the tie-downs provided
¢ page 79 .
.,. 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
front end of the driver's door. Exceeding permissible weight standards can cause the
vehicle to s lide and handle diffe rently .
264
-Please observe info rmation on safe driving
¢page 258 .
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*,
- Close the power top*,
- Open all a ir outlets in the instrument pan -
el,
- Switch off the air reci rculat ion,
- Set the fresh air fan to the highest speed.
A WARNING
-
Always make sure that the doors, all win­
dows, the sunroof*, the power top * and the
rear lid are securely closed and locked to re­
duce the risk of in jury when the veh icle is not
being used.
-After clos ing the rear lid, always make sure
that it is properly closed and locked .
- Never leave your veh icle unattended espe ­
cially wi th the rear lid left ope n. A child
could crawl into th e vehicle th rough the lug­
gage compa rtment and close the rea r lid be­
comi ng trapped and u nable to ge t out. Be­
ing trapped in a vehicle can lead to ser ious
pe rsonal inj ury.
- Never let c hild ren p lay in o r around the vehi­
cle.
- Never let passenge rs ride in the luggage
comp artment. Vehicle occu pants mus t
al­
ways be proper ly restrained in one of the ve ­
hicle's seat ing pos itions.
(D Tips
- Air circu lation helps t o reduce w indow fog­
ging . Stale air escapes to the o uts ide

_& WARNING
-Safety belts are the single most effective
means availa ble to r educe the ris k of ser ious
injury and death in automobile accidents .
For your protection and that of your passen­
gers, always correctly wea r safety be lts
when the veh icle is moving .
- Failure to pay attention to the warn ing light
that comes on could lead to persona l injury.
Why use safety belts?
Frontal collisions and the law of physics
Frontal crashes create very strong forces for peo­
ple riding in vehicles.
Fig. 2 34 Unbelted occupants in a veh icle head ing for a wall
Fig. 23 5 The veh icle crashes into the wa ll
The physical principles are simple . Both the vehi­
cle and the passengers possess e nergy which va r­
ies w ith veh icle speed and body weigh t. Engi­
n eers ca ll this energy "ki ne tic e nergy."
The highe r the speed of the vehicle and the
g reater the vehicle 's we ight, the more energy
~ that has to be "absorbed " in the crash. ~ N ...... N ~ 0
'° ~ co
Safet y bel ts
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 passenge rs of this vehicle a re not us­
ing sa fety belts
¢ fig . 234, they will keep moving
at the same speed the vehicle was moving just
before the crash, until someth ing stops them -
here, the wall
c:.-fig. 235.
T he same p rinciples apply to people sitting in a
vehicle that is invo lved in a fronta l co llision. Even
at city speeds of 20 to 30 mph (30 to 50 km/h),
the forces acting on the body can reach one ton (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 a lso not
attached to the ir vehicle. In a frontal collis ion
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 accide nts and co llisions.
269

Safe ty belts
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 bel ts!
F ig. 236 A dr iver not wear ing a safety belt is v iolently
thrown forwa rd
Fig. 237 A rear passenger not wearing a safety belt will fly
fo rward and strike t he d river
Unbe lted occupants are not able to resist the tre­
mendous fo rces of impact by holding t igh t or
b racing themselves. Wi tho ut the benefit of safe­
ty restraint systems, the unrestrained occupant
will slam violently into the steering whee l, in ­
strument panel, windsh ield, or whatever else is
in the way ¢
fig. 236. This impact with the veh i­
cle interior has all the energy they had just be­
fore the crash .
Never rely on airbags alone for protection. Even
when they deploy, airbags provide only additional
protection. Airbags are not supposed to dep loy in
all k inds of accidents . A lthough your Audi is
equ ipped w ith airbags, all vehicle occupants, in­
cluding the dr iver, must wear safety belts cor­
rectly in o rder to minimize the risk of severe in­
jury or deat h in a cr ash.
270
Remember too, that a irbags w ill dep loy only
once and that your safety be lts are always there
to offer protection in those acc idents in which
airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they have already deployed. Unbe lted occupants can
also be thrown out of the vehicle where even
more severe or fata l injuries can occur.
It is also important for the rear passengers to
wear safety be lts correctly. Unbelted passengers
in the rear seats endanger not only themselves
but also the driver and other passengers
¢ fig. 237 . In a fronta l col lision they will be
th rown forward v io lently, whe re they can hit and
i njure the dr iver 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!
Fi g. 238 Driver is co rrectly rest rained in a sudden b rak ing
ma ne uver
Safety be lts used p roperly can make a big differ­
ence. Safety belts he lp to keep passengers in
their seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap­
plied to the body i n an accident, and help prevent
the u ncontrolled movement that can cause ser i­
ous injuries . In addition, safety belts reduce the
dange r of be ing th rown ou t of the vehi cle.
Safety belts attach passenge rs to the car and give
them t he benefit of be ing slowed down more
gently or "soft ly" th ro ugh the
"give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety fea tures engi­
neered into today's vehicles. By " absorbing" the
k inetic energy over a longe r per iod of t ime, the
safety belts make the fo rces on the body more
"tolerab le" and less likely to cause injury.
IJ>

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.
282
,& 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 277.
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.
284
- 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 289. 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 49 Driver 's knee a irbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument panel
u nderneath the steering whee l
~fig. 249, 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 287, More important things to know
about front airbags.
293

Child safety
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs . and
80 lbs. (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft.
9 in . (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall.
Fig. 260 Rear seat: ch ild proper ly restrained in a booster
seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit most
children until they are at least 4
ft . 9 in. (57 in­
ches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about 80 lbs .
(36 kg). Booster seats raise these child ren up so
that the safety belt will pass properly
over the
stronger parts of their bodies and the safety belt
can help protect them in a crash.
• Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to restrain
a chi ld on a booster seat.
• The shoulder be lt must lie as close to the cen­
ter of the child's collar bone as possible and
must lie flat and snug on the upper body. It
must never lie across the throat or neck. The
lap belt must lie across the pelv is and never
across the stomach or abdomen . Make sure the
belt lies flat and snug. Pull on the belt to tight­
en if necessary .
• If you must transport an older child in a boos­
te r seat on the front passenger seat, you can
use the safety belt height adj ustment to help
adjust the shoulder portion properly .
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
qpage308.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs . or
18 kg) are best protected in child safety seats de­
signed for their age and weight. Experts say that
the skeletal structure, particularly the pelvis, of
these children is not fully developed, and they
312
must not use the vehicle safety belts without a
suitable child restraint.
It is usually best to put these children in appro­
pr iat e booster seats. Be sure the booster seat
meets all applicable safety standards.
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass across
the child's body in the right places. The routing of
the be lt
over the chi ld's body is very important
for t he child's protection, whether or not a boos­
ter seat is used. Children age 12 and under must
always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4 ft. 9 in. (57 inches/
1.45 meters) ta ll can generally use the vehicle's
three point lap and shoulder belts. Never use the
lap belt portion of the vehicle's safety belt alone
to restrain any child, regard less of how big the
c hil d is. Always remember that children do not
have the p ronounced pelvic structure required for
the proper function of lap be lt portion of the
ve­
hicle's three point lap and shoulder belts. The
c hild' s safety abso lutely requ ires that a lap belt
portion of the safety belt be fastened snugly and
as low as possible around the pe lvis. Never let
the lap belt portion of the safety belt pass over
the chi ld 's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink of
an eye and with considerab le force . In order to do
i ts job, the airbag needs room to inflate so that it
will be there to protect the occupant as the occu­
pant
moves forward into the airbag.
A vehicle occupant who is out of position and too
close to the a irbag gets in the way of an inflating
airbag. When an occupant is too close, he or she
will be struck violently and will receive serious or
possibly even fatal injury.
In order for the a irbag to
offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especially
any ch ildren, who must be in the front seat be­
cause of exceptional c ircumstances, be properly
r estra ined and as far away from the a irbag as
possible. By keeping room between the child's
.,..