airbag off AUDI A6 2013 Owner's Manual

same effect. If the front passenger
frontal a irbag is turned on, the
PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light light will go out.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the
side ai rbags supplement the pro tection of­
fe red by the fro nt three -point safety be lts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adj ustab le head restra ints to he lp reduce the
risk of injury in a wide range of accident and
crash situations. Be sure to read the impor­
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Advanced Airbag System
and the act ivation of the safety be lt preten­
sioners depend on the decelerat ion measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
electronic control un it. The amount of infla­
tion of the front airbags can also be adapted
to the front seat position, depending on the d istance between the respe ctive front seat
and the steering whee l or inst rument panel as
registered by sensors in the seats. Crash se­
verity depends on speed and deceleration as
well as the mass and stiffness of the vehicle
or object invo lved in the crash .
On the passenger s ide, regard less of safety
be lt use, the front passenger fronta l airbag
will be t urned off if the electrical capacitance
measured by the capacitive passenger detec­
tion system on the front passenger seat is less
than the amount programmed in the electron­
ic control unit . The front passenger fronta l air­
bag will a lso be turned off if the capac itance
measured by the system for the front passen­
ger seat eq ua ls tha t of an infant o f abo ut one
year of age in one o f the child seats that was
used to cert ify the Advanced Airbag System
under Fede ral Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208 . The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OF F light
comes on and stays on to tell you when the
front Advanced Airbag System on the passen­ ger s ide has been turned off
c:> page 158 .
Airba g sy stem 155
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury w hen an airbag
in flates, always wear safety be lts p roperly.
- If you are unrestra ined, leaning forward,
sitt ing s ideways or out of pos ition in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You will a lso receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up aga inst
the airbag o r too close to it when it in­
flates -even w it h an Advanced A irbag
¢ page 145 .
More important things to know about
front airbags
F ig. 158 In flated front a irbags
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated position
so that ai rbags can unfold p roper ly and pro­
vide s upplementa l pro tect ion in a fron tal col­
lis ion .
T he front airbags are des igned to provide ad­
di tional protection fo r the chest and face of
the d river a nd the front seat passenger when :
- safety belts are worn properly,
- the seats have been positioned so that the
occupant is properly seated as far as poss i­
b le from the airbag,
- and the head restraints have been properly adjusted .
Because airbags inflate in the blink of an eye
with great force, things you have on your lap
or have placed on the seat could become dan­
gerous p rojecti les, and be pushed into you if
the a irbag inf lates.
When an airbag deploys, fine dust is re leased.
This is norma l and is not caused by a fire in .,,.

156 Airbag sys te m
the vehicle. This dust is made up most ly of a
powder used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy . It cou ld irritate sk in .
I t is important to remember that while the
supp lemental airbag system is designed to re­
duce the likelihood of serious injuries, other
in juries, for example swelling, bruising and
minor abrasions, can also happen when air­
bags inflate. Airbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body . Front airbags
supplement the three-poi nt safety belts only
in some frontal co llisions in which the vehicle
dece lerat ion is high enough to deploy the air­
bags.
Front airbag s will not d eploy:
- if the ignit ion is switched off when a crash
occurs,
- in s ide collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in ro llovers,
- when the crash deceleration measured by
the airbag system is less than the minimum
threshold needed for airbag deployment as
registered by the electronic control unit.
Th e front pa ssenger airbag al so will not
d epl oy :
-when the front passenger seat is not occu ­
pied,
- when the electrical capacitance measured by
the capacitive passenger detection system
for the front passenger seat indicates that
the passenger side frontal airbag must be
switched off by the electronic control unit (the
PASSENGER A IR B AG OFF light
c::> page 158 and how they wo rk comes on
and stays on).
.&_ WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can inc rease
the risk of serious injury in crashes .
- To reduce the r isk of injury when the air­
bags 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 posi­
tion or too close to the airbag can be se­
rious ly injured by an airbag as it unfolds
with great force in the blink of an eye
c::> page 147 .
.&_ WARNING
--A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild seat in -
stalled on the front passenger seat will be
se riously inju red and can be killed if t he
front ai rbag inflates - even w ith an Ad­
vanced A irbag System.
- The inflating airbag will h it the c hild seat
or infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child sea t and chi ld against
the backrest, center armrest, door or
roof.
- Always install rear -fac ing chi ld seats on
the rear seat.
- If you m ust insta ll a rearward fac ing
chi ld seat on the front passenger seat
because of exceptional circumstances
and the PAS SENGER AIR BAG O FF light
does not come on and stay on, immed i­
ately install the rear-facing child seat in a rear seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
system inspected by you r Audi dealer .
.&_ WARNING
= -
Objects between you and the airbag will
i ncrease the r is k of injury in a crash by in­
terfering with the way the a irbag unfolds
or by be ing p ushed in to you as the airbag
i nflates.
- Neve r hold things in yo ur hands or on
your lap when the veh icle is in use.
- Never transpo rt items on o r in the a rea
of the front p assenger sea t. Objects
could move into the a rea of the front air­
bags during braking or other sudden ma ­
neuvers and become dangero us projec­
tiles that can cause ser ious personal in-
jury if the a irbags inf late. ..,.

-Never place or attach accessories or o th ­
er objects (such as cup hol ders, tele­
phone brackets, large, heavy or bulky ob­
jects) on the doors, over or near the area
marked ''AIRBAG" on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat backrests or be­
tween those a reas and yourself. These
objects co uld cause injury in a crash, es­
pecially when the airbags inflate .
- Never recline the front passe nger's seat
to transport objec ts. Items can also
move into the area o f the side airbag or
the front airbag during braking or in a
sudden maneuver . Objects near the air­
bags can become project iles and cause
injury, part icularly when the seat is re­
cl ined .
- Never place or transport ob jects on the
front passenger seat. Objects on the
front passenger seat could cause the ca­ pacitive senso r in the seat to s ignal to
airbag system that the seat is occupied
by a person when it in fa ct is not, o r that
the person on the se at is he avier than he
or she actually is. The change in electric
capacitance beca use of such objects can
cause the passenger front airbag to be
turned on when it sho uld be
off, or can
cause the airbag to work in a way that is
different from the way it wou ld have
worked w ithout objects on the seat.
- Always make sure that there is nothing
on the front passenger seat that will
cause the capacitive passenge r detection
system in the s eat to s ignal to the A irbag
System that the seat is oc cupied by a
pers on when it is not, or to sign al th at it
is occupied by someone who is heavier
than the pe rson actually s itting on the
seat . The presence of an object co uld
cause the passenger front a irbag to be
turned on when it sho uld be
off, or co uld
cause the airbag to work in a way that is
different from the way it wou ld have
worked w ithout the object on the seat. A
irbag
sys tem 157
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing prob lems fo r people
with a history of as thma or other breath­
ing cond itions.
- To reduce the risk of breath ing problems,
those wi th asthma o r other respiratory
conditions s hou ld get fresh air r ight
away by get ting o ut o f the veh icle or
open ing win dows or do ors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy, was h your ha nds and fa ce with
mild soap and wate r be fore eating.
- Be ca reful not to get the dust in to your
eyes, o r into any c uts or sc ratches.
- If the resid ue should get into your eyes,
f lus h t hem w ith wa te r.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
fl~ Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advan ced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indi cator light and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG O FF
light.
The Advanced A irbag System ( includ ing the
electron ic co ntro l unit, sensor circu its and sys­
tem wir ing) is monitored con tinuously to
make sure that it is functio ning properly
whenever the ignition is on. Each time you
switch on the ignition, the airbag monitor ing
indicator light
fl will come on for a few sec­
onds (self diagnost ics).
The sy stem must be in spected when the
indicator light
I :
- does not come on when the ignition is
sw itched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have switched on the ignit ion, or
- comes on while driv ing.
If an airbag system malfunc tion is detec ted,
the indicator light wi ll first start f lashing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
llo-
•
•

158 Airbag system
con tinuously to se rve as a constant remin der
to have the system inspected immed iately.
I f a malfu nction oc curs that turns the fron t
a ir bag on the passenger side off, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght will come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on .
.&_ WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light
c::> page 19
comes whe n the vehicle is be ing used,
have t he system inspected immed iate ly
by yo ur autho rized Aud i dea ler . It is pos­
sible that t he airbag will inf late when it
is not s upposed to, or w ill not inflate
w hen it sho uld.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fig . 1 S9 Sect ion from th e in str ument p anel: PASS EN­
GER AIR BAG O FF ligh t
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF Light is Locate d
in the center o f the instr ument panel
c::> fig . 159.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF Light will come
on and stay on to tell you when the fron t Ad­
vanced A irbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the e lectronic control unit . If the
b ul b for the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF Light
burns out, the a irbag ind icator light
fl will
come on to signal a malfunction in the Ad·
vanced A irbag System . Although the burned­
out bulb will not change the way the front
passenger's frontal airbag works, it w ill no
L onger be possib le to use the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
Ligh t to make sure tha t the ai rbag on/off status
is correct fo r the occ upant on
t h e front passenger seat . Have the airbag sys­
tem inspected immediately by your author­
i z ed Audi dea ler.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will blink
for about 5 seconds when:
- t he igniti on is sw itched on and
- t he capac itive passenger detection system,
whi ch swit ches the front sea t passenger's
front al Adv anced Air bag on and off, detects
a change in t he status of the fron t passen­
ge r seat.
As soon as the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
lig ht stops b linking, a lw ay s make sure tha t
the a irbag s tatus (on or off) as shown by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF Light is prope r for
t h e age , size and e lectrical capacitance of the
person occupy ing the front passenger seat.
Always make sure that the safe ty belt for the
front passenger sea t is properly fastened .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will
show the status of the front seat passenger 's
frontal Ad vanced Ai rbag a few seconds after
the ignition is sw itched on and the airbag in­
dicator light goes off. The PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF light :
-will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied;
- will stay on i f the e lectrical capacitance
meas ured by the capacitive passenger de­
tect ion system for the front passenger seat
equa ls the combined capacitance of a n in­
fant up to about one yea r of age and one of
the rearwa rd- facing or forward-fac ing ch ild
restrai nts listed i n Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard 208 wi th which the Ad ­
vanced Airbag System in your ve hicle was
certified; For a List ing of the child restraints
that were used to certify your vehicle's com ­
pliance with the U.S . Safety Standard
c::>poge 173.
- will go out i f the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the ca­
pacitive passenger detection system .

-The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on if the ignition is on
and . ..
- a car bed has been installed on the front
passenger seat, or
- a rearward -facing chi ld restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a fo rward-facing child restraint has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat,
- and if the e lectr ica l capacitance registered
on the front passenger seat is equal to or
l ess than the combined capacitance of a typ­
ical 1 year-old infant and one of the rear­
ward-facing or forward -facing child re­
straints listed in Federal Motor Veh icle Safe­
ty Standard 208 w ith which the Advanced
Airbag System in your vehicle was certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS ·
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on . Nev­
er install a rearward-facing child restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place fo r
a child in any kind of child restraint is at one
of the seating positions on the rear seat
¢ page 147, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 171, Child Safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on when one of the conditions listed above is met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignit ion is on.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light does not appear on and does not
stay on all the time, stop as soon as it is safe
to do so and
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off for more than 4 seconds and then turn­
i ng it on agai n;
- remove and reinstall the child restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety be lt fo r the
front passenger seat has been correctly
routed through the child rest raint as descri-
Airbag system 159
bed in the child restraint manufacturer's in­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea­
t u re on the safety belt for the front passen­
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight.
- make sure t hat no electrical device (s uch as
a laptop, CD p layer, e lectronic games device
or power inverter) is placed or used on the
front passenger seat if the device is connect­
ed to the 12-volt socket or the cigarette
lighter socket;
- make sure that no seat heater has been ret­
rofitted or otherwise added to the front pas ­
senger seat;
- make sure that nothing can interfere with
the safety belt buckles and that they are not
obstructed;
- make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cushion .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still
does not come on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on and does not stay on con­
tinuously (when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passen-
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions . Have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer immed iate ly.
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure that the child is properly restrain­
ed in a child restra int that is appropriate for
its size and age.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should
NOT come on ...
T he PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht should
NOT come on when the ignition is on and an
adult is sitting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat . If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or
flashes for about 5 seconds wh ile driving, un­
der these c ircumstances, make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is
properly seated on the center of the seat •
•

160 Airbag sys te m
cushion wit h his or her back up against the
backrest and the backrest is n ot reclined,
- the adu lt is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or support­
ing their weight on the armrest,
- the safety be lt is being properly worn and
that there is not a lot of slack in the safety
belt webbing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or
cushions or other things (such as b lankets)
on the front passenger seat that might
cause the capacitive passenger detection
system to miscalculate electrical capac i­
tance .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
-If the status of the Advanced A irbag Sys­
tem has changed wh ile the vehicle is
moving, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light blinks for about 5 seconds to catch
the drive r's attent ion.
If this happens, al­
ways s top as soon as it is safe to do so
and check the steps described above.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go off when an adu lt who is no t
very small is sitting on the front passen ­
ger seat after taking the steps described
above, make sure the adult is properly
seated and restrained at one of the rear
seating pos itions. Have the a irbag sys­
tem inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer before transpo rting anyone on the
front passenger seat.
A WARNING , --
An airbag system that is not funct io ning
prope rly cannot provide supplemental p ro­
tect ion in a fron tal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light ~ page 19
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
have t he system inspected immedi ate ly
by yo ur authorized Aud i dea ler .
It is pos­
sible that the airbag will inflate when it is not supposed to, or will not
inflate
when it should.
A WARNING
-If the front airbag inflates, a child without
a child restraint, or in a rearward-facing
chi ld safety seat, or in a forward -facing
chi ld restraint that has not been proper ly
i nstalled w ill be seriously injured and can
b e killed.
- Even though you r vehicle is equipped
with an Adva nced A irbag System, make
certain that all children, espe cial ly 12
ye ars and you nger, always ride on the
back seat properly rest rained for their
age and size .
- Always inst all forward o r rear-fa cing
child seats on the rear sea t - even with
an Advanced Airbag System.
- If you must ins tall a rearwa rd -facing
child seat on the front passenger seat because of exceptional circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not appear and stay on, immediate ­
ly install the rear-facing child seat in a
rea r seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
sys tem inspected by you r Audi dealer .
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you
m ust install a forward-fac ing c hild re­
straint on the front passenger seat, al­
ways move the seat into its rearmos t po­
sition in the se at's fore and aft adjust­
men t range, as far away from the a irbag
as poss ible . The backrest mus t be ad just­
ed to an upright pos ition . Make su re that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when­
ever the ignit ion is switched on.
A WARNING
-
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out when an adult is sitting
on the front passe nger seat after taking
the steps described above, make su re the
adu lt is prope rly seated a nd restra ined at
one o f the rea r seat ing pos itions.
~

-Have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
(D Tips
If the capacitive passenger detection sys­
tem determines that the front passenger
seat is empty, the frontal airbag on the
passenger side will be turned off, and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will stay
on .
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system are installed at
many different places on your Audi. Installing,
removing, servicing or repairing a part in an
area of the vehicle can damage a part of an
airbag system and prevent that system from
working properly in a collision.
There are some important things you have to know to make sure that the effectiveness of
the system will not be impaired and that dis­
carded components do not cause injury or pol­
lute the environment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal in­
jury and death by preventing an airbag from deploying when needed or deploying
an airbag unexpectedly:
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the
steering wheel horn pad or airbag cover
or the instrument panel or modify them
in any way .
- Never attach any objects such as cup
holders or telephone mountings to the
surfaces covering the airbag units.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one
moistened with plain water. Solvents or
cleaners could damage the airbag cover
or change the stiffness or strength of the
material so that the airbag cannot de­
ploy and protect properly.
Airbag system 161
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, front seats or electrical sys­
tem (including the installation of audio
equipment, cellular telephones and CB radios, etc .) must be performed by a
qualified technician who has the training
and special equipment necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that you see your
authorized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop.
- Never modify the front bumper or parts
of the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side airbag
can inflate without interference:
- Never install seat covers or replace­
ment upholstery over the front seat­
backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags
inflate.
- Damage to the original seat covers or
to the seam in the area of the side air­
bag module must always be repaired
immediately by an authorized Audi
dealer.
- The airbag system can deploy only once .
After an airbag has been deployed, it
must be replaced with new replacement
parts designed and approved especially
for your Audi model version. Replace­ ment of complete airbag systems or air­
bag components must be performed by
qualified workshops only. Make sure that
any airbag service action is entered in
your Audi Warranty
& Maintenance book­
let under
AIRBAG REPLACEMENT RE­
CORD .
-For safety reasons in severe accidents,
the alternator and starter are separated
from the vehicle battery with a pyrotech­
nic circuit interrupter.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit inter­
rupter must only be performed by a
qualified technicians who have the ...
L..._ _____________ _j ...
•
•

The knee airbag offers additional protect ion
to the driver's and passenger's knees and up­
per and lower thigh areas and supp lements
the protect ion provided by the safety belts.
I f the front airbags deploy , the knee airbags
also deploy in fronta l collisions when the de ­
p loyment threshold stored in the control unit
is met c>
page 155, More important things to
know about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function,
safety be lts he lp keep the driver or front pas ­
senger in posit ion in a frontal coll is ion so that
the airbags can prov ide supplemental protec­
tion .
The airbag system is not a subst itute for yo ur
safety be lt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your veh icle. Al­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wea ring
your safety belt and wear ing it prope rly . Th is
i s why you shou ld always wear you r safety
be lt, not just because the law requires yo u to
do soc>
page 136, General notes.
The safety belt buck le for the dr iver and front
seat passenge r have switc hes that tell the a ir­
bag con trol mod ule if the safety belt is be ing
used or not . If the safety belt is being used,
the knee airbag will deploy at a slightly higher rate of deceleration than if the belt is not be ­
ing used. Therefore, in a particu lar collision, it
is poss ible that an airbag will not deploy at a
seating position where the safety belt is being
used but will inflate at the position whe re the
safety belt is not be ing used.
Remember too, airbags will deploy only once
and only in certain kinds of accidents -your
safety belts are always there to offer protec ­
tion in those acc idents in which a irbags a re
not supposed to deploy or when they have a l­
r eady deployed, fo r example whe n your veh i­
cle strikes or is s truck by another afte r the
fi rst coll is ion .
This is just one of the reasons why an a irbag is
n ot a substi tute fo r the safety belt. The airbag
sys tem works most effective ly when used with
A irbag system 163
the safety belts. Therefore, always wear yo ur
safety belts correct ly .
I t i s important to remembe r that w hile the
s u pplementa l knee airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of ser ious injuries,
other injuries, for example, swelling, bruising
and minor abrasions and friction b urns can a l­
so occur when an airbag inflates.
The knee airbag system basically consists
of:
- The e lectronic control module
- Two inflatable ai rbags (airbag and gas gen -
erator), one for the driver and one for the
front passenger
- The ai rbag indicator lig ht in the instrument
pane l
The knee airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ignit io n is switched off
- in frontal collisions when the deceleration
meas ured by the con trol un it is too low
- in side co llisions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers
- in the event of a system malfunction (warn-
ing/ind icator light is on)
i=> page 19.
A WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system can
only provide protection when occupa nts
are in the proper seating position
i=>page 155.
- If the airbag ind icator light i=> page 19
comes when the veh icle is being used,
have the system inspe cted immediately
by your au thori zed A udi dealer.
It is pos­
sib le tha t the airbag will infla te when i t
is not supposed to, or will not infla te
when it should .
-
•
•

166 Airbag system
Always remember that the side airbag system
can only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt and wear ing it properly. This
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re­
qu ires you to do so
Q page 136, General
notes.
It is important to remember that while the
supplemental side a irbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of serious injuries,
other inju ries, for example, swell ing, b ruising,
friction burns and minor abrasions can also be
associa ted with deployed side airbags. Re ­
member too, side airbags will deploy only
once and only in certain k inds of accidents -
your safety belts are always there to offer pro­
tection .
Vehicle damage, repa ir costs or even the lack
of vehicle damage are not necessar ily an indi­
cation of over-sensitive or failed airbag activa­
tion. In some co llisions, both front and side
a irbags may inflate. Remember too, that air­
bags will dep loy only once and only in certain
kinds of collisions -your safety belts are al­
ways there to offer protection in those acci ­
dents in wh ic h airbags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have already deployed.
The side airbag s yst em will not deploy:
- when the ign ition is switched off
- in s ide collisions when the acceleration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end collisions
- in rear-end collisions
- in ro llovers.
In some types of acc idents the front airbags,
side curta in a irbags and side airbags may be
tr iggered together.
.&_ WARNING
- Sa fety belts and t he ai rbag sys tem w ill
only prov ide p rotec tion when occ upants
are in t he proper seating posit ion
Qpoge 167.
-If the airbag indicator light Q page 19
comes when the vehicle is being used,
-
have the system inspected immediately
by your authorized A udi dealer. It is pos­
sible that the airbag will inflate when it
is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should.
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re­
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu­
pants who are properly restrained .
Fig. 163 In flated side airbags o n left s ide of vehicle,
r ear side a irbag
When the system is triggered, the airbag is
filled with propellant gas and breaks through
a seam in the seat su rface area marked "AIR­
BAG".
It expands between the side trim panel
and the passenger. In order to help provide
t hi s addit ional protect ion, the side airbag
mus t inflate with in a fra ction of a second a t
very h igh speed and with great force. The sup­
plementa l side airbag could injure you if your
seat ing position is not proper or up right or if
items are located in the area where the sup­
plementa l side airbag expands. This applies
especially to children
Q page 171, Child Safe­
ty .
Supplemental side airbags inflate between
the occupant and the door panel on the side
of the veh icle that is str uck in certa in side col­
li sion
9 fig. 163 .
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduc e the risk of inju ry to the upp er
part of the body.
A fine dust may deve lop when the airbag de­
ploys . This is normal and does not mean there
is a fi re in th e vehicle.

168 Airbag system
larger, unclosed openings in the door
panel.
- Never drive with interior door trim pan­
els removed.
- Never drive when parts have been re­
moved from the inside door panel and
the openings they leave have not been
properly closed.
- Never drive when loudspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been properly
closed.
-Always make certain that openings are
covered or filled if additional speakers
or other equipment is installed in the
inside door panels.
- Always have work on the doors done by an authorized Audi dealer or qualified
workshop.
Side curtain airbags
Description of side curtain airbags
The side curtain airbag system can provide
supplemental protection to properly restrain ­
ed occupants.
Fig . 164 Side c urtain airbags, dri ver 's side: s ide curta in
a irb ag location
The side curtain airbags are located on both
sides of the interior above the front and rear
side windows
c:.> fig. 164. They are identified
by the word "AIRBAG" on the windshield
frame and the center roof pi llar.
The s ide curtain airbag system supplements
the safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of injury for occupants' heads and upper
torso on the side of the vehicle that is struck in
a side collision. The side curtain airbag in­
flates in side impacts and only when the vehi­
cle acceleration registered by the control unit
is high enough . If this rate is below the refer­
ence value programmed into the control unit,
the side airbags will not be triggered, even
though the car may be badly damaged as a re­ su lt of the collision .
It is not possib le to de­
fine an airbag triggering range that will cover every possible angle of impact, since the cir­
cumstances will vary considerably between
one collision and another. Important factors
include, for example, the nature (hard or soft)
of the impacting object, the angle of impact,
vehicle speed, etc.
c:,, page 169, How side cur­
tain airbags work .
Aside from their normal safety function, safe­
ty belts work to help keep the driver or front passenger in position in the event of a colli­
s ion so that the side curtain airbags can pro­
vide protection .
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your vehicle. Al­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wear ing
your safety belt and wearing it properly . This
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re­
quires you to do soc:.>
page 136, General
notes .
It is important to remember that wh ile the
s ide curtain airbag system is designed to help
reduce the likelihood of serious injuries, other
injuries, for example, swelling, bruising, fric­
tion burns and minor abrasions can also be as­
sociated with these airbags upon dep loyment.
Remember too, these airbags will deploy only
once and only in certain kinds of accidents -
your safety belts are always there to offer pro ­
tection.
The side curtain airbag system basically
consists of:
- The electronic control module and external
side impact sensors ..,..