child seat AUDI A7 2013 Owner's Guide

-The PA SS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on if the ignition is on
and . ..
- a car bed has been insta lled 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 capaci tance 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
stra ints 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
P A S·
SE NG ER AIR BA G OFF
light w ill stay on . Nev­
er install a rearward-fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place fo r
a child in any ki nd of child restraint is at o ne
of the seati ng positions on the rear seat
¢ page 151, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 175, Child Safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light com es
on ...
If the PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on w hen one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regular ly to
make certa in that the
PA SSENGER AIR BA G
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignit ion is on.
If the PA SSE NGER A IR BA G
OFF
l ight 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 a nd that the safety be lt fo r the
front passenger seat has been correct ly
ro uted through the child rest raint as descr i-
A irbag system 163
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 p laced 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
ti nuously (whe n the ignition is sw itched 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 yo ur Audi dealer immed iate ly.
- move the ch ild to a rear seat position and
ma ke sure that the c hild is properly restra in­
ed in a c hild restra int that is app rop riate fo r
its size an d age.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should
NOT come on .. .
The PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht sho uld
NOT come on when t he ignit io n i s on and an
adult is sitting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat . If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG O FF
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 •
•

164 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.
~

168 Airbag system
How knee airbags work
Applies to vehicles: with knee a irbags
The risk of injury to the leg area can be re­
duced by fully inflated knee airbags.
Fig. 165 Inflated airbags protecting in a frontal colli·
s io n
The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the a irbags for the driver and front pas­
senger deploy in certain but not all frontal
collisions.
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
a lso deploy in frontal collisions when the de­
ployment threshold stored in the control unit
is met .
When the system deploys, the airbags fill
with a propellant gas, and inflate between the
lower part of the instrument panel and the
driver and the lower part of the instrument
panel and the front passenger~
fig. 162.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cush ion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the lower
extremities .
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 it is im­
portant for occupant safety that nothing
should be in their way when they deploy.
Fully inflated airbags in combination with
properly worn safety belts slow down and lim­
it the occupant's forward movement and help
to reduce the risk of injury. Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
App
lies to vehicles : wi th knee airbags
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al­
ways wear safety belts correctly and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and do to help the safety belts and
airbags to provide supplemental protection.
A WARNING
-An inflating knee airbag can cause serious
injury. Wearing safety belts incorrectly and
improper seating positions increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- The knee airbag system cannot protect
you properly if you are seated too close
to any of the airbag locations. When ad­
justing their seat positions, it is impor­
tant that both the driver and the front passenger keep their upper bodies and
knees at the following minimum safe
distances :
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instru­
ment panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- The risk of personal injury increases if
you lean forward or to the side, or if the
seat is improperly positioned and you are
not wearing your safety belt . The risk in­
creases even more should the airbag de­
ploy.
- Always make sure that the knee airbag
can inflate without interference. Objects
between you and the airbag can increase
the risk of injury in an accident by inter­
fering with the way the airbag deploys or
by being pushed into you as the airbag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, especially children
or animals ride in the footwell in front

of the passenger seat. If the airbag de­
p loys, this can resu lt in serious or fata l
injuries.
- Never carry objects of any kind in the
footwell area in front of the driver's or passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shop­
p ing bags, for e xample) ca n interfere
with or prevent proper dep loyment of
the airbag . Small objects can be
thrown throug h the vehicle if the ai r­
b ag deploys and injure you o r yo ur pas­
sengers.
- Make su re there are no crac ks, deep
scratches or other damage in the area of
the instrument pane l where the knee air­
bags are located.
- If children are incorrect ly sea ted, their
risk of i njury increases in a collision
¢ page 175, Child Safety .
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants .
Fig . 166 Side a irbag loca tion in t he d river 's s eat
The side a irbags a re located i n the sides of the
front seat ba ckrests
¢fig . 166 a nd the rear
backrest facing the doors . They are identified
bytheword "AIRBAG" .
The s ide a irbags installed for the front seating
positions have been designed and cer tified to
he lp red uce the risk of i nju ry that can be
caused by airbags when they inflate, particu ­
l arly when the occupant sitting next to it is
not seated proper ly . The side airbag for the
front passenger seat can be used with proper-
A irba g sy stem 169
ly installed child restra ints . Please be sure to
read the important informat ion and warnings
whenever using a child restra int in a vehicle:
Safety belts ¢
page 140, Airbag system
c>page 149, Chi ld safety c> page 175.
The side airbag sy stem basically consi st s of:
- t he electro nic cont ro l modu le and external
side impact sensors
- t he two a irbags located in the s ides of the
front backrests and the two a irbags* loc ated
in the rear backrest
- t he airbag warning light in the ins trumen t
cl uste r.
T he airbag system is mon itored e lec tronically
to make ce rtain that it is f unction ing p roperly
at all times. Each time you sw itch o n the igni­
tion, the airbag system ind icator light will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics) .
T he side airbag system supplements the safe ­
t y bel ts a nd can help to red uce the risk of in­
j u ry to the dr iver's, fron t and re ar passenger's
u pper torso on the side of the veh icle t hat is
str uck in a side collision . The airbag dep loys
only in side impacts and only when the vehicle
acce lerat ion reg istered by the control unit is
high enough. If this rate is below the refer­
ence value programmed into the co ntrol unit,
the side airbags w ill not be triggered, even
though the car may be bad ly damaged as a re­
su lt of the co llision .
It is not possib le to de ­
fine an airbag triggering range that will cover every possib le ang le of impact, s ince the cir­
cumstances will vary considerably be tween
one collisio n and another . Important factors
include, for example , the nature (hard or soft)
of the impacting objec t, the angle of impact,
vehicle speed, etc .
¢ page 171, Impor tan t
safety instructions on the side airbag system .
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 side
collision so that the side airbags can provide protection .
The airbag system is
no t a substitute for your
safety belt. Ra ther, it is part of the overall oc-
cupant restra int system in your vehicle .
IIJJ,

1 7 0 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. Th is
is another reason why you should a lways wear
your safety belts, not just because the law re­ qu ires you to do so
Q page 140, General
notes.
It is important to remember that while the
supplemental side a irbag system is designed
to reduce the like lihood of serious injur ies,
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 be lts 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 llis ions, 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 air bags are not supposed to
deploy or when they have already deployed .
The side airbag system will not deploy:
- when the ign ition is switched off
- in s id e collisions when the acce leration
measured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end col lisions
- 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 whe n occ upants
are in t he proper seating posit ion
Q page 171.
- 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. 167 In flated s ide a ir b ags o n left s ide of ve hicle ,
r ear s ide a irbag
When the system is triggered, the a irbag 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 io nal prote ction, the side airbag
mus t in flate with in a fra ction of a second at
very h igh speed and with great force. The sup­
pleme nta 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 ch ildren
Q page 175 , Child Safe­
ty .
Supplemental side airbags inflate between
the occupant and the door panel on the s ide
of the veh icl e th at is str uck in certa in side col­
li sion
9 fig. 167 .
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
" cushion" the impact and in this way they can
h elp to r educ 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 .

Important safety instructions on the
side airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al­
ways properly wear safety belts and ride in a
proper seating position.
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and act accordingly to help the
safety belts and airbags do their job to pro­
vide supplemental protection .
A WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious
or fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety
belts and improper seating positions in­
crease the risk of serious personal injury
and death whenever a vehicle is being
used .
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental side airbag inflates:
-Always sit in an upright position and
never lean against the area where the
supplemental side airbag is located.
- Never let a child or anyone else rest
their head against the side trim panel
in the area where the supplemental
side airbag inflates.
- Always make sure that safety belts are worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone sitting in the front
seat put their hand or any other parts
of their body out of the window.
- 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
deploy.
- 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.
Airbag system 171
- Objects between you and the airbag can
increase the risk of injury in an accident
by interfering with the way the airbag
unfolds or by being pushed into you as
the airbag inflates.
- Never place or attach accessories or
other objects (such as cup holders, tel­
ephone brackets, or even large, bulky
objects) on the doors, over or near the
area marked "AIRBAG" on the seat backrests .
- Such objects and accessories can be­ come dangerous projectiles and cause
injury when the supplemental side air­
bag deploys.
- Never carry any objects or pets in the
deployment space between them and
the airbags or allow children or other passengers to travel in this position .
- Always use the built -in coat hooks only
for lightweight clothing . Never leave any
heavy or sharp-edged objects in the
pockets that may interfere with side air­
bag deployment and can cause personal
injury in an accident.
- Always prevent the side airbags from be­
ing damaged by heavy objects knocking
against or hitting the sides of the seat­
backs.
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once. If the airbag has been triggered,
the system must be replaced by an au­
thorized Audi dealership.
- Damage (cracks, deep scratches etc .) to
the original seat covers or to the seam in
the area of the side airbag module must always be repaired immediately by an au­
thorized Audi dealer .
- If children are seated improperly, their
risk of injury increases in the case of an
accident ~
page 175, Child Safety.
-Never attempt to modify any compo­
nents of the airbag system in any way .
- In a side collision, side airbags will not
function properly if sensors cannot cor­ rectly measure increasing air pressure in-
side the doors when air escapes through .,.. •
•

Child Safety
Important things to know
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision.
The physical principles of what happens when
your veh icle is in a crash app ly also to chi ldren
~ page 141, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts?.
But unlike adu lts and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not
fu lly developed . In many respects children are
at greater risk of serious injury in crashes than
ad ults.
Because children's bod ies a re not fu lly deve l­
oped, they require restraint systems especial­ l y designed for their size, weight, and body
structure. Many co untries and all states of the
United States and provinces of Canada have
laws requ iring the use of approved ch ild re­
straint systems for infants and small children.
In a fronta l crash at a speed of 20 -35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infa nt w ill be more than 20 t imes the
weight of the child . T his means the weight of
the child would suddenly be more than
260 pounds ( 120 kg). Under these conditions,
on ly an appropr ia t e chi ld restraint properly
used can reduce the risk of ser ious injury.
Ch ild restra ints, like adult safety belts, must
be used properly to be effective. Used improp ­
erly, they can increase the risk of ser ious in ­
jury in an accident.
Consult the ch ild safety seat manufacture r's
instr uctions in order to be sure the seat is
right fo r you r ch ild's size ~
page 179, Impor­
tant safety instructions for using child safety
seats.
Please be sure to read and heed all of
the impo rtant informat ion and WARNINGS
about ch ild safety, Advanced A irbags, and the
i nstallation of child rest raints in this chapter .
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced A irbags in your vehicle and how they
wo rk when infants and children in child re-
Child Sa fet y 175
stra ints are on the front passenge r seat . Be­
ca use of the large amount of important infor­
mation, we cannot repeat it a ll here . We urge
you to read the detailed information in th is
owner's manua l about airbags and the Ad­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the
very important information about transport­
ing children on the front passenge r seat .
Please be sure to heed the WARN INGS -they
are ex tremely importa nt for yo ur safety and
the safety o f you r passengers, especially in ­
f ants and small chi ldren .
.A, WARNING
-Accident statistics have shown that c hil­
dren a re generally safer in the rear seat
area than in the front seating position.
Always restrain any child age 12 and un­ der in the rea r.
- All vehicle occupants and especially chil­
dren must be restrai ned p roperly when­
eve r riding in a vehicle . An unr est rained
or improperly restrained chi ld could be
in ju red by str iking the interio r or by be­
ing ejected from the vehicle during a
sudden maneuve r or impac t. An un re ­
strained or improper ly restrai ned ch ild is
also at greater risk of injury o r death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- A suitable chi ld restraint properly instal ­
led and used at one of the rear seat ing
positions p rov ides the highest degree of
protection for infants and small children
in most accident situations.
A WARNING
Ch ildren on the front seat of any car even
with Advanced Airbags ca n be ser iously in­
ju red or even kil led when an a irbag in­
fla tes. A child in a rearwar d-fac ing ch ild
safety seat installed on t he front passen ­
ger seat will be ser iously injure d and ca n
be killed i f the front airbag inflates .
- T he infla ting air bag will h it the ch ild
safety sea t or i nfan t carrie r wi th great
force and will smash the child safe ty seat
an d child against the bac krest , center
armrest, or door .
•
•

176 Child Safety
-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 in 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 air­
bag system inspected immediately by
your Audi dealer.
_&, WARNING
- Forward-facing child seats installed on
the front passenger seat may interfere
with the deployment of the airbag and
cause serious personal injury to the
child.
- If exceptional circumstances require the
use of a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger 's seat, the child's
safety and well-being require the follow­ ing special precautions to be taken:
- Always make sure that the forward-fac­
ing seat has been designed and certi­
fied by its manufacturer for use on a
front passenger seat with a front and
side airbag.
- Always carefully follow the manufac­
turer's instructions provided with the
child seat or infant carrier.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if
the child restraint manufacturer's in­
structions require the top tether strap
to be used.
- Never put the forward-facing child re­
straint up against or very near the in­
strument panel.
- Always set the safety belt upper an­
chorage to the adjustment position
that permits proper installation in ac­
cordance with the child restraint manu­
facturer's instructions.
-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 in­
stalling the child restraint. The back­
rest must be adjusted to an upright po­
sition .
- Always make sure that nothing pre­
vents the front passenger's seat from
being moved to the rearmost position
in its fore and aft adjustment range.
- Never place objects on the seat (such
as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device or power inverter). These
may influence the electrical capaci­
tance measured by the capacitive pas­
senger detection system and can also
fly around in an accident and cause se­
rious personal injury.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device or power inverter) on the
front passenger seat if the device is
connected to the 12-volt socket or the
cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passen­
ger seat, never install any child re­
straint system on this seat.
- 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 .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install the forward-facing child
seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer.
- Always buckle the child seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it.
A loose child seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS
whenever using a child restraint in ave­
hicle
¢ page 140, Safety belts,
¢ page 149, Airbag system and ~

~ page 175, Important things to
know.
(D Tips
Always replace child restraints that were
installed in a vehicle during a crash. Dam­
age to a child restraint that is not visible
could cause it to fail in another collision
situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your vehicle is equipped with a front "Ad­
vanced Airbag System" in compliance with United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard (FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the
time your vehicle was manufactured.
The Advanced Airbag system in your vehicle
has been certified to meet the "low-risk" re­
quirements for 3- and 6-year old children on
the passenger side and small adults on the
driver side. The low risk deployment criteria
are intended to reduce the risk of injury
through interaction with the airbag that can
occur, for example, by being too close to the
steering wheel and instrument panel when
the airbag inflates. In addition, the system
has been certified to comply with the "sup­
pression" requirements of the Safety Stand­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up
to 12 months who are restrained on the front passenger seat in child restraints that are list­
ed in the Standard.
Even though your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Airbag system, all children, espe­
cially those 12 years and younger, should al­
ways ride in the back seat properly restrained
for their age and size. The airbag on the pas­
senger side makes the front seat a potentially
dangerous place for a child to ride. The front
seat is not the safest place for a child in a for­
ward-facing child safety seat. It can be a very
dangerous place for an infant or a larger child
in a rearward-facing seat.
The vehicle 's Advanced Airbag System has a
capacitive passenger detection system in the
Child Safety 177
front passenger seat cushion that can detect
the presence of a baby or a child in a child re­
straint system on this seat.
The capacitive passenger detection system
registers the changes that result in an electri­
cal field when a child, a child restraint, and a
baby blanket are on the front passenger seat .
The change in the measured capacitance due
to the presence of a child, a child restraint,
and a baby blanket on the front passenger
seat is related to the child restraint system resting on the seat . The measured capacitance
of a child restraint system varies depending
on the type of system and specific make and
model.
The electrical capacitance of the various
types, makes, and models of child restraints
specified by the U.S.National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration (NH TSA) in the relevant
safety standard are stored in the Advanced
Airbag System control unit together with the
capacitances typical of infants and a 1-year
old child. When a child restraint is used on the
front passenger seat with a typical
1 year-old
infant, the Advanced Airbag System compares
the capacitance measured by the capacitive passenger detection system with the data
stored in the electronic control unit.
Child restraints and Advanced front
airbag system
Regardless of the child restraint that you use,
make sure that it has been certified to meet
United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standards and has been certified by its manu­
facturer for use with an airbag. Always be sure
that the child restraint is properly installed at
one of the rear seating positions. If in excep­
tional circumstances you must use it on the
front passenger seat, ca refully read all of the
information on child safety and Advanced Air­
bags and heed all of the applicable WARN­
INGS. Make certain that the chi ld and child re­
straint are correctly recognized by the capaci­
tive passenger detection system in the front passenger seat, that the front passenger air­
bag is turned off, and that the airbag status is ..,.
•
•

178 Child Saf ety
always correctly signaled by the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
li g ht .
M any types and models of ch ild restra ints
have been ava ilable over the years, new mod­
e ls are introduced regularly incorporating new
and improved designs and older models are
taken out of prod uction. Child restraints a re
not standardi zed. Ch ild restra ints of the same
type typically have different weights and s izes
and d ifferent "footprints", the size and shape
of the bottom of the child rest raint that sits
on the seat, when they are installed on a veh i­
cle sea t. These differe nces ma ke it vi rtually
i mposs ible to ce rtify comp lia nce w it h the re ­
q ui rements for advanced a irbags w ith each
and every child restraint that has ever been
sold in the past o r will be sold over the course
of the useful life of yo ur vehicle.
F or this reason, t he United States Nat ional
Highway Traffic Sa fety Administration has
published a list of specific type, makes a nd
models of child restraints that must be used
to certify complia nce of the Advanced Airbag
System in yo ur vehicle with the suppress ion
requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standa rd 208 . These child rest raints are :
Subpart A -Car bed child rest raint s
Model
Ange l Guard Ange l
Ride AA2403FOF
Manufactured on or
after
September 25, 2007
Subpart B -Rear-facing child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Century SmartFit December 1 , 1999
45 43
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-0 13PAW and base
l 22-999W HO
Evenflo D iscovery Ad-December 1, 1999
just Right 212
Evenflo First Choice December 1, 1999
1 20 4
Graco Infant 8457 December 1, 1999
-Model
Graco Snug ride
Manufactured on or
after
September 25, 2007
P eg Perego Primo Vi- September 25, 200 7
a ggio SIP IMU NOO US
Subpart C -Forward -facing and
convertible child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Br itax Roundabout September 25, 2007
E9L02xx
December 1, 1999
Cosco Summit Deluxe September 25, 2007 H igh Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back September 25, 2007 Booster 22-209
E venf lo Tribute V September 25, 200 7
379xxxx
Evenflo Medallion December
1, 1999
254
E venflo Generations Se ptember 25, 20 07
352xxxx
Graco ComfortSport September 25, 2007
Graco Toddler Safety September 25, 2007
Seat Step 2
Graco Platinum Cargo Septembe r 25, 2007
.&_ WARNING ~
To reduce the risk of serious inju ry, ma ke
sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever a
chi ld restraint is insta lled on the front pas ­
senger seat and the ignit ion is switched
on.
- Ta ke t he chi ld restraint off the front pas­
senger seat and install it properly at one
of the rear seat positions if the
PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not s tay on .
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi dealer immed iate­
ly .