passenger seat AUDI A7 2017 Owner´s Manual

Driving safety
-Passengers who are unbelted , out of posi­
tion or too close to the airbag can be seri ­
ously injured by an airbag as it unfolds with
great force in the blink of an eye .
- Always make sure that there are at least
10 inches (25 cm) between the front pas­
senger 's breastbone and the instrument
panel.
- Always make sure that there are at least
4 inches (10 cm) between the front passen­ ger's knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of
their own and properly fasten and wear the
safety belt belonging to that seat.
- Before dr iving, always adjust the front pas­
senger seat properly .
- For adjustable head restraints: before driv­
ing, always also adjust the head restraints
properly .
- Always keep your feet on the floor in front
of the seat. Never rest them on the seat, in­
strument pane l, out of the window, etc. The
airbag system and safety be lt will not be
able to protect you properly and can even in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash .
- Never dr ive with the backrest reclined or
ti lted far back! The farther the backrests are
ti lted back , the greater the risk of injury due
to incorrect positioning of the safety belt
and improper seating position.
- Children must always ride in child seats
<='> page 172. Special precautions apply
when installing a child seat on the front passenger seat<='>
page 148 .
Proper seating positions for passengers in
rear seats
Rear seat passengers must sit upright with both
feet on the floor consistent with their physical
size and be properly restrained whenever the ve­
hicle is in use.
To reduce the r isk of injury caused by an incorrect
seating position in the event of a sudden braking
maneuver or an accident, you r passengers on the
rear bench seat must always observe the follow­
ing:
132
.,. For adjustab le head restraints: adjust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi­
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos ­
sible, try to adjust the head restraint so that it
is as close to this position as possible
<='> page 132 .
.,. Keep both feet flat in the footwell in front of
the rear seat .
.,. Fasten and wear safety belts properly
<='> page 143 .
.,. Make sure that children are a lways properly re­
strained in a child restraint that is appropriate
for their size and age
c:::> page 172.
A WARNING
Passengers who are improperly seated on the
rear seat can be seriously injured in a crash.
- Each passenger must always sit on a seat of
their own and properly fasten and wear the safety belt belonging to that seat .
- Safety belts only offer maximum protection
when the safety belts are properly posi­
tioned on the body and securely latched . By
not sitting upright, a rear seat passenger in­
creases the risk of personal injury from im­
properly positioned safety belts!
- For adjustable head restraints: always ad­
just the head restraint properly so that it
can give maximum protection.
Proper adjustment of head restraints
Applies to: vehicles with adjustable head restraints
Correctly adjusted head restraints ore an impor ­
tant part of your vehicle's occupant restraint sys­
tem and can help to reduce the risk of injuries in
accident situations.
Fig. 143 Head restraint : viewed from t he front

co
co
.... N
" N .... 0
00
\.J ' The head restraints must be correctly adjusted to
achieve the best protection. .,. Adjust the head restraint so the upper edge is
as even as possible with the top of your head. If
that is not possible, try to adjust the head re­
straint so that it is as close to this position as
poss ible ¢
fig. 143. Move the head restraint so
that it is as close to the back of the head as
possible.
... If there is a passenger on the rear center seat ­
ing posit ion*, slide the center head restraint*
upward at least to the next notch.
Adjusting head restraints
c> page 49.
_& WARNING
All seats are equipped with head restraints .
Dr iving without head restraints or with head
restraints that are not properly adjusted in­
creases the risk of serious or fatal neck injury
dramatically. To help reduce the risk of injury:
- Always dr ive with the head restraints in
place and properly adjusted.
- Every person in the vehicle must have a
properly adjusted head restra int.
- Always make sure each person in the vehicle
properly adjusts their head restraint. Adjust
the head restra int so the upper edge is as
even as possible with the top of your head.
If that is not possible, try to adjust the head
restraint so that it is as close to this position
as possib le. Move the head restraint so that
it is as close to the back of the head as pos­
sible.
- Never attempt to adjust head restraint
while driving. If you have driven off and
must adjust the driver headrest for any rea­
son, first stop the vehicle safely before at­
tempting to adjust the head restra int.
- Children must always be properly restrained in a ch ild restraint that is appropriate for
their age and size
c>page 172.
-
Driving safety
Examples of improper seating positions
The occupant restraint system can only reduce
the risk of injury if vehicle occupants are properly
seated.
Improper seating positions can cause serious in­
jury or death . Safety belts can only work when
they are properly positioned on the body . Im­
proper seat ing positions reduce the effectiveness
of safety belts and will even increase the risk of
injury and death by moving the safety belt to crit­
ical areas of the body. Improper seating positions
also increase the risk of serious injury and death
when an airbag deploys and strikes an occupant
who is not in the proper seating position. A driver
is responsible for the safety of all vehicle occu­
pants and especially for children . Therefore:
... Never allow anyone to assume an incorrect
seating position when the vehicle is being used
c> .,& .
The following bulletins list only some sample po ­
sitions that will increase the risk of serious injury
and death . Our hope is that these examples will
make you more aware of seating positions that
are dangerous .
Therefore, whenever the vehicle is moving:
-never stand up in the vehicle
- never stand on the seats
- never kneel on the seats
- never ride with the seatback recl ined
- never lie down on the rear seat
- never lean up against the instrument panel
- never sit on the edge of the seat
- never sit sideways
- never lean out the window
- never put your feet out the window
- never put your feet on the instrument panel
- never rest your feet on the seat cushion or back
of the seat
- never ride in the footwell
- never ride in the cargo area
133

Driving sa fe ty
A WARNING
Improper seating positions increase the r isk
of serious personal injury and death whenever
a vehicle is being used.
- Always make sure that all vehicle occupants
stay in a proper seat ing position and are
properly restrained whenever the vehicle is
being used.
Driver's and front
passenger's footwell
Important safety instructions
Applies to: veh icles w ith knee airb ags
A WARNING
Alw ays ma ke sure that the knee airbag can in­
flate without inter ference. Objects between
yourself and the airbag can increase the risk of injury in an acc ident by interfering with the
way the airbag deploys or by being pushed in­
to you as the airbag deploys.
- No persons (children) or animals shou ld ride
in the footwell in front of the passenger
seat. If the airbag dep loys, th is can result in
serious or fatal in ju ries .
- No objects of any k ind shou ld be carried in
the footwell area in front of the driver 's or
passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shopping
bags, for example) can hamper or p revent
prope r deployment of the airbag. Small ob­
jects can be th rown throug h the vehicle if
the airb ag deploys and injure you or your
passengers.
Pedal area
Pedals
The pedals must always be free to move and
must never be interfered with by a floor mat or
any other object.
Make sure that all pedals move freely without in­
terference and that noth ing prevents them from
returning to the ir origina l positions.
O nly use floor mats that leave the pedal area free
and can be secured wit h floor mat fasteners .
134
If a brake circuit fails, increased brake pedal trav ­
el is required to bring the vehicle to a fu ll stop.
A WARNING
Pedals that cannot move freely can cause loss
of vehicle contro l and increase the r isk of seri­
ous injury.
- Never p lace any objects in the drive r's foot­
well. An object could get into the pedal area
and interfere with pedal funct ion. In case of
sudden braking or an acc ident, you would
no t be able to b rake o r acce le rate!
- Always make sure that nothing can fall or
move into the driver's footwell.
Floor mats on the driver side
Always use floor mats that can be securely at­ tached to the floor mat fasteners and do not in­
terfere with the free movement of the pedals .
.,. Make sure that the floor mats are properly se­
cured and cannot move and interfere w ith the
pedals¢ .&,.
Use only floor mats that leave the peda l area un­
obstructed and that are firmly secured so that
they can not s lip out of position . You can obtai n
su itable floor mats from your author ized Audi
Dealer .
Floor mat fasteners are installed in your Aud i.
Floor mats used in yo ur vehicle must be attached
to these fasteners. Properly secur ing the floor
mats will prevent them from sliding into posi­
tions that could inte rfere with the pedals or im­
pair safe operat ion of your vehicle in other ways.
A WARNING
Pedals that ca nnot move freely can result in a
loss of vehicle contro l and increase the r is k of
serious pe rsonal injury.
- Always make sure that floo r mats are prop­
erly secured.
- Never place or install floor mats or other floor coverings in the vehicle that cannot be
properly secured in place to preven t them
from s lipping and interfer ing wi th the ped­
als or the ab ility to cont rol the vehicle.

Driving sa fe ty
-Never lea ve yo ur vehicle unattended espe­
c ially w ith the rear lid left open. A child
could crawl into the vehicle through the lug­
gage compartment and close the rear lid be­
coming trapped and unable to get out . Be­
ing t rapped in a vehicle can lead to se rious
persona l injury.
- Never let children play in or aro und the veh i­
cle.
- Never let passe ngers ride i n the luggage
compartmen t. Veh icle occupants m ust al­
ways be prope rly restrained in one of t he ve­
hicle's seating posi tions.
- A ir c irculat ion hel ps to reduce window fog­
ging . Stale air escapes to the outside
th ro ugh vents i n the t rim panel. Be su re to
k eep these sl ots free and open.
- T he t ire pressu re mus t cor respond to the
l oad. The tire p ressure is shown on the tire
pressure l abe l. T he tire p ressure label is lo­
cated on the driver 's s ide B-pi llar . The tire
pressure labe l lists the recommended cold
tire inflation p ressures for the vehicle at its
maximum capacity weight and the t ires that
were on your vehicle at the t ime it was man­
ufactured. For recommended tire pressures
for normal load cond itions, please see chap­
ter
¢ page 222.
Tie-downs
The luggage compartment is equipped with four
tie-downs to secure luggage and other items .
Use the tie-downs to secure your cargo properly
¢ page 135, Loading the luggage compartment .
In a collision, the laws of p hysics mean that even
sma ller items that are loose in the vehicle will
become heavy missiles that can cause ser ious in­
jury . Items in t he ve hicle possess energy wh ich
vary with vehicle speed and t he weight of the
item . Veh icle speed is the most s ignifica nt facto r.
For examp le, in a frontal collision at a speed of
30 mph (48 km/h) , the forces act ing o n a 10-lb
(4 . 5 kg) object are abo ut 20 times the normal
weight of the item . T his means that the weight
136
of the item would s udden ly be about
200 lbs . (90 kg) . You can imagine the inj uries
that a 200 lbs . (90 kg) item flying freely through
the passenger compartment could cause in a col­
li sion like th is.
A WARNING
Weak, damaged or improper straps used to
secure items to tie-downs can fail dur ing hard
b raking or in a collision and cause ser ious per­
sonal injury.
- Always use suitable mo unt ing straps and
pro perl y secure i tems to the tie-downs in
t he l uggage comp artmen t to help preven t
items from shi fting o r flying forwa rd as dan ­
ge rous miss iles .
- W hen the rear sea t bac krest is folded down,
a lways use suitable mo unti ng straps and
pro per ly secure items to the tie -downs in
the l uggage compa rtment to help prevent
items from flying forward as dangerous
m iss iles into the passenger compartment.
- Never attach a child safety seat tether strap
to a tie-down.
-
Reporting Safety Defects
Applicable to U.S.A.
If you belie ve that your vehicle
has a defect which could cause a
crash or could cause injury or
death, you should immedi ately in­
form the National Highway Traffic Safet y Administration (NHTSA) in
a ddition to notifyin g Audi of
Ame rica, Inc.
If NHTSA re ceives s imilar com­
plaints, it m ay open an in vestiga­
tion , and if it finds that a safety
defe cts exist s in a group of
v e hicles, it m ay order a re call and ..,

Safety belt s
Safety belts
General information
Always wear safety belts!
Wearing safety belts correctly saves lives!
This chapter explains why safety be lts are neces­
sary, how they work and how to adjust and wear
them correctly.
.. Read all the information that follows and heed
all of the instructions and WARNINGS.
&_ WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death.
- Safety belts are the s ingle most effective
means ava ilable to reduce the risk of serious
injury and death in automobile accidents.
For your protect ion and that of your passen­
gers, always co rre ctly wea r safety be lts
when the vehicle is moving .
- Pregnant wome n, inju red, o r physically im­
paired persons mus t also use safety be lts.
L ik e all vehicle occ upants, they are mo re
likely to be serio usly injured i f they do not
wea r safety be lts. The best way to protect a
fetus is to protect the mother -throughout
the ent ire pregnancy .
Number of seats
Your Audi has a total of four seating positions:
two in the front and two in the rear. In some
veh icles, there are f ive seating positions: two in
the front and three in the rear . Each seating posi­
tion has a safety belt .
&_ WARNING
Not wea ring safety belts or weari ng them im­
pro perly in cre ases the risk of ser io us personal
injury and dea th.
- Never st rap more tha n one perso n, includ­
ing small ch ild ren, in to any be lt .
It is espe­
c ia lly da ngerous to place a safety belt over a
child sitting on your lap .
140
-Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are safety be lts available .
- Be sure everyone riding in the vehicle is
properly restrained with a separate safety
be lt or ch ild restraint.
~ Safety belt warning light
Your vehicle has a warning system for the driver
and front seat passenger (on USA models only) to remind you about the importance of buckling­
up .
Fig. 1 44 Safety belt wa rning lig ht in th e i nst rument clus ·
ter · en larged
Befor e dri ving off , always:
.. Fasten your safety belt and make sure you are
wearing it properly.
(0
"'
"' 0 N .. m
.. Make sure that your passengers also buckle up
and properly wear their safety belts.
.,. Protect children with a c hild restraint system
app ropr iate for the size and age .
The warning lig ht . in the instrument cluster
lights up when the ig nition is o n as a reminder to
fasten the safety belts. In addition, you will hear a war ning tone for a certain period of time .
Fasten your safety belt and make su re that your
passengers al so properly put on th eir safety
b e lts.
&_ WARNING
- Safety belts are the sing le most effective
means available to red uce the risk of serio us
inj ury and death in a utomobile accidents.
F or your protection and t hat of yo ur passen­
ge rs, a lways correct ly wear safety belts
when t he vehicle is moving .
~

Safe ty belts
instrument panel, windshield, or whatever else is
in the way
r:!> fig. 147. This impact with the vehi­
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. A irbags are not supposed to dep loy in
all kinds of accidents. A lthough your Audi is
equipped w ith airbags, all vehicle occupants, in­
cluding the driver, must wear safety belts cor­
rectly in order to minimize the risk of severe in­
jury or death in a crash .
Remember too, that airbags will deploy only
once and that your safety belts are always there
to offer protect ion in those accidents in wh ic h
airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they
have a lready deployed . Unbel ted occupants can
also be thrown o ut of the veh icle where eve n
mo re severe or fatal injuries can occur .
It is also important for the rear pass engers to
wear safety belts correctly. Unbelted passengers
i n t he re ar seats endanger no t on ly themse lves
but also the drive r and other passengers
~ fig . 148. In a frontal collision they will be
thrown forward violently, where they can hit and
in jure the driver 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!
F ig . 14 9 Driver is co rrectly restrai ned in a sudde n brak ing
m aneu ver
Safety belts used properly can make a b ig d iffer­
ence. Safety belts help to keep passengers in
their seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap-
142
plied to the body in an accident , and help prevent
the uncontrolled movement that can cause seri­
ous injuries. In add ition, sa fety belts red uce the
danger of being thrown out of the vehicle.
Safety be lts attach passengers to the car and g ive
them the benefit of being s lowed down more
gently or "soft ly" thro ugh the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety feat ures engi­
neered into today's vehicles. By "absorbing" the
k inet ic energy over a longer per iod of t ime, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more
"tolerab le" and less likely to cause inju ry .
Although these examples are based on a frontal
collision, safety be lts ca n also substantially re ­
duce the r isk o f injury in ot her kinds of crashes .
So, whethe r yo u're on a long trip or just goi ng to
the cor ne r store, a lways b uckle up and make s ure
othe rs do, too. Ac ciden t st at ist ics show that veh i­
cle o ccupants prope rly wearing safety bel ts have
a lowe r risk of being injured and a m uch better
chance of surviving an acc ident . Properly using
safety be lts also great ly increases the ability of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col­
li sion. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is le­
gally required in most countries including much
of the United States and Canada .
Although your Aud i is equipped with airbags, you
still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front
airbags, for examp le, are activated only in some
frontal collisions. The front airbags are not act i­
vated in all frontal collisions, in side and rear co l­
li sions, in rollovers or in cases whe re there is not
eno ugh deceler ation throug h impa ct to the front
of the vehicle . The same goes for the other a irbag
systems in your Audi. So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly rest rained!
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safe ty belts must always be correctly positioned
acros s the strongest bones of your body .
.,. Always wear safety belts as illustrated and de ­
scribed in this chapter.
.,. Make sure that your safety be lts are always
ready fo r use a nd are not damaged .

Safe ty belts
Autom ati c s afet y belt retr actors
Every safety belt is equ ipped with an automa tic
be lt retractor on the shoulder belt. This feature
locks the belt when the belt is pulled out fast,
during hard braking and in a n accident . The belt
may a lso lock when you drive up or down a steep
hill or through a sharp curve. Dur ing normal driv­
ing the belt lets you
move freely .
Safety belt p ret en sion ers
The safety belts are equipped with a belt preten­
sioner that helps to t ighten the safety belt and
remove slack when the pretensioner is activated
¢
page 146 . The function of the pretensioner is
mon itored by a warn ing light¢
page 17.
Con vertible loc king retracto r
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertible locking retrac­
tor that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child seat. Be sure to read the
important information about this feature
¢ page 183 .
.&_ WARNING
Improperly pos it ioned safety be lts can cause
ser ious injury in an accident ¢
page 144,
Safety belt position.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Always make sure that the rear seat bac k­
rest to which the center rea r safety belt* is
attached is secure ly latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used. If the
backrest is not securely latched, the passen­
ger will move forward with the backrest dur­
ing sudden braking, in a sudden maneuver
and especially in a crash.
- Never attach the safety belt to the buckle for another seat. Attaching the belt to the
wrong b uckle will reduce safety belt effec­
t iveness and can cause serious persona l in­
jury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrained can be seriously in jured by the safety be lt it­
self when it
moves from the stronger parts
144
of the body into critical areas like the abdo­ men.
- Always lock the convertible locking retractor
when you are securing a child seat in the ve­
hicle
¢ page 185.
(D Tips
For information on safety belt pretensioners,
refer to¢
page 146 .
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi­
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig. 151 Safety belt posit ion
Use the height adjustment to change the posit ion
of the shoulder belt of the front safety belts .
.&_ WARNING
Imp roperly positioned safety belts can cause
serio us pe rsonal injury in an a cc ident.
- The shou lde r belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fi t well on the body. Ho ld the belt
above the latch to ngue and pull it evenly
across the chest so that it sits as low as pos ­
sible on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should a lways f it
snug ly ¢
fig. 151. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- A loose-fitting safety belt can cause serious
injuries by sh ifting its position on your body
from the strong bones to more vulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious i nju ry .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important informat ion
r=;, page 142 .

Safety belt s
"'Push the loop -around fittings up c> fig . 154 @,
or
"'squeeze together the (D button, and push the
loop-around fittings
down @.
"'Pull the belt to make sure that the upper at­
tachment is properly engaged.
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and oth­
er impo rtant informat ion
c>page 14 2.
(D Tips
With the front seats , the height adjustment
of the seat can also be used to adjust the po­
sition of the safe ty belts.
Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause se­
vere injuries.
Wearing safety belts imprope rly can cause seri­
ous injury or death. Safety belts can only work
when they a re correctly pos itioned on the body.
Imp roper seating positions reduce the effect ive­
ness of safety be lts and will even inc rease the
ris k of injury a nd deat h by mov ing the safety bel t
to cr it ica l areas of the bo dy. Imp roper seating
positions a lso increase the risk of serio us inj ury
and deat h when an airbag deploys and strikes an
occ upant who is not in the co rrect seat ing pos i­
tion. A driver is responsible for the safety of all
ve hicle occupants and especia lly for children.
Therefore:
"' Never permit anyone to assume an inco rrect
s itting position in the vehicle wh ile trave ling
c> ,&. .
A WARNING
Impro perly wor n safety belts increase t he risk
of se rious personal injury a nd death wheneve r
a vehicle is bei ng use d.
- Always make sure tha t all veh icle occupa nts
are co rrectly restra ined and stay in a co rrect
seat ing pos ition w heneve r the veh icle is be­
ing used.
146
- Always read and heed all WAR NINGS and
o ther impo rtant in format ion
c>page 142.
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear-end collisions above a
particular severity and in a rollover, safety belts are tensioned automatically.
Reversible safety belt tensioner s
The safety belts on the front seats are equipped
with power revers ible tensioners. The following
funct io ns are available when the dr iver's/front
passenger 's safety belts are faste ned:
- Automatic tensione rs: at the start of a drive,
the safety belts automat ica lly adjust to the
passenger after a certain time period or ve hicle
spee d. To switch the a utomat ic tens ioners off,
select the following in t he M MI :
!CARI function
button
> ( Car )* systems > Vehicle settings >
Seat s > Driver's seat or Pas senger's seat > Au ·
tomatic belt tensioner > Off .
-In certain drivi ng s ituations, the s afe ty bel ts
m ay tighten w ith a reversib le tensioning func ­
tion
c> page 138 .
- The s afety be lts may also tigh ten with this re-
vers ible tension ing f unct io n in m ino r collisions .
Pyrotechnic safety belt pretensioners
The safety belts are eq uipped w it h safety bel t
pretensione rs. The system is activa ted by se nsors
i n front, s ide a nd r ear-end collisions of grea t se ­
verity and in a ro llover. This tig htens the bel t and
takes up belt slack
c> &. in Service and disposal of
safety belt pretensioner on page 147.
Taking up
the slack helps to reduce forward occupant
movement during a collision.
A WARNING
-It is poss ible for the pretensioners to dep loy
incorrectly .
- The pyrotechnic system can only p rovide
protection for one collision. If the py rotech­
nic pretens ioners deploy, the pretensioning
sys tem must be rep laced.

Airbag syste m
Airbag system
Important information
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . For
airbags to do their job, occupants must always
properly wear their safety belts and be in a prop ­
er seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
ge rs , before driving off, always :
"' Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly ¢
page 130,
"'Adjust the front passenge r's seat properly
¢ page 48,
"'Wear safety belts p roperly ¢ page 142 ,
"'Always properly use the proper child restraint
to protect children
¢ page 172.
In a coll is io n, airbags mus t inflate within the
blink of an eye and wi th considerab le force. The
supp lemental airbags can cause injuries if the
driv er or th e front s eat passeng er is not s eated
properly. Therefore in order to he lp the airbag to
do its job, it is important, both as a dr iver and as
a passenger to sit properly at all t imes.
By keeping room between your body and the
steering whee l and the front of the passenger
compartment, the a irbag can inflate fully and
completely and provide supplemental protect ion
in certain frontal collisions¢
page 130, Correct
passenger seating positions .
For details on the
operation of the seat adjustment con trols
¢ page 48.
It's especially important that children are proper ­
ly restra ined
¢ page 172 .
There is a lot that the driver and the passengers
can and must do to help the ind iv idual safety fea­
tures installed in your Audi work together as a
system .
Proper seating posit ion is important so that the
front airbag on the drive r side can do its job. If
you have a physical impairment or cond ition that
prevents you from s itting properly on the driver
seat with the safety be lt properly fastened and
148
reaching the peda ls, or if yo u have concerns w ith
regard to the function or operation of the Ad­
vanced Airbag System, please contact your a u­
thori zed Audi dea ler or qua lified workshop, or
ca ll Audi Customer Relations at 1-800-822-2834
for poss ib le modifications to your vehicle .
When the airbag system dep loys, a gas generator
will fill the airbags, break open the padded cov­ ers, and infla te between the steering wheel and
the driver and between the instrument panel and
t h e front passenger . T he a irbags w il l deflate im­
med iate ly after deployment so that the front oc­
cupants can see t hrou gh the windsh ie ld again
without i nterruption.
All of th is takes p lace in the b link of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even rea lize that the
a irbags have deployed. The airbags a lso infla te
with a g re at deal of force and nothing should be
i n the ir way when they deploy. Front airbags in
combination with properly worn safety belts slow
down and limit the occupant 's forward move­
ment . Together they he lp to prevent the driver
and front seat passenger from hitting pa rts of
the ins ide of the vehicle while reduc ing the fo rces
acting on the occupant dur ing the cras h. In th is
way they help to reduce the risk of injury to the
head and uppe r body i n the crash . Airbags do not
protect the arms or the lower pa rts of the body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all frontal
collisions . The t riggering of the a irbag system de­
pends on the veh icle decelerat ion rate caused by
t h e coll is io n and regis tered by the ele ctroni c con­
tro l unit . If this ra te is be low the refe rence value
programmed in to the contro l unit, the airbags
will not be trigge red, even tho ugh the car may be
badly damaged as a resu lt of the collision. Vehi­
cle damage, rep air costs or even the lack of vehi­
cle damage is not necessarily an indication of
whether an a irbag should inflate or not .
Since the circumstances will vary cons iderab ly
between one co llision and another, it is not possi ­
ble to define a range of veh icle speeds that will
cover every poss ible kind and angle of impact
that w ill always t rigger t he a irbags . Important
factors i nclude, for examp le, the nat ure (hard or
soft) of the object which the ca r hits, the angle of
i mp act , vehicle speed , etc. The front airbags will .,.

co
co
.... N
" N .... 0
00
\.J - also not inflate in side or rear collisions, or in
ro llovers .
Alwa ys rememb er: Airbags will deploy only o nce,
and on ly in certain kinds of coll is ions. Your safety
be lts are always there to offer protection in those
situations in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy, or when they have a lready deployed; for
examp le, when your vehicle str ikes or is struck by
another vehicle after the first collis ion.
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is a
supp lementary restraint and is not a substitute
for a safety belt. The airbag system works most effect ively when used with the safety belts.
T herefore, always properly wear your safety belts
c::> page 140.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steer ing whee l or in­
st rument panel will decrease the effect ive­
ness of the airbags and will inc rease the risk
o f persona l injury in a co llision.
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm) to
the steering wheel or instrument panel.
- If you cannot sit mo re than 10 inches
( 2 5 cm) from the steering wheel, inves ti­
gate whethe r adaptive equipment may be
available to help you reach the pedals and
increase your seating distance from the
steering wheel.
- All veh icle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restra ined child could be injured by striking
the inte rior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle d uring a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or imp roperly restrained
child is also at greate r ris k of inju ry or death
through contact with an infla ting airbag .
-If you are unrest rained, leaning fo rwa rd, s it­
t ing s ideways or o ut of pos ition in any way,
yo ur risk of in jury is m uch higher.
- Yo u will also receive serious injur ies and
c ou ld even be killed if you are up aga inst the
airbag or too close to it w hen it inf lates -
even with an Advanced Ai rbag.
-
Airb ag sys tem
-To reduce the r is k of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear sa fety belts prope rly
c::> page 143, Safety belts.
- Always make certain that children age 12 or
younge r always ride in the rear seat. If chil­
dren are not properly restrained, they may be severely injured or killed when an airbag
inflates.
- Never let children r ide unrestrained or im­
p roperly restrained in the vehicle. Ad just the
front seats properly.
- Never ride with the back rest recl ined .
- Always sit as far as possible from the steer-
ing wheel or the instrument panel
c::> page 130.
- Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat .
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on t he seat. Always keep both feet
on the floor in front of the seat to help pre­
vent ser ious injuries to the legs and hips if
the airbag inflates.
- Never recl ine the front passenger's seat to
transpo rt objects . Items can also move in to
the area of the s ide a irbag or the front air­
b ag d uring braking o r in a sudden maneu­
ver. Obje cts ne ar the airbags can be come
projecti les and cause injury when an airbag
inflates .
A WARNING ,____ -
Airbags that have deployed in a crash m ust be
replaced.
- Use on ly original equipment airbags ap­
proved by A udi and installed by a t rained
technician who has the necessary tools and
d iagnostic equipment to properly replace
any airbag in yo ur vehicle and assure system
effect iveness in a crash .
- Never permit salvaged or recycled airbags to
be installed in your vehicle.
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.,. Be s ure to read the impo rtan t in format ion and
heed the WARN INGS for important deta ils
149