light AUDI A8 2017 Owners Manual

Airbag syste m
damaged, preventing them and the airbag
system from working properly.
- Never place seat covers or rep lacement up­
holstery that have not been specifically ap­
proved by Audi on the front seats .
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Air­
bag System from recognizing child re­
straints or occupants on the front passenger
seat and prevent the side a irbag in the seat
backrest from deploying properly.
- Never use cush ions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger seat.
The add it ional padding will prevent the
weight-sens ing mat in the seat from acc u­
rately reg istering the ch ild restraint or per­
son on the seat and prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from funct ioning properly.
- If you must use a child rest raint on the front
passenge r seat and the child restraint man­
ufacturer 's instructions require the use of a
towel, foam cushion or something else to properly position the ch ild restraint, make
certain that the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever the
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat.
- If the
PASSEN GER AIR B AG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immed iately in­
stall child restraint in a rear seating position and have the airbag system inspected by
yo ur Audi dealer.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the side
airbags supplement the protection offered by the
front three-po int safety belts with pretensioners
and load limiters and the adjustable head re­
stra ints to help reduce the r isk of injury in a wide
range of accident and crash situations. Be sure to read the important informa tion about safety and
heed the WARN INGS in t his chapter.
Deployment of the Advanced Airbag System and
the act ivat ion of the safety belt pretensioners de­
pend on the deceleration measu red by the crash
sensors and regis tered by the electronic control
unit. Crash severity depends on speed and decel-
2 34
eration as well as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object involved in the crash .
On the passenger side, regard less of safety be lt
u se, the airbag will be turned off if the weight on
the passenger seat is less than the amount pro­
grammed in the electronic control unit . The front
airbag on the passenger side will also be turned
off if one of the child seats that has been certi­
fied under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been recognized on the seat. The
PA S­
S ENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on to tell you when the front Advanced A irbag on
the passenger side has been turned off
q page 22 7, Child restraints on the front seat­
some important things to know.
A WARNING
To reduce the ris k of injury when an airbag in ­
f lates, always wea r safety belts properly.
- If you are un restrained, leaning forward, sit ­
ting sideways or out of position i n 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 against the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
q page 226.
More important things to know about front
airbags
Fig . 232 Inflated front a irbags
Safety be lts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated position so
that airbags can unfold properly and prov ide sup-
plemental protection in a fronta l collision . ..,.

0 co .... N ,..... N .... 0 0 :c ' The front airbags are designed to provide addi­
tional protection for the chest and face of the
driver and the front seat passenger when:
- sa fety belts are worn prope rly,
- the seats have been positioned so that the oc-
c u pant is properly sea ted as far as possible
from the airbag,
- and the head restra ints have been p roperly ad-
justed.
Because airbags inflate in the blink of an eye w ith
g reat fo rce, things you have on your lap or have
p laced on the seat cou ld become dangerous pro­
jectiles , and be p ushed into you if the ai rbag in ­
flates.
When an a irbag deploys, fine dust is released.
This is normal and is not caused by a fire in the
ve hicl e. Thi s dust is made up mostly of a powder
used to lubricate the airbags as they deploy. It
could irritate skin.
It is important to remember that whi le the sup­
p lemental airbag system is designed to reduce
the likel ihood of ser ious injuries, other i nju ries,
for example swelling, bru is ing and minor abra­
sions, can a lso happen when airbags inflate . Air­
bags do not protect the arms or the lower parts
of the body. Front airbags supplement the three­
point safety belts only in some frontal collisions
i n which the ve hicle decelerat io n is high enough
to deploy the airbags .
Front airbag s will not deploy:
- if the ignit ion is switched off when a crash oc-
curs,
- in side collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollove rs,
- when the c rash decelerat io n meas ured by the
airbag system is less than the minimum thresh­
o ld needed for airbag deployment as registered
by the electronic contro l unit.
The front passenger airbag also will not
d eplo y:
- when the front passenger seat is not occ upied,
- when the we igh t on the fron t passenge r seat as
sensed by t he Advanced A irbag System indi-
Airb ag sys tem
cates that the front a irbag on the passenger
side has to be turned off by the e lectronic con­
trol unit (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on).
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase the r isk of ser ious injury in crashes .
- To reduce the r isk of injury when the airbags
inflate, the driver and passengers must al­
ways sit in an upright posit ion, must not
lean aga inst or place any part of their body
too close to the area where the airbags are
lo cated.
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posit ion
or too close to the airbag can be serio usly
in jur ed by an airbag as it unfolds with g reat
force in the blink of an eye
~ page 22 7.
A WARNING
-A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal­
l ed on the front passenger seat will be seri ­
ously injured and can be killed if the front air­
bag inflates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild seat o r
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing child seats on the
rear seat.
- If you must install a rea rward facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immed iate ly install the rear­
facing chi ld seat in a rear seating posit io n
a nd have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea le r.
A WARNING
Objects between you an d the airbag will in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer ­
ing with the way the airbag unfolds or by be­
i ng p ushed into you as the airbag inflates .
- Never hold things in yo ur hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use .
235

Airbag syste m
-Ne ver t ransport items on or in the area of
t h e fr ont passenger seat. Objects could
m ove into the area of the front airbags dur­
ing brak ing or oth er sudden maneuvers and
become dangerous projectiles that can
cause serious pe rsonal injury if the a irbags
inflate.
- Never place or attach accessor ies or other
objects (such as cup holders, te lephone
brackets, large, heavy o r bulky objects) on
the doors, over or ne ar the area marked
"AIRBAG" on the steering wheel, instru ­
ment pane l, seat bac krests or between
t h ose areas and yourself. These objects
could cause injury in a crash, especially
when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenge r's seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the area of the side airbag o r the front a ir­
bag dur ing braking or in a s udden maneu­
ver. Objects near the airbags can become
projectiles and cause in ju ry, particularly
when the sea t is re clin ed.
.8, WARNING
The f ine dust create d when airbags deploy can
cause breathing problems for people w ith a
his tory of asthma or o ther breathing condi­
tions .
- T o reduce the risk o f brea thing pro blems,
those w ith asthma or o ther respiratory con ­
ditions should get fresh air right away by
gett ing out of the vehicle o r opening w in­
dows o r doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags de­
ploy, wash your hands and face with mild
soap and water before eat ing.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your eyes,
or into any cuts or scratches.
- If the resid ue should get into your eyes,
flush them with water.
236
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
tli (USA models )/!{' (Canada model s)
Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function of
the Advanced Airbag System: the airbag moni­
toring indicator light and the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light.
The Advanced A irbag System ( including the e lec ­
tronic control unit, sensor circuits and system
wiring) is monitored continuously to make sure
that it is functioning properly whenever the igni­
tion is o n. Each time you sw itch on the ig nition,
the a irbag mo nitor ing indica to r light
II (U SA
models)/ fll (Canada models) w ill come o n for a
few seconds (se lf d iagnost ic s) .
The system must be inspected when the
indicator light
fl (USA models) /E,I (Canada
models) :
-does not come on when the igni tion is sw itched
on,
- does not go out a few se co nd s afte r you h ave
sw itched on the ignit ion, or
- comes on while driv ing.
If an airbag system malfunction is detected, the
i ndica to r light will come on to se rve as a constant
r em inder to have t he system inspected immedi­
ate ly.
If a ma lfunction occurs that turns the front air­
bag on the passenge r side off, the
PASSENGER
A IR BAG OFF
light w ill come on and stay o n
whe never the ignition is on.
_& WARNING
A n a ir b ag system t hat i s no t functioning prop­
e rly cannot provide sup plemental pro te ct ion
in a fronta l crash .
- If the air bag ind icator ligh t<=? page 23
comes when the vehicle i s being u sed, have
the system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer . It is possib le that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­ posed to, or will not inflate when it should.

0 co .... N ,..... N .... 0 0 :c - PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fig. 233 Section from the instrument panel: PASSENGER
AIR BAG O FF light
The PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located in
the center o f the instrument panel¢
fig. 233 .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come on
and stay on to tell you when the front Advanced
Ai rbag on the passenger side has been turned off
by the electronic control unit . Each time you
switch on the ignition, the
PAS SENGER AIR BAG
O FF
light will flash for a few seconds and :
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small ch ild or chi ld re­
straint on the front passenger seat,
- will go out if the fro nt passenge r seat is occu­
pied by an adul t as reg istered by the weight­
sensing mat .
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light m ust c ome
on and st a y on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the front seat, or
- a rearward-facing child restraint has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward-facing child restra int has been instal­
led on the front passenger seat, or
- the weight reg istered on the front passenger
seat is equal to or less than the combined
we ight of a typical 1 year -old restrained in one
of the rear-facing or forward-fac ing infant re­
straints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 w ith w hich the Advanced A irbag
System in your ve hicle was certified .
I f the front passenger seat is not occupied, the
front a irbag w ill not deploy, and the
PASSENGER
Airb ag sys tem
AIR BAG OFF light wi ll stay on . Never insta ll a
rearward -facing child restraint on the front pas­
senger seat, the safest place for a chi ld in any
k ind of child restraint is at one of the seating po ­
s itions on the rear seat¢
page 22 7, Child re­
straints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and ¢ page 248, Child safety.
If the PA SSENGER AIR BAG OF F light come s on
when one of the conditions listed above is met,
be sure to check the light regularly to make cer ­
ta in that the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
stays on continuously whenever the ignition is
o n . If the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not appea r on and does no t stay on all the time ,
stop as soon as it is safe to do so and
- reactivate the system by sw itching the ign ition
off and then switching it on aga in ;
- remove and re install the child restraint . Make
sure that the child restra int is properly insta l­
led and tha t the safety belt for the front pas­
senger seat h as bee n correct ly routed th rough
the child restraint as desc ribed in the chi ld re ­
straint manufacturer's instructions;
- make sure that the convert ible lock ing retrac­
to r on the safety belt for the fro nt passenge r
seat has been activated and that the safety belt
has been pulled tight. The belt m ust not be
loose or have loops of slack so that the sensor
be low the safety belt latch on the seat can do
its job ¢
page 258 .
-make su re that th ings that may increase the
weight of the child and ch ild seat are not being
transported o n the front passenge r seat;
- make su re that the safety be lt tens ion sensor is
not blocked. Shake the safety belt latch on the
front passenger seatback and forth;
- If a strap or tether is being used to tie the child
seat to the front passenger seat, make su re
that it is not so tight that it causes the weight­
sensi ng mat to measure more weight than is
act ually on the seat.
If th e PA SS ENGER AIR BA G OFF light still does
not come on
and does not stay on co ntinuously
(whe n the ign ition is sw itc hed on),
- take the child restra int off the front passenger
seat and install it properly at one of the rear ..,_
237

Airbag syste m
seat positions. Have the airbag system inspect­
ed by your Audi dealer immediately.
- move the chi ld to a rear seat position and make
sure that the child is properly restrained in a
c h ild restraint that is appropriate for its size
and age .
The
PA SSENGER AIR BAG O FF light shou ld NOT
come on when the ignition is on and an adu lt is
sitting in a proper seating position on the front
passenger seat. If the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
5 seconds while driving, under these circumstan­
ces, make sure that:
- the adu lt on the front passenger seat is proper­
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his or her back up aga inst the backrest and the
backrest is not recl ined
r=> page 208, Correct
passenger seating positions,
-the adult is not taking weight off the seat by
hold ing on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or supporting
their we ight on the arm rest,
- the safety be lt is be ing properly worn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety belt web­
bing,
- accessory seat covers or cushions or other
th ings that may cause an inco rrect read ing o r
imp ression on the weight-sens ing mat under
the upho ls tery of the seat have been removed
from the front passenger seat,
- a safety be lt extende r has not been left in the
sa fety belt latch for the front passenge r seat .
I n addition to the
PASS ENGER AIR BAG OFF
light in the center of the inst rument panel, the
message
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF or PA SSEN­
GER AIR BAG ON
wi ll briefly appear in the inst ru ­
ment cluster display. This is to inform the driver
of the current front passenger airbag status.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
_& WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ion ing prop­
er ly cannot provide supplemental p rotection
in a frontal crash.
238
-If the airbag indicator light r=> page 23
comes when the veh icle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer. It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed to, or wi ll not inflate when it should.
_& WARNING
I f the front a irbag inflates, a ch ild without a
chi ld restraint, or in a rea rwa rd-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-fa cing c hild re­
stra int that has not been properly insta lled
will be seriously injured and can be killed.
- Even tho ugh you r vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that all children, espec ia lly 12 years and
younge r, always ride on the back seat prop­
erly restrained for their age and s ize.
- Always install forward or rear-facing child
seats on the rear seat -even with an Ad ­
vanced Airbag System.
- If you must insta ll a rearwa rd-facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
except ional circumstances and the PASSEN·
GER 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 system inspected by your Audi
dea le r.
- A t ight tether or other strap on a rearward­
facing chi ld restraint attached to the front
passenger sea t can put too much pressure
on the weight-sensing mat in the seat and
register more weight than is actually on the
seat. The heavier weight registered can
make the system work as though an adu lt
were on the seat and deploy the Advanced
Airbag when it must be suppressed causing
serious or even fatal injury to the child.
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, always move the
seat into its rearmost position in the seat 's
fore and aft ad justment range, as far away
from t he air bag as poss ible. The back re st
m ust be adjus ted to an upr ight position.
Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG

0 co .... N ,..._
N .... 0 0 :c ' OFF light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go out when an adult is sitting on the
front passenger seat after taking the steps described above, make sure the adult is
properly seated and restrained at one of the
rear seating positions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
Audi dealer before transporting anyone on
the front passenger seat.
{D) Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front passen­
ger seat detects an empty seat, the front air­
bag 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, remov­
ing, 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 discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de­
ploying when needed or deploying an airbag
unexpectedly:
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the steer­
ing wheel horn pad or airbag cover or the in­
strument panel or modify them in any way.
- Never attach any objects such as cup holders
or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov­
ering the airbag units.
Airbag system
-For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one mois­
tened 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 deploy and protect properly.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the airbag system.
-All work on the steering wheel, instrument panel, front seats or electrical system (in­
cluding 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 au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- 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 replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags in­
flate.
- Damage to the original seat covers or to
the seam in the area of the side airbag
module must always be repaired immedi­
ately by an authorized Audi dealer.
- The airbag system can be activated only
once. After an airbag has inflated, it must
be replaced by an authorized Audi dealer or
qualified technician who has the technical
information, training and special equipment
necessary.
- The airbag system can be deployed 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. Replacement of complete airbag systems or airbag compo­nents must be performed by qualified work-
shops only. Make sure that any airbag
Ill-
239

C) C0 ....
"' " "' .... 0 0 :r The knee airbag offers additional protection to
the driver's and passenger's knees and upper and
lower th igh areas and supp lements the protec­
tion provided by the safety belts.
I f the front airbags dep loy, the knee airbags also
deploy in fronta l co llisions when the dep loyment
threshold stored in the contro l unit is met
c:::> page 234, More important things to know
about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function, safe­
ty belts help keep the driver or front passenger in position in a frontal coll is ion so that the a irbags
can prov ide supplemental protect ion.
The airbag system is not a substitute for your safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall occu ­
pant restraint system in your vehicle . Always re­
member that the airbag system can only help to
protect you if you are wearing your safety belt
and wear ing it properly . T his is why yo u should
always wear your safety belt, not j ust because
the law requires you to do
so <=> page 218, Gener­
al information.
Remember too, airbags will deploy only once and
on ly in certain k inds of accidents -your safety
be lts are always there to offer protection in those
accidents in wh ich airbags are no t supposed to
deploy or w hen they have a lready dep loyed, for
examp le when your vehicle strikes or is struck by
another after the first collision .
This is jus t one of the reasons why an airbag is
not a substitute for the safety belt . The a irbag
system works most effectively when used with
the safety belts . Therefore, a lways wear your
safety belts correct ly.
It is important to remember that wh ile the sup­
p lemental knee airbag system is designed to re ­
d uce the likelihood of serious injuries, other inju­
ries, for example, swell ing, bruising and minor
abrasions and friction burns can also occur when
an airbag inf lates.
The knee airbag system basically cons ists of:
- The electronic contro l module
- T wo inf latab le airbags (airbag and gas genera-
tor), one for the driver and one fo r the front
passenger
Airb ag sys tem
- The a irbag indicator light in the instrument
panel
The knee airbag system will not deploy:
- when the ignit ion is switched off
- in fronta l co llisions when the decelerat ion
meas ured by the contro l unit is too low
- in side co llisions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers
- in the event of a system malfunction (warning/
ind icator light is on)
c:::> page 23.
A WARNING
--Safety belts and the airbag system can only
provide protect ion when occupants are in
the prope r seat ing pos ition
c:::> page 234.
- If the airbag ind icator light c:::> page 23
comes when the veh icle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
author ized Audi dealer.
It is possib le that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed to, or w ill not inf late w hen it should.
How knee airbags work
The risk of injury to the leg area can be reduced
by fully inflated knee airbags .
Fig. 2 35 Inflated a irbags protect ing in a fro nta l collision
The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the airbags for the driver and front passen­
ger deploy in certain but not all frontal collisions .
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags also
deploy in frontal collis ions when the deployment
threshold stored in the control unit is met.
When the system deploys, the a irbags fi ll with a
prope llant gas, and infla te between the lower
Ill-
241

C) C0 ....
"' " "' .... 0 0 :r Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
Fig. 236 S id e airbag location in the driver's seat
N N
I
The side airbags are located in the sides of the
front seat backrests¢
fig. 236 and the rear back­
rest facing the doors. They are identified by the
word "AIRBAG".
The side airbag system basically consists of:
-the electronic control module and external side
im pact sensors
- the two side airbags located in the sides of the
front backrests
- two rear side airbags
- the a irbag warning light in the instrument clus-
ter .
The airbag system is monitored electronically to
make certain that it is functioning properly at all
times. Each time you sw itch on the ign ition, the
a ir bag system indicator light will come on for a
few seconds (self diag nostics).
The side airbag system supplements the safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of injury to
the dr iver's, front and rear passenger's upper tor­
so on the side of the vehicle that is struck in a
side coll is ion. The airbag deploys only i n side im­
pacts and only when the vehicle acceleration reg­
i stered by the control unit is high enough.
If this
r ate is below the reference value programmed in­
to the control unit, the side curtain ai rbag will
not be triggered, even though the car may be
badly damaged as a result of the collision. It is
not possible to define an airbag triggering range
that will cover every poss ible angle of impact,
Airbag system
since the circumstances will vary considerably be­
tween one collision and another. Important fac ­
tors include, for example, the nature (hard or
soft) of the impacting object, the angle of im­
pact, vehicle speed, etc. ¢
page 244, Important
safety instructions on the side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety funct ion, safety
belts work to help keep the driver or front pas­
senger in position in the event of a side collision
so that the side airbags can provide protection.
The airbag system is
not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall occu­
pant restraint system in your vehicle. Always re­
member that the side airbag system can only
help to protect you if you are wearing your safety
belt and wear ing it prope rly . This is another rea­
son why you should always wear your safety
belts, not just because the law requires you to do
so
¢ page 218, General information .
It is important to remember that while the sup­
plementa l side airbag system is designed to re­
duce the likelihood of ser ious injuries, other inju­
ries, for example, swelling, bruising, and minor
abrasions can also be associated with deployed
side airbags . Remember too, side airbags will de­
ploy only once and only in certain k inds of acci ­
dents - your safety belts are always there to offer
protection.
Veh icle damage, repair costs or even the lack of
vehicle damage are not necessar ily an ind ication
of over-sens itive or fa iled a irbag activation. In
some collisions, both front and side airbags may inflate . Remember too, that air bags w ill deploy
only once and only in certa in kinds o f collisions -
you r safety belts are always there to offer protec­
tion in those accidents in which airbags are not
supposed to deploy or when they have already
deployed.
The side airbag system will not deploy:
- when the ignition is switched off
- in side collisions when the acceleration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end collis ions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers .
243

Airbag syste m
In some types of accidents the front airbags, side
curtain airbags and side airbags may be triggered
together .
A WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system will only
provide protection when occupants are in
the proper seating position¢
page 244.
-If the airbag indicator light¢ page 23
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
authorized Aud i dealer .
It is possible that
the a irbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed 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.
F ig. 237 In flated side airbags o n left s ide of vehicle , rear
side a irbag
When the system is triggered, the a irbag is filled
wi th propellant gas and breaks through a seam in
the seat surface area marked "AIRBAG".
It ex­
pands between the side trim pane l and the pas­
senger. In orde r to help provide this additional
protection, the side airbag must inflate within a
fraction of a second at very high speed and with great force . The supplemental side airbag could
injure you if your seating position is not proper or
upright or if items are located in the area where
the supplemental side airbag expands . This ap­
plies especially to children ¢
page 248, Child
safety.
Supplemental side a irbags inf late be­
tween the occupant and the door panel on the
side of the vehicle that is struck in certain side
coll ision ¢
fig. 23 7.
244 Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the upper part
of the body .
A fine dust may develop when the airbag dep loys.
This is norma l and does not mean there is a fire
i n the veh icle.
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemen tal restrain ts . Always
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 prov ide supplemental
protect ion.
A WARNING
An inflating side a irbag can cause se rious or
fata l injury. Imp roperly weari ng safety be lts
and improper seating posit ions increase the
risk of serious persona l injury and dea th
whenever a vehicle is being used .
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the s upplemental side airbag inflates:
- Always s it in an upright position and never
l ean against the area where the supp le­
mental s ide airbag is located.
- Never let a child or anyone e lse rest their
head against the side tr im panel in the
area where the supplemental side airbag i nflates .
- Always make sure that safety be lts are
worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone s itting in the front seat
put their hand or any other parts of their
body out of the window .
-Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate w ithout interfe rence .
- Never insta ll sea t covers or replacement
u pholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
A udi .

C) C0 ....
"' " "' .... 0 0 :r -Never use additiona l seat cushions that
cover the areas where the s ide airbags
deploy.
- Damage to the origina l seat covers or to
the seam in the area of the side airbag
module must always be repaired immedi­
ately by an authorized Audi dealer.
- Objects between you and the airbag can in­
crease the risk of injury in an accide nt by in­
terfering w ith the way the a irbag unfolds or
by being pushed into you as the a irbag in­
flates.
- Never p lace or attach accessories o r other
objects (such as cup holders, telephone
brackets, or even large, bu lky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked
"AIRBAG" on the seat backrests.
- Such objects and accessories can become
dangerous projectiles and cause injury
when the supplemental side airbag de­
ploys .
- Never carry any objects or pets in the de­
ployment space between them and the
ai rbags or allow ch ildren or other passen­
ge rs to travel in this posit ion.
- Always use the bui lt-in coat hooks only for
lightwe ight cloth ing . Neve r leave any heavy
o r sharp-e dged objects in the pockets th at
m ay interfere wit h side ai rbag dep loyment
and can cause pe rsonal injury in an accident .
- Always preven t the side airbags from be ing
d amaged by heavy objects knocking against
or hi tt ing the sides o f the seatbacks.
- T he airbag system can on ly be t rigge red
once . If the ai rbag has been triggere d, the
system must be replaced by an authorized
Audi dealership.
- Dama ge (cracks, deep scratches etc.) to the
original seat covers or to the seam i n the
area of the s ide airbag mod ule m ust always
be repaired immed iate ly by an authorized
Audi dealer.
- If children are seated improper ly, their risk
of injury increases in the case of an accident
i=> page 248, Child safety .
- Never attempt to modify any components of
the airbag system in any way .
Airb ag sys tem
-In a side coll ision, side airbags will not func­
tion properly if sensors cannot correctly
measure increasing air pressure inside the
doors when air escapes through larger, un­
closed openings in the door panel.
- Never dr ive with inte rior door trim panels
removed.
- Never dr ive when p arts have been re­
moved from the inside door pane l and the
openings they leave have not been proper­
ly closed .
- Never drive when loudspeakers in the doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been properly closed.
- Always make certain that open ings 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 Aud i dea ler o r qualified work­
shop.
Side curtain airbags
Description of side curtain airbags
The side curtain airbag system can provide sup­
plemental protection to properly restrained oc­
cupants.
Fig . 238 Sid e curta in airbags, driver's side: side curtai n air­
bag locat io n
The side c urtain airbags are located on both sides
of the inter io r above the front and rear side w in­
dows
c> fig. 238. T hey are identified by the word
"A IRBAG" on the windshie ld frame and the cen-
ter roof pillar. .,..
245