sensor AUDI Q7 2012 Owner´s Manual

186 Airbag sys tem
-Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been des igned and certified by
its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag .
- Never put the forward-facing child re­
straint up aga inst or very near the instru­
ment panel.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the a irbag as poss ible, before insta lli ng
the fo rward-facing chi ld restraint. The
b ackres t must be adjus ted to an upr igh t
posit io n.
- Make su re that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light co m es on and s tays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched
on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your vehicle has a lot of very important parts of the Advanced
Airbag System in it. These parts include the
weight-sens ing mat, sensors, wiring, brack­
ets, and more . The fu nction of the system in
the front passenger seat is checked by the
e lectronic control u nit when the ignit ion is on.
The control unit mo nitors the Advanced Air­
bag Sys tem and turns the airbag indicator
light on when a ma lfunction in the system
components is detected . The function of the
ai rbag ind icator light is described in greater
detai l below. Because the front passenger
seat contains important parts of the Ad­
vanced A irbag System, you must take care to
prevent it from be ing damaged . Damage to
the seat may prevent the Advanced A irbag for
the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a cra sh .
The front Advanced Airbag System
consists of the following:
- Crash senso rs in the front of the veh icle that
measu re ve hicle ac celera tion/de ce le ra ti on
to provide info rm ation to the Advanced Air­
bag System abo ut the severity of the crash . -
An elect ronic contro l unit, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts .
The control un it "decides" whether to fi re
the front a irbags based on the informat ion
received from the crash sensors. The contro l
un it also "decides" whether the safety belt
prete nsioners shou ld be act ivated .
- An Advanced A irbag w ith gas generator for
the dr iver inside the stee ring wheel hub .
- An Advanced A irbag w ith gas generator in­
side the instrument panel for the front pas­
senge r.
- A we ight-sensing mat under the up ho lstery
padding of the front passenger seat cushion
that measures the total weight on the seat .
The informat io n registe red is sent continu­
ou sly to the elec troni c con tro l unit to regu ­
la te deployment of the front Advanced Air­
bag on the passenger side .
- An airbag monitoring sys tem and in dicator
light in t he instr ument cluster
~ page 190.
-The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t comes
on and sta ys on in the cen ter o f th e instr u­
ment panel
~ page 190, fig . 199 and tells
you whe n the front Advanced Airbag on the
passenger side has been tu rned off .
- A sensor below the safety be lt latch for the
front seat passenger to meas ure the tension
on the safety be lt . The tension on the safety
be lt and the weight registered by the
weight-sensing mat he lp the control unit
"decide" whether the front airbag for the
front passenger seat should be turned off or
not
~ pag e 181, Child restraints on th e
front seat -some important things to
know.
- A senso r in the safety belt latch fo r th e d riv­
er a nd fo r the front sea t passenger tha t
senses w het he r th at safety bel t is latched or
no t and transmi ts this information to the
electronic control unit.
A WARNING
Damage to the fr ont passenger seat can
p revent the front airbag from work ing
properly.
-

-Improper repair or disassembly of the
front passenger and driver seat will pre­
vent the Advanced Airbag System from
functioning properly .
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must
be performed by qualified and properly
trained workshop personnel.
- Never remove the front passenger or
dr iver seat from the veh icle .
- Never remove the upholstery from the
front passenger seat .
- Never disassemble or remove parts from
the seat or disconnect wires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or place them on the seat. If the weight­
sensing mat in the passenger seat is
punctured it cannot work properly.
- Never carry things on your lap or carry
objects on the passenger seat . Such
items can increase the weight registered
by the weight-sens ing mat and send the
wrong info rmation to the airbag control
unit.
- Never store items under the front pas­
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Ai r­
bag System under the passenger seat
cou ld be damaged, preventing them and
the airbag system from working proper ­
ly .
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholstery that have not been specifical­
ly approved by A udi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from recognizing child re­
straints or occupants on the front pas­
senger seat and prevent the side airbag in the seat backrest from deploy ing prop­
erly.
- Never use cush ions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger
seat . The add itional padd ing will prevent
the weight-sens ing mat in the seat from
accu rately reg iste ring the ch ild restra int
or person on the seat and prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from function­ ing properly .
-If you must use a child restra int on the
front passenger seat and the chi ld re-
A irbag system 187
straint manufacturer's instructions re­
quire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something e lse to properly position the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OF F light comes
on and stays on whenever the ch ild re­
straint is installed on the front passen­
ger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immed i­
ately insta ll child rest raint in a rear seat­
ing position and have the airbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dealer .
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the
s ide airbags supp lement the protection of­
fered by the front three-point safety belts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head rest raints to help reduce the
risk of inj ury in a wide range of accident and
c rash situations. Be s ure to read the impor­
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adv a need A irbag System
and the activation of the safety belt preten­
sioners depend on the deceleration measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
electronic control unit. Crash severity depends
on speed and deceleration as we ll as the mass
and stiffness of the veh icle or object involved
in the crash .
When the e lectronic control unit registers a
low severity crash and the safety belt is being
used, the airbag will not deploy. If the safety
belt is not being used, the first stage deploys,
followed by the second stage after a much lat­ er t ime in the crash sequence.
If the electron ic control unit registers a crash
of medium severity , the first stage of the air ­
bag deploys followed by the second stage at a
much later time in the crash sequence -re­
gardless of whether the safety belt is be ing
u sed or not . In higher sever ity crashes as reg­
iste red by the electronic control unit, both the
II>
•
•

190 Airbag sys tem
aw ay by getting out of the vehicle or
opening windows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
dep loy, wash your hands and face w ith
mild soap and water before eating.
- Be careful not to get the dust into yo ur
eyes, or into any cuts or scratches.
- If the residue should get into your eyes,
flush them with water.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag
System
Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advanced Airbag System: the airbag
monitoring indicator Light and the
PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light.
The Advanced Airbag System (includ ing the
e lectronic control un it, sensor circuits and sys­
tem wiring) is monitored cont inuo usly to
make sure that it is functioning properly
wheneve r the ignit io n is on . Each t ime you
turn on the ignition, the airbag monitoring in­
d icator light
I will come on for a few seconds
(self diagno stics) .
The system must be inspected when the
indicator light
I :
- does not come on when t he ignit io n is
swi tched on
- does not go out a few seconds afte r you
have swi tched on the ign ition, o r
- comes on w hile d riving
If an airbag system malfunct ion is detected,
the ind icator light will fi rst start flash ing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to se rve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately .
If a malfunction occurs that turns the front
a ir bag on the passenger side off, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght w ill come on and stay
on whenever the ign ition is on.
A WARNING
An a irbag system that is not functioning
p roperly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal c rash.
- If the airbag ind icator light comes on, it
means that there may be something
w rong with t he Advanced Airbag Sys tem.
It is poss ible that t he a irbag w ill inflate
when it is not supposed to, o r will not in­
fla te w hen it sho uld.
- H ave the airbag system inspected imme­
d iate ly by yo ur a uthorize d Aud i dea le r.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fi g. 199 Sec tion fro m the instr um ent pa nel: PASSEN­
G ER AIR BAG O FF ligh t
-
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is loca ted
in the center of the inst rument pane l
~fig. 199.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light wi ll come
o n a nd stay on to tell you w hen the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenge r side has been
turned off by the electronic contro l unit. Each
t ime yo u turn on t he ignition, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light will flash for a few
seconds and:
- wi ll stay on if the front passenge r seat is not
occ upied
- wi ll stay on if t here is a small chi ld or child
restraint on the front passenger seat
- will go out i f the front passenger seat is oc­
cupie d by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing mat
T he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light mu st
come on and stay on
if the igni tion is on and ..,.

-a car bed has been insta lled on the front
seat, or
- a rearward-facing chi ld restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward -facing child restraint has been in­
sta lled on the front passenge r seat, or
- the weight registered on the front passen­
ger seat is equa l to or less than the com­
bined weight of a typical 1 year -old restrain­
ed in one of the rear-fac ing or forward-fac­
ing infant restraints listed in Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 w ith which the
Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle was
certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
P A S­
S ENGER AIR BA G OF F
light w ill stay on. Nev­
er install a rearward -fac ing ch ild restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any ki nd of child restraint is at one
of the seating positions on the rear seat
~ page 181, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
~ page 200, Child Safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light c om es
o n
when one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OF F
light stays on continuous ly whenever the
ignition is on. If the
PA SSE NGER AIR BAG
OFF
light does not appear on and does not
stay on all the time, stop as soon as it is safe
to do so and
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off and then turning it on again;
- remove and reinstall the chi ld restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety belt for the
front passenger seat has been correctly routed throug h the child restraint as descri­
bed in the chi ld restraint manufactu rer's in­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea­
tu re on the safety be lt fo r the front passen­
ger seat has been activated and that the sa fety belt has been pulled tight. The bel t
mus t not be loose o r have loops of slack so
A irbag system 19 1
that the sensor below the sa fety be lt latch
on the seat can do its job
~ page 209.
- make sure that things that may increase the
weight of the child and chi ld safety seat are
not being transported on the front passen­
ger seat;
- make sure t hat the safety belt tension sen­
sor is not blocked. Shake the safety belt
latch on the front passenger seatback and
forth;
- If a strap or tether is be ing used to tie the
child safety seat to the front passenger
seat, make sure that it is not so tight that it
causes the weight -se nsing mat to measure
more weight than is actually on the seat .
If the P ASS ENGER AIR B AG OFF light still
do es not come on
and does not stay on con­
tinuously (whe n the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passen-
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by your authorized Aud i dealer
immed iate ly.
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure t hat the ch ild is properly restra in­
ed in a ch ild restra int that is appropriate for
its size and age.
The
PAS SENG ER A IR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when the ignit ion is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
t h e front passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on o r
flashes fo r about 5 seconds wh ile d riving, un ­
der these c ircumstances, make sure that :
- the adult on t he front passenge r seat is
prope rly seated on the cente r of the seat
cushion with his o r he r back up ag ainst the
backrest and the backrest is not reclined
~ page 161, Proper occupant seating posi­
tions,
- the adult 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, .,_
•
•

194 Airbag system
-If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter
is scrapped, all applicable safety pre­
cautions must be followed.
@, For the sake of the envi ronment
Undeployed airbag modu les and preten­
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate
Material -special handling may app ly, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/per­ chlorate. When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
and safety belts w ith p retens ioners are
scrapped, all applicable laws and regula­
tions must be observed. Your authori zed
Aud i dea ler is familiar wit h these requ ire­
ments and we recommend that you have
your dealer perfo rm this service for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem pe rforms in a crash. For example, using
tire-r im combinations not app roved by Aud i,
lowe ring the vehicle, ch anging the stiffness of
the suspension, incl uding the springs, s uspen­
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that are measured by the ai rbag
sensors and sent to the electronic control
un it. Some suspension changes can, for exam­
p le, increase the force levels measured by t he
sensors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in wh ich it would not dep loy if the
cha nges had not been made. Other k inds of
cha nges may reduce the force levels meas­
ure d by the sensors and preven t the a irbag
from deploying when it sho uld .
The senso rs in the safety belt buckle fo r th e
d river and front passe nger sea t tell the elec­
tronic control module if the safety belt is
l atched or not. I f the safety belt is being used,
the front airbag will deploy at a slightly high­ er rate of vehicle deceleration than if the safe­
ty belt is not being used. Therefore, in a par­
ticular collision, it is poss ible that an airbag
will not deploy at a seating position where the safety belt is being used but will inflate at the position where t
he safety be lt is not being
used. It is important that nothing interfere
with the safety be lt b uckles so that the sen­
sors can send the correct information about
safety belt use to the electronic control un it.
A WARNING
=
Changi ng the veh icle's suspension includ-
i ng use of unapp roved tire-rim combina­
tions can change Advanced Airbag per­
fo rma nce and increase the r is k of seri ous
personal injury in a cra sh.
- N ever install suspension components
that do no t have the same pe rformance
chara cter istics as the compone nts o rigi­
na lly ins talled on your vehicle .
- Never use tire-rim combinations that
have not been approved by Audi.
A WARNING
= -
It ems stored between the safety be lt
bu ckle and the cente r console can cause
the sensors in the b uckle to send the
wrong information to the e lectronic con­
trol module and prevent the Advanced Air­ bag System from working prope rly.
- Always make sure that nothing can inter­
fere with the safety belt buckles and that they are not obstructed .
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system can provide suppl emental
protection to properly restrained occupants.
F ig . 20 0 Side air bag locat ion in th e driver's seat

The side airbags are located in the sides of the
fro nt seat backrests
~ fig. 200 and the rear
backrest* facing the doors. They are ident ified
by the word "AIRBAG".
Th e si de airbag syste m basicall y consis ts o f:
- the e lectronic control module and external
s ide impact senso rs
- the two side airbags located in the sides of
the front backrests
- two rear side airbags (as an ordered
option)
-the a irbag warning light in the instrument
cluster .
The airbag system is monitored electron ically
t o make certain that it is functioning properly
at all times . Each time you turn on the igni­
tion, the airbag system indicator l ight will
come on for a few seconds (self diagnostics) .
The s ide a irbag system supplements the safe­
ty belts and can help to reduce the risk of in­
jury to the dr iver's, front and rear* passeng­
er's uppe r torso on the side of the veh icle that
i s st ruck in a side collision . T he a irbag dep loys
only in s ide impac ts and on ly when the veh icle
acceleration registered by the control un it is
h igh eno ugh. If this rate is below the refer ­
ence value programmed into the control unit,
the side airbags will not be triggered, even
though the car may be badly damaged as a re­
sult of the collision. It is not possible to de­
fine an a irbag trigger ing range that will cover
every possible angle of impact, since the cir­
cumstances will vary conside rably between
one co llision and another. Important fac tors
include, for examp le, the nat ure (hard o r soft)
of the impac ting objec t, the ang le o f impact ,
vehicle speed, etc . ¢
page 196, Important
safety instructions on th e side airbag system .
Aside from their normal safety function , safe­
ty belts work to he lp keep the driver or front
passenger in position i n the event of a side
coll is ion 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 oc­
cupant restraint system in your vehicle . Al­
ways remember that the side airbag system
A irbag system 195
can on ly help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety be lt and wearing it properly. This
is another reason why you should always wear
your safety be lts, not just because the law re­
quires you to do so¢
page 170, General
notes.
It i s important to remember that wh ile the
supplementa l side airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of ser ious injuries,
other injur ies, for example, swelling, bru is ing,
and mi nor ab rasions ca n also be assoc iated
with deployed side airbags . Remember too,
s ide a irbags w ill dep loy only once and only in
certain kinds of accidents - your safety belts are always there to offer protection.
Vehicle damage, repair costs or even the lack
of ve hicle damage are no t necessa rily a n in di­
cat ion o f ove r-sensitive or failed airbag a ctiva­
t ion . In some coll is ions, both front and side
airbags may inflate . Remember too, that air ­
bags will deploy only once and only in certain
k inds of co llisions -yo ur safety be lts are a l­
ways there to offer protection in those acc i­
den ts in which airbags are no t supposed to
deploy or when they have a lready deployed .
The side airbag system w ill n ot deploy:
- when the ignition is tu rned off
- in side co llisions when the acceleration
meas ured by the sensor is too low
- in front-end collisions
- in rea r-end col lisions
- in rollove rs .
In some types o f accidents the front airbags,
s ide curtain airbags and s ide a irbags may be
triggered together.
_A WARNING
- Safety belts and the airbag system wi ll
only provide protection w hen occupants
a re in the proper se ating posi tion
¢page 196.
- If the ai rbag ind icator light comes on
when t he vehicle is being used, have the
system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer . The airbag may
•
•

-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 cupholders, tele­
phone 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 dep loyment 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 200, 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
Airbag system 197
larger, unclosed openings in the door
panel.
- Never drive with interior door trim pan­
els removed .
- Never drive when parts have been re­
moved from the inside door panel and
the open ings they leave have not been
properly closed.
- Never drive when loudspeakers in the
doors have been removed unless the
speaker holes have been properly
closed.
- Always make certain that openings are
covered or filled if additional speakers
or other equipment is installed in the inside door panels.
- Always have work on the doors done by
an authorized Audi dealer or qualified
workshop.
Side curtain airbags
Description of side curtain airbags
The side curtain airbags can provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained oc ­
cupants .
Fig. 202 Side curta in a irbags, driver's s ide: locatio n
The side c urtain airbags are located on both
sides of the interior above the front and rear
side windows ~ fig. 202 . They ar e identified
by the word "AIRBAG" on the windshield
frame and the center roof pillar .
The side curtain airbag system supplements
the safety belts and can help to reduce the risk of injury for occupants' heads and upper
torso on the side of the vehicle that is struck
in a side collision. The side cur tain airbag ..,.

198 Airbag system
inflates in side impacts and only when the ve­
hicle acceleration registered by the control
unit is high enough. If this rate is below the
reference value programmed into the contro l
unit, the side airbags 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 possible angle of impact, since the
circ umstances w ill vary cons iderably between
one co llision and another. Important factors
include, for examp le, the nat ure (hard or soft)
of the impacting object, the angle of impact,
vehicle speed, etc.
c:> page 198, How side cur­
tain airbags work.
Aside from their normal safety function, safe ­
ty belts work to he lp keep the driver or front
passenger in position in the event of a co lli ­
sion so that the side curta in airbags can pro­
vide protection.
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your ve hicle. Al­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety belt a nd wear ing it prope rly. Th is
is ano ther reason why you shou ld a lways wear
your safety bel ts, not just beca use the law re ­
qu ires you to do soc:>
page 170, General
no tes.
It is important to remember that whi le the
side curta in a irbag system is des igned to he lp
redu ce the like lihood of serious injuries, othe r
injuries, fo r example, swell ing, bruising, and
minor abrasions can also be associated wit h
these airbags upon deployment. Remember
too, these a irbags w ill deploy on ly once and
only in certain kinds of accidents -your safety
be lts are a lways there to offer protection .
The side curtain airbag system basically
con sists of :
-The electronic control module and external
side impact sensors
- The side curtain airbags above the front and rear side w indows - The airbag indicator light in the instrument
panel
T he airbag system is mon itore d elec tronically
to make certain i t is func tioning properly at all
times . Each t ime you turn on the ignition, the
airbag system indicator light will come on for
a few seconds (sel f diagnostics).
The side curtain airbag is not activated:
- if the ignition is turned off
- in side co llision s whe n the accele ration
meas ured by the sensor is too low
- in rear-end col lisions .
A WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system will
only provide pro te ction when occupant s
are i n the proper seating posi tion
<=>page 71, General recommendations.
- If th e airbag ind ica tor light comes on
when the vehicle is being used, have the
system inspected immediately by you r
authorized Audi dealer . The s ide curtain
airbag may not work proper ly even when
the vehicle acce lerat ion in a s ide collision
is high enough to activate the airbag.
How side curtain airbags work
Side curtain airbags can work together with
side airbags to help reduce the risk of head
and upper torso injuries for occupants who
are properly restrained .
Fig. 203 Illust rat ion of p rincip le : I n flated side curtai n
airbags o n th e left side
The side curtain airbags inflate between the
occupant and the windows on the s ide of the
IJ>

-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
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by its manufacturer for use on a front seat
with a passenger front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's in­
structions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- 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 installing
the child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays
on all the time whenever the ignition is
switched on.
(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 an "Advanced
Airbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
Child Safety 201
(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 si ze. 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 .
Advanced Airbags and the weight­
sensing mat in the front seat
The Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
detects the presence of an infant or child in a
child restraint on the front passenger seat us­
ing the weight -sensing mat in the seat cush­
ion and the sensor below the safety belt latch
on the front passenger seat that measures the
tension on the safety belt.
The weight -sensing mat measures total
weight of the child and the child safety seat
and a child blanket on the front passenger seat. The weight on the front passenger seat
is related to the design of the child restraint
and its "footprint", the size and shape of the
bottom of the child restraint as it sits on the ..,.
•
•

202 Child Saf ety
seat. The weight of a child restraint and its
"footprint" vary for different kinds of chi ld re­
straints and for the d ifferent models of the
same kind of child restraint offered by child
restraint manufacturers .
The weight ranges for the individual types, makes and mode ls of ch ild restra ints that the
NHTSA has specified in the Safety Standard
together with the weight ranges of typical in­
fants and typical 1 year-old child have been
stored in the control unit of the Advanced A ir­
bag System. When a ch ild restrai nt is being
used on the front passenger seat with a typi ­
cal 1 yea r-old chi ld, the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem compares the weight measured by the
weight sensing mat with the information stor­
ed in the electronic contro l unit.
The electron ic cont rol unit a lso registers the
tension on the front passenger safety belt.
The tension on the safety be lt for the front
passenger seat will be different for an adult
who is properly using the safety belt as com­
pared to the tension on the belt when it is
used to attach a child restraint to the seat.
The sensor below the latch for the safety belt
for the front seat passenger measures the
tension on the be lt . T he input from this sen­
sor is then used with the we ight to "dec ide",
whe ther there is a ch ild restraint w ith a typ ica l
1 year-o ld child on the front passenger seat
and whether or not the airbag must be turned
off .
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
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 w ith an airbag . Always be sure
that the ch ild restraint is p roperly insta lled at
one of the rear seat ing pos itions . If in excep­
tional c ircu mstances you must use it on the
front passenger seat, carefu lly read all of the
info rmation on c hild safety and Advanced Air­
bags and heed a ll of the applicable WARN­
INGS. Make certain that the child restraint is
correctly recognized by the weig ht-sensing mat inside the front passenger seat, that the
front passenger airbag is turned off and that
the a irbag status is a lways correct ly signa led
by the
PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light.
Many types and models of child restraints
have been available over the years, new mod­
els are introduced regu larly incorporating new
and improved des igns and o lder models are
taken out of product ion. Ch ild restraints are
not standard ized . Child restraints of the same
type typically have d ifferent weights and sizes
and different 'footpr ints,' the size and shape
of the bo ttom of the ch ild restra int that sits
o n the seat, when they are inst alled on a vehi­
cle seat. These d ifferences make it v irtually
impossible to certify compliance with the re ­
quirements for advanced airbags with each
and every ch ild restraint that has ever been
sold in the past or will be sold over the course of the useful life of your veh icle.
For this reason, the United States National
Highway Traffic Safety Administrat ion has
published a list of spec ific type, makes and
models of child restraints that mus t be used
to certify comp liance of the Advanced Airbag
System i n your veh icle w ith the suppression
requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208. These chi ld restraints are :
Subpart A - Car bed child restraints
Model
Angel Guard Angel Ride AA 2403FOF
Manufactured on or
after
September 25, 200 7
Subpart B -Rear-facing child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Century SmartFit December 1, 1999
4543
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-013PAW and base
22-999WHO
Evenf lo Discovery Ad -December 1, 1999
just Right 212
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