belt AUDI Q7 2014 Owner´s Manual

180 Safety belts
• Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your sea t until you hear it latch securely
¢ page 178, fig. 202.
•Pullon the belt to make sure that it is se ­
curely latched in the buckle .
A WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can
cause serious personal injury in an acci­
dent.
- Expectant mothers must always wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as
possible across the pelv is and be low the
rounding of the abdomen.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information¢ .&.
in Fas­
tening safety belts on page 178.
Unfastening safety belt s
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only after the vehicle has stopped .
Fig. 205 Releasing the to ngue from th e buckle
• Push the red release button on the buckle
¢
fig. 205 . The belt tongue will spring out
of the buckle
c:> ,& .
• Let the belt wind up on the retractor as you
guide the belt tongue to its stowed position.
On vehicles with
third row seat* : an unfas­
tened safety belt can be secured in the retain­ ing clip in the luggage compartment side
tr im . In this way, the luggage compartment
cover can be removed without obstruction . Al­
so, the belt tongue height can be adjusted so
that luggage compartment can be loaded
without obstruction with the backrest folded
forward .
A WARNING
-Never unfasten safety belt while the vehi-
cle is mov ing . Do ing so will increase your
risk of being injured or killed.
Adjusting safety belt height
With the aid of the safety belt height adjust­
ment, the three point safety belt strap rout­
ing can be fitted to the shoulder area , accord ­
ing to body size .
Fig. 206 Safet y bel t heigh t adju stm en t- loop-a roun d
f itt ings
The shoulder belt should lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possible and
should fit well on the body¢.&.
in Safety belt
position on page 179.
• Push
the loop-around fittings up c:> fig. 206
@,or
• squeeze together the (D button, and push
the loop-around fittings down@.
• Pull the be lt to make sure that the upper at­
tachment is properly engaged .
A WARNING
Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information ¢
page 177.
(D Tips
With the front seats, the he ight adjust­
ment of the seat can also be used to adjust
the position of the safety belts.

Improperly worn safety belts
Incorrectly positioned safety belts can cause
severe injuries .
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause se­
rious injury or death. Safety belts can only
work when they are correctly positioned on the body . Improper seating positions reduce
the effectiveness of safety belts and will even increase the risk of injury and death by mov­
ing the safety belt to critical areas of the
body . Improper seating positions also in­
crease the risk of serious injury and death
when an airbag deploys and strikes an occu­
pant who is not in the correct seating posi­
tion . A driver is responsible for the safety of
all vehicle occupants and especially for chil­
dren . Therefore:
... Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect
sitting position in the vehicle while traveling
¢ ,& .
A WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- Always make sure that all vehicle occu­
pants are correctly restrained and stay in
a correct seating posit ion whenever the
vehicle is be ing used.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
c:>page 177.
Safety belt preten­
sioners
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.
The safety belts are equipped with safety belt
pretensioners . The system is activated by sen­
sors in front, side and rear-end collisions of
great severity and in a rollover. This tightens
the belt and takes up be lt sla ck
c:> .& in Service
Safety belts 181
and disposal of safety belt pretensioner on
page 182.
Taking up the slack helps to reduce
forward occupant movement dur ing a colli­
sion.
@ Note
Never let the belt remain over a rear seat­
back that has been fo lded forward.
(D Tips
The safety belt pretensioner can only be
activated once.
- In minor frontal and side collisions, in
rear-end collisions and in accidents in­
volving very little impact force, the safe­
ty belt pretensioner are not activated.
- When the safety belt pretensioners are
activated, a fine dust is re leased. This is
normal and is not caused by a fire in the
vehicle.
- The re levant safety requirements must
be observed when the vehicle or compo­
nents of the system are scrapped. An au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop is familiar w ith these regulations
and w ill be pleased to pass on the infor­
mation to you.
- Be sure to observe all safety, env iron­
menta l and other regulations if the veh i­
cle or ind ividual parts of the system, par­
ticularly the safety belt or airbag, are to
be disposed. We recommend you have
your authorized Audi dealer perform this
service for you.
Service and disposal of safety belt
pretensioner
The safety belt pretens ioners are parts of the
safety belts on your Audi. Insta lling, remov­
ing, servic ing or repair ing of belt pretension­
ers can damage the safety belt system and
prevent it from working correctly in a colli­
s ion .
T he re are some impo rtant things you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of .,. •
•

182 Safety belts
the system will not be impaired and that dis­
carded components do not cause injury or pollute the environment .
.&_ WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal in­
jury and death by preventing a safety belt
pretensioner from activating when needed
or activating it unexpectedly:
- The belt pretensioner system can be acti­
vated only once . If belt pretensioners
have been activated, the system must be
replaced.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the safety belt system.
- Safety belt systems including safety belt
pretensioners cannot be repaired. Spe­
cial procedures are required for removal,
installation and disposal of this system.
- For any work on the safety belt system,
we strongly recommend that you see
your authorized Audi dealer or qualified
technician who has an Audi approved re­
pair manual, training and special equip­
ment necessary.
@) For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and preten­
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate
Material -special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/haza rdouswaste/per­
chlorate. When the vehicle or parts of the restraint system including airbag modules
safety belts with pretensioners are scrap­
ped, all applicable laws and regulations
must be observed . Your authorized Audi
dealer is familiar with these requirements
and we recommend that you have your
dealer perform this service for you.

Airbag system Important things to know
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For
airbags to do their job , occupants must al­
ways properly wear their safety belts and be
in a proper seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers, before driving off, always:
"" Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly
¢ page 165,
"" Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
¢ page 73 ,
""Wear safety be lts properly r::::> page 177,
""Always properly use the proper child re-
straint to protect chi ldren
r::::> page 204.
In a collision, airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force .
The supplemental airbags can cause injuries if
the driver or the front seat passenger is not
seated properly . T herefore in order to help the
a irbag to do its job, it is important, both as a
driver and as a passenge r to s it properly at all
times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steer ing whee l and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
comp lete ly and provide supp lemental protec­
tion in certain frontal collisions
r::::> page 165,
Proper occupant seating positions.
F or detai ls
on the operation of the seat adjustment con­
trols ¢
page 73.
It's especially important that children a re
properly restrained
r::::> page 204.
There is a lot that the driver and the passen­
gers can and must do to help the individual
safety features installed in your Aud i work to­
gether as a system.
Prope r seat ing pos ition is important so that
the front airbag on the driver side ca n do its
job. If you have a physical impa irment or con-
A irbag system 183
dition that prevents you from sitting properly
on the driver seat with the safety belt properly
fastened and reaching the pedals, or if you
have concerns with regard to the function or
operation o f the Advanced Airbag System,
please contact your author ized Audi dealer or
qualified workshop, or call Audi Customer Re­
l ations at 1-800-822-2834 for poss ible modi­
ficat io ns to your veh icle.
When the airbag system dep loys, a gas gener ­
ator will fill the a irbags, break open the pad­
ded covers, and inflate between the steer ing
whee l and the dr iver and between the instru­
ment panel and the front passenger. The a ir­
bags will deflate immediately after dep loy­
ment so that the front occupants can see
through the windshield again witho ut inter­
ruption .
A ll of th is takes place in the blink o f an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the airbags have deployed. The airbags a lso
inflate with a great dea l of force and nothing
should be in their way when they deploy.
Front a irbags in combinat ion with properly
worn safety belts slow down and lim it the oc ­
cupant's forward movement . Together they
help to prevent the driver and front seat pas­
senger from h itti ng pa rts of the inside of the
vehicle while reducing the forces acting on the
occupant during the crash . In this way they
help to reduce the risk of injury to the head
and upper body in the crash. Airbags do not
protect the arms or the lower parts of the
body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all fronta l
collisions . The triggering of the airbag system
depends on the vehicle de ce lerat ion rate
caused by the collision and regis te red by the
elec tron ic control unit. If th is rate is below
the reference value programmed into the con ­
trol unit, the airbags will not be trigge red,
even though the car may be bad ly damaged as
a res ult of the co llision . Ve hicl e damage, re­
pair costs or even the lack of ve hicle damage
is not necessarily an indication of whether an
airbag should inflate or not . •
•

184 Airbag sys tem
Since the cir cumstances will vary considerab ly
between one collision and anot her, it is not
possib le to def ine a range of vehicle speeds
that will cover every possible k ind and angle
of impact t hat will always trigger the a irbags.
Important factors include, for example, the
nature (hard or soft) of the object which the
car h its , the ang le of impact, vehicle speed ,
etc. The front airbags will also not inflate in
side or rea r collisions, or in ro ll-overs .
Always remember : Airbags will deploy only
once, and only in certa in k inds of co llisions .
Your safety belts are always there to offer pro­
tection in those s ituations in which airbags
a re not supposed to deploy, or when they have
a lready deployed ; for example , when your ve­
hicle strikes or is struck by another vehicle af­
te r the first co llision .
This is jus t one of the reasons why an a irbag is
a supplementary restra int and is not a substi­
tute fo r a safety belt . The airbag system
works most effect ively when used with the
safety belts. There fore, always properly wear
your safety belts
c::;, page 174 .
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steer ing whee l or
instrument panel will dec rease the effec­
t iveness of the airbags and will increase
the risk of personal injury in a collision .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (2S cm)
to the stee ring wheel or instrument pan­
el.
- If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
( 2 5 cm) from the s teer ing whee l, investi­
gate whethe r adap tive equipmen t may
be available to help you reach the pedals
and increase your seating distance from
the steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing fo rward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of in jury is much higher.
- You will also receive serio us injuries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the airbag or too close to it when it in­
flates - even with an Advanced Airbag. -
To reduce the risk of injury when an a ir­
bag inflates, always wear safety be lts
properly
c::;, page 178, Safety belts.
- Always make certain that ch ildren age 12
or younger always ride in the rear seat. If
children are not properly restrained, they
may be severe ly injured or killed when an
ai rbag inflates .
- Never let children ride unrestrained or
improperly restrained in the vehicle. Ad ­
just the front seats prope rly .
- Never ride with the back rest reclined .
- Always sit as far as possible from the
steer ing whee l or the instrument pane l
c::;, page 165.
-Always sit upright with your back against
the backrest of your seat .
- Never p lace your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the floor in front of the seat to
help prevent serio us in ju ries to the legs
and h ips if the airbag inflates.
- Never recline the front passenger 's seat
to transport objects , Items can a lso
move into the a rea of the s ide airbag or
the front a irbag du ring bra king or in a
sudden maneuve r. Objects nea r the air ­
bags can become projectiles and cause
in jur y when an airbag inflates.
A WARNING ~
Airbags that have deployed in a crash must
be replaced.
- Use on ly orig ina l equipment airbags ap­
proved by Aud i and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary too ls
and d iagnost ic equipment to properly re­
p lace any airbag in your vehicle and as­
sure system effectiveness in a crash .
- Never permit salvaged or recycled air­
bags to be installed in your vehicle .

prevent them from providing any
protection.
- An improperly installed child restraint
can interfere with the airbag as it de­
ploys and seriously injure or even kill the
child -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- Always carefully follow the manufactur­
er's instructions provided with the child
safety seat or carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis­
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can cause injury in a crash.
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants.
Fig. 207 Location of driver ai rb ag : in stee ring whee l
Fig. 208 Location of front passenger 's a irbag: in the in ­
strume nt panel
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced
Airbag System " in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your
ve hicle was manufactured. The safety belts
Airbag system 187
for the seats have "pret ens ioners " that help
to take slack out of the belt system. The pre­
tensioners are also activated by the electronic
control unit for the airbag system.
Th e front safety belts also have load limiters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
in a crash .
Th e airbag for the driver is in the steering
wheel hub
q fig. 207 and the airbag for the
front passenger is in the instrument panel
~ fig. 208. The general location of the airbags
is marked "AIRBAG" .
There is a lot you need to know about the air­
bags in your vehicle. We urge you to read the
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
chapters that make up the owner's literature.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they
are extremely important for your safety and
the safety of your passengers, especially in­
fants and small children.
_&. WARNING
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide
only supplemental protection.
-Airbag work most effectively when used
with properly worn safety belts.
- Therefore, always wear your safety belts
and make sure that everybody in your ve­
hicle is properly restrained.
_&. WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, es­
pecially infants and small children, will re­
ceive serious injuries and can even be kil­
led by being too close to the airbag when
it inflates.
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the
front passenger airbag if an infant or a
small child is on the front passenger
seat, nobody can absolutely guarantee
that deployment under these special
11>-

188 Airbag system
conditions is impossible in all conceiva­
ble situations that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicle.
- The Advanced Airbag System can deploy
in accordance with the "low risk" option
under the U.S. Federal Standard if a child
that is heavier than the typical one-year
old child is on the front passenger seat
and the other conditions for airbag de­
ployment are met.
-Accident statistics have shown that chil­
dren are generally safer in the rear seat
area than in the front seating position.
- For their own safety, all children, espe­
cially 12 years and younger, should al­
ways ride in the back properly restrained
for their age and size.
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208 as applicable at the time your vehicle was
manufactured.
The front Advanced Airbag System supple­ ments the safety belts to provide additional
protection for the driver's and front passeng­
er's heads and upper bodies in frontal crashes .
The airbags inflate only in frontal impacts
when the vehicle deceleration is high enough.
The front Advanced Airbag System for the
front seat occupants is not a substitute for
your safety belts. Rather, it is part of the over­
all occupant restraint system in your vehicle.
Always remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you, if you are sitting up­
right , wearing your safety belt and wearing it
properly. This is why you and your passengers
must always be properly restrained, not just
because the law requires you to be.
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 very small adults on
the driver side. The low risk deployment crite­
ria are intended to help reduce the risk of in- jury through interaction with the front 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 "suppression" requirements
of the Safety Standard, to turn off the front
airbag for infants 12 months old and younger
who are restrained on the front passenger
seat in child restraints that are listed in the Standard
~ page 206, Child restraints and
Advanced Airbags .
"Suppression" requires the front airbag on the
passenger side to be turned off if:
- a child up to about one year of age is re­
strained on the front passenger seat in one
of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant
restraints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard 208 with which the Ad­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle was
certified. For a listing of the child restraints
that were used to certify your vehicle's com­
pliance with the US Safety Standard
~page 206,
-weight less than a threshold level stored in
the control unit is detected on the front pas­
senger seat.
When a person is detected on the front pas­ senger seat, weighing more than the total
weight of a child that is about 1 year old re­
strained in one of the rear-facing or forward­
facing infant restraints (listed in Federal Mo­
tor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which
the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
was certified), the front airbag on the passen­ ger side may or may not deploy.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when the electronic control unit detects a to­
tal weight on the front passenger seat that re­ quires the front airbag to be turned off. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on, the front airbag on the passenger
side has not been turned off by the control
unit and can deploy if the control unit senses
an impact that meets the conditions stored in
its memory.
ll-

If the total weight on the front passenger
seat is more than that of a typical 1 year -old,
but less than the weight of a small adult, the
front airbag on the passenger side may deploy (the
P ASS ENGER AIR B AG OFF light does not
come on).
For example, th e airbag may depl oy if:
-a small child that is heavier than a typical 1
year-o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regardless of whether the child is in one of
the chi ld safety seats listed
<=) page 206),
-a chi ld who has outgrown child restraints is
on the front passenger seat.
I f the front passenger airbag is turned
off, the
PA SSENGER AIR B AG OFF light in the center
of the instrument panel wi ll come on and stay
on.
The front a irbag on the passenger side may
not deploy (the PA SSENG ER AIR BAG O FF
light does not ill uminate and stay lit) if:
- a small adu lt or teenager is on the front pas­
senger seat
- a passenger who is not sitt ing upright w ith
their back against a non-reclined backrest
with their feet on the vehicle floo r in front
of the seat is on the front passenge r seat .
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the
Federal Standard requires the a irbag to meet
the " low risk" deployment cr iteria to help re ­
duce the risk of inju ry through interaction
with the airbag. "Low risk" deployment occurs in those crashes that take place at lower de­
celerations as defined in the electronic control
un it.
<=) page 194
Al ways rememb er: Even tho ugh your vehicle
is equipped with Advanced Airbags, the safest
p lace for children is properly restrained on the
back seat. Please be sure to read the impor­
tant information in the sect ions that follow
and be sure to heed all of the WARNINGS.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag inflates, a lways wear safety belts prope rly.
A irbag system 189
-If you are unrestrained, leaning forward,
sitt ing s ideways or out of pos ition in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You will a lso receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up aga inst
the airbag or too close to it when it in­
flates -even w ith an Advanced A irbag
<=)page 183 .
A WARNING
-
A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild safety
seat installed on the front passenger seat
will be ser ious ly injured and can be killed if
the front airbag inflates -even with an Ad­
vanced A irbag System.
- Al tho ugh the Advanced Airbag System in
your veh icle is designed to turn
off the
front airbag when a rearward -facing
child restraint has been insta lled on the
front passenger seat, nobody can abso­
lutely guarantee that dep loyment is im­
possible in all conceivable s ituations that
may happen dur ing the usefu l life of your
veh icle.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child against the bac krest, center
armrest, doo r, or roof.
- Always install rearward-facing chi ld re­
straints on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearwa rd fac ing
child safety seat on the fro nt passenger
seat because of exceptiona l circumstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and s tay on, im ­
mediately insta ll the rear-facing ch ild
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the airbag system inspected by your
author ized Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If, in except iona l circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger's seat:
~
•
•

190 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 194.
-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 194, fig . 210 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 185, 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
uni t.
- Never store items under the front pas­
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Ai r­
bag System under the passenge r seat
cou ld be damaged, prevent ing them and
the a irbag system from working proper ­
ly .
- Never place seat covers or replacement
upholste ry that have not been specifical­
ly approved by A udi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the A dvanced
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 itiona l padd ing will prevent
the weight-sens ing mat in the seat from
accu rately reg iste ring the ch ild restra int
o r person on the se at and prevent the
Advance d Airbag System from func tion­
ing properly .
-If you mus t use a child restra int on the
front passenger seat and the ch ild re-
A irbag system 19 1
straint manufacture r'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 OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the ch ild re­
s t raint is installed on the front passen­
ge r seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immed i­
a tely insta ll child rest raint in a rear seat­
ing position and have the ai rbag 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-poi nt safety belts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head res traints to help reduce the
r isk of inj ury in a wide range of ac ciden t 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 t he activation of the safe ty belt preten­
sioners depend on the deceleration measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
electronic contro l unit. Crash severity depends
on speed and dece leration 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
l ow 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
gard less of whether the safety belt is be ing
u sed or not . In highe r sever ity crashes as reg­
iste red by the electronic con trol unit, both the
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