child seat AUDI RS5 CABRIOLET 2013 Owner's Manual

-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
driver seat from the vehicle .
- 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-sensing mat and send the
wrong information to the airbag control
unit.
- Never store items under the front pas­
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Air­
bag System under the passenger seat
could 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 Audi 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 deploying prop­
erly.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger
seat . The additional padding will prevent
the weight-sensing mat in the seat from
accurately registering the child restraint
or person on the seat and prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from function­
ing properly.
- If you must use a child restraint on the
front passenger seat and the child re-
Airbag system 145
straint manufacturer's instructions re­
quire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something else to properly position the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the child re­
straint is installed on the front passen­
ger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immedi­
ately install child restraint 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
side airbags supplement the protection of­
fered by the front three-point safety belts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head restraints to help reduce the
risk of injury in a wide range of accident and
crash situations. Be sure to read the impor­
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adv a need Airbag 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. The amount of infla­
tion of the front airbags can also be adapted
to the front sea t position, depending on the
distance between the respective front seat
and the steering wheel or instrument panel as registered by sensors in the seats. Crash se­
verity depends on speed and deceleration as
well as the mass and stiffness of the vehicle
or object involved in the crash.
On the passenger side, regardless of safety
belt use, the airbag will be turned off if the
weight on the passenger seat is less than the
amount programmed in the electronic control
unit. The front airbag on the passenger side
will also be turned off if one of the child safe-
ty seats that has been certified under Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been
recogni zed on the seat . The
PASSENGER AIR .,,.
•
•

146 Airbag system
BAG OFF light comes on and stays on to te ll
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the
passenger side has been turned off
c> page 138, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know.
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury whe n an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You w ill also receive serious inju ries and
cou ld even be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in­
flates -even with an Advanced Airbag
c>page 137.
More important things to know about
front airbags
F ig. 15 4 Inflated front airbags
-,.._
::: :i:.
"' a)
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated pos ition
so that airbags can u nfo ld properly and pro­
vide supp lemental protection in a frontal co l­
lision.
The front a irbags are designed to provide ad­
d itiona l protect ion for the chest and face of
the driver and the front seat passenger when :
- safety belts are worn properly,
- the seats have been posit ioned so that the
occupant is proper ly seated as far as possi­
ble from the a irbag,
- and the head restraints have been properly
adjusted .
Because airbags inflate in the blink of an eye
with great force, things you have on your lap or have p
laced on the seat cou ld become dan ­
gerous projecti les, and be p ushed into you if
the a irbag inf lates.
When an airbag deploys, fine dust is re leased.
T his is norma l and is not caused by a fi re in
the vehicle . This dust is made up mostly of a
powder used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy. It could irritate skin .
It is important to remembe r that while the
supplementa l airbag system is designed to re­
duce the like lihood of serious injur ies, other
injur ies, for example swelling, bruising and
minor abrasions, can also happen when air­
bags inflate . A irbags do not protect the arms
o r the lower parts of the body. Front a irbags
only supp lement the three point safety belts
in some fronta l co llisions in wh ich the vehicle
deceleration is high enough to deploy the air­
bags .
Front a irbags will not deploy:
- if the ignition is switched off when a c rash
occurs,
- in side collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollovers,
- when the crash deceleration measured by
the airbag system is less than the minimum
threshold needed for airbag deployment as
reg istered by the electronic control unit.
The front pa ssenger airbag will al so not
deplo y:
- when the front passenger seat is not occu­
pied,
- when the weight on the front passenger
seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem indicates that the front airbag on the
passenger side has to be turned off by the
electronic control un it (the
PASSENGER A IR
BAG OFF
l ight comes on and stays on).
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong pos ition can increase
the r is k of serious injury in crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the air ­
bags i nflate, the driver and passengers

must always sit in an upright position,
must not lean against or place any part
of the ir body too close to the area where
the a irbags are located .
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posi­
t ion or too close to the airbag can be se­
riously injured by an airbag as it unfolds
with great force in the blink of an eye
~ page 138.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety
seat insta lled on the front passenger seat
wi ll be seriously injured and can be k illed if
the front airbag inflates -even with an Ad ­
vanced Airbag System.
- T he inflating airbag will hit the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and wi ll smash the ch ild safety seat
and child against the backrest, center
armrest, door or roof.
- 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 because of exceptional circumstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on and stay on, im­
med iately install the rear-facing child
safety seat in a rear seating position and
have the a irbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will
increase the risk of injury in a crash by in­
terfering with the way the airbag unfolds
or by being pushed into you as the airbag
inf lates.
- Never hold things in your hands or on
your lap when the vehicle is in use.
- Never transport items on or in the area
of the front passenger seat. Objects
cou ld move into the area of the front air­
bags during braking or other sudden ma­
neuver and become dangerous projec-
A irbag system 147
tiles that can cause serious personal in­
jury if the a irbags inflate.
- Never place or attach accessories or oth­
er objects (such as cupholders, tele­ phone brackets, large, heavy or bulky ob­
jects) on the doors, over or near the area marked "AIRBAG" on the steering wheel,
instrument panel, seat backrests or be­
tween those areas and yourself. These
objects could cause injury in a crash, es­
pecia lly when the airbags inflate.
- Never recline the front passenger's seat
to transport objects. Items can also
move into the area of the side a irbag or
the front airbag during braking or in a
sudden maneuver . Objects near the air­
bags can become projectiles and cause
injury, particularly when the seat is re­
clined.
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy
can cause breathing problems for people
with a history of asthma or other breath­ ing cond itions.
- To reduce the risk of breath ing problems,
those with asthma or other respiratory
conditions shou ld get fresh air right
away by getting out of the veh icle or
open ing windows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags
deploy, wash your hands and face with mild soap and water before eating.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your
eyes, o r into any cuts or scratches .
- If the residue should get into your eyes,
f lush them with water. •
•

148 Airbag system
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 BA G OFF
light.
The Advanced Airbag System (including the
electronic control unit, sensor circuits and sys­
tem wiring) is monitored continuously to
make sure that it is functioni ng properly
whenever the ignit ion is on. Each t ime you
turn on the ignition, the
rl airbag monitoring
indicator light w ill come on for a few seconds
(self diagnostics) .
The system must be inspected when the
(I indicator light :
-does not come on when the ignit ion is
swit ched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
h ave swi tched on the ign ition, o r
- comes on wh ile d riving .
If an airbag system malfunction is detected,
the indicator light will first start flash ing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to se rve as a constant reminde r
to have the system inspec ted immediately .
If a malfunction occurs that turns the front
a irbag on the passenger side off, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght will come on and stay
on w henever the ignition is on.
A WARNING
An air bag system th at is not func tionin g
prope rly ca nnot provide supp lemen tal pro­
t ect ion in a fron tal cr ash .
-If the airbag indic ator light¢ page 20
comes whe n the vehicle is be ing used,
have t he system inspected immediate ly
by you r a uth o rized Aud i dea le r. It is pos­
sible that the a irbag will inf late when it
is not s upposed to, or w ill not inflate
when it shou ld.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF l ight
Fig . 1 55 Sec tion fro m the instr ument pa ne l: PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF lig ht
T he PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is loca ted
in the center of t he in st rument p anel
¢fig. 155.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light w ill come
o n and stay o n to tell you w hen the front Ad ­
van ced Air bag o n the pas senge r side has been
tu rned off by the ele ct ronic contro l uni t. Each
t ime you turn on the ignition, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light will flas h for a few
seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- wil l sta y on if t here is a small ch ild or child
restrai nt on the front passenge r seat,
- will go out i f th e front p assenge r sea t is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight -sensing mat .
T he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on
if the igni tion is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the front
seat, or
- a rearward-facing child restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, o r
- a forward-fac ing ch ild restra int has been in­
s talled on the front passenger seat, or
- the weight reg iste red on the front passen­
ger seat is equal to or less than t he com­
b ined weight of a typical 1 year -o ld restra in­
ed in one of the rea r-facing or forwa rd-fac­
ing infant restra ints listed in Federal Motor
Veh icle Safety Stan dard 208 wi th wh ich the
Advanced A irbag System in you r vehicle wa s
cert ified.
II>-

If the fron t passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS­
SENGER AIR BAG OF F
light will stay on. Nev­
er in sta ll a rearward-fac ing ch ild restra int on
t he fron t passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any kind of child restraint is at one
of the seating positions on the rear seat
¢ page 138, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 158, Child Safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light c om es
on
when one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PAS SENGER AIR BAG
O FF
ligh t stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignition is on . If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light does not appear and not stay on all
the time, stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and
- reactivate the system by turning the ignition
off and then t urning it on again;
- remove and reinstall the child restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the sa fety be lt for the
front passenger seat has been correct ly
routed around the child restraint a s desc ri­
bed in the child restraint manufacturer 's in­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea­
ture on the safety be lt for the front passen ­
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight . The belt
mus t not be loose o r have loops of slack so
that the sensor below the safety be lt latch
on the seat can do its job
¢ page 168 .
-make su re that th ings that may increase the
weight of t he ch ild and child safe ty seat are
not being transported on the front passen ­
ger seat ;
- make su re that the safety bel t tension sen ­
sor is not b locked . Shake t he safety belt
l atch on the front passenger seat back and
forth;
- If a strap or tether is being used to tie the
child safety seat to the front passenger
seat, make sure that it is not so tight that it
A irbag system 149
causes the weight -sensing mat to measure
more weight than is act ually on the seat .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
doe s not come on
and does not stay on con ­
tin uous ly (when the ignition is switched on) ,
- take the child rest ra int off the front passen-
ge r seat and install it properly a t one of the
rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by yo ur authorized Audi dealer
immediate ly .
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure t hat the c hild is properly restrain­
ed in a c hild restra int that is app ropriate for
its size and age.
T he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light sho uld
NOT come on when the ignition is on and an
adult is sitting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
ligh t comes on and stays on or
flashes for about 5 seconds wh ile driving, un­
der these c ircumstances , make sure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is
properly seated on the center of the seat
cushion wi th his or her back up aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is not recl ined
¢ page 119, Proper occupant seating posi­
tions,
- the adult is not tak ing weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passe nger door or support ­
ing their weight on the armrest ,
- the safety belt is being properly wo rn and
t ha t there is not a lot of s lack in the safety
be lt webbing ,
- ac cesso ry seat covers or cushions o r other
t hings tha t may cause an incorrect reading
or impression on the we ight-sensing mat
under the upho lstery of the seat have been
removed from the front passenger seat,
- a sa fety belt exten der has not been left in
the safety belt latch for the front passenger
seat.
In add it ion to the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght in the cente r of the instrumen t panel,
the message
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF or
PASSENGER AIR BAG ON wi ll briefly appear ll-
•
•

150 Airbag system
in the instrument cluster display. This is to in­
form the driver of the current front passenger
airbag status.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light¢
page 20
comes when the vehicle is being used,
have the system inspected immediately
by your authori zed Audi dealer. It is pos­
sible that the airbag will inflate when it
is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should .
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child without
a child restraint, in a rearward-facing child
safety seat or in a forward-facing child re­
straint that has not been properly installed
will be seriously injured and can be killed.
- Even though your vehicle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that all children, especially 12
years and younger, always ride on the back seat properly restrained for their
age and size.
- Always install forward or rear-facing
child safety seats on the rear seat -even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
- If you must install a rearward-facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circumstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and stay on, imme­
diately install the rear-facing child safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the airbag system inspected by your au­
thorized Audi dealer.
- A tight tether or other strap on a rear­
ward-facing child restraint attached to
the front passenger seat 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 adult 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 re­
straint on the front passenger seat, al­
ways move the seat into its rearmost po­
sition in the seat's fore and aft adjust­
ment range, as far away from the airbag
as possible. The backrest must be adjust­
ed to an upright position. Make sure that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when­
ever 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 authorized Audi dealer before trans­
porting anyone on the front passenger
seat.
(D Tips
If the weight-sensing mat in the front pas­
senger seat detects an empty seat, the
front airbag on the passenger side will be
turned off, and
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
will stay on.
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Par ts of the airb ag system are ins talled at
many different places on your Audi. Installing,
removing, 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. .,..

154 Airbag sys te m
The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the airbags for the driver and front pas­
senger dep loy in certain but not all frontal
collisions.
I f the front air bags deploy, the knee airbags
a lso deploy in frontal co llisions when the de ­
p loyment threshold stored in the control unit
is met.
When t he system dep loys, the airbags fill
with a prope llant gas, and i nflate between the
l ower part of the instrument panel and t he
driver and the lower part of the instrument panel and the front passenger
q page 146 ,
fig . 154.
A lthough they are not a soft pillow, they can
cushion the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the r isk of injury to the lower
extremities .
A ll of this takes place in the blink of an eye, so
fast that many people don't even realize that
the airbags have deployed. The a irbags also
inflate wit h a great deal of force and it is im­
po rtant for occupant safety that not hing
should be in their way when they dep loy.
Fully inflated airbags in combination with
properly wor n safety belts slow down and lim­
it the occupant's forwa rd moveme nt and help
to reduce the r isk of injury .
Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
Applies to vehicles: wit h kn ee a irbags
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al ­
ways wear safety belts correctly and ride in a
proper seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passenge rs
m ust know and do to help the safety be lts and
air bags to provide supp lemental protection .
& WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause ser ious
injury. Wearing safety belts incorrectly and
improper seating positions increase the
r isk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a veh icle is being used. -
The knee a irbag system cannot p rotect
you proper ly if you a re seated too close
to any of the airbag locat ions. When ad­
justing their seat pos itions, it is impor­
tant that both the driver and the front passenger keep the ir upper bod ies and
knees at the following m inimum safe
distances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the steering wheel/instru­
ment panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the knees and the lower part of the instru­
ment panel.
- The risk of personal inj ury increases if
you lean forward or to the s ide, or if the
seat is improperly positioned and you a re
not wearing yo ur safety belt . The risk in­
creases even more should the a irbag de­
ploy.
- Always ma ke sure that th e knee airbag
can inf late without inte rfe rence. Objects
between yo u and the airbag can inc rea se
the risk of injury in an ac cident by inte r­
fering w ith the way the a irbag deploys or
by being p ushed into you as the air bag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, espec ia lly children
o r anima ls ride in the footwell in front
of the passenge r seat. I f the airbag de­
ploys, th is can resul t in serious o r fa tal
injur ies.
- Never carry objects of any kind in the
footwell are a in front of the dr iver's or
passenger 's sea t. Bulky objects (shop ­
ping bags, fo r example) can inte rfere
with or prevent proper deployment of
the a irbag. Small ob jects can be
thrown thro ugh the veh icle if the air­
bag deploys and injure you or your pas­
sengers .
- Make sure there are no cracks, deep
scratches or other damage in the area of
the instrument panel where the knee air­
b ags are located.
- If ch ildren are incorrectly seated, their
risk of injury increases in a collision
q page 158, Child Safety.

156 Airbag system
-in rol lovers.
I n s ome types of acc idents the front a irbags
a nd side a irbags m ay be triggered together .
.&_ WARNING
-Sa fety belts and t he a irbag system wi ll
only provide protection when occupants
are in the p roper seating posit ion
¢ page 156.
- If the airbag indicator light ¢ page 20
comes when the vehicle is being used,
have the system inspected immediate ly
by your aut hori zed Aud i dea ler. It is pos­
sible that the airbag will inf late w hen it
is not s upposed to, or w ill not inflate
when it should .
How supplemental side airbags work
.
Side airbags deploy instan tly and can help re­
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu ­
pants who are properly restrained .
Fig. 159 Infla ted s ide a irbag s on left s ide of ve hicle
When the system is triggered , the airbag is
f ill ed wit h prope llant gas and breaks thro ugh
a seam in the seat surface area marked "AIR ­
BAG" . It expands between the side trim panel
and the passenger . In orde r to help provide
this addi tional pro tection, the side airbag
must inflate withi n a fraction of a second at
very high speed and with great force . The sup ­
p lemental side a irbag could injure you if your
seating position is no t proper or upr ight or if
items are located in the area w here the sup­
p lemental side a irbag e xpands. This appl ies
especia lly to children ¢
page 158, Child Safe­
ty .
Suppleme nta l side airbags inflate between
the occupant and the door pane l on the side of the vehicle that is struc
k in certain side col ­
lisio n~
fig . 159.
Althoug h they are not a soft p illow , 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 deve lop w hen the airbag de ­
ploys. This is normal an d does no t mean there
is a fire in the vehicle.
Important safety instructions on the
side airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al ­
ways properly wear safety belts and ride in a
proper sea ting posi tion.
T he re is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and act accord ingly to help the
safety belts and airbags do their job to pro­
vide supplementa l protectio n.
.&_ WARNING
-An inflat ing s ide a irbag can cause serious
or fata l injury . Improperly wearing safety
belts and imp roper seating pos it io ns in­
crease the risk of se rious pe rsonal injury
and dea th whenever a vehicle is being
used.
- In or der to reduce the risk of in ju ry when
t he supplemental side airbag infl ates :
- Always sit in an upright position and
never lean against the area where the
suppleme nta l side airbag is located.
- Never let a child or anyone e lse rest
their head aga inst the s ide trim pane l
i n the area where the supplementa l
s ide airbag inflates .
- Always make sure that safety be lts a re
worn correctly,
- Do not let anyone s itting in the fr ont
seat put t heir hand or any ot her parts
of their body out of the window .
- Always make sure that the s ide airbag
can inf late without interfe rence .

-Never install seat covers or replace­
ment upholstery over the front seat­
backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags
deploy.
- Damage to the original seat covers or
to the seam in the area of the side air­ bag module must always be repaired
immediately by an authorized Audi
dealer.
- 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 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 158, Child Safety.
Airbag system 157
-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 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 openings 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.
•
•

158 Child Saf ety
Child Safety
Important things to
know
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision .
The physical principles of what happens when
your veh icle is in a crash app ly also to chi ldren
q page 130, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults their
muscles and bones are not fully developed. In
many respects children are at greater risk of
serious injury in crashes than adults.
Because children's bodies are not fully deve l­
oped, they require restra int systems especial­
l y designed for their size , weight, and body
structure. Many countries and all states of the United States and p rovinces of Canada have
laws requiring the use of approved child re­
straint systems for infants and small children .
In a frontal crash at a speed of 20 -35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infant will be more than 20 times the
weight of the child . This means the weight of
the child would suddenly be more than
260 pounds (120 kg). Under these conditions,
only an appropriate ch ild restraint properly
used can reduce the risk of serious injury.
Ch ild restra ints must be used properly to be
effective. Used improperly, they can increase
the risk of serious injury in an accident .
Consult the child safety seat manufactu rer's
instructions to be sure the seat is right for
your chi ld's size
q page 161, Important safe­
ty instructions for using child safety seats .
Please be sure to read and heed all of the im­
portant information and WARNINGS about
child safety, Advanced Airbags, and the instal­
lation of child restraints in this chapter .
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced Airbags in your vehicle and how they
work when infants and children in child re­
straints are on the front passenger seat . Be ­
cause of the large amount of important infor- mation, we cannot repeat it all here
. We urge
you to read the detailed information in this
owner's manua l about airbags and the Ad ­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle and the
very important information about transport­ ing children on the front passenger seat .
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.
A WARNING
- Accident statistics have shown that chil­
dren are generally safer in the rear seat
area than in the front seating position.
Always restrain any child age 12 and un­
der in the rear.
- All vehicle occupants and especially chil­
dren must be restrained properly when­
ever riding in a vehicle. An unrestrained
or improperly restrained chi ld could be
injured by str ik ing the interior or by be­
ing ejected from the vehicle dur ing a
sudden maneuver or impact. An unre­
strained or improperly restrained ch ild is
also at greater risk of injury or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- A suitable child restraint properly instal­
led and used at one of the rear seating
positions provides the highest degree of
protection for infants and small children
in most accident situations.
A WARNING
Children on the front seat of any car even
with Advanced Airbags can be seriously in­
jured or even killed when an airbag in­
flates . A child in a rearward-facing child
safety seat installed on the front passen­
ger seat w ill be ser iously injured and can
be killed if the front airbag inflates.
- The inflating airbag will h it the child
safety seat or infant carrier with great
force and will smash the child safety seat
and child against the back rest or door.
- Always install rearward-facing child safe­
ty seats on the rear seat.