seats AUDI RS5 COUPE 2015 Owner's Manual

Safety belts
Never rely on airbags a lone for protection . Even
when they deploy, airbags provide only additional
protection . A irbags are not supposed to deploy in
all kinds of accidents. Although your Audi is
equipped w ith airbags, all vehicle occupants, in­
cluding the driver, must wear safety belts cor ­
rectly in orde r to min imize the risk of seve re in­
jury o r death in a crash .
Remember too, that airbags will deploy only once
and that your safety be lts are a lways there to of ­
fer protection in t hose accidents in which airbags
are not supposed to deploy or when they have a l­
ready deployed . Unbelted o ccupan ts can also be
thrown ou t of the vehicle where even mo re severe
or fata l injur ies can occur .
It is also important fo r the rea r passenge rs to
wear safety belts co rrectly. Unbe lted passenge rs
i n t he rear se ats endanger not only themselves
but also the driver and other passengers
~ fig . 125 . In a frontal coll ision they wi ll be
thrown forward violent ly, where they can hit and
in ju re the driver and/or front seat passenger.
Safety belts protect
People think it's possible to use the hands to
brace the body in a minor collision . It 's simply
not true!
F ig . 12 6 Driver is correct ly rest ra ined i n a sudden b rak ing
m aneuver
Safety belts used properly can make a big differ­
ence. Safety belts help to keep passengers in
their seats , gradually reduce energy levels ap­
plied to the body in an accident, and he lp prevent
the uncont ro lled movement that can cause seri ­
ous injur ies. In add it ion, safety belts reduce the
danger of being throw n ou t of the vehicle.
122
Safety be lts attach passengers to the car and give
them the benefit of being s lowed down more
gently or "softly" through the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety features eng i­
neered into today's veh icles. By "absorbing" the
ki net ic ene rgy over a longer period of time, the
safety be lts make the forces on the body more
"tole rable" and less li kely to cause injury .
Although these examples are based o n a frontal
collision, safety be lts can also substantially re ­
duce the r isk o f injury in other kinds o f crashes.
So, whether you're on a long tr ip or just go ing to
t he cor ne r store, always bu ckle up and ma ke sure
o thers do, too. Ac ciden t sta tis tics show that ve hi­
cle occupants properly wearing sa fe ty belts have
a lowe r risk of be ing injured and a much better
chance of surviving an accident. Pro perly using
safety belts a lso greatly increases the ab ility of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col­
li sion. For this reason, wear ing a safety be lt is le­
gally required in most countries including much
of the United States and Canada .
Although your Audi is equipped with a irbags, you
still have to wear the safety belts provided. Front airbags, for example, are act ivated only in some
fron tal coll is io ns . The front airbags are not act i­
vated in a ll frontal col lisions, in s ide and rear co l­
li sio ns, in ro ll overs o r in cases whe re the re is not
eno ugh deceler ation th rough impac t to the front
of the vehicle . T he same goes for the other airbag
systems in your Audi. So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
proper ly restrained!
Important safety instructions about safety
belts
Safety belts must always be correctly positioned
across the strongest bones of your body .
.,. Always wear safety belts as illustrated and de­
scribed in this chapter .
.,. Make s ure that your safety belts are always
ready fo r use and are not damaged .

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_& WARNING
Not wearing safety belts or wearing them im­
properly increases the risk of serious personal
injury and death. Safety belts can work only
when used correctly .
- Always fasten your safety belts correctly be­
fore driving off and make sure al l passen­
gers are correctly restrained.
- For maximum protection, safety belts must
always be pos itioned properly on the body.
- Never strap more than one person, includ­
ing small ch ildren, into any belt.
- Never place a safety belt over a child sitting
on your lap .
- Always keep feet in the footwell in front of
the seat while the vehicle is being driven.
- Never let any person ride with their feet on
the instrument panel or sticking out the
window or on the seat .
- Never remove a safety belt while the vehicle
is moving . Doing so will increase your risk of
being injured or killed.
- Never wear belts twisted.
- Never wear belts over rigid or breakable ob-
jects in or on your clothing, such as eye
glasses, pens, keys, etc., as these may cause
injury .
- Never allow safety belts to become dam­
aged by being caught in door or seat hard­
ware.
- Do not wear the shoulder part of the belt
under your arm or otherwise out of position.
- Several layers of heavy clothing may inter­
fere with correct positioning of belts and re­ duce the overall effectiveness of the system .
- Always keep belt buckles free of anything
that may prevent the buckle from latching
securely.
- Never use comfort clips or devices that cre­
ate slack in the shoulder be lt. However, spe­
cial clips may be required for the proper use
of some child restraint systems.
- Torn or frayed safety belts can tear, and
damaged belt hardware can break in an acc i­
dent. Inspect belts regularly. If webb ing,
bind ings, buckles, or retracto rs are dam-
Safety belts
aged, have belts replaced by an authorized
Audi dealer .
- Safety belts that have been worn and loaded
in an accident must be replaced with the
correct replacement safety belt by an au­
thorized Audi dealer. Replacement may be
necessary even if damage cannot be clearly
seen. Anchorages that were loaded must al­
so be inspected.
- Never remove, modify , d isassemble, o r try
to repair the safety belts yourself .
-Always keep the belts clean. Dirty belts may not work properly and can impair the func­
tion of the inertia reel
Q page 181 .
Safety belts
Fastening safety belts
Safety first -everybody buckle up!
Fig. 127 Be lt buck le and to ngue on t he drive r's seat
To provide maximum protection, safety belt s
must always be positioned correctly on the wear­
er 's body.
... Adjust the front seat and head restraint proper­
ly
r::> page 53 , Seats and storage.
... Make sure the seatback of the rear sea t bench is
in an upr ight position and securely latched in
place before using the belt
Q _& .
.. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest and pelvis
Q _&.
... Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
Qfig. 127.
... Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
Iii>
123

Safety belts
Autom atic safet y belt retractors
Every safety belt is eq uipped w ith an automatic
be lt retractor on the shou lder belt. This feature
locks the belt when the be lt is pulled o ut fast,
during hard brak ing and in an accident . The belt
may also lock when you drive up or down a steep
hill or through a sharp curve. During normal driv­
ing the belt lets you move freely.
S afety belt p rete n sioner s
The safety be lts are equipped with a belt preten­
sioner that helps to t ighten the safety belt and
remove s lack when the pretensioner is activated.
The function of the pretensioner is monitored by
a warning light
r:::') page 19.
Converti ble lock ing r etra ctor
Every safety belt except the one on the driver
seat is equipped with a convertib le locking retrac­
tor that
must be used when the safety belt is
used to attach a child safety seat. Be sure to read
the important informat ion about this feature
r=;,page 159.
.&_ WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious injury in an accident¢
page 124,
Safety belt posi tion.
- Safety belts offer optimum protection only
when the seatback is upright and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
- Never attac h the safety belt to the buc kle
for ano ther seat. At taching the belt to the
wrong buckle will reduce safety be lt effec­
tiveness and can cause serious persona l in ­
jury.
- A passenger who is not properly restrained
can be seriously in jured by the safety belt it­
self when it moves from the stronger parts of the body into critical areas like the abdo­
men.
-Always lock the convert ible lock ing retractor
when you are securing a child safety seat in
the vehicle¢
page 161.
124
Safety belt position
Correct belt position is the key to getting maxi­
mum protection from safety belts.
Fig . 12 8 Safety belt posit ion
Standard features o n your vehicle help you ad just
the position of the safety belt to match your body
size.
- he ight-adjustable fron t seats.
.&_ WARNING
Improperly posit ioned safety be lts can cause
serious personal injury in an accident.
- The shou lder belt should Lie as close to the
center of the collar bone as possib le and
should fit well on the body . Ho ld the belt
above the latch tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest so t hat it sits as low as pos­
sible on the pe lvis and there is no pressure
on the abdomen. The belt should always fit
snug ly
r:::;, fig. 128. Pull on the belt to tighten
if necessary.
- The lap be lt po rtion of the safety belt must
be positioned as low as poss ible across pel­
vis and never ove r the abdomen.
Make sure
t he belt lies flat and snug
r=;, fig. 128. P ull on
t he belt to tighten if necessary.
- A loose-fit ting safety belt can ca use serio us
in ju ries by s hifting its position on your body
from the st rong bones to more v ulnerable,
soft tissue and cause serious injury.
- Always rea d an d heed al l WAR NINGS and
other important information
r=;,page 122.

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Pregnant women must also be correctly
restrained
The best way to protect the fetus is to make sure
that expectant mothers always wear safety belts
correctly -throughout the pregnancy.
Fig. 129 Safety belt pos it io n during p regnancy
To provide maximum protection, safety belts
must always be positioned correctly on the wear­
er's body
c:> poge 124.
.. Adjust the front seat and head restraint correct­
ly
c> page 53, Seats and storage .
.. Make sure the seatback of the rear seat bench is
in an upright position and securely latched in
place before using the belt .
.. Hold the belt by the tongue and pull it evenly
across the chest and pelvis
c:>fig . 129, c:> &_.
.. Insert the tongue into the correct buckle of
your seat until you hear it latch securely
c:>poge 123, fig . 127 .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure that it is securely
latched in the buckle.
_& WARNING
Improperly positioned safety belts can cause
serious personal injury in an accident.
- Expectant mothers must always wear the
lap portion of the safety belt as low as pos­
sible across the pelvis and below the round ­
ing of the abdomen .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
~.& in Fasten­
ing safety belts on page 124.
Safety belts
Unfastening safety belts
Unbuckle the safety belt with the red release
button only o~er the vehicle hos stopped .
J-L
Fig. 130 Releasing the tongue from the buck le
.. Push the red release button on the buckle
c:> fig. 130. 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 .
_& WARNING ,-
Never unfasten safety belt while the vehicle is
moving . Doing so will increase your risk of be­
ing injured or killed.
Improperly worn safety belts
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Incorrectly positioned safety belts con cause se­
vere injuries .
Wearing safety belts improperly can cause seri­
ous injury or death . Safety belts can only work
when they are correctly positioned on the body.
Improper seating positions reduce the effective­
ness of safety belts and w ill even increase the risk
of injury and death by moving the safety belt to
critical areas of the body. Improper seating posi­
tions also increase the risk of serious injury and
death when an airbag dep loys and strikes an oc­
cupant who is not in the correct seating position.
A driver is responsible for the safety of all vehicle occupants and especially for children . Therefore:
.. Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect sit-
ting position in the vehicle while traveling
c> &_ . ~
125

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also not inflate in side or rear co llisions, or in roll­
overs .
Alwa ys rememb er: Airbag s wi ll deploy on ly once,
and on ly in cer tain kinds of collisions. Your safety
b e lts a re a lways there to offer protection in those
situations in which airbags are not supposed to
deploy, or when they have already deployed; for
examp le, when your vehicle str ikes or is struck by
another after the first collision .
This is just one of the reasons why an airbag is a
supp lementary restraint and is not a substitute
for a safety belt. The airbag system works most
effectively when used w ith the safety belts.
Therefore, always properly wear your safety belts
c::>page 120.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steer ing whee l o r in­
strument panel will decrease the effect ive­
ness of the airbags and will increase the risk
o f persona l injury in a coll is ion .
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm) to
the steering wheel or instrument panel.
- If you cannot sit more than 10 inches
(25 cm) from the steer ing whee l, investi­
gate whethe r adaptive equipment may be
available to help yo u reach the peda ls and
increase your seating distance from the
steering wheel.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward, sit­
ting s ideways 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 inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag.
- To reduce the r isk of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly
¢ page 123, Safety belts .
- Always make certain that children age 12 or
younger always r ide in the rear seat. If chil­
dren are not properly restrained, they may
be severely injured or killed when an airbag
inflates .
- Never let children ride unrestrained or im­
properly restrained in the veh icle. Adjust the
front seats properly.
-
Airbag syste m
- Never ride with the back rest reclined .
- Always sit as far as possible from the steer -
ing wheel o r the instrument panel
c::> page 112.
- Always sit up right 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 pre­
vent serious injur ies to the legs and hips if
the airbag inflates.
- Never recline the front passenger's seat to transport objects. Items can also move into
the area of the side airbag or the front air­
bag d uring braking or in a sudden maneu­
ver. Objects near the airbags can become
p rojectiles and ca use in jury when an airbag
inflates.
A WARNING
A irbags tha t have deployed i n a crash mus t be
r eplaced.
- Use o nly orig inal equipment airbags ap ­
p rove d by Aud i an d in stalled by a trained
technici an who has the ne cessary too ls and
diagnostic equipment to properly rep lace
any airbag in yo ur vehicle and assu re system
effectiveness in a crash.
- Never permit salvaged or recycled airbags to
be installed in you r vehicle .
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.,. Be su re to read the important information and
head the WARNI NGS for important details
about ch ild ren and Advanced Airbags
c::> page 150.
Even though your veh icle is equipped wit h an Ad ­
vanced Airbag System, make certain that a ll chil­
dren, especially those 12 years a nd you nger, a l­
ways ride in the bac k seat properly restrained fo r
the ir age and size. The airbag on the passenger
s ide makes the front seat a potent ia lly dangerous
place for a child to ride. The front seat is not the
sa fest p lace for a child in a forward-facing ch ild ..,.
129

Airbag system
safety seat. It can be a very dangerous place for
an infant or a child in a rearward-facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle has
been ce rtified to comp ly w ith the Requirements
of United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 as applicable at the time your vehi ­
cle was manufactured.
The Standard requires the front airbag on the
passenger side to be turned off ("suppressed") if
a child up to about one year of age restrained in
one of the rear-fac ing or forward-facing infant re­
straints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 w ith which the Advanced A irbag
System in your vehicle was certified has been in ­
stalled on the front passenger seat. Fo r a listing
of the ch ild restraints that were used to certify
comp liance with the US Safety Standard
¢page 152.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the instru­
ment panel tells you when the front Advanced
Ai rbag on the passenger side has been turned off
by the electron ic control unit.
E ach t ime you turn on the ignition, the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF light will come on for a few
seconds and:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small child or child re­
stra int on the front passenger seat,
- will go off if the front passenger seat is occu­
pied by an adult as registered by the weight­
sensing mat¢
page 138, Monitoring the Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when the control un it detects a total weight on
the front passenger seat that requ ires the front
ai rbag to be turned off.
If the tota l weight on the front passenger seat is
more than that of a typical 1 year -old child but
less than the we ight of a small adult, the front
ai rbag on the passenger side can deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not come
on). 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 electronic
130
control unit and can dep loy if the control unit
senses an impact that meets the conditions stor­
ed in its memory .
For example, the airbag may deploy if:
-a small ch ild that is heavier than a typical 1
year-old chi ld is on the front passenger seat (re­
ga rdl ess of whethe r the child is in one of the
child safe ty seats listed¢
page 152), or
- a child who has outgrow n chi ld restraints is on
the front passenger seat .
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in the
instr ument cluster and stays on.
The front airbag on the passenger side may
not
deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not illuminate and stay lit) even if a sma ll adult
o r teenager, or a passenger who is not sitt ing up­
r ight w ith their back against a non-reclined back­
rest with their feet on the vehicle floor in front of
the seat is on the front passenger seat
¢ page 112, Proper seating position for the driv­
er .
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the Federal
Standard requires the airbag to meet the "low
risk" deployment criteria to reduce the risk of in­
ju ry through interaction with the airbag. "Low
risk" deployment occurs in those crashes that
take place at lower decelerations as defined in
the electronic control unit ¢
page 138, PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF light .
Always remember, a child safety seat or infant
carr ier installed on the front seat may be struck
and knocked out of position by the rapidly inflat­
i ng passenger's airbag in a frontal collision . The
airbag could greatly reduce the effectiveness of
the child restraint and even seriously injure the
child during inflation.
For th is reason, and because the back seat is the
safest place for children - when prope rly restra in­
ed accord ing to their age and size -we strong ly
recommend that children always sit in the back
seat ¢
page 150, Child safety. ..,.

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A WARNING ,~
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the front
airbag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child 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 be­
cause of 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 airbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dealer.
- Forward-facing child safety seats installed
on the front passenger's seat may interfere
with the deployment of the airbag and cause serious personal injury to the child .
A WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in­
stall 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 man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up against or very near the instrument pan­
el.
- Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air­
bag as possible before installing the for­
ward-facing child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
Airbag system
A WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will
be displayed whenever a child restraint is in­
stalled on the front passenger seat and the ignition is switched on .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not stay on, perform the checks described
~ page 138, Monitoring the Advanced Air­
bag System.
- Take the child restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
-Always carefully follow instructions from
child restraint manufacturers when instal­
ling child restraints.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in­
stall a forward or rearward-facing child re­
straint on the front passenger's seat:
- Improper installation of child restraints can
reduce their effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protection.
- An improperly installed child restraint can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
seriously injure or even kill the child -even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
-Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight registered
by the weight-sensing mat and can cause in­
jury in a crash.
131

Airb ag syst em
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occu­
pants .
Fig. 131 Location of driver airbag : in steering whee l
Fig. 132 Location of front passenger's airbag: in the instru­
ment panel
Your vehicle is equ ipped with an "Advanced Air­
bag System" in compliance with Un ited States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208 as applicab le at the time your veh i­
cle was manufactured. The safety belts for the
seats have "pretensioners" that help to take s lack
out of the belt system . The pretensioners are also
activated by the electronic control unit for the
airbag system .
The front safety belts a lso have load limiters to
help reduce the forces applied to the body in a
crash.
The airbag for the driver is in the steer ing wheel
hub
¢ fig. 131 and the airbag for the front pas ­
senger is in the instrument panel¢
fig. 132. The
general location of the airbags is marked "AIR­
BAG".
1 32
There is a lot you need to know about the airbags
in your vehicle . We urge you to read the detailed
i nformation 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 infants and small children .
,&_ WARNING -
Never rely on airbags alone for protection.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide only supp lemental protection.
- Airbag work most effectively when used with properly worn safety belts .
- Therefore, always wear your safety be lts and
make sure that everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained.
,&_ WARNING
A person on the front passenger seat, espe­
cially infants and small ch ild ren, will rece ive
serious i nju ries and can even be killed by be­
ing too close to the airbag when it inf lates .
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle is designed to turn off the front passenger airbag if an infant or a sma ll child
is on the front passenger seat, nobody can
absolutely guarantee that deployment un­
der these special condit ions is impossible in
all conceivable situations that may happen
during the useful life of your vehicle .
- The Advanced Airbag System can dep loy in
accordance with the "low risk" option under
the U .S. Federal Standard if a chi ld that is
heav ier than the typical one-year old child is
on the front passenger seat and the other
conditions for airbag deployment are met.
- Accident statistics have shown that ch ildren
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating position .
- For their own safety, all children, especially
12 years and younger, sho uld a lways ride in
the back properly restrained for their age
and size .
-

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Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped w ith a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United States
F ederal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 asap­
plicable at the time your vehicle was manufac­
tured.
The front Advanced Airbag System supplements
the safety belts to provide additiona l protection
for the driver's and front passenger's heads and
upper bodies in frontal crashes. The airbags in­
flate only in frontal impacts when the vehicle de­
celeration is high enough.
The front Advanced Airbag System for the front
seat occupants is not a substitute for your safety
be lts. Rather, it is part of the overall occupant re­
straint system in your vehicle. Always remember
that the airbag system can only help to protect
you, if you are sitt ing upright, wearing your safe­
ty belt and wearing it properly . This is why you
and your passengers must always be properly re­
strained, not just because the law requires you to
be.
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle has
been certified to meet the "low risk" require­
ments for 3 and 6 year-old children on the pas­
senger side and very small adults on the driver
side . The low risk deployment criteria are intend­
ed to help reduce the risk of injury through inter ­
action with the front airbag that can occur, for
examp le, by being too close to the steering whee l
and instrument panel when the airbag inflates.
I n addition, the system has been certified to
comp ly with the "suppression" requirements of
the Safety Standard, to turn
off the front airbag
for infants 12 months old and younger who are
restra ined on the front passenger seat in child re­
straints that are listed in the Standard
c::> page 152, Child restraints and Advanced Air­
bags.
"Suppression" requires the front airbag on the passenger side to be turned
off if:
- a ch ild up to about one year of age is restrained
on the front passenger seat in one of the rear­
facing or forward-fac ing infant restraints listed
in Federa l Motor Veh icle Safety Standard 208
Airbag system
with which the Advanced Airbag System in your
vehicle was certified. For a listing of the child
restraints that were used to certify your veh i­
cle's compliance with the US Safety Standard
c::>page 152,
- weight less than a thresho ld level stored in the
control unit is detected on the front passenger
seat.
When a person is detected on the front passen ­
ger seat, weighing more than the tota l weight of
a child that is about 1 year old restrained in one
of the rear-facing or forward-facing infant re­
stra ints (listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 with which the Advanced Airbag
System in your veh icle was certified), the front
airbag on the passenge r side may or may not de­
ploy.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
whe n the electronic contro l unit detects a total
weight on the front passenger seat that requires
the front airbag to be turned
off. If the PASSEN­
GER 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 un it senses an impact that meets the
condit ions stored in its memory.
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 s ide may deploy (the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on).
For example , the airbag may deploy if:
- a small child that is heav ier than a typical 1
yea r-old chi ld is on the front passenger seat (re ­
gardless of whether the chi ld is in one of the
child safety seats listed
c::> page 152),
- a child who has outgrown child restraints is on
the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the center of
the instrument panel wi ll come on and stay on.
T he front airbag on the passenge r sid e may
not
deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not illuminate and stay lit) if: .,..
133

M N
0:: l­oo ,...., \!) 1.1'1
N 1.1'1 ,....,
detail below . Because the front passenger seat
contains important parts of the Advanced Airbag
System, yo u must take care to prevent it from be­
ing damaged. Damage to the seat may prevent
the Advanced Airbag for the front passenger seat
from do ing its job in a crash .
The front Ad vanced Airb ag S ystem con sis ts
of the following :
-Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measure veh icle acceleration/deceleration to
provide information to the Advanced Airbag
System about the severity of the crash .
- An electronic control unit, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts . The
control unit "decides" whether to fire the front
airbags based on the information received from
the crash sensors . T he control un it also "de­
cides" whether the safety be lt pretensioners
sho uld be activated.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control valve for the driver inside the steering
whee l hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control valve inside the instrument panel for
t h e front passenger.
- A weig ht-sensing mat under the upholstery
padding of the front passenger seat cushion
that meas ures the tota l weight on the seat. The
information registered is sent contin uous ly to
the electronic control unit to regulate deploy­
ment of the front Advanced Airbag on the pas­
senger side.
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
light in the instrument cluster
¢ page 138.
-A sensor in each front seat registers the dis­
tance between the respect ive seat and the
steering wheel or instrument panel. The infor­
mation registered is sent cont inuously to the
elect ron ic cont ro l unit to regulate deployment
of the front Advanced Airbags.
- T he
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on in the center of the i nstrument
pane l¢
page 138, fig . 134 and tells you when
the front Advanced Ai rbag on the passenger
side has been turned
off .
-A sensor below the safety belt la tch fo r the
front seat passenge r to measure the tension on
Airbag syste m
the sa fe ty belt. The tens ion on the safety be lt
and the weight registered by the weight -sens­
ing mat he lp the control unit "decide" whether
the front a irbag for the front passenger seat
should be turned
off or not¢ page 129, Child
restraints on the front seat- some important
things to know.
- A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driver
and for the front seat passenger that senses
whether that safety belt is latched or not and
transm its this informat ion to the elect ro nic
cont ro l unit.
A WARNING
D amage to the fron t passenger seat can pre­
vent the fron t air bag from working prope rly.
- Imp roper repai r or d isassembly of the front
passenger and driver sea t will prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from functioning properly .
- Repairs to the front passenge r seat must be
performed by qualified and p roperly trained
workshop personne l.
- Never remove the front passenger or driver seat from the vehicle .
- Never remove the upho lstery from the front
passenger seat.
- Never d isassemble o r remove par ts from the
seat or disconnect w ires from it.
- Never carry sh arp objects in yo ur po ckets or
p la ce them on t he seat.
If the weight-sens­
ing mat in the passenger seat is punctu red
it cannot work properly .
- Never carry things on yo ur lap or carry ob ­
jects on the passenger seat. S uch items can
increase the we ight registe red by the
weight-sensing mat and send the wrong in­
formation to the airbag control unit.
- Never store items under the front passenger
seat . Parts of the Advanced Airbag System
under the passenger seat could be dam­
aged, p reventing them and the airbag sys­
tem from wo rking prope rly.
- Never p lace seat covers or rep lacement up­
holstery that have not been specifically ap­
p roved by Aud i on the front seats.
- Seat cove rs can prevent the Advanced Air­
bag Sys tem from recogniz ing child
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