airbag AUDI RS7 SPORTBACK 2014 Owner's Guide

152 Airbag system
things on the sea t cushion can have the
same effect. If the front passenger fron­ tal airbag is turned on, the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light light will go out .
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 be lts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adj ustab le head restraints* to help reduce the
risk of inju ry in a wide range of accident and
crash situa tions. Be sure to re ad the impor­
tan t information abou t safe ty and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter .
Dep loyment of the Advanced Airbag System
and the activat ion of the safety bel t preten­
sioners depend on the decelera tion measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
e lectronic control un it . The amount of i nfla­
tion of the front airbags can also be adapted to the front sea t position , depend ing on the
d istance between t he respective front seat
and the steering wheel o r instrument pa nel as
registered by sensors in the seats. Crash se­
ver ity depends on speed and dec elerat ion as
well as the mass and st iffness of the vehicle
or objec t invo lved in the crash .
On the passenge r side, regard less of safety
be lt use, the front passenger fronta l a irbag
will be turned off if the e lectrical capacitance
measured by the capac itive passenger de tec­
tion system on the front passenger seat is less
than the amount programmed in the electron ­
i c co ntrol unit . The front passenger frontal air­
bag will a lso be turned off if the capa cita nce
measured by the system for the front passen­
ge r seat eq ua ls tha t of an infant of abo ut one
yea r of age in one o f the child sea ts that was
used to cert ify the Advanced Airbag System
under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208. The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF li ght
comes on and stays on to tell you when the
front Advanced A irbag System on the passen­
ge r side has been turned off~
page 155 .
A WARNING
-To reduce the risk of injury w hen an a irbag
in flates, always wear safety be lts p roperly.
- If you are unrestra ined, leaning fo rward,
sitt ing s ideways or out of pos ition in any
way, your risk of injury is much h igher .
- You will a lso receive se rious injuries and
could even be killed if you a re up aga inst
the airbag o r too close to it when it in­
flates - even w ith an Advanced A irb ag
r:::> page 1 4 2 .
More important things to know about
front airbags
Fig . 1 61 In flated fro nt a irbags
Safety belts a re important to he lp keep front
seat o ccupants in the proper seated position
so that a irbags can unfold properly and pro­
v ide s upplementa l pro te cti on in a fron tal col­
li sion .
T he front airbags are des igned to provide ad­
di tional p rotection fo r the ches t and face of
the driver a nd the front seat passenger w hen:
- safety belts are worn properly,
- the seats have bee n positioned so that the
occupant is properly seated as far as poss i­
b le from the airbag ,
- and for ad justab le head restra ints: the head
restrai nts have been properly ad justed.
Beca use airbags inflate in the blink of an eye
with great force, th ings you have on your lap
or have p laced on the seat cou ld become dan ­
gerous projecti les, and be p ushed in to you if
t h e a irbag inflates .
When an airbag deploy s, fine dust is re leased.
This is norma l and is not caused by a f ire in ..,.

the vehicle. This dust is made up most ly of a
powder used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy . It cou ld irritate skin .
It is importan t to remember that while the
supplemental airbag system is designed to re­
duce the likelihood of serious injuries , other
in ju ries, for example swell ing, bruising and
minor abrasions, can also happen when air­
bags inflate. Airbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body . Front airbags
supplement the three-poi nt safety belts only
i n some frontal collisions in which the vehicle
decelerat ion is high enough to deploy the air­
bags.
Front airbags will not deploy:
- if the ignit ion is switched off when a crash
occurs,
- in s ide collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in ro llovers,
- when the crash deceleration measured by
the airbag system is less than the minimum
threshold needed for airbag deployment as
registered by the electronic control unit.
Th e front pa sseng er airbag al so will not
d e plo y:
-when the front passenger seat is not occu ­
pied,
- when the electrical capacitance measured by
the capacitive passenger detect ion system
for the front passenger seat indicates that
the passenger side frontal airbag must be
switched off by the electronic control unit (the
P ASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
¢ page 155 and how they wo rk comes on
and stays on).
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong position can increase
the risk of serious injury in crashes .
- To reduce the r isk o f injury when the air ­
bags inflate, the driver and passengers
must a lways sit in an upright position,
must not lean against or place any part
A irbag system 153
of their body too close to the area where
the airbags are located.
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posi­
tion 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 144.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-fac ing ch ild seat in­
stalled on the front passenger seat will be
se riously injured and can be killed if the
front airbag inflates - even w ith an Ad­
vanced A irbag System.
- The inflating airbag will h it the ch ild seat
or infant carrier with great fo rce and will
smash the child seat and child against
the backrest, center armrest, doo r or
roof.
- Always install rear -facing chi ld seats on
the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward fac ing
child seat on the front passenger seat
because of exceptional circumstances
and the PASS ENG ER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immed i­
ately insta ll the rear-facing child seat in a
rea r seat ing pos ition and have the airbag
system inspected by your Audi dealer .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will
increase the r isk of injury in a crash by in­
terfering with the way the ai rbag unfolds
or by be ing p ushed into you as the airbag
inflates.
- Neve r hold things in yo ur hands o r on
your lap when the veh icle is in use.
- Never transpo rt items on or in the a rea
of the front passenger seat. Objects
co uld move into the area of the front air ­
bags during braking or other sudden ma ­
neuvers and become dangero us projec­
tiles that can cause ser ious personal in­
jury if the a irbags inf late.
•
•
-
-

154 Airbag sys te m
- Never place or attach accessories or o th­
er objects (such as cup holders, tele­
phone brackets, large, heavy or bulky ob­
jects) on the doors, over or near the area marked "AIRBAG" on the stee ring wheel,
instrument panel, seat backrests or be­
tween those a reas and yourself. These
objects co uld cause injury in a crash, es­
pecially when the airbags inflate .
- Never recline the front passenger's seat
to transport objec ts. Items can also
move into the area o f the side airbag or
the front airbag during braking or in a sudden maneuver . Objects near the air­
bags can become project iles and cause
injury, part icularly when the seat is re­
cl ined .
- Never place or transport ob jects on the
front passenger seat. Objects on the
front passenger seat could cause the ca­ pacitive senso r in the seat to s ignal to
airbag system that the seat is occupied
by a person whe n it in fa ct is not, o r that
the person on the se at is heavie r than he
or she actually is. The change in electric
capacitance because of such objects can
cause the passenger front airbag to be
t u rned on when it sho uld be
off, or can
cause the airbag to work in a way that is
different from the way it wou ld have
wor ked w ithout ob jects on the seat .
- Always make sure that there is nothing
on the front passenger seat that will
cause the capacitive passenge r detection
system in the s eat to s ignal to the A irbag
System that the seat is occupied by a
person when it is not, or to signa l th at it
is occupied by someone who is heavier
than the pe rson actually s itting on the
seat . The prese nce of an object co uld
cause the passenger front a irbag to be
t ur ned on when it sho uld be
off, or co uld
cause the airbag to work in a way t hat is
different from the way it wou ld have
worked w ithout the object on the seat.
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy
ca n cause breathing p rob lems for people
with a history of asthma or ot her breath­
i ng cond itions .
- To reduce the risk of breath ing problems ,
those wi th asthma o r othe r respiratory
conditions s hou ld get fresh air right
away by getting o ut of th e veh icle or
open ing windows or do ors .
- If you are i n a collision in which airbags
de ploy, was h your h ands and face wi th
mild soap and wate r before eating.
- Be ca reful not to get the dust into your
eyes, o r into any c uts or sc ratches.
- If the res id ue should get into your eyes,
fl ush them w ith wate r.
Monitoring the
Advanced Airbag System
t~i Airbag monitoring indicator light
Two separate indicators monitor the function
of the Advan ced Airbag Sy stem: the airbag
moni toring indicator light and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG O FF
light.
The Adva nced A irbag Sys tem ( incl uding the
ele ct ron ic cont ro l u nit , sensor circu its and sys­
tem wir ing) is monitored con tinuously to
make sure that it is functioning properly
whenever the ignition is on. Eac h time you
switch on the ignition, the airbag monitor ing
indicator light
fl w ill come on fo r a few sec­
onds (self diagnostics) .
The sy stem mu st be in spected when the
indicator light
I :
- does not come on when the ignition is
sw itched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have switched on the ignit ion, or
- comes on while driv ing .
If an airbag system malfunction is detected,
the i ndicator lig ht w ill first sta rt flashing to
catch the drive r's attention and then stay on .,..

continu ously to serve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately.
I f a malfunction occurs that turns the front
airbag on the passenger side
off, the PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
lig ht wi ll come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light
c::> page 18
comes when the vehicle is being used,
have the system inspected immediately
by your authorized Audi dealer . It is pos­
sible that the airbag will inflate when it
is no t supposed to, or will not inflate
when it sho uld.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fig. 162 Sect ion fr om the inst ru ment pa ne l: PASSEN­
G ER AIR BAG OFF l ight
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is locat ed
in the center o f the instrument panel
c::>fig . 162 .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come
on and sta y on to te ll you when the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenger side has been
turned
off by the e lectronic control unit. If the
bu lb for the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
burns out, the a irbag indicator light
fl will
come on to signal a malfunction in the Ad­
vanced A irbag System . Al though the burned­
out bulb will not change the way the front
passenger's frontal airbag works, it w ill no
longer be possible to use the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
l ight to make sure that the airbag
Airbag system 155
on/off status is correct fo r the occupant on
the front passenger seat. Have the a irbag sys­
tem inspected immediately by your author ­
i z ed Audi dealer.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will blink
for about 5 seconds when:
- the ignition is switched on and
- the capacit ive passenger detection system,
wh ich switches the front seat passenger's
frontal Advanced Airbag on and
off, detects
a change in the status of the front passen­
ger seat.
As soon as the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light stops blinking, always make sure that
the airbag status (on or off) as shown by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is proper for
the age, size and electrical capacitance of the
person occupy ing the front passenger seat.
Always make sure that the safe ty belt for the
front passenger sea t is properly fastened .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will
show the status of the front seat passenger's
frontal Advanced Airbag a few seconds after
the ignition is switched on and the airbag in­
dicator light goes off . The PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF light:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied;
- w ill stay on if the e lectrical capacitance
measured by the capacitive passenger de­
tect ion system for the front passenger seat
equals the comb ined capacitance of an in­
fant up to about one year of age and one of
the rearward-facing or forward-facing child
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 w ith the U.S. Safety Standard
c::> page 170.
- will go out if the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the ca­
pacitive passenger detection system.

156 Airbag system
-The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and stay on if the ignition is on
and ...
- a car bed has been installed on the front
passenger seat, or
- a rearward-facing chi ld restraint has been
installed on the front passenger seat, or
- a forward-facing child restraint has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat,
- and if the e lectr ica l capacitance registered
on the front passenger seat is equal to or
less than the combined capacitance of a typ­
ica l 1 year -old infant and one of the rear­
ward-fac ing or forward-facing child re ­
straints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safe­
ty Standard 208 w ith which the Advanced
Airbag System in your vehicle was certified.
If the front passenger seat is not occupied,
the front airbag will not deploy, and the
PAS ­
SENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on. Nev­
er install a rearward-facing child restra int on
the front passenger seat, the safest place for
a child in any kind of child restraint is at o ne
of the seating positions on the rear seat
¢ page 144, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
~ page 168, Child Safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light comes
on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on when one of the conditions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to
make certa in that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light stays on cont inuous ly whenever the
ignition is on. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
l ight does not appear on and does 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 for more than 4 seconds and then turn­
i ng it on again;
- remove and reinstall the ch ild restraint .
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety be lt fo r the
front passenger seat has been correctly routed through the child restraint as descri- bed in
the child restraint manufacturer's in­
structions;
- ma ke sure that the convertible locking fea­
ture on the safety belt for the front passen­
ger seat has been activated and that the
safety belt has been pulled tight.
- make sure that no electrica l device (such as
a laptop, CD p layer, e lectronic games device,
power inverter or seat heater for chi ld seats)
is placed or used on the front passenger
seat if the dev ice is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket;
- make sure that no seat heater has been ret­
rofitted or othe rwise added to the front pas­
senger seat;
- make sure that nothing can interfere with
the safety belt buckles and that they are not
obstructed;
- make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or other
liquids on the front passenger seat cushion.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still
does not come on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still
does not come on and does not stay on con­
tinuously (when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passen-
ge r seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions. Have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer immed iately.
- move the child to a rear seat position and
make sure that the child is prope rly restrain­
ed in a child restra int that is appropriate for
its si ze and age.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should
NOT come on ...
T he PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should
NOT come on when the ignition is on and an
adult is s itting in a proper seating position on
the front passenger seat . If the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light 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 with his or her back up against the
backrest and the backrest is not reclined,
- the adult is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or support­
ing their we ight on the armrest,
- the safety be lt is being properly worn and
that there is not a lot of slack in the safety
belt webbing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or
cushions or other things (such as blankets)
on the front passenger seat that might
cause the capacitive passenger detection
system to miscalculate electrical capac i­
tance.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
- If the status of the Adva need A irbag Sys­
tem has changed wh ile the vehicle is
moving, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light b links for about 5 seconds to catch
the driver's attent ion. If this happens, al­
ways stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and check the steps described above.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go off when an adu lt who is not
very small is sitting on the front passen ­
ger seat after taking the steps described
above, make sure the adult is properly
seated and restrained at one of the rear
seating pos it ions. Have the airbag sys­
tem inspected by your authorized Audi
dealer before transpo rting anyone on the
front passenger seat.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning
prope rly cannot provide supplemental p ro­
t e ction in a fron tal crash.
- If the airbag indicato r light ~page 18
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
h ave the system inspected immedi ately
by you r autho rized Aud i dea ler . It is pos­
sible that the airba g will inflate when it
A irbag system 157
is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child without
a child restraint, or in a rearward-facing
chi ld safety seat, or in a forward-facing
chi ld restraint that has not been proper ly
install ed w ill be seriou sly injur ed and can
be killed.
- Even tho ugh yo ur vehicle is equipped
wit h an Advanced A irbag System, make
certain that all children, espec ial ly 12
ye ars and younger, always ride on the
back seat properly rest rained for their
age an d size .
- Always install forward o r rear-facing
child seats on the rear sea t - even with
an Advanced Ai rba g System.
- If you must install a rearwa rd -fa cing
child seat on the front passenger seat because of exceptional circumstances
and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not appear and stay on, immediate ­
ly install the rear-facing child seat in a
rear seat ing pos itio n and have the airbag
system inspected by you r Audi dealer.
- If, in exceptiona l circumstances, you
must ins tall a forward-fac ing ch ild re­
s traint on the front passenger seat, al­
ways move the sea t into its rearmos t po­
sition in the seat 's fore and aft adjust­
men t range, as fa r away from the a irbag
as possi ble . The backrest must be adjust ­
ed to an upright pos ition. Make su re that
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when­
ever the ignit ion is switched on.
A WARNING
-
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out w hen an ad ult is sitting
on the front passenger seat after taking
the steps described above, make su re the
adu lt is prope rly seated and restra ined at
one o f the rea r seat ing pos itions. .,.
•
•

158 Airb ag sys te m
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
If the capacitive passenger detection sys­
tem determines that the front passenger seat is empty, the frontal airbag on the
passenger side will be turned off, and the
P ASS ENGER AIR BA G OFF light w ill stay
on .
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at
many different pla ces 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 co llision.
There are some important things you have to know to make sure that the effectiveness of
the system will not be impaired and that dis­
carded components do not cause injury or po l­
lute the environment.
A WARNING
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the risk of personal in­
jury and death by preventing an airbag from deploy ing when needed or deploying
an airbag unexpectedly:
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the
steering wheel ho rn pad or airbag cover
or the instrument pane l or modify them
in any way .
- Never attach any objects such as cup
holders or telephone mountings to the
surfaces covering the airbag uni ts.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
pane l, use only a soft, dry cloth or one
moistened w ith plain water. Solvents or
cleaners co uld damage the airbag cover
or change the stiffness or strength of the
material so that the airbag cannot de­
ploy and protect properly. -
Never repair, adjust, or change any parts
of the a irbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, front seats or e lectr ica l sys­
tem (including the installation of audio
equ ipment, cellu lar telephones and CB
radios, etc.) must be performed by a
qualified technic ian who has the training
and specia l equipment necessary.
- For any wo rk on the airbag system, we
strongly recommend that yo u see your
author ized Audi dealer or qualified work­
shop.
- Never modify the front bumper or parts
of the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the s ide airbag
can inf late without inte rfe rence:
- Never install seat covers or rep lace­
ment upholstery over the front seat­
backs that have not been specifically
approved by Audi.
- Never use additional seat c ushions that
cover the areas where the side a irbags
inflate.
- Damage to the orig inal seat covers or
to the seam in the area of the side a ir­
bag module must a lways be repaired
immediately by an author ized Audi
dealer .
- The airbag system can deploy on ly once .
After an a irbag has been deployed, it
must be replaced w ith new replacement
pa rts des igned and app roved es pecially
for your Aud i mo del ve rsion. Replace ­
ment of comple te airbag systems or air ­
bag components must be performed by
qualified wor kshops only . Make sure that
any airbag service action is entered in
your Audi Warranty
& Maintenance book­
let under
AIRBAG REPLACEMENT RE­
CORD .
-For safety reasons in severe accidents,
the alternator and starter a re sepa rated
from the veh icle battery with a pyrotech­
n ic circuit inte rrupte r.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit inter­
rupter must only be performed by a
qualified technicians who have the
llll-

experience, informat ion a nd specia l
too ls necessary to perform the work
safely.
- If the veh icle or the circuit interrupter
is scrapped, all applicable safety pre­
cautions must be followed.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undep loyed airbag modu les and preten­
sioners might be classified as Perchlorate Material - special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca .gov/hazardouswaste/per­
chlorate. When the vehicle or parts of the
restraint system including airbag modules
and safety belts w ith pretens ioners are
scrapped, all applicable laws and regula­
tions must be observed. Your author ized
Aud i dea ler is familiar with these requi re­
ments an d we recommend that yo u have
your dea ler perform this se rvice for you .
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced A irbag Sys­
tem pe rforms in a crash. For example, us ing
tire -r im combinations not app rove d by Aud i,
l owering the vehicle, changing the stiffness o f
the suspension, incl uding the springs, s uspen ­
sion struts, shock absorbers etc. can change
the forces that a re measured by the airbag
sensors and sent to the elect ronic control
u ni t. Some suspension changes can, for exam­
p le, increase the force levels measured by the
se nsors and make the airbag system deploy in
crashes in wh ich it would not dep loy if the
changes had not been made . Ot her k inds of
change s may reduce the force levels meas ­
u red by the sensors and prevent the a irbag
from deploying when it shou ld .
The sensors in the safety belt buckle fo r the
d river and front passenger sea t tell the elec ­
tronic control module if the safety belt is
l atched or not . If the safety belt is be ing used,
the front airbag will dep loy at a slightly high ­
er rate of vehicle deceleration than if the safe ­
ty belt is not being used. Therefore, in a pa r-
A irba g sy stem 159
ticular coll is io n, it is possible t hat an airbag
w ill not deploy at a seating position where the
safety belt is be ing used b ut w ill inflate at the
position where the safety belt is not be ing
used . It is important that nothing interfere
with the safety be lt buckles so that the sen ­
sors can send the cor rect info rmation about
safe ty be lt use to the electronic control un it .
A WARNING .
Changing the vehicle's suspension includ­
i ng use of unapp roved tire-r im combin a­
tions can cha nge Advanced Airbag per­
formance and increase the risk of se rious
personal injury in a crash.
- Never install s uspension componen ts
that do not have the same performance characteristics as the components origi ­
na lly installed on your vehicle.
- Never use tire -rim combinations that
have not been approved by Audi .
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
Applies to vehicles: wit h knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supple­
mental protection to properly restrained
front seat occupants .
Fig. 1 63 Driver 's k nee airbag
T he driver knee airbag is in the ins trumen t
pane l underneath the steering wheel
r:::> fig. 163, the airbag for t he passenger is at
about the same height in the instrument pan-
el underneath the glove compartment. ..,.

160 Airbag sys te m
The knee airbag offers additiona l protect ion
to the driver's and passenger's knees and up­ per and lower thigh areas and supp lements
the protect ion provided by the safety belts.
I f the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
a lso deploy in frontal co llisions when the de ­
p loyment threshold stored in the contro l unit
is met
c:> page 152, More important things to
know about front airbags.
In addition to their normal safety function,
safety belts he lp keep the driver or front pas­
senger in posit ion in a frontal collis ion so that
the airbags can prov ide supplemental protec­
tion .
The airbag system is not a subst itute for your
safety belt. Rather, it is part of the overall oc­
cupant restraint system in your veh icle. Al­
ways remember that the airbag system can
only help to protect you if you are wearing
your safety be lt and wear ing it properly . Th is
is why you shou ld always wear your safety
be lt, not just because the law requires yo u to
do so
<:> page 133, General notes.
The safety belt buck le for the dr iver and front
seat passenge r have switches that te ll t he a ir­
bag control mod ule if the safe ty belt is being
used or no t. If the safety be lt is being used,
the knee airbag will deploy at a slightly higher rate of deceleration than if the belt is not be­
ing used. Therefore, in a partic ular collision, it
is possible that an airbag will not deploy at a
seating position where the safety belt is being used but will inflate at the position where the
safety belt is not be ing used.
Remember too, airbags will deploy only once
and only in certain kinds of accidents -your
safety be lts are always there to offer protec ­
tion in those acc idents in which a irbags a re
not supposed to deploy or when they have a l­
r eady deployed, fo r example whe n your veh i­
cle strikes or is str uck by another after the
first coll is ion .
This is just one of the reasons why an a irbag is
n ot a substitute for the safety belt. The airbag
sys tem works mos t effective ly when used wi th the safety be
lts. Therefore, always wear yo ur
safety be lts correct ly .
It is important to remembe r that w hile the
s u pplement al knee airbag system is designed
to reduce the likelihood of ser ious inju ries,
other injuries, for example, swelling, bruising
and minor abrasions and friction b urns can a l­
so occur when an airbag inflates.
Th e knee airbag system basically consist s
of:
-The e lectronic control module
- Two inflatable ai rbags (airbag and gas gen -
erator), one for the driver and one for the
front passenger
- The airbag indicator lig ht in the instrument
pane l
The knee airbag system will not deploy:
-when the ignit ion is swit ched off
- in frontal collisions when the deceleration
measured by t he control un it is too low
- in side co llisions
- in rear-end col lisions
- in rollovers
- in the event of a system malfunction (warn-
ing/ind icator light is on)
<:> page 18.
A WARNING
-Safety belts and the airbag system can
only provide protection when occupants
are in the proper seating position
<:>pag e 152 .
- If t he airbag ind icator light c:> page 18
comes when the veh icle is being used,
have the system inspected i mmediately
by you r au thori zed A udi dealer.
It is pos ­
sib le tha t the airbag will infla te when i t
is not supposed to, or will no t inflate
when it should.
-

How knee airbags work
Applies to vehicles: with knee airb ags
The risk of injury to the leg area can be re­
duced by fully inflated knee airbags.
Fig. 164 Inflated airbags protecting in a frontal coll i­
sio n
The knee airbag system has been designed so
that the airbags for the driver and front pas­
senger deploy in certain but not all frontal
collisions .
If the front airbags deploy, the knee airbags
also deploy in frontal collisions when the de­ ployment threshold stored in the control unit
is met .
When the system deploys, the airbags fill
with a propellant gas, and inflate between the lower part of the instrument panel and the
driver and the lower part of the instrument panel and the front passenger¢
page 152,
fig. 161.
Although they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cush ion" the impact and in this way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the lower
extremities.
All 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 airbags also
inflate with a great deal of force and it is im­
portant for occupant safety that nothing
should be in their way when they deploy.
Fully inflated airbags in combination with
properly worn safety belts slow down and lim­
it the occupant's forward movement and help
to reduce the risk of injury.
Airbag system 161
Important safety instructions on the
knee airbag system
Applies to vehicles: wit h knee airbags
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 passengers
must know and do to help the safety belts and
airbags to provide supplemental protection.
_&. WARNING .. -
An inflating knee airbag can cause serious injury. Wearing safety belts incorrectly and
imprope r seating positions increase the
risk of serious personal injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- The knee airbag system cannot protect
you properly if you a re seated too close
to any of the airbag locations. When ad­
justing their seat positions, it is impor­
tant that both the driver and the front passenger keep their upper bodies and
knees at the following minimum 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 injury increases if
you lean forward or to the side, or if the seat is improperly positioned and you are
not wearing your safety belt . The risk in­
creases even more should the airbag de­
ploy.
- Always make sure that the knee airbag
can inflate without interference. Objects
between you and the airbag can increase
the risk of injury in an accident by inter­
fering with the way the airbag deploys or
by being pushed into you as the airbag
deploys.
- Never let anybody, especially children
or animals ride in the footwell in front