airbag AUDI S3 SEDAN 2017 Owner's Manual

Driving sa fe ty
A WARNING
Improper seating positions increase the r isk
of serious personal injury and death whenever
a vehicle is being used.
- Always make sure that all vehicle occupants
stay in a proper seat ing position and are
properly restrained whenever the vehicle is
being used.
Driver's and front
passenger's footwell
Important safety instructions
Applies to: veh icles w ith knee airb ags
A WARNING
Alw ays ma ke sure that the knee airbag can in­
flate without inter ference. Objects between
yourself and the airbag can increase the risk of injury in an acc ident by interfering with the
way the airbag deploys or by being pushed in­
to you as the airbag deploys.
- No persons (children) or animals shou ld ride
in the footwell in front of the passenger
seat. If the airbag dep loys, th is can result in
serious or fatal in ju ries .
- No objects of any k ind shou ld be carried in
the footwell area in front of the driver 's or
passenger's seat. Bulky objects (shopping
bags, for example) can hamper or p revent
prope r deployment of the airbag. Small ob­
jects can be th rown throug h the vehicle if
the airb ag deploys and injure you or your
passengers.
Pedal area
Pedals
The pedals must always be free to move and
must never be interfered with by a floor mat or
any other object.
Make sure that all pedals move freely without in­
terference and that noth ing prevents them from
returning to the ir origina l positions.
O nly use floor mats that leave the pedal area free
and can be secured wit h floor mat fasteners .
252
If a brake circuit fails, increased brake pedal trav ­
el is required to bring the vehicle to a fu ll stop.
A WARNING
Pedals that cannot move freely can cause loss
of vehicle contro l and increase the r isk of seri­
ous injury.
- Never p lace any objects in the drive r's foot­
well. An object could get into the pedal area
and interfere with pedal funct ion. In case of
sudden braking or an acc ident, you would
no t be able to b rake o r acce le rate!
- Always make sure that nothing can fall or
move into the driver's footwell.
Floor mats on the driver side
Always use floor mats that can be securely at­ tached to the floor mat fasteners and do not in­
terfere with the free movement of the pedals .
.,. Make sure that the floor mats are properly se­
cured and cannot move and interfere w ith the
pedals¢ .&,.
Use only floor mats that leave the peda l area un­
obstructed and that are firmly secured so that
they can not s lip out of position . You can obtai n
su itable floor mats from your author ized Audi
Dealer .
Floor mat fasteners are installed in your Aud i.
Floor mats used in yo ur vehicle must be attached
to these fasteners. Properly secur ing the floor
mats will prevent them from sliding into posi­
tions that could inte rfere with the pedals or im­
pair safe operat ion of your vehicle in other ways.
A WARNING
Pedals that ca nnot move freely can result in a
loss of vehicle contro l and increase the r is k of
serious pe rsonal injury.
- Always make sure that floo r mats are prop­
erly secured.
- Never place or install floor mats or other floor coverings in the vehicle that cannot be
properly secured in place to preven t them
from s lipping and interfer ing wi th the ped­
als or the ab ility to cont rol the vehicle.

Safe ty belts
Unbelted occupants are not able to resist the tre­
mendous fo rces of impact by holding tight or
bracing themselves. Without the benefit of safe­
ty restra int systems, the unrestrained occupant
will slam violently into the steering whee l, in­
strument panel, windsh ield, or whatever else is
i n the way
¢ fig . 232. This impact with t he ve hi­
cle interior has all the ene rgy they had just be­
fore the crash.
Never rely on airbags alone for protection . Even
when they deploy, airbags provide only add itional
protection . Airbags are not supposed to dep loy in
all kinds of accidents. A lthough your Audi is
eq uipped w ith airbags, all veh icle occupants, in­
cluding the dr iver, must wear safety belts cor­
rectly in order to minimize the risk of severe in­
jury or death in a crash.
Remember too, that ai rbags will deploy on ly
once and that your safety belts are a lways there
to offer protection in those accidents in which
airbags are not supposed to deploy or when they
have a lready deployed. Unbelted occupants can
also be thrown out of the ve hicle where eve n
more severe or fatal injuries can occur.
It is also important for the rear passengers to
wear safety belts correctly . U nbelted passengers
in the rear seats endanger not only themselves
but also the driver and other passengers
¢ fig . 233 . In a frontal collision they will be
thrown fo rward violently, where they can hit a nd
inj ure the driver and/or front seat passenge r.
260
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!
Fi g. 234 D river is corre ctly res trained in a sudde n brak ing
maneuver
Safety belts used properly can make a big differ­
ence . Safety belts help to keep passengers in
thei r seats, gradually reduce energy levels ap­
plied to the body in an accident, and help prevent
the u ncon trolled movemen t that can cause ser i­
ous injuries. In add ition, sa fe ty belts reduce the
danger of being thrown out of the vehicle .
Safety be lts attach passenge rs to the car a nd g ive
them the benefit of be ing s lowed down more
gently or "soft ly" th rough the "give" in the safety
belts, crush zones and other safety features engi­
neered into today's vehicles. By "absorbing" the
k inet ic energy over a longer per iod of t ime, the
safety belts make the forces on the body more
"tole rab le" and less likely to cause injury .
Although these examples are based on a frontal collision, safety be lts can also substantially re­
duce the r isk of injury in other kinds of crashes.
So, whether you're on a long trip or just going to
the cor ner store, a lways buckle up and make s ure
others do, too . Acc ident sta tist ics show that veh i­
cle occupants properly wea ring safety bel ts have
a lowe r risk of be ing injured and a m uch better
c h ance of surviv ing an accident . Properly us ing
safety belts also great ly increases the ability of
the supp lemental airbags to do their job in a col­
li sion. For this reason, wearing a safety belt is
le­
gally required in most countries including much
of the United States and Canada.
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Although your Audi is equipped with airbags, you
still hav e to wear the safety belts provided. Front
airbags, for example, are activated only in some
frontal collisions. The front airbags are not acti­
vated in all frontal collisions, in side and rear col­ lisions, in roll overs or in cases where there is not
enough deceleration through impact to the front
of the vehicle . The same goes for the other airbag
systems in your Audi . So, always wear your safety
belt and make sure everybody in your vehicle is
properly 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 sure that your safety belts are always
ready for use and ar e not damag ed.
A 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 all passen­ gers are correctly restrained .
- For maximum protection, safety belts must always be positioned properly on the body.
- Never strap more than one person, includ­
ing small children, 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
Safety belts
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 belt. 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 acci­
dent . Inspect belts regularly.
If webbing,
bindings, buckles, or retractors are dam­
aged , have belts replaced by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
- 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, disassemble, or 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
¢ table Interior
cleaning on page 349.
261

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Improper seating positions reduce the effective ­
ness of safety be lts and will even increase the
risk of injury and death by mov ing the safety belt
to critical areas of the body. Improper seating positions also increase the risk of serious injury
and death when an airbag deploys and strikes an
occupant who is not in the correct seat ing pos i­
tion . A driver is respons ible for the safety of a ll
vehicle occupants and espec ia lly for children.
Therefore:
"' Never permit anyone to assume an incorrect
s itting position in the veh icle wh ile trave ling
c:> & .
A WARNING
Improperly worn safety belts increase the risk
o f serious personal injury and death whenever
a vehicle is being used .
- Always make sure tha t all vehicle occupants
are correctly restrained and stay in a correct
seating position whenever the vehicle is be­
ing used.
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS and
other important information
c:> page 261.
Belt tensioners
How safety belt pretensioners work
In front, side and rear-end collisions above a
particular severity and in a rollover , safety belts
are tensioned automatically .
Reversible safety belt ten sioners
The safety belts on the front seats are equipped
with power reversible tensioners. The following
functions are available when the driver's/front passenger's safety belts are fastened:
- In certain driving situations, the safety belts
may tighten with a reversible tens ion ing func­
t ion
i::>page 133 .
- The safety belts may a lso tighten with this re­
versib le tensioning function in minor collis ions.
Pyrotechnic safety b elt pr eten sion ers
;:::: The safety belts are equipped with sa fety belt r---
~ pretensioners . The system is activated by sensors 0
~ in front, side and rear-end co llisions of great se-oo
Safet y be lts
verity and in a rollover. This tightens the belt and
takes up belt
slack ¢&. in Service and disposal of
safety belt pretensioner on page 266.
Taking up
the slack helps to reduce forward occupant movement during a collision.
A WARNING Co---
- It is poss ible for the pretensioners to deploy
i n correctly.
- The pyrotechnic system can only provide
protection for one collision. If the pyrotech­
n ic pretens ioners deploy, the pretensioning
sys tem must be replaced.
@ Tips
The pyrotechn ic safety belt pretensioners can
o nly deploy once.
- The safety belt pretensioners do not deploy
in minor frontal, side and rear-end colli­
sions .
- A fine dust is re leased when the pyrotechnic
safety belt pretensioners deploy . This is nor­
mal and is not caused by a fi re in the ve hi­
cle.
- The relevant safety requirements must be
observed when the vehicle or components
of the system are scrapped. A q ualified
dealership is familiar with these regulat io ns
and wi ll be pleased to pass on the informa ­
tion to you.
- Be sure to observe all safety, envi ronment al
and other regulat ions if the vehicle or in di­
vidua l parts of the system, particularly the
safety belt or airbag, are to be disposed . We
recommend you have yo ur authorized Aud i
dealer perform this service for you.
Service and disposal of safety belt preten­
sioner
T he safety belt p retensioners are pa rts of the
safety belts on your Aud i. Insta llin g, removing,
servicing or repair ing of be lt pretens io ners can
damage the safety belt system and prevent it
from wo rking correctly in a co llision .
T he re are some important things you have to
k now to make s ure tha t the effectiveness of the
system will not be impaired and that discarded
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Safety belts
components do not cause injury or pollute the
environment .
A WARNING -
Improper care, servicing and repair proce­
dures can increase the r isk of personal injury
and death by preventing a safety belt preten­
sioner from activating when needed or acti­
vating it unexpectedly:
- The belt pretensioner system can be activat­
ed only once. If belt pretensioners have
been activated, the system must be re­
placed.
- Never repair, adjust, or change any parts of
the safety belt system.
- Safety belt systems including safety belt
pretensioners cannot be repaired. Special
procedures are required for removal, instal­
lation and disposal of this system.
- For any work on the safety belt system, we
strongly recommend that you see your au­
thorized Audi dealer or qualified technician
who has an Audi approved repair manual,
training and special equipment necessary.
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modules and pretension­
ers might be classified as Perchlorate Materi­
al -speci al handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/ pe rchlo­
rate. When the vehicle or parts of the re­
straint system including airbag modules safe­
ty belts with pretensioners are scrapped, all
applicable laws and regulations must be ob­
served. Your authorized Audi dealer is familiar
with these requirements and we recommend
that you have your dealer perform this service
for you.
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Airbag system
Important information
Importance of wearing safety belts and
sitting properly
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. For
airbags to do their job, occupants must always
properly wear their safety belts and be in a prop­ er seating position.
For your safety and the safety of your passen­
gers, before driving off, always :
.,. Adjust the driver's seat and steering wheel
properly
9 page 248,
.,. Adjust the front passenger's seat properly
¢page 249,
.,. Wear safety belts properly ¢ page 261,
.,. Always properly use the proper child restraint
to protect children ¢
page 292.
In a collision, airbags must inflate within the
blink of an eye and with considerable force. The
supplemental airbags can cause injuries if the
driver or the front seat passenger is not seated
properly. Therefore in order to help the airbag to
do its job, it is important, both as a driver and as
a passenger to sit properly at all times.
By keeping room between your body and the
steering wheel and the front of the passenger
compartment, the airbag can inflate fully and
completely and provide supplemental protection in certain frontal
collisions ¢ page 248, Correct
passenger seating positions .
For details on the
operation of the seat adjustment controls
¢page 61.
It's especially important that children are proper­
ly restrained
¢page 292.
There is a lot that the driver and the passengers
can and must do to help the individual safety fea­
tures installed in your Audi work together as a
system.
Proper seating position is important so that the
front airbag on the driver side can do its job. If
you have a physical impairment or condition that prevents you from sitting properly on the driver
seat with the safety belt properly fastened and
Airbag system
reaching the pedals, or if you have concerns with
regard to the function or operation of the Ad­
vanced Airbag System, please contact your au­
thori zed Audi dealer or qualified workshop, or
call Audi Customer Relations at 1-800-822-2834
for possible modifications to your vehicle.
When the airbag system deploys, a gas generator
will fill the airbags, break open the padded cov­ ers, and inflate between the steering wheel and
the driver and between the instrument panel and
the front passenger. The airbags will deflate im­
mediately after deployment so that the front oc­
cupants can see through the windshield again
without interruption.
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 nothing should be
in their way when they deploy. Front airbags in
combination with properly worn safety belts slow
down and limit the occupant's forward move­
ment . Together they help to prevent the driver
and front seat passenger from hitting parts of
the inside of the vehicle while reducing the forces
acting on the occupant during the crash . In this
way they help to reduce the risk of injury to the
head and upper body in the crash. Airbags do not
protect the arms or the lower parts of the body.
Both front airbags will not inflate in all frontal
collisions . The triggering of the airbag system de­
pends on the vehicle deceleration rate caused by
the collision and registered by the electronic con­
trol unit . If this rate is below the reference value
programmed into the control unit, the airbags
will not be triggered, even though the car may be badly damaged as a result of the collision. Vehi­
cle damage, repair costs or even the lack of vehi­
cle damage is not necessarily an indication of
whether an airbag should inflate or not.
Since the circumstances will vary considerably between one collision and another, it is not possi­
ble to define a range of vehicle speeds that will
cover every possible kind and angle of impact
that will always trigger the airbags . Important
factors include, for example, the nature (hard or
soft) of the object which the car hits, the angle of
impact, vehicle speed , etc. The front airbags will
II>
267

Airbag syste m
also not inflate in s ide or rear collisions, or in
ro ll-overs.
Al wa ys rememb er: Airbags will deploy only once,
and on ly in ce rtain k inds of coll is ions. Yo ur safety
be lts are always there to offer protection in those
situations in which airbags are not supposed to
dep loy, or when they have already deployed; for
examp le, when your vehicle str ikes or is struck by
another vehicle after the first coll is ion.
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 a irbag system works most
effect ively when used with the safety belts.
Therefore, always properly wear your safety belts
r=;, page 258.
A WARNING
Sitting too close to the steering wheel o r in­
st rument panel will decrease the effective­
ness of the airbags and will inc rease the risk
of personal injury in a co llision.
- Never sit closer than 10 inches (25 cm) to
the steering wheel or instrument panel.
- If you cannot si t mo re than 10 inches
(25 cm) from the steering wheel, invest i­
gate whether adaptive equipment may be
available to help yo u reach the pedals and
increase your seating distance from the
steering wheel.
- All veh icle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restra ined child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or imp roperly restrained
child is also at greate r risk of inju ry or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning fo rwa rd, s it­
t ing s ideways or o ut o f pos ition in any way,
yo ur risk of in ju ry is much h igher.
- Yo u will also receive serious injuries and
c ould even be killed if you are up aga inst the
air bag or too close to it when it inflates
-
even with an Advanced Airbag.
2 6 8
-
- To reduce the ris k of i njury when an a irbag
inflates, always wea r safety belts properly
r=;, page 262, Safety belts.
- Always make certa in that children age 12 or
younger always ride in the rear seat. If chil­
dren are not properly restrained, they may be severely injured or killed when an airbag
inflates.
- Never let ch ildren ride unrestra ined or im­
properly restrained in the vehicle. Ad just the
front seats properly.
- Never ride with the back rest recl ined .
- Always sit as far as possible from the steer-
ing wheel or the instrument panel
r=;, page 248.
- Always sit upright w ith 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 recl ine the front passenger's seat to
transpo rt objects . Items can also move in to
the area of the s ide a irbag or the front air­
bag du ring brak ing o r in a sudden maneu­
ver. Obje cts nea r the airbags can become
projecti les and cause injury when an airbag
inflates.
A WARNING
A irbags that have deployed in a crash must be
replaced.
- Use on ly original equipment airbags ap­
proved by Audi and installed by a trained
technician who has the necessary tools and
diagnostic equipment to properly replace
any airbag in your vehicle and assure system
effectiveness in a crash.
- Never perm it salvaged or recycled airbags to
be installed in your vehicle.
Child restraints on the front seat - some
important things to know
.,. Be s ure to read the impo rtant info rmat ion and
heed the WARN INGS for important deta ils
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about children and Advanced Airbags
c::>page292 .
Even though yo ur vehicle is equipped with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System, make certain that all chil­
dren, especially those
12 years and younger, a l­
ways ride in the back seat properly restrained for
their age and size. The airbag on the passenger
side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous
place for a child to ride. The front seat is not the
safest place for a child in a forward-facing child
safety seat .
It can be a very dangerous place for
a n infant or a child in a rearward-fac ing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle has
been certified to comply with the requirements
of United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standa rd (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor
Veh icle Safety Standa rd (CMVSS)
208 as applica­
b le a t the time your veh icle was m an ufact ured.
Accord ing to requirements, the front Advanced
Airbag System on the passenger side has been
certified for "suppression" for infants of about
12 month old and younger and for "low risk de­
ployment" for children aged 3 to 6 years old (as
defined in the standard) .
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG O FF light in the instru­
ment panel tells you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been turned
off
by the electronic control unit.
Each time yo u switch on the ignition, the
PAS ·
S ENGER 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 the electrical capacitance meas ­
ured by the capac itive passenger detection sys­
tem for the front passenger seat equals the combined capacitance of an infant up to about
one year of age and one of the rearward-facing
or forward-facing child restraints listed in Fed ­
era l Moto r Vehicle Safety Standard
208 w it h
which the Advanced Airbag System in your veh i­
cl e was certified . Fo r a listing of the child
re­
strain ts th at were used to ce rtify you r vehicle's
compliance with the U.S. Safety Standard
c::>page295 .
Airbag sys tem
-wi ll stay on if there is a small child or c hild re­
straint on the front passenger seat,
- will go
off if the front passenge r seat is occu ­
pied by an adult as registered by the capac itive
passenger detection system
c::, page 2 79, Mon­
itoring the Advanced Airbag System.
T he PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht comes on
when e lectrica l capacitance registered on the
front passenger seat is equal to or less t han the
combined capacitance of a typical
1 year-old in­
fant and one of the rearward-facing or forward­
facing child restraints listed in Federal Motor
Ve­
hicle Safety Standard 208 w ith which the Ad ­
vanced Airbag System in your vehicle was certi­
fied.
If the total e lectr ica l capacitance reg istered on
t h e front passenger seat is more than that of a
typ ical 1 year-old ch ild but less than the weight
of a sma ll adult, the front airbag on the passen­
ger 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 electron ic con trol
u ni t and can dep loy if the control unit senses an
impact that meets the cond itions s tored in its
memory .
For example , th e airbag may deplo y if:
- a small ch ild that is heav ier than a typ ical 1
year-o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regardless of whethe r the child is in one of the
child safety seats listed
c::, page 295), o r
- a child who has outgrown c hild rest raints is on
the front passenge r seat.
If the front passenger airbag is turned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on in the
inst rument cluste r and stays on .
If the front passenger airbag deploys, the Feder­
al Standard requires the airbag to meet the " low
risk" deployment cr iteria to reduce the r isk of
in­
jury through interact ion w ith the airbag . "Low
r isk" dep loymen t occurs in those crashes tha t
t ak e place at lowe r decelerations as defined in
the e lectronic cont rol unit
c::, page 2 79, PASSEN -
GER AIR BAG OFF light.
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269

Airbag syste m
Always remember, a child safety seat or infant
carrier installed on the front seat may be struck
and knocked out of position by the rapidly inflat­
ing passenger's airbag in a frontal collision. The
airbag could greatly reduce the effectiveness of
the child restraint and
even seriously injure the
child dur ing inflation.
For this reason, and because the back seat is the
safest place for children - when properly restrain­
ed according to the ir age and size -we strongly
recommend that children always sit in the back
seat ¢ page 292, Child safety.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing chi ld safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat w ill 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 chi ld 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 chi ld
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­ cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iately install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seat ing pos ition and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
- Forward-facing ch ild safety seats installed
on the front passenger's seat may interfere
with the deployment of the airbag and ca use serio us personal injury to the child .
A WARNING
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in­
stall a forward-facing chi ld restraint on the
front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward -facing seat
has been designed and ce rtified by its man­
u facturer for use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and side a irbag.
270
- Never put the fo rward-facing child restraint
up against or
very near the instrument pan­
el.
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the highest posit ion in the up and down ad­
justment range and move it back to the rearmost posit ion in the seat's fore and aft
ad justment range, as far away from the a ir­
bag as poss ible, before install ing the for­
ward-facing chi ld restraint.
- Always make sure that the safety be lt upper
anchorage is behind the ch ild rest raint and
not next to o r in front of the child rest raint
so that the safety be lt will be properly posi­
tioned.
- Ma ke sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on a ll the time
wheneve r the ignit ion is switched on .
A WARNING
-
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will
be d isp layed whenever a ch ild restraint is in­
stalled on the front passenge r seat and the
ignition is switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not stay on, perform the checks described
¢ page 2 79, 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
Aud i dea le r i mmediately.
- Always carefully follow instructions from child restraint manufacture rs when instal­
ling child restra ints.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional ci rcumstances, you must in­
stall a forward or rearward-fac ing child re­
stra int on the front passenger's seat:
- Improper installat ion of child restr aints can
reduce the ir effectiveness or
even preven t
them from provi ding any pro te ct ion .

a, a, ..... N
" N ..... 0 N > 00
-An improper ly installed ch ild restraint can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
seriously injure or even kill the child
-even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
- Always carefu lly follow the manufacturer 's
instructions provided w ith the child safety
seat or carrier.
- Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that w ill cause the
capacit ive passenger detection system in
the seat to signa l to the Airbag System that
the seat is occupied by a person when it is
not, or to signa l tha t it is occ upied by some ­
one who is heavier than the person actua lly
sitting on the seat . The presence of addi ­
tional objects could cause the passenger
front airbag to be turned on when it shou ld
be off, or could cause the airbag to work in a
way that is different from the way it would have worked without the object on the seat .
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat occu­
pants.
Fig. 2 41 Location of driver airbag: in ste.e ring wheel
Airb ag sys tem
Fig. 242 Location of front passenger's airbag: in the in­
st rument pane l
Your vehicle is equipped with an "Advanced Air­
bag System" in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(FMVSS) 208, as well as Canada Motor Veh icle
Safety Standard (CMVSS) 208 as applicable at
the time your veh icle was manufactured. The
safe ty belts fo r the seats have "pretensioners"
that help to take slack out of the bel t system.
T he pretensioners are also activated by the e lec ­
tronic control unit for the airbag system .
The front safety belts also have load limiters to
help reduce the fo rces applied to the body in a
c rash .
The airbag for the driver is in the steering wheel
hub
¢ fig. 241 a nd the airbag for the front pas­
senger is in the instrument pane l
~fig. 242. The
general lo cation of the airbags is marked "A IR­
BAG".
There is a lot you need to know about the airbags i n your vehicle. We urge you to read the deta iled
information about airbags, safety be lts and c hild
safety in this and the other chapters that make
u p the owner's literatu re . 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.
A WARNING
Never rely on airbags alone for protect ion.
- Even when they deploy, airbags provide only
supplemental protection.
-Airbag work most effectively when used
with properly worn safety be lts .
271