weight AUDI S4 2014 User Guide

148 Airbag sys tem
Even tho ugh your vehicle is equip ped with an
Advanced Airbag System , make certain that
a ll c hildren, especially those 12 years and
younge r, a lways ride in the back seat properly
restra ined for their age and size. The airbag
on the passenger side makes the front seat a potentially dangerous place for a ch ild to r ide.
The front seat is not the safest place for a
child in a fo rward-facing ch ild safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for a n infant or
a child in a rea rward-facing seat.
The Advanced Airbag System i n your veh icle
has been certified to comp ly with the Requ ire­
men ts of Uni ted Sta tes Federa l Mo tor Veh icle
Safety Standard 208 as applicable at the time
your veh icle was manufactured.
The Standard requires the front a irbag on t he
passenger side to be turned off ("sup­
pressed") if a ch ild up to about one year of
age restrained in one of the rear -facing o r for­
ward -facing infant restraints listed i n Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which
the Advanced A irbag System in your vehicle
was certified has been installed o n the front
passenger seat . For a listing of the child re ­
strai nts t hat we re used to certify compliance
with the US Safety Standard
r=vpage 169.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the in­
strument panel te lls you when the front Ad­
vanced A irbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the e lectronic control unit.
Each t ime you turn on the ignition, the
PAS ­
SENGER AIR BA G OFF
light will come on for a
few seconds a nd:
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- wi ll stay on if there is a small child or child
restraint on the front passenger seat,
- wi ll go off if the front passenger seat is oc ­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing mat
r=v page 156, Monitor­
ing the Advanced 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
fro nt airbag to be turned off.
If the total weight on the front passenge r
seat is more than that of a typica l 1 year -old
c hil d but less than the weight o f a small
adult, the front airbag on the passenger side
can deploy (the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght does not come on). If the PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on , the
front a irbag on the passeng er side has not
been turned off by the elec troni c con trol unit
and can deploy if the control uni t se nses an
impact that meets the cond itions stored in its
memo ry .
For example, the airbag may deploy if:
- a small ch ild that is heav ier t han a typical 1
year-old ch ild is on the front passenger seat
( r egard less of whethe r the child is i n one of
t he child safety seats listed
r=v page 169), or
- a child who has outgrown ch ild restraints is
on t he front passenge r 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 s ide may
not deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li gh t does not illum inate and stay lit) even if a
small adult o r teenager, or a passenger who is
not sitt ing up rig ht w ith their back against a
non- recl ined ba ck res t w it h thei r feet on the
vehicle f loor i n front of the sea t is on the front
passenger seat
r=v page 129 , Proper seating
position for the driver.
If t he fron t passenger a irbag dep loys, the
F ede ra l Standard req uires the airbag to meet
t h e "low risk" dep loyment criteria to red uce
t h e risk of injury t hrough interactio n wit h the
airbag. "Low risk" dep loyment occ urs in those
crashes that take place at lower dece lerat ions
as defined in the electronic control unit
r=v page 157, PASSENGER 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 posit ion by the rap­
idly inflat ing passenger 's airbag in a fronta l
collision . T he a irbag could great ly reduce the
effectiveness of the ch ild restra int and even
seriously injure t he ch ild dur ing inflation .

150 Airbag system
-Never place additiona l items on the seat
that can increase the total weight regis­
tered by the weight-sensing mat and can
cause injury in a crash.
Front airbags
Description of front airbags
The airbag system can provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants.
F ig . 153 Location of driver airbag: in steer ing whee l
Fig. 15 4 Location of front passenger's airbag: in the in ­
strument panel
Your veh icle is equipped with an "Advanced
A irbag System" in compliance with United
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard ( FM VSS) 208 as app licab le at the time your
ve hicl e was manufac tured. The system senses
the position of the front seats and controls
front airbag inflation with a valve, depending
on the distance between the respect ive seat
and the steering wheel or instrument panel.
The safety belts for the seats have "preten­
sioners" that he lp to take slack out of the belt
system . The pretensioners a re also activated
by the electron ic cont ro l unit for the ai rbag
system. T
he front safety belts also have load limiters
to help reduce the forces applied to the body
i n a crash .
T he airbag for the drive r is in the stee ring
whee l hub¢
fig. 153 and the airbag for the
front passenger is in the instrument panel
~ fig. 154 . The general locat ion of the a irbags
is marked "AIRBAG".
T here is a lot you need to know about the ai r­
bags in your vehicle. We urge you to read the
detailed information about airbags, safety
belts and child safety in this and the other
chapters that make up the owner's literature.
P lease be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they
are extremely importa nt for your safety and
the safety of your passengers, especially in­
fants and small chi ldren.
_&. WARNING
Neve r rely on airbags alone for p rotection.
- Even w hen they deploy, airbags provide
only s upplement al pro te ctio n.
- Airbag work most effect ive ly when used
with p roperly wor n safety bel ts.
- Therefore, always wea r you r safety belts
a nd make sure tha t eve rybody in your ve­
h icle is p roperly res trained.
_&. WARNING
A pe rson on the front passenger seat, es­
pe cial ly infa nts and sm all ch ildren, w ill re­
ceive serio us inju ries and can even be kil­
l ed by being too close to the airbag when
it inflates .
- Although t he Advanced Airbag System in
your veh icle is designed to tur n off the
front passenger airbag if an infant or a
small child is on the front passe nger
seat, nobody can absolutely guarantee
that deployment under these special
conditions is imposs ible in all conceiva­
b le sit uat ions that may happen during
the useful life of your vehicle.
- The Advanced Airbag System can dep loy
i n acco rdance with the "low risk" option
unde r the U.S . Feder al Standard if a child
that is heav ie r than the typical one -year
-
.

old chi ld is on the front passenger seat
and the other cond itions for airbag de­
ployment are met.
- Accident statistics have shown that chil­
dren are generally safer in the rear seat
area than in the front seating posit ion.
- For their own safety, all children, espe­ cially 12 years and younger, should al­
ways ride in the back properly restrained
for their age and size .
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped w ith a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with Un ited
States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208 as app licable at the time yo ur vehicle was
manufactured .
The front Advanced Airbag System supple­ ments the safety belts to provide add it io na l
protection fo r the d river's and fron t passeng­
e r' s heads and upper bodies in fronta l crashes.
The airbags inflate only in frontal impacts
when th e vehicle dece le rat ion is high enough .
The front Advanced Airbag Sys tem for the
front seat occupants is not a substit ute for
your safety belts. Rather, it is part of the over­
all occupant restraint system in your vehicle.
A lways remember that the ai rbag system can
only help to protect you, if you are sitting up­
right, wearing you r safety belt and wearing it
properly . This is why you and you r passengers
must always be properly restrained, not just
because the law requires you to be.
T he Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle
has been cert ified to meet the "low risk " re ­
qu irements for 3 and 6 year-o ld children on
the passenge r side and very small adu lts on
the dr iver side . The low risk dep loymen t crite­
ria are intended to he lp red uce the risk of i n­
jury through interaction with the front airbag
that can occ ur, for example , by being too
close to the steer ing whee l and instrument
panel when the airbag inflates.
I n addition, the system has been certif ied to
comp ly with the "suppression" requirements
A irbag system 15 1
of the Safe ty Standa rd, to turn off the front
airbag for infants 12 months old and younger
who are restrained on the front passenger
seat in child restraints that are listed in the Standa rd
¢ page 169 , Child restraints and
Advanced Airbags .
"Suppression" requires the front a irbag on the
passenger side to be turned off if:
- a child up to abo ut one year o f age is re ­
strained on the front passenger seat i n one
of the rear-fac ing or forward-facing infant
restraints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard 208 with which the Ad­
vanced Airbag System in your ve hicle was
cert ified . Fo r a listing o f the child restraints
that were used to certify your vehicle's com­ plia nce w ith the US Safety Standa rd
¢ page 169,
-weight less than a thres ho ld level stored in
t he control uni t is de te cted on the fron t pas­
senge r seat.
When a person is detected on the front pas­
senger seat, weighing more than the total
weight of a ch ild tha t is abou t 1 year old re ­
stra ined in one of the rear -faci ng or forward ­
f acing infa nt res traints ( listed in Fede ral Mo­
tor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 w it h which
the Advanced Airbag System in yo ur vehicle
was certified), the front airbag on the passen­ ger side may or may not deploy.
The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when the elect ronic contro l unit detects a to­
ta l we ight on the front passenger seat that re­
quires the front airbag to be tu rned off. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on, the front ai rbag on the passenger
s ide has not been turned off by the cont ro l
unit and ca n dep loy if t he control un it senses
an impact that meets the cond itions stored i n
its memory.
If the total weig ht on the front passenge r
seat is more than that of a typical 1 yea r-o ld ,
bu t less than the we igh t of a small ad ult, t he
fron t airbag on the passenger side may dep loy
(the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on). ..,. •
•

-Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the a irbag as poss ible, before insta lling
the forward-facing child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upr ight
posit ion.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime w henever the ignition is sw itched
o n.
Advanced Airbag System components
The fron t passenger seat in your vehicle has a
lot of very important parts of the Advanced
Airbag System in it. These parts include the
weight-sens ing mat, sensors, wiring, brack ­
ets, and more. The function of the system in
the front passenger seat is checked by the
e lectronic control u nit when the ignit ion is on .
The control un it mon itors the Advanced Air­
bag System and turns the airbag indicator
l ight on whe n a ma lfunction in t he sys tem
components is de tected. The function of the
airbag indicator light is described in greater
detai l below . Because the front passenger
seat contains important parts of the Ad ­
vanced A irbag System, you m ust take care to
prevent it from being damaged. Damage to
the seat may prevent the Advanced Airbag for
the front passenger seat from doing its job in
a crash .
The front Advanced Airb ag Sy stem
consists of the following:
- Crash sensors in the front of the veh icle that
measure veh icle acceleration/decele ration
to provide information to the Advanced Air­
bag System about the seve rity of the crash.
- An electronic co ntrol unit, with integrated
c rash se nsors for front and side impacts .
T he cont ro l unit " decides " whethe r to fire
the front airbags based on the inform ation
received from the crash senso rs . The contro l
unit a lso "decides" whether the safety belt
pretensioners should be activated .
Airbag system 153
-An Advanced A irbag w ith gas gene rator and
contro l valve fo r the driver ins ide the steer ­
ing wheel h ub.
- An Advanced Airbag w ith gas gene rator and
contro l valve inside the instrument pane l for
the front passenger.
- A weight-sensing mat under the upholstery
padding of the front passenger seat cushion
that measures the total weight on the seat.
The informat ion reg istered is sent continu­
ously to the electronic control unit to regu­
late deployment of the front Advanced Air­
bag on the passenger side.
- An airbag monitor ing system and ind icator
light in the instrument cluster
q page 156 .
-A sensor in each front seat registers the dis­
tance between the respective seat and the
steer ing whee l o r inst rument panel. The in­
forma tion registered is sent cont inuo usly to
t he elect ron ic cont ro l uni t to regula te de­
ployment o f the front Advance d Airbags .
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ligh t comes
on and st ays on in the cen ter o f th e instr u­
ment panel
<:!;> page 157, fig . 156 and tells
you whe n the front Advanced Airbag on the
passenger side has been tu rned
off .
-A sensor below the safety be lt latch fo r the
front seat passenger to measure the tension on the safety be lt . The tension on the safety
be lt and the weight registered by the
weight-sensi ng mat he lp the control unit
"decide" whether the front a irbag for the
front passenge r seat should be turned
off or
not
<=;> pag e 147, Child restraints on the
front seat -some important things to
know.
- A senso r in the safety belt latch fo r the d riv­
er a nd fo r the fro nt sea t passenger tha t
senses w hethe r that safe ty belt is latched or
no t and transmi ts this informa tion to the
electronic control unit.
_&. WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can
prevent the front airbag from work ing
properly.
-
•
•

154 Airbag sys te m
- Improper repair or disassembly of the
front passenger and driver seat will pre­
vent the Advanced Airbag System from
functioning properly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must
be performed by qualified and properly
trained workshop personnel.
- Never remove the front passenger or
driver seat from the veh icle.
- Never remove the upholstery from the
front passenger seat.
- Never disassemble or remove parts from
the seat or disconnect wires from it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets
or place them on the seat. If the weight­
sensing mat in the passenger seat is
punctured it cannot work properly.
- Never carry things on your lap or carry
objects on the passenger seat. Such
items can increase the weight registered
by the weight-sens ing mat and send the
wrong info rmation to the airbag control
unit.
- Never store items under the front pas·
senger seat. Parts of the Advanced Ai r­
bag System under the passenger seat
cou ld be damaged, preventing them and
the airbag system from working proper­
ly .
- Never place seat covers or replacement upholstery that have not been specifical­
ly approved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced Airbag System from recognizing child re­
straints or occupants on the front pas­
senger seat and prevent the side airbag
in the seat backrest from deploy ing prop­
erly.
- Never use cush ions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger
seat. The add itional padd ing will prevent
the weight-sensing mat in the seat from
accurately reg iste ring the ch ild restra int
or person on the seat and prevent the
Advanced Airbag System from function­ ing properly .
-If you must use a child restra int on the
front passenger seat and the chi ld re- straint manufacturer's instructions
re­
qu ire the use of a towel, foam cushion or
something e lse to properly pos ition the
child restraint, make certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on whenever the ch ild re·
straint is installed on the front passen­
ger seat.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not come on and stay on, immed i­
ately insta ll child restraint in a rear seat­
ing position and have the airbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dealer.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the
side airbags supplement the protection of­
fered by the front three-point safety belts
with pretensioners and load limiters and the
adjustable head restraints to help reduce the
risk of injury in a wide range of accident and
crash situations. Be s ure to read the impor ­
tant information about safety and heed the
WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adv a need A irbag System
and the activation of the safety belt preten­
sioners depend on the deceleration measured
by the crash sensors and registered by the
electron ic control unit. Crash severity depends
on speed and deceleration as well as the mass
and stiffness of the vehicle or object involved
in the crash .
On the passenger side, regardless of safety
belt use, the airbag will be turned off if the
weight on the passenger seat is less than the
amount programmed in the electronic control
unit . The front airbag on the passenger side
will a lso be turned off if one of the child safe­
ty seats that has been certified under Federal Moto r Veh icle Safety Standard 208 has been
recognized on the seat. The
PAS SENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on to tell
you when the front Advanced Airbag on the
passenger side has been turned off
¢ page 147, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know. ...,.

A WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag
inflates, always wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward,
sitting sideways or out of position in any
way, your risk of injury is much higher.
- You w ill also receive serious injuries and
could even be killed if you are up against
the a irbag or too close to it when it in­
fla tes - even with an Advanced Airbag
~page 146.
More important things to know about
front airbags
Fig. 155 Inf lated front a irbags
Safety belts are impo rtant to help keep front
seat occupants in the p roper seated pos ition
so that airbags can unfo ld properly and pro­
v ide supp lemental protection in a fronta l col­
lision.
The front a irbags are designed to provide ad­
d itiona l protection for the chest and face of
the dr iver and the front seat passenge r when:
- safety belts are worn prope rly,
- the seats have been posit ioned so that the
occupant is properly seated as far as possi­
ble from the a irbag,
- and the head restraints have been properly adjusted .
Because airbags i nflate in the blink of an eye
with great force, things you have on your lap
or have placed on the seat could become dan ­
ge ro us projectiles, and be pushed into you if
the airbag inflates.
When an a irbag deploys, fine dust is released.
This is normal and is not caused by a fire in
A irba g sy stem 155
the vehicle . This dust is made up mostly of a
powder used to lubricate the airbags as they
deploy. It could irr itate skin.
It is important to remembe r that wh ile the
supplementa l airbag system is designed to re­
duce the like lihood of serious injuries, other
injur ies, for example swelling, br uis ing and
minor abrasions, can also happen when air­
bags inflate. Airbags do not protect the arms
or the lower parts of the body . Front a irbags
o nly supplement the three point safe ty belts
in some fronta l co llisions in which the vehicle
decelera tion is h igh enough to deploy the air­
bags.
Front airbags will not deploy :
- if the ignition is sw itched off when a crash
occu rs,
- in side co llisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollovers,
-when the crash deceleration measured by the airbag system is less than the minimum
threshold needed for airbag dep loyment as
reg istered by the electronic contro l unit .
The front pa ssenger ai rbag will also not
deploy:
- when the front passenger seat is not occu ­
pied,
- when the weight on the front passenger
seat as sensed by the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem ind icates that the front airbag on the
passe nger side has to be turned off by the
electronic control unit (the
PASSENGER AIR
BA G OFF
light comes on and stays o n).
A WARNING
-S itting in the wrong pos ition can in crease
the r is k of se rious inj ury i n crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the air­
bags inflate, the drive r and passenge rs
m ust always s it in an upr igh t positi on,
m ust not lean against or pla ce any part
of their body too close to the area whe re
the airbags a re located. .,.

whenever the ignition is on. Each time yo u
turn on the ignition, the
fl airbag monitoring
indicator light w ill come on for a few seconds
(self diagnostics) .
The system mu st be in spected wh en the
II indicat or light:
- does not come on w hen the ignit ion is
switched on,
- does not go out a few seconds after you
have switched on the ignition, or
- comes on whi le driving .
I f an a irbag system malf unct ion is de tected,
the ind icator light will firs t start flashing to
catch the driver's attention and then stay on
continuously to serve as a constant reminder
to have the system inspected immediately .
If a malfunc tion oc curs that turns the fron t
ai rbag on the passenger side off, the
PAS SEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
li ght wi ll come on and stay
on whenever the ignition is on.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal crash.
- If the airbag indicator light¢
page 20
comes when the vehicle is be ing used,
have the system inspected immediately
by yo ur authorized Aud i dea le r. It is pos­
sible that the a irbag will inf late when it
is not s upposed to, or w ill not inflate
when it sho uld.
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
Fig. 156 Sect ion fro m the instr umen t pane l: PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG O FF light
-
A irba g sy stem 15 7
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light is located
in the center of the instrument pa ne l
¢ fig. 156 .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come
on and stay on to tell you when the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenger side has been
turned off by the electron ic contro l unit. Each
time you turn on the ignit ion, the
PASSEN ­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light will flash for a few
seconds and:
- will stay on i f the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if there is a small chi ld or child
restraint on the front passenger seat,
- will go out if the front passenger seat is oc­
cupied by an adult as registered by the
weight-sensing mat.
T he
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light must
come on and sta y on
if the ignition is on and
- a car bed has been installed on the fron t
se at, or
- a rearwa rd-facing child restra in t has been
installed o n the front passenger seat, o r
- a forward-fac ing c hild restra int has been in­
s talled on the fron t passenger seat, or
- t he we ight reg istered on the front passen­
ge r seat is equal to or less t han the com­
bi ned weight o f a typic al 1 year-o ld restr ain­
ed in one of the rear -facing or forwa rd-fac­
ing infant restraints listed in Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with which the
Advanced A irbag 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 O FF
light will stay on. Nev ­
er install a rearward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, the safest p lace for
a child in any k ind of child restrai nt is at one
of the seating posit ions on the rear seat
¢ page 147, Child restraints on the front seat
- some important things to know
and
¢ page 167, Child Safety.
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on
when one of the cond itions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regu larly to
IJi,,-

158 Airbag sys te m
make certain that the PA SSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght stays on continuous ly whenever the
ignit ion is on. If the
PASS ENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light does not appear and not stay on all
the time, stop as soon as it is safe to do so
and
- react ivate the system by turning the ignition
off and then turning it on again;
- remove and reinstall the child restraint.
Make sure that the child restraint is properly
installed and that the safety belt for the
front passenger seat has been correctly
routed around the child restraint as descr i­
bed in the child restraint manufacturer's in­
structions;
- make sure that the convertible locking fea­
ture on the safety belt for the front passen­
ger seat has been activated and that t he
safety belt has been pulled tight. The belt
must not be loose o r have loops of slack so
that the sensor below the safety be lt latch
on the seat can do its job
c::> page 177 .
-make su re that th ings that may increase the
weight of the chi ld and child safety seat are
not being transported on the front passen ­
ger seat;
- make sure that the safety be lt tension sen­
sor is not b locked. Shake the safety belt
latch on the front passenger seat back and
forth;
- If a strap or tether is being used to tie the child safety seat to the front passenger
seat, make sure that it is not so tight that it
causes the we ight-sensing mat to measure
more we ight than is actua lly on the seat.
If the PASSEN GER AIR BAG OFF light still
doe s not come on
and does not stay on con­
tinuously (when the ignition is switched on),
- take the chi ld restraint off the front passen -
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat pos itions . Have the a irbag system
inspected by your authorized Audi dealer
immediately .
- move the ch ild to a rear seat pos it io n and
make sure that the child is properly restrain­
ed in a child restraint that is appropriate for
i ts size and age. The
PA
SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light sho uld
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
PAS SENGER
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 aga inst the
backrest and the backrest is not recl ined
c::> page 129, Proper occupant seating posi­
tions,
- the adult is not tak ing weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the fron t passenger door or support­
ing thei r weig ht on the armrest,
- t he safety belt is being properly wo rn and
t hat there is not a lot o f slack in the safety
be lt webb ing,
- accesso ry seat covers or cushions o r othe r
t hings tha t may c ause an incorrect reading
or impression on the weight-sensing mat
under the upho lstery of the seat have been
removed from the front passenger seat,
- a sa fety belt extender has not bee n left in
the safety belt latch for the front passenger
seat.
In add ition to the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
li ght in the center o f the instrument panel,
t h e message
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF or
PASSENGER AIR BAG ON wi ll briefly appear
in the instrument cluster disp lay. This is to in­
form the dr iver of the current front passenger
airbag status.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An a irbag system that is not functioning
properly cannot provide supplemental pro­
tection in a frontal c rash.
- If the airbag ind icator light
c::> page 20
comes when the veh icle is being used,
have the system inspected immediately
by your au thorized A udi dealer .
It is
-

possible that the airbag will inflate when
it is not supposed to, or will not inflate
when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a ch ild without
a c hild restra int, in a rearward-facing c hild
safety seat or i n a forward-facing child re­
st raint that has not been properly insta lled
w ill be seriously injured and can be k illed.
- Even though your veh icle is equipped
with an Advanced Airbag System, make certain that a ll children, especially 12
years and younge r, a lways ride on the
back seat properly restrained fo r their
age and size.
- Always instal l forw ard or rea r-facing
child safety seats on the rear seat -even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
- If you mus t install a rearward -facing
child safety seat on the front passenger
seat because of exceptional circ umstan­
ces and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and stay on, imme ­
diately install the rear-fac ing ch ild safety
seat in a rear seating position and have
the a irbag system inspected by you r au­
tho riz ed Aud i dea le r.
- A tight tether or other strap on a rear­
wa rd-fac ing child restra int attached to
the fro nt passenger sea t can put too
much pressure on the weight-sens ing
mat in the seat and register mo re weight
than is ac tually on the seat. The heavier
weight registe red can make the system
wor k as though an adu lt were on the seat
and dep loy the Advanced Airbag when it
must be suppressed caus ing serious or
even fatal injury to the child .
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you
must install a forward-facing child re­
st rain t on the front passenger seat, a l­
ways move the seat into its rearmost po­
sit ion in the seat's fo re and aft adjust­
ment r ange, as far away from the airb ag
as possib le. The backrest m ust be adjus t­
ed to an upr ight position. Make sure that
A irbag system 159
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on all the time when­
ever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
-
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light
does not go out when an adult is sitting
on the front passenger seat after tak ing
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.
- Have the airbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi dealer befo re trans­
port ing anyone on the front pas senger
seat.
@ Tips
If t he weig ht-sensing mat in the front pas­
senger seat detects an empty sea t, the
front airbag on the p assenger side will be
turned off, and
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
will stay on .
Repair, care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the airbag system are installed at
many different p laces on your Aud i. Insta lling,
removing, servicing or repa iring a part in an
area of the vehicle can damage a part of an
a irbag system and p revent that system from
working p rope rly in a coll is ion.
There are some important t hings you have to
k n ow to make sure that the effectiveness of
t h e system w ill not be impaired and that d is­
ca rded components do not cause injury o r pol­
l ute the environment.
A WARNING
Im proper care, serv icing a nd rep air proce­
d ur es can increase the risk of personal in ­
ju ry and death by preventing an a irbag
from deploying when needed or deploying
an a irbag unexpectedly:
- Never cover, obst ruct, or change the
steer ing whee l horn pad or airbag cover
or the instrument panel or mod ify them
in any way. •
•

Safety. Supplemental side airbags inflate be­
tween the occupant and the door pane l on the
side of the vehicle that is struck in certain s ide
collis ion¢
fig. 158 .
Although they a re not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in this way they can he lp to reduce the r isk of injury to the upper
part of the body.
A fine dust may develop when the airbag de­ p loys. This is norma l and does not mean there
is a fire in the veh icle .
Important safety instructions on the
side airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints. Al­
ways properly wear safety belts and ride in a
proper seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers
must know and act accordingly to help the
safety belts and a irbags do the ir job to pro­
vide supplemental protection .
A WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause ser ious
or fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety
belts and improper seating positions in­
crease the risk of ser ious personal inju ry
and death whenever a vehicle is being
used.
- In orde r to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental side airbag inflates :
- Always sit in an upright pos ition and
never lean against the area where the
supp lemental s ide a irbag is located.
- Never let a chi ld or anyone else rest
their head against the side trim panel
in the area where the supp lemental
side ai rbag inflates.
- Always make sure that safety belts are
wo rn correctly,
- Do not let anyone sitting in the front
seat put their hand or any other parts
of their body out of the window.
- Always make sure that the side airbag
can inflate witho ut interference.
A irbag system 163
-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
deploy.
- Damage to the orig inal seat cove rs or
to the seam in the area of the side a ir­
bag module must always be repaired
i mmediately by an author ized Audi
dealer.
- Objects between you and the airbag ca n
increase the risk of injury in an accident
by inter fer ing with the way the airbag
unfo lds o r by being pushe d in to yo u as
the airbag inflates .
- Never place or attach accessor ies or
othe r objects (such as cupho lders, tele­
phone brackets, or even large, bu lky
objects) on the doo rs, over or near the
area marked "A IRBAG" on the seat
bac krests.
-Such objects a nd accessories can be­
come dangerous project iles and cau se
i njury when the s upplementa l side air­
bag deploys .
- Never carry any ob je cts o r pe ts in the
deployment space be twee n them and
the airbags or allow ch ild ren or other
passengers to trave l in t his position.
- Always use the b uilt-in coat hooks on ly
for lightweight clo thing . Never leave any
heavy or sharp-edged objects in the
pockets that may interfere w ith side air­
bag deployment and can cause personal
injury in an acc ident.
- Always prevent the side airbags from be­ ing damaged by heavy objects knocking
aga inst or hitting the sides of the seat­
backs .
- The airbag system can only be triggered
once . If the airbag has been triggered,
the system must be replaced by an au­
thorized Audi dealersh ip.
- Damage (cracks, deep scratches etc .) to
the o rig inal seat cove rs or to the seam i n
the area of the side airbag module must .,,. •
•