seats AUDI S4 2017 Owner's Guide

Airbag syste m
never insta ll any chi ld restraint system on
this seat .
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets, or
similar items on the front passenger seat .
The add itional layers prevent the capacitive
passenger detection system from accurat ely
measuring the capac itance of the ch ild safe ­
ty seat and/or the person on the seat and
thus keep the Advanced Airbag System from
wor king properly.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, elect ronic
games dev ice, power inverte r or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat
i f the device is conne cted to the 12 -volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket . Such
devices can influence the capacitance reg is­
tered by the capac itive passenger detection
system, so that incorrect information is pro­
vided to the airbag control unit .
- If you must use a child restraint on the front
passenger seat and the child restraint man­
ufact urer 's instructions require the use of a
towel, foam cushion or something else to
prope rly position the ch ild rest raint, make
c ertain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
~; light comes on and stays on whenever
the chi ld restraint is installed on the front
passenger seat .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF,;; light
does not come on and stay on, immediate ly
insta ll child restra int in a rear seating posi­
t ion and have the airbag system inspected
by your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
If the front passenger seat gets wet, dry it im­
mediately.
- If liquid soaks into the front passenger seat, this can keep the a irbag system from work­
ing properly and may , for instance, deact i­
va te the passenger frontal airbag. If this
happens, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF,;;
light will come on and stay on togethe r wi th
the airbag ind icator
light E,I in the inst ru­
men t cl uster.
262
- If liq uid is pooled on the seat, but has not
soaked in, th is may also keep the airbag sys­
tem from working properly and cause the passenger fronta l airbag to be enabled
(turned on), even though there is a p roperly
installed child res traint system on the seat .
Wet towels or o ther we t things on the se at
cushion can have the same effe ct. If the
front passenger fronta l airbag is turned o n,
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF,;; light light
wi ll go out .
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced A irbag System and the side
airbags supp lement the protection offered by the
front t hree-point safety belts with pretens ione rs
and load lim ite rs and the ad justab le head re­
strain ts to help reduce t he risk of injury in a wide
r ange of accident and c rash s itu ations. Be sure to
read the important info rmation abou t safety and
heed the WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adva nced A irbag System and
the activa tion of the safe ty belt pretensioners de­
pend on the dece lera tion measured by the crash
senso rs and registered by the electronic contro l
u nit . Crash severity depends on speed and decel ­
eration as well as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle o r object involved in the crash.
On the passenger side, regard less of safety be lt
use, the front passenger frontal airbag will be
turned off if the e lectr ica l capacitance measured
by the capaci tive passenger detection system on
the front passenger seat is less than the amount
programmed in t he e lectronic control unit . The
front passenger frontal a irbag w ill also be turned
off if the capaci tance measured by the system for
the fron t passenger seat equals that of an infant
of about one year o f age in one o f the chi ld sea ts
that was used to certify the Advanced Airbag Sys ­
tem under Federa l Moto r Vehicle Safety Standard
208. The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF,;; light
comes on and stays on to tell you when the front
Advanced Ai rbag System on the passenger side
has been turned off
Q page 265 . .,,.

_& WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag in­
flates, always wear safety belts properly.
- If you are unrestrained, lean ing forward, sit­
t ing s ideways or out of pos ition in anyway,
your risk of injury is much h igher.
- You will also receive serious injur ies and
could even be killed if you are up aga inst the
airbag or too close to it when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
¢page 253.
More important things to know about front
a irbags
F ig. 221 Inflated front airbags
0 0 M
-..:, ... m
Safety belts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the p roper seated position so
that a irbags can unfold properly and provide sup­
p lemental protection in a frontal collision.
The front airbags are designed to provide addi­
tional protection for the chest a nd face of the
d river and the front seat passenger when:
- safety belts are worn properly
- the seats have been positioned so that the oc-
cupant is properly seated as far as possible
from the airbag
- and the head restraints have been properly ad-
justed
Because airbags inflate in the blink of an eye with
great force, things you have on your lap or have placed on the seat could become dangerous pro­
jectiles, and be pushed into you if the airbag in­
flates .
~ When an a irbag deploys, fine dust is released.
8 This is normal and is not caused by a fire in the
~ vehicle. Th is dust is made up mostly of a powder
co
Airb ag sys tem
used to lubricate the airbags as they deploy. It
could irritate skin.
It is important to remember that wh ile the sup­
plementa l airbag system is designed to red uce
the likelihood of serio us injuries, other injur ies,
for example swelling, bruising and minor abra­ s ions, can also happen when airbags inflate. Air­
bags do not protect the arms or the lower parts
of the body. Front airbags supplement the three­
point safety belts on ly in some frontal collisions
in which the vehicle deceleration is high e nough
to deploy the airbags .
Fron t airb ags will not depl oy:
- if the ignition is switched off when a crash oc-
curs
- in side collisions
- in rear-end collisions
- in rollovers
- when t he crash deceleration measured by the
airbag system is less than the m in imum thresh­
old needed for airbag dep loyment as registe red
by the electronic control unit
Th e front passenger airbag also will not
deplo y:
- when the front passenger seat is not occupied,
- when the e lectr ica l ca pacitance measured by
the capacitive passenger detection system for
the front passenger seat indicates that the pas­
senger s ide frontal a irbag must be switched off
by the electronic control unit (the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
11,;; light ¢ page 265 comes on
and stays on).
A WARNING
-Sitt ing in the wrong position can increase the
risk of ser ious injury in crashes.
- To reduce the risk of injury when the airbags
inflate, the drive r and passengers must al­
ways sit in an up right posit ion, must not
lea n aga ins t or place any part 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 c an be serio usly
inj ured by an airbag as it unfolds with great
force in the blink of an eye¢
page 254. ~
263

Airbag system
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child safety seat
installed on the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured and can be killed if the front
airbag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the child safety seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward -facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­ cause of exceptional circumstances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF,;, light does not
come on and stay on, immediately install
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system inspected by your authorized Audi dealer .
A WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer ­
ing with the way the airbag unfolds or by be­
ing pushed into you as the airbag inflates.
- Never hold things in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use .
- Never transport items on or in the area of
the front passenger seat . Objects could
move into the area of the front airbags dur­
ing braking or other sudden maneuvers and
become dangerous projectiles that can
cause serious personal injury if the airbags
inflate.
- Never place or attach accessories or other
objects (such as cupholders, telephone
brackets, large, heavy or bulky objects) on
the doors, over or near the area marked
"AIRBAG" on the steering wheel, instru­
ment panel, seat backrests or between
those areas and yourself . These objects
could cause injury in a crash, especially
when the airbags inflate .
- Never recline the front passenger's seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
264
the area of the side airbag or the front air­
bag during braking or in a sudden maneu­
ver. Objects near the airbags can become projectiles and cause injury, particularly
when the seat is reclined .
- Never place or transport objects on the
front passenger seat. Objects on the front
passenger seat could cause the capacitive
sensor in the seat to signal to airbag system
that the seat is occupied by a person when it
in fact is not, or that the person on the seat
is heavier than he or she actually is. The
change in electric capacitance because of
such objects can cause the passenger front
airbag to be turned on when it should be
off, or can cause the airbag to work in a way
that is different from the way it would have
worked without objects on the seat .
- Always make sure that there is nothing on
the front passenger seat that will cause the
capacitive passenger detection system in
the seat to signal to the Airbag System that the seat is occupied by a person when it is
not , or to signal that it is occupied by some ­
one who is heavier than the person actually
sitting on the seat. The presence of an ob­
ject could cause the passenger front airbag
to be turned on when it should 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 .
A WARNING
The fine dust created when airbags deploy can
cause breathing problems for people with a
history of asthma or other breathing condi­
tions .
- To reduce the risk of breathing problems,
those with asthma or other respiratory con­
ditions should get fresh air right away by
getting out of the vehicle or opening win­
dows or doors.
- If you are in a collision in which airbags de­
ploy , wash your hands and face with mild
soap and water before eating.
- Be careful not to get the dust into your eyes,
or into any cuts or scratches. ..,_

Airbag syste m
front seat p assenge r's frontal Advanced Airbag.
Th e PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light:
-will come o n if the front pa ssenger seat is not
occupied;
- will come on if the e lectr ica l capacitance meas­
u red by the c apac itive passenger detec tion 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 rest raints listed in Fed­
eral Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 with
which the Advanced Ai rbag System in your veh i­
cle was certif ied; Fo r a listing of the child re­
straints that were used to cert ify your vehicle's
compliance with the U .S. Safety Standard
c=> page 279.
- will go out if the front passenger seat is occu­
pied by an adult as reg istered by the capacitive
passenger detection system.
- T he
PAS SENG ER AIR BAG OFF~; light must
come on and s tay o n if the ignition is on and . ..
- a car bed has been insta lled on the front pas­
senger seat, o r
-a rearward-fac ing ch ild restrai nt has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat , or
- a forward-facing child restra int has bee n in stal ­
led on the front passenger seat,
- and if the e lectrical capacitance registered on
the front passenger seat is equa l to or less than
the comb ined capac itance of a typical 1 year­
o ld infant and one of the rearward-fac ing o r
fo rward -fa cing chi ld restrain ts lis ted in Federal
Motor Veh icle Safety Standard 208 with w hich
the Advanced Airbag System in yo ur vehicle was
certified .
If th e fron t passe nger seat is no t occ upied, the
front ai rbag w ill not dep loy, and the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF~;
light wi ll stay on.
Never i nstall a rearward-facing child rest raint on
t he front passenge r sea t, the safes t place for a
chi ld in any k ind of child restraint is at one o f the
seating positions on the rea r seat ¢
page 254,
Child restraints on the front seot -some impor­
tant things to know
and c:> page 2 7 7, Child safe ­
ty .
266
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light
com es on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light comes
on when one of the condit ions listed above is
met, be sure to check the light regularly to make
certain t hat the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~;
light stays on cont inuously whenever the ign ition
i s on . If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light
does not appear on and does not stay on all the
time, stop as soon as it is safe to do so a nd
- reactivate the system by tur ning the ignit ion
off for more than 4 seconds and then tur ning it
on again;
- remove and re install the ch ild restraint. Make
sure that the child restra int is prope rly insta l­
led and that the safety belt for the front pas­
senge r sea t has bee n corre ct ly rou ted th rough
t he child restraint as desc ribed in the ch ild re­
straint man ufact urer's inst ruc tions;
- ma ke sure that the convert ible loc king retr ac­
to r on the safety belt for the front passenge r
seat has been activated and that the safety belt has been pulled tight .
- ma ke sure that no e lectrica l device (s uch as a
laptop , CD p layer , e lectronic games device,
power inverte r or seat heater for chi ld seats) is
placed or used on the front passenger seat if
the device is connected to the 12-volt socket or
the c igarette lighter socket;
- make sure that no seat heater has been retro­
fitted or otherw ise added to the front passen­
ger seat;
- make sure that noth ing can interfere with the
safety belt buckles and that they are not ob­
struc ted;
- make sure that there are no wet objects (such
as a wet towe l) and no water or other liquids on
the front passenger seat cushion .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light still
does not come on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF~; light st ill
does not come on and does not stay on cont in u­
ous ly (when the ign ition is switched o n),
- take the child restra int off the front passenger
seat and install it properly at one of the rear
ll-

<( a, .... N ,....
N .... 0 0
3 a,
seat positions. Have the airbag system inspect­
ed by your Audi dealer immediately.
- move the chi ld to a rear seat position and make
sure that the child is properly restrained in a
child restraint that is appropriate for its size
and age.
Th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF ~ ; light
s h ould NOT com e on ...
The PASS ENGER AI R BAG OFF ~ ; light should
NO T come on when the ignition is on and an
adult is sitting in a proper seating position on the
front passenger seat . If the
PASS ENGER AIR
BAG OFF ~;
light comes on and stays on while
driving, under these circumstances, make sure
that :
- the adult on the front passenger seat is proper­
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his or he r back up aga inst the backrest and the
back rest is not reclined,
- the adult is not tak ing weight off the seat by
ho lding on to the passenger assist handle
above t he front passenger door or supporting
their weight on the a.rm rest,
- the safety belt is be ing properly worn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety belt web­
bing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or cush ­
ions or other things (such as blankets) on the
front passenger seat that migh t ca use the ca­
pacitive passenger detection system to miscal­
cu late electrical capacitance .
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
-If the status of the Adv a need A irbag System
has changed while the vehicle is moving, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF,;; ON @ light
blinks for about 5 seconds to catch the driv­
er's attention .
If this happens, always 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 adult who is not
very small is s itting on the front passenger
-
Airb ag sys tem
seat after taking the steps described above,
make sure the adu lt is properly seated and
restrained at one of the rear seating posi­
tions . Have the a irbag system inspected by
your author ized Audi dealer before trans­
port ing anyone on the front passenger seat.
A WARNING
f-
An a irbag system that is not functioning prop-
e rly cannot prov ide supplemental protect io n
i n a front al crash.
- I f the ai rbag ind icator light~
page 33
comes when the veh icle is being used, have
the system inspected immedia tely by your
authorized Audi dealer . It is possib le that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a ch ild without a
chi ld restraint, or in a rearward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-fac ing child re­
stra int that has not been properly insta lled
will be seriously injured and can be killed.
- Even though your vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that all children , espec ially 12 years and
younge r, always ride on the back seat p rop­
erly rest rained for the ir age and s ize .
- Always install fo rwa rd or rear-facing child
safety seats on the rear seat - even with an
Advan ced Airbag System.
- I f you must install a rea rwa rd-facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­
cause of excep tional circums tances and the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF,;, light does not
appear and stay on, immediate ly install the
rear-facing chi ld safety seat in a rear seat ing
position and have the a irbag system in­
spected by your authori zed Aud i dea ler.
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat, always move the seat into its rearmost position in the seat's
fore and aft ad justment range, as far away
from the a irbag as poss ible . The back rest
m ust be adjusted to an upr ight position .
267

Airbag syste m
Make sure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
11;; li ght comes on and stays on all t he
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
A WARNING
- If the PA SSEN GER AIR BAG OFF 11;; light
does not go out when an adult is si tting on
the front passe nger seat a fter ta king the
steps described above, make sure the adult is p roperly seated and restrained at one of
the rear seating positions.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Aud i dealer before transporting
anyone on the front passenger seat.
@ Tips
If the capacitive passenger detection system
determines that the front passenger seat is
empty, the frontal airbag on the passenge r
side w ill be tu rned off, and the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
11;; light will stay on.
-
Repair , care and disposal of the airbags
Parts of the a irbag system are installed at many
different places on your Audi. Installing, remov­ ing, servic ing or repa iring a part in an area of the
ve hicle can damage a part of an airbag system
and prevent that system from working properly
i n a collision .
There are some important things you have to
know to make sure that the effectiveness of the
system w ill not be impaired and that discarded
components do not cause injury or pollute the
env ironment.
A WARNING
Improper care, serv icing and repai r proce­
dures can increase the r is k of personal injury
and death by preventing an airbag from de­
ploying when needed or dep loying an airbag
unexpectedly:
-
- Never cover, obstruct, or change the stee r­
ing wheel horn pad or airbag cover or the in­
strument pane l or modify them in any way.
268
- Never attach any objects s uch as c upholders
or telephone mountings to the surfaces cov­
ering the a irbag un its.
- For cleaning the horn pad or instrument
panel, use only a soft, dry cloth or one mois­
tened w ith plain water. Solvents or cleaners
could damage the airbag cover or change
the st iffness or strength of the material so
that the airbag canno t deploy and p rotect
properly.
- Never repair, adjust , or change any parts of
the airbag system.
- All work on the steering wheel, inst rument
panel, front seats or e lectr ica l system ( in­
cluding the installation of a udio eq uipment,
cellular telephones and C B radios, etc.)
m ust be perfo rmed by a qualified techn ician
who has the training and specia l equipment
necessary.
- For any work on the airbag system, we strong ly recommend that you see your au­
thorized A udi dealer or qualified workshop.
- Never modify the front b umper or parts of
the vehicle body.
- Always make sure that the side a irbag can
inflate w ithout interference:
- Never install seat covers or replacement
upholstery over the front seatbacks that
have not been specifically approved by
A udi.
- Never use additional seat c ushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags in­
flate.
- Damage to the orig inal seat cove rs or to
the seam in the area of the s ide airbag
module mus t always be repaired immedi­
ate ly by an autho riz ed Au di dealer.
- The a irbag system can deploy on ly once. Af­
ter an airbag h as been deployed, i t m ust be
repla ced with new replacement parts de­
signed and approved espec ia lly for your
Audi model version . Replacement of com­
plete airbag systems or airbag components
must be perfo rmed by qua lified workshops
only. Make su re that any airbag service ac­
tion is entered in your A udi Warranty
&
Ma intenance boo klet under AIRBAG RE-
PLAC EM EN T RECORD.
~

collision. It is not possible to define an airbag
triggering range that will cover every possible an­
g le of impact, s ince the circumstances will vary
considerably between one collision and another.
Important factors include, for example, the na­
ture (hard or soft) of the impacting object, the
angle of impact, vehicle speed, etc.
¢ page 2 75,
How side curtain airbags work .
Aside from their normal safety function, safety
be lts work to he lp keep the driver or front pas­
senger in pos it ion in the event of a collision so
that the side curtain airbags can p rovide protec­
tion .
The airbag system is not a substitute for your
safety belt . Rather, it is part of the overall occu­
pant restraint system in your veh icle . Always re­
member that the airbag system can only help to
p rotect you if you are wearing your safety bel t
and wearing it properly . This is another reason
why you should always wear your safety belts, not just because the law requires you to do so
<::;> page 245, General information.
It is important to remember that whi le the s ide
curtain airbag system is designed to he lp reduce
the likelihood of serious injuries, other injuries,
for example, swelling, bruising, friction burns and minor abrasions can also be associated with
these airbags upon deployment . Remember too,
these airbags will deploy only o nce and only in
certa in ki nds of acc idents -your safety belts are
always there to offer protection .
The side curtain airba g sy stem ba sically
consists of:
- The electronic control module and external s ide
impact senso rs
- The side curtain airbags above the w indows of
the outer seating positions with ejection miti­
gation feat ures
- The airbag indicator light in the instrument
panel
The airbag system is monitored electronically to make certain it is funct ion ing properly at all
times . Each time you turn on the ignit ion, the air­
bag system ind icator light will come on for a few
seconds (self d iagnost ics) .
Airb ag sys tem
The side curta in airbag is not activ ated:
- if the ignition is turned off
- in side co llisions whe n the acceleration meas-
ured by the sensor is too low
- in rear-end col lisions .
_&. WARNING
-Safe ty bel ts and the airbag system will only
provide pro tect ion when occupants are in
the proper seating position
¢ page 61,
Front seats.
- I f the airbag ind ic a tor light q page 33
comes when the veh icle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer. It is possib le that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed to, or w ill not inf late when it should.
How side curtain airbags work
Side curtain airbags con work together with side
airbags to help reduce the risk of head and upper
torso injuries for occupants who are properly re­
strained .
Fig. 228 Illustration of pr incip le: Inflated s ide curta in air­
bags o n the left s ide
The side curtain airbags inflate between the oc­
cupant and the w indows in a side collis ion
c> fig . 228 .
When the system is triggered, the side curtain
airbag is filled with propellant gas and breaks
through a seam above the front and rear side
windows identified by the AIRBAG label. In order
to help provide this additional protect ion, the
s ide curtain a irbag must inf late w ithi n the blink
of a n eye at very high speed and with g reat fo rce .
T he side c urtain airbag could injure you if yo ur
Ill>
275

Child safety
Important information
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision .
The physical principles of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash apply also to children
c:> page 246, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not fully
developed. In many respects children are at
greater r isk of serious injury in crashes than
adults .
Because children's bodies are not fu lly devel­
oped, they require restraint systems especially
designed for their size, weight , and body struc­
ture. Many countries and all states of the United
States and provinces of Canada have laws requir­
ing the use of approved child restraint systems
for infants and small children .
I n a frontal crash at a speed of 20-3 5 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13-pound
(6 kg) infant will be more than 20 times the
weight of the child . This means the weight of the
child would suddenly be more than 260 pounds (120 kg) . Under these conditions, only an appro­
priate child restraint properly used can reduce
the risk of serious injury . Child restra ints, like
adult safety belts, must be used properly to be
effect ive. Used improperly, they can increase the
risk of serious injury in an accident .
All ch ildren, especially those 12 years and young­
er must always ride in the back seat proper ly re­
strained for their age and size. If you must install
a child restraint on the front passenger seat in
exceptional circumstances, be sure to read and
heed the important information and warnings
c:>page 254. Infants and other children who are
properly restrained in an appropriate child re­
straint that is for their si ze and age can benefit
from the protection that supplemental side air-
<( ~ bags provide in some kinds of crashes.
N ,....
:=:: For more information please see information
0
3
provided by the:
Child safety
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), currently at: http :/ /www.safe ­
rcar.gov (for the USA)
- Transport Canada Information Centre, current-
ly at: http://www.tc .gc.ca (for Canada)
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's in­
structions in order to be sure the seat is right for
yo ur child's size
c:> page 281 , Important safety
instructions for using child safety seats .
Please
be sure to read and heed all of the important in­
formation and WARNINGS about child safety,
Advanced Airbags, and the installation of child
restra ints in this chapter .
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced Airbags in your vehicle and how they work
when infants and children in child restraints are on the front passenger seat . Because of the large
amount of important informat ion, we cannot re­
peat it all he re . We urge you to read the detailed
information in this owner's manual about airbags
and the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
and the very important information about trans­
porting children on the front passenger seat.
P lease be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they are
extremely important for your safety and the safe­
ty of your passengers, especially infants and
small children .
A WARNING
--Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seat ing pos ition. Always restrain
any child age 12 and under in the rear.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or imp roperly
rest rained 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 improperly restrained
child is also at greater risk of injury or death
through contact w ith an inflating a irbag.
- A suitable child restraint properly installed
and used at one of the rear seating positions
provides the h ighest degree of protection
for infants and small children in most acci­
dent situat ions .
277

Child safety
A WARNING
Children on the front seat of any car even with
Advanced Airbags can be seriously injured or even killed when an airbag inflates. A child in
a rearward-facing child safety seat installed
on the front passenger seat will be serious ly
injured and can be killed if the front a irbag in ­
flates .
- The inflating a irbag w ill 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, or
doo r.
- Always install rear-facing child safety seats
on the rear seat.
-If you must install a rearward fac ing ch ild
safety seat on the front passenger seat in
exceptional circumstances and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF~;
light does not come
on and stay on, immediately install the rear ­
facing child safety seat in a rear seating po­
sition and have the airbag system inspected
immediately by your Audi dealer.
A WARNING
- Forward-facing child seats installed on the
front passenger seat may interfere with the deployment of the a irbag and cause serious
personal injury to the child .
- If except ional circumstances require the use
of a forward -facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat , the child's safety
and well-being require the following special
precautions to be taken:
- Always make sure that the forward-facing
seat has been designed and certified by its
manufacturer for use on a front passenger
seat with a front and s ide a irbag.
-Always carefully follow the manufacturer's instructions provided with the child seat
or infant carrier.
- Never install a child restraint without a
properly attached top tether strap if the
child restraint manufacturer's instructions
require the top tether strap to be used.
278
-Never put the forward-fac ing child re­
straint up against or very near the instru­
ment panel.
- Always set the safety belt upper anchor­
age to the adjustment position that per­
mits proper installation in accordance
with the child restraint manufacturer's in ­
structions .
- Always move the front passenger seat to
the h ighest position in the up and down
adjustment range and move it back to the
r earmos t position in the seat's fore and
aft adjustment range, as far away from
the airbag as possible, before installing
the forward-facing child restraint.
- Always make s ure that the safety belt up­
per anchorage is behind the child restraint
and not next to or in front of the child re­
straint so that the safety belt wi ll be prop­
erly pos itioned.
- Always make sure that nothing prevents
the front passenger's seat from being
moved to the rearmost position in its fore
and aft adjustment range.
- Never place objects on the seat (such as a
laptop, CD player, electronic games de­
v ice, power inverter or seat heater for
ch ild seats). These may influence the elec­
trical capacitance measured by the capaci­
tive passenger detection system and can
also fly a round in an accident and cause
serious personal injury.
- Never place or use any elect rical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heat­
er for child seats) on the front passenger
seat if the device is connected to the 12-
vo lt socket or the cigarette lighter socket.
- If a seat heater has been retrofitted or
otherwise added to the front passenger
seat, never install any child restraint sys­
tem on this seat.
- Make sure that there are no wet objects
(such as a wet towel) and no water or oth­
er liquids on the front passenger seat
cush ion .
- Always make sure that the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF~;
light comes on and stays

-Take the chi ld restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
P ASS ENGER A IR
BA G OFF~;
light does not stay on .
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately .
The child seats listed in categories A to C have been statically tested by Audi only for the Ad­
vanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correc t use of child safety sea ts substan tially re­
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safety
of everybody in the vehicle, especially children:
~ Always use the right child safety seat for each
child and a lways use it properly~
page 283.
~ Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer 's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child safe­
ty seat .
~ When using the vehicle safety be lt to install a
child safety seat , you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety be lt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
¢ page 288.
~ Push the child safety seat down with your fu ll
weight to get the safety be lt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2.5 cm).
~ Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
¢ page 283 .
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always ride in the back seat properly re­
strained fo r their age and size.
_& WARNING
<(
~ Not using a ch ild safety seat, using the wrong
~ child safety seat or improper ly installing a
.... 0 0
3 Ch ild safety
child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestra ined or improperly
restrained child could be injured by striking
the inter ior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle dur ing a sudden maneuve r or impact .
An unrest rained or improperly restrained
child is a lso at greater r is k of injury or death
through contact w ith an inflating a irbag.
- Commerc ially availab le child safe ty seats
are requi red to comply with U.S . Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 213
(in Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restra int, select one
that fits your ch ild and the vehicle .
- Only use child restraint systems that fully
contact the flat portion of the seat cush­
ion. The ch ild restraint must not t ip or
lean to either side . Audi does not recom­
mend using child safety seats that rest on
legs or tube-like frames. They do not pro­
vide adequate contact with the seat.
- Always heed all lega l requirements per­
ta ining to the insta llation and use of child
safety seats and carefu lly follow the in­
structions provided by the manufacturer
of the seat you are using .
- Never a llow children under 57 inches
(1.45 mete rs) to wear a normal safety be lt.
They must a lways be restrained by a proper
child restraint system. Otherwise, they
could sustain injuries to the abdomen and
neck areas during sudden braking maneu­
vers or accidents .
- Never let more than one child occupy a child
safety seat.
- Never let babies or o lder children ride in a
vehicle while sitting on the lap of another
passenger .
- Holding a child in your arms is never a sub­
stitute for a chi ld restrain t system .
- The strongest person cou ld not ho ld the
ch ild with the forces that exist in an acci­
dent. The child will strike the interior of
the vehicle and can also be struck by the passenger.
28 1