child restraint AUDI S8 2016 User Guide

-The inflating airbag will hit the child seat or
infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door or roof .
- Always install rear-facing child seats on the
rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
exceptional circumstances and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immediately install the rear­
facing child seat in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer.
- Forward-facing child seats installed on the
front passenger's seat may interfere with
the deployment of the airbag and cause se­ rious personal injury to the child.
,&. WARNING ,..__ -
If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in­
stall a forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger's seat :
- Always make sure the forward -facing seat
has been designed and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forward-facing child restraint
up against or very near the instrument pan­
el.
-Always move the passenger seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fore and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air ­
bag as possible before installing the for­
ward-facing child restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to an upright position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
,&. WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious injury, make sure
that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light will
be displayed whenever a child restraint is in­
stalled on the front passenger seat and the
ignition is switched on.
Airbag system
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not stay on, perform the checks described
¢ page 156, 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
Audi dealer immediately.
- Always carefully follow instructions from
child restraint manufacturers when instal ­
ling child restraints .
,&. WARNING
-If, in exceptional circumstances, you must in-
stall a forward or rearward-facing child re­
straint on the front passenger's seat:
- Improper installation of child restraints can
reduce their effectiveness or even prevent
them from providing any protection.
-An improperly installed child restraint can
interfere with the airbag as it deploys and
seriously injure or even kill the child -even
with an Advanced Airbag System.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child seat or
carrier.
- Never place additional items on the seat
that can increase the total weight registered
by the weight-sensing mat and can cause in­
jury in a crash.
149

Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with Un ited States
F edera l Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208, as
well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
(CMVSS) 208 as applicable at the time your vehi­
cle was manufactured .
The front Advanced Airbag System supp lements
the safety belts to provide additional protection
for the driver's and front passenger's heads and upper bodies in frontal crashes . The airbags in­
f late only in frontal impacts when the veh icle de­
celeration is high enough.
The front Advanced Airbag System for the front
seat occupants is not a substitute for your safety be lts . Rather, it is part of the overall occupant re­
stra int system in your vehicle. Always remember
that the airbag system can on ly help to protect
you, if you are sitting upr ight, wear ing your safe­
ty belt and wear ing it prope rly. This is why you
and your passengers must always be prope rly re­
stra ined, not just beca use the law req uires yo u to
be .
The Advanced Airbag System in your veh icle has
been ce rtified to meet the "low r is k" requi re­
ments fo r 3 and 6 ye ar-old children o n the pas­
senger side and very sma ll adults on the drive r
side . The low risk dep loyment criteria are intend­
ed to help reduce the risk of injury through inter­
action with the front a irbag that can occur, for
examp le, by being too close to the steering wheel
and instrument panel when the airbag inflates .
In addition, the system has been certified to
comp ly with the "suppression" requirements of
the Safety Standard, to turn off the front a irbag
for i nfants 12 months old and younger who are
restrained on the front passenger seat in child re ­
stra ints that are listed in the Standa rd
¢ page 170, Child restraints and Advanced Air­
bags.
"Suppress ion" requ ires the front a irbag on the
passenger side to be turned off if:
- a ch ild up to about one year of age is restra ined
on the front passenger seat in one of the rear­
facing or forward-fac ing infant restra ints listed
Airb ag sys tem
in Federal Motor Veh icle Safety Standard 208
with which the Advanced Airbag System in your
veh icle was certif ied. For a List ing of the child
restraints that were used to certify your vehi­
cle's compliance with the US Safety Standard
¢page 170,
-weight less than a threshold level stored in the
control un it is detected on the front passenger
seat .
When a person is detected on the front passen­ ger seat, weighing more than the total weight of
a chi ld that is about
1 year old restra ined in one
of the rear-facing or forward-fac ing infant re ­
straints (listed in Federal Motor Veh icle Safety
Standard 208 with w hich the Advanced A irbag
System in your veh icle was certified), the front
airbag on the passenge r side may o r may not de­
ploy .
T he
PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht comes o n
whe n the elect ronic control uni t detects a tota l
weight on the fron t passenger sea t th at req uires
the front a irbag to be turned off . If the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on, the
front airbag on the passenger side has not been
turned off by the control unit and can dep loy if
the control unit senses an impact that meets the
condit ions stored in its memory .
If the total weight on the front passenger seat is
more than that of a typica l 1 year-old, but less
than the weight of a small adult, the front airbag
o n the passenger s ide may deploy (the
PAS SEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on) .
For example , the ai rb ag may deploy if :
- a small chi ld that is heav ier than a typ ica l 1
yea r-o ld child is on the front passenger seat
(regard less of whether the child is in one of the
child seats listed
¢ page 170),
- a child who has outgrown c hild restraints is on
the front passenger seat.
If the front passenge r a irbag is t urned off, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light in the center of
the instrument pane l wi ll come on and stay on .
T he front airbag on the passenger side m ay
not
deploy (the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not illuminate and stay lit) if: ..,.
151

Airbag syste m
-a small adu lt or teenager is on the front pas ­
senger seat
- a passenger who is not sitting upright with
their back against a non -reclined backrest with
their feet on the vehicle floor in front of the
seat is on the front passenger seat.
I f the front passenger airbag dep loys, the Feder ­
al Standard requires the airbag to meet the "low
risk" deployment criteria to help reduce the risk
of injury through interaction with the airbag.
"Low risk" deployment occurs in those crashes
that take place at lower decelerations as def ined
in the electronic control unit¢
page 156.
Alway s remember: Even though your vehicle is
equ ipped w ith Advanced Airbags, the safest place
for children is properly restrained on the back
seat . Please be sure to read the important infor­
mat ion in the sections that follow and be sure to
heed a ll of the WARN INGS.
A WARNING
To red uce the risk of inj ury when an ai rbag in­
fla tes, a lways wear safety bel ts p roperly.
- If you are unrestrained, leaning fo rwa rd, s it­
t ing s ideways or o ut of pos ition in any way,
yo ur risk of in jury is much h igher .
- Yo u will also re ceive 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 146.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing chi ld seat insta l­
led on the front passenger seat will be seri­
ously injured and can be k illed if the front air­
bag inflates -even with an Advanced Airbag
System.
- Although the Advanced A irbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the front
airbag when a rearward-facing child re­
straint has been installed on the front pas­
senger seat, nobody can absolutely g uaran­
tee that deployment is impossible in all con­
ceivable s ituations that may happen during
the usef ul life of your vehicle .
- The inflating a irbag w il l hit the child seat or
infant carrier w ith great force and will
152
-
smash the child seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door, or roof.
- Always install rearward-facing child re ­
straints on the rear seat.
- If you must install a rearward facing child
seat on the front passenge r seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immed iate ly install the rear­
facing chi ld seat in a rear seating posit ion
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea le r.
A WARNING
If, in exceptional ci rcums tances, you must in­
stall a forward-facing child restraint on the
fron t passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-fa cing sea t
has been des igned and certified by its man­
ufacturer for use on a front seat with a pas ­
senger front and side airbag.
- Never put the forwa rd-facing child restrain t
up against or very near the instr ument pan ­
el.
-Always move the passenge r seat into its
rearmost position in the seat's fo re and aft
adjustment range, as far away from the air­ bag as poss ible, before install ing the for­
ward-facing chi ld restraint. The backrest
must be adjusted to an upr ight position.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ign it ion is switched on.
Advanced Airbag System components
The front passenger seat in your veh icle has a lot
of very important parts of the Advanced A irbag
System i n it. These parts incl ude t he weight­
sens ing mat, senso rs, wir ing, bracke ts, and
more. The funct ion of the sys tem in the front
passenger seat is checked by the electronic con ­
tro l unit when the ignition is on . The control unit
monitors the Advanced Airbag System and turns
the airbag ind icator light on when a malfunction
i n the system components is detected. The func­
tion of the ai rbag ind icator light is described in
greater deta il be low. Because the front .,.

passenger seat contains important parts of the
Advanced Airbag System, you must take care to prevent it from being damaged . Damage to the
seat may prevent the Advanced A irbag for the
front passenger seat from doing its job in a
crash.
The f ront Ad vanced Airb ag Sy stem con sist s
of the follo wing :
-Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measure vehicle accelerat ion/decelerat io n to
provide information to the Advanced Airbag
System about the severity of the crash .
- An electronic control un it, with integrated
crash sensors for front and side impacts . The
contro l unit "decides" whethe r to fire the front
airbags based on the information received from
the crash sensors. The control unit also "de ­
cides" whether the safety be lt pretensioners
sho uld be activated.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
contro l valve for the driver inside the steering
whee l hub .
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
contro l valve inside the instrument pane l for
the front passenger.
- A weight -sensing mat under t he upho lstery
padding of the front passenger seat cushion
that measures the total weight on the seat . The
information registered is sent continuously to
the e lectron ic control unit to regulate deploy­
ment of the front Adva need A irbag on the pas ­
senger side.
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
light i n the instrument cluster
¢ page 156.
-A sensor in each front seat registers the dis­
tance between the respective seat and the
steering wheel or instrument panel. The infor­
mation reg istered is sent cont inuous ly to the
electronic control unit to regulate deployment
of the fro nt Adv a need A irbags.
- T he
PASS EN GE R AIR BAG OFF light comes on
and stays on in the center of the instrument
pane l
¢page 156, fig . 166 and tells you when
the fron t Advanced Airbag on the passenge r
side has been turned off.
- A se nsor below the safety bel t lat ch fo r th e
front seat passenger to meas ure the tens ion on
Airb ag sys tem
the sa fety belt. The tension on the safety belt
and the weight registered by the weight-sens­
ing mat help the contro l unit "decide" whether
the front airbag for the front passenger seat should be turned off or not¢
page 147, Child
restraints
on the front seat -some important
things to know.
- A sensor in the safety belt latch for the driver
and for the front seat passenger that senses
whether that safety belt is latched o r not and
t ransmits this information to t he electronic
cont rol un it.
_& WARNING
D amage to the front passenge r seat can pre­
vent the front airbag from working properly.
- Imp roper repair or disassembly of the fro nt
passenger and driver seat will p revent the
Advanced Airbag System from f unctioning
p roperly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must be
performed by qualified and p roperly trained
workshop personne l.
- Never remove the front passenge r or driver
seat from the vehicle.
- Never remove the upholstery from the front
passenger seat.
- Never disassemble o r remove par ts from the
seat o r disconnect w ires from it.
- Never carry sh arp objects in your pocke ts or
p lace them on the seat. If the weight-sens­
ing mat in the passenger seat is punctu red
it cannot work proper ly.
- Never carry things on your lap or carry ob­
jects on the passenge r seat. S uch items can
increase the weight reg istered by the
weight-sensing mat and send the wrong in­
formation to the a irbag control unit.
- Never store items under the front passenger
seat. Parts of the Advanced Airbag System
under the passenger seat could be dam­
aged, p reventing them and the airbag sys­
tem from working p roper ly.
- Never p lace seat covers or replacement up­
holstery that have not been specifically ap­
p roved by A udi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced A ir­
bag System from recognizing chi ld
153

Airbag syste m
restraints or occupants on the front passen­
ger seat and prevent the side airbag in the
seat backrest from deploying properly.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets or
similar items on the front passenger seat.
The additional padding will prevent the
weight-sens ing mat in the seat from accu­
rately reg istering the ch ild restraint or per­
son on the seat and prevent the Advanced
Airbag System from funct ioning prope rly.
- If you must use a child restraint on the front
passenge r seat and the child restraint man­
ufact urer's instructions require the use of a
towel, foam cushion or something else to properly position the chi ld restraint, make
certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG O FF
light comes on and stays on whenever the
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG O FF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in­
stall child restrai nt in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
you r Audi dealer.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the side
ai rbags supplement the protection offered by the
front three-point safety belts with pretensioners and load limiters and the adjustable head re ­
stra ints to help reduce the r isk of injury in a wide
range of accident and crash situations. Be sure to
read the important information about safety and heed the WARNINGS in th is chapter .
Deployment of the Advanced Airbag System and
the activation of the safety belt pretensioners de­ pend on the deceleration measured by the crash
sensors and registered by the electronic control
unit . Crash severity depends on speed and decel­
era tion as we ll as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object invo lved in the crash.
On the passenger s ide, regardless of safety belt
use, the a irbag will be t urned off if the weight on
the passenge r seat is less than the amount p ro­
g rammed in the e lectron ic cont rol unit . T he front
154
airbag on the passenger side will also be turned
off if one of the chi ld seats that has been certi­
fied under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 has been recognized on the seat. The
PA S­
S EN GER AIR BA G OFF
light comes on and stays
on to tell you when the front Advanced A irbag on
the passenger side has been turned off
¢ page 147, Child restraints on the front seat ­
some important things to know .
.&_ WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury when an airbag in­
f lates, always wear safety belts properly.
- I f you are unrestrained, leaning forward, sit­
ting sideways or ou t of position in any way,
your ris k of injury is much highe r.
- You will a lso receive ser ious injuries and
could even be killed if yo u are up against the
airbag or too close to i t when it inflates -
even with an Advanced Airbag
r::!;>page 146.
More important things to know about front
airbags
Fig. 165 Inflated front a irbags
-,... N 0 :i: ;;i;
Safety be lts are important to help keep front
seat occupants in the proper seated position so
that airbags can unfo ld properly and prov ide sup­
plemental protection in a fronta l co llision.
The front airbags a re designed to provide addi­
tional protection for the chest and face of the driver and the front seat passenger when:
- safety belts are worn properly,
- t he seats have been positioned so that t he oc-
cupant is properly seated as far as possib le
from the airbag,
Ill-

-and the head restraints have been properly ad -
justed.
Because airbags inflate in the blink of a n eye w ith
great for ce, things you have on you r lap or have
p laced on the seat cou ld become dangerous pro ­
jectiles, and be pushed into you if the airbag in ­
flates.
When an a irbag deploys, fine dust is released .
This is normal and is not caused by a fire in 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 remember that while the sup­
p lemental airbag system is designed to reduce
the likelihood of ser ious injuries, other inj uries,
for example swell ing, bruising and minor abra­
sions, 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 only in some frontal collisions
i n which the veh icle decelerat ion is high enough
to deploy the airbags.
F ront airbags will not deploy:
- if the ignit ion is switched off when a crash oc -
curs,
- in s ide collisions,
- in rear-end collisions,
- in rollovers,
- when the crash decelerat ion measured by the
airbag system is less than the minimum thresh­
o ld needed for airbag deployment as registered
by the electronic contro l unit .
Th e front passeng er airbag also will not
deplo y:
- when the front passenger seat is not occupied,
- when the weight on the front passenger seat as
sensed by the Advanced Airbag System indi­
cates that the front airbag on the passenger
s ide has to be turned off by the electronic con­
trol unit (the
P A SSENGER AIR B AG OFF light
comes on and stays on).
A WARNING
Sitting in the wrong pos ition can increase the
r isk of se rious injury in c rashes.
Airb ag sys tem
-To reduce the risk of injury when the ai rbags
inflate, the driver and passengers must al­
ways sit in an upright posit ion, must not
lean aga inst or place any part of their body
too close to the area where the airbags are located.
- Occupants who are unbelted, out of posit ion
or too close to the airbag can be seriously in jur ed by an airbag as it unfolds with g reat
for ce in the blink of an eye
Q page 147.
A WARNING
A child in a rearward-facing child seat instal­
l ed on the front passenger seat will be se ri­
ously injured and can be killed if the front air ­
bag inflates - even with an Advanced Airbag
System .
- The inflating airbag will hit the child seat or infant carrier with great force and will
smash the child seat and child against the backrest, center armrest, door or roof.
- Always install rear-fac ing child seats on the
rear seat.
- If you must install a rea rward facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not come on
and stay on, immed iate ly install the rear­
faci ng chi ld seat in a rear seating posit ion
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Aud i dea le r.
A WARNING
-
-
Objects between yo u and the airbag will in­
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer­ i ng with the way the airbag unfolds or by be­
ing pushed into you as the airbag inflates .
- Never hold things in yo ur hands or on your
lap when the veh icle is in use .
- Never transport items on or in the a rea of
the front passenger seat . Obje cts could
move into the a rea of the front airbags dur­
ing b raking or other s udden maneuvers and
become dangerous projectiles that can
cause serious persona l injury if the airbags
inflate.
155

The PASSENGER AIR BAG O FF light is located in
the center of the instrument panel
¢ fig. 166 .
The PASS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light will come on
and stay on to tell you when the front Advanced
Airbag on the passenger side has been turned off
by the electronic control unit . Each time you
sw itch on the ignition, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OF F
light will flash for a few seconds and :
- will stay on if the front passenger seat is not
occupied,
- will stay on if the re is a sma ll child or child re­
straint on the front passenger seat,
- wi ll go out if the front passenger seat is occu ­
pied by an adult as registered by the weight­
sensing mat.
The
PA SSENGER AIR BAG O FF light mu st co me
o n and st ay on
if the igni tion is on and
- a car bed has been insta lled on the front seat,
o r
- a rearward-facing child restrai nt has been in­
stalled on the front passenger seat , or
- a forward-facing child restra int has been instal ­
led on the front passenger seat, or
- the weight reg istered on the front passenger
seat is equal to or less than the combined
weight of a typical 1 year-o ld restrained in one
of the rear-facing or forward-fac ing infant re­
straints listed in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 208 w ith which the Advanced A irbag
System in your vehicle was certified.
I f the front passenger seat is no t occupied, the
fron t air bag w ill not deploy, and the
PASSENGER
AIR BAG OFF
light will stay on . Never install a
rearward -fac ing child restraint on the front pas ­
senger seat, the safest p lace for a child in any
kind of child restraint is at one of the seating po­
sitions on the rear seat
¢page 147, Child re­
straints on the front seat -some important
things to know
and ¢ page 168, Child safety .
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes on
when one of the conditions listed above is met,
be sure to check the light regularly to make cer­
tain that the
PAS SENGER AIR BA G OFF light
stays on cont inuously whenever the ign ition is
on. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
Airb ag sys tem
not appear on and does not stay on a ll the time,
stop as soon as it is safe to do so and
- react ivate the system by sw itch ing the ig nition
off and then switching it on aga in;
- remove and re insta ll the chi ld restraint. Make
sure that the chi ld restraint is properly insta l­
led and that the safety belt for the front pas­
senger seat has bee n correct ly routed through
the child restraint as desc ribed in the c hild re­
straint manufacturer's instruct ions;
- make sure that the convertible locking retrac­
tor on the safety belt for the front passenger
seat has been activated and that the safety belt has been pulled tight. The belt must not be
loose or have loops of slack so that the sensor
below the safety belt latch on the seat can do
its job
¢ page 177 .
-make sure that th ings that may increase the
weight of the child and ch ild seat are not being
transpo rted o n the front passenge r seat;
- make sure that the safety belt tens ion sensor is
not b locked . Shake the safety belt la tch on the
front passenger seatback and fo rth;
- If a strap or tether is being used to tie the child
seat to the front passenger seat, make su re
t ha t it is not so tight that it causes the weight­
sensing mat to measure more weight than is
ac tually on the seat.
If th e PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still doe s
not come on
and does not stay on continuously
(whe n the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passenger
seat and install it p roper ly at one of the rear
seat pos itions . Have the airbag system inspect­
ed by yo ur Audi dealer immed iate ly.
- move the child to a rear seat pos ition and ma ke
sure that t he chi ld is proper ly rest rained in a
child restra int that is appropr iate for its s ize
and age .
T he
PAS SENGER AIR BAG OFF light should NOT
come on when the ignit io n is on and an adu lt is
s itting in a proper seat ing pos ition on the front
passenge r seat. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
5 seconds whi le dr iv ing, under these c ircumstan-
ces, make sure that :
Ill-
157

Airbag syste m
-the adu lt on the front passenger seat is proper ­
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his or her back up against the backrest and the
backrest is not reclined
c> page 130, Correc t
passenger seating positions,
- the adu lt is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the fron t passenger door or supporting
their we ight on the armrest,
- the safety bel t is being properly worn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety belt web­
bing,
- accessory seat covers or cushions or other
th ings that may cause an incorrect read ing or
impression on the weight-sensing mat under
the upho lstery of the seat have been removed
from the front passenge r seat,
- a safety be lt extender has not been left in the
safety belt latc h for the front passenge r seat.
In addition to the
PA SSE NGER AIR BAG OFF
light in the center of the instrument panel, the
message
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF or PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG ON
w ill briefly appear in the inst ru­
ment cluster display . T his is to inform the driver
of the current front passenger airbag status.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not funct ion ing prop­
er ly cannot p rovide supplemental p rotection
in a frontal crash .
- If the airbag indicato r light
r=>page 18
comes when the vehicle is be ing used, h ave
the system inspected immediate ly by yo ur
authorized Aud i dealer . It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not s up­
posed to, or will not inflate when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a child without a
child restraint, or in a rearward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-facing child re­
straint that has not been properly installed
w ill be seriously injured and can be killed .
158
-Even tho ugh your vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that a ll children, espec ia lly 12 years and
younger, always ride on the back seat prop­
erly restrained for their age and s ize.
- Always install forward or rear-facing child
seats on the rear seat -even w ith an Ad­
vanced Airbag System .
- If you must install a rearward-facing child
seat o n the front passenge r seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN­
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and
s tay on, immediate ly ins tall the re ar-fa cing
child sea t in a rear seat ing pos ition and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
dea ler.
- A t ight tether or other s trap on a rearward­
facing chi ld restraint attached to the front
passenger seat can put too much pressure
on the weight-sensing mat in the seat and
register more weight than is actually on the
seat . The heavier weight registered can
make the system work as thoug h an adu lt
were on the seat and deploy the Advanced
Airbag when it must be suppressed causing
serious or even f atal injury to the child .
- If, in exceptional circumstances, you must
install a forward-fa cing child res traint on
the front p assenge r seat, always move the
seat into i ts rearmost posi tion in the sea t's
fore and aft ad justment range, as far away
from the ai rbag as possible . The back rest
must be adjusted to an upr ight position .
Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF
li ght comes on and stays on all the time
wheneve r the ignit ion 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 afte r taking the steps
described above, make s ure the adult is
p roper ly sea ted and restra ined at one o f the
rear sea ting posit ions .
- Have the ai rbag system inspec ted by your
Aud i dea le r before tr anspor ting anyone on
the front passenge r seat .

Airbag syste m
airbags have dep loyed . The airbags also inflate
with a great deal of force and it is important for
occupant safety that noth ing shou ld be in their
way when they deploy.
F u lly inflated airbags in combination with proper ­
ly worn safety belts slow down and limit the oc­
cupant's forward movement and he lp to reduce
the risk of injury.
Important safety instructions on the knee
airbag system
Airbags ore only supplemental restraints. Always
wear safety belts correctly and ride in a proper
seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
know and do to help the safety belts and airbags
to provide supplemental protection .
A WARNING
An inflating knee airbag can cause ser ious in­
jury. Wea ring safety belts incor rect ly and im­
proper seating pos it ions increase the r isk of
ser ious persona l injury and dea th whenever a
vehicle is being used.
- T he knee airbag system cannot protec t you
properly if you are seated too close to any o f
the airbag locatio ns. When adjusting their
seat positions, it is important that both the
dr iver and the front passenger keep their
upper bod ies and knees at the following
minimum safe distances:
- at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
chest and the s teer ing whee l/instrumen t
panel.
- at least 4 inches (10 cm) between the
knees and the lower part of the i nstru­
ment panel.
- The r isk of persona l injury inc reases if you
lean forward or to the s ide, or if the seat is
imp roperly positioned and yo u are not wear­
ing yo ur safety belt. The risk increases even
more should the a irbag deploy.
- Always make sure that the knee airbag can
inflate without interference. Objects be­
tween you and the airbag can increase the risk of injury in an accident by interfering
162
w it h the way the airbag deploys or by being
pushed into yo u as the a irbag deploys.
- Neve r let anybody, especia lly childre n or
anima ls ride in the footwell in front of the
passenger seat.
If the airbag de ploys, this
can result in serious or fa tal in juries.
- Never ca rry objects of any kind in the foot­
well a rea in front of the driver's or pas­
senger's seat . Bul ky objects (shopp ing
bags, for example) can interfere with or
prevent proper dep loyment of the airbag .
Small objects can be thrown through the
vehicle if the airbag deploys a nd injure you
or your passengers.
- Make sure there are no cracks, deep scratch­
es or other damage in the area of the instru­
ment panel where the knee airbags are lo­
cated .
- If ch ildren are i ncorrectly seated, their risk
of injury increases in a col lision
c::> page 168, Child safety .
Side airbags
Description of side airbags
The airbag system con provide supplemental
protection to properly restrained occupants .
Fig. 169 S id e airbag location in the driver's seat
The side airbags are located in the s ides of the
front seat backrests<=>
fig. 169 and the rear back­
rest facing the doors . They are identified by the
word "AIRBAG" .
The side airbag sy stem bas ically consi st s of:
- the electronic control module and external side
impact sensors

Airbag syste m
How supplemental side airbags work
Side airbags deploy instantly and can help re­
duce the risk of upper torso injuries for occu­
pants who are properly restrained .
Fig . 1 70 In fla ted side airbags o n lef t s ide of vehicle , rear
side a irbag
When the system is triggered, the a irbag is filled
with propellant gas and breaks through a seam in
the seat surface area ma rked "AIRBAG". It ex ­
pands between the side trim pane l and the pas­
senger. In order to help provide th is additiona l
protection, the side ai rbag must inflate within a
fraction of a second at very h igh speed and with
great force . The supplementa l side airbag could
injure you if your seating position is not proper or
upright or if items are located in the area where
the supplemental side airbag expands . This ap ­
plies especially to children
~ page 168, Child
safety .
Supplemental side a irbags inflate be­
tween the occupant and the door pane l on the
side of the vehicle that is struck in certa in side
coll is ion
~ fig. 170.
A lthough they are not a soft pillow, they can
"cushion" the impact and in th is way they can
help to reduce the risk of injury to the uppe r part
of the body .
A fine dust may develop when the airbag deploys .
This is normal and does not mean there is a fire
in the vehicle .
164
Important safety instructions on the side
airbag system
Airbags are only supplemental restraints . Always
properly wear safety belts and ride in a proper
seating position .
There is a lot that you and your passengers must
k now and act according ly to help the safety belts
and airbags do their job to prov ide supplemental
protect ion .
_& WARNING
An inflating side airbag can cause serious or
fatal injury. Improperly wearing safety be lts
and improper seating posit ions increase the
risk of serious persona l injury and death
whenever a vehicle is being used.
- In order to reduce the risk of injury when
the supplemental side airbag inflates:
- Always s it in an upr ight position and never
l ean agains t the area where the supple­
mental s ide airbag is located .
- Never let a child or anyo ne e lse rest their
head against the side tr im panel in the
area where the s upplementa l side airbag
inflates .
- Always make s ure t hat safety belts are
worn correctly,
- Do no t let anyone s itting in the front seat
p ut their hand or any other parts of their
body out of the window.
- 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 bee n specifical ly approved by
A udi .
- Never use additional seat cushions that
cover the areas where the side airbags de­ ploy.
- Damage to the orig inal seat cove rs or to
the seam in the area of the s ide airbag
module must a lways be repaired immedi­
ate ly by an autho rized Aud i dealer .
-
-Objects between you and the a irbag can in­
crease the r isk of injury in an acc iden t by in­
t erfering wi th the way the airbag unfolds or
~