weight AUDI S8 2016 Owner's Manual

Child safety
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
¢ page 139, 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
g reater r isk of serious injury in crashes than
adults .
Because children's bodies are not fully devel­
oped, they require restraint systems especially
des igned 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 20-35 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
adu lt safety belts, must be used properly to be
effect ive. Used improperly, they can increase the
risk of serious injury in an acc ident.
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's in­
structions in order to be sure the seat is right for
your child's size¢
page 171, Important safety
instructions for using child safety seats .
Please
be sure to read and heed all of the impo rtant in­
formation and WARNINGS about child safety,
Advanced Airbags, and the installation of child
restraints 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 information, we cannot re-
168 peat it all here.
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.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS - they are
extremely importa nt for your safety and the safe­
ty of your passengers, especia lly infants and
small chi ldren.
.&_ WARNING
- Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seating position. 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 improperly
restrained child cou ld be injured by striking
the inter ior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is a lso at greater r isk of injury or death
through contact w ith an inf lating airbag.
- A suitable ch ild restraint properly installed
and used at one of the rear seating positions
provides the highest degree of pro tect ion
for infants and small children in most acci­
dent sit uations.
.&_ 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 chi ld safety seat installed
on the front passenger seat will be seriously injured and can be killed if the front airbag in­
flates.
- The inflating airbag will hit the child safety
seat or infant carr ier with great force and
w ill smash the child safety seat and child
aga inst the backrest , center armrest, or
door.
- 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 in

exceptional circumstances and the
PASS ENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iately install
the rear-fac ing ch ild safety seat in a rear
seating pos it ion and have the airbag system
inspected immediately by your Audi dealer .
A WARNING
If, in exceptio nal circumstances, you must in­
stall a forward-facing chi ld restraint on the
front passenger's seat:
- Always make sure the forward-fac ing seat
has been designed and ce rtified by its man­
ufact urer fo r use on a front seat with a pas­
senger front and side airbag .
- Always follow the manufact urer's instruc­
tions prov ided with the ch ild safety seat or
carrier.
- 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 possib le before installing the child
restraint. The backrest must be adjusted to
an upr ight position.
- Always make sure that the
PA SSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on all the
t ime whenever the ignition is switched on.
{D) Tips
Always replace chi ld restraints that were in­
stalled in a vehicle dur ing a crash . Damage to
a child restraint that is not visible could cause
it to fail in another collision situation.
Advanced front airbag system and children
Your veh icle is equipped with a front "Advanced
Airbag System " in compliance w ith United States
F edera l Moto r Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS)
208, as well as Canada Motor Ve hicle Safe ty
Stand ard (CMVSS) 208 as appli cable at the t ime
your vehicle was manufactured .
The Advanced Airbag system in your ve hicle has
been ce rtified to meet the "low-risk " requ ire­
ments for 3 -and 6-year old children on the pas­
senger side and small adults on the driver side .
The low risk deployment criteria are intended to
Ch ild safety
reduce the risk of injury through interaction with
the airbag that can occur, for example, by being
too close to the steering wheel and instr ument
panel when the airbag inflates. In addition, the
system has been cert ified to comply with the
"suppression" requirements of the Safety Stand ­
ard, to turn off the front airbag for infants up to
12 months who are restrained on the front pas­
senger seat in ch ild rest raints that are lis ted in
the S tanda rd .
Even thoug h your veh icle is equipped with an Ad­
vanced Airbag system, all ch ildren, especially
those 12 yea rs and younger, sho uld a lways ride
i n the back seat properly restra ined for their age
and size . The airbag on the passenger side makes
the front seat a potentia lly dangerous p lace for a
child to ride. The front seat is not the safest place
for a ch ild in a forward-fac ing ch ild safety seat. It
can be a very dangerous place for an infant or a
larger ch ild in a rearward-facing seat .
Advanced Airbags and the weight -sensing
mat in the front seat
T he Advanced A irbag System in you r vehicle de­
tects the presence of a n in fan t or child in a ch ild
restra int on the front passenger seat using the
weight-sensing mat in the seat cushion and the sensor below the safety belt latch on the front
passenger seat that measures the tension on the
safety belt.
The weight-sensing mat measures total weight
of the child and the chi ld safety seat and a child
blanket on the front passenger seat. The weight
on the front passenger seat is related to the de­
s ign of the child restra int and its "footprint" , the
s ize and shape of the bottom of the c hild re ­
straint as it s its on the seat. The weight of a chi ld
r estra int and its "footprint " va ry for different
k inds of child restra ints and for the different
models of the same kind of ch ild rest raint of ­
fered by child restraint manufacturers.
T he weight ranges for the individ ual types,
makes and mode ls of chi ld restrain ts that the
N HT SA has spec ified in the Safety Standard to­
gether with the weight ranges o f typical infants
and typical 1 year-old chi ld have been stored in .,.
169

Child safet y
the control unit of the Advanced Ai rbag System.
When a chi ld restraint is being used on the front
passenger seat with a typical 1 year-old child, the
Advanced Airbag System compares the we ight
measured by the weight sensing mat with the in­
formation stored in the electronic control unit.
The electronic cont rol un it also registers the ten­
sion on the front passenger safety belt. The ten­
sion on the safety belt for the front passenger
seat will be d ifferent fo r an adult who is properly
using the safety belt as compared to the tension
on the belt when it is used to attach a ch ild re­
stra int to the seat. The senso r below the la tch fo r
the safety belt for the fro nt sea t passe nger
meas ures the tens io n on the belt. The inp ut from
this sensor is then used with the weight to "de­
cide", whether there is a child restraint with a
typical 1 year-old child on the front passenger
seat and whethe r or not the a irbag must be
turned off.
Child restraints and Advanced Airbags
Regardless of the child restra int tha t you use,
make sure that it has been cert ified to meet Safe­
ty Standa rds and has been certified by its manu­
facturer for u se wi th an a irb ag. Always be sure
t ha t th e chi ld res tra in t i s properly insta lled at
one o f th e rear seating posit ions . If i n excep tion ­
a l ci rcumstances yo u must use it on the front
passenger seat, carefully read all of the informa­
tion on child safety and Advanced Airbags and heed a ll of the app licab le WARNINGS. Make cer­
tain that the child restra int is correctly recog­
n ized by the we ight-sens ing mat inside the front
passenger seat, that t he fron t passenger a irbag
is tu rned off and tha t the airbag status is a lways
cor rect ly signa led by the
PASSENGER AIR BAG
OFF ligh t.
M any types and models of c hild rest rai nts have
been available ove r th e yea rs, new models are in­
t roduced regularly incorporat ing new and im ­
p roved designs and o lder mode ls are taken o ut o f
p roduction . Chi ld restraints a re not standardized .
Ch ild rest raints of the same type typica lly have
d ifferent weights and s izes and d ifferent 'foot­
prints, ' the size and shape of the bottom of the
chi ld restraint that s its on the seat, when they
170
are ins talled on a vehicle seat . These d ifferences
make it virtua lly impossib le to certify compliance
with the requirements for advanced a irbags w ith
each and every child restra int that has eve r been
sold in the past or will be so ld over the course of
the usefu l life of your vehicle.
Fo r thi s reason, the United States Nationa l H igh­
way Traffic Safety Administration has published a li st of specific type, makes and mode ls of ch ild
r estra ints that must be used to certify compli­
ance of the Advanced Airbag System in your ve hi­
cle w ith the s uppress ion requirements of Federa l
Motor Ve hicl e Safety Standa rd 208. These child
r es trai nts are:
Subpart A - Car bed child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Angel Guard Angel Septe mber 25, 2 007
R ide AA2 403FO F
Subpart B - Rear-facing child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
Cent ury SmartFi t 454 3 Decembe r 1, 1999
Cosco Arriva September 25, 2007
22-013PAW and base
22- 999WHO
Evenf lo Discove ry Ad -December 1, 1999
just R ight 212
E venflo First Choi ce Decembe r 1, 1999
2 04
Graco I nfant 8457 December 1, 1999
Graco Snugr ide September 25, 20 07
Peg Perego Primo Viag- September 25, 2007
g io SIP I MUNOOUS
Subpart C -Forward-facing and convertible
child restraints
Model Manufactured on or
after
B rit a x Roun dabo ut September 25, 200 7
E 9 L02xx
Cosco Touriva 02519 December 1, 1999

Model Manufactured on or
after
Cosco Summit Deluxe September 25, 2007
High Back Booster
22-262
Cosco High Back Boos -
September 25, 200 7
ter 22-209
Evenflo Tr ibute V September 25, 2007
379xxxx
Evenflo Medallion 254 December 1, 1999
Evenflo Generations September 25, 2007
352xxxx
Graco ComfortSport September 25, 2007
Graco Toddler Safety September 25, 2007
Seat Step 2
Graco Platinum Cargo September 25, 2007
.&, WARNING
To reduce the risk of serious inju ry, make sure
that the
PA SSEN GER AIR BAG OFF light
comes on and stays on whenever a child re ­
straint is installed on the front passenger seat
and the ignition is switched on.
- Take the child restraint off the front passen ­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
P A SSEN GER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
(D Tips
The chi ld 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
Correct use of child safety seats substantially re­
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safety
of everybody in the veh icle, especially children:
.,. Always use the right chi ld safety seat for each
child and a lways use it properly
q page 173.
Child safety
.,. Always carefully follow the chi ld safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the ch ild safe ­
ty seat.
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the chi ld safety seat from moving
q page 177.
.,. Push the ch ild safety sea t down with yo ur full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2.5 cm).
.,. 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
weight -sensing mat to measure more weight
than is actually on the seat .
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
q page 173.
Always remember: Even though your veh icle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
c hi ldren, especia lly t hose 12 yea rs and younger,
sho uld a lways ride in th e back seat p roper ly re·
strained for their age and s ize.
A WARNING
=
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
chi ld safety seat or improperly insta lling a
chi ld restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must always be restrained properly whenev­
er riding in a vehicle.
- An unrestra ined o r improperly restrained
c hi ld can be injured o r killed by being
thrown aga inst the inside of the veh icle or
by being ejected from it during a sudden
maneuver or impact.
- An unrestra ined or improperly restrained
child is at much greater risk of injury or
death by being struck by an inflating air­ bag.
- Commercially availab le child safety seats
are requi red to comply with U .S. Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 213
(in Canada CMVSS 213). ..,_
17 1

-Take the child restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASS ENGER A IR
B AG O FF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
F ig . 173 Schemat ic overv iew: keep unused s-afety belts
away from children in c hild safety seats.@· oute r rear
sa fety belt,
@ -center rear safety belt
If a chi ld safety seat is used on the rear bench,
especia lly with LA TCH universal lower anchorag­
es, the unused safety belts
mu st be secured so
that the child in the chi ld restraint cannot reach
them
c::> ,& .
-Guide the safety belt webbing behind the head
restraint of the adjacent seat
c::>fig . 173. When
doing so, do not engage the convertible locking
retractor! You should not hear a "clicking"
sound when winding up the safety belt.
- Let the belt retractor wind up the safety belt
webbing .
A WARNING
A child in a child safety seat installed with the
LATC H l ower anchorages or with the standard
safety belt or a child in a booste r seat on the
rear sea t could play with unused rear seat
safety belts and become entangled. This
co uld cause the chi ld serious personal injury
and even death .
- Always secure unused rear seat safety belts out of reach of ch ild ren in child seats such
as by properly routing them around the
head restraint of the seat where the child
restra int is installed.
Ch ild sa fety
- Never activate the convertible lock ing re­
tractor when rout ing the safety belts around
the head restraints.
- Never let anyone sit at the center rear seat­
ing position if the center rear safety belt has
been routed around a rear head restraint.
Child seats
Infant seats
Babies and infants up to about one year old and
20 lbs. or
9 kg need special rearward-facing
child restraints that support the back, neck and
head in a crash.
F ig. 174 Sc hematic overview : rearward-facing in fant seat ,
properly installed o n th e rear seat
... When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat, you must first activate the
convertib le locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
c::> page 177 or insta ll the seat using the LATCH
attachments.
... Push the child safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt 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
c::> page 173.
Infants up to about one year (20 lbs. or 9 kg) are
best protected in special infant carriers and child
safety seats designed for the ir age group. Many
expe rts be lieve that infa nts and small chi ldren
shou ld ride only in special restraints in which the
child faces the back of the vehicle. These infant
seats support the baby's back, neck and head in a
crash
c::> fig . 174. ...,
173

Toddlers and children who are older than one
year up to about 4 years o ld and weigh mor e than
20 lbs (9 kg) up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) must always be
properly restrained in a child safety seat certified
for their si ze and weight¢
fig. 175 and
¢fig. 176 .
The airbag on the passenger side makes the front
seat a potentially dangerous p lace for a child to
ride . The front sea t is not the safest place for a
child in a forward-facing child safety seat .
It is a
very dangerous place for an infa nt or a larger
child in a rearward-facing seat .
A WARNING
Not using a child safety seat , using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death in a collision or oth ­
er emergency situation.
- Children on the front seat of any car, even with Advanced Airbags, can be seriously in­
jured or even killed when an airbag inf lates.
A ch ild 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 Ad­
vanced Airbag System .
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the ch ild safety seat and chi ld
against the bac krest, center arm rest , door
or roof.
- 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 be­
cause of exceptiona l circumstances and the
PA SSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does not
come on and stay on, immed iate ly install
the rear-facing child safety seat in a rear
seating position and have the airbag system
inspected by your Audi dealer.
- The rear side of the child safety seat should
be pos it ioned as close as poss ible to the
backrest on the vehicle seat. Adjust the rear
seat head restraint if it is diff icult to install
the ch ild seat with the head restraint in
Ch ild safety
place ¢ page 132. Driving with head re­
stra ints that are not properly adjusted in­
creases the risk of serious or fatal neck in­
jury dramat ically .
- Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever us ing a child restrained in a vehicle is
be ing used
c> page 138, Safety belts,
¢ page 146, Airbag system and
¢ page 168, Important information.
A WARNING
If exceptional c ircumstances req uire the use
of a forward-facing ch ild restraint on the
front passenger's seat, the child 's sa fe ty and
well -being req uire that the following special
precautions be taken:
- Make sure the forward-fac ing seat has been
designed and certified by its manufacturer
for use on a front seat with a passenger
front and side airbag.
- Always follow the manufacturer's instr uc­
tions provided with the child safety seat or
infant carrier.
- Always move the front passenger seat into
the rearmost pos ition of the passenger
seat's fore and aft adjustment range, and as
far away from the airbag as possib le before
installing the ch ild restraint .
- Always make sure that nothing prevents the
front passenger's seat from being moved to
the rearmost pos ition in its fore and aft ad­
justment range .
- Always make sure the backrest is in an up ­
right position .
- Make sure that the
PAS SENGER AIR B AG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignit ion is switched on.
- If the light does not stay on, perform the
checks ¢
page 156, Monitoring the Ad­
vanced Airbag System .
-Take the child restra int off the front passen ­
ger seat and install it prope rly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PA SSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does no t stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
175

Child safety
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs . and 80
lbs. (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9
in. (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall .
Fig. 177 Rear seat: ch ild proper ly restrained in a booster
seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit most
children until they are at least 4
ft . 9 in. (57 in­
ches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about 80 lbs.
(36 kg). Booster seats raise these chi ld ren up so
that the safety belt will pass properly
over the
stronger parts of their bodies and the safety belt
can help protect them in a crash.
• Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to restrain
a chi ld on a booster seat.
• The shoulder be lt must lie as close to the cen­
ter of the child's collar bone as possible and
must lie flat and snug on the upper body. It
must never lie across the throat or neck. The
lap belt must lie across the pelv is and never
across the stomach or abdomen . Make sure the
belt lies flat and snug. Pull on the belt to tight­
en if necessary .
• If you must transport an older child in a boos­
te r seat on the front passenger seat, you can
use the safety belt height adjustment to help
adjust the shoulder portion properly .
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c> page 173.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs or
18 kg) are best protected in child safety seats de­
signed for their age and weight. Experts say that
the skeletal structure, particularly the pelvis, of
these children is not fully developed, and they
176
must not use the vehicle safety belts without a
suitable child restraint .
It is usually best to put these children in appro­
priate booste r seats. Be sure the booster seat
meets all applicab le safety standards.
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass across
the child's body in the right places. The routing of
the be lt
over the chi ld's body is very important
for the child's protection, whether or not a boos­
ter seat is used. Children age 12 and under m ust
always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inches/
1.45 meters) ta ll can generally use the vehicle 's
three point lap and shoulder belts. Never use the
lap belt portion of the vehicle's safety belt alone
to restrain any child, regard less of how big the
c hi ld is. Always remember that children do not
have the p ronounced pelvic structure required for
the proper function of lap belt portion of the
ve­
hicle's three point lap and shoulder belts. The
c hi ld's safety absolutely requ ires that a lap belt
portion of the safety belt be fastened snugly and
as low as possible around the pe lvis. Never let
the lap belt portion of the safety belt pass over
the child's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink of
an eye and with considerab le force . In order to do
i ts job, the airbag needs room to inflate so that it
will be there to protect the occupant as the occu­
pant
moves forward into the airbag.
A ve hicle occupant who is out of position and too
close to the a irbag gets in the way of an inflating
airbag. When an occupant is too close, he or she
will be struck violently and will receive serious or
possibly even fatal injury .
In order for the a irbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especially
any ch ildren, who must be in the front seat be­
cause of exceptional c ircumstances, be properly
re stra ined and as far away from the a irbag as
possible. By keeping room between the child's .,..

Child safety
-Always make sure that the safety belt re­
tractor is locked when installing a child
safety seat. An unlocked safety belt retrac­
tor cannot hold the child safety seat in place during normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firmly in
place even if a child is not sitting in it . A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a collision.
- Always make sure that the rear seat back­
rest to which the center rear safety belt is
attached is securely latched whenever the
rear center safety belt is being used to se­
cure a child restraint .
- If the backrest is not securely latched, the
child and the child restraint will be thrown
forward together with the backrest and will
strike parts of the vehicle interior. The child
can be seriously injured or killed.
- Never install rear-facing child safety seats or infant carriers on the front passenger
seat. A child will be seriously injured and can be killed when the passenger airbag in­
flates.
- 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
or infant carriers on the rear seat .
- Forward-facing child safety seats or infant
carriers installed on the front passenger's
seat may interfere with the deployment of
the airbag and cause serious injury to the
child.
- It is safer to install a forward-facing child
safety seat on the rear seat.
-Always read and heed all WARNINGS when­
ever using a child restrained in a vehicle is
being used ¢
page 168. Special precautions
apply when installing a child safety seat on
the front passenger seat¢
page 147, Child
restraints on the front seat- some impor­
tant things to know.
178
A WARNING , .
Always take special precautions if you must
install a forward or rearward-facing child re­
straint on the front passenger's seat in excep­
tional situations:
- Whenever a forward or rearward-facing child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light must come on and stay on whenever
the ignition is switched on.
- If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, perform the
checks described¢
page 156, Monitoring
the Advanced Airbag 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 whenever
the ignition is switched on.
- 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.
- Always carefully follow the manufacturer's
instructions provided with the child safety
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.
A WARNING
Forward-facing child restraints:
- 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 posit ion .
- Make sure that the
PAS SEN GER AIR BAG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on .
A WARNING
Rearward-facing child restraints:
- 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 Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- The inflating a irbag w ill hit the child safety
seat or infant carrier with great force and
will smash the ch ild safety seat and chi ld
against the backrest, center armrest, door
or roof.
- Always be especially careful if you must in­
stall a rearward facing child safety seat on
the front passenger seat in exceptional cir­
cumstances.
- A tight tether strap on a rearward-facing
child restraint attached to the front passen­
ger seat can put too much pressure on the
weight-mat in the seat and register a heavi ­
er weight in the Advanced Airbag System .
The heavier weight registered can make the system work as though an adult were on the
seat and deploy the Advanced Airbag when
it must be suppressed causing serious or
even fatal injury to the child.
- Make sure that the
PASSENGER AIR B AG
OFF
light comes on and stays on all the time
whenever the ignition is switched on.
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in­
sta ll the rear-fac ing ch ild safety sea t in a
rear seating position and have the airbag
system inspected by your Audi dealer.
Ch ild safety
Activating the convertible locking retractor
Use the convertible locking retractor to secure a
child restraint .
Always heed the child sa fety seat manuf actu rer 's
ins truc tions when ins talling a child restraint in
your vehicle . To activate the convertible locking
retractor:
.. Place the child rest raint on a seat, prefe rably
on the rear sea t.
.. Slowly pull the belt
all the w ay out .
.. Route it around or through the child restra int
be lt path ¢,&. .
.. Push the ch ild safety seat down with you r full
weight to get the safety belt really tight.
.. Insert the belt tongue into the buckle for that
seating position.
.. Guide the safety belt back into th e retractor un­
til the belt lies flat and snug on the child safety
seat .
.. You should hear a ''cl icking" noise as the belt
w inds back into the inertia reel. Test the con ­
vert ible lock ing retractor by pulling on the belt .
You shou ld no longer be able to pull the belt
out of the retractor. The convertib le locking re­
t ractor is now activated.
.. Make sure that the red release button is facing
away from the child restraint so that it can be
unbuckled quickly .
.. Pull on the belt to make sure the safety belt is
properly tight and fastened so that the seat
cannot move forward or sideways more than
one inch (2 .5 cm) .
A WARNING
Using the wrong ch ild rest raint or an improp­
e rly installed child restra int can cause se rious
personal injury or death in a crash .
- Always make sure that the safety be lt re­
tr actor is locked when installing a child
safety seat . An un locked safety be lt retrac­
tor cannot hold the chi ld safety seat in p lace
during normal driving or in a crash.
- Always buckle the child safety seat firm ly in
p lace even if a child is not sitting in it. A
loose child safety seat can fly around during
a sudden stop or in a crash. .,.
179

Child safety
and the installation of child restraint sys­
tems
r::> page 168 , Child safety.
(D Note
On vehicles with power adjustable rear seats*
some criteria must be observed when attach­
ing the child restraint using the
LA TCH sys ­
tem:
- To attach the chi ld restraint securely, the
seat must be moved to the farthest rear po­
sition, the seat height set to the lowest po­
sition and the head restraint must be ad­
justed to the vertical position
c'.:> page 61.
- If a ch ild safety seat is attached to one of
the rear seats , this seat must not be adjust­
ed using the power controls under any cir ­
cumstances . The
Entr y ass is ta n ce for th is
seat must also be deactivated in the MMI
r::> page 64. The child safety seat as wel l as
the rear seat can be damaged by the adjust­ ment process .
Tether anchors and tether straps
Fig. 18 4 Te ther a nch ors: recess flaps beh ind the rear sea t­
ba cks
The tether anchors for the two* /three rear seat­
ing positions are located in recesses in the rear
window shelf
r::> fig . 184 . Vehicles with two rear
seating positions* are equ ipped w ith two tether
anchors .
A tether is a straight or V-shaped strap that at­ taches the top part of a child restraint to special
anchorage points in the vehicle .
The purpose of the tether is to reduce the for­
ward movement of the child restraint in a crash, in order to help reduce the risk of head injury
184
that cou ld be caused by striking the vehicle inte­
r ior.
Forward facing child restra ints manufact ured af­
ter September 1, 1999, a re required by U.S. fed­
eral regu lations to comply with new child head
movement performance requirements . These
new performance requ irements make a tether
necessary on most new child safety seats.
A WARNING
Improper installation of child restraints wi ll
i ncrease the risk of injury and death in a
crash .
- Always follow the instructions provided by
the manufacturer of the ch ild restraint you
intend to install in your Audi .
- Improper use of chi ld restraint anchors (in­
cluding tether anchors) can lead to injury in
a co llision. The anchors are designed to
w ithsta nd only those loads imposed by cor­
rectly fitted ch ild restraints.
- Never mo unt two ch ild rest raint systems on
one LATC H lower anchor poin t.
- Never attach two child restraint systems to
one tether st rap or tethe r anchorage.
- Never attach a tether strap to a tie-down
hook in the luggage compa rtment .
- Never use child restra int tether anchorages
to secure safety belts or other kinds of occu­
pant restraints.
- Never secure or attach any luggage o r other
items to the LATCH lowe r anchorages or to
the te ther anchors.
- I f a tether or other strap is used to attach a
child restra int to the front passenge r seat,
make sure that it is not so tight, tha t it
causes the weight-sensing mat to meas ure
more weight than is actually on the seat.
- The heavier weight reg istered can make the
Advanced A irbag Sys tem wor k as though a n
adu lt were on the seat and deploy the Ad ­
vanced Airbag when it must be suppressed
causing serious or even fatal injury to the
child.
- If you must insta ll a rearward facing child
safety seat on the front passenger seat be­
cause of exceptional circumstances and the